A word about Honduras

What you DON’T hear…

My brother was in Honduras when the coup happened.  The media is an interesting thing.  You almost have to leave the country and listen to the international media to get a sense of balance.  From my understanding here’s what happened and what most US Americans are NOT hearing.

1. The old President was aligned with Venezuela dictator Hugo Chavez.  In following his mentor, Zelaya went to his congress and asked them to abolish term limits for the presidency (his office).  BTW – a very convenient way to abolish democracy and keep a dictator in power.  The congress refused to listen to him. Telling him it was unconstitutional to get rid of presidential term limits. So…

2. Zelaya tells the Congress that he will put it up for a popular vote and let the people decide.  The Congress again denies him telling him he does not have the constitutional right even to ask the people to vote to get rid of presidential term limits.  This time the Supreme Court buts in and tells Zelaya that he is out of bounds.  So…

3. He goes to his military generals and commands them to pass out the ballot boxes to vote on a referendum to get rid of term limits.  The military generals refuse to comply saying that he is breaking the law and that it is against the Honduran Constitution to abolish term limits.  So…

4. He fires his generals.  To which they respond,  we don’t acknowledge you firing us.  We are still in control of the army.  Get back jack.  So…

5. He tells the army to pass out the ballots to the people to vote to get rid of presidential term limits.  They respond by arresting him and kicking him out of the country.  (Which they thought was a nice thing to do.)  This is where I think they went wrong.  They should have just arrested him right there.   So…

What would we do if our President began acting in this way?

What if the acting President  treated his congress and generals in like manner?

What do you think of term limits for the president?

Notes from Sunday Sermon – Jesus’ method.

Last Week Brad spoke about the Jesus Church doesn’t like to talk about anymore.

He spoke about how Jesus reached out to people who were hurting and rejected.  He spoke about how Jesus wasn’t hated by the sinners, but by the religious people.  I want to share with you how an atheist was impacted by a Christian man who reached out to him.  

Sometimes it takes an atheist to teach the church a lesson.  I love his line, “How much do you have to hate somebody and NOT tell them how they can have eternal life?”

We need to be getting this message of eternal life out!  We all need to find ways to share the Love of Christ to our world.  

We as a body of believers have a great opportunity before us.  Coming up in a few weeks is Easter.  As you know it is one of the most invitational times of the year.  Many people in our culture only go to church 2 times a year.  Easter and… Christmas.  We want to remind you that we are preparing a very special EASTER service.  We will have 3 services to accomodate all the people.  INVITE your friends to easter.  It’s an easy way to get the word out.  It is one of many ways we will be seeking to reach out this year. 

For teenagers, this Friday is our monthly video game/Party night.  Starting at 6:30 we will have this whole room decked out and ready for teens to come and hang out here.  

Today , I want to look at the method of Jesus.  The way that he did his work and how the Church often misses the simple methodology that Jesus used.  

Innovative churches are catching on to the idea that I will be sharing with you today and are seeing amazing things happen. And really what I am sharing this week is the flipside of the coin to what Brad shared last week.

1. What is God’s purpose for creation? Why is the universe and all the stuff in it created?  Why do we have angels and sinners and birds and mountains,…?  Psa.96:8, 86:9, Rev. 14:6; 5:13; Isa. 6:2-3; Rev. 4:8

Everything ultimately exists to say back to God – YOU ARE IT!  You are the only one!  You are perfect.  You are the man.  Not I, but you.  You made me – all I am goes back to show you off!

2. Our story brings glory to God.  As we get salvation – all all of what that means – out life is a living, “God is awesome!” (1 Cor. 10:31, 6:20; Rom. 15:5,6; Eph 2:10 with Matt 5:16; 1 Pet. 2:9,12; Gal. 1:24; 1 Pet. 4:11; 2 Thess. 1:11-12)

3. The way our story brings glory to God is to make us like Jesus.  (Rom 8:29; Jn. 15:8,16; 17:4,18; 20:21; 1 Pet. 2:9,12; Luke 19:10)

    How?  I believe it is seen in making us like Jesus in our Character & In our Mission (Read the gospels to see Jesus’ character and mission.  Mission –  Luke 19:10. Character – 1 Pet 1:16

How did Jesus build His Church?

He told lots and lots of people the good news.  He was out there telling the Penn & Tellers of the world!

He picked 12 to be His disciples. Mark 3:14

He said they were to be with him and then go out and tell people the good news.

A disciple is just a follower.  

Then he appointed 72 – Luke 10:1

And sent them out to tell people the good news.

Acts 1:15

There were about 120 after the crucifixion.

Talk about numbers and how they matter to God.  We want to see more come to faith.  Each number represents a person who will give glory to God!

We want to see Woodland Grow!  So that we can rejoice in God saving more people!  We can watch the mighty hand of God move in people’s lives!

Let us be accused about being all about the numbers!  Who said you can’t have numbers without ‘watering down” the gospel?

Look at the early Church!

Acts 2:41
Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
Acts 2:47
praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 4:4
But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.
Acts 5:14
Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.
Acts 6:1
[ The Choosing of the Seven ] In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.
Acts 6:7
So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
Acts 9:31
Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.
Acts 11:21
The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
Acts 11:24
He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
Acts 11:26
and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
Acts 14:1
[ In Iconium ] At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed.
Acts 14:21
[ The Return to Antioch in Syria ] They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch,

Acts 16:5
So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.
Acts 17:4
Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.
Acts 17:12
Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.
Acts 17:34
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.
Acts 19:19
A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.
Acts 19:26
And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all.

Jesus’ method was to preach to the crowds, and gather a few and train them to be followers.  REAL followers.  These followers then shared it with others and TRAINED others to be followers who trained others, who trained others…

Let’s look at what Paul did.  

2 Tim.2:2

And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

Paul 

Timothy

Reliable men

Others. (implied – who will teach others)

Jesus commanded us.  Here in Matthew 28:19-20

If we took this command seriously to make followers of Jesus – (not the church but YOU to make a follower)  And YOU to teach somebody everything Jesus told you! 

NOT if we feel led, not because it’s a calling, but it’s because it gives glory to God to save more people – AND HIS method is by using ordinary people to tell others.

Most churches use marketing, mailouts, and lots of free gimicks to try to get people to come to come to the church.  They ADD members.

What if we added 100 members a year.  How many members would we have in ten years?

100×10 = 1000

What if we each took this command seriously to pass on what we have learned from Christ?

What if we each made a friend this year and poured our lives into them.  What if that person accepted Christ and we helped them in their walk with God?   WHat if they came here, or went to another church – who cares.  Look and see what would happen.

Our current 200 adult attenders in one year would be 400.  Let’s say that each person again would help one more person the next year to be a follower of Jesus.  A real one. 

We would in two years have 800 people here.

Then 1600.

3200

6400

12800

25600

51200

102400

204800

In 27 years we would have overrun the population of the world.

Jesus is commanding us each as individuals to help people be followers.  In order for someone to follow Him all the way – they need to know Him.  So we must first reach them and then pour into them and then send them out on this same mission.

The Church of Jesus Christ is not a group of people meeting once a week in a building – it is a movement of God that reaches out and builds people up and sends them out.

Jesus’ disciples changed the first century in this manner.  In China, India, South America, the church is growing in this exact same way.  Churches here in the US who have put this as their purpose to reach people and then  train up people to be like Christ in their Character and Mission have seen the same thing happen.

THE WORLD OF LOST PEOPLE is waiting for us to reach them.  They aren’t going to just come walk through those doors.  We have to go get them!  In our home groups we will be purposing to train you up and send you out.  

We need to take being like Christ serious.

We need to take His methodology serious. 

This command to reach others is a big deal.  The more we ignore it, the more we will lose sight of what really matters.

We think having a class is discipleship.

We think coming on Sundays is us being disciples.

And often in the Church, instead of speaking with power and authority, we fiddle faddle with the commands of God.  We ask you if you want to obey.

Listen church – if you are a CHrist follower – obedience is not optional.  Look at what would happen if you taught your children the way many churches teach people to be followers of Jesus.

 

What if we taught our children how to do life with the same cold precision that we taught the Bible?

Every command is a do!

If Jesus is Lord in your life – the option to reject what God says is zeroed out.

I must – forgive, love, share Christ.  It is good for me and us to do what God say!

I bought car from my brother in law.

Buick Riviera – super charged “sleeper”

Wed. night 

Taking somebody home.

Show off.

Peeled out.

Pastor Greg saw me.

There goes my witness.

I love that car.

I love to stomp it!

I love the power under the hood.

Woodland is a sleeper.

It is like that car.  Doesn’t look like it’s got much going on.  But once you get inside – you see the power!

We need to reach a lost world!  It is His command to us.  If you are to be like CHrist – you need HIS character AND His mission for your life! 

When we all get on mission – watch out!  Cartersville and the world will not know what hit them!

Stomp it Woodland!

Here is Penn’s original video, for those who haven’t seen it.

Here is my response.

Leave a comment…

Francis Chan – Session One – Youth Minister’s Conclave, GA 2009

Oh my goodness! This message tonight is what I call a SPANKER! He challenged us to BE and Make Disciples like Jesus. The thought that our churches are FAR from Jesus’ design was hard but true. He shared his struggles to be in ministry and not be running a Jesus, New Testament Church, but an American 21st century ministry. Far too long he felt not at peace with his Bible readings vs his experience at Church.

A great look at the parable of the sower! Oh my goodness. I can’t explain it.

All I can say is that it challenged me to get rid of the God-damned things in my life. I am NOT CURSING! I am saying there is MUCH waste and frivolity that need to be purged from my life. I cannot continue to live in a way that is full of waste and emptiness. How JD? HOW? Oh the wasted hours! The time slipped away by a good television plot. A good movie. And I find myself wasting my time. The food I eat – the money I spend. THe time I waste. God forgive me!

I am not cursing anybodies life, but my own. I am not talking to anybody else but me. The conviction and power of tonight’s message is too deep for me to explain here.

God help me to follow YOU with all my heart and soul and mind…

9 Things You Simply Must Do – Hate Well

9 Things You Simply Must Do
Principle #1 – Dig it up – All of our life – good or bad – springs up from the inside of us and begins as spirit/thought.
Principle #2 – Pull the tooth. – Resolve negative things quickly, lovingly, thoroughly, effectively & let go of things you can’t resolve.
Principle #3 – Play the Movie – Look ahead to the results of your decisions, today. How will what I choose today affect tomorrow, and the day after that…
Principle #4 – Do Something – Be a part of the solution to problems you see. Act don’t react.
Principle #5 – Act Like an Ant. – Small habits make big changes. Do small things to make big changes in your life.

Principle #6 – Hate Well

Subjective Hate: Subjective hate is like
any other state of subjective feelings. It is a pool of feelings and
attitudes that resides in our soul, waiting for expression. It is not
directed at anything specific or caused on any given day by any
specific object. It is already there, sort of like an infection of the
soul. It just lives there.
Hate does more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to
the one on which it is poured.
Objective Hate: Transform it to the kind
of hate that solves problems, protects things that you value, and
stands against the things that you do not want in your life. Go
hard on the issue, and soft on the person.
Character is in part formed by what we hate, because we strive
to be different from whatever that is.

Exodus 18:21
But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
Deuteronomy 12:31
You must not worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.
Deuteronomy 16:22
and do not erect a sacred stone, for these the LORD your God hates.
Psalm 45:7
You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.
Psalm 45:6-8 (in Context) Psalm 45 (Whole Chapter)
Amos 5:15
Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts. Perhaps the LORD God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph.
Amos 5:14-16 (in Context) Amos 5 (Whole Chapter)
Malachi 2:16
“I hate divorce,” says the LORD God of Israel, “and I hate a man’s covering himself with violence as well as with his garment,” says the LORD Almighty. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith.
Malachi 2:15-17 (in Context) Malachi 2 (Whole Chapter)
Hebrews 1:9
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”
Hebrews 1:8-10 (in Context) Hebrews 1 (Whole Chapter)

Redemptive Media

2 Corinthians 8:9
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

 

So I watched this show on hulu the other day and it blew me away!

Who do you see in the poorest communities in the country helping the poor?  

Who are the ones giving their lives selflessly to help others less fortunate?

I see JESUS all over it!

Check it out.

Watch this and tell me where you see Jesus.

9 Things you simply must do – Part 5 ACT LIKE AN ANT

9 Things You Simply Must Do

Principle #1 – Dig it up – All of our life – good or bad – springs up from the inside of us and begins as spirit/thought. 

Principle #2 – Pull the tooth. – Resolve negative things quickly, lovingly, thoroughly, effectively & let go of things you can’t resolve.

Principle #3 – Play the Movie – Look ahead to the results of your decisions, today.  How will what I choose today affect tomorrow, and the day after that…

Principle #4 - Do Something

#5 Act Like an Ant.

“Go to the ant, you sluggard; 

Consider it’s ways and be wise! 

It has no commander, 

No over seer or ruler, 

Yet it stores its provisions in summer 

And gathers its food at the harvest.” 

— Proverbs 6:6–8 

The activity of any individual ant seems to have little impact. Nor 

is it apparent how any single grain has much to do with the big 

picture of what is forming. But the impact is happening, and form 

is developing. 

“I am concerned that until you begin to value the little steps and 

focus on them, not the big goal, you will always get discouraged 

and give up. Success will seem too slow to you.” 

Whether you are trying to lose weight, build a business, build a 

marriage, raise a child, overcome a pattern, resolve a depression, 

or build a business, it is done the same way: one brick at a time. 

One grain of sand at a time. 

Lessons from the Ant.

1. Works Hard - 

2. Self-Disciplined - “A man without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls” (Proverbs 25:28). In the 1960s, Walter Mischel tested four year old children for self control in “The Marshmallow Test”: the children were each given a marshmallow and told that they can eat it anytime they want, but if they waited 15 minutes, they would receive another marshmallow. Follow up studies showed that the results correlated well with these children’s success levels in later life.^{Self control was also shown to improve upon exercise. Exercise in these experiments varied. Taking care on posture, doing regular exercise, and other forms of self-control improved over time the self-control ability in seemingly unrelated areas.}

3. Understands Today Matters - Never underestimate the value of what you do today.  Today you could destroy your future or invest in the success of it.  

4. Doesn’t Give Up - When I was with Capitol Records in Hollywood, the Vice President for Special Products shared with me his belief in the marvels of persistence. According to his story, one day, early in his career, while calling on retailers in downtown Los Angles, he found himself with some spare time before his next appointment, and decided to call on, for the first time, a large department store chain located a block away. When meeting the buyer, he was told there was no need for his product as the chain was satisfied with a competitor’s merchandise. The following month, being in the same area, he decided to try again. Once more the buyer told him he was not interested.

Three months later, with some free time, he made another attempt. The buyer greeted him, asking abruptly: “Where have you been for the past three months?” Perplexed, he explained on his two earlier visits, he had been clearly told there was no interest in his merchandise. At this point, the buyer told him that he did not do business with any salesperson that did not make at least three, but preferably four, sales calls. He explained it was his business philosophy to do business only with those determined to do business, and viewed determination as a sign of future reliability. With that, he was told to get out his order pad if he wished to make a sale. He learned that persistence does pay off.

“The first strategy of many who are faced with a problem is

to quit. But a man who suffered such severe burns on his

legs that he faced amputation–he didn’t quit. Glenn

Cunningham became the most successful distance runner of

his time.

“And a man with less than one year of formal education

didn’t quit. Abraham Lincoln became the most revered

president we ever had.

“And a fragile boy in Scotland, bedridden most of his

childhood, didn’t quit. Robert Louis Stevenson became such

a masterful storyteller, your great grandchildren will

cherish his books as you did.

“Now, if you had all three of those strikes against you,

nobody would blame you for quitting. But unless your legs

are severely burned, and you’re so fragile, you have to

stay in bed, and you never graduated from second grade,

why don’t you turn around and get back to work. 

5. Understands Compounding - Say that, starting in 1960, your mom put $1,000 a year into the S&P 500 for the next forty-four years. With its average rate of return of 10 percent, she’d have had $717,905 in 2004. Investing that $44,000 over those forty-four years delivered substantial returns. What’s especially striking about Mom’s happy outcome, though, is its growth curve. At her twenty-two-year mark in 1982, your mom’s then-$22,000 investment would have been worth just over $78,000 — a tidy $56,000 profit. Not bad, grant you.

But the real magic would have occurred in the next twenty-two years. Grand finale: Mom’s $78,542, plus her annual $1,000 addition, would have ballooned. Think of it: She added the same $22,000 but her account grew from $78,542 to $717,905. The magic of compounding created almost $640,000 more during the same amount of time!

Ode to my friends…

Ode to my old friends… from John Delgado on Vimeo.

 

Enjoy this video tribute to all my friends.

Do Something!

9 Things You Simply Must Do

Principle #1 – Dig it up – All of our life – good or bad – springs up from the inside of us and begins as spirit/thought. 

Principle #2 – Pull the tooth. – Resolve negative things quickly, lovingly, thoroughly, effectively & let go of things you can’t resolve.

Principle #3 – Play the Movie – Look ahead to the results of your decisions, today.  How will what I choose today affect tomorrow, and the day after that…

4. “Do Something”

Our culture is plagued by people waiting…

We want the hero to come in and fix our problems, give us a break, give us a job.

Successful people don’t look out for a hero, they are a hero!

Successful people do things.

Most people wait to do or wait for something to “come their way”

Colossians 3:23
Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,

Initiate – solutions, possibilities, opportunities.

Create – action, movement, upward growth.

Generate – money, life, love, etc.

Am I being a part of the solution?

I will call on myself to help fix the situation – I will DO something!

(IT DOESN’T MATTER WHOSE FAULT IT IS!  IT ONLY MATTERS THAT I AM GOING TO HELP FIX!)

I will not wait around… for a problem to be fixed, for a person to see it my way, for someone else to “get it”, etc.

What can I do to make things better?

How can I make good things happen out of this bad or not so good situation?

What can I bring to the table?  What force out there can fix this?

I am responsible for myself.

I am walking with God, and TOGETHER we are planning the course for my life.

We will be judged on what we DID!

1 Corinthians 3:12-15

12If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

“PLAY THE MOVIE”

Wed. Night notes. – PLAY THE MOVIE

9 Things You Simply Must Do – notes from a book of the same name by Henry Cloud.

Principle #1 – Dig it up – All of our life – good or bad – springs up from the inside of us and begins as spirit/thought. 

Principle #2 – Pull the tooth. – Resolve negative things quickly, lovingly, thoroughly, effectively & let go of things you can’t resolve.

Principle #3 – Play the Movie

If I do “A” then “B” will happen. & not only will “B” happen, but so will “C” & “D” & F,G,H,I etc.

The wise person asks, “What will I reap if I sow _(whatever)___?”

How long would it take to have a dream (college degree, new career, closer walk with Go, etc.)?  X amount of time.

Do you plan on being alive for X amount of time?

X amount of time IS GOING TO COME!

When X amount of time comes – do you want to have your dream accomplished or do you want to still be waiting – hating your life?

How long will it take for you to choose?

The passing of time is NOT a choice.

You can foresee good and bad futures.

Play the movie…

What will my family experience if I keep smoking and get cancer and die in 15 years?

What will happen to my marriage if I have this affair?

How will it affect my children?

“Worry” for the future.  Not worry in a way that you CAN’T change the outcome, but envision potential problems and how you will deal with them.

Build strategies in your life to expect problems and failures.

    Do you have a group of people to “goto” when the bottom falls out?

    Do you have things in “order” (emergency fund, insurance, etc.)?

    Do you have accountability people in your life? 

“Play the Movie” in all areas of your life.

Relationships – Prov. 19:19 

If I continue to treat this person in this way… what will happen to the relationship?  

If I kiss this person, what will they think and where will this relationship go?  Do I want it to go there?  

How will my anger affect my children?  How will they relate to me when they grow older?  

Parenting - 

If I always give my children everything they want without giving them opportunities to work for things, how will that affect their future marriage, job, etc.?

Instead of helping your children resolve conflict, you give him his favorite ice cream  and try to ease his pain?  How will that affect the way they handle conflict or misunderstandings in the future?

Morality - 

Look ahead to the day you have to tell your children that you are getting divorced because of an affair.

How will your friends (parents, family, etc.) trust you when they find out that you have been lying to them constantly?

Health - 

Am I ready to deal with lung cancer because of my smoking habit?

Am I ready for heart surgery because my overeating is clogging my arteries?

Diabetes?

Not all movies are bad.

A man with a family history of heart disease got in shape so he could be there for his daughters weddings.

Tiger Woods practiced daily so that he could succeed.

Do I have people in my life to support me in my “movie making”?