Newspaper article

My twice yearly appointment to send in an article for the Rochester Sentinel came this week.  You can read below.  I really try to take this opportunity seriously.  Not sure who will read it and being limited to 400-500 words is tough, but my hope is that one person might get turned into God's direction and see Him, church and faith a little differently.

When I was first married, I made one attempt to accompany my beautiful bride to the grocery store to assist in the process of buying groceries for our new little family.  In the process of that trip, I learned that we would have two different strategies when it came to food purchase and consumption.  I believed in the purchase of name brand, my lovely budget-conscious bride with limited funds believed in saving money by buying generic or store branded items.  Needless to say, as I look in our pantry almost 13 years later, I lost.

Deep down in the soul of every person is a drive to find the “real”.  We ask tough questions like, “Why am I here?”  “What is my purpose?”  “What is the meaning of life – my life?”  Believe it or not, humans having been asking these questions ever since our first breath.  We are born with an innate sense of trying to find “real”.  We know there is something more to these lives and we try desperately to find it but the search often comes up empty.  Sure, we find short-termed victories but a feeling of loss and emptiness usually follows the success.

There are some incredible words spoken by Jesus in the story of his life written by one of his followers, John.  He says that there is an enemy in this world that wants to stop us from finding “real” – real purpose, real value, or real significance.  However Jesus says that his mission coming to earth was to give us an opportunity for life.  He says he came to give us abundant life, full life, REAL LIFE!

That is our heart at Mill Creek.  We are not perfect people, in fact we are quite flawed, we recognize that the battle over sin is real and sometimes we fall short.  But we also believe that we are on a journey together of discovering the REAL LIFE Jesus says he came, lived and died for us to have.  We are not a perfect group of people, but ones who believe in a God who can redeem, change, heal and transform our lives.  We believe in a God who wants us to step out of the fake and phony and step into the REAL.

My challenge to you this week is simple.  Look at your life; is it everything you’ve wanted it to be?  Are you truly happy with where you are, who you are and what you have?  Is there a deeper sense of longing for something more?  A pursuit of faith and God is a journey filled with honest questions.  Start asking today!  And, if you don’t have a church home, we would love to share our journey with you soon.

So, whether you love name brand food or know how to stretch your dollars by being budget conscious, know this - God loves you, he has a plan and a purpose for your life and you can live the REAL LIFE.

Finding the Secret

Paul talks about the secret of contentment - the hidden treasure unseen by a casual observer.  Contentment is never found in the places we think, it does not fall into our laps with a certain level of education, financial freedom or status.  The secret source of contentment is divinely rooted.

The cornerstone of contentment is the Cross.  Remember what was done for you on the Cross.  It is there where friendship with God is restored.  The Cross is where freedom from the slavery of sin begins.  Because of the Cross, our salvation is assured.  Our future in  heaven is guaranteed.  Isn't this enough?  What else really matters?  God has already taken care of the big things!

The secret of contentment is also found in the act of letting go of the past.  We will never find this hidden treasure by hanging onto past hurts, abuses, failures and mistakes of ourselves or others.  There is a difference, obviously, between forgetting the past and ignoring it.  God doesn't ask us to ignore what has happened, but process through it.  Go through the act of forgiveness.  True forgiveness requires we see the wrongs clearly, articulate them, release them to God and then walk away from them.  It might take time and assistance but without it we can never live with a contented heart.

Learn to live one day at a time.  Wait right here for God.  Don't allow envy to distract you by what tomorrow might bring or to lose focus by looking at things and others.  Look for God today, live each day in his glory and in the beauty of the relationship with him.  Everything else pales in comparison.

Finally, find sufficiency in Christ Jesus.  In the context of the New Testament, "contentment" means being at peace with Christ's sufficiency.  With Christ, all things are possible.  While our human determination and toughness can help in some ways, it's only through Christ's supernatural power and strength that will allow us to live with a contented spirit in a discontented world filled with envy.  In the final analysis, contentment lies not in what is ours but in whose we are.  True contentment is impossible apart from the supernatural work of Christ in our lives!

Surrender and Contentment

Contentment is a matter of accepting from God's hand what he sends because we know that he is a good God and wants to give good gifts to his children.  We accept, therefore, from God's hand that which he gives.  All that is needful he will supply.  He can even redeem pain and suffering that seemingly cannot be corrected.

Surrender is not dying as a person or being used and abused by those who are more powerful.  Surrender is like taking the vacation of a lifetime and having someone come alongside you to take care of all the details. 

If we fail to surrender, we will forever be discontent.  Our freedom will be suffocated.  We will be in bondage to our desires.  Our relationships will be poisoned with jealousy and competition.  Potential blessings will be sacrificed.  Discontentment has the potential to destroy our peace, rob us of joy, make us miserable and tarnish our witness.  We dishonor God when we proclaim a Savior who satisfies and then live discontentedly.

What areas of your life have you surrendered to God?  How has that helped you live more contented?  Maybe the areas of discontent reveal areas of a lack of surrender to God...

What are you?

Interesting picture to consider when thinking about contentment and how to learn it's secrets.  Most people fall into two categories - thermometers and thermostats.  Think about it.

A thermometer personality is someone who merely registers what is around them.  If life is going well, with no storms or problems, they are happy, content and peaceful.  If life gets a little crazy, a little unfair then they get irritable and stressed and worrisome and fearful.  They live their lives dependent on the circumstances around them.  They try to be content but their contentment is totally based on what they have and what's happening.  Most people live like this, they experience pseudohappiness, a counterfeit high that evaporates quickly.  They hope the next superficial satisfaction will last, but external happiness is like cotton candy, sweet one moment but quickly dissolves.

Then there are the thermostats in life. The function of a thermostat is simple - control the temperature, regulate what is happening not just measure it and show no control.  There is an inner sense of satisfaction and peace no matter what is happening externally in their lives.  They have learned that contentment isn't denying one's feelings about wanting and desiring what one can't have; it exhibits a freedom from being controlled by those feelings.  Contentment isn't pretending that things are right when they aren't; instead, these people display a peace that comes from knowing God is bigger than any problems and that He has a plan.

They learn the big secret - Contentment isn't based on external forces or circumstances, it is an internal source, it comes from the heart and it lives and exist inside a person, it's a choice.  Contentment is always an inside job!  It's one source?  A soul-satisfying relationship with our heavenly Father, who cares for us, loves us and promises to meet us where we are.

What kind of a person are you?  A thermometer or a thermostat?

The heart of a learner

In the span of two verses (Philippians 4:11-12), Paul says twice that he had to "learn to be content".  Whenever one reads Scripture, seeing something repeated is an important clue to its importance.  The bottom line in the issue of contentment - you aren't born with it, it's not a gift, it isn't natural.  It absolutely has to be learned.

If you don't believe that contented people are just born with it, have a conversation with any 2-5 year old (or adult for that matter) in the next month and a half as all the Christmas advertisements come out for all the new and hot toys of the year.  There won't be a contented person, kid, or youth out there!  Everyone wants the newest, latest, greatest.  Everyone thinks what they already have isn't good enough.  And to be happy?  I have to have new and better.

That's the trick of contentment.  We convince ourselves that it's good to be content because we hate envy (no peace!) but we think contentment comes when we have NEW, when we have THINGS.  Our tendency is to look for things that will make us content - those things that are better or those events that are next - rather than putting forth the effort required to learn how to be content RIGHT NOW.  Contentment is a skill - it's something that has to be practiced over and over again in order to learn it and incorporate it into our lives.  If I want to learn to ski, I don't go to the Double Black Diamond slope to learn, I start at the bunny hill (but since I hate skiing, I'll just stick to tubing).

Contentment is no different, it has to be learned.  So that means we have to make a conscience effort to learn, to take the things that make up our lives and learn to be content with them.  To take our focus off of things and stuff and put it on the deeper things of life.  You make that decision, it's a choice to learn a skill not necessarily a character trait you're born with.

So, start today learning a new skill.  Walk by those things that you think you "need".  Be grateful for what you already have.  Look to find meaning and significance in something other than new and better.  See if in 5, 10, 30 or even 100 days later you don't have a better skill set and better way of life having learned to be content "in every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in need..."

Going Deeper on Contentment

In order to shorten my message up this week, which kind of worked :), I decided to share some addtional thoughts this week on the blog in the area of "Contentment".  As we looked at the sin of envy and why it's so deadly, the opposite of envy would have to be contentment.  Paul says that it's learned, there is a secret way to it.  What does that mean?  How can I learn contentment?  What's the secret?  Looking forward to unpacking this idea a little further this week here with you.  Feel free to leave comments and ask questions - will allow us to learn together!

Contentment Defined (from the book "The 7 Sins of Highly Defective People")

The author of Hebrews wrote, "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have"  (Heb. 13:5).  Contentment lies not in what is mine but in whose I am.  When I come into a relationship with God through his Son, Jesus Christ, I understand whose I am and what I have.  Envy causes one to look horizontally - at what others have - so we are never satisfied.  Contentment invites us to look vertically - at God.  When we look in his direction, we know he is enough.

John Stott wrote, "Contentment is the secret of inward peace.  It remembers the stark truth that we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it.  Life, in fact, is a pilgrammage from one moment of nakedness to another.  So we should travel light and live simply.  Our enemy is not our possessions, but excess.  Our battle cry is not "Nothing!" but "Enough!"  We've got enough.  Simplicity says, if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."

Being content with less stuff and not envying those who have a lot is a process that will take more than a quick prayer, reading a book or hearing a sermon!

Tomorrow - Contentment is Learned.

Sunday Preview

In our current series "Deadly", we are unpacking the seven deadly sins and how God can give us incredible freedom to live the real life available to us.  Stop living "dead", let's come alive!  This Sunday?  The green eye of envy.  Really good stuff - a sin we all hate, a sin that offers no peace, no resolution, no satisfaction and yet a sin that we constantly struggle with and have fed to us all day, every day.  Looking forward to Real Life this weekend!

Gets me every time

These videos always mess with me.

New local serving opportunities

Shared in Sunday's message (sorry for going long) about the idea of serving in order to combat the issue of pride in our lives.  We presented two "new" local opportunities that I believe are worthwhile and could make big impacts in our local communities.

The first was the new animal shelter that is being started for all of Fulton County.  The director of the shelter is Opealjean Rogers (Opy).  We have had numerous email conversations and the new shelter is in desperate need for supplies and volunteers to help make it a successful start.  If this is something you, your small group, or your family would be interested in helping with, you can contact Opy by email.

The second opportunity is through Columbia School (K-2) called GIVE.  GIVE stands for Giving, Inspiring, and Valuing Each other.  It is a one-on-one mentoring program with local kids.  They ask for one hour a week and it can be done according to your schedule.  There is some training involved.  The school has more kids in the program this year than adult volunteers to help, so the need is big.  As I mentioned, we have some incredible people in our church who are active parts of our community.  What a great impact it could make to show our school staffs, administration, parents, and community that we are a church who cares!  If you would like more information or to get a volunteer application stop by the school or please contact Chris Hohm, second-grade teacher at Columbia.

In the coming weeks, we'll be sharing about the upcoming Miracle Tree - another huge way we can show Love Wins in our communities!

I know the feeling

I know how you feel kid - I know how you feel.






Then to think he kissed his sister - messed up man.

Video from Sunday

Here's the video we showed on Sunday (10/2).  Had a lot of fun - hope you enjoy and bring in some candy - these kids are hungry!