Look Backing, Looking Ahead

As 2010 draws to a close it's another time to reflect and see God's goodness to me. His provision for a church body, friends that encourage me in my walk with Jesus, and a family that is pursuing Him too. I'm grateful for the job he has provided for me to do during the last 14 years.

I see the Lord at work in me and others through the biblical counseling ministry at church. None of us, as believers, are to stagnate in our growth. Paul writes to the church in Colosse, "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." (Colossians 1:6-7)

I'm expectant of God's work in and through me the new year to come. Grateful for the promise "that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6b).

As the sun sets today, my heart is full knowing that God's on the throne and His goodness is real.

Expectant to know Him more and make Him known in 2011.

Light.

"For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ" (1 Corinthians 4:8).

Lights are everywhere during the Christmas season. They decorate people's houses, candlelight luminaries light sidewalks, Christmas trees are garnished with lights, and Chicago skyscrapers are lit with lights for the season. I am grateful for Jesus Christ - the Light of the world - who took on flesh as a little baby in order to live and die for my sins. Isaiah prophesied of his birth, "The people walking in the darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned" (Isaiah 9:2).

In the New Testament, John writes of Jesus as the light of men. "Through him (Jesus) all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it" (John 1:3-5).

Grateful for the Light, Jesus Christ, who came into the world to save men from their sins.

Thanksgiving: Considered

As I look back over the last year, the Lord has brought me through a lot and continues to sanctify me through His Word, life’s circumstances, and people. Through reflecting on this year the word “consider” comes to mind. In order to reflect on a year I’ve got to stop and consider.

As I look to God’s Word for there a number of verses of scripture that appropriately and concisely sum-up a heart of thanksgiving for 2010.

God’s Care & Love. “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” (Psalm 8:3-4).

Thank you Lord that in your infinite love and love for me.

Christ Better Than Anything Else. “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8-9).

Heavenly Father, thank you that You are again now and for eternity and everything else this world has to offer is losse!

Trials. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds.”
(James 1:5)

Lord, thank you for the trials. They show me Your greatness, my dependence on You, and refine me to be more like your son, Jesus.

The Gospel. “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given to me – the task of testifying to God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24)

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for the gospel.

Rewind: Nashville & Knoxville

It’s a three day weekend to Nashville and Knoxville. I finally get to see my good friend, Stephen, and see the UT Vols take on the #1 ranked Oregon Ducks. I have not seen this brother since he was graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 1996.

Before head’n out to Knoxville, we hit the sights, sounds, and food fixins in the ‘Ville. Last time I was in Nashville was many years ago. We walked down Broadway, checked out some sweet guitars, cowboy boots (didn’t buy none ‘dem), and the country music. Lot o’ country here, but didn’t buy no vinyl either.

On to the food fixins, Jack’s Bar-B-Que on Broadway is the place for it! Not only were there Oregon Duck fans at Jack’s, but Vandy and LSU fans for the game on Saturday in Nashville, and Oakland Raider fans for the Tennessee Titan game on Sunday. These fans were decked out with their team’s jerseys 1 to 2 days before the game. A lot of crazy team spirit was in the house!

A couple hours after my arrival to Nashville, it began to rain. With the remnants of a tropical storm moving through Eastern Tennessee, it kept raining during most of the 3 ½ hours drive to Stephen’s house outside of Knoxville. I asked the Lord if He could hold off the rain for the game. The rain kept coming through the night. It was looking like we were in for a rainy Saturday football game. Not fun.

We went to buy rain suits at Gander Mtn. So did the rest of the fans as planning to attend the game. Their stock was rapidly selling out. Thankfully, we got what we needed.

The skies began to clear and the sun came out! Thank you, Lord. We watched the weather report at a friend’s house and there was an approaching thunderstorm headed to hit Neyland Stadium at kick-off. We decided, let’s go for it!

Neyland Stadium is one of the largest stadiums in college football with a seating capacity of over 100,000.

The pomp of an SEC (South East Conference) football game is amazing. Of course, it’s the UT spirit that makes the atmosphere what it is -- electric! The game started and it began to rain, not too hard, but enough for me to take cover and watch it so I wouldn’t get wet.

The unranked Vols put 6 points on the board with two field goals. Wow, they’re beating the #7 ranked Ducks – Go Vols! Lightening was sighted the football teams cleared the field. The public address announcer asked the fans to take cover.

It began to rain sideways! The severe thunderstorm produced monsoon like conditions. I haven’t seen it rain like this in years. Some fans tried to make a dash to the cars. They got soaked. The game was delayed over an hour minutes. We watched the rain and talked to UT and Duck fans while keeping dry.

The game resumed. It was tied at the end of the first half. The Ducks got after it in the second half racking up 35 points. Final score: Vols 13 Ducks 48.

Hell.

Note: There will be no firemen putting out fires in Hell. This photo is strictly provided to capture the intensity of what one can experience in Hell for eternity.

This year summer officially ended last week, September 21. It was one of the hottest summers on record for the Chicago land area. Some would say, “It’s been hotter than hell.” All of this heat reminded me about hell and, a series of messages on this doctrine that my former pastor, Scott Ardavanis, preached over 10 years ago. Since then, I don’t think I’ve heard any messages on hell.

As a young boy around 7 or 8 years old, I remember learning about the reality of Heaven and Hell in vacation Bible school. Then there was a movie series on the End Times that I watched with others at church. I thought to myself, if I die today, will I go to Heaven or Hell? Heaven and Hell are real places where one will spend eternity forever. This got my attention. Through the work of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God, I was convicted that I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I did not want to spend life in Hell after I died.

Yet, the sobering reality is the neighbor next door, co-worker, Starbucks barista, mail clerk, sports fan, or person walking down the street today does not even consider the reality of hell. Some trivialize it. Others don’t believe in hell. Others don’t know what they are saying when statements are made like, “That was one hell of a game!” or “He made a helluva play.”

As I listened through these messages on Hell I was gratefully reminded of what I have been saved from, living for my sinful selfish desires, and being “born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).

What does the Bible say about Hell?

1. Jesus says more about the topic Hell then He does about Heaven.

2. Hell is a real place of both eternal fire and complete darkness. Have you ever thought how this could be – fire and complete darkness in the same place?

“In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal life” (Jude 7)

“They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever” (Jude 13)

“And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:30).

3. Hell is eternal.

“Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:14-15).

4. Hell is a place of torment, fire and punishment.

“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called him, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I a in agony in this fire” (Luke 16:22-24).

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

“But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12).

5. Hell is complete separation from God forever.

“This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power” (1 Thessalonians 1:7b-9).

6. Hell is not only for sinners, but for those who do not believe in God.

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe in him stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness instead of light because their deeds are evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God” (John 3:18-21).

Day After Memorial Day

Memorial Day reminds me to remember the scores of men and women, including my grandfather, uncle, and a number of good friends, who have risked their lives for the freedom that I am blessed to enjoy.

One World War II veteran that I came across this weekend was Lt. John Finn. At 100, Finn was the oldest surviving recipient of the Medal of Honor – the nation’s highest honor for valor and the only recipient still alive among those who received the medal for his actions during the that attack on December 7, 1941.

Finn passed away last Thursday, May 27, and he will be known for defending the U.S. during the surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor. Finn was stationed at the naval air station in Kaneohe Bay and awakened by an explosion during the morning of the attack. He immediately manned a machine gun and began firing on incoming Japanese attack planes as they flew in low to attack their primary target 15 miles away, the U.S. planes and ships in Pearl Harbor.

Finn stayed at his post for more than two hours firing on incoming Japanese Zeroes. And was credited for shooting one down.

More than 2,400 service members and civilians died in the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, which led to the U.S. entry into World War II. By the end of the onslaught, Officer Finn had suffered more than 20 injuries, including a bullet wound in his left arm; a broken left foot; shrapnel to his chest, stomach, right elbow and thumb; and a laceration on his scalp.

“It was only by specific orders that he was persuaded to leave his post to seek medical attention,” according to the Medal of Honor citation. “Following first aid treatment, although obviously suffering much pain and moving with great difficulty, he returned to the squadron area and actively supervised the rearming of returning planes.”

(Photo: Lt. Finn & his wife.)

The Cross & Crutches.

New.

With the start of a new year and time to reflect, I am reminded of how often “new” appears in the Word of God. It occurs some 214x in the Bible. This brings encouragement to my heart and praise to God! Why? Check this out...

God’s Mercies are New Every Morning.

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23-24).

Sing to the LORD a new song.

“Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth” (Psalm 96:1).

“He has put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD" (Psalm 40:3).

For the Believer in Christ who has Born Again, You Have New Heart & New Spirit.

“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (Eziekel 36:26).

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Walk in the newness of life.

“We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).

Know the New Covenant in Christ’s Blood.

“In the same way, after super he (Jesus) to the cup saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25).

Daily put off the old self and put on the new.

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desire; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:24-25)

Look forward to the New Jerusalem – Heaven.

“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:2).

All Things New, By Steven Curtis Chapman

You spoke and made the sunrise, to light up the very first day
You breathed across the water, and started the very first wave
It was You
You introduced Your glory, to every living creature on earth
And they started singing, the first song to ever be heard
They sang for You

You make all things new
You make all things new

Then the world was broken, fallen and battered and scarred
You took the hopeless, the life, wasted, ruined and marred
And made it new

You make all things new
You make all things new

You redeem and You transform
You renew and You restore
You make all things new
You make all things new
And forever we will watch and worship You

You turn winter into spring
You take every living thing
And You breathe Your breath of life into it over and over again
You made the sunrise, day after day after day
But there's a morning coming, when old things will all pass away
And everyone will see

You make all things new
You make all things new
Come redeem and come transform
Come renew and come restore
You make all things new
You make all things new
And forever we will watch and worship You

Now and forever You are making all things new
You're making all things new

Hallelujah...