Reflections on Father’s Day with a piece below that some of you fathers/grandfathers out there may want to copy and give to your children/grandchildren. [Written by one of our faithful Crossroads fathers/grandfathers…Used with permission.]
“I am reminded each Father’s Day of the wonderful blessing I have been given by the Lord. Being a father and grandfather is one of the greatest gifts in this life. But we are not perfect you know, unlike our Heavenly Father. There are many things, looking back, that we would have done differently. To be a father and grandfather carries such a great responsibility. We work to provide a living and we try to balance that with family time. We try to always be loving and thoughtful, but we often fail. We talk when we should listen and give advice when we should take it. We take when we should give and we admonish when we should praise. How grateful I am that we all have a Heavenly Father that does none of that. He is always faithful, never compromising. He loves us for whatever reason, never admonishing, never criticizing, always listening, always forgiving. To be like him, that would be my goal as a father and grandfather.
Let me assure you of this…In the early morning hours, when my mind is clear and the cares of the days are gone, I pray for you. I lift up each of your names to the Lord. I pray for your safety, and I pray that your minds and hearts, and the things you say and the things you do are in His will. I pray for that protective shield around you that will follow you all of your days. I pray that you will love the Lord with all your heart, and that you will, in turn, lead others to Him by what you say and do. I pray for Him to forgive when you fail and when you stray.
I count among my greatest blessings the gift of being able to participate in the baptism of both of you [adult children] and witnessing my grandchildren being baptized. You see, it doesn’t matter how much education you have, the amount of holdings you accrue, or your stature in society. It doesn’t matter how nice you’ve been as a father and grandfather, if your children or grandchildren are lost.
Being a father and a grandfather is and will continue to be one of the greatest blessings of my life. I promise you this…I will continue to fail miserably at times. I’ll continue to be insensitive at times, when I should be sensitive; and at times I will fail to set the example I should.
But remember this: I love each one of you with all my soul and all my heart. I’m terribly proud of each one of you…And I truly would die for you. I have been blessed with a wonderful wife, and a wonderful family. I have been blessed in innumerable ways. All of these blessings have come from my Heavenly Father, the very same Father you have. So my prayer for you is this: Every day be thankful, and then, be thankful again, for the perfect Father in heaven that we all have.
With love, Dad and Grandpa”
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
6/18/12
Norma Jean Mortenson…. Remember that name? Norma Jean’s mother, Mrs. Gladys Baker, was periodically committed to a mental institution and Norma Jean spent much of her childhood in foster homes. In one of those foster homes, when she was 8 years old, one of the boarders raped her and gave her a nickel.
He said, ‘Here Honey…. Take this and don’t ever tell anyone what I did to you.’ When little Norma Jean went to her foster mother to tell her what had happened, she was beaten. She was told, ‘Our boarder pays good rent. Don’t you ever say anything bad about him!’ Norma Jean at an early age learned what it was to be used and given a nickel and beaten for trying to express the hurt that was in her. In time, Norma Jean turned into a very pretty girl and people began to notice. Boys whistled at her and she began to enjoy that, but she always wished they would notice she was a person too – not just a body – or a pretty face – but a person.
Then Norma Jean went to Hollywood and took a new name – Marilyn Monroe. And the publicity people told her, ‘We are going to create a modern sex symbol out of you.’ Her naïve reaction was, ‘A symbol? Aren’t symbols things people hit together?’ The said, ‘Honey, it doesn’t matter, because we are going to make you the most smoldering sex symbol that ever hit the celluloid.’ She was cast in dumb blonde roles. Everyone hated Marilyn Monroe because she would keep the filming crews waiting two hours on the set. She was regarded as a selfish prima dona. What they did not know was that she was in the dressing room vomiting because she was so terrified. She went through three marriages used and abused by heartless men. And so finally, on a Saturday night, at the age of 35, Marilyn Monroe took her own life. When the maid found her body the next morning, she noticed the telephone was off the hook. It was dangling there beside her. In the last moments of her life she called to tell a Hollywood actor that she had taken enough sleeping pills to kill herself. He answered by saying, in so many words…. ‘I don’t care.’
What really killed Marilyn Monroe, the love goddess who never found love? The dangling telephone was the symbol, a metaphor of her whole life. She died because she never got through to anyone who understood or cared for her.
She needed a Savior. She needed a Lord. She needed forgiveness and a life purpose. She needed a community of caring friends who would surround her with genuine unselfish friendship. How many 8 year old or 35 year old Norma Jean Mortenson’s will there be in our life path?
Pray with me…. Father, give us Your heart for the little ones, the lost ones who are around us every day. Get us outside of ourselves so we can be used as a channel of your love and grace to the people with whom we interact today. In the name of the One who went about doing good and loved the weak and the wandering, Jesus….amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
He said, ‘Here Honey…. Take this and don’t ever tell anyone what I did to you.’ When little Norma Jean went to her foster mother to tell her what had happened, she was beaten. She was told, ‘Our boarder pays good rent. Don’t you ever say anything bad about him!’ Norma Jean at an early age learned what it was to be used and given a nickel and beaten for trying to express the hurt that was in her. In time, Norma Jean turned into a very pretty girl and people began to notice. Boys whistled at her and she began to enjoy that, but she always wished they would notice she was a person too – not just a body – or a pretty face – but a person.
Then Norma Jean went to Hollywood and took a new name – Marilyn Monroe. And the publicity people told her, ‘We are going to create a modern sex symbol out of you.’ Her naïve reaction was, ‘A symbol? Aren’t symbols things people hit together?’ The said, ‘Honey, it doesn’t matter, because we are going to make you the most smoldering sex symbol that ever hit the celluloid.’ She was cast in dumb blonde roles. Everyone hated Marilyn Monroe because she would keep the filming crews waiting two hours on the set. She was regarded as a selfish prima dona. What they did not know was that she was in the dressing room vomiting because she was so terrified. She went through three marriages used and abused by heartless men. And so finally, on a Saturday night, at the age of 35, Marilyn Monroe took her own life. When the maid found her body the next morning, she noticed the telephone was off the hook. It was dangling there beside her. In the last moments of her life she called to tell a Hollywood actor that she had taken enough sleeping pills to kill herself. He answered by saying, in so many words…. ‘I don’t care.’
What really killed Marilyn Monroe, the love goddess who never found love? The dangling telephone was the symbol, a metaphor of her whole life. She died because she never got through to anyone who understood or cared for her.
She needed a Savior. She needed a Lord. She needed forgiveness and a life purpose. She needed a community of caring friends who would surround her with genuine unselfish friendship. How many 8 year old or 35 year old Norma Jean Mortenson’s will there be in our life path?
Pray with me…. Father, give us Your heart for the little ones, the lost ones who are around us every day. Get us outside of ourselves so we can be used as a channel of your love and grace to the people with whom we interact today. In the name of the One who went about doing good and loved the weak and the wandering, Jesus….amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
Monday, June 11, 2012
6-11-12
God’s Word speaks clearly of the deep joy and satisfaction of sex in marriage. It also warns of the shame and emptiness of sex outside of marriage. A cartoon offered an insightful commentary on our times: Moses had returned from Sinai where he received the commandments. He said to the people, “I’ve got good news and bad news. First, the good news…. I talked Him down from 20 to 10. The bad news is He won’t budge on number 7 [you shall not commit adultery].”
God limits the gift of sex to marriage for our benefit. But our 21st century culture has difficulty with His limits. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, “We grow up surrounded by propaganda in favor of unchastity. There are people who want to keep our sex instinct inflamed in order to make money out of us. Because, of course, a man with an obsession is a man who has very little sales resistance.” But there are some very good reasons that breaking the 7th commandment constitutes sin….
Adultery is a sin because it defies God. After King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, he recognized his failure. Restored to his senses, he confessed to God, “Against you, and you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” [Psalm 51:4] When Joseph refused to be seduced by Potiphar’s wife, he said, “How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” [Genesis 39:9]
Adultery destroys families. God designed the family – He is committed to it. Adultery destroys the unique and sacred quality that is the basis for the family
Adultery defiles the marriage. God established the standard for marriage. “Male and female He created them” and ordained that “a man leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and they will become one flesh.” This love relationship represents a oneness that is more than sexual. It is the physical expression of a spiritual and emotional union. Adultery defiles that union. Sex outside of marriage is never right, nor can God bless it. The Bible says, “A man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself. But blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away.” [Proverbs 6: 32-33]
Pray with me…. Father, You are the Creator. You are Sovereign in all the universe and on earth. We have seen, both in the past and in the present, that Your Word is true and that it works when applied to life. Life in the Son is life indeed, life abundant, life eternal. We trust and have experience that your way is narrow and straight, but that it leads to eternal peace and joy that actually begin on earth when we are wise enough to conform our lives to your truth. In the name of Him who is the Truth…. Jesus…. we pray, amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
God limits the gift of sex to marriage for our benefit. But our 21st century culture has difficulty with His limits. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, “We grow up surrounded by propaganda in favor of unchastity. There are people who want to keep our sex instinct inflamed in order to make money out of us. Because, of course, a man with an obsession is a man who has very little sales resistance.” But there are some very good reasons that breaking the 7th commandment constitutes sin….
Adultery is a sin because it defies God. After King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, he recognized his failure. Restored to his senses, he confessed to God, “Against you, and you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” [Psalm 51:4] When Joseph refused to be seduced by Potiphar’s wife, he said, “How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” [Genesis 39:9]
Adultery destroys families. God designed the family – He is committed to it. Adultery destroys the unique and sacred quality that is the basis for the family
Adultery defiles the marriage. God established the standard for marriage. “Male and female He created them” and ordained that “a man leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and they will become one flesh.” This love relationship represents a oneness that is more than sexual. It is the physical expression of a spiritual and emotional union. Adultery defiles that union. Sex outside of marriage is never right, nor can God bless it. The Bible says, “A man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself. But blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away.” [Proverbs 6: 32-33]
Pray with me…. Father, You are the Creator. You are Sovereign in all the universe and on earth. We have seen, both in the past and in the present, that Your Word is true and that it works when applied to life. Life in the Son is life indeed, life abundant, life eternal. We trust and have experience that your way is narrow and straight, but that it leads to eternal peace and joy that actually begin on earth when we are wise enough to conform our lives to your truth. In the name of Him who is the Truth…. Jesus…. we pray, amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
6/5/12
Years ago Lewis and Clark set out across the western wilderness to blaze a trail over the Rockies. Their party included a French guide who took along his Indian wife. Life was rough and harsh for these men in the untamed wilderness. Each night the French guide would offer his squaw to one of the men for a price. Each night the men refused. Finally, these men crossed their last river east of the mountains. They needed horses to carry their luggage, their boats, and supplies. They asked the chief of a nearby Indian tribe for help. The Indian replied, “No help white man. White man cheat.” Lewis and Clark begged for help, but to no avail. “White man lie!” the chief roared. The Indian wife of the French guide stepped out of the party and said to the chief, “These men are different. They keep their promises to their squaws back home.” Then she told the story of nights by the campfire and the refusal of these men to commit adultery. She was able to persuade the Indian chief, and he subsequently loaned Lewis and Cark the needed horses. The explorers were able to cross the Great Divide, put their boats in the headwaters of the Columbia River, travel to the Pacific Ocean, and claim the Northwest for their government. Consequently, their greatest achievement was not geographical or political; it was moral. And without their moral character, Lewis and Clark would likely not have made it to the finish line of their journey.
Our journey through life will have some long and lonely stretches, times when compromise would seem a good escape, a way to make life more exciting, more mystifying, more self-satisfying. But, when we are tempted, if we can keep our heads and exercise righteous moral discipline/judgment, we will find down the road that we can experience God’s best in this life and His best in the life to come.
Pray with me…. Father, give us the wisdom of the man who said when standing at the intersection of right and wrong, trying to decide which way to turn, …. ‘Of what shall I think of such a thing in my dying hour?’ Thank you for history’s record of those who have chosen to make decisions with eternity in view. In Jesus’ name, amen
Our journey through life will have some long and lonely stretches, times when compromise would seem a good escape, a way to make life more exciting, more mystifying, more self-satisfying. But, when we are tempted, if we can keep our heads and exercise righteous moral discipline/judgment, we will find down the road that we can experience God’s best in this life and His best in the life to come.
Pray with me…. Father, give us the wisdom of the man who said when standing at the intersection of right and wrong, trying to decide which way to turn, …. ‘Of what shall I think of such a thing in my dying hour?’ Thank you for history’s record of those who have chosen to make decisions with eternity in view. In Jesus’ name, amen
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
5-27-12
I once heard preacher Tom Ellsworth tell of visiting the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. He stopped at a souvenir stand across the street to check out the wares. He picked up a little bronze replica of the flag raising memorial to the Marines who fought at Iwo Jima in WW2. The disinterested man behind the stand suddenly perked up, sensing a potential sale. “Cheap!” he said with a smile. “Only $10!” Tom nodded, put the bronze replica back and walked on, thinking to himself, “No, not cheap…. not cheap at all.” In 36 days of fighting, the Marines sustained over 25,000 casualties on Iwo Jima—including 7,000 fatalities. More Marines received the Medal Honor for their service at Iwo Jima than for any other battle in U.S. history. There was nothing cheap about it.
On Memorial Day, we as Americans remember such sacrifice. Though we enjoy our freedom at no cost, we remember that others paid a great price. Our freedom is free, but it is not cheap. So we value our freedom. We do not take for granted the privileges it provides…. we can worship without fear, we can speak openly without reprisal, we can choose our vocation and share in the rewards of our labor, we can have a voice in our government, we can go visit our family without driving through a war zone. Today we pause to remember these blessings and to say thank you to those who made them possible.
Every week, we as Christians also pause to remember another sacrifice—the sacrifice of Christ. Though we enjoy our salvation at no cost, Jesus paid a great price. Yesterday I held in my hand the communion bread and remembered Jesus’ body, broken for me. I held the communion cup and remembered Jesus’ blood, shed for me. God’s grace is free, but it is not cheap. So we value our salvation. We do not take for granted the privileges it provides…. God’s forgiveness for our past, His powerful presence in our lives, joy and peace, the ability to begin to live more like Christ, a supernatural strength to endure trials, a new and living hope. I value that hope highly. Our salvation is free, but it is not cheap. It is the most valuable thing we shall ever possess. So today, we pause to say to the One who made it possible: Thank you.
Matt Proctor
President
Ozark Christian College
On Memorial Day, we as Americans remember such sacrifice. Though we enjoy our freedom at no cost, we remember that others paid a great price. Our freedom is free, but it is not cheap. So we value our freedom. We do not take for granted the privileges it provides…. we can worship without fear, we can speak openly without reprisal, we can choose our vocation and share in the rewards of our labor, we can have a voice in our government, we can go visit our family without driving through a war zone. Today we pause to remember these blessings and to say thank you to those who made them possible.
Every week, we as Christians also pause to remember another sacrifice—the sacrifice of Christ. Though we enjoy our salvation at no cost, Jesus paid a great price. Yesterday I held in my hand the communion bread and remembered Jesus’ body, broken for me. I held the communion cup and remembered Jesus’ blood, shed for me. God’s grace is free, but it is not cheap. So we value our salvation. We do not take for granted the privileges it provides…. God’s forgiveness for our past, His powerful presence in our lives, joy and peace, the ability to begin to live more like Christ, a supernatural strength to endure trials, a new and living hope. I value that hope highly. Our salvation is free, but it is not cheap. It is the most valuable thing we shall ever possess. So today, we pause to say to the One who made it possible: Thank you.
Matt Proctor
President
Ozark Christian College
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
5/22/12
Are you ready to be shocked? The Southern Baptist Council on Family Life recently discovered a gut-wrenching statistic: “88 percent of children raised in evangelical homes leave church at the age of 18, never to return.” Perhaps this is due in part to these additional factors: The Barna Group found that 45 percent of those who profess to be born-again Christians believe that gambling is morally acceptable, 49 percent believe that living with someone of the opposite sex without being married is morally okay, 49 percent are comfortable with enjoying sexual thoughts or fantasies about someone and one third of those professing to be born again think it is morally acceptable to kill an infant while it is still in the womb. According to an article titled ‘Porn Nation’ in World Magazine, of the men belonging to the Christian organization Promise Keepers [who make a promise to be committed to practicing spiritual, moral, ethical, and sexual purity], 53 percent visit porn sites every week.
In 2009, the Barna Group found further evidence that all is not well in the contemporary Church: Among individuals who describe themselves as Christian, close to half believe that Satan does not exist, one-third contend that Jesus sinned while He was on the earth, two-fifths say they do not have a responsibility to share the Christian faith with others, and one-quarter dismiss the idea that the Bible is historically accurate and truthful in all of the principles it teaches. BINGO!
The basic reason for ‘easy believism’…. that is, ‘accepting Christ’…. without a renewed mind and a transformed life [Romans 12:2] is Biblical illiteracy! Dads who don’t/won’t read the Bible, let alone study it and teach it to their children…. Moms who are too busy to find a quiet place, under a good light to internalize the Word of God…. Kids who are hypnotized by video games and I-pods and MTV. And if parents and grandparents do not take seriously the responsibility to be discipled and to disciple their children, the results will be catastrophic for the next generation. We are seeing it right before our eyes now…. Our nation is accelerating its descent into the abyss of self-eradication. Listen to the words of a prayer in Exodus 33:13, “…. Teach me Your ways so I may know You and continue to find favor with You. Remember that this nation is Your people.” Listen to the warning in Deuteronomy 4:9, “Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.”
Okay, I just proofread the text of this ‘Speaking the Truth in Love’ piece. It is heavy on the side of truth this week. What can I say? This is what God has impressed on my heart this morning. I have had a ‘sudden awakening.’ I am being ‘brutally honest.’ [Remember Kyle’s sermon from last weekend at Crossroads?] Is God speaking to you about your own heart and your responsibility to teach your children and grandchildren? If Biblical illiteracy is perpetuated in the church, the church as an agent of salvation for the lost world will be increasingly ineffective and hell will be more populated in the end. Does that sound extreme? Read God’s Word, especially the words of Jesus about heaven and hell, and realize in fresh ways how high the stakes are for us and our posterity.
Pray with me…. Loving Father…. save us from self-deception. Save us from shallow commitment. Save us from our mediocrity. Save us from our luke-warmness. Save us from our failure to teach our children Your Word. Save us from our careless living before their eyes. Save us from ourselves for Yourself. In the Savior’s name, amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
In 2009, the Barna Group found further evidence that all is not well in the contemporary Church: Among individuals who describe themselves as Christian, close to half believe that Satan does not exist, one-third contend that Jesus sinned while He was on the earth, two-fifths say they do not have a responsibility to share the Christian faith with others, and one-quarter dismiss the idea that the Bible is historically accurate and truthful in all of the principles it teaches. BINGO!
The basic reason for ‘easy believism’…. that is, ‘accepting Christ’…. without a renewed mind and a transformed life [Romans 12:2] is Biblical illiteracy! Dads who don’t/won’t read the Bible, let alone study it and teach it to their children…. Moms who are too busy to find a quiet place, under a good light to internalize the Word of God…. Kids who are hypnotized by video games and I-pods and MTV. And if parents and grandparents do not take seriously the responsibility to be discipled and to disciple their children, the results will be catastrophic for the next generation. We are seeing it right before our eyes now…. Our nation is accelerating its descent into the abyss of self-eradication. Listen to the words of a prayer in Exodus 33:13, “…. Teach me Your ways so I may know You and continue to find favor with You. Remember that this nation is Your people.” Listen to the warning in Deuteronomy 4:9, “Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.”
Okay, I just proofread the text of this ‘Speaking the Truth in Love’ piece. It is heavy on the side of truth this week. What can I say? This is what God has impressed on my heart this morning. I have had a ‘sudden awakening.’ I am being ‘brutally honest.’ [Remember Kyle’s sermon from last weekend at Crossroads?] Is God speaking to you about your own heart and your responsibility to teach your children and grandchildren? If Biblical illiteracy is perpetuated in the church, the church as an agent of salvation for the lost world will be increasingly ineffective and hell will be more populated in the end. Does that sound extreme? Read God’s Word, especially the words of Jesus about heaven and hell, and realize in fresh ways how high the stakes are for us and our posterity.
Pray with me…. Loving Father…. save us from self-deception. Save us from shallow commitment. Save us from our mediocrity. Save us from our luke-warmness. Save us from our failure to teach our children Your Word. Save us from our careless living before their eyes. Save us from ourselves for Yourself. In the Savior’s name, amen.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
5/14/12
With the rejection of Biblical absolutes [which are from God for our protection and preservation] the wheels began to come off. The baggage of sexual regret being carried into marriages began to take its toll in the form of a growing number of divorces. Pornography has gained acceptance, moving our society from ‘Playboy’ magazine to hardcore Internet porn as a multi-billion dollar industry. Skyrocketing statistics on child abuse and victimization, the proliferation of sexual predators with offenders living in virtually every neighborhood, the scandalous sexual exposes of the entertainment, sports, business and political ‘glitterati,’ as well as high profile ‘televangelists’ and the priestly clergy, have rapidly taken us down a path of self-destruction.
Now, our Vice-President and President have come out, in the same week, with statements of unqualified support of same-sex marriage. So, the wall of protection around Biblical marriage has officially been breached. And, I predict that we will be overrun in the years ahead with the barbaric hoard of spin-off consequences in the lives of real people. The patience and tolerance of our Holy God has been stretched to the breaking point. His judgment will be inescapable. God’s wrath against sin is built into the human system. We have never been here before as a nation. The protection of the innocent unborn has been eliminated by the state. The protection of Biblical marriage and the traditional family has been eradicated by the state. As a pastor, I will witness the carnage up close and personal. As a father and grandfather, I am deeply concerned about the nation my children and grandchildren will inherit and the price they will have to pay for the sins of my generation. More than ever before in my lifetime, I identify with the closing prayer of Revelation 22:20-21, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.”
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
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