Pastor's Blog

“Genuine Labor Rewarded”

“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”—1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV84

At first glance, one would suspect this verse is only for ministers and missionaries, and those in “full-time” ministry. ‘Cuz they have the “time” to “always give [them]selves fully to the work of the Lord (emphasis added).”

And this may be a more reasonable understanding if this were to Titus, or Philemon, or Timothy…. But it is “To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:2 NIV84), which seems to me to be a much broader audience than just those “in full-time ministry.”

So, if it is for all of us, what can we all harvest from this?

We are all not to be moved from our faith in, focus on and Love for the Lord Jesus.
We are all to “always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord,” no matter what we are doing; we are doing it all for His glory (see 1 Cor. 13:31).
We are all to “labor in the Lord” and not in our own strength. “Lord Jesus Christ, do “this” in me” and then—Go do it!
We are all to “remember” our “Labor in the Lord is not in vain” or empty. We will receive our reward, the fruit of our labors.

Much can be said on each of these four points, but I want to encourage all to make sure we labor in the Lord and not for the Lord. And, I want us to not give up…. But keep on in true genuine Hope of genuine fruit from our genuine Labor in the Lord…. It. Is. Not. In. Vain!

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” —Galatians 6:9-10 (NIV84)

Shalom,

Pastor Mike

“Dealing with Grief Makes us More Genuine”

In light of the recent flooding tragedy and loss of young life in Texas, and even now as our hearts are still aching, I thought I would very brief address grief.

First, we must engage the grief. The sense of loss be is great or small must be “felt”. The Lord knows our frame and knows how much grief we can handle, but nevertheless running from in, denying it, or refusing to deal with it not only “hurt” ourselves, it also “hurts” all around us. We start to shut down our emotions and, in essence, become inauthentic because we are not being real with ourselves, let alone others.

The Word says, “Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope” (1 Thes. 4:13 NIV84). Notice it does not say: “Do not grieve.” But it does say, “grieve with hope.” Too many times Believers think that if they grieve—have any intense emotional response to a loss, that they are not “good” Christians, but this isn’t so. Our Lord Jesus grieved on several occasions: (1) at Lazarus’s’ tomb (John 11:35); (2) on the Road into Jerusalem (Luke 19:41 ); (3) in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matt 26:36-42) just to capture three moments. It is okay to grieve, but with HOPE!

In traveling through the various loops of the Grief process, we become more empathetic, (Heb. 4:15) we become more genuine (2 Cor. 1:12), and, frankly, we become more like Jesus (Isa. 53:3). In short, not going through the grief process is not only being disingenuous, it is also failing to be more like Jesus.

And if I know you all well enough: You do sincerely want to be more like Lord Jesus. Let us journey together through our grief as we help carry each other’s crosses.

Shalom,

Pastor Mike

“A True, Godly Patriot”

Let us learn a powerful lesson from the words of the Prophet Jeremiah:

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” [Jer. 29:4–8NIV84 emphasis added]

If we start with the understanding that we are sojourners here (1 Pet. 2:11), and in some sense “exiled” from our heavenly home (Phil. 3:20), then it follows that we are to build homes, etc., and “Seek the Peace and prosperity of the city to which [He has] carried [us] into exile!” …And we are to “Pray to the LORD for [our city], because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” So, to isolate ourselves from our culture seems to be contrary to this Word from the LORD through the Prophet Jeremiah (Cf. Jn. 17:15; 1 Cor. 5:10). A true, godly patriot prays to the LORD for the prosperity of his/her city. A true godly patriot seeks Peace and prosperity for his/her city, and this “seeking” is not passive in the least. It involves purposeful, prayer-filled intuition. At the very least, we can vote in our great nation, especially as we celebrate our 250^th anniversary! But, some of us are called to much more in “seeking the Peace and prosperity of our city.”

What is the LORD whispering to you to do?

Shalom,

Pastor Mike

“Carrying Each Other’s Cross?”

Was our Lord Jesus modeling for us the opportunity for us to carry someone else’s cross? As I read the account of Simon of Cyrene, he appeared to be forced into service by the Roman soldiers because the Lord Jesus could no longer carry His cross.

A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. (Mark 15:21NIV84 emphasis added; cf.; cf Mt. 27:32 and Luke 23:26).

Now for certain, our Lord was much too weak to continue to carry His cross, so Simon was “enlisted” to help. Our Lord gave no protest. He accepted the help.

Again, is it possible our Lord was modeling for us helping our brothers and sisters carry their own cross? We are to pick up and carry our cross daily (Lk. 9:23), but maybe there are some days we do not have the strength to carry our daily cross, and we need the help of others to carry it?

In the past I have taught Grief Relief Seminars in which I have expressed the reality of this ministry: When someone’s life is upended through a tragedy or death or some crisis, to bring the grieving relief, it requires upending our lives to help someone whose life has been…upended!

Is this what Simon of Cyrene was doing? Even though he was “forced” to carry the Lord’s cross, are we also to carry each other’s cross, especially when it becomes too heavy for them?

And what’s even more fascinating, the Lord Jesus “let” Simon help. How many times have I resisted letting someone help me carry my cross? But what a marvel!?! We help carry each other’s crosses when “they” cannot! Helping carry someone’s cross is indeed a ministry of the Body of Christ to one another. It is fulfilling the “New Command” isn’t it? “As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:35)

I’m curious, is this what the Apostle Paul means in Colossians 1:24–29?

Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of His body, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all His energy, which so powerfully works in me. (NIV84)

Wow! I get to practice carrying someone else’s cross! And I have a choice to become embittered, filled with rage, envy, and resentment…. Or, I can choose to “rejoice in what was suffered for you [the one whose cross I help carry]!” What a marvel: this Mystery of Cross-Carrying.

Peace,

Pastor Mike

“Safe-Place People are Available”

Safe-Place People indeed are those who unconditionally Love as Jesus Loves us; … are forgiveness ready, as Jesus is towards us; and … are nonjudgmental listeners as Lord Jesus listens to us. But in order to “be” all these “things”, Safe-Place People need to be available. …

They need to be available physically. If they are not there, they cannot even be good listeners, forgiveness ready or even Love. They need to be available emotionally. Our Lord Jesus had compassion on those who came to Him (Mt. 9:36). They knew He cared; they connected with Him and He with them…. And they need to be available spiritually. Our Lord Jesus was spiritually vulnerable, not just in the wilderness (Mt. 4:1ff), but throughout His earthly walk among us (Heb. 4:15). He experienced life with us. He was not aloof, disengaged or offish….

He came to us, became one of us, lived, ate and slept with us. And hurt with us…. He is the archetype of Safe-Place People. By coming to us, He made Himself available. He could have stayed in the Holy of Holies, aloof, offish and insensitive. Ah, but while we were still sinners, He so Loved us by dying for us and our sins (Cf. John 3:16 & Rom. 5:8). He came to us…. He made Himself available. …

I want to live like Jesus, I want to be Him to others. I want to be a Safe-Place Person…. Would you like to join me in being available to be Safe-Place People?

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Phil. 2:5–8 NIV84)

Shalom,

Pastor Mike

Is the Josiah Revival Upon Us?

s and congressmen to call the nation to repentance. Alas, no response. Then I gave up praying for a Jonah Revival. Roughly ten years ago at a National Day of Prayer Observance, I mentioned this to a pastor friend, and he said, “Why did you stop praying?” Normally I would have an immediate retort, but the Lord gave me pause. And I deeply reflected on this question, leaving it unanswered.

I went home and entered into fervent prayer. It was a bit, but the Lord finally opened my ears to hear Him speak of a Josiah Revival that is coming. And it will start with the youth.

Why do I mention all this? Because in the mid-1970’s I received a prophecy: “There will be one more period of prosperity, then the Revival, and then the End.” Mind you, the inflation rate roughly 25% then. When Reagan’s “Prosperity” came, I thought this was it, or perhaps we have been in a rather long prosperity run since? But what ever the case, the Josiah Revival seems to be upon us. Not just on universities and college campuses, but on High School campus, and as I substitute teach throughout our school district, even in elementary schools. These young, excited followers of Jesus are talking more about Jesus and less about “god” and “religion,” and this is even in the face of some apparent insurmountable challenges; the Lord is faithfully strengthening them to make the right decisions in spite of the peer (and teacher) pressure!

Now, about the timing….

As I have been faithfully working out at home this last year and a half, I have been using timers a lot. Intriguingly, I keep checking on how close to the “end” my timer is getting. Well, it has taken me almost all this time to realize the parable hidden in this small exercise.

The LORD has been prompting me to relax and just wait for the timer to go off; all this long “hinting” that I need to relax because no matter how closely I watch the “timer,” it is going to go off when it is at its end!

Yes, this has a lot to do with the Josiah Revival which as been sweeping this nation and even our city for a little over a year now. Josiah’s revival lasted roughly 13 years give or take a year or two. (He foolishly didn’t obey the LORD and died needlessly and prematurely, at least from a human perspective.) But, my query is this: Have we just entered the roughly 12 years of the Josiah Revival?!?

I obviously do not know, and the LORD is not telling me. But I do know this: If we relax and possess a “conquest” mentality after this election, we are in for some deep kimchi! If, however, we continue the repentance, tearing down the strongholds and following roughly Jonathan Cahn’s book, The Josiah Manifest, we may get those 12 years…..

But whatever is on the horizon, the Church must stay vigilant, continuing to repent and live a life pleasing to the LORD Jesus:

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with His promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with Him

—2 Peter 3:11–14 (NIV84)

“How’s the Pausing Coming?”

As we enter the Holiday Seasons, we all the more to need prepare our hearts. Hearing from many of you, I know the Lord has been offering us many opportunities to Pause, Reflect and Collect. But, if you’re like me, I look for something to fill the void, and the Pause Button doesn’t stay on for long….

And for many, “Reflecting” is very challenging, too. It brings up all the hard times, our short comings and our failures…. But, maybe, just maybe, we can start reflecting on all the blessings the Lord has given us? Enough with the negative focus and self-talk, right? It is time we see all the blessings the Lord has so lavished on us, and engage in some healthy “positive self-talk!” Besides: “Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes” (Mt. 6:25 NIV84).

Join me in pressing the Pause Button, taking time to Reflect, so we can “Collect” all the blessings the Lord has so graciously bestowed on us. Then, from a heart filled with thankfulness and humility, we can be His Light during this Holiday Season.

Are you up for it?

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. (Col 2:6–7 NIV84).

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life. (Phil. 2:14–16 NIV84).

In Thankfulness,

Pastor Mike

“Of Droughts & Wildernesses”

As with physical droughts and wildernesses, there are spiritual ones, too….

We can wander into a wilderness or be sent. Likewise, we can choose to enter into a drought period of our lives or the Lord will send us into one. Whether these are self-inflicted or divine appointments, know this: The Lord has a purpose for these times in our lives.

Self-inflicted droughts & wildernesses are used as discipline. The Lord is denying us what is important in life to remind us to “go and sin no more” (see John 8:11 & 5:15), thus showing us what is important in Life—His Life….

But what of those divine appointed droughts and wildernesses? David went into one; Moses did, too. And even our Lord Jesus was sent into the wilderness. All these, and more, are showing us that the Lord is using these thirsty and wandering times to purify us and protect us. While in the wilderness, often we are being hidden from those that would do us harm—even ourselves. While experiencing severe thirst, He shows us what water really satisfies.

So, are you in a drought? Do you feel like the Lord has abandoned you in a wilderness? Join me: Cease our striving. Quit trying to figure it out or even “get out”. Simple rest in Him. Pause, reflect, collect. Pause: Intentionally take time to be with Him—Alone. Reflect: During this Pause reflect on what the Lord has done, and is doing. Collect: As you intentionally pause and reflect, begin to collect all the little nuggets the Lord is uncovering, both in you, through others and in His Word.

And through all this rest…, knowing that only in His time will the drought end and the wilderness give way to a land of milk and honey.

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? (Ps. 42:1–2 NIV84.)

O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. (Ps 63:1NIV84)

You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. (Isa. 55:12 NIV84)

In Faith Thirsting & Wandering together,

Pastor Mike

“Your Sorrow Shall Turn to Joy—At the Appointed Time”

It has been almost a year since Robert and Amy moved to the East Coast, and now our dear sister, aunt, mother, Vivian, has moved to the Eastern Slope. We all grief; each in our own way—and in varying degrees, but nonetheless we grieve. She was like an aunt to me. She even looked like my Aunt who had passed shortly before Vivian first arrived at VBC in 2006. It created an immediate bond. We grew close even in there departure. And the blessing of her returning a few years ago has spread to many, if not all….

So, in light of her departure, our grieving, and a follow up to my last blog, “Two Ways to Step out in Faith,” I’m sharing a devotion from Streams in the Desert, July 4th’s entry (p. 199).

“For the vision is yet for an appointed time … though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Hab. 2:3.)

“IN the charming little booklet, Expectation Corner, Adam Slowman was led into the Lord’s treasure houses, and among many other wonders there revealed to him was the “Delayed Blessings Office,” where God kept certain things, prayed for, until the wise time came to send them.

“It takes a long time for some pensioners to learn that delays are not denials. Ah, there are secrets of love and wisdom in the “Delayed Blessings Department,” which are little dreamt of! Men would pluck their mercies green when the Lord would have them ripe. “Therefore will the Lord WAIT, that He may be gracious unto you” (Isa. 30:18). He is watching in the hard places and will not allow one trial too many; He will let the dross be consumed, and then He will come gloriously to your help.

“Do not grieve Him by doubting His love. Nay, lift up your head, and begin to praise Him even now for the deliverance which is on the way to you, and you will be abundantly rewarded for the delay which has tried your faith.”

So, Dear Saints of Valley Bible, know that though there is waiting, there is an appointed time where our grief shall turn to joy. And this, too, is by faith.

Join me in …

Walking in Faith together,

Pastor Mike

“Two Ways to Step out in Faith”

As I read the Word, I discovered at least two ways to step out in faith. The first way is like Moses & the Israelites. Moses is told by the LORD in Exodus 14:15-22: “Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.” This step of faith was after the waters had already been divided. Oh, Moses still had to act in faith raising his hands. If nothing happens, no harm. Just an old fool lifting his hands. This step of faith was clearly the Israelites walking between “a wall of water on their right and on their left” (Ex. 14:22 NIV84). Imagine their reluctance. Huge walls of water could come crashing down at any time…, but they all made it, even Moses, whose faith initiated theirs….

The second way to step out in faith is somewhat opposite of Moses’. In Joshua 3:9-16, the priests are basically told to get their feet wet first before the waters will “wall” up and they can cross the river on dry ground: “And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD—the LORD of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap” (Joshua 3:13 NIV84). Imagine the priests’ reluctance. The river was at flood stage with rapid currents, and yet they are told to step into the water before the miracle will happen….

Which way do you prefer? Before or After? Which way is the LORD prompting you? As we wait on the LORD to provide finances to pay our bills & repair our cars, or fix our relationships, do we need to step out after or before He “parts” the the waters? Both require faith. Both result in a miracle. And yet, each is uniquely different. Again, which way is the Lord Jesus prompting you to step out in faith?

Whichever way it is, make sure you take a big step!

“for we walk by faith, not by sight”—2 Corinthians 5:7:15–16 (NASB95)

Walking together in Faith,

Pastor Mike