Feed Your Soul

Erin Pearce      

I'm learning more and more, the older I get, what a ministry music is to my soul. I remember in college days getting my very 1st RUF CD (Reformed University Fellowship) that had many of the hymns and songs that we sang in large group. As I would drive around, I remember just listening and meditating on the powerful, truthful words, and then Scripture would come to mind that would remind me of and confirm these truths. Music was such a blessing to my soul, as I was constantly singing these truths alone in my car on days that I was struggling, doubting, fearing, repenting, confessing, rejoicing, praising. Through all kinds of myriads of emotion, these songs would help me cling to the truth when I was having a hard time seeing straight.  Even this morning as I was worrying about my grandmother who is in the ICU and several other people in my life that have had really bad turns in life recently, I heard this song playing as I was putting on my make-up:

Abide With Me by Henry Lyte

Abide with me; falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.
When other helpers, fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, abide with me. 

Thou on my head, in early youth didst smile;
And, though rebellious, and perverse meanwhile,
Thou hast not left me, oft as I left Thee,
On to the close Lord, abide with me. 

I need Thy presence, every passing hour.
What but Thy grace, can foil the tempter’s power?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, abide with me. 

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless
Ills have no weight, tears lose their bitterness
Where is thy sting death? Where grave thy victory?
I triumph still, abide with me. 

Hold Thou Thy cross, before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies.
Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, Lord, abide with me. 

I was reminded yet again that our Lord is faithful even when we are not. That He is with us when help and comfort flee. He is our constant stronghold who cannot be moved when things seem to be falling apart around us. My soul was encouraged by these truths, and I hope yours is too.

Obedience and Feelings... in that order

By: Chris Leuck     

We live in a “feelings-based” culture. We tend to operate as “feelings-driven” people. By “feelings” I mean one’s personal will, emotions, desires, motivations, etc.

In the current cultural paradigm, an individual’s feelings are seen as a trustworthy primary source for life direction. You have heard and maybe even used the sayings, “Just follow your heart” or “I just have a good feeling about this one…”

This is not the way we should live as Christians (or as human beings, for that matter). Your feelings are not a trustworthy primary source for life direction.

Why?
We are “fallen”… every last one of us. Sin has corrupted mankind and contaminated us to our very core. No man will experience complete freedom from his indwelling sin this side of the grave.

Christians ARE free from sin in another way (in the sense that we no longer have to serve sin as our master… the chains have been broken and we ARE FREE to serve our new master, Jesus Christ). However, we will continue to have indwelling sin as we serve Him.

Stay with me… we live in a time when popular thought says that your feelings ARE a trustworthy source of direction for your life. I am telling you that this is NOT TRUE because you are contaminated with sin down to your deepest parts, including your feelings.

At best, your feelings are often confused. Worse than that, they are often misleading and can be downright destructive. In fact, the corruption in this world has been caused by sinful desire (2 Peter 1:4).

The biblical paradigm puts your feelings in their proper place. Your feelings do not dictate your obedience to God. Your obedience to God dictates your feelings.

1 Peter 1:22-23
“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”  (I would recommend reading all of 1 Peter 1 to get the fuller context… Peter describes the great GIFT of salvation and the Christian’s responsibility in light of the gift).

Have you ever been faced with this dilemma? “I REALLY WANT to do ‘that thing’ but I know that God hates ‘that thing’ so I know I shouldn’t do ‘that thing’… but I really want to.”

If you have been a Christian for more than 5 minutes, you have had that dilemma. You have competing sets of feelings. Sometimes you are in touch with the PURE feelings that God has given you, but sometimes you are in touch with your SINFUL feelings. They wage war against each other inside of you. They compete for your loyalty.

Take heart… you ARE FREE from the slavery of service to your sinful desires. You ARE FREE to serve Christ. HOWEVER… please understand that your feelings are not trustworthy. They are NOT to be the primary source of direction for your life. The truth is.

What should you do in that dilemma?
Obey the truth not your feelings. Peter says that your obedience to the truth purifies your soul. Is Peter being legalistic? No. Peter is not talking about earning your salvation… he is talking about living out your salvation.  If you are truly a Christian, you have experienced a second birth… born of an imperishable seed… you have been given salvation.

What are the makings of this second birth?
From 1 Peter 1:23 we at least know that it has come “… through the living and abiding Word of God,” also known as the truth.  Elsewhere, we find more clarity into the fact that God has actually given His people HIS HOLY SPIRIT! See Ezekiel 36:25-27. God has given His people the inner means of obedience. If you are a Christian, he has caused you to be born again of the truth for obedience to the truth. Salvation IS a gift… and the means of your obedience is part of the package. Do not despair of your indwelling sin… live your life in the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit… live your life in obedience to the truth.

Ezekiel 36:27
“And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”

Regardless of the way you feel, obey the Word… and as you live your life in obedience to the truth, your soul will be purified. This is an important distinction. Your motivation for obedience is not to be the driving force of your obedience. Truth is. Truth dictates what you should or shouldn’t do and obedience to the truth purifies your motivations, or feelings. The more you follow God, the more you will want to follow God (and I would say that the more you live in sin, the more you will want to live in sin).

Think about the implications in the context of marriage:

Ephesians 5:24-25
"… as the church submits to Christ so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her…”

But what if I don’t FEEL like it!?

Ephesians 5:33
“… and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”

But what if he is being a jerk and he makes me mad? What if I don’t FEEL like it!?

These are not conditional commands… in fact, the call is for unconditional love. Put your feelings in their place. Husband, your call is to sacrifice yourself for your wife’s sake. Wife, respect your husband… submit to him in everything.

Obey God’s commands… He has given you the ability to do so. After a while, you will feel like it.

Chuck Colson

By: Dr. Jimmy Young     

I was saddened to hear on the news Saturday night that Chuck Colson had died.  You younger folk may not recognize that name, but, boy I do.  Nixon’s “hatchet man” of Watergate fame, converted in prison, founder of Prison Fellowship.  What a brother he was! 

I had supper with him one night many years ago.  But I most remember his books, of which there were several.  The guy was brilliant.  There were so many keen insights contained in his books, like this one: 

“I was reminded of a young woman profiled in Psychology Today.  Counseled to give up the endless round of parties, drugs, sex, and alcohol that was driving her into despair, she gasped to her psychiatrist, ‘You mean I don’t have to do everything I want to do?’”  

He was full of the thought-provoking, and did it in a way that made Christianity appear as the most credible option that ever existed.  In a day when we Christians are made to look as if we have committed intellectual suicide, Colson was a star.  I will miss him.

No Stinking Badges

By: John Ottley      

People wonder what I do at Grace Evan.  A short answer besides “Not a whole lot” is “Pastoral Care and Senior Adult Ministry.”  I’ve learned something about the latter.  The word “senior” evokes a gamut of responses.  Lots of people don’t want to be thought of as a “senior” and they don’t want to be rounded up, branded and herded off to a "Senior Adult Ministry."  These folks aren’t mavericks.  Many of them are galloping after the glory of God.  (OK, no more horsing around with metaphors.) 

Grace Evan exists to reach an unchurched world through maturing Christians.  Maturing Christians   are growing more like Christ who did not come to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45).  Maturing Christians reach an unchurched world by using their resources (time, talents and treasure) for God’s glory.  And there are no age restrictions or limitations on this mission.  It’s for everyone—young and old.  “Junior” and “Senior.”

One of my goals as “Senior Adult Minister” is to encourage those 50 and older to mature, that is, to be what GOD wants them to be and do what GOD wants them to do (Ephesians 2:10: "created in Christ for good works…").  Many of these folks can inspire and encourage their peers to “get off the bench and into the game.”  Some of these folks will challenge their friends to join a Sunday School class, Grace Group, or MIT.  Others will build friendships with younger couples or serve in Amazing Graceland.   Again, the issue, the goal, the mission is to mature in order to reach an unchurched world.

There’s a great quote about “badges” from John Huston’s The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.  Mexican banditos have cornered Fred Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and his gold mining cronies.  The bandits pretend to be law enforcement officers to trick the prospectors into giving up their guns.  Dobbs and his buddies see through their pretense and call their bluff by asking to see their badges.  That’s when one of the bandits says, "Badges? We ain't got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any stinking badges."

So if you don’t like the “Senior Adult” badge, forget it.  We don’t need no stinking badges.  We just want you to be what God wants you to be and do what God wants you to do.  And if you happen to be, you know, over… say… 50 and you want to have a fun evening with some other great people, then put May 3rd on your calendar.  You’ll get great barbeque, great music and a great message.  And we promise not to brand you.

Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead — since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”   Romans 4:19–22

Living to Play Another Song

By: Kim Killebrew        

I read this article today.  Maybe you saw it, too.  Israeli violin maker Amnon Weinstein of Tel Aviv lost 380 relatives to the Holocaust.  He has spent the last decade scouring the globe for violins that were played in Nazi ghettos, work camps, and death camps.  He has collected 18 instruments that will now be on display at The University of North Carolina, Charlotte: College of Arts and Architecture.

I did not realize that music was even a part of the Nazi reign of terror.  Reportedly, prisoners were forced to play during the inmates roll call, marching time, work time, and even to showcase executions.  

“Weinstein likes to tell of the violin he was working on one day in his shop in his native Israel. He found himself scraping away black gunk until he realized what it was. The violin had been played by an inmate in the orchestra at Auschwitz, a short walk from the gas chambers and chimneys. It was ashes.”

Naturally, many survivors wanted nothing to do with these instruments of death.  So the violins were discarded and lost.  However, Weinstein has searched them out, restored them to working condition, and now displays them in an exhibit called “Violins of Hope.”

Ladies, does that sound familiar?  God designed us to be life-givers. Sin caused us to be life-takers.  Christ’s redemption, the life he has given us, has restored our life-giving capabilities.  Just like the violins.  We were once instruments of death, but today we live to play another song.  Will we?

I am challenged to see life through a new set of eyes.  I can choose to gripe and complain and point fingers - tearing down the lives around me, celebrating the death of this world we live in.  Or I can choose to pray, and wait, and deny myself, and encourage, and convey a message of hope for the future. Oh God, give us the strength to play a new song!

Songs That Prepare Kids to Meet Their Maker

By: Johnny Coggin      

Have you ever wondered why we sing the songs we do? There are a number of factors that determine whether or not we use a song in our worship services at Grace Evan. Yet nothing factors higher than the content of the lyric, what the song is saying. Whatever pleasing qualities the tune or arrangement may bring, whatever emotions may be stirred up by the performance, we're wasting our time if what we sing together as God's redeemed people isn't calibrating our minds and hearts to the glories of who God is and what he has done.

John Bell makes this point in his book, The Singing Thing, in a discussion of children's songs:

...what we learn in childhood we retain all our life and [...] the images of God we receive from such songs will determine our faith and theology. That means that whenever anyone teaches a child a hymn or religious song, they may be preparing that child to meet his or her Maker. Does that seem too extreme?

Then consider the experience of those who minister to the elderly. A hospital chaplain colleague talks of how when she takes prayers in a geriatric ward, where people cannot read hymn texts, she uses songs they have in their memory. So they will sing "Jesus Loves Me" and "If I Come to Jesus, He Will Make Me Glad," both of which not only invoke the past but speak positively of the love of God.

Consider a child born in the 1970's, finding himself coming towards the end of his life in a geriatric ward in the 2060's, and as he prepares to make his peace with God summoning up such a deeply spiritual ditty as: 

        "If I were a fuzzy wuzzy bear,  

         I'd thank you, Lord, for my fuzzy wuzzy hair."

Children's hymns should never be seen simply as a form of entertainment to keep the kids happy. These songs, in the future, will be evocative of God.

It's true of kids' songs, but it's true of our songs too. Granted, music can simply be fun and entertaining. But as a church, we have a responsibility to use the divinely-designed power of music to teach and shape "our faith and theology" for the long haul. And the tunes and truths we sing together will often be what will come to mind in the trials of our lives.

- A loved one's death may bring to mind the reassuring words of "It is Well with My Soul."

- A season of grief and loneliness may be met with sweet comfort as you are reminded of the song "What a Friend We Have in Jesus."

- A fear of death and/or a nagging uncertainty of your standing with God may be put at ease as you recall the truths of "Before the Throne of God Above."

This is why we invest so much time and energy into Scripture Songs for the kids (and everyone else!). This is why we sing songs in our gathered worship that are rich with biblical truth about God. We're preparing ourselves - young and old - to meet our Maker, yes, but also to face life, now and future, with bold confidence in him.

Justice Smiles

By: Jim Umlauf      


Quite a few years ago, I spent about six months down at 201 Poplar. No, I wasn’t incarcerated—I worked there. On my last day, I thought it would be fun to get my picture taken in a judge’s chair, so I asked a court clerk friend of mine if he could make that happen. At 8:45 am, fifteen minutes before the whole “all rise” thing, I made my way into the courtroom through a door behind the judge’s desk. To my surprise, the place was packed. I mean shoulder to shoulder, crammed to capacity. As I sat down and looked out, what I thought would be a fun photo op turned somber very quickly. These people staring up at me had all been accused. They were going to be judged. They knew that punishment awaited them.

The sinner is in a cosmic predicament. God, the source of truth, good, and called by the Bible, “holy, holy, holy,” cannot allow the integrity of perfect justice to be compromised. If he did, he would be untrue to himself, which would mean he was imperfect, and you can see how it all unravels from there. Instead of meting out his justice upon sinners whom he loved, he poured it out on his perfectly just Son, the only possible substitute. What an amazing thing to ponder!

Here are some lyrics by John Newton that offer a fresh take on God’s justice:

Let us wonder; grace and justicejoin and point to mercy's store;when through grace in Christ our trust is,justice smiles and asks no more.

A courtroom scene is very familiar to most of us (thanks to television). We know what it means to throw one’s self on the mercy of the court. We know what it sounds like when the judge smacks his gavel. And we know the tension as the jury foreman says, “We the jury, find the defendant ________.”

Because of Christ, we not only hear the words, “not guilty,” but justice actually smiles.

Life-Givers

By: Kim Killebrew        

Well, she came.  Susan Hunt, that is.  She had a profound message for us.  (If you happened to have missed it, you can listen to it here or on our Grace Evan mobile app (iPhone/iPad or Android)  

Her message is simple.  Women have a unique design, and redeemed women have unique gifts.  We are the only ones who can be “life-givers” on this earth. The fall has made us “life-takers,” but Christ has restored our “life-giving” capabilities.  What does that mean?  How does it get fleshed out in daily life -- in our marriages, with our children, in our workplace, in friendships, our community, and our church? 

Susan Hunt draws our attention to some of the women who knew Jesus.  We find them in Luke 8:1-3: 

“Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.”

There is much we can imagine about these women who worked and provided for Jesus and his disciples.  Jesus was the only sinless one of the bunch, so it must have been rather interesting.  But what we know for sure is that each woman who had been given life was moved to give life back to the One who had healed her.

I hope that we will consider this passage and pray for the Lord’s direction.  May we be led to give life wherever we find Jesus.

Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands

By: John Ottley      

Kathleen and I got into it last Sunday afternoon.  We’d just gotten home from a great morning at Grace Evan when something happened and all of a sudden we were, shall we say, having a robust conversation.  Stress and fatigue are like gasoline on my indwelling sin and the sparks flying from our friction really got my "old man" blazing (Romans 7, James 3).  My accelerated heart rate helped me realize I needed to calm down, so I went to take a nap and listen to the convicting voice of God’s Spirit.  God helped me repent and take responsibility for my role in our rumble.  After my “time out” I sat on the couch, held out my left arm, and invited my bride to join me for a calmer conversation.   She immediately complied, we exchanged perspectives, and peace was restored.

The Grace Evan staff recently read and discussed Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul Tripp.  The subtitle is “People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change.”  The book says that when God calls us to himself, he calls us to serve Him by serving others.  “…God uses people, who are themselves in need of change, as instruments of the same kind of change in others.”

Yesterday, someone who is going through some tough times in their marriage asked me for advice.  I was tempted to plead incompetence, but I remembered Paul Tripp’s book about "needy people helping needy people."  I realized how little I know about helping someone in this specific situation.  I felt inadequate because I’m no “expert” but what I’d read in the Tripp book encouraged me to point to the Redeemer.   So that’s what I did.  I tried to point my friend to Christ.

"'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me." - 2 Corinthians 12:9

A Milestone By Biblical Standards

By: Johnathan Todd       

This morning as I was brushing my hair, I noticed a gray hair.  I am 42 years old; my oldest is now 15; my youngest is into double digits. So this gray hair presents a choice:

1. Pluck it because it is a sign of getting old.

2. Leave it because it is a sign of getting old.

I am surrounded by messages telling me that my outward appearance determines my value, and youth has the greatest value. However, as part of the process of renewing my thinking, the Bible has an alternative perspective on my gray hair.

*A concrete reminder that this is not the way it’s supposed to be.

Yes, we grow old which is an indication of sin’s impact – I am physically dying; creation groans under the tyranny of sin’s temporary deterioration. Yet Peter reminds me that “according to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5). The way I experience life right now is not the way I will experience life for all of eternity. This life is tainted. That life is perfect. This life is temporary. That life is eternal. This life fades. That life shines.

*An indication of (potential) wisdom.

Culturally, we disdain any sign of aging because we are intoxicated with youthful appearance. Biblically, aging is the result of sin’s ravaging all of creation and an indication of potential wisdom. Proverbs 16:31 states: “Gray hair is a grown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.” Living long is a gift from God and the potential wisdom gained from longevity and increased experience is a valuable asset.

*A reminder of God’s faithfulness and kindness.

How did I get to the point where I have a gray hair?

Isaiah 46:3-4:
Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from before your birth,
carried from the womb;
even to your old age I am he,
and to gray hairs I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear;
I will carry and will save.

So this gray hair is a reminder of God’s faithfulness and kindness in my life – once again, he has given me breath.

*A call to prioritize my legacy.

A gray hair becomes one of those moments that dissects life and causes me to look back and look forward. What am I living for; what am I accomplishing? Will my life have eternal significance? In Acts 20:24, Paul states, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” Ultimately, I will not be remembered a few years from now by many. But I hope that God uses my life to further proclaim his good news and glorify himself. If a gray hair and some aching bones remind me of this, then so be it.

My intention here is not to try and convince any of us that growing old is fun; it is not and there is difficulty and suffering which accompanies age. However, I am attempting to call us to sober up from our intoxication with youthfulness. Let’s live for eternity, not 22!

Oh, by the way, I chose to leave the gray hair.  ;-)

Father, I Know That All My Life

By: Erin Pearce      

We sang a song recently at church that Andy and I have been talking about a lot lately. Take a look:

Father, I know that all my life is portioned out for me,
The changes that are sure to come, I do not fear to see,
I ask thee for a present mind, intent on pleasing thee
I ask thee for a present mind, intent on pleasing thee 

I would not have the restless will that hurries to and fro,
seeking for some great thing to do or secret thing to know,
I would be treated as a child and guided where I go,
I would be treated as a child and guided where I go 

I ask thee for the daily strength, to none that ask denied,
a mind to blend with outward life while keeping at thy side,
Content to fill a little space if thou be glorified,
Content to fill a little space if thou be glorified 

In service which thy will appoints, there are no bonds for me,
My secret heart is taught the truth that makes thy children free,
A life of self-renouncing love is one of liberty
A life of self-renouncing love is one of liberty 

- Father, I Know That All My Life 

  words: Anna L. Waring (1850) // music: J.M. Umlauf (2000)

I keep thinking, "What is it that is so captivating about this song?" I think it's because it begins by stating that our Lord is sovereign and in complete control of our lives. He has a plan, and we should not fear. This makes me feel very safe.

I think the other thing that draws me in is that there is a sense of peace and calmness in this person's spirit. It's a person that is content to follow Jesus wherever he or she is led. They don't need to make a huge splash; just to be a faithful servant and glorify the Lord in all that they do.

We can get so distracted with so many things in life. Always on the go, sprinting from one thing to the next. I long so much to be a calm, peaceful, faithful servant.