Today is the last message in our series entitled “For the Least of These.” This week we focus on what our responsibility to the orphan. Our reading is James 1:19-27
Tag Archive - Serving
Great God and a Great Church
God is so good! What an incredible blessing it is to be a part of the Lord of Life family. I wanted to share with you a few of the amazing blessings that have resulted from your generosity.
Incredible Response
Two weeks ago I had shared in my weekly email how Lord of Life was having some trouble meeting our expenses at the end of the year. Our expenses had exceeded our income. Our ministry has accomplished some awesome things in the past year, but as we look forward to the next year it was important that we live within the means of God’s provision. We don’t want to spend what we don’t have.
So a few weeks back I brought our Executive Committee in front of the altar in the Family Life Center. There we bowed down and just simply asked God’s provision for the ministry that he would provide everything we need to accomplish the work he has given us to do. We trust in God’s provision. We know there is so much more we can do for God’s kingdom, but we definitely needed his help.
This morning I came into my office and I opened up the weekly giving report and was just blown away. The receipts from last Sunday’s offering were $46,018. When I read that, I thought there must have been some mistake. This is almost 3 times the amount given on an average Sunday.
This will go a long way towards catching up on some of those bills. Even more so it is further assurance that with God all things are possible. We are to do what he has called us to do and trust he will make it happen if we are obedient.
Thank you so much for your overwhelming response so far in this end of the year appeal. When there is a need, Lord of Life comes through. I am looking forward to an incredible year in 2012 as we advance the kingdom of God in our community. In the next coming weeks I am hoping to share some exciting opportunities for our church to launch in the upcoming year. My prayer that we will take some steps of faith to do more than we have ever done before. We are not going to back down! What a great blessing to be a part of a church committed to the cause of Christ.
Another Great Story of Giving
When I arrived at Lord of Life on Sunday morning there were still a good number of ornaments on the HELPS giving tree that had not been taken. The HELPS Christmas Party was later that afternoon. It seemed that some of the requested gifts would not be received this year.
But after the 8:30am worship all the ornaments disappeared and at the end of the 10am worship all the gifts that had not yet been purchased arrived at Lord of Life. They were all wrapped just in time to be given away at the HELPS Christmas Party. Praise the Lord for his provision.
Cookies, Cookies, and more Cookies
Once again this year we had more than enough cookies to give away to the boys at IYC. With all the leftover cookies we took some to the train stations at Elburn and LaFox. But we still were not able to give all the cookies away.
That same day volunteers were leaving for St. Matthew’s Soup Kitchen in Chicago. So we sent two boxes of cookies along with them. The staff at St. Matthew’s took the cookies and froze them. Now they will be served on Christmas for those who come to the Soup Kitchen.
Yet, another box went to the Elburn Food Pantry. We handed out cookies to the people waiting in line while we talked with them and prayed with them. Every person standing in line got at least one dozen cookies. We still had more left over that we left at the food pantry.
I think about all the love that went into each one of those cookies and pray that those who receive them will somehow know that there is a great God who loves them.
God Open’s Door for Malaria Initiative
We have been praying that God would open some doors for the Malaria Initiative effort in Africa. John Peterson emailed me this past week that to let me know that the Ghana government is going to begin clinical trials using the Malaria Treatment. This is the note John sent me.
Pastor Phil, I just got the most excellent Christmas present I have been praying for. The Ghana Government has confirmed their agreement to work with what you may know as Malaria Initiative (M-end) to start Clinical trials of our new malaria treatment. There are more negations to be done but God has answered a prayer by many people. He works in His way. I Pray that we are doing His work. We are the most blessed persons on earth. I am sending you this note to let you know that Prayers are answered. In His Service, John
A Christmas Greeting from Gilgal Gospel Ministries
Gilgal Gospel Ministries sent us a link to a video with Christmas greetings. About a minute into the video you will see gifts given to children in Christmas Stockings. Some of these gifts were contributed by you at Lord of Life.
Here is the direct link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O-n7z0psK0&feature=youtu.be
Wheelchair for Meagan
Another thing I wanted to share with you is an effort we have been undertaken for Meagan Seals. Many of you already know Meagan’s story, but if not please check out by watching this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFjc-q9V9ws
Meagan’s parents, Scott and Luellen, have been working to raise the funds for an infant wheel chair for little Meagan. It is a special chair that will allow Meagan to sit up on her own. Because of overwhelming medical bills related to Meagan’s condition, the Seals have not been able to afford this chair.
In an effort to help out, Lord of Life has contributed benevolence funds towards the effort. The Seals have also been generously supported by Conley Outreach in Elburn and Lutheran Church Charities. Lutheran Church Charities has set up a fund to which you can donate by following this link. Lutheran Church Charities has posted the story on the front page of their website at lutheranchurchcharities.org.
Christmas Worship and New Years
The last thing is a reminder that Christmas Eve Worship is at 5pm and 7pm. Christmas day worship, which happens to fall on a Sunday, is at 9:15am. There are no Bible Studies or Sunday School on that day.
Some of you have asked about worship on New Year’s Day. We will be going back to our regular Sunday schedule. There will be two worship services that morning at 8:30am and 10am. Make sure to start the new year in the right way!
Merry Christmas, Pastor Phil
Building Your Kingdom
There is a major shift in the story of David we have been looking at the past few weeks. In last week’s readings, King Saul dies on the battlefield. This opened the door for David to become king. At the end of the Scripture reading for this message from 2 Samuel 5:1-12, it says that God confirmed David as king and blessed his kingdom.
Later in Acts 13:36 it says David served God’s purpose in his own generation. My prayer is that the same will be said of us, that we served God’s purpose in our generation. what is it that holds us back from doing so?
In the middle of this message I shared a video that you can view on YouTube below. The audio of the video is not contained in the above audio link. (One note of caution: the recommended videos at the the end of this video suggested by YouTube, may not be entirely appropriate.)
The Rich Man in Me
In Luke 16:19-31 you will find the story of the rich man and Lazarus. The story tells us about a rich man who lived in luxury every day. At his gate laid a beggar named Lazarus. This man was hurting. He had sores that covered his body. It says he longed for the scraps off of the rich man’s table.
The time comes when both of these men die. Lazarus finds himself in heaven and is greatly comforted. The rich man finds him in hell and is greatly tormented. The rich man cries out across this large chasm which has been set between heaven and hell for mercy. He asks that Lazarus might come just to touch his tongue with a cool drop of water.
But Abraham says, “remember that in your lifetime you received good things, but now he is comforted here while you are in agony.” There was no help coming anytime soon.
As you think about this parable, I want you to think about who you relate to in this story. If I am honest with myself, I am the rich man.
We live in luxury every day! Consider this – if you have running water, food to eat, shelter over your head, clothes to wear, and some means of transportation, then you are in the top 15% of the world’s wealthiest people.
We see wealth around us every day. We are easily reminded of all the things we don’t have. We don’t see the poor around us unless we intentionally open our eyes to them. When we fail to see the poverty in this world we easily forget about all the things we have been given.
David Platt shares in his book, Radical, that today more than a billion people live in desperate poverty. Although you are not going to necessarily see these people in Elburn, Wasco, St. Charles, or Geneva. You are not going to see them unless you want to see them. They attempt to survive on less than a dollar a day. Close to two billion people will survive on less then two dollars per day. That’s nearly half the world struggling to find food, water, and shelter with the same amount of money I spend on french fries for lunch.
When I think about the rich man and Lazarus, I wonder if the rich man even knew Lazarus lay outside his gate. I wonder if he was so blinded by his luxury he missed the poverty just outside his gate.
The Bible teaches us not to neglect the poor:
Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses. Proverbs 28:27 When it comes to sin, we certainly do not overlook the sin of sexual immorality. But neglecting to care for the poor is much more readily acceptable. What is the difference? One is taboo and the other is status quo. But the Bible condemns both.
God does not give us what he has given us for our own luxury. He gives what he gives us so that we might serve his kingdom purposes. On the day of judgement each one of us will be called to account for how we spent the treasure he gave to us. Did we spend it on earthly trinkets or did we invest it in heavenly treasure.
I want you to consider if you take your cue for how you spend your money from the people around you spend their money or do you take your cue from God’s Word. I imagine many of us take our cue more from the world around us than anything else and we are given to the same keeping up with the Joneses games everyone else is playing.
King David once asked the question, what is a sacrifice that costs me nothing. I wonder if we give in such a way that it costs us something. Do we give off of our table of bounty or do we give from our left-over scraps?
In the end, we should be careful to note the rich man did not find himself in hell because of the way he spent his money. We are never going to buy our way into heaven. Jesus blood alone paid the price. But there is nothing in our life that is as good of an indicator of our eternal destination than the way we spend our money. It’s no wonder Jesus talked about money as much as he did.
Do you “like” or “live” for Jesus?
I am convinced living in America, our greatest obstacle to following Jesus is not a lack of ability to say yes to Jesus. It is our lack of ability to say no to all the rest. Jesus is one more commitment we make in our already over-committed lives. I think about the thousands of people who come forward for altar calls in churches and at crusades to say yes to Jesus, yet see so little impact upon our churches and communities. Why is this?
Have you seen the “like” button on Facebook. You click on the “like” button to identify people, places, and organizations your are interested in. I took a peak at my Facebook account and realized I had some diverse interests. I “like” Lord of Life Church, the US Open Golf Championship, the Great Wolf Lodge, Crab Boat Captain Sig Hansen, Elburn Baseball and Softball, Amazon Kindle, MLB Trade rumors, Peter Lik Photography, and many, many more. So many interests. Some of these interests I am more invested in than others.
The thing I fear with all these different interests is that Jesus becomes just one more interest I dabble in among many others. Many of us see Jesus as a really good guy. We realize he is someone we should spend some time with and get to know better. We know he is someone we should fit into our schedule and listen to what he has to say. We think to ourselves, “maybe I can help him out in his work a little bit. I think I might volunteer a little bit of my time or offer him a little bit of my money.”
But following Jesus is so much more than having an interest in him. Jesus doesn’t call us to “like” him but “live” for him. Maybe Facebook should add a “live” button. He doesn’t want to be one interest among many, but wants to be our all in all.
The Apostle Paul writes: “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 My failure to live in the fullness that Jesus has called me to has less to do with my willingness to follow Jesus, but more to do with my unwillingness to set aside other interests (rubbish) in life.
My challenge for you this week is to consider what in your life is hindering from moving beyond “liking” Jesus to “living” for Jesus. These might not necessarily be bad things in your life. They might very well be good things. But they are things that hold you back from the best thing. What is Jesus leading you to say no towards and to sacrifice so that you might more fully serve him? What are your fishing nets he is calling you to leave behind?
He is still alive!
It is the Thursday after Easter, but Jesus is still risen. Jesus is alive. The hope of Easter is not a truth to be lived out on one day of the year, but everyday!
On Easter Sunday I shared that for a resurrection to take place there must first be a death. Without Good Friday there is no Easter Sunday. If we are going to live the new life that Jesus has called us to live we must first die to self. Jesus says, “whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:25 The path to the resurrection goes through the cross.
I fear at the end of our lives, many of us may regret the things we are striving for today. We are not going to wish we had spent more time at work, on the golf course, or watching tv. We are not going to wish we had a bigger house, a nicer car, or took more extravagant vacations. In the end we will not wish we had got more, but we will wish we had given more.
There are so many people in life going through the motions. They are not living a fulfilled life. They live one paycheck to next and one crisis to the next. The exclamation point at the end of their life will be that they lived and died and not much else. Maybe that is where you are today.
If that is the case you need to know that the resurrection is not limited to an event that took place some 2000 years ago. The resurrection is not just something for you when you die and leave this world. The miracle of the resurrection is for us to take hold of today. It is that we might live a new life. That we might do more than just get by, but that we would live for Jesus. I pray this will be the exclamation point at the end of my life – not that I lived and died, but that I lived for Jesus.
Jesus calls us to follow him. Unfortunately, too many of us are chasing after our dreams and desires that we don’t have the time or the energy to follow Jesus. We are doing what we think is best. However, Proverbs 14:12 says: “There is a a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” Our dreams and desires are not going to take us very far. It is not until we can give up our dreams and desires for Jesus’ dreams and desires that we will take hold of the full and abundant life to which Jesus has called us to (see John 10:10). This is what it means to die to self. It is stepping aside to put Jesus in charge.
I am naive enough to believe with the help of the Holy Spirit that trading my life for the mission of Jesus will change the world. Are you naive enough to believe that with me? If so, I want to invite you to join me at Lord of Life on the five Sundays during month of May as we take a deeper look at what it means to follow Jesus. I can say that these are some of the most challenging messages I have ever prepared. It will be a message series to challenge our status quo. It may make us uncomfortable and stretch us. Following Jesus is never easy. The cost is great. We may give up everything, but we will gain everything.
Praying for God to Move
God is at work. He is moving in mighty ways. We pray for him to move in our midst and to set our hearts ablaze for his will and his glory this Lenten season.
Lent is a period of 40 days. 40 days is a significant number often associated with a move of God. It was 40 days and 40 nights that it rained upon the earth in the days of Noah. It was for 40 days that Jesus was tempted in the desert by Satan. Acts 1:3 tells us it was 40 days from the time of Jesus’ resurrection till his ascension into heaven. So 40 days is not without significance and we pray for a mighty move of God during these 40 days.
There is no better time for us to fast and to pray and to ask God to reveal himself in a greater way. There are several things I would ask you to pray about in anticipation and expectation.
The first is the Love and Respect Marriage Conference on April 8-9. As a pastor I know there are many marriage in our church and in our community that are struggling. Hope and healing are both desperately needed. As a church it is important for us to respond to and minister to this need and not to sit back quietly. Let’s pray for God to use this conference to touch many marriages. I am praying for at least 100 couples participate in this conference. I will pray for couples to come and participate whether they are looking to hold together a marriage that is badly fractured or making a great marriage even better. I would ask your prayers to make this happen and to join together in helping get the word out. You can find information at the following link: www.lolchurch.net/loveandrespect
The second big event this Lent is the Seder Dinner to be held on Palm Sunday. The Seder Dinner is the same meal Jesus shared with his disciples on the night he was betrayed when he instituted the Lord’s Supper. The Seder Dinner was part of the Passover Celebration of the Jewish people. My prayer for this event is that this will deepen our understanding of the Lord’s Supper and help us to better grasp the tremendous sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross. I pray for our Lord of Life family, young and old, to come together on this night that our unity as the body of Christ would be strengthened. This is an event about “coming together” so that we might “go out.”
Finally, pray for the observances of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday culminating the the celebration of Easter. Every Easter we have people who will come to Lord of Life who might not hear the gospel message at any other time of the year with the exception of Christmas Eve. Please pray for God to break into their hearts and the transform them by his love that they might know him and live for him. Pray for the gospel to take root in their lives and grow into an abundant harvest. My prayer is that hope might be found by individuals and families that have no hope and their lives would be changed forever.
All this is God’s work, but God uses us to make all this happen. It takes our prayers. It takes our willingness and courage to participate together with him in his work. God does it, but we can help make this all happen. It is exciting to take part in God’s work. Please join me! How great is our God!
Lent
The Church season of Lent is just around the corner. Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent, is March 9. Lord of Life will host a special worship service on that night at 7pm. On that night we practice the imposition of ashes when the sign of the cross is made upon the forehead of the worshippers in ashes. The significance of this action goes back to the Old Testament when God’s people would put on sackcloth and ashes when they were confronted with the significance of their sins. It was a symbolic act of repentance and sorrow. On this night we also come humbly before our Lord asking for forgiveness for our sins and that he would change our hearts.
Lent is a tradition that has been observed from the earliest times of the church. It is a season of reflection and repentance. It is a time to contemplate the tremendous sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross. Many churches will avoid using the word Hallelujah during this time, until the celebration of the resurrection on Easter Sunday. Music in general tends to be more reflective and less celebratory. The color purple is often used which is a color of royalty. Jesus comes as our king, but he does not wear a crown of gold, rather a crown of thorns.
It is also a practice of many Christians to give something up during Lent. This practice is derived from the spiritual discipline of fasting. Fasting is not a discipline that is often practiced in our American culture. The thought of depriving ourselves of anything is not something that many find attractive. The message we hear is that you can have it all. You deserve it. Don’t miss out. Don’t settle for anything less than the best.
However, if truth be told, fasting is not as much about depriving ourselves of anything as much as it is about discovering true riches. It is making a choice to set aside earthly treasure for heavenly treasure. Fasting is not about giving up food for the sake of giving up food, but that you might concentrate more on feasting upon God’s daily bread, the Word of God.
We must guard against making fasting to be a self-serving and gratifying practice. It is not about showing myself or others how spiritual I am. Jesus warns against this in the Sermon on the Mount. The main purpose is not that I better understand or appreciate the sacrifice of Jesus. Giving up chocolate or television for 40 days is not going to help us to begin to come even close to grasping the cost he paid.
So why should I fast then?
To remove any distraction that might get in the way of my relationship with Jesus. Jesus says, “if your hand causes you to sin, then cut it off.” Of course we know that Jesus is using hyperbole to make a point here, but the point is well received. What in your life is interfering with your intimacy with God? Is there anything that is potentially becoming your God and that you rely upon and trust more than him. Then you need to purge it from your life. By removing the distractions in your life, you are then able to hear him better.
To cultivate generosity. The more you trust and rely upon him over and above the things of this world, the more room you will have for generosity. The reason we are not a more generous people is that we have convinced ourselves that we need our food, our money, and our time. We are convinced we “need” these things and cannot do without them. The tighter we hold on to them the harder it is for us to let go. Fasting works to challenge us not hold on too tightly to the things of this world. It challenges us to let them go, and hold tightly on the one from whom all those blessings flow.
Personally, during the season of Lent, it is my plan to fast on Wednesdays. I plan on taking the extra time during lunch to use it for prayer and study of the Bible. I can also take the money that I would have spent on lunch and contribute that to the work of God’s kingdom. If you also plan to give something up during Lent, I would encourage you to also consider how you can use that effort to better hear from God and to advance his kingdom. It’s not really about what you give up, but what you give away.
On Membership (Part 2)
We continue from last week our discussion of church membership. I received several emails in reply to last week’s message. I very much appreciate your thoughts and encourage you to keep sending them. But one thing additional thing I would encourage you to do is submit your reply by hitting the comments link in this message. By doing so you will be able to share your thoughts with more than just me, but will be able to share your insights with anyone who might happen upon my blog.
When we think of church membership from a worldly viewpoint, there are really only two benefits. In our church constitution, membership gives you the right to vote at one of our voters’ meetings and qualifies you to hold elective office. Other than that, there is not much that church membership affords you from the world’s perspective. On the surface, it would not hold much interest for me to join a church. Voters’ meetings are not the most exciting events to attend and holding elected office in the church is not a position many aspire to.
But that is the world’s perspective. When a person seeks to join a church, the question of how it benefits me becomes a mute point. The point in of becoming a member is not about how it will benefit me, but is about fulfilling my purpose and my calling. If there is is a benefit, the benefit is being in the position God wants me to be.
This is what I was created for. I was created to be a part of something that is bigger than myself. I was created to do kingdom of God work. We were not created to live out our faith in isolation of others, but to join together. There are many commands in the Scripture that are impossible fulfill without a commitment to a local Christian community of faith.
Here are just a few examples:
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:26
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit – just as you were called to one hope when you were called – one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:2-6
So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church. 1 Corinthians 14:12
Another important part of being a church member is being afforded spiritual protection. What we miss in our English Bible translations is many of God’s promises to his people are spoken with “you” in the plural sense. In other words these promises are not given to individual Christians, but to the church.
Think about Romans 8. It says here that in all things “we” are more than conquerors. It does not say I am more than a conquerer. It does not say you are more than a conqueror. It was “we” are more than conquerors. In other words I am not more than a conqueror when I stand alone. It is only when we stand together that nothing that will separate “us” from the love of God.
Do you see where I am going? While God’s does give promises to us as individuals, his fuller promises are found within the community. This is why membership is important. So in the end, maybe there are more benefits than just being able to vote and hold office, but they are not worldly benefits. They are kingdom benefits.