Fresh Bread: The Blessing of a Praying Pastor

For this reason [seeing the greatness of this plan by which you are built together in Christ], I bow my knees before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,…I pray that He grant you out of the rich treasury of His glory to be strengthened and reinforced with mighty power in the inner man by the [Holy] Spirit [Himself indwelling your innermost being and personality]. May Christ through your FAITH [actually] dwell (settle down, abide, make His permanent home) in your hearts!…That you may have the power and be strong to apprehend and grasp with all… [God’s devoted people…] what is the breadth and length and height and depth [of God’s Love]; [That you may really come] to know [practically, through experience for yourselves] the love of Christ, which far surpasses mere knowledge [without experience]; that you may be filled [through all your being] unto all the fullness of God […having the richest measure of His divine Presence …wholly filled and flooded with God Himself] Now to Him Who, by… the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]– To Him be glory in the church…throughout all generations… (Ephesians 3:14-20; Amplified Bible). In Chapter 7 of The Pursuit of Holiness, Jerry Bridges informs us that there is “Help in the Daily Battle” to live a holy life. This help is not as simple as having assistance from the Holy Spirit. It is quite obvious that the reason God gave us His Holy (different) Spirit is so that we could live our lives differently. However, if God’s People are going to live holy lives and win this battle, they must have the assistance of a praying pastor. Ephesians is one of the crown jewels of Paul’s Epistles (letters). In addition, the church of Ephesus was actually his strongest church plant. One of the reasons for this was because he stayed and taught in Ephesus for the longest time. However, the other main reason for their success is that the Apostle Paul prayed fervently for the people of God. I remember being told a story about Jack W. Hayford, who was affectionately known to many as “Pastor Jack.” He was once asked, “How do you grow a large...
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Fresh Bread: Heart Dis-Ease

Search me, O God, and know my HEART; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. (Psalm 139:23-24, NLT) During a message I gave a few months ago, I asked this question: “What is the leading cause of death in women?” Most of those present responded, “Cancer”. Who could disagree with them given the tremendous amount of advertisement and press coverage this disease has received? The official color representing the fight against this disease, pink, is virtually ubiquitous. Many were as surprised as I was to learn that the actual answer to this question was heart disease. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women in the United States. According to the American Heart Association, about 13 million Americans have active symptoms of coronary artery disease. Heart disease is the narrowing or blockage of the arteries and vessels that provide oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the heart. It is caused by an accumulation of fatty materials on the inner linings of arteries that restricts blood flow. When the blood flow to the heart is completely cut off, the result is a heart attack because the heart is starved of oxygen.* In Chapter 6 of The Pursuit of Holiness, Jerry Bridges informs us that “holiness is a battle.” It is a battle that daily occurs within our hearts. Every battle involves attacks. I believe that the main cause of spiritual death in believers (Christians) is also heart disease. Satan blocks the breath of God, that is, the influence in the form of God’s Holy Spirit (oxygen) and the food of God’s Word (nutrients) that our hearts (attitudes) need to live victoriously for God. Satan begins his attack on our hearts with anxious thoughts. On my way home, I regularly see a sign in front of a church that says, “Worry is the opposite side of Faith.” Worry or anxious thoughts will destroy our faith, which is the ticket into our God-given place of promise and purpose (Hebrews 3:12-19). The currency on which God’s Kingdom runs is not money, but FAITH (Hebrews 11:6). We are commanded not to worry! (Philippians 4:6). And yes, being anxious about our future offends our God who holds the future in His hands. Anxiety or worry distracts us from the purpose for which God saved...
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Fresh Bread: Today We Go Sightseeing!

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall SEE God. (Matthew 5:8; KJV) Make every effort to…be holy; without holiness no one will, SEE the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14; NIV) This word “See” means the following: • To gaze at with wide-open eyes, as at something remarkable; and thus differing from a simple voluntary observation. • To stare at and thus discern clearly (mentally); by extension, to attend to. • To experience. Today begins our congregation’s twelve-day consecration. The third chapter of our consecration reading, The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges, is entitled “Holiness Is Not an Option”. The Scripture found in Hebrews 12:14 tells us that we must make every effort to be holy (Different, Uncommon, Peculiar, Separated, God’s Private Property) because without holiness we will not be able to experience how remarkable God is. God’s holiness is what causes the angels in heaven to call out to each other in amazement 24 hours a day and 7 days a week without ever getting bored (Isaiah Chapter 6). This is what David, the greatest human worshiper in the Scriptures, means when he tells us to “worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness” (1 Chronicles 16:29; NKJV). Whenever people go on a sight-seeing tour, they can either see what every other tourist sees or they can see the special places that only those native to that specific area know about. These are the places that are probably not described on the internet or in a printed tour guide. These are the places that after you tell someone you’ve seen them, they reply, “I’ve never been there before!” or even better “I’ve never heard of that place!” Because the word “beauty” is also defined as “originality”, there is a place in God that is so original (fresh, new, imaginative, innovative, inspiring, inventive, novel, unconventional, unprecedented, untried, unusual), that we can never be bored in life. It’s a place that only the Holy Spirit knows (1 Corinthians 2:10-11; NKJV). The question is, as with any other sight-seeing tour: Are we willing to pay the extra cost to see places in God that others cannot see? That cost is holiness! If you’ve found yourself so bored with your tour in God that you’ve fallen asleep, this consecration is your opportunity to begin paying the price to see places in God reserved only for those who will make every effort (and...
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Fresh Bread* March 29: Entangled

Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be ENTANGLED again with a yoke of bondage (Galatians 5:1, NKJV) No one engaged in warfare ENTANGLES himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. (2 Timothy 2:4, NKJV) For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and they are again ENTANGLED in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. (2 Peter 2:20, NKJV) The Message Bible seems to make this Scripture frighteningly clear: “If they’ve escaped from the slum of sin by experiencing our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ, and then slid back into that same old life again, they’re worse than if they had never left. Better not to have started out on the straight road to God than to start out and then turn back, repudiating the experience and the holy command. They prove the point of the proverbs, A dog goes back to its own vomit and A scrubbed-up pig heads for the mud.” (2 Peter 2:20-22) Last Sunday, I saw a young child get her hair tangled in the earring of her mother. Almost everyone who observed what had happened either stopped to try to untangle her hair or simply lend his or her moral support to the crying child. My heart went out to her, as she had no idea how she got herself tangled up in such a painful situation. At her age, one would have to believe that it was an accident. Yet, it could happen again. If this were to occur, folks would probably feel even worse because we all understand that this toddler clearly does not understand what she’s getting herself into, nor how she got herself so entangled. But we are neither infants nor toddlers! As we enter into our consecration this week, I believe God is going to provide us freedom from sins that have entangled us. Through the Spirit’s revealing and bondage-breaking power, this is going to be a tremendous season in our lives. Then the question will be: After the Holy Spirit untangles us from the mess (vomit & mud) in our lives, will we voluntarily choose to return? Will we return to messy habits? Will we return to relationships...
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Taken

A few days ago, while I was watching a news program, an alert scrolled across the screen saying that an actress by the name of Natasha Richardson was severely injured in a skiing accident. I really did not pay much attention to this news bulletin. It wasn’t that I didn’t care; it was simply because, like most of us, there was far too much going on in my own life to even give this news an emotional response. Upon her death this week, it dawned on me that during a dinner, some friends were telling me about a movie that kept them “at the edge of their seats” entitled “Taken”. I’ve always liked the star of the movie, Liam Neeson, and I had determined to see it at some point. So it was ironic that it was his 45 year-old wife who was “taken” from him and their sons through this tragic accident. Let’s be honest. Nobody wants to think about death. It’s just one of those subjects that, more often than not, we all simply try to avoid discussing. It can often bring up painful memories of loved ones whose company we may still intensely miss. It’s hard to reconcile our emotions with the words of Job. The Lord gives and He can also take away what He gives, and that God still should be praised in both His provision and His removal of what He’s provided (Job 1:20 -22, KJV). This week, I’m preparing to give remarks at the memorial service of a friend who passed away last Fall. This month would have marked his 49th birthday. I can still vividly remember our discussion in April of last year. He visited from out of state and we talked about his dream of finally becoming the senior pastor of a large congregation he had worked so hard to help build for many years. Six months later, he was taken. So what’s the lesson in all this? What’s the upside in discussing such a “downer” of a subject? The lesson here is that no matter who we are the God-given life we posses will eventually be taken back. It’s during times like these that we are reminded that once we die, we will all have to report to the One who has the right both to give life and to take it. So as this year continues to unfold,...
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