December 30, 2015

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” Genesis 12:2-3

Nothing happens until you believe in God. At least nothing that lasts.

When God called Abraham He made him some promises and then it was up to Abraham to decide if he would believe God. In order to believe in God it is necessary to know God through faith.

God didn’t call Abraham to blind faith. He called Abraham to be willing to believe what he saw and heard from God.

Believing begins with knowing God personally by faith. When you invite Him to be your God and Savior He will reveal Himself through His Holy Spirit. As Romans 8 says, “His Spirit will bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God”.

Once you know God personally you grow in that personal relationship by learning His Word and doing His will!

After you become a believer you will find it vitally important to become part of a church since worship is the next step in getting to know God, continuing to learn His Word and being encouraged to live our His will and purpose.

A healthy church, like FredWes, will make it easy to believe for the following reasons:

1) A healthy church will believe so strongly in God’s will, God’s Word and worship that it will make it easier for you to believe!

2) A healthy church will believe in you! You will be accepted, loved, encouraged, developed, given a place to serve, and always given the benefit of the doubt!

3) A healthy church will be something you can believe in! You will find leaders who are sincere and who lead with integrity. You will be able to trust the leaders because they are servant leaders who are under accountability to a Leadership Team and members who have committed to a high standard of membership expectations.

4) A healthy church will have unity which will allow the Spirit of God to move and change lives! Seeing lives transformed by God’s love, power and grace makes it easier to believe in God and in that local church!

5) A healthy church will have teaching and preaching that is believable because it is comes directly from the Bible and will be presented in a clear way that applies Bible principles to daily life.

God’s dream for His Promised Place was a place where His people could believe in Him, in His Word, in His ways, in His will and will have a witness of His Holy Spirit doing His work among the people.

That dream captured Abraham’s heart and called him to a life of faith. Abraham became one of the reasons we believe, a foundation for the faith we love and live by.

This same vision is the passion that drives my life and ministry. I have a strong belief in God and His Word, I want to live a believable life. I want to share my belief with those who don’t believe and convince they that they should believe. I want to strengthen those who do believe by building a Biblical foundation under their belief. I want to build a church that believes strongly in God, believes in the mission He called us to do, believes in people and loves them to life.

What do you believe?

December 29, 2015

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”  Genesis 12:2-3

Have you ever wondered where FredWes got the idea of “Loving People to Life?”

There is little doubt it is a catchy slogan that has a warm sound to it, but so what?

What does it mean?

Why does it matter?

Over the next five Sundays at FredWes we plan answer the “So What” question about our mission and we will go retro to do it!

I could go to the Book of Acts and document our mission as an extension of their mission (because it is) but I will go back to God’s call to Abraham. It is powerfully clear what God intended for His people in the Land of Promise He envisioned using Abraham to establish.

God’s covenant-driven call to Abraham was shaped by God’s vision of what a place that developed healthy God-worshippers should look like. It captivated Abraham and lured him far away from his comfort zone.

In these several but significant verses I see God’s guidance and blueprint for a healthy place for His people, a place where people can be loved to life! As I framed the vision for FredWes I shared the same passion God infused in Abraham when He called him to be the Founder of a Land of Promise.

A place that attracts and develops healthy God-followers creates an environment that is:

A PLACE WHERE IT IS EASY TO BELIEVE

A PLACE WHERE IT IS EASY TO BELONG

A PLACE WHERE IT IS EASY TO BLESS

At the risk of being presumptive, I believe the reason you decided to make FredWes your church home is because you found these healthy faith factors in operation within our fellowship.

In an environment created by these faith-building factors it is easy to love people to life!

If you have been drawn to FredWes because of this environment I want to ask you for three things as your pastor:

1) Commit to loving God with all your life

2) Allow us to continue loving you to life.

3) Ask God to use you to love others to life and let FredWes help

Will you make a place in your heart for that?

December 28, 2015

“But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”   Luke 2:10-11

God Is Aware Of Your Fear!

Fear usually arises out of our weakness or areas where we feel out of control. God knows that.

Zechariah and Elizabeth lived under the fear that they would be judged as less spiritual because they were childless. Children were seen as a sign of God’s blessing and God’s blessing was considered a reward for your level of spirituality.

So, Zechariah had labored faithfully as a priest but had done so with a heavy heart over being childless and being disrespected because of something he couldn’t control.

You get a sense for the level of his disappointment when he hesitated to believe the angel’s announcement.

But to that fear the angel spoke, “Fear not!”

Mary’s biggest fear after being assured that God would cause her to become pregnant with the divine child even though she was a virgin, was how her pregnancy would be viewed by Joseph and the rest of her neighbors in Nazareth.

What if Joseph didn’t believe her story and chose to divorce her? She had no control over how he would respond.

What if the people of the town didn’t believe her story – she could be stoned to death! She had no control over what they might decide to do.

Those were very real fears, but to them the angel spoke, “Fear Not!”

Out on the Judean hillside those shepherds also struggled with fears. They feared insignificance. All they were was lowly shepherd, some of the most overlooked and unappreciated people in the land. The shepherds had little control over the level of disrespect they received but it was hard to take.

But God valued them and gave them significance by sending the angel to say, “Feat not!”

You and I see our weaknesses as obstacles to faith, but God sees our weaknesses as opportunities to show His power!

As God told St. Paul, “My strength is made perfect in your weakness!”

The exciting news is that God used weak and fearful people to change the world! He met them in their doubts and at their inadequacies and in their anxiety and unleashed His power through them.

You may feel like you are weak and your life out of control, but "Fear not" a miracle is on its way!

December 27, 2015

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people." Luke 2:10

Once famous evangelist, Billy Sunday said, “if you have no joy, there’s a leak in your Christianity.”

Joy was a new experience for the shepherds because joy arrived with the coming of Jesus! But it should not be a novel experience for you. Jesus intended for His believers to live in joy:

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." John 15:11

"Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete." John 16:24

So, what can you learn about joy from this encounter between the angel and the shepherds?

First, joy comes from receiving the good news.

These shepherds heard the good news in a very dramatic way. The angels came to them with this amazing announcement. How great was that?!

You will not get the news from an angel but the good news is no less powerful. One of your main responsibilities is to put yourself into places where you can receive the good news. Whether that be church service or small group or listening on radio or on the Internet or watching TV or in your daily devotions, it is up to you to get your daily dose of good news! No one else can do that for you.

How can you have joy if you are not regularly hearing the good news? What are you doing to make sure you regularly hear the good news?

Second, joy comes from responding to the good news.

The shepherds immediately responded to the good news. When they heard about what was happening they went to see it for themselves.

What do you do with the good news you receive? Do you obey it? Do you test it? Do you live it out in your daily living so that you know it it true? Do you let it guide your decisions and steer your emotions? Joy is not an emotion, but it is an action that leads to positive feelings. Feelings always follow faith and faith is the preferred response to the good news.

Living in joy means receiving the good news and responding to the good news and thirdly, joy results from relationship with the good news!

Joy is the natural response to living in relationship with Jesus. If you receive the good news just for information you will not live in joy. If you receive purely for inspiration it will not remain. But if you will commit to living in an intimate personal relationship with Jesus, your joy will not leak. The good news is about truth and Jesus IS the Truth! The good news is about finding your way and Jesus IS the Way! The good news is a way of life and Jesus IS the Life!

How is your relationship with Jesus? 

How well do you know Him?

Is He your Source of Joy?

Don't let the joy leak out of your life. Plug that leak by plugging into Jesus! Receive His good news daily and respond to it and live in relationship with it!

Have a joyous day of worship!

December 26,2015

"Zechariah asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." The angel answered, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news." Luke 1:18-19

"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:34-37

"This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:18-21

We live in an age of "reality" TV shows, virtual reality devices and a 24/7 media that seeks to shape your sense of reality.

No wonder people are questioning, "What is real?"

Christmas give us the answer. Christmas clearly proves that God is real and faith in Him defines, yes, redefines our reality.

The events of that first Christmas challenged how Zechariah and Elizabeth and Mary and Joseph defined their reality.

For Zechariah and Elizabeth, in their "real" world, old barren people didn't have babies. They had long since cashed in their dream of being parents. They had done all the right things and lives served the Lord. But He had not honored them with a child. Disappointing as that was, they chose to remain faithful to God. They had adjusted to a world of bareness.

And then one day, an angel showed up with a word news from God that challenged their reality.

When the angel asked them to believe the unbelievable they had to decide which reality would define their belief.

Mary and Joseph were both the kind of young people you would love to claim. They were faithful to God and lived with integrity. Their wedding was fast approaching and they looked forward to completing their love and being man and wife. Honoring God in their relationship wasn't easy, but it was right and they had done so.

Then the angel confronted Mary with a word from God that challenged her reality. How can a virgin conceive? She had saved herself for Joseph and now her first child would not be his. She had to decide which reality she wanted to live in? Did she want to please God and risk her relationship with Joseph, or disappoint God to protect her marriage plans?

Would she believe what made sense or would she believe the unbelievable and trust God - and Joseph? She had never heard of anything like this before. Could she trust God to do the impossible or remain in the world she knew?

We are not sure how the news came to Joseph that his fiance' was pregnant. Did Mary tell him or did the rumor mill get to him first? If she told him then she surely told of the angel and the plan of God. I am sure he wanted to believe her but it was an unreal story. Virgins don't get pregnant. He thought he knew Mary, but her story didn't square with the reality he knew. What would he believe?

And then the angel came to him in a dream and confirmed Mary's story. Now he would have to be open to a new reality.

Each of these principles in the Christmas story were asked to believe the unbelievable. They were asked to shift from a reality of limited possibilities to a new reality where "nothing is impossible with God"! Everyone of them took the leap of faith. And through their altered reality, God changed reality forever!

So, on this day after Christmas, we find ourselves in the very same place they were. Christmas challenges our reality. Are we going to believe what we know and what we see? Are we going to live in the limited world of sight and sound and senses and previous experiences, or are we going to believe God?

Christmas was impossible - but now it is real! Before Christmas, salvation was impossible, but now it can be real! Before Christmas we were limited to a world of human possibilities, now we can step into a new reality of infinite power, presence, and peace.

Christmas is the ultimate reality show! Which reality will you show?

December 25, 2015

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people." Luke 2:10

Joyous Christmas to you!

Here is another reason why the good news of Christmas brings reason for joy.

Christmas brings the joy of His presence, and the joy of His pardon, and the joy of His peace. Anyone of those is reason enough alone - but ALL of them are available to you through Christ!

Want more?

Find joy in His power!

It was the power of God that caused an elderly couple to conceive and give birth to John the Baptist, the greatest prophet ever! From their weakness came the strength of God! From their impotence sprang a miracle! His power brought Zachariah and Elizabeth great joy!

Why?

Because "nothing is impossible with God"! That is His power!

Through the power of God a virgin gave birth to the Son of God without ever knowing a man! It is impossible, but it happened! Because "nothing is impossible with God"! He has the power to accomplish everything He wishes to accomplish. And he can do it through weak human beings! Mary found exceeding joy through the power of God at work in her!

Christmas demonstrates the amazing power of God! Nothing is impossible because of His great power! And that power resides in you when you walk in Christ and His Spirit!

Perhaps you are facing some difficult challenges as you celebrate Christmas 2015. Find joy in the power of God! Take joy in the knowledge that "nothing is impossible for God"!

Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2015

"Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what sort of greeting this might be." Luke 1:29

God called a teen-aged Jewish girl named Mary to commit to an overwhelming life-changing experience so He could offer life-change to a world overwhelmed with sin.

And while we find her feeling overwhelmed at the beginning of this story it ends with her being overjoyed. 

How did she go from being overwhelmed to being overjoyed?

That's what we are considering around the blessed Christmas Holiday 2015.

First, let's consider what overwhelmed her.

She was overwhelmed when an angel from God appeared to her. 

I can't speak for you but I would find the sudden and unexpected appearance of an Archangel an overwhelming experience.

So did Mary.

Anytime you are confronted by God it is overwhelming because you are reminded of His holiness and your humanity. 

She was overwhelmed by the angel's announcement.

Anytime you are confronted by God He calls you to surrender your will to His will. That is an overwhelming proposition.

Have you been confronted by God's will and not found it overwhelming? I haven't because to start doing His will means I must cease doing mine.

We know Mary was overwhelmed by virtue of her announcements to the angel:

V. 29 - "Mary was greatly troubled at his words......"

V. 30 - "How can this be possible since I am a virgin?"

The reason we are having this conversation about Mary is because even though she was overwhelmed by His will she was open to it. She didn't say, "No" she asked, "How"?

I find it very encouraging that when God knew she was willing to obey, He helped her by speaking to some of her concerns. God helps those who want to obey!

Have you ever found yourself overwhelmed around the Christmas Holiday Season?

Perhaps you are there now!

You are in good company!

Despite the manic attempts by our culture to secularize Christmas, still it confronts you with the will of God. Could it be that you would rather overwhelm yourself with Christmas shopping, Christmas parties, Christmas baking, Christmas decorating and Christmas gift-wrapping rather than allow yourself to be confronted by God?