“It isn’t fair!”  How often we hear these words uttered (or utter them ourselves).  We have been discussing recently the theme, “Giving God’s Way.”  Listen to what Jesus said: “Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance.  Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”  (Matthew 13:12)  And some of you are probably already screaming, “It isn’t fair!”   But consider this, God cares a whole lot more about his kingdom advancing than he does your feelings about fairness or lack thereof.

     Someone has written, “God’s gifts are not given to level the playing field for us; they are given to bear the most fruit … Fruitful servants attract more resources from the Giver of all good things.”  Isn’t this very similar to what Paul said in chapters eight and nine of II Corinthians, that when Christians are generous in their giving God will provide them the means to continually be generous.  If you choose to be generous, God will honor that heart to give with the provision to do so and even abundantly.

     Matthew Arnold wrote, “Use your gifts faithfully, and they shall be enlarged.”  What is the “more” we will be given???  Material resources?  A deeper understanding about the gospel?  Talents and spiritual gifts?  More responsibility?  It can be any or all of these.  What we need to learn is that what we do with whatever God has given us matters.

     What are you doing with what God has given to you?  All that he gives us is for one primary purpose — building his eternal kingdom.  If we prove faithful in building the kingdom, we will be given ample resources.  If we prove unfaithful, we’ll find ourselves empty — maybe not now, but eventually. 

     It is a good time to examine our investments, direct them toward eternity and expect God to make them fruitful.  Love, Jim

     Satan is a terrorist.  Jesus informed us of this reality when he said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)  He is out to get us, big time.  He wants to take us off of God’s path.  His mission is to steal our joy, terminate our lives and degrade our relationship with God.  And he is extremely aggressive about his mission. 

“The devil does not sleep, but seeks our ruin in a thousand ways.”

—Angela Merici

     We must be aware of his desires for us and his schemes by which he will try to achieve those desires.  We cannot have our heads buried in the sand and live in a pre-9/11 world spiritually.  We must be on the alert.

     Hebrews 12:2 gives us a good strategy.   “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  We need to have our eyes fixed on Jesus.  We must resolutely fix our gaze on God and His Word and remain unswerving in our devotion to Jesus. 

     We need to also remember that his desire for us is not to harm us or destroy us, but to give us abundant life.  He wants only the very best for us.  His will may not always be easy or comfortable, but it will always be good. 

     Former President George W. Bush was fond of saying, “We will not negotiate with terrorists.”  I admire his stance.  The same must be true of disciples of Jesus Christ.  We dare not negotiate with Satan.  We must not listen to his voice.  We must drown out his voice and listen only to the One who longs for our best.  His voice must be the only voice we hear.  It is the key to an abundant and full and rich life.  Love, Jim

It is hard to imagine the Christian landscape without Chuck Colson. About the time I began my walk with Christ, Born Again was published. He will be sorely missed. But let us rejoice at the power of a redeemed life. May God bring healing to the hearts of his family and friends and glory to His name.  - Max Lucado

The world has lost one of the most brilliant Christian leaders and articulators of the faith, Chuck Colson. He was a scholar, a constitutional lawyer, and a compassionate humanitarian who befriended lost and lonely prisoners for nearly 40 years … Chuck Colson was a Marine captain (there are no former Marines) and a man’s man. He was like a brother to me and I grieve his loss. His influence on my life has been profound. I look forward to seeing this godly soldier in heaven some day. I am certain he has now heard these words of welcome from his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”  - Dr. James Dobson

He stood in a long line of celebrated converts, beginning with the Apostle Paul on the Damascus road, and including figures such as John Newton, G.K. Chesterton and Malcolm Muggeridge. They were often received with skepticism, even contempt. Conversion is a form of confession — a public admission of sin, failure and weakness. It brings out the scoffers. This means little to the converted, who have experienced something more powerful than derision. In his poem, “The Convert,” Chesterton concludes: “And all these things are less than dust to me/ Because my name is Lazarus and I live.”   

     It is a strange feeling to lose a mentor — a sensation of being old and small and exposed outside his shade. Chuck’s irrational confidence in my 21-year-old self felt a little like grace itself. The scale of his life — a broad arc from politics to prison to humanitarian achievement — is also the scale of his absence. But no one was better prepared for death. No one more confident in the resurrection — having experienced it once already. So my grief at Chuck’s passing comes tempered — because he was Lazarus, and he lives. – Michael Gerson

     “According to the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services, the US foster care system serves more than 740,000 children.  Beyond that, more than 3 million children in the US can be labeled as ‘children of trauma.’  Children without hope line our own city streets and fill our forgotten alleys.” (Source:  “Rescuing Children at Risk” article, Christian Standard)

­     Rick Bayless of Cookson Hills Christian Ministries says, “Maltreated children are among the neediest in America.  Some are living in your neighborhood; others play on streets outside boarded-up buildings.  Some are caught in the bureaucracy of the government foster care system; others run away and steal what they will eat and wear today … Some are reaping what they sowed, and others inherited a mess from their parents.  But they all have one thing in common.  They matter to Christ.”

     The cost and repercussions are staggering.  Maltreatment of children costs taxpayers $103.8 billion annually.  This doesn’t include the social, emotional, and spiritual expense both the child and society must bear.  Children of trauma are more likely to suffer depression, eating disorders, suicide attempts, teenage pregnancy, juvenile delinquency, and adult criminality.  “Without the love and power of Christ, these children continue the cycle of abuse and dysfunction,” laments author Karen Wingate.

     Are there children “at risk” in our community?  Are there children who have been traumatized by life experiences?  The answer is YES.  The question is … what can we do?

     A big thank you to those who faithfully serve in our Whiz Kids, Refuge and Pioneer Club ministries.   These outreach ministries provide us an opportunity to love and serve and have an impact on numerous children, some from healthy home situations but others who live in very difficult circumstances.  Lord willing, by this coming fall the Mt. Healthy Alliance, partnering with BLOC Ministries, will be offering an after-school program where youth can hang out in a safe place.  Volunteers will be needed.  Maybe you can step forward and make a huge difference in a child’s life?!?  Love, Jim

     1. Christian Summer Camps Instills Great Values in Cool Ways
     Research from the fields of education and psychology has consistently shown that the core values of young people, and consequently their own worldview, are formed in their adolescent years.  Kids may not even know why they believe what they believe, but they believe it, nonetheless!
     In other words, values and beliefs are caught, and not necessarily taught.  A well run youth Christian camp will have staff members that not only teach great lessons about God and about life, they will model these lessons in the ways they care for kids and serve them.  Many people will tell you that the love and care of youth Christian camp counselors made a profound difference in their lives growing up.
     2. Christian Camps Help Kids Own their Faith
    A lot of church programs are run on the same model school classes are taught.  Kids hear teachings and new information, there may be some short discussion, and then they are on their way to other things.
     But, a well run youth Christian camp allows many opportunities for kids to get some alone time with God.  These times are typically brief enough to be age appropriate, but the key is to allow young people to “own” their faith by actually practicing some of the basic spiritual disciplines and not simply being a student in a Sunday school classroom.
     3. Christian Youth Camps Allow Young People to Create Great Relationships 
    When young people interact with new friends who share their beliefs, talk openly about them, and live a life that sincerely involves faith, their own faith can grow greatly.  One common meaning of the word discipleship that is found in the scriptures is to “rub off on something.”
     Discipleship, in the Bible, doesn’t mean getting lots of sermons or hearing Bible lessons, it literally means that a person can rub off on others as they seek to disciple them.  In other words, those who were discipled actually became like the one who discipled them.
     When young people are mentored by camp staff members or by other peers who take them under their wing, amazing things can happen.

     Would you be willing to assist our kids attend?  You can donate items for the upcoming Yard Sale.  Or you can simply write a check to the church and designate it for “Camp Scholarships.”  Your help will be greatly appreciated and who know what life changes you will be making possible?!?  Love, Jim

      It is Easter Sunday, which I prefer to simply call Resurrection Sunday.  Today Christians around the globe celebrate the greatest event in human history.  In reality, we who follow Jesus should be celebrating the resurrection on a daily, even hourly, basis.  If we don’t connect with that first century empty tomb and understand its implications then our Christian existence will be only a shell of what it should be.

     Let me briefly offer you some benefits of the resurrection:

(1) We have proof that Jesus is who He said He was!
”For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”  (Acts 17:31)

(2) We have the forgiveness of all our sins!

“ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.” (I Corinthians 15:17-18)

(3) We have victory over the power of sin!

^“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.” (Romans 8:11)

(4) We have authority over Satan and the demonic realm!

 ^“ I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”  (Luke 10:19-20)

(5) We have eternal life!
“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.  For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.  For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.  Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.” (I Corinthians 15:20-24)

(6) We have hope for daily living!

^“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, …” (I Peter 1:3)

     Enjoy the day!  Eat your chocolate bunnies and spend time with your family.  But don’t forget about the resurrection.  Let it make a difference in your life today and every day!  Love, Jim

     The eleventh chapter of Hebrews never ceases to amaze me.  Every time I read through it I am convicted about my lack of faith and stirred to grow in my faith … in my trust and confidence in God!  Here is what Jeff Walling has to say about the verse above in his great book Daring to Dance with God.

     “… even though he did not know where he was going.”  I love those words!  They are so unashamedly honest.  No pretense there.  Think of it: Abram packed all his belongings and bade a tearful good-bye to his family.  He hugged his brothers, Nahor and Haran, and kissed the hand of his father, Terah.  At last he saddled up his donkey and set off for … where?  Which way would he ride?  We are told that he left without the slightest idea of where he was going.  Yet he didn’t seem too worried over how many pairs of underwear to take.  He was just going to follow God.  I don’t know many of us who could have handled that one.  After all, what would you tell the neighbors when they asked, “So, where you moving to?”  Wouldn’t you feel pretty foolish saying, “I haven’t got the faintest idea!”

     Yet that’s when the dancing starts.  The moment we truly abdicate the throne of our life and give God the control is the moment of discovery.  It is then that we feel the joy and release found in not being in charge anymore.  We experience the peace and relaxation that come from having someone else at the wheel.

     I think Walling is right on with his comments.  How are you doing right now?  Do you have to know everything up front before you will allow God to lead?  Are you a control freak or will you let go of the reins and give God the lead in your life?

     Get down off the throne and let the dancing begin!  Love, Jim

     Highview just experienced an invasion of teenagers from Manhattan, KS (not NYC).  Last Sunday evening 31 teens and 7 adult sponsors arrived and spent the entire week pouring out their lives in Christian service!  It has been incredible to watch.  They have been up early and gone to bed late, expending their energy to help others in the name of Christ. 

     They come from University Christian Church.  This is where Nate Traver did his Youth Ministry internship several years ago.  Josh and Amy Nelson lead this large and active youth ministry.

     What was accomplished this week?  And by “accomplished” I am only speaking of what were the visible results.  The invisible results and benefits are more difficult to measure but many will be eternal in duration.

q       Stocked shelves and performed other miscellaneous tasks at the Mt. Heatlhy Alliance Choice Food Pantry

q       Did landscaping

q       Did preparation work and laid concrete for a basketball court at the Travers … this will provide Nate a great evangelistic tool as youth walk by his house on their way home from school

q       Tore out and rebuilt a bathroom in the home of a neighborhood resident

q       Cleaned and painted in our church building (painted the Youth Room and Nursery)

q       Worked on a project for Hope Inner City in Price Hill

q       Passed out flyers in Northbrook

     It has been inspiring to watch.  These young adults have been kind and respectful.  There has been no complaining.  They clearly came to give of themselves and serve and serve is what they have done!  And we are the blessed recipients of their labors of love. 

     A special thanks to Nate Traver for planning and supervising this event.  And to those families who have opened up their homes to house students.

     God willing, we will be participating in a short-term mission trip ourselves during this calendar year.  There will be a discussion about this at a congregational luncheon on April 29 after church.  Who knows, maybe you will be a part of it?!?  Love, Jim

Max Lucado

     Matthew records an account about two blind men coming to Jesus asking for healing.  Jesus quizzes them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”  They respond in the affirmative.  Then Jesus says, “According to your faith will it be done to you.”  And they received their sight!

     “According to your faith will it be done to you.”  How do you respond to that statement?  Is it comforting and reassuring or is it disturbing and discomforting?  Isn’t there a certain discomfort because we really don’t want that much to depend on us.  We want God to intervene and answer our prayers regardless of how much faith we have or don’t have.  However this statement can be liberating when we realize that the only hindrance to our prayers is our faith.  All we need to do is grow in our faith.

     Here is where we sometime get the order mixed up.  We reason that if we see more of God, then we will have more faith.  But God basically says to us that we will see more of Him when we have greater faith.  So how do we get more faith?  How do we have a big faith?

     For starters, we must ask God to increase our faith.  A father appealed to Jesus in this way and was rewarded (see Mark 9:24).  Then, we must base our faith in God on something other than our own experience.  The Bible will help us.  We can meditate on the psalms.  We can worship God for His goodness, His love, His power, His protection, and more.  Fill your life up with praise and adoration.  In doing this God will grow larger in your own eyes.  And when God is huge, huge things happen — according to your faith.

     Where do you need a big God right now?  Jesus first made the blind men acknowledge His ability.  Only then did He answer.  Do you want big faith?  Then worship a big God.  The rest will come naturally.

     Love, Jim

     In Luke 11 Jesus is asked by his disciples to teach them to pray, to obviously pray the way they have observed him praying.  And so he offers them the essential aspects of prayer in what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” He follows this with a parable about a man who approaches a friend, but at midnight, to ask for three loaves of bread.  The friend initially refuses, but then relents because of his friend’s persistence.  Jesus puts it this way:  “… yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.”

     From here Jesus naturally proceeds to this tremendous appeal to all of us: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”   God wants us to be bold and confident and persistent in our prayer lives.  He is not holding out on us.  But he does not always, nor probably even usually, answer our requests right away.  But we have to continue to go after it.  William Booth said, “Pray as if everything depended on your prayer.”  And Jesus would add,  “and keep on praying.  Don’t stop!”

     Back to the friend asking for bread at midnight … it doesn’t matter if the hour is inappropriate, the request is large, and the initial answer is “no.”  True prayer means desperation outweighs protocol.

     Prayer calls for boldness and a certain measure of relentlessness.  God wants us to persevere and not give up so easily.  Like a farmer who waits for his harvest, we are to wait for God’s answers. 

     Jesus is clear: Keep on asking!

     God has encouraged me lately in my prayer life.  I made a specific request that a kidney stone be broken up and pass.  It happened.  Steve Kidd even had to remind me that I had been that specific in my request.  Steve’s surgeon a few weeks later thanked me for praying as the surgery, which might have been more complicated, ended up being quite ordinary (I don’t ever remember being thanked by a surgeon before).  And speaking of perseverance, I have been praying for over four years for musicians with no previous answers.  And now God has brought Matt, Michael, Rebecca and now John with other possibilities. 

     Let’s all take our prayer lives higher and ask God’s will to be done in our lives and in our church family. 

     Love, Jim