No More of This

I was going to originally write a post entitled "Be Strong and Courageous", but today I had to funeralize a young lady by the name of Ashley Brown, who was tragically killed last week at the age of 27. What makes it so heartbreaking, is that she was an innocent bystander, who was struck by a stray bullet as an assailant just shot into the crowd. This is the third tragic funeral I have had to preach within the last year. I am saddened and sickened at my generations lack of compassion when it comes to life. I shared at the funeral today the passage from Luke 22:51. It was in this passage, as they were coming to arrest Jesus, that His disciples pulled out there swords and responded with violence. Jesus exclaims, "No More of This", encourages them to put there swords away and heals the injured man. In essence, Jesus was telling us all that violence is not the proper response. No matter if we feel its right or not, violence is not the answer. Just as Jesus was telling the disciples to put the swords away, the same could be said to our young people to put the guns and knives away. Even after the put the swords were put away, there was still an injured man. Jesus puts His hands on his ear and heals the man. The profound point here is that violence will always leave someone injured, whether it is physical, emotional, mental or spiritual. The only healing can truly come from Jesus. We can march, hold vigils, but true healing comes from a touch from the master. The chronicler proclaims "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray, seek my face, then I will hear from heaven and HEAL their land". Let us earnestly seek God and trust that He will HEAL our land, from senseless violence. Let us declare and partner with Jesus and live out "NO MORE OF THIS!!!!"

What Do You See?

Yesterday, in our staff meeting, I shared a leadership exercise. I brought an acorn to the conference room and laid it on the table. I went around the room and asked everyone what they saw. The majority said an acorn. When it was my turn, I remarked that I saw chairs, pews and a pulpit. I was teaching on the principle of Vision. The Word of God says that "without VISION, the people perish." Leaders have to have the ability to see something beyond its now. Where other people are limited by a present perception, a visionary leader has to see beyond the now and into the not yet. The tension of life is the fragile place between being and becoming. I have to acknowledge what is, while also pressing forward to what can be. Life is like that acorn. To limit it to today is to abort the potential that it has to be greater tomorrow. Be Blessed, PG

Are You Ready to Receive?

I read an awesome quote during my devotional period this morning. It simply said "God gives to those who have empty hands". It got me to wondering, how many times has God wanted to give me something, but I was too full to receive. This is a sobering truth, that there have been moments that God wanted to bless me, but I was to encumbered, to saturated to receive. God is looking for empty vessels to fill. I am reminded of the story that chronicles the first miracle of Jesus. He was at a wedding in Cana when the wine ran out. He was then commissioned by His mother to do something about it. He commands the servants to bring forth some used, discarded and empty stone clay jars. It would be these forgotten but empty vessels that Jesus would have filled with water that would be changed to wine. I suggest that the only thing that mattered to Jesus was that these pots were empty, which meant they could be used for His expressed glory. You have to figure out would you rather be a shiny, brand new vessel that is too full to be filled, or a discarded, ostracized jar that is empty and ready to be filled for the use of the Master. Its your choice. PG

Being Still in His Presence

I wonder what has taken me so long to really understand this. I have had an ephinany over the last few weeks. I finally realized that I am not God. I know that this might sound crazy, coming from a preacher and all, but I needed this dose of reality. God has graced me in so many awesome ways in 32 years of life. I have had my fair share of ups and downs. As a pastor, I have seen the best in people, but also the worst in people. I have been to the mountain of success but also the valley of pain and suffering. I was at a point where I could not handle everything that was coming my way. It was effecting my health, my mind, and even my spiritual walk. I was consumed with trying to figure out how to make everything right and work everything out. I had finally got to the point where I was broken, mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. it was at this point, I heard a voice and it simply said, "BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD". Wow. It finally hit me. I am not God. Since I am not God, it is not my job to work it out and figure it out. that is God's job. My job is to trust and seek to be close to God every single moment. I guess I had what Martin Lawrence would call a "WOOSAH" moment. I feel so much peace, joy and serenity now that I realize I am not God. PG

The Journey of Joy

I have recently been meditating on the meaning of Joy. Joy is defined as an emotion evoked by well-being or success. That is a worldly definition that does not line up with the biblical view. The bible speaks of Joy as an innate assurance that remains constant regardless of circumstances. Joy is not predicated on material success or tangible attainment. Joy is simply knowing that what you depend on and trust in is not a "What" rather a "Who". That is why we can declare with the psalmist that "weeping may endure for a night, but Joy comes in the morning". That is also why we can echo the sentiment of the writer James, when he says "count it all Joy, when you fall into all kinds of temptation". Perhaps it is best summed up in the song that seasoned saints at the church I grew up in, would melodiously declare, "this Joy I have, the world did not give it, and world can not take it away". I can unequivocably declare I have Joy because I am rooted and strengthened in Jesus. What is your Joy?

PG

Embrace the Moment

So many times I see people who are twiddling there thumbs and waiting for the perfect opportunity. I have seen frustrated people throughout life and especially in ministry. I want to share a tidbit I learned a long time ago from my grandfather, there is no such thing as a "perfect opportunity". Nothing is going to line up exactly the way we want it or come packaged in neat and perfectly crafted gift wrapping. Many times the greatest opportunities come masked in ugly, disheveled wrapping and oftentimes at the wrong time. I am reminded of the story of David and Goliath. I know that this story is familiar to us all, however I was blown away with how the great victory was set up. Recall that David was only at the battlefield to deliever lunch to his brother. When he showed up, the Israelites, including King Saul, were cowering as the Goliath was challenging them to a fight. The opportunity for David to fight and defeat Goliath was created by the absence of someone else to step up. David was willing to do what others would not. This victory gained for David unbelievable acclaim and notoriety and a place in the palace. All because he was ready to seize the opportunity during a lunch run to the battlefied. Always be ready, you never know when your moment will come. Peace and Blessings, DrCEGJr

Your Church is TOO BIG

I was having a conversation with my sister on yesterday. She is currently living in Philadelphia, Pa for work. She is contemplating joining a wonderful church up there, Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church led by a friend and big brother of mine, Pastor Alyn Waller. She told me she enjoyed the worship and the excellent teaching of Pastor Waller. I asked her what was her reservation in joining the church and she said because it was "TOO BIG". I began to ponder this because I have heard this same thing said about the church I pastor. A lot of people I have come into contact with who have enjoyed the worship experience of TAB, but have not made an official connection with our ministry because they think it is too big. With national church demographics suggesting that 90% of churches have a membership less than 90 members. This seemingly new phenomenon is what is called "Mega Church". A Mega Church has a membership of over 2000 members. I believe that there is nothing wrong with a big church. I actually believe that it is biblical. The church of Acts started out with 3000 members. When the church was alive, it grew rapidly. The church in a contemporary context, grows according to the size of the community and the receptivity of the people. I also believe that a Mega Church provides opportunities for fellowship and service on a larger scale and needs more people to get involved in order to propel the ministry forward. I also believe that the large church gives us a picture of what Heaven will be like, according to Revelation 7:9. I believe that the Mega Church has and will continue to be used by God to evangelize the lost, edify the saved, minister to the needy and be the conscience of the community. Ultimately, I believe that people should be where they are comfortable to freely worship God. If that is a small church, then by all means get planted and start serving. But do not allow the size of a church deter you if you feel that that is the place that God is calling you to be.

Seeking after God

It has been a while since I have written a blog. I am going to discipline myself to be more consistent. Hopefully that means once a week. We just finished a month at our church where we had Early Morning Corporate Prayer with the Pastor. i was so encouraged through the praying for the saints. The beautiful thing is that we had a lot of people who were not members of our church join the prayer call. PSALM 5:3 says "In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation". There is something humbling and powerful about seeking God early in the morning. By laying our hearts desires and petition before the Lord, we can then live in expectation that God is a faithful rewarder of them who diligently seek after him. I want to encourage someone to SEEK AFTER GOD. It is in our SEEKING that God is able to add ALL things to us. God loves to bless the sincere and authentic hearts. Let us all be seekers after God.