Capitalize What We Prioritize

Have you ever wondered (like me), why the English language capitalizes the word "I" and lower-cases the words "you" "they" "we" "us"? Could it be that we capitalize what we prioritize? Just sayin'. :-)

Ruined for Love’s Sake

For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

- Hosea 6:6

The matter is quite simple. The Bible is very easy to understand. But we as Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined.

- Søren Kierkegaard,
Danish philosopher, theologian, and ethicist (1813-1855)

Significantly Insignificant

Then turning toward the woman, [Jesus] said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little."

- Luke 7:44-47

Every spiritual master in every tradition talks about the significance of small things in a complex world. Small actions in social life, small efforts in the spiritual life, small moments in the personal life. All of them become great in the long run, but all of them look like little or nothing in themselves. One of my favorite writers, Steve Sjogren, says that "small things done with great love will change the world." So whether it's quietly and anonymously picking up someone's check at lunch today, lending an ear to a friend who has a problem, or just simply holding the door for someone, remember that small, seemingly insignificant things become holy moments in time when done out of a heart for Christ.

Blessed to be a Blessing

Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. Jesus took the seven loaves of bread and the fish. Then Jesus gave thanks to God for the food. Jesus divided the food and gave it to the followers. The followers gave the food to the people. All the people ate and were full. After this, the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. There were about 4,000 men there that ate. There were also women and children that ate.

 

-- Matthew 15:35-38 (ERV)

                     
 

Jesus gave directions, gave thanks, and gave food so the disciples could give what the people needed to be filled and satisfied. These are wonderful blessings that Jesus gives. When we look to him and seek to really serve him, he blesses us with power and ability above our normal human capacity. This zone of blessing and ministry can also be ours if we will offer Jesus ourselves and remove the things we allow to get in the way of our faith in him. Bless you as you go through your day today quietly being the hands and feet of Christ.

Did you ever stop to think about what a worshipful experience it is to sit and watch the weather channel? Our God is an awesome God indeed!

Love Granbury May Project Report

What a great time we had this morning during our May Love Granbury service project.

This month we were asked by Mission Granbury to assist one of their clients in getting his property cleaned up around his house. It seems the elderly gentleman has fallen on some pretty tough times the last year or so. In fact, he just got released from the hospital a couple of weeks ago after suffering a mild stroke. His property had become so littered with trash and debris that the Hood County Health Department was getting ready to condemn his home...which would effectively evict the man from his home, making him homeless.

So this morning, the Church stepped up and showed up to be the hands and feet of Christ. On Friday afternoon, we had a 30 yard capacity trash dumpster delivered to the man's home, paid for by Mission Granbury and the Love Granbury ministry at Lakeside Baptist. In a little less than 2 hours this morning, our crew had completely filled the 30 yard dumpster.

While we didn't finish the project today, we made great progress! The man was so excited and happy! He just kept saying over and over again, "thank you so much for all you're doing." On Tuesday, the filled trash dumpster will be picked up and an empty one delivered. We are planning on returning to the man's home next Saturday, May 30th to finish the job.

If you'd like to join us and help out, we will be meeting at Lakeside Baptist at 10:00am next Saturday morning. What an incredible privilege to serve others as Ambassadors of Christ!

Kindness Explosion 09 Wrap Up

"This was so much fun…I want to do this every week" was what one participant of Kindness Explosion 09 had to say during the closing testimony time on Saturday afternoon. That pretty well summed up what most people said was by far the best Kindness Explosion yet. Twenty churches, hundreds of Believers from all different denominations, all coming together for the purpose of worshiping God and loving the community in His name.

Friday night's Kick-off service really set the tone for the weekend as Lincoln Wiseman and his band led in worship. The Rev. Tim Adams, who drove all afternoon through torrential downpours from San Antonio, delivered an inspiring message about the Good News that we have been entrusted to share and the power that it has to not only change individual lives both spiritually and physically, but to renew and transform entire neighborhoods and communities as well. Especially when the Body of Christ comes together to join our hearts, our hands, and our resources!

Then on Saturday morning, under cloudy and threatening skies, the Church went out to blanket the entire community with the love of Christ. What an incredible day it turned out to be in spite of the weather…which by the way, turned out to be not so bad. Well over 1,800 hot dogs, over a 1,000 bottles of water, hundreds of soft drinks, nearly 100 dozen homemade cookies and brownies, dozens and dozens of cars washed, dozens of bags of trash and litter picked up, countless smiles, and so many other acts of humble service done in the name and kindness of Christ…all with no strings attached!

Then after the Kindness Explosion ended at 2:00 pm, the Church came back to Granbury Baptist for an "agape feast" of food donated by numerous local eating establishments. Already the stories about the day were beginning to pour out as we gathered around the tables to eat. After lunch, everyone gathered in the sanctuary to hear the reports of how God worked throughout the day. Over the next few days, I'll be sharing some of those stories with you on this blog, so stay tuned!

I just want to thank all the congregations that took part in this year's Kindness Explosion and I hope you truly received a blessing for taking part. If you were a part of Kindness Explosion, be sure and spread the word about your KE experience to your brothers and sisters in your congregation and start encouraging them even now to plan on being a part of Kindness Explosion 10. Speaking of, be sure to go ahead and mark your calendars now with the dates for Kindness Explosion 10. Kindness Explosion 10 will take place on Friday, April 16^th and Saturday, April 17^th, 2010.

The Church has left the building!