Our view of God

I went to another outstanding ISU (Illinois State Univ.) bible study last night.

Ted Witzig Jr. gave a very informative/convicting talk entitled "How Clearly Do You See God?". He pointed out how important it was for a Christian to have an accurate Biblical view of God. It was amazing how, through the course of his talk, he pointed out so many areas where a lot of people hold misconceptions about God. Most of us who are Christians probably think we've got a pretty good handle on how we think about God, but after you listen to the study I have a feeling you will come away amazed. We're commanded to worship God is Spirit and in Truth. This is a great study to learn truths about God's character and nature.

I think the best thing I can do is HIGHLY recommend you download the talk and listen to it yourself. There will also be a handout of the powerpoint slides he used. I'll get that to you as soon as I get them.

To download "Right Click" and "Save As" HERE
To download the slides "Right Click" and "Save As" HERE

If those links don't work, you can also download them from the ISU Y.G.'s Resource Page. Just scroll down to March 30th.

Counting it Joy

James 1:2-4
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 3 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

So, do you? Do you count it all joy? Are you going through something now that's tough? The verse doesn't say to just "acknowledge deep down that it's for the better". It says to "count it ALL joy". Are you praising Him in your trial? Are you still bringing glory to His name?

Explanation of God

A lot of you have probably seen this before. It circulated as an email forward awhile back. It was attributed to an 8 year writing an essay for school, but I'm not sure I buy that. It has some pretty complex sentence structure for an 8 year old. Regardless of author, it's a good simple reminder.

EXPLANATION OF GOD:
"One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die, so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. He doesn't make grownups, just babies. I think because they are smaller and easier to make. That way he doesn't have to take up his valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers."
"God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times beside bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because he hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise in his ears, unless he has thought of a way to turn it off."
"God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting his time by going over your mom and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have."
"Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista. At least there aren't any who come to our church.(I Love that part *grin*) Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work, like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of him preaching to them and they crucified him But he was good and kind, like his father, and he told his father that they didn't know what they were doing and to forgive them and God said O.K."
"His dad (God) appreciated everything that he had done and all his hard work on earth so he told him he didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So he did. And now he helps his dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones he can take care of himself without having to bother God. Like a secretary, only more important."
"You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time." "You should always go to church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God!
Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway. "If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared, in the dark or when you can't swim and you get thrown into real deep water by big kids."
"But...you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and he can take me back anytime he pleases.
And...that's why I believe in God."

Rob Costlow

I just recieved a cd in the mail that I ordered last week. If any of you guys like solo piano music, I would highly recommend Rob Costlow. Check out his site. It's got some samples of his music you can download and listen to. Good stuff.

Here's "L.A./Passing By":

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Comparison

We know, from 2 Corinthians 10:12, that it is not wise to compare ourselves to other people, but what about comparing ourselves to ourselves? When is the last time you thought about what you were like a year ago? Have you changed? Have you experienced spiritual growth? How will you think/act/talk differently today than you did on this day a year ago? Are there some things that you've felt conviction on and thought about changing but have never committed to the change through grace? Let us all put on the girdle of truth (honesty) today and examine our hearts through the eyes of our Lord. Then may you have the grace to enact change through the Spirit. If you have never let the Spirit into your heart click on the "Now Try God" link on my sidebar to find out how to begin.

Change my heart, O God
Make it ever true
Change my heart, O God
May I be like You

You are the potter
I am the clay
Mold me and make me
This is what I pray

Remember Your Leaders

Here’s another message from Bill Bright.  The founder of Campus Crusade for Christ.

Remember your leaders who first taught you the word of God (Hebrews 13:7, NLT).  


Dear friends:

Terry, a man in his early thirties, was the pastor of a thriving church in a small, mid-western community.

Although he treasures the ministry, Terry and his family passed through circumstances that made his pastoral responsibilities almost unbearable.

Terry's wife experienced her third miscarriage. Each baby's death seemed more unbearable than the last, and their hearts were broken.

A month after the miscarriage, Terry's grandfather died. On almost the same day, construction began on a new parsonage. Each of these situations brought its own stress, still there was no relief from church-related problems, and his congregation continued to call him day and night for prayer and counsel.

One night Terry sat alone in his office, tears welling in his eyes. "Lord," he prayed. "Help me! Right now I'm the one who needs ministry. Everyone wants my help, but I have nothing more to give."

Eventually, Terry's burden was lightened. But his dilemma reminds us that pastors need our support and love on a daily basis.

We forget that pastors are human too, with the same challenges and problems we all have. Plus, they have stresses others do not have. They are expected to be "perfect," and their families are expected to be perfect. They can and should be models of Christian behavior, but none of us is ever perfect.

Because of their ministry, pastors may also be under heavier spiritual attack than most Christians, especially if they are boldly proclaiming the saving power of Christ's blood and the power of the Holy Spirit. Satan hates that as it helps destroy his kingdom, and he often tries to counterattack. Paul says, "We are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms" (Ephesians 6:12, NLT).

Let us love our pastors, pray for them, joyfully submit to their leadership, and encourage them.

"Remember your leaders who first taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and trust the Lord as they do... Their work is to watch over your souls, and they know they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this joyfully and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit" (Hebrews 13:7,17, NLT).

Yours for helping to fulfill the Great Commission
each year until our Lord returns,

Bill Bright

College Weekend

Greetings Brothers and Sisters!
College Weekend this spring will be at Bluffton North Church on April 22nd and 23rd. The agenda is as follows:11:30-12:30 - registration
12:30-1:00 - congregational singing
1:00-2:30 - speakers 1 and 2
2:30-3:15 - speaker 3 (while sisters have their group discussion)
3:15-4:00 - speaker 4 (while brothers have their group discussion)
4:15-6:00 - supper
6:00-6:30 - program practice
6:30-6:45 - congregational singing
6:45-9:00 - evening program
*Be at Bluffton North at 11:30 for registration (no
lunch included, sorry)

*All brothers, sisters, and friends in College, out of
college, of college age, or are seniors in high school
are welcome!

*Please Stay overnight!

*The topic is SPIRITUAL WARFARE (I Corinthians 10:4)

*Come, be blessed, fellowship, and learn what God
wants to show you

Questions and feedback can be emailed to:
Joe Lehman (260-273-2715)
Zach Bertsch (260-273-1716)
Cassie Bertsch
Katy Longenberger

Trust

Update: I accepted their counter-offer, and we're meeting at 4:00pm to sign the papers! If everything goes smooth, I'll be a "condo-owner"! I'm excited. Thanks so much for all your prayers!
As some of my readers know, I've been looking at buying a home for the last 2-3 months. While it hasn't been the easiest, it's taught me some good lessons about vertical meekness(the belief that all God does with me is good and helps to further my sanctification). I've tried to approach this with the attitude of - I'll do my best to make a God honoring decision, and then I'll let the outcome in God's hands. Then we're called to praise God no matter what that outcome may be - knowing that if we keep our eyes fixed on Christ, it will ultimate further God's purpose in our lives.

That being said, I'm getting close to putting in an offer on a condo (probably this evening). I'd just like to request that my readers be prayerful for the situation. Pray that I'll use Godly wisdom in the decision, and that I will count the outcome as blessed no matter whether I get the home or not.

Thanks in advance for your prayers!

Perfecting Holiness

". . . perfecting holiness in the fear of" God —2 Corinthians 7:1

Therefore, having these promises. . . ." I claim God’s promises for my life and look to their fulfillment, and rightly so, but that shows only the human perspective on them. God’s perspective is that through His promises I will come to recognize His claim of ownership on me. For example, do I realize that my "body is the temple of the Holy Spirit," or am I condoning some habit in my body which clearly could not withstand the light of God on it? ( 1 Corinthians 6:19 ). God formed His Son in me through sanctification, setting me apart from sin and making me holy in His sight (see Galatians 4:19 ). But I must begin to transform my natural life into spiritual life by obedience to Him. God instructs us even in the smallest details of life. And when He brings you conviction of sin, do not "confer with flesh and blood," but cleanse yourself from it at once ( Galatians 1:16 ). Keep yourself cleansed in your daily walk.
I must cleanse myself from all filthiness in my flesh and my spirit until both are in harmony with the nature of God. Is the mind of my spirit in perfect agreement with the life of the Son of God in me, or am I mentally rebellious and defiant? Am I allowing the mind of Christ to be formed in me? (see Philippians 2:5 ). Christ never spoke of His right to Himself, but always maintained an inner vigilance to submit His spirit continually to His Father. I also have the responsibility to keep my spirit in agreement with His Spirit. And when I do, Jesus gradually lifts me up to the level where He lived-a level of perfect submission to His Father’s will— where I pay no attention to anything else. Am I perfecting this kind of holiness in the fear of God? Is God having His way with me, and are people beginning to see God in my life more and more?
Be serious in your commitment to God and gladly leave everything else alone. Literally put God first in your life.

Backsliding?

I recently got the following email from Mark over at Codex Markianus. I found it convicting, so I thought I’d share.

Here is what puritan J.C. Ryle (1816-1900) provided as one of the most common causes of backsliding in the life of a professing believer.

God bless,~Mark

--There is such a thing as going back in religion after making a good profession. People may run well for a season, like the Galatians, and then turn aside after false teachers. People may profess loudly while their feelings are warm, as Peter did, and then in the hour of trial deny their Lord. People may cool down in their zeal to do good, like John Mark the companion of Paul. People may follow an apostle for a season, and like Demas go back to the world. All these things people may do.

It is a miserable thing to be a backslider. Of all unhappy things that can befall a person, I suppose it is the worst. A stranded ship, a broken-winged eagle, a garden overrun with weeds, a harp without strings, a church in ruins, all these are sad sights, but a backslider is a sadder still...

Now what is the case of most backslidings? I believe, as a general rule, one of the chief causes is neglected private prayer. Of course the secret history of falls will not be know until the last day. I can only give my opinion as a minister of Christ and a student of the heart. That opinions, I repeat distinctly, that backsliding generally first begins with neglect of private prayer. Bibles read without prayer; sermons heard without prayer; marriages contracted without prayer; journeys undertaken without prayer; residences chosen without prayer; friendships formed without prayer; the daily act of prayer itself hurried over, or gone through without heart: these are the kind of downward steps by which many a Christian descends to a condition of spiritual palsy, or reaches the point where God allows them to have a tremendous fall.

This is the process which forms the lingering Lots, the unstable Samsons, the innocent Asas, the pliable Jehoshaphats, the over-careful Marthas, of whom so many are to be found in the church of Christ. Often the simple history of such cases is this: the became careless about private prayer. You may be vary sure people fall in private long before they fall in public. They are backsliders on their knees long before they backslide openly in the eyes of the world. Like Peter, they first disregard the Lord's warning to watch and pray, and then like Peter, their strength is gone, and in the hour of temptation they deny their Lord.

Wise man

Have you heard the saying "Wise men learn from their mistakes."? When I was back in high school, I added my own second part to it, so it goes like this:

Wise men learn from their mistakes, but a really wise man learns from other peoples mistakes.

I've found that it's another one of the great attributes of the church. By sharing, not only our good experiences, but also our bad ones, we can grow and learn from experiences without having the negative side effects of actually going through it. Granted, I realize this doesn't work 100% of the time, but I have found it helpful.

Prepare me.

Lord prepare me
to be a Sanctuary
Pure and Holy
Tried and True
With Thanksgiving
I'll be a living
Sanctuary for You.



Have you heard that song before?
Have you sang it?
Have you thought about it?
Did you mean it?
Have you thought about the consequences of truly meaning what you sing?

Read it again...

Tried and True...Are you prepared to go through trials...and not just go through them, but go through them with thanksgiving? Becoming pure and holy doesn't happen by God giving us our every desire and making our life one long mountain top (at least not in my experience).

Think back to your last trial...

Did you praise God through it? Did it refine you? Are you more like Christ now, than you were then?

If this is the first time you've really thought about that song, I pray that the next time you sing it, you'll mean it.

Ring 'dem Bells!!

Have you ever wondered what the "Bells of Heaven" would sound like? Have you ever wondered what it sounds like to hear the Angels rejoicing?

Well, today, if you listen really close, you just may be able to hear them! Jeff Weigand's brother, Craig, began his walk with Christ last night! He's from Goodfield. Praise God!

God thing

Have you ever had one of those times when you feel the Spirit moving you - When you feel the Spirit urging you to move forward/up on the spiritual plane, and you try and share it with someone, and you feel like you did a totally inadaquate job, but yet, somehow, the Lord blesses your efforts and touches someone? That's a God thing.

I love it.

Taylor

I meant to post this pic awhile back, but I forgot. This is from when I met the K-State/Topeka group in Taylor. Where else would you get to shoot skeet at an invite! I love it.

The difference Love can make

You should follow my example, just as I follow Christ's (1 Corinthians 11:1, NLT).  


Dear friends:

Sometime ago I was talking to a close friend about a mutual friend of ours, and I asked, "Has he made a commitment to Christ?"

He replied, "He knows all the right words, but he doesn't have the right music."

All over the world there are what we call evangelical, orthodox, fundamental, born-again Christians who have the right words but do not have the right music.

The first-century church was so powerful that it turned the wicked Roman Empire upside down. Yet today, in this country, with more than 60 million adults professing to be born again, we as Christians have had negligible influence on our decaying society. Why?

I believe there are two main reasons.

First, we have not learned to love the way we should. If the love of Christ were to suddenly begin shining through every born-again Christian in America, masses would be running to Him. The churches would be overflowing. There would be revolutionary changes in our society. For example, if Christian husbands began to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:25), the Christian divorce rate would drop to near zero.

Second, too few Christians know about and rely upon the power of the Holy Spirit. If we want first-century results in our present century, we should go back and study the book of Acts to better understand what happened.

Paul said, "Follow my example and do as I do" (1 Corinthians 4:16, NLT). If we followed Paul's example, we would see Paul's results. He had the same Holy Spirit as we have. He also said, "You should follow my example, just as I follow Christ's" (1 Corinthians 11:1, NLT).

Peter said, "Christ, who suffered for you, is your example. Follow in his steps. He never sinned, and he never deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted. When he suffered, he did not threaten to get even. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly" (1 Peter 2:21-23, NLT). Jesus was always under the complete control of the Holy Spirit.

Remember that in the book of Acts there was great emphasis on the Holy Spirit, who is rarely mentioned in many churches today except in liturgies.

When we begin to love as Jesus loved, and when we begin to imitate Him and the first-century apostles, relying on the Holy Spirit's power instead of our own, we will see an explosion of revival in our world.

Let us hasten that day by our own faith and obedience.

Yours for helping to fulfill the Great Commission
each year until our Lord returns,

Bill Bright  

Worship

After reading Elise's post this morning, I had these thoughts.

Do you ever find yourself in that place where worship seems...I don't know the word...difficult?...but yet not difficult...

When your wretchedness as a human stands out starkly in your mind, and you can't comprehend why the God of the Universe would be patient with you and love you unconditionally? When all you can do is lay hold of the promises in the Word and surrender what you have, and you feel like it's a pathetic offering? When you realize with disgust all the mire you allow to cling to you - all the pride you harbor - and you bow in amazement that Christ has a robe that is pure and perfect and righteous - you bow in amazement that He's willing to put that robe on your filth and cover it. It is clothed in that robe that you come before our almighty creator to Praise Him through it all, because you know He's worthy of so much more.

Inexhaustible Love

I believe the concept of unconditional love is one which we as humans will never fully grasp. I mean true unconditional love. To love no matter what. I think that, if we could really grasp that concept, our devotion to our Father would be multiplied many times. If we could really understand how much He loves us - If we could really understand how badly He wants a relationship with us - If we could really understand how much our fellowship and worship means to Him. The story is told of a modern prodigal son who had quarreled with his parents and had left home in anger. After leading a life of partying, illicit sex and drugs, he finally boarded a train for home.

As the train neared his home, the young man related to the passenger next to him that he had written a letter to his parents, asking their forgiveness and begging them to take him back. If they wanted him to return, they were to tie a white rag to the old elm tree in the front yard.

"I can't look," he said to his seat partner. "You look for me. I'm afraid there will be no rag on the tree."

As they rounded the bend, his neighbor peered out the window and exclaimed, "Look! There's not just one rag, there are hundreds! Every branch is covered!"

This is a wonderful illustration of God's inexhaustible, unconditional love. Both the above cases remind me of Romans 8:38, "I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love" (NLT), and Ephesians 3:20, expressed in the classic words of the King James Version: "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us."

Hang onto the promises

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
on to the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He's holding out His hand

But the waves are calling out my name
And they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and FAILED
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again. "Boy, you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"

Pandora

Ok, I'm excited. This is possibly the coollest internet related thing I've found in a LONG time. I definitely recommend you check it out. I found out about it from Jennie's blog.

You type in an artist or artists you like. It automatically finds a ton of songs that sound like that and then plays them back to you. And if you don't mind ads, it's FREE!! Heck yeah. Beats Launchcast to pieces.

Obedience, not duty

"If we do something simply out of a sense of duty, we are trying to live up to a standard that competes with Jesus Christ. We become a prideful, arrogant person, thinking we know what to do in every situation. We have put our sense of duty on the throne of our life, instead of enthroning the resurrection life of Jesus. We are not told to "walk in the light" of our conscience or in the light of a sense of duty, but to "walk in the light as He is in the light . . ." ( 1 John 1:7 ). When we do something out of a sense of duty, it is easy to explain the reasons for our actions to others. But when we do something out of obedience to the Lord, there can be no other explanation-just obedience. That is why a saint can be so easily ridiculed and misunderstood."

Do you ever struggle with this? Do you ever find yourself going to a Young Group event just because you should? Do you ever have to drag yourself to Wednesday night church just because you know people might ask where you were? Have you ever helped on a service project just because you didn't have a good excuse not to?

Jesus Christ has so much more for us. He wants us to open ourselves up to a relationship with him and his love that will spawn a burning desire for obedience, not duty. Total obedience to the Word of God is not a natural or easy thing. Sometimes there is pain associated with amputating our fleshly desires. But which of us, if we had a cancerous tumor, would not get the surgery done immediately? Christ has already paid for the surgery, and He's willing to do the surgery. He's the only surgeon in the universe qualified for this type of surgery, and He's never failed. Ever.....Ever....not once. He's not promising that it won't hurt, but He does promise success if we trust Him.

Let's trust him.

AOL takes fight against phishing gangs to court

MUMBAI: To help battle the rising tide of email phishing scams, devious email hoaxes, and complex identity theft on the Internet, internet company AOL has filed three civil lawsuits against several major phishing gangs in the US.

This is a part of AOL's wide-ranging efforts to protect the email safety and security of its members. The lawsuits are the first by a major ISP to cite Virginia's first-in-the-nation anti-phishing statute, adopted in July 2005. The lawsuits also cite applicable Federal laws, including the Federal Lanham Act (trademark law), and the Federal Computer Fraud & Abuse Act (antispam). AOL is seeking total damage awards of $18 million.

AOL's lawsuits allege that these phishing gangs – some believed to operate from abroad - victimised AOL and CompuServe members through emails that attempted to trick and lure them to fake websites of legitimate online companies, for the purpose of fooling them into giving up their personal identifying information, such as AOL screen names, passwords, and credit card information.

AOL senior VP and Deputy General Counsel Curtis Lu says, "Phishing scams have grown more sophisticated and more dangerous to consumers. At AOL, we are using every legal and technical means at our disposal to drive phishers from the AOL service, not only to protect our members, but to make the Internet a better, safer place for all consumers.

"The phishers targetted in our lawsuits spoof a variety of prominent internet brands, including AOL. We are going to continue to play our part in protecting the sanctity and integrity of the email experience of the web – and today's actions are a part of our ongoing, successful, and comprehensive antispam and anti-identity theft work."

The three lawsuits, filed target aggressive and complex identity thieves who sent official-looking emails to AOL members in an attempt to trick and lure them to websites that mimicked the appearance and feel of official AOL or CompuServe websites. Once directed to one of these fake websites, AOL and CompuServe members were encouraged to enter their screen names, passwords, billing and other financial information.

These phishers could then use this information to traffic in stolen identities, to compromise credit cards and personal identities of innocent internet users – and then interfere with their online experience, and for some – to steal their identities and assets. According to the lawsuits, these phishing groups used vast resources and creativity to intricately design hundreds and hundreds of fake websites to mislead consumers. AOL has stored tens of thousands of examples of phish emails transmitted by these gangs.

AOL says that phishing is a growing online threat as scammers adapt and refine their fraudulent efforts to trick consumers into giving up personal information. The IRS, for example, is warning of widespread phishing emails as tax filing deadlines near. The Anti-Phishing Working Group (www.apwg.org) found almost 50,000 phishing websites created last year – and more than 7,000 in December alone. A 2005 survey of personal computers by AOL and the National Cyber Security Alliance found that 1 of every 4 home computer users are hit by phishing attacks each month.