Vacation Thanks

Wow, I have so much to write about and many people to thank as I return from vacation.

First, I want to thank the choice people of CrossPoint for allowing me some much needed time off. I needed the break, and now I am ready to return to the weekly routine of preaching God’s Word and casting God’s vision for CrossPoint.

I want to express gratitude to Mandi Logan and Jason Motte for writing my blog in my absence. I knew they would do an excellent job. Well done. You inspired us.

As for John Thweatt, I have issued a LIFETIME BAN from JUSTONEMORE.INFO as well as from the CrossPoint campus. He will never be allowed, ever again, to write in my absence or to preach for my people. He is a reprobate, and we should pray for him to some day be saved.

As for Vaughn Harris, his blogs were most insightful. I especially appreciated his video from John Piper. We are both big Piper fans. However, when he used his pastor’s blog to write sweet, syrupy, and mushy things about his wife, then that is where I had to draw the line. I have no problem with a man bragging about his wife; other men would be wise to follow Vaughn’s example. His using my blog to do that kind of thing got me in some hot water with my wife, nonetheless. Immediately, she inquired why I have never written about her. Vonda said, “You’ve written about your kids, about your church, and I think even about your mother, but you have never written anything about me on your blog.”

Thanks a lot, Vaughn.

Indoor Picnic

What did you think about the indoor picnic? CrossPoint showed her true colors when she kicked into Plan B and moved the picnic indoors. Aren’t you thankful we have the new dining hall to accommodate our growing family?

Wasn’t it awesome to witness 10 new believers professed their faith in Christ through baptism?

And, for those who took the tour, what did you think about the second building in our Phase II project?

The building is awesome, isn’t it? The more I tour the facility, the more I see it’s potential. Get ready CrossPoint, the moment we open the building we will never be the same.

Poem

I promised to provide you the poem from yesterday’s message yesterday. Every time I read it, I am reminded of how God used those thoughts in my life in 1998. I trust it influences you as well.

When God Wants to Drill a Man
Author Unknown

When God wants to drill a man,
and thrill a man;
When God wants to mold a man
to the play the noblest part;
when He yearns with all His heart
to create so great and bold a man
that all the world should be amazed
Watch His methods, watch His ways!

How He ruthlessly perfects
whom He royally elects!

How He hammers him and hurts him
and with mighty blows converts him
into trial shapes of clay which
only God understands;
while his tortured heart is crying
And he lifts beseeching hands!

How He bends but never breaks
when His good he undertakes;
how He uses who He chooses;
and with every purpose fuses him;
by every act induces him
to try His splendor out—
God knows what He’s about.

And, finally…

I am curious. Who is going to fast this week? And, what are you fasting? I want to hear from you AFTER your fast, so that it may be done in secret. Remember, the reward is MORE…not less.

Hugs For Everyone!!

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster for justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

Based on our site report from the past 24-48 hours, people have visited this site from Florida, Arizona, Missouri, South Carolina, Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Georgia, and, of course, Alabama. Please don't let this scare you. We do not spy on you. We only use this meter to track the locations of our readers so we can better serve you and so that we don't fall into a rut of writing about things from which people outside of CrossPoint could not benefit.

So, to everyone, wherever you are, I leave you with a big hug and a video by one of my favorite music groups, The Dave Matthews Band.

You Never, Never, Never, Never, Never, Never, Never, Never Outgrow Your Need for the Gospel!!

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster for justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

On my last day as guest blogger(actually I have a surprise for you tomorrow), I wanted to share with you a great video of one of my heroes. John Piper is the Preaching Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN. He has a little website at desiringGod.org but is more well known for writing a book or fifty. I love this guy. I hope you enjoy this. Check back tomorrow for a Saturday fun blog.

You can never outgrow your need for the gospel. Get it through your head!!!

About My Wife

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster for justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

My beautiful wife, Ambre, and I will be celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on December 7. I am reminded on a daily basis how much of a great responsibility being a parent is. Since I started working from my home office, I see my wife and what she does day in and day out. We are truly blessed that Ambre, my beautiful wife, has been able to stay home with our three children. If you don't yet know, our third child is due on February 5, 2008. I'll be the first to say that our finances would be much better if Ambre could work. But, knowing that every little advancement and growth spurt Bryant and Gavin have, Ambre is the first to see it. That is awesome to me. There's no price tag you can put on watching first-hand the development of your child. I believe that God has blessed our efforts and commitment and will continue doing so.

I wanted to take a moment to profess my love for my wife to everyone who reads this blog. As I hear all too often of men walking out on their wife and family, I want my wife to know that I am more in love with her today than I ever have been. I am fully and most affectionately committed to our friendship, relationship, and marriage until death separates us. I will be drastic as necessary so I never put myself into a situation where my fidelity, loyalty, and faithfulness to her could ever be questioned or compromised. I want my relationship with my wife to be a firm example to my boys of how Christ loves the church and how to treat a woman. I am committed to displaying such a Godly example to them that they won't settle for just any girl, but a Godly woman that is radically in love with Jesus. I want my wife's life to be the example of the type of woman that my boys will desire in a mate. I am committed to being the spiritual leader in my home. Never will my wife be put in the situation where she is "dragging" me to church. I want my wife to know that I am committed to her happiness and well-being. Although we now have roles as parents, I am committed to not forgetting our role as husband and wife. I don't want our last child to move out of the house then look at my wife and say, "Who are you?" I am committed to continuing to pursue her as I did when dating her. I am committed to dating her through our marriage. (Guys, your wife will love it if you call her and ask her out on a date just like when you were pursuing her before you got married. They dig that!!!) I have bought into the philosophy that spending money on babysitters now is cheaper than spending money on divorce attorneys later.

So, Ambre, I love you with all my heart and I'm looking forward to growing old with you. I want the only thing that can separate us to be death. And even when it tries, it will have a fight on its hands!”

I just wanted to brag a little bit on my wife and how much I appreciate her and what she is doing for our family. She is a true blessing that I am honored to spend my life with her. By the way, if God ever tells you to donate your vacation cottage for weekend getaway for a young couple, please email me. :-)

First justonemore.info Poll

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster for justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

I used to hate trying to figure out things on the computer. But over the past couple of years I have learned to embrace technology. Technology is now my friend. It can be used for good and for evil. I am determined to use technology for the cause of advancing God's kingdom.

One cool tool is the use of web polls. To the right, you will discover justonemore.info's first web poll. Please take a moment to look at it and participate. This will give us valuable feedback to make sure we serve you and equip you better for ministry.

Keep it real!!

Can You Do It?

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster of justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

As some of you may know, I love investing time with our students. Understand this: Our youth are NOT the "church of tomorrow"; they're the church of TODAY!! If you study some of the great revivals in history, they started with young people! Folks, let me tell you this: Our students are ON FIRE for GOD!!! They fire me up every time I'm around them. They genuinely weep over their lost friends. They burn with desire to know God in a deep, intimate level. I'm not talking about a short-lived "warm and fuzzy" that takes place on the last night of church camp when everybody cries, hugs each other, and sings "Friends Are Friends Forever". These students take up their cross daily and follow Him and quite frankly, it challenges me to grow deeper in my spiritual walk. This transformation may surprise you especially if you knew the sinful lifestyle of some of these students a year ago. I've heard many first-hand accounts about how within the past year, God has delivered some of our students out of premarital sex, drug abuse, alcohol abuse, etc. I get pumped up just thinking about it!!


The other night at a student home group meeting, I told my group that as leaders, they must be prepared to share the plan of salvation and they must also be able to counsel someone on what to do once that person prays to receive Christ. So many churches share the plan of salvation, but never follow up after someone prays to receive Christ. I was taken aback when I asked who knew how to lead someone through the plan of salvation. No one knew!! I then posed a question that I pretty much knew that answer: Who knows what to tell someone after they pray to receive Christ? These questions immediately prompted one of the leaders of the small group to call a mandatory meeting for all small groups. At this meeting, which had near perfect attendance, out students were trained on how to lead someone through the plan of salvation. They were then trained on how to counsel someone after they pray to receive Christ. In that part of the training, baptism was discussed heavily. So many times we think that our faith in Christ is a personal and private issue when in reality He has called us all to go public, and the main way we go public is through our baptism. I clearly explained to the group that baptism is something done AFTER salvation and that you only need to be water baptized if you have not been baptized since receiving Christ. After the training session our student leaders were spontaneously asked who in that group had not been baptized. Lets put it this way: Very soon there will be 5 or 6 student leaders that will publicly identify themselves with Christ by being immersed in the water grave as a symbol of what Christ did for them on the cross!!


Here's my question: Can you lead someone through the plan of salvation? Can you give someone Godly counsel on the steps to take after they pray to receive Christ? Have you been water baptized by immersion? Some of the students that needed to be baptized in that group were infant baptized in a Catholic church, sprinkled in a Methodist church, and had been baptized prior to assuring their salvation. Can you relate with one of these students? My challenge to you is this: Be ready to share the plan of salvation and also be ready to give steps to help spiritual growth for new believers. Mark 16:16 plainly talks about baptism. Have you been immersed? If not, I challenge you to join some of our students in water baptism at out church-wide picnic on July 29. Let us celebrate with you as you obey Jesus' commandment to be baptized.

What Do YOU Expect?

posted by Vaughn Harris, webmaster of justonemore.info and member of CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

Over the years I have developed certain expectations. I expect my service at a restaurant to be excellent. I expect my car to start when I get into it each morning (sometimes I get let down). I expect my boys to get along most of the time. Nothing extravagant, nothing life changing, just some expectations I have embraced over the years. I’m sure there are many, many more but these are just a few.

A few months ago, two teen girls invited a friend to our church for the first time. This friend did not walk into our student ministry in possession of a relationship with Christ and probably didn’t expect to leave with one. But as we worshiped, as we loved each other, as the word of God was opened, God did something in this girls’ life that caused her to surrender her life to Christ. The girls who brought her said, “I am really surprised. I just didn’t expect it. This is awesome!”

In my heart I thought, “Why not?” Why didn’t you expect God’s love to come through? Why didn’t you expect the power of the Gospel to penetrate her soul? Why didn’t you expect the Jesus we love and serve to become her friend? Why didn’t you expect the Holy Spirit to draw this girl to the Savior?

Many Christians I know who share Christ do not expect a life to change, but they are mildly optimistic. If we even attempt, we cringe when we share Christ, we timidly invite people to church, and we hem haw at opportunities when we should be saying, “I know SOMEONE who can help.” In other words we know what God can do, were just not sure He will. We know what God wants to do, we’re just not sure that He will.

Let’s look at what Paul wrote:

“What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.”

I Corinthians 3:5-7 ESV

These words are saturated with expectation. He is saying, when someone plants and someone waters – GOD DOES SOMETHING! All farmers have the expectation of plant, water, grow. They know they plant and water and then wait with EXPECTATION. Jesus told us the same thing when He said, “…the fields are white and ready – go harvest”. We must expect a harvest.

What would happen if everyone who knows Jesus suddenly thought, “Wow, I have the gospel and it is the power of for salvation. I EXPECT when I share it, something in the eternal realm is happening and God is bringing His power to bear upon the hearts of people trapped in darkness, I EXPECT Him to win.” Would having this expectation alter how often we share Christ with others? Would having this expectation alter how we bring people to church? Would having this expectation help define and clarify our role in the process?

I have learned that when I EXPECT God to do something in someone’s life, I see opportunities for God to show up as opposed to people who would never believe. When I EXPECT God to do something in someone’s life, my prayer life is more focused on God and His will being done here on earth than my needs being met. When I EXPECT God to do something in someone’s life, I see my role as to either plant or water and then to fully trust that God will cause growth. When I EXPECT God to do something in someone’s life, I ignore what I might have to lose in sharing Christ and develop a passion for what others might have to gain. When I EXPECT God to do something in someone’s life, I become less surprised by what God does and become more amazed by who He is.

Blessed to be a Blessing

posted by Dr. John Thweatt, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church in Pell City, AL

I have been talking to you about missions. I think one of the greatest things about getting out of our culture is seeing just how blessed we really are. God has given us so much and to whom much is given much is expected. I don't think we should ever feel bad about being blessed, but we should realize that we are not blessed to be blessed--we are blessed to be a blessing.

John said, "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth." I want to close my time as a guest blogger with a shocking set of photo's. I can tell you the world around us is hurting and in the midst of thier suffering there are people looking for love and we have the greatest love to share. God's love is so great that He would rather die to have us than to live without us--what will we do with a love like that? The only thing I know to do it to share it. It is just too good to keep to ourselves.

Total Transformation

posted by Dr. John Thweatt, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church in Pell City, AL

One of my favorite things about CrossPoint is the number of stories Ryan tells me that deal with total transformation. When a person places faith in the Gospel message he or she is converted and at that moment the old is gone and the new has come. From time to time I will talk to someone about a member of our church and they will tell me what he used to be like—I just cannot believe it. He is totally different now and the change is due to one thing—He met Jesus.

Recently I began meeting with a young man in our church. He was experimenting with a number of things and his life was falling apart. I shared the Gospel with him and one day he called me and said, “I’m ready to become a Christian now.” The next time he came into my office the transformation was stunning. He just wasn’t the same person. Paul said it like this (Galatians 2:20), “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Bob Roberts said, “The journey of transformation begins with legitimate conversion. To convert means to change over, to switch. Following are some myths about conversion that make it difficult for us to understand what it actually entails.”

“There is a myth that conversion means making a better me, improving who I am. However, Scripture contradicts that theory because it teaches we are totally lost and depraved apart from God. Conversion is far more than taking a lot person and conquering bad habits.

There is also a myth that conversion means praying the sinner’s prayer. This is wrong; it means more than mouthing words. It is possible to pray the sinner’s prayer and not be converted. First John 2:3 says, “We know that we have come to know him” because we obey his commands. We know it by the kind of life we are producing.

You may be familiar with the lingering myth that conversion is the epitome of spirituality. No, it is just the beginning. Churches who gauge themselves by baptisms, attendance, and membership do not emphasize what we are producing as much as how fast we are producing it…We know that conversion is not the end all of spirituality. What numbers do you talk about the most?

Many churches inadvertently promote the myth that conversion means going to church and jumping through the hoops…

Of course, some buy into the myth that conversion is nice, but not total, allowing one to continue to have a secular and spiritual dichotomy. However, Jesus taught that there is no separation in the life of a believer of the secular and spiritual; we are one being.

Finally, there is the myth that conversion is primarily fire insurance. Wrong! "That’s only a benefit and not the motivation.” (Transformation, pp. 66-68)

Obviously, transformation doesn’t mean we are perfect, but if you and I are justified then God will begin the process of sanctification and will continue that until He calls us home. When it comes to salvation it isn’t all about what we can do for God—it is about what He will do in us. Paul said, “The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God.” When it comes to salvation all we bring to the table is the sin which makes our salvation necessary. We bring the sin and Jesus brings everything else, but when we respond to His salvation in faith the transformation is amazing!

The Power of the Gospel

posted by Dr. John Thweatt, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church in Pell City, AL

[Just for the record—if you go to Monday’s blog you’ll notice a key phrase in the first paragraph, “I have been thinking for the last few weeks of what stories I could make up…” I did not say Ryan was actually doing those things!!]

Yesterday I wrote about doing missions. I think the thing that changed my life forever was something that happened on the first trip we took to Kenya. We spent the day doing Back Yard Bible Clubs and Medical Clinics and then preached in open air crusades every night. Driving in Kenya is always an experience, but there was one particular area that we drove through almost every day that was unlike any other area. We knew we were there by the smell—on one side of the road they dumped their trash and got rid of it by burning it. The stench was awful, but not quite as awful as looking at the children picking through the trash trying to find something to eat.

When we reached that area our driver made us roll up our windows and put our cameras away. When asked why, he would always say, “Dangerous.” Well, we would drive through that area and go to other areas to preach that had been preached in for several years. In other words we were going to areas that had already been fished and most of the fish were already caught. I asked the pastor in Mombassa about the area and wondered aloud why we were preaching in areas that were already fished while we drove through areas so dangerous that we had to roll up the window. Pastor Joseph caught the vision and said, “We should go and preach there.” Needless to say this wasn’t a real popular idea with many of the other pastors who insisted it was simply too dangerous for us to be there.

I left the decision to them, but prayed that we could spend the last two nights of our mission trip preaching where they really needed to hear the Gospel. That afternoon I came back from a Back Yard Bible Club and was informed that we were going to preach in the area. I was also told that I needed to leave my passport, ring, and watch with the group and that I was to take just enough money to get back to the hotel in case something happened. I have preached Jesus’ words, “Take up your cross and follow me…” but for the first time I was faced with the reality—I might not make it back.

I wrote Kim a letter and told her how much I loved her and the girls and then prepared to go. We drove up to the place and the music was already playing and the tension was really thick. The looks on the faces of most of the crowd asked the question, “What are you doing here?” We were introduced and then something amazing happened. David Thew walked up to the microphone and started singing a song he learned in college—it just happened to be in Kiswahili—their language! The tension was gone, the frowns became smiles, and I knew God was about to move. I preached that night and 80 people came to Christ. We went back the next night and 120 people made professions of faith. We were willing to take a God-called risk and 200 people came to Christ.

The rest of the story still hasn’t been told—the next year we drove through the same area and I noticed we were not told to roll up our windows. I asked Pastor Joseph if it was the same place and he said yes. It was no longer dangerous—the Gospel had transformed a whole region. That is the power of the Gospel. Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Do you believe that? The Gospel we preach is transforming, but it has to be shared. It can change anyone, but they must hear it to be changed.

The best book I have ever read on missions is John Piper’s Let the Nations Be Glad, but I read another book not too long ago that was also really good—Transformation, by Bob Roberts. I will talk more about his book tomorrow, but let me close with a question he asked, “If community transformation became the measure of our success, how would our churches and our communities look different? How would we look different?” Great question—more on that tomorrow, but for now let me just encourage you to share the Gospel!

Great Commission, Great Joy

posted by Dr. John Thweatt, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church in Pell City, AL

One of the greatest joys I have in life is being involved in missions. In the last six years I have made six trips to Kenya, a trip to Tanzania, Honduras, and in March I went on a backpacking trip to Madagascar where we did survey work among several un-reached villages. I love to go and do missions. I love to see others go and do missions. One of our church members just got back from Costa Rica where his 13-year-old daughter led 40 people to Christ.

That is no doubt my greatest joy, but the greatest cause of grief comes when I hear that there are people who do not share the vision for world wide missions. From time to time I will hear people question our focus. One reason for the opposition to our spending and going overseas is the fact that there are so many needs right here where we live. I have no doubt that there are many needs right here and we should do all we can to meet them, but research shows that five out of six of the world's non-Christians can only be reached by cross-cultural missionaries. They are found in people groups where there is no indigenous church to reach them. I live in a city where there is a church on every street corner, a Christian presence on every TV and Radio, and where they even sell Bibles at Wal-Mart and yet there are billions of people who have absolutely no opportunity to hear the Gospel. Doesn’t it make sense that we try to focus on the un-reached people groups or at least try to train those who can reach them?

We don't feel the dreadful force of this state of affairs because we don't look beyond America. Back in the 1980’s there was a major study which reported that in America there is 1 (so-called) evangelical for every 3 adults. There is 1 vocational Christian worker for every 296 people and there is one church for every 800 people, but in India for example, there is one Christian church for every 8,000 people and one Christian worker for every 4,500 people.

Maybe we can try to understand this by picturing ten men lifting a log; except that nine of the men are on one end of the log and one on the other. There are 190 countries in the world with proportionately fewer Christian workers than we have. Of these, 45 have less than one-tenth as many Christian workers in relation to their population as we have. Yet year in and year out, we send men and women to the wrong end of the log.

The simple fact is that the deployment of Christian troops in the world is proof that the church in America does not yet have a war-time mentality. There are many who question the number of troops we have in Iraq, but you have to send the troops to where the battle is. Think about the days before we entered WWII. What if our country had the same mindset toward war as the church does? If they shared our mindset when we drafted two million men we would send twelve hundred overseas to fight Hitler and 1.998 million to Arsenal in Anniston.

John Piper said, “One of the dangers of Arminianism is that it teaches men to usurp the place of God in conversion. One of the dangers of Calvinism is that it leads some to deny the place of man in evangelism. If the Book of Acts teaches anything it teaches that the Holy Spirit wills to reach the end of the earth through us.” It is not a question of “Has God called me to go?” The question is, “Has God called me to stay home?” God wants to use us to reach this world and the Bible clearly states that there are some who are going to go and there are those who are going to send, but we are all called to be involved in reaching lost people. To send them is to provide for their needs and to do all that you can to pave the way for them to go in your place, but it is also to be involved in reaching the man across the street while they reach the man across the ocean.

The Spirit wants the world for Christ; and a church deploying people into the world will be mightily blessed by God at home. It is time for churches to move dramatically with the Spirit in world evangelization. If you are a child of God you are a “chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

I hope you see the purpose of all that you have been declared to be. God didn’t do all of that just so you could be a blessed—God did all of it so that you could “proclaim the excellences of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” You were not blessed to be personally blessed—you were blessed to be blessing.

Let me encourage you to get involved in missions here at home and across the world. The amazing thing is that if you will look around you the world is coming to you. I know Ryan shared the story of calling the 800 number to get help with his computer and talking to someone in India. This weekend I hired a couple of men to help work in our yard and they were from Mexico. In Huntsville Bill and Ora Parr taught English as a second language to countless numbers of people from China and I was privileged to baptize several of them. When you go eat a restaurant or go to a class in Birmingham you may well come across someone who was born in an un-reached people group. Why not get to know them. I can tell you from experience—being in a strange culture is a lonely experience. Look around you and reach your world one person at a time!

What a Friend I Have In Ryan!

posted by Dr. John Thweatt, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church in Pell City, AL

I can’t believe Ryan let me have his blog for a week! I have been thinking for the last few weeks of what stories I could make up—for instance I thought about telling you that he called me the first week of his vacation telling me he was laying naked on a raft in the middle of the pool drinking strawberry daiquiris wondering what day it was, but I didn’t want that mental picture to ruin your morning!
Then I thought about telling you how he went to a tattoo parlor to get his belly button pierced and to get GOD’S WORD tattooed on his knuckles, but I was pretty sure you wouldn’t buy that one either so I thought I would just tell you the real story, but I knew if you wouldn’t buy the ones I made up you certainly wouldn’t believe what really happened!!
So I decided to restrain myself and to spend some time today telling you why I love your pastor. We met several years ago through Steve Parr’s parents. Bill and Ora were members of the church in Huntsville where I served as pastor. I was feeling God call me to a prolonged fast and didn’t know what to do so I called a friend in Huntsville who walked me through it and prayed for me every day while I fasted.
As I was finishing the fast, God was calling Ryan to the same type of fast. He shared that with Steve and Steve told him to contact me and I was able to walk him through it and pray for him every day. That started a relationship that has gone south ever since!
My parents used to use to say someone was joined at the hip with someone when they were close. I can honestly say I am not joined at Ryan’s hip, but we are joined in several other areas. For example:

• We are joined at the call. I cannot tell you how important it is to have a friend who knows what you are going through and know one knows what a pastor goes through like another pastor. I know Ryan has referred to Buddy, Ron and me often and I know Ron and I refer to each other just as much. (Buddy is smart enough to keep our friendship a secret!) 1 Samuel 18 speaks of David and Jonathan’s friendship—“As soon as he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.” There are times God graces us with friends who share His same call and when we can find a friend like that we are truly blessed!


• We are joined at the run. Many of you have heard the story. Ryan had finished his first marathon and was encouraging me to run one. I said something like, “Ryan, I don’t even want to run 26.2 miles…” Well I did start to walk very soon after that so that I could lose some weight and one day I told Ryan how long it took me to walk a mile. All of you know how merciful Ryan Whitley is and that mercy came out in his next question—“What were you doing? Picking up trash?” I cannot tell you how ticked off I was…I was not going to let a former offensive lineman out run this former tail back ever again!
  I cannot tell you how much fun we have had running together. I used to hear people say, “If I ever see someone smiling while they are jogging I’ll start…” and I know they have never seen us running. There are times that I have almost fallen on the ground laughing at the stories Ryan has told me and there was one time I almost died watching Ryan on the ground because he tripped over a root. I can tell you this—if Ryan Whitley fell in the woods and no one was there to hear it—it would make a huge sound, but he would take the time to stop his watch!


• That brings me to the last thing—we are joined at the laugh. I live by the mentality if I am going to do something I would just as soon laugh while I am doing it and Ryan helps me in that endeavor. There have been times that we have cried together, well Ryan cried and I listened…and there have been times that we have poured our hearts out over the stuff that comes with being a pastor, but for the most part we have enjoyed life together.
  Psalm 126:2 says, “Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy.” God has certainly blessed me with friends who make that happen in my life day after day. I love your pastor and am thrilled to be able to call him a friend, but I want to ask you something. Who is the David or Jonathan in your life? Who challenges you with a picking up trash comment? Who laughs when you laugh and weeps when you weep? Who comes and sits with you when your daughter gets a pace maker or sends you a note of encouragement at just the right time?

If you don’t have a Ryan-type friend in your life you are missing out. I would close with some encouragement and maybe a warning.

1. If you have a friend like that let them know how much you appreciate them and love them. I am thankful to have the opportunity to do that today.


2. If you don’t have a friend like that start praying for one.


3. If you need a friend like that be a friend like that!


4. Make sure that friend is not someone of the opposite sex (your spouse is an obvious exception to that rule!) I cannot tell you how many people have gotten into trouble by ignoring that last one.
   

I look forward to being with you for the rest of the week—don’t forget you have a Friend who will never leave you or forsake you—spend some time with Him today.

What are YOU Doing?

posted by Jason Motte, M.Div., Student Pastor, CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

If I was going to bet, I would bet that by now that most of you by now know that Paris Hilton was in jail and has been released. Honestly how could you not? The story dominated every news station, website and television show and tabloid page for nearly the entire time she was in prison. But do you know that on the other end of the world a man by the name of Son Jong Nam is currently in prison? I doubt that any of us have even heard of him. He was arrested in North Korea over a year ago for preaching the gospel. I think hearing about this brave man demonstrates 2 things to us:

1. Do you realize that around the world we have brothers and sisters in Christ who are genuinely suffering and being persecuted (I mean real persecution, not just being embarrased) for the gospel and many who are actually losing their lives? Do you know that according to research in the last 100 years there has been more martyrs for Jesus than in the other 1900 years of Christianity combined? This is disturbing.



2. Do you realize that sometimes there are things going on that you don’t see or hear about? There are incredible things going on at CrossPoint that you probably don’t know about (Just One More stories if you will). I know personally that this is true in our student ministry. The last year has seen a huge turn in things in our student ministry and our students. God is doing and has done some incredible things. Do you know that within the last year we have had 4 students who feel a call to foreign mission fields? Do you know that we have several who are struggling with a call to various types of pastoral ministry? Do you know that many of our students are experiencing such a hunger for God’s Word that they are reading theological books that I am assigning them so fast that it is difficult to keep providing them the books at the rate they are reading them? Are you aware that the hunger for God’s Word is so heavy among many of them that I have meet with various groups of students to teach them how to study God’s Word throughout the week (there is such passion for it that some of these groups have met at 6:00 a.m which equals unbelievably huge commitment by teenage standards)? Are you aware that the hunger and passion is there so heavy that some of our students are starting their own home Bible studies outside of church? And speaking of passion, have you seen our students worship in the last year? If you haven’t you have missed a blessing and a personal challenge. I was shocked at our high school camp to have our speaker who travels the world (literally) tell me he has never seen a group of students anywhere worship with such passion and so unashamedly as ours do. I could go on and on, but God is doing HUGE things here with our students. You may never see it or hear about it, but it is happening. I am not saying that every student we have is like this because they are not, but I find it very telling that over and over in various situations that the vast majority of our students now repeatedly demand Bible study, worship and prayer in everything we do over any form of “church entertainment.” That is amazing and in most places, an unheard of dream. To God be the glory!
   

Two questions to leave you with today:

1. Are you being obedient to God’s Word and praying for people that you don’t always hear about but who are being persecuted around the globe?



2. Are you praying for things and maybe even considering giving your time to things at CrossPoint you don’t always hear or see, but where God is moving? The Bible teaches us that “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” What will your role be at CrossPoint and around the world where God is moving?

Technology Never Fails; Humans DO!!

posted by Vaughn Harris, justonemore.info

The blog I posted yesterday about the teens learning to share their faith was actually intended for my Bible study group's site, familytiesfridge.info. Of course, it got posted on this site as well. Jason Motte is the guest blogger this week and you can scroll down and read his post from Monday. He's got a great one coming up later today as well as the rest of the week.

What Are You Looking Fordward To In Heaven?

posted by Jason Motte, M.Div., Student Pastor, CrossPoint Church in Argo, AL

Hello everybody! Jason Motte here. I am so excited about this week! The reason I am excited is because I will be filling in for Ryan on his blog! Now I am not quite sure what the right way to write a blog is, but I hope you enjoy and just in case you don’t, remember Ryan will be back in a few weeks!

Anyway, as most of you know, 29 of our high school students and adults just got back from a mission trip to Bay City MI. It was an incredible trip! I can’t begin to tell all the good things that went on and rest assured that you will be hearing more about the highlights of it this week as I write, but what I want to dwell on today is something that touched me on the trip before we ever got to Bay City. While we were on the bus during the 15 hour drive, being a little bit of an insomniac, I took the time to catch up on some reading while everyone else slept. One of the books I read was a compilation of sermons and writings by Jonathan Edwards. Jonathan lived in the 1700’s and is probably most famous for his sermon “Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God” and for sparking what has become known as the Great Awakening. I did get to read about the Great Awakening and also got to read the sermon “Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God” along with some of his other writings, but perhaps the one thing that he wrote that caught my attention the most was a sermon about heaven. Now when I have talked about heaven or heard it talked about even among Christian circles several things have always stuck out: streets of gold, mansions, the pearly gates of the city, a place where there is no more crying, hurt or pain, seeing loved ones who have gone on before us, knowing and understanding things that we have an insufficient knowledge of now, etc.

While these things are all going to be reality for the believer one day, Edwards points out that this heaven is overrated and will disappoint. He notes that the one thing about heaven that we leave off the traditional list is the very thing that makes heaven, heaven: the fact that we will be face to face in the presence of God forever. Without this heaven is really not that big of a deal. It would just be something that was exciting at the moment of arrival but would quickly fade into disappointment and discontentment. The one thing that we all have to live for hear on this earth as Christians is that one day we will put behind us all the pain, hard work, troubles, trials, persecutions and blindness that we now have and we will go to be in the presence of God and to enjoy Him forever as He has always intended. Heaven is not so much the lack of pain, problems or hurt as it is the gain of the unending presence of God. This is our portion in this life, the one thing that can get us through today and any day regardless of what we face. So my question today for us is what are you looking forward to in heaven?

7/7/07

posted by Vaughn Harris, justonemore.info

I hope everyone is having a great 7/7/07. Some people have decided to get married today because of all the 7's. Speaking of, is this just another day to you or does it have any significance?

In case you are wondering, Tim Tidwell will be filling in for Pastor Ryan tomorrow at CrossPoint. You will not want to miss this guy. You will definately be blessed.

Next week, Jason Motte will be the guest blogger. I have really grown to love this guy over the past few months. I know for a fact that our middle and high schoolers are being taught truth. I cant wait to read what's on his mind.

Please continue to keep Pastor Ryan in your prayers as he enjoys some much needed rest and rejuvenation.

Keep it real.

Stirring the Pot

posted by Mandi Logan, Ed.S., NBCT, guest writer for www.justonemore.info

On my last day as guest blogger, I had to leave you with something a little “out there”. Some of you may agree with the article below and some may agree that it is “out there”. I am not trying to be offensive in any manner but I do not share the perspective that this person does. I do believe God created animals (hello, Genesis) and we need to take care of them, but I am not sure that they are the purest form of God’s unconditional love. Set me straight if you disagree with me. Freedom of speech and opinion can be very fun! Ryan, will you start adding pets to the hospital visits (just curious)?

Animal chaplain prays, anoints, gives last rites
GREG GARRISON
News staff writer for The Birmingham News
ggarrison@bhamnews.com

Next to an open Bible on a table inside the Riverview Animal Clinic on U.S. 280, pet Chaplain Marcus Allison cuddled a sick, shivering brown puppy in one arm, reading aloud a verse of scripture.

Then he stroked the dog's fur and spoke softly. "The Lord loves you," he said. "The Lord has shined his grace on you. We love you."

Becky Pearce, 22, who works at the Riverview clinic, found the female puppy abandoned on a road in Pleasant Grove. She picked her up, brought her to the clinic and named the puppy Paige. A veterinarian contacted Allison, a Homewood-based chaplain who specializes in caring for the spiritual needs of animals.

Pearce said the puppy was in bad shape, and would be difficult to save.

"He said he'd like to see her and pray for her," Pearce said.

Allison was recently ordained by the Rev. Keith Brown, founder of The Chaplain of Pets Ministry in Stone Mountain, Ga.

Allison's services include praying for and laying hands on pets, anointing them with oil, providing grief support for pet owners, giving last rites to dying pets and performing memorial services for pets. He draws on traditional Christianity, but he considers the ministry interfaith.

The former grief counselor says he has been through traumatic experiences with pets and was disappointed at how his own pastors have dealt with the issue of animals and the grief of pet owners.

"My ministry is for animals and people," he said. "My goal is to help people connected with animals to have faith."

Pets have souls and are an expression of God's unconditional love, Allison said. "My greatest spiritual lessons have come from animals."

He believes prayers have helped two of his own pets recover when they were on the verge of death.

"There's nothing as good as prayer," Allison said.

Allison, who previously ran a pet-sitting business, said he had a dog that had congestive heart failure and kidney failure, and could no longer walk. He asked his pastor to pray for the dog and the pastor said no. So he did some research looking for a pet chaplain and found Brown, who agreed to pray for the dog.
"She suddenly got better," Allison said. "She just came back alive and could walk around the block with me again."

Earlier, he had a dying cat. "I prayed, `Let me accept your will,'" he said. "She lived another year and a half."

Allison likes to cite biblical references to animals.

"In Revelation, Jesus rides a great white horse," Allison said. "Where'd that horse come from if there are no animals in heaven? Scripture says the lion will lay down with the lamb. How can the lion lay down with the lamb if there are no animals in heaven?"

Allison believes animals have souls.

"God created animals before man, before the fall," Allison said. "They can't sin. They don't need salvation. It's already assured to them. Who could be more pure than an animal? The greatest teachers of God's love are animals. It's the closest we can come to God's unconditional love."

Many people like to have a memorial service when a pet dies, Allison said. He does services to celebrate the lives of pets.

"A lot of people feel left out in the cold by the attitude of ministers toward people grieving over animals," he said. "That's why animal clergy is needed. Some people experience more grief when an animal dies than when a person dies."
Not everybody has been welcoming of his offers to pray for pets, or his views on pet salvation. Some think he may be kidding, or crazy.

"Some people think it's silly or look at me like I'm from Mars," Allison said.
Still, some veterinarians have welcomed Allison, saying patients may find spiritual support with their pets helpful.

"Marcus is real sincere, very kind and caring," said Dr. Arthur Serwitz, co-owner of Riverview.

"For certain people, spirituality is very important and they want to be reminded that their pets are God's creatures," said Dr. Amy Tate, also an owner at Riverview.

A day after the visit from the chaplain, Paige the puppy took a turn for the worse. Tate said the puppy may have had congenital kidney problems.

"It was a real complicated case," Serwitz said.

The puppy died on Monday. "It was comforted at the end," Tate said.

Allison may be reached by e-mail at chaplainmarcus@gmail.com, or check his Web site, chaplainmarcus.org.

So What Did You Do?

posted by Mandi Logan, Ed.S., NBCT, guest writer for www.justonemore.info

Since I am writing this on Independence Day, I decided to make it pretty low key. We enjoyed the day swimming with the kids, visiting friends, and eating like crazy! I would like to know what you did and what today means to you. I am so thankful for all the men and women who have fought and are fighting for our freedom. I do not have anyone directly connected to the war, but I know we have Crosspointers who are away for the cause. Let’s continue to pray for our soldiers every week and remember their families too. So let’s hear it- what did you do and why?

The Memory Keeper's Daughter

posted by Mandi Logan, Ed.S., NBCT, guest writer for www.justonemore.info

Ryan was correct when he told you I am an avid reader. I read numerous books a month but usually they are work related. When I know I am going to have some vacation time, I buy something on the best seller’s list. I recently had the opportunity to go with my hubby to Destin on an annual appreciation trip! The place he buys lighting and supplies from takes us on an all expense paid trip to Sandestin that I absolutely love. It is three days without kids and all the luxury you can stand! So, I grabbed a book called The Memory Keeper's Daughter and had it read by the end of the first day. I was a bit of a recluse but when you get hooked that’s what happens.

Several people recommended this book because they knew of my involvement in the area of special needs. I was a teacher for nine years and then moved into administration almost two years ago and I love it. I have always been fascinated by kids with special needs since I was very young. I knew early on that I would work in some capacity in this field. There was no one in my family impacted by a special need growing up but I still was drawn to this field. So this book has a tie to special needs and people wanted me to read it. Even if you have no experience in this area, it is a great book and has numerous life lessons to be learned. (Note: This book is not intended to be a scriptural or Christian based book, but I gleaned much from the story that could certainly be applied to our Christian lives.)

The short of it is this:
This stunning novel begins on a winter night in 1964, when a blizzard forces Dr. David Henry to deliver his own twins. His son, born first, is perfectly healthy, but the doctor immediately recognizes that his daughter has Down syndrome. For motives he tells himself are good, he makes a split-second decision that will haunt all their lives forever. He asks his nurse, Caroline, to take the baby away to an institution. Instead, she disappears into another city to raise the child as her own. Deeply moving, The Memory Keeper's Daughter is a brilliantly crafted story of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of love.

This was a powerful book for me because it deals with the sacred moments we have in life that we often take for granted. Every little incident that occurs with your family helps shape who you and your kids will become. Do you spend too much time at work or at play? Are the moments you have at home quality moments or are you just there taking up space? These are challenging, soul searching questions you ask yourself when you read this book. If I had different parents how would I be different? If my children were born with a disability would my life be better or worse? At first thought we might think worse, but read the book and find out what happened to this family. If any of you have read this, I would love to know your thoughts and what message you received from it. This is a constant reminder to me that the Lord allows no room for error when he creates a child. We are all created in His image whether or not that is apparent to us physically. This story emphasizes that sometimes a gift is not apparent until you can unwrap it and appreciate it for what it truly is. How many gifts do we overlook because the wrapping doesn’t appeal to us? What gifts have walked out of our lives because of our selfish will? Look for the gifts in your life. There are some I need to dust off and begin to use and appreciate again.

Invertical

posted by Mandi Logan, Ed.S., NBCT, guest writer for www.justonemore.info

This will be a new word to most of you, but if you spend much time with the infamous Stone Logan, you would know the meaning. Stone has a way of making up these random words and if not spoken in context would truly be just words. However, he speaks them in context and then we begin to figure out just what he is talking about. His kindergarten teacher is going to have a great time with this knack. So, my son speaks of invertical’s often. For instance, he wants to own one when he is sixteen. He also wants to drive near the beach in one so the wind will blow his hair. By now, I think you know that he means convertible. No matter how much I correct him though, it is always invertical.

So why in the world would I share that? Well, just this morning as I was getting ready for work, he unloaded this revelation on me.

Stone: Hey momma
Momma: yes
Stone: Do you think Power Rangers are like inverticals?
Momma: Well, they aren’t cars but they sure do move fast (facetiously)
Stone: No, momma- you know how they are regular people but then they invertical into another person?
Momma: Oh- yes that is very true. Is it then true that Superman is invertical?
Stone: Momma- that’s great- Superman’s an invertical!!! (goes to find his superman toy)
Momma: Think about all those figures you play with and put them in invertical and non- invertical piles (the teacher in me is ever present, but not a very fun activity at 6:00am)
Stone: Nah, I think I’ll play with them instead.

Stone did not realize what that conversation would lead me to discover.As I was finishing up and taking a moment with the Lord before heading out, I realized that we are all somewhat invertical. Yesterday, Mr. Hallaman (Holloman?? sorry) spoke of his invertical life. It was a profound testimony of how he led dual lives and when it was convenient, he could invertical into either of his lifestyles. He also spoke wonderfully about how he overcame this and was born again! I don’t know about you but I want my life to be vertical in every sense of that word. I want to live so vertically that there is no question about where I’m going! You can bury me horizontally but my soul is on the fastest vertical track to Heaven! My prayer for you today is that your invertical days come to an end and you live as vertical as you can for the Lord! After all, he died vertically for us, rose vertically and sits vertically waiting for us to join Him.

Constant vs. Consistent

posted by Mandi Logan, Ed.S., NBCT, guest writer for www.justonemore.info

Is there a difference in these words? Now let’s look at it as it applies to Christians and then answer. The Lord has put these words in my path recently and I am yet to fully understand why, but I hope through your comments I discover why this is so important. I am trying to understand if I live for Christ in a constant, consistent or constant and consistent manner. BTW: I want to do both.

From my research thus far, I understand constant to be something that does not change or vary, it is uniform, regular and continuing without pause or letup. I can already tell you I am falling short.

Then we have consistent, which means adhering to the same norms or principles, compatible, not self-contradictory, and holding firmly together. Again, falling short.

In terms of living a Christ centered life, which would mean that my walk would not change or vary, be regular without pause and would adhere to the same principles while holding firmly together. Short pause for a sidebar: thank you Lord for public humiliation to teach me a lesson! It would be easier for me to tell you what I am constant and consistent with than it would what I am not (that list would be MUCH longer). I am pretty constant and consistent with what I eat. I eat regularly, not varying much from what my palate desires by adhering to the same principles. My work ethic is pretty constant and consistent. My family interactions are constant and consistent. I’ll stop there as you can already see this is not earth shattering news. Who doesn’t do these things the same each day?

So what about the stuff that matters? Do I daily spend time with God? Do I daily use what I learn in that time to influence others? Given a new setting with boundaries that challenge my principles, do I hold firmly together or do I cave? The answer for me is sometimes yes but sadly sometimes no. Why is it so hard to remain constant and consistent? God is the ultimate constant and consistent! Thank goodness for that! What if he wavered in how He treated us due to the situation? What if we never knew when His principles would change? I shudder to think of how He feels when I consciously choose to not to be constant and consistent.

I would like to hear from you about this constant and consistent dialogue. What do you struggle with? Does this mean something different to you? I know God is going to use someone to teach me more about this so bring on the comments- I am really listening Lord!