When I was in the 6th grade my Bible teacher was Ms. Schry.  She was also the art teacher but I was far more interested in Bible class.  She was a great teacher that made learning the Bible fun.  I also remember that she required us to learn John 1:1-14 as a memory verse.  It seemed hard at the time but that gave me an appreciation and an ability to memorize long passages of scripture. (which has come in handy in my line of work).  I’d like to take the next few weeks and walk through the book of John together and the best place top start is with that memory passage I learned so many years ago.  Let’s look at it together today. 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

There is so very much truth packed into these few verses.  Jesus is God.  He is the Word.  He is the creator.  He is the light of the world.  He is our Savior.  He became flesh so that we could believe in Him and become children of God.  This passage has a bit of everything (even mention of John the Baptist).  This intro sets us up for the action packed life of Jesus and the book of John.  John contains the most claims from Jesus, Himself about His divinity.  It contains all 7 of the I AM statements from Jesus.  I find that each time I read through the book of John I am struck with different and amazing things about Jesus.  As we walk through it together I encourage you to read it on your own and ask God to show you Jesus in a fresh new way. 

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

Have you ever thought about succession?  When you are gone who will fulfill the role/s that you have currently?  This is an incredibly important concept in companies and organizations.  It was important to Moses as well.  When he is told by God that he will not lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land Moses asks God to raise up a new leader.  Let’s look at the passage together in Numbers 27. 

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go up this mountain in the Abarim Range and see the land I have given the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was, 14 for when the community rebelled at the waters in the Desert of Zin, both of you disobeyed my command to honor me as holy before their eyes.” (These were the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the Desert of Zin.) 15 Moses said to the Lord, 16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community 17 to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” 18 So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit of leadership, and lay your hand on him. 19 Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence. 20 Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him. 21 He is to stand before Eleazar the priest, who will obtain decisions for him by inquiring of the Urim before the Lord. At his command he and the entire community of the Israelites will go out, and at his command they will come in.” 22 Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole assembly. 23 Then he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, as the Lord instructed through Moses.

Moses cares enough about the rebellious people he has been leading to ask God to provide someone to shepherd them.  Some leaders are intimidated by the idea of succession but the best leaders are constantly looking toward it.  Moses is such a leader for the people of Israel.  He wants an opportunity to invest and pour into the next generation of leadership.  This is exactly what Jesus does with His disciples.  Jesus knows that it will be them who build the early church so He spends 3 years investing and pointing into them.  Whatever and wherever God has us we should be doing the same.  Investing and pouring into the next generation is God’s plan of discipleship for His people.  I challenge us all to identify those that we can pour into and mold to be the “next”.  God wants to continue to do great things through the next generation that we pour into.  Who knows you just may find a Joshua.

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

Have you ever been in a situation where you learned an important lesson from a surprising source?  Perhaps someone who you should be teaching ends up teaching you.  We have probably all experienced this at some point in our lives but perhaps none more surprising then the story we find in Numbers 22.  Let’s look at it together today. 

Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. 22 But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road. 24 Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides. 25 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again. 26 Then the angel of the Lord moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. 27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff. 28 Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?” 29 Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.” 30 The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?” ”No,” he said. 31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. 32 The angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.”

Balaam has been asked to go and place a curse on the people of Israel and obviously God does not want him to do this.  God uses a donkey to teach Balaam an important lesson.  Balaam has impure motives and seeks after the riches and glory that would come with the job he has been asked to do.  He is blinded by this and cannot see the danger as the Angel of the Lord is in front of him.  God humbles him by allowing the donkey not only to see this but then to speak and win an argument with him.  Balaam ends up being taught by his donkey (insert joke here).  There are some obvious takeaways for us today.  First we can learn from anyone and everyone.  I often find that children can be great teachers and reminders of some of the great truths of God.  The second thing is that if God can use a donkey to deliver His message He can certainly use all of us.  We all need to be willing to deliver the messages that God gives us and puts on our heart.  If we don’t he may use some jackass to do it (I couldn’t resist).

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

Have you ever found yourself practicing sort of obedience?  You were maybe obeying but doing it with a bitter heart.  Or perhaps you obeyed but not fully.  Moses has an instance of this as he is growing weary of leading the people of Israel and he is tired of their complaints.  Let’s look at it together in Numbers 20.

Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. 3 They quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! 4 Why did you bring the Lord’s community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here? 5 Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!” 6 Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 7 The Lord said to Moses, 8 “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.” 9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank. 12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”

I have often thought of this story as a harsh punishment from God.  Moses has led these ungrateful people for years and now he does not get to lead them into the Promised Land.  Two things struck me that changed my opinion.  First it was never really Moses leading them it has always been God.  God has led the people all the way with a visible presence of a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day.  Moses has simply been the lead follower.  God has honored Moses in many ways along the journey and done for him special things that he has done for no one else.  Secondly when God asks Moses to speak to the rock the understanding is that God will receive the glory and credit for the power.  Moses, by hitting the rock is doing things his own way and is taking the credit for himself.  He is tired of the grumbling at him and wants the people’s favor at this moment more than he wants the favor of God.  This is a trap it is easy for any of us to slip into.  When we long for the favor and approval of others instead of the favor and approval of God we get ourselves into dangerous situations.  We need to live our lives for an audience of one – Jesus.  When we live life that way we avoid the mistake of Moses and we allow God to lead us to the places He wants us to go.  So don’t hit the rock.  Listen to God and live your live for His approval alone. 

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

The story of Moses and the people of Israel is an interesting one.  God remains faithful to His people despite their continued unfaithfulness.  Moses leads the people up to the cusp of the Promised Land but in not allowed to enter it.  The book of Exodus ends abruptly with God’s presence leading the people and we have to dig throughout the giving of the law in Leviticus and Deuteronomy for the rest of the story.  Much of the law is actually directed toward the next phase of the people’s journey as God knows they will be afraid of the enemies they encounter and will also be tempted to adopt their cultures and gods.  God offers them encouragement in Deuteronomy 20. Let’s look at it together today.

When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. 2 When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. 3 He shall say: “Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. 4 For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”

Most of us will probably not march off into war against enemies but this scripture still applies to us.  Whatever battles we face in this life we face knowing that God is with us.  There will be times when we are afraid but we can trust that God goes with us as we fight our battles.  God is the one who provides victory.  Victory over fear.  Victory over anxiety.  Victory over sickness and pain.  Victory over sin.  God wants us all to experience victory.  He is with us and He leads, guides, and protects us in our journey.  May we all rest in this truth today and every day.

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

Since I have finished my journey wandering in the wilderness with the Eighth Grade class it is time to turn our attention to Moses and the Israelites once more.  Moses has received the law a second time and now is instructing the people and building the ark and constructing the temple as well.  For now the temple is a tent that moves as the people continue their journey to the Promised Land.  Let’s look at Exodus 40 as we see the finished product of the tabernacle. 

They washed whenever they entered the tent of meeting or approached the altar, as the Lord commanded Moses. 33 Then Moses set up the courtyard around the tabernacle and altar and put up the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. And so Moses finished the work. 34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; 37 but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted. 38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels.

Do you ever feel like God is not with you?  For the people of Israel there was a visible presence they could depend on.  A cloud over the tabernacle when they were to stay and worship and a pillar of fire by night.  These moved when they were called to travel and God’s very presence led them toward the Promised Land.  Today we do not have those visible signs but we have something even better.  God does not simply reside in a tabernacle.  We have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  God is with us always and while we cannot see Him, we can experience Him always.  He still leads, guides, and directs us when we follow Him.  Today and every day seek to experience the presence of God.  He is with you always!

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave

This reminds me of the scripture from Proverbs 22:6 “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.  God has given me an important job as their mother to love them and lead them to their Creator.  Children are so important and loved by Jesus that in Matthew 18 He evens compared us to them and said that we must be like children to enter His Kingdom.  I often wonder and question myself  “Did I get right or what did I miss” but I did get it right because our children know their Heavenly Father loves them no matter what and He has their life already planned out. 

I can’t wait to hear about her adventures and stories but most excited to hear how God presented Himself to her and her classmates.  

I don’t want to miss the opportunity to thank all of the families that entrust me with their children as Advent’s Family Minister.  I do have the best gig here!

In His Service,
Jessica Ballas

Exodus 20:8-11

^8-11 Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Work six days and do everything you need to do. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to God, your God. Don’t do any work—not you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your servant, nor your maid, nor your animals, not even the foreign guest visiting in your town. For in six days God made Heaven, Earth, and sea, and everything in them; he rested on the seventh day. Therefore, God blessed the Sabbath day; he set it apart as a holy day. – The Message

“Sabbath is not about time off or a break in routine. It is not a mini-vacation to give us a respite so we are better prepared to go back to work. The Sabbath is far more than a diversion; it is meant to be an encounter with God’s delight.” – Allender – “Sabbath: The Ancient Practices”

One of the hard things to manage as a Pastor, heck as a human being, is finding the time to truly sabbath. Everything and everyone try to infringe on this sacred practice. We can feel, or be made to feel guilty for taking time off because there is so much to do. Even when we take time off, we do so, to work on all things that “we want to do”. We know we need it, God commanded it, but we try to rationalize all the reasons why we don’t practice it consistently. 

So why is it so hard to sabbath.

As Yahweh gives Moses the fourth commandment, He reminds Israel and us to “remember it”. Sabbath was already instituted, in Exodus 16:22-30. He basically tells us to follow his example. We know God didn’t need to take a day off, He’s God! He was showing us that this would be for our own good. He knew our tendencies to try to do things in our own strength. To try to accomplish and attain everything on our own, a self-sufficiency that would lead us astray from being dependent on Him, as the good father, who would provide for us.

It reminds me of a story of a Dad who asked his three year old son to move a cinder block from one side of the yard to the other (can you feel a life lesson coming here). The Dad told the capricious toddler to move the cinder block, and if he did, he would get a new water gun to play with. The toddler tried with all his strength, pulling, pushing, kicking, grabbing a stick trying to wedge it, but the block wouldn’t budge. The toddler sat down frustrated, leaning against the block, after trying to move it for 15 minutes. All the while the Dad was watching everything going on. He asked his son “have you tried everything my boy?” He answered, “yes daddy, I tried pushing, pulling kicking even took a stick and tried to wedge it, and it wouldn’t move, I can’t move it daddy.” Dad asked again, “Are you sure you tried everything?” The boy sat there and placed his finger to his chin, “yes sir”. His Dad laughed, and scuffled his hair and said, “did you ask me for help?” By the way the Dad still gave his son the new water gun, and took him to get some Ice Cream! 

When we don’t practice sabbath, we become like this child in the story trying to do it all in our own strength, but to no avail, we will end up frustrated and burnt out. Like the Father in the story, God wants us to come to him and ask him for help, to trust him. This is what we do through our actions when we sabbath. Through our actions we tell God, ok dad, we are going to trust you, and know that you will accomplish more through us in 6 days, than we could accomplish in 7 by ourselves. We are going to delight in you, knowing that you will do for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves. What a beautiful picture of the Gospel. 

The takeaway from this is as we remember the sabbath and practice it, we should prepare to encounter God’s delight as He lavishes His grace, love and mercy on us, as obedient sons and daughters who trust in him more than we trust in our own strength and understanding (Proverbs 3:5,6).

Proclaiming Him,

Pastor Will

Wouldn’t it be nice to know you had a guarantee on life. I know as a shopper I always appreciate the 100% Guarantee on a product. Unfortunately, I do not always receive a 100% Guarantee. About five years ago, I received a birthday gift for an electronic water bottle purification unit. It had a lifetime guarantee of working. The problem came one day about a year ago when I tried charging the batteries on the unit and it would not accept a charge. I called the company asking for a replacement. They were no longer producing the unit so their replacement was a straw! It basically was a filtered straw that you had to suck on to get the water out of the bottle. Needless to say I was very disappointed in the guarantee. Today’s scripture is from Hebrews 7:23-25.

23 Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; 24 but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. 25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Jesus is always there for you. His promises are not 80% true nor a substitute of the original. We may not always understand the twists or turns of life but his promise is true to save completely. The work done at the cross two thousand years ago does not need to be repeated. It was the final act of obedience to bridge the gap so that now we have the righteousness of Christ. There is nothing extra that needs to be done. Even better than a 100% Guarantee is the 100% Call Line, too. Jesus is always interceding for us to the Father. When you don’t know what to do or what to pray Jesus is speaking to the Father on your behalf. You are now a child of God and that means your life counts in a bigger plan of the work God is doing in this world. Guarantees come and go on earth but there is one guarantee written in blood and backed by heaven. This guarantee states; If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 100% Guaranteed!

Pastor Aaron