The truth about wolves and Proverbs 18

¹⁵ “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. ¹⁶ By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
Matthew 7

You know...this is a well-quoted verse in Scripture, but misused by many people...Christians and non-Christians alike.

For so many, they believe that this verse is pointing at people who are in their limited estimation "bad" pastors or tele-evangelists or someone like that, but that's a very limited scope of what this verse is about...it speaks to just about anyone who would choose to speak in God's name.

In the Old Testament, it was easy to find the true prophet...if a prophet ran his mouth saying "thus sayeth the Lord" (because we know they didn't speak Hebrew, they spoke King James English - :)  ) and his prophecy didn't come true, the people just stoned him to death  and no more prophet.  Pretty simple.

Well, today, most people don't agree on prophecy as something that just tells the future, but prophecy is one who takes the Word of the Lord and expounds it with application and expediency to the people in a specific situation.  Basically, you take something from the Bible and speak "for" God into someone else's life and tell them what that means for them.  The problem is that without a fortune telling element, how do you know who to stone and are you really even supposed to do that?

That's why God put this together in Matthew 7...he said "by their fruit, you will recognize them."  In other words, they'll be true to the entirety of the character of God as expressed in the whole of Scripture.  Their message won't hold water or they will be exposed when they deliver it by their life not matching with what Scripture says.  For example, when someone brings the "truth", but spouts in in an unloving way or in violation of Scriptures such as Matthew 18...they are a false prophet at that moment.  Don't listen to them.

Or if, for example, out of fear and cowardice they hide in the bushes or scream their message from afar in a cowardly manner, you'll know they are false because Joshua 1:8 tells us that when God speaks through us it isn't through a spirit of fear, but of power and of love.

Or if, they do it in an ugly and disrespectful manner, obviously not trying to bring someone in sin to resolution with God, then they are violating Galatians 6, in which is clearly defines the proper way to approach someone who is caught in a sin...the proper way to view that person, not as an enemy, but a fellow co-laborer in Christ who needs help.  Maybe they violated Ephesians 4 by not being humble or gentle or patient or valuing unity with their fellow believers, feeling that somehow their message has given them leave to violate the rest of the Scripture...Then, well, you see by the fruit that you don't listen to them.

There are loads of examples here, but the truth is when someone delivers a message in an unChristlike manner, then you just heard all you needed to know about that person and what they had to say, because they just denounced their "prophetic message" with the way they lived out the "Gospel" in front of you. 

"But Jim, what if they quote Scripture (or part of one) or say a couple of things that sound good...shouldn't we listen to them then...what if only PART of what they say is wrong?"  That's cool, but there's more to it.

Here's why you don't want to listen to them...

Proverbs 18 puts it a little more bluntly about those who aren't following God in their speaking "for" God.  In the Bible, fools are characterized as those who don't follow Christ, because as Psalms 111:10 (or Proverbs 9:10) says "the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom"...but Proverbs 18:2 lays it pretty clear here..."Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions."  One, the person not following Christ isn't interested in the truth, it's just their opinion...their fruit tells you so. 

Proverbs 18:7 takes it further and tells you more..."The mouths of fools are their undoing, and their lips are a snare to their very lives."  First, their own words and message will cannibalize itself eventually.  Even further, their mouths and lips will be their OWN undoing and it will be a snare to their lives and if you participate in that, you'll be snared by the same things that ensnare them...because as you allow them access and influence over you, their snares, just like their words, will become yours as well.

Beware the wolf in sheep's clothing...they look like they know what they are doing, but pay close attention to them...."so we can STONE THEM, right, Jim?" 

No, we don't stone them.  We see them as people who are caught in sin just like anyone else.  It's not our job to take vengeance on anyone doing wrong (Romans 12:19), we leave that to God.  He's a much more strict, harsh and effective disciplinarian than we could ever be any way.  We are to be God's agents of mercy, grace and love (even love that says the hard truth, but never done without love or we violate Scripture again).  Doesn't mean we sacrifice the "truth" to love people, any more than we commit the sin of sacrificing "love" as our motivation of truth....and people know. 

Sometimes, it's hard to see them as what they are, because usually, to reference Proverbs 18, "fools" who just love to air their own opinions just annoy the daylights out of you...usually it's their self-aggrandizing arrogance that is really hard to love and that's only natural.  While that's natural, it's not God-controlled and we must always attempt to follow Christ, even more closely in the moments where we are in the presence of someone who is sin-controlled.  Not for our sakes, but for theirs and my interaction with them is about helping them, not pumping up myself (Phil 2:3).  It's not to down them or judge them or in some false humility moment insinuate how much better we are than them...not at all, because that's not remotely what Christ wants us to be...if we succumb to that, we become them, not help them.  No, we must pray for them, care for them and use the strength that Christ gives us to endure what they have to say, however misguided, in hopes that some day, we can "restore them gently" to full fellowship with Christ. 

So love the wolves, pray for the wolves, but just don't listen to them or get caught up in their mess.

The Story of "The House That God Provides"

The story:  A wonderful story of God’s faithfulness in Panama rests in the “House that God Provides”.  As you know, we have a young couple from our church that felt called to full-time missions in Panama when we went there earlier this year.  They made an incredible step of faith to quit their jobs, and put their house on the market.  Without knowing where God’s provision for this calling was coming from, they stepped out in faith and began moving where God wanted them to be.  God has provided every step of the way, but one way that God has provided for them, for our church and for the mission of reaching the Chinese in Panama is through the “House that God Provides”.

During this time, a married couple in our church (who have asked for their names to be withheld) was moved by God to make a bold step as well…to buy a house in Panama.  The plan was to buy the house, let the couple (the Ervins) live in it rent free, and then it would be used to house the mission teams that come down to work with the Chinese.  The problem was…how to find a house that’s big enough to do that?  The couple gave the Ervins a number to shoot for and then they began looking for a house.  They looked at many houses, but many were too expensive.  They found one that would be perfect…it was newer than the more expensive ones, it was bigger than many of them and the design of it would lend itself perfectly to housing our teams when they came down…unfortunately, it was over the figure given.

While praying in Melbourne, the couple buying the house felt a calling of God to increase the number and God gave them one.  Mind you, they had no knowledge of the house the Ervins had found at all.  They called the Ervins and gave them the new number and yes, this is a God story, so it was the asking price of the house.  In addition to a place for the Ervins to live, allowing them to put more time into reaching the Hakka Chinese, this makes the cost of the Panama trip more economical for the teams that come by only adding a fraction of the normal housing cost for a Mission Team to stay in Panama (to upkeep the house).  While that is incredible, that’s not all, because this house also opens up a place to house teams from colleges and other churches that would join us in this effort.  Amazing, huh?  I’m not done.

The house itself came with a story.  The owners of the house go to El Dorado Baptist Church, one of our primary partners in ministering to the Chinese in Panama.  The husband had just become a Christian recently in the last year or so.  Upon becoming a Christian, he lost his job.  Nalo had been resistant to accept Christ, but when he did, he went at it for real.  His job required him to be untruthful periodically about certain figures about his company and after becoming a Christian, he would no longer lie about the production, so he lost his job.  Nalo, Marta and their two children remained true to God, even in the face of this seeming disaster. Not being able to find more work, the lack of income was forcing them to lose their house.  Imagine finally accepting Christ and integrity to that decision leading to the loss of your job, and now you couldn’t keep your house …but they remained true to God.  They had been searching for someone to buy the house before they would lose it, but, not just anyone, they had been praying for something special.  They have a heart to reach the Chinese of Panama and they had been praying for a Christian couple with the same heart to buy the house.  They were one month from losing the house completely when God led the Ervins to the house through the Pastor of El Dorado Church’s son, Richey, who is a lawyer in Panama.  They trusted God and He was there.

It doesn’t end there.  Now the Ervins had to find a way to stay in Panama legally.  The previous most-economical way to stay in Panama would have been to apply for a Missionary Visa which would cost the Ervins between $5000 and $10,000.  The Missionary Visa would last for a few years and then they would have to pay it all over again to renew it.  Richey informed them that with the price of the house, if the house was put in the Ervins’ name for a time that they could then apply for a permanent visa under a little used statute in Panamanian…for free.  This provision would also allow them to gain citizenship in just a few years.  It’s all perfectly legal.  That’s God.

So, God provides…but understand this…
…if the Ervins had not been faithful to just go with no concrete support for the future, just a promise from God…
…if the couple in Melbourne had not been faithful to what God said about the crazy notion of buying a house in Panama…
…if Nalo had not been faithful in his integrity to God in the face of unemployment…
…if Nalo and Marta had not been faithful to God to pray and wait for God’s timing…the mission to reach the Chinese in Panama wouldn’t have received this incredible confirmation/blessing/tool, and they wouldn’t have seen God’s provision in their lives in this amazing way.


The lesson: (DON'T miss this)

Faithfulness to God is a chain reaction and if I am unfaithful because I don’t see the resources in my hand, I refuse the hand of God and His provision in my life.  That’s my choice…that’s your choice...that’s our choice as a church as well…it’s the choice of being unfaithful or faithful and we make it every day.  We choose to reject the hand of God when we don’t tithe, when we don’t give our time, when we don’t risk our reputation to share …at each decision big AND small, we refuse the blessings that God has pre-arranged for us and for others and we choose destitution over blessing again and again.

While we were in Panama, the paperwork for the house was processed and the business done.  Part of that
business was the making of a plaque that would be affixed on the outside of the house.  In Chinese, Spanish and English, a sign exists to be a testament to the God that is faithful…it reads “The House that God Provides”.

Nalo, Marta and their two children

Friday recap - Panama

Friday started early...Katye, Caitlin and their translator, Anna, had to be at Sun Yat Sen (a very large and influential Chinese school - not the Christian one we've worked with before) at 8am to meet about having an Music and Arts Camp in January.  They are not a Christian school, but are very connected and influential among Chinese society here in Panama City.  They left about 30 minutes before the rest of us left, and after their appointment, we all were going prayer walking in a Mall and surrounding businesses in the "new" China town in Panama City.

Katye, Caitlin and Anna met us at the church with very good news.  Pastor Ricardo also went with them and they had great success.  They were able to meet with the Head Principal, not just an assistant, and she was very open to the Music & Arts Camp.  The college group from FBC Melbourne that came in July that did the basketball camp had done a good job with their end of things and had left us a great opening and reputation with them.  Pastor Ricardo and the principal hit it off and she actually said that they have "summer school" (December - January is their "summer" time) going on and they would like to incorporate our camp into their existing program in the morning.   That worked out very well and it was a slamdunk to really start the trip.

We met at the church...heard the great report and left to go prayer walking.  Instead of going to the Mall in "new" Chinatown, Pastor Ricardo and Anna, our translator, took us to "Avenue B", the old Chinatown.  Apparently, it is a dangerous place.  We found out that Anna had only been there for the first time a couple of days ago and in 25 years of living in Panama City, Pastor Ricardo had never been.  He said this was "no tourism" and believe you me, there were no other white people around here...definitely no tourists.

We prayer walked each side of the street, split into two groups, Larry and Pastor Ricardo headed the group and Ben Norton and I guarded the rear of the group as we walked.  We had to take off our electronics and most jewelry and leave them in the van (another great praise story, btw...the van or busito, I mean) because the place was known for thieves that would snatch and run to steal things apparently.  We stopped in a shop and Pastor Ricardo struck up a conversation with a shop owner about the location of a Buddhist Temple that was supposed to be near there.  Pastor Ricardo walked off, telling our group to "aqui" (stay here) while the guy he was talking to showed him directions down the street.  As we were standing there, a policeman in bulletproof gear and a few guns came up and starting asking us questions in Spanish.  I was reaching to pull out my copy of my passport, but Katye understood that he was asking us if we wanted to go see the Buddhist temple.  When Pastor Ricardo came back, he talked to the policeman and he said that he would guide us to it.  We called the other group and headed out.

We started going down alleyways and side streets and then came to a door that led up some narrow stairs.  If people would lag, our translators would call out for us to catch up and stay close...Some of us really didn't think things were too scary, but then others of us noticed that another policeman had circled in and was bringing up the rear of our party.  We went upstairs and saw the Buddhist Temple, praying for the people as we went.  it was a beautiful place, but honestly, for me, it really hit me how hard this was going to be...for an ornate place to be built in this tough area and to be kept so well...other religions really had a stronghold on the people here.

The policeman led us down the stairs and out into the street and told us he and the other policeman would take us down another street (Pastor had told them what we were doing and I don't know if they were believers or not, but they were very helpful).  The policeman said that the name of the street meant "Leave if you can" (that's comforting)...it was extremely narrow and was filled with little shops a continuous row of huts with tin roofs in the middle of the street...there was only enough room for one person to walk between the buildings on the street and the shops in the middle of the street.  We continued to pray and the policemen led us out on the other side and back down the streets to the market when were had parked the van a few streets away.  The policeman said never come down there on Sunday, because Sunday is the day there are no police in the area...but we were safe.  We really believe that God has big plans for that area and we are confident that He's already working in Panama.

Right now, it's late, and this blog entry is really long, so I'll stop here and I'll get back to you later on the next set of recaps...there's plenty more...good night.

Thursday recap - Panama

I've been kind of limited in my WiFi down here this time, so I haven't blogged like I meant to, so I'll try to catch up tonight a little and keep it going tomorrow.

Thursday was a LOOOONG day.  We have to be at the church at 5:30am to go to Orlando to fly to Panama...not bad, 1 layover in Miami and out of the country.  It was a smooth trip.

When we got to Panama and cleared customs we met with Chris, Pastor Ricardo and his son Richey and they got us back to PVQ (where we are staying).  We got to hear about the awesome way that God has been working already to piece things together.  The Mission House story is another crazy one...that's huge.  A story for another day.

We went to eat and then right back to PVQ to meet with an IMB missionary, Kavin Cawfin (sp?), who is actually from Enterprise, AL (30 minutes from where I grew up) and knows a lot of my relatives in the Enterprise area very well.  He talked to us about the work in Panama and after a LOOONNG meeting, we finally got to bed...good day, but a long day...and we had to be ready for Friday.

Response to the "Urgent Prayer Need" yesterday

Yesterday, I posted an email sent to one of our LifeGroup members, sent from a missionary couple that they support in Papa New Guinea, asking you to pray for a dire need in their lives.  Here was the response and the result of that situation.  I hope you'll be encouraged.

My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. Dan 6:22 

This is exactly what the Lord did again today! He protected us and saved us from the lions! Literally, the accusations made against us were like a lion’s roar but the roar was worse than bite. We are very safe and all is good, know it’s better! 

This morning after a not so good night sleep I looked outside and saw men walking around our houses to protect us. I couldn’t see all the angels that were fighting for us J Then the plane came in with the leaders and left to go get the police men. We all met together and prayed and reminded each other to respond as Christ would respond. 

The police arrived at the same time as the delegation. So we gave to floor to the religious leaders and they accused us of all kinds of falsehood and that they said we had to leave and gave us a 2 month deadline to get out. The police men then gave us (around 120 people) the floor and they listened to testimony after testimony of how God has changed their lives and that Jesus is the only way to God. I literally cried as a listened to them give God all the glory. The police man had to stop people as hand after hand went up wanting to give testimony! It was AMAZING! 

After these men heard the testimonies one man proposed that we can stay until we finish the translation and all of a sudden the lions turned into kittens. They literally changed their demand and said, “We never said they had to leave.” Can you believe it – listen to the purr! The testimony of God’s working in the lives of these people silenced them! 1 Cor 4:20 says that the kingdom of God is living by God’s power and God’s Kingdom is here! 

So they even apologized to us and we shook hands and left. Our houses are still standing and we are safe, but more importantly our faith is stronger! This served to unify the church here in an awesome way. 

We are exhausted but exhilarated. Our mission leaders said they’ve never seen a heavy like that get settled so peacefully. They too give all the credit to God. 

To God be the Glory! 

Thank you again for fighting with us. We love you all so much. 

Gary for all us Smith’s and the Dinangat Church.

Please continue to pray for Bay West Church as we continue to try to be a church in Palm Bay that shows Christ to all around us.

URGENT Prayer Request for today (Monday, August 8th)

Gary Holland, one of the members of our Osterholm LifeGroup at Bay West, sent this email in asking for prayer for some missionaries that they help support in Papa New Guinea.

"We just got an email from the missionaries that we support in Papua New Guinea.  I will try to make it short but it is urgent.  The denominational leaders of their area are coming in to question them and challenge them in the areas of church practice.  They are treatening to remove them from here if they do not comply with their demands.  That was the email from yesterday.  Now we just got one saying that they were in another village yesterday and their tempers boiled over.  One of the believers from there (Gary's village) was with them and came back with the report that they are going to burn their houses down and force them to leave.

When this villager was telling this there were about 100 listening and said that they would stand around them and not let anyone touch them.  One old man shouted that he now knows the truth and you can not get rid of these missionaries, they are God's work men!

They contacted there leadership and they are flying in with the police early this morning.  This should all take place around 6pm EST.  They are rejoicing with the verse from Acts 5:
Thanks so much,

Gary and Beverly Holland"

As a part of our Radical Experiment commitment for this year, we've been praying for the World and here is a personal request that is tied directly to people at Bay West that we need to pray for today.

Continue to pray for us as we continue to try to be a church in Palm Bay, attempting to honor Jesus at Bay West Church.

GUEST BLOGGER today: Rebekah Lorenzo

Rebekah Lorenzo is one of our students that participated in one area of the Radical Experiment (click here for info on that) this summer by stepping out of her comfort zone and going to West Virginia to show Christ's love to the people up there.  I asked her to blog a little about her experience and here is what she wrote.  Enjoy how God is speaking to and through our students...you might learn something.  I did.

In Luke 9:23, Jesus tells the disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” I’ve almost always felt something like guilt or anxiety when I’ve come across this verse, although I’ve never completely understood it. What did Christ mean by “come after” and “take up his cross daily”? I never realized how much of this verse’s message I had just been glossing over before until we started to read the book Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman on our way to West Virginia. The book was basically about what it means to be follower of Jesus rather than just a fan of Jesus, and Idleman explains that this is what He’s telling us about in Luke 9:23. Idleman also explains that the Greek term that was translated to “come after” really means to pursue, almost as a boy would pursue a girl. So what Jesus is saying is that if we want to pursue a relationship with Him, we need to deny ourselves and take up our crosses daily and follow Him. I also learned that “denying myself” and “taking up my cross daily” means denying my own needs and any other selfish causes so that every day I can “take up” God’s cause, instead.


Another thing addressed in the book that stood out to me that week was that one way people sometimes “cheer” for Jesus as fans would instead of following Him as real disciples should is by putting on masks and hiding behind rituals and boundaries so that others can’t see their weaknesses. I felt really convicted about holding back from my friends in that way, especially the ones who weren’t Christians. My group at the camp spent a few days visiting a birthing center for female prisoners, which was basically a place where women came from prisons all over the country when they were six months pregnant and stayed until their children were old enough to go up for adoption. On the first day there, I met a mother who told us that she had spent a lot of time in prison, and that some of the best and most interesting people she had ever met, she had met there. She said that this was because, when someone is incarcerated, they can’t be identified anymore by money or status or even their old friends. We heard similar ideas when we went to visit a men’s prison, and heard testimonies from some violent offenders who had formed a support group. Prisoners in a way are stripped of their resources so that all that remains is their character and the memory of what they’ve done to get where they are, and so their character is what defines them. I think now that this is what Christ wants from us as followers. He wants us to be totally open and genuine, and not to worry about people holding our faults against us, because really only He can know and judge us, and His forgiveness is all the justification we need. If we just let go of the past and focus on God, we’ll stumble less often and we’ll be able to find peace and satisfaction.
 
Thanks for sharing your experience, Rebekah...nice job.

Generosity and Water skiing

I've really been thinking about generosity and I just have been thinking of the imagery of water skiing...follow me.

If you've ever waterski'ed, you know that in getting up on the skis for the first time, it's a bit of fight and trust.  There's a tension of being pulled, and straining yourself to keep your body straight enough to get pulled up.  I'm not an expert or anything, but you'd see people just get pulled over, or bent over, sunk in the water just taking a lot of water in the face.  That's exactly where a lot of Christians are in being generous, in both tithing and giving to others.  They can't trust that if they keep a little stiff against the philosophies of the world that you will actually "pop" up on top of the water.

Then when you get up, you've got to trust that what you are ski'ing on is right.  I remember getting up the first time, but falling after a few minutes because I thought that the tension and effort I was putting forth wasn't right, so I pulled to the place of no tension without thinking and found myself falling face first, getting yanked out of my skis and cutting my heal.  Some Christians try it, but when it requires some push and strength from them, they feel they are doing it wrong and reach back for the comfort of not trusting God to provide and they fall...hard.  I was lucky enough to get back up and get rolling again...but some Christians never do.

Then there's the bliss when you trust the gliding across the top of the water...you get it, you are doing it and it's AMAZING.  you are flying and you can turn and pick up speed and it's extremely fun.  That's when you have finally trusted God...turned your back on the failed philosophies of the world as far as finances and resources and sharing goes.  You look back at when you were being drug around by the boat taking the water in the face and you think "that's nuts".  Others that are getting dragged around or those afraid to give it a shot, think you are amazing and they wish they could do that...when they CAN...you know that, but they won't believe it.

There are those who never try and let go, never enjoy the bliss of just absolutely gliding across the top of this world, being pulled along by the Father.  They think they have to generate all the motion and they sink in the waves.  The great part of ski'ing is that I don't generate the motion or the energy...not my job, that's the boat...I don't have to decipher the direction...that's the boat driver.  I'm just supposed to hold my ground and trust the boat...same as with Christians.

I really hope that we, as a campus, can grasp these principles of generosity in our lives.  I feel that it is ABSOLUTELY crucial for all of us here.  This is a watershed moment for most of us and it will mean the difference between being stuck in the drudgery of water in the face or the excitement of water under your feet.  Whether anyone of us stays at Bay West for the next 10 years or the next 10 days, that WHEREVER any of us goes, my prayer is that we can just fly and just tear this life up...that's God's plan for us, for you.  Please don't miss it. 

Generosity all over the place.

The famous King Solomon of the Old Testament was widely known because he was the wisest man alive at his time...ever wonder how he got His wisdom?  The story goes in 2 Chronicles that He became King and took a "firm control" over his lands because God was with him and he got his leaders together and went to worship at a temple.  After burning a 1000 burnt offerings to God, that night, God appeared to him and told him to ask for anything...ANY thing...he wanted and he would have it.  He basically asked for the wisdom to lead God's people properly....and this was God's response.

¹¹ God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people—¹² I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”

It was said after that time that silver and gold were as common in Jersualem as stone...

Learning about Radical Generosity

-  Generosity begins and ends with God...it is FOR God.  


- Generosity is not about the needs that we meet, and all about the God we serve.  It's not even as much about the lives we touch, as it is about the honor we deflect to God.


- One of the things that's apparent in this series on Radical Generosity is that generosity is utterly imperative for the Christ follower, so much, that if someone is truly following Christ, it is impossible for them to remain not generous.


Christ is the most generous person to ever live.
God is the most generous being that has ever existed.


If those are your examples and you really follow them, it is IMPOSSIBLE to do that without being generous, first to God and then even more to God by giving to others.


-  It's also apparent to me that for the church not to talk about money is almost criminal from a spiritual standpoint.


-  What if we met challenges in our life with the predisposition to GIVE and not the predisposition to hold on to what we have?  In other words, rather than talk myself INTO being generous, then we should talk ourselves OUT of being generous.


- What if we first budgeted what God gets, then what others should get and then we lived on the rest, rather than doing exactly the opposite?


- I've never seen anywhere in Scripture that we have been given the blanket right to dictate the use of what God has asked us to give...not to others and not to God...yet, we still feel the need to dictate that, yet call ourselves generous.  If a purpose is dictated, it is dictated by God.


Before we can be truly generous, we have to understand something.
Generosity is not merely about the relinquishing of possession, but also about the relinquishing of control.

Facebook and affairs? What's the real problem here?

For some time, Facebook has become more popular as a communication and social media tool.  With the rise of that popularity and usage, the concerns of Facebook increased.  Addictive games, addictive info supply, and massive time wasted leading to lack of productivity are among the list. 
While these seem more controllable and harmless, more dangerous games are "played" like marital affairs.  John connects with Jennifer from high school and driven by strong early emotions and a lot of rose-colored glasses about the past, John and Jennifer begin a relationship online that leads them to connect emotionally again...one problem, John and Jennifer are married and not to each other...and they end up leaving their previous soulmates to be together in some sort of "we found our real soulmate...no, REALLY...not like the other soulmates, but the real only one for me" moment. 

There's a growing trend to outlaw Facebook in business and religious circles, and, from ministers to counselors, to "demonize" it.  So is Facebook a marriage killer?  I don't think so.  The pattern of online affairs usually seems to follow the same pattern as any affair...connection, emotional attachment, improper contact, secretive continuance, adultery and ultimately, announcing that you've found "the one" to "the one" you've already found.  Facebook isn't the problem, it's an opportunity for connection and at ANY opportunity for connection people can stumble.  Without discipline and transparency and honesty, anyone can sin.  I think the Bible shows us how sin happens in James 1...

14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.

15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.  16 Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters.

This passage is talking about the subject of whether or not God tempts us to sin and while the answer is "no", this passage gives us the pattern by which sin...ALL sin...happens.  There is a desire that tempts us, we linger with that desire and hang around with it...then it takes hold of us and we act on it (gives birth to sin) and then that sin leads to death.  Sounds a lot like the process of an affair...online or otherwise.

I've thought rather than demonize Facebook, maybe we should look at the real problem which is ourselves and put our guards there.  There's no denying that Facebook gives more occasion for connection, that's why it's popular, but just like any other area of connection, it shouldn't give us some "free pass" to throw off all safeguards and just act however...that's where the real problem comes.

In real life, I don't ride in a car by myself with a member of the opposite sex that isn't family, if I can help it...I don't tell things to members of the opposite sex that I haven't told my wife.  I don't have personal conversations with members of the opposite sex, but if a conversation turns that way, I talk about it with Katye.  She is privy to all parts of my life...and loads of that are things that I tell NO ONE but her and vice versa with her.

I don't violate those things on Facebook either... and then there's other guards as well, if I don't know you, I'm probably not going to accept your friend request.  I stay off private chat, if I can help it...if I do get on and talk with someone, I'll let Katye know what we said.  That's transparency...that's a big part of safety.  If I'd feel weird telling Katye about an interaction, then it's a safe bet, I don't need to take that connection opportunity...that's a good safeguard for me.

The truth is that affairs start at ANY connection point...too many affairs start at work, so should we stop working?  or make work segregated sexaully?  No.  Work isn't the problem...and neither is Facebook.  The problem is the lack of discipline of the people who use it...and to an experience, that's exactly how sin works...regardless of the medium.

Bay West T-shirts - a RADICAL piece of clothing to own

This Sunday, we'll start selling the Bay West T-shirts that I've been putting on Facebook and Twitter and that Randy and I wore to Church in the Park on Palm Sunday.  These T-shirts won't just be a normal buy and be a walking ad for Bay West, they have a larger purpose.


We are in the process of working with Viera Water Network, a year old ministry based up in Viera, that goes to under-resourced countries to build safe water pumps and safe water systems for people.  Over 1.4 billion children die each year from preventable diseases caused by unsafe drinking water...that works out to 4,000 deaths per day or 1 every two seconds...that's two children alone that have died from a preventable disease due to drinking unsafe water since you began reading this blogpost.


FBC is forming a partnership with VWN and we will be sending a team to community that we have partnered with in Nicaragua in July.  We hope to be able to see VWN repair two water supply areas there in the community and my hope for these T-shirts is that the sale of them will pay for at least 1 of the repairs.  I hope to be having Daniel from Viera Water Network in to Bay West to give us a better picture of what they are doing and the ministry they are a part of.

We will be selling the T-shirts for a minimum price of $15 per shirt...we have made a decision NOT to recoup the cost of the T-shirts and send ALL money given to the shirts to this project.  Due to our commitment to the Radical Experiment, we'll make adjustments in our campus budget to make up for the production costs of the T-shirts and any future T-shirt orders for this project, so we can give ALL of the $15 price to the project in Nicaragua.


Why minimum price?  We chose this term because we know that some of you will probably want to give more to this project, so anything above $15 given to each shirt will go to the project as well.


Why $15?  We have 100 shirts and the average cost of a well repair is $1500...our hope is to pay for one at least and possibly pay for another or have money to put toward another.


We have regular T-shirts, soft cloth (blue, tan, black) and some "Junior Cut Ladies" Tees (Pink/black writing & black/white writing) as well.

Gaps and holes

We talked a few weeks ago about why it's important to study all of God's Word...to read it all for yourself.

One of the primary reasons we talked about this danger was because failing to do so can leave "gaps" and "holes" in your understanding of God's Word.  The natural tendency when you don't have information is to try to fill those "gaps" and "holes" with your own logic or wishes or from your sense of justice or mercy...and most of the time, our personal thoughts are not God's thoughts.

I ran across this verse that made me think about this in my reading today...in Jude 1

¹⁸ They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”
¹⁹ These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.

What the Bible points out here is the dangers of following merely your own natural instincts.  It's hard to remember that sin corrupts even our best logic and helps us completely rationalize the most illogical thing we can do...not following God...that's what sin did to us.  It made it seem like the "smart" and "logical" thing to do was something other than God's plan.  That's why the Word is so important and why we should strive to know it as well as we can.  Our earthly intelligence...at its best, will always have a part of it that will try to pull us away from God, because, through sin, it is flawed.  We need God...we need His Word. 

So take advantage of the gift that God gave you....and get rid of the "gaps" and "holes".

Radical AND the Power Team

The Power Team had a GREAT time last week and God really moved in the lives of some people, but, NOW, the real work begins for us as a church.  "Do you mean that setting the stage and all that stuff wasn't work?"  No, it was...but it's just the beginning.

Last week, 181 people made decisions for Christ for the first time, & 59 people who are returning to Christ in rededication.  That's almost 200 new people in God's kingdom...We just finished a series on our theme for the year, Radical....time to step up, people of God.

In Radical, it walks about multiplying yourselves and being a part of a multiplying community, here's where the rubber meets the road for that...it's not just seeing decisions for Christ, it's deciding to step in and take people who've made decisions and helping them grow in Christ...taking responsibility for the spiritual "babies" (if anyone who accepted Christ for the first time is reading this, I'm not trying to slam you, but to make a point to existing Christians...you are new, and you need some help to know where to go from here - that's all.)

Don't bring me any weak stuff like "I don't know enough"...every person who's been a Christian knows SOMETHING to pass on to the next one.

Here's where the RADICAL challenge/experiment meets the road now...what are YOU going to do about those spiritual babies?  Not me...not Larry...not Dennis or Doug or David or Jenny or Tom or Scott or Randy or Nate or Bevan or the deacons or whatever group you can categorize... but YOU...What are you gonna do?

Here's my suggestion:

If you know ANYONE personally who made a decision, then YOU take the personal responsibility to be PROACTIVE in offering yourself as a resource and mentor through this time for them.  I'm not talking about just once, but to call them and then check up on them...ask them to lunch (guys with guys, girls with girls...please)...talk to them about their decision...encourage them once a week for the next two months...help them get to church by inviting them, offering them a ride...be availble, but not just that, be proactive in contacting them.  Point them to where you read...not reading the Word?  START NOW...you don't have time to waste, them read it with them.

There shouldn't be ANY young Christian that has to wait to ask for help...that's the job of ALL Christians in our churches.

Time to step up people...God dropped 200 spiritual children on your door, church...rubber is meeting the road as you read this...what you gonna do?

Sugar and air

Every year, we make our way around to that time when we all are bombarded with signs of love everywhere. Hearts, flowers and balloons mark the stores, advertisements and commercials on TV. Usually our mental paintings of love consist of romantic fancy and that's certainly a part of the equation. Still, for me, I see this extreme over-emphasis on this small part of love, as more of a detriment in some ways than a help. Don't lynch me...hear me out.

I fear that in focusing exclusively on the emotional part of love in our relationships, we walk away with the wrong definition of what we sign up for. Love is not about that rush of feeling you get, that's not the substance of love, that's like the icing on a cake. Icing on a cake is pretty much sugar and air. In every relationship, there comes a time, where the strength of love is tested. If your version of "love" is just sugar and air, then you are in trouble, because there no substance to it. Icing never stands by itself, it needs a solid substance by which to cling.

The substance of real love is based in commitment and sacrifice. The Bible says that there's no greater love that a man can have than to lay down his life for his friends. The most extreme picture of this definition was when God's Son, Jesus, gave His life for every one of us without a "pre-nuptial" promise beforehand. That's unconditional...freely given regardless of whether it's returned or not.

Everyone longs to be loved in this manner because it's real. The problem is that we all want it, but we don't want to do the work to give it. It's the son that wants his mom to just "accept him", but doesn't embrace her lack of acceptance. It's the wife, that thinks its all her husband's fault, and if he'd just "love" her like he is supposed to, then everything would be fine or the husband who does the same...we all want to have the perfect partner to love, but much like Jesus, who has no choice but imperfection from which to choose to love, it isn't happening. That's part of what Jesus modeled for us, because the strength of love is never in the getting, but in the giving of it. Here's another truth of it...if you aren't willing to give it, you will never get it, it will never come to you by demanding it. You'll just be shouting at the rain. It's a commitment freely given, with risk of it never returning anything. That's hard, but true.

So when you "get" the flowers or the golf clubs or the card, and over a candlelight dinner you gaze into the eyes of someone, don't forget that the feeling of the moment has to have some hard choosing, unglamorous, pride-swallowing sacrifice at its foundation if it's going to last. If not, it'll wash away at some point, either in light rain or hurricane, because ultimately, it was just sugar and air to begin with.

Safety redefined

I'm reading this book called The Barbarian Way by Erwin McManus and he deals with the "domestication" of Christianity. One of the principles that he discredits is the Americanized version of the safest place to be is in the center of God's will. We've somehow taken this to mean that God will keep us physically safe. That's not necessarily true. I believe, in the eternal sense, that the safest place to be is in the center of God's will, but there's a lot of Biblical argument that God will sacrifice physical safety for spiritual gain.

Ran across another deal this morning...Joseph, son of Jacob, was sold into slavery by his brothers and those same loving brothers told their father that he was dead. They even attempted to manufacture evidence by taking the coat they'd stolen from him and dipping it in animal's blood, to throw Jack McCoy off the track.

After all of this, Joseph goes on this amazing journey where he's sold into slavery, falsely accused for rape and imprisoned for at least 2 years or more. Person after person that Joseph helped or served faithfully in his state betrayed him or forgot about him or lied to have him imprisoned. Then, of course, he interprets a dream for Pharaoh and Pharaoh ends up making him second in command of the country of Egypt...a pretty normal occurrence for all us, wouldn't you say?

Here's the point...most folks read that story and think God jumped in while Joseph was in prison and "took over" to bring him to the exalted position of 2nd in command in the country...but that is not what the Bible says. Here's the commentary straight from Joseph's mouth in Genesis 45.
5 But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. 6 This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting.

No matter how you read it..."It was God" sticks out. So was God not in control while he was attacked by his brothers, imprisoned by them, sold & resold as a slave, falsely accused & imprisoned for rape, forgotten and betrayed by people sworn to help, but then he was "in God's will" when God stepped in to make him 2nd in command in Egypt...or was it, as Joseph seems to understand, all a part of God's will to begin with... Kind of blows that "I'm safe in the arms of God" thing. I really like the old song "Sheltered in the Arms of God"...it talks of safety, but the chorus states the truth "so let the storms rage high, the dark clouds rise, they won't worry me".  Our physical blessing or safety is not the priority...of course, God doesn't want you to live in a stressed out state, but that's because He wants you to trust Him so much, that you accept what He has for you, NOT that there is always piles of money in the bank or the job is safe or the 401k is rolling on up.  We will see death and struggle, but that's not because "Satan" snuck into the control tower and God is breaking down the door to get things back in order...doesn't work that way.

The "Bay" Way

I confess...that's flippin' corny.  No doubt about it...I'm going to own that, but as I told my girls about commercials on TV, they aren't written to be the best song or the best acting, they are written to be the most memorable and that's what Bay is all about.

Hence, the Bay Way.  I've gone to church a lot in my life and I can navigate the culture pretty much, but if you haven't been in church all your life, you may not get the memo of what's "normal" in being a part of a group of believers.  So here's what we are...our core values are explained here.  Those are called "the 6" and are they are statements that guide what we are trying to do at BW to keep us on track as an organization.

But past that, for the individual, if you wonder what's the norm for involvement in church, here it is for us...and it's BAY.

Be here.  A primary purpose is for us is to help people love God more.  Our worship services are designed to help you learn about God and process through various parts of who He is through speaking, singing, and creative experiences.

Among friends.  Another primary purpose is to learn to love others more, from a God perspective.  Our small groups are designed to develop community and relationship.  People learning from God by being a part of each other's lives and learning to care/love each other from a God perspective.  These Bible studies meet in homes weekly or bi-weekly.

Your part.  Another primary purpose is to learn to serve the world around us.  We expect everyone to find a place that is their responsibility within the workings of Bay West.  That's usually on Sunday mornings taking a turn on our FIT (First Impressions Team), KidZone, Setup crews, Worship Team or something like that.  Everyone needs to be a part.  This practice reinforces the truth that we don't come to Bay West for ourselves.  It teaches us to give to serve others inside the church and hopefully, that habit translates outside the church.  It's important in the church because doing it in the context of "worship" helps us understand that worshipping God isn't a passive activity and we learn more by doing.

There it is, in a nutshell....Be here, Among friends, Your part..."BAY" Way.

So, how are you finishing off 2010?

So, how are you finishing off 2010? If you are like me, it's possibly like running 300 miles an hour and then slamming on the breaks, hitting a wall, somewhere around Dec. 26-Jan. 2. A lot of people I talk to seem to be like that. There’s a lot of stress in the season these days. One really has to wonder how it came to that, because “stress” was about the last thing that God really wanted for us to associate with the birth of His Son. It was quite the opposite actually.

In the Bible, the prophecies that talk about Jesus’ coming tell us things like “God is right here with us”, describing His power and might and endless capability to handle situations and this world…and then it wraps all that up in words like “Everlasting Father”, denoting how this magnificent God views us all. One of the most interesting themes that is thrown out the Old Testament is the theme of “comfort” in Isaiah 40. Prophecy in the Bible usually has an effect for the people of that time, an alluding aspect to a future event and an over-arching principle for all of mankind. In Isaiah 40, the Israelites are just getting back in God’s good graces, so to speak, because they are being delivered from a country’s oppression that has been due to their lack of respect and obedience to God. Isaiah 40 starts off with “comfort, comfort my people” and then it goes on to link this prophecy with the life of Christ in the New Testament. We begin to understand that one of the big things about Jesus’ coming is that we are comforted in knowing that the Master Planner of the Universe is actively working over us with the care of a Father and has sent His valuable Son to rescue us. In a lot of ways, Jesus’ coming was meant to reduce the amount of stress in our lives, limiting us to one main concern, a relationship with Jesus as the source of our comfort.

God’s gift of Christ was supposed to streamline our cares in this world to our relationship with Him. We were supposed to see that God would provide, care for, protect and direct us by giving us access to limitless wisdom and knowledge that is found in the relationship with Jesus.

You see, What we’ve created is far from a simple gathering of a few shepherds with the family. This event was meant to take the pressure off and relax us…but somehow, we’ve found a way to turn it into one of the most stressful times of the year. Sometimes, I have to wonder if somewhere, when Christmas starts again, God just looks at our overstated plans and just, figuratively, shakes His head…and maybe chuckles a little.

The invisibility of repentance Part 1

Today's blog is not a solution...it's a beginning to a thought process.  Think of it as a jumping off point....you may not agree.  You may not find resolution...it's not sewed up and finished.  That's fine....Here we go...
This thought's just been running through my head and I'm a little concerned for the church of America today and it has to do with God's grace and forgiveness. 
I believe somehow in our society, we've gotten the impression that "admitting" or "confessing" your sin is enough for God's forgiveness and grace.  It's become accepted, almost, to some, for us to feel that if we own up to a sinful behavior, but tack on the end, "God will just have to forgive me", then somehow, someway, we feel that's enough to settle accounts with God.  Sadly, it's not.  I wish I could tell you that only giving the "head nod" and the "yeah, you're right" was good enough for God's forgiveness and grace, but it's just not. What then finishes off that forgiveness for God? REPENTANCE.
Repentance means that you turn around from the direction that you are heading, do a 180 and do it God's way. That's what it is. That's all it is. There is no substitute for that. In other words, if I'm not being kind to someone, then my repentance is to start treating them with kindness. That's what it is. If God has told me to do something, then my repentance is to do what God says, that's the only way that relationship with God is maintained.  Here's a thought for you to chew on...I'm not done with this, so really chew on this.

The grace of God is a magnificent thing, but it is designed to cover us until we come in line with God's Word...NOT instead of us coming in line with God's Word.

What do you think?

Next time....we'll start here.

 "If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left."
Hebrews 10:26

The definition of God

You know...I don't think we take enough time to think through what being "God" means.  It's impossible to fully grasp.  God is unique and has a set of rules that apply only to Him.  Just wanted to throw out some random thoughts on the subject.

God is perfect...He lacks NOTHING.  In other words, He does not need you or I.  You and I must act on the basis of need.  We need food.  We need relationship.  We need rest.  God is in a total state of perfection...in other words, at every moment, He has NO need.  In turn, He never acts out of want or need...He acts ONLY out of free choice.  We cannot understand that, because every decision we make, every action we attempt, is, at it's most free, a coerced choice or a "forced choice".  At some level, every choice we make is effected by "need".  In fact, our entire life is colored by need.

God owns everything.  That's me, that's you, that's your Mom, your house, your stuff...it's all His.  In the faux ownership thing that we live everyday, really just minding HIS stuff, we don't like anyone telling us what to do with our (HIS) stuff...well, neither does God, and even more, because it is His stuff...and it really is.  He's not caught in the fake state of ownership like we are, attempting to "own" everything, including our own bodies.  He really owns it all.  Unlike us, He's not just holding it until the real owner decides to take it back.

God is not moral.  Before you lynch me, follow me a little.  I'm not saying that God is immoral.  When we say that something is "moral", we are saying that here is a "moral standard" and this thing/act/person conforms to that standard, therefore they are moral.  God conforms to no standard...He is the standard.  It would be more correct to say "Moral is God."  The standard by which we determine something being right or moral or just is what God is.  That's the only requirement.  In this sense, God is not just...Just is God.

Whatever God decides to do in the moment is right.  He is not bound as we are, by a standard that is out there that depicts justice or righteousness that we try to model.

For example, if God decided to completely flip the rules of life tomorrow (which He would never do, because He is unchanging and consistent to His character, but for sake of argument)...if He did...say...make murdering people right and correct.  That's just crazy, but I'm just picking something "nuts" to make a point.  If he made that switch in morality, then that would be the right and moral thing to do, because He is the standard of right...there is no other.

For us, we can easily fall into a very American mentality of thinking that the authority needs to meet our approval.  God cannot be judged or evaluated.  There would never be an evaluation that comes back but "that's the most perfect action to be taken".  Why?  Because whatever God does, by definition of "being God", is absolutely right.  The misconception that we all fall into at times is that there is a standard set that we are supposed to judge God by, that He should meet to determine if He deserves our allegiance.  That is completely wrong and it makes terribly misguided conceptions of God.  It lacks an understanding of what it means to be God.  Think about these questions...

What if whatever you decided to do was instantly a law of the Universe? 
What if gravity was your decision? 
What if what you felt defined reality?
What if the concept of perfection was based on what you are?
What if the way you are determined the way the world worked?
What if physics was based on you and not the other way around?

Getting the picture...to question God is not to understand who or what He is and to demonstrate an ignorance of life itself. 

There is no effort required to be perfect or all-powerful or all-knowing...it's just who He is.  It's more natural to Him to be all of those things than it is for us to attempt to breathe.  Easy and hard are irrelevant terms to God when "nothing is impossible" for you.  As I said, the normal rules and assessment techniques don't apply when it comes to God and when we attempt to say things like "God didn't do that right" or "God is wrong" or "I think it would have been better to have done", we just spout ignorance of the reality of the situation, not some sort of evaluative wisdom that God didn't understand somewhere.

And the glorious thing is, in the middle of this situation, that He is aware of our almost insulting ignorance and He's quite willing to walk patiently with us through the complicated and impossible process of understanding...why?  Because He loves us that much...and because, nothing is impossible for Him...another by-product of being God.

Please continue to pray for us at Bay West Church as we try to be the church of Jesus to west Palm Bay Florida.