This is your Father your dealing with

Today we are preparing for several special events as the church. Tomorrow - May 1, 2008 is the National Day of Prayer. Everyone is invited to the join us in the Worship Center at North Raleigh at noon for a time of prayer. We will join with millions of people across the country for this event.

Several years ago I had the privilege to be in the Rose Garden at the White House and personally observe President Ronald Reagan sign the proclamation for the National Day of Prayer. I plan to share my insights about that experience and some other unique presentations to draw us into a time of prayer beginning at noon on Thursday.

Here is a message from Shirley Dobson - Chairperson of the National Day of Prayer Task force:

These words challendged me this morning in my time alone with God.

Matthew 6:7-13 from The Message:

"The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They're full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don't fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:

Our Father in heaven,

Reveal who you are.

Set the world right;

Do what's best— as above, so below.

Keep us alive with three square meals.

Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.

Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.

You're in charge!

You can do anything you want!

You're ablaze in beauty!

Yes. Yes. Yes."

Tonight Pastor Brittany Cottle and I are teaching a Baptism Class. We are planning to baptize new believers during the worship service this coming Sunday. This is NOT what we plan to share about being baptised:

The Lord is my strength and shield

Today was our last staff meeting with Pastors Drew and Kevin. Our time today ended with a staff lunch at On the Border. In attendance with me was Pastor Drew, Pastor Kevin and Julie, Becky, Donna and Karen.



I want to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to Drew and Kevin for serving on the pastoral staff with me at North Raleigh Church of the Nazarene.


The past nine months have been filled with times of transitions and challenges as well as spiritual blessings and some good times. I think we enjoyed the first pastoral "advance" within my first 30 days at the church. The events of Big Top in November, The Christmas Eve service and the Good Friday service would not have been possible without the hard work and leadership of Drew and Kevin. I will miss the interactions and the iron sharpens iron opportunities I had with Drew and Kevin.


My prayers go with them as the explore other opportunities of ministry in the days ahead. It was been a privilege to serve with them.




We were a little behind in announcing the prayer time scheduled in our Worship Center for this coming Thursday - May 1st as we join with millions of people across our country for the National Day of Prayer. I encourage those in the Triangle area that can join us from noon until 1:00pm to come for a meaningful time of prayer. Why join for a time of prayer? Take a few moments to watch this clip:

The theme verse for this year's national Day of Prayer is from the psalms of David.

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Psalm 28:7 NIV

A BIG WEEKEND

This was a great weekend of ministry at North Raleigh Church of the Nazarene. On Saturday we gathering in the church parking lot for the Community Yard Sale sponsored by our Women's Ministry of NRN. The turn out was fantastic. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

The children especially enjoyed the face painting provided by Danielle Shannon. The inflatables provided by our Children's Ministry were also a big hit. All the proceeds are going to assist in our benevolence ministry at NRN.

Sunday was a beautiful time of worship and celebration at NRN. As the worship experience was about to begin John Watson came to my side to share with me that several children had accepted Christ as Savior during Sunday School! Our worship experience included the baby dedication of Devon Joslin; a special time of prayer around the altars of the church for Joesph Solomon as he prepares for deployment to Iraq serving in the US Marine Corp.; then we celebrated communion together.

I preached on the topic of Discovering True Friendships. On our worship folder we printed the following: Today we conclude the two part series on "FACEBOOK: Seeking Authentic Community" as we discover the meaning of true friendships.

How can we find true friendship in this often phony, temporary world?

True friendship involves action: doing something for someone else while expecting nothing in return; sharing thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or negative criticism. True friendship involves relationship. Many people say, "Oh, he's a good friend of mine," yet they never take time to spend time with that "good friend."

Friendship takes time: time to get to know each other, time to build shared memories, time to invest in each other's growth. Trust is essential to true friendship. We all need someone with whom we can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations. We need to be able to share our deepest secrets with someone, without worrying that those secrets will end up on the Internet the next day! Failing to be trustworthy with those intimate secrets can destroy a friendship in a hurry.

True friendship requires certain accountability factors. Real friends encourage one another and forgive one another where there has been an offense. Genuine friendship supports during times of struggle. Friends are dependable.

God's Word tells us that a friend sticks closer than a brother, and that in order for one to be a friend, one must show themselves friendly (Proverbs 18:24). The question is: what type of friend do you desire to be? Do you need a friend? God wants to be your true friend. Are you longing for companionship? God is always with you (Hebrews 13:5). Who do you know who needs a true friend today?

God wants you to befriend others. He calls us to be His hands and feet in a world starving for true friendship.

If you would like to hear this message just click HERE

Sunday evening we held our farewell for Pastor Drew and

Adrienne Robinson - and - Pastor Kevin and Julie Todd.

There was an excellent turnout as we gathered to express our appreciation to these couples for their service and ministry to NRN. We are excited for Drew as he soon begins his ministry at Mosaic Church of the Nazarene in Washington, DC. We want to continue to encourage Kevin as he pursues his graduate degree from Duke Divinity School.

This is a time of transition and growth at NRN. New families are visiting the church each week. People are making life changing decisions. God is at work in our midst.

Several times today I quoted the words of Jeremiah 29:11 " For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

These are truly TRUSTWORTHY SAYINGS...

Happy Birthday Sharron

An open letter to Sharron.

Happy birthday sweetheart. I am so sorry I am not with you today. This is only the second time I missed your birthday. I think the last time was in 1994 when I was in Russia.

Sharrie – you are a gift from God to me. I cannot imagine my life without you. You have brought such joy into my life. You are my love and my best friend. You are my life partner and cherished wife. You are a great mom to our daughters and a wonderful grammie to Alyse.

Though we are apart by miles today you are in my heart. I am privilege to be your husband and thank God every day for you. I hope today is a great day as you celebrate a HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

I thought you would like a little levity on this day. Enjoy the clip below from nationally-known Christian comedian, Jeff Allen, has some pretty funny views on diet and exercise!




Now, how about comedian Jeff Allen on closet vision. Any man that's ever gotten ready to go out with his wife, only to find that "she doesn't have a thing to wear" will appreciate this!



I love you Sharron


HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

To know and to be known

Today was a great service at North Raleigh. As I followed up on my landmark sermon I shared part one of two on a series entitled FACEBOOK. Facebook clearly displays the need within each of us to be known and to know others. God has created us with a need to know others and be known by others and be known by God. God has designed us for intimacy with Himself and with others.

God created each of us with a longing for intimacy -- intimacy with Him. We must, therefore, come to some understanding of what He is asking of us and what He is offering. We must come to the realization that we were created to fellowship with our Creator. We need Him and He desires us. “God desires us?” Yes! He wants us, desires us. He gave the very best He had in His only begotten Son to redeem what Adam relinquished in the Garden. And He did it for intimacy. Intimacy never involves just one person. As the old adage goes, “It takes two to tango.” God has gone to great lengths to dance with mankind. From the time He walked with Adam in Eden to this day, His desire hasn’t changed. (Source: All about prayer.org)

I did my best to encourage everyone to be in a small group. I did show two :clips" with my message. Here is a clip that I did not show but found very interesting:




Some of the very first words God spoke in the Bible were "It is not good to be alone". We really do need each other. I have found it true in my perosnal life that the most significant life change takes place in small groups. Is there a good reason you are NOT in a small group?

The Landmark Message

Yesterday at North Raleigh I preached what I consider a landmark sermon.

I stated that a local church really is like a living body, it’s more of an organism than an organization. It’s made up of living, but flawed, sinful people. So in spite of it’s best efforts it will blunder from time to time. There is no church that is 100% successful in everything it does.

As one anonymous poet put it:
“I think that I shall never see, a church that’s all it ought to be;
A church whose members never stray, beyond the straight and narrow way;
A church that has no empty pews; whose pastor never has the blues...
Where gossips never peddle lies, or make complaints or criticize;
Where all are always sweet and kind, and all to other’s faults are blind.
Such perfect churches there may be, but none of them are known to me. But still I’ll work and pray and plan, to make our church the best we can.”

Then I described the refocus process we are beginning. In order for any church to really refocus it must experience change.

To hear this landmark message simply click HERE.

WORD SCRAMBLE

Unscramble the letters below

U T O S H

Hint: At least three people told me after hearing my message that they wanted to stand up and do this.

PS: Congratulations to Danelle Betancourt who solved the last word scramble with the correct answer of AWESOME!

This vision is for a future time ... it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed. Habakkuk 2:3

These are trustworthy sayings!

Preparing for Sunday

Today I am at my desk praying and preparing for Sunday. I believe God has placed within my heart a "landmark message". I first heard that term in 1994 when reading the recently released book "Who's in Charge? Standing up to Leadership Pressures. (Part of the Mastering Ministry's Pressure Points series by Christianity Today).

Jack Hayford writes "Strong leaders are known for their landmark sermons ( and sometimes lynched for them). He goes on to say "As I prepare a landmark message, I have a growing sense of anointing best described as a sense of mission and authority. Even before I come into the pulpit, I feel clothed with a mantle of grace to declare a vital word. The message, fully gestated, is ready for birth." He continues: "Landmark messages are extraordinarily demanding. They strain my emotions and study time. They force me to wrestle with great issues. The draw criticism. And I know I will have to face some repercussion for people following incorrectly what I say (usually people who didn't listen to all I said)."

The message for Sunday began turning in my spirit in late February. On February 26 we hosted the Engaging Church Seminar at North Raleigh. In a conversation with the two presenters, Chip Arn and Allen Ratta they asked me a simple but profound question: "If you had an opportunity to speak to the church about their current reality what would you say? I then shared about my last nine months at the church and my observations, concerns and diagnostic evaluation. Then they said - You should share that with the congregation in a landmark message. WOW

The problem is - I have sooo much to say and so little time to say it! My prayer is that God will enable me to speak with the anointing power of God and with clarity and conviction.

I saw this on a favorite web site recently and thought I would pass it along here:

WORD SCRAMBLE

UNSCRAMBLE THESE LETTERS

w e e m o s a

Hint: This is the word I hope people are saying as they think about the presence of the Lord in our worship experience this coming Sunday.

"Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you - they are your life." Deuteronomy 32:44-47a

These are the concluding words of the Song of Moses - his final words to the children of Israel and to us today! Truly ~ Trustworthy sayings.

Thanks for the comments - does anyone know what the answer to the word scramble is? Why not post it on my comments? First person to post the answer should see me at church on Sunday for a gift.

A Symbolic Gesture

This morning I was walking from my office toward the Worship Center only to be stopped by a number of friends who wanted me to greet Todd Vaughan. He is a die hard Kansas men's basketball fan. He is also a graduate from Kansas University.

I welcomed him and asked him to join me following the service to have these pictures taken as a symbolic gesture to my friends in Kansas and those who have infiltrated our church in Raleigh that there are no hard feelings and I wish the very best for the excellent Jayhawk team this year.

Of course Todd and Amanda are preparing for church membership in the days ahead and I will have an extra assignment for Todd to complete the course for my recommendation as a church member.

My daughter prepared the perfect blog for the Kansas - UNC game response. Thus, I copy from her:

WHAT HAPPENED !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY LOST .....

I don't want to talk about it anymore...

Showdown at the Alamo - A heart breaker

Dedicated to my friends in Kansas: The Showdown at the Alamo was truly a heart breaker here in North Carolina. As the big game came to a close - and after I got up off the floor - I went to my Internet home page and read the report by Eddie Pells posted on the Associated Press site. Here is an excerpt from that article: SAN ANTONIO (AP) By EDDIE PELLS What Roy Williams needed was a comeback for the ages. What he got was a disappointing dose of payback - a chance to see what it feels like when Kansas breaks his heart. The Jayhawks left their old coach in the dust Saturday night, getting 25 points and seven rebounds from Brandon Rush to stave off a ferocious comeback by North Carolina for an 84-66 victory in the national semifinals. Trailing 40-12 late in the first half, Tyler Hansbrough, Wayne Ellington and the Tar Heels made a valiant rally, getting as close as five points with nine minutes left, but ran out of steam in their effort to pull off the biggest Final Four comeback ever. Kansas moved within a win of its first national championship since 1988, the year before Williams began his storied 15-year tenure in Lawrence - one that ended when he jilted Kansas for his alma mater. The Jayhawks will play Memphis, an earlier 78-63 winner over UCLA, in the title game Monday. Williams stood stoically as the clock ticked down, arms folded, nothing much left he could do. Tears usually come pretty quickly after the final buzzer of the season for him, and this season ended one game short of where many thought it might. Still, at game's end he walked to the Kansas bench and shook every player's hand, hugging many of them. It was Bill Self who replaced Williams after the coach famously bolted for North Carolina, and this was the first chance to see them go against each other with their new teams - and on the game's biggest stage. The Jayhawks shot 53 percent from the floor and held the nation's second-leading offense to 35 percent. They had nine more rebounds, 10 more assists, six more blocks. All that may have helped prove Williams' theory, as he tried to deflect all the talk of himself this week: That the game would be decided by the players. The Jayhawks were simply better. To read the entire article click HERE. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE KANSAS JAYHAWKS! Now I view the clock and realize that Saturday has ended - not only is the game over - and North Carolina's season over - but now the day has ended and a new day has begun. This evening we greeted our first overnight guest in our new home except for family. Missionaries Terry and Joan Read. They will be sharing about the work of the Church of the Nazarene in the Sudan. I am looking forward to a great day in the Lord. I plan to begin our service with these words from Psalm 95: Come, let's shout praises to God, raise the roof for the Rock who saved us! Let's march into his presence singing praises, lifting the rafters with our hymns! And why? Because God is the best, High King over all the gods. In one hand he holds deep caves and caverns, in the other hand grasps the high mountains. He made Ocean—he owns it! His hands sculpted Earth! So come, let us worship: bow before him, on your knees before God, who made us! Oh yes, he's our God,and we're the people he pastures, the flock he feeds. These my friends are truly trustworthy sayings..........

Stay Classy

Over the past few days I have received a few emails from my friends in Kansas regarding the upcoming UNC - Kansas game on Saturday night. I realize this is a big game. The last time UNC and Kansas met in the final four was 1993. I felt I should respond.


The following news article caught my attention:


RALEIGH – Gov. Mike Easley and Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius have agreed to a “friendly wager” on the outcome of Saturday’s NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament semifinal contest between the UNC Tar Heels and the Jayhawks of the University of Kansas.

At stake is a pound of eastern North Carolina barbecue from Wilbur’s in Goldsboro and a pound of western barbecue from the Barbecue Center in Lexington, along with the fixings and a case of Cheerwine. Sebelius has countered with a barbecue dinner for four, including ribs and brisket and other Kansas products.


“Not only is North Carolina home to the finest basketball team in the nation, we also have the best barbecue in all the land,” Easley said. “I am as confident that UNC will advance to play for the national title as I am that I will be enjoying ribs and brisket from Kansas while cheering on the Heels in the NCAA championship game.”


Gov. Sebelius is confident her Jayhawks will be victorious against North Carolina. “It has been a spectacular season for the Jayhawks and I look forward to our victory on Saturday night and then I’ll continue celebrating with a taste of North Carolina barbecue,” she said.


UNC, the number one seed in the East, plays Kansas, the number one seed in the Mid-West, in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday at 8:47 p.m.

Source: Copyright 2008 Asheville Citizen-Times. Clarke Morrison All rights reserved.


To my friends in Kansas - BRING IT ON!



This is known as the Hansbrough Victory Dance!



I understand there is a new, local ad campaign in Kansas that urges, "Stay Classy, Lawrence."



North Carolina head coach Roy Williams has strong feelings for Kansas. "I love that place so much. If somebody says ‘Rock Chalk Jayhawk’ when I’m walking through an airport, I still say, ‘Go KU,’ " he said. I think that's pretty classy!

Tarheel fans everywhere are wearing the Carolina Blue ribbons in memory and celebration of the life of Miss Eve Carson, student body president at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Miss Carson's life was tragically cut short. Eve Carson, only 22 years of age was shot and murdered early in the morning of March 5,2008 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Here is a little look at the North Carolina Tarheels this year:




I was taught as a young child - If God is not a Carolina Tarheel fan, then why is the sky Carolina Blue?

Paul Newman Eyes

On Wednesday April 2nd at 11:00am Sharron and I arrived at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) office in Charlotte, NC for Sharron’s appointment with Homeland Security.

Earlier this year Sharron obtained her North Carolina Drivers license and was informed that her alien registration card (which she has carried since 1979) had expired. That began the process of application for a renewal of registration and many forms to be filed and documents secured. A prayer request about this meeting was placed on a prayer card during our March prayer vigil at North Raleigh.

When the appointment time came we were greatly encouraged. Sharron’s interview, finger printing and filing process took less than an hour. She will receive her new alien registration card within the next 90 days and this card is valid for ten years. We praise God for the ease of the process and the answer to our prayers!

A real benefit of the meeting taking place in Charlotte was the opportunity to visit with Josh and Stephanie for Tuesday overnight then having dinner with Danielle on Wednesday evening. Sharron and I are filled with joy because Stephanie and Josh have allowed us to bring Alyse to Raleigh for a short visit at Papa and Grammy’s house.

When we went out for lunch today Alyse wanted to walk around with Sharron. No less than four people stopped us today to ask how old she is and comment how beautiful she is. A lady at the grocery store mentioned how lovely her "eyes" are. She went on to say she thought Alyse had "Paul Newman eyes". Sharron said to me later she thought Alyse had Stephanie's blue eyes which came from my blue eyes - thus do I now have "Paul Newman eyes"? Uhmmmm

We have laughed a lot today as we hear the giggles from Alyse. It was good to look at Sharron and see her smile. I said the words and she agreed, we love our life here in North Carolina. Several people have called and emailed us letting us know that were praying about the meeting with Homeland Security CIS. These thoughts and prayers have meant a lot to us over the past few days.

I am looking forward to Sunday at North Raleigh as Terry and Joan Read - Missionaries of the Church of the Nazarene share with us. I am working hard on my message for the following week - believing God is stirring my heart with a landmark message for our church.

My prayer is to be "filled with the spirit of wisdom" as Joshua as recorded in Deuteronomy 34:9 It is from this text I am planning to begin next Sunday as we return back to the mountain top for a view to the future.

Rick's Ramblings for today

To the 7 people who commented on my last blog: THANK YOU! I recently made the comment to someone that I would not blog again until 7 people posted a comment on my last blog. Thanks for the comments and now for Rick's Ramblings.

My brackets may be busted but my team is in the final four! I'm talking about NCAA Men's Basketball. This has been a GREAT year to follow my beloved Tarheels!

Click HERE to see how the brackets unfolded.

Alyse is becoming a true Tarheel fan - She was just tired of all the cheering! This Saturday will be BIG as North Carolina faces the Kansas Jayhawks. To all my friends in Kansas I say: I miss you all and wish you well - but grab the crying towel on Saturday night for Kansas is playing a Roy Williams coached team from North Carolina!

Now I depart this subject ......

I wish to congratulate the newly elected members of the 2008-2009 church board at North Raleigh Church of the Nazarene. Those elected this past Sunday include:


STEWARDS: John Watson; Joanie Richards; Randy Powers

CE BOARD: Karen Joslin and Rodney Rhoads

SUNDAY SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT: Karen DeSollar

Returning members include: Bob Floyd; Gary Bennett; Andy Joslin; Brad Pope and Bill Shannon.

Our organizational meeting for the new church board is scheduled for Tuesday April 8 at 7:00pm


A time of transition begins:

This past Sunday marked the conclusion of the church year as we look with faith toward the next church year! On Sunday we heard the letters of resignation of Pastor Drew and Pastor Kevin. Pastor Drew has accepted a staff position at Mosaic Church of the Nazarene in Washington D.C. Pastor Kevin is continuing to pursue his degree from Duke Divinity School. The transition is underway. I have invited all the middle school and high school students to join me for Pizza with the Pastor on Wednesday night 4.09 and then a parents only meeting scheduled for Sunday following the service on 4.13. The purpose of these meetings is what I call a "listening tour" to gain insight and perspective as I seek God's plan for our youth ministry.

Some words of encouragement I recently spent time with:

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, whose thoughts are fixed on You! Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD GOD is the eternal Rock
(Isa. 26:3, 4 New Living Translation ).

People with their minds set on You, You keep completely whole, steady on their feet, because they keep at it and don't quit. Depend on God and keep at it because in the Lord God you have a sure thing
(The Message).

With perfect peace You will protect those whose minds cannot be changed, because they trust You. Trust the LORD always, because the LORD, the LORD alone,

is an everlasting rock
(God’s Word Translation).

These my friends are truly trustworthy sayings... PR