PT's Espresso Cafe

Worshiping the football gods

2011-08-19T05:46:00.000-07:00

Throughout history men have worshiped many false gods, and today is no different. Probably the most popular false god of modern times would be the "sports god". Think about the way we raise our children to worship this false god. We will spend more time and effort to get them involved and interested in sports then we do in teaching them the Word of God. In essence we are telling them, "this is what is really important." We will rush around with more excitement and punctuality to get them to participate in practice and the game than we ever would to get them to church, not to mention the fact that Americans are rarely so strict about our children devoting a moment of the day to devotional reading of the Bible. Fact is, most families in the US have lives that revolve around their childrens' sports programs more than their spiritual life.

Now don't get me wrong, God does not frown upon sports. It's my belief that He invented sports as a diversion for us to pass time, get exercise, and learn to work together. However He does not want humans to replace worship for Him with worship for sports, and sports heroes.

We all have different convictions and I definitely had to surrender to my own convictions of NASCAR. I would do anything to watch a race and plan around the events, even church. But as I experienced in my own life I realized I could grow and be what God wanted me to be when I begin to put him first and plan around him. Its sad to see that the church is put on hold during football season so we can fit in all the events surrounding football while the season last. The thing is God doesn’t put you on hold for anything. He has a direct link to your life through the Holy Spirit. We have become Numb to the convictions because of the excitement of the Sports god.
Psalm 115:8 has an alarming commentary on the worship of false gods. It says:
"Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them."

If you are upset by these words, well then maybe there is your conviction because I just tapped a nerve about something so near and deer to your heart. How you react is up to you.

Enjoy your sports and have fun but don’t put off your chance to plug into church, get involved, and grow. You may find out that you will grow even more as a result of taking time off from a season of football. I know I just said a curse word to some people. Lets set a good example for our children to grow and put the Lord who gave His all for you and me.

Living in the FAST lane

2011-04-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

Living In the FAST lane

I was talking to Daddy today and in his presence just the sheer utterance of silence came across me, I began to to wonder what was next in my time with him. I wanted to hear his voice clearly and know what was next for my life. As I was praying and seeking his voice I began to remember a time where I wanted something from my father as a young teenage boy, I was trying to figure out what I could do to convince him that I really needed this tool that would help me expand my talents as a young artist. I had mentioned several times about this airbrush I wanted a while back. But he never got the hint I guess. I wanted this airbrush so bad and it cost a lot of money at the time. So I continued to think of ways that I could get my father to buy it for me. I was willing to clean the garage which nobody liked to do. And by the looks of it you would know why. Junk piled upon junk, tools scattered everywhere. Old fishing poles and camping gear just thrown anywhere and not to mention the birds-nest of wires and cables from God only knows where. So I approached my father and he said he wanted to talk to me any way. and he began to speak but I interrupted him and said “dad, dad” I have something to ask you. He said hold on let me tell you something. I told him but I want to ask you something. I was anxious to get my words out first before he would lose focus on what I wanted to ask him. After several attempts of him trying to tell me something I kept on shouting to him “DAD”! I want you to get me something and I will clean out the Garage. He got silent and said what do you want, I told him about the airbrush again but this time I told him I could earn money selling airbrushed items. He said “Ted that air brush cost a lot of money”. I said yes dad but I will clean the garage for you and mom. He said fine, go ahead and we will see what we can do. Usually that meant “go ahead and clean and no you can’t have it”. So I took my chances and I worked hard, it was in the summer time, it was hot and I was determined to get this project done so I could get my airbrush. It took me all day sweating and filthy dirt covering me. But finally at eleven at night I had finished. I was so tired and I didn’t even care about the airbrush anymore at this time. I didn’t even want a shower. I crawled in the bed and fell asleep. I woke back up Saturday morning and smelling pretty ripe at this point. I got up enough energy to get in the shower and when I was done and dressed my father called me into the kitchen. He said Ted, I said yes dad. He said I wanted to tell you something last night but couldn’t get a word in to you because you were so worked up on your air brush. He said I just wanted to tell you I love you and how proud of you I am. I wanted you to know that because I don’t think you really know. Your always busy and going a hundred miles an hour. But I wanted you to know this and he handed me a bag with a box in it. It was the airbrush I wanted with several bottles of paint. He said I had gotten this for you monday night Ted and I wanted to give it to you last night. I was speechless. mostly because my foot was still in my mouth from last night.
I realize now that sometimes we need to listen first before asking Aba Father. We should take time to fast and just listen. When we fast we don’t have to do some special task, but we do need to clean our hearts and minds of everything so that we can hear his voice. When we fast it is not to get something from God but for God to give us what he wants us to have out of love. Because he is proud of you and loves you unconditionally. Slow down and FAST. You never know what God will give you. He might not give you anything but love. I realized after my father said what he said, it didn’t matter if he had gotten me the airbrush I wanted or not. His words of love and encouragement were just what I needed and wanted more than anything. Jesus just wants us to listen and soak in his presence and receive what he has for us. There are no costs to us, just discipline, and submission is what allows God to give us what he wants to.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:33). Your time of fasting will be rewarding and what you receive from God your father will be more that what you could have asked for.

Spidy Woman

2011-04-06T05:47:00.000-07:00

I have found something new to play with in my life of creativity, I have discovered the power of Chroma green and the use video together. Being an artist and graphic designer I have now taped into a whole another world of creativity behind the camera. This is something that I enjoy doing on the side of ministry. God has blessed me with this gift and I have always wondered how the two would come together. Any way back to the Chroma or other words known as Green Screen, I have begun to let my creative juices flow and it is dangerous. Well I am not really a dangerous person by nature but this whole green screen has captivated my attention to the fullest of my creative juices. I have a thirteen year old daughter Whitney who likes to work with photography and she enjoys altering photos and such. So I figured we would spend some father daughter time during her spring break playing around with this green screen effects. We went to the fabric store and bought some bright green canvas and began to let our minds flow with creativity. We began to experiment with different shots. The initial process of green screen is shooting some video of background first and then shooting some video of your subject against the green screen or in our case our newly purchased green canvas. We all know that Spiderman is not real but now a days they make him seem so real. So I wanted to make the first ever teenage spider woman. I shot video of a brick wall as I was climbing the ladder looking down. Then I shot some video of my daughter A.K.A. spider woman crawling toward me like spider man on her hands and feet. I then preceded to bring the two together and told the computer to remove the green background and wha la, you have spider woman crawling up the wall. We had so much fun making short twenty second clips of her floating in the sky, pretending to be something we weren't. Great time of bonding and this all made me think of what the Psalmist said in Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,
Be yourself, base off your relationship with God. Not what the wicked do. Even though pretending is fun and using it towards creativity, there is a lot of this going on in the church today. We are not being what God wants us to be. We are not being the church Christ is coming back for because we are caught up in the imagination of the worldly things that corrupt us. The junk we see on T.V. or listen to on the radio is simply that, JUNK. Not everyone falls into this but the church is failing to make our voice heard and take a stand for Christ Jesus. The bible says in Isaiah 42:111 Let the wilderness and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops.
We cannot sit silent and just let the world go by and watch our children and teens the church of today be corrupted by fantasy, lies and deception. Creativity is a gift from God and it should be used to Glorify him not distort the message and mislead our world.

2011-03-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

Being strong and courageouse

Joshua1:5 No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. I will be with you, just as I was with Moses. I will not leave you or forsake you.
6 "Be strong and courageous, for you will distribute the land I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance. 7 Above all, be strong and very courageous to carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. 8 This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.

God gave Joshua leadership over the territory promised to the Israelites as long as he was obedient and meditated over the scriptures day and night. He was instructed to not let the word depart from his mouth.

That promise is for all of us - He will give you and me all that is promised as long as we read the word consistently and are obedient to Him. We should have no fear because the Lord is with us wherever we go.

We cannot walk in fear when we have His promise. God gives each of us a part of leadership that we are to embrace in our walk with Him. The question is, "are you walking with him, and are his words part of the overflow in your life?"

Be strong and of good courage!

Texting God

2010-03-09T06:41:00.000-08:00

It seems today that texting has taken the place of the ole fashioned face to face communication. Every where you turn texting is taking place. It has become the obsession of our society and preferred method of talk. If we needed something done we simply text someone to get it done. If we want to invite someone over we wont stand face to face and ask them we wait until they walk away and text them the invite. If we want to break off a relationship, we simply text the other person, “It’s OVER!” and that’s that. I even see my daughter texting people who are sitting right next to her; this avoids the obvious whisper of gossip. I think to myself where did we get so ambitious about making this a necessity that God is pushed aside? We get caught up in all this high tech stuff and where does it get us? We try to gain as much wisdom as we can about keeping up with the times and never blink and eye about keeping up with God and his desire for us. In Ecclesiastes Solomon, one of the wisest kings ever said that everything is meaningless. Of course today many scholars would argue that point. Many people in general would argue that if we don’t live a little and have fun that we live a miserable life. Sure we might enjoy the technology today but what about when we have come to the end. Was it all worth it? Solomon said that he had everything, did everything, could have had more but in the end it is all meaningless. That is a bold statement for someone who had it all. Whose cup was over flowing, and in the end still had nothing. What is the point of all of this stuff in the first place? What good is all the wisdom we gain? What is the point of life if it is not being lived? The question is what was God’s purpose for creating us? Companionship and love are the reason; He created us to enjoy his presence, and to worship together his presence as our father and our creator. If we gain all the knowledge in the world but are still standing alone without God then it is all meaningless. If we possess everything and God is not our possession, then it is all meaningless. If we become dependant on texting versus praying, life is meaningless. It’s like Solomon said, “it’s like chasing the wind”. We need to live for Jesus Christ daily, we need to seek him in all his glory and bask in his presence daily. We need to live for Jesus like he died for us. We need to put away the phone and pull out our bibles. We need to speak to God like we text one another every moment we get. If we could text God with the same passion and effort we do one another what would you say to him? If you think life is just about getting what you want out of it then Solomon was right, “It’s all meaningless”. If your priority is living your life for God as he did for you, then there is meaning to your life. Enjoy the things you have and do, but remember that they cannot take the place of Jesus Christ and the relationship you need to have for him. He is the meaning of life. He is reason we have a life to live.
Ecclesiastes 2:1-26

Run Your Race

2009-08-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

My wife and I like to go out for a run in the morning and enjoy the beauty of God that surrounds us as we tour the streets with towering trees that shade the sun from our run. Everywhere I look I see reminders of God’s presence and all that he has designed for us to enjoy. My wife and I begin our run with a slow pace until we get warmed up a bit. Then I begin to pick up the pace a bit and my stride begins to lengthen as I get further into my run. I am now setting my pace in order to finish the race that I have in my own mind. The race for a better time and a race that I will be proud of while benefiting from a great cardio workout. My wife has her goal and in her way her own race. We are not racing each other but we both do have a race to win. I feel bad at times because I run at a much faster pace. I have longer legs and I have more experience in running over the years. Even though I love my wife, I cannot let her stand in my way in finishing my race. I sometimes will loop back around and pick her up and motivate her but I still have a mission in front of me. If I continue to run at her pace I will never improve and my body will not be pushed to its limits, to the uncomfortable state that it needs to improve. So we both have our own race to run and we cannot let one another hinder the goal at hand.
Our Christian walk with the Lord is the same. Some of us have friends that will keep us from reaching the goal that God has for us. Our friends or family can slow us down, distract us or even detour our lives from Gods call. I think that slowing down once in a while and motivating someone to get their life on track is always good as long as it doesn’t keep you from finishing your race, and receiving the prize that God wants to give you. Sometimes it’s not people that slow us down, but it’s the extra baggage we carry that can slow us down. We often carry too much baggage in our lives that can resemble an old pair of worn out shoes. You might be able to keep running for a while, but eventually it will cause you more harm than good and then your body takes a beating that can destroy your finish God has for you.

Hebrews 12:1

Ground Hog Day

2009-08-05T09:10:00.001-07:00

An all time classic comedy is Ground Hog Day. In the movie, a weatherman (Bill Murray) is reluctantly covering a story about a weather forecasting ground hog or "rat" as he calls it. This is his fourth year on the story, and he makes no effort to hide his irritation. Upon awaking the 'following' day, he discovers that it's Groundhog Day again, and each day thereafter. First, he uses this to his advantage. He pretends to change but never really comes to terms with reality. Finally, the realization that he is doomed to spend the rest of eternity in the same place has captured his attention, seeing the same people do the same thing EVERY day.
I couldn’t handle living the same frustrating day repeatedly. If God gives us a chance to change, it is in our best interest to do just that. When he sends his signs our way through the people that we are close to or through His scripture, it would be easier to just submit to the change He knows we need, rather than living the same day over and over again. Moses was sent by God to deliver a direct message to Pharaoh to free his people. Pharaoh had many opportunities to change. After the first plague I would have gotten the message loud and clear! Don’t try to live each day over and over again until you can get it right. We are not guaranteed tomorrow and change starts with attitude first.

Exodus 10:27-34

Team

2009-07-29T05:58:00.000-07:00

I can remember back in fifth grade when I made the basketball team for the first time. I was so excited that now I could be part of a team, I could make a difference. I wasn’t that great of a player at the time but I gave it my all and sometimes I wondered if my all was enough for the team. I was tall, skinny, and had that 70’s bushy hair going on. Needless to say, I wasn’t the coolest guy on the team. I didn’t have the skills that everyone else had, but I was fast and I could catch the ball. My shooting skills had much to be desired; however, I was a great defender. If I couldn’t shoot the ball right, then I wasn’t about to let the other guy shoot it either. So I blocked his shot. It sounds simple to me. I was made fun of, had a nickname, and all the other embarrassing things that came with being the outcast on the team. I mean if the team didn’t like me then why was I there? What purpose did I have? They wouldn’t work with me and they felt that I was just in their way. I felt lonely and sometimes just felt like quitting. Again why was I put on the team? Maybe the coach saw something in me that I didn’t. Maybe the coach saw the determination inside of me to do better. Maybe he saw inside of me things that others couldn’t understand. Either way I made a difference. If someone was tired in a game, I could go in and give them a break. If that was the least I could do, then I made a difference.
I believe the church, the youth , and everyone else has a vital role in the body of Christ. The body had many difference parts, like a basketball team has many different positions and players. We all have our purpose in the body. We all have different skills, different gifts and together the whole body can function the way Christ needs it to function. If you ever feel you have no place in the body, you need to remember that Christ sees something in us that we cannot always see. He knows more about you and I than we could imagine. It’s our responsibility to get plugged in and try to make a difference for the whole body, the whole team, even when others reject us. Let God deal with the rejection, you deal with your place on the team. We all need to have compassion for the team, like Christ has for us.

1Corinthians 12:12-27

Drive Thru Religion

2009-07-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

As I think of all the coffee houses that I have visited over the years, I realize that something is happening that is catching up with a lot of people. I noticed that a lot of coffee houses have drive thru windows. At fist I think, wow this is convenient and what a way to grab it and go without the hassle of standing in line, listening to somebody talk about their issues. Then I think to myself, what has this world come to? We no longer take the time to listen to people’s concerns but we’d rather spend our day planning and running our own lives. My favorite type of coffee house is one where I can go in, say hi to the barista ,and maybe exchange a couple of “How’s your day?”. I also like to sit next to another person and chat about interesting coffee stories and share the days scripture. I sit down, relax ,and get a chance to have a cup of Java with Christ.
I wonder if he were sitting next to me, what would he drink? I think of Jesus as the Ethiopian black coffee type, no added stuff, just the real kick off your sandals type of guy. Who wouldn’t want to spend a day in the coffee house with the King? I believe that we often are in a rush today, and we are missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime to spend time with God because we want a drive through religion. Mary had a different type of hospitality for Christ. Are you so busy planning and running your own life that you neglect precious time with Jesus. Or do you respond to him by listening to his word, then finding ways to worship him with your life? It’s that kind of hospitality that he longs from us.

Mathew 26:6-12

2009-07-23T08:48:00.001-07:00

Have you ever experienced isolation before? I think about Jonah in the belly of the fish. This man experienced a crushing isolation that comes from rebellion against God’s will. He had the idea that running in the opposite direction of the one God wanted would be better and less resistant for his life. This caused rejection by his community on his ships crew. The fish sure liked his rebellious attitude because he swallowed him whole and now he sits isolated in the belly of this giant fish. What a meal for the fish and what a sour smell Jonah had to endure. Death now grasps Jonah in its hands; He is cut off from the very source of life; oxygen is not stored in the belly of a fish so time is of the essence in his mind. God’s compassion for the people of Nineveh really annoyed Jonah and he ran off to be by himself. What is sad is that the leafy plant even abandoned Jonah. Now that’s what you call an outcast.
While sitting here thinking of Jonah I realize something, there is different types of isolation. As is sit here writing I have isolated myself from everything around me. Some people need peace and quiet; I need a little jazz or soft worship music to dray my senses to a writer’s world of peace. I put on my headphones and turn on the music while I visit my writer’s world. However I do realize that this type of isolation is self imposed and by my own vocation. I realize that my writing style differs from most. Most writers need a state of quietness and a place where nobody resides. My mind tends to wonder in the opposite direction and this is probably due to the ADD in my life. Either way this isolation can be a place of solitude for a lot of Christians.
The isolation that I am in right now is not the same as the one that Jonah is experiencing in his life. Mine is not generated by a rebellious attitude against God. I am submitting to what I feel God is directing me to do, and that is to write this first book so that it might inspire a deeper and more relative connection with God for others. I know because I have been in that state of loneliness that Jonah experienced. Of course being a youth pastor, I am surrounded by people all the time. Ministry is a people business, and when you are in people business sometimes helping others sometimes you feel left out about your needs. I would never change it because I am being obedient to God and He takes care of everything in my time of solitude with Him. Rebellion cuts us off from God who is our only true companion. No matter what we’re doing or who we’re with if we stand outside the will of God we are isolated and in the world of loneliness.

Jonah 2

Coffee Stains

2009-07-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

I consider myself a coffee junkie. I’d rather not call it an addiction because that seems a bit un-Christian like. So in order to please the crowd I call myself a Java Junkie. One thing any coffee connoisseur will tell you is the many stains they have encountered over the years. I like to look at the table after one has finished their hot choice of Java. One thing that you see almost every time is a light coffee stain or ring left on the table, counter, book, and maybe even the very paper that is decorated with their writing. Somehow the java always manages to escape the cup it’s poured in, and creates a path down the side onto whatever is in its path from the bottom of the cup. For some of us it is even our favorite shirt. These coffee stains can produce unique patterns and if you look at one long enough you might even find an animal of choice or even a sculpture that captivates your eyes and mind for a while. Our Christian life is like a coffee stain sometimes. We always manage to have some type of stain and to some people it just captivates others and we begin to draw conclusions about their lives. The funny thing is, is that while we are drawn to the lives and sins of others that stain their lives we are spilling our own coffee somewhere and our stains begin to take their own shape. Come on we’ve all done it. While sipping on your hot java something catches your attention and there it goes down your chin and onto your shirt. We collectively look around to see if anybody notices that we have a hole in our lip and we slowly wipe the dribble off our chin and try to clean the shirt and table before it stains. This is why God sent his son Jesus Christ to this earth for us. To clean up or coffee stains from the past. We have to do a better job of not spilling the coffee and focusing on Christ. He will wash our stains away as white as snow. So the next time you see someone drinking some coffee and they leave a stain behind. Maybe you can look beneath your own cup!

Isaiah 1:18-20

Towering Light of Life

2009-07-20T08:44:00.001-07:00

One of my childhood favorite things to see is lighthouses. I have always loved the towering castles of light. It wasn’t the light that shined that drew my first attention, but the contrast of lines that twisted up these towering man-made architectural beauties. Some came in different sizes, shapes and colors and filled the sky with wonder. Seagulls would find their place to rest and sculpt their own nests while protecting them from the elements of Mother Nature. I can remember my first trip to the top of the light house in Cape Hatteras, all 268 steps of it. I was young and in shape but it still took its early toll on me at about 134 steps. I thought that these steps would never end. It is the tallest light house in the nation standing 208 feet tall overlooking the Atlantic coast. The beacon from the light can be seen some 20-miles out to sea and has warned sailors for more than 100 years of the treacherous Diamond Shoals, the shallow sandbars which extend some 14 miles out into the ocean off Cape Hatteras. For many years the light houses have been used to symbolize God and his light. As a child I could never put these two together. I always said I can’t see God’s light but I can see the light of the light house. As I got older and much wiser I realized the impact of Jesus Christ in my life His word and how He can be the light that leads us through the storms, and the difficult times. I tried many times to weather the storms in my life without Him and I always seemed to run aground. Sailing through life began to get harder and harder. If we let Christ be our light, He will warn us before the rocks cause us to stumble. He will protect us from the bad elements of life. His word is our direct light to keep us out of the trouble we could face when we try to conquer the sea of life alone.
John 8:12

Shadow Monsters

2009-07-17T06:36:00.000-07:00

Six years old, fearless and can take on the world with my super hero’s. As I go to my room lay on my bed and look out my window, the evening sun has taken its place behind the mountains. The moon now guards the evening stars throughout the sky. My eyes begin to take their place deep beneath the lids. My ears are switching to the channel of peace and quiet. My body now molded to the wrinkles of my soft tethered blanket and my fingers grasping to its edges leaving the tip of one in my lips. My batman figurine and all his side kicks set at the foot of my bet guarding our makeshift cave. We are now going to the land so distant and far off. Nothing can hinder this trip where the Z’s unfold their work. Suddenly a distant rumble echoes through out the land. Then a flicker of light casts a burst of shadows deep beneath my eyelids. Quickly I peak out the side of one eye and capture another flicker of a shadow and I begin to see things move in my room. I slowly begin to unfold myself from the fetal position and peak around the room. Adrenalin flows like a river through out my body. My closet begins to capture the shadows from the rolling thunder and flash of lightening. I asked where did this storm come from and why did it bring all the shadow monsters with it? The moon is now only casting a faded light deep beneath the clouds; just enough to invite eerie in the room. I grab all my action figures from the base of the bed waiting for their next command. Nothing! I hold on tighter to my blanket as the lightening and thunder break the sound barrier. No one is responding to my call. It’s just me and the distance between the door to my room. As I slowly creep on my tip toes to the bedroom door as not to disturb the shadow monsters, I work my bravery up enough to make it to my parent’s room where mom and dad are not even fazed by all the battles going on outside my window. They can’t even see the shadow monsters preparing the attack. I slowly crawl into the safest place on the planet next to my father. Suddenly everything is peaceful once again.
Our lives can bring a lot of shadow monsters and we always feel that the world may be planning its attack on us. The rolling thunder from all the storms in our life is enough to frighten anyone. The comfort from our Heavenly father suddenly brings peace to those who seek him and fear him.

Psalm 34:4-7

American Idol

2009-07-15T07:11:00.000-07:00

It’s seven thirty in the morning and I am sitting at the table with my wife enjoying an iced coffee and a bowl of cereal while getting into my daily devotional. As I am leaning over to get a bite of cereal, I notice out of my peripheral vision that a yellow spot keeps edging its way closer to my leg. I try not to pay attention to the wet yellow ball that sits so gently in the mouth of my black lab, Boone. If I make eye contact, it’s on! He knows it and will drop his ball into my lap so that I have to put my hands on the slobbery ball. I call it “Boone’s crack”. It goes everywhere with him. Tennis balls are everywhere around the house and he worships them. I looked down at him and said, “You know the Bible says not to make an idol of anything Boone.” He looks at me like I’m out of my mind with those soft brown eyes that can melt an aluminum can.
I can’t help but think that today we strive to be the next idol. Look at what American Idol has become. People will do anything to get their moment on TV, even if they have no chance at all of being successful. But never the less, people flock by the thousands to be the next idol or get a peak to see the next idol. We have made idolism what it is today and now there are many shows trying to mimic the American Idol. If we continue to worship people for their talents, the way they look, act, or sing then we will continue to lose Jesus Christ in all this. My dog Boone worships his tennis ball, but he is loyal to me in every aspect. He will drop his ball in order to give love and or receive it from me. We as Christians should be that way. We can enjoy entertainment without worshiping the people who entertain. If we are after what the world has, we are losing the war against the enemy. Think about it, we know more song lyrics than we do scriptures. Ouch! Who or what is an idol in your life?

Romans 1:21-23

Un accepted best friend

2009-07-14T06:33:00.000-07:00

If I can think back into my teenage years I can think of a best friend that only I could share my most troublesome sorrows, and laughs with. The issue was that my parents could not see the reason that I wanted to hang out with such a friend. Even all my other friends made fun of me because of who I hung out with. This can work on one’s esteem pretty good. I doubted sometimes if everyone else was right about the person, and then I thought to myself that no one really knows this friend of mine. No one can see the things in this person that I can. This person has problems as well and we developed a relationship that we could share our problems and work them out through communication.
Jesus promises his disciples and us a friend or helper similar to this, The Holy Spirit The world will not receive the Holy Spirit because it doesn’t know the Holy Spirit. But the Holy Spirit will live in you despite the rejection of the world.

John 14:16-19

Land Nav

2009-07-13T08:38:00.001-07:00

The day was dusty, hot and long. I was in Kuwait and we were doing some navigation exercises out in the desert with the temp at 125 degrees. The only breeze you received was hair dryer blowing sand into your mouth. Never the less the mission had to move on. I was stationed with 3rd and 15th Mechanized Infantry division and attached to a tank battalion. We were always on the move and it was very important to know how to get around in the desert where there is very little differences in the terrain. We were giving the task to move from one coordinate to another out in the middle of nowhere. In order to accomplish this, the military gives you a terrain map and a PLUGGER or in civilian terms a “GPS”. We were in a race against other tanks to reach the point first. We were at different starting locations but within the same time and distance so that it would be fair. We had to plug in the existing coordinates and then plug in the destination and then try to navigate our way through the sand dunes that are constantly changing with the wind. During my NCO Academy training we learned advanced Mapping using a compass, and a map. Most people struggle in this but because I was a visual person I did really well in this and carried this into my advantage. It was a good thing because in Kuwait as I was putting the coordinates into the PLUGGER, it died. The batteries gave out. My soldiers began to panic thinking we would never win the races. I smiled and told them to give me the map , protractor, and compass. As a tank commander I had to be calm and take control. I knew that this was probably a plan and a trick from the Company commanders. So I found out where we were and according to longitude and latitude and the surrounding rock formations. We triangulated our position and wrote down our destination. I began to shoot an azimuth then we headed out. With ease we arrived about two minutes before the other tanks and without a GPS. The Commanders were surprised and when they found out we did it without the GPS the evened the playing field. They took everyone’s GPS units and gave them a map and compass. As the day went on the tasks were longer and it began to get darker. This made it even more difficult, especially while eating sand. We continued to win every race and each time the time gap was larger and larger. I trusted the training I had. I spent extra time making sure that I knew about map reading and I never wanted to be stranded. If the batteries go out on the GPS where are you then? I believe our Christian faith is the same. If we can trust Gods word and what we learned from it to get through life we should be on track. We cant just go on our own instincts all the time or do what we feel is the right thing to do. We have to know what Jesus would do. The more time we spend with God the more he reveals himself and will navigate us through life. If we are in His will we wont have to rely on the world to get us on the right path. I often think that if we had to have a GPS, it should be a God Positioning System, “Prayer and lots of scripture with convictions by the Holy Spirit”.

Proverbs 3:1-6

Scorned Lips

2009-07-10T05:12:00.000-07:00

There was a time when my sister and I use to fight like cats and dogs. It could sometimes get brutal. I’m talking flying objects with trajectory of precision that would split an apple from twenty feet or so. I’m talking serious pain on impact or a trip maybe to the hospital. Despite all the bruises, flesh wounds and emergency room visits, there was something else that caused more pain than any of these. The words we used to describe how much we hated one another. I remember the day that she decided to leave the house due to the conflicts and distress that flooded our home. My heart broke that day. I cried like a baby because my sister would no longer be around. Not because I had no one to pick on but because of all the guilt from the terrible things I said to her over the years. The love I felt deep inside came out that day. I realized that I had regretted all those terrible things I said about her. The tongue is a powerful weapon; It can slice through the toughest of people. And even the people that we hang around can influence our tongue. They can influence how we speak to others and cause us to sin. Sometimes before it is too late we realize this and God will convict us. I think this is what happened the day that my sister decided to leave at the age of seventeen while I was a mere thirteen year old skinny knows it all boy. We can find redemption in our Lord and transformation of our heart. Through the transformation of our heart our lips are scorned and the hatred that we once delivered from our lips will no longer leave our lips again.

Isaiah 6:1-7

2009-05-04T08:31:00.000-07:00

Is the Church becoming an amputee?

I have been reading this book called “The Love Dare” which is a series of devotional stories to help you in your marriage realize the importance of your marriage. At the end of the devotion there is a love dare, a challenge for the spouse to complete which can be difficult but rewarding at times. In this book I was reading the devotion today which dealt with a person who takes there car in to a mechanic. The owner finds out that the cost of the fix is more than their current budget. The owner of the care decides it would be better to trade in the car for a newer one rather spend the time and money to fix it. Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it? Another gentleman who is an engineer crushes his hand in a piece of equipment. He goes to the emergency room and has it x-rayed and finds multiple broken bones in his hands. He proceeds to have a cast put on his hand and also goes through many costly surgeries and physical therapy visits in order to fix his hand. This scenario also seemed pretty reasonable. The example here deals with a marriage and how many people would rather trade in there spouse for a new one rather than to work on the marriage even though it is hard work and costly. The engineer didn’t just cut off his hand and give up. As I thought this through I also thought of the church and wondered if the church is giving up because we are experiencing difficult times in this world. I look and read about so many churches who are cutting off this ministry or that ministry or their association with other churches because it’s too difficult to work on the CHURCH relationship, the community. I think it is becoming much easier for the church today to separate themselves from other churches and do their own thing. I don’t know but it would seem to me that if we are to go into battle against the opposition of the world, wouldn’t it be better to do it with greater numbers. If you are on the battle field face to face with five of the enemy and you had another person near by that you didn’t see eye to eye on everything, wouldn’t you use that person anyway to fight? Wouldn’t you beg for help and receive that help? Wouldn’t you do whatever it takes to get him on your side for a common cause? Or would you simply cut him off and try to be the big hero even when he might have more ammo, more experience, and more people behind him. I see the church doing this today. I’m not saying every church, but more than we need. If we see a need in our own church, in order to move forward into battle and win the war, why do we turn our back on the problem, cut it off from the finance and prayer it takes to make it work? We are loosing the battle within our own walls a lot of time. If we can’t win the small fights in the walls of our own church then we will never win the battle outside of the church. Soon we will become crushed and we will be amputated and lifeless.
10I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas[a]"; still another, "I follow Christ."
The Mission at hand is bigger than you and me. I surly don’t want to be cut off from what God has called me to do. Christ told us to amputate the sin not the sinner.

Fat sinners and Phat sinners, which are you?

2008-11-21T12:04:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a while since I last posted and I am really trying hard to manage myself and time better as the game of life gets crazier. I wanted to share something very near and dear to my heart. Some of you may know that I am a personal trainer and I take health very seriously. We are often faced with a news paper article, news broadcast, or something from the government about American being obese. I hate to add to all the bad news but America is simply just fat, not “phat!”
We have surrendered to a want versus a need in our culture and we are teaching it to our younger generation. Our lives have become so busy and fast pace that not only are we putting God on the back burner but we are also putting our own lives in the trash can
Question: "Is gluttony a sin? What does the Bible say about overeating?"

Answer: Gluttony seems to be a sin that Christians like to ignore. We are often quick to label smoking and drinking as sins, but for some reason gluttony is accepted or at least tolerated. Many of the arguments used against smoking and drinking, such as health and addiction, apply equally to overeating. Many believers would not even consider having a glass of wine or smoking a cigarette, but have no qualms about gorging themselves at the dinner table to the point that they feel like they are going to explode. This should not be!

Proverbs 23:20-21 warns us, "Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags." Proverbs 28:7 declares, "He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father." Proverbs 23:2 proclaims, "Put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony."

Physical appetites are an analogy of our ability to control ourselves. If we are unable to control our eating habits, we are probably also unable to control other habits such as those of the mind (lust, covetousness, anger) and unable to keep our mouth from gossip or strife. We are not to let our appetites control us, but rather we are to have control over our appetites. (See Deuteronomy 21:20; 2 Peter 1:5-7; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; and 2 Corinthians 10:5.) The ability to say “no” to anything in excess—“self-control”—is one of the fruits of the Spirit common to all believers (Galatians 5:22).

God has blessed us by filling the earth with foods that are delicious, nutritious, and even pleasurable. We should honor God's creation by enjoying these foods and by eating them in appropriate quantities, while controlling our appetites, rather than allowing them to control us.

Ultimately we have a responsibility to take care of the temple God has given us. We also have a responsibility to teach our children and live by example. Kids learn by what they see us do. It tears at my heart to see children and youth that are obese. Because if they are obese at an adolescent age then what will they become like when they are adult, or will they even reach adult hood. You can almost bet that if the children are obese the parents are to blame and are obese themselves with exceptions to medical conditions.

So lets get off the fat and believe that we can overcome all obstacles. Phil 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me”. Not some things all things including gluttony. Any questions or comments email tedlinn@edgeyouth.org. I will answer any and all questions that I can.

Fear the But?

2008-10-09T05:30:00.000-07:00

During these times we are in there is so much negativity thrown at us from every angle. As Christians what are we to do? Aren’t we supposed to be the strong, the willing, and able. Are we called to a higher place of expected hope? I think we have to answer each and every question with Christ first. I was reading 2nd Timothy today and came across verse seven in the first chapter. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and of a sound mind.” This is one place where the “but” is allowed to get in the way of the enemy strategy. You see this type of fear does not come from God, it comes from the enemy. As long as you have fear in your life there is doubt. If there is doubt, our faith in Christ ability diminishes. The enemy is very good at what he does; he has been at it longer than you have been alive. He has enough time under his evil belt to defeat anybody. But, once again we may feel very small compared to the dark angel, think how small David felt against Goliath. David didn’t hold on to how small he felt, he held on to how Big our God really is. In Romans 8:15 it says “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The cry out to God releases any bondage we may feel is on our lives. Fear is a type of bondage and can tear you apart. Christ died so that we can be free of any bondage. Hold on to His word during these tough times, and remember these times are only as tough as you perceive them to be. God sees these times as a time to gain strength in Him and become closer than ever. There has to be peace in knowing this. Enjoy your time in growing close to God today, and forever.

Are you Jealous

2008-07-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

A relaxed attitude lengthens life; jealousy rots it away. Proverbs 14:30

I was in my prayer time and was reading Proverbs 14:30 and I could not help but think of our mission’s trip to Honduras in a week. Because I remember our trip to Belize last year and the impact it had made on me as well as several people on the team. I think that there was so much going on in our hearts for the people over in Belize because we saw what they had or rather what they had a lack of. I couldn’t help but think here we are coming into their country and walking proudly as Americans feeling blessed. It made me think, do you think these people might be jealous of what we have and how we live. I felt like walking on my tip toes not wanting to disturb the people who were less fortunate. What I really was feeling in my heart was sadness for them. But as we moved through the country and were able to share Jesus with them and get to know them, and even go to their church gatherings, it hit me. They are full of joy. These children of God worshiped Him all the time. They knew that what they had was a blessing and they accepted it was what God had given to them. In comparison to our standards it wasn’t much. We based it on what we had that they had very little. I began to see the Holy spirit inside of them and how they worshiped God. I began to become Jealous and to desire their passion for God. We may feel sorry for them and think that Life has treated them unfairly. We may think they may feel jealousy of our material things and lifestyle. But I believe they are content and relaxed about what they have. They are not spoiled like we are. I believe they understand proverbs 14:30 better than we do. I have to admit I am jealous. I am jealous because I want that same spirit living in me that they have living in them.

How Well Do you Know Christ Jesus

2008-07-02T05:55:00.000-07:00

How well do you know Christ? I was sitting reading the word and God spoke to me and said How well do you know me? And Of course I said I think I know you well, but probably not well enough. I had to really meditate on this. I had to ask myself what I am missing. Do I know him like He wants me to know Him? If Christ visited today, would I have a close enough relationship with him that I would miss him if he passed by? We all know the Image of Jesus Christ and what the world has pictured him to look like. A gentle man with soft olive skin, long brown hair and soft brown eyes. But what if he came with Tattoos, piercing, and a Harley. What if he were wearing a ragged pare of jeans, torn shirt, and smells like dead rodent. Do we truly know Jesus Christ the way that He wants us to know him? I am not saying Todd Bentley is the Christ of today, But what if. Are we close enough to Christ and do we have that intimate relationship with him that we could honestly see him. I Believe that if we had that type of relationship with Christ, that we could pick him out. I believe that He would allow us to discern who he is and what he would do if he came to Earth in the form of flesh again. After his crucifixion, he appeared to his disciples and they did not recognize him. I think that he had intentions of revealing himself but knew they had not the intimate relationship that He had with his father. Christ desires the same relationship with us as He does with His father. One that we would know him better than his disciples, one that he could build his kingdom. If we think that we know Jesus well enough now, we will not continue to get to know him any further, we will become complacent and satisfied with what we know and therefore we will miss him when he passes by. Do you know him well enough? Could you get to know him better?

Who do you say Jesus is?

2008-05-30T10:28:00.000-07:00

Ever thought that you had someone all figured out? I use to look at people all the time from a distance and I would begin to analyze them from the top of their head to their toes. I would get as much information from them without ever speaking to them or to anyone about them. Then when I finally got the nerve to introduce myself to them I realized that I had it all wrong in the first place. There was another man who walked this earth and people thought that they had him all figured out.
But Jesus was not what people expected. Even the Jewish authorities—the people who claimed to know more about God than anyone—were totally unprepared for the way God came. They expected the promised Messiah to be a strong political and military leader, one who would free his people from Rome. Instead, the Messiah was a 'suffering servant' (Isa 53), proclaiming a kingdom that was not of this world.
Like so many others, the Jews were very confused as to who Jesus really was. Jesus himself knew that even his closest followers felt that uncertainty. He asked them point-blank: 'Who do you say I am?' Peter’s response to this question, given in Matthew 16:16, was simple, direct, and tremendously powerful: 'The Messiah, the Son of the living God.'
Peter’s answer, simple though it was, set off shock waves that rippled through history. If Jesus was—and is—indeed the Messiah, the Son of the living God, then God had entered into human history in a way he had never done before. Life on this planet could never be the same again.
The only way to really know someone is to spend time with them and ask questions. Build a relationship and trust with that person, God is no different in that retrospect. In order to truly know him is to spend time with him daily and ask questions. His answers were all written out for the common person to live by. So don’t try to analyze God by looking at a picture someone painted or by what people say He is. Spend time with him yourself and get to know the most personal, impressionable, loving, healing, and selfless friend anyone could ever know.

Make some Noise

2008-04-17T08:42:00.000-07:00

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. That’s all I could hear as I was sitting at my desk waiting on God to enter the room and say something to me. I looked at my bible and then looked at the clock that kept me wondering why I am sitting here waiting on something to happen, for some magical sign of God to pierce my silence and move me. Then I realized that God created this very moment for me to speak to him. I was waiting on Him and he was giving me the chance to talk with him. I realize that God is not always going to speak to us. If and when we have issues and we need him we tend to just sit there and wait on God to move first. I can remember a pastor friend of mine saying that when counseling people if you just let them talk and you listen they almost always work out their own issues. They just need someone there to listen. I believe that God uses that same tactic with us at times. We all have issues and problems and sometimes if we speak to God and are transparent with him we begin to see the results unfold through our own words. God can fix us by using us. God is always near us and is waiting on us to talk to him. Sometimes God like to hear your voice too. We have to understand that God does hear us and when we believe and stand on his word whatever it is that we are asking for is given to us. Sometimes God doesn’t even need to speak. The blessing is already there we just have to believe things will work themselves out. 1John 5:14 This is the confidence in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
I know that when I approach God and speak to him I cannot ask something of him that is against his will. If I ask of something in his will I can expect results based on what his word says. So the next time you are sitting there in a quiet place make some noise and talk to your daddy.

I've never been more homesick than now

2008-04-05T09:28:00.000-07:00

I can remember a day when I had burned my hands on a wrench that was so hot it scalded my hands and left blisters. I don’t know about you but when you get burned it brings out the anger in you sometimes. You begin to ask why I am doing this. What’s the point? Here it is in the middle of the Kuwaiti desert and it’s 130 plus degrees and you are miserable. Everything you touch is scorching hot. I was a tank mechanic in the Army and we had to soak our tools in an ice chest to cool them off and lay blankets on the tanks before we could climb up on them and work. It was so miserable. I was constantly torn between reenlisting in the Army, or going home. I was home sick as many of the soldiers were. I had to think what was best for my family or my country. I knew that the misery would end when I went home and that all the 130 degree weather would be behind me. We would freeze at night and fry during the day. I remember when we challenged the theory of frying an egg on the hood of an HUMMER. Well I can tell you this it’s not just a theory we had not only eggs but sausage and pancakes to go with it. You see some days you just had to be creative to pass the time and others time passed you. I still wrestled with going home or staying in the Army for another three years. I knew that it would be better for you if I had stayed in and served my country and I did. Paul has a similar dilemma that he faced.
Near the end of his life, while in prison, Paul penned his letter to the Philippians. In this letter he admits to a dilemma: “I’m torn between two desires: Sometimes I want to live and sometimes I long to go and be with Christ. That would be far better for me, but it is better for you that I live. (Philippians 1:23-24, NLT).

Paul's mind was definitely on heaven. He had long since realized that life on earth is only a shadow of life in eternity. He was homesick. But Paul also realized that every day was a gift from God and an opportunity to serve him. Every breath was another chance for him to share with someone about his eternal home. If your heart is in heaven, tell others about it, and maybe they’ll want to come too.

GO FISH

2008-03-08T08:19:00.001-08:00

Come and follow me and I will make you fishers of men. Mark 1:17

I can go anywhere at any time and Boone will drop whatever he is doing and follow me like a shadow I cant get rid of. Boone is my four legged son. I can get up and go get a drink and there he is. I can get up and switch chairs and there he is. I can get up and go to the boys room and yup, there he is. He will follow me every where that I go. He will drop what he is just to be close to me. He will go out of his way to be there. He will follow me no matter what I am doing. He doesn’t expect anything in return. He loves me no matter what and doesn’t expect anything in return. He just wants to be there beside me and follow me all the time. In fact he has separation anxiety if a door or a wall separates us for any length of time. The thing is I love his and I would never trade him for the world. You see we adopted him from another family who didn’t want him. Who wanted nothing to do with him. All I did was love him.
Can you imagine what the first disciples were like. They followed Jesus everywhere. I believe they may have had separation anxiety. They followed Jesus and became close to him. They were normal every day people that I think some just didn’t like. They became some of Jesus’ best friends because they spent a lot of time with him. They knew all his manners and lifestyles to the most of details. They had such an intimate relationship with Him and He enjoyed this. They picked up his prayer habits. He knew the sacrifice they gave to follow him and they didn’t expect anything in return. They just remembered his promise.
Do you think if we were like Boone or like Jesus’ disciples we would be more blessed than ever? We would live in a world that would do anything to help another lost soul. We would leave ten thousand to find that one lost. We would give up a meal to feed someone who hasn’t had one in days. We would spend more time praying and less time running. I truly think the world would be a better place if we would pick up on what it means to drop what we are doing and follow Jesus, to be fishers of men. What are you doing to go fish? How are you compared to Christ’s disciples? What are you doing to draw closer to him and hear His voice? I think I could be like Boone and unconditionally do what ever it takes to be close to Jesus, find him and follow him where ever He takes me.

Joy—An Inside Job

2008-02-19T06:49:00.000-08:00

I don’t normally copy another person’s article but I read this, this morning on the Men’s Devotion and I had to pass it on and share it with everyone. It really touched me and inspired me in a whole new way.

Dr. Victor Frankl, author of Man’s Search for Meaning, was imprisoned by the Nazis in World War II because he was a Jew. His wife, his children, and his parents were all killed in the Holocaust. The Gestapo stripped him of his clothes. He stood totally naked before them. As they cut off his wedding band, Viktor said to himself, “You can take away my wife, you can take away my children, you can strip me of my clothes and my freedom, but there is one thing no person can ever take away from me—and that is my freedom to choose how I will react to what happens to me!” Even under the most difficult of circumstances, joy is a choice which transforms our tragedies into triumph. Let’s face it, not everything goes our way. Things don’t always work out as we planned. Some days are disasters. Other days are worse than that. Happiness comes easily when things go our way. Joy is different. It’s deeper. Joy is an attitude we select. Happiness is external and subject to what happens. Joy is an inside job in which we opt to rejoice regardless of the circumstances. Don’t confuse happiness with joy. Happiness is a buoyant emotion that results from the momentary plateaus of well-being. Joy is bedrock stuff. Joy is a confidence that operates irrespective of our moods. Joy is the certainty that all is well, however we feel. Joy is a divine dimension of living that is not shackled by circumstances simply because we have chosen to respond in a positive manner. Paul is saying in Philippians 4:4 that joy is not something that happens to me but rather something I deliberately and consciously select. Circumstances seldom generate lasting smiles and laughter. Joy comes to those who determine to choose it in spite of their circumstances.

This is so true. I see myself determining my emotions of happiness or joy based on my circumstances, and I think that we all have at a point. I realize that Joy comes into our life through my own ambition and desire to live my life in the existence of Joy. I have to choose to live in Joy just as I have to choose to have faith. The problem that we face is that Joy requires us to work for that joy. If we want to have a happy marriage we have to work at it and continue to work at it. Joy can be a part of our life and we choose who can steel it from us. You don't just let anyone take your money that you worked so hard for, so why would you let someone steel your joy that you worked for either. The choice is yours but it is "An inside Job”.

Memories

2007-12-26T18:39:00.000-08:00

Well I have been some kind of busy this Christmas season and I haven't posted here in a while. Please excuse me and I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas. My sister had bought my mom one of those digital picture frames and i have to say I was impressed with the variety of photos she put on the card. We watched the photos cycle through as history merged with technology. The infant photos of myself and my sister drew tears in moms eyes. Memories of my step father before his passing drew new smiles from underneath my moms loneliness as we shared some very special memories. Laughs, ah's, and tears filled the moment with hugs and happiness. I believe God wants us to have those same memories with Him. To remember the times of sorrow that he brought us out of, to remember the times he made us laugh, and cry. God is a personal God and he has created us to be personal with him. If we could just remember the reason for this season, and think back to his child hood. Put yourself in that position wrapped up in swaddling clothe. Surround yourself with the smells and imagine what those who surrounded him were saying about a king in this position, and did they know? Thanks to Gods word we do know and we should take the time to cherish what the birth of Jesus Christ means. If he had not been born he would not have died and we know what this means for our salvation. Now Christmas day may have passed, but CHRISTmas should be an every day celebration for all of us. Challenge yourself this up and coming year to have a very merry CHRISTmas every day.

Bigger not always better

2007-12-11T07:59:00.000-08:00

In our society, small means "not very important." We tend to look over the small things in life and track down all the big things we think will make the biggest impact. I could remember as a child that the bigger the present the better it was. It it didn't fit under the tree, well then it had to be pretty important, and it took a lot of money and effort to put it there. How disappointed I became one year when I realized that the reason for the big box that was wrapped in newspaper, was to protect the precious cargo inside. It was packed and stuffed all around the small piece of valuable merchandise. It only took me ten minutes to unwrap what it took my mother 45 minutes to secure with precision, and care. The part that was the hardest for me to swallow was that once I got it unwrapped my mother told me that she would hold on to it untill I got older and could appreciate it. It was a hand me down, a pocket watch that was my great grandfathers. To this day she still holds on to the watch but I also have a greater appreciation for the gift coming to me.

But you O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.

Miciah 5:2

What seems so "not very important, or insignificant to us is extreemly important and significant to God.

2007-12-05T06:44:00.000-08:00

I think back to the time when I was younger and full of energy for the holidays. Now it takes energy to find some in dealing with the holidays. Everywhere we look advertisement selling something. I don’t have a problem with advertisement but when they take the Christ out of Christmas it just goes to show where the world is going. We could all boycott certain companies for selling holiday trees instead of Christmas trees, or holiday cookies instead of Christmas cookies. And guess which cookie Santa Clause would pick? The point is we could get our feathers all ruffled up in all this but in doing so we are loosing the spirit ourselves of the meaning for this season. That’s the Birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He came so that we may have life and have it more abundantly. Are we living an abundant life if we are caught up in the commercial status of Christmas. As a child I can remember the large Christmas gatherings of family and fellowship. Of course the tearing open of the unknown was important, as it is for any child. But the real happiness and joy came from seeing family and friends that you only get a chance to see at such and event. My family came from a Jewish heritage. No one ever complained about the trees, the manger with baby Jesus in it. The spirit lies in your heart. The joy comes from knowing we have a blessed life. Why do we let the society take something from us that Jesus never intended them to do. What I want to say is, don’t get caught up in all the commercial standards of Christmas. Spend this Christmas knowing that Jesus is alive in you, and hopefully it will rub off on every one else. But don’t spend your energy getting upset. If we could spend that energy toward making Christmas in your home what it was meant to be then I bet Christ would be pleased. I’m not saying we cant voice our opinion but don’t be the example of something we would be ashamed of other Christians doing. Start a tradition in your own family that can be passed down to remember the miracle of Christmas. In my house we always set up the Nativity set the day after Thanks Giving, but we don’t but Baby Jesus in the manger yet, we do this first thing Christmas morning after a Christmas devotion. May God bless you this holiday season and remember the reason for the season.

Don't wait on the Rooster

2007-11-10T15:20:00.001-08:00

Can you remember as a little child when your parents told you that you would do something that would change your outlook on life when you get older? And your response would always be no way, not me. It happens to all of us growing up. Your parents know you better than you do because they made you. They know your thought process. I can recall another person who witnessed this same thing and it would change his life. Peter. Peter was told by Jesus that he would deny him three times before the rooster would crow. I believe the church as a whole is going down the same road. We are so busy with our own lives that we don’t give Jesus our very best. We are denying Christ every time we set ourselves before Him. Every time we pass the opportunity to share Jesus with a lost person we are in sense telling Jesus we are more important or that He is not important enough. We need to put away our toys and pick up our bibles. We need to put down our cell phones and raise our hands to Him and just thank him for loving us even though we don’t deserve his love. His grace is sufficient not a license to sin. We should love on Him every moment we get the chance. Sometimes its as if we are waiting on the rooster rather than Jesus. If we are waiting on Jesus we are missing out on life. Jesus is waiting on us. We have to be proactive in life. The lost are dying to the world and it could be due to our negligence.
Luke 22:54-62

In The Army Now

2007-11-05T07:50:00.000-08:00

I can remember when I was in high school about a few years ago and it seems like yesterday, that I had some of the most memorable times of my life. I had the opportunity to go to one of the most elite private military academies in the nation. Fork Union Military academy. When I entered my freshman year I was not aware of what I was really getting myself into. I can remember to this day the shaking of my hands and knees while the sweat rolled off my forehead. My nerves had gotten the best of me. I knew that I was in for something I didn’t want to face. I had heard of all the thingsthat could happen in a military academey. All the torture that they love to put freshman through. I just knew that I was going to be hamburger to these guys. As my parents walked me through the registration line, and took me to the supply building to receive my uniform and supplies I would need to be a cadet, I just wanted to go back home. But I knew that I had made a promise to my parents that I would go through with this until the end. Next came something that I was not prepared for. We were lead to a small building that had three swivel barber chairs. As I saw tears of big full grown boys leaving the building I knew I was not going to like this. I saw young men who had spent their whole life growing their hair come out crying. My hair was not too long but I did take pride in my appearance. Not any more. I had felt the buzz of the clippers flowing through my hair to the contour of my headand saw all those curls my mom loved fall into my lap. I just knew that I was going to be the laugh stock of this school. I didn’t shed any tears but it took everything I had to hold them in. I was on my way to become a military man, a cadet at the young age of 14 . After a long day my parents gave me what I thought would be my last kiss and hug. Tears filled many men that day as they sent their young boys to become young men. I was one of those to become a new person. As I had gotten settled in the yelling started and the interrogation began. Leaders came from all cracks of the rooms like cockroaches to break us of our cultural ways and to tech us that we are no different from one another. They instilled in us equality and teamwork. That no one person can make a difference big enough to impact the world we live in. We were humiliated in front of others which made us realize that we are no bigger or smaller that the person next to us. I finished my freshman year along with many and many would not finish. I returned to my sophomore year and the beginning would be memorable because now I was no longer the new guy, but I had not reached the leadership status in the military world. It was much easier but still it had its own challenges just like my freshman years. Again I had finished the year and I had lost more classmates. I returned for my junior year and senior years and thanks to God I graduated from one of the most elite military academies in our nation. I had accomplished what many had not. I had conquered a huge milestone in my life and become a young man. Little did I know that after going through college, a wedding, becoming a husband, a father that my high school was only preparing me for the real thing. The United States Army. I was going to face another battle where I was going to be broken of my character, to become a machine trained to defend our nation at whatever cost. My self esteem would be challenged and rebuilt. My demeanor would be reformed. I had never faced such challenges both mental and physical. My body would be put through the ultimate test to meet its breaking point. My mind would face the same. All this was done to show that once again I was no different from the person next to me. I could not win a battle on my own. I needed my fellow soldiers no matter what color, race, sex, or country they were from. We were to come together for a common cause. We were to fight for the same thing. Freedom was not free. I served for six years. I spent most of my time training away from my family, deployed to Kuwait, Bosnia, and other states. It was while I was in Kuwait that God touched my heart and spoke into my life. It was much easier to find him in peace than in the world with all the lies and deception. I realized that God has a much easier way to recruit someone, to train them, to change them and to send them into the battle. I thank God for sending His one and only Son to die for me. I thank God for helping me to realize that I am special but also that I am no different from anyone else. We must realize that it is going to take one another to win the battle over Satin. We have to put our differences aside for the Kingdom. Forget all the glamour, and pressure from the world to be something we are not. I thank God that I did not have to go through the things I went through in high school and the Army to be a Christian. He made it much easier for the transformation. It can be painful for some but in the end you know that He is there to hold you, love you and comfort you. The military didn’t offer this. Society can not offer us what Christ can give us. The world cannot change you the way that God can change you. I say this to bring a point that if we want to make change in our world we have to come together, putting all differences aside, grab hold of the things God has for us. Go into battle knowing our battle buddy is Jesus Christ.
Basic training in Gods army is much easier than the world’s army and much more rewarding.

2007-10-23T13:29:00.000-07:00

Bulls Eye Holiness

Have you ever tried to accomplish something in life that just seems way out of reach? I can remember as a kid that I wanted to fly planes for a living; I wanted to fly the F-14 in the Navy. As I grew up and began to get taller everyone said that I would be too tall to fly in the Navy. I lived by these things that were told to me and never worked on pursuing the idea any longer. One of my friends that I went to school with had the same dreams and faced the same obstacles. The difference is that he continued to aim for his goals and dreams and is now flying for the Navy. He is not flying the F-14 but he is flying and he is living his dream with a different pair of wings. If we aim do the things God commands us to do despite the negative things the world says about it we can separate from sin.
What does it mean to be Holy? Holy is a famous religious term given to things associated with God. Something that is holy is SET APART from sin.
Holy or holiness is very rare. Holiness starts with God because God is holy. God then calls you and I and encourages us to be SET APART from the things that separate us from God. Since God has given you His Son to make you right with Him, holiness is a goal for those wanting to mature and grow in their faith.
It is what I call bulls eye living. If you continue to aim at nothing, you will hit it every time. Nothing is a lousy target. Take aim at holiness today. Set yourself apart from sin.

But you are Holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
Our fathers trusted in you;
They trusted and You rescued them.
They cried to you and were set free;
They trusted in You and were not disgraced.
Psalm 22:3-5

Driving while Intexticated

2007-10-19T12:33:00.001-07:00

Today on the Morning show my heart cried out for a family who had just lost their little girl due to an accident that could have been prevented. I began to get angry to think that the person driving and responding to a text message was so selfish. This person couldn’t wait two minutes to pull over and respond. She had to respond right away. It was so important that she looked away for two seconds to type LOL and her life would change forever. Her life would be full of guilt and another life gone, while her mother and father deal with the loss of their 17 year old daughter. How selfish can we be? What is so important that we have to text one another while we are driving and risk killing someone. You might as well be driving while intoxicated. The morning show took five teens and adults on a driving test who all assured that they had mastered the art of texting while driving. They may have mastered the art of texting but failed while doing it driving a vehicle. Out of the 150 cones placed out in a driving course to simulate the side of the road and oncoming vehicles one girl ho thought she could do it the best hit the most, knocking over three quarters of the cones. Ten of them were simulating on coming traffic and seven pedestrians on the side of the road. It takes less that half a second traveling at 45mph to merge 10 feet from your course of travel. We don’t need to text that bad. I would think that God gave us better sense than that. I struggle just talking on the headset and driving. This brings me to another conclusion. Relationships, have our relationships gotten so impersonal that we can’t even talk on the phone to one another? Have we lost touch with Gods ways of fellowship? I’d rather hear someone’s and feel their emotions rather than read LOL. I want to hear them laugh, cry, call for a hug, or even just say hi. But we have driven ourselves into this fast pace world where everything is in a to-go bag. Families don’t even sit down at the dinner table anymore. Our dinning rooms have become our office or computer room. We wonder where our family values are at. Well we just past by them going 7 seven days in less than 24 hours.
People, slow down and. look at what God created. Take a time of solitude and try enjoying spending time with family at the dinner table, have conversation, and share what your day was like with one another. This texting is getting out of hand. I don’t condone texting, I think that it is a useful tool when used at the right time. But don’t let it consume your quality time with family. They are the only family you have. And parents be aware of where your kids are. Don’t text them to pick up milk at the grocery store when you know they are on the road driving. We have a responsibility to bring back the family values, and base them on Gods values.

Fear In the Closet

2007-10-15T14:33:00.001-07:00

Can you remember a time when you were little that the boogie man lived in your closet or under your bed and it was just impossible to go to sleep only to find out in the morning that he was never there? I remember those days and I also remember a day when a friend of mine told me his story. When my friend was seven years old he had been playing hide and seek with his neighbor friend and while he was searching for his friend he had gotten distracted by his brother and detoured into the unknown world of “what was I just doing”? Well dinner time came and went, and then it was time to take a bath and so forth. Well soon after it was 9:00 pm and the bed time was approaching quickly. He dreaded this because of the boogie man who had made his way into his closet every night as he slipped underneath his cold sheets. He had a really bad feeling in his stomach this particular day and the sounds from the closet seemed so real. He started to sweat and shiver in fear that this night was his last. The boogie man had finally come to take him away. He heard another thump in the closet and he tried to scream for his mommy but his voice was caught in fear. He buried himself under the sheets further than ever before hoping the sounds would just go away. Another thump and it was all over, he screamed a blood curdling and his mother came running in what going on? As he said the boogie man and pointed to his closet his friend came out of the closet crying and rubbing his eyes. His friend had fallen asleep while playing hide and seek. Now some of you are probably wondering why his parents didn’t call looking for him? They had gone to a movie and the older sister was to be looking out for him. I guess she got in trouble for that one. Sometimes we often fear things that we put into the closet ourselves. We don’t understand how to face certain things so we put them in the closet or under the bed hoping that they will just go away. We need to be able to trust in God and know that he will enable us to face all things. We may not like the outcome always but sometimes the unknown can be exciting when God comes along for the ride.
John 14:27 “I am leaving you with a gift-peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give isn’t like the peace that the world gives. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Honoring our Pastors

2007-10-14T18:22:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated a special day to some very special people. Today was our pastor’s appreciation day and I thought that I would share what they mean to me and my family. Pastors Eric and Gena Boggs have been such a wonderful part of my family’s life since we moved to the Greenville area. I have only known the Boggs family since last November. We visited Beech Springs by invitation from another member and to this day I believe it was a God send. We met and it felt as if I had known them for years. I knew that God had placed Pastor Eric in my life for many reasons and with this gave me an opportunity to be a part of the church staff as youth pastor. I cherish Pastor Eric and Gena. Just in such a short time I see how God uses this family to influence our community and be a place of comfort to the hurting people. They dedicate themselves to serve God and the community with such passion in their heart and to see the world change with love one person at a time. Their love for people is a model of Christ’s love and with such an example you cant help but love them and want to e a part of the vision God has given them. Their children mirror the same heart within their parents, and are always there to lend a hand to their peers. All I can say if I had to keep it short is I love them and I appreciate everything they are doing for the Kingdom. I am honored and humbled to be a part of their journey with God. Pastor’s Eric and Gena, we love you!

Can I get a Hug?

2007-10-13T08:43:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a day that just goes astray and it seems that nobody is around to get you back on track? I think we all have a day like this occasionally and maybe often more than likely. I was sitting down during my quiet time this morning and couldn’t help but to think that God didn’t intend for us to go a day feeling blue or in distress. You know if you could take some time and free yourself from the chaos of the world around you and just seek a quiet place and hear the sounds of peace. You might find yourself there more often. When days seem to just go the wrong way something so peaceful and simple could inevitably make the day better. Last week end I took my family to the Fusion warehouse to volunteer watching over the youth who crowded in the place. You have to picture this place as an indoor inner city full of kids of all sorts of ethnic backgrounds and culture. It is so diverse and everyone is all under one roof. You can imagine the chaos with over 400 teens in this one place talking, looking for attention and chasing after one another. It all seems so hectic. You really have to have some patience here. This can resemble our lives quiet often. But the think amongst all this chaos was a single girl standing on the side of the indoor street holding a sign that reads “Free Hugs”. I was overcome by emotion. Just an average person with an incredible vision. I thought to myself as I saw strangers go and receive a free hug, with no strings attached, “some of these people may have gotten their only hug in life from a stranger. But it brought peace to their day.
You know we have someone who is always near to us with open arms to make your day a brighter day. Jesus who is a stranger to some and a refuge to others is always there to give us a hug and there is no strings attached. Just an incredible God with a vision to impact the world. Can you reach out to him and ask “Can I get a Hug?”

Running From The Church

2007-10-12T20:01:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here in my Christian crack house called Starbucks, also known as my office.
I sometimes come here to fill my addiction to caffeine and spend time to myself reading the word and maybe even eavesdrop on a few conversations. I don’t do that kind of stuff. LOL You know sometimes listening to the sounds of voices around you can get one to think out loud. I am not one to listen in on another persons conversations all the time but sometimes the people around you want you to hear what they have to say just because you are reading the Bible. So I here a conversation about religion and how the Christian people are so religious in their beliefs. Of course this is coming from someone who just chased a hangover with a cup of java. They could not understand why there could be so many mean christians out there. Why so many Christians are so nice to you when they need some money and then turn their back on you. I thought to myself man who disappointed this person, who turned their back instead of reaching out. I looked over at the lady and she returned the look of “well what about it”. I took it as an opportunity to first apologize to her for my fellow church who let her down. She and her friend let me in on their conversation and I found out that she was a dancer at a local strip club. She was trying to turn her life around and do the right thing. She went to church occasionally and gave her tithe and even an offering. She knew that God was not happy with what she was doing but that she grew up in this kind of environment. Just the other day the church that she had attended confronted told her that she was not welcome any more once one of the elders there found out where she worked. Some people in our church have a ministry that reaches out to women who are in this field of work. And I shared this with her. I know that she had been let down by the very source that she thought would be her refuge. She felt betrayed. And now we all share a label. If we are to turn our backs on those who are trying to change then what does that say about out Christ like love. I could not stand there and say I wash my hands of her sin and her problems. I could only apologize to her for someone else’s ignorance and lend out another hand in hopes that it would help. Are we so religious that we cannot share the love of Christ to those trapped by sin? Are we so religious that we turn our back on the ones who need our hand and our love? Imagine if Christ turned his back on us because of our sin. Where would we be today? This woman has picked out the Pharisees within the church today and now labeled everyone. I don’t condone her labeling everyone for one church, but it is what it is. I hope that we can look deep into our own hearts and see that we often put a band-aid on the sore spots in society an look the other way instead of implementing a cure. We are supposed to be a hospital for the hurting and sick, a refuge where people feel safe. Christ was all these things and he always led people to a place of safety from the sin they were trapped in.
Luke 14:21 So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’
You see there is always room for those in need of hope and salvation. We should never turn away or condemn anyone. How can we turn someone away when we ourselves are still living in sin. We all have fallen short of the glory of God. I like to remember the scripture in JOHN 8 John 8
1But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" 6They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." 8Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" 11"No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."
I think that if the church would have accepted this woman for who she was and not what she has done she might be running from her job as a stripper and turning other women as well from this degrading lifestyle. Instead now she finds herself running away from the doors of the church. May God bless her and give us all the courage to love and reach the lost.

Espress yourself.

2007-10-11T08:05:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, I hope that you are as blessed as I am. I am excited to be able to share some thoughts occasionally with you and also start some conversation based on what God has laid on my heart. I hope that you will enjoy this time in what I lik to call PT's Espresso cafe. People seem to open up and have great thought over a cup of coffee and this might not be a real cafe', but if you grabe yourself a cup of good java and sit down and read I believe we can have a great time sharing some thoughts and prayer. I don't get to share my heart all the time with everyone due to time. Life is very busy. This is a way to share time with all of you my heart. May God Bless you all.
PS. I am not an english scholar so excuse my dislexia and grammer.
I love you all.
Pastor Ted Linn
Pastor of youth at BST