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APRIL 12 "WHEN GOD DOESN'T MAKE SENSE"

  Joshua is a pretty impressive fellow! If I asked you to quickly mention something negative, most would not be able to give an answer within 30 seconds, try it! Couldn't come up with anything, could you? In our story today we do see signs of human frailty in Joshua. Right after the great conquest and victory of Jericho, Joshua sends in a small dispatch of 3000 men to go in an wipe out a small segment of enemies remaining on the outskirts, but when those men come back with their tales between their legs and explain how they were defeated and had to retreat, Joshua falls apart. Joshua starts blurting out statements as, "we should have just stayed on the other side of the Jordan" Really?! Joshua begins to panic and blurt out that now all their enemies will hear about this defeat and they will be doomed. He goes into panic mode and a defeatist mindset. It just goes to show, how easily our confidence is broken. One loss, one set back and our faith crumbles. After a victory, ...
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APRIL 11 "WHO WANTS TO GO TO A PARTY?"

  We all want to go to a party right? "Well, that all depends on who's having it", we would say. I guess you could say, "a Christian" (can we call JESUS a CHRISTIAN?) is having this party, still want to go? "I guess that means there won't be any alcohol?" Probably not! " I guess there won't be any drugs there?" You guessed right! " and I guess there won't be any chance of "hooking up" at this party either?" No, there won't be any hooking up, that's for sure! So, just let me know if you are going to be going? "Oh, I can tell you right now, I'm not going, sounds like a pretty lame party to me. I don't know who you're going to be able to get to go to that party". For many people, "a Christian Party" is an Oxymoron, because it's missing all the elements of a good party, ie: SIN! Jesus gives us a parable of a party He is throwing and people are not overtly interested in go...
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APRIL 10 "WHY SHOULD I FIGHT FOR THEM?"

I don't know how they did it, they, being the tribe of Gad, Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh, but they did. They left their wives and children behind to go fight for the rest of the Israelites that still had not possessed their land. Imagine knowing and or thinking..."this is crazy, I have my inheritance, my land and here I am, out here fighting, I could get killed doing this and never get to go back to my family, who am I fighting for and why?! Let them fight for this land, they are the ones that want it, I already settled for my land on the other side of the Jordan!" I know what you are going to say, "they had already promised they would when Moses agreed to let them have that land". And to that I say, "big deal!" People promise all sorts of things when they are excited, but when reality sets in they retract every promise they made under the guise of, "it was irrational, c'mon, I was to excited to be thinking straight, I mean what would...
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APRIL 9 "GIVE IT A YEAR"

  In our reading today, we read a very good parable about a fig tree that is about to be chopped down, for the simple reason, it's not producing figs. For 3 years now this fig tree has been visited, never once bearing any fruit, finally the command is made, to "chop it down". Your average person, would have said, "sure, if the stupid tree is not producing figs, cut it down, what do I care". However the average person is not the subject of this parable. It is a man that is above average. We would do well to have men and women like him in the church. He steps in on behalf of the tree and negotiates for the tree's life, even though it has no bearing on him. Not only does he negotiate for the tree's life, but makes a commitment to invest in the tree, do some digging, add some fertilizer, anything to give this tree "one more year". What a difference a year can make! The wisdom of this simple sentence, how many lives could have been saved from much h...
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APRIL 8 "READY OR NOT, HERE I COME"

 It's hard to believe, that we "Christians" actually get a warning from God, that He's coming back and that some of us are still not going to be ready! And even with this warning, even with time to get things right, many of us will still be caught with our pants down, figuratively of course! Actually, in some cases it will be quite literally! I believe that God's frustration with us, is not a whole lot different than his frustration with the Israelites in the Old Testament reading. It doesn't help that we have Preachers teaching that once you get saved you can do whatever you want and you will still make Heaven your home. This kind of preaching really takes the punch out of Jesus' warning to us to get ready or else! Or else what? If I'm going to Heavan, then what? What is there to watch for, what is there to be ready for? Jesus is clear to illustrate in His story "that they that know what they should be doing and don't do it, will be greatly p...
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APRIL 7 "IT'S ALL JUST DOOM AND GLOOM"

  There's a lot of negativity in today's Old Testament reading. Moses is telling them they need to memorize a song because it will serve as a testimony against them when they enter the land they have been promised. God seems upset with these people, Moses seems upset with these people. The Church of Jesus Christ remains a Paradox. It is both a very pleasant place and a very negative place. God has worked with these people knowing the end result, how much more so are we required to work with difficult and ungrateful people, NOT knowing the results. It's a difficult bunch, this group of Israelites seems like they just can't live for God with any measure of long term faithfulness. The Church is in a constant flux. The average Church functions somewhere along these lines.....for every 20 people added to the Church 10-15 leave, net gain, 5! Ministry leaders and laymen are being removed from ministry, other members are having to be removed from Church all together, there are ...
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APRIL 6 "WHY ARE YOU SO FRUSTRATED?"

       It’s so easy for the ones who frustrate others, to be sanctimonious and criticize them, “wow, they get so angry”.  Its so easy for those that disobey the law to criticize those that do obey it and have to enforce and it’s so easy for “the lawbreakers” (us sinners) to criticize the God who has made those laws and offer to bless us in return and spare us from harm. And its not just “do what I tell you or else!” It’s do what I tell you and it will be to your benefit. Sound like a good deal? For some reason, humans say, “ no, it’s not a good deal, I reject it and I want to do what I want; and it still better go well for me, or I will smear your name.”      God then points out a major flaw in our thinking, “ when such a person hears the words of this oath, he invokes a blessing on himself and thinks, I will be safe, even though I persist in going my own way ” If that doesn’t describe the insane, religious, community we live in. The fallacy that ...
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