Was Jesus a Fool?

(An Aside: Are you out there? Before I started this BLOG I read that you need to be consistent in your postings or people will stop going to your site. It’s been about three weeks since I wrote anything so I’m wondering if anyone is out there. For those of you who are still there here are my thoughts today.)

My question for today is: “Was Jesus a fool? What do you think? Yes or No! If you are an “American Christian” then there is a 65% probability that you would have to answer “Yes”.

Let me explain: According to the New Testament Jesus came to earth from heaven for the express purpose of dying so that people could go to heaven. This was God the Father’s plan and purpose in sending His Son.

However, a survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, done this past December, found that 65 percent of American Christians “think that many different religions can lead to eternal life.” In our culture 65% is a strong majority and since the majority must be right there must be many ways that lead to eternal life.

Therefore, Jesus was a fool. Or if he had just waited 2,000 years until this Pew Survey was completed he could have saved himself a lot of pain and suffering. After all who but a fool would purposefully suffer the agony of the cross if there were several other alternative paths that lead to eternal life.

If I were Jesus I would have said, “chose any path you wish, any religion will do, even no religion is OK, but I’m not going to pay with my life for something you can get another way.

My vote is NO! Jesus was not a fool! He knew that he was the only way and that there is no “other way”. So don’t call me a “Christian” anymore, call me a “Christ Follower”.

I don’t want to be confused with the 65% who are following a fool.

“Jesus told him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6)

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P Jay

A HIP BLESSING

Do you ever wrestle with God, in order to get a blessing? There ARE a lot of places in the Bible where people do that very thing. If your familiar with the Book you probably are thinking of Jacob wrestling with God (Jesus came to him). It says, “When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket (sounds painful). (Genesis 32:25) Then the man asked Jacob to let him go and Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And he got “a Hip Blessing”. God gave him a new identity.(His old name meant "deceiver".

Hannah also wrestled with God for years, in prayer. In fact it was so intense that she was “in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord.” (1 Samuel 1:10) And she got her blessing, a son!

Sometimes when I’m wrestling with God I get tired and the pain seems too much to bear and I want to throw in the towel. What helps me go “another round” is the encouragement of those in my “corner”, fellow Christians who pray for and with me.

The writer of Hebrews says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses (check out Chapter 11 for the list)…let us strip off every weight that slows us down…by keeping our eyes on Jesus…he endured the cross (what a battle that was)…Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. (Heb 12;1-2)

So…be an encouragement to those you come in contact with. They may be in a wrestling match barely hanging on with a dislocated hip, in need of ‘A HIP BLESSING”.

Shalom (Peace and so much more

P Jay

REPRESENT

Last week a good friend of my wife and her husband were in Florida on business and they stopped by to see us and go out to dinner. He works as a fundraiser for a Christian College in Michigan and was in Florida contacting possible donors.

We visited at our house for about and hour before going out for Cuban food (one of our favorite restaurants and they bought ;-). He wore a shirt that had the name of the school and since our two boys graduated from there he shared an 18 minute video about what has been happening over the past year. He and his wife were very upbeat about the school. They were REPRESENTING!

A few days later I was reflecting on how I would like to be bolder about my witness for Christ. I am rather reserved when it comes to interacting with strangers. Unlike my wife who will strike up a conversation with anyone at anytime. (I should tell you about the young girl she met in the airport in Orlando, who she later visited in Switzerland).

I was reading in the Bible (book of Romans) and came across verse five of the first chapter. In my words it says, “God has given me the privilege and the authority to tell people everywhere what God had done for them”. More often than not, I see this as more a challenge than a privilege. But it got me to thinking!

I am an “Authorized Representative of Jesus” and I should be as excited about what I have to share as the folks we entertained last week. So I’m going to try and do a better job of REPRESENTING! I’ll let you know how it goes.

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P Jay

CLOUDY DAYS

Last week was particularly busy with flying to Chicago and back for a 5 hour meeting on Tuesday then driving to Orlando (4 hours each way) on Wednesday for a 4 hour meeting, then getting ready for and being part of our church work project (helping repair a trailer for a family in need) from 8 till 3 then a 90 minute conference call followed by our church movie night, besides all the “regular stuff’. So by the finish of the second service and potluck yesterday I was beat, tired, wasted, whipped, weary, and ready for a time-out.

Ever have one of those weeks? Some folks have them week after week after week. Eventually burning the candle at both ends leads to burn-out. When that happens to me life can seem dark. Things can seem overwhelming and the longer the cloud last the darker it gets.

In my Day Planner (yeah I still carry my “Day runner”, not very 21st century) I have a section filled with positive statements, scripture, sayings and quotes. I try to read it regularly to keep me out of the dark place. Here are a few examples:

I am a child of God and His Ambassador
“Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today.” Will Rogers
The joy of the Lord is my Strength
God’s Hand of blessing is upon me
God is thinking about me—a lot
God is with me from the time I arise
Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world
I can do all thing through Christ who gives me strength.
“When we do what we can, God will do what we can’t”

Perhaps you could put uplifting sayings in your Day Runner or Blackberry or…to help fly above the clouds. Particularly when life gets really busy.

It helps me!

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P Jay

How Do You Handle Disappointment?

I had a meeting yesterday that I was rather excited about. I expected one result but I was disappointed. It didn’t turn out as I had hoped and so I had to begin formulating “plan B”. I did what I could but it was a “no go”.

Did you notice the number of times the word “I” was used in the last paragraph? Could it be that we are often disappointed because our plans or decisions are focused on “I”? Sure we pray and ask God to help but often times we are just looking for a “junior partner” in the endeavor. Someone to follow our plan in order to get our results. What if I turned it around and God was the Senior Partner. Then that first paragraph might look a bit different and I wouldn’t end up being disappointed. Check it out…

God invited me to a meeting yesterday that was rather exciting. The results were not according to my expectations or hopes. Rather than become disappointed my excitement grew. You see it was clear to me that God must have a “plan B” that was even greater than my initial expectations.

Hope I can grow to be more like the second paragraph.

Check this out: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P. Jay

How's Your

At West Broward Community Church (the church I pastor) we have two quite different worship experiences. The first is 30-40 minutes long and starts at 8:00 a.m. The format is fairly simple: call to worship, opening prayer, a Song/Hymn, Scripture, Prayer, Meditation, prayer for the offering and benediction. It’s for folks who have to work or have other commitments and yet would like to join in worship. I started this service in January and so far our high attendance day was Feb. 1st. We had 5 people plus me! We don’t have a budget to advertise so it’s word of mouth. I have high hopes and I enjoy this simple low-key worshipful format.

But I also like our 10:00 service which lasted 90 minutes this past Sunday. We have a lot of music with a childrens lesson, a congregational sharing and prayer time, a message and this week we had an exciting report about the work of the Gideons.

These two services are as different as night and day (I even give two different messages). But they are both worship!

I grew up in the Roman Catholic church when the mass was in Latin and YES I was an altar boy. Over the years I have experienced many types of worship (including a Quaker meeting where we sat and waited for the Lord to give a word). Perhaps all this variety in styles of worship helps me to remember that true worship is not about all the component parts of the service as much as it is about the spirit and truthfulness of the worshipers.

Jesus said; "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him." Joh 4:23

P.S. Next I would like to start a worship service that appeals to young people or perhaps an online worship.

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P.Jay

Why they Go Deep!

Jack (one of our deacons) had members of his family in church yesterday. They were visiting from “up-north”. His brother-in-law brought his fishing gear along but wasn’t having much luck. The chilly weather we’ve been having in south Florida the last couple of weeks keeps the fish from biting. They “go deep”.

That got me to thinking. Isn’t it like that for us as well. When things are “chilly” we tend to “go deep”. But when things are warm and inviting we come to the surface. We Christ-followers often have a reputation of being cold, judgmental and critical. And sadly too often the reputation is deserved. We want to reach lost people but our words or actions can cause them to “go deep” instead of rise to the surface.

I remember when I gave my heart and life to Jesus. My zeal overpowered my love and I was rather obnoxious. I had good intentions but bad execution and those around me went “deep”.

So I think the guy with the funny hair at the ball games that hold up the sign every time the camera comes near him should change his message just for us Christ-followers. He should make it John 3:17 instead of John 3:16.

“God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it , but to save it.”

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P.Jay

February 2, 2009

Let me tell you about....

It's called bragging. Your proud about something and you want others to know about it. Yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday and I'm sure there are lots of folks who are bragging on "their" Steelers (right Nikki).

Some of you who know me may think this is leading to my grandson. After all Cody is the brightest child on planet earth. Instead, I want to brag about the folks at WBCC. Now there are lots of things I could share with you but I want to tell you about their "servant hearts".

Two weeks ago Habitat for Humanity had a last minute need for 15 people to work on Saturday and they called WBCC. Now for a large church 15 people would be no problem but we are a small church. So when Gordon, the head of our Deacons, called to ask me if I thought we could meet the need, I HAD SERIOUS DOUBTS. Our folks had just done a major service project a month earlier. But I said, let's put the word out and see what happens.

What a blessing when 20 people from WBCC showed up to work. From teens to senior citizens they showed up and in the midst of fellowship and fun we blessed a family in need.

Now I don't know what kind of church you attend or if you even attend a church. But you won't find a body more "servant minded" than WBCC on planet earth. They are GREAT, and I have pictures if your interested!!

"Whoever wants to become great must be a servant." Mark 10:43 (MSG)

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P Jay

ENTERING INTO CYBER SPACE

January 26, 2009

What a great day to start a new Blog!

Or is every day a good day to start one?

I’m the pastor of West Broward Community Church in South Florida and we are on a terrific journey and I would like to invite you to join us. My plan is to stop by this Blog at least once a week to give you the latest update and I’ll try to add picture to enhance your reading pleasure. You can make comments, ask questions or just enjoy. I’ll be the tour guide as we journey together.

So let’s begin:

Ever have one of “those” mornings. Yesterday was one for me! Our computer guy for worship (Kum) had to go home to Argentina. Earlier in the week I finished installing our second big worship screen and wanted to use it during the Sunday service. So using a program that is not all that familiar to me I inputted the song lyrics, scripture passages, some pictures and a few videos. I went to church Saturday and spent a couple hours making sure I had it right. Then Saturday evening I thought of a couple things I wanted to add, so I did. BIG MISTAKE!

Sunday morning comes and after the 8:00 service I started setting up the computer for the 10:00 Contemporary Service. I quickly discovered that whatever I had done Saturday evening had messed up my presentation. I could show the pictures and the videos but the song lyrics and scripture passages were “lost in space-without a trace”. I spent 45 minutes between the services trying to fix it but with no success.

But guess what, we were still able to worship. Go figure. ;-)

Perhaps that’s what the writer of proverbs meant when he wrote “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” (16:9)

Shalom (Peace and so much more)

P Jay