Mile High Rev

REVrence - The Lord Is in His Holy Temple

Digital Hymn #692 - The Lord Is in His Holy Temple.

This weekend, I start a five-part sermon series titled, “Let All the Earth Be Silent.”  We’ll be studying the Old Testament book, Habakkuk.  I based the series title on Habakkuk 2:20 – “The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Habakkuk lived in a time of great turmoil between Israel’s two “captivities” –Assyrian – 722 BC, and Babylonian – 586 BC.  He complains that God isn’t listening or doing anything about all the injustice and violence.  “Why do you tolerate wrong?” (1:3b)  “Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife and conflict abounds.”  (1:3c)  “Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails.” (1:4a)  Kind of sounds like FOXNews, doesn’t it?

Habakkuk includes some powerful texts: 1:5 – “For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told.” 2:4 – “But the righteous will live by his faith!”  3:17–18 – “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”  Relevant stuff, wouldn’t you agree?

2:20 is my favorite!  “The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.”  I remember sitting in a Reformed church in Holland, Michigan when I was about 10 years old and the choir sang a very somber and majestic piece – “The Lord is in His Holy Temple.”  I had no idea what that song would mean to me 50 years later.  I linked you to a digital version above.  Check it out.  It took me right back to that Sunday in church.  And it caused me to sit in silence, contemplating the sovereignty of God.  Find a time to be silent today…it’s great therapy for our noise-addicted American souls.

REView - Looking Back at The Christian Writers Guild Weekend

As you know, Jan and I were honored to participate in the Jerry B. Jenkins Writers Guild Conference Feb. 19–22. 

We had a glorious time.  Despite the challenge of processing the death of our Children’s Ministry Director the day before we left, the Lord provided a great opportunity to minister and to be enriched.

I enjoyed the challenge of presenting 6:45 a.m. devotions on Friday and Saturday.  Although there were over 300 registered for the conference, I couldn’t imagine there would be a huge turnout at that time of the morning, so I planned an interactive study of Romans 16.  I figured we’d have around a dozen or two attending.  Kind of like a small group meeting. 

By 6:30 a.m. on Friday, there was one lady named Cynthia, and within a minute or two, another lady named Mary, and a guy named Tom.  And then, the flood started.  By 6:45, all 75 seats were taken and they were rolling in extra chairs.  So much for my “interactive study!”  We had well over 100 seated with people standing around the edges.  Jerry walked in (on time) and joked - “I just came to see the look on your face!”  We had a rousing 15 minutes pondering the names Paul wrote in the first half of Romans 16 - and this brief thought – “People want to be part of a family where they are known (by name), valued and loved.”  I felt all three that morning.

On Saturday morning, we didn’t have quite as many, but I was once again amazed by the energy and size of the crowd.  I really didn’t expect to be so blessed and encouraged by those early morning sessions.  We looked at the final “names list” in Romans 16.  People gave very kind and affirming feedback – by name!

Another great benefit during the weekend was the opportunity to hear the other speakers: 1) Gary Chapman – 5 Love Languages and 5 Languages of Apology (reminded me of our men’s retreat a few years ago where Chapman spoke), 2) Karen Kingsbury – very popular Christian fiction writer.  She told great stories and gave a great challenge.  3) Sammy Tippit – an international evangelist who spoke at FBC some years ago during one of our missions conferences.  Sammy has been on a rather painful personal journey in recent years, and he poured out the pain, making the point that God was with him every step of the way.  4) Dennis Hensley –“Doc”  Hensley is a Professor at Taylor University.  He runs a writers program there and brought us some powerful teaching on the culture and relevant writing.  Best stuff I’ve heard on postmodernism in a long time.  5) McNair Wilson – A former Disney “Imagineer,” McNair is now working at Compassion International.  It’s difficult to describe McNair.  You really have to experience him.  He challenged everyone to be themselves – “do you” – in one of the most moving and creative presentations I’ve ever heard, ending with the music and description of the final scene in Mr. Holland’s Opus.  6) Randall Atcheson – A Julliard graduate who has played piano at Carnegie Hall nine times, has performed on five continents, is piano teacher to the stars (90 lessons per week!), and is a passionate bundle of talent and energy.  He led the music and did a concert on Friday night.  My heart is still vibrating with the power of Randy’s musical genius.

I spoke in the final session from the book of Habakkuk.  I challenged the writers to “watch, wait and wonder!”  Though I was a bit intimidated by the luminaries around me, the Lord honored His Word and hopefully pointed all the writers to the Author of greatest book every written! 

Jan and I got home late Sunday afternoon feeling blessed and bushed.  One more thing – all of this was made possible by the Lord (sovereignly) and Jerry B. Jenkins (humanly!).  I’ve known Jerry for 35 years.  To be trusted to minister at his conference was an incredible blessing.  He’s a great friend.  And he’s an amazing instrument of God in our generation! This  weekend with Dianna and him was a little taste of heaven!  Thanks again, Jerry!

REVved - "Writing for the Soul" Conference

Writing for the soul conference.

I’m participating in the “Writing for the Soul Conference” in Colorado Springs this weekend.  The event is sponsored by the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild. 

Jan and I have known Jerry and his wife, Dianna, for over 35 years.  In fact, a bit of trivia – Jan’s older sister introduced Jerry and Dianna while they were both in college.  It’s been fascinating to see how God has used Jerry through the years.  He’s written over 175 books, and is most recognized as the co-author of the wildly popular Left Behind series. 

Aspiring Christian writers from across the country will attend the conference, hoping to learn, grow, and maybe even make a connection with a Christian publisher.  During a previous conference, it was fun to watch the hopefuls schedule their appointments and offer their prayers in hopes that God might make their dreams to become published come true.  It actually does happen there.

My role will be to bring morning devotions and wrap-up the conference on Sunday morning.  To no one’s surprise, I plan to preach from the Bible - the bestselling book in history.  Who knows, I might also get inspired to get moving on the ideas in my “book ideas” file!

I hope to report on the conference some time next week.  This is going to be fun!   

REVrant 46.3 - A Trillion Dollars or $54,000 Dollars

Numb and number: Is trillion the new billion? - CNN.com.

Take the time to real the linked article about what a trillion dollars is.  Every time I hear “trillion,” I shudder.  Does anyone really know how much money that is?  My favorite explanation of a trillion is given by Senate Republican Leader, Mitch McConnell – “To put a trillion dollars into context, if you spent a million dollars every day since Jesus was born, you still wouldn’t have spent a trillion.” 

When CNN checked this statement with a Temple University math professor, they learned that McConnel was right – it would only be 3/4 of a trillion if you spent a million dollars every day for 2,000 years.  Staggering.

Against the backdrop of the stimulus package the President is going to sign in Denver tomorrow (by the way, I wonder how much that trip is costing us…), I have been thinking about what happened the past two weekends at Foothills.

We’ve experienced one of our most joyful missions emphasis times in recent memory.  In addition to trying to raise money for missionary care, we selected an orphanage (El Shaddai) and school (Eva Carson) in Sierra Leone, and decided to try to help them with school supplies, to raise money for daily needs, and to purchase a vehicle if the money came in.  We also distributed over 1,000 2–gallon bags to be filled with items for the children.

Sierra Leone is a West African nation that was torn apart by a brutal 10–year civil war that started in 1991.  Our current Worship Director (Daniel Sesay) is from Sierra Leone.  We have also been supporting a missionary (Don Osman) from there for over 29 years.  The goal was set at $27,000.  A lofty goal in this financial recession we’re in.  So we thought.

On Sunday night, at our “Taste of Sierra Leone Event,” our Missions Director (Joyce Feil) announced the totals for each project, and you won’t believe the grand total – $54,000!  TWICE what we had hoped and prayed to receive.  Many of us were speechless when we heard the total.  We all knew that God had done something amazing for us…but so much more, for 60 precious orphans in Sierra Leone!

I don’t know how to get in touch with the idea of a 3/4 trillion dollar stimulus package…and I’m quite sure I’ll never see any of it.  But 60 kids in Africa are going to be blessed by a group of sacrificial givers at a Bible church in Littleton, Colorado who took to heart the words of Jesus Himself –“It is more blessed to give than to receive!”  I can’t tell you how pleased I am to be a part of this church family!  And I can’t wait to see the looks on those little faces in Africa.  

REVved - Congratulations to Jeff Baxter - New Book

One of our pastors, Jeff Baxter, has written a book that is just being released by Zondervan – due in the stores on March 1, 2009.  The book is titled, Following Jesus Into College and Beyond. 

Jeff graciously allowed me to read a draft prior to publication.  It’s an incredibly well-written and well-researched book on the challenge of keeping students connected to Jesus AND the church, after they leave for college.  Every Youth Pastor, and most other pastors I know, anguish over the depressing statistics about the church losing students once they go off to college.  Jeff faces it head-on.  He quotes extensively from students and 20–somethings across the nation. 

This book fills a niche that I pray will make a profound difference in the lives of students.  And not only at Foothills Bible Church, but hopefully, across the nation!  Congratulations Jeff.

You can order the book on Amazon or directly through Zondervan (www.zondervan.com).  You can also contact Jeff at FBC, or on his facebook, or blog – www.sacredoutfitter.blogspot.com. 

REVrant 46.2 - Eroding Integrity

Integrity – “The quality or state of being of sound moral principle, uprightness, honesty.”

In recent weeks there have been a flurry of revelations exposing lack of integrity by high profile public figures in business, politics, entertainment, sports, and religion. 

Bernie Madoff – ran one of the largest Ponzi schemes in the history of America.

Timothy Geithner/Tom Daschle – neglected to pay taxes on income over multiple years and only did so while being vetted for cabinet positions.

Chris Brown – attacked fellow artist and girlfriend Rhianna prior to the Grammy’s, causing both of them to miss the event; she landed in the hospital and he was arrested.

A-Rod/Michael Phelps – A-Rod admitted steroid use, and Phelps admitted pot smoking.

Ted Haggard – a new victim of Haggard’s sexual deviance and deception came forward to expose him. Meanwhile, Haggard launched an HBO documentary and giddily appeared on Larry King and Oprah.

A very typical response to these revelations is, “Nobody’s perfect.”  Agreed.  But let me turn that statement around – “Everybody isn’t dishonest.”  And when someone IS dishonest, or deceptive, or morally unsound, it is not unfair or unjust to express outrage and to demand accountability.  And to expect consequences.  These are all very sad cases of people who knew better, allowing themselves to drift away from integrity.  The journey back isn’t easy, quick, or magically accomplished by saying, “I’m sorry.”  “I’m sorry,” is a good starting point, but it is only that – a starting point.  

Two final quotes on a damaged reputation:

A reputation once broken may possibly be repaired, but the world will always keep their eyes on the spot where the crack was.
Author: Joseph Hall

Choose a good reputation over great riches, for being held in high esteem is better than having silver or gold. - Proverbs 22:1

REVrant 46.1 - Paying Taxes 101

1. You make money.

2. You calculate taxes.

3. You pay taxes by April 15.

I’ve been doing these three steps every year for my entire working life.

Seems simple, doesn’t it? 

Romans 13:6–7 – “This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing.  Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.” 

According to the Bible, not paying taxes isn’t a “mistake,” it’s a sin.