Gate Crashers

Sorry this blog is so late, but just returning from eleven days in the Holy Land and catching up.  Had an awesome trip!  I last took a group 10 years ago, but saw lots of new places.  This year we added Jordan, which included stops at Jarash, a large Roman city ruins from the time of Christ; Mt Nebo, where Moses looked over the Jordan River and saw the Promised Land; and Petra, an incredible ancient city cut out of sandstone cliffs.

Some of the highlights which are a must for any Holy Land trip were: a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, baptizing in the Jordan River and communion at the Garden Tomb.  The accommodations were great. We had a very knowledgable tour guide and Josh or I would share Bible application at each location.

Caesarea Philippi was a fascinating place.  It was there that Peter made his declaration of faith “Thou are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”.  Look at Jesus’ response in Matthew 16:17-19…

17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

What makes this scripture come alive is the massive rock cliff that contained the idols worshipped by the Romans.  It was a demonic stronghold.  But the only rock that will endure forever is “Christ, the Son of the Living God.”  There was even a cave in the side of the rock that was said to be the gate to their gods.  But the Lord has called out a church that He is building on the Rock, and is greater than any power or authority of the enemy.

So much of what Jesus taught used illustrations from that culture, i.e. fishing, farming, vineyards, and rocks.  I was privileged to be there and watch those stones all come alive once again.

Blessed to Have Seen,


Pastor Larry

October 30, 2009 | Filed Under Pastor's Thoughts

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Turning Failure into Success

On Thursday night, October 1st, Ronnie Shiner took Jason, Jonathon Millen & me shrimping. It was a beautiful night. We were filled with anticipation. We got to the “crab bank” near the Charleston Harbor, and set our ten poles just before dusk. We baited the poles and waited for the shrimp to gather.

I drove the boat and Ronnie was throwing the net. The first pass yielded not one shrimp. We thought that maybe we hadn’t given it enough time so we waited some more. Waiting is ok because that is when we   get our sandwiches, chips and peanuts! When we finished eating, we threw our nets for the second time and had the same results, no shrimp. Each time we would pull up the net, we expected to see the glowing, beady little shrimp eyes… and nothing! We threw the nets 4 times over a 2 1/2 hour span and did not even catch one shrimp! There were four other boats in the same vicinity and they had gotten just one shrimp between them.

John 21:3-6

3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing. 4 But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.” 6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.

I now have some idea as how two disciples must have felt. I’ve got to believe that the difference between success and failure was more then the width of the boat. Jesus had been there all day long, but probably did nothing so He could teach His disciple a couple of lessons:

  1. Without Me you can do nothing
  2. Jesus is near, even in failure
Good lessons for us, because we all deal with failure. But success comes when they obeyed the word of the Lord. So keep Christ at the center of all your fishing plans and any other activity you are going to pursue, and He will take care of you!

Pastor Larry

October 12, 2009 | Filed Under Pastor's Thoughts

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Foolish Things

Last weekend we celebrated what Faith Assembly is all about, Missions. It was a special honor to have Josh and Lindy Johnson as our special speakers from Nepal.

It is hard to imagine Josh , with his poor eyesight and Lindy with a certain amount of clumsiness, trekking through the hills and forests of Nepal to get the gospel to people who have never even heard the name of Jesus.

1 Corinthians 1:26-29

26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence.

Lindy spoke at our ladies brunch Saturday morning and I heard wonderful reports.  Josh did an outstanding job ministering the truth of John 4 ‘But He needed to go through Samaria’ (vs 4).  The challenge for all of us is clear, who is it God is speaking to us that we “must needs” go to.

I was so proud of my kids.  When Tania and I dedicated Lindy to the Lord 28 years ago we had no idea God would call her to the mission field, especially such a remote part of the world. But the reward is seeing God use them in the center of His will for Kingdom service.  And for everyone who prays for them and gives, we will also share in the reward.  Thank you for your faithfulness.

In His harvest together,

Pastor Larry

October 5, 2009 | Filed Under Pastor's Thoughts

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