Sinning to Death

This weekend we wrap up our study in the book of James with his admonishment to the church to confess trespasses, pray for one another and even be willing to confront the wayward.  As I worked this week to wrap my mind around this concept and its implications, I was reminded of the fact that to do this requires that I give up the hope of a "normal" life.  What normal person confesses to another person,  what normal person makes it a habit to confront sin?  Normal people don't interfere with someone else's private life, normal people don't whip out the sandwich boards and bullhorns. To live the Christian life, we are to be peculiar.

Someone reminded me of this earlier this week as they related the sentiments of a co-worker that said "You Christians hate everybody."   The reality is that what is often seen as hate is the most self sacrificing form of love. It would be so much easier to pretend to love you by patting you on the back and encouraging your sin, or patting you on the head and making light of your ignorance.  I don't want to be seen as a hater.  I don't want to stand out as the nut-case Christian.  I don't want others to see me, and groan.  I am tempted to sit still and be quiet.  I am tempted to mind my own business.  I am tempted to live and let live.

But I am called to make a difference.  I am called to love people as I love myself.  To place my love for God and His Gospel above all that this world has to offer.  God's word teaches that there is a sin that is unto death.  It is possible for a person, a culture, or a nation to sin itself to death.  We are called to confront a world gone wrong.  We must accept that what is seen as love is actually hatred, and what is loving will be at first seen as hatred.  The doctor who gives the vaccine, or sets the broken arm, know this very well.  The momentary pain and "hatred" they inflict is for the long term good.  In fact, inflicting pain is the most loving thing they can do.  The man on the side of the road screaming at the cars driving by is seen as a lunatic, until the driver learns that the bridge is out.

We must be willing to love.  We must understand that our friends and family are sinning themselves to death and that God has placed us where we are to shine as lights in the darkness.  Harsh, is the unfortunate reality.  Hatred is the perception. But love is the responsibility for every one who claims to know the Truth.

James 5:19

¹⁹Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 

²⁰let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

BIG Money

Last night at our prayer meeting I found out that there is a group of ladies who are specifically praying for God to give us 9 million dollars for the next stage of ministry here in Four Corners.   I was amazed at the specificity of the prayer and its simplicity.    I remember the days of the $25,000 pyramid, and Wheel of Fortune's cry of "Big Money Big Money!"   One's idea of big money I guess changes with time and now I can clearly see God blessing our church with $9,000,000 and not blinking an eye.  As I was driving earlier this morning I began thinking about the faith of those ladies, and pondered where and more specifically how God will answer that prayer.  I truly believe that money does not grow on trees, but that God uses people to finance His work in our community.

What is amazing is that while we were not watching, God has already begun to answer that prayer.  to date, God's people have given almost $950,000 to this community through Cornerstone Baptist Church.  By January, that number will top 1 million dollars of ministry invested into this community!  I think that is stinkin awesome!!!  It is amazing to just pause and reflect on the goodness of God, and the faithfulness of His people.  Meeting in rented facilities, it may appear to some that Cornerstone is some minor player in church world, but if the last 6 years are any indication, the people of Cornerstone believe in giving of themselves for not only changing our community, but the world.  By the way,  every investor will tell you, the first million is the most difficult.  May we all stay faithful in our giving and in the use of those funds for the effective spread of the gospel around the world.

Online Meeting Place

One of the things that fascinate me about today's church culture is that we are able to be so much closer to one another than generations past.  For instance, On Tuesday night I watched the Rays Baseball game with my brother and this morning I spoke to my aunt.  On the surface, that is nothing astounding.  However, I watched that game on my couch in FL and my brother was in Raleigh.  This morning I was cooking breakfast in FL and my Aunt was cooking supper in Cambodia.  Never before has the body of Christ had so much opportunity to be  in community with people who are not in our immediate community.

This week I built a facebook group for Cornerstone that will I hope be a place where we can connect with our mission pastors overseas, as well as many of the vacation home owners, and snowbirds that regularly visit from around the world.  I believe that this is an opportunity for our church to build life together in a way that does not require us to be in proximity in order to build one another up.  I want to encourage all who attend as well as all who love and care for our church to join this group and take a moment to give a brief paragraph of how you came to Christ.

From time to time we will post pictures of events, carry on conversations, and we may even plan an online Bible Study using this format in the future.  The Bible tells us to consider one another, how to stir one another up to love and good works.  This site will give us one more opportunity to be an encouragement, why don't you join the conversation.

Celebrating Recovery

In life as in football fumbles are made.  While making one's way towards the goal, you drop the ball.  Dropping balls is never part of the strategy of any team.  In fact, you will find that most teams devote great time and energy into not dropping the ball.  Typically when the ball is dropped, there is a scramble, followed by a dog pile.  The poor soul who dropped the ball is doing his best to recover, but everyone else is piling on.  At the bottom of the pile a battle rages as the one who dropped the ball fights to regain control.  If the opponent successfully takes the ball then he will celebrate.  But often, when the player recovers his own fumble, the rest of the team shakes their head, wipes their brow, and takes a breath.  Then the fumbler will hang his head, and trot towards the sidelines.  Though this is what often happens, this is not what should happen.  Recovery of any fumble deserves to be celebrated.  Winning a battle at the bottom of the pile is no easy task.  Sure, fumbles should be avoided at all costs, but when they happen and a recovery is made, the whole team ought to storm the field in celebration.

Tonight at Cornerstone we will begin to celebrate recovery with a new breakout group for those who battle addictions.  As far as I know, there are no such groups at all in Four Corners.  Tonight, for the first time, we will get to the bottom of the pile with those fighting to regain control, and we will cheer them on, and when they emerge with a recovery we will celebrate.  Then if they fumble the ball, or stumble and fall, we will come alongside them all over again, anticipating celebrating recovery.

Celebrating Recovery
Wednesdays 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.
Four Corners Charter Elementary School
For information, Call 888-836-7234

Iraqi Underground

Yesterday I got to meet a pastor of a former underground church in Iraq. I say former because after "Iraqi Freedom" they are free to worship Christ. Here are some things I took away from the meeting: Milad is an Iraqi national born in Baghdad. He received Christ as his personal Savior and pastored an underground church in Iraq. Below are some notes from his testimony.

• It all started in Iraq: Eden, Ur, Nineveh, Babylon...
• Muslims do everything "for" God. Our message is that everything has been done.
  
• (He showed pictures of Suni Muslims cutting themselves and even their children)
• Saddam killed at least one member of almost every family in Iraq
• Saddam killed over 1 million Kurds
• Americans say war was a mistake, As an Iraqi, I say it was the greatest thing
• 95% of Iraqis are so happy for the liberation
• The news only shows Baghdad and Mosul
  
• Iraqis celebrate Christmas with trees and lights but they don't know why
• Public schools have invited him to come and teach about Christmas and the Reason
• He is able to distribute Bibles to the public school students and on the street
• Iraqis have more freedom of religion now than America does

"I was having dinner with Karen in Moscow last night..."

So I wake up this morning with an email from Greg Nelson. He and his wife are on the vacation of their life time and while sitting in Moscow he is thinking about his ministry at Cornerstone. I don't know whether to scold him or praise him. He refuses to let a unfinished detail slip by. This is just one example of the dedication of those who serve at Cornerstone. I am always amazed by the level of commitment and the quality of ministry expressed by our people! Thanks Greg and thanks everyone who works so hard to serve our community every week!

Something Old, Something New

I was reading some C.S. Lewis yesterday and he made a very insightful statement about what we read. It is his opinion that we balance our reading by reading as much of the classic/older works as we do the latest and greatest. This is wisdom that many of us (church planters & pastors) need to hear even if we fail to heed it. Classic books on belief and practice are classic because they have stood the test of time. Most of us are futurists and we try to understand our culture and how to best do ministry here and now. Unfortunately some of the latest books have yet to be defined as either classics or fads. The difficulty is that we will not know until the theories have been tested and tried. A balanced approach will help us be more effective and more discerning of the books that we do read. And, I have the wisdom of the classic author C.S. Lewis to thank.

Video Team

What did you think about the video transition yesterday? It is just something we are playing with. Video is the most powerful medium available today to convey messages and we are committed to use it for the glory of God. So.......a little shout out to anyone out there who wants to join me in starting a video team. I would like for us to make a lot more videos for everything from announcements, to testimonies, to showing who we are to the people in our community. We will need people who can shoot video, and people who can act, and people who can edit video on their PC or Mac. Who wants to play? Email me here.

Gimp

A little note for you photo manipulation types out there (you know who you are.) This week I have been test driving a new release of the Gimp program. It seems to do all that Photoshop can do without the $650.00 price tag. It does have a learning curve and is still a bit awkward, as all freeware is, but there is no way I am going to pay
$650, no matter how user friendly it is.

On Pastor's Wives from Time Magazine

Time Magazine has an article on the difficulties of being a pastor's wife. Something this pastor needs to read, and I would bet, most pastors need to know. I for one know that without my wife, I have no ministry. ...Amy, You rock! Article here.

Don't Quit Your Day Job

My good buddy Mark over at Ephesus has a great post that every potential church planter should read. You can find it here. We must change how we define church, back to the biblical model. Buildings are great, but the church is the- ekkle'sia - the body of called out believers assembled together. Too many men who have been called by God as pastors, have chosen to sit this one out because they could not build a large enough congregation to do it vocationally. What would life be like if we applied that same principle to sports? No basketball hoops in the driveways, or parks, it was reserved for people who could gather crowds who pay to see them play. What if music could only be played by paid professionals. (that might not be a bad idea on second thought) Our thinking is warped. Thanks Mark for bringing it front and center. By the way... are you a full time, professional blogger?

Props to my Boy Benj

Today, I will be able to sit in on the ordination council for one of the guys who was in my youth group. Ben and I shared so many good times. From the down load on a Saturday morning following my first date with Amy. Ben is a solid guy and has developed into a great youth pastor. Ben, I am so proud of you. I look forward to celebrating with you.

Natural Law of Reproduction

In Genesis 11:11,12 God gives us a bit of natural law.

Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Natural Law states that everything brings forth fruit after its kind. Evolution aside, this principle applies to all of our lives. Here is where I am going. The purpose of an apple tree is to produce, not apples, but other apple trees. Fruit happens along the way, but that fruit must translate into other trees. The same can be said of the human race, grass, herbs, animals, etc.

As believers we are commanded by God to bear fruit, according to this law, the purpose of Christians is to bring forth after our kind. Therefore Christians should make more Christians. The purpose of discipleship is not smart disciples, but new disciplers. The purpose of churches is to start more churches. each according to its kind. ... And God saw that it was good.

Speaking at Sonshine

Today, I am heading to Port Charlotte to speak to the Sonshine Baptist Church about the importance of church planting. My goal is to challenge them to view thebarrenness among churches equal to that felt by people who cannot have children of their own. Too often churches will settle for chipping in support for the plant of a sister church much in the way that we give gifts to our neices and nephews. As much fun as they might be, neices and nephews can never bring the joy of birthing and bringing to maturity a baby of your own. Maybe, one day we will see a baby church begun, as Sonshine enters the joys of parenthood.