I recently began reading K.P. Yohannan’s book No Longer a Slumdog. God has already used this book greatly to stir my soul. The ministry Gospel for Asia is giving the book away for free.  You can click here to get the book for free.

Chapter one of the book begins with this great quote from Daniel Berrigan:

“Sometime in your life, hope that you might see one starved man, the look on his face when the bread finally arrives. Hope that you might have baked it or bought or even kneaded it yourself. For that look on his face, for your meeting his eyes across a piece of bread, you might be willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even.”

Wow!

Jesus said “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:25-26)

Valeria and I took our children out to play in the snow. Tom Wallace park in Jefferson Memorial Forest (The lake in the background was frozen over. We were able to walk out on it.) located right here in Fairdale is an awesome place to go sledding. As these videos show, They loved it!

 

Here is JJ going down the big hill. (Notice that he clips Eli at the bottom!)

Here is Eli going down the big hill. I think he went the farthest!

Here is Noah going down the big hill. (I am proud of him. He recently turned 3 years old, and he was brave to go.)

And here is JJ & Eli going together! Two brothers who are the best of friends. They started spinning toward the bottom!

We had so much fun! I also was able to take our little girl, Carolina, down with me one time. She was smiling so big!

Sunday I preached our 2nd sermon in the series through Exodus. You can listen to that sermon here.

It was on the blessing of God in oppression.

Here is a fantastic quote from Douglas Stuart that I referenced in the sermon:

“In a fallen world, the blessings of God are often so in conflict with the prevailing corrupt values of this world’s culture that they function as a threat to those who are not aligned with God’s will. The parade example of this phenomenon is the rejection of Jesus. He was the purest example of good that the world has seen, and yet God could send him to earth with the certain knowledge that he would be put to death by people who thought they were doing the world a favor.”

A few months back, I was interviewed about what advice I would give to a new younger pastor who is beginning to lead at an older established church. (I enjoyed this assignment because it deals with real life.)

They specifically asked me to give 5 steps that I would take. (For the record, this situation is what I went through in becoming the Pastor at FBC Fairdale.  I have been on staff at this church since 2003, and I have been the Lead Pastor since 2009.) Here they are:

1. See John 13:16 – Servant! I determined from day 1 to make myself approachable. I wanted everyone to know I am here for them. Literally. I am not too strict, too harsh, too cool, too poor, too godly, too wealthy, too smart, too fancy, nothing. I want all people to feel good about approaching me about anything. Whether that be to ask for a favor, or help, or money, or prayer, or to make a suggestion or complaint.  Focusing on being approachable sets the tone for good honest relationships that will last for a long time.
2. See 2 Timothy 3:16 – God’s Word! Establish right away that the Word of God is the authority. Not the preacher. (We aren’t Catholic. Or over-religious) God speaks and we listen. Thats it. Make sure everyone knows that. If you get mad over a Biblical issue, it cannot be mad at the preacher because the Bible says it. That foundational truth will solve so many headaches. No telling how many people have been shut-up or forced to stay silent because they knew they couldn’t argue with God.
3. See Acts 20:35 – Hard Work! I knew right away that people are impressed with work ethic. (Even the word “ethic” is a spiritual word, I bet you have never thought of that in that way before. haha.) So I am quick to take out the trash or mow the grass or dig ditches, etc. I am amazed that Paul makes this comment in this verse as his goodbye to Ephesus. So many ministers get a bad knock or reputation for being lazy, or playing golf, or not knowing how to do much else. Whether that is right or not doesnt matter. The blue collar men are drawn to hard workers. Hard work pays off. Colossians 3:23
4. See Hebrews 13:17 – Shepherd! I determined right away that I would KNOW our people. The Spirit will not let me be fine with having sheep that I do not know on a personal level. So In my first year, I arranged to have a sit down meeting with everyone in the church. We devoted Tuesdays to this. Our church secretary would schedule me meetings with everybody in the church. One family, couple or individual at a time. We discussed salvation, church involvement, and gifts. It was awesome. You cannot disciple anyone at all, no one, if you do not know them on a personal level. Shepherd!
5. See Luke 10:2 – Prayer! I established right away that we would pray a lot. I set a goal of 2 hours a week of church prayer time. 30 minutes sunday mornings at 9am. 30 minutes on Wednesday nights. 20 minutes on Sunday nights. And lots of other smaller pieces in other parts. We turned Wednesday night’s Bible study into a prayer focus. We cannot do this work without prayer. True religion is Spiritual. The Spirit must do it. We know that. And we don’t at all want to try and make it happen on our own. Thats worthless! So we pray.

One of our college student’s at FBC Fairdale, Drew Dillman, is spending his Christmas in Belgium, Europe competing in Cyclocross.

He was asked by www.cyclingnews.com to write a blog post about his experience with this trip over the holidays.

Click this link to read Drew’s encouraging article.

You can also follow Drew on twitter at @DizzleDillman

Drew is from Fairdale, and he is currently a sophomore at Marian University in Indianapolis, IN.

Deception is such a scary and dangerous thing. It is possible to think you are right and be very wrong.

According to Dictionary.com, to deceive means to mislead by a false appearance or statement.

Deception is the act of deceiving. There are many ways that we can be deceived.

We deceive ourselves, and we are deceived by people.

There are 4 places in the Bible that plainly state “Do not be deceived.”

1. 1 Corinthians 6:9 “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,” 

   What is the deception mentioned in this verse? It is that one would think that ungodly, sinful people will enter the kingdom of God, or go to heaven. The obvious truth here is that they won’t. They will not. The unrighteous will not be in heaven. Do not be deceived about that. God has said it. Now before we start thinking that “the good folks” will go to heaven, let me remind you that there is none righteous. The righteousness that saves and gets people into God’s kingdom must come from somewhere else. If anyone will believe in Jesus and turn away from their sins, God will forgive them of all their wrongdoings and He will make them righteous. If you have that righteousness, Christ’s righteousness, then you will go to heaven. Do not be deceived into thinking there is another way.

2. 1 Corinthians 15:33 “Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”” 

   What is the deception mentioned in this verse? It is that one would think that the resurrection of Jesus is not true, and therefore they can live however they want to. The obvious truth here is that  Jesus has been raised from the dead and the power of God is working, and therefore we should be careful how we live. And we should not want our morality to be compromised by bad company. There is such a common deception going on today that thinks morality doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t matter how I live or what I do. If you think that way, you are deceived. God is real. Judgment is real. How we live matters. Sin is wrong. It is against God. Jesus died for our sins. Our sins killed Jesus. When God raised Him from the dead, it was to prove that sin can be forgiven. It is the power to change lives. To live unchanged, or to live however you want, is wrong. Do not be deceived about that.
   
   

3. Galatians 6:7 “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” 

   What is the deception mentioned in this verse? It is to think that people will “get away” with all the wrong they do. It is to think that people will not be held accountable for their actions. The obvious truth here is that one gets what he deserves. He reaps what he sows. God will not be mocked. If one wants to live as if God is not real, or God is not present, or God is not able, then they are deceived. There is coming a day when God will judge the world. When He does, God will judge every single person. Each person will get what he deserves. Do not think God can be mocked. Do not be deceived about that. If anyone believes in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, they will escape the judgment (John 5:24).

4. James 1:16 “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.” 

   What is the deception mentioned in this verse? It is to think that God is not good for you. It is to think that God is against you. It is to think that God is not working all things for the good of you. The obvious truth here is that every good and perfect gift is from God. It is God who has saved you. Of course, He is working favorably for you. James knows that our lives are full of trials and difficulty and struggle and discouragement. And James also knows that our tendency, or drift, is to blame God or get frustrated with God. Don’t do that. Do not be deceived into thinking that God is against you. He is not. God is absolutely for you in Christ Jesus! Do not be deceived about that. 

When the Bible says the same thing multiple times, we are to recognize the theme or emphasis. There is a real danger in each of our own hearts and minds to be deceived into thinking that we are right. Please do not be deceived in this way. Hear Proverbs 3:7 “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.”

In Deuteronomy 6, Moses tells God’s people to teach their children about God “When you sit in your house.”

That is a loaded statement for times have changed quite a bit. Do parents and children “sit” in their house together anymore?

If so, do they do it with the TV turned off?  And if the TV is turned off, do they do it without their cellphones?

It seems as if the idea of parents and children actually sitting down together to talk about God rarely happens these days. But let me encourage you to not give up on aiming for that. Let me encourage you to keep desiring that home-life.

The Christmas season is the ideal time to be casually talking with people about God. 

Our family devotional is at its best during the Advent season. A few years ago, I wrote a blog post about what our Advent Family devotionals look like.

Each evening we turn all of our attention toward this special time. We turn the TV off, and we all gather together on the couch. As our children are growing up (JJ is about to turn 6. Eli is 4. And Noah is 3.), they are understanding the Gospel message and the Christmas story better and better each time they hear it.

It is so enjoyable as a dad to sit unhurried with my wife and children and take our time reading and discussing God.

Let me tell one great story from our experience:  The other night we were reading about the 10 Plagues and the Passover, in the book of Exodus. When the angel of death came, my middle son Eli asked “is that real?”

I said, “Yes, it is real.” Noah, my youngest, then speaks up and says “Thats scary!”

Then Eli again speaks up asking “Is that in our city?” (what a question!)

I quickly comforted them by explaining why the angel of death was there. And I reminded them that there was a simple and clear way to be safe.

That then led into a great discussion about how God never punishes anyone without first giving them opportunity to be saved and forgiven.

It was fascinating. They were seeing how good God is. He is nice. He always does what is best and right. He loves us.

Trust God, and you will be safe!

I am thankful that God taught me to sit in my house with my family to talk about Him.

I recently was asked to come speak to a college class (in the Youth Ministry department) about being involved on the school campuses near our church. In other words, they wanted to know how did I and how do I approach getting into and being at the middle schools and high schools in our area.

Let me first say that I really enjoy this topic. Some of the biggest and best ministry opportunities of our day are the public schools. However, I do not claim to be an expert. Not at all. I just enjoy it. And in my 10+ years of doing student ministry among the same schools in the same area, here is what I have learned. These 4 points are what I taught the class:

1. VISIBLE
   -Are you visible to the students? Do the students at the school know who you are? Do they know you? Do they see you? Is your face or voice familiar to them? Are you on campus long enough to be seen? Do they ever see you at outside extracurricular activities and connect you with your involvement at their school? Would they recognize you if they ran into you at Wal-Mart?
   -Knowing who you are is the first step to the student being able to connect with you.
   -If you are just dropping by and not staying long, then chances are, most of the students do not even see you. Your campus involvement is accomplishing nothing in the area of outreach.
2. VIBRANT
   -Are you vibrant to the students? Once the students know who you are, do they like who you are? Do they like you? Do you go to school to try and meet students and notice that kids do not want you around? Lets be honest, someone doing student ministry that does not connect with students is going to struggle.
   -Let me clarify, by VIBRANT I do not mean you need to be big, or cool, or young, or good-looking, or Mr. personality. Not at all.  Vibrant with students is not that difficult. Students like adults sometimes. Are you helpful to them? Are you understanding to them? Are you interested in their world? I have found that buying some students some Polar Pops (32 oz fountain drinks at the Circle K) or attending their soccer game some evening is more than enough to make yourself vibrant to them. What student doesn’t like a free drink? Or what student doesn’t like fans at his or her varsity games?
   -If you want to make an impact in some students lives, especially lost, lonely and looking students lives, then start helping their lives.
   -Along those lines, Jesus’ very ministry teaches that being “able” to get into people’s lives is not at all about possessing the “cool” factor. (Although many student ministries these days place so much emphasis on coolness) Student ministry on campuses will thrive if it is like Jesus’s ministry = being humble servants. There is not a public middle school or high school that I have ever seen that is not in need of some volunteers. Most schools are desperate, even dependent  for community involvement. They would gladly welcome you being there.  Just a few weeks ago, I dropped by to see a coach. Within minutes, I was painting lines on the football field and then moving the soccer goals too.  Jesus’ willingness to wash people’s feet is also what enabled him to speak to their hearts.
   -Being vibrant is not so much about being cool to students. It is more about being helpful to students.
3. ‘VAILABLE (as in “Available”)
   -Are you available to the students? Can they find you if they need to? Have you been Visible enough and Vibrant enough that they can find you? Do they know where your church is? Do they know when your services are? Do they know when and where you will be on their campus next? Do they have your contact info? Your cell #? Your e-mail? Can they find you on social media? Are you Available to them?
   -There are so many students out there who are suffering. When they decide to turn to someone for help or guidance, will it be you?
   -In the last month, we have had 7 kids contact us through twitter asking what time our worship service began. We answered them. They were there in worship.
   -How busy are you? Are you so busy that you do not have time to be available? How about leaving open some free time for students? Most students do not plan. So if you want to be available to them, you have to be available to them on their timing.
   -One day I was walking out of the school after a meeting inside the school when I ran into 5 African players on the soccer team. I began talking to them and found out that they had 3 hours to burn before their game that night. I asked them if they wanted some food. All 5 loaded up in my car, and I took them to Wendys for a burger, fries and a drink. We talked about Jesus and Islam on the drive. They loved it. I loved it.  It would not have happened were I not available.
   -Being available to students is not something that just happens. Availability must be a priority.
4. VOCAL
   -Do the students hear you? What do they hear from you? Do they know what you are about? Are they confused about it? Do they question your motives? Do they wonder why you are around? Are there any integrity issues? Do they see you as an Adult? A pastor? Do they know that you are not just their friend?
   -Trying to be their friend will not accomplish your purpose. It will not help them. They need your mentorship and leadership way, way, way more than they need your friendship. The students know that and feel that, please make sure that you know that too.
   -There are too many bad stories out there of adults messing up with students. Don’t let that happen. Be Vocal. Communicate up front who you are; what you stand for, and why you are there. It will not ruin things!

These 4 points (Visible, Vibrant, ‘Vailable, & Vocal)  should be helpful to you as you attempt to make a difference on the middle & high school campuses around you! May God give us grace and favor to get into people’s lives and make a difference the way we see Jesus doing this in his earthly ministry. “For the Son of man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” -Mark 10:45

Kevin DeYoung, with his newest book Crazy Busy, has hit a homerun!

Being busy is not even worth mentioning anymore. Most people these days are busy. Many people are way too busy. Perhaps worst of all, even more people tell you they are busy. Its a problem! Its a big problem, and it really seems to have no solution. But in the midst of all the busyness, DeYoung (known as @RevKevDeYoung on twitter) supplies us with a great book to get our minds focused on this problem.

There is not a more applicable book for the countless busy people of our day!

I would like to comment on the book in a few different ways. First, I will list what I really liked about the book. Then, I will give a few of the quotes I liked from each chapter.

 

1. You want to read it! Without knowing any of the content inside the book, Crazy Busy makes you want to read it. As soon as I saw it, I could not wait to read it. It has an attractive pull to it.
   1) It is small. It is only 118 pages. That is very appealing to a busy person.
   2) It is green with a very catchy logo. The stick-figure-man who resembles a yellow street crossing sign with an exclamation point for his head really connects with the reader. This is how we feel. We are busy because everything seems so important.
   3) “Crazy Busy” is a brilliant title.  Saying “I’m busy” is so 15 years ago. It carries no weight or burden. So now busy people say “I’m crazy busy!” for emphasis.
   4) The most interesting part of the appeal to read it is that DeYoung doesn’t necessarily want to tell you how to fix your “being busy” problem. He merely wants to point out the big problem, and then he wants us to recognize the big problem.  The reader recognizes this from the sub-title “A Mercifully Short Book About a Really Big Problem.” This approach is genius. For these four reasons, I think the book itself causes people to want to read it!
   
2. He has this problem too! Chapter one is titled “Hello, My Name is Busy.” The 8 page opening chapter is all about how crazy busy the author Kevin DeYoung is. He does not hide from this fact. He admits it. So the book is not intended to make you feel guilty about being busy. It is intended to get you to see this problem. His first sentence is “I am the worst possible person to write this book.”
3. I loved chapters 5 and 6! Chapter 5 discusses something that I have never read about or heard someone speak on before = Jesus being busy. I found this topic fascinating and very intriguing. Chapter 6 is about parenting.  I wish every parent I know could read this chapter. Very informative and encouraging!
4. What an ending!! DeYoung’s closing chapter is powerful! He does not offer any solutions. No steps to become less busy. Instead, he just highlights Jesus. And he ends this short quick-read book by emphasizing how important it is to be focused on Jesus. To the busy person, the books ending is precisely refreshing!

 

Now let me provide some of my favorite quotes from the book.

Chapter 1

“I’m writing this book to figure out things I don’t know and to work on change I have not yet seen. More than any other book I’ve worked on, this one is for me.” (page 14)

Chapter 2

“We have more opportunity than ever before. The ability to cheaply go anywhere is a recent development. The ability to get information from anywhere is, too. Even the ability to easily stay up past sundown is relatively new. The result, then, is simple but true: because we can do so much, we do do so much. Our lives have no limits.” (page 24)

“When we are crazy busy, we put our souls at risk.” (page 27)

“When busyness goes after joy, it goes after everyone’s joy.” (page 28)

Chapter 3

“Here’s the bottom line: of all the possible problems contributing to our busyness, it’s a pretty good bet that one of the most pervasive is pride.” (page 38

“It’s ok to be busy at times. You can’t love and serve others without giving of your time. So work hard; work long; work often. Just remember it’s not supposed to be about you. Feed people, not your pride.” (page 41)

Chapter 4

“The church– gathered in worship on Sunday and scattered through its members throughout the week– is able to do exponentially more than any one of us alone.” (page 50)

“Its a cross that says I’ll do anything to follow Jesus, not a cross that says I have to do everything for Jesus.” (page 51)

Chapter 5

“Jesus was a very busy man.” (page 54)

“He was busy, but never in a way that made him frantic, anxious, irritable, proud, envious, or distracted by lesser things.” (page 55)

“Time may be our scarcest and most precious resource. And we will begin to use it well only when we realize we do not have an infinite supply to use.” (page 58)

Chapter 6

“I cold be wrong. My kids are still young. Maybe this no-theory is a theory of its own. I just know that the longer I parent the more I want to focus on doing a few things really well, and not get too worked up about everything else. I want to spend time with my kids, teach them the Bible, take them to church, laugh with them, cry with them, discipline them when they disobey, say “sorry” when I mess up, and pray a ton. I want them to look back and think, “I’m not sure what my parents were doing or if they even knew what they were doing. But I always knew my parents loved me, and I knew they loved Jesus.” (page 74)

Chapter 7

“We cannot have meaningful relationships with thousands of people.” (page 88)

Chapter 8

“He made us to spend almost a third of our lives not doing anything except depending on him. Going to sleep is our way of saying, “I trust you, God. You’ll be okay without me.” (page 95)

“If we really paid attention, we’d be surprised to see what we do and don’t do from eight to twelve o’clock every night.” (page 97)

Chapter 9

“If you have creativity, ambition, and love, you will be busy.” (page 102)

“If you love God and serve others, you will be busy too.” (page 107)

Chapter 10

“But a man seldom goes into his closet, and pours out his soul before God in secret, unless he is serious.” (page 114)

“Maybe devotion to Christ really is the one thing that is necessary.” (page 116)

“The only thing more important than ministry is being ministered to.” (page 117)

He has his ways!

Have you ever heard anyone say that about someone? I have. Actually, people say that frequently. And when they say it, they are almost always referring to someone’s “ways” that are not admirable.

In many households you can sometimes here the wife or children make that comment when referring to the father or grandfather of the family. And its humorous.

But do you know that God has “His ways”?

That’s right! The Bible says in Psalm 128 “How happy is everyone who walks in His ways!”

You can be certain that God has His ways, and His ways are completely admirable. God’s ways are good and right! God’s ways are for us to know and follow. God’s ways are the way that we can live for Him and bring glory and honor to Him.

In Proverbs 8:32 God says “Blessed are those who keep my ways.”

Let me ask you 2 questions:

1. Are you happy?
2. Do you walk in God’s ways?

 

God wants us to be happy, and that happiness can only be found in Him. It makes sense. The unhappy person is the person who is distant from God or running from God.

Would you consider the fact that your walking in God’s ways and your happiness are linked?

Often we are frustrated or discouraged by someone who is set in his ways. But with God this is not the case. God does not frustrate us or discourage us. Not at all. We frustrate and discourage ourselves. And why is that? Because we have abandoned God’s ways. His ways are right! His ways are good for us.

Back during the summer while out of town for a wedding, we stayed in the home of this godly elderly couple. They were so sweet and serving. Above their kitchen sink hung a little plaque that said “If you are feeling distant from God, Guess who moved?”

Remember Jesus’ words in John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow me.”

Let us ask ourselves what ways are we going? Whose ways are we following? And lets be blessed! Blessed are those who keep God’s ways.