Sunday Reflection

Great day of worship as we started Advent.  I love the four Sundays between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Moving from a position of gratitude toward a position of anticipation is always exciting.   Can't wait to see what this Christmas season holds.

This morning we talked about "capturing the moments" this Christmas.  I define a moment as "something that would happen that would enhance our relationship with God and/or the people around us.  I think it's so important for us to find some margin, in the middle of all the busyness, to connect with God and the people in our lives.

I've been fighting a col for the last week and felt terrible when I woke up.  I loaded up on medicine and asked God for the energy I didn't have.  Between him and Starbucks I managed.  Glad I did.  Worship always energizes me.

That's What Christmas Is All About

This Sunday is the first week of Advent; four of my favorite Sundays in the year.  We'll also be launching a new series this Sunday that we're calling That's What Christmas Is All About.  The title comes from a line, spoken by Linus, in The Charlie Brown Christmas Special.  Charlie Brown asks a question that I think a lot of people want to know the answer to - "Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?"  Linus gives him the answer.

For the next four weeks, at FCBC, we'll be looking at four words that remind us of what Christmas is all about - capturing, restoring, releasing and changing.  This Sunday we'll talk about "Capturing the Moment."  God has some things to show us this Christmas, but if we're not ready for those moments we'll miss them.

150 Volunteers + 2 Hours = 1245 Shoe Boxes

Free Speech and Followers of Christ

Last week in the Northern Virginia area there was a lot of press attention given to the Westboro Baptist Church.  They had several protests scheduled in the area, including a local public high school.  It ended up not being the story the press was expecting.  Five people from WBC showed up to the protest and were met with over 200 counter-protestors.

According the Westboro's website, they have conducted 44,517 protests and demonstrations since June, 1991, many aimed at homosexual parades and gay-themed events, and at more than 400 military funerals for US soldiers, whom Westboro's site says, "God has killed in Iraq/Afghanistan in righteous judgment against an evil nation." WBC has a right to protest and express their views like all of us do.  They have a right to be angry and express their anger with mean spirited signs and protests.  They have a right to be bad parents and bring their kids to the protest.  But when a follower of Christ, whether as an individual or as a church, claims to be doing the work of God there is a very high standard that has to be met. The standard that has to be met is simple - love.  "Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.  Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God." Ephesians 5:1-2 (NLT) Once we claim to be a follower of Christ we are not longer just exercising a right, we are representing Christ.  Whether it's in a conversation at work, a post on FaceBook, a protest or counter-protest, or something we write in a blog - once we claim to be a Christ follower we are representing him and there's a high standard to be met. Scripture tells us over and over, in many different ways, that we are called to speak the truth.  But the standard of scripture is love; that everything we do and say should flow out of love for the person we are saying it to.  Sometimes, when we apply that standard, it will mean we want be able to say anything at all.

Marine Corps Birthday

I have a friend who reminds me every year of the Marine Corps birthday.  Today is the 235th birthday of the Marine Corps.  This past Monday I attended the funeral for a man who had served as a marine.  I'm always impressed when I see the honor guard and how much attention is given to detail and how much respect is given to the individual and their family.

So for all of the marines out there, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!  And to everyone who has served, is currently serving or has lost someone they love in the line of duty, thank you for your commitment, your bravery, your sacrifice and for protecting our freedoms.

What Right Do You Have to Be Angry?

"But the Lord replied, 'Is it right for you to be angry?'" Jonah 4:4  

That's basically the end of the book of Jonah.  Even though it's not the last verse it is the last thing communicated between God and Jonah chronologically.  And it's a great questions.

Jonah was angry that God extended grace to the people of Nineveh - Jonah's enemies.  And God asks him were he gets the right to be angry.  God was saying "Jonah, after all the chances I gave you and after all the ways I intervened in your life to show you grace, what right do you have to be angry that I extended the same grace to the people of Nineveh?"

If I were to summarize the entire book of Jonah, here's how I would do it:

• God loves you too much to leave you alone.  No matter how far or how long you run from his call on your life, he never stops pursuing you and he never stops intervening.

• God loves your enemies as much as he loves you.   The uniqueness of God’s love is not that he loves a particular group, it’s that his love is not based on our performance.  And that he loves everyone.

• God will sometimes call you to be an instrument of grace in the life of the "enemy" you're struggling with. 

Will the Election Change Anything?

Two years ago an entire political party was thrown out of office; the party that replaced it ran on a campaign of change.  Now, two years later that party has lost a significant amount of it's political power and the opposing party ran on change.

So the question is will this election change anything?

In the third chapter of the book of Jonah there's an amazing story.  It's a story of a culture that was changed.  Here it is in a nutshell:

Jonah goes to the city of Nineveh and tells them that God does NOT want to destroy them but that He want to love, forgive, restore and lead them.  And then, when the people hear that, God begins to work in their hearts and they begin to move in a new direction.  When they hear that God loves them and wants to be connected to them, their hearts melt and they begin to change.  In fact the story tells us that EVERYONE begins to change.  AND because the people changed, so did the culture.

The people start fasting and wearing sackcloths - all symbols of repentance.  Here's where the story gets interesting to me.  When the king (the political power) sees what the people are doing, he creates a law saying that everyone should do what they are already doing.

Now it’s not this newly established law that causes the people to repent, it’s the word of God at work in their hearts that causes that.  In fact in this case the law is somewhat irrelevant.  The law that’s getting established here by the king, simply reflects what’s already going on in the culture; in the hearts of the people.

Now that’s true with most laws.  Generally, in most cultures, most laws function more like a thermometer than like a thermostat.  In most cultures, most laws tell you more about the moral temperature of the culture than they determine the moral temperature of that culture.

And I think that’s something that the church should never, lose sight of.  We must never lose sight of the fact that the moral temperature of a culture is not primarily determined by the people who are in power or by the laws that are in place.  It’s determined by what’s going on in the hearts of the people.

Now does that mean that Christians should not be concerned about who’s in power?  No, we should be very concerned.  History teaches us that evil people, entrusted with lots of power can do really bad things.  We should be concerned about who’s in power. 

Does it mean that we should not be concerned about the laws of the land?  No. We absolutely should be concerned about that.  Because bad laws can create a lot of injustice in a culture and as followers of Christ we should be concerned about that.

It DOES mean that what we see in Nineveh, is generally how God works; that generally cultures are changed, not primarily by the laws that are created, but by the hearts that are transformed by the word of God.

And that's something that the church should never forget.

What Ever It Takes

Here's some pics from Samaritan's Purse showing how they do whatever it takes to get the Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes to kids around the world.  Enjoy!