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TJ

NO, I will not believe that...

I don't know about you, but one of the biggest struggles of my Christian life is choosing to get past discouragement and believe what God says. This week has been a real struggle, but I really feel like I've been victorious thru Jesus! Lately there has been a fight in me that says, "NO, I will not believe that lie! I believe Jesus."

There have been days this week when I have been discouraged that people I'm ministering to JUST WON'T CHANGE. Ever been there? But God reminded me that it's not by power, nor by might, but by His Spirit that real change comes. I can know for sure that He is working change on the inside, and that eventually it will come to the outside. HE CAN CHANGE ANYONE AND EVERYONE. He changed my life and no one is beyond His reach.

There is a HOPE, and His name is Jesus. Introduce your situation or problem to Him. EVERYTHING CHANGES (including you and me).

TJ

Everyone Building - Nehemiah 3

Just got done reading Nehemiah 3. At first I started feeling like it was going to be an extremely boring chapter with nothing to really think about. But as I read, I saw the names of so many different families, brothers, priests, and others helping to rebuild the walls and gates in their town.

I began seeing the names of the people in our church. Each person taking responsibility for their part of the wall - rebuilding hope on their street. We will never get there if just our pastor and staff rebuild, but every person in our church needs to believe that they are a builder! And as it says in Ephesians 4 - we build them, so that they can be builders in this ministry as well.

Mad Church Disease by Anne Jackson - The Diagnosis

The good news? I don't have Mad Church Disease. Whew! I thought it may have been something I ate at a potluck dinner, or gotten it from tainted Communion wafers.

Anne Jackson does a great job in this book of presenting the tough challenges that ministry leaders face without giving people permission to just be victims of their circumstance. I think her heart for this book is really well reflected in Chapter 3 where she says, "We should look at our past as a gift and not a burden. And as such, we should steward it like any other gift we've been given. We need to be grateful for our unique circumstances, not resentful."

She doesn't focus on the disease as much as on getting healthy. Half of the word healthy is HEAL, yet so many people want to get healthy without healing. Part of the book is focused on identifying where we might be unhealthy, but much of it hones in on spiritual, physical, emotional, and relational health. In every one of these four sections she gives Bible verses to base our growth on.

I was most challenged by the physical health section. I am BAD at taking care of my body. I got some really practical ideas for getting better sleep, eating better, and taking time for exercise. It actually challenged me to change my patterns at night to get ready for going to bed. Something simple that will have a long-lasting impact on me.

Now, I'm sure that there are some self-loathing pastors that could use this as an excuse to feel sorry for themselves. But they won't find Jackson patting them on the back telling them it will be ok, they'll find her saying, "But do I wish I had been protected from experiencing that pain? Honestly, no." She pushes us all to stop running from these issues, but to face them head on and be healed. It may hurt to open up these wounds, but it will be worth it.

The final thing that I really enjoyed about this book were the voices of top Christian leaders who have been through some of these "low" times. It is written in an interview format with some great answers! My favorite answer was from a pastor that I had never heard of - Gary Kinnaman - he said about strengthening others, "You realize you have nothing to offer but Christ in you".

I definitely recommend this book to people who may be in a hard situation at a church or just have not dealt with emotions from past experiences. But ANYBODY can get some great principles on how to be more healthy in ministry. Thanks Anne for a great book!

Sleigh Ride Treat for You!

Enjoy this Christmas treat from Relient K


Relient K - Sleigh Ride from gotee on Vimeo.

Earth Shaking Servants of God - Acts 16

I wanted to share this devotion. I shared it with our discipleship group last night, and wanted to pass it on to you. God has been changing my life!

Earth Shaking Servants of God – Acts 16
God wants to break chains in us so that we can shake the world.

BREAK THE CHAINS OF SIN – Your Life and Others
18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her. 19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods.

• Get sick of sin and excuses – This cannot just be one of our pet peeves. It must be something that you know the Holy Spirit is telling you to say.
• When you break the chains of sin, the dogs of Hell will start to chase you.
• We know Paul and Silas had broken their own chains of sin because 1 Peter 4:1 says, “The person who has suffered in the body is finished with sin”. What chains of sin do I need to break?

BREAK THE CHAINS OF SILENCE – Praise in your hardest times
23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.
24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.

• Is your earthquake on the inside or the outside? Are circumstances in your life always leaving you shaken? Or is God shaking the chains off you?
• When you praise God in hard times it shakes Hell and shakes situations, instead of letting circumstances shake you.
• Why break the chains of silence? God is listening (Psalm 116:1-4)
• Why break the chains of silence? Other prisoners are listening to you (v.25b)

BREAK THE CHAINS OF SELFISHNESS – Freedom from God is not to just focus on yourself. Freedom from God is freedom to serve and love others.
27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” 29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.

• Do you think how things may affect other people?
• God has been really dealing with me on this lately – maybe our mechanic needs money more than we do. Are you willing to be used by God even if it doesn’t affect you the way you want?
• Philip 2:4 – Do not be interested only in your own life, but be interested in the lives of others.
30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Last night, Jess and I, along with the Gancers went to see a special pre-screening of this movie. I came in expecting a decent movie, but left so grateful that we went to see it.

It is the story of two young boys who become friends. One who is a Jewish boy in a concentration camp, and the other who is the son of a Nazi soldier. They have such a cool friendship. As well, the movie does a real great job of showing what Nazi Germany must have been like at that time.

However, my favorite part of the movie was how deeply it made me feel the emotions. It REALLY got through to me.

I know this is kind of a vague review, but I don't want to give away anything about the movie. See it! Check out the preview from youTube below, then GO SEE IT! You won't be disappointed.