Expecting

Expecting

"The creation waits in eager expectation
for the sons of God to be revealed."
Romans 8:19

The announcement "I'm expecting", or the male version of "we're expecting", is always met with excitement and enthusiasm, with handshakes and hugs, with congratulations, happiness and, occasionally, applause. It is such a commonly used phrase that Websters includes in its' definition of the word expecting "to be pregnant, to await the birth on one's child". But it's the other definitions that have been on my heart all week as I've had the opportunity to spend time in prayer.

Webster's also defines expecting as "to anticipate, to look forward to the coming or occurrence of something, to considerable probable implying a high degree of certainty" and it includes the idea of preparing and envisioning. And it's in that usage that we see the thought of expecting and expectation scattered throughout the Bible.

One of my favorite verses is found in Psalm 5:3 where David writes:

"In the morning I lay my requests before
you and wait in expectation."

As David prayed, an expectation arose in his heart of what the Lord would shortly do, a certain looking forward to the answer to his requests that he had laid before the Lord in prayer. He no doubt began to envision the fulfillment, seeing with his spiritual eyes the outcome of his petitions before the Lord. He easily could have made the announcement "I'm expecting", declaring "I'm expecting God to move in your life and in your situation" or "I'm expecting God to perform a miracle for you".

That same expectation is to fill our hearts as we wait to see what the Lord will do in our lives. Peter wrote boldly in I Peter 1:3 "we live with great expectation" and John talked in I John 3:3 of living with "an eager expectation" of what was in the future. For those who aren't experiencing that in their lives right now, the key is found in the very nature and heart of God. He is a God who loves his people, you and I. He is a God who is faithful to His promises-each and every one. He is a God who delights in answering prayers that are offered in faith by those who trust in Him. Like David, we can confidently lay our requests before Him, and wait in expectation for all that the Lord will do in our lives, able to say with a certainty "I'm expecting God to ............"!

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Hilton Head '09

Hilton Head '09

"But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and
straining toward what is ahead, I press toward the
goal to win the prize for which God has called me."

With only one day left on our family vacation in Hilton Head South Carolina, the scene of some great senior trips over the years, the choices for writing a devotion seem almost endless. There are the incredibly scenic beaches with the ever-changing tides to enjoy or the quality time spent with family laughing together, sharing memories and creating new ones. The challenging design and splendor of the golf courses we played is one other option but someone might ask my scores so I ruled that out. From the power of the ocean's waves to lessons on getting sunburned, this vacation has provided so many lessons including one learned from playing solitaire.

Solitaire, as the name indicates, is the card game you can play by yourself, seven piles of cards, turn over three at a time, and try to move the cards up top by their suits-a game we all know. Nancy was playing solitaire the other night as we were sitting around the condo and asked if I wanted to try a hand. From accepting her offer till now, I am 0 for 19, having lost every game so far. But the nice thing is it isn't at all discouraging because as soon as I'm done with this I can start a new game with as good a chance to win as ever.

The same is true in each of our lives in a much broader sense. Each day is a new day in the Lord; we can forget yesterday's disappointments and failures and start the morning with expectancy and hope. Paul, realizing this, wrote to the Philippian believers about his exercised habit of forgetting what was in the past, all his yesterdays including both successes and failures, and reaching toward the future opportunities offered by the Lord to each of us.

Francis Chan wrote "the scriptures demonstrate clearly that there is room for failure in our pursuit of the Lord". David wrote about God's mercy being new every morning, not from teachings he had learned but from the experiences of his life. Despite failure in his personal life, he walked in the forgiveness God offers and in the hope represented by each new day in the Lord.

Like the next game of solitaire I'm about to deal myself, your tomorrow is a fresh opportunity to accomplish God's will with your life, a truly new day to get it right in the choices and decisions you make, in the attitudes you carry, and in the impact you have in the lives of others. Let's take advantage of God's new day!

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Undiluted

Undiluted

"For I didn't shrink from declaring to you
all that God wants you to know."
Acts 20:27

On one of our many trips to Vermont when we lived on the East Coast, I still remember trying out "Genuine Vermont Maple Syrup". Expecting it to be similar to my Log Cabin Maple Syrup back home, I poured it on as usual only to be shocked at the first helping of blueberry pancakes. This was the real thing, undiluted, super sweet, unlike anything I had tasted.

We get so used to the products we enjoy being diluted, that the real thing becomes too much to take. And maple syrup isn't the only example. Orange, apple and other juices have only a small percentage of the real thing. And drinking whole milk tastes so thick after getting used to half percent that I can't drink it anymore let alone put it on a bowl of Frosted Flakes in the morning. And when the extra ice in my Diet Coke melts, the pop gets so diluted that you can't always tell what it was to start with.

Paul, in his parting words to the elders of the Ephesian church, was speaking of his ministry among them when he said "I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God". He was establishing his faithfulness to them as a minister of the gospel in that he didn't hold anything back, didn't water down the Word, and certainly didn't dilute the message the Lord had called him to deliver. It may taste a little strong at first and even be a little offensive, but we need the whole truth of God's Word if we are to stand strong during the days we are living in. We need to hear about holiness and purity and the need to be separated from the world and unto God, without it being diluted with excuses the Lord won't accept.

Faithfulness in devotions, giving and church attendance - "Pastor, please don't dilute it and don't hold back, speak the truth to us!!" Patience, persistence, passion, and prayer - we need Pauls who won't shrink back, won't be afraid to say the unpopular but necessary things we need to hear.

Jesus said "you will know the truth and the truth will set you free". To steal a phrase "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth" is desperately needed in our generation.

Let's not settle for diluted when it comes to the things of God!

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Fishing Stories

Fishing Stories

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than
all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at
work within us, to him be glory in the church."
Ephesians 3:20

Now let's be honest, we've all exaggerated once or twice in our lifetimes, if not much more. Maybe it was the story that sounded a little better after spicing up the details for your friends? Or the famous fishing story and your hands just happened to go a little farther apart as you told how big the fish you struggled with for hours before finally landing was? Or the church story that would have a much greater effect on people, and sound a whole lot more powerful with only a little exaggeration of the details of what happened?

My thinking about this subject started with a statement by Francis Chan in his book Crazy Love that said "Isn't it a comfort to worship a God we cannot exaggerate?" Now before we move on, let's make sure he's right by trying some God-sized exaggerations to see if they work:

1. Nothing is too difficult for my God! Nope, that doesn't work because it's true, our God is able to do anything and everything. He parted the Red Sea, made the sun stand still in the heavens, raised the dead, and so much more. There is no problem in our life that God can't handle, no difficulty His grace can't bring us through and certainly no battle we can't win with God by our side. We're going to have to try a whole lot harder if we're to have any hope to exaggerate our God!
   
   
2. My God can listen to a billion people pray at once, hear each of their prayers and answer them according to His will. Sorry, that didn't work either. There is no call- waiting with God, no busy signals, no "all circuits are busy, please try your call again later". He is always there for each of us, from the remotest villages to the largest cities, hearing our every cry for mercy, help and strength. The Bible says He doesn't slumber or sleep, doesn't take sabbaticals or go away on vacation, and is never out sick. In fact it says that He will never leave us or forsake us, not you, not me, not any of us. No exaggeration there either, let's try one more time.
   
   
3. When I fail Him or walk away from Him, My God forgives me, remembering my sins no more, "casting them into the depths of the sea". Wait a minute, doesn't everyone hold a little grudge, dredge up the past when it's needed, or keep a record of wrongs? Not our God. Psalm 103:3 says He "forgives all our sins" and then verse 12 adds that He removes them "as far as the east is from the west". Our God forgives and forgets! Little stuff and big stuff, He washes our sins away in the blood of the Lamb.
   

His forgiveness and mercy cannot be exaggerated, by even the best teller of tall tales out there. Not only do we have to admit that God cannot be exaggerated but we have to admit that it is comforting to know that. His power is unlimited, His knowledge is immeasurable and His love is unfathomable. And all are available to those who will seek the Lord and put their trust in Him.

We serve a God whose power, whose love, whose understanding is greater than we have words to describe. He simply cannot be exaggerated.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Eating Machines

Eating Machines

"Like newborn babes, crave pure spiritual milk so
that by it you may grow up in your salvation."
I Peter 2:2

When you look at the characteristics of some of the animals, birds, and insects in creation, it's easy to see how Solomon used them to teach God's ways. From the courage of a lion "who retreats before nothing" as Proverbs 30:30 tells us, to the flight of an eagle who can rise above the greatest of storms, nature teaches us invaluable lessons on life. The title "Eating Machines" is one of the names given to caterpillars and for a very good reason. At birth they are so small they can barely be seen but they eat constantly and voraciously until in less than two weeks they are two inches long.

We have been told so much about the importance of reading the Word of God, that we often lose sight of it's importance. Peter uses the word "crave" in relation to our taking in the Word of God as part of our spiritual lives. Dictionary.com describes "crave" as to want greatly, to long for and to desire greatly. And to make sure we understand, it uses the phrase "to crave sweets" to hammer home the point. Now that most of us can definitely relate to! Reading the Word of God is not another dull routine to be endured, it is a part of our growth and of our sustenance, our source of guidance and hope, and a blessing that we so often lose sight of.

The caterpillar provides us with another insight into the thought of growth by the way it sheds its' skin. A monarch caterpillar sheds its' skin five times during the larvae stage. And here's the key. A new larger skin is always waiting under the one that is shed. Think of that - stages of growth, going from one level to another. Romans 1:17 talks about our going "from faith to faith" or from one level of faith to another. Other scriptures talk about growing in the gifts of the Spirit and in our understanding of God's ways, while others address our growing in grace and love, in patience and trust, all attributes of godly men and women of faith.

I can't help but think as I write this that there are new larger skins, like the caterpillar, waiting for many, if not all, of us in our Christian walks. And as soon as the old is shed, the new is revealed. So often the Word of God is the link to our realizing that we have some "old skin" to get rid of, and some new skin to begin walking in. That new skin will be larger, it may stretch you along the way and challenge you in your attitudes and in the way you live your life. But one thing is for sure, you'll come out a better and more satisfied person, able to see the growth and change in your own life.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church