Beyond What You Can Ask or Think

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:20-21 (ESV)Our asking depends on our thinking, and our thinking is influenced by all kinds of factors. But generally we don’t ask beyond what our minds conceive is possible, legitimate, necessary, or even impossible. Maybe you are blessed with a mind that thinks audaciously big, but even it has a limit. Sometimes desperation makes us cry out for and wish for what our minds deem impossible, and still our minds paint a picture of what that looks like.All too often we are beset with smallness of mind, so we don’t bother to even ask, “You do not have, because you do not ask God” James 4:2b (NIV). Of course some have no room for any notion of the reality of God, this too is a smallness of mind that shuts the door on all kinds of possibilities, and certainly to ask him for anything.The harnessing of power has been an ongoing pursuit of mankind; we are much better at it than we are submitting to power. Yet, in spite of many incredible advances the gap between God’s power and ours has not narrowed, God still “is able to far more abundantly than all we ask or think.” All the additions to our knowledge, skills, and abilities has not negated our need for God, for what he knows, what he is capable of. Our minds cannot even conceive his eternal power, knowledge, and wisdom, “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts’” Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV). “But, as it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him’”— 1 Corinthians 2:9 (ESV).Have you ever thought that God is not doing enough, both in general and for you specifically? This too is evidence of our smallness of thinking, as well as a considerable amount of hubris. It implies that God somehow is delinquent, that he somehow is misusing his power, that he fails to use his knowledge, his wisdom, and his power appropriately and timely. When we do so we forget that we owe our very existence to the application of God’s greatness, goodness, and power.The verses that began this pastor’s note are part of prayer the Apostle Paul prayed for believers at Ephesus and Asia Minor. He wanted them and us to know God more, to love him more, to experience his greatness ever more, to grow beyond the smallness of ourselves and our thinking and to rely on him who is so great, so incomprehensible, so magnificent that he truly is worthy of all glory for all generations.May God grant Paul’s request in regard to you and me, to live beyond what we can ask or think, ever thirsty for God to reveal more of himself and Christ.To God be all glory. Love you, Pastor Hans 

Nothing Is Impossible with God - Context

For nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37 (NLT)We enter 2016 with one. We were born into one. We are never without one. We often wish we had a different one. Many of our complaints and hopes are about it. Most of us have tried to escape it a time or two or more. From the moment we are conceived we contribute to it. Even after die we still affect it – CONTEXT.The truth that “nothing is impossible for God’ stands on its own; it is an eternal and constant reality. This is terrific news, not just at the beginning of a new year but at the beginning of and throughout every day, and in any context. There is an accompanying truth to God’s omnipotence: we are not. Many things, most things are impossible for us. We cannot turn water into wine any more than we can walk on water. We cannot speak an entire cosmos into existence anymore than we can sustain the universe. We cannot transcend the laws of nature or escape death. We do not know all the questions much less the right answers. 2016 will confront us with more of our “can’ts” than we’d like.Although For nothing is impossible with God” stands on its own it is quoted out of context. It was part of the angel’s answer to Mary wondering how she could end up being pregnant without having sex. It was meant to encourage her to trust God and take up his invitation to participate in his eternal plan and redemptive work. Mary’s context wasn’t godless or without faith, she believed in God, she was a very decent person, but this was an invitation to trust in and walk with God at a completely different level. This wasn’t about merely believing that God did some incredible things in the past, or listening to someone else’s experience, this was about her adjusting her life to the will of God on the basis of his omnipotence instead of her own capacity to believe. Her response, “God I have no idea how you will do this, but I know and trust that you can. So Lord, I am yours to do as you please” (Luke 1:38, my paraphrase).Mary’s surrender to the reality and will of God completely changed her context, and in the long view of history even ours, but on God’s terms and not hers. That’s our struggle, in the face of our can’ts and our life’s impossibles we would love to harness the power of God to change our and others’ contexts, and when he won’t bend to us we become angry, dismissive, cynical, defiant. It is sinful arrogance to think the Omnipotent should bow to the impotent, that the powerless can harness the Almighty. The finite, us, has just one proper response to infinite power – SURRENDER, to adjust ourselves to reality and will of God.God’s 2016 invitation is to walk with him, on his terms, to live out his will, to let his omnipotence define and direct our lives, to live our lives in the context of him and his Son Jesus Christ. And when we do our experience, our understanding, our context and even our prayers will change.“Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously. “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts” Isaiah 55:6-9 (NLT).“Oh, that you would burst from the heavens and come down! How the mountains would quake in your presence! As fire causes wood to burn and water to boil, your coming would make the nations tremble. Then your enemies would learn the reason for your fame! When you came down long ago, you did awesome deeds beyond our highest expectations. And oh, how the mountains quaked! For since the world began, no ear has heard, and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him! You welcome those who gladly do good, who follow godly ways.” Isaiah 64:1-5a (NLT).What will your 2016 context look like? Will God figure into it to his extent? Oh, how I hope so.Happy New Year! Love you, Pastor Hans    

Stars and Worship

If you are searching for that that last minute or super special Christmas gift you might want to consider having a star named for the person you have on your mind. You can choose between an “Ordinary Star” (from $19.95), and “Extra Bright Star” (from $39.95), or a “Binary Star” (from $64.95). If you want go all out with this idea you can go with the gift sets (from $74.95, $84.95, $124.94 respectively).  You could join 17,000 others who plunked their money down to have someone’s name attached to a real star by this independent, albeit unofficial, star registry. Yes, you could brighten someone’s Christmas Day, more accurately night, in a way they never imagined. And if you ever misplace or lose your “Star Deed” you can contact the good folks at STARNAME Registry.org and they will help you. I am sure the passing along of this ordinary, extra, or double “bright idea” will be another reason why you so value my Pastor’s Notes.I wonder. How much money have stars generated over time? How many other clever star schemes have people come up with? Astrology is alive and well even today, and suckers are still being borne every day. But the stars themselves, the universe as a whole does declare truth, The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship” Psalm 19:1 (NLT); “The heavens proclaim his righteousness; every nation sees his glory” Psalm 97:6 (NLT); “The basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse (for not acknowledging and worshiping God)” Romans 1:19-20 (MSG, parenthesis mine).Regardless of the tendency of sinful human nature to either exploit and pervert spiritual things or to disregard God and explain him away, the testimony of the stars stands, God is real, his power and wisdom are both incomprehensible and immense, we are accountable to him, and the most proper response to God is to love, worship, and obey him. “Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him’” Matthew 2:1-2 (NLT). That star was visible to anyone who cared to look, but it seems people came to vastly different conclusion and vastly different responses. Most wise men from eastern lands stayed home, kept peddling the same astrology they had for centuries, it is difficult to adjust yourself to spiritual truth. King Herod saw the very notion of a new king as a threat his godless world of politics and power, it is difficult to submit to divine authority. The Jewish elite and scholars did not want their personal, political, and religious world be turned upside down, so they also gave it no significance, it is difficult to take God at his word.For this Christmas I challenge you to look up into the night sky and see and hear its declaration of God, to pursue spiritual truth, to lead you to worship. If you follow that path it will still lead you to Jesus Christ, God incarnate, the ultimate revelation of God, the one who can save us from our sins.Merry Christmas. Love you, Pastor HansP.S. If you are tempted to go the Star Registry website, RESIST! Instead look for ways to give those $20-100 or so to your church, a missionary agency, the Salvation Army, Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, World Vision, Compassion International, or help someone in your community, or find a way to help the millions of refugees of our day.      

Christmas Lists

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10-11 (NASB)Chances are high that you have a Christmas list, if not on paper then at least in your head, of people you intend to give a gift or send a card. It might be a very long list or one that is very short. The card list is fairly easy, the only challenges are to get the cards and get them out on time. The gift list, on the other hand, can be quite challenging. Some people are notoriously difficult to find gifts for, they either have most everything already or are simply not easy to please. Some folks have very high expectations which add significant pressure. Others we feel obligated to have on our list but if we are honest our motivation level toward them is not very high. There are of course those to whom we want to give nothing but the best, pull out all the stops, stretch ourselves financially beyond what is prudent. But no matter who is on your list chances are high you will need only one sheet of paper to note all of their names, maybe even the fingers of your hands will suffice to count them all up.Go back and read the scripture at the top again and check out God’s Christmas list, “Good News” “Great Joy” “A Savior” – “for all the people.” No one left out, no one overlooked, no one in the obligatory category, no one designated for “card only.” Everyone on the major, lavish (Ephesians 1:3-8a), all out gift list. It is astounding that anyone would end up on that list. None of us is deserving. For each one of us God (who knows us completely) has many and convincing reasons to leave us off the list, to take out a pen and cross out our names. But somehow, graciously, gloriously God has put your and my name, along with everyone else’s on his Christmas giving list.Answer honestly. Have you ever gotten a Christmas gift you didn’t really care about, for which you were not all that grateful? Does that include what God gave at Christmas, his Son Jesus Christ, the Savior you and I need? Has it ever struck you how much God cares about you, and how much you and I need what he has given? And what hope can we have if we disregard God’s ultimate gift, that which we need most?And one more call to Christmas honesty. We struggle with God’s Christmas list because it includes those we don’t like, our enemies, evil doers, haters, ingrates, brats, the lazy, the unjust, the …. It includes those we’d leave off, those whom we label as “undeserving.” It is a list we would have never compiled on our own. How compatible is God’s Christmas list with your and my worldview, our politics, our level of compassion, our willingness to be “lavish” when it comes to mercy, grace, love, and giving?Merry Christmas. Love you, Pastor Hans  

Life-time Warranty

The kitchen faucet was leaking. It shouldn’t do that after only 10 years, don’t you agree. After several short-lived attempts of fixing the problem I faintly recalled that said faucet had a life-time warranty. So I looked in the file drawer where we keep manuals and warranties and sure enough there it was, a life-time warranty with the original receipt, and that’s when the fun began.Actually fun is entirely the wrong word, more like run-around, frustration, “you’ve got to be kidding me.” The first live person, after navigating the automated menu which supposedly is to make things easier, informed me that there was no such thing as a life-time warranty. I read her what was printed on my life-time warranty, only to be accused of making it up. I figured this would be a good time to ask for someone with more authority and tact. This request got me thrown back into the automated menu which ultimately disconnected me.The next live customer service representative did take down my personal information but didn’t think that she could help me. She was, however, willing to connect me to someone who might be able to help. This put me on hold where I was forced to listen to some really bad music, until I got disconnected.The next customer service rep did confirm that my personal information was in the system and managed to connect me to said person with higher authority. The higher authority informed me that they did indeed did not have life-time warranties on my faucet, so I read from my printed warranty. He was unwilling to take my word and but would consider my claim if I would send in the original warranty and receipt. I informed him that I would not send in the originals because I wanted to hang on to my warranty for the future and that I would gladly fax him copies. He wouldn’t budge, so I thought that this would be a good time to ask to speak to someone with more authority than him. He didn’t like that idea, and I found myself on hold listening to more bad music. After a while he came back on to inform me that copies were okay but to not get my hopes up. I told him that my hopes were not anywhere near being up but that I thought life-time should mean just that. He thought that at 10 years I pretty much got my money’s worth. I obviously disagreed. A few weeks later I installed a new faucet.My garden hose reel broke, having learned from the past, I checked whether it had a warranty, it did, and life-time at that. I called the phone number, “no longer in service.” Took it to the store where I bought it and found out that the company went out of business and that my warranty was worthless. (To that store’s credit they did give me a new reel because they wanted me to know that they stood behind what they sold).I know of only one whose guarantees are hassle free and eternal (which is a significant upgrade from life-time). God’s word, God’s principles, and God’s promises are rock solid, they are as good and trustworthy today as they will be 100 or 10,000 years from now. And they cover things much more significant than faucets, roofs, power-trains, and such. They cover matters of the soul, of destiny, of salvation, of blessing, of conscience, of happiness, and of success.Warranties are great when things break but God’s word and promises hold guarantees that are not only good when things brake but keep things from braking in first place. But don’t take my word on it, read and rely on the Bible (God’s written word) for yourself His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ… Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall” 2 Peter 1:3-8, 10 (NIV).To God be all glory. Love you, Pastor Hans  

The Author of Liberty

Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans?The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the LORD and against his anointed one. “Let us break their chains,” they cry, “and free ourselves from slavery to God.” But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Psalm 2:1-4 (NLT)Independence, freedom from tyranny, liberty, free to do as you please, free to believe what you want to believe, free to be who you want to be, free to go where you want to go, and do what you want to do. The anarchist wants no laws, the atheist wants no gods, the capitalist wants no restraints, the communist wants no inequalities, the fundamentalist wants conformity, the activist wants change, the _____ wants _____. No shortage of wants, and the more people want what I want the greater the chance that I will get what I want to get at someone else’s expense. Freedom and independence is wrought with conflict.Everyone who loves independence, liberty, and freedom should be in awe of God. He alone knows true independence, complete liberty, and uncorrupted freedom. We can learn more about liberty from him than from anyone else, and yet by and large and throughout human history he has been thought of as the greatest obstacle to true freedom, “Let us break the chains of God and his anointed, Jesus Christ.” Or God is highjacked for some religious tyranny, for someone’s particular definition of freedom, to bring about what someone wants. Neither is interested in learning from God.Don’t bring God into school or to the university, he’ll adversely affect academic freedom. Don’t bring God into politics he’ll infringe on all kinds of liberties. Don’t bring God into art and literature he will stifle artistic expression. Don’t mix God with business that will mess with the bottom line. Don’t bring God into discussion of morality that will introduce limitations and absolutes. Don’t let God into your free time, night life, and high life, he will hurt the fun. Don’t include God in your plans you might have to change them. Keep God out of your conscience he’ll make you feel guilt. What we need most is God off our backs, out of our minds; we are better freed from God. Right?Striving for freedom from God, declaring independence from God, denying the existence of God does not bring us into the promised land of ultimate freedom, it accomplishes the exact opposite, it propels us into the wastelands of human depravity. The notion of liberating yourself from God is both the greatest form of self-deception and the ultimate expression of hubris. Real liberty is not about the escape from reality but the opportunity to live better in reality. Real liberty is not about freedom from responsibility and accountability but the awareness that our lives count. Real independence is not about indulgence but about service to my neighbor, my country, the world, and above all God. You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law (of God) is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself" Galatians 5:13-14 (NIV, parenthesis mine).If we are to get independence, liberty, and freedom right we cannot define it and pursue it in a way God laughs at. No, we must do so in a way that acknowledges him as the author, protector, authority, perfect example of independence, liberty, and freedom.To God be all glory, Pastor Hans     

Salad Bars, Smorgasbords, and Potlucks

Do you like salad bars? Smorgasbords? How about a good old-fashioned potluck? As a preacher I can do potlucks blindfolded, salad bars don’t get me too excited, and I don’t remember the last time I was at a smorgasbord, although I loved them when I was younger. You know the drill, get a plate, survey the offerings, and fill your plate with everything you love while bypassing the things you don’t like.Growing up my oldest brother loved it when my Mama asked him to dish everybody up. He knew exactly what each one of us didn’t like, so, accompanied with a stupid grin, he would heap our plates with the stuff we didn’t like while quoting the rule, “Was auf dah Tisch kommt wird gessa!” (What’s put on the table will be eaten).How do you approach God? Jesus Christ? Church? The Bible, God’s word? Are all three of them something you loved when you were younger but now you have developed a more discerning palate, a more selective taste when it comes to spiritual things? Do you get out your plate and fill it with all that you love while bypassing what’s not to your liking? Have you shifted to a different cuisine altogether?How do like God? Cuddly and warm? Spicy or just a tiny hint? Loving or just? As the main dish, or side dish, as a dip, or as “but hold the …?”Jesus Christ, do you consider him as a “got to have it,” or “I have to be in the mood,” or “yuck”?What about church? Only if you have to, when it gets scooped onto your plate whether you like or not, but preferably not? Are you the food critic every time you show up?“Oh the Bible, please only the sweet things in it?” “No, just the low calorie stuff, I hate that bloated feeling, some things take forever to digest.” “I have several food allergies, so I have to be very careful what I eat.”The truth is the living God cannot be dished out in portions to our liking, religion can be but God and Jesus Christ cannot. The truth is that my Mama was more like God than my oldest brother (sorry Michael). He delighted in making our lives miserable (he’s changed), she delighted in keeping us alive, in us being well fed, and seeing us grow. She didn’t just give us what we liked (although she often did), she gave us what we needed. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” Matthew 4:4 (ESV, emphasis mine). The truth is when you treat God, Jesus Christ, the church, and the Bible like a salad bar, smorgasbord, or potluck you end up with eclectic and empty spirituality, or with a flabby Christianity with plates full of what we like, yet far from what God and Christ would have us to be; or you become a mere critic of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ, and of his church, and of his word.Allow me to put something on your plate from the Bible, something not all that tasty, but something we need as we try to cope with barbarism, terrorism, evil, enemies, and hate, "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” Matthew 5:43-45 (NIV). “Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice” Proverbs 24:17 (NIV). “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” Romans 12:21 (NIV).To God be all glory, love you, Pastor Hans   

God Pressed the "Send" Key

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” John 3:16-17 (NASB)God loved, God gave, God send his Son to save – that is the reality of Christmas, it is the essence of the Good News, the Gospel. Out of all the messages you and I get throughout our lifetimes that’s the most important one.Maybe you are the kind of texter whose thumbs move as fast as the wings of a hummingbird, but I am dismally slow, keep hitting the wrong keys, and frequently manage to send my texts before I am ready. Ready or not, once the send button is pushed there is no stopping it, it is unleashed. Christmas is about God pressing the “send” key.Love made God do it, his love recognized the need, his love compelled him to give, his love pushed the “send” key. Real love is not blind, God’s love is not blind, it recognized that we are indeed perishing. Our mortality, our finiteness, our imperfection, and our sinfulness all testify to the reality that we are perishing. We are completely powerless, utterly impotent to change any of them. God could have sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to judge the world, you and me, but he send him to save us. The judgment we deserve the saving we need, his love made that decision.Maybe you are among those who think that you do not need Christ, that you have no need to be saved. Maybe you have decided that all of this is just a bunch of hogwash, religious baloney, or outright #^@#*! If so, that puts you at odds with no one else but God himself; it has you defining spiritual reality in complete opposition to God. It is vastly more probable that you are wrong and God is right. What is amazing that, in spite of our arrogance, denials, and outright rejection of truth and God himself, he still pressed the “sent” key; he still addressed our need, our helplessness, our perishing, by giving his Son.How many Decembers have you lived through? 10, 20, 30, 50, 90, or more? Did December ever have just 28 days, or 30? In my 54 Decembers it has always been 31 days? And nothing has changed about both our need to be saved and God’s love willing and able to save us through Christ. He pressed the “send” key, not accidently, but deliberately, and out his unfathomless love. All that remains is for you and me to receive the message and believe in his Son. That’s the wonder of Christmas. “But as many as received Him (Jesus Christ), to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” John 1:12 (NASB, parenthesis mine).Merry Christmas, Pastor Hans  

Your Vote Counts

State wide only 29.7 of all eligible California voters cast a ballot, about 50% of Tuolumne and Mariposa County registered voters voted, and a mere 28.7 % of Stanislaus county did so (according to http://vote.sos.ca.gov/returns/status/). This means 70% of those who were eligible and registered chose to disenfranchise themselves for this election. They exercised their right not to vote, but they also neglected their democratic responsibility.Of course all of them voted, albeit unofficially. They voted to do something else instead of voting. They voted that nothing on the ballot was important. They gave their proxy to a few. I wonder how many of those who didn’t vote would say that living in a democratic society is important to them. After all the USA is the land of the free, the champion of democracy, and still the envy of millions around the world.Voting is about making choices, including choices we might not like or want to make. Voting is about the privilege of having choices to make. Voting, being involved in decision making is a reality of life. Most of our voting, our decision making is of the unofficial kind, which does not make it any less important. There is not a week that goes by where we are not called upon to vote for or against integrity, honesty, transparency, compassion. Married people vote do not just cast a vote for fidelity at the altar but throughout their married lives. Parents continually face choice and decisions regarding family. Every temptation is a commercial vying for your vote. And all of these choices matter a great deal. Think what happens when enough people vote against integrity, or if 70% decide integrity is no longer important enough to go and vote for it? What happens to a family when one or both parents no longer vote for it? I reminded of what God told Cain, “… sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it" Genesis 4:7 (NASB). “Cain, you have to vote, you have to decide,’ is what God was essentially telling him. Why? Because how we vote, for what we vote makes a difference.One vote that more and more think is entirely optional is the God vote, whether or not to believe in, trust, and follow God by doing his will. Some do not like the choices; there is only one true, eternal, Almighty God, who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, on the ballot. And yes, you have the choice not to vote for him. And yes, making no decision is still making a decision. And yes, this is in the big scheme of things, in the long haul the most important vote anyone of us will ever cast. Joshua was keenly aware of this reality when laid out the God vote in front of his family and countrymen, “If serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD" Joshua 24:15 (NIV).We have to live with the consequences of our voting. Every single one of our votes, official and unofficial, has consequences, some of them lifelong, some of them for generations to come, and some of them eternally. We ought to weigh that before we cast our God vote or decide not to choose at all.To God be all glory, especially in our voting. Pastor Hans

Ultimate Authority

You and I can’t go where the President of the United States can go. Just try strolling into the White House next time you’re in D.C. Or try to go to the nearest military base on your next day off and demand to see the commanding officer right away. You can call me from jail and tell me how it went. We don’t have the position, status, or authority the President has. He has access to people, places, information, and power the ordinary citizen does not have. He doesn’t have to stand in line and wait. I am sure he’ll have a hard time remembering the last time he had take a number. There are things only the president gets to do while he is in office.Of course the power of the President is limited and most of us are quick to point out whenever we think he overstepped his bounds. Most of us would consider our private lives none of his business. Were we live, how we spend our money, the work we do, our opinions, and our lifestyles, and our love-life are all things most of us would not only consider none of his business but also beyond his Presidential authority.The President is not the only one who has had his authority questioned. Pretty much everyone who has ever held any authority has had his/her authority questioned, “You can’t do that! You don’t have the authority? Who do you think you are?”No one has had his authority questioned more than God, than Jesus Christ. When Jesus dared to address and forgive a paralyzed man’s sin people were aghast. He seemingly had overstepped two lines you just don’t cross: 1. the man’s private, personal sphere, and 2. Claiming authority that only belongs to God (Mark 2:1-12).Does God really have the authority, the right to make judgments regarding our private lives, our personal spheres, our morals, the way we spend our money, our thoughts and desires, our plans, our words, and our decisions? Can he really tell us what is right and what is wrong, what is just and unjust, what is good and what is evil, what is pure and what is impure, what is righteous and what is sinful? Of course you don’t have to like the answer anymore than the authority the president yields, but that does not negate the authority. You can try to get away from the President’s and governmental authority. You can move to another country, fall of the grid, or try a rebellion or revolution. All of these, however, will not work with God. His authority is absolute, infinite, and eternal. Nothing lies outside of his authority. He has rightful access over everything in our lives “… We are the clay, and You our potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand” Isaiah 64:8 (NASB). Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable Hebrews 4:13 (NLT). “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?” Job 40:2 (NLT).Remember the paralyzed man mentioned above? This is what Jesus said and did to answer those who questioned his authority, “But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to (point out, define and to) forgive sins"—He said* to the paralytic, ‘I say to you, get up, pick up your pallet and go home.’ And he got up and immediately picked up the pallet and went out in the sight of everyone, so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this" Mark 2:10-12 (NASB parenthesis mine).God/Jesus Christ has legitimate authority over your and my life. Thus the question becomes whether or not you and I are submitted to his authority.To God be all glory, pastor Hans   

Waiting, tired of waiting

WaitingHave you ever been tired of waiting? Like when you are on hold on the telephone for the “next representative” (I think there really is only one who does lots of different voices)? Or maybe at the fast food joint where the food is so fast they can’t catch it? Or at the airport security line when you are pressed for time? Maybe it is for that tool, book, or GPS you loaned out? Or how about that apology, thank you, or a little help? Maybe it is for that break, that fortuitous change, that streak of good luck?Most Germans are not good at waiting (This German excluded). Next time you are at the airport look for a bunch of people wearing sandals and socks who sound like they’re arguing when they talk (and they might be). You can almost read their collective mind as they scheme, jokey, look for the passing lane, and quite literally will run you over if you don’t watch it. The goal is to be first, to outwit everyone else, to win, to be able to sit in your seat and watch all the losers dejectedly file in after you and try to find some space for their overhead luggage. Maybe you have observed people other than Germans behave in such a way, or maybe you strangely find yourself being described by the above. This can only mean two things: 1. you are more German than you think, 2. a bunch of Germans have bypassed you and you have not moved for an hour, so you have decided if you can’t beat them, join them.Being tired of waiting is often accompanied by desperation. Time is the most irreplaceable resource we have. While we wait we lose life, opportunity, and depending on what we are waiting for, hope. After all we don’t have forever. It feels strange that the scriptures encourage us to learn to wait. Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD”Psalm 27:14 (NASB), is King David’s advice when life pushes us to be desperate.Being tired of waiting is often the stage right before giving up. At what point do you throw in the towel, hang up, check out, cut your losses. You can’t wait forever, can you? There comes a time to move on, to no longer wait. Right? Yes and no. Some things we are waiting for we might actually need to let go, while some things we never meant to let go of, especially faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13:13).Nobody is better at waiting than God. This doesn’t mean he always waits forever, nor does it mean God overlooks things, but his patience, his long-suffering, his kindness, his mercy, his grace, and his love are amazing. In a way we will run out of life before God runs out of patience. If you have breath it is clear evidence that God hasn’t thrown in the towel on you, given up on you, hoping to save you, change you, grow you, and use you for his kingdom and glory. It is a glorious and gracious reality, God’s waiting, even on our worst day, when we are tired of waiting, desperate, and even ready to give up, God has waited for you and me to engage us with his love, hope, strength, mercy, and grace.“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” Isaiah 40:28-31 (NIV).To God be all glory, love you, Pastor Hans  

You Can't Shop for God

You can’t shop for God.We are inundated with choices. How many different car brands are there? How many different models does each automaker sell? I have been looking for tires, luckily for the odd size I am looking for there are less than 100 choices. How many different brands and kinds of soda does your supermarket sell? What do you like? Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Vanilla Coke, Cherry Coke? Or are you a Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Throwback Pepsi, Pepsi Maxx drinker? Maybe you prefer Dr. Pepper, or Dr. Pepper 10, or Diet Dr. Pepper? Who knows it might be RC, Mountain Dew, or 20 different flavors of store brand for you? Maybe you are a water only kind of person? In that case you will have to decide what brand, what size, and what flavor. You can repeat this exercise in every aisle of the grocery store, department store, home improvement store, and at every shopping mall. And if by chance you do your shopping on line then you have simply exploded your choices a zillion times.Way back there was a commercial touting cat food for the finicky feline. Of course it came in numerous flavors. Since then the choices in the pet food aisle have multiplied. However, manufacturers and merchants have obviously figured out that we are the most finicky creatures of them all. We know what we like and don’t like. We know how sensitive our taste buds are, how delicate our sense of fashion is, and even what our tender backsides prefer in the restroom.So when it comes to God, to spiritual things, we like to go shopping. God has to taste right, feel right, fit right, and preferably be on sale. He has to match our preferences, our lifestyle, our morals, and appetites. He needs to be helpful but not too demanding, accessible but not intrusive, loving and forgiving but not requiring anything, and of course always ready to bless, even a mess.The problem is you can’t shop for God. Whatever we pick and choose in the aisles of religions, world views, and philosophies is not God. If God is defined by what we think he should look like, feel like, and be like then he is as small as can of cat food. If God fits in a shopping cart or neatly into our lives then he is as insignificant as six-pack of whatever is your favorite. You can’t shop for God, he is not for sale, there is no store or mind large enough to contain him.One God, One Savior, One Way, One Truth, One Book does not fit into our approach to life. “There has to be choice! – Right?” The answer is, “No.” There is only one true, living, eternal, and almighty God, and the only way to come near to him and live with him is through his Son Jesus Christ, everything else is futile shopping. “… there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me” Isaiah 45:21 (NASB). “This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us” 1 John 3:23 (NASB).To God be all glory, love you, Pastor HansP.S. A word to all of us who claim to believe in and follow Christ. Before we say, “Amen,” and shake our heads at those who do not yet follow Christ, let’s ask ourselves, How often do we go “shopping” when we read our Bibles, attend Bible studies, and decide on the shape and content of our Christian lives based on what fits us, feels good to us, and seems right to us? How often do we pick and choose and in the process end up with something far less than God, than Jesus has in mind?  

God's Goodwill - ... and Goodwill Towards Men

"Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Luke 2:14 (NKJV)Long before the first Goodwill Thrift store opened its doors God has been in the not for profit business of goodwill. Sometimes we forget just how vast the goodwill of God is. But when the voices of a multitude of angels shook the countryside they were proclaiming the ultimate expression of God’s goodwill towards all of mankind, Jesus Christ.I learned something new (please hold your snide comments and show me some goodwill), in accounting goodwill is a business’s value beyond its tangible assets. That’s being worth more than you’re worth because someone assigns you that worth, and that is exactly what God has done to us in and through Christ. In fact our spiritual assets are not just zero but in the red. All of us, all of mankind, every last one is spiritually bankrupt, we are all sinners, we are creatures of not just goodwill but also of ill-will. God sent Christ not because our balance sheets neatly balanced out our good and bad, rather God in his love and goodwill through Christ assigned to as unfathomable and undeserved value. No wonder the angels started with, “Glory to God in the highest!”It baffles me how often God gets a bad rap, is accused of ill-will. Why are we so prone to begin anywhere but ourselves? I don’t think I am exaggerating in assessing our collective human ill-will as staggering, and that without including the neglect of goodwill. “I am not as bad as ___________,” is a poor excuse for not being as good as I should be. And how often do we devalue others, are unwilling to account them some goodwill but rather insists on only seeing and talking about their lack of assets.The lack of peace on earth illustrates this further. Why is there a lack of peace? Just this past week a Chinese and an American warships engaged in a game of chicken – why? You cannot ascribe the lack of peace on earth to any failure of God; he has given us a capacity for peace and peacemaking. It is us who chose otherwise. History is a long indictment when it comes to our lack of peace with each other and with God, it is a long record of both ill-will and a lack of goodwill.I suppose if it were up to us we would have pulled the plug on the humanity a long time ago, at least we would have withdrawn our goodwill. This is how we operate if we cannot see some results to our goodwill, we move on. Fortunately you and I are not in charge. Fortunately God did the exact opposite, rather than withdrawing from our brokenness and abandoning us to our bankruptcy, he simply poured out more goodwill. Actually in Christ he opened the floodgates of goodwill, he flooded eternity with goodwill so eventually all ill-will will be drowned. No wonder the angels shouted over the fields, “Glory to God in the highest.”It is because of the goodwill of God you and I received the gift of today. It is in the goodwill of God human worth and dignity are rooted. It is in the goodwill of God forgiveness and salvation has come to us through Christ. It is in the goodwill of God hope and mercy are offered to sinners whose balance sheets are wanting.Intuitively the shepherds, who heard the angels’ praise, understood that this wasn’t about just hearing some words, but an invitation. An invitation to discover God, to find peace, to experience the goodwill of God – “Let’s go,” … “Let’s see,” was their Christmas response. What is yours?Merry Christmas, to God be all glory, Pastor Hans  

Stop talking - Opinions vs. Revelation

In the end they all wished they had kept their mouths shut. His friends kept trying to figure out why things had gone so badly for Job? How he could have fallen so fast and so far? “You reap what you sow,” “What goes around comes around,” “You can’t fool karma,” “Your sin has found you out,” was their conclusion.“No! No! I did everything right, I don’t deserve this,’ was Job’s adamant reply. “If God would just give me hearing this could all be straightened out,” was his plea.So, round and round they went, until God spoke. Then they wished they had been silent. Job’s friends were plain wrong, their theology was faulty. Job’s expectations were misguided, he thought as long as he did everything right he was insured against calamity, disaster, and suffering.When God finally spoke he told Job to look around, to consider the universe and all of the physical creation and pay attention to what they say about God. They should inspire us to be in awe. They should cause us to consider the greatness, the wisdom, the inscrutability, the sovereignty of God (Job 38-39). “Job, do you think you are on par with me?” God wanted to know.There is no shortage of opinions when it comes to God, when it comes to trying to figure out why bad things happen to good people and bad people seem to get away with it. The problem with opinionating is that lacks any awe, it reduces God to the size of our minds, it breeds the hubris that puts us on par with God, and causes us to be blind to the fact that, "… my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV).When it comes to God we had better pay attention to revelation, to what God tells us about himself. Our opinions about God will cause us to end up in trouble, render us worshipping false gods, or denying God altogether. When God told Job to look around he called him to consider revelation, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” “… the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for God himself is judge” Psalm 19:1, 50:6 (NIV). Theologians call that general revelation, it should inspire humility and awe. The Bible (God’s written word) tells things about God that go beyond what the universe declares about him. It also informs us about what he thinks about us and how we should live. Theologians call the scriptures special revelation, we should give it special attention and it should inspire faith and trust. The greatest revelation of all is Jesus Christ, God’s son, who was literally God in human form (in the flesh), he should inspire us to worship, follow, and imitate him.Are you still talking, opinionizing? Maybe it time to be still and consider God, not as you want to think of him, but as he has revealed himself in the physical world, the Bible, and through Jesus Christ.To God be all glory, Pastor Hans   

Springtime - reflections

Springtime in Don Pedro is incredible, it seems as though nature is putting on a concert, and art exhibit, and a commercial for a deluxe vacation all at the same time. The beauty surrounding us is stunning, the temperature is perfect, and everything seems to be overflowing with life. Early mornings on my back deck are spectacular, just birds singing, the smell of fresh cut grass, the blossoms of poppies, wildflowers, and fruit trees slowly waking up and getting out of bed, warm sunshine peaking over the horizon.  It doesn’t matter if you love going on walks and hikes, ride your bicycle, hop on your Harley, drive with the top down, go fishing, do some gardening, hit the golf balls, barbeque, ride horses, or play horse shoes, this seems to be the perfect time for it all.There are other things about spring that we are wise to notice:

  • Spring is about planting, reproducing, thinking ahead. A man reaps what he sows” Galatians 6:7 (NIV).
  • Spring invites us to live to the glory of God. My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be My disciples” John 15:8 (HCSB). “Our Lord and God, You are worthy to receive glory and honor and power, because You have created all things, and because of Your will they exist and were created” Revelation 4:11 (HCSB).
  • Spring is about growing. “…, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen” 2 Peter 3:18 (NLT).
  • Spring is about praising God and His Son Jesus Christ. The birds do, the flowers do, as does all the rest of nature. They don’t get dressed up for us, they don’t sing for us, they don’t live for us. We simply benefit from what God has created them to be. The old hymn is right, “This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise; the morning light, the lily white declare their Maker’s praise” (This Is My Father’s World, by Maltbie D. Babcock).
  • Spring testifies about God, that He is the author of life, that the beauty surrounding us is a reflection of His beauty, that all of it has sprung from His mind and His heart, “The Mighty One, God, the LORD, has spoken, And summoned the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has shone forth” Psalm 50:1-2 (NASB).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          “Sing to the LORD a new song; Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, bless His name; Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples. For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him, Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength” Psalm 96:1-7 (NASB)

Can I encourage you to take a half an hour and take the beauty of this spring as an invitation from God and the Lord Jesus Christ to think about Him, and life, and how He would have you live it.To God be all glory, love you, Pastor Hans

Where? (Advent)

Where?After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the East arrived unexpectedly in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. So he assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Messiah would be born. “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they told him, “because this is what was written by the prophet: And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the leaders of Judah: because out of you will come a leader who will shepherd My people Israel.” Matthew 2:1-6 (HCSB)“Has anybody seen my keys (wallet, glasses, …)?”“Where do remember having them last?”“If I’d know that I probably wouldn’t be asking!”“Where is that blasted 10 mm wrench? I just had in my hands.”“Where is your brother (sister, father, mother, …)?”“Honey, where’d you say the lunch meat was?”“Third shelf, right behind the mayo?”“I looked there, but I don’t see it?”“(I swear that man is retarded) You’re gonna make me get up and look for it, aren’t you.”“Well, I can’t find it (If she wouldn’t keep hiding things I wouldn’t have to ask).”“Look, it’s right here where I told you!”“No way! I looked all over the fridge, twice.”“Just where do you think you’re going?!”“Where did we/I go wrong in all of this?”“Where is God in all of this?”We often get confused when it comes to “Where?” We misplace things, get lost, find ourselves in unfamiliar surroundings, are in need of help, get our lives off track, … So we ask “where?” God is never confused when it comes to “where?” That’s why it is so smart and wise to walk through life with God, it eliminates a lot of confusion and feeling lost. As you prepare for Christmas the written Word of God (the Bible) challenges us to think about:Where were you? (Job 38:1-4, 40:1-4) Do we really understand who God is?Where are you? (Genesis 3:9) Are we hiding from God?Where will you be? (John 14:1-6) Are you prepared for eternity?To God be all glory, love you, Pastor Hans

John 9- A Challenging God

September 4 2011As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. John 9:1-3 (NASB)Have you ever tried to figure out why something bad happened to someone you know or heard about? Why, “What goes around comes around;” “You reap what you sow,” which is actually in the Bible – Galatians 6:7-8; and don’t forget about karma. We can add to all that our own life experience, stupid decisions and irresponsible actions have some very predictable outcomes (at least most of the time).I don’t know what prompted Jesus’ disciples to wonder about this particular blind man, and I can understand the first part of their question, “Is his disability his parents’ fault, did they sin, and is this God’s punishment for it?” After all there are lots of kids and adults who bear the scars of the transgressions of their parents. However, I am more than puzzled by what they asked next, eventhough they knew the man was born blind. Actually that almost qualifies for a stupid question (and contrary to popular belief there are some stupid questions). “Did he sin?” they asked. Did he get drunk in the womb? Did he kick his mother too hard too often? Did he have foul mouth, and his mother had to keep warning him, “I’ll wash your mouth out with soap just as soon as you come out of there?” Was he already consumed with lust, or greed, or a defiant godlessness? How much can a preborn baby sin?We love for things to make sense, being able to explain things, especially the things we consider bad. If we can’t it challenges our thinking regarding the goodness and the power of God. Jesus’ answer did not help a great deal either, in fact it leaves us even more challenged in our thinking about, and in our understanding of God. “This man’s blindness is not the result of his or his parents’ sin” (and there is sickness that results from sin), Jesus said, “God let him suffer with blindness because he has a purpose for it.” How much do you think the disciples were thrown off by this answer? How much are you?Why and how could God do that? “To display the works of God in him,” does not fit our thinking. Bad effects should be rooted in bad causes. God who is good, who is love, for whom nothing is impossible purposefully exposing us to suffering, disability, and to trials just doesn’t fit. It is not a neat explanation, it requires me to think differently about God, it confronts me with the truth that there is much I don’t understand about God, and Jesus’ answer brings me face to face about how much I really trust God.At this point I am tempted, especially as a preacher, to wax eloquent (which rarely happens), and sooth over the perplexity of what Jesus said here. But I’ll refrain; maybe it is good to be challenged in our view of God, lest we make him too small.To God be all glory, love you, Pastor Hans