The following is a quote from John Piper that I shared this Sunday in my sermon. Let your thanksgiving be a telescope for the glory of God.
Telescope Magnification
David said, "I will magnify God with thanksgiving." The word "magnify" can be used in two different senses. It can mean: make something appear greater than it is, as with a microscope or a magnifying glass. Or it can mean: make something that may seem small or insignificant appear to be as great as it really is. This is what our great telescopes help us begin to do with the magnificent universe which once upon a time spilled over from the brim of God's glory. So there are two kinds of magnifying: microscope magnifying and telescope magnifying. The one makes a small thing look bigger than it is. The other makes a big thing begin to look as big as it really is.
When David says, "I will magnify God with thanksgiving," he does not mean: "I will make a small God look bigger than he is. He means: "I will make a big God begin to look as big as he really is." We are not called to be microscopes, but telescopes. Christians are not called to be con-men who magnify their product out of all proportion to reality, when they know the competitor's product is far superior. There is nothing and nobody superior to God. And so the calling of those who love God is to make his greatness begin to look as great as it really is. The whole duty of the Christian can be summed up in this: feel, think, and act in a way that will make God look as great as he really is. Be a telescope for the world of the infinite starry wealth of the glory of God.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Monday, November 01, 2010
4 False Ideas that Destroy Leaders
1. “I Cannot…”
One of the things that seems to be appearing over and over again to me as I read the Scriptures is this thought…
At the end of the day I am a servant of the Most High God! And, a servant can do exactly what his Master has commanded him to do because he is operating under the power and authority of the One who called, equipped, and empowered him to serve in the first place.
You can do EXACTLY what God called you to do. Don’t back down!
2. “I Am Not as Good as…”
Comparing yourself to other ministers and/or ministries is one of the quickest ways to go insane and completely lose your focus on who God is and what He has called you to do.
We should learn from “them” but focus on “HIM”!
There will always be someone who does something better than you. Your call isn’t to imitate people but to focus on Christ.
3. “I Failed Before”
Of course you did.
All great leaders have failed at something significant.
However, what makes them great is that they do not allow their failures to define them. They pick up the pieces and move forward. They learn lessons from their failure…if there was a sin issue involved, they repent and submit to Jesus and the leadership of others and then they get on with life.
Peter failed. Remember when he tried to cut off the servant's ear and had to be rebuked by Jesus? Yet, when it came to Acts 2 and the day of Pentecost, he was the guy who Jesus anointed to preach the Gospel and see over 3k new believers!
4. “All Hope Is Gone”
The only problem with that thought is THE TOMB IS EMPTY and as long as that is a reality, then there is always hope--always.
I know some reading this feel like you are just about at the end of your rope but from my personal experience, I’ve discovered when I do get to the end of my rope Jesus is always there saying, “What took you so long?”
Losing hope can bring about times of intense desperation but quite often intense desperation leads to undeniable revelation! When we lose hope and believe that things are just about over, well, that’s always a time for God to remind us of WHO HE IS and what He is capable of!
by Perry Noble
One of the things that seems to be appearing over and over again to me as I read the Scriptures is this thought…
At the end of the day I am a servant of the Most High God! And, a servant can do exactly what his Master has commanded him to do because he is operating under the power and authority of the One who called, equipped, and empowered him to serve in the first place.
You can do EXACTLY what God called you to do. Don’t back down!
2. “I Am Not as Good as…”
Comparing yourself to other ministers and/or ministries is one of the quickest ways to go insane and completely lose your focus on who God is and what He has called you to do.
We should learn from “them” but focus on “HIM”!
There will always be someone who does something better than you. Your call isn’t to imitate people but to focus on Christ.
3. “I Failed Before”
Of course you did.
All great leaders have failed at something significant.
However, what makes them great is that they do not allow their failures to define them. They pick up the pieces and move forward. They learn lessons from their failure…if there was a sin issue involved, they repent and submit to Jesus and the leadership of others and then they get on with life.
Peter failed. Remember when he tried to cut off the servant's ear and had to be rebuked by Jesus? Yet, when it came to Acts 2 and the day of Pentecost, he was the guy who Jesus anointed to preach the Gospel and see over 3k new believers!
4. “All Hope Is Gone”
The only problem with that thought is THE TOMB IS EMPTY and as long as that is a reality, then there is always hope--always.
I know some reading this feel like you are just about at the end of your rope but from my personal experience, I’ve discovered when I do get to the end of my rope Jesus is always there saying, “What took you so long?”
Losing hope can bring about times of intense desperation but quite often intense desperation leads to undeniable revelation! When we lose hope and believe that things are just about over, well, that’s always a time for God to remind us of WHO HE IS and what He is capable of!
by Perry Noble
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Oct. 31 - Much More than Scary Movies and Costumes
October 31. Halloween. When you think of this date, what comes to mind? For most its simply pumpkin carvings, scary movies, costume parties, candy corn, and spooky decorations. But are these the things that should come to mind and mark this date as significant? Don't get me wrong. I love putting a face to a pumpkin. I’m a sucker for candy corn, and I've been known to win a costume party or two. :) But do you know the Christian significance of October 31?
493 years ago tomorrow, a brave young monk named Martin Luther made a common bulletin board a place of conviction and change. On October 31, 1517, the day before All Saints Day, Luther’s 95 theses were nailed to the castle door of Wittenberg . This sparked the official beginning of reforming the church which gave birth to Protestantism. The starting gun was fired. The Reformation had begun. And with it, the seeds were sown for the return of God’s people to live, not according to man’s traditions and customs, but according to the word of God alone (Sola Scriptura).
What was Luther’s message? Simply put - an end to the corruption of the Catholic Church. Man’s power, man’s money, man’s tradition, man’s customs, had infiltrated the church. The church’s authority was now on par with the Scriptures themselves. And because of it, the church leaders were selling expensive “indulgences” to fund their building programs and shutting the people out from understanding God’s word and the truth of the gospel. Luther learned from studying the Scriptures himself that people were saved not by doing penance or any amount of good works, but by faith alone (Sola Fide) in Christ alone (Sola Christus).
“How does an unrighteous sinner become right with a righteous God?” That was the question that had plagued Luther’s mind and heart, and by God’s grace, he found the answer … “For our sake, He made Him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). Luther learned that the very righteousness God required for us to stand before Him was the very righteousness He freely gave to us in Christ. People only needed Christ!
October 31 is primarily known as a secular holiday, but …
May tomorrow be a reminder to us all of the change that can be brought through the conviction of just one person who is zealous for God’s truth. May tomorrow cause us to look back upon Luther’s simple act of conviction and ask God to grant us the same type of passion to stand up for His truth with sincerity and sacrifical love. May tomorrow serve to stir in our hearts the same hammer of conviction that drove the nails through the Wittenberg door, in the face of the status quo and in the pursuit of God's glory.
October 31 - much more than scary movies and costumes. Much more!
493 years ago tomorrow, a brave young monk named Martin Luther made a common bulletin board a place of conviction and change. On October 31, 1517, the day before All Saints Day, Luther’s 95 theses were nailed to the castle door of Wittenberg . This sparked the official beginning of reforming the church which gave birth to Protestantism. The starting gun was fired. The Reformation had begun. And with it, the seeds were sown for the return of God’s people to live, not according to man’s traditions and customs, but according to the word of God alone (Sola Scriptura).
What was Luther’s message? Simply put - an end to the corruption of the Catholic Church. Man’s power, man’s money, man’s tradition, man’s customs, had infiltrated the church. The church’s authority was now on par with the Scriptures themselves. And because of it, the church leaders were selling expensive “indulgences” to fund their building programs and shutting the people out from understanding God’s word and the truth of the gospel. Luther learned from studying the Scriptures himself that people were saved not by doing penance or any amount of good works, but by faith alone (Sola Fide) in Christ alone (Sola Christus).
“How does an unrighteous sinner become right with a righteous God?” That was the question that had plagued Luther’s mind and heart, and by God’s grace, he found the answer … “For our sake, He made Him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). Luther learned that the very righteousness God required for us to stand before Him was the very righteousness He freely gave to us in Christ. People only needed Christ!
October 31 is primarily known as a secular holiday, but …
May tomorrow be a reminder to us all of the change that can be brought through the conviction of just one person who is zealous for God’s truth. May tomorrow cause us to look back upon Luther’s simple act of conviction and ask God to grant us the same type of passion to stand up for His truth with sincerity and sacrifical love. May tomorrow serve to stir in our hearts the same hammer of conviction that drove the nails through the Wittenberg door, in the face of the status quo and in the pursuit of God's glory.
October 31 - much more than scary movies and costumes. Much more!
Monday, October 25, 2010
A Perfect Pastor? | Preaching.com
Here's a small snippet from a book on pastoring. It was a reminder to me that being transparent in how God has and continues to bring me through my own struggles is exactly what people need to hear from their pastor.
A Perfect Pastor?
A Perfect Pastor?
Friday, October 15, 2010
Latest Ultrasound
Here's the latest ultrasound from our doctors visit today. You can just make out a profile.
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