Calendar

We now have an online calendar available for viewing.

It is located here, incorporated into our main website.

God on the Ground

Does your life feel crazy & chaotic right now? The hectic pace and demands on us at this season of the year are crazy. It seems like this should not be -- but actually it is a really great thing. Why? The closer you get to the profane, the closer you get to God. Paul told the Romans: "...where sin abounds, there grace abounds all the more."

The Christmas season brings out the absolute worst in us. It's the number one time for an intervention on a family member who cannot seem to pull it together!

That's exactly what God did. The world weas messed up, so He came to it. We're messed up, so He comes to us.

He doesn't wait until we're all cleaned up before He hangs out with us. That's what makes the Christmas story so great!

Here are three examples of how ungodly and profane and wicked the Christmas story is, and how perfect it is to find God in the midst of that.

Jesus' lineage was filled
with immmoral people
Matt 1:3 lists Tamar. Go read her story in Genesis 38 -- Tamar would be a great addition to the Jerry Springer show!

Matt 1:5 lists Rahab. She's another prostitute, but she's not even in the family!

Matt 1:8 lists Ruth -- another outsider, from the enemy! Sort of like having the President of Iran in your lineage...if you're an Israeli.

A later verse simply lists "Uriah's wife" -- that was Bathsheba, but they didn't even put her name there! It was too scandalous a story!

Matt 1:16 says this checkered lineage leads to Jesus. This is good news, but even in that last verse there's Mary: an unwed pregnant teenager whose fiance almost left her.

This is the bloodline from which Jesus came. He was a Jew. He was born into their chaos. Their history -- His history -- has some royalty in there but it is by and large full of messed up moldy-black moss-spots on the family tree.

In the incarnation Jesus brought together
the eternal sacred with the temporal profane.

The shepherds were irreligious
According to Jewish law at the time, the shepherds were unclean. They could not participate in festivals or feats, etc. They're excluded. They could not testify in a dispute because everyone just assumed they were liars.

Imagine you're God, and you're going to get the word out to people that the King was born...

When Prince Charles & Princess Diana had their boys, announcements and invitations went out to the hoity toity of the world in which they circulated. God told the shepherds.

It's like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir practices all year long, and then the curtain opens and who is in the audience? 8 guys from night shift. That's it!

Luke 2:1-20 tells the amazing story.

The Shepherds get the call. They probably assumed everyone else heard as well, so they expected a huge crowd of insiders who'd be there. No crowd. No mayor of Bethlehem. No city council. No religious dudes. They get there and there's Joseph and Mary, and a cow.

And the baby

"Wow, we get to see him real close!"

The Magi were foreign new-agers
Gold, frankincense, & myrh. Three gifts are listed so we assume there were three Magi, but we don't really know how many there were. Because of the social and cultural norms of the day we can assume they were men, but they weren't religious leaders. They weren't even Jews. They weren't eagerly waiting for the Messiah. They were from Iraq!

"Magi" comes from "magistrate" or possibly "magician" -- making the Magi sort of a cross between a politician and a pagan astrologer-priest.

Sadly, Christians meet people like that (today we call them [gasp] "New Agers"!) and put up the sign of the cross like they're Dracula or something. They certainly don't invite New Agers to be major players in the church's Christmas pageant.

But God did. He is not freaked out by the Magi. God spoke to them in a way they would understand, and respond.

What about the "good guys"? Why doesn't God speak to the High Priest; any priest? These guys fast and stay pure and are looking for the Messiah. And they. Get. Nothing! What's up with that? They'd paid their dues!

God isn't into rewarding us after we've "paid our dues" -- instead He simply comes to us when we need Him most.

The incarnation tells us that in our chaos, God comes. Christmas choas, emotional chaos, spiritual chaos. God comes in the midst of that.

It was the start of a pattern of living He would continue Go read Matt 9. Jesus is at Levi's house (Levi was [gasp] a Tax Collector!) and people ask what that's all about; how come He hangs out with the outcasts? He answers the critics by saying says He came to hang out with the people who need him most!

Read Matt 11. Jesus is accused of being a glutton for hanging out with "the wrong crowd" again. Jesus said

Umm. Yeah. See, I seem to blow away the line between what is sacred and what is profane BECAUSE YOU HAVE IT WRONG!

The incarnation is our model for ministry. People don't need us to preach to them or "try to save them!" -- people don't need someone trying to change them and tell them what is wrong and bad about them. They need someone to live and walk among them.

That's what Jesus did, and He calls us to be like Him: God-filled people, on the ground with other people.

The more we hang out with non-Christians the more we become Christians ourselves.

That's what Jesus did: He came through immoral people, he came to the outcasts and spiritually weird.

Those are the people to whom He chose to announce the coming of The Kingdom!

It inspires us to be like Him.

This year don't just celebrate the incarnation.

Be the incarnation.

Earn your Degree with TLC!

We are looking to start an extension for Trinity Learning Community here in San Carlos. TLC's vision is to prepare Christian leaders for the 21st century church. Our first goal as we partner with TLC is to get a Bachelor of Christian Studies (BCS) program going. We're hoping to start January 21st.

The BCS is a four-year program:
• 2 years online.
• 2 years on campus here in San Carlos. During these 2 years on campus, students will be personally mentored by a pastorally gifted leader holding an MA, M Div. or above.

Applicants need:

1. A high school diploma.
2. TLC will recognize any accredited Bachelors work towards our BCS degree.
3. The 2 years online will be $2,000 per year (practical & liberal studies) and the 2 years on campus will be $5,000 per year (Kingdom of God & Biblical Theology). Campus years are required for degree.

A normal BA in the state system costs
$15,000- $25,000 for 4 years.

Religious degrees cost around
$30,000 - $40,000 for 4 years.

That makes our $14,000 total
the lowest cost Bachelors degree in California!

Applicants receive:

1. TLC will provide all administration, student guidance, grading, oversight and assistance on financial aid.
2. A Bachelor of Christian Studies will qualify the student to register in our Masters of Ministry Degree program. We also plan a modular program for at-distance students. There are other ideas in the making.
3. Our Masters of Ministry Degree will qualify students to apply for Fuller Theological Seminary's Doctorate program in Missiology.

Time is of the essence!
Especially if students need financial aid. The first quarter's tuition is to be paid in full two weeks before the quarter. If you are interested please contact us at the Vineyard office, and also contact TLC's main office in Corona, California.

Incarnation

Did you see the new European import?Yeah! I read all about it in Car Nation magazine!

A bee stung you? Where'd it come from?It was in carnation!
Incarnation literally means "in the flesh"

The mystery of the humanity of Christ
is that He sunk himself into our flesh
~ Martin Luther

John 1:1-5, 14, 18

Jesus put on Humanity. He did not lose anything of His deity. He was not a hybrid; not a Prius. He never said "Hmmm, I've exhausted this one part of myself, so I need to tap into this other aspect of myself right now..." God became fully human and experienced everything we do as humans: a mind, emotions, a psyche.

What does the incarnation tell us?

1) It tells us what God is like (John 1:18): Jesus made God known. If we want to know what God is about, we don't have to guess. We can look at Jesus and see what makes Him passionate and angry and compassionate and sad and motivated. We can look at Jesus and see how God would respond to any person.

God demonstrated His love for us in this way:
while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
~ Paul of Tarsus

The incarnation also tells us what God is not like. We make God in our image, which is arrogant and tough and ruthless, like Zeus (it taps into our pride). The incarnation blows all that apart and says: "No, God is humble!". It is not that God was great, and became humble by stooping low. God is humble and stoops low: that is what makes Him great!

2) The incarnation tells us what it is like to be truly, fully, human! "Oh, well, I blew it...I'm only human" No! That is not human-ness. That is fallen-ness! What kind of humans did God design from the beginning? Look at Jesus. That's what God intended in the first place, before the fall. As the band Switchfoot puts it, There's a New Way to be Human

That new way to be human is the redemption of Jesus in our lives. He shows us what it is like to live without addictions, without nasty habits and problems within our depths; free from fear. In Jesus we see what it's like to not be religious, to be free from other's expectations, and free from having to maintain control. Free to tell the truth, Jesus was also free to hang out with those society rejects.

One of the aspects of Divinity is humility. Likewise, one of the aspects of humanity is humility. In John's day (in the height of Roman & Greek culture) no one saw humility as a good thing. Christianity came along and showcased humility as something good and noble. Why aspire to humility? Because God did!

Jesus became human, therefore all humans have dignity. If I take a little seed money and start a company and watch it grow, then that company has some value to me. But if I sell my house and put all my assets into a new start-up business, I would care a lot more about how that business does! Jesus became human. He became one of us. What does that tell us about our value to Him?

And here's something to bend your mind: He is still human. He became human, He died human, and He was resurrected human. He is still fully God and fully human; always will be.

3) The incarnation gives us hope in our lostness. He came and experienced things just like us: Pain. Hurt. Sadness. Sometimes in our pain, all we need is to just have someone be with us, not to say anything or do anything -- just to be with us. To sit with us and cry with us, and just be with us.

In the prophecies of Isaiah, Jesus is called Emmanuel which means: God with us.

As we lose our way, He walks with us. We arrogantly (and ignorantly) tell Him where we're going, and we make all these plans and go all these places with our hearts and lives...and He does not stop us. He lets us go wherever, but He walks with us. He is always with us. When we're tired, and when we're done, we can always grab His hand a little more tightly, and He will hug us, because He will always be with us. He will always have that finger that our tiny hands can reach up and grab.

He will always be there to lead us home.

He knows the way, and He knows how best to lead us there.

Because He became one of us, as a little baby.

Come walk among us.
Come walk among us Jesus.We know that we need You.
We know that we need You Jesus.You see our hearts,
You know that we're but dust.It's You who made us,
Lord in You we choose to trust.Come Lord.
Come Lord.

Sovereignty & Faithfulness

Guest Speaker: Elbert Paul
We're all at different points on a journey, and we sometimes experience tension between God's sovereignty & His faithfulness.

Sovereignty
God is able to do, within His character,
anything He wants to

Faithfulness
God is always faithful,
but it doesn't always look the way we think it will

SOVEREIGNTY
We misread circumstances all the time. Elbert once mistook a raccoon on his roof for a deranged intruder, and freaked out. Afterward, he realized how silly his fear reaction had been. In the moment, though, he had been terrified!

The ancient Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar found himself in a bad spot when he got arrogant, but at the end of his God-allowed psychotic break, he came to his senses and honored God. (Dan 4:28-37)

Elbert told the story of hearing a pastor from the underground church in China being visited by God in his prison cell, having his broken legs healed, and walking out of prison to go back and share the good news of God's offerred freedom, seeing God perform miracles all over the place. As Elbert was listening the Holy Spirit said gently to his heart, multiple times,

This is so easy for Me to do anywhere I want...
...even in America

Later as Elbert read an eMail from a friend about God doing just that. The eMail included this video:As Elbert watched the video he wept and wept, wanting to see God do that in his life, but also saying "God, if that never happens in my life, I will still follow You!" and God said again:

This is so easy for Me to do anywhere I want...
...even in America

FAITHFULNESS
John the Baptist is an example of faithfulness, regardless of what God is doing; how God is moving.

Religion is when we try to get God to do things
for/to/through us by how we live or what we do.

but

True spirituality is allowing God to use us
as He sees fit, and celebrate whatever that is.

John the Baptist was faithful, even though we have no record of his doing any miracles, despite the Holy Spirit filling him while in his mother's womb! But because of some King wanting to see some girl dance, John's head was cut off.

Is God still sovereign?

Before it happened, while still in prison going through a pretty tough time, John sends his disciples to go ask Jesus what was going on. Jesus was experiencing a very different season, and was living in an abundance of miracles. John sent a messenger to ask Jesus "Are you the One I've given my life for?" Jesus answers "Tell John...you're not wrong. Then he tells all the people: There's no one born of woman greater than John the Baptist." (Matt 11:1-11)

SOVEREIGNTY & FAITHFULNESS
in our lives...
Do not think your faithfulness goes unnoticed. God uses it to bring blessings to others. Do not think your season of experiencing God's blessings go away without having a tremendous impact to stir the faith and faithfulness of others.

God stands ready to meet us with His sovereignty and His faithfulness:

Keep coming to Me

Even if you don't 'feel it' I am building into you all the time

Keep coming to Me and asking for
whatever I have for you

Men Pursuing Purity

Joe Guenther will be facilitating a 5 week Men's discussion group using the booklet Men Pursuing Purity by Ron Citlau in association with Desert Stream Ministries.

The group will start either Tuesday 21st November or Wednesday 22nd November, depending on the schedules of the men who sign up. The location has yet to be determined.

To sign up for this group, or for any questions you may have, please eMail Joe privately at joeg222@comcast.net. A signup sheet will also be available at the Vineyard.

Jesus Loves Porn Stars

Our guest speaker today was Craig Gross from XXX Church. It all started around 4 years ago as Craig & Mike Foster discussed the problem with pornography as they ate dinner at P.F. Chang's

Stats/Facts:

Percentage of pornography viewers/customers who are women: 30%

Average age of kids' introduction to porn: 10 years old

Number of porn sites on the internet: 390,000,000

Percentage of the internet which is related to pornography: 60% (and that does not include iPods or cell phones)

Percentage of people who look at porn while all alone: 70% Why? Shame and embarrassment. In a society where we're already over our heads in loneliness, pornography does not promote relationships. It simply feeds loneliness.

As married pastors, Craig & Mike wrestled with the idea that we can't blame the dark for being dark -- but we can blame the light for not being light! So he & Mike went to a porn show in Las Vegas. They rented a booth for $5000.00 and brought their wives.

They offered something better than pornography. When you fill your lives with something empty, there is something better for you!

The porn industry is smart. 70,000+ people attend these conventions, and they hold it the same weekend as the Consumer Electronics show.

The people at the show and in the industry are also honest. Some of them have said to Craig & Mike:

I'm empty.

Now I'm divorced.

I brought it into my marriage and now my wife wants it out.

The show promoters contacted Craig & Mike and asked them to come back. When the issue of finances came up, they actually gave them a non-profit discount and invited them to Los Angeles and then again to Las Vegas the following year. They've been going there for 4 years now. They bring hair & make-up artists who do free makeovers and let women know they are beautiful and loved -- not because of the big hair or fake eyelashes. Just because of who they are as a daughter of God.

But pornography is sin.

Sin is simply open rebellion: trying to do your own thing your own way, instead of following God. We all fall into that. Paul talked about this in his letter to the Romans.

I know I am rotten through and through so far as my sinful nature is concerned...

Thank God I'm delivered through Jesus Christ.

Mike & Craig are helping porn stars out of the industry. The first one, named Trinity took them up on it. They gave her money for job training and relocation, even bought her a car! A year later she was disillusioned. She had to come to grips with what Craig & Mike know: They can help someone out of the porn industry, but only Jesus can offer them something better!

After 4 years of being there at the shows, this past year they gave away bibles. There're student bibles, water-proof bibles, duct tape bibles, and even trucker bibles! XXXChurch has shirts that say "Jesus loves porn stars" so they thought

Why not have a bible that says
Jesus Loves Porn Stars
on the cover?

After a lot of emphatic "No!" answers from publishers, they finally found a company to print the bibles. They took 3,500 bibles -- totaling 1,700 pounds. At first they were worried about being able to give away that many, but they were gone within 24 hrs. Ron Jeremy (a famous porn star) told Craig & Mike: "You're on to something. No one is going to throw these away!"

Craig is not sure what people do with them, but we do know this: when people open them and read them and allow God in, it can change their life. God doesn't promise the current situation will all go away in an instant. It may take some time. But it will change. The same is true with us. Whatever our thing is; whatever our sin is -- God says He won't hold it against us and He'll erase it from our past. He'll forgive us and cleanse us.

It is important to talk to someone about it; deal with reality. Porn is a fantasy world and is a set of baggage we carry around. It doesn't go away when someone gets married and has free access to sex. The issue is bringing something into the light. We can't get through this if we can't talk about it. Get monitoring software. Deal with it honestly and relationally. If you wait until you are the end of your rope -- at the dead end and at rock bottom -- it may be too late. Find and make a safe place to talk through this and get help.

Decide today to clean it up and move forward. Paul said to the Romans that sin is always tripping us up.

He told the Corinthians to flee from sexual immorality, since no other sin affects the body like this one.

How do we run when everywhere we turn it is staring us in the face?!??!

Start by identifying what it is that is tripping you up, and clean it up. Decide today to go the other way, and clean it up so you don't find yourself back where you started.

You have to physically do something with it. You can't expect someone else to do it for you or take it away from you. Filtering & accountability software applications are great resources, but it is just a beginning step. You have to make changes to your life.

Sin is holding us back. When we remove these things it is not just about making us a better person or even a better Christian. It is about allowing God to have His way. If we do, He says He will do things in and through us which are beyond our mind's wildest imaginings!

The reality is God is not angry with us. He loves us, but He doesn't make deals. We want deals. We say "God I'll get out of this when I have a wife..." or "...when I have a husband" or "...when I have more money" or "...when I have..."

But God says:

If you get out now, I can do so much with your life. I have such better plans for you!

At the end of the day, we know what we are doing that is wrong.

If we turn to Jesus and say this, and allow Him to help, He gives us a new life. If you're looking to make a deal with God, you won't find one better than that!

(we had technical difficulties recording Craig's talk on Sunday 10/29 at the Vineyard, but here is a link to the mp3 file from the same talk Craig did on Saturday night at a nearby local church)

From Flirting to Disaster

Marriage should be honored by all,
and the marriage bed kept pure...
~ Heb 13:4

The goal of this covenant agreement is to bring life and healthm establish families and grow kids. Keeping the marriage bed pure is for intimacy and oneness and fun and pleasure.

Valentines Day is not the biggest day for florists -- that is Mother's Day. Unfortunately Valentines Day is the biggest day for Private Detectives.

But no one wakes up and says "Today I will ruin my marriage and my life!" it is more often a slow progression.

During the Cold War, the U.S. came up with the idea of protecting us from a nuclear attack by developing a Distant Early Warning (D.E.W.) Line. The Bible has a D.E.W. Line for marriage as well. Proverbs 5, 6, & 7 is like a narrative: warnings and consequences.

Prov 6:20-29: Ouch! This is the warning as we go into the story. There are certain boundaries:

1) The Boundary of speech (v 24)
We think we can say anything to anyone, but this is not always best. There are boundaries of speech that keep us from adultery:
What you talk about and say about your marriage.
What you say about your spouse.
What you say about your sex life.

Honesty is a value in God's Kingdom, but it is not the highest value. Love is. If you start a sentence with "I've got to be honest with you..." you'd better add to that intro "...so I'm going to be loving".

And there are certain "never" things. Never say:
"I just want to let you know I'm finding myself attracted to you"
"I just want to let you know I'm finding myself emotionally drawn to you"
"You look beautiful." (although "That is a nice haircut" or "that is a nice scarf" -- complimenting the thing, not the person -- is OK)

2) The boundary of thought (v 25)
Sow a thought, reap a deed
Sow a deed, reap a habit
Sow a habit, reap a lifestyle
Sow a lifestyle, reap a destiny

Want to change your destiny? Change your thought life.

Adultery is not about how great the other person is. It is about how great you feel about yourself when you are with them. It is about your ego. Praying "Lord, take this from me" does not kill the ego. Instead, pray this: "Lord, make me unattractive to the other person" -- that prayer kills the ego.

3) The Boundary of the eyes and non-verbals like touch (v 25)
Culturally appropriate touch is healing and wonderful. But marriages can be killed without words ever being used.

4) The Boundary of jealousy
Know your spouse's boundaries.
"I don't trust you" means something deeper than you need. Better to say "I don't trust this situation" -- and sometimes "I don't trust that other person". "You I trust, now go be careful..." -- that is empowering!

What happens when you disregard these boundaries? Prov 7:6-ff

1) You'll lose your discernment and sanity
"It was like my brains fell out!"
yep

2) You'll over-spiritualize an ungodly relationship.
"Now I've found my soul mate"
nope. Spiritual unity is intimate -- so just don't go there to a place where you find yourself prayng togeter alone with someone of the opposite sex.

3) You will find your "moment of opportunity" (v 19)
When you're vulnerable:
When you are on top of your world (ego)
When you are overwhelmed (looking to medicate)
When you are in transition (anonymity)

How do we help?

1) Count the cost NOW!
God will forgive you -- your wife might kill you! =O)
Make a list of things you would lose
And make an even bigger list of the things those around you will lose

2) Nurture your marriage NOW!

3) Nurture your relationship with Jesus...NOW!
Nothing will do more for protecting your marriage!

divorce stats at large: 50%
divorce stats for Christians: 49%
divorce stats for Christians couples who pray together: 1%


the good news
1 Cor 6:9-11 ...that is what some of you were

God will judge the adulterer -- and that was done on the cross.

At the right time, to the right people, in the right situation -- tell your story. God can use that to minister powerfully to someone else.

CBS 5 Interviewed Charlie re: Porn Sunday

The report aired on the 11 o'clock news. Click one of the images below to watch the video.

"Fall" Clothes II

God is sovereign, but humanity and the earth as we know it is not the way God intended it to be. God is working His divine nature back into us. Paul tells the folks in Colossae to change their spiritual "clothes"

Taking off our "fall" clothes of sexual sins...

Colossians 3:5-10

Sexuality is a gift from God to put on @ the right time.

God is not ashamed of our sexuality
Proverbs 5:18-19
Song of Songs 5:10-16; 7:7-9

Anything of high value must be protected.

Our sexuality is of high value. The enemy of our souls is trying to get us to act and do things which do not protect the special gift God has given us. He is constantly trying to get us to put on other clothes that are not consistent with our calling to be like Christ. What ruins the gift of sexuality?

1. sexual immorality (Heb 13; Gen 39)
   when we give ourselves sexually, it takes a piece of us and gives it away to someone else. that is a good thing, in only one place: marriage


2. impurity -- the list is getting more broad! (Prov 6:27; Judges 16)


3. lust -- the most powerful sex organ you have is your brain (Matt 5:27-30)
   God measures us by our heart's internal alignment with Jesus, not external performance. The issue is the heart. It's not the first look, it is the second or third. So bounce your eyes. Pornography dehumanizes all involved and reduces the experience of sex to something distant and disconnected -- the opposite of the intimacy and oneness God designed. Guys: build up your wife's need for security by strengthening your relationship with Jesus. She will feel secure and know you are trustworthy.
   


4. evil desires (2 Sam 11:1-4)
   God redeemed things, and Solomon was born. No matter what you've done, a child is never a curse. But sin followed as well, and Solomon sinned in the same ways David did.


5. greed, which is idolatry -- sex sells
   Pornography is not about sex. It is about money.

So how do we do this? OK, ready...

DON'T THINK ABOUT PINK ELEPHANTS!It's hard isn't it? Even if you close your eyes, what do you see? The elephant is still right there.

The answer is to fill your heart and mind with something else. The answer is not just removal of what is bad -- but it is about filling ourselves with God's stuff (Phil 4:8-9). It has been said "You become what you look at"

2006 Women's Retreat

2006 Women's Retreat

Oct 1, 2006

Thanks to Jodi Reynolds & Peggy Shor for these great photos!

Living in the (real) Big Picture

spoons were handed out to everyone. Charlie told us it was OK to fidget with them and play with them while he talked, but he told us to hang onto them...if you have a chance, go grab a spoon right now to have in your hands as you read this...

As we've been studying Paul's letter to the Colossians together, we've faced the question: "What is spiritual maturity about?"

It is all too easy to allow the mindset of our surrounding culture to influence our perspective as we journey in our faith. The Bay Area is driven and performance oriented: set the goal, develop the action plan, work the plan, go for martinis when the project is closed. Spiritual maturity doesn't work that way. We need to step back and look beyond the day-to-day; we need to look at the bigger picture.

“If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.” ~ Colossians 3:1-4, NASB.

Spiritual maturity is about our union with Jesus: we've died with Him and been raised with Him -- now that’s a big picture worth wrapping our hearts and minds around!

It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one.
~ CS Lewis

Paul says we should set our hearts on things above: want, desire, seek out the things above. Set our minds on things above: think about them. Keep wanting. Keep thinking.

But what sort of “things above” is Paul talking about? What is that? Our clue is:

“...where Christ is seated at the right hand of God”

That is the location Paul wants is to think about: in a word, that place is heaven.

Rather than spend time looking at the Greek derivation of the words Paul used, we spent time trying to do this -- we looked at heaven (an admittedly edited version).

1. Heaven is a real place
It is not just a state of mind. There are real dynamics. Jesus looked “up” when He prayed.

But what does “real” even mean? CS Lewis said heaven is so real that if we were to go there right now in our present state, even the blades of grass on the outskirts of heaven would pass through our feet because our feet are less real than Heaven’s grass.

The book of Revelation tells us there will be music in heaven. Music has tempo and beats and rests, which implies there will be time. Rev 8 tells us Heaven was quiet for a half an hour.

We’ll have real bodies (new and better! yea!). There will be no hunger, yet we will feast, and enjoy it! in John 14 Jesus told His disciples "I go to prepare a place for you"

2. God lives in Heaven
Heaven is where the Kingdom of God exists in its purest form, yet heaven cannot contain His glory. It is where Jesus came from, where He went to, and from where He will return. When Jesus comes into our lives, heaven comes with Him. Divine moments in worship are just a foretaste -- like a kid tasting the icing on a birthday cake!

3. We will see God face to face
Revelation 22 says His servants will see His face. In Jewish culture this was huge. This was probably the biggest thing for John as He wrote the book! In Exodus 33 God told Moses “No one may see Me and live”. We can’t handle it...on this side of eternity. But in the new body, in the new place, we’ll be able to see Him. This was David’s desire as expressed in a Psalm: to behold the beauty of the Lord. John’s gospel says God lives in unapproachable light. His later letter (1 John) says we’ll be like Him, for we will see Him as He really is!

4. Heaven is our real home.
The old adage “You can’t go home again” is true, meaning when you grow up and go back, things have changed. In the Bay Area it is hard to buy a home, so we have a semi-nomadic culture with apartment rentals and job changes, etc. That’s hard, but here’s the thing we grapple with on an even deeper level: we have no real home here on this planet.

And while in heaven, we will begin to have memories of earlier "times" in heaven. It will become more and more "homey" to us. It will feel more like home after 10,000 years than it did after 1,000. Hurricanes and earthquakes and tsunamis won’t be able to damage it. Robbers and banks and layoffs/strikes won’t be able to take it away.

5. We will know each other
1 Corinthians says we will get smarter in heaven, not dumber. Our ability to remember will be better then than it is now!

6. There is continual interaction between heaven and earth
In Luke 15, Jesus said heaven rejoices when a lost person is found. In the book of Revelation, John describes servants in heaven crying out to God for judgement on earth (so while there is no biblical evidence for us talking to them and asking for things, there is evidence for "the saints" praying on our behalf!)

God answers our prayers and things change. His Son came to us. There is an interplay, and therefore, what I do matters! It matters on earth and it matters in heaven. What I do changes things. Heaven breaks in to our reality. The bible says we are "...seated with Him in the heavenly places...". That is past tense. As He is seated at the right hand of the Father, somehow so are we.

7. Heaven is not stagnant
Isaiah says at some point Lucifer rebelled. That suggests a before/after time-space event. Jesus said He was going to prepare a place for us -- so it has been changing for 2,000 years. It is not as good now and it wil be later -- and it will continue to get better and better!

8. We will experience Heaven in process
In 1 Peter we read that angels grow in their understanding. This suggests we will too.

Sin empties us, which leads to boredom. In Heaven we will have stuff to do: rest, rule, work, gaze and adore Him in His beauty. We will be fulfilled! A psalmist wrote about being in God's presence: "...at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore." Our righteousness will grow and that will be a true source for continuing increase of our pleasure and fulfillment.

We will have emotions. Tears of Joy probably will be there! Emotions are good and were created by God. Jesus, in the parables, referred to the Master saying “...well done...come and share in your master’s joy”

Still got your spoon?

Charlie told a story about a little old lady holding a spoon in her hands in her casket. It was her dying wish to be buried in this way. The preacher explained:

As a little girl her mom always told her, while clearing the dinner dishes from the table in preparation for dessert, "Hold on to your spoon -- something better is coming!"

We get a foretaste now. When we feel His presence, when we feed the poor, when we take care of the environment -- we are bringing heaven to earth.

Think about these things. Set your heart on and desire these things.

And let that change your life.

Warriors Come Home

God has placed something unique in each of us that is rich and beautiful. It has strengths and weaknesses, but it is there. It is designed to both shine forth and share. It is the same in every person in every culture.

It is the desire of the Father that every culture be cherished, as He cherishes them. And there is something in every culture from which we can learn.

There is something we can learn from a culture we don’t often hear about: The Island Culture.

Some of the characteristics of island culture include:

• Generosity: They sometimes have so little, but they give so much.
• Hospitality: They welcome you into their home and do anything for you.
• Joy: Laughter is everywhere (food is everywhere too!)
• Flexible & Easy-Going: They're often not so much interested in ‘doing’ as much as ‘being’.

One more characteristic that seems to go deeper than any of these: Island people are Warriors:Both men and women. You see it in their dances, songs, and tattoos.

They’re a people of the heart; they live from a deep place. They have something to offer to us. What can we learn from them?

They’re very polite & kind, but there is a deeper part that is not civilized. Not "tame". That is a deeply good thing and reflects the character of God. That can attract and touch us and awaken something in us.

It is a part of how God made all of us.

We don’t possess what the Islanders have, because it is for them. We don’t have to be like them. We get to be us -- but we can learn from them.

God has so placed His life in them that when it comes out there is a flame there that awakens something in us.

We do have a war dance, a war cry -- but it looks different, because we are different. There is a warrior in all of us. In a deep deep place, He has created us to be not quite civilized, not quite tame -- and that is good. Sometimes we can be so civilized and so tame we are unable to hear or respond to God’s voice when He says “let’s run over there”

God wants us (not to be weird) but to tap into that place, deep inside us coming alive, so that we are willing to go wherever He says -- to be so completely immersed in His intimacy and presence (wherever we are) that we listen to Him and respond.

Not “out of control”...but “alive like never before”

In Tahiti the word “hope” is tied to the word “victory” -- they are inseparable.

What hope/victory can we take from the Island culture?

We are not sure what strength and battle look like. David & Goliath? Elijah calling down fire on unbelievers? James & John wanted to do that and Jesus rebuked them.

Paul talks about it in Eph 6. But what we do is:

1) go about life
2) when evil comes
3) stand against it
4) evil goes away
5) we go back to just going about life

But God is calling us to more than that.

There’s all sorts of things we can fight for, but Dudley talked about just one:

Unity

If we can fight for that, we’ll see God’s kingdom come like never before.

Unity touches our understanding of God and relationship with others, and the world around us.

Relationship with God
Relationship with others
My impact on the world around me

We often see these as separate things, but they are all inter-related. Rather than polarize in one area, and neglect/pull-away from the others, there is a better way.

For Dudley, he realized he has to talk -- that God told him “it doesn’t do anyone any good if you don’t talk”

Unity isn’t clean and easy and pretty, it takes work.

Unity is not a state of being. Unity is much more -- it is a process of living out loud with one another in honesty and authenticity and transparency and courage and reality.

And the goal is not so we will be "good Christians" -- it is so God’s kingdom will come down in our midst! It is so His kingdom comes and His will is done on earth, just like in Heaven.

That is worth fighting for.

One of Jesus' final prayers was for us -- those who would come to believe and follow and give our lives to Him. What did He ask the Father for on our behalf? Listen to this:

“...that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You have given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one;” John 17:21, 22, NASB.

It isn't easy. It isn't nice and neat. But working through those details and working out relationships, the kingdom of God comes and changes us, at various levels. Personal. Family. Community. Nation. World.

We are warriors -- and we can fight -- not just when it bad stuff happens, but proactively; we can fight for unity.

It won’t be easy or pretty, but the Kingdom will come and it will be worth it.

And here's the kicker: we’re not fighting to get it, we already have it -- we are fighting to NOT lose who we are!

What are you willing to do to maintain unity? Are you willing to fight to maintain unity?

It is time for the warriors to come home.

Why Be a Part of a Small Group?

To combat the epidemic of loneliness, and avoid the lie/trap of self-sufficiency, you need to be a part of something bigger than yourself.

Are you feeling lonely?

Spiritual growth is not about whether we hear God's Word, it is whether we do God's Word. You're more accountable in a small group.

Do you really want to grow?

In isolation, we tend to overinflate our abilities. In a small group our spiritual gifts can grow in a lovingly honest atmosphere.

Wouldn't you like it if people really knew you, and told you the truth in a loving manner?

The #1 reason people stay in church is relationships. That's why small groups are the absolute core of what we do here.

We're kingdom people, wanting to follow Jesus' model and bring a bit of heaven to earth. Heaven will be a diverse place. So go hang out with someone different than yourself!

What are your thoughts?

Great Big God

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We had a great time at the Great Big God event!

See the whole album here

2006 Baptism Photos

Click here to view the whole album

How to Leave a Comment Here

Hi everyone,

Here is a simple tutorial re: how to leave a comment on this blog.

Step 1) At the bottom/end of a post, click the "Post a Comment!" link

Step 2) A new window will open. On the right-hand side type your comment in the box under the words "Leave your comment".

Step 3) Underneath the box where you've typed your comments, you'll need to "Choose your identity" from three choices:

1. if you have an account at blogger.com then pick "Blogger" and sign in.
2. if you don't have an account at blogger.com, pick "Other" and enter your name (and web site if you have one)

or
3. if you wish, you can pick "anonymous".

Step 4) In the "Word verification" box, type in the coded letters you see (this helps eliminate spam on our blog).

Step 5) Click the "Publish Your Comment" button. Afterward, you'll be taken to a similar looking window -- but at the very top you'll notice it says:

Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval.

I will immediately get an eMail letting me know the comment is there. Once I've read through it to make sure there is no profanity, etc then I will approve the comment and you'll be able to see it online right away!

If you have any questions or problems making comments please let me know!

~ Keith
~ keith@godshack.com

Avoiding the Appearance of Hypocrisy

Colossians 2:16-23

Don't Give in to Self-Appointed Judges

If we live by a list of dos and don'ts, the rules become the point. That's "religion"; that's "legalism": caring more about the rules than about people. It's easier to create new rules to live by, and act like Christians, than to have our lives transformed. But spiritual maturity is still the goal.

Don't be Discouraged by Spiritual Braggarts

If we live from mountain top to mountain top, the cool "warm fuzzy" experiences become the point. False pride about spiritual experiences just puffs us up to make us think we are better than someone else. But spiritual experiences are still normative.

Spiritual Maturity is about Love

Many preachers tell us: "The world's culture is not good for your spiritual walk!"

What if we asked ourselves: "Is church culture good for my spiritual walk?"

Spiritual maturity is not about following all the rules in order to look good.

Spiritual maturity is not about having experiences in order to sound good.

Spiritual maturity is love.


What are your thoughts on Paul's ideas here?
How have you been trapped by legalism or hyper-spirituality?
What is God doing in your heart to bring real maturity in love?

New Orleans Mission Trip / Katrina Relief

We sent a team of people to the New Orleans area in July of 2006, to help continue the relief efforts of assisting those affected by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Here is a movie/slideshow of that trip.