A life not wasted...

Was reading in Psalm 71 this morning...

6 Yes, you have been with me from birth; from my mother’s womb you have cared for me.  No wonder I am always praising you!

It's always easy to read the Bible from a too artistic sense, if you aren't careful.  You can pass by things and say "well, it just appeared to that guy that way" or "he was under a lot of duress" or you can say that "that writer was just caught up in emotion and being drama", but there's a catch there.  Once God allowed it to continue as a part of His book, it became holy writing...it became sacred and without error.  It's not just an opinion like this blog.  I can mis-step...I represent God, I don't transcribe for Him.  The Bible is without error in tone or emphasis or anything.  It communicates exactly what God is trying to say.  Remember...this book is all about us learning what God expects from us and what we can expect from God.

This verse is always eye-opening, especially in the days of pro-choice and pro-life...sometimes, you just need to look for what God places priority on and recognize.  If God chooses to begin His care inside the Mother's womb, then we should too...just sayin'.  From one abortion survivor to another...

Please continue to pray for us as we attempt to be the church of Jesus Christ in Palm Bay, Florida at Bay West Church.

Disaster Relief Team assembling NOW to go to Haiti at end of April!

Hey guys,

Larry mentioned a Disaster Relief Team being put together by the Bay West and Melbourne Campuses of FBC yesterday in the service.  Here is a link to the info on when the team is going and how YOU can be a part of this amazing relief effort firsthand  As Larry told us, over 40,000 people have come to know Christ in Haiti since the tragedy.
 
Click here for info and who to contact if you feel God leading you to step out and "be Jesus" to the people of Haiti.  Pray earnestly about whether God would have you to go and sign up quick, because there are only 8 spots and they will fill up quick.

Thanks for being the church of Jesus in Palm Bay and around the world at Bay West Church.

In Christ,
Jim

Time change this week! Spring forward!

Don't forget this!  This weekend, March 14th is time change Sunday!

Seeing isn't believing, it's only the setup for the payoff

Numbers 13
17  Moses gave the men these instructions as he sent them out to explore the land: “Go north through the Negev into the hill country.
18  See what the land is like, and find out whether the people living there are strong or weak, few or many. 19  See what kind of land they live in. Is it good or bad? Do their towns have walls, or are they unprotected like open camps?
20  Is the soil fertile or poor? Are there many trees? Do your best to bring back samples of the crops you see.” (It happened to be the season for harvesting the first ripe grapes.)

These verses are the instructions that Moses gave his folks when they were supposed to "scout out" the land that God was about to give to Israel.  What ended up happening is that after 40 days of scouting the land, the team came back and about 80% of them were COMPLETELY opposed to trying to take the land...they were scared out of their mind... Even though, their nation had gone through a LONG journey, all the while, dreaming and relying on God through ENORMOUS struggles and hardship to get them right where they were...to this land.  It was their goal!  It was a motivation...and right at the edge of it, they were scared to death and said "no". 

My thought was "why even have them scout it, God?  I mean, You had decided on the destination...they had given up LOADS of stuff and followed You across treacherous ground to get there.   What was the point of evaluating now?"  Was this a bad leadership decision?  Of course not...it was a misunderstood command.

I think God does this to us...He asks us to really take a look at what's about to happen.  In His plan, He wants to us realize the immensity of the task He's about to accomplish.  It's not about deciding on an action, it's about setting up the praise for God and His power.  If we don't take in the huge task He's doing, our praise doesn't fill out, because without some sort of realization of how difficult and impossible the task is, we don't burst forth with how great God is through it.

Here's our problem...we think that when God calls us to "check it out", that somehow that's God saying "I don't know about this, what do you think?" and for a lot of us, we take that as our chance to get out of the scary thing in front of us...we run like scalded dogs.  We don't realize that God is just saying "Check this out...see how scary impossible the task is...got it...now WATCH THIS!"  Sadly for a lot of us, we have turned tail and are running at "see how scary it is" and we never get to the "WATCH THIS!" or even the incredible move of God that happens next that inspires us and challenges us and makes a statement to the entire world around how incredibly unbelievable God's ability and power is...  We miss the "I'm the master of it all" statement...sad.

Stick in there and realize that if God told you to do it...and you KNOW that for a fact... wait for the win, because it's coming.

Continue to pray for us at Bay West Church, as we try to be a church in Palm Bay and communicate Christ to west Palm Bay, Florida.

Psalm 50...what God is after

If you've ever wondered if God needed your money or stuff, here God talks about it in Psalm 50...

Psalm 50 (New Living Translation)
7 “O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God!
8 I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer.
9 But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens.
10 For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it.
13 Do I eat the meat of bulls? Do I drink the blood of goats?

Our sacrifices and offerings aren't about His greed, it's about controlling ours and honoring Him.

Here's the scenario that God is looking for with His people...
14 Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High.
15 Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory.”

There you go...that's the deal in a nutshell. Why don't you read the rest of Psalm 50? There's more good stuff in there as well.

Some jewels from Psalm 49

5 Why should I fear when trouble comes,
when enemies surround me?
6 They trust in their wealth
and boast of great riches.
7 Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death
by paying a ransom to God.
8 Redemption does not come so easily,
for no one can ever pay enough
9 to live forever
and never see the grave.

So where's the hope, since you can't make enough to save you?

15 But as for me, God will redeem my life....

Yeah, I want to be THAT guy.

And one verse for all the artists and poets and songwriters out there, one of which David was...

4 I listen carefully to many proverbs and solve riddles with inspiration from a harp.

That's a good mission statement for artists...take solid wisdom and express it artistically for all to remember.

Please continue to pray for us as we try to be a church in Palm Bay in West Palm Bay, Florida at Bay West Church.

Just a point...

Read this today...if you've ever had to address the "being a Christian is fun, TOO" thing and wondered if it's Biblical or just sensible... Answer: absolutely Biblical.

Proverbs 10:23 (NLT)
23 Doing wrong is fun for a fool, but living wisely brings pleasure to the sensible.

I also like how the Amplified Bible puts it...
23 It is as sport to a [self-confident] fool to do wickedness, but to have skillful and godly Wisdom is pleasure and relaxation to a man of understanding.

So...make sure what you do brings you some "pleasure"...have a great day!

Please continue to pray for us as we attempt to be a church in Palm Bay that honors God here at Bay West Church.