We all want to leave a mark on this world. Some of us want to leave a mark that tells the world “I was here with Jesus.”
We are ready for our annual art show next month. Here are the pictures I am offering up:
I will be showing more of the group’s artwork over the next few weeks.
In other news, we are ready to put out our first C.cada calendar for 2013. Proceeds will be going to benefit kids from the church who are preparing for the annual Fine Arts Festival. http://faf.ag.org/. All art is orignal work done by our C.cada artists team. If you would like to order one contact me here via comment.
With so many new readers I thought an explanation of the chapter charts might be necessary. Chapter charting is a devotional exercise that is part meditation/ part brainstorming. Every week I take four chapters of Scripture (we are charting the entire Bible in consecutive order).
1.I read the chapters.
2.I note what comes to mind as I read and jot down three of my “first thoughts”about the chapter in bullet or title form. For instance, last week as I read Judges Chapter 10:11 (God’s response to the Israeli pleas for mercy) I began to hear the song “I Will Survive” playing in my head. So I came up with the sermon title “When God Sings Like Gloria Gaynor”.
The point of the exercise is not to come up with incredible sermons. It is sort of like a word association game. You read the Bible and write the first thing that comes to mind. All kinds of interesting questions come from those “first thoughts”. The chapter charts have sparked many prayer conversations between me and the Heavenly Father. Come on play the game and see what happens!
Here’s What I see in today’s chapters:
Judges chapter 14 sermon topics/titles:
1. God uses every opportunity: Judges 14: 1-4
2. Breaking the Vow: Judges 14:1-20
3. Giving In To Outward Pressure: Judges 14: 15-20
With so many new readers I thought an explanation of the chapter charts might be necessary. Chapter charting is a devotional exercise that is part meditation/ part brainstorming. Every week I take four chapters of Scripture (we are charting the entire Bible in consecutive order).
1.I read the chapters.
2.I note what comes to mind as I read and jot down three of my “first thoughts”about the chapter in bullet or title form. For instance, last week as I read Judges Chapter 10:11 (God’s response to the Israeli pleas for mercy) I began to hear the song “I Will Survive” playing in my head. So I came up with the sermon title “When God Sings Like Gloria Gaynor”.
The point of the exercise is not to come up with incredible sermons. It is sort of like a word association game. You read the Bible and write the first thing that comes to mind. All kinds of interesting questions come from those “first thoughts”. The chapter charts have sparked many prayer conversations between me and the Heavenly Father. Come on play the game and see what happens!
Here’s what I see in today’s chapters:
Judges chapter 12 sermon topics/titles:
1. Your Tongue Betrays You: Judges 12:1-7
2. “Whitey” and “Mighty” Rule the Roost: Judges 12: 8-12
3. Lots of Sons on Little Horses: Judges 12: 13-15
So this has been a big week of discovery for Pastor Wrinkles. There have been so many epiphanies I hardly know where to begin. I was sitting at lunch this week with the church staff eating my Greek yogurt. It was a new kind that just went on sale at the market. It is very tasty. My only objection is that they put the yogurt and the fruit in adjoining containers. Well all week long I have been scooping the fruit into the yogurt with a spoon…making a mess of myself, the table and anyone bold enough to get close to my “lunch mess”.
The youth pastor’s wife joined us for lunch the other day and upon observing my yogurt issue she offered, “You know the container folds in half so that you don’t make such a mess.”
the angels in Heaven sang as I discovered the best invention ever! Folding yogurt containers! What genius thought that up?
But Jesus wasn’t finished with me yet! For years I have been having a daily argument with the office coffee pot.
When the coffee is made it won’t come out! You have to turn the top and if you don’t turn it right the top comes off and you end up with a coffee mess. So I usually just take the top off altogether and pour sans top. Usually I over pour and end up with that nasty coffee ring that travels with you everywhere you put your cup down (of course I never think to wipe the bottom of the cup with a napkin that would be too brilliant).
One of the secretaries noticed me pouring out the other day and remarked “You know you don’t have to take the top off to pour. It will stay on and pour perfectly if you just line up the arrows.”
The angels sang and the people rejoiced!
Of course I have taken a bit of ribbing over these discoveries. To all this I say “My elevator may not go all the way to the top. I may be a few ants short of a picnic. Yes I may be dumb, but I am a nice kind o’ dumb!” 😉
I am late this week sorry Cee!! But what fun the questions will be this week. Thanks Cee for picking my ice breaker out of the bunch I am so honored! 🙂
Where did you live at age five? My parents rented a house on Baldwinville State Rd. in Winchendon MA from my Aunt and Uncle. Uncle Dick was stationed out of Honolulu for a couple of years and my folks were saving up for a house of their own; So I imagine Uncle Dick and Aunt Lore let us have the house on the cheap. I remember there was a big rock out back where a snake lived. I would go out and talk to the snake every afternoon and try to get it to come out and play. Mostly that didn’t work. 🙂
What five things in life would you like to get paid for but would choose to do even if you have to pay to do them? (Reinventing the We’ll) O.K. so I had to go back to my comments from last week to get this list. I wanted to make sure I didn’t add anything else to the list: 1.I would like to get paid for reading 2. I would like to get paid for singing 3. I would like to get paid for writing 4. I would like to get paid for travelling 5. I would like to get paid for helping people get closer to Jesus!
Describe yourself in a word that starts with the first letter of your name. (teedeevee) Jocular
“What do you have to be so happy about?” (Caddo Veil)-
There are some people who can turn a phrase so that it comes out the realm of thought and enters the world of taste. Sometimes a line or a word properly placed can be so delicious it brings a sweetness to your palate and tears to your eyes.
“September Me Once More” is so beautiful and heartwrenching I just had to share it with you all. Thanks Sis Caddo!
While Amanda’s birthday was in April she opted for delayed gratification so that Tina and I could give her a night of Ireland. So last Saturday, after our September artist’s gathering, the three of us headed off to Boston for that evening of celtic wonder.
We started with dinner just off Government Center, at Kinsale’s Irish Pub. After the Fenian Pasta, a huge piece of chocolate guiness cake and a strong cup of Irish Joe (to refresh me after the early morning and a busy day with artists and musicians), we headed up Tremont Street to see Celtic Thunder perform their one night in the city! I am a die-hard Thunderhead. It turns out so is the dean of student life at my daughter’s college. The dean ended up standing next to us in line as we waited for our section to open up!…Small world! Amanda was really glad she was in dress code. 🙂
“In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.” Jude 1:8
We have spent the last several posts talking about the signals that indicate a “secret-slipper-inner” has taken up residence in a church. Those signals are reiterated here in verse 8. If you missed the discussion, it can be found here:
What I want to talk about today is not what behavior typifies the “secret-slipper-inner” but how they managed to become a danger to the church in the first place.
The Bible in Jude 1:8 calls the “secret-slipper-inner” a dreamer or according to the KJV a “filthy dreamer”. The Greek expression is “houtos kai enypniazomai-” roughly translated that is “the men who are beguiled by their sensual dreams.”
Do you remember this song?
This is a perfect example of “houtos kai enypniazomai-“.
Sometimes when we think of “filthy dreams” we think of those dreams we wake up from saying “Wow I am glad that I really didn’t do that.” But Jude isn’t talking about some dream we have because we haven’t guarded our hearts properly or because we ate crazy before bed (how could he be our night time dreams are not generally under our control and these filthy dreamers are very clearly making conscious choices). When Jude speaks of filthy dreamers he is talking about people who have chosen a mindset that leads to unbelief, rebellion and sexual promiscuity because it disregards God altogether. Paul identified it when he wrote: “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.” Romans 1:21-24 NIV
Our culture is rife with the idea that all religions are equal…all roads lead to Heaven…there are many paths one destination…that we should
What we have to realize is that this is not a God dream. God is not for freedom of religion. Jesus did not create many paths to Heaven. God is not discovered in all gods. Heaven is only open to those who will repent of their sin and accept Jesus as the only son of God crucified and raised back to life on the third day!
Now, to some “tolerant” ears this message may sound harsh and rather unloving or un- good- newsish; But then it’s not our good news. It’s God’s good news.
The good news was never meant to be that “all roads lead to Heaven.”
It was always “Hey I’ve made A ROAD! TAKE IT!”
I suppose in the days ahead we are going to hear a lot more of the “all roads” jargon. I imagine we will even be pushed to accept it. All who press us in this direction are “houtos kai enypniazomai-“.
Reinventing the We'll 