DUG DOWN DEEP

I finished reading "Dug Down Deep" by Joshua Harris yesterday. I have come away with a very high level of respect for Joshua Harris and a conviction that everyone who calls himself a Christian should read this book.

As a pastor, one of the things that I am aware of is that we are raising a generation of biblically illiterate believers. The sub-title of the book by Joshua Harris is "Unearthing What I Belive and Why It Matters."

What we believer will determine how we act, and sadly, many believers have no clue as to what they really believe.

While the word "deep" is in the title, the book itself is not a deep theology book, and Harris acknowledges that. In fact, if you don't generally like theology type books, I think you will enjoy this one...consider a theology book for people who don't like theology. You may not even consider yourself a theologian at all, but as Harris states in the first chapter, "We're all theologians. The question is whether what we know about God is true."

But just because it is not deep, does not mean that it is not good. In fact, it is very good. Harris weaves autobiographicaly stories along with sound theology, making the book not only readable, but memorable as well. While I have read "deeper" books on the subjects Harris addresses, I have not read about theology in more entertaining, while still thought provoking way.

Some of the subjects Harris tackles are God, the Bible, Jesus, the death of Jesus, redemption, sanctification, the Holy Spirit, the church....and humble orthodoxy. In my opinion the chapters on the Holy Spirit and the church are worth the price of the book all by themselves.

But don't take just my word on it...here is what some others have to say about the book:

J. I. Packer: “Via vivid autobiography, Pastor Harris takes readers on a personal journey into the biblical theology that, belatedly, he found he could not manage without. A humbling, compelling, invigorating read.”

John Piper: “When the apostle Peter says, ‘Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God…casting all your anxiety on Him,’ he implies that humble people are fearless. They have the courage to stand up for truth humbly. I love the term ‘humble orthodoxy.’ And I love Josh Harris. When they come together (Josh and humble orthodoxy), as they do in this book, you get a humble, helpful, courageous testimony to biblical truth.”

Joni Eareckson Tada: “More than forty years of quadriplegia has underscored to me the matchless value of knowing—really knowing—the doctrines of the Christian faith. Dug Down Deep reveals how biblical doctrine provides a pathway to understanding the heart and mind of God. If you’re looking for ‘that one book’ that will push you farther down the road to faith than you’ve ever journeyed before, Dug Down Deep is it. I highly recommend it!”



Get "Dug Down Deep" and get your spiritual shovel out...you'll need it.

Pastor Dave

FREE! FREE BOOK! REALLY FREE BOOK!

Free? Really? Nothing is free, right? Well, that is what my Dad always told me, and in some ways he was right, even concerning this.

Let me try and explain here.

I have been blogging for awhile now (4 years), but have not been very regular at it. I have learned the truth in what someone once told me, “Starting a blog is much easier thank keeping a blog going.” But I have been very moved by the Lord to jump start my blog and to post on a daily basis. Now, I know I might miss a day or two, but it is my desire to now share with you…whoever you might be…what the Lord is teaching me these days, so missed day will be the exception, rather than the rule.

In order to try and increase the readership of my blog, I am going to give away three books. The titles and descriptions are listed below.

On August 31, I will draw the names of three people and they can win the book of their choice. I will send the book to the winners with no cost to them…I will cover the postage.

That’s right. No cost to you. Nada. Zip. Nothing.

Well, then again, that is not entirely true. It will not cost you any money, but it will cost you a tiny bit of effort on your part.

Here’s the deal. The three drawings will be from these three areas:

One: Followers of the blog. If you choose to follow the blog, then I will draw a name from all of those who are followers and they will win a book. Even if you are already a follower of the blog you will still be put in for this drawing.

Two: Comments posted. If you post a comment on the blog itself (not on the facebook post of the blog, but on the blog post itself), your name will be put in for a drawing for a book. On this one, only comments from today’s post and forward will count. And yes, a comment on this post counts. For every comment you post, your name will be entered, the more you comment, the more chances you have to win. One special note here: All comments have to be approved by me, so no spam, no rude comments, and no generic comments (“Hi, read your blog.” and stuff like that.).

Three: If you refer someone to the blog and they become a follower, you will be entered for a drawing. So if you refer someone to the blog and they become a follower they will need to send me an email to let me know who referred them, or they can let me know in a comment, and that way they get put in for the comment drawing and for the drawing for being a follower, and you will be put in for the drawing for referring a follower to the blog.

In fact, some can have their name put in for all three. If you are a follower, you are entered in a drawing! If you leave a comment on a post, you are entered in a drawing! If you refer someone to the blog and they become a follower, you are entered in a drawing!

Once the names are drawn, I will contact the winners. They will give me their first, second and third choices for the books they want. First one to respond back, wins the first book of their choice, second one will win the first book of their choice that is left, and same for the third.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at: pastor_dave2004@yahoo.com

And now: here are the books:

A TALE OF TWO SONS by John MacArthur



Charles Dickens. William Shakespeare. Garrison Keillor. They're all part of the chorus of literary geniuses who expressed admiration for The Parable of the Prodigal Son as outstanding literature. After all, it is a powerful drama, rich in detail, powerfully succinct, and intensely personal. But beyond the literary critiques-besides being one of the most celebrated written works of all time-the message of this parable is one we can't afford to ignore.
In The Prodigal Son, John MacArthur takes the story back to its roots, when Jesus' words were absolutely revolutionary. As one of America's most beloved Bible teachers, MacArthur leads us through the minefields of interpretation and restores the simple yet profound brilliance of this passage. Giving engrossing historical background, The Prodigal Son will reveal Christ's original message as intended for the Pharisees, the disciples, and the world today.
Gain an enlightening perspective into the prodigal son's story and embrace God's love anew with The Prodigal Son.

About the Author
John MacArthur, the author of numerous best-selling books that have touched millions of lives, is pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, and president of The Master's College and Seminary. He is also president of Grace to You, the ministry that produces the internationally syndicated radio program Grace to You and a host of print, audio, and Internet resources. He authored the notes in the Gold Medallion Award-winning The MacArthur Study Bible. For more information, contact Grace to You at 1-800-55-GRACE.


CRAVE: WANTING SO MUCH MORE OF GOD by Chris Tomlinson



From Publishers Weekly:
This first book by Tomlinson, a management consultant, is a perfect fit for the booming spirituality market, particularly for enthusiastic, evangelical 20- and 30-something audiences. He begins his personal musings with a simple thesis: it is too easy to become a “comfortable Christian” and we must always search for ways to express our active devotion to God and Jesus Christ. This premise is not particularly innovative, but his writing style is straightforward and personally honest. The author acknowledges his own struggles with pride while retelling, often with humor, his only-too-human attempts to reach lofty spiritual goals such as charity and purity. Every chapter opens with vivid and iconic imagery—a spoon, a bit of floss, a pager—tangible symbols throughout the book for more abstract ideas like obedience, joy, and comfort. In sum, the product is endearing and inspiring, especially appealing to young, male evangelicals. One chapter specifically devoted to the intersection of his spirituality and military service will also draw the interest of Christian men and women in the armed forces. Tomlinson’s debut leaves room for future development while it meets the expectations of readers and the genre as a whole; he is worth watching.

Reviews:
"Chris Tomlinson addresses the noblest and most necessary question in the most disarming style. It is the theme which engaged the best thoughts of writers from Augustine to Pascal to C.S. Lewis. That question seeks to explore what Pascal called the 'God-shaped vacuum': How do we satisfy our hunger for God? No mortal can answer the question with finality. But this book takes us a long way in the right direction." --Ronnie Collier Stevens, Pastor, Danube International Church, Budapest, Hungary

"Chris Tomlinson possesses a skill rare in Christian writing today: a clean, clear, powerful perspective. Crave is deftly written, with a sneaky comedic sense, but what sets Chris apart is his heart. He'd never say it himself, but he has a lot to teach, and we have a lot to learn." --Jordan Green, Editor-In-Chief, Burnside Writers Collective

"In this creative blend of autobiography and devotional, Chris Tomlinson paints for us a Christ who satisfies our cravings for himself. An inspiring work from a gifted and anointed writer." --Christian George, Author of Godology, Sex, Sushi, and Salvation, and Sacred Travels

"Part autobiography, part theological musing, Chris talks about God in a very personal and compelling manner in Crave. His message is clear and told through the introspective and often hilarious experiences of his own life: that God is great and should be praised. An engrossing read that not only had me laughing out loud but also thinking about my own personal beliefs, even from an atheist’s perspective." --Andy Wang, Friend and Atheist

"Tired of fluffy books on the spiritual life? Chris Tomlinson has written a biblical, God-centered antidote. Crave takes us on a frank and honest journey through the challenges of the Christian walk in today's world. It is at once a wise, practical, and readable guide, useful for those who recognize spiritual mediocrity in themselves but want to grow beyond it." --Duane Litfin, President, Wheaton College

THE LAST CHRISTIAN by David Gregory



From Publishers Weekly:
The hit sci-fi show Battlestar Galactica meets the New Testament in the new novel by Gregory (Dinner with a Perfect Stranger). In the year 2088, Christian missionary Abigail Caldwell leaves her New Guinea village to seek help for fellow villagers, who have all been stricken by a mysterious disease. A message from her grandfather, an American neuroscientist who is the co-inventor of a silicon brain replacement, draws her to America, where religion has died out. Abby joins forces with a historian who has a connection to Abby's family as they investigate the death of her grandfather and face the spiritual implications of transhumanity—humans with replacement silicon brains that promise eternal life but make impossible personal connection with God. The plotting is intricate and imaginative, and the religious elements go beyond formula, though the political intrigue plot thread is less convincing. Gregory's approach is fresh, and he's produced a page-turner.

Product Description:
In the future, it’s possible to live forever—but at what cost?

A.D. 2088.

Missionary daughter Abigail Caldwell emerges from the jungle for the first time in her thirty-four years, the sole survivor of a mysterious disease that killed her village. Abby goes to America, only to discover a nation where Christianity has completely died out. A curious message from her grandfather assigns her a surprising mission: re-introduce the Christian faith in America, no matter how insurmountable the odds.

But a larger threat looms. The world's leading artificial intelligence industrialist has perfected a technique for downloading the human brain into a silicon form. Brain transplants have begun, and with them comes the potential of eliminating physical death altogether—but at what expense?

As Abby navigates a society grown more addicted to stimulating the body than nurturing the soul, she and Creighton Daniels, a historian troubled by his father's unexpected death, become unwitting targets of powerful men who will stop at nothing to further their nefarious goals. Hanging in the balance—the spiritual future of all humanity.

In this fast-paced thriller, startling near-future science collides with thought-provoking religious themes to create a spell-binding "what-if?" nove

Ok, so get to commenting, following and referring.

Hope to see ya there, or in the air.
Pastor Dave

Love

Love.

A word that we use so casually....we say that we love pizza, we love our dog, we love football and we love our spouses...and each time we use the word, it means something different. It is the most covered subject in all of music. Just imagine a world where there were no songs about love. Yet, even there the word is used casually, without any real thought to the meaning, and often it is is sung without the singer even experiencing what they are singing about. Many musicians and artists have gone through multiple spouses and / or partners that they live with, all the while singing great songs that move us emotionally about love, but that they themselves have never experienced.

Even the Beatles sang, "All you need is love, love is all you need." And then they broke up and sued each other multiple times in the years that followed the recording of that anthem to love from the sixties.

Yes, indeed we use the word "love" so very, very caually in our culture.

But there was nothing casual about the love of Christ.

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

His was the greatest love that has ever existed.

No one can really question the love exhibited by the Son of God. He who gave His life so that you and I might live forever. He who gave His body at the whipping post. He who shed His blood for an uncaring world and a generation of perverts. he who left His home in heaven and came to a world of sinners who rejected Him and nailed Him on a cross. He who in love cried out to the Father, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." He who bowed His head in shame and suffering and then died for a world who hated Him and wanted nothing to do with Him.

That is love.

That is a love unlike any other.

There is no one who will read this (including myself) who would do tht for a world of people who do not care.

He did for you. He died for me. He died for us.

Because He loves you. Because he loves me. Because He loves us.

Because He IS LOVE!

But what gets me is that after this love has been discovered by so many people, after they have embraced Jesus as their Savior, after they have have recieved the gift of eternal life, then so often they...no, WE, WE (myself included), have the audacity, the arrogance, to indulge willfully in sin, to entertain ourselves with wickedness, to excuse or trivialize sin and neglect meeting together for worship and prayer. How sad is that!

I'm reminded of the verse in the book of Revelation, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him and he with me."

This verse is usually used in the context of someone who does not know Jesus and explaining to them that Jesus is wanting to come into their life, and to be their Lord and Savior...and while I have no problem when people use this verse in that way, that is not the context or purpose of this verse.

This verse, which is Revelation 3:20, is Jesus talking to a church! Do we realize the implication here? Maybe this can be applied to our church...or to break it down on a personal level...to us! Quite possibly Jesus has been left on the outside of our church services! It is possible that He has been left on the outside of our lives! This is what happens whenever the people of God leave behind their first love. Whenever they begin to love their position, prosperity, and programs more than they love Jesus. It happens whenever they love their time, their stuff, their things, their hobbies, their movies, their tv shows, their music more than they love Jesus. When that happens Jesus is on the outside saying, "Hey! Let me in! I want to eat with you. I want to share a meal...to be intimate with you." And we cannot hear Him knocking over the sound of our tv, movies, music, stuff, and most of all over the sound of our own selfish desires. We have invited Jesus into our hearts, but we want Him out of our lives.

We read in Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."



Now this is love people! Oh, I know it's not pretty, but real love is not pretty, it's messy. Real love winds up getting it's hands messy. It's dirty...sweaty...bruised...and yes, pierced. That is real love.

You see, Jesus didn't love me once I got it all together....He loved me when I was a mess! He didn't love me so that I could get it all together either! I've been following Jesus now for about 26 years, and I still don't have it all together...in fact, the more I follow Jesus, the more I realize just how much I don't have it all together. Jesus loved me, loves me, and will continue to love me so that I can have His "togetherness".

Let us love.

Let us show love.

Let us BE love.

Let us BE Jesus.

I know that I have a long way to go...but my goal, with each step I take, and with each breath I breathe...is to be more like Jesus...to love more like Jesus.

Hey, I've got a wild idea...why don't you join me?


Pastor Dave

"To Do" List

My main employment history is in the area of retail. I got my first job at the age of 15 (which was not in retail, but in the Circulation Department of my local newspaper), but since that first job I have worked for eight different retail business, either in sales or in management. One of my more enjoyable jobs was working for Walgreens.

I was in their management training program, and generally was the swing shift manager at the location I worked at. When I first began the program, the manager and/or executive assistant manager would leave a "to do" list of things to be done each day. I would bust my butt trying to get that list done each night. Part of what you did was delegate jobs to the other employees...and I was determined to get the list done each night. Each day the list kept getting longer and longer until finally, I just could not get everything done. I went to the manager and apologized to him. He just laughed. I thought, "What the heck is so funny here?" And then he explained it to me. The "to do" list was put up so that the people working the shift would not run out of things to do...it was never meant to be a list that they expected to get done every night. When he would come in each morning and see that the list was done, he would make it longer the next day so that we would not run out of things to do.

I was thinking about this when I was reading Acts 1:1-2 "In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving INSTRUCTIONS through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen." (Emphasis added).

Notice that Jesus gave us some instructions...a "to do" list if you will. What was it? You can find it very clearly listed in Matthew 28:19, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”

Now the list is not long...or is it. This list was given around 2,000 years ago, and it is still not finished. As long as there is one person who has not heard the message of salvation that is found in Christ, the job is not finished. I pastor a small but growing church, but we have not grown enough...in fact we will never grow enough. As long as there is one more person who needs to be ministererd to, as long as there is one more broken heart to be healed, as long as there is one more lost soul to be found, as long as there is one more hurting person to be comforted, as long as there is one more person who needs Jesus our church is not done growing.

But this "to do" list does not just include salvation of the lost, but also discipleship. I'm all for evangelism, but I'm also for discipleship. It is not "either, or" but both...both of these are on the "to do" list that Jesus left. Many churches are doing ok on the salvation end, but poorly on the discipleship end. For too many churches we get 'em saved, dunk 'em, throw them at the wall, and if they stick, cool, if not, oh well, we just move onto the next one so we can carve another notch in our Bible. This is not the way it is supposed to be. Salvation and discipleship are two sides of the same coin.

Even in our little church we have several ministries and programs going on...but we struggle with an ongoing discipleship program...and that means that the "to do" list remains unfinished.

What about you? How are you doing with discipleship? Does that part of your life remain unfinished?

Do we hear the cry all around of us "unfinished"?

The mission field cries out "unfinished"!

The voices of your neighbors cry out, "unfinished"!

Some of your family members cry out, "unfinished"!

Maybe even your own soul is crying out, "unfinished"!

Taking the good news to those who need it...and discipling those who recieve it...that is the "to do" list of the church....how are you doing with it?

So, just how do we accomplish this?

Well, following the example of Jesus is a good way to start, since He is the one who left us the list in the first place. Let's look again at Acts 1:1-2, only this time we will put the emphasis on a couple of other words:

“In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began TO DO and To TEACH until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen."

As the Church, we must DO and TEACH. If we want to impact our nation, we must DO and TEACH. If we want to impact our state, we must DO and TEACH. If we want to impact our towns, we must DO and TEACH. If we want to impact our families we must DO and TEACH.

Notice that DO comes before TEACH. I think this order is important. Why? Because people will follow what you do before they follow what you teach. We must "do" the gospel. Share our faith. Care for the lost. Genuinely love them. Too often they become a "project"...and people can tell if you really love them, or if they are just a project. I don't know why we hesitate so much to share the good news...we'll share a sale at Targe before we share the fact that we have been redeemed, sanctified, bought with a price, have eternal life, been justified and recieved the righteousness of Christ...and I'm telling you a relationship with Christ and my sins forgiven beats a 12 pack of toliet paper for 1.99 any day!

And then, after we DO the gospel, we need to TEACH the gospel. The gospel is more than just salvation, just as life is more than being concieved...yes life begins at conception, but it does not end there. The same is true of salvation. It begins with being born again, but it does not end there. We have been given the opportunity to live a life of work and worship of the creator of the universe. How cool is that!!!

So, let's get out our "to do" list and get busy. It may not be long, but it is still unfinished...

Pastor Dave

What Does It REALLY Mean To Follow Christ?

In the last year I have read two books that continue to plague my thoughts. They brought up questions that I cannot answer. They have made me rethink many things that I thought I already knew. The information found in these books continue to roll around in my brain....like a never ending blender, slowing down at times, speeding up at other times, but never, ever shutting off.

The first book was called "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan.


I read this book a year aqo...it bothered me...in a good way. But I guess it didn't bother me enough. I didn't change anything because of the book. I just put the information in my mental blender.

And then a month ago I read another book. "Radical" by David Platt.


If possible, this book bothered me even more than "Crazy Love" did. But again, not enough I guess. I still haven't done anything about what I have read, just went and put in the mental blender.

But now I can't seem to turn the blender off. Questions keep coming to the surface. Questions that I cannot seem to find solid answers to. Maybe that is the problem. Maybe there are no solid answers....but that doesn't mean that there aren't any answers.

So, I thought I would put my questions up here. Maybe someone who reads this can help me with the answers....maybe not. Maybe we'll just have a group of us with more questions than answers....but if the questions won't go away, maybe we can search for the answers, and in the searching, while we might not find an answer, maybe we will BE the answer.

What does it really mean to follow Christ?

Matthew 4:19 (New International Version)
19"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."

How many REAL "fishers of men" do you know? Does following Jesus mean that you would be a fisher of men if you follow? If you're not fishing for men, are you really following?

Matthew 10:39 (New International Version)
39Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

What does it mean to lose your life? How many people who go to church every week, how many pastors have truly lost their life? I'm not talking about physical death, but death to self.

Luke 14:26-27 (New International Version)
26"If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple

What does this look like? I know what I've been TOLD it means...my love for Jesus in comparison to my family will make what I feel for my family look like hate....but is that REALLY what it means? If so, how does this look in our society? How is it lived out? And the taking up and carrying the cross thing....what does that look like? It's waaaaaaay more than just having to deal with the unpleasent things that come our way...a man in the days of Jesus who was carrying a cross was a dead man...on his way to the execution...so how is that life lived out here? What does it look like?

Matthew 13:44 (New International Version)
44"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field."

And now for the last set of questions for the day....how is the above scripture lived out? If the kingdom is worth EVERYTHING...why do we spend more time entertaining ourselves than we do advancing the kingdom? Why do we spend more money on ourselves than we do advancing the kingdom?

Ok...that's enough for one post...but I have more questions...and maybe I'll post more later...but it all boils down to this:

What does it REALLY mean to follow Christ? Do you know? Do you know anyone who TRULY follows Jesus?

Stil rolling the questions around in my mind....
Pastor Dave

Ice Cream Lessons

Today I enjoyed one of the good things in life. A vanilla ice cream cone, dipped in chocolate.



I had my first chocolate dipped vanilla ice cream cone at a little roadstand burger joint between Lemoore and Armona in central California with my grandpa when I was just an itty bitty dude. Since that time I have been hooked. But as good as they are, and as much as I like them...well, let's just say that there is a time and place for them....and driving in the car while trying to merge onto the freeway is neither the time or the place.

If you've ever had one of these heavenly ice cream delights you will know exactly what I'm talking about and I bet you will be smiling as I describe to you what happened. If you've never had one, well, hopefully you will still get what this blog is going to be about, but you won't get the full effect.

Anyway, while driving and trying to merge onto the freeway, my delicious chocoloate dipped vanilla ice cream cone turned evil on me. It did what they always do, which is kinda cool when you're a ten year old boy eating at a picnic bench with your grandpa...but not so cool while trying to merge into traffic at about 65 miles an hour.

The ice cream began to melt and run down the cone....and then onto my hand...getting my hand all sticky. I tried to steer with my knees, while wiping my hand with a napkin...and then a big piece of chocolate broke off and fell onto my lap somewhere, so I looked down trying to find it.

Not a good idea.

There's a reason why you're not supposed to take your eyes off of the road.

While you are trying to find the chocolate before it melts and leaves a stain that will be there until Jesus comes back, the chocolate has moved from your lap to the seat and your car has just merged into the lane next to you while there is still a car occuping the lane next to you there. Now as we all know it is impossible for two cars to occupy the same space...one must move...or the two cars will become as one...and that is not a good thing.

While all this is going on, and I'm still looking for the rapidly melting chocolate I happen to turn the cone upside down....and get some vanilla ice cream in my lap. So now here I am, a sticky, melty, chocolate mess, as well as a bit on edge having almost caused a pile-up on the freeway.

Thankfully, everything ended up fine. I finished the ice cream cone, the chocolate wound up on the floor mat, the ice cream in my lap was easy to clean up and some handi-wipes took care of the rest.

So what is the point of this blog...well, other than the very good lesson that you should not eat a chocolate covered vanilla ice cream cone while driving on the freeway?

The point is a little three letter word.

Sin.

Yep. Sin.

You see, the chocolate covered cone is kind of like sin. It looks good. We've had it before and it tasted fine. But once the newness begins to wear (melt) off, you're left with a mess. And unlike the ice cream cone mess, you cannot make everything better with a handi-wipe.

In fact Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death..." And sin always pays its wages. Every sin we commit results in death. Death of trust. Death of health. Death of innocence. Death of a marriage. Death of relationships. Death of friendships. Death of a job. Death of life. And the worse....eternal death.

Sin looks good...and honestly, for a little while it is pleasing and pleasurable. But then the chocolate coating begins to melt...and it gets messy. One addiction leads to another. One lie leads to a lifetime of habitual lies. One broken relationship leads to a string of broken relationships and hardened hearts. What started out as pleasing and pleasurable winds up a mess.

You know one of the "funny" things about my chocolate covered ice cream story is that it was not the first time it had happened. I had done this before. But this time I told myself it would be different. I was more experienced. I was more mature. I talked myself into something that I knew from experience was a bad idea.

We do the same with sin. "One last time", we tell ourselves. "I can handle it this time", we say. "This time it will be different" we lie to ourselves.

Sin cannot be managed, excused, coddled, trivialized or played with. It must be dealt with...it must be hated. It must repulse us. We need to move from being sin-sick to sick of sin.

And there is only one way to do that. The same verse in Romans that tells us that sin pays its wages also says, "...but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Oh man, you gotta love that! Eternal life!!! Wooo-hooo! Now there's something to shout about!

But how does that help us deal with sin in the here and now? Read it again...."but the gift of God is eternal life IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD." Once we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, once we have comitted to following Jesus with our lives, we are IN CHRIST...and not in sin. We have the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us to help us combat sin. We are no longer identified as sinners, but as children of God! I understand that we will still struggle with sin. We will even still sin...but we are no longer on sin's payroll. We have been forgiven and cleansed from our sin. While it is true that we will never be sinless before we are untied with Jesus, we will sin less. We are set free from sin. When sin calls, I don't have to answer the phone any longer. When sin comes knocking at my door I don't have to open it. I am so grateful to Jesus for this. It took me years to appreciate this part of my relationship with Him. But I am so glad that sin no longer has a hold on me. Thank you Jesus, for dying for me, for saving me, and for keeping me safe....even when I'm making a chocolate covered vanilla ice cream mess.

Ok, that's all for now.
Pastor Dave

God is God

I have been reading through the book of Isaiah the last few days, specifically chapters 42 through 55, and I've been working my yellow highlighter overtime. There is so much great stuff in this book. Of course, that could be said about every book in the Bible, but I guess that even though I have read Isaiah several times, this time it was different. This time, the place I am in my life, in my ministry, caused the Lord to use Isaiah in a different way.

I noticed that over and over again God keeps telling us that there is no one like Him. Chapter 43:11 "I, I am the Lord, and besides me there is no savior." Chapter 44:6;8;22 "Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god....Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any." Chapter 45:5-6 "I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God...I am the Lord, and there is no other...Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other." Chapter 46:9 "...for I am God and there is no other, I am God, and there is none like me."

I have just begun to realize these past few weeks how much I put before God. There is NO ONE like the Lord...there is NO OTHER GOD...nothing and no one else offers salvation, peace, security and contentment. Maybe I should rephrase that last statement...lots of "things" offer salvation, peace, security and contentment...but God is the only one who can actually deliver on the offer. Everything the world has to offer will let us down...even our friends and family will let us down...but God will always be there for us. Our salvation is secure in Him.

So why do we chase after so much? Why are we a people who must be constantly entertained? Why does the average Christian spend more time watching televison in one day than they will spend in the Word of God all week? Why does culture and popular opinion shape our decision making process more than God?

We have so many Bibles to choos from in this country. Go to any Christian book store and you will find a variety of translations to choose from: KJV, NKJV, NIV, TNIV, ESV, NLT, The Message, The Living Bible, RSV, Amplified and more. On top of that, we have more "types" of Bible than you would ever think we need: There are Men's Study Bibles, Woman's Study Bibles, Army, Navy, and Marine study Bibles. You can choose from the Bible that looks like a magazine, or you can even pick up the comic book Bible. You can find a Bible that looks like a tennis shoe, a Bible with a metal case, and even the duct tape Bible! There are Bibles with special helps for single men and women, married couples, mothers, fathers, and new believers.

Sadly, the most common type of Bible you will find is the one that is not read.

We need to get back to the Word of God. We need preachers who will not follow the flavor of the day, the trend of the moment, the hottest thing on the market, but will open up the Word of God and feed it to their flocks!

The church chases after the things of the world and seeks advice from Oprah and Dr. Phil more than we do from Obadiah and the Apostle Paul! Why? Because our eyes are glued to the televison instead of having our nose in THE BOOK!

Why is it that we get all excited over a multitude of things, but can't muster up even a sparkle of excitement over the Word of God? I've seen Christians get more excited about getting a good parking spot at Wal-mart than they do about finding a life changing verse in the scriptures! I've seen Christians get more worked up over someone pulling out in front of them in traffic than they do about the reality of their friends and family members that are heading for hell!

Why are we not burning for revivial in the church today? Why are we not passionate for the lost? Why are not more of God's people on fire for the Lord? Because you cannot start a fire without fuel...and the Bible is the fuel, but it sits in the container instead of being poured out on the lives of believers where the Holy Spirit will then strike the match to start a blazing inferno!

After reading Isaih, I have been on my knees and face crying out to God for revival, for passion, for a downpour of the Spirit and to see a movement of God in my life, my church, my town, my state and my country.

God I pray that you will rend the heavens and ignite in your people a passion for YOU, for YOUR WORD and for the LOST....may your people begin to realzie that You are the Lord and besides You there is NO Savior.

In His service,
Pastor Dave