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

One of my most favorite passages in all of Scripture is found in Psalm 37, in the 4^th verse. It says that if we delight ourselves in the Lord that he will give us the desires of our heart. Some people think this is a lie, because they misinterpret the promise to mean that if we devote ourselves to God that he’s going to give us what we want and because they haven’t received their wants yet, then it must not be true. But for those of you who may be disappointed in God for not fulfilling his promises, I do have something for you to chew on; that is, try looking at the passage from the focus of where your delights lie, as opposed to what your wants are. Jesus said that where your treasure is, that this is where your heart is going to be found as well (Luke 12:34). If God is not providing the desires of your heart, maybe it’s because your desires are found in your wants instead of the Lord, who pours out his love into our hearts by his Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). For those whose craving is for the love of God, that want will always be met and satisfied. 

-Craig

Our church has purchased a new IMac computer.  It is fast, outperforming any of our other office computers by a long shot.  Its purpose: to edit pictures and video, manage the website, and live stream our worship services in order to better serve our church.  Already I’ve edited a video on it that would have crashed my PC at least half a dozen times.  I’m the biggest fan of our new IMac; I love the idea of our church advancing its message by being sufficient in its use of media and the web, but this new computer has got me thinking.

Our church can be the coolest organization on the planet, but still miss out on God’s best.  We can have the sweetest website, the most up-to-date Facebook, and media that is funny and relevant, but still miss what God wants most from us… kind of like Martha.

In the book of Luke there is a story about two women.  One was named Martha, and she was all about pleasing Jesus.  When Jesus came to visit her and Mary, the other woman, Martha went nuts!  She worked so hard, cleaning up, preparing food, making sure everyone was comfortable… I think she really wanted to do her best for Jesus.  But Mary didn’t help out at all; instead, she spent time with Jesus.  Mary knew she only had a limited amount of time to be face-to-face with the Savior, so she didn’t spend it working on making everything great around her, she spent her time worshipping.  When Martha got upset about this, Jesus said to her, “You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed .” (Luke 10:41–42 , italics mine) So what was the one thing He was talking about?  Ben Patterson, in his book ‘Deepening Your Conversation With God’, says it better than I can:  “The one absolutely essential, nonnegotiable thing is to be with Jesus as Mary was. The church grows when its people attend to the one thing needed, not when it is preoccupied with the many things not needed.”

May we be preoccupied with Jesus, and not with the ‘stuff’.  Our new IMac is pretty sweet, but I pray that we will use it to support the one thing that is most important: being with Jesus.

-Mike

Hey LCC,

A new quarter of "Souled-Out" begins February 14th. Class information and registration sheets are located in the church foyer, and we'll begin selling books on January 31st. We have some really great courses to offer and I know there'll be something for everyone. If you have any questions, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or check out the table in the foyer.

-Pastor Craig

Faith Factor… Fear is not a Factor for those who are in Christ Jesus… Philippians 4:6-7 says “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

This was our theme for AWANA last night.  We had so much fun looking up the many verses that god has given us regarding fear and trusting God.  Of course, we also had to work in a little food challenge for those who chose to “face their fears”… our Sparks got to touch various things (hidden in a brown bag): marshmallows, cooked noodles, feathers etc… Our T&T group had the option of tasting things: tomato juice, tortilla chips in chocolate, beef and vegetable baby food, sardines, lemon juice, spinach (some of the really brave ones even chose to mix a few together).  Lots of laughing, anticipation and some gagging ensued as we learned that with Christ we can face our fears!

-Kristan

Well, it is finally happening.  I have felt for some time now that our 4^th and 5^th graders need to get a little deeper in their study of God’s word and Pastor Mike and I are ready to provide this opportunity!  We are beginning what we call Group 45 on January 28^th.  This group will meet on the 4^th Thursday of every month from 6:00 to 7:30.  We will be playing games, learning lessons from God’s word, and building Christ-like relationships!  We are really excited about this new group and can’t wait to see what God has in store for all of us!

-Kristan

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.”