Nathan Stam
Communications/Children's Pastor
The past few Tuesday nights we've been going through Christian Financial Institute as a Fellowship. I know about money about as much as I know the rules of hockey (which would be not at all) so it's been helpful to me as I try to be a faithful steward and to provide for my family in the future.
I know after reading through the New Testament Gospels that Jesus talked about money a lot. 11 of His 39 parables deal with money and for good reason. Our attitudes toward money in a lot of ways reflect our attitude towards God. In Luke 12 Jesus gives the Parable of the Rich Fool. This man seems to wisely prepare for the future with his finances and possessions, but he doesn't take into account the truth that God is the Owner of all things--including our life, breath and everything else--that his goal should be to be rich towards God and not to build bigger barns. The man's life is taken from him and God exclaims, "You fool! The things you have prepared--whose will they be?"
Jesus goes on to say, "That's how it is with the one who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God...For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Where is my heart? Is it rich toward God? Is it anxious after money? After things and possessions? After all this, here's the question I have to ask myself: "How am I using my money?"
I used to love Rich Mullins in college (and still do). I think he is a genius musician and song-writer. Plus, he was an excellent feather-ruffler! I remember hearing that Rich was heavily influenced by St. Francis of Assisi and while he could have made bundles of money for himself in the CCM world here is what he did with his income: The profits from his tours and his albums went to his church, which divided it up, paid him the average salary in the U.S. for that year, and gave the rest away to various charities. I remember seeing him in concert and he wore blue jeans, a white t-shirt and went barefoot. Not a lot of bling with Rich.
So, could I get to the point where I give more away than I keep for myself? By the way, here's a video clip of Rich if you've never heard or seen him.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Another One of Those Signs
Here's another one of those signs that we ran across during our time in East Asia. This was at a hospital we were visiting to see if their neo-natal care was up to snuff. Aidan was not born here, but at least we knew where to come if we got into any trouble!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
The Fringes
Nathan Stam
Communications/Children's Pastor
Anybody else seen Fringe? It kind of reminds me of the X-Files, but I miss Scully and Mulder so I've never quite gotten into it. But did you know Job, of Biblical fame, was in to Fringe science as well?
Listen to what Job, in a very poetic way, has to say in Chapter 26 about God (by the way, Job had been through a lot by the time he gets to this point!):
"These are but the fringes of His ways;
how faint is the word we hear of Him!
Who can understand His mighty thunder?"
Or put another way in a different translation:
"And this is only the beginning,
a mere whisper of His rule.
Whatever would we do if He really raised His voice!"
What an incredibly amazing God! When we look at all He has done, all the wonders we've seen Him work in our family's life, all the miracles we've seen in our own lives; we're only seeing a fringe of His Power. A mere whisper of His sovereign rule.
Here's to the whispers and the fringes, and here's to the Day that He raises His voice!
Communications/Children's Pastor
Anybody else seen Fringe? It kind of reminds me of the X-Files, but I miss Scully and Mulder so I've never quite gotten into it. But did you know Job, of Biblical fame, was in to Fringe science as well?
Listen to what Job, in a very poetic way, has to say in Chapter 26 about God (by the way, Job had been through a lot by the time he gets to this point!):
- He stretches the northern skies over empty space.
- He hangs the earth on nothing!
- He laid out the horizon on the surface of the water!
- The pillars that hold up the sky tremble at His rebuke.
- By His breath the heavens gained their beauty! By His very breath!
"These are but the fringes of His ways;
how faint is the word we hear of Him!
Who can understand His mighty thunder?"
Or put another way in a different translation:
"And this is only the beginning,
a mere whisper of His rule.
Whatever would we do if He really raised His voice!"
What an incredibly amazing God! When we look at all He has done, all the wonders we've seen Him work in our family's life, all the miracles we've seen in our own lives; we're only seeing a fringe of His Power. A mere whisper of His sovereign rule.
Here's to the whispers and the fringes, and here's to the Day that He raises His voice!
Monday, March 22, 2010
100 Cupboards and Knowing Who We Are
Nathan Stam
Communications/Children's Pastor
I just finished reading the "100 Cupboards" series by N.D. Wilson and I really recommend them. He's a great writer and they're rich in imagery and imagination. If you like fantasy you'd definitely enjoy his story about a boy named Henry and his journey to save his family!
There's one passage in the third book, "The Chestnut King," where the main character, Henry, is filled with self-doubt, that reminded me of Paul's words in Ephesians. Here's the passage first:
"Who am I?" Henry asked. "I'm a boy with nightmares, a burned hand, a witch's blood in my face, and her voice in my head."
Henry's grandmother tipped up his chin and stared into his eyes. "You are Henry York Maccabee, seventh son of Mordecai Westmore, seventh son of Amram Iothric, in the line long faithful to the Old King, bone from my own bone, blood from my own blood. You are the pride of your father and the glory of your mother, a fire green and gold and a curse to darkness." She dropped her hand. "May you never need to be told again."
Just like Henry had to be reminded by his grandmother who he was I think we forget who we are in Christ Jesus as believers. But just listen to who Paul says we are in Jesus in the book of Ephesians:
Communications/Children's Pastor
I just finished reading the "100 Cupboards" series by N.D. Wilson and I really recommend them. He's a great writer and they're rich in imagery and imagination. If you like fantasy you'd definitely enjoy his story about a boy named Henry and his journey to save his family!
There's one passage in the third book, "The Chestnut King," where the main character, Henry, is filled with self-doubt, that reminded me of Paul's words in Ephesians. Here's the passage first:
"Who am I?" Henry asked. "I'm a boy with nightmares, a burned hand, a witch's blood in my face, and her voice in my head."
Henry's grandmother tipped up his chin and stared into his eyes. "You are Henry York Maccabee, seventh son of Mordecai Westmore, seventh son of Amram Iothric, in the line long faithful to the Old King, bone from my own bone, blood from my own blood. You are the pride of your father and the glory of your mother, a fire green and gold and a curse to darkness." She dropped her hand. "May you never need to be told again."
Just like Henry had to be reminded by his grandmother who he was I think we forget who we are in Christ Jesus as believers. But just listen to who Paul says we are in Jesus in the book of Ephesians:
- Made alive with the Messiah. (even though we were dead!)
- Raised up and seated with Christ in the heavens.
- Fellow citizens with the saints and members of God's household.
- We are being renewed in the spirit of our minds.
- Sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption (He's the down payment!).
- Forgiven in Christ.
- Children of light!
- Blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavens.
- Chosen!
- Adopted through Jesus Christ for himself.
- Redeemed!
- Christ's inheritance.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Come What May
Nathan Stam
Communications/Children's Pastor
Recently, in Going Deeper, we read in Mark 10 where the Pharisees questioned Jesus about divorce and Jesus replied, "So they [husband and wife] are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, man must not separate."
Our marriages are so important (and yet so hard!) to talk about and examine and they can be a weighty subject, especially in a public setting. I remember when Kristi and I first got married we agreed that no matter what happened divorce was never going to be an option or an answer for us.
I recently have come to like the band, Thrice. Granted, they may not be your cup o' tea, and honestly, sometimes they can be a little intense for me, but I love their thoughtful and thought-provoking lyrics.
On their most recent record, Beggars, they have a song about marriage called "The Weight." Check out a few of the lyrics:
"And come what may, I won't abandon or leave you behind.
Because love is a loyalty sworn, not a burning for a moment
And come what may, I will be standing right here by your side;
I won't run away, though the storm's getting worse
And there's no end in sight."
And:
"Some talk of destiny, others of fate,
But soon they'll be saying goodbye.
But I won't leave you high and dry.
Because a ring don't mean nothing
If you can't haul the weight
And some of them won't even try.
But I won't leave you high and dry.
I won't leave you wondering, 'Why?'"
This is the kind of husband I want to be: A man who isn't swayed by temptations or enticements, but who loves my wife like Christ loves the Church and won't ever leave her side. My love for my wife is a "loyalty sworn", a choice, and not governed by emotions. And I'll never run away, no matter how hard the storm thrashes and flails against us. Our love is not just a "burning for a moment."
I've posted a clip of the song below for you to listen to (if you're feeling brave!). I especially love the emotion in the chorus. It's a promise. It's raw, passionate, and real. Come what may...this is my prayer as a husband.
Communications/Children's Pastor
Recently, in Going Deeper, we read in Mark 10 where the Pharisees questioned Jesus about divorce and Jesus replied, "So they [husband and wife] are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, man must not separate."
Our marriages are so important (and yet so hard!) to talk about and examine and they can be a weighty subject, especially in a public setting. I remember when Kristi and I first got married we agreed that no matter what happened divorce was never going to be an option or an answer for us.
I recently have come to like the band, Thrice. Granted, they may not be your cup o' tea, and honestly, sometimes they can be a little intense for me, but I love their thoughtful and thought-provoking lyrics.
On their most recent record, Beggars, they have a song about marriage called "The Weight." Check out a few of the lyrics:
"And come what may, I won't abandon or leave you behind.
Because love is a loyalty sworn, not a burning for a moment
And come what may, I will be standing right here by your side;
I won't run away, though the storm's getting worse
And there's no end in sight."
And:
"Some talk of destiny, others of fate,
But soon they'll be saying goodbye.
But I won't leave you high and dry.
Because a ring don't mean nothing
If you can't haul the weight
And some of them won't even try.
But I won't leave you high and dry.
I won't leave you wondering, 'Why?'"
This is the kind of husband I want to be: A man who isn't swayed by temptations or enticements, but who loves my wife like Christ loves the Church and won't ever leave her side. My love for my wife is a "loyalty sworn", a choice, and not governed by emotions. And I'll never run away, no matter how hard the storm thrashes and flails against us. Our love is not just a "burning for a moment."
I've posted a clip of the song below for you to listen to (if you're feeling brave!). I especially love the emotion in the chorus. It's a promise. It's raw, passionate, and real. Come what may...this is my prayer as a husband.
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Awakening
Phil preached this weekend on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-12 and spoke about walking in the light. We also looked at Ephesians where Paul instructs us to "wake up!" It reminded me of this past Fall Retreat for the ABC Youth where they used the theme of "The Awakening". I just wanted to share with you quickly a couple of different places that inspired that theme for the retreat with Matt Orth and company:
1. The first is from Paul who wrote in Ephesians 5: "Wake up, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you." He's instructing the Ephesians to be imitators of God and to walk in the light and not in the darkness. Expose the works and the deeds of darkness by the light! (This is the one that Phil mentioned on Sunday)
2. The second came from a study done on dolphins and sleep. Check it out:
"On land, human beings and other mammals breathe involuntarily: If we don't make a decision to breathe or not to breathe, our body will take in air automatically. Because of their undersea environment, whales and dolphins must be conscious breathers. They have to actively decide when to breathe. Consequently, in order to breathe, they have to be conscious. This presents a problem, since mammalian brains need to enter an unconscious state from time to time in order to function correctly.
There's plenty of time for a dolphin to catch a catnap between trips to the ocean surface, of course, but this isn't a viable option. When you're a conscious breather, it's just not feasible to be completely unconscious -- what if you don't wake up in time? The solution for whales and dolphins is to let one half of the brain sleep at a time. In this way, the animal is never completely unconscious, but it still gets the rest it needs.
Scientists have studied this phenomenon in dolphins, using electroencephalography. In this process, electrodes hooked up to the head measure electricity levels in the brain. The resulting electroencephalograms of dolphin brains demonstrate that in the sleep cycle, half of the the dolphin's brain does indeed "shut down" while the other half is still active. Researchers have observed that dolphins are in this state for approximately eight hours a day.
We can't really know what this rest state feels like, but we can make a good guess. It is probably something like the semi-conscious state we experience as we begin to fall asleep. We're pretty close to unconsciousness, but are aware enough of our surroundings to wake up completely if we need to."
The point here is, as believers, we sometimes exist in this semi-conscious state and live our lives moving from moment to moment with no intentionality and urgency of the Gospel. We're just in "survival" mode and are doing nothing to help advance the Kingdom of God. We need an AWAKENING!
3. And the third place was from a quote from John Gillies (that we featured in The Awakening Promo Video). Here it is in its entirety:
"The world is still sleeping its 'sleep of death.' It has been a slumber of many generations--sometimes deeper, sometimes lighter--yet still a slumber like that of a tomb, as if destined to continue till the last trumpet sound; and then there shall be no more sleep. Yet God has not left it to sleep on unwarned. He has spoken in a voice that might reach the dullest ears and quicken the coldest heart. Ten thousand times has He spoken and still speaks. But the world refuses to hear. Its myriads slumber on, as if this sleep of death were the very blessedness of its being."
Let's wake up, ABC, and be a light that shines in the darkness! Let's walk in the light and see God do amazing some amazing things in our Church! The AWAKENING!
1. The first is from Paul who wrote in Ephesians 5: "Wake up, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you." He's instructing the Ephesians to be imitators of God and to walk in the light and not in the darkness. Expose the works and the deeds of darkness by the light! (This is the one that Phil mentioned on Sunday)
2. The second came from a study done on dolphins and sleep. Check it out:
"On land, human beings and other mammals breathe involuntarily: If we don't make a decision to breathe or not to breathe, our body will take in air automatically. Because of their undersea environment, whales and dolphins must be conscious breathers. They have to actively decide when to breathe. Consequently, in order to breathe, they have to be conscious. This presents a problem, since mammalian brains need to enter an unconscious state from time to time in order to function correctly.
There's plenty of time for a dolphin to catch a catnap between trips to the ocean surface, of course, but this isn't a viable option. When you're a conscious breather, it's just not feasible to be completely unconscious -- what if you don't wake up in time? The solution for whales and dolphins is to let one half of the brain sleep at a time. In this way, the animal is never completely unconscious, but it still gets the rest it needs.
Scientists have studied this phenomenon in dolphins, using electroencephalography. In this process, electrodes hooked up to the head measure electricity levels in the brain. The resulting electroencephalograms of dolphin brains demonstrate that in the sleep cycle, half of the the dolphin's brain does indeed "shut down" while the other half is still active. Researchers have observed that dolphins are in this state for approximately eight hours a day.
We can't really know what this rest state feels like, but we can make a good guess. It is probably something like the semi-conscious state we experience as we begin to fall asleep. We're pretty close to unconsciousness, but are aware enough of our surroundings to wake up completely if we need to."
The point here is, as believers, we sometimes exist in this semi-conscious state and live our lives moving from moment to moment with no intentionality and urgency of the Gospel. We're just in "survival" mode and are doing nothing to help advance the Kingdom of God. We need an AWAKENING!
3. And the third place was from a quote from John Gillies (that we featured in The Awakening Promo Video). Here it is in its entirety:
"The world is still sleeping its 'sleep of death.' It has been a slumber of many generations--sometimes deeper, sometimes lighter--yet still a slumber like that of a tomb, as if destined to continue till the last trumpet sound; and then there shall be no more sleep. Yet God has not left it to sleep on unwarned. He has spoken in a voice that might reach the dullest ears and quicken the coldest heart. Ten thousand times has He spoken and still speaks. But the world refuses to hear. Its myriads slumber on, as if this sleep of death were the very blessedness of its being."
Let's wake up, ABC, and be a light that shines in the darkness! Let's walk in the light and see God do amazing some amazing things in our Church! The AWAKENING!
Friday, March 12, 2010
The Mark of a True Believer
In Matthew 24:13 Jesus makes an interesting statement:
"But the one who endures to the end will be delivered." Or "be saved".
(He's speaking in context of predicting the destruction of the Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70 and then moves to predicting what it will be like on the earth before the Second Coming.)
But his statement is an interesting general principle referring to salvation that we also find throughout the book of Hebrews. Several times in Hebrews the author repeats the following truth:
"For we have become companions of the Messiah if we hold firmly until the end the reality that we had at the start."
"Let us...run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus..."
It seems like it should be an obvious statement: that the one who loves Jesus genuinely won't ever stop loving Him, but we always find ourselves wondering, "How do I know if so and so is a believer?" or "I'm not sure if they love Jesus or not?" or "How do I know if I'm a believer?" Well, here's the answer to these questions for us: we know if we endure to the end! (The author also adds another mark of a true believer that if we're not being disciplined by God we're not true children of God.)
With that being said, a believer can sometimes fall into sin and wander from God, but he or she will be under too much conviction to stay there for long. He will always return.
It's the mark of a true believer!
"But the one who endures to the end will be delivered." Or "be saved".
(He's speaking in context of predicting the destruction of the Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70 and then moves to predicting what it will be like on the earth before the Second Coming.)
But his statement is an interesting general principle referring to salvation that we also find throughout the book of Hebrews. Several times in Hebrews the author repeats the following truth:
"For we have become companions of the Messiah if we hold firmly until the end the reality that we had at the start."
"Let us...run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus..."
It seems like it should be an obvious statement: that the one who loves Jesus genuinely won't ever stop loving Him, but we always find ourselves wondering, "How do I know if so and so is a believer?" or "I'm not sure if they love Jesus or not?" or "How do I know if I'm a believer?" Well, here's the answer to these questions for us: we know if we endure to the end! (The author also adds another mark of a true believer that if we're not being disciplined by God we're not true children of God.)
With that being said, a believer can sometimes fall into sin and wander from God, but he or she will be under too much conviction to stay there for long. He will always return.
It's the mark of a true believer!
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