Fat Tuesday - SWEET!!!!!

Yes, I had a paczki today. It is Fat Tuesday!!!!

No, I will not be going to church tomorrow. It is Ash Wednesday.

However, this Sunday, our pastor handed out the book :"50 Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die." by John Piper. It is also called: "The Passion of Jesus Christ: 50 Reasons he came to die."

As he explained it, their is a lot of wisdom to what the Roman Catholics do with the whole Ash Wednesday/Lent thing. It is total preparation for Resurrection Sunday. Easter. The day all Christians received the power. The day all Christians won. The day all Christians received the ability to look upon the world in Resurrection Wonder.

It is the crux of Christianity.

He asked each househld to read one of the reasons every day and ponder it and realize it everyday until Easter. (There are 49 days, from last Sunday - the 26th).

From time to time I may post a quick paragraph or snipet of the book. I am really excited to do this and agree that the principal behind Lent is something maybe all Christians should do. Personally, I have always wished that Easter received the same fanfare as Christmas, actually more. Longer vacations, a month long build-up. Sights and sounds everywhere you go. I feel compelled beyond more than anything to be in church on Easter than any other day (even Christmas).

It is just me.

The Christmas story is amazing with a host of angels and shepherds and a massive party in the sky.

Easter is AWESOME with a couple ladies walking to the tomb, finding the rock rolled away and a dude sitting in white telling them that man is free for evermore.

Just 3 days earlier, all seemed lost. Every ounce of blood in their "messiah" was gone and spilled. He was dead. Utter desolation was all they felt. That Easter morning, they all found out that their Messiah was ALIVE.

I am really going to spend more time than usual on these one or two pages I will read from Piper's book daily. Let the whole crucifixtion really set in. Realize the power of the cross and the victory it has wrought for everyone. Try and put myself in a state of being where Easter Celebration will be one of life-changing magnitude.

I would encourage all of you to do the same thing. However you can find a way to do that. Prepare your hearts and minds for Easter.

Until then

God Bless

Free Verse 3 - 1 Corinthians 13: 4 - 7

"Love suffers long, and is kind;
love envys not; love does not push
itself forward, is not puffed up,
Love does not behave itself unseemly, love
seeks not her own, it is not easily provoked, love
thinks no evil;
Love does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices
in the truth
Love bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things."


1 John 4:8 - "He that loves not knows not God,
for God is Love


"God suffers long, and is kind;
God envys not; God does not push
himself forward, is not puffed up,
God does not behave himself unseemly, God
seeks not his own, he is not easily provoked, God
thinks no evil;
God does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices
in the truth
God bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things."


"I and my Father are One." - Jesus (John 10:30)


"Jesus suffers long, and is kind;
Jesus envys not; Jesus does not push
himself forward, is not puffed up,
Jesus does not behave himself unseemly, Jesus
seeks not his own, he is not easily provoked, Jesus
thinks no evil;
Jesus does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices
in the truth
Jesus bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things."


Romans 8: 29 - From whom he did foreknow, he also
did predestinate to be conformed to the image of
his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many
brethren.

Phillippians 2:5 - Let this mind be in you, which was
also in Christ Jesus


"Brian suffers long, and is kind;
Brian envys not; Brian does not push
himself forward, is not puffed up,
Brian does not behave himself unseemly, Brian
seeks not his own, he is not easily provoked, Brian
thinks no evil;
Brian does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices
in the truth
Brian bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things."

*******************************************

Is this true of myself? More often than not, no!

I have some work to do.

Feel free to enter your name when you read this.
This is a direct correlation and is a a new way I have
never looked at this passage of Scripture before.

Buzz Words

I love buzz words. Well, not love, but I like them a lot. Maybe that is part of the reason I studied Marketing and Advertising in College. Even the real lame and stupid ones. I like some of the real catchy ones too. My wife Michele is always laughing or mocking me at my hypocrisy. My hypocrisy in the fact that I allow pop, mainstream, corporate, etc. culture to enter my life and live it to an extent. You see, I really cannot stand when people let this happen to themselves. Examples of this (and whether or not I have fallen victim) are American Idol (no), Fear Factor (no), MTV (check), People Magazine (no), Donald Trump (check), and Reality TV (no). The list goes on. Feel free to add your own.

Anyway, I digress slightly. The Pastoral leadership at my church has started using some of our own buzz words. These are classic buzz words and the more you think on them the more you have to question yourself and ponder them. Unwrap them and see where they apply to your life.

In no particular order here they are (well they are in some order, you'll see later):

1. Club Church
2. Christian Ghetto
3. Constipated Christian (introduced this past Sunday into our lexicon)

I really love using these terms in day-to-day conversation with believers and non-believers alike. When I hear them I cannot help but snicker a little bit. I'll break these down for you here a little in hopes that you will start to use them yourself.

1 - Club Church - When the church is more worried about:

• who is allowed in (clientale of the club)
• what you wear (dress code of the club)
• the music that is played (format of the club)
• the Bible translation that is used (the proper language to use in the club)

you have become a club. A location where rules dictate activity and not God and the Holy Spirit.

2 - Christian Ghetto - It's where only Christians hang out and compound each other's problems and fail to get out and experience what God has for them in their life. They know nothing else. Worse, they are pressured by the owners of Club Church (you see, they run and operate the ghetto) to stay there and complain about everything outside of the ghetto and how they always get the raw deal.

3 - Constipated Christian - the Christian who receives God's love and blessings. The power of God has moved them in their lives (the same power that has defeated the grave). They recognize it and know it. Yet, they keep it all to themselves and keep it packed inside themselves. Then they harass and proclaim that people who do not have as much as they have are weak and need a revival. Nevermind that they go against

1. Matthew 22: 37 - 40
2. Mark 12: 30 - 31
3. Luke 10: 25 - 28
4. John 13: 34 - 35

And no matter what they do, when they do not share this love of God, they fail to realize this is what they are: 1 Corinthians 13: 1-3

And if they continue it, Jesus has said: Revelation 2: 2 - 5

Buzz words, I really like them. Especially when they are dead center right on.

****************************************************************************************

***Continue to pray for Michele and the missions team in Brazil. As well as there families.

If you are not sure what I am talking about, read my previous post (just below this one).***

Rio Branco, Brazil

Well, Michele departs today for an 11-day adventure as a missionary for the gospel of Jesus to the natives of Rio Branco, Brazil and the Amazon Jungle. Her and 5 others are going on behalf of our church to aid our missionaries (Aaron and Tiffany Epps) already there during the time of Carnival.

Carnival is Mardi Gras all juiced up on drugs and steroids. During this time, the natives from the Amazon come into the city. By law, no one can enter the jungle and spread the gospel. So this time is the only time some of these people will ever hear the name Jesus. It just so happens to coincide with a week of drunken debauchery, spirit worship, occult happenings, and wild and lewd laschivousness.

They will be doing prayer walks and street evangalism (by doing paint talks) as well as children's ministry. They will have one day at the end of the trip to be a "tourist."

Pray for Michele and the other members (Julie Jones, Matt Mathis, Bob Mydlowski, Silas Gray, and Chandra Gray).

• They will be strong and courageous and stand upon the truth and gospel of Christ.
• That God's will would be done in the people that they meet and talk to.
• Safe travels to and from - today alone they leave Detroit for Miami, then to Sao Paolo where they have a 12 hour layover!!! From Sao Paolo to Brasilia and then finally to Rio Branco. Whew!!!! She returns home on March 4th, but the flying starts on the 3rd and isn't quite as bad.
• Pray for all their families too. All involved will feel God's provedintial hand and his protection.

On a personal note, Michele's leap of faith and heed to God's call has been an inspiration to me and caused me to look a lot deeper at myself and the things I do. I am so proud of her and still cannot believe she is the woman God put in my life to marry.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He Who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds...let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10: 23 - 25).

When I Look at the World

When you look at the world
What is it that you see
People find all kinds of things
That bring them to their knees
I see an expression
So clear and so true
That changes the atmosphere
When you walk into the room

So I try to be like you
Try to feel it like you do
But without you it's no use
I can't see what you see
When I look at the world

When the night is someone elses
And you're trying to get some sleep
When your thoughts are too expensive
To ever want to keep
When there's all kinds of chaos
And everyone is walking lame
You don't even blink now, do you
Or even look away

So I try to be like you
Try to feel it like you do
But without you it's no use
I can't see what you see
When I look at the world

I can't wait any longer
I can't wait till I'm stronger
I can't wait any longer
To see what you see
When I look at the world

I'm in the waiting toom
Can't see for the smoke
I think of you and your holy book
While the rest of us choke
Tell me, tell me, what do you see
Tell me, tell me, what's wrong with me

- U2 "When I Look at the World"
**************************************

Brother Bono

Do You See Your Calling?

. . separated to the gospel of God. . .

—Romans 1:1

Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the gospel of God. The one all-important thing is that the gospel of God should be recognized as the abiding reality. Reality is not human goodness, or holiness, or heaven, or hell— it is redemption. The need to perceive this is the most vital need of the Christian worker today. As workers, we have to get used to the revelation that redemption is the only reality. Personal holiness is an effect of redemption, not the cause of it. If we place our faith in human goodness we will go under when testing comes.

Paul did not say that he separated himself, but "when it pleased God, who separated me . . ." ( Galatians 1:15 ). Paul was not overly interested in his own character. And as long as our eyes are focused on our own personal holiness, we will never even get close to the full reality of redemption. Christian workers fail because they place their desire for their own holiness above their desire to know God. "Don’t ask me to be confronted with the strong reality of redemption on behalf of the filth of human life surrounding me today; what I want is anything God can do for me to make me more desirable in my own eyes." To talk that way is a sign that the reality of the gospel of God has not begun to touch me. There is no reckless abandon to God in that. God cannot deliver me while my interest is merely in my own character. Paul was not conscious of himself. He was recklessly abandoned, totally surrendered, and separated by God for one purpose— to proclaim the gospel of God (see Romans 9:3 ).


-Oswald Chambers - "My Utmost for His Highest" (January 31)