Monthly Archives: August 2013

Pastor Wrinkles: Just Start

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One of my followers, Nicole,

, writes a lot about getting out there and trying new things. Her blog is about living life to the full.  One of her newest endeavors is teaching piano (brave soul). http://justliveitblog.wordpress.com/2013/08/06/taking-a-chance-at-tickling-those-ivories/. I won’t ruin the end of the story for you. Just shoot over and pay the good lady a visit.

Her “tickling the ivories” blog got me thinking about my own attitude towards trying new things. By nature I tend to be a “we can’t do that” type of person…an “if you can’t do it right (which means perfect) don’t do it all” type of person. Do you relate?

I have to admit this attitude has held me back in life and certainly in my spiritual growth. For a long time I lived under the mistaken notion that spiritual growth was something that God alone created inside a person. I equated it with going to the beach and getting a sun tan. All I had to do was sit in the Sonlight and “tadah!” I would get a holiness tan.

I thought this had to be the way it worked because after I received Christ I started trying to do holy stuff and I found out I was really bad at it.

So I thought, “Well then I won’t even try. If God wants me good He can just whammy me with his magic whammy wand and I will become good.”

The thing is waiting for the magic Jesus whammy also didn’t work because becoming holy is not just God’s work anymore than it’s just my work. Becoming holy requires a cooperation between God, who is an expert at holiness, and me, who it turns out is an F student in the subject; Or at least I was until I started practicing.  Yep, you read that right. I have had to practice holiness and I have needed Jesus’ help all along the way to get better at it.

When we are first born again we are real novices at the whole holiness thing and to expect that we are just going to start being good at being holy  is like expecting a one month old to be good at skeet shooting. Holiness takes time… and God… and us.

Maybe you are looking at an out of control area in your life right now. Maybe you have no clue how to get victory. Maybe you have tried and you have discovered that you are really bad at fighting the type of battle required to win. That’s all right because God knows how to train you. He will. All you have to do is start practicing your victory. You don’t have to succeed right away. Just start. God will finish.

Friday Fictioneers 8-16-13

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Well it is time for another dose of Friday Fictioneers with Rochelle at http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2013/08/14/16-august-2013/. The challenge is to write a 100 word piece of fiction with a beginning, middle and end. Let me encourage you to take the challenge for yourself!

Copyright - Roger Bultot

Reaping the Whirlwind

Momma used to sing me a lullaby… “If God is for you, sweet baby child, who can stand against you?”

I always liked that, thought; But what if God is against you ?

I knew joining Billy’s  “business” was not wise  but my honey-tongued friend can make murder sound friendly. Besides , the street was deserted. The keys were in the ignition. I was gone in under thirty seconds.

A  block down the road God blew on the tree.

When the police arrived I just admitted “Momma always told me, ‘If you sow to the wind, you’ll reap the whirlwind’.”

Pastor Wrinkles: House On Fire Pt. 5

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

Welcome back to House On Fire, our discussion class through the book of Acts. If you missed any of our previous discussion, you can find it here:

http://wp.me/P39vIx-Gh

Here is the text we are dealing with today:

Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose,since it is only the third hour of the day.[a] 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
    and your young men shall see visions,
    and your old men shall dream dreams;
18 even on my male servants[b] and female servants
    in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above
    and signs on the earth below,
    blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned to darkness
    and the moon to blood,
    before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus,[c] delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,

“‘I saw the Lord always before me,
    for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
    my flesh also will dwell in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
    or let your Holy One see corruption.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life;
    you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
35     until I make your enemies your footstool.”’

36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. Acts 2:14-41 ESV

My question for you today is simple. What are five things that stand out to you about this sermon?

Pastor Wrinkles: The Chapter Charts Pt. 171

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

 

The chapter charts are a method of Bible study. With each charting session two chapters of Scripture are studied and from those chapters six topics are drawn (three for each chapter). The idea of course is to help us better understand the themes of the Scripture and also to give us fodder for sermons or blog posts. Today we are studying 2 Kings chapters 24 and 25.

Here is what I see in today’s chapters:

2 Kings chapter 24 sermon topics/ titles:

1. What Not To Do When the Lord Won’t Forgive: 2 Kings 24: 1-4

2.  The Goodness Of Being Cut Off: 2 Kings 24:10-16

3.  Being Righteous In Name Only: 2 Kings 24:17-19

2 Kings Chapter 25 sermon topics/titles:

1.  Wearing Down the Rebels: 2 Kings 25:1-4

2. The Last Thing You See: 2 Kings 25: 5-7

3. True Royalty Learns Humility: 2 Kings  25:27-30

Now I would love to hear the lessons you are learning from these chapters! 🙂

 

Pastor Wrinkles :House On Fire Pt. 4

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

I have really been enjoying this discussion through the book of Acts. So far five of you have popped in on the discussion. Let me encourage you to read and put in your thoughts concerning the thought strand. Let’s make this a real discussion class. If you have missed any of the class questions you can catch up here: http://wp.me/P39vIx-Gh

Now on to today’s class.

Read over some of the comments from the last classes. Are any of these new thoughts for you? How have they changed your view of the disciples after the resurrection of Jesus?

When last we left the disciples they had just elected Matthias  to fill Judas Iscariot’s position. They were all waiting in Jerusalem for the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Here is what happened.

2 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” Acts 2:1-13 ESV

Between Acts 1:9 ( Ascension Day) and Acts 2:1 (Pentecost) was a period of 10 days

Pentecost is one of the seven feasts of Israel. Each of them reflect a different aspect of  Messiah.

The four spring feasts are:

Pesach- Passover/ Jesus is our Passover lamb protecting us from the death angel

Unleavened bread- Jesus is our sinless Messiah

First Fruits-  Jesus was the first to be raised from the dead. He is the first fruits of our salvation.

Shavuot- Pentecost/ The Holy Spirit descended

The three fall feasts are:

Rosh Hoshanah- Yom Teruah, “The blowing of the shofar”. symbolic of the great in-gathering of the saints by Messiah (rapture of the church)

Yom Kippur- Day of Repentance/ day when Messiah shall judge

Succot- Feast of Tabernacles/ the Kingdom banquet/ marriage supper of the Lamb

Here is some information about Pentecost-

Shavuot, the Festival of Weeks is the second of three major festivals with both historical and agricultural significance (the other two are Passover and Sukkot). Agriculturally it commemorates the time when the first fruits are harvested and brought to the temple. Historically it celebrates the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai. It is customary to stay up the entire first night of Shavuot and study Torah and then to pray as early as possible in the morning.

Do you think this practice may have had any bearing on the coming of the Holy Spirit? Why or Why not?

Pastor Wrinkles: House On Fire Pt. 3

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

Welcome to episode three of our study through the book Of Acts, House on Fire. If you missed our previous  sessions they can be found here: http://wp.me/P39vIx-Gh

When last we left our intrepid disciples, they were watching Jesus ascend into Heaven. The master had left them specific instructions that they were to remain in Jerusalem until they received the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Let’s pick up the narrative at this point.

Acts 1:10-26

10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.[a]

15 In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, 16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. 17 For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.” 18 (Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong[b] he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. 19 And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 “For it is written in the Book of Psalms,

“‘May his camp become desolate,
    and let there be no one to dwell in it’;

and

“‘Let another take his office.’

21 So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.” 23 And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen 25 to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” 26 And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

I would like to start with a question from verse 15. We know from this verse that 120 returned to Jerusalem and waited for the “baptism in the Holy Spirit”. We also know from I Corinthians 15:6 that Jesus appeared to over 500 people after his resurrection.

Why do you think 480 people were missing from the upper room experience?

Now let’s talk about what went on in the upper room during those 10 days. We have a small glimpse here of how the disciples “waited” for the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

How do these verses change your understanding of the command from Jesus, “wait for the promise of the Father”? Does this change your understanding of “waiting on God”?

Friday Fictioneers 8-9-13

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copyright-Renee Heath

Here is our prompt for this week’s Friday Fictioneers. This exercise in flash fiction is a great way to get the creative juices flowing!  So let me encourage you to jump on over to Rochelle’s page at http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2013/08/, read the rules and join in the fun.

Here is my take on this week’s prompt.

Wannabe

My name’s Jake. The chick on the right is my sister Norma Jeane. Yep that’s right Norma Jeane Mortenson.  The Mortenson clan were big fans of the blond bombshell. One of the families had to fall on their swords and create a namesake. We drew the short straw.

Actually it wasn’t all that bad until Aunt Orli bought Norma that stupid white dress. Now she insists on wearing it out  every time we go to the grocery store.

She calls this “doing the Marilyn.”

I call it “the ditz’s walk of shame.”

I can’t wait until I get my license.

Pastor Wrinkles: House On Fire Pt. 2

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I have been enjoying the on-line discussions I have started with Angela and Debby in the book of Acts. If you missed our first discussion question it can be found here: http://wp.me/p39vIx-Ei

Now onto our next question from Acts:

The Bible says that after his final teaching Jesus ascended into Heaven.

9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” Acts 1:9-11

Mel 5

The last thing the angels tell the witnesses to the ascension is that Jesus will come again. That second coming is described in Zechariah and Revelation.

“A day of the Lord is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls.

2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. 3 Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle. 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. 5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake[a] in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.” Zech. 14:1-5

“Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. 3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.”

Imagine the emotions being experienced by the disciples during the ascension. How would you feel if you were there?

Now imagine being a witness to the return of Jesus. How will you feel on that day? What do you imagine the emotions of others you know will be? What feelings does this motivate inside of you?

The Celebrant: This Was Us Pt. 5.5

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100_2503

Part five of the Celebrant turned out to be so long I felt the need to break it up into two pieces for the sake of my blog family. So this week you get two installments instead of just the one. I hope you enjoy! If you have missed any of the previous parts of Nathan’s Story it can be found here: http://wp.me/P39vIx-EQ

The Celebrant 5.5

The Christmas concert was paper snowflakes and tacky tinsel glittered over with the dulcet tones of untuned flutophones. It was magic after the highest order. Under its spell I became an addict to melody and rhythm.

After Christmas I started the trumpet.

In Fifth grade I got a paper route and bought myself a  dented French Horn.

In sixth grade it was the guitar.

In seventh the saxophone.

In eighth grade I joined the high school chorus as an alto and began piano lessons.

I was no prodigy. I was an addict. I would play the music until the music played me. The song it sang pushed me by increments away from my family. I think they missed me.They never said; So I just filled the hole inside with sound.

In the late eighties as Paul and I prepared to enter high school the stock market went bust. Adam’s bank account exploded. He focused his business in do-it- yourself hardware and camping supplies, two growth industries it seemed. With the money he made from his good -end- year Adam moved us out of the house on the hill to one of the new developments springing up all over Winchendon. Treasure heights was a block of large modular homes cut into the side of Mount Pleasant just below the Olde Center of town. Benjamin Street banked right onto Fiesta Dr. which curved left onto Celebration Dr. ,left again onto Gala Blvd and finally left once more onto Extravaganza Way.

The Dahlstrom family moved into number  2 Celebration Dr. a giant blue Edwardian affair complete with Grecian columns holding up the front porch roof. A giant brass chandelier swung over the stoop lighting the way into the foyer, a sunken living room to the left and a full dining room to the right. The Kitchen which ran the length of the house at the back was built around a  breakfast bar with built-in double sinks. A walkout to the left side spilled onto a sixteen by twenty deck that overlooked a manicured lawn that flowed back to a one story barn running the full length of the yard.

The shed, as we called this out building, had two doors and was walled directly in half with a connecting door between the two resulting rooms.

“This side,” said Adam motioning to the left, ” is going to be my workshop.”

“And this side,” He waved to the door on the right, “Is going to be your clubhouse. It is where all your sports equipment goes Paul and where all your instruments go Nathan.”

I wanted to protest but he raised a hand for silence. “The building has its own heat so none of your equipment will get damaged and there’s plenty of room for both of you to share.’

It took us the rest of the summer to unpack and organize but by the time I entered ninth grade I was the only kid in band with a practice studio.

My addiction was effectively shut out of the house but that’s how it was discovered by Mrs. Wallender.