Christmas Songs

This Christmas I have been thinking about Christmas songs more than ever. Largely, this is because at our church I have been preaching through Luke 1 in December. Luke 1 contains two songs—the song of Mary and the song of Zechariah. Some refer to these as the Magnificat and Benedictus based upon the first Latin word used in each song. Though the Scripture merely says Mary and Zechariah “said” these words, the poetic construction of the words have caused people through the ages to refer to them as songs.

Studying these two Christmas songs has caused me to consider how much songs are a part of the Christmas “Season”. Wikipedia states there are over 400 radio stations nationally that play Christmas music 24 hours a day during the month of December. Many stations find a spike in their market share of listeners by playing Christmas music. Obviously, they are seeking to leverage the Christmas music to gain new listeners. Of course, as people walk through malls and stores festive Christmas music is piped in—some stores doing so before Thanksgiving. Surely this is an attempt to get people into a “Christmas mood”, or more accurately a “shopping mood”, as soon as possible.

However, lest I become too cynical I know that God-centered Christmas music also is a tool of instruction about the incarnation and a means of stirring up greater praise to God. In fact, initially all Christmas music was for the purpose of worship to God and the incarnate Son. When Christmas became an official “holy-day” of the church, that is declared such by the Roman Catholic Church, there was music written to add to that celebration. The songs written then were chant, litanies and hymns, done in Latin of course. How curious to think how far we have come now with Christmas songs that are about snowmen, reindeer, Santa Claus and jingling bells. Hey listen, I’m not being a prude here. I enjoy singing about Rudolph or the Grinch like a lot of people. I just think it is stunning to consider the contrast of the lyrics found in many modern Christmas songs on the airwaves compared to the ones spoken by Mary and Zechariah. And I guess I actually feel a sadness in my soul to know that some people know nothing of the latter—they are so overrun with the silly songs about Christmas that they do not know even know the ones that herald the birth of Jesus. Which ones do our children and grandchildren know and sing? Which do we hum as we stroll along merrily in December?

These next two Sundays I am excited to share with First Baptist Church, Lake Wales those first Christmas songs—those expressed by Mary and Zechariah. Their themes are clear and powerful and draw attention to the mercy and salvation from the Lord. I hope if you are nearby you will join me for a look at them. Then also this weekend down by Lake Wales we will share some wonderful Christmas songs that also express wonder and worship over God made flesh! We will host Christmas by the Lake on Saturday and Sunday (12/18-19) evening at 6 PM near the basketball court and gazebo.

I hope this Christmas will continue to be full of wonderful Christ-exalting songs for you and your family. Sing them by the lake. Sing them in the church. Sing them on the city streets. Just sing them with rejoicing like Mary and Zechariah about the merciful God who has sent a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ!

Singing to the Son of God!
Pastor Scott

Great joy for ALL people?

And the angel said to them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people Luke 2:10 (ESV)

These words spoken by the heavenly messenger to the shepherds on the hillside somewhere near Bethlehem is familiar to many of us. If you’ve been any church for a Christmas or two or watched The Peanuts Christmas Special you have heard these words. But do we believe them?

Do we believe the message of the birth of Christ the Lord is good news? Or is it just more news, other news, some news to recall once a year? Is it really good news to you and if so why?

Good news of great joy…the angel announced. So does this good news fill you with great joy? Does it bring you not just some joy or a decent portion of joy but great joy? How great? Since his coming alters our eternal destiny maybe a joy as great as if your boss said you were getting a raise, your team won the championship, you hit a hole-in-one, he proposed or she said she’d marry you. Yeah, a reverberating, life-altering great joy! Not a whimsical, passing emotion but a deep abiding sense of rejoicing that salvation has come due to the birth of Jesus.

Yet I think the words we believe the least in the angel’s announcement are the last words in Luke 2:10. We may believe it is good news of great joy for us and some other people too, but for ALL people? Do you believe that? It is good news of great joy for people in North Korea, Tibet, Iran, and the Sudan? It is good news of great joy for your co-worker, your neighbor, your classmate, your Uncle Bill and sister Susan?

Christmas is a holiday widely acknowledged in our culture. International missionaries tell us every year that it gives them wonderful opportunities to share about the life and salvation Jesus offers. Those missionaries certainly believe it is good news of great joy for all the people. In fact, they are staking their lives on it (more on that next week.)!

Yet sadly the silence of many of us each Christmas season seems to indicate we really don’t believe it is good news of great joy for ALL people. If we really believed this would we not tell person after person we interact with over this holiday season that Jesus’ coming means they can have great joy in Him? Why do we pull back from telling our unbelieving relatives and friends? This message is for them. It means joy for them, right? So why are we so hesitant to share?

Okay, you say you believe it is good news of great joy, but you are just unsure of how to start a conversation. Gotcha! Then let me just give you a couple Christmas discussion starting questions. Ready? Ask either of these:
Do you think people understand the real meaning of Christmas anymore? Why or why not?
What difference does it make to you that Jesus was born?

Both of these questions allow you to listen to what they think about Christmas and the birth of Jesus? The first is for someone who may not know of Christ’s birth and life, whereas the second assumes they know that central event of the Christmas story. Then, both allow you to share of what Christmas and the birth of Jesus means to you personally. In other words, it allows you to share the testimony of how Jesus has brought you great joy through faith in Him.

Do you really believe the coming of Jesus is good news of great joy for ALL people? Then, will you and I boldly ask these questions this Christmas? Will we share of our great joy in Christ?

I am praying we will. And I am praying we will invite people to come to services at FBC this month and/or to Christmas by the Lake (Dec. 18 & 19 – 6 PM) using the tickets available this Sunday. Let’s use the Christmas season as a chance to tell ALL people the good news of great joy!

Sharing HIS joy!
Pastor Scott

A Bundle of Mercies

Great are Your mercies, O LORD; Revive me according to Your ordinances. ~ Psalm 119:156 (NASB)

This Thanksgiving Season I am filled with gratitude to God for his abundant mercies in my life. Recently I was reading the writings of Puritan pastor George Swinnock (1627 –November 10, 1673). Though he was really writing on the value of Christian meditation, I thought these words he shared were also instructive to us on how to stir up a spirit of thanks-giving. He wrote:

Mediate upon His mercies to you from birth. Look at the dangers you have been delivered from, the journeys you have been protected in, the seasonable help He has sent you, the suitable support He has afforded you in distress, the counsel He has given you in doubts, and the comforts He has provided you in sorrow and darkness. They are present with you by [thanksgiving]. Do not forget the former favours bestowed on you and your family. Then meditate upon present mercies. How many do you enjoy—your house, family, body, and soul are all full of blessings! Think of them particularly. Spread them out like jewels to your view. Mediate on how freely they are bestowed, on their fullness and greatness. O, your soul’s mercies—the image of God, the blood of Christ, eternal life, and season of grace! Your whole life is a bundle of mercies. These stir us up to bless the GIVER.

I pray that this Thanksgiving you will take time to spread the jewels of his mercy to you out for all your family to behold. Though your year may have been hard, once you honestly reflect upon his blessings as Swinnock instructs I imagine you will see there remains a bundle of mercies for which you also may give thanks. May such reflective thanks center you upon the Lord Christ that you may find warm-hearted joy in Him.

Marveling at His mercies!
Pastor Scott



Happy Thanksgiving from my family and our Church Staff to you!

Generation to Generation Praise

“One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.” Psalm 145:4

As I read Psalm 145:4 I get excited because I realize God has populated our church in such a way that we can do as the verse instructs. Frankly, some churches can not. You may know of churches that are largely of one generation, either only older folks or only filled with young adults. I am sure God is doing great things among them too, but it is sure a joy to be a part of a multi-generational church where one generation can commend the Lord to the next. There is something beautiful about the dynamics of Psalm 145:4 taking place in a local church setting. I guess it helps me see that our church is truly functioning in a biblical way. As a pastor, that is always my heart’s desire.

Last night (Wednesday 6 pm) I led a study of Psalm 145 at our church that was simply delightful to me. What a wondrous Psalm that praises God for what he has done and who He is. David uses multiple adjectives to describe the works of God that were filling him with praise. Then, on the heels of my recent message series on the attributes of God (hear them at www.fbclw.com “BIG GOD, little me”), it was exciting to hear those present cite the attributes of God stated plainly in this psalm. We also noted that this incredible song of praise begins with David saying “I will exalt you, my God the King” (145:1) and ends with David saying “Let every creature (lit. all flesh) praise His holy name forever and ever.” Yes, praise is not merely to be an individual exercise of faith but we are to urge all creation to join in the mighty chorus of praise to our great God. Verses 11-12 emphasize that we who know God are to tell others of God’s glorious kingdom and “speak of his might so that all men may know” of the wondrous works of God and of His kingdom. Do you hear the missional emphasis in that? It is unmistakable! Thus, our worship is intended to draw others to know and praise the Lord with us. Consequently, worship can and should be a means of witness.

Among those to be influenced by our praise of God and his wondrous works are the succeeding generations. Psalm 145:4 (cited above) makes this very plain. I think that holidays like our upcoming Thanksgiving holiday become an ideal occasion for the older generations to tell their children and grandchildren of God’s mighty acts. Is it too idealistic to envision a grandfather sitting on a sofa with a grandchild or two around him as he tells stories of God’s goodness to him in bygone years? Is it far-fetched to envision grandmothers around the dinner table telling all present of how God answered various prayers throughout her lifetime? Perhaps I am nostalgic or too influenced by Norman Rockwell. But I think that would be one clear way to obey Psalm 145:4 this Thanksgiving.

This Sunday (11/21/10) at First Baptist Church we will give our services over to this kind of generation to generation praise and thanks to God. During our Sunday morning service you will hear from various church members tell of incredible things God did in their lives this year. You will hear of the transforming work of God’s Spirit within those who walk in obedience to Jesus as Lord. We will celebrate the goodness of God through the testimonies of church members in our morning worship service and then Sunday night after our church family dinner we will have “open microphones” for anyone to share their own testimony of praise and thanks to God with all present. So join us this weekend at First Baptist Church, Lake Wales as we flesh out Psalm 145:4 and give testimony to the greatness and goodness of God in our lives. Then, may your homes be filled with praise to our Lord and King, from generation to generation this Thanksgiving and always.

Praising & thanking our Lord with you,
Pastor Scott

Numbering Our Days

“Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” ~ Psalm 90:12

Having had two dear friends die in the past couple weeks and a third receive the news he was to “get his house in order” has made me think about the brevity of life lately. After all, one of these men was 45 years old and the other 50 years old and my age is squarely in the middle of theirs. The verse that has been on my mind is Psalm 90:12, written above.
As you may know Psalm 90 expresses both the eternality of God (90:2) and the mortality of man (5-6). When referring to the span of a person’s life in verse 10 Moses writes “they quickly pass, and we fly away.” The longer I live the more I agree with that!
Therefore, verse 12 is so crucial to mediate on and live by. I will share my meditations on it here. First, we are instructed by the Lord to number our days. We are each allotted a given number of days on the earth. Some get more and some less. Some are past already and some are ahead. God alone knows the number of days before and behind us. Ironically, though we cannot know their number Psalm 90:12 tells us to number them aright. How can we? Sure, we cannot. But the Lord is telling us to not overestimate how many there are. Do not live as if we will be on earth forever. Recognize our days are ticking away and then we will be accountable to Him. What is the first phrase saying about our days then? It does not mean to count them out, but to make them count.
Why are we to number our days aright according to Psalm 90:12? The last half of the verse says so that we may gain a heart of wisdom. A heart of wisdom? I realize most in American culture think of the heart figuratively as the seat of emotions, yet in Hebraic thought the heart meant much more. The heart was seen as the center of a person. Given that reality this divinely-given text is calling us to have wisdom in our inner being. So here is what that means to me.

· Wisdom should guide my affections, attitudes and decisions. Wisdom should guide my feelings, my thinking my acting. There is no time to waste on ungodly loves, unhealthy feelings, or unholy attitudes.
· Wisdom in my heart would also affect the priorities, values, and goals of my life.
· Wisdom should dictate my use of resources and the relationships I pursue. If I have numbered days how foolish it is to let my relationships be fractured by unforgiveness or unspoken love. In such situations wisdom would urge immediate and continual reconciliation with all. I should freely and intently love others in God-pleasing ways. I should treasure my daily experiences with family and friends.
· Wisdom in my heart would also drive me to a closer relationship to God. If I recognize that very soon I will be with the Lord I should seek to cultivate a relationship with him. Wisdom, as written of in the Old Testament, always began with a reverence of God (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10; 11:2). So my relationship with him must begin there as I recognize that the Lord will soon be my judge (Hebrews 9:27). Yet it should also lead to an intimacy since after judgment as a true believer in Jesus I will share joyous eternity with Him.
· Wisdom means I use all the days I have left well before God and others. This means living within God’s will and boldly giving witness to him before a world full of temporal people just like me. Each day I must live with an active awareness of God being with me and directing me to use my moments as He intends. Numbering my days aright means there is no time to squander on trivialities. A heart of wisdom would tell me all activities must be filtered by the reality that my time on earth is running out day by day.

These have been challenging thoughts for me. I have been re-evaluating these various areas of my life this week. I hope as you personally meditate on Psalm 90:12 God will guide you also toward a wiser heart. For Psalm 90 is plain: Life is brief. Eternity is forever. So we must wisely choose how we will live each day before the Lord eternal.

Seeking a wise heart!
Pastor Scott

Christians & Yoga

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” –Romans 12:2a

In my opinion one of the most biblically-informed, clear-thinking and relevant Christian bloggers out in cyberspace is Dr. Albert Mohler. His blog is found at AlbertMohler.com and there are other resources there too. Dr. Mohler is a seminary president and a frequent guest on talk shows such as Larry King. While I may not agree with the well-read and articulate Mohler on every issue, I do on many, though my tone may be less strident.

Some time ago Mohler posted a blog entry entitled partly titled “Should Christians Practice Yoga?” I found this intriguing because I had been asked that question just some time ago. I found myself caught because I certainly did not want to be a legalist, yet nor did I want to sanction for a believer that which I knew to be spiritual practice associated with a non-Christian worldview. Still I knew as a pastor it was, and is, my responsibility to give counsel on such questions when asked by those in our church family.

As usual, Mohler finds just the right resource to enlighten the believer so they can make wise and godly decisions and give meaningful answers. The resource Mohler cited on this topic was a book by Stefanie Syman entitled The Subtle Body: The Story of Yoga in America. The author actively practices yoga and knows the history of yoga in America quite thoroughly Mohler informs us. In her book Syman tells of an episode when recently during the Easter holiday she had the chance to lead guests in yoga excercises on the White House lawn that she described as “sanitized, sanctioned, and family-friendly,” Commenting on this event further Syman wrote:

There certainly was no better proof that Americans had assimilated this spiritual discipline. We had turned a technique for God realization that had, at various points in time, enjoined its adherents to reduce their diet to rice, milk, and a few vegetables, fix their minds on a set of, to us, incomprehensible syllables, and self-administer daily enemas (without the benefit of equipment), to name just a few of its prerequisites, into an activity suitable for children. Though yoga has no coherent tradition in India, being preserved instead by thousands of gurus and hundreds of lineages, each of which makes a unique claim to authenticity, we had managed to turn it into a singular thing: a way to stay healthy and relaxed.

When you think about it, it is rather stunning that a practice that would have been seen as foreign or even “heathen” fifty years ago is now seen as a normal means of meditation and exercise by many Americans. In her book Syman does explain the spiritual roots of yoga and she actually argues yoga cannot be fully separated from its roots in Hinduism and Buddhism, nor from the role sexuality plays in it. Whether you agree with her or not, her argumentation should not be ignored by Christians who really want to know if it is a good activity for them to be engaged in.

Obviously, one of the fundamental differences between the meditation of yoga and Hinduism is that it calls for an emptying of the mind, whereas Christian meditation is always about filling the mind with Christian truth as made known in the Bible. The recitation, memorization and meditation upon the Christian Scriptures is the means of renewing the mind (Romans 12:1-2) and of motivating believers to offer their bodies as living sacrifices unto the Lord. As followers of Jesus we are not to leave the consciousness of this world, but to look to Christ to rule our conscious, and even unconscious, thoughts. The Christian way is never escape from reality, but the transformation of reality into that which is Christ-honoring.

Listen, I see nothing inherently wrong with the physical posturing of the body in various ways or pursuing new forms of exercise. But the question is what are these positions of the body supposed to teach? What do they represent? What are you seeking to achieve by them? Why are they considered optimal? Further, consider this thought from Mohler: “if you have to meditate intensely in order to achieve or to maintain a physical posture, it is no longer merely a physical posture.”

Friends, I am not here to condemn anyone who is doing yoga for exercise purposes. I am not seeking to be negative or a prude. I am not trying to clamp your liberty in Christ. If your conscience is clear on doing it as a form of excercise, then hear me saying just yoga away. But I wonder if more is not involved than we think when Stefanie Syman writes that the practice of yoga in America “has augured a truly post-Christian, spiritually polyglot country.” Hmm, sounds like she, at least, sees it as more than an exercise.

Striving after Him in all things!
Scott

Inspired to Pray?

At my private Christian college in Pennsylvania I was once assigned for reading the classic book Power through Prayer by E.M. Bounds. I found the little book a great challenge to my prayer life. Now as I have called our church to prayer I thought I would share some quotes from that book. Power through Prayer is full of strong words particularly directed to preachers, but I have listed quotes below that should challenge every believer in Jesus. Yes, I know some do think Bounds is a little too focused on human effort in his writings, but personally any lack in prayer for me has always been on that end, I assure you.

I hope these quotes will inspire you to pray more fervently and frequently for the needs in your life, our church, our community and our world. Here are some words from E. M. Bounds:

Talking to men for God is a great thing, but talking to God for men is greater still.

Much time spent with God is the secret to all successful praying…He yields to the persistency of a faith that knows Him.

The more true saints, the more praying; the more praying, the more true saints.

Christ knows nothing of prayerless Christians.

To be little with God, is to be little for God.

Prayer is the creator as well as the channel of devotion.


Seeking greater devotion to prayer,
Scott

A CALL TO PRAYER

“For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds;
and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” – Matthew 7:8

The Scriptures seem clear that God has determined to use the prayers of His people to evoke His power. Surely he does not need our prayers to display His power; nevertheless it is a means He uses. I speculate that one reason He does so is so that our yearnings to see His power would drive us to fellowship with Him in prayer. While we may be focused on having needs met when entering such prayer, God is constantly focused on a relationship with us. He wants our needs and those of His church to compel us to meet with Him in a state of dependency. He wants us to surrender control and acknowledge His. And this is precisely what prayer does.

On Sunday September 26 I urged our local church to enter into an extended “Season of Prayer” for the remainder of 2010. There are many factors that God put upon my heart that caused me to beckon our church body to prayer. Among them is the spiritual, moral and economic state of our nation. Our nation desperately needs a Great Awakening and I am seriously praying for it. This economy should be causing the lost and the redeemed to cry out to God. We should pray it will! A second motivating factor toward prayer at this time is the very critical health of several church members who could gain great encouragement knowing our church body was praying for them constantly—every hour of every day. There are other factors that I listed out in the Prayer Prompt Card you can pick up when you join the church prayer chain. Yet at the top of that list you will see my desire to see revival in this church.

I am convinced we will never be the church we want to be unless we become more fervent in prayer. I believe we should plead with God to give us a spiritual breakthrough in this church and community. We should ask him to awaken the lethargic and lukewarm. We must ask him to put soul cravings within the populace of Lake Wales. These inner workings by God are spiritual and thus, our best means of joining with God in seeing this work done is through prayer. So will you join me in praying for our church, as well as these other needs? Will you give yourself to prayer for our church, community, and nation one hour per week? You need not stay kneeled or positioned physically in prayer that whole hour, but we would ask you remain in a spirit of prayer your full time. If you are willing, I invite you to sign up this Sunday for the prayer chain during this season of prayer.

Bear in mind, author E. M. Bounds has written, “Praying is spiritual work, and human
nature does not like taxing, spiritual work.” And Bounds also warns in his book Power Through Prayer that “A prayerless age will only have scant models of divine power”. May God grant us the humility and desire to be greater in prayer. May He persuade us of the priority of and power available through prayer in the Name of Christ.

Praying for His power to fall!
Pastor Scott

Dumb Christians and Smart Atheists?

In the last week news outlets began reporting on the findings of a recent survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. The U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey asked 32 questions on tenets, practices, history and leading figures in major world religions. The overall average score was 16 correct. Here is the breakdown of how major religious groups compared as reported by USA today initially on September 29, 2010:

Demographic Group & Number Correct
Atheist/Agnostic 20.9
Jewish 20.5
Mormon 20.3
White Evangelical Protestant 17.6
White Catholic 16.0
White Mainline Protestant 15.8
Black Protestant 13.4
Hispanic Catholic 11.6
By Anne Godlasky, USA TODAY
*Atheists and Agnostics were scored separately but had the same number correct. Source: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life phone survey of 3,412 U.S. adults in May and June. Margins of error: +/-2.5 percentage points overall, larger for subgroups.

You can actually go to the USA Today website and see how you do on five sample questions from the survey. While the USA Today and other national news outlets found it astounding that atheists knew more about religion I, frankly, did not.
Sociologists studying these matters have long reported that atheists and agnostics are highly educated and very knowledgeable of religious matters (The Denominational Society, Andrew Greely, 1972.). As Greg Lewis, Pew senior researcher, reported in the USA Today article 8 in 10 atheists and agnostics grew up in a religious tradition. So while those who say there is no God may be called foolish by the Christian Scripture (Psalm 14:1), this does not mean they are an uneducated or uninformed fool. On the contrary, perhaps as 1 Corinthians 8:1 indicates it is their great knowledge that has “puffed them up’ to where they could reject a belief in God, or at least assert he is unknowable (agnostic). This should remind followers of Jesus that when they speak to an atheist or agnostic one should not assume they are ignorant or unaware of biblical teachings. Rather, we should seek to uncover what they learned or experienced in life that made them turn away from a belief in God.
A second observation I would make is that the research really revealed more about the knowledge of religion, in general, rather than about biblical beliefs or a knowledge of God. Therefore, I believe the Orlando Sentinel’s headline on the article about the research was very misleading. Their headline read: Believe It: Atheists Know God. Yet when one reads the questions asked by Pew Research you find they really are not measuring if people know God. They are asking questions about world religions, church history, and questions about governmental rulings pertaining to the expression of religion. These were hardly questions about “knowing God”. Even questions pertaining to the knowledge of the Bible were very few. Consequently, the survey is truly more about religion and less about God. Sadly, some news outlets cannot seem unable to make this distinction.
However, it is still alarming that so many religiously-involved Americans know so little about the Bible and general religious matters. It was sad to hear just 55% of all respondents knew the Golden Rule isn’t one of the Ten Commandments or that 45% could not name all four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). It is lamentable that only 11% knew the fiery preach and theologian who participated in the First Great Awakening, an 18th Century revival, was Jonathan Edwards, not Charles Finney or Billy Graham. These responses seem to reveal the “dumbing down” of American evangelicalism and of the professing Christian populace as a whole. The poor showing by evangelicals reminds me of the warnings given by Mark Noll in his 1994 book The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind.
In that book Noll stated, “American evangelicals are not exemplary for their thinking” (3) and in his work he outlines why. In part, he cites our desire to be “pragmatic, populist, charismatic, and technological, more than intellectual” (55). Further, “we have tended to define piety as an inward state opposed to careful thought….” Reminding us that this is no small matter Noll quotes Charles Malik who wrote earlier (The Two Tasks, 1980), “The problem is not only to win souls, but to save minds. If you win the whole world and lose the mind of the world, you will soon discover you have not won the world. Indeed, it may turn out that you have actually lost the world (26).” Noll moves from that point to challenge American evangelicalism to move from an anti-intellectual posture toward activities that promote Christian thinking at every level.
I can only hope that this Pew Research Survey will also awaken Christians in the pulpits and pews of the need to learn more about their faith, their Scriptures, their religious history, and about the beliefs of others in our pluralistic society. May we, the church of Jesus, love the Lord with our minds as well as our heart, soul, and strength (Luke 10:27). Indeed, may we have a zeal that is based on knowledge (Romans 10:2).

Eager to know Him more & make Him known!
Pastor Scott

SHOUTING SUNSETS

They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.” – Psalm 65:8 (NASB)

I don’t fully know why but I have always loved sunsets. I also know I am not alone in appreciating the beauty of sunsets. Perhaps Psalm 65:8 clues us in as to why so many people find sunsets stunningly beautiful. God has made them to shout with joy as a sign to Him as Creator.

Notice how the psalmist speaks of those who live at the ends of the earth, here in context referring to those who live in the east and west. David is saying no matter which end they live on God has put signs there to cause them to stand in awe of Him. In the east they can see the dawning of the sun and in the west the setting. God uses both regularly to create colorful masterpieces upon the tapestry of the skies. Notice David gives the sunrise and sunset human features as he writes that they “shout for joy.” Well, they sure do to me! Also they cause me to shout to joy with them to the glorious Creator God and Redeemer of my soul!

I am attaching some pictures from the trip. These pictures and more are also on my facebook page. Let me briefly seek to explain the setting of each picture below. The first was taken on just our second day when we saw the sky turn a pale orange as the sun set beyond the Golden Gate Bridge and the hills to the northwest of us. One sunset we really savored was the one at the Grand Canyon as the next three pictures show that setting. The blazing orange ball of fire set beyond the canyon as we sat at the Desert View area. It caused the clouds to become pink and orange. It caused the Lookout Tower and our faces to glow. It was gorgeous. It was some days later in Bozeman, Montana when we were again in a setting where we could enjoy a sunset. The sun lit the upper half of the sky with a solid orange color. I also was able to line the setting sun up with a plant before me. It made the unknown field weed look almost radioactive with its glow. The fifth and final sunset only Daniel and I saw as we raced down from our campsite to catch the sun setting on the west side of Lake Tahoe. Adding the dimension of the water made that sunset unique and enjoyable to us.

Yes, we stood in awe of these sunsets as unmistakable signs that a creative and intelligent God put this earth here for his glory and our joy. It grieves me when so many miss or ignore these signs God has given. Yet I am grateful that we who know Him personally can so easily direct the unknowing and preoccupied to Him and His Son simply by pointing to a sunrise or sunset. May we do so in order that others may hear the sunsets shout for joy to Him!

Joining in the joyful shouts of sunsets!
Scott

God and the Mountains, Part 2

Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. – Psalm 90:2

Previously, I presented four observations about mountains that simultaneously taught me about God. These thoughts came to me from the Lord as I meditated upon what I saw while looking at the numerous mountains out in the Western United States during our recent vacation. In this article I want to share several other thoughts the Lord brought to me.

A fifth observation I made about mountains is that they appear one way from a distance, but can look entirely different up close. For example, some mountains in Nevada and California lacked trees or rocky outcroppings. They simply look smooth from a distance; like you could easily drive all over them on an ATV or you could simply roll down them for hundreds of yards. However, once closer you see there is dry brush and briers and rock upon them. From this closer viewpoint it becomes clear they would not be very enjoyable to traverse and impossible to roll down. Or, consider also from a distance how a mountain looks and then how suddenly we are humbled by its size the closer we get. From a distance it looks like you could climb it easily. Then as you get closer you realize what a climb it would be. Various times I would try to zoom in on the video camera to give proper perspective on the mountain. As I zoomed out from a hiker until they become a dot on the screen it then became apparent how large that mountain they were climbing really was. So also the closer we get to the Lord the more we realize how great and awesome he is and how small we are. This perspective makes us ask as David did in Psalm 8:4 “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him.”

Now a revelation closely related to the fifth one is that mountains often contain hidden treasures. Obviously, both of these lessons pertain to our limited perception of mountains. From a distance we can only see a mountain. Little do we know that as you hike the trails of that mountain you can find gorgeous mountain lakes, cool streams, scenic waterfalls, meadows of wildflowers, living creatures both large and small and much more. This is what we learned as we hiked to such spots in the Yosemite, Zion National Park, and up behind Emerald Bay at Lake Tahoe. New and glorious surprises waited ahead. While others may have discovered these beautiful details of the mountain they remained a mystery to us until we made the effort to get to know that mountain better. Both of these observations reminded me that knowing God is a never-ending discovery process. Because God is infinite and mysterious and because I am finite and prone to misjudgment I must be careful about the definitive conclusions I make about God. I cannot craft Him in my image or seek to know Him from afar. I must anchor my understanding of Him to his own infallible Word. I get closer to seeing Him aright as I draw near Him in the Scriptures. And the glorious wonder is that as I pursue knowing Him more I find that there are delightful aspects of His nature and character that I have yet to fully appreciate. There always seems to be more of Him to know. His ways are higher than my ways and His thoughts are higher than my thoughts (Isaiah 55:9).

A seventh observation about mountains is that they seem to somehow beckon people to hike them, explore them, or strive for their summit. During our trip we heard of how climbers scale the face of El Capitan in Yosemite. While hiking ourselves we saw climbers farther up ascending to the top of a waterfall or to a snow-capped peak. During National Park movies we heard incredible stories of how people tried to summit peaks like those in the Tetons for years before they finally succeeded. I have to admit that as I stood there looking up at those mountain peaks there was some visceral yearning within me to climb. I too wanted to summit those peaks. So also I think that the Lord beckons us to know Him better. He invites us to draw into deeper experiences with Him so we might find greater joy in Him. Paul expresses this quest for greater knowledge of Christ quite powerfully when he writes in Philippians 3:10, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection of the dead.”

I hope that you and I will seek to know the Lord more, whether or not we find ourselves beckoned to climb a mountain. I hope like me you will thank God for the mountains he birthed and you will find them directing your thoughts toward the Creator. They are the perfect habitat for many unique creatures. They provide nourishment to lowlands below with their streams and melting snow. They fill us little humans with wonder and excitement as we view them or traverse them. And may they teach us endless lessons about their Maker and our Lord.

"Some people, in order to discover God, read books. But there is a great book: the very appearance of created things. Look above you! Look below you! Read it. God, whom you want to discover, never wrote that book with ink. Instead, He set before your eyes the things that He had made. Can you ask for a louder voice than that?" - Augustine of Hippo

Hearing His voice in the Mountains!

Scott Markley

Learning of God in the Moutains, Part 1

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. – Psalm 36:5-6

As most of you know I just returned from a family vacation out in the western United States. We went to places we had never been before—places we’d only heard of or seen pictures of. It was a delightful family time in many ways and truly a “once-in-a-lifetime” trip. Before going I prayed and asked God to teach me more about Him through our travels. Today I was meditating simply on what I learned of God through the many mountains we saw on our excursion.

One of the first things we noticed upon arriving in California was the mountains. We traveled in seven different states on this trip and every single one of them had mountains. Some were majestic and snow-capped, while some looked barren and dry. Nevertheless, they were there—mountains––holding lessons about the Creator for those willing to observe and learn.

Let me share some of the truths about God that mountains made me contemplate. There are so many I will do so in two parts. In this article, let me simply share four insights.

First, mountains, obviously, communicate the idea of strength, stability, security, and permanence. That was the why Jesus made the astounding statement about having a faith that could move mountains (Matt. 17:20) and why Paul also referred to such an unimaginable feat (1 Cor. 13:2). Mountains seem fixed and immovable. In this, they also remind me of our God who is mighty and strong.

Second, mountains can stun you with their rugged beauty and majestic peaks. One can get mesmerized by their alluring beauty and gaze at them all afternoon from varying angles. This beauty is why they are photographed and painted and sketched generation after generation. Likewise David speaks of gazing upon “the beauty of the Lord” in Psalm 27:4.

Third, it is fascinating to me how mountains beautify all that is around them. Part of what makes Lake Tahoe so spectacular is the mountain range surrounding much of the gorgeous lake. Yes, the lake and forest of pines have beauty in themselves, but their beauty is enhanced. Or consider many of the valleys that look so lush and lovely. Imagine them without mountains around them. They would just be plains or flat terrain. Part of their beauty comes from the fact that they are nestled in between hillsides or mountain peaks. So when the Scriptures speak of the beauty of Zion I think the beauty referred to comes through a belief that this holy city is a unique habitation of the Lord (Ps. 48:1-2). It was His Divine presence there, in the mind of the ancients, which made Jerusalem so glorious. So also as we today associate with God, as we “put our hope in God” are we made more beautiful (1 Peter 3:5).

Fourth, mountains provide us an unparalleled vantage point that puts other things into perspective. As we ascended to the peaks over Sun Valley, Idaho the towns below diminished in our sight. The wealthy estates seemed small and puny from the mountain top. From the top of Morro Rock in Sequoia National Park we could see snowy peaks and peer into the San Joaquin Valley. There is no doubt God’s perspective on the affairs of this world and my own life is different than the perspective I usually live with. The wonder of knowing the Creator God is that as I see life through God’s eyes pride and fears diminish and that which seems all-important is reduced in significance.

Well, there is a taste of what God can teach us through mountains. But there are even more lessons to extract from the God-ward orientation mountains can give us. I will share more of them in my next article. For now, may we live in light of these truths—valuing that which is truly lasting from God’s perspective, enhancing our own beauty through fellowship with the glorious Lord, and fixing our hope in our great God.

We're off!

Let the begin! We are (mostly) packed and leave in a few hours for the trip-of-a-lifetime. We have saved for it for years. I have envisioned a trip to the National Parks out west since a pastor friend of mine did it in the mid-90's when his son turned 16. We had hoped to do it in 1997. But the Lord has seen fit for now to be the time. This seems wiser (as His Providence always does) since now at age 12 my youngest son, Daniel, will likely remember far more. Of course, the bittersweet reality is that this may also be the last time our oldest son is even with us for this many consecutive days. Whoa, that'll knock you back. Yet as a friend said to me the other day, "When will we realize that these days--today (not yesterday or tomorrow)--is the very best day."

With that thought in mind we are finishing packing and heading out for the very best days the LORD has given us upon His earth. With Psalm 104 in mind we intend to rejoice in Our Creator and all His handiwork!

I will enter posts here when I can. Follow along...and pray for our safety and refreshment in our gracious King Jesus!

Going west as if a young man!

Scott Markley

A Healthy Hatred of Sin

As I shared with you previously Charles Spurgeon once said, “God does not allow his children to sin successfully.” I contend an example of unsuccessful sin is found in 2 Samuel 11. From David’s sins presented in that chapter I find there are many lessons for Christ-followers to learn. These lessons can aid us in our efforts to avoid sin and become more like Jesus.

Let me list by way of review the first five observations made about sin from 2 Samuel 11, which were presented previously.
1. The Occasion for the Sin (11:1)
2. The Setting for the sin—temptation. (11:2)
3. The Turn into sin & away from God (11:3)
4. The Willfulness of sin (11:4)
5. The Unmanageable Nature of Sin (11:5-13)

Now let me share another five observations about sin from the remainder of the chapter and what the Lord taught me through these verses.

6. The Escalation of sin. (11:2-4, 13, 15, 17)

Once David’s plan for Uriah to enter into marital relations with Bathsheba as a means of covering up the pregnancy resulting from his adulterous liaison failed, David faced a decision. Should he admit his capital crime and come clean or should he have Uriah killed? Sadly, David chose to send Uriah and other soldiers to their grave through the orders he sent to the military commander Joab. Now David’s sin of adultery has escalated to multiple murders. So also in my life one sin can lead to another. Sin easily can escalate unless I quickly repent and renounce that sin.

7. The Disloyalty of sin (11:15)

It is an striking thing to contrast David and Uriah’s actions in these verses. David tried to deceive and manipulate this trusted member of his own bodyguard (2 Sam. 23:39). Yet Uriah showed unwavering devotion to the Lord and a solidarity with his fellow soldiers by refusing to enjoy the comforts of his own home. The irony is Uriah showed more restraint from his own wife when drunk (made drunk by David), than David did toward Uriah’s wife when sober. How could David be so disloyal? Yet sin will do that. It will lead you and me to manipulate and deceive and betray those we profess to love. Sin breeds disloyalty and destroys relationships.

8. The Desensitization of sin (11:25-27)

When you read these verses you cannot help but be saddened for how philosophical David gets when he hears the news of Uriah’s death. There is no sadness or remorse. Sin has desensitized him to the point where Uriah’s death brings no emotional response. He just quotes some proverb about warfare. His repeated, willful sin has made his heart callous. And surely the same dynamic happens in my life when I sin like that. I become desensitized to my transgressions and the harm they bring others as my heart becomes more and more distant from God as well.

9. The Assessment of sin (11:27)

We get little biblical data of what the people of Israel thought of all these acts by their king. He now took Bathsheba as a wife. Did people see that as compassionate or as unlawful? Well, regardless of what the people thought verse 27 makes it plain what God’s assessment of these actions was. God saw it as “evil” in his sight. It was nothing less than outright as sinfully evil. And that is how God assesses every sin of mine too. David’s evil would have to be judged and so was mine. Christ bore the judgment for my evil sin on the cross. Yet that payment should never make me falsely assess or excuse my sin. Rather, every instance of sin should make me rejoice all the more in Christ’s subsitutionary payment for my sin on the cross.

10. The Consequences of sin (11:17; 12:11, 14, 15)

As we move from Chapter 11 into Chapter 12 the consequences of David’s sin will unfold one after another. The child of the illegitimate union will die. His family will be destroyed by rape, murder, and rebellion. Forgiven sin will still have consequences. Therefore, though we may be forgiven in Christ we should want to avoid all sin simply because we do not want to reap the consequences of that sin. Obviously, there should be higher motives than that. But when we read the chapters that come after Chapter 11 it should be like a slap in the face to us. I certainly don’t want consequences like that for sin in my life.

Indeed, all of these ten lessons I learned about sin from 2 Samuel 11 create within me a healthy hatred of sin. I hope they will for you also. And as God reveals to us our sin may we respond with repentance as we read David did in 2 Samuel 12 remembering as Proverbs 28:13 states: He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever renounces them finds mercy.

Loving Christ & hating sin,
Pastor Scott

Rejoicing With the Rejoicing Creator

REJOICING WITH THE REJOICING CREATOR

As most of you in our church family know by now my family and I are taking an extended vacation in the coming weeks out to the western United States. This is a trip that I have anticipated since the early 90’s when a pastor friend of mine did it with his family. We have planned and prepared for it for years and are grateful the church has allowed and even encouraged this extended time away with our sons before they are grown and gone. So now the time is here for a once-in-a-lifetime journey. We feel so blessed to be going and hope this gives to our sons memories they will cherish their whole lives.

Primarily, we will be visiting national parks and observing the wonders of God’s glorious creation. Thinking of what we will see had me reading Psalm 104 this morning. It is a wonderful poem that speaks of God’s creative work. Some outline the psalm in this way:
· Stanza 1 (vv. 1-4) The Lord Clothed with Splendor & the Celestial Realm
· Stanza 2 (vv. 5-9) The Lord Sets Bounds for the Land & Sea
· Stanza 3 (vv. 10-13) The Lord Provides Water for the Creatures on Land
· Stanza 4 (vv. 14-18) The Lord Provides Food & Homes for Land Creatures
· Stanza 5 (vv. 19-24) The Lord Governs the Rhythm of Day & Night
· Stanza 6 (vv. 25-26) The Lord Delights in the Seas Creatures
· Stanza 7 (vv. 27-30) All Creatures Everywhere Depend on the Lord’s Provision
· Stanza 8 (vv. 31-35) May I Ever Rejoice in the Lord’s Works Like He Does
[Outline from ESV Study Bible]

Well, that last stanza is what I intend to do on this trip. In Psalm 104:30 it reads: “May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works.” Then down in verse 34 it states, “May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord.”
I love the dynamic described of the Lord himself rejoicing in the glory and wonder of what He has created and then us rejoicing with through our meditations.

I hope that as we observe the beauty the Lord has displayed through His creative work on land, sky and sea that we will be filled with a grander vision of our Great God. I am praying the Lord will burst the horizons of our imaginations for how glorious He is through this trip. I am trusting Him for jaw-dropping wonder to overcome my sons and Tina and me. I am praying he will forever remove small, simplistic or domesticated thoughts of Him, the Almighty One. As we step into the laboratory of creation my hope is God will instill lessons that will lead us to an ever-expanding view of Him. I am praying that God will allow us to forever rejoice with our creative King in the works of His Hands.

Please pray for our safety, for sweet family fellowship and for the Lord to impart these faith-shaping experiences to us as we seek refreshment and renewal in Him. Thank you for all your well-wishes, encouragement, and prayers. I love you, First Baptist Church!

Rejoicing with Him & in Him!
Pastor Scott

GIve a Call

The way many of us relate to each other has changed dramatically in the last two years alone. Social media is exploding in it’s usage in our society. Consider just these stats from pingdom.com:
126 million – The number of blogs on the Internet (as tracked by BlogPulse).
350 million – People on Facebook.
50% – Percentage of Facebook users that log in every day.
500,000 – The number of active Facebook applications.
90 trillion – The number of emails sent on the Internet in 2009.
247 billion – Average number of email messages per day.
1.4 billion – The number of email users worldwide.
1.73 billion – Internet users worldwide (September 2009).
27.3 million – Number of tweets on Twitter per day (November, 2009)
4.25 million – People following @aplusk (Ashton Kutcher, Twitter’s most followed user).
2.5 billion – Photos uploaded each month to Facebook.
30 billion – At the current rate, number of photos uploaded to Facebook per year.
1 billion – The total number of videos YouTube serves in one day.
12.2 billion – Videos viewed per month on YouTube in the US (November 2009).

Those are some staggering statistics aren’t they? They don’t even include the billions of texts sent over phones each year. Obviously, the social media presents several opportunities to individual Christians and the church of our Lord Jesus. They can assist in creating community as people share comments, photos and videos about life events. Social media can also aid in communication and extend the reach of a church around the world. Social media allow instant and remote communication. The social media may even provide inspiration and instruction through tools like blogs. So there are many ways the church can leverage social media to their advantage in this new age of communication.

However, at the same time there are some drawbacks to the social media. Ed Stetzer is a researcher, futurist, and extensive blogger (edstetzer.com) who I heard present some comments on social media two weeks ago. The five concerns about the social media he voiced were: 1.) the wrong people may be in the social media (unengaged, social outcasts can find a haven in it), 2.) It can trivialize important things, 3.) It can create a false sense of community. 4.) It can create pride (numbering your fans, followers, readers), 5.) It can promote impertinent speech (by offering communication without accountability).

I would add one more concern I have as a local pastor about social media. I wonder if it is possible that we might insulate ourselves in a social cocoon through the social media. I wonder if social media allows us to feel in touch with others, when in reality we are only in touch with a small portion of people. So while it seems we are sending our messages to more people than ever, the quantity of people you are actually dialoguing with may be fewer than ever.

I write this not to denigrate the usage of social media, but rather to say we cannot allow ourselves in the church to restrict our communication to these forms. While facebooking, tweeting, and texting are great, sometimes we need to simply give a call to someone.

The summer is a time when many of us are traveling. It is easy to assume someone is on vacation, when in truth they may have fallen into discouragement and be drifting from God. If someone like that comes to mind or is absent from your small group why not just give them a call. Hearing your voice of concern may serve as a tonic and be just the kind of invitation needed to get them back in fellowship with the Lord and His people. Then again, maybe you can write them on facebook or twitter.

Regardless of how you communicate with those away or inactive in the life of the church this summer I do hope you will remember how you can get in touch with God. His preferred communication tool seems clear (kidding!) from this verse some refer to as God’s phone number—Jeremiah 33:3: “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

So this summer let’s make sure we don’t forget to “give a call”—to the Lord and others who need to hear from us.

Grateful He answers!
Pastor Scott

Not Sinning Successfully

Charles Spurgeon once said, “God does not allow his children to sin successfully.”
The other Wednesday we dialogued in our Midweek Bible Study at First Baptist Church, Lake Wales about what Spurgeon meant by that quote. The discussion was worthwhile. That discussion then led into a look into David’s sinful acts in 2 Samuel 11. He certainly did not sin successfully.

As I approached the text for that study I asked the Lord to teach me about sin, in general, from David’s example. In other words, more than re-examining the historical narrative that many in attendance would already be familiar with, I wanted to extract lessons from the text that would help me learn about the nature of sin itself. I desired to grasp these lessons so that I could seek to avoid the absolute mess David found himself in. I know it is easy for us to distance ourselves from David’s sin if we can relegate it to a historical event or if we can put his sin in a category beyond us. Of course, the irony is, I think, there is no category of sin beyond us, or at least beyond me. So rather than despise David for his sin, I wanted to identify with him in it. For as a pastor I felt this was the best way I could help our people to be victorious over sin.

Obviously, I do not have time or space to relay to you all the lessons and verses in full form. Nevertheless, I do want to share them with you as readers in outline fashion in two parts. Here is Part I of the lessons I learned about sin from 2 Samuel 11.

The Occasion for the Sin (11:1) – A straightforward reading of verse 1 will show you the occasion for David’s sin. It appears that by not being where he could have, and likely should have been, David left himself vulnerable to sin. Likewise I set myself up to sin when I am not actively practicing spiritual disciplines or fulfilling my responsibilities from the Lord.

The Setting for the sin—temptation. (11:2) – Every sin has a setting. Every sin comes at us initially as a temptation. That is when we must turn away from it. When David arose from his rest on his palace roof and saw Bathsheba bathing in the nude he needed to turn away—or as Joseph did even RUN away! Instead, the progression of sin God presents to us in James 1:14-15 took place in David’s heart and mind. The temptation was not sin, but the lingering gaze was...and it led him more deeply into sin. Yet thinking on this made me realize that one way I can avoid sin is by avoiding those settings that cause desire to “give birth to sin”.

The Turn into sin & away from God (11:3) – As I reflected on all the Lord had done for David up to this point (read chapters 1-10) I realized how sadly and swiftly David’s turn was from the Lord. God had blessed David in wonderful ways, but that did not make David immune to sin. How grievous to realize that my sin is also a turn away from God’s goodness to me.

The willfulness of sin (11:4) – David’s willfulness in his adulterous relationship is obvious. He saw her, gazed upon her, sent for her, and initiated sexual relations with her. He could not blame the circumstance of seeing her or any force outside of himself. Despite his righteousness manifest in many ways before this occasion he now was fully responsible for his sin. He chose it. And any chance of victory over sin in my life and yours comes only once we acknowledge our responsibility for our sin. If we attempt to blame circumstance or others for our sin we are not only self-deceived, but more than likely perpetuating sin by that attitude.

The Unmanageable Nature of Sin (11:5-13) – Wow, isn’t this so true? Once Bathsheba rocks David’s world with the startling news that she is pregnant David has to get busy. He is into damage-control mode. Cleverly, David concocts the plan to bring her husband Uriah back from the battlefield so that it can appear that the child Bathsheba is now carrying seems to be Uriah’s. Uriah, to his credit, ends up showing more resolve and righteousness drunk than David did sober David is trying to manage his sin. He wants to contain it. But David found that it is like trying to scoop up a gallon of water in one handful–too much seeps through your fingers. You cannot manage sin.

A classic example of the unmanageable nature of wrongdoing and sin is the events of the Watergate break-in. Charles Colson in his writings has often mentioned how stunning it was that a small group of intelligent, tough, and determined men could not even keep their wrong-doing suppressed. Despite their mutual commitment to keeping the deeds done secret, the story still leaked out.

No, God does not want us to seek to manage our sin, but instead confess and renounce it.
As Proverbs 28:13 states, He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever renounces them finds mercy.

I am grateful God does not allow me to sin successfully so that I might see the futility and wickedness of them and therefore renounce all sins. I must tell you that I have similarly prayed that straying Christian friends would find no pleasure in their sin. Yes, one of my abiding prayers for those under my care in First Baptist Church is that they would, indeed, never be able to sin successfully.

Hating sin & loving Christ,

Pastor Scott

Praying for our Oil-leaking Earth

Like so many of you I have been distressed over the oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico. I have experienced an array of emotions over this disaster including but not limited to dismay, disgust, confusion, frustration, anger, unbelief, sadness, and somberness. Initially, my sadness was for the eleven men who died in the explosion. Yet as time has passed most of my afore-mentioned emotions were directed toward the issue of the leak itself, and our astounding inability to stop it.

Like you I have also heard all of the blame-shifting and political gain-saying. I guess it is to be expected that politicians might use such a disaster as a political opportunity, but that doesn’t prevent my disappointment. Sure this wasteful leak raises valid questions about if, where and when to drill for oil. I understand that and those and other energy-related questions are worth exploring in a solution-centered approach, but I question the justice of criminalizing an accident for the sake of political gain, if that is being done. More so, it disappoints me that some politicians see it more as a political issue, than as profound ruin for many people and much of God’s creation in that area.

Like you I have heard of solutions for the clean-up from farmers, internet bloggers, news reporters, and hopeful citizens. I am for any of them that will work whether it is hay, human hair, or a vacuum cleaner attached to a spaceship. Since I am no expert in this area I can only trust that BP and government officials know about all of these options so I won’t supply you with any links to forward to your congressmen.

Also, like you I have hoped and prayed for every attempt to stop the leak. With my limited knowledge about the technical elements of the leak or of the clean-up or of energy issues I figured this was my best play. So day after day now for weeks on end I have prayed for an end to the devastation caused by this leak. And as those made in the image of God and redeemed by Christ Jesus I think this is our responsibility. Of all the people affected, we should be passionately praying for this because God has made us stewards of this earth.
In Genesis 1:27 we read of God creating humankind. Then in the very next verse (Gen. 1:28) we read, “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

Some call this humanity’s cultural mandate. It emphasizes human stewardship over all creation. It positions humanity uniquely above all of the other species God created. It gives humans the rest of creation as both resources and a responsibility. A Christian worldview of creation must always balance out these truths. We are not pantheists or naturalists who worship creation as if God is in it. Yet we are not materialists who would see nothing sacred about creation. Rather, we see all of creation as, in some way, reflecting the wonder and glory of our Creator. Thus, when His creation is defaced or ruined we grieve or are indignant. Yet we do not deify creation and chastise humanity for daring to rob “Mother Nature” of her elements. No, these were given to us by the Creator to care for, manage, and use for our needs. This is what “subduing” the earth means. Yet at the same time the steward of creation knows the earth and its creatures are to be resourcefully used, but not abused or wasted.

So unlike others you and I, as Christ-followers made and re-made by the Author of Life, have a delicate balance to strike in our relationship to our Lord’s earth. We cannot advocate the greedy exploitation of the natural resources our Creator deposited into this earth, regardless of the consequences. Nor should we reduce humanity to just another naturally-evolved species who has no right to pollute the earth with a carbon footprint. Rather, as subduing stewards of God’s creation we must balance wise resourcefulness and responsibility. Practically, I think this does mean recycling and taking measures that show good management of the resources of our Lord’s creation. I also think it means continuing to fervently pray for success in stopping that leak in the Gulf as soon as possible. May none outstrip our zeal in such prayers.

Groaning with creation (Rom. 8:22-23),

Pastor Scott

Investing in Relationships

I confess to you I know nothing about financial investing. I’ve never been to the E*trade website. I don’t ever read the stock market section of the newspaper. I have visited Wall Street once, but don’t really understand how the whole thing works. I can’t explain to you what “insider-trading” is or how someone determines what a “share” is worth. I never even had a course in economics or business in college or high school. Yes, in terms of financial investing I am as dumb as a stick.

But I think I understand relational investing a little better. I thought of that concept again as I came to the passage of Scripture I will be sharing with you Sunday. The verses we will examine are 2 Timothy 3:10-12. It seems that in these verses Paul is reminding Timothy about how much he had invested in him relationally. Here is what he writes as presented in the New Living Translation:
“But you know what I teach, Timothy, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith an how long I have suffered. You know my love an my patient endurance. You know how much persecution and suffering I have endured.”(2 Timothy 3:10-11a)

You get Paul’s point don’t you? Paul is saying Timothy knows about these things because Paul spent so much time with him. They traveled together on missionary journeys together. They served together, ate together and suffered together. Paul took Timothy along because he was investing in Timothy relationally and spiritually. Consequently, a love and loyalty developed between them and Timothy matured into a valuable servant of the Lord.

However, today in the church it seems we are reluctant to invest in relationships as those in the Early Church did. I am not speaking strictly of mentoring relationships, but just the desire to have meaningful personal relationships within the church. It wasn’t just Paul who invested in other relationally. Acts 2:42-47 seems to depict the Early Church as sharing life together. Now most Christians seem content to share 75 minutes sitting in a large room together. I say that not to denigrate those valuable minutes in corporate worship, but to question if that is enough to replicate the community the Early Church experienced. It certainly does not call for much of a relational investment does it? I wonder, how connected we can be with such a limited relational investment? How can we know about each other’s lives, purpose, faith, character and struggles through that arrangement? Can that limited way of “doing church” produce disciples of Jesus Christ?

Obviously, you can guess I think there needs to be something more. While there is not time or space here for a full response to my own questions, I do want to extend an invitation here and now.
I invite you to try ratcheting up your involvement in the lives of your fellow believers at FBC by plugging into one of our DO SOMETHING GROUPS coming this summer. There will be ten groups meeting on Sunday evenings for 90 minutes in homes all over the Lake Wales area. Maybe you have never been to such a group. Maybe you rarely, if ever, have been to a Life Connection Group (Sundays @ 9:15 AM). Maybe you have never attended any type of Home Bible Study. Let this be the time to give a small group a try. Look, it is only 6 weeks! You can handle such a short-term commitment. If you miss due to a vacation or whatever that is okay, just come the weeks you can. Choose one near where you live or where you know somebody else attending.

Obviously, these small groups will not produce the bond Paul and Timothy shared in six weeks. However, I bet you will come away relationally closer to those in your group. Consider it a minimal relational investment. Yeah, it is just buying a few shares, but who knows what the dividends may be. As you hear of others share about how their faith in Jesus intersects with their everyday living you may find yourself eager to invest a little more. And who knows, with such experiences you and I might end up being as big as (relational) investors as Paul.

Gladly investing my all!

Pastor Scott

On Unemployment & Satisfaction in Work

My wife, Tina, was re-hired yesterday to teach at Lake Wales High School again next year. Boy, am I glad.

My brother called from Washington, D.C. He was elated that after four months of searching, dozens of applications, and multiple interviews he landed a job. Well, kind of…it is a six-month full-time position. Given employment opportunities in today’s America he should probably be grateful—and he is.

Wednesday I spoke to a friend in our church. He is a certified teacher but positions in his area of certification are few. When stacked against a younger applicant his age does not help him anymore either. He’s applied to dozens of jobs not in his field, yet they have turned up nothing also. His options are limited. His savings have dwindled down. His unemployment could probably be considered near the crisis stage.

Given the economic situation in our nation and in Central Florida how would you like to be a college student trying to find a summer job? I never had a problem finding that work. While at home during the summers of my college years I flipped burgers, stocked shelves and sliced lunchmeat. During my seminary days I sold clothing and did landscaping. Nowadays options to do any of those are severely limited here in Central Florida. Believe me, I know. The old adage of “if you want to work there are jobs out there” may not apply anymore. Scores of people apply for the same positions. Businesses struggling to stay solvent are scraping by with fewer employees. Paid internships are non-existent. Yes, these are different economic times in America.

All of this should make each of us who are working or who were always able to secure employment back in our working days to give thanks to God. Furthermore, we should find satisfaction in our work. Rather, than grumbling about our job or resenting our duties or feeling under-paid by our employers we should be happy in our work. I say this not merely because of the economic realities of today or the high level of unemployment. I say it because that is what God instructs us to do.

No fewer than three times in Ecclesiastes are workers told do find satisfaction or happiness in their work. Work and this attitude about it are seen as a gift of God!

“A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God.” Ecc.2:24

“That everyone may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God.” Ecc. 3:13

"…to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God.” Ecc. 5:19

So let’s work hard, rejoice in our work positions, and give thanks to God for our employers. Let’s also pray for the unemployed and for the economy of our nation so that those who are missing out on the satisfaction coming from work might also be able to partake of this gift.

Grateful to co-labor with you for the Lord,
Pastor Scott

Honoring Mothers

Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your god has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Deuteronomy 5:16

Most all reading this article are familiar with this command among ten given by the Lord to Moses for the people of God to obey. Many of us memorized the command to honor your father and mother. Well, that is certainly what we intend to do this Sunday at FBC. Obviously, the command from the Lord was not a mandate for a holiday in which we would honor our parents. Rather, the honor was to be shown in their everyday living. Their honor was to be shown in how they acted toward and spoke to and of their parents. Submission, respect, obedience, love, and care–these were to be the way in which a child was to honor their parent. I’m pretty sure greeting cards, flowers, and chocolates were not on the mind of the Lord when he gave this command. Still today they remain a cheap substitute for the honor the Lord expects children of all ages to show. I know, I know you’re wondering if I have seen the price of cards and flowers lately. I have. And I certainly I am not opposed to giving them also. Indeed, this coming Sunday at First Baptist Church we will also seek to honor all mothers in the context of worship.

I hope you will join us for this Sunday. There will be a child dedication service included in our worship, several mothers will bring our special music, a mother and son will bring a unique offertory piece, and we will give a little gift to all mothers present. Furthermore, we will view a prayerful tribute to mothers and I will urge all of us, including mothers, to choose to be honorable vessels in the great house of God. So beyond giving honor this Sunday, I will call all of us to be honorable from Scripture. I hope you will join us for all of this on Sunday May, 9, 2010 at FBC, Lake Wales. I now close with a little poem to honor our mother’s in one other way.

A MOTHER'S LOVE
A mother's hands are gentle,

As she wipes away our tears;

A mother's arms bring comfort

As she helps us face our fears.

A mother's heart is loving -

A true reflection of

The peace found in our Savior

And His everlasting love.

Grateful for the love of the Lord & mothers,

Pastor Scott