Wednesday, February 22, 2006


Pop & Kids

Park 3

Park 6

Beau 2

Abby 5

Park 2

Abby 4

Park 5

Park 1

Adri 2

Abby 3

Anna 1

Park 4

Adri 1

Anna 2

Monterey Aquarium 4

Abby 1

Sunnydale Jr. (Beau, hereafter)

Monterey Aquarium 2

Abby 2

More ocean view

Monterey Aquarium 3

Monterey Aquarium 1

Waves breaking

Pacific Ocean view

Monday, February 20, 2006

CrossTies Devotional Article For February 19, 2006


More Than One Member
By Bill Denton

For the body is not one member, but many. (1 Corinthians 12:14, NASB95)

Dear Preacher:     There are 566 members in our church, but 100 are frail and elderly.  That leaves 466 to do all the work. However, 80 are young people away at college. That leaves 386 to do all the work.     However, 150 of them are tired businessmen, so that leaves 236 to do all the work. 150 are housewives with children. That leaves 86 to do all the work.     There are also 46 members who have other important interests. Which leaves 40 to do all the work, but 15 live too far away to come regularly.     So that leaves 25 to do all the work. And 23 of them say they've done their part. So, preacher, that leaves YOU and ME and, frankly, I'm exhausted.Good luck to you.A. Member
          Source Unknown

I’ve read several variations on this little illustration.  The numbers vary but the point is the same.  There are many people who make up a church, then it ends up with only one doing all the work.  I’m thankful that’s not true about our congregation.  I continue to be impressed by the number of folks who are actively involved in making our congregation busy and accomplishing good things.  We try to involve everyone who is willing to help, and for the most part, I believe the greater number of people in our church are quick to jump in and participate.

I know that in lots of places it’s not quite like that.  There are lots of churches that match the little illustration above.  Even in churches like ours where the majority of people do pitch in, there are still a few who seem to think “church” only means a place to get things, not to give.

Over the years I’ve heard from some of those folks.  They are the ones who get upset because someone didn’t do something for them.  They seem to be extremely sensitive to being overlooked, left out, ignored, or forgotten.  Sometimes, it seems that people have a great propensity for overlooking all the good that is done for them, unless one of the “special” people do it.  I once knew a family whose daughter was terminally ill.  Numbers of people sat with them at the hospital, prayed for them, cooked meals, etc.  After the daughter died, they were very critical, commenting that the church hadn’t done much for them.  I understand about grief, but I also understand that this was their view long before, and long after, the death of their daughter.  I’ve known others who seemed to think that nobody else’s prayer counted unless the preacher came by to pray.  Once, I met an elder and his wife coming out of a lady’s hospital room where they had just visited.  When I went in, the lady said, “I’ve waited all day for someone to come pray for me.”  Did the elder pray for her?  Yes, but I guess it didn’t count.  The body of Christ is more than one member.  Any particular congregation is more than one member.  It takes all of us, and the more the better.  When the body works well, don’t ignore it.

© Copyright  2006, Dr. Bill DentonAll Rights Reserved.Articles may not be reprinted in any "for profit" publication without further permission by the author. Articles may be freely distributed via e-mail, reprinted in church bulletins or in other non-profit publications without further permission. Please keep this copyright and Web Site information intact with copied articles. Articles are sent originally to subscribers only. You may have received a forwarded or reprinted copy.   http://www.crossties.org
 
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Wednesday, February 15, 2006

CrossTies Devotional Article For February 12, 2006



Nine Years Out Of Your Life
By Bill Denton

Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:15-17, NASB95).

     Rafael Antonio Lozano is a man with a mission, albeit a strange one. The 33-year-old computer programmer from Plano, Texas, is on a quest to visit every company-owned Starbucks on the planet.
     Lozano, who calls himself Winter, began his mission in 1997, when there were 1,304 such stores worldwide. Today, there are over 6,000 in 37 countries. As of October 31st, 2005, Winter had visited 4,918 Starbucks in North America, in addition to 213 others around the globe.
     Despite his impressive pace, Winter is realistic about the nature of his quest, saying, "As long as they keep building Starbucks, I'll never be finished." He is also realistic about the importance of his mission. "Every time I reach a Starbucks, I feel like I've accomplished something," he said, "when actually I've accomplished nothing."
Jayne Clark, "Sooner or Latte, He'll Get There," USAToday.com (10-13-05)

Now there’s a busy guy, though it seems that neither he nor I would describe his busyness as accomplishing anything particularly worthwhile.  Maybe he should have talked to the Starbucks people and got them to pay for all his trips and coffee and use him to advertise their coffee shops.  As it stands, I can’t see where he’s doing anything worthwhile.

Lest we get on this fellow’s case too harshly, perhaps it would behoove us to consider whether we are accomplishing anything better.  Silly thought, you say?  Well, let’s think about it.

Take TV time, just as an example.  According to the A.C. Nielson Co., the average American watches 3 hours and 46 minutes of TV daily.  That works out to more than 52 days of non-stop TV watching each year -- almost two months!  By the age of 65, that average American will have spent nearly 9 years watching TV.  What could you do with 9 years?  Learn several new skills?  Travel to distant places?  Get 2 or 3 college degrees?  Learn to speak a second language?  Write a book?  Maybe none of that interests you, but surely there is something you’d like to do that having 9 years available would give you a big start toward doing it.

What’s really amazing are the number of people who don’t seem to think they have time for spiritual activities.  We’re too busy to attend Bible classes.  Worship, with the possible exception of Sunday mornings, often interferes with TV time (remember I’m one of the people who grew up having to decide between Walt Disney’s Sunday night TV program and church!).  TV isn’t our only problem, just one - but it is a big one.

Next time you are tempted to claim you don’t have enough time to do something, figure out if you’re an average American.  If so, you’ve got more available time than you think.

© Copyright  2006, Dr. Bill DentonAll Rights Reserved.Articles may not be reprinted in any "for profit" publication without further permission by the author. Articles may be freely distributed via e-mail, reprinted in church bulletins or in other non-profit publications without further permission. Please keep this copyright and Web Site information intact with copied articles. Articles are sent originally to subscribers only. You may have received a forwarded or reprinted copy.   http://www.crossties.org
 
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Sunday, February 05, 2006

CrossTies Devotional Article for February 5, 2006

Person of the Year:  God!
By Bill Denton

“Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 4:11, NASB95)

Annually, Time picks the Person of the Year to appear on the cover of its magazine. Previous honorees were asked whom they would select for 2006, and Coleen Rowley, former FBI agent and whistleblower chosen for the honor in 2002, responded:
I think the "Person" of the Year should be God. On the one hand, more people seem certain they know God's will on the social issues of the day. On the other, all of us feel the need to find answers as we confront the "acts of God" dominating the news, like diseases and global catastrophes.
               "Some Past Honorees Give Their Picks for This Year," Time (11-21-05)

I understand Ms. Rowley’s suggestion, and must confess to a great deal of agreement with the sentiment.  On the other hand, how would we ever have anyone but God as Person of the Year?  It seems to me that God would dominate, if He were given a fair consideration.

It does bring up a question about honoring God.  He doesn’t have to be chosen for Time’s cover and granted a title.  It’s entirely appropriate for us to recognize those among us who stand out and deserve some special consideration.  Honor for God should greatly supercede a magazine cover layout, or a special edition dedication.

Both Paul and John, writing respectively in the books of Romans and Revelation, draw upon the idea of honoring God.  Paul said in Romans that failing to honor God stood at the brink of a precipitous plunge into sin.  John writes of his glimpse into the heavenly scene where the twenty-four elders proclaim their obeisance to God having acknowledged His right to receive glory, honor and power.  After all, God is creator of all, therefore all should acknowledge the relative positions of both themselves and the God who created everything.

I suppose in some way, this may sound like some very complicated thing, but it’s not really.  I once heard a fellow say (probably quoting someone else who originated this statement), that the greatest lesson he ever learned was this:  There is a God and I’m not Him.

Honoring God begins with a recognition that He exists.  Go back and read the first chapter of Romans.  Man’s downward spiral into ruin started with a lack of honor for God that eventually led to an outright denial of God.  Lack of honor for God resulted in man elevating all sorts of things into the place of God.  Sometimes it was in the form of idols.  Much of the time, we elevate ourselves into God’s place.  Honoring God, starts by acknowledging His existence.  Everything else flows from that.  Once there is God, other things fall into place.  Who do you honor?

© Copyright  2006, Dr. Bill DentonAll Rights Reserved.Articles may not be reprinted in any "for profit" publication without further permission by the author. Articles may be freely distributed via e-mail, reprinted in church bulletins or in other non-profit publications without further permission. Please keep this copyright and Web Site information intact with copied articles. Articles are sent originally to subscribers only. You may have received a forwarded or reprinted copy.   http://www.crossties.org
 
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