Set Apart for Service

Last Sunday, our evening service was a very special kind of service. As a church (a local community of believers) we ordained two men as deacons and installed three previously ordained men into deacon service at Hopedale. While I welcome the installation of the older men, I am especially excited about the ordination of our two new deacons.

Hopedale continues to grow and to reach out to young families and I really believe that adding these two guys will help young families to better identify with our fellowship and to see how there is a place of service and ministry for all of us.

I have been as open as I can be about my church. I absolutely love my church family. Our history is not without its battles and battle scars. We have had disagreements and there have been people that have left with hurt feelings. I believe that some of them needed to leave to fulfill God's calling and had become too comfortable at Hopedale. Often times, God's discipline is difficult to understand until we are able to see the result of His leading. I am sad that there are probably some that have left angry and haven't moved past that or shouldn't have left in the first place. In some ways, we are like many other Southern Baptist churches.

Having said that, Hopedale is not your daddy's church.

We have kept a traditional service for many of our members that prefer that structure and more traditional music. We have an excellent service designed to appeal to young families with kids--lots of kids. Our children's programs are great and our youth group is growing. Much of our growth (but not all) is coming from this area of service.

...And our pastor preaches the Word. Rock Solid. Sound doctrine. Good News. Jesus is Lord and Savior. Good preaching.

As Hopedale continues to grow, we will have the occasion to set aside more men for the purpose of serving one another and meeting the needs of our members. But set aside or not, we are all called to meet the needs within our family of believers.

If you need a church home and are in the Ozark area, I want to invite you to stop by and see us. If you can't make it in person, worship with us on the internet. Our service is streamed live and also available via podcast here.

I guess it seems strange to congratulate somebody or to honor them by placing them in the role of a servant. But that is what we have done. And I mean to honor them and encourage them by this post. Taking on the role and nature of a servant is the best way to model the behavior of our Lord Jesus.

John <><


Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 
but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 
so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 
Philippians 2:4-11

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Whitney Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

January 27, 1991

Just ten days earlier, US military forces entered into Kuwait and Operation Desert Storm was underway. News accounts of the Gulf War were steady and Super Bowl XXV was a welcome break from the constant reports.

Whitney Houston had agreed to sing the National Anthem almost a year prior the date of the big game and at a time when nobody could have expected that we would be at war in the Middle East. In an era that superstars "perform" the National Anthem and often do more to bring attention to themselves and their personal styles than to honor our country, Ms. Houston (pardon the mixed metaphor) hits it out of the park.
*



John
*click the title at the top of the video link to watch on YouTube

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Christian Right. Christian Left. And Whatever happened to just following Jesus?

Once again Christianity makes its way into the news in the form of politics and social agendas and misses the mark as far as sharing the Salvation story and lifting up the name of Jesus.

The past week has seen the Komen/Planned Parenthood debacle (find your own link, there are plenty of them), the controversial birth control mandate for employers (the ruling is more than a decade old) that includes religious groups that oppose some/many/all forms of medical contraception, and the continuing Presidential primary race that says we have to place a religiously endorsed (as long as it's the right religion) leader in the White House.

While each of these stories provides enough material to fill many days of blog posting, I'm still wondering why there seems to be so little concern among Christian leaders that our people (Christ followers) are obviously living self centered lives and are failing in our calling to "go and make disciples." The agendas that we are apparently most concerned with have more to do with trying to force people that aren't Christians to live like Jesus expects us to live rather than following the command of Jesus to go and make disciples. We're not even doing a very good job of the "They'll know you are my disciples by the way that you love one another" thing that Jesus was trying to get across to us.

Since our government is not a theocracy (and I happen to be okay with that), it's foolish for us to expect that all of the laws of our country will reflect our particular faith's beliefs. If we really expect people to stop -- what's the word for offending God? ...oh yeah -- sinning against our God, maybe we should try to teach them about His great love and let God worry about the judging/converting/changing hearts and lives stuff.

If you are a follower of Jesus that thinks that we need to change the Constitution to make abortion illegal (or same sex marriages or what ever your sin of choice happens to be today), I agree that it would, well ... it would make abortion (or whatever) illegal. But it does absolutely nothing to bring even one lost person to a relationship with Jesus as Lord and Savior.

...And isn't that really our business?
What if we just did the WWJD thing and took care of the poor, the sick, the fatherless, the widows--you know the social things that Jesus commanded us to do?
What if we became disciples (and by that I mean we literally became students of His life and teachings) and helped others to become disciples, as well?
What would happen if people started to love God?
What would happen if people started to live like the Holy Spirit was living in them and guiding their life?

What would our world look like?
Would there be fewer abortions; even though abortion might still be legal?
Would there be less promiscuity; leading to fewer unwanted pregnancies?
Would we be less greedy and begin to see ways that we can better help those that are in need?
What would happen if we were as interested in what our neighbor/coworker/classmate believed in as we seem to be with what political candidates believe in?

Would people ever get to the point that they recognized us as Jesus followers by the way that we love one another rather than by the signs that we carry or the issues that we protest?

Often times I am just as offended by the Christian Left as I am by the Christian Right. I fear that sometimes I may offend my fellow Christians, but I am even more fearful of offending those that do not know my Lord, Jesus. My fear is that they will wrongly judge Jesus by the mistakes that I make or by the imperfect life that I live; by the mistakes that we make, the imperfect lives that we live.

It's still early in the election year politics and already I'm thoroughly disgusted by it. Disgusted by the obscene amount of money being spent. Disgusted by the outright lies being told. Disgusted by the hate and fear that is being spread. And disgusted by the parading of religion that says, "My religion's candidate will make a better president than your religion's candidate!" or "God doesn't like your candidate because he isn't the right kind of American."

So fellow follower of Jesus, what will you do today to let somebody know that there is a God that has created them with a purpose? Will you share the Good News today? Will somebody be blessed by the love of God showing through your words; your actions--today?

And if you are not (yet) a follower of Jesus, I have a bit of news for you. God loves you. And Jesus died for you!

John <><

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For My Magician Friends (both of you!)

Last Saturday night I did a first time "Card to impossible location" effect. It was for an Upwards Basketball Celebration, so naturally the selected and signed card ended up inside of a basketball that had to be cut open. I think that the handling went well, but I am certain that I will make some modifications as I continue to use this or similar effects. (However, I've not yet had any real feed back from an audience member.)

I'm interested to know what methods are the favorites of other magicians for this effect. Leave your comments here on Out of My Hat rather than on Facebook. All comments are moderated by me and your methods will not be revealed. If you prefer, you can e-mail me at gospelmagic@gmail.com. I'd be happy to share my method with you, as well.

Thanks for taking the time to share.

John <><

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Facebook Postings

During his sermon this morning, Pastor Terry was talking about "authentic Christians."
(I'll pause to mention that I think that Pastor Terry is an exceptional preacher and you can listen to his sermon here. The service starts at about the 7 min mark. I don't believe that the messages are archived, so you need to listen to it this week.)
Towards the end of his message, he made a reference to Facebook and how confusing our testimony may be--posting scripture verses on one occasion and posting (or linking to) offensive blogs, pics or statuses on another.

Naturally, this got me to reflecting on my own posts, links and blog. I'm pretty sure that what I write reflects who I am and what I think without much pretense. I know that many of my Christian friends do not agree with my political views. But I'm not too concerned about those disagreements. I know that I been told that I can't be a Christian and vote for a Democrat. I know that there are probably pastors that will never ask me back to their churches after reading my blog even though I have never preached anything but the Word of God and Salvation by the Grace of God through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son, Jesus.

When it comes right down to it, I'm not too concerned about offending Christians that are secure in their belief and certain of their salvation in Jesus.
However, I am greatly concerned of driving unbelievers away from a belief in God and away from a relationship with Jesus by sending mixed messages of God's love on the one hand and my personal judgment on the other. I do think about how my actions might affect my witness. I do make the occasional wrong call and need to backtrack and make amends. If you are not a follower of Jesus, I want to be able to talk to you about what you believe and share with you what I believe. You are the ones that I am most concerned about offending.

So here is what I want to know from my Facebook friends:

For those of you that are not followers of Jesus (and I know that there are many of you) -- Do the things that you find on my Facebook or Out of My Hat make you more likely or less likely to be willing to dialogue with me (or another Christian) about matters of faith? Or more importantly, do I post things that would keep you away from God? Away from Jesus?

For those of you that are fellow Christians -- Feel free to share your comments about how you feel about whether or not my posts, statuses or links are an asset or a detriment to my Christian witness. You won't hurt my feelings. I've been called out and criticized before so you won't be the first.

As always, if you want to keep your comments private, comment on the blog instead of on Facebook and mention that you want it that way. No judgment from me so there's no need for guilt or hesitancy from you. I wouldn't ask if I didn't really want to know.

John<><

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Saturday AM

Just a quick post before really getting into the day...

I'm looking forward to tonight's Upwards Basketball season ending celebration at South Haven Baptist Church. This is a little bit challenging as the time allotted to me is pretty short. With only a short amount of time, the challenge is to have a good opening effect, a killer closing effect and something in between. Also, since I generally provide an evangelistic message of some kind--well, you can see the problem.

For tonight I'll just go with an opening effect, a message from the opener, and then move into the closer. I'm a little bit concerned about the closer as this is the first time I've done anything like it. I know how it's supposed to work (in my head) but actual performance is generally a little bit different. I had to make some last moment changes in the presentation so ...
I'll get back to you on how it turns out.

And it's Superbowl weekend! I know that means a lot to a great many people. To me it only means that it's a week closer to baseball season starting. More than most big sporting events, the Superbowl is an event designed for the 1%. Yesterday, I heard (it was on TV so it must be true!) that the average cost of a ticket to the Superbowl in 1967 was $9. That's right, $9! The average cost of a ticket to tomorrow's event--$3800! And that's the average cost!

At least it's on NBC so we can all watch it for free.
Enjoy the game. Enjoy the weekend.
Find the time and a place to worship God in all that you do.

...And remember, pitchers and catchers will be reporting to camp in just a couple of weeks!

John <><

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President Obama's Address at the National Prayer Breakfast

This is a long post -- but I didn't write it. I read it.
And I would like for you to read it, too.

Over the past few years, much has been said of our President's faith. Much of it has been unflattering and critical and much of that has come from those that profess to be Christians.

Regardless of your opinion of the President's religious beliefs; regardless of your religious beliefs (or lack of them if that applies); please take the time to read this speech. It took the President twenty minutes to say it. It should take you less time to read it. I supposed I could have hunted down a link for you if you prefer to listen to it, but I didn't.

Feel free to comment (or not). Feel free to share it (or not). Retweet it (or not). Just, please, read it.

John <><

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Please, please, everybody have a seat. Well, good morning, everybody. It is good to be with so many friends united in prayer. And I begin by giving all praise and honor to God for bringing us together here today.

I want to thank our co-chairs Mark and Jeff; to my dear friend, the guy who always has my back, Vice President Biden. (Applause.) All the members of Congress –- Joe deserves a hand –- all the members of Congress and my Cabinet who are here today; all the distinguished guests who’ve traveled a long way to be part of this. I’m not going to be as funny as Eric -- (laughter) -- but I’m grateful that he shared his message with us. Michelle and I feel truly blessed to be here.

This is my third year coming to this prayer breakfast as President. As Jeff mentioned, before that, I came as senator. I have to say, it’s easier coming as President. (Laughter.) I don’t have to get here quite as early. But it’s always been an opportunity that I’ve cherished. And it’s a chance to step back for a moment, for us to come together as brothers and sisters and seek God’s face together. At a time when it’s easy to lose ourselves in the rush and clamor of our own lives, or get caught up in the noise and rancor that too often passes as politics today, these moments of prayer slow us down. They humble us. They remind us that no matter how much responsibility we have, how fancy our titles, how much power we think we hold, we are imperfect vessels. We can all benefit from turning to our Creator, listening to Him. Avoiding phony religiosity, listening to Him.

This is especially important right now, when we’re facing some big challenges as a nation. Our economy is making progress as we recover from the worst crisis in three generations, but far too many families are still struggling to find work or make the mortgage, pay for college, or, in some cases, even buy food. Our men and women in uniform have made us safer and more secure, and we were eternally grateful to them, but war and suffering and hardship still remain in too many corners of the globe. And a lot of those men and women who we celebrate on Veterans Day and Memorial Day come back and find that, when it comes to finding a job or getting the kind of care that they need, we’re not always there the way we need to be.

It’s absolutely true that meeting these challenges requires sound decision-making, requires smart policies. We know that part of living in a pluralistic society means that our personal religious beliefs alone can’t dictate our response to every challenge we face.

But in my moments of prayer, I’m reminded that faith and values play an enormous role in motivating us to solve some of our most urgent problems, in keeping us going when we suffer setbacks, and opening our minds and our hearts to the needs of others.

We can’t leave our values at the door. If we leave our values at the door, we abandon much of the moral glue that has held our nation together for centuries, and allowed us to become somewhat more perfect a union. Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Jane Addams, Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Day, Abraham Heschel -- the majority of great reformers in American history did their work not just because it was sound policy, or they had done good analysis, or understood how to exercise good politics, but because their faith and their values dictated it, and called for bold action -- sometimes in the face of indifference, sometimes in the face of resistance.

This is no different today for millions of Americans, and it’s certainly not for me.

I wake up each morning and I say a brief prayer, and I spend a little time in scripture and devotion. And from time to time, friends of mine, some of who are here today, friends like Joel Hunter or T.D. Jakes, will come by the Oval Office or they’ll call on the phone or they’ll send me a email, and we’ll pray together, and they’ll pray for me and my family, and for our country.

But I don’t stop there. I’d be remiss if I stopped there; if my values were limited to personal moments of prayer or private conversations with pastors or friends. So instead, I must try -- imperfectly, but I must try -- to make sure those values motivate me as one leader of this great nation.

And so when I talk about our financial institutions playing by the same rules as folks on Main Street, when I talk about making sure insurance companies aren’t discriminating against those who are already sick, or making sure that unscrupulous lenders aren’t taking advantage of the most vulnerable among us, I do so because I genuinely believe it will make the economy stronger for everybody. But I also do it because I know that far too many neighbors in our country have been hurt and treated unfairly over the last few years, and I believe in God’s command to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” I know the version of that Golden Rule is found in every major religion and every set of beliefs -– from Hinduism to Islam to Judaism to the writings of Plato.

And when I talk about shared responsibility, it’s because I genuinely believe that in a time when many folks are struggling, at a time when we have enormous deficits, it’s hard for me to ask seniors on a fixed income, or young people with student loans, or middle-class families who can barely pay the bills to shoulder the burden alone. And I think to myself, if I’m willing to give something up as somebody who’s been extraordinarily blessed, and give up some of the tax breaks that I enjoy, I actually think that’s going to make economic sense.

But for me as a Christian, it also coincides with Jesus’s teaching that “for unto whom much is given, much shall be required.” It mirrors the Islamic belief that those who’ve been blessed have an obligation to use those blessings to help others, or the Jewish doctrine of moderation and consideration for others.

When I talk about giving every American a fair shot at opportunity, it’s because I believe that when a young person can afford a college education, or someone who’s been unemployed suddenly has a chance to retrain for a job and regain that sense of dignity and pride, and contributing to the community as well as supporting their families -- that helps us all prosper.

It means maybe that research lab on the cusp of a lifesaving discovery, or the company looking for skilled workers is going to do a little bit better, and we’ll all do better as a consequence. It makes economic sense. But part of that belief comes from my faith in the idea that I am my brother’s keeper and I am my sister’s keeper; that as a country, we rise and fall together. I’m not an island. I’m not alone in my success. I succeed because others succeed with me.

And when I decide to stand up for foreign aid, or prevent atrocities in places like Uganda, or take on issues like human trafficking, it’s not just about strengthening alliances, or promoting democratic values, or projecting American leadership around the world, although it does all those things and it will make us safer and more secure. It’s also about the biblical call to care for the least of these –- for the poor; for those at the margins of our society.

To answer the responsibility we’re given in Proverbs to “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.” And for others, it may reflect the Jewish belief that the highest form of charity is to do our part to help others stand on their own.

Treating others as you want to be treated. Requiring much from those who have been given so much. Living by the principle that we are our brother’s keeper. Caring for the poor and those in need. These values are old. They can be found in many denominations and many faiths, among many believers and among many non-believers. And they are values that have always made this country great -- when we live up to them; when we don’t just give lip service to them; when we don’t just talk about them one day a year. And they’re the ones that have defined my own faith journey.

And today, with as many challenges as we face, these are the values I believe we’re going to have to return to in the hopes that God will buttress our efforts.

Now, we can earnestly seek to see these values lived out in our politics and our policies, and we can earnestly disagree on the best way to achieve these values. In the words of C.S. Lewis, “Christianity has not, and does not profess to have a detailed political program. It is meant for all men at all times, and the particular program which suited one place or time would not suit another.”

Our goal should not be to declare our policies as biblical. It is God who is infallible, not us. Michelle reminds me of this often. (Laughter.) So instead, it is our hope that people of goodwill can pursue their values and common ground and the common good as best they know how, with respect for each other. And I have to say that sometimes we talk about respect, but we don’t act with respect towards each other during the course of these debates.

But each and every day, for many in this room, the biblical injunctions are not just words, they are also deeds. Every single day, in different ways, so many of you are living out your faith in service to others.

Just last month, it was inspiring to see thousands of young Christians filling the Georgia Dome at the Passion Conference, to worship the God who sets the captives free and work to end modern slavery. Since we’ve expanded and strengthened the White House faith-based initiative, we’ve partnered with Catholic Charities to help Americans who are struggling with poverty; worked with organizations like World Vision and American Jewish World Service and Islamic Relief to bring hope to those suffering around the world.

Colleges across the country have answered our Interfaith Campus Challenge, and students are joined together across religious lines in service to others. From promoting responsible fatherhood to strengthening adoption, from helping people find jobs to serving our veterans, we’re linking arms with faith-based groups all across the country.

I think we all understand that these values cannot truly find voice in our politics and our policies unless they find a place in our hearts. The Bible teaches us to “be doers of the word and not merely hearers.” We’re required to have a living, breathing, active faith in our own lives. And each of us is called on to give something of ourselves for the betterment of others -- and to live the truth of our faith not just with words, but with deeds.

So even as we join the great debates of our age -- how we best put people back to work, how we ensure opportunity for every child, the role of government in protecting this extraordinary planet that God has made for us, how we lessen the occasions of war -- even as we debate these great issues, we must be reminded of the difference that we can make each day in our small interactions, in our personal lives.

As a loving husband, or a supportive parent, or a good neighbor, or a helpful colleague -- in each of these roles, we help bring His kingdom to Earth. And as important as government policy may be in shaping our world, we are reminded that it’s the cumulative acts of kindness and courage and charity and love, it’s the respect we show each other and the generosity that we share with each other that in our everyday lives will somehow sustain us during these challenging times. John tells us that, “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

Mark read a letter from Billy Graham, and it took me back to one of the great honors of my life, which was visiting Reverend Graham at his mountaintop retreat in North Carolina, when I was on vacation with my family at a hotel not far away.

And I can still remember winding up the path up a mountain to his home. Ninety-one years old at the time, facing various health challenges, he welcomed me as he would welcome a family member or a close friend. This man who had prayed great prayers that inspired a nation, this man who seemed larger than life, greeted me and was as kind and as gentle as could be.

And we had a wonderful conversation. Before I left, Reverend Graham started praying for me, as he had prayed for so many Presidents before me. And when he finished praying, I felt the urge to pray for him. I didn’t really know what to say. What do you pray for when it comes to the man who has prayed for so many? But like that verse in Romans, the Holy Spirit interceded when I didn’t know quite what to say.

And so I prayed -- briefly, but I prayed from the heart. I don’t have the intellectual capacity or the lung capacity of some of my great preacher friends here that have prayed for a long time. (Laughter.) But I prayed. And we ended with an embrace and a warm goodbye.

And I thought about that moment all the way down the mountain, and I’ve thought about it in the many days since. Because I thought about my own spiritual journey –- growing up in a household that wasn’t particularly religious; going through my own period of doubt and confusion; finding Christ when I wasn’t even looking for him so many years ago; possessing so many shortcomings that have been overcome by the simple grace of God. And the fact that I would ever be on top of a mountain, saying a prayer for Billy Graham –- a man whose faith had changed the world and that had sustained him through triumphs and tragedies, and movements and milestones –- that simple fact humbled me to my core.

I have fallen on my knees with great regularity since that moment -- asking God for guidance not just in my personal life and my Christian walk, but in the life of this nation and in the values that hold us together and keep us strong. I know that He will guide us. He always has, and He always will. And I pray his richest blessings on each of you in the days ahead.

Thank you very much. (Applause.)

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