Here is a link to the Strength for the Journey talk I did last week
Monday, March 28, 2022
Sunday, March 20, 2022
Sweet Spot Hitting in the Game of Life (Bring both bats)
What do a baseball/softball bat, ping pong paddle, tennis racquet, and golf club have in common? They all have a sweet spot. In baseball or softball, the primary offensive goal is to hit the ball on the bat's sweet spot. That is where the most incredible power occurs over the ball. Liam, my youngest son, chooses to use a wooden bat. Wooden bats are more balanced, but they have a much smaller sweet spot. Sweet spot hits on a wooden bat are fantastic. They go far, and they sound great. However, if you don’t hit the ball on the sweet spot, the ball hardly goes anywhere, leaving your hands with a burning, stinging, and numb sensation.
Another advantage is the batter can see ball marks from each hit. Liam can see where baseballs were hit in his first two years of little league. He can see permanent reminders of his performance. He sees where the ball leaves a stain. He can see when his hits were right on the mark and when they fall short of the sweet spot.
This year, it was time to upgrade to a longer bat. We went to SabreCat bats, and he ordered his new bat. He was excited. It had a new design, and he was able to start fresh. No marks! One of the owners told him that the pros always hit the ball on the sweet spot in batting practice.
Our Christian life is similar. Our goal is Transformation. Romans 12- Do not conform, but be transformed. We strive to clothe ourselves with Christ. We want to be the salt of the earth. Just like baseball and softball players trying to find the sweet spot, we train as Christians, working to find how God can use us the most and how we can have the best impact. However, we shouldn’t confuse the goal of being like Christ or Christian living with the goal of salvation.
Just like Liam’s wooden bat has a small sweet spot, we know that our God is way more significant, more amazing, and perfect than we could ever imagine. Because God is God and He is perfect, our best is not close to good enough. Isaiah 64:6 our very best deeds are like filthy rags. That means the sweet spot is teeny tiny- impossible to find. Sin is falling short of the mark.
The sweet spot is impossible for us to find. Our love for Christ, makes us want to hit the best we can so that we can show others His love, but when it comes to making our relationship right with God, Jesus becomes our designated hitter. When we accept Christ in our hearts, God does not see our dirty bats that show many stains of imperfection. He sees His son with a bat with ball marks perfectly placed on the sweet spot. When God looks at us, He sees Christ in our place. With Christ in our hearts, we never step up to the plate of life alone, and we destroy life’s curveballs because Christ is always victorious.
As we prepare for communion, may we confess our sins. We acknowledge we fall short and we celebrate His forgiveness in our lives.
Saturday, February 12, 2022
Believe
Believe!
This morning, as we prepare for communion, I want to talk about unbelievable things becoming believable.
Today is Superbowl Sunday. Did you know the Bengals won four games last year? Last year, they were the worst in the AFC North, and analysts picked them to finish last in the AFC North this year. This year, 27 out of 32 teams were more likely to make it to the Superbowl than them.
Unbelievable!
Speaking of unbelievable, I want you to imagine being a high school basketball player. Imagine it being the fourth period, and you are losing by two. The opposing team is shooting a foul shot, and you have one second left. Would you give up?
Take a look at this video. I bet this kid would tell you it is not over until it’s over. Did you hear the other fans? Na na na na na na hey hey. Well, Jake Ramsey’s shot made them say “goodbye” to their dream of winning the game right then and there. AMAZING Full Court BUZZER BEATER! BEST of ALL TIME???? MUST SEE!!!!
Unbelievable!
Speaking of unbelievable, we serve a savior who hung on a cross, had a sword pierce his side, and nails pounded through his hands and feet. Talk about an amazing buzzer-beater? Christ came back to life in three days! No one ever would imagine he would come back to life. His resurrection changed the lives of billions and was so unbelievable that millions have sacrificed their lives because of it.
Unbelievable!
Speaking of unbelievable, have you ever felt like you couldn’t catch a break? Have you ever felt like a failure? Do the odds seem stacked against you? Have you ever tried to win at anything in life but keep messing up?
As we prepare our hearts and minds for communion this morning, I want to encourage you never to believe and never give up. I want to take one more step and tell you Christ can do unbelievable things in you and through you. You may not see the light at the end of the tunnel. Never give up. Keep the faith. Keep trying. Belief is not just a state of mind. It is a doing. Do your part to get better. To live at peace. To make amends. To forgive and forget. Put in the work, but then hang on to Christ. Remain in Him. Remain. He will produce great fruit in your life.
Let’s pray: Father, you are unbelievable. When we think of your power, we are simply dumbfounded. You created the sun, which can fit over one million earths! You are that big and mighty, and yet you gave us your son who can take all of our sins. Thank you for doing unbelievable things on earth. Thank you for Jesus. Forgive us for falling short. We confess our sins and pray for more of you in our lives, in the life of our church, and in our community. Would you do amazing things through us here, Lord? We love you. In Jesus name, Amen
Sunday, January 2, 2022
Power of the Providential Pause
As we prepare for communion this morning, I would like to talk about the Power of the Providential Pause. I want to start by asking a few questions and then share something that has helped me deal with the feels. In the last 48 hours, how many of you have felt any of the following: Read emotions of anger, sadness, and then confusion?
If you went grocery shopping on New Year’s Eve, I guarantee you experienced half of those emotions, and if you are a Brown’s fan, I assure you have felt them all! When it comes to emotions, I want to ask a question: What is the wise thing to do when those emotions are high? How do you say no to the emotions that compete for your control? Your feelings are not who you are. You are a child of God. Communion reminds us Christ lives in us. It is normal to want those emotions to go away. Instead, welcome those emotions and look at them through the frame of Jesus and the cross.
Let me explain. Here is where the providential pause comes in. When your emotions are high, I want to encourage you to hit pause. I want to guide you through prayer now. This is the prayer I use to help when My emotions are high and other times for that matter. Please bow your heads or sit tall and look downward or at the cross. Take a few deep breaths and say this, “Our Father, Who Art in Heaven.”
By doing so, you are saying, God, you are my father. You love me. That means you are patient with me and my emotions, you are kind when I don’t feel kind, and you are not rude when I feel like I am. You keep no record of wrongs. You forgive me when I fall short. You do not delight in evil, but you rejoice in the truth. Help me know your truth. You always protect, trust, hope, and persevere. You will not fail me. Who art in heaven. Thank you for loving me unlike any earthly father could.
Help me be patient with others. In fact, I have one person I am thinking about now. Help me be kind, help me not be envious. Help me not be boastful, help me not be rude or self-seeking. Help me keep no record of wrongs. Help me not to delight in evil, but rejoice in your truth and to always protect those around me. Help me always trust, hope, and persevere for those I encounter.
Praise God for the positive emotions He provides (Happy, Strong, and Energized).
Sunday, November 28, 2021
Right Thinking Over Time With God's Help= Changed Life
I decided to not present the communion meditation I posted yesterday. I am using this instead:
Happy Thanksgiving. Things are about to get crazy! Parties, gifts, food, Christmas cards, concerts, Christmas lights, snow, snowball fights, ice- please be careful! The hustle and bustle! Exciting but stressful. This time can be wonderful, but it can also be super distracting. I would like you all to set aside all of the holiday feels right now and invite you to join me in a time of Christian meditation. Take a nice deep breath and sigh as you breathe out because God wants to give you peace right now. Right now, we focus on communion. Communion is about focusing on what matters. Jesus provides a great example of the power of proper focus. I would like to read from Hebrews 12:1-3,
Hebrews 12:1-3
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
As Jesus endured the cross, we know he sweat blood and was in misery. But we are also told he scorned or “thought nothing of” the shame. We are told He felt a deep sense of joy knowing He would save the world. He could have called 10,000 angels and slaughtered all the evil people around him. However, His focus or His thinking was correct. His focus was not on himself but on what God would do through the cross for all humankind forever.
As we examine our hearts, we acknowledge our guilt and feel the shame of our sins. We are sorry. Godly sorrow leads us to eagerness for Him, alarm, longing, and concern that we need Him to make things right.
Communion is a time to repent. Do you know what repent means? Repent means right thinking. Communion is a time to think correctly about who we are- sinners who need a savior and who Jesus is- our perfect sacrificial lamb. We are all guilty. Our guilt leads us to the cross and a sense of relief and victory. As we focus on His love, our guilt leads us to accept His protection, His hope, His forgiveness, peace, grace, power, patience, kindness, gentleness, and through all of this, He makes us overcomers.
You see, with right thinking about who we are in Him and what He can do through us, over time, with God’s help, He will lead us to a changed life. Here is an equation that I like to share. Right thinking/time with God’s help=changed life. Please join me in prayer:
Father, thank you for being faithful and just and for cleansing us from all unrighteousness. We know that w you, all things are possible. Thank you for carrying our shame. We confess we are guilty. But our shame isn’t what defines us. Jesus defines us. And even in the moments when our shame weighs on us heavily, we can look to you, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, knowing that He took our guilt and shame away forever. We pray for your guidance as we press on toward growing in our relationship with you.
Saturday, November 27, 2021
A Nice Big Helping of Guilt and Shame!
Happy Thanksgiving. At a time to reflect on all of the things we have to be thankful for, what better topic to discuss around the holidays than guilt and shame.
Was the stuffing or Turkey that you cooked and brought to the meal gathering too dry? Did you forget to make the green bean mushroom soup casserole or leave it on the counter at home? Did you show up late to the family gathering or speak too harshly at your kids if they got a little carried away? Perhaps you said too much when discussing the latest political news and views or maybe you should have kept your mouth shut when your mother-in-law commented on your father-in-law’s toupe. If so, maybe you also helped yourself to a nice big helping of guilt and shame for your ride home.
As your mind ruminated on these ideas perhaps you thought that the holidays are a microcosm of what really happens in life. That’s right, not only do you feel like a Thanksgiving loser, but now you feel like a big loser overall!
Well, good news! No one is perfect and no one is ever going to get everything right. In fact, we may make the same mistakes over and over again. Like Browns fans, we always hope it will be better next year, but, the difference is that with Christ we will be victorious.
When it comes time for communion, we are faced with this reality of life. We are asked to examine ourselves. Examine our hearts. If you are sitting here right now struggling with focus and/or you feel like a big Thanksgiving loser, Jesus is encouraging us to not give up.
The purpose of communion is to draw us to Him. To examine our hearts and remember and give thanks for Christ and His sacrifice for our sins. The purpose of this moment is to help us focus. If your mind keeps racing or you continue to make the same mistakes, don’t throw in the towel. Don’t allow feelings of guilt and shame to keep you from working on directing your heart and mind during this moment.
Hebrews 12:1-3
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Father, thank you for being faithful and just and for cleansing us from all unrighteousness. We know that w you, all things are possible. thank you for carrying our shame. We confess we are guilty. But our shame isn’t what defines us. Jesus defines us. And even in the moments when our shame weighs on us heavily, we can look to you, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, knowing that He took our guilt and shame away forever. We pray for your guidance as we press on toward growing in our relationship with you.
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