Let’s EAT!

Far too often our sinful, human nature robs God of the worship he deserves. I’m not talking about bad Christian music. What I am talking about are the simple, good things in life that bring us joy and our lack of response to God for giving us these great things! That certainly is a broad and general statement, but one area we neglect to give God the honor and worship due to him is with FOOD. Yes, I said FOOD, and I don’t mean just praying for God to make whatever you are about to consume nutritious to your body.

Now before you think I am crazy, take a look at the Old Testament. The year for God’s Chosen people was often shaped and coordinated around Feasts. Now these weren’t just excuses for people to get together and simply hang out. These were done with a specific purpose in mind. What were the feasts and why did they have them, you ask? Here is a very quick breakdown:

FEAST	PURPOSE
The Passover Feast (Lev. 23:5)	Salvation with the Blood of Christ
The Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:6)	Jesus being the Bread of Life
The First Fruits (Lev. 23:11)	The Resurrection
Pentecost (Lev. 23:16)	Jew and Gentile becoming one Church
Trumpets (Lev. 23:24)	The summoning of the Saints
Atonement (Lev. 23:27)	Christ Atones and will return
Tabernacles (Lev. 23:34)	God provides shelter for His people

Now I am not going to use a verse out of context like Paul, when he states in 1 Corinthians 15, “Eat and drink for tomorrow we die.” This is not a call to excess and gluttony. I simply want to point out and encourage you that you can honor God for His love and mercy toward you with the great, awesome and delicious food He has provided for you. It may not be every meal and it may only be at Thanksgiving each year. I urge you, however, if you take a bite of a great piece of meat, a warm chewy piece of bread, or eat a ripe juicy peach, do not pass up the opportunity to acknowledge God for his provision and his mercy in allowing you to enjoy these things.

So please, eat to the Glory of the Lord!

Pastor Tim Mason

I Need a Miracle

Everyday. It’s how we’re all created. And the wonderful thing is, the miracle is available everyday, if we’ll be courageous enough to claim it.

In Matthew 16:24, Jesus clearly tells us, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” These instructions are repeated in Mark 8:34 and 

in Luke 9:23. But how do we do this? 

We all get stuck. Instead of letting the tar of our lives hold us captive like a soon-to-be-extinct brontosaurus, deny the frustration of the moment and focus on Christ and his victory on the cross. Frustration is a selfish emotion, and your self is not going to free you from your sin. Only Jesus can do that. 

Bear the burden or your circumstance (your cross). Be inspired by the Stations of the Cross. After being beaten to the point of death, Jesus carried his cross up to Calvary with only the reluctant assistance of Simon of Cyrene. Along the way he kept his focus on God’s love. 

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” That’s exactly where we need to keep our focus, every moment, of every day. Eternal life starts now with the miracle of Jesus on the cross.

Unlike Simon, we have the enthusiastic assistance of the Holy Spirit. We can be filled with the strength to bear our burdens and endure our trials.

Think about it: the creator of the universe gave his son as a sacrifice so that he could have a relationship with us free from our sin. This relationship transcends death on Earth and lasts forever. Forever. That is a miracle I need everyday.

Kevin Bibo

Like A Good Neighbor

I can hear the jingle of that popular insurance company TV commercial in my head.

We had three new families move into our neighborhood over the past year or so. We have made it a point to introduce ourselves and welcome them to the neighborhood. They seem like nice people and by all accounts they seem like they will fit right in to our neighborhood dynamic.

I remember as a kid how people came over to welcome us when we moved in and brought us cookies or something. I can remember most of those neighbors even today. Man, times sure change.
Our new neighbors today seem to want to be left alone. When we see them outside they rarely look up or make eye contact. When we pass in our cars on the street they don't wave. I think, "How rude! Not very neighborly!"  Then I got to thinking, what does it mean to be a good neighbor? Let me offer these points:

- Does a good neighbor expect others to look up and say hi or does a good neighbor respect the fact that others may want to be left alone?
- Does a good neighbor expect others to keep the noise down or is a good neighbor one who doesn't constantly complain about everything?

I could go on and I certainly have my own opinion. The bottom line is we are all different and have our own expectations of other people. We generally expect others to be like we are...that doesn't make us right. The true test of character is who we are modeling ourselves after. Are we a reflection of Christ or are we a reflection of the world?

What kind of neighbor are you?

Jason Pugh

Our Decision To Tithe

This occurred about a year or so after I accepted Christ. Scripture indicates we are to support the local church through our tithes and offerings. I had felt the need to do this shortly after I was saved, but my wife did not. We had had many heated conversations about it, and I continuously heard the same things, “We give what we can.” “We have bills to pay.” “How can we afford to just give away 10% of our earnings?” Stuff like that. It always left me feeling frustrated and disobedient. Regardless, we continued to give $20 here, $20 there, basically whatever “change” we happened to have on us at the time, but with no real consistency or conviction.

At the time, we were just starting a financial services company. Money wasn’t pouring in, but we were doing OK. One day I got a commission check for $1000. Immediately, God (though the prompting of Holy Spirit) told me to give $100 (10%) to the church. My immediate response was “But God, you know the conversations Stacey and I have had about this.” Immediately after that thought I “heard” Him say, “Am I a big enough God to take care of your wife?” I was floored, because I knew He was. But I had my doubts.

As I’m driving home, I’m rehearsing the conversation I’m about to have with my wife because we’ve had it numerous times before. And I can hear her saying the same things she’d said time and time again.

I walked up the sidewalk, opened the door and announced “I’m home!” She comes out, and I inform her I got a check today for $1000. She says, “That’s great!” And then I told her, “And $100 of it is going to the church.” Her response was, “That’s not a problem.” Again I was floored…2x4 style!

Now, I don’t mean to say we were windfalled with monetary gain, we weren’t, quite the contrary actually. We would have a bill come due for $60, I’d get a check for $80, but we tithe regardless. We’d get another bill for $200, I’d get a check for $250, all the while continuing to give to the church. This went on for 6 or 8 months, but we never doubted our needs would be met. And all it did was solidify our faith that if we were faithful and joyful in our giving, He would meet our needs.

That was almost 25 years ago. And we’ve given ever since, even increased our formal giving, and have never been in want of anything, we’ve always had more than enough and have been fortunate to give generously even outside of our normal giving to the church. Not so we can get more, but because we enjoy it and we get to see what God does with that giving.

This is only one of many examples of God convincing me of His existence and love for us. But it all had to start from the very first decision to trust Him and believe that Christ shed His blood for my sins. Are you willing to do that? Because frankly, none of this is going to make any sense to you until you do. You can have all the head knowledge of scripture you want. Shoot, you’re probably more knowledgeable than most Christians when it comes to scripture as just words. But without a saving knowledge of God through Christ Jesus, it’s all meaningless and of no gain to you.

Kevin Willard

Temptation!

I had a topic all picked out and had supporting scripture and then I heard Pastor Steve speak some amazing, eye-opening truth.  His message, "The high cost of low living."  I specifically identified with the story of Samson.  A chosen man blessed by God, who sins carelessly fully knowing he had been selected by God. 

So immediately I go to the, "How many ways am I NOT like Samson?"  After a couple seconds I move to the obvious and asked the question, "How many ways am I like Samson?"  I spent a considerable amount of time pondering this side of the question.  One common denominator that kept standing out to me was the correlation between Samson being blessed, yet, still sinning and how I live my life.  And that other little, tiny, thing... Am I living right (righteously) for God?  Oh man this would having me thinking and praying the rest of the day.  

If there is one thing I know, it is sin.  So this epiphany had me at a wait a sec. moment.  I tithe, I'm a good guy, I'm nice, I volunteer.  Wasn't this enough?  And then, Sunday, through Steve's message, I realized what I give is not enough.  I have committed to doing things but I have not completely surrendered!  I have not submitted my life to God.  I am too susceptible to temptation.  So how do I change this?

There is only one way to beat the temptations of this material world.  To give my life completely to God and to live by His will.  Doing so will require me to guard myself.  Again referring to Sunday's message, I believe Pastor Steve gave us a method that will yield success: 

Guard your eyes.

Guard your desires.

Guard your heart. 

Guard the patterns and habits you allow in your life.

I perceive this as a roadmap for all of us who struggle with all kinds of temptation.  

My last thought to ponder is, "Why do we continue to sin knowing it is wrong?"  I believe Pastor Steve said it best yesterday- 

"We give up heavenly treasures for earthly trinkets."  What am I giving up in heaven -- betraying a loving father who gave 

His son -- for my earthly desires?  

God bless you,

Ben Linares

Why Worry About It?

Tonight as I was driving home, my cell phone rang. It was a number I did not recognize. With all those telemarketers and such, ignoring the “No Call List,” I have just found it easier to screen those types of calls. Besides, I try never to answer the phone while driving. However, I will pull off the freeway to answer calls that may be important.

After pulling off the freeway and stopping at a restaurant to grab some dinner, I checked the voicemail that was left for me. It was the manager of the apartments in which I reside. That’s never good. The manager stated that she would like to talk to me about another tenant, a neighbor, at my earliest convenience. I’m thinking, “My earliest is right now. I want to know what’s up.” So, I returned the phone call. Unfortunately, she had already left and I had to leave a message. Let the worrying commence.

Many things began to run through my mind. We are quiet and respectful neighbors. We smile and wave at everyone we see. We don’t throw wild parties. I even throw their child’s ball back over the fence. What could it be?  Do they have an issue with the company I keep? Are they complaining because of the low noise level I keep while we are hanging out on the back patio, which is near one of their windows?

I was anticipating all the possible reasons for the phone call, and all of my possible responses. Boy, was there a multitude of ideas. Finally, at 8:30, the manager called back.

After we spoke, I realized I had worried for nothing. The manager said the tenants were concerned because there was a lot of banging noises coming from my garage at night. It happens to be a shared wall to their child’s bedroom, and the noises make it hard for them to sleep. I assured the manager that I was not in the garage making noise at 2:00 AM.

And because the manager knows us fairly well, she knew there had to be another explanation. There is. It is the hot water tank. Calcium build up causes that tank to sound like the Fourth of July in my garage. Every once in a while I would yell out, “Incoming!” Trust me, it is that bad.

Matthew 6:27 states, “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his life span?” Worry gained me nothing. It did not turn out to be anything of major consequence. On the bright side, I might be getting a new hot water tank.

Pastor Rob King