Could There Be Life On Planet Gliese 581g?

Astronomers say they have spotted, for the first time, a planet beyond our own in what is sometimes called the Goldilocks zone for life: Not too hot, not too cold. Just right. This new planet sits smack in the middle of what astronomers refer to as the habitable zone, unlike any of the nearly 500 other planets astronomers have found outside our solar system. And, it is in our galactic neighborhood, suggesting that plenty of Earth-like planets circle other stars.

There are a lot of unanswered questions about this strange planet. It is about three times the mass of Earth, slightly larger in width and much closer to its star - 14 million miles away versus our 93 million. It's so close to its version of the sun that it orbits every 37 days. And it doesn't rotate much, so one side is almost always bright, the other dark. Temperatures can be as hot as 160 degrees or as frigid as 25 degrees below zero, but in between - in the land of constant sunrise - it would be "shirt-sleeve weather." It is unknown whether water actually exists on the planet, and what kind of atmosphere it has. But because conditions are ideal for liquid water, and because there always seems to be life on Earth where there is water, astronomer Steven Vogt of the University of California at Santa Cruz believes "that chances for life on this planet are 100 percent."

The only problem with all of this is that the planet is 120 trillion miles away, so it would take several generations for a spaceship to get there. However, while this seems like a long distance, in the scheme of the vast universe, this planet is "like right in our face, right next door to us," astronomer Vogt said in an interview.

Hebrews 11:3 tells us: By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Ephesians 4:10 says: He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe. Many verses in the Bible tell us about a Creator unlimited by time or space. We cannot even comprehend distances like 120 trillion miles. Somehow that doesn't seem to me to be "right in our face, right next door to us." Last summer we drove out to the West Coast and back to St. Louis, about 8,500 miles, and we were totally exhausted. The incredible thing about this is that the God who created the universe, who I am sure, delights in us finding things like new planets, is the same God who knows me intimately. The Bible tells me that he knows things about me that I do not even know. Have you ever tried to count the number of hairs on your head? Once again, science, and specifically astronomy, have blown me away with the vastness of God, and yet He knows and loves me, me. Wow...

Some Thoughts About Judas and Remorse

I had an interesting conversation with Nicole, our 18 year old first year college student, recently. She is writing a script for our youth human video team. Part of the script deals with Judas, the disciple that betrayed Jesus. She said that basically what she has been taught is that Judas was a greedy person who probably didn't believe in Jesus from the start and only followed Him for what he could get personally. In the script she is writing, she was wondering if there was more to the story, did he feel any remorse, and will Judas be in Heaven? I gave her a couple of things to think about regarding what the scriptures have to say, particularly in Matthew 26 and 27.

After we ended our conversation, I did some more thinking about Judas and what his motivation was in betraying Jesus, and then his tragic end. The one question Nicole asked, "will Judas be in Heaven?", really got me thinking. It seems like one of the keys to Judas' motivation may be found in the story of the expensive perfume being poured on his head while he was at the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany. Mark says "Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, 'Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year's wages and the money given to the poor'. And they rebuked her harshly." Was Judas among these? Was this a tipping point for Judas? Verse 10 of Mark 14 says, "Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them". The "Then" of this verse comes right after the account of the perfume incident. Interesting thought...

One more thought, why would Judas ask during the Lord's Supper if he was the betrayer unless he thought that Jesus would not know, and not point him out? Would he make himself the deliberate object of scorn in front of his peers? Even after all the miraculous events that Judas had experienced with Jesus, he apparently did not believe that Christ was God, and was all knowing. I think Judas was taken completely by surprise when Jesus said, "Yes, it is you." I believe that Judas' world was turned upside down by that one incident. Now, for the first time, he clearly understood who Christ was, and that he would be "selling Him down the river". I believe that from the time that night that he kissed Christ in the garden to point Him out until the next morning when Judas went to the temple to return the money, he was in the greatest anguish a person could be in. Early the next morning, when he could not resolve the situation, when he couldn't fix it, in desperation he threw the money at the priests and ran out and took his own life.

Will we see Judas in Heaven? As the rope tightened around his neck, did Judas have time to breathe the words, "O God, please forgive me?" What do you think?

The Solitude of Rustling Leaves

I watched part of an infomercial the other day for a yard tool. I'm kind of a tool nerd, so I enjoy hearing about and looking at new tools. This was a 3 in 1 yard blower, vacuum and mulcher. The cool thing about it is that you do not need any attachments. You simply flip a switch and it changes from one function to another. For 3 easy payments of $29.95 plus shipping, it could be all mine. "But wait..." If I called in the next 10 minutes they threw in all kinds of goodies. The main selling point was all the time I was going to save by blowing all the leaves and debris in my yard, all over my yard. With the voice-over trying to compete with the blower, it was a very noisy infomercial. After a few minutes I went back to the football game I was watching.

Today I mowed and raked my yard. I thought briefly about the vacuum/mulcher tool as I raked leaves by hand. Then I thought a little bit about the tool as I swept leaves and cuttings down my sidewalk. It would have saved me a lot of time. However, I enjoyed the quietness and solitude. Since this was the middle of the day on a week day, there was almost no sound in our neighborhood, just the sound of my straw broom on the cement. I needed that solitude today. Kathy and I are wrestling with a very difficult situation with our 16 year old. We are at the point of not knowing what to do. My prayers have been reduced to a simple "help us, O God". In the solitude of sweeping the sidewalk and street, and then looking back at my work and seeing a groomed yard, I felt good about my work, but a lot better in my spirit because I had taken some time to let God's presence touch my life as I worked. I took plenty of pauses as I prayed, thought, pondered and said "help us".

I don't think I'll be ordering the 3 in 1 yard tool. I need more of these moments of solitude. Moments when God knows everything I'm feeling when I can only manage a feeble "help us". Maybe you can breathe a "help them" for us, when you think about it.

Wonderful Name, Jesus

Yesterday I posted a Facebook status about the Choir rehearsal I had just come from. One of the senior pastors I worked for in Albany, Oregon, Allen "Tex" Groff replied and said in part, "I wish I was there..." His comment to my post reminded me of a wonderful experience we had in Albany one Christmas. First Assembly was a great place to work and to attend. Pastor Groff encouraged creativity in every area of the church, expecially with his staff members. I think every staff member thought he was their biggest fan. He kept a file drawer full of examples of his staff's accomplishments. The way I found out about that file drawer was when one of my original choir songs was published by Manna Music. I took a copy of the published song into one of my meetings with Pastor Groff. After he congratulated me on my accomplishment and looked over the printed copy, he opened the drawer to put the copy away, and explained to me about what was there. The great thing about working for Pastor Groff was that he had been a minister of music, and he was a wonderful musician and lead worshipper. I knew for sure that he was my biggest fan.

Well, on to the Christmas story. For the second half of this year's production we were performing the Rodger Strader musical King of Love. One of the early songs in that musical is Wonderful Name, Jesus. I had asked Pastor Groff to narrate the musical. He had rehearsed on his own and we were putting it all together at the dress rehearsal. Since he had not heard the choir and orchestra rehearse prior to the dress rehearsal, this was his "first listen." The orchestra began the introduction with a gorgeous string introduction and harp gliss. I turned towards Pastor Groff to give him his narration cue. As I raised my baton to cue him, I realized he wasn't looking at me. His face was in his hands and his shoulders were shaking. It was quite obvious that heaven had touched earth at that moment, and he had been swept into God's presence. For a few moments we all rejoiced in God's goodness and the promise of the Redeemer. When Pastor Groff was finally composed enough to say something, he apologized for stopping the rehearsal. Everyone assured him that this was a wonderful moment and there was no apology needed. We went on to finish the rehearsal and performed our musical that year four times to nearly 5,000 guests. Everyone said "this was the best one yet." (they say that every year) However, I think it might have been, because I think that every choir member, every orchestra member, and each technical crew person was touched by God's presence in a special way during that rehearsal. I will never forget this experience. Even now as I write these words, my spirit senses God's presence in a very real way. If you have iTunes loaded on your computer, you can listen to the song that touched us all. http://www.qpg.com/custom/1006077/kol04.mp3

God Leads Us Along

I love hearing the stories of the hymns and songs that we sing. Many are forged out of great sorrow and grief, and many are written out of tremendous joy and rejoicing. George A Young was a preacher who made his living doing carpentry work. He and his wife eventually entered full-time ministry, going from small church to small church in rural areas. Their experiences were many-some good and some heartbreaking. Often those with whom they worked were too poor to help in supplying the needs of the preacher and his wife and family. George and his wife did not waver, saying "God is doing the leading all we have to do is follow. He will not forsake us in time of need and is also very much aware of our situation wherever we are."

After many years, the Youngs were able to scrape enough money together to buy a small lot and George began to build a small home for his family. It took them several years to complete the house. At last the day came, and the Young family moved into their own home, how wonderful it was! Then disaster struck while George and his family were away holding church services. It is thought that someone, not in sympathy with Young and his preaching and not in favor that the likes of him should have a home of his own, set fire to it. When the family returned, their home was a heap of ashes. All that George and his family had sacrificed for and dreamed of was now a memory.

As Mr. Young stood and looked at the ashes, his heart was sad but he found a deep consolation as he remembered the priceless things he possessed which could not be destroyed by fire. Perhaps, like Job, this could be an attack of Satan but he was not alone, for God was aware of it all. In his mind, words began to form -
     Tho' sorrows befall us and Satan oppose,
     God leads His dear children along.
     Some thro' the waters, some thro' the flood,
     Some thro' great sorrow, but God gives a song.
     In the night season and all the day long.

George A. Young had been given the beginning of a song in his deep night of despair-a song that would lift many burdens and give light and encouragement to untold thousands in the years ahead. Within a few days he had written three other verses and in 1903 God Leads Us Along was first published.

That Was Quite A Year Part 2

Kathryn Kuhlman's Las Vegas crusade was, I believe, a high point in her ministry. "Sin City" opened its heart and city to her and the Las Vegas Convention Center was packed the day of her crusade there in 1975. I was sitting in the first balcony, first row. I could see the stage perfectly. I did not want to miss a thing. As a young minister, I was eager to see the power of God move in the hearts and lives of people. Sometime during the service a breeze blew from the right side of where I was sitting. Since it was hot in the building and there was no air movement, the breeze caught my attention. I followed the direction of the breeze even though I could not see any visible sign of it. I followed it from my right to my left and I kept looking in the direction that I thought the breeze was going. As I watched towards my left, I saw a commotion down on the convention center floor, near the edge of the balcony. I saw people moving around and suddenly a gurney begin to move. I realized then that I had seen this gurney come in earlier, before the service started. When they came in, the person on that gurney was very still and was obviously being attended to by medical people. By the time the gurney, and the person pushing it reached the platform, the whole place had gone nuts. I don't remember all the details of the story, but I do remember that this person was near death. They had been brought to the service against doctor's wishes and now this person was strong enough to push their gurney all the way to the platform. This event was made all the more real to me because I had seen this person being wheeled in earlier, and now I had witnessed a tremendous miracle. A lot happened that day, it was quite an experience. By the way, you can see Kathy in this picture of the platform. Look for the harp.

On one of our trips to Los Angeles for a service at the Shrine Auditorium, I went to the Kuhlman office with Kathy's father to pick up up music for the choir rehearsal that night. I sat out in the reception area while Paul gathered the music. Just as I sat down, Miss Kuhlman and one of assistants came through the door. Paul introduced me. He and Miss Kuhlman's assistant went into another office to get what they needed and Miss Kuhlman sat down and we had the opportunity to talk. I asked her the one question I had wondered about ever since my interest in the miracle healing power of God had gripped me. "How does God heal?" "How do you put yourself in the position for God to work through you so miraculously?" I sat with baited breath, knowing I was going to find out one of the deepest and most hidden secrets of Christian ministry. Her answer was, "I don't know". In my mind I thought, "how can you not know?" We talked some more about the meetings, she was interested in my ministry and my family, and we enjoyed a few more minutes together and we all left the office. The next day, at the service, I had the backstage experience I described yesterday. Then I knew the deepest and most hidden secret of divine healing ministry...total reliance on God's power, resting on a humble servant. I will never forget that year.

That Was Quite A Year

We have a 3 picture frame on our living room wall, near the hall that leads to our bedrooms. I look at those 3 pictures every time I walk down the hall. Tonight, as I paused to look at them more closely, I was reminded of one of the most significant years of Kathy's and my life.

The center picture shows Kathy sitting in a chair, next to her ebony Lyon & Healy A10 harp. She is on a stage, behind is a large organ with the organist sitting on the bench. There are other people on the stage. The bottom picture shows Kathy's harp again with Kathryn Kuhlman standing next to it. The top picture shows Kathy, Kathryn Kuhlman and myself. The middle picture was taken in Las Vegas at one of Kathryn's largest crusades. The other two pictures were taken at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

The last year of Kathryn Kuhlman's ministry Kathy played several times at the once-a-month Sunday afternoon services at the Shrine Auditorium. Kathy's dad conducted the large choir that sang at the services, as well as the praise & worship. My role was the chief harp mover. At some meetings I sang in the choir, at others I sat in the audience and at a couple I stayed back stage. It was one of those times backstage that I watched something that I will never forget. Miss Kuhlman, as she was called, was pacing back and forth behind the large stage curtain. Each time she turned my way I could hear her say things like, "I can't do this without You", "please let Your Spirit rest on me", "don't let me do anything on my own without Your leading". If you don't know anything about Kathryn Kuhlman, she had a marvelous healing ministry. By the time she was waiting to go out to speak and minister, in each of her meetings, people had already been healed outside the auditorium as they were waiting to get in, people were healed inside the auditorium before the meeting started and all throughout the meeting itself. In fact, she never prayed for anyone for healing. She did not want to take any credit for God's miracle working power. All she really did was interview people who had already been healed. If you only saw her public ministry, you would never know how much she relied on God's leading and presence in her life.

Next time I'll tell you about her Las Vegas crusade and what I experienced there, as well as a visit in her Los Angeles office. She was quite a lady. I think I'll go look at the pictures again. Oh, by the way, my Kathryn was named after Miss Kuhlman. That's a story for another time.

By 2031 You May Be Able To Go On An Earth Orbiting Sightseeing Tour

Every generation can remember things that were in use at one time, and then gradually were phased out until they only existed in garage sales or museums. In my generation, computers replacing typewriters was a major change. Early in my professional career I became quite adept at using an IBM Selectric typewriter. I took typing in 9th grade and could type quite fast. Later I learned how to change ribbons, change font balls, do minor maintenance and generally became a Selectric "help desk", although that term didn't exist at the time. I still remember buying my first computer. It was at an Office Depot type big box office supply store. My computer with its monochrome monitor and dot matrix printer was huge, slow, and very non-user friendly. But it was incredible... Now, 20 years later, I'm composing this blog post on a computer that doesn't even begin to compare to that first one. I have a flat screen display, 4 gigs of ram, an optical drive and numerous wireless devices. Plus, I'm connected to the world wide web. Things I didn't even dream about when I was using that first computer.

How about the future? What is coming in the next 10, 20, 50 years? A couple of months ago, 40 Japanese scientists came together to map out the things they thought they would develop in the near future. Here are some of them. 2020 - Thin, flexible electronic displays replace newspapers. 2022 - Synthethic blood makes donation unnecessary. 2026 - Domestic humanoids become common. 2028 - Smellovision televisions that produce tastes and smells grace every living room. 2023 - Doctors use medicine to control any cancer. 2033 - Stem-cell techniques can produce artificial organs. 2035 - Commercial flights are 100 percent autopilot. 2040 - Earthlings establish a manned lunar base.

I thought is was interesting that except for dealing with cancer, none of these forecasts dealt with the human condition. Will we find answers for the anger and mistrust that permeates our world? Will a nuclear war have taken place by 2040, crippling the world and diminishing the population? The movie I Am Legend dealt with a world wide virus that wipes out all but a tiny group of people. Could that happen? In Jeremiah 29:11 we find this wonderful promise. For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Regardless of what is on the horizon, both positive and negative, God has a plan for us. Help us, O God, to put our trust in You. Help us to look to You first, to stand on Your promises. Thank You because You know us, love us, and have planned our future.

Where Are the Leaders?

When it comes right down to it, most of us are followers. We may have a leadership role at work, or in a club, or a church group, and at home, but most of us do not bear the load of "the buck stops here" leadership. For followers, there is a comfort level in knowing that someone else is in charge. That someone else is affirming our work, looking out for us and making decisions that will be good for us.

As I have watched national and international events unfold recently, I have come to the realization that the unrest we feel, the raw nerves that are being set off by talk of racism, extremism and all the other "isms", is coming from a lack of leadership. No one is in charge when it comes to our national and international economy. No one is delivering answers in the escalating racism rhetoric in our country. No one has a handle on immigration. The "burn the Koran, move the mosque" circus is playing to capacity crowds. Everyone has an opinion, but no one seems to have any answers. No one seems to be able to bring anyone together to find solutions. There are no peace makers. News coverage has become combative as the right and left side of the political spectrum take swings at each other. We are less than two months away from the midterm elections and the political climate will continue to heat up. The problem is, however, that while it appears that a majority of Americans are rejecting the direction our President has taken the country in, there doesn't appear to be much of an agenda from the other side to deliver answers to the situation we find ourselves in. How do we create jobs, how do we jump start the housing industry, how do we deal with illegal immigration? What should be our response to the inevitable nuclear weapon development in Iran? Is there a solution to the deteriorating financial markets in Europe? The questions go on and on, and no answers in sight.

We need Godly leaders on every level to step up and lead. Rather than praying for these situations, we should be praying for leaders who are not afraid to lead, regardless of the political fallout. Some of the greatest leaders in the Old Testament were the prophets who spoke the Word of God with boldness, they were used of God in mighty ways, and nations were changed. They weren't the most popular men, and sometimes they had to run for their lives, but when the people got themselves in trouble, they always sought out the "man of God." Oh God, in the midst of this leadership vacuum, would you raise up leaders. Men and women who speak the truth boldly, with authority, and without regard to the political consequences. Father, we need Your wisdom and authority. Help us, O God and may Your name be exalted throughout the world.

Staying On the Message

In 2010 I have been reading a daily volume titled The One Year Christian History. I have really enjoyed all the stories about Christians and the events that impacted their world. Some of them have been great moments, and some not so good. Today's reading was about Georg Blaurock, a Catholic priest from Chur, Switzerland who was born in 1491. He came to Christ about 1523. In his devotion to personal study of the Bible, he became convinced that baptism was for believers in Christ, not infants.  Georg joined a group known as Anabaptists, meaning rebaptizers. In 1525, the Zurich city council warned all parents in Zurich that they must have their children baptized within eight days of their birth or face banishment from Zurich. The Anabaptists decided to fight this edict and so arrests were made and people went to prison and, it appears to me a lot of people got off the message of the Gospel. While still in his 30s, Georg Blaurock, a promising preacher and man of God, was burned at the stake because of his beliefs on baptism. This seems like such a terrible waste of a life, and the issue deviates so far from the core reason that we exist as Christians.

When Christ was praying in the garden of Gethsemane before his arrest and crucifixion, he prayed that the Christians at the time, and all Christians to come, would be one, just like He and the Father are one, so that the world would know that the Father had sent Him. In other words, that love would be the prevailing characteristic of the people of God, so that a watching world would have tangible evidence of a loving God who is manifested through the lives of His children. Our message must be that the love of God has been freely given to us and that He forgives our sins and reconciles us to himself.

This morning on the news I heard this: "In protest of what it calls a religion "of the devil," a nondenominational church in Gainesville, Florida, plans to host an "International Burn a Quran Day" on the ninth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks. The Dove World Outreach Center says it is hosting the event to remember 9/11 victims and take a stand against Islam. With promotions on its website and Facebook page, it invites Christians to burn the Muslim holy book at the church from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m."

If this takes place, how will this church ever minister to Muslims who are seeking after Christ? How will this affect the Muslim view of Christianity? What this misguided event will do is to provoke other Christians to condemn this church, Muslims will condemn this church, and the Gospel will be the loser. We are living in difficult times and the church of Jesus Christ must stay on the message. He is our Redeemer, our Savior, and He wants to draw all people to Himself. We must love people into the kingdom, not condemn them. Oh God, help us to listen to Your voice, to do the things You have asked us to do. May Your will be done in our lives.

So Long, Spudley

Fifteen years ago we added a new member to our family. Our good friend, Ron, owned a pet store in Grand Junction, Colorado. He was a member of our church and lived across the street from us. One day he came over and said that a breeder he worked with had a Pekingese puppy that he would give away. While this puppy had a great bloodline, his plumbing didn't form properly and he would never be able to breed. With all our kids jumping up and down saying "yes, we'll take him", how could Kathy and I say no. So a brand new puppy joined our full house. The first job was to name him. Both our boys were basketball players and they decided that our new puppy resembled a short player in the NBA, Spud Webb. Somehow I suspect that if Spud Webb had known that a new Pekingese puppy had been named for him, he would have doubted it was a compliment. But after a lot of names and input from everyone in the family, the name Spud stuck. Somewhere along the line, he also became know as Spudley. Spud lived with us in Grand Junction, moved with us to Oklahoma City and then for the past eight years in St. Louis. 

Spud was a great dog. We had a lot of wonderful years with him. He really became part of our family. Spud loved Josh. Every time Josh came over Spud acted like a puppy again. He loved to have Josh hold him. One time when we were Skyping with Josh and Kelly from South Africa, Spud heard Josh's voice and started to respond as if Josh was in the room. 

 Earlier this year we became aware of the fact the Spud was slowing down. He still came to the door to greet us when we came home, but a lot slower. I even think his tail wagged slower. In the last two weeks he really slowed down. He didn't even want to go outside. He ate very little. On Monday it was apparent that he really wasn't doing good. We decided Tuesday evening that Spudley needed to see a vet. On Wednesday morning, before we could get him to a vet, he breathed his last breath. He was on Kathy's and my bed, he had been there since Monday. Kathy left the room briefly to do something in another part of the house and when she came back, Spud was gone. Today we dug a deep hole in our yard and laid him to rest. Shawn helped me dig. Shawn took Spuds passing really hard. Spud slept in Shawn's room a lot. Shawn is going to miss his buddy.

I'm not the greatest pet person. I suppose I could have gone my entire life without having a dog. But I'm glad Spud was part of our lives. We'll really miss him. I wonder if we'll see Spud again. Last night a friend told me that he was positive that pets would be in heaven. I guess we'll see. For now, we have pictures and memories of Spud, and that is enough.

What If Things Only Get Worse?

My last blog dealt with the issue of deep roots and trusting God. Here is Max Lucado's take on the subject from another angle. The title is What If Things Only Get Worse? "Christ tells us that they will. He predicts spiritual bailouts, ecological turmoil, and worldwide persecution. Yet in the midst of it all, he contends bravery is still an option. Things are going to get bad, really bad, before they get better. And when conditions worsen, “See to it that you are not alarmed” (Matt. 24:6 NIV). Jesus chose a stout term for alarmed that he used on no other occasion. It means “to wail, to cry aloud,” as if Jesus counseled the disciples, “Don’t freak out when bad stuff happens.”

“See to it…” Bosses and teachers are known to use that phrase. “See to it that you fill out the reports.” Or “Your essay is due tomorrow. See to it that you finish your work.” The words call for additional attention, special focus, extra resolve. Isn’t this what Christ is asking of us? In this dangerous day, on this Faberge’-fragile globe, with financial collapse on the news and terrorists on the loose, we have every reason to retreat into bunkers of dread and woe.

But Christ says to us, “See to it that you are not alarmed.” (NIV) “Keep your head and don’t panic” (MSG).
“See that you are not troubled” (NKJV).

And remember: “All these [challenging times] are the beginning of birth pains” (Matt. 24:8 NIV), and birth pangs aren’t all bad. (Easy for me to say.) Birth pains signal the onset of the final push. The pediatrician assures the mom-to-be, “It’s going to hurt for a time, but it’s going to get better.” Jesus assures us of the same. Global conflicts indicate our date on the maternity calendar. We are in the final hours, just a few
pushes from delivery, a few brief ticks of eternity’s clock from the great crowning of creation. A whole new world is coming!" This is a good word from Max Lucado. Oh Lord, in spite of what appears to be on the horizon, help us to keep our heads and not panic. Help us to trust you as we make a difference in a world that desperately needs to know You.

Roots That Reach Deep

Every Saturday, a retired pastor in our congregation sends a scripture and writes a blog based on the scripture. It is interesting how many times the scripture touches an area of my life. Today was no different. Here's the scripture Iver Walker picked for today:

“Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:7-8 NLT)

It seems like one of the keys here is that "they never stop producing fruit", regardless of the circumstances. The "they" is you and me. Right now I am struggling with issues involving raising a teenager, replacing a vehicle we can't really afford and dealing with a perplexing situation in my professional life. Jeremiah said that if we are like trees with roots that reach deep into the river's water, we won't be bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. This scripture gives me tremendous hope, because I am certainly feeling the heat of drought in these three areas. I know I have made the Lord my hope and confidence, and I truly trust Him. Therefore, I can believe that my roots will sustain me, my leaves will stay green and I will not stop producing fruit.

Are you in a tough spot? Take heart, this scripture was written for you as well. Trust in the Lord and make Him your hope and confidence. Now, I better pick some clothes for church tomorrow that match my green leaves...

A Rock Solid Servant of God

Last weekend I spent two days in Southern California. I attended a celebration service and funeral for my uncle, Jose Ibarra. Uncle Joe was married for 68 years to my mother's sister, my aunt Isabel. This past July, there was a celebration marking my uncle's seventy years of full time ministry. At 87 years old, Jose Ibarra was teaching Bible school classes and part of the leadership team of Templo Calvario in Santa Ana, California. A week ago Monday, he died suddenly from a heart attack.

Uncle Joe was part of a generation of Hispanic ministers in the Assemblies of God that helped pave the way for what has become the fastest growing segment of the AG. He pastored several churches and served as an officer in two Spanish AG districts. He also served as a national AG representative. Over  seventy years of ministry he mentored countless numbers of young ministers and helped strengthen churches up and down California. He was a leader at a time when the Hispanic Assemblies of God was expanding and reaching thousands of immigrants pouring in from Latin America. He was a leader at a time when there was never enough money or resources for what needed to be done. The offerings given by Hispanic Christians come from lower salaried jobs and resources. Most Hispanic churches still struggle financially because incomes are lower than English speaking churches. Most ministers of his era lived very modest lives. They lived in modest houses and drove economy cars, usually very used. The ministers of his generation worked incredibly hard and set a work ethic standard for generations that will follow.

On Friday night I rejoiced at the celebration service to hear all the stories, humorous recollections and the testimony of people deeply affected by his life. While there will be sadness, loss and grief, there is also  a tremendous admiration for a life lived in this manner. Two words were used over and over, "integrity" and "righteousness". He was a man of the Word, preacher, teacher, and he lived the Word of God.

Uncle Joe set the bar high. O God, help to keep that bar in sight as we live our lives. As a minister, may that bar propel to the highest that you want for me and from me.

A Baby Dedication And A Hole In A Heart

I was talking today with one of our financial employees about her son and a hole in his heart. Somewhere between the time that tests showed the hole and getting scheduled for a procedure to close it, the hole disappeared. A lot of prayers were prayed for Andy and as we talked we agreed that this indeed could be a wonderful miracle of healing. An additional test will confirm that the hole  is really gone. PTL!

I told Lolly about the very first foster baby that Kathy and I, mostly Kathy, cared for. Katie came to us as an infant with a rather large hole in her heart. Our social work said that our task would be to help Katie gain weight and strength to endure an operation to close the heart. We also had to commit to a series of doctors visits, tests and whatever Katie might need. At the time we were working at First Assembly of God in Albany, Oregon and our senior pastor was Allen (Tex) Groff. He is a real pastor's pastor. The kind of pastor that made everyone feel great about being part of our church. When he led our services, it was like your father or grandfather was in charge, you knew you were loved and cared for. We knew that asking him to dedicate Katie was a little strange since she wasn't our child and we did not know what her future might hold. When we asked him about it, it was the kind of reaction I knew he would have, he was all for it. That morning he cradled Katie just like she was his own. For that moment, she was, that was the way Tex Groff was, and even though she was an infant, I can't help but believe that God helped her understand what a wonderful environment, and arms, she was in. We prayed for her, shed a few tears and rejoiced in God's goodness and then the service went on.

A week later, Kathy took Katie for an appointment. The doctor listened, and listened and finally said that he needed to take her to another examination room. After quite awhile, the doctors came back to tell Kathy that they thought the hole might not be there anymore. After confirming tests, that is exactly what it was. Katie had been healed during her dedication. Our church rejoiced in this wonderful manifestation of God's love and care for one so small and defenseless. Within a few days the social services department put her on the active adoption list and she left our home for a permanent one. Over the next twenty years we saw many miracles in the lives of children that we cared for in our home, but that experience was one of the real highlights. God is so good. Oh, and Andy, we'll be waiting for that confirmation so we can celebrate with you.

53 Minutes To Go

Every once in a while God helps us understand how much He loves us and cares about the smallest details of our lives. I think it is so great when God intervenes in the lives of our children in unmistakable ways.

We've been school shopping, looking for bargains and trying to stretch our dollars where ever we can. Last Saturday Shawn and I went tennis shoe shopping. That is a real challenge with a picky ninth grader. We went from store to store until Shawn finally settled on a pair of shoes. He was trying to bargain shop, but his desire for cool shoes kept taking him back to the Air Jordan display. He picked a pair of 16.5s. (I didn't realize that there were so many models of Air Jordans, some costing up to $149 on sale, most in the $75 to $89 range) The salesman went to the back room and came back with the news that they didn't have any of that type in stock. The only pair were the display models and they were size 11. We were looking for 9.5s. We asked a manager when another shipment might come in. She looked up the model number and informed us that this shoe would not be available anymore. She suggested going to Nike.com and see if we could order a pair. On the way home from the mall, we stopped at a couple more stores. No luck.

When we got home we went from site to site, no one had the shoes in his size. We finally found a site with a pair in his size, $89.95 plus shipping. We put the pair in our online shopping basket and then I had a thought, let's check Ebay. We opened another browser window, went to Ebay.com and did a search on Air Jordan 16.5 tennis shoes. The very first pair of shoes that came up were the exact color and model that Shawn was looking for. A mother had bought the pair for her son and they were the wrong size. They were still in the box, brand new. We scanned down the description looking for a size, 9.5. Unbelievable... and then we saw there were no bids and the auction was ending in 53 minutes. We quickly entered our bid for the starting bid price of $60, a real bargain. Then we realized another blessing, free shipping. We checked the site several times in the next hour and then finally got the email, "you have won the auction". A brand new pair of Air Jordan tennis shoes for a bargain price.

Does God care about us? You bet. Does He delight in revealing Himself in such creative ways? Absolutely. Did Shawn see God's blessing in his life on Saturday? It was unmistakable. Now, where is that postman?

Another Milestone Day

Today our oldest adopted daughter begins her first college class. I still vividly remember her first days in our home. Nicole came to us as a foster baby. She had some serious birth problems and had been born a preemie. For eighteen months her grandmother tried to get custody of her. Every home study that Children's Services in Jefferson County (Colorado) did turned out negative. When the long and tiring process ended, Nicole was finally ready for adoption. Because of her birth problems, however, and very limited family history, she was not a very good candidate for adoption. Since we didn't want to let her go after so long, it worked well for us to keep her for good. Some of my fondest memories of her early life are the many times that I fed her her nighttime bottle and put her to sleep. I would hold her, walk with her, rock her, pray over her, agonize over her family situation and generally make a fuss over this little bundle of joy. One night as I agonized over the fact that she would never know who her father was, the Holy Spirit whispered to me, "you are her father. Just like your heavenly Father adopted you as a son into His family, you have become Nicole's father."

A couple of hours ago I was an overly protective father, making sure she knew the building and room number for her class, made sure she had her textbook, made sure she had her paid tuition receipt to get her college ID and told her which license number to put down for a parking pass. She could have done all of that for herself, but sometimes I go back and forth between 18 years ago and now, and I forget she is a grown up young lady. I have resisted the temptation to text her and find out if every thing's going okay. For now, Nicole is going to live at home and commute to school. For her, and me, that is a good decision. I have always been a basket case when our kids have moved out.

Kathy and I are so proud of her. We know Nicole will do well in college. We're praying that God will help her figure out what He wants her to do, and how best to prepare for it. For today, I'll try and not look out the front window too often. I don't want her to catch me waiting for her and think that I'm not giving her enough space. She is, however, going to tell her mother and I all about her first day...

36 Years Ago

Today Kathy and I are celebrating 36 wonderful years of marriage. The big event on the weekend of our wedding 36 years ago was the resignation of President Richard Nixon on our rehearsal evening and then his leaving the White House with his family on the day of our wedding. There are a lot of highlights that are vivid memories, but there is also a lot of time in which I do not recollect much. This kind of reminds of the story of the two retired guys who are talking and one says to the other, "I couldn't help but notice that you call your wife 'sweety', 'baby doll', 'sugar', and other romantic names. How have you kept that much romance in your marriage all these years? The other guy turns to him and says, 'actually, I forgot her name about 10 years ago and I've been too embarrassed to ask her what it is."

Well, for us, it's not that bad. We have many wonderful memories that we recall. We've been so blessed. One of the biggest blessings has been our unified desire to serve God full time, anywhere, anytime. We've had some great adventures, and both of us have seen our experiences as adventures in helping to build God's kingdoms. We've had the blessing of raising six children, three birth children that are now grown and all involved in full time ministry, and three teenagers still at home that bring both great joy and present interesting challenges. We look back at some great ministry successes and people that we've had the pleasure of mentoring and guiding into successful ministry and other careers.

As I think about today, however, I think the greatest blessing for me is the love that Kathy and I share. I love her so much. She is my best friend and confidant. I love her laugh, and the way she brightens up a room. Of the two of us, she is the "people person" and I enjoy watching her be with people. I love the fact that after we've been with a group of people I get to go home with her. 36 years is a lot, particularly in our present society, but for us it is another signpost on a lifetime commitment that we agreed to, just about at this time, 36 years ago. Now we're older, hopefully wiser, and ready for the next adventure, together.

Shouts of Joy, the Sound of Weeping

In the book of Ezra there is an interesting account in chapter 3. And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy. No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away.


It is no secret that there is a clash of culture in churches today. With many churches having 5 generations of people, the cultural likes and dislikes are enormous. In Ezra's day, the temple was being rebuilt after God had allowed its destruction after nationwide disobedience and turning away from God. In the midst of the celebration because the foundation had been laid, the older priest, Levites and family heads wept because they remembered what the temple had been like. They realized while it would be a wonderful thing to have the temple rebuilt, it would never be like it was.

Today, in the US, church attendance is down overall. The only place it is increasing is in mega churches and churches that are engaging younger attenders, largely tailoring their church services and programming to accomodate today's consumer mentality. The clash goes far beyond musical style (hymns versus contemporary songs, choirs and orchestras versus small "worship teams"). It goes to length of services, the shorter the better; offer less programming, people are too busy to do much at church; the way a church looks, don't offend anyone by making the church look like a church, make it look like a big box store. Make sure you use plenty of theatrical lighting, maybe some haze, kick the decibels up and make people feel like they are at a concert.

In the end, people will come to faith in Christ because they see something in us that makes sense for their own lives. Even in the busyness of life, people want to belong. They want genuine friends that add to the quality of their lives and their families. Maybe our church services should simply be the place where we encounter God, in whatever cultural form it takes, and then we design times and ways for people to connect. Church culture has an interesting way of cycling, in fact, some church life watchers think the cycle away from the present wave has already started. Take a look around the next time you are at a church service. Maybe in the midst of the celebration shouting you will hear some weeping.

Election Observations From One Precinct

I spent Tuesday from 5AM until 7:30PM in the 437th Missouri precinct. I have served in this precinct for 5 elections as an assistant supervisor. My job is to assist voters use the digital touch machines and feed their paper ballots in a scanner/reader. Because my polling location is in a senior living center, we have a lot of seniors come down and vote. Many of them need a lot of assistance, and I have always looked forward to this interaction. Partly it is because this is a way for me to give back to my community and to provide real help to people who want to exercise their right to vote. Another part of it is that I hope that my kindness to these seniors is the same kind of kindness that people in Raleigh, NC show my parents who are of this same age group.

I noticed something interesting yesterday. Because this was a primary election, some offices had several candidates. Between national, state and local candidates and two measures, the digital ballot was 5 pages long. In many cases, the only thing these elderly voters wanted to vote on was Proposition C, this was a statewide measure that essentially boiled down to a Missouri rejection of the recently passed national health care reform. I could sense fear, anger and confusion as senior after senior expressed their displeasure with the overall health care situation. The other interesting thing was it didn't seem to matter if they were a Democrat or Republican voter.

During the day, on election day in November 2008, there was an overall sense of optimism and looking forward. I think voters believed that regardless of who they were voting for, things were on the upswing. Sadly, I saw none of that yesterday. Oh God, your word tells us to honor those in positions of authority over us. Help us to pray for our leaders, and Lord, help us to go about your business of telling the good news of your gospel so that people's lives are changed and renewed. We know that true change will only occur as you are involved in our lives as individuals and in our nation.