Thursday, January 12, 2012

A Heart Like His

It was cool to worship this past Sunday with the guys (and gal) from Line Creek. Made me want to shout “Hallelujah and Hee Haw!”. Thanks ya’ll for making a joyful noise that we could tap our toes to. We’ll look forward to hearing you again on January 28th at our Youth BBQ/Bluegrass Fundraiser Dinner at the Sharpsburg Recreation Center. Tickets will be available in the lobby of the theatre this Sunday.

We also launched back into “The Story” after a long break for the holiday’s. Can you believe we’re already 1/3 of the way through the Bible? So, we started with the story of David as the unlikely choice to be anointed as the next king of Israel. He was the unlikely choice because he didn’t measure up to his brothers in terms of physical appearance. But he was God’s choice because God does not look at the outward appearance. He looks at the heart. And He saw that David’s heart was a heart like His (Acts 13:22).
When He looks at your heart (or my heart)…what does He see?

This matters. As John Eldredge says, “the subject of the heart is addressed in the Bible more than any other topic – more than works or service, more than belief or obedience, more than money, and even more than worship.” Your heart matters to God. And it matters to others. One of my favorite verses on this topic is from Proverbs 4:23. It says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Your heart is the well that everyone else in your life
drinks from. Be careful with it. Guard it. Ask God to help you cultivate a heart like His.

God knew something (lots of something’s actually) that David didn’t know. There was an extremely large Philistine with an attitude – named Goliath - that needed to be eliminated. It took a giant-killer with a heart like David’s to get the job done. What giants are you facing today? Be strong and courageous, “the Lord who rescued me (you) from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me (you) from the hand of this Philistine”. Our God is bigger than our giants!

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Future Tense






This past Sunday’s message was called “Future Tense”. I started thinking about it awhile back, after watching the movie “2012”. The film did not forecast a Happy New Year for us. In fact, it was one in a long line of Hollywood movies (“Armageddon”, “The Day After Tomorrow”, “The Road”, “Contagion”, and “Legend” just to name a few) that predict the end of the world (as we know it) in the not too distant future. Given that the economic, political, environmental, cultural, spiritual and moral climate of our day seems so dark and threatening…it’s not hard to understand why so many of these movies are being made. People sense that something is going to happen.


Maybe something bad. Maybe something soon.

And maybe they’re right. But in Christ, we don’t have to live life as though there were no hope. Our Living Hope is all we really have. And He (Jesus) truly is all we need. So, no matter what the future holds…I am certain of this: "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. To quote a bumper sticker…I don’t know what the future holds – but I do know Who holds the future. That’s good news! It means that in spite of all of the horrible things that sometimes happen in our lives (Lower Story), God has not forgotten us. He has a plan for our rescue (Upper Story). He has a story of redemption to tell and we’re in it!

Makes me want to sing a chorus of “Mighty to Save”…feel free to join me. Because God is too wise to be mistaken. He is too good to be unkind. When I can’t trace His hand, I’ll trust His heart.

Closing Thoughts...


  • Don’t forget that small groups start back up next week. Nick and Heather’s group meets on Sunday afternoons in Fayetteville. Mike and Sherry’s group meets on Monday evenings in Peachtree City. Joe and Robin’s group meets on Wednesday nights in Sharpsburg. And my group meets on Wednesday nights at Casa del Heaton (sort of between Inman and Woolsey). If you haven’t made small group a part of your week…you’re missing something of incredible value. You need this…don’t miss out! For more information on Small Groups, please visit the website (WheresTheSteeple.org) or contact Mike (small group coordinator) Stout or myself.

  • Also, if you missed the message on Sunday and want to know more about the concepts of “Upper Story” and “Lower Story”…I recommend that you pick up a copy of The Story and read about it or just listen into the “Future Tense” message on the website for more detail.