A story of God at work

I don't typically share emails I receive after a Sunday, but I asked permission to share this one. The sender granted permission as long as God got the glory.

This past Sunday we saw God was in control even in a recession (times of adversity). There have been several who are part of ClearView who have found themselves without employment in the midst of these times. As encouragment as well as a praise I wished to share with all of you, here is the email I received:

Mark, Want to let you know about a PRAISE your sermon has been & how thankful I am for what you said. After thinking about what you said & my current jobless situation, I went home & prayed. I have had ALL doors closed on me within the last month, esp. the last week. I said, "OK, God, I will quit trying to take control of my future & leave it competely up to you. I have put in the applications, it's up to You to put me where you want me." So I relented all control & "worry" (which I thought I didn't have). Today, I was on the way back from Cookeville, TN (taking my daughter to TTU for a college visit) when I received a call offering me a job. It was a job I interviewed for about a month ago & was told it was put on hold at that time. They wanted me to come work tomorrow afternoon. I know it was because I finally gave up all my heart & put it all in God's hands, before He was going to show me that He really was in control. I continue to > marvel & stand in awe at His ways!

May God get the glory! And we continue to pray for all those who find themselves without employment at this time.

The Christian and the Recession

You can't avoid hearing about it: the recession. Radio, TV, news web sites ... it's everywhere. Banks going under. Major companies folding. Massive unemployment. Record foreclosures. On and on the list goes.

As a Christ follower, how do we respond? What does God's Word have to say?

14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity, consider: without question, God has made the one as well as the other, so that man cannot discover anything that will come after him.
Eccl 7:14 (HCSB)

So, God is sovereign over our days of prosperity. And He is also sovereign over days of adversity? So He is in control. What could He possibly be trying to teach us? We will looking into this March 1 at ClearView. Learn more here.

Text-Driven (A peek into a Preacher's World)

I am continuing to look for language to express what I feel and sense as a Preacher / Pastor. I cam across this video by another pastor (Matt Chandler, Pastor of The Village Church) that says so much of what I feel these days. In a brief 5 minute clip Matt shares advice to preachers. But I thought you might be interested in peeking over my shoulder as I hear advice from Matt.

One sentence you will hear early in the clip is that for many preachers, "preaching becomes just one of the things preachers do". Not the place a preacher wants to find himself. It is a constant battle to push aside other important things I could be doing in order to do the one thing no one else can do for the people of ClearView ... preach. I am re-discovering more and more that preaching is not something I do, it is who I am. I think you will understand what I mean as you listen ...

Lunch with a 7th grader (and her mom and dad)

I had lunch today with a young lady who is a member of the church I pastor. She is in the 7th grade. (Or course, her mom and dad accompanied her) Seems the question was asked in her SS class if they could have lunch with anyone, who would they choose?

A few thoughts:

1. I can't think of a greater honor than to have a young student make such a request. Really, I was so humbled by this.

2. When told she could ask anything she wanted, her first question of me was, "Why is it true that once our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life (her words) can it not be removed?" Talk about deep thinking! I almost didn't recover from that one. :) By the way, the major part of the answer has to do with God being a God of promise. He cannot break His promise and continue to be God. Let's just say in 7th grade, I was not thinking about these kinds of things ... and you probably weren't either.

3. Solid families tend to produce solid kids. When you watch moms and dads interact with their children, you can tell a great deal about what goes on at home. It was so obvious this mom and dad loved their little girl and she loved and respected her mom and dad. Combine that with the fact her mom and dad love the Lord and serve Him faithfully and you have a great combination for raising a Godly young lady. So encouraging to see these parents interact with and encourage their daughter toward godliness in a crazy world.

4. This is why I came back to pastor. I want to be around in this church long enough to see this young lady grow up chronologically, but most of all spiritually.

This is an open invitation for any students at ClearView that would like to hang out some time. Shoot me an email ... or give me a call ... or simply approach me at church some time.

Changing World; Changless God

This video gives us a great picture not only of the changing world in which we live, but just how fast things are changing. The reason change leadership is so valuable today is because the speed of change is now exponential. It is in times like these we can rejoice our God does not change:

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Heb 13:8 (HCSB)