Happy New Year - No Fear in the New Year

This past Sunday was January 1, 2012. AT NRN we held a family worship service to begin the New Year. I received several encouraging comments about my message and thought I would post some of the text of my message in this first posting of 2012.

No Fear in the New Year
Isaiah 43: 1-7; 18-19
Jeremiah 18:1-6
Ecclesiastes 11:3

A New Year is simply a change on the calendar – but today could serve as a time of change.
How do you respond to change?
Many people are resistant to change – yet every growing organism changes. That includes you and me.

A lot of times, the way we respond to change is what determines the outcome of
that change. I have also found that being prepared for change, and even embracing change is a key to living the abundant life.

Could 2012 be the year that you need to make a change?
Today’s message is unique in that all the scriptures are from the Old
Testament. The children of Israel needed change, but resisted it. In fact, a
study of Israel shows that the people were wandering. Following the Exodus from Egypt – there were times of great obedience, followed by times of total disobedience. God sent prophets to share His message because the people were in need of a change. They needed to move from dependence upon themselves to dependence upon God.

One of those prophets was Isaiah – who prophesied “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be
called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Listen to these words from Isaiah Chapter 43: 1-7

But now, this is what the LORD says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you,
Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD your
God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to
the north, ‘Give them up!’ And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

You were created for God’s glory! Your life is part of a tapestry of God’s glory.
I know, your part may be a little fuzzy – the colors may not match – but you are
a part of God’s plan to show forth His glory. You are loved by God – and you display God’s glory. God loves you with an everlasting love.

Now, hear from Isaiah 43:18-19: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on
the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive
it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

God brings change that last. That is the message of Christmas – God sent his only Son to save us and change our lives forever. This is the perfect God – molding us into Himself. God loves you – you are his son and daughter.

Is 2012 the year that you need a change? Will you grow in your…
Patience; Love for others; generosity; worry less; be more joyful; stop that bad habit; how you talk to your spouse or other people? Sometimes, change is uncomfortable.

Isaiah’s message was also:
You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the
clay! Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, “You did not make me”?
Can the pot say to the potter, “You know nothing”? Isaiah 29:16

Change is hard – scary – fearful – but I say to you – Fear NOT!

Isaiah also said: Yet you, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.Isaiah 64:8

Listen to the account of Jeremiah the prophet (Jeremiah 18:1-6)

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the LORD came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel.

Do you remember playing with clay or playdoh when you were little? You could mold it and reform to make whatever shape pleased you, until it dried out and got hard. Once it became hard trying to reshape it just caused it to crumble and fall apart. God tries to do the same for us, reshaping us into something pleasing to Him, unless we harden our hearts and make ourselves unable to take on the new shape that He desires. Are you permitting God to use you or mold you into the instrument, device or pottery that will give honor to God?

CLIP: New Year’s Transformation

A few questions:
· What do you need to leave behind?
· What change do you need to make?
· What failures do you need to forget?
· What disciplines do you need to develop?
· What grudge do you need to release?
· What burdens do you need to give back to God?
· Do you need to trust God more in the New Year?
· What does God want you to do?

And - this is my New Year prayer for all my friends:

May God grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed. May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and raise a victory banner in the name of our God. May the Lord answer all your prayers. Psalm 20:4-5

Preparing for Sunday Jan 1 2012

Tomorrow is January 1, 2012. As I have prepared for the worship experience at NRN I have felt a change on my message. I will still speak about No Fear in the New Year however, God has laid several passages of Scripture upon my heart to share. One thing unique is that all the Scriptures tomorrow will be from the Old Testament.

We will begin with a great time of worship in song before the Lord. Here is the worship set for the first Sunday of 2012:











One more thing about tomorrow. I have had the message for Sunday prepared for several weeks. When God spoke to my heart about a needed change it was following a visit to Duke Medical Center to sit with Al Taylor a few hours before his precious Mary escaped this world and went to her heavenly reward. I came home that night and totally changed my message. The next day, a response came via email from the person I wanted to sing before my message on Sunday. She had no idea of the change in my message but told me the song she plans to sing. It was the confirmation from God that I has made the right decision about my message. Here is the song she plans to sing:



The worship experience for Sunday January 1, 2012 will be at 10am at NRN!

No Fear in the New Year

As I prepare the first Sunday of 2012, I am praying, and working on my message entitled

No Fear in the New Year. This is the final message in the teaching series - A Fearless Christmas.

I am really looking forward to a great time of worship and then to bring my message.

The New Year's Day Family Service at NRN will begin at 10am.

Since I have received several emails about my last posting - I thought I would share one more worship song - Chipmunk style. Enjoy....

Chipmunk Style

Over the past few days Sharron and I have spent time with family and having a great time. Now home - Alyse and Breeley are with us. Today we stopped at a McDonalds for short break and I purchased some chocolate milk for the girls. The friendly person behind the counter also gave us two items from the "kid's meal" featuring the Chipmunks.

I could not help but think of one of my favorite songs from Alvin and the Chipmunks. You may be surprised...




What do you think?

Daily Advent Devotional for Nov. 29 2011

Each year I begin my Advent Celebration with daily devotions for a trusted source. I want to share these with you to enhance your Christmas Season. I hope you will join me often during the next 27 days as we share our daily Advent devotionals:

Your Daily Advent Devotional
November 29, 2011

The Genealogy of Jesus

Matthew 1:1-17

An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Aram, and Aram the father of Aminadab, and Aminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah....

My Great Aunt, Celia Belle Yoder, keeps our family history. She's ninety-five years old but sharp as a tack and shows no signs of slowing down. I went to visit her a few weeks ago. We spent an hour together as she walked me through our family genealogy. She's a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and she can trace our family history back at least four hundred years. She tells me of well-known circuit-riding preachers who started churches a hundred fifty years ago, about Civil War soldiers, and about pioneers on the Oklahoma prairie. She wants me to know who I am and where I came from.

We begin this book of reflections about the stories surrounding the birth of Jesus precisely where Matthew begins the story--with the genealogy of Jesus. Scholars agree that Matthew does not give us a complete genealogy. He gives us just the highlights that he thinks are important. I've included only a portion of the genealogy above, but I would encourage you to read all seventeen verses. Most people just skim them when reading Matthew, but there are important things to notice.

Here are a few of them: First, Matthew's genealogy is a summary of nearly the entire Old Testament, from Genesis 11 to Malachi 4, capturing the stories of the patriarchs, the Israelites' slavery in Egypt, and the exodus from Egypt to the promised land; there is David and Solomon and the divided kingdom, the destruction of Israel and the exile of Judah, and finally the return from exile. Here's the point: Jesus' birth is the climax of this entire story of God's relationship with Israel. Jesus is the end to which the entire biblical story was moving.

It is also often rightly noted that Matthew's account of Jesus' genealogy is nearly unique in that it includes five women. Putting women in a genealogy was not unheard of in the first century, but it was unusual. Who are these women, and what do they tell us about Jesus?

Tamar, the mother of Perez, played the role of a prostitute in order to have children after her husband died. Rahab, listed as the mother of Boaz, was a prostitute when she first entered the biblical story. She was also a foreigner. Then there was Ruth, who, like Tamar, was a widow and, like Rahab, was a foreigner. Bathsheba is mentioned next. She was the wife of Uriah the Hittite, which means that she may have been a foreigner, and she was an adulteress (or the victim of rape) at the hands of King David, after which David had her husband killed. She too was a widow. The last of the women mentioned in the genealogy is Mary, a peasant girl whose life we will examine in greater detail in the next reflection.

When my Aunt Celia Belle tells me our family's history, she describes pioneers, soldiers, and preachers. When Matthew tells Jesus' genealogy he lists two prostitutes and an adulteress, women who were outsiders. Matthew is, in this genealogy, pointing us toward Jesus' identity and mission. Jesus would bring hope to the widow, mercy to the sinner, and good news not just for the Jews, but for all humankind.

Lord, thank you for your love of those whom others see as second class. Thank you for showing mercy to the sinner and compassion to the brokenhearted. As I begin this season of Advent, help me to see you more clearly in the stories surrounding your birth. Amen.


Excerpted from: The Journey: Walking the Road to Bethlehem - Devotional Book
by Adam Hamilton

Trunk and Treat 2011 Revisisted

On Monday October 31 we held a revised version of Trunk and Treat at our church. Due to the bad weather we were able to move the event into our Worship Center. Special appreciation to Pastor Jordan and wife Alana for making this such a great event. They enjoyed "skating" around during the time with the children.


I also enjoyed watching Jacob Hartsell display his artistic abilities as he took request from children and then carved the pumpkins to their design.

Of course he needed some assistance from three great guys to "hallow" out the pumpkins and prepare them for carving.

I thought you would like to see some of the final work:


Not all of the work was a little "spooky" Someone made a special request. Can you guess what it represents?

You got it!! Pumpkin Pie!

I was amazed by the Mickey Mouse

BOO!

YUK......

What I did not get pictures of was the bounce house and the tables filled with candy and chips. In the foyer a great team of workers came to provide food for the parents. Dave Cogan made a great display of hot dogs with condiments. Mike Stroupe was there with the popcorn machine working overtime. Rodney Rhoades arrived early and the Connection Cafe' provided coffee, cider and other snacks. This event was blessed by many people giving their time and efforts - Thanks!

A man came up to me in the foyer and noticed his young daughter smiling and having a great time. The man commented how much he appreciated the fact that when other churches in the area cancelled their Halloween alternative events, he was so glad that we held such a great and fun event. I am so thankful for those in our church who consistently display a servant spirit.

Trunk N Treat 2011

Today is Halloween. I am looking forward to Trunk N Treat at NRN this evening.
Here is the info: Monday, Oct. 31, 2011 • 5pm-dark

This is an alternative family event for the Halloween evening. Your kids can get just as much candy right here at the church in a safe environment! People from North Raleigh Nazarene will make available the trunks of their cars to put gobs of wrapped candy. From 5–7:00pm, the kids will go from trunk to trunk gathering treats.

There will also be an inflatable bounce house and some carnival-type games for the children to enjoy. Refreshments and snacks will also be available for all. Free hog dogs and popcorn. Hot coffee for all!

You have seen the light shows for homes at Christmas. Enjoy this expression of Halloween 2011: