A Ferocious Feline

When I got up this morning, I went down to our family room. There in the middle of the room was our declawed cat batting around a mouse. I think the mouse was about 99.9% dead when I arrived.

Now our cat is a house cat. The biggest thing she has ever hunted was a two inch moth. Her name says it all when it comes to this cat--Fluffy. But, this morning you would have thought she was a lioness out in the sunshine of the Serengeti. She tossed that mouse, twitched her tail, and rolled as if she were the only cat to ever catch anything.

She had been stalking her prey for weeks. She sat for hours in our storage room waiting for the right moment. Last night at some point, the right time came. She grabbed the mouse and took it out into the family room for all to see.

While Fluffy may not be the greatest example of a powerful cat and what it can do to its prey, I was reminded through her persistence over the last several weeks that we have an enemy and we are his prey. Peter tells us that Satan is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. We would do well to realize that he does not give up and looks forward to relishing our defeat!

Mister Rogers Would've Been Proud

At noon today, I attended the dedication ceremony for the new metro 911 center of Kanawha County. What a great building! While technologically very sophisticated, its design is practically very simple.

It looks as if this facility will be a great help to the people of our county, and has the capacity to be one of the finest 911 centers in the nation when it opens. Hats off to all of those in the city, county, and state that have worked to get this center completed. Anyone who sees it will be impressed.

I was also struck with what a great neighbor the new metro 911 facility will be for us at Bible Center. When we relocate to our new property at Southridge, the 911 Center will be right next door. Our property practically surrounds the 911 facility. We have the land beyond it on Peyton Way and behind it along Parkway.

The security, safety, and 24-hour nature of the center will help to create a similar atmosphere in the neighborhood. The community that is developing around our property is the kind of neighborhood about which Mister Rogers would've been proud.

God has again reminded me that He has provided us a wonderful piece of land. Even the fact that 911 is our next door neighbor is a blessing to us from Him. Thank you Lord!

Finishing Up and To Be Continued...

We had about 100 people who gathered for a special noon time prayer service on our land at Southridge. It was a beautiful day! The sounds and sights of God's grand creation were just perfect. What a wonderful place to pause and praise Him! What a wonderful place to plead with Him for continued blessing on our great land and on His church family at Bible Center!

With the service today, we concluded 40 Days of Passion and Prayer. We have been praying that God would keep us focused on His passion for us as people, His mission to us as His followers, and His vision for us at Bible Center. Several have relayed to me that God has worked on them during these 40 days in unique ways. God even used this period to convict one man of some drug use that had been going on a long time in his life. Others have mentioned ways in which God had convinced them about specific aspects of their financial giving to the Lord. Many have enjoyed being reminded to pray for Bible Center because of the awareness bracelet.

God has truly blessed the Bible Center family over the years. We pray that as we remain faithful and God blesses us, others will see that truly what is happening in and through the people of Bible Center is a "God thing."

While the 40 days have concluded, keep praying for God to guide us in the planning of the new property. Keep praying that God would provide the financial resources through His people that will be necessary to do what He has called us to do.

I will continue posting blogs for a while. I have enjoyed blogging daily, but can't promise that there will be new blogs every single day. I may post a verse or song that has stood out to me. Who knows, maybe I'll post a joke or two. But, I will try to share what God is doing in my life, what He is teaching me, what He is using to challenge me, and how He is involved in even the simplest and silliest things that occur in my day.

So I conclude this 40 days of blogging with: To be continued...

Car Wash

On my way in to the office today, I decided to wash the car. It was covered with pollen and I don't need any more tree pollen around. It also had a great deal of mud and dirt on it from being on our Southridge property. Anyway, it was a mess, so I ran it through the car wash at the gas station.

I drove a good distance to have lunch today. By the time I got back, there were bugs all over the windshield and pollen all over the car. It was amazing to see how filthy the car got by the end of the day. Obviously, another wash was needed. But, it will eventually end up getting dirty again.

How true this is of us as God's children! We are completely cleansed by God when we receive Christ as Savior, but he periodically cleans us up again as needed. It is needed when we as His children sin. He has forgiven us once and for all, and because of that provides us the periodic washings needed to remain in tune with Him.

Thank God for His cleansing!

Do They Know Me?

Someone spoke to me today about my background and my religious heritage. Interestingly, they had made some assumptions about me that were not true. They thought I was associated with a branch of Christianity with which I have little or no connection. They based that on these false assumptions. But, I had given them little other knowledge of me to remove those assumptions.

They began to speak to me about what I believe and how I live out my Christianity. Again, they were way off in their understanding of me and my faith. This happens to me a great deal with people who do not have much contact with me or know much about me. But, this person, while not a part of our church family, has had a great deal of contact with me over the years and I thought should know me pretty well.

Through this interaction, I was struck with the reality that it is my responsibility to share my faith and my relationship with Christ. I am the one who has not represented myself and ultimately Christ well before this person. I could easily blame them for their ignorance of me, but I was convicted that by now this person should know what I believe about faith and how to have a right relationship with Jesus Christ. They didn't and that is my fault.

This person really didn't know me for who I am and what I believe and for the sake of my witness for Christ, they should have. From now on as I interact with other people, I am going to ask myself the question: Do they know who I am? After a little bit of interaction with me, friends, neighbors and associates should know that I am a born again follower of Jesus Christ and that I live for Him. They need to hear about and see Jesus in me. I may be the only "Jesus" they will ever see. If they know me, that will give me the opportunity to help them know Jesus Himself.

The Good Side of Sinus Pressure

I slept about three hours last night. For some reason, this year's tree pollen has affected me more than in previous years. My eyes feel as if someone is trying to push them out of my head from the inside. Sudafed has worked very well, but I thought I did not need it last night when I went to bed. Boy, was I wrong.

So, when I awoke at 3:00 a.m., I decided to pray for people. This is not normal for me--praying in the middle of the night that is. I prayed specifically for people who shared needs with me throughout the day yesterday. I prayed for some of our missionaries we have heard from lately.
Even though Lesli was right there next to me, in the quiet of the night, I felt as if it was just me and God (I guess we were the only ones conscious in the house at the time). The stillness and the quiet of the house and our neighborhood provided such a peaceful atmosphere in which to talk with God. I even found myself thanking Him for the sinus pressure that allowed me to converse with Him in the stillness of the night.

Life moves at such a fast pace for all of us. The world is filled with noise. We should follow the psalmist's challenge to be still and know that God is God. After praying, I simply lay there in bed and thought about God being God. Then, I took the time to repeat verses I had memorized regarding who God is, what His attributes are, and just how much He loves me. It seemed after two hours of communing with, praying to, and thinking about God that my heart was refreshed and realigned to His heart.

While I don't like that pressure behind my eyes, I am glad that God used it last night to tune my heart to His!

Simple and Sufficient

Over the last two months, I have dealt with people both inside and outside the Bible Center family who are feeling the effects of sin. I have dealt with people who are struggling with addictions to alcohol and drugs, people whose lives have been ruined by infidelity, people who have lived in sexual immorality, people who have lied, cheated or stolen at work and have lost their jobs due to their sin, and people who are deeply broken because of the wayward wanderings of their children or grandchildren. Sin continues to do what it began to do in the Garden of Eden--corrupt people, destroy marriages, devastate families, and seize greater ground in human society.

Today, we celebrated the Lord's Supper which reminds us of the freedom Christ has secured for us from sinful addictions, actions, and attitudes. The Lord's Supper (or communion) has two basic elements given to us by Christ Himself. Both the fruit of the vine and the unleavened bread symbolize for us the work of Christ on the cross. The bread symbolizes the purity of the one who was the perfect sacrifice. The juice symbolizes the price that He paid for our forgiveness. Each element points to the work of grace displayed in Christ on the cross. Without the reality of the grace that these symbols represent, none of us could be free from the penalty, guilt and consequences of our sin before God.

The grace of God of which we are reminded each time we participate in communion is sufficient to forgive every sinner and to cleanse away every sin. What's so amazing about God's grace is how simple it is to receive--by faith, but yet how sufficient it is to free us from sin--completely!

Tonight, I thought not only of my sin and God's grace being simply sufficient to cleanse me, but also of those with whom I have cried, counseled and prayed in the last two months. In each case, my method of ministry was to take them back to the concepts of the cross. If they did not know Christ, I sought to win them to Him. If they did know Christ, I sought to help them see that through confession of their sin they will discover that He is faithful and just to forgive them.

Truly, His simple and sufficient grace is amazing!

Ordination Day

On this wet Saturday morning I will be traveling to the Beckley area. This will be two Saturday's in a row that I have been in Beckley. I was there last week to officiate a wedding ceremony. This week I will be there to participate on the ordination council of the Youth Pastor at Daniels Bible Church. Mike Manney was one of the teens at Limerick Chapel when I worked as an assistant pastor there.

Mike and his wife Melissa are both from Limerick and I had the privilege of providing them with premarital counseling when they were finishing up as students at Appalachian Bible College. They both love the Lord and are eager to reach this generation for Jesus. It will be a joy to be a part of this special day in their lives.

For Melissa, the day should be rather smooth. She will be asked to share her testimony and whether or not she stands with her husband in vocational Christian service. Mike on the other hand will probably have a longer day. He will be asked to relate his theological and biblical knowledge to practical ministry in today's world. He will be asked by the council (which is made up of several pastors and the elders of his church) questions which will require more than a pat Bible answer. The question and answer time of the council will last for about 5 to 6 hours in total.

It is not the job of the council to "call" Mike into ministry--God does that. It is our job to recognize that call and to evaluate whether or not he is properly equipped with the biblical understanding needed to serve the Lord in today's world. We will not be seeking the answers to theological questions we have not been able to answer. This is not the time to play "stump the young guy." We want to prayerfully be used of God to help Daniels Bible Church evaluate his preparedness for ministry and encourage Mike to be the best servant for Christ he can be.

Usually, ordination councils remind me of my own ordination and how incredible it is that God uses me in ministry for His glory. What a joy it is to serve Christ!

Have You Heard?

Have you heard the news? Pope John Paul II died Saturday. The 24 hour news channels have covered little else in the world. The eyes of not only Roman Catholics but people everywhere are fixed on what is taking place in Rome. Why has all of this attention gone to the death of one man?

For Catholics everywhere their earthly shepherd of the last quarter of a century is gone. For others a powerful voice in the world is gone. Billy Graham referred to John Paul II as "a great moral voice of a generation." Even for those that are not Catholic, there is an admiration of his ability to take strong stands for morality, while at the same time doing it with a tone of graciousness. He is the one who coined the phrase "a culture of life" when addressing the issue of the sanctity of human life. He has been the voice that has transcended cultures and crossed national borders in support of a biblical perspective on the family. He added greatly to the moral and philosophical discourse of our modern times. The world has suffered the loss of a leader who often repeated a view of morality from a biblical point of view.

His passing gives God's people a great opportunity to point to the one true mediator between God and man—Christ Jesus. With the deaths of Pope John Paul II and the Terry Schiavo, people all around us are asking life and death questions in light of eternity. Folks are wondering what exactly provides the bridge from a life marred by sin to eternal life with God. They are wondering what it takes to know that they are at peace with God. They question how they can experience the complete and total forgiveness of God. Jesus is the answer. He is the mediator and has finalized the mediation in His death, burial, and resurrection. God's grace saves a person as he or she express faith in Who Christ is and what He has done. Each person must choose to accept Jesus as the mediator between himself or herself and God.

Now, as the world faces life and death issues, is a wonderful time for us to share the incredible hope found in Jesus Christ and in Him alone. People are pondering the basic questions of eternity. Are you ready to answer their questions with the Good News of Jesus Christ?

Disoriented by Time

I grew up near South Bend, Indiana. We did not change our clocks according to Daylight Savings Time (DST). We never sprung ahead or fell back at all. We never lost an hour of sleep or gained an hour of sleep. We did notice that Primetime on the TV changed an hour twice a year. That was the only disruption to our lives regarding DST.

I will never forget the first time I adjusted my clock back an hour. It was in the fall of 1985 as a freshman at Appalachian Bible College. The Head Resident of the dormitory posted a sign telling us to fall back an hour that night; how weird it was to actually "lose an hour" by adjusting my clock. It seemed like we were messing with what God had built into creation. We were playing with the universe itself.

Since that time, I have changed my clocks twice a year. I don't suppose I will ever get over this awkward and disorienting process. Today, I have struggled to figure out if I am on time or if I am late. My body feels the loss of an hour and longs for the fall when I will gain it back. Changing the clock for DST may give us longer summer days, but it sure confuses me each time we do it.

I have been reminded by today's change of the clock, that God is the one who has set the entire universe in motion. He is the one who keeps it running on schedule. He is the sustainer of all that He has made. Even when we must move our clocks, God is still aware of all that is happening and is still in control. While I get a little disoriented in life with simple things like DST, God never gets disoriented. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Terri Schiavo - Death and Life

Over the past several weeks, I have been asked many questions regarding the Terri Schiavo situation. The whole thing has been an unpleasant mess for us as a nation. Some have concluded that the husband wanted her to die so that he could selfishly continue life as he wants it—free from any responsibility for her. Some have concluded that the parents have been selfishly delusional about her recovery and that their attempts to keep her alive are all about them rather than about her.

Through our media resources, it is hard to get an accurate picture of people on the surface let alone try to determine at a distance what their motivations are. I have made it clear in my conversations with folks inside and outside the Bible Center family as well as in interviews with the local media that I believe in difficult life and death issues we must always as a culture and in our laws err on the side of life. Providing food and water to a living being is basic to decent humanity. My purpose in this blog today is not to address the biblical foundations for this perspective, but to point out that all of the life and death issues we face (including the Schiavo case) are the result of man's sin.

It was in the paradise of the Garden of Eden that it all started. When Adam and Eve believed a lie from Satan and then acted on that lie by disobeying God, part of the curse was death. Death began its ugly and dark reign in humanity. From the point sin entered the human race, death has lingered like a thick dark, damp cloud chilling and shrouding lives ever since. God said it would be this way, but God also has provided Christ as the way in which the curse was lifted. His passion for us in His death, burial and resurrection has conquered the grip of death. Through faith in Christ the sting of death is removed for the individual and the hope of eternal life with Christ is granted.

The Schiavo situation has raised practical and philosophical issues that must be addressed, but the issues are even more complex than we see on the surface. While our nation grapples with the societal and scientific implications of the life and death issues, as God's children we must proclaim that this is all linked to the curse of sin, but that Jesus Christ came to remove its sting. We must be faithful in not just standing for the sanctity of physical life, but we must be the promoters of the deepest need--spiritual life through Jesus Christ. Whenever you discuss the crucial questions of life and death with others, always share the vital hope you have in Jesus Christ as the giver of real and lasting life!

Destination without Direction

As a family, we traveled to Charlotte to get away for a few days this week. Our kids are out of school for Spring Break and it is hard for us to get quality time as a family in the Charleston area. We got away to a hotel with an indoor pool.

I made the arrangements online before we left home. We got in the car and headed down I-77 toward Charlotte. Then, I realized that I knew what hotel for which I had made the reservation, but I had not looked at how to get there once we arrived in the greater Charlotte area. We had a problem. We had a destination, but we lacked direction. I had to call and get directions.

Churches can do the same thing. It is easy to know the new programs, expanded ministries, additional staff members, and relocation site, but not know how to get there. Knowing our Christ-given mission is critical, having a shared vision of the future is vital, but without direction, execution of the plan is futile.

Praise the Lord that as a church family we are working on master planning for the new site. We are seeking God's guidance in laying out a plan for the land. To help us do the best job possible, we have hired a local architectural firm and they have partnered with an architectural firm out of Atlanta that specializes in building churches.

We don't want to have a sign out on the new property for years that says "Future Home of Bible Center Church." Without clear direction that is what will happen.

We not only have a destination that God has provided us for the relocation of this ministry, but we are seeking God's direction in how and what to build on the land to best represent Jesus Christ in the Kanawha Valley.

Disappointed I Didn't Get There

With yesterday being such a beautiful day, I had every intention of getting out on our new church property at Southridge. Spring days like the one we experienced yesterday are great days to roam around the land and pray. Two years ago, we were beginning to look at the possibility of this land as the place for us to relocate our facilities. Last spring, we were in the process of buying it. Each year, I have thoroughly enjoyed walking around the land and observing the creative beauty of it while talking with God.

From the very start of the day yesterday, I planned to take an hour or so to go out to the property and pray, but it didn't work out. I, like most people who were working yesterday, did not get out of the office to bask in the sunny glow of such a gorgeous spring day. The tyranny of the urgent robbed me of the opportunity. Such is life! But, I am disappointed I didn't get there. God has used those times of fellowship with Him as sweet and stirring moments in my life personally and professionally.

Next time it is nice out, I am there. Let me suggest that you take the time to get out and pray on the land in the coming days. If you are not sure where it is or how to best access it, call the church and ask the receptionist for help.

Please go out to the land and pray. Prayer is what will provide us the right plans for the use of the land. Prayer is the means by which God will provide the finances for our relocation. Prayer is what will most dramatically impact the timing of our move.

Prayer is what will ultimately get us all out there!

God is the Author of Change

Today is such a beautiful day in Charleston. Spring has sprung! Yes!

By the latter part of August, I will probably be rejoicing that the warm sunny weather is giving way to the cool refreshing air of the fall, but today I am basking in the sun of late March. I am so glad our seasons change. God has provided us a tremendous blessing in the seasonal changes that we experience. Each new season communicates a fresh start—none more so than the spring.

God is the author of change. He has built it into His creation. Seasons change. A caterpillar becomes a butterfly. Clouds give way to sunshine after a storm. The rain washes away the dust that has built up over time.

God is the author of change. He has provided it through His salvation. A person whose sin once condemned him to eternal judgment can live forever with God because of God’s love gift of His Son. The guilt is removed by God’s life changing grace. The soul is set free due to the forgiveness of God. The person who has experienced all of this change because of faith in Christ now begins to see the new life of Christ change him. He experiences what Christ called the abundant life. As he surrenders to God’s plan and purpose for his life, God changes his attitudes, outlook, and behaviors.

As today’s awesome change in weather has captivated my thinking and reminded me of the author of change, I am reminded that He expects me to yield, trust, and obey so that He can change me. Don’t just rejoice in how God is changing the weather; let Him bring you joy as He changes you today!

Yesterday's Solution, Today's Problem

While reading an article in a business journal last night, a statement jumped off the page and grabbed my attention: “Yesterday’s solutions are today’s problems.” How very true that statement is! The building located on Oakhurst Drive where the church known as Bible Center meets was once a great solution to the problem of the church’s continued growth.

Those who were here in the mid-seventies during the relocation from the downtown site to our current location have shared with me what a blessing it was for the congregation to move into this wonderful facility. This building was a solution to the space problem Bible Center Church faced back then. This site with all of its various expansions, additions, and enhancements has served as a wonderful tool of ministry to the glory of God for almost three decades.

The great solution has become a huge problem. God has continued to bless Bible Center with growth as a result of the church staying focused on the life-changing Good News of Jesus Christ. The pattern this church has faced over the years is a difficult one, but a good one: outgrowing various sites. Over the sixty plus years of ministry, this group of believers has moved from meeting in homes, to gathering in the shoe department of a downtown department store, to renting a store front, to buying a large home on the old Broad Street, to building a place to meet on the Kanawha boulevard, and finally to relocating to its current site on Corridor G. As the church has grown spiritually and numerically over the years, at each stage of that amazing growth the leadership has recognized that the past solution has become a current problem. We are now in that same situation again.

This wonderful site has become a hindrance and a hurdle to sharing Christ with the lost and teaching the relevant message of God’s Word for Christian living today. Praise the Lord He has opened a door for us in the new property at Southridge. He has provided us a 96 acre solution for the next phase of this church family’s ministry in the Kanawha Valley. We believe this is His solution for many, many decades to come.

Pray today that God would move us there more quickly than we would anticipate. Pray that God would bless some of our families financially in surprising ways and that He would burden them to give graciously and generously so that we might move into His new solution for us as we seek to preach Christ free from site restrictions! Pray that God would once again provide for us as we seek to remain faithful to Him and His Word.

To God Be The Glory!

Yesterday was a great day of worship here at Bible Center Church. Easter is such an incredible day to exalt who our Savior is and to celebrate what He has done for us in His death, burial, and resurrection. Through the Scripture reading, music, fellowship, and preaching, each of the morning services did lift up our risen Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. As a pastor, it is my favorite preaching day of the year. My theory is that if you can’t preach a biblically based, passionate message on Easter Sunday you might as well quit preaching.

God gave us a tremendous opportunity to share the hope of Christ’s resurrection with many guests yesterday. Many of our church family members introduced me to friends or loved ones with whom they have been sharing the gospel. It was exciting to meet folks that we have been praying would come to Christ. I have already received a couple of emails from individuals telling me that the guest they had with them yesterday has been asking probing questions about the message of hope they heard in our worship services. Praise the Lord! Let us continue to pray that the Holy Spirit will work in hearts, and that individuals who were with us yesterday will yet come to Christ as Savior.

One of our goals yesterday was to make all of the logistics of the morning (parking, nurseries, seating, etc.) run so smoothly that nothing would become a distraction from the message of the morning. I thank God for using so many people to accomplish this—from nursery workers and parking lot attendants to those who rearranged their morning schedule to worship with us at eight or who parked at one of the offsite parking lots and shuttled over to the church. We had over 475 people at the 8:00 service and we parked more than 100 cars off-site during the peak of our morning. Thanks to all of you who helped facilitate the logistics and to all of you who adjusted your Sunday morning routine. God used us, as we worked together as a body of believers, to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Overall, compared to last year’s number of 1,914 people in attendance in all three morning services, we had 2,075 people in all three services. Praise the Lord! What a joy and a privilege it is for me as God’s messenger to communicate the message of hope found in Jesus Christ to so many people. I am truly humbled that God can use us as a church in this way, and I am even more deeply humbled that He chooses in His sovereignty and grace to use me. To God be the glory!