Flip Flops

We just wrapped up a message series called Flip Flops. The week leading up to the new series one of the ladies in our church who has a son serving in Afghanistan came in and mentioned that he and members of his platoon were in need of some personal items that the army doesn't provide. One of those items was Flip Flops to wear in the showers. We thought it great timing and did a promotion in the month of June for our church family to bring in Flip Flops and other personal items on their list. Our people really rallied around the cause and so far we've sent over 300 pairs of Flip Flops and over 400 pounds of other personal items such as flytrap sticky strips, baby wipes, bars of soap, lotion, multi-vitamins, sunflower seeds, protein bars and a host of other items the soldiers requested! Thanks Crossroads for coming through for these brave men and women protecting our interests abroad! Here's a shot of me and members of the Matson family boxing up the loot to send to Afghanistan.

The Yoke - Pt. 3

Another reason a farmer would harness an older, stronger, trained ox with a younger, inexperienced one was to help set the pace for the work day. If the younger ox didn't have the older one setting the pace for him, he would use all his energy early in the day and would then be unable to finish the work the farmer needed him to accomplish. This is what Jesus is referring to in Matthew 11:29 when He tells us to take His yoke upon us and learn from Him. He wants to set the pace for us.

So many of us fail to allow Him to do that. Consequently, we burn out quickly and we don't finish the work He's given us to do. Galatians 5:25 says, "Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." So often we are either running ahead of God or lagging behind, but Christ wants to set the pace for us so we can keep in step with the Spirit.

When my family and I go skiing, Chase and I enjoy skiing the more challenging blue runs together. The problem is, Chase and I have two completely different methods of skiing. I use my skis to dig into the snow and make 's' turns all the way down the slope so I don't pick up too much speed. Chase, on the other hand points his skis down the mountain and just takes off 90 to nothing! Sometimes, along the trail we're on, their are side trails that lead to other parts of the mountain. Some even lead to lifts that take you to higher elevations. I often get frustrated when I can't access those trails because by the time I get to them Chase is past them on his way on down the mountain at break-neck speed! There's a spiritual lesson here. If we don't let Christ set the pace for us through the yoke of the Holy Spirit, we will try and get ahead of God. We will miss the turns He wants us to take and there are parts of the 'mountain' we will never see. There are elevations we will never reach.

Today, let's step into the yoke and let Christ set the pace!

Michael

Michael Jackson died Thursday and although I can't explain it and I never would have expected it, I feel sad. I've had a long history with Mr. Jackson.

I became a Christian about the same time he rose to megastar status with the "Thriller" album. In the years that followed Michael personified the 'enemy' for me because as a youth pastor I was trying to keep young people from being 'secularized' by pop music and MTV. I remember when the controversy broke about the alleged child molestation case, my take on it was, "Are you surprised? He's been molesting the minds of our children for years!" Looking back on it now I probably made much more of a fuss than I should have. I still believe music with a fallen world view can be very unhealthy for us spiritually, but I'm not nearly as uptight about it as I once was.

For all the fuss, I must admit Mr. Jackson was an incredible talent. The artistic side of me yearns to see the church be as creative with our message as he was with his craft.

Then there's the humanitarian side of Jackson's career that provokes me to do more to make a difference. From "We Are the World" to "Man In The Mirror," Michael confronted things that those of us in America's pulpits often ignore.

I realize that Michael Jackson was a very controversial figure. So a post like this will probably be met with controversy. There will always be those who demonize him, as I did for years. Who knows if he was guilty of the things he was accused? God does.

According to reports, Jackson was a Jehovah's Witness early in his career. (One more bizarre aspect of the man's story.) I know the Jehovah's Witness organization is way off-base Biblically, but I raise the point to say that Michael obviously had a spiritual hunger. I can only hope that someone was able to get to him through all the paparazzi and personal entourage and share the truth of the gospel with him. I hope the king of pop somehow met the King of Kings. It would be fun to moonwalk with him on the streets of gold one day.

Daddy Shoes

For Father's Day this past weekend I performed a song I wrote back in 1993. Robin was about 18 months old and when I would come home in the evenings from work and slip off my shoes, she would put them on and walk around the living room saying, "Daddy shoes, daddy shoes." I would get a big kick out of it. One day while watching this it dawned on me that I had some really big shoes to fill. My dad was such a great father. This song came out of that moment and I decided to share it for Father's Day during our Flip Flop message series. (That explains the Island theme in our auditorium). I hope you enjoy it. It's the first time I've performed it with a band. I think the guys did a great job with the arrangement. Props to Coy Watson and Tony Goulas. Also thanks to Richard Gaspard, who heads up our media department for cranking this edit out so quick so I could get it posted. I've got great friends!

Chase's Garden: The Old Ways

Chase has grown a garden the past 6 years as a 4-H project. This year he won First Place in his club and Reserved Grand Champion in the Parish. We're real proud of him. His gardening is one of the things he's learned that I think of as the old ways. There are so many of the old ways that aren't being passed down to this generation and I'm just as guilty as anyone of failing to pass them along. By the time I was Chase's age my dad had taught me to clean fish, skin a squirrel or a rabbit, change the oil in a car, sharpen a knife or an ax, saddle a horse, follow a compass, shine a pair of dress shoes, tie a Windsor knot in a tie or a slip knot in a rope, use a chain saw, start a fire and so many other things kids simply just don't do any more. These things may seem antiquated and irrelevant these days but somehow I think something has been lost if they're not passed along. I'd be interested in hearing about things your parents taught you that you haven't passed on yet.

The Yoke - Pt. 2

The reason a farmer would yoke a young, weaker, inexperienced ox to an older, stronger, trained ox was to keep him on the path. This is another thing we can learn from Christ when we accept His invitation in Matthew 11:29 to "...take my yoke upon you and learn from me..." One of the most common mistakes we make as Christ-followers is our tendency to get off the path.

The yoke of the Holy Spirit serves to harness us to the guidance Christ provides. John 16:13 says, "When He, the Spirit of Truth comes, He will guide you into all truth." Let's face it, sometimes following the leading of the Holy Spirit is a frightening prospect, but we can trust our guide!

There's a great story about a missionary who hired a native guide to direct him through one of the most dense jungles in Africa. For the first few miles, the path was clear but after a while the missionary couldn't see the path at all. He began to get concerned and asked his guide, "Where is the path? I can't see it." The native smiled and said, "At this point in the jungle... I AM the path."

What a great lesson for us as Christ-followers. Sometimes we can't see the path in life, but Jesus reminds us that in those moments, He is the path! (John 14:6)

Let's step into the yoke God has provided and allow Christ to keep us on the path!

Camp Courageous: Where God's love is contagious!

Our day camp is going on this week.

Over 350 awesome boys and girls are here at Crossroads enjoying Camp Courageous! This week they'll go swimming, bowling, ice skating, take in the new Pixar movie "Up" and much, much more! Most importantly they'll be challenged and encouraged with God's Word to have a personal relationship with Christ and be everything God has called them to be!

Over 50 volunteers and an incredible staff make all this possible. Thanks to all who are contributing!

Marty and Anna Hoey are the heart and soul behind all this fun and ministry and I'm so thankful to have the best Children's Pastors in the whole world serving along side Donna and I here at Crossroads Church.

The Yoke - Pt. 1

   Jesus invited us in Matthew 11:29, "Take my yoke upon you and learn of me..." It's hard to really grasp the meaning of this invitation outside of it's ancient agricultural context, but the disciples knew exactly what Jesus meant. The yoke wasn't only a device to harness the power of two animals but it was a mechanism by which a farmer could train a young, weaker, inexperienced ox by placing him in a yoke with an older, stronger ox that was already trained. Jesus was inviting the disciples to learn how to minister effectively by being yoked with Him. Today, the invitation stands and we can be harnessed to the power of Christ. 

   I believe the yoke is the Holy Spirit. Remember what Jesus promised in Acts 1:8, "You shall receive power after the Holy Spirit has come upon you..." Or, in other words, you will receive power after you've been harnessed to me by the Holy Spirit. We desperately need that power today. We have nothing to offer a lost and dying world in and of ourselves, but if we can just be yoked with Christ, we have HIS power to offer! 

   Years ago, in the Tournament of Roses Parade, a float broke down and held up the precession for quite a while as workers attempted to determine the cause. After checking out everything else, someone finally thought to check the gas tank and sure enough, it was out of gas. Think about that for a minute. Hours and hours had gone in to preparing this beautiful float. Intricate details were poured over to make sure it looked just so and yet, with all the careful preparation and attention they didn't think to fuel up!

   There's a message here about ministry. We so often make sure church looks just right and sounds just right but the real question is, "Have we fueled up? Are we harnessed to the power of Christ?" The truly amazing thing about this story is the float actually represented the Standard Oil Company. If anyone should have thought about checking the gas tank you would think it would be the Standard Oil Company! The same could be said of those of us who are Spirit-filled believers. If anyone should know how important the power of the Holy Spirit is, it's us!  It's time to step into the yoke.

The President's Allegiances

This past week, President Obama declared June Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender month, fulfilling one of many campaign promises made to support the homosexual agenda. Interestingly, although he signed the legislation declaring May 7, 2009 the National Day of Prayer, he refused to host a prayer gathering at the White House as his predecessors George W. Bush, George H. W. Bush and Ronald Reagan had done. He said he prays privately. So his allegiance to the GLBT community is publicly carried out with pomp and ceremony while his allegiance to God is something reserved for a back room somewhere. Maybe it's because there is no allegiance to God at all! As this President continues to pursue the most radical agendas ever carried out by an American president concerning the issues of abortion, gay rights, the redistribution of wealth, the government take-over of private enterprise and the weakening of national security it is clear where his allegiances lie. Those allegiances are obviously not to the constitution, they certainly aren't to the American family and they in no way reflect an allegiance to God!