When Life Seems Uncertain

Being human has its highs and lows and often at the speed of fast or slow. Rarely do we find ourselves without concern and worry. Often we find ourselves in the midst of daily challenges and even distressing circumstances.

And if we are not careful we can allow our feelings and emotions to control our lives.

Our feelings and emotions are a gift from God but The Word of God reminds us that we are to live by faith in the promises of God and not by feelings alone. So I thought something helpful for your Sunday afternoon would be short list of some of the promises of God;

Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Romans 8:38-39 “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

And finally we can agree with Joshua 21:45 “Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.”

Someone once told me that “God’s promises are never broken no matter how hard you lean on them.”

So when you are faced with the highs and lows and the fast or slows of being human, trust in the sure promise of God and enjoy the feelings and emotions God gave you…  In that order!

Going to Mexico to visit House of Mercy Orphanage

Our plan is to drywall the study room and throw a Christmas party for the kids.

My Driftwood Hobby

Check out my latest driftwood. These are hardwood pieces I collected in Santa Barbara.

Python No Spill Clean And Fill System

I wanted to give a shout out to Lance at Python Systems for an amazing product the is made in the USA! That's right, good ol' American engineering and quality.

So this thing will clean and fill your fish tank without ever making a mess. No more buckets and dirty water in the house.  It has a pump you run in your sink that can both draw the water out and then when you adjust the water temp to your tank fill it back up.

 All your dirty water goes right down the drain.  It has a nice gravel cleaner at the end and a shut off valve to stop water flow to move from tank to tank.
Check out their website at Python Products
Just look at how clean my tanks are!

   

Amazon Sword Taking Over My 30g

Oh...and the Turquoise Discus looks nice

Amazingly Successful Trip To Nepal

What a privledge to represent www.ccmv.us in Nepal. Thanks for sending me and supporting me in prayer.
I was one of 7 pastors who taught through 1st and 2nd Thessalonians to a group of about 175 pastors from the mountains and hill country around Dharan Nepal.  Investing into the lives of these brothers is strategic for the future of Nepal.
We also sat in on a service at Calvary Chapel Dharan during both children's church and adult church. On our way home we squeezed in a visit to the Calvary Chapel Bible College at Kathmandu.

Here are some of the photos of the trip...

Serving Together With Some Wonderful New Friends 

Riding In A Tempo...Three Wheels and up to Six Passengers

Calvary Chapel Dharan and Lisa Giri

Lisa Giving The Bible Lesson "Our Shepherd Jesus Christ"

The Children Displaying Their Craft "Sheep With Glued Cotton"

A New Friend Jonahs...He is blind but that does not stop his passion to serve.

Typical Farm House In Dharan, Nepal

The Market...Fresh Veggies!

The Pastors/Leaders Receiving The Word From Pastor Troy Warner
 and the amazing translation of Nanda Giri (Lisa's Husband)

Continuing through the books of 1st and 2nd Thessalonians with Pastor John

Some new friends

Getting read to fly on Yeti airlines!

Pastors Troy and Vernon on the tarmac!

I Got Discus

Got a great deal on three discus fish from my lfs.

Sold My Frontosa Colony And Dirted The Tank

Well my Frontosa Colony was outgrowing my 40 Gallon tank so I sold them to a nice guy with a bigger tank. He even kept his word and sent me a picture of their new home (see below).

I mineralized some awesome soil, added red Clay, and then mixed in some special ingredients.

I put in a few starter plants and Guppies that were born in my other tank. Oh...and then I got a Cory Catfish clean up crew of four. 

Planted Tank

After creating my own blend of mineralized soil with red Clay added, the live plants are growing extremely well.  I also put the tank in the window for direct sunlight.

Frontosa Colony

I have started to raise a small school of Frontosa Cichlids. The largest I purchased  three months ago and the other five about a month ago. It takes almost two years for them to reach breeding age. I will try to post updates often.

My German Rams

Dirted my 30 gallon and added live plants. My German Rams appear to enjoy their new home.  The Driftwood is also my latest DIY project. 

Father's Day

For many of us, our fathers are our heroes. We appreciate them for their love and guidance. A good father can set an example of love, strength, honor, sacrifice, and responsibility. A godly father not only points his children to Christ, but lives his life in such a way as to demonstrate the reality of Christ to his children.

In the Fifth Commandment we are told to honor our father and mother, that our days might be long upon the earth. Hopefully you take the opportunity to honor your father more than one day a year.

Mark Twain recounts a story that is true for most all of us. He states: “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years.”

In the same way Margaret Truman tells us “It’s only when you grow up and step back from him–or leave him for your own home–it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it.”

...Billy Graham is quoted as saying, "A good father is one of the most unsung, unpraised, unnoticed, and yet one of the most valuable assets in our society."

One night a father overheard his son pray: “Dear God, make me the kind of man my Daddy is.”  Later that night, the father prayed, “Dear God, make me the kind of man my son thinks I am.” 

On this Father's Day, we honor dads for their love and the lessons they have taught us. 

H. David Landry, PastorCalvary Chapel of Casa Grande 

Saving Money With My Fish Tank Hobby

I have two main tanks (30 Gallon and 40 Gallon).  As part of my hobby patience is key to saving money. For instance watching Craigslist sales from people who don't want to continue in the hobby and sell their tanks and equipment well under the retail prices. But you might say, they are so dirty and have lime stains.  Yes but that's where a little Vinegar and elbow grease (scrubbing) will make the dirty tank look brand new.

For instance, check out my 30 Gallon I purchase on Craigslist for $40.00 along with 3 working pumps, a Whisper filter, bags of cichlid food, and a bunch of other supplies. It was covered in Lime stains as it was empty and kept in a garage.  I have a Lime stained tank above and my Vinegar cleaned tank below...

Are You persuaded?

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

The word persude according to dictionary.com means: “to induce to believe by appealing to reason or understanding; convince.”

God has declared and demonstrated in His Word that He loves us.  If we simplify the discussion in the passage above (Romans 8:38-39) to all that is created, and the One Who created it….It’s easy to see the point. Nothing in all of creation can separate you from the love of The One Who created you.  So God has declared He loves us and that nothing can separate us from that love.

But what about His demonstration of this love? The place where God demonstrated His love for us is the Cross! Jesus said in Mark 10:45 that He came to this earth to serve and not to be served and to give His live as a ransom. John tells us “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us.” So God demonstrated His love for us by sending His son to die on the Cross for our sins…

But maybe you are not persuaded.  Maybe you are listening to how you feel instead of what God has declared and demonstrated. The only thing that can separate you and I from God’s love is unbelief!  

So believe what God has declared and demonstrated to you….He loves you!

This Christmas It's All About Jesus

It's All About Jesus

    It's All About His Humanity

It's All About His Nativity
It's All About His Vulnerability
It's All About His Adversity
It's All About His Identity
It's All About His Humility
It's All About His Authenticity
It's All About His Simplicity
It's All About His Access ability
It's All About His Dignity
It's All About His Solidarity
It's All About His Community
It's All About His Equality
It's All About His Validity
It's All About His Necessity
It's All About His Capacity
It's All About His Responsibility
It's All About His Credibility
It's All About His Intensity
It's All About His Capability
It's All About His Integrity

   It's All About His Deity

It's All About His Glory
It's All About His Purity
It's All About His Fidelity
It's All About His Charity
It's All About His Reality
It's All About His Quality
It's All About His Longevity
It's All About His Stability
It's All About His Eventuality
It's All About His Complexity
It's All About His Superiority
It's All About His Authority
It's All About His Ability
It's All About His Priority
It's All About His Eternality
It's All About His Sovereignty

Because He came to rescue us from our Carnality!

Standing With Our Brothers And Sisters In The Middle East

The danger of following Christ if you live in the Middle East is a very real and present danger.  There are radical elements plotting against our brothers and sisters even as I write this blog post. This Christmas our Egyptian, Syrian, Lebanese, and other ethnic brothers and sisters are in real danger of being attacked during worship services.

How should we in the Western Churches respond?  First, we need to prayer for them (regularly). Also during our Christmas services we need to stand with them corporately in prayer. They need to know we care about them. They need to know we love them and hold their Faith in Christ as precious.

Having been to Egypt visiting both Coptic and Evangelical churches, my heart longs to see their safety and freedom of worship. I desire for God's intervention to undo the work of these hate mongers who kill innocent people.  I desire God to lift the blinders off those who attack Christians and think they are serving God.

Jesus, please protect your Church in the Middle East. Please use their sacrifice to bring light to their persecutors. Please bring the schemes of Satan through binded Moslems to nothing. Please open the eyes of those who are spiritually blinded and full of hateful resolve. Please save our spiritual family in the Middle East!

Training In Titus

The Book of Titus was written by The Apostle to his young pastor/protégé that he left on the Island of Crete to get The Church back on the tracks of sound doctrine that reflects lives that demonstrate what we believe.

First Leaders who are qualified by their godly conduct.
Then Older men who are influential by their self - control.
And Older women who are influential by their investment in to lives of the next generation.
Also Young men who are influential by the Gospel demonstrated in their daily lives.
Finally Employees who are influential by being honest, hardworking, and loyal.

Spurgeon On Our Attitude Towards Sin

O sirs, if I had a dear brother who had been murdered, what would you think of me if I valued the knife which had been crimsoned with his blood? —if I made a friend of the murderer, and daily consorted with the assassin, who drove the dagger into my brother’s heart? Surely I, too, must be an accomplice in the crime! Sin murdered Christ; will you be a friend to it? Sin pierced the heart of the Incarnate God; can you love it? Oh, that there was an abyss as deep as Christ’s misery, that I might at once hurl this dagger of sin into its depths, whence it might never be brought to light again!   

The Call To Christian Maturity

I write to you, little children, Because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.  I write to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, Because you have overcome the wicked one. I write to you, little children, Because you have known the Father. I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.  1st John 2:12-14 

Imagine with me spending a full day observing a preschool and the children during their daily activities there. And one of the students is a 30 year old man enrolled as one of the preschoolers? And each time the teacher asked a question the man gave the correct answer. And each time the teacher asked for cleanup time the man was the first to have his area cleaned. And at the end of the day you observe the 30 year old man is one of the best preschoolers.  But you know in your heart there is a problem. A 30 year old man does not belong in preschool! 

What an incredible experience it was for me when I became a disciple of Jesus almost 29 years ago.  As a brand new baby Christian, to know I had been forgiven and given the privilege of becoming one of God's family. To learn of the wonderful love that God has for me as a child of God.

But if my relationship with Jesus was formed only from my understanding of my forgiveness and acceptance and never moved from that starting point to other important truths like stewardship, obedience, and service any keen observer would say there is a problem. He is still in Christian preschool after almost 29 years of discipleship.

In 1st John 2:12-14 John illustrates three stages of Christian maturity with little children, young men, and fathers.  And it appears the path from little children to fathers is the way of young men and having the Word Of God to strengthen us to overcome temptation. In other words, learning and applying God's Word for daily living. Jesus wants us to graduate from Christian Preschool to normal life long discipleship.  See also Hebrews 5:12-6:3

Our New Generation Has Forgotten The Respect For The Great Generation

Thank You Delbert Belton (Shorty).

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/01/funeral-held-for-beaten-wwii-veteran/