Vacation Day 3 THE "L" of LIFE

Today is the last day of 2008 and I am thrilled that God has given me another day to celebrate His gift of grace in Christ with the world. It is so great to be loved by the God of the universe and I repent for forgetting that at different times throughout 2008.

I woke up this morning and I thought I would share pieces of 1 Peter with you as really a thought be thought walk through the book. Don't worry I'm not going to share every verse and I didn't even do a verse from every chapter. Just some general thoughts from 1 Peter to wrap up the year and a wonderful reminder from Matthew 22 focusing on the "L" or up and out of life. I also included a prayer as we go into 2009. Enjoy!

"Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,23.for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God." 1 Peter 1:22-23

I have realized during my visit here that loving other people is what it is all about. People need to experience the love of God in Christ through us and it is time to GET BUSY doing it. Reach out! Love others! Don't worry about whether you're doing it right or not. You aren't and it doesn't matter. Love others because God loved you first!

"BUT YOU are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light ; 10.for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, BUT NOW you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD ; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY." 1 Peter 2:9-10

You are different and DON'T forget about it. You don't HAVE TO live like anybody else and isn't that AWESOME?! "But you" "But now" YOU ARE DIFFERENT for the glory of God. Spread the word.

"For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to FOLLOW IN HIS STEPS" 1 Peter 2:21

Couldn't help but remind you of our commitment. What would Jesus do to celebrate 2008? Be grateful. Give love away. Serve others! Have fun doing it today!

"For YOU WERE continually straying like sheep, BUT NOW you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls." 1 Peter 2:25

You were BUT NOW...go for it! WHY NOT?

"ABOVE ALL, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins." 1 Peter 4:8

ABOVE ALL sounds like it's important. What do you think?

"Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace be to you all who are in Christ." 1 Peter 5:14

HAPPY NEW YEAR my dear family! This verse is a hug and kiss from me to all of you as we enter the 2009 adventure!

Matthew 22:34-40
The Most Important Commandment
"But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees with his reply, they met together to question him again. 35 One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” 37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

Carolyn Vogt loaned me a book which has been great on my trip. It is called "The True Christians Love to the Unseen Christ" by Thomas Vincent. I thought this quote right at the beginning of the book said what the focus for the "L" of life is really to be and why. Here it is:

"Without love to Christ we may have the name Christians, but we are wholly without the nature. We may have the form of godliness, but are wholly without the power." p. 1

He also asks some great questions throughout this book but this little section goes right to the heart:

"How little Christ must be entertained in your thoughts, who is the object of faith? Moreover, does it not argue little love of Christ that you speak so little of Him and for Him in your conversing one with another? If you had much love to Christ, would not this love BREATHE forth more in your discourses?" p. 31

Great challenge in applying the love of God in Christ. Love and share it. Share it and love! awesome opportunity and WE GET TO do it ALL for God's glory! WOOHOO!

Happy New Year! We will miss you guys tonight! We love you and are praying for you as you celebrate!

Pray this prayer as you enter 2009
"Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I love you! Thank You for loving me first. As I enter 2009 increase my love for You but please don't let it stop there. Allow me the privilege to see the love I have for You or even more importantly the love You have for me SPILL OVER to others that they may experience the greatest gift of grace in the Gospel. 2009 will be a better year Father, Son and Holy Spirit as lives are transformed by Your work starting with me. To You be the glory in all things! Much love from me to You. I pray in Jesus' name. AMEN!"

DAY 2 Vacation

The smile on my kids faces as we pulled into Danville was worth the price of the trip! It was lunch time when we arrived yesterday and we were going to stop and eat. My kids would have nothing to do with that. They wanted to start visiting with people immediately and I have to tell you I was so glad we came. They ran around like a bunch of nuts calling and stopping by to visit. It was absolutely great! Thanks for praying for our family during this break! It has already been so refreshing to visit and take in old familiar things. Last night I went to a Centre College basketball game with the kids and saw all kinds of people we know and was amazed at how it felt like we had never left. God is wonderfully gracious and I am so thankful for people who love us. Centre lost the game but we had a fantastic time with friends. (Don't worry...we're freezing and can't wait to get home! LOL)

As an added bonus I have had the chance to share with these brothers and sisters what God is doing in me and in our church family. It has been exciting to share and I have to tell you that through this time others are getting on board with asking the question 'what would Jesus do?' They are wanting to join in the adventure because they know it is a worthwhile question to ask. I am thrilled to be spreading the adventure but even more than that...I am thrilled to watch the Spirit spread the power of the Gospel into the hearts of those He loves.

Maybe as 2009 begins we will see true revival begin in this country. It has been so long since I have truly prayed for revival and yet as my own heart is transformed more and more I long for true revival to break out. That the church would be the church in the world. The spotless bride of Christ. Doesn't that sound great? Lets pray hard this year that God would transform a little church in Stuart, Florida and that through His Spirit would spread revival to the world. "Be devoted to prayer" says Paul in Colossians 4. I am totally in for that!

Praying right now for you and for the Spirit to move in power! Much love! LGLO, Pastor Peter

DAY 1 Vacation

We are just north of Chattanooga and yesterdays drive was great! Thank you all for praying. I followed my own advice and enjoyed the wonderful creation that God has so gloriously given to us. We had a great start to our vacation and will drive the rest of the way this morning. Here are some quick thoughts that I have loved from following the star. Good stuff and a great prayer to wrap up as we celebrate loving God and loving others today. 'What would Jesus do?' He would enjoy this day for the glory of God!

"Christ has come. Christ is here. Christ will remain. Give yourself over to this One whose coming we continue to celebrate. Know that this same loving Lord stays constant in loving you and leading you, day by day and in these quiet moments."

"Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” Luke 2:25-32

Great prayer!

Jesus, take off the blinders that block my view of you and your love. Help me to become quick to offer you praise. Expand my vision to recognize the needs far beyond my corner of the world. Amen. and AMEN! LGLO, Pastor Peter

The Home Row

"When at rest the typist's fingers are positioned, lightly, on the A-S-D-F keys for the left hand, and the J-K-L-; keys for the right hand." From Peter's typing school online (LOL)

I thought that I would share this with everyone even if you are going to be at church this morning. Not the sermon because that wouldn't be fair (well, it would be but I wouldn't do that to you).

I am convinced that the biggest problem we face in answering the question 'what would Jesus do?' is not a lack of understanding about what He would do in any given situation but a lack of willingness to do it without apology. We are 'mostly' bright people that God has blessed tremendously. I say mostly bright because I am included in the mix with you. LOL We have been given so much and the old adage is true 'to whom much has been given, much is required'. Luke 12:48 "From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more." In this case the old adage is true because Jesus said it in His Word to us. Because much has been given to all of us, much is required of us. Not in a 'I need to pay God back' mentality. That doesn't fit for a whole lot of reasons but one in particular...it isn't possible to pay God back for all that He has given us. It is not even for gratitude alone that we do what He has called us to do. A gratitude ethic wont last long. We do what God has called us to do because of WHO HE IS. Our CREATOR. LORD. MASTER. SAVIOR. REDEEMER. PROVIDER. DEFENDER. SHIELD ABOUT ME. OUR GLORY. THE LIFTER of MY HEAD. ALPHA & OMEGA. FIRST & the LAST. He is our God and He is glorious indeed! This home row idea is such a simple one but gets us back to the foundation!

The HOME ROW for us starts in the very beginning, it's a very good place to start. When you read you begin with A, B, C. When you sing you begin with DO, RE, MI. When you ask 'what would Jesus do?' you begin with "In the beginning God created the heaven's and the earth." Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1-4 "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men." There is one other verse that is part of this that explains our problem. "The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." John 1:5 I think that we forget that coming out of the darkness into the light takes some adjusting. Our eyes need to refocus every time we go into the darkness and come out again. The BEST solution...stay at the HOME ROW! Stay with the ONE who sees clearly and can clearly direct us whatever way we are going.

Let me give you one example as I finish. If I move my fingers one key to the right. This is what my name is z[ryrt nstyidls/ Notice I cant even make a capital letter. It is thrown off that much. If I move one set of keys down it's this ;dgdf zfgjx,z. It's amazing how that little movement changes everything. Move toward Him. He is the HOME ROW! Much love and prayers! LGLO, Pastor Peter

Random Thoughts

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds."  Titus 2:11-14

Grace in salvation training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions...SOUNDS GOOD TO ME!  I really think that is the hardest part of asking 'what would Jesus do?'  There is SO MUCH around us to distract us and I am easily distracted.  It really isn't a question of loving God or my desire to love others from loving God a lot of the time.  It simply is that I don't think about it or if I do I think about it after thinking about what I want to do.   Me first, God second, others fifty fifth.  A verse from Colossians 3 always haunts me when I am wrestling with these types of questions.  I was challenged in college to memorize the book of Colossians and for some reason chapter 3 sticks out in my mind and it might be just for this verse "when Christ who is your life is revealed then you will also be revealed with Him in glory." v. 4  If this verse is true, and I believe the Word to be true all the time, then the order of priorities in life should go something like this:  God is my life and everything else gets the spill over from that reality.  You've heard me say this a million times and this is one of the foundational ideas behind it.  Loving God and loving others comes from Him being our lives at the very core.  In fact, saying loving God and loving others almost makes it sounds like the two are equal and really they aren't.  Jesus says the second is "like it" not the same as it.  Loving God is the foundation for loving others as we all know.  Loving others is never the foundation for loving God it is the fruit of loving God and more importantly of GOD LOVING US!

Sorry for the random thoughts today.  Hope it makes a little sense.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

CHANGED?

How has your life and your faith been changed through the celebration of Christ’s birth? How can you praise and glorify God today in response to all that you have seen and heard?

"Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,
15. but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior ; 16. because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY." 1 Peter 1:13-16

"As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." 1 Peter 4:10

I thought that this was a worthwhile question to start the post Christmas living for Jesus and asking what would Jesus do.  Enjoy.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

MERRY CHRISTMAS

"With the coming of the Christ, joy enters the world. And with joy comes hope, peace and love. Come feel the joy. Come know the hope. Come share the peace. Come be made new by God's love."
"Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." John 20:30, 31

Just imagine how many amazing stories we will hear from the King when we get home.  Awesome to consider!

"You must worship no other gods, but only the LORD, for he is a God who is passionate about his relationship with you." Ex. 34:14

This is one of the most amazing promises of the Scripture.  God is passionate about a relationship with me?  AMAZING in such an unbelievable way!  

MERRY CHRISTMAS my brothers and sisters in Christ.  I am excited about what God is doing in and through us as this year comes to a close and I hope you are as well.  God is so faithful and He continues to poor out His blessings on us again and again.  I thought these two verses were great as a reminder this Christmas.  I hope they encourage your heart as much as they did mine today.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

Christmas Eve 2008 - WOW!

"Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel." Isaiah 12:5-6

It is Christmas Eve and I am psyched. God loves us so much and we GET TO celebrate His coming to earth! Notice the progression of thought from this verse in Isaiah.

SING PRAISE TO THE LORD. Don't forget to sing today. Even if you have a horrible voice it sounds great to the King. He hears your heart in love with Him and He made your voice so He is very familiar with it.

HE HAS DONE GLORIOUSLY.  I am amazed every day at how glorious God is and how incredibly faithful He is day in and day out.  He has done gloriously and we have a great hope that He will continue to do it.  He hasn't missed a day yet.

LET THIS BE KNOWN IN ALL THE EARTH.  Why wouldn't we tell somebody else?  God is so amazing and He has given us the greatest gift that we will GET TO celebrate with Him forever.  Tell someone...it's worth it.

Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

The story goes that after the first performance of Messiah, an enthusiastic member of the audience congratulated composer and director George Frideric Handel for producing such a wonderful piece of "entertainment."

"Entertainment!" Handel replied, "My purpose was not to entertain, but to teach them something."

Great is the HOLY ONE of Israel.  Shout aloud and sing for joy.  He was not sent to be wonderful He was sent to teach us something...OUR NEED IS SATISFIED in HIM and HE IS THE ONLY WAY.  

Enjoy Him today!  He is glorious indeed!  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

Enjoying a Devotion

Some time ago I counted all the different times I have preached or taught over the last 15 years.  I realized as I counted that I have been preaching or teaching 2 to 4 times a week for 15 years.  If you take 6 weeks off a year (which I don't) that means that I have preached or taught some number between 1300 and 2500 times.  That is a lot of preaching and teaching.  That doesn't even include the one on one, couples or other opportunities to share the Scripture and they do count I promise.  

I share that with you, not to brag, I promise.  I share it with you because I realized something this morning.  Sometimes it really is me simply passing on what I have learned.  Originality is forgetting where you got it and I am an avid practicer of that as you have heard me say.  Today I wanted to share this with you from www.followingthestar.com.  It was worth it and I thought I'd pass it on!  Enjoy!  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

"For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this." Isaiah 9:4-7

"The other day a friend of mine asked me to define “Christmas spirit.” Not wanting to appear Scrooge-like, I quickly began giving my two cents on the matter. After a few minutes of babbling, my friend stopped me with an unimpressed stare. He told me that I was missing the point of his question. He was right.

Many of us do lots of time-consuming things to create a spirit of Christmas in our lives. We decorate our homes, listen to our favorite Christmas songs, throw parties and prepare certain foods. We get and give special gifts, and many of us are on our best behavior. What connects all of these? These are things that we do to create the Christmas spirit.

My friend reminded me that, just like Isaiah tells us, the spirit of Christmas comes from the message of hope found in the story of Jesus’ birth. This is God’s gift to us."

Michael Harper

Working Hard with Your Compass

2 Peter 1:2-10
"May God bless you with his special favor and wonderful peace as you come to know Jesus, our God and Lord, better and better. 3. As we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a godly life. He has called us to receive his own glory and goodness! 4. And by that same mighty power, he has given us all of his rich and wonderful promises. He has promised that you will escape the decadence all around you caused by evil desires and that you will share in his divine nature.  5. So make every effort to apply the benefits of these promises to your life. Then your faith will produce a life of moral excellence. A life of moral excellence leads to knowing God better. 6. Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. 7. Godliness leads to love for other Christians, and finally you will grow to have genuine love for everyone. 8. The more you grow like this, the more you will become productive and useful in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9. But those who fail to develop these virtues are blind or, at least, very shortsighted. They have already forgotten that God has cleansed them from their old life of sin. 10. So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Doing this, you will never stumble or fall away."

This is a great text from 2 Peter.  I continued on the journey in Peter's letters and found a great reminder for today.  One of things that is very difficult to remember is that this 'what would Jesus do?" challenge isn't about asking it one time but an ongoing question as we make little decisions every day.  Sometimes it is very hard and sometimes it is rather easy.  In both cases and everything in between our goal is to RESPOND to the grace that has been given to us in such a way to show we are truly His.

A number of years ago I was part of a 7 Habits of Highly Effective People weekend.  I know it sounds like a "cultish" thing and honestly it seemed like that to me when I went.  It is for new leaders in the community I was living in and we had a director come from the Covey Institute.  Stephen Covey wrote the book years ago and it has been a very popular business tool if  you haven't read it.  I mention this book because the one piece that I liked most of all is the idea of this compass to direct us.  Covey uses it as he talks about course corrections along the way in your life.  He discusses how planes have to constantly adjust their heading as they fly from point A to point B.  This is not a big surprise as the flight encounters different weather conditions including a variety of wind patterns.  All of us are walking day to day in Christ and we are encountering all kinds of things that are causing us to make corrections.  My question is in this "how hard are you working at looking to the real compass to direct?"  It's hard work to dig into the Scripture.  The Word of God convicts when you study it and though it is always for God's glory and our good it is easier sometimes to hide from it rather than to hide IT in our hearts.  

Work hard today with your true compass.  It will serve you very well!  Much love and prayers.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

WHACKED in the HEAD from Exodus 20

This text is in Exodus 20 and I read it this morning after the DO...IN HIM post. I read this text and though I have read through the Bible many times in my life I don't remember ever reading v. 20. AWESOME! I know the idea from the Scripture in other places and I have taught the idea myself but it struck me like a ton of bricks reading it and I could NOT help but pass it on. It reminded me if a very good book by Jerry Bridges called The Joy of Fearing God. Anyway...here's the text. ENJOY!

"When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the horn, and when they saw the lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear. 19.And they said to Moses, "You tell us what God says, and we will listen. But don't let God speak directly to us. If he does, we will die!" 20."Don't be afraid," Moses said, "for God has come in this way to show you his awesome power. From now on, let your fear of him keep you from sinning!"

Did you catch that from Moses? "Don't be afraid..." "From now on, let your fear of Him keep you from sinning!" What is that all about? Don't be afraid...be afraid? I think Moses is sharing honestly and wants to encourage the people about God's awesome power then he says I need to also take advantage of this opportunity and point them to a very useful tool in following hard after God. Yes...perfect love casts out fear but even in that the only source of perfect love is God and so if we look to Him and HE casts out the fear than AWESOME!

Anyway...thought you'd like to hear your Pastor getting whacked up side the head by the Spirit. It is a constant thing lately and I'm having a blast! Hard as all get out...BUT GREAT! LGLO, Pastor Peter

DO...IN HIM

Exodus 19:1-8
"The Israelites arrived in the wilderness of Sinai exactly two months after they left Egypt. 2.After breaking camp at Rephidim, they came to the base of Mount Sinai and set up camp there.3.Then Moses climbed the mountain to appear before God. The LORD called out to him from the mountain and said, "Give these instructions to the descendants of Jacob, the people of Israel:4.'You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I brought you to myself and carried you on eagle's wings. 5.Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the nations of the earth; for all the earth belongs to me. 6.And you will be to me a kingdom of priests, my holy nation.' Give this message to the Israelites."7.Moses returned from the mountain and called together the leaders of the people and told them what the LORD had said.8.They all responded together, "We will certainly do everything the LORD asks of us." So Moses brought the people's answer back to the LORD."

I am so excited about what God is doing in my heart and soul. It is SO good to be looking to Jesus and wrestling with great questions in following after Him. My biggest concern at this moment is...there is so much I want to do, how do I do it and still be alive to celebrate with someone about doing it? The old Hindu proverb says anyone can eat an elephant one bite at a time but ...if an elephant sits on you, you get squashed.

The people of Israel said they would do everything the LORD asked them. Amazingly two chapters ago they were complaining about God taking them out of Egypt. I read that this morning and thought...have these Israelites been watching my life? Anyway...

They said they would do everything and honestly I don't think they meant it. It is a wonderful privilege to do what the LORD wants us to do and it is AWESOME to wrestle with what Jesus would do in all circumstances. REMEMBER...in order to REALLY do all that the LORD wants us to do we HAVE TO DO IT FROM HIM, THROUGH HIM, and TO HIM. "To Him be the glory for ever and ever. AMEN!" Romans 11:36

Honestly...it really is more about being IN HIM then doing. Because if you are IN HIM then you will do. You can't help it! ENJOY! LGLO, Pastor Peter

My Strength and My Song...THE WARRIOR

"I will sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously; he has thrown both horse and rider into the sea  The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my victory.  He is my God, and I will praise him; he is my father's God, and I will exalt him!  The LORD is a warrior; yes, the LORD is his name!."  Exodus 15:1-3

"So prepare your minds for action.  Control yourselves.  Put your hope completely in the grace that will be given to you when Jesus Christ returns."  1 Peter 1:13

I have been reading in the Old Testament as I am reading through the Bible.  As I was reading in Exodus 15 I was struck by this song.  The LORD is my strength and song; He has become my victory.  It feels like that to me as we ask the question 'what would Jesus do?' It feels like God is truly my strength and my song and that He is continuing to give victories one after another.  It doesn't have anything to do with whether I am living perfectly in asking the question or whether or not I am perfectly answering the question.  It has EVERYTHING to do with God being my strength and my song and the additional bonus in this song is that He is also a WARRIOR.  I love that He will fight for me but I am even more glad that He will fight for Himself to be glorified IN ME!  He wants the best for me and HE IS THE BEST!

So...put your hope COMPLETELY in "the grace that will be given to you when Christ returns"!  It is a great promise for today!  ENJOY IT!  LGLO,  Pastor Peter 

A FULL LIFE

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

"The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy.  I have come that you may have life and have it to the full."  John 10:10

My ability to see 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 through was tested yesterday but in a good way.  Hard way, but good.  Most of you know that Lauri Mayo's Dad died yesterday.  I was able to be with the family through the whole thing and it was a privilege and painful.  

How do you rejoice always when someone is dying?  We did a whole lot of praying without ceasing including anointing Clyde with oil and praying that God would allow his final breaths to be at peace.  That happened in a wonderfully encouraging way for sure!  God is so good.  How do you give thanks in everything when someone dies?  Lauri and her family shared about Clydes life and that was something to give thanks for definitely!

This living for Jesus thing and asking 'what would Jesus do?' is great but it is NOT easy.  It is so easy to forget that He came that we might have life and have it to the full.  It is so easy to try and make it better but many times there is no way to make it better...like, when someone dies.  There was an enormous amount of love in the room with Clyde as he died and we couldn't make it better.  Even now as I type that I realize something very simple.  We couldn't make it better for Clyde but God did that.  We could make it better for everyone in that room including the Doctors and nurses and God helped us do that.  We prayed for peace and He gave it.  We prayed for Clydes sister to get there before he died and she did and had great moments with him.  We prayed...God answered.  It hurt but He never told us it wouldn't.  Life to the full doesn't mean life without pain.  It just means life with Him even in the pain.  REJOICE.  PRAY.  GIVE THANKS!  What a great thought for the day!  Get busy.  

Much love from a rambling Pastor.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

P.S.  The pictures are included just because I wanted to look at something beautiful while I typed and cried.  I'm a big jelly mush!

He MUST Increase

I have been doing a mini-devotional at www.followingthestar.com for the Advent season and this mornings struck a cord with me so I thought I'd share a piece of it with you.  If we truly believe he is GREATER THAN US asking 'what would Jesus do?' shouldn't really be that hard should it?  At least not that hard of decision to give it a try.  After all Jesus said this "I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  BUT TAKE HEART!  I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD!"  John 16:33

"Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.  They asked him, "Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?"  John answered them, "I baptize you with water.  Among you stands one whom you do not know, the One coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of His sandal."  This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing."  John 1:24-28

"Have you ever wondered about the actors who portray superheroes in the movies?  You know, the people who play Superman or Spiderman or James Bond.  I wonder what it's like dressing up and getting to fly or have tricky fountain pens and fast cars.  I wonder if they ever lose themselves in their superhero characters.

My Personal Favorite

John knows himself.  While he is baptizing crowds, he understands that he is just the opening act, the second fiddle, the bench-warmer.  He says, "There is one coming after me who is awesome!  The 'real  deal' is right here among us!"

John knew who he was; he was not Christ!  John did not get lost in himself, rather he fulfilled his call to ministry with passion.  John was not the Christ.  You are not the Christ either...but you are pretty awesome!"  Bo Prosser

In another place John also said this..."He must increase and I must decrease."  John 3:30  Enjoy this day in Christ!  It's worth it and so were you to your LORD!  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

Being Still

"Be still and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!  The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress."  Psalm 46:10-11

The world is going faster and faster and I am finding it more and more difficult to slow down or as the Psalmist challenges us to "be still".  I remember going to a monastery in Kentucky several years ago called Gethsemani.  

Gethsemani is a collection of monks that included, at one time, Thomas Merton.  Merton was the author of many books including The Seven Storey Mountain and Seeds of Contemplation.  His primary focus in life was social justice issues throughout the world.  Anyway...I digress.

I can see where I spent time at Gethsemani in this picture and as I reflect on that time I am amazed again at the monks focus when I was there.  Their stillness was a testimony of what I think the Psalmist was pointing too here in Psalm 46.  It isn't a matter of NOT moving around or NOT doing a whole variety of things.  It IS a matter of focusing towards what really matters and more specifically being still and "KNOWING THAT GOD IS GOD" and that He will be exalted in the earth.  It seems like a simple thing to accept but we often live so differently than that.  

There are many things that are going to test all of us along the way in asking 'what would Jesus do?'  I have already experienced that testing as I am sure you have.  The key ingredient in continuing onward is to truly "be still" in Christ and have this absolute promise as our bedrock principle that HE IS OUR FORTRESS! He will guard us as we are "still" in Him.  

Take time to be still and know that God is God today as you rest in His fortress.  It is a wonderfully safe place to be.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

P.S.  Notice anything about the monastery?  Looks like a fortress doesn't it?  I wonder if that's a coincidence?  Their life is not for everyone but it sure looked good when I was there.  Except for that give up my wife thing and all.  haha

JOY

"You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him, you trust him; and even now you are happy with a glorious, inexpressible joy." 1 Peter 1:8

An "inexpressible joy", doesn't that sound great? Have you ever found yourself so happy you couldn't say anything? That's what Peter has in mind here as he is overwhelmed by the grace that God has given him. His focus is on the gift that has been given and the trust we demonstrate but more than that he is focused on the fruit of putting your trust in the One who is able to give us REAL JOY! "I came that you might have life and have it to the full." said Jesus in John 10:10

I am having a great time asking 'what would Jesus do?' today not because it is easy to answer or because it is easy to apply. Both are very difficult on a moment by moment basis. I am having a great time asking the question because the joy that is before me is so great and I GET TO experience it in Christ. I have had some of the greatest conversations of my life over the last couple of days . I have truly been amazed at the prospect of joy that is before me in all of these conversations. When talking with people it has been the expectation of God transforming them and making them more and more like Christ. At the same time God is transforming me to make me more and more like Christ. Absolutely awesome! I also have had some of the hardest conversations. In those hard conversations I have asked 'what would Jesus do?' time and time again and honestly sometimes I haven't been sure. What I have been sure of is that "He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward." Heb. 12:2

Looking forward to hearing the stories of what God is doing! I am already so amazed at the joy in seeing it happen. What would Jesus do today? Love God and love others. Pastor Peter

Reality

"Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God."  1 Peter 4:1-2

I had a great day yesterday.  I hope you all did as well.  At the same time I felt like I needed hours away from everyone so I could think about what it really means to ask the question "what would Jesus do?" and then do it.  Time goes by so quickly and it seems to me that my life is determined by so many things that are forced on me rather than me choosing to do them.  Because of that I thought this text was great this morning as we continue to wrestle with our daily reality and this decision we have made.

"ARM YOURSELVES WITH THE SAME WAY OF THINKING" is the line that stuck out to me.  Also the "ceased from sin" part but I am still thinking about that and doing a little reading on the side to understand what Peter is talking about more.  What does it mean to be armed with the same way of thinking as Christ?  I reflect back to Philippians 2 and Christ who did not consider "equality with God as something to be grasped but emptied Himself" and I begin to understand.  Jesus was ALL ABOUT THE WILL OF GOD!  He didn't sit around waiting for some divine sign but rather got up early prayed to His Father, reflected on the Word He had heard from as a youth and then stepped out in faith to live it before the world.  Good stuff and simple enough for me.  

Prayer, the Word and step out believing that God is with you wherever you go!  Sounds like a plan for DAY 2.

Much love and prayers along the way.  LGLO,  Pastor Peter

Getting Started

"For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in His steps." 1 Peter 2:21 NLT

Well dear brothers and sisters we are off and running. God is so good, so strong and so mighty, there is nothing my God cannot do. Sounds like Ephesians 3:20,21 in a kid version for sure. "Now to Him is ABLE to do immeasurably more than we ask or think..." Fantastic stuff. I am so thankful that you all are willing to join me on this crazy journey. I expect God to do some amazing stuff in this year ahead. I hope you are expecting that as well!

We started this blog spot so that you can post the stories of what God is doing in and through you during this year long adventure. I hope that you will not only avail yourself of the stories regularly but that you will update us on what God is doing in you so that we can share in the joy, tears, laughter, victories and defeats.

Let me give you a couple of starter points. I already shared with you that I am not sure what God has in store or how to do this...winging it together is a great step of faith:

1) Don't forget that salvation is a gift. Ephesians 2:8,9 I know you realize that already but it is a great reminder. God loves you already as much as He ever will love you. What we do can and does please our LORD but it doesn't get Him to love us more or earn us "brownie" points.
2) I know I scared you a little about the attacks coming your way and the challenge this is going to be. That is for the best. Remember Paul's admonition in Ephesians 6:12 "For we are not fighting against flesh and blook enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places." NLT Also remember that we are stepping out believing that this is possible. It is possible to ask "what would Jesus do?" in all of our circumstances and get a true Biblical answer led be the Holy Spirit without just slapping a Bible verse on it. The SPIRIT WILL lead us!
3) Studying 1 Peter until the end of the year is worth it as I mentioned already. Read through it over and over again to understand the context of Peter's challenge to the church. After that your own Bible plan and prayer is up to you. If you want some help with that please let someone know or let me know and we will work on it together.
4) Pray without ceasing. 1 Thess. 5:17 Be devoted to prayer. Col. 4:2 Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be open to you. For to those that ask receive and to them that seek find and to those who knock the door will be opened." Matthew 7:7-8 PRAYER IS IMPORTANT! Don't forget!
5) We are in this TOGETHER. Whatever happens good, bad, totally sold out or struggling it is ok! We will work on it together! God will be exalted and we will be different a year from now for sure!

Praying with and for you all! Loving God and loving others, Pastor Peter

P.S. Find a copy of In His Steps and read it over Christmas time. It is worth it!
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