national day of prayer

To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world. Karl Barth


Next Thursday, May 4, is National Day of Prayer. I enjoy praying, and remember some very powerful prayer meetings over the years. Last year we hosted a gathering of several churches to focus on praying for our nation. It was a memorable evening. In the next week, I’ll blog on some of my favorite quotes on prayer, adding some comment. The American church puts far too little emphasis on the power we have as Christians in prayer. Prayer truly does change situations, events and courses. Please set aside time next week to pray for our nation, and for the state of the body of Christ in America.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:18

Spring Break

I’ve taken some vacation this week. The kids had their Easter/Spring break, and I wanted to spend some time with them, as well as Traci. It wasn’t enough time, though. I love playing with them! The boys are both good baseball players, so we spent quite a bit of time doing that. I’ll blog more next week, when I’m back into the work thing. Right now I have to go play baseball.

Horses

I just finished reading "Funny Cide; How a Horse, a Trainer, a Jockey, and a bunch of high school buddies took on the Sheiks and Bluebloods. . . and won". As you know, anything with horses has got to be good in my eyes, and this was no exception. I remember watching Funny Cide run in 2003, but didn't realize the story behind it. This is a great story about a group of people who wanted to live life to the fullest, and went for their dream, to own racehorses and actually win! The odd part of their dream was this: they were not stereotypical race horse owners. After Funny Cide's winning of the Kentucky Derby, one of the "typical" racehorse owners (referred to as "bluebloods") was overheard saying, "one of the owners (of Funny Cide) is a school teacher!" The audacity of her!

I love it when typecasts are broken!

Good Friday

With this being Good Friday, I was thinking again of the movie, "The Passion of the Christ". Even though it was done two years ago, and it's been a while since I've seen it, the images of Jesus suffering still stay with me. I remember watching the lashes He received and wanting desperately to yell at them to stop. The worst part of that being the realization that the beating was for me. I'm glad the story doesn't end with Jesus on the cross, though. It ends with an empty cross and an empty tomb, because He has risen. I pray that is the message that is proclaimed loud and clear on Sunday.

Immigration

I just had a friend, a long time member of the church, ask me what I thought about the immigration issue. Hmmm. A huge issue, to say the least. Here's where I would begin. Go to Dave's Adventure and check out what he's got to say. He is a friend from years back (14 years or so), who leads mission teams into Mexico. Our church has been a part of his mission team experiences for the 14 years I have known him. He is the kind of person I would want to talk with when forming an opinion on this issue. Whether you agree or disagree, he has a perspective worth reading. I have great respect for Dave and for his Ministry. He's doing some amazing work for the sake of the Kingdom of God.

The Gospel of Judas

Ok, I might as well wade in on the current topic of the day: The Gospel of Judas. But I’m not going to rehash what has already been said with great eloquence, so let me recommend two sites worth reading. One is Mark D. Roberts. He has a rather lengthy article on the subject posted on April 9, and may give you more info than you wanted, but it is well worth reading. The other is Al Mohler, a great piece, and once again showing the desperate need of some to try to debunk the truth of the Scriptures.

This onslaught against the Bible, and more significantly, Jesus Himself, is nothing new. The claim by media and scholars is that this will shake the faith of believers and challenge the gospel story. No it won’t. Truth will always wins out.

Reviewing "The Jesus Show"

I have some hesitation reviewing “Jesus”, but realizing this is just an actor playing the part, here I go:
On April 5 I was contacted by a local newspaper to ask my opinion on a radio show out here in the LA area which is on Sundays from 6-9AM. My first reaction to any show that would be like this was great skepticism. That skepticism changed on Sunday. From the opening monologue on sin the “Holy Host” (as he describes himself) drew me in and quickly made me a fan. So much so that I even recommended him to my congregation! How exciting, someone who is a Christian, who speaks thoughtfully and kindly, yet also with great wisdom and strength. Innovation and stretching outside of our normal comfort zones is a great passion of mine (hence the name of the blog, “Braveturn”), and what the “Holy Host” is doing is very innovative.

Yes, I know, your concern is that a person would actually claim to be Jesus and be on the radio giving advice. That person could be a nut case! I must admit that was my train of thought, but in listening to him all that changed. My fears turned to jubilation. Here is someone who can clearly articulate the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a way that is relevant and truthful without being condemning or critical. I heard two different callers ask questions, and both were handled with care as he shared Scripture that contradicted their line of thought. I cannot say with authority that the Holy Host’s answers were exactly like what Jesus would say, but I could readily say it would be easy to hear those words from the true “Holy Host.” Give him a listen. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Blog recommendation

There is a site I have inadvertently overlooked mentioning, but is a good one. The site is called Laura’s Writings. Her comment on my entry “Jesus is on the Radio” from April 5 is worth reading. But don’t stop there, check out her blog, too. She is currently attending BIOLA, a great school out here in southern CA. The students are outstanding, and the faculty is topnotch.

Laura has commented on entries in the past, and I have always read with great interest her comments. They've been thought provoking, and of great help to me. Check out Laura’s blog when you get a chance, it’s worth the read.

PS: Laura, when I can remember how to add you to the "links" section, I'm going to do it!

Attempting to Dethrone Jesus

April 7, 2006
Are you amazed by all the news articles and books about Jesus? The last two days our paper has had something about Jesus (“Jesus May have walked on Ice”, and “’Gospel’ suggests Judas Didn’t Betray Jesus”). Prime Time Live, on ABC, did a segment on the Gospel of Judas Thursday night, and National Geographic is airing a drama on Sunday night based on the same thing. I’m currently reading two books on the issue of Jesus and His divinity (or lack thereof, according to both). The books are:

• The Jesus Papers, Michael Baigent
• The Jesus Dynasty, James D. Tabor

There is nothing new under the sun. Ever since Jesus birth, death and resurrection, someone has been trying to debunk the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So here we go again, the next round of “scholars” and "historians" attempting to reveal “new truth” that will dispel Christianity. Eventually they will fade into the sun, but the truth will continue to win out. It has for 2000 years, and will continue to do so.

Here are some great resources you might want to check out, dealing with the latest challenges to Christianity (which includes “The da Vinci Code” by Dan Brown)

The Da Vinci Code: A Quest for Answers, Josh McDowell
Cracking Da Vinci’s Code, James L. Garlow and Peter Jones
Thedavincicodechallenge.com
www.markdroberts.com

Jesus Saga continued

I got this from Charley, it's in my comments on April 5, but I had to publish it here, too, so all of you take a look at it. Charley gives us some good info on "Jesus" on KFI. I'm looking forward to hearing "Jesus" on Sunday.

Charley said:

I LOVE the Jesus Christ Show. I catch a few minutes of it almost every Sunday morning.

The host is an actor, Neil Saavedra. Neil happens to be a friend of a friend of mine (though I've never personally met him). He's a Christian with a good command of apologetics and a lot of common sense.

The history is something like this... several years ago, there was another call-in show on KFI, whose name I can't remember. They would deal with various controversial topics. Occasionally Neil would call in, as Jesus, and offer his opinion.

He became such a popular caller that he eventually became a guest on the show occasionally. Eventually, he was given his own show on Sunday mornings.

So what we have is a Christian, with a good command of the Bible and good communication skills, who also happens to be an actor portraying Jesus. People call in with their theological questions or life situations and he gives answers. The things I've heard him say are pretty solid.

I think it's one of the most creative, out-of-the-box things I've ever heard a Christian do, and it's very bold of KFI, a secular station, to do it.

By the way, I've referenced Charley's blog in the link section. His blog is an enlightening, entertaining read. Check it out!

Jesus is on the radio

Jesus Christ
Sunday 6 am - 9 am

Tune in every Sunday morning for The Way, The Truth and The Life.

I got this call this morning from a reporter with a local newspaper, "The Daily Breeze." The reporter, Kim, told me about this new radio show in which Jesus Christ was the host. She asked if I would listen to the show and comment on it, to which I gladly agreed, if only out of morbid curiosity. I also looked up the web site of the radio station, and here was the description:

THE JESUS CHRIST SHOW
2000 years ago He walked this earth.... teaching.... guiding.... loving and
preparing to make the ultimate sacrifice...

What if... today, you could talk to Him, laugh with Him...cry with Him? Not
just through prayer, but through the radio...

Tune in this Sunday morning to find out why the young and old from all over the world listen (via the internet & radio waves) for the answers to life's toughest questions.

Hosted by Jesus Christ

I preach every Sunday morning. I use the Scriptures, studying the text from several different versions and several different commentaries. I even read sermons on the text from other pastors at times. I spend a great deal of time thinking (and meditating) on the Scripture as well as considerable time in prayer. When I preach, I try to get an accurate understanding of the text according to what I believe God is saying through it. But I am not so bold as to say "I'm Jesus Christ, and here is what this text means." So, is the radio host bold or nuts or both for claiming to be Jesus? Or is this all a great publicity stunt? KFI radio has been known to do some outlandish things for publicity.

The station is KFI 640 in Los Angeles. If you get a chance, listen to it and give me your response. I'd be curious to know what you think. If you look at the web site, look at the list of hosts on the left side, and click on to "Jesus Christ."

Dreamer

I'm a sucker for a good horse story. Actually, I may even be a sucker for a bad horse story, as long as there is a horse. I grew up riding horses, it was one of the great joys of my life. There is nothing like the noise of the saddle, the movement of the horse and the sound of the hooves as they hit the ground. I even like the smell of a horse and the saddle! I could ride for hours. It was one of the things I did when I needed to get away from everything and just think, or do no thinking at all. There are times when we need both. I learned a great deal from riding horses, lessons I have used over and over again, not the least of which is "if you fall of a horse, you get back on." I miss riding and owning a horse. That is one of the things I do not understand about being called to ministry in LA. I have enough room in my back yard for a horse to turn around, and that's about it. I love my job, don't get me wrong, I just wish we had room for a horse!

Anyway, go rent "Dreamer". It's a good story, and it's got a great horse in it. Of course you know the ending that's coming, but who cares? Not only is the horse in it, but it's a great story of a man who renews his passion for what he loves. And out of that comes a family who is brought together in the process of fulfilling a dream.

Life abundant

Everyone needs to get away to play every now and then. Kids are a great reminder of that. When I get too serious, I watch my kids, and realize there is so much more to life than work, even work for the Lord. Jesus said, "I have come that you may have life, and have it abundantly." I enjoy my work for the Lord, and am often in awe of being called to take care of those in a church. It is a privilege I do not take for granted. But I realize that not taking the time to enjoy life, like snow and sledding, for instance, causes me to miss out on all that God has for me, which includes fun. And I'm all for fun! So, here I am, sliding down a hill in the mountains of southern CA. It's life abundant. By the way, the white in my beard is snow (well, maybe not all of the white).