Gone for a few days

For those two or three of you who read my blog on a (semi) regular basis, I will not be posting for a few days. I leave tomorrow morning to get my son and daughter-in-law from San Francisco. They will be staying with us right through the holiday weekend, and then I will be taking them back home to SF on Sunday. So, enjoy your holiday and be sure to give thanks to our God for all His blessings! See you on the other side of the holiday weekend!

Pastor Ken

Realist vs. Cynic

For decades now my wife and I have talked about my propensity to view life from a particular perspective at times. It is a perspective that she calls cynical and I have called realistic. Now, at this point, you undoubtedly have already figured out how I tend to look at things sometimes. When things happen that I don't like, or when I expect things to go less than spectacularly, Cheri tells me that I am being cynical, and I reply that I am just being realistic. But the truth is (and don't you tell my wife I said this!) that it really is cynicism. Because the only realistic perspective for the believer is the realization that everything that happens to me, regardless of how it appears at the moment and regardless of the intent of the one who may be doing it, is raw material in the hands of a God who intends to conform me to the image of His Son and use every bit of it to His glory and my good. So if I were being realistic, I would have to praise God always, and give thanks for everything. Guess I'll need God's help for that. Pray for me!

Pastor Ken

Thanksgiving and Families

Well, Thanksgiving week is here. For most, it will mean spending time with our families. And isn't that appropriate? Because, of all the things we have to be thankful for, family is the best. Sometimes. Because, while there are many, if not most who enjoy the time they will spend with their families, there are also those who are dreading their time with their family. I don't want to talk about the reasons for that. Rather, I want to encourage each of us to decide that this holiday season we are going to do the things that build family rather than destroy it. I know it can be hard to break old habits. But I can tell you from personal experience that, having admitted that there are things about your life and habits you would like to change, God's power is always there to do just that. Regardless of how bad our family experiences may have been in the past, they can begin to get better this year. Not very deep, but maybe a good idea.

Pastor Ken

Pretend vs. Real

Yesterday morning my wife prevailed upon me to take her to see the new Twilight sequel, New Moon. Now, the fact that not one, but two ordained Assemblies of God ministers were willing to see a movie about vampires and werewolves is going to cause some to go into apoplectic shock, I know. So let me just make each of you that much more angry: I have also enjoyed The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and many other "supernatural" thrillers. How could I do that? I have enjoyed each of these, as have my children, because we understand the difference between pretend and real. I honestly don't know why some people think that to have an imagination is to teach our children in the reality of witches and vampires and elves. From the earliest age my children have understood the difference. We never told them that Santa was real, and we always told them that God was. Because we were honest, and because we celebrated imagination, they have grown up healthy, and not one of them has ever believed in witchcraft or other such imaginary things. Sometimes I just wish that well-meaning Christians would just leave all this stuff alone. But I expect that we will continue to read of book burnings and condemnations. Oh, well. I guess I'll go back to waiting for the next Twilight sequel.

Pastor Ken

You can't choose your family

Several years ago I remember hearing someone say that you can choose your friends but you can't choose your family. The meaning of such a statement is obvious - friends are by definition someone that you like, and sometimes you just don't like some members of your family. And yet, as much as I value my friends, I must admit that I have probably grown spiritually in some ways as a result of an "irregular" family member that I might never have had I only been able to choose who I would have a relationship with. And then I realized - for all eternity I will be spending time with the family of God, and not just with the friends of Ken! I know that we are going to become more than we could imagine when we are perfected in Christ. And yet, I can't help but wonder - will some of those "imperfections" that drive me crazy with some family members end up being part and parcel of the beauty of each of them, and will I find that my petty problems with them were just that - petty? Anyway, as Thanksgiving approaches, and with it the increase in family stress, I am resolved to ask God to not just help me cope with and put up with irregular family members, but to see them in the light of His love and ask for His help to appreciate them for who they are. Maybe I will grow a little bit in that process.

Pastor Ken

The Apocalypse

So yesterday afternoon I took a couple of the guys from our youth group to see "2012." The idea was to view the movie, and then to discuss not only their view of prophecy, but even more importantly, to talk about the kid of worldview inherent in the movie. One of the more obvious things was that every religion was afforded an equal value. Those of you who have read this blog before know that I find that inherently dishonest and something that can only be said by someone who has not studied the various religions in the world. In the movie, it was as though Christianity was the "junior" religion, the one with the most mistakes. At one point, when discussing the various religions that had predicted the end of the world, the comment was made that, while others had gotten it substantially right, the Bible was mostly wrong, but still contained the idea of an apocalypse. The thing is, I do not think that this constant portrayal by Hollywood of Christianity as substantially wrong and dangerous and Christians as rubes and fools is intentional - I think it represents what many in Hollywood think is the accepted wisdom of our culture. As we talked about that at dinner afterwards, I loved the conclusion that one of our high schoolers came to. He said that the only real answer is to live our Christian lives as well as possible and let our lives prove how wrong those ideas are. A great bit of wisdom! All of the public complaining only serves to reinforce the ideas so prevalent in the media. But if we will quietly love God and serve our fellow man, it will be obvious just how wrong those portrayals are. So here's to living the Spirit-filled, Spirit-led life! We were never going to be successful for God without His help anyway!

Pastor Ken

Death - The Final Frontier

I missed a day on this blog because I was with a family that unexpectedly lost their mother/wife at the relatively young age of 62. Death is something that most of us are able to successfully remove from our minds most of the time. But there are times when we can ignore it no longer. For me, and for this family, this is one of those times. So, some thoughts about death. First, death puts everything in perspective. The simple fact is that if death really is the end of existence, as modern naturalists insist, then death is the ultimate reminder of the futility of life. If this natural world is all there is, then nothing, and I mean nothing, we do is of any significant consequence. Even what we do for others is unimportant, as they, too, will die, along with the entire universe eventually. I know many who have tried to make life significant in the face of this, but all of it falls flat. Likewise, if the eastern religions are correct about life being about coming back again and again until we get it right, at which time we finally get off the wheel and die eternally, then again, there is no significance or meaning to life. If Judaism is correct and God will judge us based on how faithful we were to our own traditions, that gives some kind of comfort, but no real knowledge of what awaits us. But if Christianity is correct, then this life assumes eternal significance, since it is here where we make the decision that will determine our eternal state. The question, of course, is how do we know which of these and other traditions is correct? And the answer that has satisfied me is: only Christianity has a bona-fide historical occurrence to confirm its worldview. And that occurrence is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I will not go into all the historical evidence for the resurrection - that is more than I have room for in one blog. But I am convinced on historical grounds that Jesus Christ did indeed physically raise from the dead three days after he was declared dead by the Roman Empire - a group that was expert at both delivering a death sentence as well as verifying that it had actually been carried out. That resurrection is the ultimate stamp of authority for all that Jesus said and did. And that means that real, true significance is possible. In fact, it is guaranteed. What we do in this life matters! So, this Saturday, we will celebrate not just the life of a saint of God who has now met her Savior face to face, but the eternal life of that saint. Because in this life, she decided to avail herself of the offer that God has made. I will miss her, as will her family and loved ones and friends. But I will not mourn for her. She is in the presence of the one to whom she dedicated her whole life. And she has realized the significance of that life. Carol - I will meet you there!

Pastor Ken