Christmas Fest is coming

Christmas Fest is coming!

Dec. 4th.

Here's a slide show of some previous Christmas Festivals.

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Leaders that lead

Brief Reflections on 1 Samuel 11

Sometimes people get gripped by fear and they literally don’t know what to do. What they need is a leader. While there are actually many people around to be a leader – someone needs to step up. This is what we see happening in 1 Samuel 11 (Read it here).

In Chapter 10 of 1^st Samuel Saul becomes king. Chapter 10 ends with Saul going home with some “Valiant men” going with him. And then it tells us that some “scoundrels” doubted that Saul can save them. The last line of Chapter 10 is curious: “But Saul kept silent.” In previous chapters about Saul he didn’t look very impressive. He wandered around trying to find lost donkeys. He didn’t know much about the prophet that was leading his people. When he was appointed to King he hid in the baggage area. And now he is mocked and is silent.

Chapter 11 begins with the horrifying challenge of an invader in a city in Israel. This invader threatens to gouge out the right eye of every citizen in this city. The city sends out a call to the cities of Israel asking for help. The response? They wept. They didn’t rise up and say “how dare they attack us.” They didn’t even form a committee to discuss the problem and find a resolution. They just wept. So paralyzed by the events surrounding them that they didn’t do a thing.

Then we are told that Saul comes into the city, walking behind his Oxen (apparently the king is doing yard work). Now, as I’m reading this story I’m not very hopeful. This Saul guy really has not been very impressive. I expect him to say something like “I found my oxen.”

But Saul steps up! He inquires about the problem and then he takes actions and organizes the people. And they move out to a quick and easy victory. The people could do it, but they just needed someone to say let’s go. The story doesn’t tell us that Saul was a great fighter that endured much pain in leading the people into battle (That’s how Mel Gibson would have told it in a movie). Instead Saul organized the people and led them to a victory.

My college group use to sell Christmas trees as a fundraiser. I remember being there as the trees were being delivered. We had a lot of trees and the truck driver was in a hurry to get them off his truck. So we unloaded them and just piled them by the truck. The truck drove off and there was a crew of us staring at all the trees. We began talking about what should be done but nothing was happening. But then the leader showed up (he actually wasn’t in charge, he just drove up and saw the mess). He immediately started telling us what to do and we went to work. We did what we already thought might work – but we weren’t doing anything. But a leader got us moving and in short time the pile of a mess was organized. That was one of my first lessons in seeing a leader lead by leading!

Too often we have people and leaders who are immobilized by fear: school is too difficult, I might not know what to say, I’m not the right person, my life is busy and I can’t do anything else, the Christmas tree pile is too high. These people aren’t leaders. They are too busy (or think they are too busy) or too fearful to step up and lead.

But a leader steps in and takes action. A leader makes things happen. Saul has not been an impressive leader, at least not yet, but he steps up and makes a difference.

But I left one important fact from the passage out. Look at verse 6. The spirit of the Lord came on Saul with power. Saul didn’t just decide to become a leader, but the spirit filled him and made him respond as a leader. A Spirit filled leader is the one who is led by God to step in and make a difference. The Spirit filled leader is guided by the Spirit as he leads the people.

We need leaders who don’t get overwhelmed by what is happening around them or by what might happen. We need leaders who rely of the Spirit of God and who are willing to step in and make things happen. To step up. To lead us.

Prayer and Expectation

Prayer and Expectation

When I was a young Christian in my college days, in the early 1980’s, I remember a speaker teaching us about the Country of Albania. He told us it was an officially atheistic country and it was a totally closed country to any outside influences. He challenged us to pray for Albania. I took up that challenge and began to pray regularly for Albania. At first I prayed with get enthusiasm but as time went by it became one of those things that I always prayed for. It’s not that I didn’t believe in prayer, it’s just that I got use to praying for this closed country that had been closed for some time.

Then in 1991 reports came out that Albania was opening up. I good friend of mine told some amazing stories as he traveled into Albania around that time. As all of this started happening I had two emotions: First I praised God for answering these prayers. But Second, I felt a little guilty that while I still prayed for Albania, I had stopped praying with expectation. It became something I just prayed for.

I’ve been reading 1 Samuel for my devotions lately. In chapter one we are introduced to Hannah, a woman without child. It was a torment to her to be childless (read the story 1 Samuel 1:1-10). So she prayed to God out of her “deep anguish”. Hannah had a desire and she prayed – with earnestness. So much so that the priest thought she was drunk because she was being so animated as she prayed (1 Samuel 1:11-18). She had a passion and she wasn’t going to quit praying.

God answers her prayer and she says a prayer (sings a song?) of praise to God. (Read the prayer 1 Samuel 2:1-11). She concludes the prayer with:

“It is not by strength that one prevails;

those who oppose the Lord will be broken.

The Most High will thunder from heaven;

the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.

“He will give strength to his king

and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

Hannah sings praise to God and she put the power in the right place – God gives strength. God will “thunder from Heaven.”

When I prayed for Albania I was praying to the God who gives strength – the God who will thunder from heaven. That is worthy of praying with great expectation that God will respond.

Jesus challenges us to pray this way. The Bible says Jesus “told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” (Read the parable: Luke 18:1-8) Jesus concludes this parable saying “And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?” (Luke 18:7)

Hannah cried out to God, and God answered – he brought about justice for Hannah.

I (and a great number of other Christians who inspired me) cried out to God for Albania and God thundered from heaven.

So the question is: what do you need to be praying for?

Are you calling out to God day and night?

Are you praying with the expectation that he will answer?

There are some amazing things that we can be in prayer for.

· For salvation to come to family and friends

· For God’s blessing in our fellowships

· For the message of Jesus to go out to unreached corners of earth

· For peace in the middle east

· For world leaders that are considered “despots” to understand, receive, and follow Jesus. (Have you ever prayed salvation for Osama bin laden? Kim Jong-il? Ahmadinejad? Others?)

Can you pray prayers that Big? Can you pray with expectation?

We need prayer warriors that can pray big prayers.

Olivia Noel Ray

Today is a sad day.

At least to some of us. One year ago this day my daughter’s best friend was hit in a crosswalk by a car and died. Olivia was my daughter’s best friend and also a part of our family. The Ray family is special to us also. My wife Cynthia often says that Oct. 3^rd really defined our family’s year last year.

John Ray and I actually met in a ministry context before Olivia and Bekah had met and before Jane and Cynthia became friends. I don’t remember why John and I met but I know for quite some time John use to join me in prayer for ministry to international students back when few people were interested in ministry to international students. When my daughter started going to nursery school she met this really cool girl there and they started to do things together. Then my wife and the mother of this cool girl started to do things together. I don’t remember who realized it but at some point the wives and kids discovered that the dad’s had been praying together for some time. At that point our lives became interconnected.

Olivia and Bekah are so alike. Both have a tomboy side. There is never a tree that they didn’t look at and try to climb. I remember Olivia once climbed the swing set at Wilson Park and walked along the top rail! WE have a great picture of the two of them in a tree together. One of my last interactions with Olivia happened about a week before Oct. 3^rd. Olivia and Naomi and Bekah didn’t have school that day and were at our house all day. I was at work but when I came home they were outside creating something. Then a little later I was in the kitchen getting a glass of water when I heard a bicycle in our den. I looked in and there was Olivia with her bike getting ready to put the bike on the treadmill. In my wisdom I said “uh, let’s not do that.” I think those were my last words to Olivia. I often look at that treadmill and wonder what would have happened if she had succeeded in putting the bike on it and started the treadmill.

Olivia and Bekah both also have that “girlie” side to them. After climbing trees they’d come in and have a tea party together. We have another great picture of Olivia and Bekah and their other best friend Naomi sitting in Bekah’s room dressed up as princesses.

Olivia always played a game with me. When I would come home she’d walk around behind me or slip into the car behind me and I’d pretend to not know she was there. At some point I’d turn around and say “hey how did you get here.” I think she was old enough by the end to know that I was goofing off, but she still did it. I miss that.

We have a big indentation in the gravel in front of our driveway that when it rains it would fill up with water and become a pretty big pond. After the rain was over Bekah and Olivia would get into swimsuits and go out and play in that puddle. After Olivia died Bekah would sit at that puddle and talk to Olivia. I would usually cry when I saw that.

Bekah talks to Olivia a lot still. Whenever there is a birthday party Bekah and Naomi make sure that the picture of Olivia is at the table. Bekah has put candies on the ledge of the picture frame for Olivia. Recently a piece of candy that was on the refrigerator fell off the fridge onto the Olivia picture frame that is on a shelf by the fridge. Bekah told me that Olivia must have tried to get some candy.

After Olivia died Bekah would get up early every morning while I was having my morning devotions and she would sit on my lap. She didn’t talk, just sat there holding me. This went on for months after Oct. 3^rd. I would also read the paper at this time and Bekah just sat there and held on to me. On the day that the paper had an article about the investigation into the accident Bekah took the paper from me and beat it up. She was pretending to goof off but I think it was therapeutic for her.

I started this remembrance saying “today is a sad day”. One person doesn’t agree with me. Cynthia told me that the other day Cynthia had said to Bekah how Oct. 3^rd is a sad day and Bekah said “No it isn’t, it’s a happy day. Olivia has had one year with Jesus!”

Today my family and Naomi's family are going to go and sit at the Butterfly bench at Leverette school that the Ray family had made in memory of Olivia. We’ll go there at about 2 PM. Some, I’m sure, will cry. Many will be driven to silence. And at some point the girls will play on the playground. Like Olivia did.

It is a sad day because we miss Olivia here, but I have a feeling Bekah has a better perspective.

We love you Olivia. We miss you. Enjoy Jesus.

Prayer and Community

Prayer and community

Matthew 18:20

For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.”

Psalm 133:1

How good and pleasant it is

when brothers live together in unity!

Luke 18:1

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

This morning Jonathan, Josh and I met at the ISCA house and prayed together. We prayed for each other, we prayed for the residents of the ISCA houses, we prayed for ISCA and ISCA leaders. We prayed. It was such a “sweet time of prayer”. A great way to start my day.

It really struck me – Why are prayer meetings always the smallest or even the “non-existent” meetings of the week? We do we say we are “Too busy to pray”?

Many years ago I read a book titled “Too busy NOT to pray”. Great title.

Often we feel “too busy to pray”. But when I think of our prayer time this morning I must ask “why on earth are we too busy for this?”

Why do we feel too busy to talk to the maker of the universe?

Why do we feel too busy to talk to the maker of the universe who died for me?

Why do we feel too busy to talk to the maker of the universe who died for me and who encourages me to talk to him?

And amazingly God listens! When the three of us prayed this morning it wasn’t 3 guys in a room talking. God Almighty was there.

That’s amazing!

I can’t wait until next week to do it again.

Feel free to join us: Friday’s at 8 AM at the ISCA house.