Random Thoughts of Pastor Dee

Teaching An Old Dog New Tricks

2011-12-30T09:25:00.000-08:00

I am absolutely amazed! As I sit here writing this I cannot believe it happened! I am not sure exactly when it happened . . . but it has happened! What am I talking about? Well, let me first set this up with a little background.

I have always been one who believed in equal rights for all people . . . even . . . and especially . . . women. I was raised with, of course, a mom and a sister. God would later bless me with a lovely wife and three wonderful daughters (and a great son . . . but that is for another story). Now, I have three more granddaughters. So, to say the least . . .my life has been surrounded with females. As you can imagine, there have been some things I have had to get used to with all these girls around the house . . . hair in the sink and tub, "beauty products" all over the bathroom, and on and on. But, for all the young 45 years of my life their has been one thing that I have always stood by and never gave in. I have had discussions and even disagreements about this one thing. I mean after all there is just so much you can ask a man to do . . . right?!! So, as any good self respecting stubborn man would do . . . I took my stand! This will not change! That was until now...

What was this thing? What was my stand? The age old argument about the toilet seat. That's right. . . the toilet seat. Up . . . Down. . . that was the question and of course my stand was UP! Equal rights . . . right? Why can't the ladies put it up when done? Why should we have to give in? . . .

But, as the title of this blog suggests . . . you can teach an old dog (that would be me in this case) new tricks (that would be putting the seat down). How, you ask? How does such an old dog change on such an important issue? Well, it was through the "wisdom" of my 5 year old granddaughter. I don't know if it was the sound of her crying out as her back side almost slipped into the toilet or just her continual fussing from the bathroom, "Pappa Dee, you need to remember to put the seat down!". I don't know exactly when, but I found myself . . . without even thinking about it . . . putting the seat down! Now, I do this at work or anywhere else I am . . . even in the men's room of restaurants! So, I give in . . . I still don't exactly know how . . . but I guess I have been trained once again.

Now, I know you are wondering . . . how am I going to put a "spiritual" meaning on this one.

Well, the new year is upon us. And we will all be making resolutions and setting goals. How about all of us "old dogs" and even you "think you are young" dogs make a resolution to seek something more this next year. No, not just more money or a better job or more stuff. But something more than ourselves. What if we really sought out God and asked Him to allow each of us to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Now, this would be different for each of us . . . but no matter where you find yourself there can be so much more. Imagine . . . if you really put forth your very best effort and gave everything you had to give . . . what would your greatest accomplishment be for this next year? OK, now stretch that 10 fold and ask God to step in and make it bigger . . . to make it better. Not for yourself . . . but for His glory. Imagine you a part of something so big that unless God steps in . . . you will completely fail.

Check out what Jesus said:

"I (Jesus) tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. (John 14:12)

Wow!, can you imagine? Even greater things that Jesus? How's that for something bigger than yourself?

So, if you are up for the challenge here are a few places to start:

1) Read the Bible - if you already do . . . read some more. If you don't have a Bible and need one, let me know and I will give you one.

2) Get involved in church - if you need a good one . . . FBC Raceland is available but there are many others if you are not in this area. If you are already involved . . . do more!

3) Pray and Expect God to do Great Things!

4) Be willing to step out of your comfort zone.

5) Be amazed!

Don't be satisfied with the status quo. . . let this year be the best year of your life!

Just a thought.

Bro. D

Twas The Night Before Jesus Came

2011-12-20T09:27:00.000-08:00

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE JESUS CAME

Twas the night before Jesuscame and all through the house

Not a creature was praying,not one in the house.

Their Bibles were lain onthe shelf without care

In hopes that Jesus wouldnot come there.

The children were dressingto crawl into bed,

Not once ever kneeling orbowing a head.

And Mom in her rocker withbaby on her lap

Was watching the Late Showwhile I took a nap.

When out of the East therearose such a clatter,

I sprang to my feet to seewhat was the matter.

Away to the window I flewlike a flash

Tore open the shutters andthrew up the sash!

When what to my wonderingeyes should appear

But angels proclaiming thatJesus was here.

With a light like the sunsending forth a bright ray

I knew in a moment this mustbe THE DAY!

The light of His face mademe cover my head

It was Jesus returning justlike He said

And though I possessedworldly wisdom and wealth,

I cried when I saw Him inspite of myself.

In the Book of Life which Heheld in his hand,

Was written the name ofevery saved man.

He spoke not a word as hesearched for my name;

When He said, “It’s nothere” my head hung in shame.

The people whose names hadbeen written with love,

He gathered to take to HisFather above.

With those who were ready Herose out of sight;

Oh, if only I had been readytonight.

In the words of this poemthe meaning is clear;

The coming of Jesus isdrawing near.

There’s only one life andwhen comes the last call,

We’ll find that the Biblewas true after all!

This is of course not an original from me . . . but really makes you think. Now, we celebrate his coming as a babe in a manger . . . next time he comes it will be for judgement! We might just want to be ready....

Just a thought!

Bro. D

Beauty in the Midst of the Mess!

2011-12-10T06:57:00.001-08:00

On December 8th, 2011 at 5:09am God showed up in a hospital delivery room to bring Sara Maxine Penrod into this world. I am extremely blessed as this is now our third grandchild.

At this time of the year, I could not help but think of another young couple having their first child. There were many similarities. Both young couples looked at their beautiful child with amazement at what God has done. They all wondered at what the future will hold. I would imagine that they all have great dreams and expectations of what their new little baby would be.

But there are also so many differences in the birth of these babies.

One was born in a delivery room.

The other was born in a manger.

One baby was delivered by a very skilled and trained physician.

The other was delivered by The Great Physician.

One was born in a sterile environment with the latest air filtration system available.

The other was born in the mess of a barn filled with the stench of animals.

We see the nativity scenes with everything in place. It looks so peaceful and calm. Everyone gathered around singing silent night..... But if you have ever been involved in the birth of a child, you know there is NOTHING calm and peaceful about the experience!

The birth of Jesus was no exception. A young couple in a strange place with strange people. Not certain of the future. No hospitals, no 911, no epidurals, not even a clean place to stay. They are forced to bring their new baby into this world in the stink and mess of a stable.

But this is just like God isn't it? The perfect world he had created was such a different place. Yet he shows up in the mess of it all. The people he created had become self centered and sinful. Yet he shows up time and time again in the mess of it all. The only thing that could make the people right again was for him to send his perfect son to a cruel and very messy cross. And once again he showed up in the mess of it all.

I am so glad that this is the God I serve. He doesn't wait for us to become perfect, or for us to get everything right before he comes to us. His desire is to come to us just as we are . . . in the mess of it all. When we make mistakes . . . he is there. When we fail . . .he is there. When we hurt others . . . he is there. When we are hurt by others . . . he is there. When we are lonely. . . he is there. Even when we turn our back on him . . . he is there.

So, for this Christmas season . . . remember Emmanuel . . . which means "God is with us" . . . .even in the mess of it all!

Just a thought...

Bro. D

It's Hard to Be Still

2011-12-05T08:26:00.000-08:00

As I was putting Gabi to bed one night, she told me something that really caught my attention. As she was settling down she said, "Pappa D (that's what she calls me) do you know if you lay really still you can feel Jesus and God rubbing your shoulders and arm." Then after a few minutes of stillness she said, "Pappa D, I feel Jesus rubbing my arm". OK, so she really caught my attention! Then as a little more time passed, in the stillness and quietness, she whispered. . . "Pappa D, it's really hard to be still."

This reminded me of the words of the Psalmist:

"Be still and know that I am God"

How often I feel like Gabi when she said that it was hard to be still. We get so caught up in all the stuff of life. And just about everything in this world screams, "DON'T BE STILL!" This is especially true during these weeks leading up to the celebration of the most important event in all of history. Now, added to our hurried, never stop pace of life, we have to prepare for Christmas. There are all the decorations to put out and all the gifts to buy. We have to make plans as to where are we going . . . or who is coming over . . . what food will we prepare . . . and on and on. Be still??? Are you kidding me???

How terrible it would be for us to get so busy preparing and planning that we miss out on the actual reason for the celebration in the first place. Sure, we know the "reason for the season". . . yes, we remember to "keep Christ in Christmas". . . . but so often these just become those catch phrases we say during this time of the year. In fact, these phrases have become just as much a part of Christmas as "Frosty the Snowman", or "Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer"!

(Warning. . . toe stepping ahead!)

We are quick to STOP everything to watch our favorite college football team play.
We will change everything to STOP to watch our NFL team play.
We can STOP to go to the office "holiday" party.
We won't hesitate to STOP everything to catch our favorite TV show or movie.
We will absolutely STOP to talk about our co-workers or classmates.
We will STOP all our plans to get to that wonderful sale the stores are having.
We won't miss the chance to STOP to go sit in a deer stand to get that big buck.

But when was the last time we even slowed down to appreciate all the blessings of God?

James says it this way . . . "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights." (James 1:17)

So, here is my challenge to you (and to me as well). Go against the norm. Don't give in to this world's pressure. Take time to stop and be still. Who knows.... in the stillness of the moment . . . in the quietness of the night . . . you might just receive the greatest present of all . . . not just the cuteness of a little baby in a manger . . . but the reality of the presence of the King!

Just a thought. . .

Bro. D

So, it's been a while......... but...

2011-10-13T18:42:00.000-07:00

Yes, it has been a while since my last post. These past few weeks have really been quite crazy!

But, of course I will have more to come (for those of you who must have nothing else to do but actually read these things).

HOWEVER!! If you really want some encouraging words to hang on to...... you really need to join us at FBC Raceland on this Sunday morning at 10AM. The Saints don't play until 3 so I should have you out with time to spare!

But seriously, I will be speaking on my most favorite verse in the Bible. There is a wonderful truth in this verse that will literally change your world!

I hope to see you there!

Bro. D

Warning: Read At Your Own Risk!!

2011-09-23T10:52:00.000-07:00

My four year old granddaughter, Gabi, has been in preschool now for the past few months. She is learning stuff like the letter "A" and the sound it makes as well as an example of that sound in a word, such as Apple. She has learned all of her vowels and is now beginning her consonants. So far, she has mastered the "A" for apple, the "E" for elephant, the "I" for ice cream (I like that one), the "O" for ostrich, the "U" for umbrella and now the "T" for table.

She is also learning some valuable social skills in interacting with the other students like taking turns or sharing and just being nice to each other.

There are a few things that she is learning, however, that are quite disturbing. Some things that have actually been made illegal in public schools (for obvious good reasons, of course). So, be warned before I share this with you . . . some of this may be disturbing to you. Read further at your own risk.

OK, you have been warned . . . so, here are a few of the horrible and illegal things she has learned so far:

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1

Can you imagine the horror as she discovered that everything did not just come together with a "bang" and that someone actually put some thought and effort and care into the creation of everything?? Oh my goodness.

"I am fearfully and wonderfully made." Psalms 139:14

What? She actually learned that she was made wonderfully? She is no accident? She is actually a creation of a great and mighty God? How could they teach such garbage??

"The Lord is my Shepherd." Psalms 23:1

OK, now this is just taking it too far! They actually are telling her that this same God, who created the heavens and earth . . . the same God who created her . . . actually wants to be her Shepherd?? He wants to care for her. He wants to guide her. He wants to protect her. Come on . . . this has just gone too far!

As if that is not enough . . . they are actually encouraging her to pray. Yes, you read that correctly! Pray while in school. Not just pray for herself . . . but for others in her class and others outside of her class. She has taken this "nonsense" back home with her and actually wants to pray for others every time she hears of someone hurting or having a need. Can you imagine??

I can certainly understand why such activities were declared illegal in public schools. We would much rather have our young boys thinking that they are the ones in control and our young girls getting their self-image from everyone else who thinks they are better. I mean, all they need to do is to watch the television to see the half starving "role models" used in every commercial to see what they should look like. And of course, we certainly don't need our children focusing on the needs of others . . . no, they have enough to just focus on their own needs.

Hopefully, you can see the sarcasm in all of this. Yes . . . we have come a long way from when the schools were actually the same building as the church houses. . . prayer was the beginning of each school day . . . and the Bible was a major part of the teaching in school.

Not only is Gabi learning these Bible verses . . . she actually has them memorized. The scary thing is that she probably has more verses memorized than many who will read this blog! Sure, we can memorize every player on our favorite football team along with all their stats. Of course we can memorize every word of our favorite song. . . but the Bible???

Psalms 119:11 says this, "Your word have I hidden in my heart, so I might not sin against you." I don't know . . . but just maybe there might be some benefit in not only knowing the Word of God but actually memorizing it as well. Imagine as Gabi has her first crush and eventually has her little heart broken (I pity the fool, who breaks my baby girl's heart . . . but that's another story). But as she remembers the fact that she is wonderfully made . . . there is nothing that anyone can say that can change that.

So, just maybe we need to worry less about being politically correct . . . and just being right with God.

Just a thought. . .

Bro. D

Roller Skates and Mini Bikes!

2011-09-19T08:31:00.000-07:00

OK, what do roller skates and mini bikes have in common? . . . Well, they both have wheels. . . they both can get you somewhere and they can both bring lots of fun. I guess something else they both have in common is that there is the assumption that those riding the mini bike and those using the roller skates have just a little common sense! But, that last one is probably stretching it a little far for some.

I recall a time when we apparently wanted to test Newton's three laws of Motion. When I say "we" I really mean my sister, Angie, and my cousin, Jay. It was one hot south Louisiana afternoon and we were all around the house riding our mini bikes and some were skating as well. (at this point these were two seperate events) As whould often happen, the need arose to make a trip to our local market, Midway Groceries, for something (honestly, I cannot remember what for. . . but that is not the point anyway). So, it was Angie and Jay who volunteered to go the store. Jay would be driving the mini bike and Angie would be riding on the back. Now, that sounds scarey enough as it is but if you add to this the fact that neither Angie or Jay did not think it was necessary to remove their roller skates . . . then you can see where this may be going.

Now, I was not an eyewitness of the actual events so I am only recounting what was told to me by the parties involved. Appatently all was well for the trip to the store. It was upon arriving at the local establisment that the thought of Newton's law came in question. For those who don't recall this law, it basically says something like this:

I. Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it.

Apparently when arriving at the store in an attempt to stop the roller skates blocked the break pedal and would not allow Jay to apply pressure to bring the mini bike to a slow stop. Attempts by Angie to stop the mini bike with her feet were unsuccessful as the skates provided very little resistance. (thus the law of objects staying in motion)

Now for Newton's second law of motion:

II. The relationship between an object's mass m, its acceleration a, and the applied force F is F = ma. Acceleration and force are vectors (as indicated by their symbols being displayed in slant bold font); in this law the direction of the force vector is the same as the direction of the acceleration vector.

This just means that the speed they were going on the mini bike did make a difference!

And now, for the third Law:

III. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

It is at this point I would like to introduce the post. The post was an object not in motion. The post would soon represent the "opposite" reaction, or perhaps the external force, to the previous mentioned motion of the mini bike and roller skates. Luckily, the mini bike did miss the post . . . but unfortunately, Angie's knee did not. The end result was a pretty nasty cut and of course Newton's laws were proven to be accurate.

Below is a very good picture describing this law and the events that took place (of course you will need to replace the car with a mini bike, the wall with a post, add another person and roller skates . . .and no one really flew off the mini bike. . . but other than this this is exactly what happened.)

So, I am sure you are wondering how am I going to apply this to some great biblical truth. . . right?

I could probably quote something like:

Proverbs 15:21 "Foolishness brings joy to those with no sense; a sensible person stays on the right path"

or maybe something like:

Proverbs 1:22 "How long will you who are simple love your simple ways?"

But, I think I like this one best . . .

Proverbs 16:9 "We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps."

I don't know about you, but I am glad we have someone much wiser than all of us to determine our steps. The good news is that even when we do make mistakes and go the wrong way, He is there to put us back on the right path.

He WILL direct . . . but the question is . . .will WE follow?

Something to think about. . .

Bro. D

More Than You Can Imagine!

2011-09-17T09:04:00.000-07:00

Have you ever felt like there must be more? You look around you and think . . . is this really all there is? Well, there is much more ahead for you!

If you want to see how to get to all that God has in store for you . . . this weekend's blog will be in person at FBC Raceland. Come out and worship with us at 10am on Sunday!

God has immeasurably more than you can ever imagine in store for those who seek after Him!

See ya Sunday!

Bro. D

I Don't Wanna Grow Up!

2011-09-16T04:45:00.000-07:00

Imagine, if you will, being in a rocket ship. Waiting in a small space for the final "blast-off". The excitement and anticipation growing as you will soon be traveling to new and far off places. You hear mission control saying that you are good for launch. So you strap yourself down and wait.

Everything is good until your uncle comes home. . . now, imagine as you (formerly known as mission control) are asked if you know where your cousin (his son / aka the astronaut / aka Jay) might be. I couldn't tell my uncle that he was in the rocket ship awaiting for blast-off. . . so I just said in a very timid voice. . ."I don't know". Well, you can imagine how difficult it would be to hide an entire rocket ship in the house . . . so it did not take long for the would be astronaut to be found. The "rocket" was actually their front loading dryer. Now, don't laugh if you think about it there is some resemblance. . . especially to a kid. His dad did threaten to turn the dryer on . . . but came up with other forms of "determent" for us to not take any more space journeys using the dryer.

My childhood is filled with memories of imaginary journeys and adventures. I am also sure that most of you reading this have your own memories. But somewhere along the way those journeys and adventures were replaced with jobs and responsibilities. Somewhere along the way we were taught to grow up and be an adult. In so many ways that changed things. We are programmed to over analyze and over think stuff. We can't just have those naive thoughts that everything would just be OK. We have to make lists of the pros and cons. We have to consider the possible risks and losses. Now we are in the "real world" of adulthood!

Well. . . I don't wanna grow up! AND . . . I think Jesus would agree with me! Look at what he said:

Mark 10:14-15:

He (Jesus) said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 15 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”

Do you see what Jesus said? It is only with the child like faith that we can enter into the Kingdom. It is that simple faith and trust that He is who He said He is. It is the faith of a child when they throw themselves into their daddy's arms knowing that he will catch them. A child does not sit and calculate the distance of the jump or the mass body weight index compared to the relative strength of the individual catching. . . no, they just jump! That's faith! And it is not "blind" faith either. The child has faith because they know their dad. They know that he has never dropped them before. They don't even think of the possibility of anything else but being caught when they jump, being picked up when they fall, being loved when they are hurt, and being accepted and encouraged to be the best they can be.

Well, I say be a kid . . .especially when it comes to faith in your heavenly daddy. Dream those impossible dreams. Step, no jump, out on faith. For nothing is impossible with God. Don't try and figure it all out. Just trust and believe that God loves you so much that He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to this world to die so that you might live. Don't try and understand it all . . . just accept it by faith. Trust Him to lead and guide you. You may not always have all the answers, but He does! Yes, you might want to stay out of the dryers . . . but if your faith is in the everlasting creator of the ends of the Earth . . . you will soar to heights you could never do on your own.

Bro. D

FIRE!!

2011-09-14T05:10:00.000-07:00

I feel like I need to make a disclaimer right from the start . . . Mom, I was young then and yes I have learned my lesson. Ok, now I can continue. . .

On the back end of Cindy Lane there used to be this giant hill of dirt. We would always ride our bikes on it and play battle and other fun things there. I remember once in the month of January my cousin, Chad, and I were messing around the hill and developed an appetite. So, we decided to ride our bikes up the the local market (Midway Groceries) to get a snack and something to drink. I remember we each got a small carton of chocolate milk (you will see how I remember this soon). So we headed back to the hill to enjoy our snack. Now, I don't remember if it was really cold (after all, this was in south Louisiana) or if we just thought it would be "cool" to have us a little "camp fire" while we ate. But, we decided to gather some sticks and start a fire. It was pretty easy to start as we used the cartons from our milk to light the sticks. I remember searching for some more sticks to keep it going. It was then that Chad had a great idea. He found this old dead Christmas tree that he was going to use some of its branches for the fire (if you think you know where this is going . . . you have no idea). So, we had all the wood we needed and yes the dried branches made for good burning.

All was good in our adventure until it was time for us to leave. We decided to just "smother" the fire to put it out. So Chad (yes it sounds like I am putting a lot on him . . . but just wait my genius will come out soon enough) decided to pick up the remainder of the dead, dry Christmas tree and began to beat the fire in an effort to put it out. To our amazement the tree as a whole burned much quicker and faster than the individual branches. Now, here is where my intelligence really came out. In my quick thinking, I remembered a ditch just down from the hill and I told Chad to drag the, now burning, Christmas tree over to the water to put the fire out. This plan was perfect, except for one unforeseen factor. Being as it was in January, not only was the tree dried out but the long grass all around was also dried out and supported combustion quite readily. We managed to get the tree to the ditch and put that fire out but literally left a trail of burning grass behind us. It was then we got to be firemen for a day. What joy we had as we frantically ran stomping out all the fires. Many times we looked at each other wondering if we should just run for our lives or keep on stomping. All kidding aside, it was a pretty big, quickly spreading fire. If we would have had cell phones back then, we would have certainly made a call to the fire department (and ran!). We did eventually get the fire out . . . and we did learn our lesson (next time get bottled water rather than milk).

I can't help to think of a passage of scripture every time I tell that story:

James 3:4-10 (NLT)

And a tiny rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot wants it to go, even though the winds are strong. ⁵ So also, the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. ⁶ And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full of wickedness that can ruin your whole life. It can turn the entire course of your life into a blazing flame of destruction, for it is set on fire by hell itself.

⁷ People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish, ⁸ but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. ⁹ Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God. ¹⁰ And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!

I am sure that we have all been the recipients of the wickedness of someone else's tongue. We can all relate to the words of James in this scripture. My questions is, if we have felt the sting of the harshness of someone else's words . . . how can we do the same to others? Surely, we understand how James says "no one can tame the tongue".

Today, we have changed our tactics some . . . but the damage is just as deadly. We are quick to use social media sites such as Facebook to air out all of our dirty laundry. We think somehow it is not as bad if we are typing this stuff rather that speaking. . . as the whole Facebook world reads these words many are quick to "like" your status and even leave comments themselves. I think the "fires" spread much quicker today than when James wrote this but the destruction is just as bad.

James also spoke how blessings and cursing come out of the same mouth. I think this speaks to volumes more than just the words we use. We can say all the "right" stuff but if our actions do not follow our words then we are just as guilty. We can try and "cover" the truth . . . but like that dry Christmas tree . . . the flames will only get greater.

So is there any hope? Yep, here are a few quick "fire fighting" tips:

1) Remember the old saying, "Garbage in, garbage out"? Well, fill your mind with the good things of God through the reading of His Word.

2) Realize that we cannot control or tame this tongue on our own. Spend time in prayer asking God to help bring this "blazing flame of destruction" under control. And not just your control but under God's control.

3) If blessing and cursing cannot come from the same mouth . . . spend more time blessing and you will not have the opportunity to do the cursing. Look for reasons to bless others.

These are just a few . . . but if we could just master these . . . imagine what a difference it would make in your own life as in the lives of those around you.

Bro. D

PS. . . be sure to tune in next time as I recall stories of rocket ships and clothes dryers!!

The Great Treasure Hunt

2011-09-13T05:14:00.000-07:00

My four year old grand daughter, Gabi, goes crazy over finding "treasures". These treasures are not what most people would consider of any value but to her they are priceless. She once found a small colorful piece of card board left in the bottom of a box. She pulled it out and her eyes opened wide and with amazement said, "Look how beautiful!" Perhaps her biggest thrill is when she finds her treasures outside. It could be a tiny rock, the leaf from a flower or best of all a small bug. She is absolutely fascinated and mesmerized by these treasures. She loves these so much that she would literally give anything to be able to have these treasures.

Jesus spoke a parable about a treasure that was so valuable that the man who found this treasure went and sold everything he had to purchase the field where the treasure was located. What was this treasure that would cause someone to give up everything else? Jesus compares it to the kingdom of heaven. (see Matthew 13:44)

I wonder if we really get this today? Do we have this same thinking when it comes to the kingdom of heaven? Do we see it as a priceless treasure that is worth more than anything this world has to offer? If we did, shouldn't our lives reflect this thinking?

I mean the very first thing Jesus preached was to repent for the kingdom of heaven was near. In other words, in lite of the knowledge of the kingdom we should turn from our "worldly" thinking and focus more on "kingdom" thinking. So what is this kingdom thinking? Well, much more than one blog can cover but it would require us to realize that there is much more than this life on earth. In comparison to the time we spend in eternity, this life is just a blink of an eye. If that is true then it only makes sense that we invest more in eternity than in this temporary life. How we spend our time, how we treat each other, how we use our talents . . . everything is changed when we discover this priceless treasure called the kingdom of heaven. Perhaps this is why one thing Jesus taught in how to pray was to pray, "your kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven".

So, here is my challenge. . . look for treasures in the way a four year old would. Seek the kingdom in the small things of day to day life. But most of all be prepared for the treasure to come!

Bro. D

P.S. Come join us @ FBC Raceland to discover more about this wonderful kingdom together! Bible study at 9 and worship service at 10 on Sundays. Experiencing the power of prayer on Wednesday nights at 6:30. I hope to see you there!

I am AMAZED!!

2011-09-04T13:07:00.000-07:00

I am amazed. . . These are the first thoughts I had today at about 12 o'clock or so.

This world is filled with some pretty big stuff. Things that are so bigger than we are . . . and I am amazed. I am amazed at the journey of my (still short) life. It seems as if only yesterday I was an altar boy at St. Louis church in Bayou Blue. But oh, what a journey this has been over the many years since. I think I have always known that God was wanting something from me. From the early age of serving in that church until now, I think God has always been leading in the same direction. Of course, I had so many other plans for my own life. And, honestly so many of my own plans have not been so great. It has been my own plans that have often gotten me in the most trouble. But, I still move along. Over the years I hope I have learned and matured more.

But I still find myself in the same feelings of the Apostle Paul when he said, "Oh, what a wretched man I am." In fact, here are his exact words from Romans 7:15-25

¹⁵I do not understandwhat I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. ¹⁶Andif I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷Asit is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. ¹⁸Iknow that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I havethe desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹Forwhat I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this Ikeep on doing. ²⁰Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is nolonger I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

²¹So I find this lawat work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²²Forin my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³but I see another lawat work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind andmaking me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. ²⁴Whata wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? ²⁵Thanksbe to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

I find so much in that scripture to which I can relate. My desires do not always equal my actions. News flash . . . I am not perfect. But I am still a work in process. And this is why I am amazed. I am amazed that God has NEVER given up on me.

That journey of my life spoken of earlier . . . well it continues. And in many ways I have come full circle. I find myself back home again. And if you are wondering why I was amazed today at about noon . . . God has given me another opportunity to serve as Pastor. In many ways I find myself with the same purpose as before. . . serving through the local church. But this time is also different. Different because I know now that I cannot do anything on my own. I understand Paul's thoughts when he said that we have no confidence in the flesh.

So, I am amazed! Amazed that God could take a simple boy from the bayou and even care about me to begin with. I am amazed that God would use me to do things I could never do on my own. And I know that if God can use ME . . . then He can use anyone who is willing to follow Him!

I am amazed . . . but then again we serve an amazing God!

Bro. D

PS. . . Come join us at FBC Raceland to discover more amazing things from this amazing God!