Blessed

People who abuse others have themselves been abused. However, not everyone who has been abused becomes an abuser. On a positive note, people who bless others are blessed themselves. The purpose of God's blessings in a person's life is to become a blessing. Are you blessed?

Ephesians 1:3-6, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved."

In Christ we are blessed. We are blessed to be a blessing. You are blessed. Go out and be a blessing to others today.

Peace,
Stan

Seedtime and Harvest

Grace allows us to receive what we do not deserve—salvation. Our relationship with God is based on his grace. Our relationship with others and with the world around us is based mostly on reciprocation, or cause-and-effect. Newton’s Third Law of Motion is to every action force, there is an equal and opposite reaction force.

The Hindus and Buddhists talk of karma—the idea that action brings upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad. I completely reject the reincarnation aspect of karma. In everyday life karma, or what-goes-around comes-around, or planting and harvest is spot on. In my relationship with God, I trust in the grace of God, not in planting and harvest. But, planting and harvest is a law that governs life on earth.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 (NKJV)
      To everything there is a season,
      A time for every purpose under heaven:
      A time to be born,
      And a time to die;
      A time to plant,
      And a time to pluck what is planted;

When is comes to planting and harvesting, like begets like. Whatever kind of seed you plant, you will harvest the same kind of produce. Apples produce apples, bears produce bears, hatred produces hatred, etc. Not all seeds produce in the same way. Some seeds multiply quickly. Others require more patience.

Farmers plant from 25,000 to 45,000 seeds per acre. According to the Iowa Corn Producers the average yield per acre of corn is 183 bushels. There are 72,800 kernels in a bushel of corn. So, each acre produces about  13,322,400 kernels. Every seed planted yields at least 300 kernels of corn at harvest, just a few months later.

Oak trees are far different from corn. Only 1 in 10,000 acorns become an oak tree. Oaks don't start producing acorns until they are at least 20 years old. They only reach their maximum production after they are 100 years old. A mature oak produces about 2200 acorns yearly. Their average life span is around 200 years. So, oak trees produce about 350,000 acorns in their life span.

Nearly everything in life can be considered a seed. Time, words and money are all seeds. Not every seed will produce the same. Some seeds will multiply quickly. Others are like acorns. Not every kind action will be immediately rewarded. Yet, kindness will certainly be rewarded richly if practiced continually over a lifetime. Kindness toward others will beget kindness in return.

A good portion of your time and money should be used to bless others and to advance God's kingdom. Words destroy, so you should put a guard on your lips. Words edify, so you should be generous with compliments and words of comfort.

All seed left in the bag will never produce, and will usually rot.

Peace,

Stan

I Love My Church Family

I love my church family. Cornerstone Church is a warm, close, genuine church family. The church is Christ's answer to a cold, lonely world. At church we worship, serve and grow together. Mostly, church is where we connect with other Christ followers.

I appreciate my personal relationship with God. I am grateful that I can go to the throne of God's grace myself to receive the help I need. However, there is no such thing as Christianity outside of the context of body. We are the body of Christ.

The body of Christ is local. Paul wrote letters to local churches. Jesus addressed local churches in Revelation. I am so glad to be a member of the body of Christ known as Cornerstone Church in Chillicothe, Missouri. Cornerstone is a place where you do not have to put on airs. You can come as you are, but you will not stay that way. We grow together. We mourn together, and celebrate together. We pray for one another, and serve one another. We reach out with help and healing to our community and to our world.

We are close knit. Yet, there is always room for one more in the fabric of our community. I love my church family.

Peace,
Stan

Teamwork

Everything is better together. We are not meant to go through life alone. When I was younger I tried to do most things myself. The stress was great. Additionally, there were so many things I was not proficient in. Therefore, many areas of my life and ministry were deficient. I found that I do only a few things very well. I discovered that God designed me to be dependent upon others. Most of us do not like being dependent; we would rather be independent.

1 Corinthians 12 uses the imagery of the human body. Just like the individual parts of the body are dependent upon each other part, so we as humans are dependent upon one another. Each of us have strengths and weaknesses. Instead of trying to improve my weakness, I try to surround myself with people who are strong where I am weak.

The Cornerstone Church pastoral staff is a great example of teamwork. We are all quite different. Yet, we share the same values and the same vision. I love my team. I love working with them every day. They love God and love people. They believe in other people. We have a great time dreaming and planning the future together.

I love to hear each of them preach or teach. Brent is quite different from me. I am quite different from Kortney, who is quite different from Aaron. Blend in Chad and Whitney and Michelle into our leadership mix, and we present a great flavor to the world. We are able to do together what we can never do alone.

Who is on your team?

Peace,
Stan

Marriage = Heaven or Hell

Marriage is either heaven on earth or hell on earth. There seems to be little ground between these two extremes. What makes the difference? The best marriages can be described as intimate. Intimacy is a warm, loving and close relationship. Better communication leads to greater intimacy.

Too many couples play communication games. Hints, half-truths, manipulation and intimidation are poor forms of communication. Usually, straight-forward communication is the best. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Secrets will destroy trust. Trust is the foundation of a solid marriage.

To create a safe zone for the truth to be spoken in love, each spouse must be free to share opinions and feelings. Husbands and wives must value each others' opinions. We must give each other the freedom to think differently from ourselves. Forcing my opinion on my wife robs intimacy from our relationship. This leads to arguments or silence. Michelle, my wife, has freedom to share with me what troubles her in my behavior. I need to receive her thoughts without being defensive. We are seeking a solution to our problem, not blame. No one wins an argument. Both lose.

Does your marriage look and feel more like heaven or more like hell? Your ability to communicate will greatly determine which is true.

Peace,

Stan

Peace or Strife

One's motives can be measured by the fruit that is produced.
James 3:14–18 (NKJV), "But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."
Wisdom from above produces peace. Bitterness and envy is the product of earthly, sensual & demonic "wisdom". Seek the peace that comes from above.
Peace,
Stan

God is Love

God is love, according to 1 John 4:8. God can never do anything outside of love. He is not loving; He is love. God loves when we do not. There is not one thing a person can do that will cause God to stop loving him or her. God's arms are open to us always. God forgives so that we can repent and reestablish right relationship with him.

If I am going to be more like God, then I must allow his love to grow in me. Romans 5:5 informs us that God's love has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. So, I now have the capacity to walk in unconditional love also.

Love is incompatible with the claim of my rights. Love is concerned for the rights of others. Self-absorption is the opposite of Christianity. My story is subordinate to God's story. God is glorified only when I love as he has loved me. Forgiveness is at the heart of love. Unconditional love means that I do not have a choice except to forgive and give.

Is there any person on earth, whom God does not love? I think not. Therefore, I must love every person on earth. Someone may hate me. Yet, I must love him. There are certainly people of all kinds who live differently from my values. They should not see my condemnation and disdain; they should see God's love shining through me towards them.

The essence of our belief system is loving God and loving our neighbor. According to Jesus, my neighbor is anyone I come in contact with, especially those who are hurt or in need. My actions prove what I believe about God. The golden rule is my best guide in how to relate with other people. I must always treat others in the same way I want them to treat me.

The church living together in the love of God is our best witness to those outside of our fellowship. Walking in love means that I hardly even notice mistreatment. Love is not touchy. Love does not demand its own way. Our love must also reach outside of the church walls. We love each other as the church gathers together. Our love reaches out to the world after the benediction. The church must be a preview of things to come. We must be the trailer the world views to draw them to the main event.

God is love, so must I be.

Peace,
Stan