So I’m reading in my YouVersion daily reading, and I came upon this story of Abraham:

 In verse 30 of Genesis 21, Abraham explains to Abimelech that he himself had dug a well at Beer-Sheba.  Now, we could go on and talk about ownership, rights, settling disputes, honesty, the importance of keeping promises, etc., but what struck me, in particular, was what the Bible says next:

 "Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beer-sheba, and there he worshiped the Lord, the Everlasting God."

You must understand that I’m a word geek, and seeing that I am not too current on my deciduous shrubbery, I had to Google it.  Here’s what I found:  they are a shrubby type of tree that can withstand/take high volumes of salt unlike many other trees.  Now, that becomes important to know in that it can disrupt the water table for other plant life, and it’s also important to note (via Wikipedia) that its sap is somewhat loosely related to manna (see Gaz and Manna).

But again, I was struck by that verse: "Abraham planted a…tree… and there he worshiped the Lord…" 

Thus far, as I’ve encountered someone worshiping the Lord, they would build an altar and worship (Genesis 8:20, Genesis 12:7-8, Genesis 13:4, Genesis 13:18).  But here, in chapter 21, Abraham didn’t build an altar.  

Instead, he planted a tree.

Next to a well, that provides water, he planted a tree.

A tree that is known for its relationship to salt.

A tree that he would go to worship God.

A tree that he would go to worship the Everlasting God.

This Everlasting God, seen in this story as the God Who Provides. 

What a strange place to worship.

What is a strange place for you to worship the Everlasting God?  What seemingly strange or uncommon time in your life have you called on the name of the Lord?  

I’ve told you about our son Alex – how we found out that he had a biological problem with both kidneys, how we looked and researched for all sorts of solutions, and how, eventually, he came, and Jesus is carrying him in paradise.

But what I haven’t told you is this: when Mary and I first heard the news, we felt powerless.  We felt like there was nothing we could do.  And we shot up a quick prayer to God, and then we went about trying to find solutions.  And they didn’t work, or they wouldn’t happen.  This and that wouldn’t fall into place.  It stinks having that feeling that there is absolutely nothing you can do; you’re powerless.

Feeling powerless stinks.

Sometimes I feel powerless, as if I can’t do anything right or anything at all – and I bet that you’ve probably felt that way too.

Someone says, “You’re just a teenager” to you so many times that eventually you think, “What can I do?  What power do I have?”        

Or someone you know is in the hospital, and you feel like their illness is out of your hands.  You think, I don’t know medicine and I’m not a surgeon, so what can I do?”

Or there’s this relationship you have that’s broken, and you’ve done all you can: you’ve sang her a lullaby, and you’ve bought her a diamond ring, and you’ve begged and groveled and asked for forgiveness, and nothing works.  They’re still mad at you.  You feel powerless.  What can you do?

How does progress happen?  How does something start moving forward?  How can we begin to fix our relationships?  How can we help our friends?  Our church?  Our school?

The Bible says something about progress, and it’s our Big Idea for tonight: Progress begins with prayer.

In the OT, Solomon built a huge platform made of bronze (2 Ch. 6.13) to kneel on as he led all of Israel to pray to God.

Jesus prayed to the Father on His knees (Lk. 22:41).  There was even one time, as soon as he got up, that the disciples said, “Teach us to pray.”

When the disciples prayed, it was on their knees.

But why?  Why on their knees?  Kneeling is connected with blessing and saluting (H1288 and TWOT 285).  “To bless in the Old Testament means ‘to endue with power for success, prosperity, fecundity (fruitfulness), longevity, etc.’” TWOT

There’s this other story in the Bible of Peter being in prison and how progress began with prayer.

It was, quite literally, a people on their knees.

Progress begins with prayer.

I’m not saying that you pray, and some genie will give you what you want.  But, the first step to something happening is prayer.

Time and again prayer is the key.

And maybe, maybe the reason I feel powerless at times, and maybe the reason you feel powerless at times, is because we don’t pray.  We don’t kneel before God.  Maybe we shoot a quick prayer up to God, but maybe our heart isn’t in it.  Maybe we don’t mean it. 

Allow me to share with you a few quotes on prayer from some great people:

• “Grant us grace, Almighty Father, so to pray as to deserve to be heard.”  Jane Austen, writer of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility
• “Our prayer must mean something to us if they are to mean anything to God.”  Maltbie D. Babcock, writer of “This Is My Father’s World”
• “Prayer crowns God with the honor and glory due His name, and God crowns prayer with assurance and comfort.  The most praying souls are the most assured souls.”  Thomas Benton Brooks, engineer and colonel in the army during the Civil War
• “He who runs from God in the morning will scarcely find Him the rest of the day.”  John Bunyan
• “When though prayest, rather let thy heart be without words than thy words without heart.”  John Bunyan
• “Prayer should be the key of the day and the lock of the night.”  Thomas Fuller, 17^th century writer
• “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go.”  Abraham Lincoln
• “Prayer is the chief agency and activity whereby men align themselves with God’s purposes.  Prayer does not consist in battering the walls of heaven for personal benefits or the success of our plans.  Rather, it is the committing of ourselves for the carrying out of His purposes.  It is a telephone call to headquarters for orders.  It is not bending God’s will to ours, but our will to God’s.  In prayer, we tap vast reservoirs of spiritual power whereby God can find fuller entrance into the hearts of men.”  G. Ashton Oldham

Progress begins with prayer.  Progress in our lives and in our world begins with us, praying, together, on our knees.

What would happen if we – like the people praying for Peter, or the early apostles getting together, or Jesus with his 3 trusted disciples – got down on our knees before God and prayed?

What would happen to us?  Our relationships?  Our families?  Our Sunday schools?  Our Youth Ministry?  Our Church?  Our school?  Our city?  Our state?  Our nation?

This has been the busiest, yet most productive season I can remember for awhile.

And here’s why:

It seems, with school, and my wife’s schooling, and with two conferences (one and two), and with moving to a new church/ministry, and with watching my child grow, that I have been consumed with thing after event after task after thought.

And so, I got too busy.  And maybe I had lost sight of what is really important.

And then Sunday school happened two Sundays ago.  Our Sunday school teacher, Trent Favre, had been taking us through a more applicable, hands-on, experiential, "what does this mean for and to you" kinda approach of the Christmas season — starting the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  His lesson two Sundays ago ended with, "What will you do to make Christmas special this year?"

I’ve got to tell you, that discussion (which started at Simeon’s joy and ended with an expectant promise from Isaiah) left me in awe, and God began to work things back into a proper perspective for me this season.

So, what do you do when you hear something amazing like that?  Do you hide it under a bushel?  ("Oh no!" in the words of his son Sam).  You let it shine, and so I asked him to share that with our students this last Wednesday night.  We watched a clip from Elf, thanks to my friend Joey Bland and YouTube, y’know, the clip where it’s announced that Santa is coming the next day, and then Buddy gets all beside himself and says, "I know him!"? That clip.  And I suggested that "The proper view of Christmas brings excitement to your life."  Then, Trent came and presented his teaching from that Sunday morning about Christmas being special.

Just like the first time I heard the teaching, I was left in a moldable state to which God began to work, slowing me down, and helping me to see properly.

Friday came, and we took our students on a 5hour Progressive Dinner.

Saturday came, and our students painted our new youth room (for over 5hours).

Sunday came, and we attended Sunday school, worship, and then assembled and delivered fruit baskets to about over 20 people for 4hours.

And then Sunday afternoon came, and I took my student to First Missionary Baptist Church down the road to support our brothers and sisters in Christ as their students put on the biblical Christmas story.

And it was awesome.

And it was there that God, although I myself had been super busy this season, slowed my mind down and put everything in a fresh perspective.  Jesus, our Rescuer, humbly entered this broken world.  For that moment, at the end of the performance, all was calm, and all was bright.  

So Monday came, and 6 people joined me as we traveled an hour and a half to the Deanash Baptist Children’s Village to give the children over 30 gifts.  And then, when I returned to my office, I found two guitars totaling $3500 waiting for me.  And I heard the news that our church received some money to finish some homes in the community that were still suffering from Hurricane Katrina.  And I heard the news that our Gulf Coast region gave over 9000 shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child.  And just this morning I heard that some money anonymously came in for some families this Christmas.

And all the while, I look at these presents and I think, "They don’t belong under a green, plush tree."  These presents can’t be attributed to mere coincidence.

No, instead, I propose that these presents, these gifts that are bringing joy to families here in our community and in our church and to children across the world, that these gifts came from our Rescuer, and we lay them down at the foot of His tree — the Cross of Calvary.

Which tree do you see this Christmas?

So I got this recipe the other day. You see, I was preparing for our student ministry’s AppleFest (which I was super excited about), a night when

1) students got to come to their first "official" event at our house

2) we got to splurge on everything apple: Dutch apple pie, sugar cane ham w/ apples, amazing apple cookies from a student, and RedHot apple cider (recipe courtesy of my undergrad Greek professor), as well as playing Apples To Apples.

Good times.

But, the problem came in that as I was shopping for the ingredients for the Ham at a local grocery store, I couldn’t find sugar cane swizzle sticks.  This store had everything — even a plethora of organic ingredients — but no sugar cane swizzle sticks.

I think.

The store may or may not have had the sticks; I wouldn’t know.  I searched for twenty minutes throughout the store, asked several stockers for help, and still no luck.

Here’s what the real problem was: I had no clue what I was looking for.  I was looking for something that I had seen in type on a recipe card, but I had never seen one.

How many of us have tried to do something or find something, knowing "I need ___" but were unsuccessful in finding it because we had no clue on what it looked like?

For example: in Alice in Wonderland, Alice finds herself lost in a forest, to which she begins asking directions from the Cheshire Cat:

 `Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?’ 

We’re like Alice sometimes, aren’t we?  We know that we need to be somewhere or have something, but we’re not sure on exactly where or what that thing looks like.

If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll never get there.  If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you’ll never find it.

Case in point: in Matthew 13, Jesus tells the story of a merchant who finds a magnificent pearl and sells everything he has just to buy it. Here’s what we can learn from this: the merchant, as Jesus tells us, was "in search of fine pearls."  He knew what he was looking for.  He had an idea of what the fine pearl would look like, so it made his search easier.  He knew what the desired result would be, and he set out to make that happen.

Do you know where you’re going?  Who do you want to be?  What are you looking for?

Once you find out where you want to go, you can begin to formulate the needed steps it takes to get there.  And instead of wasting time being lost, intentionally increasing frustration due to lack of vision, or potentially missing out on who God wants you to be and what He wants you to do, you can start now by asking, "Am I who I need to be?  What is it that I need?" 

(obviously) reading Giglio’s i am not, but i know I AM, and feeling a little, well, as if I get my sights outta whack.  He mentions this particular image in his book,

and so I was immediately reminded, "Wow, it really isn’t about me, is it?  Ever.  Not even when i’m planning things.  Not even when it’s my day, my message, my anything."

Sometimes i find myself as "demanding," as Giglio puts it (134), making things on "my" timetable.  But it’s not really "my" anything, is it?

i’m just a manager of stuff.  Of God’s stuff.

so i need to be reminded of Colossians 3:17, "Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." 

So I was checking my email (as you do) and ran across this article about Ben Stein.  Apparently, he was asked to do the graduation commencement speech at the University of Vermont.  He had received rave reviews from speaking there last spring.  However, once some folks (isn’t it great that detractors usually pull the ‘anonymous’ tag) found out, you could almost hear Bruce Buffer saying, "It’s TIME!"  And then the backlash began.

So what’s the big deal?  Ben Stein, a staunch Jew, supports Intelligent Design, and has even made a movie criticizing Darwinianism.  And now all the bright scientists with huge IQs (or maybe the normal, everyday folks… with huge EGOs?) have an issue with Ben.  Are they afriad that he only has one topic he wants to address as a commencement ("Go, and spread ID")?

If they (the always elusive "they") would just sit back and think , then they’d see what an opportunity they were missing.

What say you? 

I found this in my research for my teaching on 2 Corinthians 9:1-15, but it didn’t make it into my teaching last Wednesday.  I guess you could call it a "deleted scene."

I thought it was worth noting, though.

In verse 5, Paul says "So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised."

Who were these brothers?  My research indicates that they are Titus (2 Cor. 8:23) and the Macedonians Jason (Acts 17:5) and Sopater (Acts 20:4; Rom. 16:21).  The point of urging the brothers to come is that they would teach Corinth to save money for the offering/gift they had intended to give (1 Cor. 16:2).

Here’s a question for thought: in what ways are you preparing your offering for God? 

It’s Monday.  What am I thinking?

1.  School today.  Had two classes.  This, technically, was my first day of school, although I actually showed up LAST WEEK thinking we had class (didn’t catch the memo about "No school on MLK Day.").  In Spiritual Formations, Dr. Eric Pratt said this,

 "You can’t take people places you’ve never been or are never going."

Furthermore, he asked,

 "Is there anything you’re doing right now that requires ‘true faith’?"

2.  In my second (of only two classes this semester) class, History of Christianity, Dr. Nance said,

 "He who controls education has the power to change society."

3.  The Blessed Hand Sign that Points Me To Jesus (or somewhere in that general direction?)

 So I was driving back from school this afternoon after lunch, and I’ll admit: I was going 75.  I usually set the cruise this way on my way to and from school, so that I don’t get the lead foot.  75 is an acceptable speed, right?  Or is it?  I’m supposed to obey the law of the land, and in that way I can honor God.  But, alas, I was breaking the law.

But that’s not the point of the story.  No.  The story isn’t focused on me breaking the speed limit (or is it?).  I was in the left lane trying to pass an 18 wheeler (while using my cruise control.  btw, prolly not the best idea, unless, like in my case, you’re the only two vehicles on that stretch).  But then, all of a sudden, we weren’t the only two vehicles hugging the road.  This white truck came outta nowhere (and really quickly, but not "Clark Kent" quickly, more like, 85mph quickly) and ran my tail.

Now, normally I would’ve taken off my cruise control and sped up and passed the 18 wheeler (and even disobeyed the law more?  Of course, it takes just one mile over to transgress, right?), but as I talked on the phone with @tstaires (if you’re not following this guy on Twitter, you should), Truck Guy flashed his lights at me… as if I was going to cruise faster.  And then I started observing Truck Guy: he had a nice "Jesus" license tag on the front of his truck.

What a nice Truck Guy.

I say that sarcastically.  So, I did what any sinner would do — I continued to cruise until Truck Guy passed me and cut off 18 Wheeler Guy.  I know, I know: "What if he was in an emergency?" If Truck Guy had been, his emergency lights would have been on (since his headlights obviously worked, and even his blinker worked as he passed me and cut off 18 Wheeler Guy).

So, Truck Guy actually did what I would have done — he stared me down as he passed me.

And then I waved and smiled

As he got further in front of me, he rolled down his window and proceeded to tell me that "Jesus is #1."  Seriously.  Or, maybe that "Jesus is in heaven."  I couldn’t tell which.  I was thoroughly flabbergasted with his gesture, license tag, and non-emergency. 

Just saw this when I was checking my email.

The article says,

"Obama has spent his first days in office systematically signing executive orders reversing Bush administration policies on issues ranging from foreign policy to government operations."

Barack Hussein Obama is our President.  However, whereas he may make bold moves towards human rights in some areas (regarding torture and equality; even Clay Aiken and UNICEF noted that UNICEF and ONE supporters care about the most "vulnerable" people on our planet), he seems to neglect them in another. 

Even the Pope encouraged President Obama.

So we can too.  Whatever your thoughts on anything, I urge you to go to ONE’s website and to help fight the battle for the less fortunate.  And regarding those in the womb that have not yet seen the light of day, I encourage you to pray. 

How many of you ministers are looking for authenticity when choosing a worship leader for something?

It’s sometimes difficult to find.  It’s a gem when you do stumble upon it (and I think that comes through following God’s leading in that still small voice).

This last weekend I had the privilege of working with Jeremy Riddle for our Disciple Now weekend.  Now, I’ve worked with a lot of guys (from bringing in people to my BSU years ago to church settings), and I’ve seen a lot of different types of worship leaders live.

But Jeremy Riddle is different.  Jeremy is authentic, to the bone.  He showed up a little after 3pm Friday afternoon, and was as down to earth and jovial as my close friends.  Talking and even working with Jeremy kinda reminded me of working with my friends Reggie and Tony.

And, what’s even cooler than the down-to-earthiness is his receptivity to the leading of the Spirit.  Two times this weekend he added or changed a song based on where God was moving.  This guy was in tune to the movement of God, and it was sweet! 

I have never had such great feedback after a weekend retreat as I’ve had this last weekend with Jeremy. 

My only qualm is on my part: I didn’t get the typical cheesy "youth minister with famous guy" shot.  Oh well.  The memorable blessing was being able to serve and invest into the students together.

For more info, go here or here.

Blessings.