Christmas year is the most celebrated holiday of the entire year. Regardless of what someone’s faith might be, there just seems to be an acceptance of the giving of gifts in the Christian tradition. However, let us remember the truth behind all the traditions of Christmas and its trimmings. With children at home, I love this time of the year. My seven year old gets so excited and my special needs son starts singing Christmas songs. Everyone in my family enjoys the season in so many different ways. It is truly the most wonderful time of the year. But behind all the man-made traditions of Christmas trees, Santa Claus, reindeer and so forth, there is a true story that is historical, biblical and very miraculous.
A child named Jesus was born to a virgin woman named Mary. It was first and only time that this encounter has happened between God and man. It is true that they travelled likely a six day journey because of the census bureau of the day. Please keep in mind how easy you have it this year when your form comes in the mail from the 2010 census bureau with 10 questions, What can take us 10 minutes of our time took Mary and Joseph on a journey of a lifetime when they went to register for the census.
When the day for his birth arrived, they ended up in an animal shelter in a busy city with no available rooms. After Jesus was born, angels proclaimed this historic news to a group of hillside shepherds who probably smelled as bad as the animals they worked with. Jesus was born as the King of the Jews, but he certainly was not born with a silver spoon in his hand or in a palace.
Sometime later, while this new young family was adjusting to life with a newborn in the city of Bethlehem, a caravan of Magi arrived after a brief visit to King Herod in Jerusalem. This was when the political and religious world were clued in. The prophesied Messiah was born. I still am amazed at how many of the religious leaders of the day missed it. However, the wise men from the far east had been watching, looking in the scriptures as they discovered a historical event. This event caused them such excitement, that they journeyed perhaps months to find this child. When they did find the child born of a virgin they presented the family with 3 precious gifts to acknowledge him as a Prophet, Priest and King.
Within a day the family headed south to Egypt, the wise men returned by a different route, and King Herod had approximately two thousand male children ages 2 and under murdered in Bethlehem. He was hoping to kill the new King of the Jews.
Centuries later, we still find ourselves celebrating His birth. It is the day when God birthed His own Son from eternity into the human race, announced it to poor shepherds by way of a host of angels and placed a star in the sky to lead foreign rulers to the Roman Empire acknowledging Him as king.
Today children still learn, adults still wonder and many truly believe. I am glad I can enjoy it all, but especially the true meaning of Christmas. Jesus was born as the anointed Messiah and King.
2009 Has been the fullest year of activities of our lives. God indeed gives us times and seasons that vary from year to year, but this past year was indeed the fullest of everything. The video associated with the letter is truly only a snap shot.
In January we moved to Deland Florida to fulfill the call to pastor after 9 wonderful years of our children’s lives in Central Virginia. After many boxes, moving vans we are almost adjusted in our new home.
In February I was off to a Revival session on Saint Simmons Island where we webcasted, taught and enjoyed the presence of God with Elaine Pettit Ministries.
In March we celebrated a couple birthdays as we enjoyed the warm Florida winter and I took in my first Biker Week in Daytona as we adapted and to living in a city among a great people of God in DeLand.
In April we enjoyed many great church services as welcomed a new church staff member to our church. Becky headed to Boston by car to take Chelsea to the regional Teen quiz competition where Chelsea was picked for the world quiz team. Peter took the boys to Atlanta for Newman’s first Regional Invitational Quiz.
In May we adjusted to the warm summer kicking into to gear along with trips to the beach which is only 25 miles away as we entertained many friends who travel to Fl for vacations. Peter headed to Columbus for second Revival Waiting School.
In June we drove to Virginia for Chelsea’s high school graduation and the day after people went to Maine to celebrate with His mom her 90th birthday and then fly home with her just in time for revival. The day after revival it was off to Orlando for the General Assembly of the church of the Nazarene where Chelsea competed in World Quizzing and Newman as well in Children world quizzing.
In July we hosted 29 adults from Papua New Guinea (PNG) that will forever impact our hearts and lives and Peter worked daily for over 10 days hosting many of these visitors to America. They slept on the floors and throughout the parsonage. During part of this time Becky and the kids returned to Virginia to visit family.
In August Peter, Becky dad and a few others headed to Alaska for a work and witness team while Becky with the kids in early August to Virginia for family camp. In mid August we hosted VBS in our church and saw a great influx with new lives in our church. In late August Peter went to Maine again for a revival with Elaine Pettit Ministries, while Becky took Chelsea off to College in Mount Vernon Ohio to Mount Vernon Nazarene University. ( MVNU).
In September we stayed home and started up health children and youth ministries and got use to Chelsea being away from home the best we could. We made several more trips to the beach and continue to enjoy our ministry and families times in our new home while Peter made a short 7 hours trip to Panama City for the pastor retreat on the district.
In October we headed to the soccer fields with Brigette and Newman, while Rayna discovered new friends and new connections through Young Life and Levi discovered the world of bowling. Chelsea fly home for a fall break as we celebrated her 18th birthday with her.
In November we celebrated 20 years of marriage enjoyed the warm weather and welcome more people into our new church home as we have seen health growth over the past 11 months. We took a week’s vacation as we headed to Lynchburg, Va for Thanksgiving and reunited briefly with Chelsea who drove with Aunt Phyllis from College.
Now December is moving fast with Christmas parades, parties and lights. Now is a time to thank you our friends and family for your love and blessings throughout the years. It has been a very busy year and our collective driving and flight miles as a family rounded off just over 40,000 miles.
As a pastor I seek to grow and develop our church so that we might win some to Christ.
When I began thinking about why people attend a certain church it made me think about my why as well.
First my why changed from not being a Christian to becoming one. Therefore, from that point on the Lord lead me to a church.
Once inside the doors it was the people that keep me coming back. It was not the music, the buildings or the programs or activities, but the people. In particular at age 19 it was a young teenage that kept me coming back.
Now as I fast forward 20 something years ahead I see we live in such a different day. Attending a church as a Christian is a must from a biblical point of view, yet it has become somewhat optional from those who make a profession.
As I think about even the few times we visited strange new churches on vacations as a family it was always the people that we were attracted too. It was ALWAYS about connecting with someone or several. Since Christ is in our, who is the hope of glory it makes sense that we are the attraction or not
Some churches are truly very friendly and people hang around chatting after a service or function while many come and leave as quickly as possible it seems.
As I begin to think about reaching into peoples lives today with a message of the gospel I process several things. One, if they attend a church already or not. If so, I ask more questions to see how close we might be on the same page in Christ and enjoy that common bond as God allows.
Two, If they do not attend or belong to a church or fellowship or do not really have a clear profession of faith, then I look to find some common ground and begin try to begin a relationship without the constraints of Church having to be part of that connection or relationship, even though I will share and invite when the timing I feel is best.
Truly people want to be loved and cared for without expectations. After living in FL for 10 months now I have a number of new and growing contracts. Of those, 4 have attended some sort of church function and meet other people, yet most have not gone much beyond that yet. It takes time, prayer and common interest to win people to Christ. But it especially takes a friendly church environment to keep them as well. The next time you attend church think about your availability to be connected with someone new. You may not invite someone new, but your friendliness or lack there of could determine if someone who came once will want to come back again. When was the last time you invited someone new into your home, church, life events or out to grab a coffee or meal?
Let us win the lost and connect with people in truly caring ways.
8 years ago my daughter was on a T- ball team and we connected with one family out of dozens and today they are full members of our last church and serving the Lord with all their hearts. Let us wins some by our love and friendships .
"Thank you for tuning into today's broadcast and we are here to bless you and help you with your breakthrough. Just send your gift of $100.00 or more to our ministry and plant your seed of faith with us today and prepare for your miracle". Change the amount and change the appeal or the product, but it all boils down too send your gift first into some ministry by faith and wait and watch for God to give you what you need. It is a vending machine concept of God and it has polluted the hearts and minds of untold millions.
Where is the faith action of the ministry? Why are they not sending out free CD's, books and Dvd's without strings attached as their seed of faith to hungry and hurting people? This past week 3 people in two days came to our church office for a handout, but they had nothing in hand. In nine months I have filled gas tanks, bought food and given some personal cash to folks. The best one was the guy driving the Jaguar who forgot his wallet on the way to Jacksonville from Lakeland and ran out of gas on his way to the hospital where his 12 year old grandson was dead with his daughter waiting on him tog et there to grieve and comfort one another. It was a great and compelling story and I felt compelled to just give him personal money. So between my associate and I we gave him 20.00 cash to help him. He asked for our address because he was just borrowing it and would send it back. Well. it's been over 40 days now and I have not heard a word.
So this past week two people came in while I was in a meeting and both within 1 hour of each other. Then the third person came the next day and asked for a refrigerator. Yep you got it! This man said he took the bus from 30 minutes away going to different ministries looking for a Frig. I told him I did not have a frig to give him. Then he asked me to ask my congregation for one ( as if they were inside worshiping as we spoke). After I refused his appeals with no, no, no, he asked me what does our church do for people? In essence, what do we give people to help them?
These were good questions, but his assumption was that churches were suppose to be equipped for helping people with whatever they needed to solve their problems. If I had followed his desires to the end exactly as he requested I would have needed several hours time, resources and a truck to fulfill his request of "The church". Well, I did not have a frig or a truck or time to go figure it out at the moment. So he left shaking his head is disbelief that I could even consider myself a pastor representing a church without dropping everything to solve his problem.
Where did he get that kind of understanding of God from? Where happened to personal responsibility? Has Television evangelism and broadcasting assisted a culture to perceive that God is a vending machine? The man wanting a refrigerator expected, yet he had nothing to give and never offered any type of faith action like all the TV preachers expect. He just asked and did not receive.
I’ve been a believer since 1981. As a young man I was discipled in the Lord in a local church. It was in the local church that I was sanctified and filled with the Holy Spirit. It was in and through the local church that I received my call to ministry and was baptized and preached my first sermon. In those early years of my life I never really paid much attention as to why people were preaching on TV or even what they had to say or what they wanted. Today the airwaves are full of preachers of which I believe are mostly charlatans doing more damage to the cause of Christ while propagating a vending machine theology of God.
Lets define what a charlatan is before we move ahead to much more: a charlatan is a person practicing quackery or some similar confidence trick in order to obtain money, fame or other advantages via some form of pretence or deception.
In 2009 there are more programs on TV, radio, cable and satellite then I could ever possibly watch or consume. This does not even include the countless programs that are now broadcasting on the internet and radio.
The other day I was surfing the web and ended up on a website about prayer. It was an independent ministry with theological beliefs that included prosperity doctrines. From there I ended up on a directory of hundreds of other ministries with daily or weekly broadcasts. The next thing I knew some preacher was on my laptop screen using scriptures to tell me "the viewer" why I needed to send them money. The scriptural story was true and the preacher seemed genuine, but there was something about the whole process that just rubbed me wrong. It was a vending machine theology message. It was give and then you shall receive.
It was then that I realized this was one of many charlatans on the air/internet using God and scripture over the last 40 years that has appealed to peoples’ emotional and personal problems to get funds for their means whatever they maybe.
We must remind ourselves that giving money to the work of God must fit into scriptural guidelines. In every biblical account whenever anyone was releasing or giving tithes or offerings it was to the local ministry and community. It was all personal and accountable locally. The motive to give to God was obedience and generosity for God's glory not for ones return.
Over the years I have seen very few ministries that I can honestly say would fit the biblical mandate for giving money too. Regardless if they are TV, Radio or internet based, very few truly share a good message of hope without the expectation or desire for anything in return. They almost always ask for support to stay on and keep the ministry going and how your donation is SO NEEDED to continue. One of few I can recall that is so careful to never even ask or suggest giving is the Michael Guido Ministries out of Meter, Ga. Michael just passed away this year at about age 92 and was known for his TV and radio broadcast called “Seed from the Sower”. I personal meet Michael and heard his heart and story in the summer of 2007 while on sabbatical. He never asked for money as it was associated with the gospel. He only asked for prayer requests and the opportunity to help people find Christ.
I eventually signed up on his mailing list and once a month I still get a letter and materials for my spiritual growth and encouragement along with an envelop for any contribution I may desire to give to support his ministry with. There is never even a hint for a suggest amount either.
Regardless of how great a preacher someone is and or even how doctrinally sound they are, I am more convinced then ever that if that local preacher/ ministry is asking you for your money they are a modern day charlatan. I don’t care how many people attend their church or how many books they have written and sold or how many TV programs they have spoken on. I know this may sound harsh, but I am persuaded we have a lot of misguided professing ministers more concerned about getting funds into their own ministry then they are in giving away the message of hope and salvation without price.
Imagine a preacher just saying please request your free CD or DVD. Why are they asking for even a suggested donation? Can they not trust God to supply their needs as they give away the gospel and pay the cost for materials and shipping and handling? Where is the faith of those who are broadcasting the message of hope?
I know Michael Guido operated that way. I recall a story he told about how someone walked into his office and asked if they could write him a check and what his needs were. Since the man asked Michael he shared the need of the ministry. He said a few months later the man walked in and wrote a substantial check and went beyond the original need. Wow imagine that! He never asked for a thing, but just gave and gave and trusted God to meet the needs of the ministry. I am inspired by the life of Michael Guido and I am sickened by the hundreds of charlatans who keep asking for money and becoming even so bold to tell people how much to send.
The saddest part of today's broadcasted ministries is that they are appealing to listeners and viewers according to the needs of the flesh and turning the Holy Gospel message into a means of ungodly gain for self propagation in a day of great self centeredness.
Viewers beware! Everyone watching and listening should go through a criteria process before giving to any ministry. Here are questions you should review the next time you feel compelled to give to a broadcasting ministry.
1.Would my pastor and local church approve of this ministry I am drawn to give too? Why or Why not?
2.I am currently giving locally in obedience to scriptures to my local church without anything in return?
3.What does the broadcasted ministry offer you that your local home church does not?
4.Are you considering giving for what you hope will happen to you later?
5.Does the ministry release its financial records for accountability if requested?
In these last days we are warned in scriptures that many false prophets and false gospels will arise to deceive many. That day is here and many are being led away by charlatan vending machine preachers. Be careful and consider these things before you swallow anything coming at you on those polluted transmission waves.
