Category: Uncategorized

Paul uses several analogies to describe the church.  One is the body.  In First Corinthians 12:15-21 Paul shows the absurdity of our physical bodies having a conversation that looks like this: “The foot says ‘since I am not a hand, I don’t belong here’ and the eye says to the hand, ‘I don’t need you'”  Our physical body is made up of parts that are all necessary.  The lesson we can learn as believers is this.  First, don’t be like a foot and say, “I don’t have the abilities of so and so, I am not crucial to the body of Christ.”  Second, don’t be like an eye and say, “I can do so much more than so and so, I don’t need them.”

The fact is that we all need each other.  Every one of us plays an important role in the body of Christ.  Just like Paul needed Barnabas and Timothy, we all need each other.  This also means that someone needs you.  You have a role to play in God’s Kingdom.  What are you waiting for?

Ron Paul’s website has posted pictures from the Duke event.  I have been happy to talk with people about his message of liberty and freedom.  I am surprised at how many people don’t know anything about him.  I had one person recently, who told me they follow politics, ask “what is he running for?”  I wonder how different the voting would have been if the main stream media would have talked about what his campaign was about.

I was exited to see Ron Paul tonight at Duke University.  There was a sold out crowd of 600 in attendance.  They spanned all ages and races.  The message of freedom and the thirst for liberty truly is universal.  Dr. Paul laid out very plainly what a Constitutional Federal Government would and should look like.  We are so far from having one today!  Foreign Policy would be reasonable, we would not the policemen of the world, we would not prop up dictators, we would not start wars.  Economic Policy would be one where the market determines interest rates and the value of the currency.  There would be a limited federal government.  Organizations such as the Dept. of Education and the FDA would not be in place (since they aren’t Constitutional).  There would be no income tax.  In fact, the 1 Trillion dollars a year we spend on our foreign policy would shrink.  The savings from that alone would more than replace the revenue form the income tax.

The Constitution does not give us any rights.  Our Founders understood that our rights come from our Creator.  The Constitution limits the role of the federal government by allowing men and women to live in a free society.  It was a bold and risky move by those men and women a couple of centuries ago.  This type of government would be a radical shift from the status quo.

If you are interested in learning more about Ron Paul’s message of freedom and liberty, get a copy of his latest book, The Revolution: A Manifesto.

Some memorable quotes…”The government does not regulate what we put into our brains or our souls…why should it regulate what we put into our stomachs?”

“With freedom comes much responsibility”

“If a Federal Politician makes a mistake, it hurts the whole country, if a state politician makes a mistake, it hurts the whole state, if a local politican makes a mistake, it hurts the county, if you make a mistake it hurts you.  The closer government is to home, the safer we all are.”

“A worker should be able to keep all of the fruits of his labor.”

There was also a book signing afterward.  They did not have time to allow each person to pose with Dr. Paul, so I got a shot of someone else getting their book signed.  I did tell the good Dr. that I was a Pastor and after teaching on the Just War Theory, I realized that we haven’t been following that.  He shared with me that he is troubled by so many Evangelicals who say that our current war is “God’s Will”  I have to agree with him.

It has been a while since I posted on here.  I am looking forward to hearing Ron Paul speak at Duke this evening.  He speaks much of freedom.  As he once said, “Freedom is new, tyranny has been around forever.”  I see such a connection between freedom in this country and religious freedom.  I have the privilege each year of organizing the National Day of Prayer Service for our county.  We meet each year in front of the county courthouse.  As our service began yesterday, I was moved by the thought of our freedom in this country.  There are so many places in the world that our believing brothers and sisters cannot meet in the public square and pray in Jesus’ name.  Our freedom is a precious thing.

Over the past century we have been slowly losing our freedom as individual Americans.  This is not what our Foudning Fathers intended.  It is comforting to know that I am first a citizen of the Kingdom of God and second, a citizen of America.  If we do lose all of our freedoms in this country, I’ll be alright.  But the good news is that we don’t have to lose them!  Our country began with the idea of freedom for everyone.  Freedom because we have all been created free.  Our Constitution in this country only limits the reach of our government into our lives.  If we follow it as a people, we would see more freedom that we do today!

When the government begins to trample on our freedoms, they do not let up.  I have been troubled by the events surrounding the Polygamist group in Texas.  What troubles me is that over 400 children have been removed from their families because of the actions of some of the parent’s in the compound.  Don’t misunderstand, I firmly oppose Polygamy and Pedophilia.  Those guilty in these areas should be punished.  But what is troubling is that many dozen families were trying to raise their children with their family’s belief system.  For the government to come in and sweep up EVERY child, have a court hearing for all 400+ in only a few hours time, and then place the 400+ children in foster homes throughout Texas is scary to say the least.

When will we get to the point where the government doesn’t like the actions of some in my denomination?  When will teaching that homosexuality is sin, and adultry is sin, when will that be so unpopular that the government considers is harmful to children to learn?  When will they begin to remove children from homes who are being home-schooled for religious purposes?  Whereas I disagree with much of the theology of those in Texas, they at least have a right to believe what they believe.  At least, they are supposed to in this country.

we are called to see people differently than we have ever seen them before.  in 2 corinthians 5:16 Paul says that we no longer know people in a purely human way.  his point is that we have been changed by our relationship to Jesus, and this change must cause us to see people differently.  we have been reconciled to Jesus, everyone we meet needs to be reconciled to Jesus.

we who know Christ must see everyone in 1 of 2 groups.  either they know Jesus, or they don’t.  verse 15 says that Jesus died for all so that we would not live for ourselves any longer.  don’t live for your desires, your passions, and your agendas. instead, live for Jesus.  live to bring people to Jesus.  may people see something different in you and be led to Jesus.

last night we had a great time together.  We connected with the Lord through singing and His Word.  It was a good time to be with God’s people and grow closer to Him.  When we were cleaning up after all was done, one person said they were ready to give everything to the Lord.  Praise the Lord for this!  She had connection with the Lord for the first time.  It was a blessing to see God working in her life in that way.  How awesome was the look on her face after she prayed and took those first breaths as a child of God.

We’ll be meeting again on February 16 at 6:30 PM.  We have plenty of coffee and desserts to go around.  We spend time connecting with each other for about half an hour and then we go to a time of worship so we can connect with the Lord.  Make plans to be a part next month.

My prayer is that all of you who can come out tomorrow night (January 12th) will come out for connect.  I am excited about what the Lord is going to do during our time together.

There is excitement about something new.  Our anticipation of what will be different does something within us unlike anything else.  With this new year comes new opportunities and new challenges.  There is a chance to grow, to not make the same mistakes we made last year.  Every semester I was in college and Seminary (8 semesters altogether) I would start off by cleaning and organizing my room (or wherever I would be studying).  My thought was to start out fresh, to do all my work, to do it well.  I always thought, “this time it will be different…it will be better.”  Usually by the third week in, I was in the same old routines.  Even though I knew this would happen, I still got excited about something new.

God’s Word tells us that as Christians, we are new.  2 Corinthians 5:17  says that if any person is in Christ, they are a new creation, old things have passed away and all things have become new.  What a great promise.  So often as believers we get back into the same routines we had before but we don’t have to.  We are new.  With the strength of the Holy Spirit we can live in the new life.  We don’t have to live as we used to.

This Saturday, January 12, at connect: we will be talking about being new.  What can we do different and new this year and the rest of our lives.  I pray you will be able to come and be a part of this special night!

Celebrating Christmas is always a joyous time.  We have much to celebrate.  God reached down out of Heaven in the lowliest of ways in order to  connect with us.  God, who can do anything, became a baby, who could do nothing.  As Jesus lie there helpless, it was truly the lowliest point God could have come.  We shoujld have no doubts as to the lengths God will go to meet our every need.  He came to the little feeding trough in the little town of Bethlehem to a young girl, so that we could have a relationship with Him!

God Bless you and your families this Christmas.