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In this morning's newspaper was an article that told of a mother who was helping her 14 year old son build up an arsenal of weapons. Now...granted...possession of all sorts of guns are legal and currently protected by the Constitution, but I can't help but wonder why anyone would build up an arsenal without having a plan to use it (think David Koresh). In this case the boy was being bullied in school and this was the only act of revenge he could think of. My wife remarked, "What do you expect? That's all we see on TV anymore." Deranged felons and psychological misfits seem to make good news and TV drama stories. And, of course, that's what intrigues the interest and imagination of many a watcher; just look at the ratings. Don't try to convince me that the media in America doesn't influence some of our country's citizens, especially the impressionable ones and those who have little or no coping skills. There's enough we think of all by ourselves without the added negative influence. Not only do we have the freedom to bear arms, but we have the freedom to write and print anything we want, even if it hurts people, families and America.
What ever happened to "responsible" freedom? In a spiritual context, Paul asked a simple rhetorical question, "(Now that we have freedom from the Old Testament Laws) shall we keep sinning so that grace may increase?" (Romans. 6:1-2) In a modern day perspective, we should ask ourselves, "Even though we have the freedom to do so, shall greed be the motivator in our financial institutions, shall hate and superiority dictate how we treat others, shall the prospect of high ratings justify sex, violence and inappropriate behavior in TV productions, and shall we let our freedom to bear arms determine the revenge methods we use against others?" I have no idea where America is going from here; but I do know if we continue on the same course, it ain't gonna be pretty.
Here's a disclaimer: I know a solution is not as simple as keeping TV clean. But I do believe its a matter of learning at a very early age to respect people, develop coping skills when things go wrong and believing in a God that loves us.
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We made some pretty good progress last Tuesday night's Core Group meeting. After a time for discussion and Q&A, we formed two of the 10 launch strategy teams, the Prayer Team and the Marketing Team. These are two vital teams that need to be operating ASAP. Well, you know we've been praying all along for The Bridge, now we want to do it better and involve more people. I told the group that the MyChurch family has been interested in what we are doing and also praying for us. Thanks guys.
The Marketing Team is vital, also. On my own, I've talked about The Bridge on MyChurch, opened a MySpace account (www.myspace.com/thebridgeofhavelock) , updated our church website (www.cherrypointbaptist.com) from time to time, and then I write to 104 folks on my group email list an E-Letter from The Bridge called "Bridge Work". But now we are needing others to get involved with other, more local, needs. Specifically, there's a military community in our target area that is restricted to our canvassing methods; we'll have to be more creative.
For those new readers of my blog, let me explain what The Bridge is all about. The Bridge is a multi-site venue sponsored by our home church to meet in a neutral place (non-church) for worship and discipleship. The mission is to reach out to the un-churched and de-churched folks that the traditional church has not been able to reach. It will be creative and innovative and especially designed for the target community.
So that's it in a nutshell. Thanks to all my MyChurch friends who have been praying for us! PTL!
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How many times have I thought to myself, "I'm going to turn a new leaf. I'm going to quit what I'm doing, so I can become a better person. I'm going to start Monday...or...I'll begin right after I'm done with this...or...this is the last time." I've been there, have you?
It's sort of like starting a weight reduction diet. The evidence is there (bulging mid-section). The desire and determination is there (pumped up). The start date approaches (usually Monday morning). The first week went well (lie!). Wow! I lost three pounds. The second week I slip a little, but I still lose two pounds. The third week I slipped a bit, gained back two pounds (I blame it on those pot-luck dinners and the dessert table!). The fourth week. Boy, this is harder than I thought. Fifth week, what diet? Net weight gain: 6 1/2 pounds.
"I am weak, but thou art strong..." the song goes; a grim reminder that weakness is perpetual. But does it have to be in all aspects of my Christian walk? I think not. The secret of overcoming weakness, especially spiritual weakness is passion. Passion and taking one thing at a time. All I want is the "closer walk with thee" part of the song. And that's where it starts: desire gives way to passion if my determination is strong.
In my later years, I have discovered a talent that I have for pencil drawing. I was passionate about it at first and thought I had become very good at it. Then I drew less frequently and discovered that it was harder for me to get things to look right. The BIG discovery here was not my talent, but the learned fact that I need to keep my passion in the forefront in order for it to become successful and flourish.
Now I can answer my own question, "How many times have I thought that?" Just this last time. Thank you Lord!
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I must admit, I have recently been forced to confront my prayer life...or I should say, my LACK of a prayer life. About six weeks ago, I became aware of my mild depression. I call an episode like this a "blue funk". During that time, I recognized that I was not confident about my prayers. In fact, I found myself sinking to ungodly attitudes. Was God actually listening to me? Do things turn out the way they do because of chance anyway? Does God really care about me and my concerns or my condition? Do I rely on the often recited excuse that God answers all prayers with "no", "yes" or "not now"?
So, here's what happened. I finally sat down and talked about my depression with someone. My wife. I talked, she listened. In fact, I missed church that morning because I had to let it all out. My wife offered no remedy that day. Monday morning came around and I muddled through mundane administrative tasks. Lunch time. I opened my lunchbox to see a page from a popular daily devotional. The date on the top of the page was months ago, but as I read the two paragraphs, I became acutely aware that it was meant for me. Here's the lesson I got from it: It's not about me and what I want or expect from prayer, it's about my relationship to the heavenly Father. It's about feeling confident enough and faithful enough to keep my relationship with God strong through communing with Him in prayer. It's not about successful prayer, it's about faithfulness. Then, if God so desires, my prayers are answered and my faith is rewarded.
Today, I'm feeling better knowing that angels are all around. And one of them had gone into my lunchbox.
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Some of my friends have been asking about The Bridge, our church's new multi-site venture. Since I've not been able to post anything for awhile, there's been some good progress. First of all, we have nearly completed the preparation of our Core Group Team (Vision, Mission, Core Values, Covenant) and then a target community has been selected. We have talked to the elementary school that serves the area and the principal is very much in favor of us using her facilities for a worship service each week. After prayerwalking the area, our Core Group surveyed the neighborhood. We haven't totally evaluated the results yet, but we did share our impressions at a luncheon after the survey.
We have reworked our logo (the one we were using was already being used by a company in Atlanta) and have outlined a task list to be completed before we launch, hopefully in late January '09. But there is much more to be done. A website dedicated to The Bridge is being now considered and organizing our finances need to be done more formally, especially in the area of fund projections.
God is good. I believe He has led us as far as we have come. My prayer is that we would keep our eyes on Him, recognize His leadership and not jump the gun. Thanks for your continued prayers...it's a worthwhile investment...after all, there are many people out there that need to follow Christ.
Here's our vision statement:
Our vision is to witness the complete transformation of our city as
as people become fully devoted followers of Christ
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