Great Day Off with My Family

Today was a great day!

My wife, 3 kids and I went to the YMCA this morning.  Lynn and I played racquetball while the 3 kids were playing in childcare.  Afterwards, all 5 of us went into the swimming pool and had a blast.  Sadly, I made little Hannah (4 months) cry by dunking her twice in the pool.  She calmed down and relaxed as long as she sat on Daddy's shoulder, her face next to mine.  David had a blast showing me how he could jump from the side into the pool.  He really, really had a great time doing that.  Later, Lynn took Hannah into the observation room and fed Hannah while I played in the pool with the boys.  We had a blast playing with rubber duckies, learning how to use a noodle, and throwing rings (that sank) across the pool.  David especially enjoyed having me throw him high in the air and landing in the water.  It won't be long before he can take off his floating device and really swim on his own.  He's learning how to doggie paddle and is getting better at kicking.

After we got out of the pool, took showers, and got dressed, we started to head out of the facility and I peeked into the basketball gym and saw a few friends playing 3-on-3.  I asked Lynn if she wouldn't mind taking the kids home and coming back in about an hour to pick me up.  I hadn't played hoops in at least 2 1/2 months and thought I was going to be rusty out there.  Actually, I had a hot hand and everything seemed to work well...passing, dribbling, shooting and defense.

Lynn came and picked me up and we headed home.  I was dead tired!  Eventually, Lynn wanted to go to the store, so David, Joshua and I went up stairs, jumped in Mom and Dad's bed and took naps...ooooohhhh, did that feel great!

Lynn made tacos for dinner while I played with Hannah.  Just before bed, the boys and I played follow the leader and we sat on the floor and played with blocks.  Afterwards, I took the boys upstairs and put them to bed, telling them another thriller of a story about 2 young boys named Prince David and Prince Joshua who rode through a jungle on elephants and came upon a dinosaur and a lion (their choice for the animals) who had been terrorizing a tribe in the jungle.  The dinosaur and lion came after Prince David and Prince Joshua, who had gotten off of their elephants, but because of their faith that Jesus was with them, they stood their ground.  Then, they pulled out their swords and killed these ferocious creatures, saving an entire tribe from any more terror!

Being a Dad is great!  I think I'm starting to catch on how Father God looks at me (us).  Last Sunday night, the "Experiencing the Father's Embrace" DVD challenged our small group to move from a relationship with the Father that was primarily "gimme, gimme, gimme" to "change me, change me, change me."  Jack Frost challenged us with this question, "When you pray, is most of your prayer time consisting of, 'God, give me this or give me that.'"  Or is it simply "being with the Father" and experiencing intimacy with Him?

Jack used the parable of the Prodigal Father (the religious church has focused on the sin of the younger son, and entitled it "The Prodigal Son") to teach us how easy it is to move adrift of the Father and His love by only coming to the Father for the "gimme, gimme, gimme".  We were challenged to move from valuing the Father for what He can give us, to valuing Him for who He is and intimacy with Him.

Luke 15:11  And He said, "A man had two sons.  12 "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me...'"  NASU

Any thoughts on this?

Who's Feet You Sittin' At?

I've noticed that when I sit at the feet of certain talk radio guys, I begin to see the world from an unbiblical perspective.  Let me explain.  I begin to see people from a certain party or a certain political perspective, as the enemy, as my enemy.  My "blood boils" when I think of them, and soon that turns to rage.  My issue is this...the Bible clearly tells us that "flesh and blood" are not our enemies.  Is sitting at the feet of someone for any length of time, that has an unbiblical worldview, a wise thing?  If, while sitting at their feet, I sense a shift within my heart to see people as the enemy, rather than a mission field to be reached...is it a wise thing to sit at their feet?  Consider this passage...

Eph 6:12  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.  NASU

Are these very popular talk radio guys viewing the world through accurate lens?  I've found myself having struggles with reaching out to people of vastly different political perspectives.  And I believe it's because I'm putting up contentious walls when I sit at the feet of certain talk radio guys.  Shouldn't I be viewing the devil and his minions as who I wrestle with, who I war against?

How much better it is when I sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to what He has to say about the world, about government, about everything!  When I do sit at His feet, I begin to see the world in the way that He sees the world.  Jesus told us it is the one thing necessary for us...to sit at His feet and listen to Him.  He didn't tell us that listening to talk radio was the one thing necessary, or that serving was the one thing necessary...no, He said sitting at His feet and listening is the one thing necessary!

Luke 10:38-42  38 Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.  39  She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word.  40  But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me."  41  But the Lord answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; 42 but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."  NASU

I wonder if the Lord would say to me when I'm listening to talk radio..."Kevin, Kevin, you are worried and bothered about so many things, but only one thing is necessary...choose the better part, sit at My feet and listen to My voice."

I find it interesting, compelling, convincing and inspiring that history is replete with an abundance of people that do this and are fruitful, successful and world changers....Joseph (son of Jacob), Mary, George Washington Carver, Yonggi Cho, and so on and so on. 

May we be those who sit at Jesus' feet and listen to His voice!

Faithing Puts On

Eph 6:13-18  13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.  14  Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, 15 and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE; 16  in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  18  With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit,  NASU

Tonight during our cell group, we concluded our study of the personal benefits of the blood, body and Cross of Jesus Christ, by reviewing this passage.  I've typically examined this passage with a magnifying glass-type of perspective, but tonight was a good opportunity to take a few steps back and look at it with a broader view in mind.  A broader view helped me to view this passage from the "battle" perspective.  The terms "armor" and "stand firm" and "sword" and "breastplate," all make it clear that this passage is about battle!  Battle is a hostile engagement by two or more foes.  And our foe is the Devil!  It was encouraging to not only review the personal benefits of the blood, body and Cross of Christ, but to take a stand on that which is promised to us, the inheritance of the saints.

The enemy, the Devil, has come to steal...and, if possible, to steal our inheritance.  Jesus came to give us an inheritance and the Devil has come to take it away.  We receive the inheritance by faith and the enemy tries to take it away by tempting us to doubt what God has accomplished for us on the Cross.  This is the fight that Paul urged his spiritual son, Timothy, to wage...the fight of faith!  I was reminded afresh tonight that we need to contend for these benefits, to "stand firm" against Satan, the one who would desire to steal away our inheritance by deceiving us into doubting the benefits of the Cross.  Paul encouraged Timothy to "fight the good fight of faith."  Who was Timothy to wage this fight against?  The Devil is our foe!  He desires to use our past experiences, or even most recent experiences against us in his scheme to get us to believing amiss.

But the Word of God says we are to embrace the truth only, and not to fall for Satan's deceptive trickery!  And as we stand on the truth, and appropriate the inheritance through faith in Christ and what He successfully accomplished through the Cross, we will defeat Satan!

Let us not be ignorant of the blessings Christ so painfully worked to deliver to us!  He went to great extremes to provide an inheritance to us, how apathetic it would be to not delve into the Word of God and discover the great treasures He has paid for us to possess by faith!

Be encouraged!  Father loves you with an everlasting love, and He desires that you discover every bit of the inheritance that He has purchased for you.  It is not greedy or self-centered to diligently discover what He longs for you to possess!  Will you search the Word of God thoroughly to discover how rich an inheritance you have through Christ?  It's definitely worth the effort!

Equipping Inmates for Ministry

On Friday, Sept 19th, the Greater Augusta Pastors' Society Inmate Ministry (GAPSIM) held a strategic planning meeting at Cornerstone Christian Fellowship in Vassalboro, Maine. There were 15 people present desiring to plug in to this expanding ministry that purposes (1) to lead incarcerated men and women to Christ, (2) equip them to walk victoriously in their newfound faith, and (3) assist them in transitioning to their new life of freedom outside the Kennebec County Correctional Facility (KCCF).

Currently, GAPSIM has 3 teams that goes in to KCCF to preach and teach the gospel. All 3 teams are reporting that lives are being changed as they minister to these inmates. Team 1 goes into the jail once a week (on Sunday afternoon) and ministers to a rotating segment of the jail population (minimum security, medium security, maximum security, women). Team 2 goes into the jail once a month and ministers to the female population. Team 3 goes into the jail once a month and ministers to the male population.

There is a growing desire and commitment to provide mentoring to interested and willing inmates that begins while they are in the jail and continues for a period of time after they are released. The "reentry" of inmates into society is one of the key elements in grounding these men and women into God's Word and a healthy community that can support them in walking with Christ, and walking free from their "old" life. Many inmates need assistance in starting afresh...finding a new place to live, getting a job, receiving assistance with food, furniture and clothing, and much, much more.

Many of these inmates are incarcerated because of crimes committed to support their drug addiction. We believe that as we bring the Word of God to these men and women, and faith rises in their hearts, they can walk in the freedom that Christ has obtained for them already. Society is ready to put these people out to the curb like garbage. Jesus Christ has a far better plan! The Lord has already spoke about His plan for the inmates, "For I know the plans I have for you...plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." (Jer 29:11, NLT)

There are many facets of God's plan to bring them out of the slavery they have settled for in their lives, and this plan requires an abundance of laborers...from mentors, to letter/card writers, to those that preach and teach the gospel, to leaders to organize and strategize, to those who will pray for the incarcerated men and women as well as those ministering to the inmates. Will you ask the Lord if He wants you to put your shoulder to the load?

Under Law or Under Grace?

One of my favorite people in the Bible is David.  There's so much to love about him.  He's real...just read the psalms that he wrote.  I mean he just opens up his heart to us and let's us inside.  He taught me how to be real that way.  Also, he was rejected by his own family...when Samuel, the prophet of Israel came to town and the Lord directed Samuel to go to Jesse's house, all the boys, all 7 of the boys were invited to come and sit with the prophet...well, all of them but one...that's right, David was the only one left out from this very important meeting.  David was treated with hostility by his older brothers when he came to the front lines to bring them food.  And yet, not only a reject, but David was a man's man...he killed a lion AND a bear, before he took on the 9 foot giant, Goliath!

So there is so much to love about him.  Another thing I love about David is that when it came to expressing worship to God...he didn't stick his wet finger in the air to discover what the winds of opinion had to say about the issue.  David was just downright FREE with his worship of God.  He didn't settle for lame excuses about why he couldn't be really expressive during worship...he just went for it...and let the opinions of others take a hike!  I love it!

So, David, in one of his first acts as King of united Israel...he gets the troops ready to go to battle against the Philistines...primarily for one reason...they've got the ark of the covenant.  The ark of the covenant was where the Presence of God dwelt in the tabernacle of Moses.  There was nothing more important to David than restoring the Presence of God to the nation of Israel.  So David and the army beat the Philistines so badly that they never again become a formidable foe to Israel, and David returns to Jerusalem, with the ark.  There is such joy in David's heart that the Presence of God is returning to Israel, that he assembles a band of worshipful musicians to lead worship before the ark as it is brought along the journey...and David is dancing and whirling about in celebration of God's Presence!  Let's read about it...

2 Sam 6:14-16, 20-23  14  And David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, and David was wearing a linen ephod.  15  So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouting and the sound of the trumpet.  16  Then it happened as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart.  20  But when David returned to bless his household, Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, "How the king of Israel distinguished himself today!  He uncovered himself today in the eyes of his servants' maids as one of the foolish ones shamelessly uncovers himself!"  21  So David said to Michal, "It was before the Lord, who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel; therefore I will celebrate before the Lord. 22 "I will be more lightly esteemed than this and will be humble in my own eyes, but with the maids of whom you have spoken, with them I will be distinguished." 23 Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.  NASU

Michal, his wife, judged David for being free in his worship, for dancing before the Lord in a celebratory and free way!  There is one who flows in this accusatory way towards God's people...in fact, his title is...the accuser of the brethren.  Michal made the choice to flow in accusing David and her womb suffered from the curse of poverty.  When you flow in the enemy's path...poverty will hunt you down.

On the other hand, David celebrated as does anyone that has been the recipient of God's abundant grace!  And David would prosper, as did Israel under his leadership.

Let this be a lesson to all of us...we can either flow in the Holy Spirit or we can flow with the enemy, the judgmental accuser of the brethren.  One releases blessing upon blessing, and the other releases a curse upon our lives.  One is to live under grace (the flow of the Holy Spirit) and the other is to live under the Law.  Michal lived under the law, and probably felt like God was always judging her, which in turn caused her thought life to be full of judging others.  Do you feel like God is always judging you?  Consider this verse...

John 5:22  "For not even the Father judges anyone...  NASU

Is your thought life filled with accusatory thoughts towards yourself for failing to measure up?  Or is it filled with accusatory thoughts towards others for failing to measure up?

Is your thought life filled with thoughts of how pleased God is with you?

What does the word of God say about all this?

Why? Why Vietnam and Why Not Barbary Wars?

I have a 4 1/2 year old boy, an almost 3 year old boy and a 4 month old baby girl.  I am loving being a father.  Tomorrow afternoon I get to take my 4 1/2 year old and almost 3 year old out to their soccer game.  I can hardly wait!

My 4 1/2 year old is going through a bit of a challenging stage right now...no pun intended.  Whenever he is given direction, given an order...he now frequently responds with, "Why?"  For the most part, I'd say, he asks for the following 2 reasons, (1) he's genuinely curious and is wanting to know more info, and (2) he is simply parroting what he's heard other kids say without realizing what he's asking.

Sometimes I wish adults, myself included, were more like my 4 1/2 year old.  I find myself wondering "why?" when I consider this research that I've just completed, that I'm going to describe to you so you can do the same.  You can search a wide variety of news websites for specific words or phrases simply by typing the word(s) or phrase into the search window of http://news.google.com.  Try entering the term in quotations "Barbary Wars" in the news search and see how many news articles pop up in the search.  Just one news article comes up with the exact phrase "Barbary Wars."  Now, try typing in the news search box Vietnam and Iraq.  In other words, research how many articles are probably drawing upon the Vietnam War as a frame of reference for the Iraq War.  Well, you end up with 13,142 news articles.  Now, to even the casual observer, this makes one's antenna perk up!

Let me ask you a question.  What do you know about the Barbary Wars?  If you do not know anything about the Barbary Wars or very little...why is that?  Is it possible that you don't know much because it isn't being referenced in the news?  If you are not aware of the history of the Barbary Wars please click on the following link and be astonished along with me...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_Wars

Now, let me ask you another question...why are news reporters and/or editors intentionally framing the Iraq War in the context of the Vietnam War, but are intentionally not referring to the Barbary Wars?  After reading the above article...doesn't it seem quite odd that a reporter/editor would not even mention the Barbary Wars?  Doesn't it seem odd that the ONLY frame of reference, the only filter the reporters/journalists/editors want you to have is the Vietnam War filter?  Why is that?

Let's be discerning people when it comes to what we watch on the TV.  Everyone has an agenda.  Networks have an agenda...journalists have an agenda...reporters have an agenda...editors have an agenda.  Don't assume that simply because it's on TV news, or in the newspaper, or on an internet news site, that that makes it true.  Consider the source and consider their agenda.

What did our nation learn about Islamic fundamentalists from the Barbary Wars?

Kennebec County - Cry Out America

Today, pastors from 7 different churches and attendees from 10 different churches gathered at the steps of Kennebec County Superior Court on the 7th anniversary of the horrendous, Satanic attacks by Islamic terrorists on our nation.  We gathered to remember that immediately following the attack there was this measurable desperation in our hearts as we ran to God.  But this day, 7 years later, we gathered at the steps where justice is dispensed and cried out to God for mercy upon our county and our nation, for having returned back to "business as usual."  It didn't take long for our nation to forget about God and resume life as it was pre-9/11.  So, we gathered to repent of our own sins and to identificationally repent of the sins of our county and our nation, and to cry out for revival in our land.

The Awakening America Alliance, a coalition of like-minded ministries, denominations, and Christian leaders, exhorted the body of Christ to gather as a solemn assembly at the county courthouse steps in the 3,141 counties throughout the U.S. to fast and pray, and cry out for revival in the spirit of Joel 1:14.

Joel 1:14
Consecrate a fast,
Proclaim a solemn assembly;
Gather the elders
And all the inhabitants of the land
To the house of the Lord your God,
And cry out to the Lord.  NASU

God assures us that if we, His people, called by His name, will humble ourselves and pray, seek His face and turn from our wicked ways, He will hear us, forgive us and heal our land.  Our desire was to see God begin to heal our land.  Heal our land of what, you might ask.

Over 50 million babies have been slaughtered in the womb of pregnant women since Roe v. Wade.  There are so many women out there that have made this horrific, sinful choice and they are now overwhelmed with guilt, shame and a multitude of other life-debilitating issues.  There is an entire generation of men and women that are not with us today because they never got the chance to take their first breath out of the womb.  Innocent, indefensible, weak, and vulnerable, they were destroyed before they could dream, before they could love, before they could look in their mother's eyes, before they could hold hands and stare in the eyes of their future mate.

Our prisons and jails are overfilled with the mentally ill and the drug addicted.  The church has reneged on one of its God-mandated purposes...to minister to the poor, and so our government has had to step up and fill in the gap.  Child abuse, spouse abuse, child pornography, middle school and high school teachers sexually abusing their students, soft porn on prime time TV, embryonic stem cell research, gay marriage, etc, etc...

The Church is in need of an awakening.  It is NOT hopeless, because Christ is still Lord of all.  He has entrusted the Church with the authority and the power (through the baptism of the Holy Spirit...Acts 1:8), to face the enemy and destroy him and set the captives free.  God is innocent, the blame is upon those who know better, those who have the equipment (the Holy Spirit) to do something about it.  Let us rise up in the power of the Holy Spirit and walk in obedience to the Holy Spirit to walk in our destiny as God has established it for us!

This is why we gathered...to repent of our lethargy, our lukewarmness, our doubting and unbelief.  Let us move forward in faith, knowing that Father leads the way!

Walking in Your Identity

For most of our lives we identify ourselves by our first, middle and last name.  If someone were to walk up to you and say, "Who are you?" most likely, your knee-jerk reaction would be to respond, "My name is..."  You might say, "What's wrong with that?"

It's interesting to me that as believers in Jesus Christ, and His Word, that we settle for identifying ourselves according to what our temporal parents with their finite wisdom selected as our name.  What alternative is available to us regarding identifying ourselves?  The alternative is to make the wise choice to seek out in God's Word how He has chosen to identify us in His ETERNAL, infinite wisdom.

Another trap that we fall into when attempting to identify ourselves is to identify ourselves according to what we do.  "I'm a surgeon...I'm a carpenter...I'm a housewife, etc"  My question to you is this...how does God identify us in His Word?  I'm not going to answer the question on this post.  It's better for you to search the Word of God and listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit to discover what God has to say about this subject.  How does God identify you?