Lake Break

Out and about running errands with a “to do” list repeating in my head, I realized this had to stop, even if just for 10 or 15 minutes. The day was beautiful, with the kind of weather Northern Virginia hasn’t seen for awhile, and the lake beckoned.

On the drive there, I began to consider the tasks I could get done while sitting on the dock: make entries in the checkbook, maybe pay some bills, or even catch up on some reading. Then I realized I would be missing the whole point of the outing. I needed to stop, do nothing, unplug, and be still.

How busy we can get and forget to take time to be quiet, especially to be quiet with God. In the midst of my hectic day (probably self-induced if I am honest), I needed communion with my Heavenly Father.

Getting closer to the marina, I was almost surprisingly excited. Imagine . . . time to do nothing but enjoy the presence of God surrounded by His creation! I parked my car, followed the path through the trees, and walked up the ramp of the dock.

When I was just a few wooden planks beyond the metal ramp, I heard a familiar rustling of leaves overhead and noticed a quickening dance of waves. Almost involuntarily I closed my eyes as the soft wind lifted loose strands of hair from my face. The delightful breeze lifted as well the stress I had been feeling. For a moment, however brief, I understood “peace.” I couldn’t help but give thanks for this much-needed, gentle gift from God.

Opening my eyes, I looked to the tree-lined shore across the lake and then up at the blue sky. Lastly, I let my eyes take in the silver bits of sunlight glistening on the water’s surface. Such awesome beauty in deceptively simple things: earth, air, and water . . .

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature---have been clearly seen, being understood from what was made, so that men are without excuse. (Romans 1:20)

If I had continued my day the way it had begun, I might have accomplished more of my “to-do’s” but I would have missed so much. I hope this week you find opportunities to stop whatever you’re doing, be still, and enjoy being with God.

CTL

Opinion/Belief/Conviction...Can You Put It in the Right Category?

We ended one series last week and begin another in two weeks. Next week Matt Tapie will be preaching. This week I want to speak about something that is important as we grow together as a church.

When someone acts a certain way, we must evaluate. Either they have a mental problem if they, for example, eat from the trash, or they are not crazy if they eat from the trash because they don’t have other food. My point is we assume people behave a certain way for a reason. Unless someone is crazy, their actions or behaviors stem from values and values usually stem from opinions, beliefs, and convictions that are deeply held. We know this is true as Christians because we talk about it all the time. We want people to be centered on God’s view of the world, so such a God-centered world view would produce a belief system that would produce values that in turn would produce good behaviors.

It’s important to see that “values” are generated by beliefs, opinions, and convictions. One of my opinions is I love my Macintosh computer. I think it is great, and I base that opinion on a mix of facts, emotions, and experiences. Yet, sometimes I get so crazy about this opinion that it starts slipping into belief and conviction. This is uncomfortable for my friends who have PC’s because they see what they thought was just a simple machine on their desk is oddly a conviction for me.

As Christians we do this as well. There are some things we have opinions about . . . the color of the carpet, the songs we sing, the order of worship. Those are opinions, driven by a mix of personal preferences and experiences. Then we have beliefs . . . such as whether or not we home school or think Halloween is a good holiday. These are much more than mere opinions; people who feel strongly about these give a strong defense for their belief.

But what are our convictions? What causes us to draw a line and makes Christian armies turn their guns on one another? There are many examples of churches where opinions, beliefs, and convictions get into a confused mix that ends up a mess. In fact, being a part of a group that has too many strong convictions is a sure recipe for strife.

In Philippians chapter 3 Paul addresses this issue. He talks about this mix of opinions, beliefs, and convictions, and he points out what our convictions should be. This week we look at what Paul says about these three things.

Mark

I Love this church

I can't help it.  I just gotta say that I love this church.  It's my family- and it's a pretty good one.  Good thing, too, since my wife and I spend an awful lot of time with this church- going, doing, fixing, helping, encouraging, leading, following, moving, and enjoying.

 

 

Meet the Tapies

Matt and Carolyn Tapie finally made the long trek from Dallas, Texas to Springfield last weekend. They arrived Monday night and are very excited to call Springfield their home.

The Tapies have lived in Texas since 1997. Matt and Carolyn both graduated from Abilene Christian University in 2001 with their bachelors degrees. Carolyn graduated with a B.A. in Biochemistry and a minor in Bible, and Matt graduated with a B.S. in Christian Ministry and a minor in Philosophy. After ACU they were married in Greenville, South Carolina (Carolyn’s hometown).

In 2002 they started graduate work at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Matt and Carolyn attended the Crestview Church of Christ in Waco where they led a young adult Bible class. While at Baylor, Carolyn attended law school and Matt attended Baylor’s Institute of Church-State Studies. They both graduated from Baylor in the summer of 2004 and then moved to Dallas, Texas.

In Dallas, Matt served the Farmers Branch Church of Christ as a Spiritual Formation Minister while pursuing a Master of Divinity at ACU. Carolyn worked at Hughes and Luce LLP (a Texas law firm) and practiced complex litigation and labor/employment law.
In January of this year Matt was accepted to the Catholic University of America’s School of Theology and Religious Studies to pursue a Ph.D. in Theological Ethics. He graduated from ACU with the M.Div two weeks ago and will begin classes at CUA at the end of the month. Carolyn will be working at King and Spalding LLP, and she begins her new job in early September. They are very thankful that God has called them to the Springfield Church of Christ and are eager to help this family of believers serve the Lord.

Praise You in This Storm*

I was sure by now / That You would have reached down / and wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day / But once again, I say, “Amen” / and it’s still raining

As the thunder rolls / I barely hear Your whisper through the rain, / “I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls / I raise my hands and praise the God who gives / And takes away

I’ll praise You in this storm / And I will lift my hands / For You are who You are
No matter where I am / Every tear I’ve cried / You hold in Your hand
You never left my side / And though my heart is torn / I will praise You in this storm

I remember when / I stumbled in the wind / You heard my cry / You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone / How can I carry on / If I can’t find You

As the thunder rolls / I barely hear Your whisper through the rain, / “I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls / I raise my hands and praise the God who gives / And takes away


I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth
**

*Casting Crowns, Lifesong **Psalm 121: 1-2

Hate Your Mom!

Look at the following quotes from Jesus:

Luke 12:51-53
51 Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. 52 From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law."

Luke 14:25-27
25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple."

Can you imagine if Jesus were invited to speak at Focus on the Family and he preached a message like these?! Hate your father and mother? Hate your wife and children? Hate your own life? Certainly these are descriptions of maladjusted, strange people in need of counseling? Or not?

John tells us God is love and Jesus spoke a lot about love, but in these difficult verses he seems to say that there are times when hate and strife are appropriate in the life of the believer. This week we will look at those tough words from Jesus.

Mark

Toughest Things Jesus Said: A Look at Last Words

As we sort through all the red letters in our Bibles looking for especially difficult words from Jesus, eventually we come to his very last words. Perhaps one of the most difficult things Jesus ever said was the last thing he ever said. As he hung on the cross he said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

You have heard the same explanations of these words that I have heard. Before Jesus, mankind was so sinful and so deep in debt to God that no human being could ever pay it all. So God sent Jesus to die for our sins, erasing the debt once and for all. This is the most traditional view of the cross, but it does not answer the question of suffering. What kind of father demands the death of a son in order to pay off a debt to himself?

According to another view, it was God who died on the cross, putting an end to divine bookkeeping through the voluntary sacrifice of divine power. But this view asks the question, “If Jesus was God, to whom was he talking in the garden and from the cross?” It’s clear he believed that someone else had the power to remove the cup of suffering from him, or at least to be with him while he drank it down--but who, in both cases, declined to do so?

I’m not sure if there is anything worse I could have my sons accuse me of. If they looked at me in a moment of desperation and said, “Why have you left me now?” I would feel horrible as a father. Yet we have those troubling words there at the end of Jesus’ life. This week I won’t pretend to be the final word on Jesus’ final words, but we will look at how difficult they are and try to explore what they mean for us and our lives.

Mark