Romans 7

I know that all God's commands are spiritual, but I'm not.  Isn't this also your experience?  Yes.  I'm full of myself—after all, I've spent a long time in sin's prison.  What I don't understand about myself is that I decide one way, but then I act another, doing things I absolutely despise.  So if I can't be trusted to figure out what is best for myself and then do it, it becomes obvious that God's command is necessary.  But I need something more!  For if I know the law but still can't keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help!

I realize that I don't have what it takes.  I can will it, but I can't do it.  I decide to do good, but I don't really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway.  My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions.  Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.  It happens so regularly that it's predictable.  The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up.

I truly delight in God's commands, but it's pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight.  Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.  I've tried everything and nothing helps.  I'm at the end of my rope.  Is there no one who can do anything for me?  Isn't that the real question?

The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does.  He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.  With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved.  Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud.

A new power is in  operation.  The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

Sound Familiar?  Love you all!

It's nice to take a break from the center and spend a little quality time with the woman I love, and my beautiful daughter. Its easy to get so caught up in the day to day activities at the ODCC that you don't realize that you could really use a break. I could get used to this!

My View Of Church

I thought I would make a quick post while we are getting ready for church.  It is Wednesday night, and people have begun to file in.  The picture is taken from the new media booth I and another guy built at the back of the church.  We can now do lyrics and scripture verses like the big boys, and all with open source software.  We are using OpenSong.  I tried using OpenLP, but had issues with video and a couple other bugs that made it unfeasible.  Anyway, we video all the services, and do projections.  At some point I would like to see a projector installed to replace the flat panel monitor we have, but we all have to work with what God gives us.  I guess that's about it for now, i'm just trying to get into the swing of regular posting.

God Bless you all!

Sometimes a girl just needs to cry...

I’ve had one of those mornings… I awoke from a bad dream first thing this morning. I had dishes in the kitchen sink that had to be washed. The coffee maker was acting funky and brewed my coffee with grounds all in it. My girl would not move above the speed of a snail and it was picture day at school – so we had to be there early. Looked at yet another daycare, this will be # 12… Arrived at work ten minutes late, dropped a cup of coffee on my way to my office and it literally bounced off the floor and splashed all over my white sweater.

Have you ever had one of those mornings? Well, maybe not exactly but I’m sure you have had a rough morning in your lifetime. Did you feel like life was really crappy? Did you feel like no one cared? Did you feel like God didn’t care? I felt that way this morning. I had a little pity party for myself and I shed more than a few tears. And there was the little voice that backed me up – telling me I had a right to feel sorry for myself… but then there was another voice – Can you find your joy even in all of this?

And I did. The Lord reminded me of all I should be grateful for:
1. the warm, dry bed I had to sleep in
2. clean water to wash my dishes
3. electricity for my coffee maker
4. a little girl that is healthy and happy
5. a job, so that I can pay for all the conveniences in my life
6. And my God who did care for me – so much that he sent his Son to die for me.

So it was one of those mornings, but my God is bigger and better than any morning and I choose to believe that He will use even this day for His glory! I’m reminded that “sometimes a girl just needs to cry” (something my child tells me very often). And I’m also reminded that the Lord cares about those tears.

Psalm 56:8 You keep track of all my sorrows.
You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in your book.