still don’t believe in the resurrection?

I am not the judge on who is a Christian and who is not. If I were, heaven wouldn’t need so many mansions.

But I am wondering how a person can identify themselves as a follower of Jesus Christ and not believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus. They are out there – the people who buy into salvation and new life in Christ but coming back from the dead is a little over the top! So apparently Easter means nothing to these people. What will they be celebrating when they dress up and come to church this Sunday?

Here is my take on the issue: It is completely futile to put your faith in a dead man’s ability to raise you from the dead. It doesn't matter that Jesus died for you if He is still in His grave. There is no redemption in His death unless He resurrected.

The resurrection of Jesus from the grave is THE MOST central concept of our faith. If Jesus did not resurrect, we remain dead in our sin. Paul said, “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. “ 1 Corinthians 15:14-15 (NIV)

So, take the leap. Put your faith in what God says. Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and resurrected from the dead. He is alive and is coming again. And everyone who follows Him is alive!

That’s what Easter is all about.

project Peru con't.

You may donate by visiting wecanshareit.org

palm sunday

OK, I rethought my last post. I was determined to keep my eyes on the immediate project, our outreach efforts to the children of Peru. But with the arrival of Palm Sunday and Holy Week tomorrow, we have to put first things first.

Passover begin at sundown on Monday. The week of Passion will be upon us. The greatest need of humankind will be met by the Sinless One. The emotions of this week, for those who take time to look closely enough, will take us for a ride.

Palm Sunday, although the beginning of the "end" for Jesus, is a day of great triumph. Jesus will overcome! He will complete His task of being the Savior of the world. And we have reason to celebrate!

Palm Sunday at Maranatha will feature a message from the Gospel of Matthew 21:1-11. Read it thoroughly. We will discuss the ironies of the events of that day. And in the end, we will rejoice with others at the plan of salvation that God has brought about.

God awaken us to your love, your life, your salvation!

Salvation is now!

focus

Although some pretty cool things have been happening this week, I am staying zeroed in on "Project Peru" this week. We shot some new video today that I will post tomorrow. Once that is up, we will explore some of the new things that God has done this week.

Suffice it to say, we are heading into Holy Week with some momentum!

If you have yet to make a donation to Project Peru, please take a look at the video two posts down or visit wecanshareit.org to check your options. I am serious about helping these needy kids in Peru. We need to make an investment into their lives.

Jump in!

project Peru

Do you think I can hike 25 miles? With a full backpack? In 13,550 ft Andes Mountains elevation?

And, on a related note, do you care about needy kids?

I am raising money to help assist a Children’s Ministry Center in Lima, Peru. They feed, educate and provide medical care for 330 impoverished children. Their leader, Pastor Dario Lopez is a trusted man who has invested the last 20 years caring for these children. Our financial support will allow this great work to continue and to expand.

Here is the plan: My daughter, Jessica and I plan to hike the Inca Trail in Peru in May. The trip is approximately 25 miles long. I am finding sponsors who will support my trek on a per-mile basis. The money will be collected before (for those of you who actually think I can make the trip) or following (for those of you who think I am a wimp) the trip. I am actually hoping to hand-deliver the funds to Pastor Lopez when we arrive in Peru so your faith in my hiking ability is pretty vital.

Here’s all you need to do. Go to Maranatha’s outreach website, wecanshareit.org and read the details. Or, you can watch this video on youtube.com or click on it below. A paypal page has been set up for your convenience. You may also simply place a check in the offering at one of our services at Maranatha, but please be sure to designate “Peru” on your envelope. One more thing: and this is important. Let me know if you plan to support and how much you plan to donate. If you plan to give one dollar per mile, obviously the total amount is $25. I am looking for your total amount pledged. This will assist us as we set and reach our goals. My preliminary goal is $5,000, an amount easily attainable for us. That means that I need 200 people who will pledge $1 per mile. Or 100 to pledge $2 per… you get the idea. Of course, if you want to pledge $200 per mile, we will reach our goal!

Thanks for your support. Pray for us as we are in training for this demanding hike. I have a lot of motivation to complete it!

project peru

Support Project Peru here: wecanshareit.org

Thanks very much!

friday, march 19

It’s a beautiful Friday morning in south Florida and we are getting ready for a day off.

Some personal stuff:
Letha’s birthday is tomorrow so we are planning some celebration time. Going to enjoy a couple of Cardinals baseball Spring Training games and eat steak for dinner tonight. I am trying to get her to plan a shopping trip – we’ll see. She is so low maintenance!

Letha’s dad, Dave, is visiting with us for a couple of weeks. He is a joy to have around but I feel for him. His wife Mary passed away last January and he is not rebounding so well. I can’t say that I blame him. We are just embracing the time that we have together while he is here.

We are missing Jessica a lot since it’s been Christmas since we have seen her. These are the stretches that make it tough. We have scheduled a trip in April to go see her – I can’t wait.

Some ministry stuff:
I am getting ready for more missions activity. We are working on two projects: one for Peru and one for Guatemala, both to benefit needy children. On a total of 3 trips this Spring/Summer, we will take needed supplies to orphans, deliver finances to help build a Children’s Ministry Center and lead a large team of families from Maranatha on their first short-term missions experience. This missions activity is close to my heart and is one of the greatest expressions of my calling. It also helps keep me relatively sane.

Maranatha is gearing up for Easter. We are hoping for some momentum to pick up and carry us through the season. We are having a difficult time getting people to come to worship events on a consistent basis. It just seems that so many things compete for the attention of our people. Maybe we will see a surge of commitment in the next few weeks. If we don’t, it won’t be because we are not trying. In fact, we are pushing hard to see this happen.

One thing I am really enjoying right now is a small group that we have put together. We are meeting with several young couples on Wednesdays. They are a great group and are really jumping in to some important spiritual growth concepts. It is exciting to see how bright they are and how they are growing in our brief time together.

Some vision stuff:
I am meeting regularly with a Vision Team for Maranatha. These guys, along with our staff, are putting together some very important ideas for ministry effectiveness. I think the church will see the results of their work in a bunch of areas. I get inspired by meeting with them.

When God speaks to me, especially in areas of changes that He wants me to make, it usually feels like agitation to my spirit. He makes me uncomfortable enough to want to change. I have been agitated in several areas for some time now. We are now dialoging our way through some adjustments that God is bringing about. By nature, I am not much of a risk taker, but God is certainly making it clear that some risks are going to be necessary if we are to see His plans fulfilled. We are praying and planning now but soon will launch into the vision casting stage of the process. I am cautiously anticipating a positive reaction from the people of Maranatha. By this time next year, if all goes well, we could be a different church.

Just 3 bullet points for you to go with:
Do something today that matters; that will outlast you – that’s what God asks of us.
Put God first. If He is not first on your list, He isn’t on your list. God doesn’t settle for second place.
Find someone to serve. Give something away that you aren’t using. Surprise someone with kindness.

Peace!

what is influencing me

These clips are by Ed Stetzer at the recent Verge Conference Letha and I attended in Austin. Watching this may help you understand where I am headed.

inspired by a couple of old geezers

My daily Bible reading has me in the book of Joshua. Toward the end of the book, the Israelites have crossed into the Promised Land but there are lots of specifics still to be hammered out. I came across three verses that were pretty inspiring. I needed a pick-up on the Monday after time change! This worked.

Joshua 13:1 “When Joshua was an old man, the LORD said to him, “You are growing old, and much land remains to be conquered.” I love this. God is not allowing Joshua to come up with any excuses for not pursuing his dreams. He makes it clear – in essence saying, “you are not dead yet, get busy!” Sometimes we get tired or burned out or we want to retire. God won’t have any of that. As long as your heart is beating, God has land for you to conquer.

Joshua 14:10b-12a “Today I am eighty-five years old. 11 I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then. 12 So give me the hill country that the LORD promised me. You will remember that as scouts we found the descendants of Anak living there in great, walled towns. But if the LORD is with me, I will drive them out of the land, just as the LORD said.” I love this even more. Caleb is an old man with a great history of being a tough guy for God. At eighty-five, he is just as much of a butt kicker as he was in his thirties. We may laugh at old guys who don’t know they are old – you know what? I wouldn’t mess with Caleb! A new battle cry for us all: “Give me the hill country!” This tells me that God won’t let the vision die and we shouldn’t either.

Joshua 18:3 Then Joshua asked them, “How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given to you?" This is Joshua’s challenge to the seven tribes who had yet to possess the land that God had promised them. And it is an excellent challenge to those of us who are still living around the outskirts of what God has planned for us. How long are you going to wait? Direct, succinct, to the point. And impossible to ignore. I am not waiting any longer!

These three passages got me going on this Monday. I hope they will do the same for you.

Shalom!

ideas I won't use tomorrow

It's Saturday night, wrap up time for my message. Tomorrow, I am preaching part 2 of Awaken (an invitation to spiritual vitality). I have a lot that I would like to say and there is a lot that I am not able to say.

If you want to hear what I have to say, set your clock forward one hour and get to church on time. By the way, I bet I have heard 30 times the last few days someone say, "don't forget daylight savings time!". So I won't believe the people who say they did not know. They just don't want to come to church and any excuse will do. :)

The major verse I am launching from is:
Ephesians 5:16 “Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times!” (The Message) This verse probably speaks for itself.

There won't be enough time tomorrow for me to share:

Judges 16 where Samson slept while his girlfriend removed his power.
Matthew 25:7 where the five foolish young girls overslept for their weddings.
Revelation 3:1b-3 “I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. 3 Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief." (NLT)

So there, I just shared it. Now, let's wake up and get busy doing what God has directed us to do!

Blessings, everyone!

words for leaders

“Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:6-9 (NLT)

God speaks directly to Joshua as he assumes leadership of the Israelites just prior to entering the Promised Land. Maybe He is speaking to us, too.

3 times God tells Joshua to be strong and courageous. Strength and courage must be important for a leader.

God tells him to: 1. Obey the instructions, 2. Don’t stray from the instructions, 3. Study the instructions, 4. Mediate on the instructions. We can assume that the instructions (God’s Word) are central to success.

God had earlier said “You will be successful in everything you do.” He later qualifies that statement by saying, “Only then (IF you obey, don’t stray away from, study and meditate on the instructions) will you prosper and succeed in everything you do.” God makes the conditions of success very clear.

One final word to leader by God: “The Lord is with you wherever you go.”

Hey leaders, God has appointed us for this time and this season. Let’s lead people with courage, stay committed to God’s plan and give God glory for any success we enjoy.

Jesus is not a germophobe

My name is Rick and I hate germs. When people sneeze in public, I hold my breath until I can move away from them. I open public restroom doors with a paper towel in my hand. When someone brings me cookies that they and their kids baked, I don’t eat them. (kids touch things that I am not interested in eating). I don’t like germs.

At Holy Communion on Sunday, I told the worshipers that Jesus is not a germophobe. In other words, He is not afraid of being contaminated by us. He never cringes when we come to Him with our dirtiness. He doesn’t hold His breath when we walk by coughing. In fact, He calls us and embraces us when we are at our worst. We are sick and diseased and contagious with sin. And Jesus loves it when we let Him embrace us.

I caught a cold this week. Some scoundrel at one of our services heard me talk about how I hate it when I am being hugged and then the person says, “I have been sick as a dog!”. Gee thanks, whoever you are.

Jesus takes our colds and pains and hurts and diseases and sins. He is not afraid of our ugliness. He takes all of our stuff and nails it to the cross. “Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could become right with God.” II Corinthians 5:21 (NCV)

pushing back

Our worship event at 9:00 on Sunday was quite a roller-coaster ride. While I think we were successful (in that we were faithful, we did not quit, we delivered what God wanted, and we worshiped God), there was some serious resistance.

From a technical standpoint, if it could go wrong, it did. Without going into specifics, the first half of the service was a choppy as I have seen it. We couldn’t get into a flow, there were numerous interruptions. Sounds like a disaster, huh?

Not really. Our church is pretty good about overlooking glitches and we recover rapidly. There is a lot of grace. This may be because we hold the standards of expectation high and we usually are a pretty smooth operation. I think we were able to overcome the technical difficulties and I think we won. At least it wasn't as bad as a 10:45 service recently where the fire alarm went off!

I think the resistance was spiritual. A few people mentioned to me that they sensed the same thing. Obviously, the enemy of our soul does not like us focusing on the Lover of our soul. He tired to stop us or at least distract us. He failed.

Some of the team discussed after our day of worship how humbling it is when something goes wrong in a service. They were reminded to stay focused, stay in the moment of worship and not get lazy. We also encouraged one another with the idea that there is a margin for error. The success of a worship event is not up to us or our level of performance. We certainly are supposed to give God our best, but when our best stinks, we are counting on God’s grace to cover us. And it does.

Regarding Sunday: People worshiped. They heard the Word of God. They prayed. They encouraged each other. I think it was a successful service.

The moment I demand perfection from others, I will be held to the same standard. No thanks.

a loss

Letha and I are attending the funeral of a dear lady who departed this earth on Friday. Bobbye Linton, wife of our friend, Pastor Charles Linton died from the results of cancer. The Lintons had been married for 52 years. Our prayers and support are with Dr. Linton as he mourns. God bless this dear man.

what are we sleeping through?

Sleep is awesome and necessary. But sleep can also be addictive and wasteful and dangerous.

Belgian teenager, Kimberley Vlaminck said she went to sleep in a tattoo artist's chair and woke up 56 stars later. She later recanted her story and said she had lied because her father was angry at her for the ink. But the impression remains.

I wonder what is happening to us while we sleep.

What bad things are going on in the world that we need to address? What opportunities for good and noble are flying by, while we dream? What is God doing and saying that He invites us to join?

Problem is, if someone is asleep, they are unaware. What will wake us up?

Romans 13:11-14 (MSG) But make sure that you don't get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We can't afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around and dissipation, in bickering and grabbing everything in sight. Get out of bed and get dressed! Don't loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about!

Don’t allow the monotony of life to put you to sleep, missing the opportunities right in front of you…

a coaching tool

Yesterday, I was reminded of a a useful tool for anyone who works in a coaching or mentoring capacity. Carl George developed a simple list of questions that will enable a leader to effectively open communication with a follower or a group of followers.

The next time you find yourself leading a discussion with someone who is looking for some direction, you can work through these questions with them:

1. How are you? (beneath the surface)

2. What are you celebrating? Where are you winning? What are the victories?

3. What challenges are you experiencing?

4. What do you plan to do to solve these challenges?

5. How can I help you?

6. How can I pray for you?

Hope you find this helpful!

wake up, people!

We are working on a new message (I never preach old stuff!) for this Sunday at Maranatha Church. “Awaken” is an invitation to spiritual vitality. That is a nice way of saying, “wake up, people!”

Please consider sending an invite to a friend to join you.