Rain, weather, and changing people

Warning! In this pastor’s note you will be asked to help and to respond. So if you you’re saying to yourself, “I’d rather not,” then right now get up, walk away to do something else, but don’t read on. If you read this far and if you’re thinking, “I’ll read what that preacher has to say and then decide if I will respond and help,” consider yourself caught. From this point if you read on it is like when you have clicked the “next” button after you have checked off the license agreement on a computer. Well, I see you read even further, you obviously have no intention of walking away until you’ve read it all. I take that as a sign of good faith on your part, that I can count on you to interact and help.As you might know this rain season we have had not near enough precipitation here in Central California. It certainly has not been the first time or the last. I suppose this is the reason various cultures have invented a rain dance. Now trying to change the weather with my dancing skills would surely result in the opposite, an extreme drought. But yesterday I was reminded that some of my activities, in complete defiance of statistical probability, seem to be followed by rain. You ask, “What were you doing?” I sprayed weeds for several hours, and bam, by this morning it rained. The same seems to be true for planning a camping trip. Someone else told me that for them it is washing the cars. Would you email me (theGermanShepherd@juno.com) what seems to be your version of the rain dance.  And I apologize for having been so slack in spraying weeds and planning camping trips. All kidding aside, we have prayed for rain, and God who holds sway over all things has been gracious (Matthew 5:45).Thinking about the weather made me think about “things I cannot change.” It is astounding how many there are. The weather, gravity and other laws of nature, the time, my age, your age, the past, stupidity (stupid is always stupid), people’s hearts, … What would you add to that list? Yup, you guessed it, email me that too.God is in the people changing business, turning spiritually lost people into saved men and women, spiritually dead people into regenerated people, sinners into saints, enemies of His into beloved children of God, the broken into the restored, the hopeless into champions of faith, the violent into peace makers, the greedy into givers, the evil into Christlikeness (yes, email me what you would add to that list as well). And here you and I thought changing the weather was difficult. That’s why I am asking for your help. God has called us, you and me, Christians, the Lake Don Pedro Baptist Church into the people changing business, “follow me and I will you make fishers of men (Mark 1:17-18).” I am asking you that between now and Easter to join me in doing two things: 1. Pray for specific people to come to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. 2. Each week invite at least five people to join you in your Bible study group and in a church service. I am sure that as smart as you are you will email or give a list of the people you are praying for and a list of those that you want to invite.May God let it pour! Love you, Pastor Hans