"Thank God For The Dirty Dishes" Poem

I decided to give full poem written by Cecelia Williams and shared by her Pastor son John Williams III on on the Sermon Central Illustrations section. This was used in the sermon I preached Sunday Oct. 14 on "Complaining".

Rev. John Williams III shares this:

"My natural mother once wrote a poem about being thankful that I have always treasured since I discovered it. She died in 1984 with s

kin cancer. But, all that I learned from her is still with me today. I thank God for every memory and every valuable lesson that she taught me about life.
Her Poem went like this…

Thank God for dirty dishes,
They have a tale to tell.
While other folks go hungry,
We’re eating very well.
With home and health and happiness
We should not want to fuss.
For by this stack of evidence,
God is very good to us.
(Cecelia D. Williams)

It is often that stack of evidence that we so often forget or slight because we are too busy fussing or complaining."

Think Again About Complaining

Today I preached from Numbers 11 on the theme of Complaining. In Numbers 11 it tells of a chain reaction that occurred related to complaining.

During the Exodus some fringe people complained about the food God provided, then the Jews themselves complained, Moses ,the leader, complained and wanted to die and God Himself became discouraged and angry at the whole situation.

The point--- be careful  about complaining- you could set off a chain reaction of negative responses around you.

More importantly - Complaining is often rejection of God's path for your life and rejection of God trying to fine tune your trust in Him.

Be careful- Complaining is a downward spiritual path.

Be thankful for the dirty dishes - it shows you had food to eat! (paraphrase- Cecilia Williams)

You Are Key to Improving Relationships - Home Improvement Sermon Series #2

Home Improvement Sermon Series #2– You Are Key to Improving Relationships

Love is foundational to all relationships:

-John 13:34 (NIV) “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”  

1st.--_ACCEPT their uniqueness.

God made everybody different

Slide-    Romans 15:7 (NIV) “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.”

                                                                                         

I Corinthians 13:5a (TLB) "Love does not demand its own way."

Our children are not necessary a carbon copy of …..

On a Scale of 1-10 --How are you doing at accepting others as DIFFERENT?

                                                                                                       

|_______________________________|

1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10

          2nd.    Trust them with responsibility.

Did you know if you protect them too much it is  like rejecting them

The goal is to trust –to do that you have to be patient to build up their confidence

On a Scale of 1 to 10 ---What is your Trust level of  people ?                                                                    

|_______________________________|

1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10

     3rd.  Expect the best

Research shows students doing much better under teachers who thought the student was a higher IQ than average.  Why?

Because expectations make a huge difference in performance!

1 Corinthians 13:7 (NLT) “Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”         

-  SO RATE YOURSELF

Which do you tend to do ?

What do you expect from people?

The Best or Worst? –

|_______________________________|

1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10

Could you help improve this situation?

4th. AFFIRM their value.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NIV) “Encourage one another and build each other up.”

People need to know “they  matter”

·       If you love somebody – find a way to show it !

·        GIVE THEM   ATTENTION

•        Show AFFECTION

•        Show Appreciation

The Apostle Paul knew how to do this- He would Affirm the people 1^st then go on to discipline them in love.

----Philippians 1:3 (TLB) “All my prayers for you are full of praise to God.”

Do you AFFIRM people by giving them Attention, appropriate levels of Affection and/or Appreciation?

How AFFIRMING ARE YOU?

|_______________________________|

1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10

Stay encouraged in Loving People as Jesus did!

(*Resource and Outline based on Message by Pastor John Watkin of the Highland Avenue Community Church of the Nazarene)

The Church is Showing Signs of Growth

After an extended period of downturn in the Chandler Church of the Nazarene's numbers small but strong signs of health are returning. New people are beginning to show up at the events and a positve tone is beginning to talk hold. I praise God for the encouraging signs!

A New Year About to Commence - 2011

It is always good to check your baggage - to see if you are dragging something along that is dragging you down. It is a good time to let go of the failures of 2010 - give them over to God and vow to try better and stop kicking yourself.
This is a time to monitor how well we listen, how well we love and how much we could learn in the new year. We have so much information all around us that can be accessed for little or no cost.
It is also a time to re-evaluate current use of time. For example if we are constantly listening to or watching a program on radio or TV - maybe it is time to cut back on the time used for that program (or type of program) and find a new interest to broaden our horizons.
How much do you laugh? God did create laughter and we need to find ourselves laughing in the New Year. I am told it is good for us physically as well as emotionally.
Let the Word of God invade in your life this year -even if it takes weeks for one passage to filter its way through you.

Have a productive, blessed year!

God to Kenton-"It's Taken Care Of! -Now Can You Trust Me For That?"

I was having one of those days where the signs of epilepsy had showed themselves and I had wisely gone back to bed.
The Situation: Tim had a debate in a Political Science class at Olivet which I had helped him research for and had gone to bed at 12:30am after sending him my last research - and woke up at 6:30am worried(yes, the dreaded non- Christian "w" word) and researched more, sent more then the feelings of trouble showed and I went to bed after calling Cheryl and telling her I would not be able to be at the hospital for Ron's heart Cath at 11:00am. (May I add I just wrote a truly Pauline sentence!- ah lest I digress).
Occasionally I would awaken and pray for Tim and Ron- At one of those times it was as if God said,"It's taken care of - the debate and the operation--Now can you trust me for that?
For me it was a new twist to trust - I suddenly felt like a heathen who keep repeating the same prayer and I was supposed to listen and trust for that prayer and be thankful for a God Who answers prayers.
For me , a person who tells people to Trust God on a regular basis was being taught a new dimension in the wonders of walking with God!

Empty Tomb + Appearance = Many Believers

Today we celebrate - HE IS RISEN! A new perspective came to me as I studied the Emmaus incident recorded in Luke. The two disciples were "downcast" and yet had heard about the empty tomb that very day! It was only when Jesus broke bread, blessed it and disappeared instantly were there eyes opened and they went from downcast to excited. For them it was knowing about the Empty tomb+ the Appearance(or maybe better said the disappearance) that caused them to truly start to see Who He was and what He really wanted from us.

It is a very interesting thought that some of us need a show of God's power to believe while others can reach forth in faith and believe in the Empty Tomb and go on to serve. Yet some also need that Appearance after Salvation to verify His work and convince us of His greater power for us and others

Spring 2010

Spring has arrived and the rain is hitting the office window.

Now we face a new array of activities not performed for several months such as mowing and so on. Yesterday I planted some grass in the thin areas of our front yard. By morning some birds had found the seeds and we can only hope some seeds will ultimately survive.

Life is much like the planting. Many obstacles come our way to try and stop or slow us down but it is the observant individual that finds God's path and stays on it.

As the grass grows we can thank God for life and enjoy His majesty!

Learning Again Better Use of Time

Recently on a Missions trip to Peru, I begin to re access my use of time in relation to my normal consumption of news , talk radio, online and television. Now over three months later I have come to the point of filtering priority news events from news in process or just opinion of news in process. I have felt from the beginning of this journey that God was allowing me to stay informed( although for the first 30 days back from Peru I had a total break from any news cast). I learned for the next month to access mostly headlines around the world (from BBC a majority of the time ) in about 10 to 12 minutes at the end of the day. The end of the day was important since it would keep me from temptation to look throughout the day.
Now I seem to not care about news like I used to but am allowing around 30 minutes od news time throughout the day in any form.
This has led me to re access other areas of my life and it it great to have God at work.
It is like fasting since I have replaced news time with more reading.
Part of my reading is in Oswald Chambers book entitled , Spiritual Leadership. Leadership is determined in how a man uses his/her time. "The character and career of a young person are determined largely by how and with whom he spends his spare time". (p85)

It is great to know God continues to define and redefine our lives at every stage.

Good Friday is always a time of intense feeling. This morning our church walked a Cross in Chandler during the time people were going to work. Tonight we had about 60 people from different community churches at our church. I got in on half of it and it too was filled with deep emotion.
The reason I missed the 1st half was due to being examined to see if my nose was broken. I took a fall on the Church parking lot early today, just before we were to walk the cross. I experienced blood and pain --- two parts of what Jesus experienced that day --only my blood and pain was so minor in relation to HIS journey. It is an important day but we are glad it ended with the resurrection on Sunday morning!
Remember - Suffering > Salvation>Resurrection

Have You Believed God For Something Today?

I am at a point in my life that his question is very important for me and especially for the church I serve. It is a place in the spiritual journey that says "Wake up- are you walking by faith or by sight"
I am looking forward to how this will enrich my people and mysellf.

As I looked into their eyes.....

As I looked into their I eyes I was filled with passion for their safety in face of temptation. They are 2nd graders facing the Summer. They will have time on their hands and it was my concern they have a tool to deal with temptation.
The Scripture that stood as teachable to 2nd graders was 1 Corinthians 10:13. It says:
"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."
The two things I taught 2nd graders should work for adults!
1st- God would let you be tempted beyond what you can stand
2nd- He will provide a way out

All the power of our Lord is behind us as we face temptation -but we can face it with confidence of His aid. Hebrews 2:18 "Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able ti help those who are being tempted."

May you rely on HIS help. Look for a way out.

Feed My Sheep

Yes that was my call and as I have once again reviewed it I realize the intensity Peter must have felt. You see the call to Feed My Sheep has lasted a lifetime for me.
- It is large enough to encompass a lifetime and never be exhausted
- It is direct enough to show the ministry assignment
- It is broad enough to have an enlarging scope
- It has a passion to keep you animated for God
If God is calling you to ministry -to feed , to tend , to care or to lead sheep - remember you are not alone --HE WANTS TO EMPOWER YOU!!!
Praise the Lord!!! What a Commander-in-Chief we serve under.

"You Can Go to Heaven If People Don't Love You But You Can't Go To Heaven If You Don't Love People "- Metcalfe

I am reading a powerful sermon from Dr. Russell Metcalfe,Jr that I want to share.
"1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another,
for love is from God, and everyone who loves
is born of God and knows God. The one
who does not love does not know God,
for God is love.
John is saying, if I understand him
correctly, that it doesn't take positive, evil acts to separate me
from God-- sins that I DO- - but he is clearly saying that something
negative-- the LACK of something-- something I DO NOT DO-- can prove I
don't even know God at all.
You can get to heaven if people do not forgive you. But you can't get there if you are unwilling to forgive. I didn't say that. Guess who did? Jesus said,
"If you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will the
heavenly Father forgive you your trespasses." (Matthew 6:15)"("The Son Of Consolation, May 8, 1994)
Some around us need to hear the message of love again..
God wants to make us capable to love again

Spiritual Growth through Spiritual Disciplines

The series currently being preached deals with four spiritual disciplines- solitude,confession, prayer and fasting. I am amazed at the response by our people. We are hungry to continue getting closer to God and His will for our lives.

In the solitude material the word "unhurried" was used and I have focused on that couple time and gratefully so! Many of us are charged up most of the time when God needs us to slow to a "Listening Stop". What a refreshing time it can be.

May you find 2 minutes to separate yourself from others and listen.

Are You Sure You Want to Carry 2007 into 2008?

Are you holding on to resentments? If so are they worth taking with you into the New Year?
It is worth praying about- worth considering as we cross into the New Year.
May God Bless You this year!

Everyone is Born With a Hole in Their Heart

This morning I heard this on radio and want to share the thoughts that went with it because I have been thinking about related matters.

The man on the radio said doctors had told him all of us have a hole in our heart when born. A blood vessel enters the heart from the mother to pump blood prior to birth but soon after birth it closes. Some folks have to have surgery to close that opening if it does not properly seal.

Then he stated we are all born with a spiritual hole in our heart.
- We spend our lives trying to fill the spiritual hole:
- by relationships
- entertainment
- money
- things
- sex
- drugs

Until the day comes we accept the notion it can never be filled.

As Christians we know the hole to our heart is only filled by surrender to Jesus Christ!

This relates to a pattern of thought I have been dealing with in regard to how much are we having to fill our lives with entertainment. With all the sources of being entertained it is becoming a bit frightening - even among Christians.

Thanksgiving of an Abundant Lack of Fear

They say in Bagdad people are doing things that show signs of a return to normalcy. The New York Times published photos this week of an outdoor wedding. It among other signs was one less indication of fear being as high as before.

We have so much ---but one great aspect of our lives is the relative lack of fear. For that we must be truly thankful.

Waiting Patiently?

Patience is one of the greatest spiritual challenges that I face. Consider the benefits:
1st - Relationships will go smoother
2nd - Stress will be decreased
3rd - A new perspective on what is really important will surface
4th - God will be honored through increase in trust
Psalm 40 states, " I waited patiently for the Lord;"
That is a trait we should all acquire in this lifetime!

What Is In Your Hand?

What talent or ability has God given you?
What experiences have you had to this point in life- good or bad?

It all adds up to how God may use you now.

.....but I have to be aware of where I have been ,
what I have done and
the abilities I have.......

God needs to use you--don't remain idle!