Dear Dayspring Family,

This is a good time to remember our extended family, Eddy and Sarah Trussell, in Bogota, Colombia, South America. We wish them a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, and let them know they may be out of sight, but not out of mind! I’m sure they wouldn’t turn down a little Christmas Cheer, of the green kind, if you have any left!!!! Ho Ho Ho, let the sleigh bells ring and the Spirit be all over you, as Jesus visits us this special time of year!

Blessings to you all,
Pastor Skip

This is from an Australian guy who did his own documentary, and it is terrific!!!

1. Is being overwhelmed being out of order?
2. Have you gotten over it?
3. Can you say “no”?
4. Can you be cared for?

There’s an old joke about the minister delivering his Sunday sermon, and at the height of a particularly bold point one of the congregants mutters “Now you’ve gone from preachin’ to meddlin’.”

Permit me to meddle.

Each of the above questions is meant to provoke not only your thoughts, but some specific action. Each one has come about from the Biblical office of “pastor,” one who cares for and leads the flock of God, during this time on earth before Jesus comes again. I think the answers you give will be not only revealing, but potentially helpful if you’re interested in the transformation Jesus offers.

But, you may ask, why these questions, and why at this time? After all, it’s almost Thanksgiving!

Yes, when we’re overwhelmed, we’re out of order. Meaning, we don’t function as we should. I don’t believe God wants us overwhelmed. I believe He wants us walking in His Spirit, with joy, peace, and happiness. Not realistic, is it? Or is it? If you’re overwhelmed, consider why, and then consider what it would take to get back to joy, peace, and happiness?

It seems to me that in this American life of absolute wonder and abundance, there is way too much bitterness. We who have so much seem too angry, at too many, especially within the Church! Has someone offended you? Get over it. Your bitter attitude isn’t making it better, is it? Your anger isn’t resolving the issue in a favorable way, is it? We need to do a lot more than read about forgiveness, we need to practice it.

Point 3 may be the answer to point 1. Well, can you? It’s a wonderful word, and it yields a lot of peace. Saying “no” creates time, out of nothing, and prevents so many misunderstandings, judgments, hostilities, etc. Try it.

We’re supposed to care for one another; we want to care for one another; we are gifted to care for one another. Yet there seems to be something in the way. I don’t think the Church of Jesus Christ lacks care GIVERS as much as care RECEIVERS. It requires humility to receive, which may be the greatest obstacle we face, and it also requires submission, a bad word in our “modern” vocabulary. Perhaps the biggest obstacle, however, is that we want to be cared for “our way,” rather than how Jesus offers.

James- about pride (oh oh)
1 Peter- about suffering (can this be good?)
2 Peter- expectant living (not apathetic)
Philemon- about forgiveness (oh oh)
1 Timothy- a basis for living today
Titus- about sound doctrine
2 Timothy- fan into flames your spiritual gift
Hebrews- the priesthood (identity crisis?)
1 John- fellowship (community)
2 John- family (roots)
3 John- hospitality (get to’s)
Jude- warning (if the light is on, stop the car)

Warning! This may challenge your thinking, your preconceived notions, your bias or even your wishes.

But don’t worry, because I’m not saying you’re wrong. Only that by being challenged we grow, and that growth in this area will be good for us, and perhaps others.

Are we in the “last days,” or the “end times”? Can we even know the answer? If we know the answer, or think we know, what should we do about it? What CAN we do about it? Or should we just go on living like the little kid with his hands over his eyes declaring “you can’t see me” to an adult staring him in the face?!

This is the stuff of academics in almost every part of academia, spiritual or not, because the modern physicist and astronomer, poet and philosopher, etc. all go here at times. We should too.

Only God is omniscient, so I suppose we can say that only God knows ALL the answers to these questions, but let’s not cop out that way. We DO have some “knowings” of our own, and we CAN weigh in on the subject with some supportive data, not just feelings.

We could say we are in the “last days”, because these days are after the days we’ve already lived, but that wouldn’t be fair to the point of the question, which is Biblical at its core. Therefore, we must go to the Bible to see if it tells us anything. I think it does, and I think we are in the last days because I understand the term to mean those days AFTER the resurrection and ascension of Christ. What becomes clear, to me at least, is that the term “last days” is not the same as the term “end times.”

Last days of what? End of what times?

I think we are in the last days of time BEFORE the return of Christ. All of the days up to and including the “end times” are included in the “last days.” We can know more about what these days look like by reading the Bible, as there is a lot there to inform us. What happens next is of critical importance, don’t you think?

The “end times,” I think, refer to those specific last days leading up to and INCLUDING the return of Christ, about which there is also much written. Yada yada yada

But wait! There’s more! This is the point, dear ones! God is telling us that He is up to something! Life as we know it may change, but eternity awaits us! Our future is just around the corner, and it is going to be almost indescribable, even though He is trying to describe it to us in His Word. Jesus Christ loves you and is available to you, right now, to lead, guide, and direct your path, if you will only follow! Life WITH Christ, in HIS Kingdom, was, is, and will be much better than we have experienced or can experience on our own.

The skeptic may say “oh yeah, prove it,” and the broken one may say “I don’t get it,” and the weak may say “I don’t have the fight in me any more,” but for all the answer is the same: read the Bible. Let God tell you, and I promise that He will.

The best and the worst of the church. I suppose this could be a book title, or perhaps the title of a graduate thesis, but let’s get to the point much more quickly. Jesus came (comes) to set the captives free, which they desperately want(ed), and as He did (does) so they began (begin) to revert to “going back to Egypt.” Only the names have changed …

The whole concept of Freedom in Christ is so fantastic that we cannot fully comprehend it with our world-infected minds, but we yearn, none-the-less, for this freedom. The Good News of Jesus Christ is, in fact, this freedom He has won for us and offers us today, every day. From the atonement to reconciliation, from forgiveness to redemption, all of our Doctrine about Jesus Christ leads us to learning more about our freedom in Him, because of Him, through following Him, believing in Him, etc. This is the Christian faith- that Jesus Christ saves us, and sets us free from sin and death as He leads us to eternity with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The “followers of the way” were how the believers in Christ were first identified, and then they got called Christians, in Antioch (Acts 11:26). It’s interesting to me that what they meant by “followers of the way” included all of what we call the Good News, resulting in our understanding of salvation. In other words, Jesus was the way to salvation. As this began to sink in, as further teaching by the Apostles spread, they came to understand that this wasn’t about “head knowledge,” but about a living, dynamic relationship! Christ IN you, the hope of Glory (Col 1:27). Thus the word Christian, which was a compound word for Christ-one, or, better yet, one in whom Christ lives.

So the Church of Jesus Christ grew rapidly and spread over the entire world! The entire world was and is hungry for this Freedom He brings, even if they don’t have a vocabulary to express it the way we do.

Enter now the contrast- the leaven. Leaven is “an element that produces an altering or transforming influence. ”( Webster) The leaven of the Pharisees was their attempt to regain control of the people they had lost to the new faith in Christ. This is what religion is, an attempt to be in control. Andrew Farley, in his book “God Without Religion” defines religion as “a return to bondage,” from the compound Latin re ligare. It is easy, here, to see the similarity between the Israelites of old in captivity to the Egyptians to what is going on today in much of what we call Christendom. In the “days of old” it was a problem for the Jews. Today it is a problem in the organized church.

As soon as we organize, for all kinds of good purposes, we begin to control one another. We can’t help it. I suppose it is part of the brokenness we have in our DNA from “the fall.” We want to do good things, so we organize into churches and begin to facilitate good works, building both subtle and not-so-subtle control mechanisms into our assembly. After all, we don’t want error to slip in, and we’ll be sure we structure things so it can’t. Riiiight.

The best of the church is Christ at work in us, with us, through us, for others. The worst of the church is our attempt to control the very Freedom Christ brings to us by His Holy Spirit. We pray for Revival, and then tell God how to do it! We pray for gifts, and then determine how we will recognize them, train them, categorize them and use them. We pray to be followers, and then tell Jesus where we are willing to go. I think you get the idea.

The answer is not that we get rid of the church. We can’t do that. Jesus Christ is building His Church, and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it! The answer is not that we dis-organize the church, or attempt to live independent from the church, out of fellowship.

The answer is that we pray for and allow Jesus Christ to have His way with us; to read His Word every day so we get the food we need for spiritual sustenance, and to remain in fellowship with one another so that the gifts Jesus distributes among us can be fully utilized.

Perhaps we cannot do this without some form of human control, but we CAN do this with a minimum of control of others. Self control seems to be what is most needed, which seems to be brought about by what we call “death to self.” The old saying “let go and let God” seems appropriate, especially today.

God Bless you as go deeper into the fantastic voyage of Following Christ.

Let’s talk about balance. It’s very important. If you are not “in” balance, you are “out” of balance, and about to “fall down”. Discernment is not judgmentalism; it is the application of wisdom. We can’t “get right with God” if we refuse to ask what God wants, and then refuse to go where He leads.

A Christian can be a believer and not be a disciple. The disciple is the one who is walking in the victory of the faith in Christ; a follower. A believer may just be hanging on for eternity, and messing up all the time prior to its unfolding in his or her life.

A Christian disciple, therefore, will have discipline. Spiritual disciplines he is pursuing, and that are active in his life! These disciplines yield the fruit of righteousness, and peace.

7 Disciplines:

1. The Word of God
2. Bible reading
3. Bible study
4. Prayer- fasting, intercession, and worship
5. Giving
6. Meditation and confession
7. Work- ministry, acts of kindness
8. Rest- retreats, the Sabbath, pilgrimage
9. Journaling- what do you say to God? What does God say to you?

If you were to do a self-evaluation of these 7 disciplines, how would it look? Are you consciously pursuing each one, even if some more than others? If not, why not? What can you do to change?

I write this for your benefit, and for your family, even though I don’t like the subject very much. Pay attention, please!

We recently lost to death a dear member of our church family, which always gets our attention. In addition to the grief we share, there are some practical “shepherding issues” that I’d like you to pay attention to.

Do you have a current will?
Do you have a current trust?
Do you have a current POLST? (Physician orders for life-sustaining treatment)

Do you know what these are, what their limitations are, and why you should have them or not have them?

Do you have any preparations at all for your possible demise or untimely prolonged illness?

Do you want your family to suffer not only your possible sickness or death, but also the potential legal hassles of probate? Do you know what probate is? Do you know why you don’t want it, and how to not have to have it?

The Nov 2012 issue of Money magazine has a terrific article on the dangers of abuse among the funeral-home industry, and how bereaved families spend so much money on questionable services. Do you have an arrangement with a funeral home locally? Do you have a funeral plot? Have you decided about burial vs. cremation? Have you ever heard of “green burial”?

Do you have a family attorney?
Do you have a financial advisor, other than a neighbor, or a child, or in-law, or someone who wants your stuff!!!????

While this looks daunting, it really comes together quickly and quite orderly once you put your mind to do it! There are wonderful professional people available to help in every area, and having a complete set of instructions and plans will put you at ease and save your family from potentially disastrous broken relationships.

Someone recently said to me that they didn’t care about this stuff because they would be dead, meaning in Glory with Jesus, and wouldn’t be worried about anything any longer. “Heaven is a wonderful place” the song goes. But for those left behind, dealing with what YOU should have dealt with, well, earth isn’t so wonderful this way.

As your pastor, I rejoice at the thought of doing your memorial service, knowing that you would be with our Lord. But I don’t want to have to face the family issues that might come up because you didn’t do some simple planning. Ok? Ok. And now that I’ve exhorted YOU this way, I know I have to get my own house back in order, and update a bunch of documents. Let’s get it done!!!

Ok, I’m compelled to respond to yesterday’s ruling, partly because people are asking, and partly because the discussion needs it.

The Court has responded to a National issue from a purely legal position, and people with moral values are very upset, when, in fact, it is moral values that are in conflict. Let me explain:

The controversy contains multiple issues; marriage, rights, rule of law, Christian doctrines, and money. Probably more, but these are the big ones. Examined carefully, I think it’s the last one that is driving this thing, and here’s why. Why do gay people want the “right” to marry? Money. Why is money this problem? Because they have to pay more than married people, so it becomes a “rights” issue.

Americans believe in equal rights, so I think the Court may have gotten this one correct, in that people living together not married are financially disadvantaged, so they are discriminated against, and we’re opposed to discrimination as well. The issue isn’t really “marriage” as much as it is equality, and by this word they mean money! The Court is trying to achieve equality, a Constitutional protection.

This ruling will prove very expensive for the government, as it will cost billions of $$$ to provide all the benefits to gay couples that the married ones get. Money benefits, that is.

The solution is very simple, and will SAVE billions. Even better, it will GENERATE billions, if not trillions, to the budget, which is desperately needed. Instead of giving MORE benefits to MORE people, the government should remove the benefits now given to marrieds. Equality doesn’t have to mean more benefits from the treasury, it just means equal benefits. This probably wont happen, but it is a solution.

So, if we resolve the money issue, the rights issue, and the rule of law issue, that leaves “marriage” and Christian doctrine as the stumbling blocks. So, what should Christians think and do? Just because we have a faith in Christ doesn’t mean we get to define what marriage is for non-believers. We can’t resolve moral issues with laws, which we’ve proven throughout history. Christians should be proclaiming Christ, and following Him, and living out their faith regardless of what non-Christians think and do. STOP:

It is right here that Christians lose the conversation. Right now your mind is whirling with all kinds of “answers” to my points. Right now your are drawn to an argument, and this isn’t Christ!!!

Let the government do what it does. And let the Christians do what they are supposed to do — Love. And pray. And follow Christ. You cannot follow Christ for another person, only for yourself, so, like me, you have a full-time job that should keep you busy!

You might want to take out a piece of paper and write down all the things you think “following Christ” includes, and then try to match those against the marriage issue, as well as your own walk with Him. Personal evaluation is always a good thing.

I woke up today (3/14/13), mind filling with all sorts of thoughts about the day and what I must do. Something didn’t seem right, so I determined to pray- to enter my prayer closet- to orient my mind to God instead of the world. And God spoke to me, about Communion. About the Sacramental nature of this Holy time we share.

I found myself almost immediately repenting. Apologizing, if you will, to God, for being so worldly minded and so consumed with all that is temporary. I told Him I was weak, and easily distracted from Him, and that I was truly sorry, and that I needed His strength to even keep this conversation going.

I rebuked the devil, and commanded his spirits and influences to leave me, using Jesus’ Name as my authority, with a strong Amen to end. Immediately I was praying in the Spirit, and found that my whole system relaxed and became at peace. I love to pray in tongues because it is so freeing.

Free from the games the mind plays, where we try to determine an outcome by our own will, rather than allowing God’s Will to be done. Free from concerns about how “right” the prayer might be, or how my thoughts might conform to correct doctrine. Free from external pressures of time and place, and free from all the other voices that compete for our attention, whether human or spirit.

And then, almost interrupting my prayer, came another voice, as it were, but such that it wasn’t offending but rather so important that I just naturally stopped to listen because I knew, somehow, that it was important now to listen. Whether this was totally new information, or an actual interpretation of the tongue I had been praying I don’t know. I’m ok with it being either, and not bound by some regulation that says my conversation with God Almighty has to conform to anything I even think I understand. It’s just wonderful, that’s all, so I stopped praying and began listening, with no struggle.

As I listened, I heard familiar words; words that I knew somehow. And I began to whisper, along with the Voice, in unison. As I did so I began to realize “we” were praying together the Apostle’s Creed, which I had learned as a child. As this sort of tapered off I was impressed again, not so much by a voice as by a thought, about Communion. And the words “Remember Me” were prominent, almost as if I was being instructed to focus upon them.

It was as if The Wonderful Lord Himself was showing us how to keep remembering Him; by repeating the creed. This is not now a time when we institute a new element of liturgy, but rather visit an old one, time tested, proven, even given to us by God Himself. The purpose of reciting a creed is that it helps us focus on what we believe, and brings us together in worship, unifying all our backgrounds and doctrinal preferences into a … Communion, as we fulfill the instruction to “Remember Me.”