On June 20^th I began an eight week long journey known as a sabbatical. During my time away from every day ministry responsibilities, I was able to relax, reflect and most importantly renew. God met me and ministered to me many times during those weeks. He reminded me of who He is and who I am because of Him. I can’t say that my entire eight weeks away was a day in and day out experience of basking in the glory of God. There was work that God needed to do deep within me. Intense periods of my sanctification (becoming Christ like) that were hard, but necessary. He reminded me of His great unconditional love for me. I was able to reflect upon His goodness and grace toward me. Due to the nature and pressures of ministry it was good to be reminded of God’s calling in my life. It is my greatest desire to serve Him well. I want to be faithful and available to Him and for Him. I am learning more and more just how insignificant I am and how significant God is. I NEED HIM! He is my all in all. I often will say “it is my desire for God to be glorified in and through my life.” That requires brokenness, humility, desperation for God, a hunger and thirst for Him alone. If I really want His will over mine, then I must deny myself, take up my cross and be willing to follow Him (Luke 9:23). He revealed to me some deficient areas of my life. Some areas that I had accepted as routine and therefore was blinded to the negative impact they were having and would have on my life. I am striving to live my life for an audience of one and long to be satisfied in Him alone. I want to wake every morning with a renewed sense of purpose and passion, as though I am on a mission with God. He is infusing within me a greater purpose, more courage and necessary strength to accomplish all that He has called me to.

Some of the things that He taught me and reminded me of through His Word, books, prayer, travel and quietness before His throne:

Be for Him and not do for Him; Live in and under the promises of God; Do not fear; Be strong and courageous; Be bold; Lead with confidence; Follow Him no matter what; Be myself not who others want me to be; Seek approval from Him alone; Listen… no really listen; Deal with dysfunction in my own life and in the church; Be quiet; Be patient; Be spirit filled; Be holy; Be set apart; offer myself as a living sacrifice for His glory; Live as though I am on a mission for God; make decisions with His glory in mind not my own; Be honest with God and myself; address my motives….

In many ways I am changed...different than I was before. I find myself more reflective, more guided by the spirit of God within me, giving more time and attention to what matters most. I am growing daily in my relationship with God, my wife and those who are closest to me. Success to me is having God approve of me and having those who are closest to me love and appreciate me. The rest of life is details, of which I no longer want to get lost in!

Simply said… I want my life to be a reflection of His glory while I live a life that is Fully Alive in Him!

Pastor Andy Veith

Have you ever been at a place in life where you just needed to be reminded of God’s promises? This past Sunday I preached a message entitled “Manna from Heaven.” In Exodus chapter 16 we find the Israelites at yet another one of their stopping places along their journey to the Promise Land. They had just witnessed God split the Red Sea wide open for them to cross, and now they found themselves where else but the desert. They went from a miracle party to a pity party almost overnight. They were in desperate need and then in Exodus 16:4, God says to his people… “I will rain down bread (manna) from heaven for you.” It was God’s way of reminding His people that He would take care of them and that He had not forgotten about them. I am not sure there are any words that are more comforting than when God says, “I will.”

Keep in mind that God is fully aware of your road. And He is certainly aware when your road leads you into the desert, because it was His choice to take you there. Always remember… Everything in your life is either caused or allowed by God for your good and for His glory! God has not forgotten about you. God is fully aware of you and your situation. When there seems to be no way, God makes a way and with God all things are possible.

God’s promises in scripture are the anchors and rocks you and I need to cling to.

• He promises to never leave us or forget about us: Psalm 33:13-15 > From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth — he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.
• He promises to meet all of our needs – Philippians 4:19 > And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
• God promises to give strength and rest to the weary: Matthew 11:28 >    "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
• God promises that His grace is enough:    2 Corinthians 12:9-10 > But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
• God has promised that all things work together for good:    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.
• God has promised the forgiveness of sin and eternal life:  Acts 2:21 > And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Thank you God for your promises and for your faithfulness!

Pastor Andy Veith

I don’t pretend to know the full disclosure of James, when he says in chapter one verses 2&3, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.”

 

I keep telling myself and others that I want to finish the race strong. That I want to bring glory to God, live my life for Christ, and live a life of sacrifice for Him. I want to have Christ standing there giving me a high five as I cross the finish line, saying something like… “That was awesome!” I wonder though … how long will I keep telling myself and others those things and remain idle and passive? How many more times will I tell God that I want to change and be a warrior for Him and yet be unwilling to endure the necessary tests that make it possible for me to press on?

 

In all truthfulness, I have lived much of my life saying things like this to God, “You can quiz me God, but in all honesty, I am not ready for the test. I haven’t had time to prepare. I have had too many snow days in my life (for the Iowa folks reading this). Please God, give me some more time and I promise I will be a better Christian. I will go to church more, read the Bible more and pray more. But for now can I get an excused absence so I can be better prepared when the test(s) come?”

 

Here I sit again reminded of the stark reality that if in fact I/we are never in a place to need him, then we will live our lives convinced that we in fact do not need Him.

… I/we cannot be a Christian and not be tested. The testing of our faith is not an option or an add-on when you are ready. The scripture is clear saying, the Christian life is all about change not adaptation. You cannot stay as you are and go with God. I know all of these things to be true, but do I speak from experience or expertise? Some of both I suppose.

 

It is true, God will not give us more than HE can handle!  Is God testing you as I speak? Though it may be hard, the longer and the more difficult the test, the greater joy at the outcome.

 

Keep in mind that giving your life to Christ is an open invitation for God to use whatever means is necessary to test and try your faith so that you may effectively and passionately run the race marked out for you. 

 

This past week as I was reading scripture I was reminded of Hebrews 11:6, which says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” Faith is the vehicle we use to please God. So…what are you driving? A work truck with scrapes and dents or a luxury Mercedes? Pleasing God is not possible if we pursue a faith that is luxury with no evidence of God’s working in our lives. The tests of life won’t come and go without leaving behind scrapes and dents; not meant to embarrass us as we might like to think, but rather to make a public display of God’s working in our lives.   

 

All I can say at this point in my life is… If I cannot please God without faith, then Jesus Bring the Rain! Take a minute and solidify these thoughts by listening to the song “Jesus bring the Rain” by MERCYME.  And may God draw you ever so close today as you thank Him for the scrapes and dents you currently display and for the ones yet to come.

 

Click here to see the MERCYME video

 

Pastor Andy Veith

It was too late, my eyes had already seen the words and now they were on their way to my hard drive, preparing to be etched in my mind forever. The words became like a missile to a target, my heart. I sat completely still and stunned for a moment as I pieced together the words into a life-changing sentence. The words penetrated not only my heart but what felt like every bone in my body. The words read, “It’s time to give up your good Christian life and start following Christ.” If my dragon had never been raised before, it was showing its fierce head now. Who is this guy? What gives him the right to be so quick to judge? My response was…now wait just a minute! I am a follower of Christ, and it is evidenced by my good Christian life, right?

It was the shock of it all that knocked a hole in my wall of security and protection. The wall that had surrounded me for so many years had now been breached and much of what I knew about being a good Christian was now in question. If following Christ is not a good Christian life then what is it? In fear of us accepting religion and pursuing good behavior and calling ourselves Christ followers, Jesus made it a bit more clear in Luke 9:23, when He said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

It was the first part of Jesus’ statement that stalled my attention to the rest. He said, as if I were hearing it whispered in my very own ear, “If anyone would come after me.” Christ was inviting me to make a directional decision. Would I choose to allow Christ to be positioned in my life as my singular focus and pursuit? Would I choose Christ or a good Christian life? Then it dawned on me…it was not a good Christian life that led to Christ, it was Christ that led me to a good Christian life! Joseph Stowell said it best, “If Christianity is dull and boring, if it is a burden and not a blessing, then most likely we are involved in a project, not a person – a system not a Savior, rules rather than a relationship.”

If God said… “You can ask for one thing and it will be done, what would you ask for?”

If you were dying and God came to you and said, you can ask for one thing and it will be done, what would you ask for? I know what I would ask for…. I would ask that my kids would love God, listen to God, follow God and worship God all the days of their life! I am serious! Hands down, my greatest desire for my children is that they know and believe and desire to follow God with their entire life. If they are not a straight ”A” student or if they are not the top athlete or do not end up with the best job in the world making a huge salary, but they love God and desire to follow His ways, then that would bring the most joy to my life. 

So I/we must ask ourselves, what is it that we are passing on to our children? What fingerprints are we leaving on them? If I am so passionate about my children knowing God and following God, then I must be willing to fulfill my role according to scripture. What does scripture say to us parents? We are to train up our children in the way of the Lord. There are only two batting stances in baseball, left handed and right handed. There are only two ways a child can go… toward God or away from God. It is our responsibility to train them toward the ways of the Lord.

 

This past week I received an Acronym of the word TRAIN that I believe is an excellent guide for us to follow when it comes to training up our children. 

 

T teach and disciple them in the ways of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4)
R replenish their hearts with encouragement ( Ephesians 6:4, Colossians 3:21)
A accept and value their gifts from God (Psalm 139:14)
I inspire them with love ( Matthew 3:17)
N navigate them toward Jesus (John 14:6)

As parents, we prepare and train our children how to survive the battle – they ultimately must choose to what degree they will fight! Let’s do our part and pray that they do theirs! 

Don’t get mad at me, I am not the one who said it, He is!  Jesus said in Matthew 10:39, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Oh, how I long to “live” and in doing so miss life altogether at times, at least the life Jesus intended for me! What a ride I have been on struggling to make this life work. I find myself wondering…What more can I do, what else can I try, where else can I turn, what else will make this emptiness go away? I wonder how much time and energy I have spent “finding life?” Sad to say, no doubt many more hours and much more energy than I even care to know. I have spent years and years looking for “life.” A life of contentedness, joy, fulfillment, purpose, meaning, etc.. It is not the gain of life that offers me such things, it is the loss of life for the sake of Christ.

It happened just yesterday… God awakened in me a deep curiosity. I was attending a men’s bible study at my church participating in a discussion on James 1:19-25. It was then and there that the questions began running rampant in my mind and heart. What does it mean to humbly accept the word planted in me? What does it mean to have the fullness of Christ in me?  What does having a treasure in a jar of clay really mean? And so it was right then both my head and my heart started on a journey of which they are both continuing to travel. If the fullness of Christ is in me, I want to know all there is to know and the effect on how I relate and fellowship with Christ, how I share Christ and how I grow in Christ.