Thursday, April 17, 2008
Here is a 3:09 audio-slice of
thoughts that were spurred on by
yesterday's meetings with Jimmie,
Curt, and Jean:
A Slice of Life:
CLICK HERE
I had two primary Office
Visitsyesterday. As with all of
them, both of these were very
valuable to me--especially as I am
currently reading the revised,
updated edition of Blackaby's
'Experiencing God'. Our group is
currently in Week Eleven (of 12).
At 4:30,
Doc Harris and I went out
to the Placer site of the
California Conservation Corp
yesterday. As we were driving up the
entrance we prayed for the Lord to
direct our steps and to open doors
for us. After a walk past the
theatre, the library, and the dorms,
we went to the Administration Bldg.
to see about making a formal
contact.
Deborah allowed me to
leave a note for the Director,
a brochure, and a copy of
the article I wrote for last
Friday's Auburn Journal (Yo' Faith).
Later, we saw four counselors
sitting at a picnic table. One waved
and greeted us so we felt prompted
to walk up to them. After a brief
time of introduction, they took us
inside the cafeteria and we had the
opportunity to meet the Driver and
the Director.
Our evening hymn-sing and prayer
meeting was practical and visionary
toward new-year goal of developing
an intentional, evangelistic action
plan for our entire church. Further
meditation as I live through this
day's circumstances, I will meditate
upon this coming Sunday Message:
I will SERVE
the Ministry
of my church
...by discovering my gifts and
talents
...by being equipped to serve by my
pastors
...by developing a servant's heart
I will SUPPORT
the Testimony of my
church
...by attending faithfully
...by living a godly life
...by giving regularly
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
We have
been enjoying listening to Duncan
Holmes's prelude from the direct
microphone (the video has crowd
noises).
Feel free to burn it to a CD and
listen for yourself:
Duncan's Prelude Music
Duncan wrote about his visit to
Auburn in his journal here is an
excerpt from his email newsletter:
I shared at
the morning service of Bell Road
Baptist Church. As for the service
itself, we had a baptism of a young
mother and her nine-year-old child,
new believers in Christ. And we had
the Lord's Supper. Weak moment: I
did terribly on the song "I Am the
Bread of Life." My voice was still
on Central Time, I think. But one
great moment: one young child gave
her heart to Christ that morning,
and that in itself was worth the
trip!
You can view
video clips and hear audio portions
of that service on the church's
website. Rob and his staff there are
very high-tech, and they have many
of their sermons on mp3 and other
things on video.
Duncan's Testimony and
The Lord's
Supper
1 Chronicles 16:1-12
Duncan and Rob
On the way to Modesto, we stopped
for lunch at a small cafe in the
little burg of Galt, where I treated
Rob and Cathy to lunch. Touchy
moment: one ill-informed kitchen
staffer told us (while we were in
the middle of our meals) that the
dog would have to go outside, but
Rob gently pointed out to him that
by law and the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA), we had every
right to have the dog with us. A
nearby patron, probably a civic
leader in Galt, pointed out to that
man that he knew the restaurant
manager and that we were right and
that this civic leader would himself
contact said manager. End of
discussion!
BTW, Rob and my blind friend Greg
Brayton grew up together in
Coldwater, Michigan. They've worked
together on many of Rob's cd and
other audio projects. (We talked
with Greg via phone that Saturday
evening while on our way to Auburn
from the airport.)
Much to say too little time to
write. Maybe in tomorrow's entry,
I'll tell you about tax day with the
Pattersons.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
By the grace of God, my eyes opened
around 5:00 a.m. There is some
'Uncle Sam' stuff that I must
postmark by today and a signed
wedding license that needs to be
sent off as well. So, I'll leave to
get BSF set up sometime soon and get
a proactive start on my duties and
obligations.
I did some work on preparing audio
sources for the public record. It is
sometimes hard to hear myself
preach. I surely want to be faithful
as one of the preachers that has
been chosen by God to speak during
this generation.
Since all have sinned and fall short
of the glory of God, then of course,
I should be concerned with the
potential for mixed motives. We
never want to ignore real,
Spirit-given 'conviction' however.
It is important to examine ourselves
each day so that our walk will be
faithful.
Yesterday, a feeling of condemnation
came over me while I was sitting
next to Cathy at a movie (Nim's
Island). Since I had invested much
of the day in a technical
mindset--handling raw audio--the
Shield of Faith set down in the
midst of the busyness. I became
susceptible to fiery darts aimed at
my heart and soul. Cathy told me to
"shake it off..." (my primary
pastoral message at Special
Ministries Camp last year). Gracious
Lord, help me to take in this new
day slowly and proceed with careful,
prayerful deliberation and
consideration of others.
By the grace of God...
I'm reminded of this song that Jebby
wrote. Cathy, Jerry, and I went into
Greg's Studio back in 2006 and
carried with us an mp3 draft of
Jebby's song by that same title. We
experienced the joy of doing four
songs during two days in the studio.
I had to hunt a bit but I located
the myspace entry I had journaled
with all four songs: click here for
Studio Summer 2006
Our newly-formed Tuesday afternoon
Visitation Teams are heading out at
4:00 p.m. today. At Sunday's Iglesia
Bautista, I committed some
organizational time to map and
record our involvement at two
housing complexes toward our goal of
intentional, evangelistic
visitation.
Here is
Duncan's Prelude Music:
Duncan said that his voice wasn't he
had wanted it to be on the song "I
am the Bread of Life" but...I had
faded it out anyway. I was mostly
concerned with the spoken messages
and prayers for our church. There
are only wanted musical excerpts
during the actual time the bread and
cup was passed out.
Duncan's Testimony and The Lord's
Supper
Tuesday, April 14, 2008
Busy, busy. Non-stop. Refreshing.
I woke up this morning before 4:00.
Ready to run the race marked out for
me. The Courthouse Athletic Club
opens at 4:30 so I'm gonna wake
Cathy up soon and see if she wants
to get 'her day' started as well.
Check back to hear the Message later
this morning.
Here's this week's 'Expert Advice'
as it appears in today's Auburn
Journal.
Click
on this box
to see the Sunday with Duncan Holmes.
Once you get to that page, you can
click on 'Details' and there will be
separate frames which allow you to
get to different points in the video).
April 6th is the Sunday that we
brought the Children's Church up
into the Choir Loft.
This morning I hope to upload an
audio track of last Sunday's
complete service with our guest
minister, Duncan Holmes.
I also will
try to upload Message No. 44 (from
our Acts-Luke-Romans series). I may also upload Pastors' Reports (and
other communicable Vision) from
yesterday's business meeting. Yeah,
just thinking...the phone call from
Bob Knapp is 'on record'.
Congratulations, Bob and Diana
Knapp. Yesterday, Dunsmuir Baptist
Church formerly 'called' Bob to
become their pastor with a 90% vote
of affirmation. Subsequently, they
formerly asked Bell Road Baptist
Church to ordain Bob to the Gospel
Ministry. That joyous 'new business'
was passed unanimously so today we
will set a date for an ordination
council of pastors and deacons in
the Foothills Association to examine
Bob.
Tom, Christene, Katey, and Daniel
Santillan surprised us by driving
Galt to Auburn yesterday in time for
Sunday School. We had our Quarterly
Business Meeting after church, so I
suggested that Daniel, Mary, Joe,
and Cerissa go out to eat with them
during our meeting. Kyla Ruth went
with them to eat as well. Then, most
of them took the Santillans to visit
'the Biblical Gardens'. By the way,
we're gonna baptize Polly Jones at
the Biblical Gardens one of these
days when the timing is 'just
right'.
Iglesia Bautista de Bell Road (2:00)
was a joy for the five of us who
were there to worship and pray
toward the future.
On Mondays I like to do what it
takes to keep momentum rolling from
Sunday's gathering. Checking my
notes from the day before and
responding to inquiries and visitor
records helps me to keep positively
engaged in the overall mission of
our local church.
My primary goal on Mondays
is to upload Sunday's Message online
and distribute CDs to our
hard-working volunteers who missed
out in order to allow others to have
childcare. Cathy, Mary, Karla, and Cerissa worked in
the nursery yesterday morning. Heidi
and Robin were in the BellRoad
Express with the older kids. At this
point Cerissa are the only ones who
haven't received a CD of the SundayMessage. I've already listened
to it during drive-time to-and-from
'Experiencing God' last night.
Saturday, April 13, 2008
Today,
Duncan Holmes will fly back to
his home in Texas. He has had four
performances since his time with us
last Sunday.
Grace Earl shot video
footage of last Sunday's entire
morning service. I have enjoyed
watching it and have made copies for
those who worked in the Nursery. As
possible I will upload the Duncan
Holmes Sunday to the Internet.
Our second son,
Jeremiah,
came up to Auburn for a couple
hours. I asked my boy to help me
move things around at the church.
Then, the two of us went out to the
California Conservation Corp to
gather more information. In the
administration office, we spoke at
length with Debbie and Deborah about
the program. They located some of
their brochures for me (I'll promote
the program to young adults I know).
I left a church brochure with them
to see if it can go up near the
mailboxes.
Last night was the first of our
Friday Night Concert series
featuring the Johnson Family
Singers.
Tom, Francie, Bob, Ann, Rachelle,
Clyde, Faye, Cathy, Matt, Larry,
Wanda, Christy, Mike, Nancy
and others were there early to help.
Unforeseen circumstances kept
Les & Bobbie and
John & Patty
away. So, our key leaders took on
extra jobs. I thoroughly enjoyed
praying with our local workers
earlier in the evening. Grace came
to videotape the event.
Just prior to their performance we
also gathered with the family
singers. I was asked to speak toward
the Offering for the Singers during
a break in the concert. Then, I
showed the audience a hardcopy of
Friday's article in the Auburn
Journal and read a portion as part
of my brief testimony. Here is an
online version of the article. I
think the hardcopy may be useful as
we continue to go out door-to-door.
Yesterday, (with Cathy's help) I
tracked the calories of food I had
eaten. She prepared tasty, real food
to chew on and my caloric intake was
about 1200. I also drank 90 oz. of
water throughout the 24 hours of Day
One. I won't write about this
adventure much but it does feel
somewhat like fasting so I'm
enjoying the fruit of self-control
(and self-examination).
My sermon outline is finished,
printed and in the bulletin.
Sunday's Sermon will be the 44th
Message in the Acts-Luke-Romans
series (even though it is a
fast-forward to the 14th chapters of
Luke and Romans). Tomorrow's is a
topical message built upon the four
points of BellRoad's Membership
Covenant which was established in
January, 2006.
While looking over archived sermons
of preachers-past, I located rare
footage of
Billy Sunday speaking in
the open-air on the subject of
Prohibition. The 6-minute film clip
shows Homer
Rodeheaver with his
trombone introducing the aging
preacher:
click here
Friday, April 11, 2008
I awoke at 3:30 this morning.
Figured since I was up I'd check the
online version of the Auburn Journal
to see if my article had yet been
posted. Noticing that the link to
this website was incorrectly
spelled, I left a comment to that
effect. I had to register to leave a
comment but that led to seeing how I
could now post upcoming events,
stories, and even videos.
So, from my bedside laptop I found a
jpeg to post, copied the story but
was able to add a photo (cool), and
listed that the Johnsons will be in
concert at Bell Road tonight.
Check out the Journal Story:
click here
Now compare my own version of the
article with the original title:
click here
After just an hour it has
significantly more page
views--probably because ...um who
reads the Religion section? The 2nd
version of the story is accessed
through links for those who are
registered to comment. Hmm..
See my spot as pastorob on their
website:
click here
Did you know that Pastor Matt now
has an online journal?
Matt:
you'll be happy to know that
I purchased
www.mattsjournal.com this
morning
Oh, I'm starting PRISM today. More
on that tomorrow maybe. Gotta run to
Deacons' Prayer meeting at 6:30am.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Yesterday,
Doc Harris came in to
visit with me. He had some great
suggestions to grow our local
church. As we closed I felt prompted
to invite Doc to go out with me for
door-to-door visitation. We went out
into the community for 2 hours. Our
final visit was with a woman who
follows the Brahmin belief system.
She shared that she had received a
'notice' at her shrine that very
morning. The notice was that she
should expect visitors at her door.
Her hospitality toward us included a
great cup of Chai. I gave her a
copy of the Matt-Rob CD and told her
that I'd be back with my wife,
Cathy, someday soon.
This morning I wrote the following
500-word essay for the Religion page
in this Friday's Auburn Journal.
Yo' Faith
by Pastor Rob Patterson
"Don't put yo' faith in yo' good
looks;
you can lose yo' good looks!"
Years ago, a 'street preacher' had
grabbed my attention with those
words. Not that I had been
particularly faithful toward my good
looks but the old man had just made
a good point. I had heard preachers
on the street in years past but they
had seemed sleep-deprived and manic.
This old man's rhythm was engaging
so I stopped to listen:
"Don't put yo' faith in yo' car; you
can lose yo' car!"
I noticed that he was connecting
with other passersby--even if just
for a moment:
"Don't put yo' faith in yo' job;
you can lose your job!
"Don't put yo' faith in yo'
relationships;
you can lose yo' relationships!"
Put yo' faith in Jesus!"
That old preacher's memorable
message spurs me on to ask you
today, dear reader, "Have you
accepted Jesus as your Lord?"
Sometimes circumstances allow me the
opportunity to present a balanced
presentation of the scriptures to an
individual who is already seeking to
know Truth or to experience Peace.
In friendly settings, it is a
privilege to freely open the Bible
and share passages which point out
that 1) all people have sinned, 2)
the wages of sin is death, and 3)
the gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus.
I have come to believe that certain
encounters with individuals are
sometimes 'divine appointments'.
Whenever I am aware of such
opportunity, I am compelled to share
this fact from the Bible:
"Everyone who calls on the Name of
the Lord will be saved."
Right then and there, I like to ask
people if they want to be saved from
death and eternal separation from
God. For those who do, I try to
steer them straight to Jesus for the
rest of their lives. Some people
only get enough 'religion' to make
their lives miserable. Accept no
substitutes! Don't allow anything to
keep you from the joy of a saving
relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Being saved goes beyond the hope of
heaven after this life. Eternal Life
is also for here-and-now. Just as
the divine appointment may lead to a
sinsick soul getting saved, there
will surely be hindrances to that
soul's spiritual growth.
The gentle shepherd tends His flock
with these words:
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they
may have life, and have it to the
full."
Maybe it won't be the devil himself,
but one of his small-time minions
may attempt to steal, kill, or
destroy your ability to enjoy God's
blessings. The Thief may need no
outside help to work his agenda. An
unconfessed sin simmering on the
back burner of your mind will slowly
and insidiously steal your joy.
Here's the key: Love God. A loving
relationship with the Lord Jesus
will lead to fullness of joy. Love
God and share His love with your
neighbor. Love Him with all your
heart, soul, and strength.
Don't put yo' faith in anything or
anyone else!
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
The workday ended at 'yesterday'
at 12:45am. and started again at
6:30am. These are busy days of real
ministry. 9 year old
Abigail
was saved on the first day of the
week. There is much to do to assure
the best environment for Abigail to
grow at First Base and to begin
running the bases in her faith
development. I really don't mind
working really, really hard when I
see that people are being saved,
baptized, and becoming known by
name.
During a break last night, I looked
up the story of the YouTube beating
of the Lindsay girl by her fellow
cheerleaders. I had seen it while
running the treadmill at the Gym
yesterday morning.
The abundant life of Jesus is just
the opposite of Ms. Lindsay's
persecution. My choice today is to
be part of the solution instead of
one wringing my hands wondering
aloud how all of this trouble is
ever gonna cease.
Yesterday morning, BSF was
interrupted by Thursday night's bat
flying around the foyer and even
into the sanctuary. Apparently I was
the only experienced batman so I
decided I'd better do what I could
to save the day.
At my childhood home in Michigan the
bats had access to the Victorian
attic and would periodically find
their way into the human living
space. We were trained by my Dad
with a broom and we usually killed
the little mammals until my great
Uncle interceded on the behalf of
one. "Bats eat mosquitoes!"
From thereon, I always spared my
captive's life--until yesterday.
After batting it down with my
"Experiencing God" text, the little
thing appeared to be dead. I took it
outside and set its body by a tree
then went back in to get a ladder.
The BSF ladies had told me that they
were squeaking of baby bats in a
corner of the high foyer window. So,
I returned with our longest ladder,
climbed up to the alleged nesting
spot to find no babies and no
squeaking.
That was the beginning of my
workday. Much more happened with
door-to-door visitation, a seniors'
ministry visit at Fair Oaks
Presbyterian, a quick hospital
visit, emails, and a late night
staff meeting. Again, no time to
write more.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
This morning at the Gym I met a
grown pk named Bill.
He wanted to share with me his
different interpretation of the
Bible. Overhearing Bill's views,
another guy, Ken, announced
that he is a faith-based democrat.
Although I did much writing last
night I have no time to publish at
the moment, so I may have a lengthy
entry tomorrow.
Yesterday, on the way to Modesto,
Cathy and I dropped by Jebby's house
and introduced him to Duncan Holmes.
Duncan played to songs for us.
On the way home, we stopped to get
coffee and Ted recognized us. We
gave him a copy of the
Matt-Rob CD.
Monday, April 7, 2008
I hurt my lower back yesterday
morning when I moved the Grand
Piano. I didn't stop to think about
asking anyone. Bob was there but his
back's been hurting so ....
oops--that should have tipped me off
that these guys with hurting backs
did something to cause it.
I didn't even notice it until after
church. It still aches this
morning--just a dull pain.
I went to the Gym and did some
running then rested in the spa but
it still hurts. I am a 'whiner' when
I'm sick or in any type of physical
pain. Maybe this published report
will suffice to satisfy my need to
let the world know that I am in need
of Jehovah-Raphe
today!
We have started Week 10 of
'Experiencing God' today. Last
night's weekly small group was full
of wonder (as usual).
Bob, Ann,
Tom, Francie, Patrice, Ben, Caitlyn,
Danielle, Rachelle, David, Mary, KC,
Polly, Paulie, and yours
truly. God continues to bless my
heart and soul through Blackaby's
legacy.
Even at the Gym today I met a guy
named Mike
while I was reading my lesson
(its called multi-tasking). Mike
asked me to clarify the name of the
Study and the author's name.
We experienced another multi-media
firstfruits yesterday. A close-up
video of Duncan Holmes was on
BigScreenLeft
and a close up of the piano
keyboard was on
BigScreenRight.
I lost count of how many children
came up to sit in the Choir loft but
it was a healthy number. The seats
on the BellRoad Express were fulI as
we were also joined by the childreni
n the 2s and 3s class. I hope that
Grace Earl's
video of the entire morning service
turns out well. If so, we will post
it online (if permission is granted
by the parents).
Michael
and Andy attended the
Worship Service to support family
members by watching the public
baptism of
Beverly and Lacey.
They wanted me to get on their
church website and write a note to
Pastor Tim
Blackmon to testify that
they had been among us.
So, I did as requested. I learned
that our visitors' church is in
Folsom, has a Christian Reformed
background, and they maintain a
well-organized website:
click here
We combined a membership class with
lunch after our morning service.
Mary, David,
KC, Polly, Brenda, Keith, Melody,
and Daniel received the
tri-fold membership vision
(doctrinal-methodological-attitudinal
distinctive) as discovered upon a
close examination of our By-laws.
After the Membership Class,
Karla,
Melody, Cathy, and I met
for Iglesia
Bautista de Bell Road.
Elba and Jesse are on another
vacation. We reviewed the
door-to-door visitation results of
the prior week and made plans for
this coming Tuesday. We also
worshiped together in Spanish and
prayed bilingual prayer.
We will take Duncan Holmes down to
Modesto this morning. He has gigs at
schools both in Modesto and in
Merced. It has been great getting to
know Duncan personally. Thanks to
Les and Maria
Scoggins for hosting
Duncan and Lucky in your home.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Rev. Aaron Cool (from 1856)
came to speak at the Men's Breakfast
this morning. I uploaded his sermon
to the web last night, but it is
'unpublished', so if you would like
to see it, please write me at
pastorob@bellroad.org
and I'll send you a link.
Jeremy and his baby son, Hunter, were guests of Matt Woodin. I invited Jeremy to come hear Duncan Holmes. I hope he will come. There has been a fair amount of door-to-door visitation this week. I hope we will see some fruit from that loabor of love.
Last night at Applebee's a guy
named
Kutter came up to pet
Duncan's seeing-eye dog, Lucky.
Kutter
and his girlfriend
Brandy
are from Roseville; he is working in
Fairfield; but his sister lives in
Auburn. I gave them a CD and a
brochure.
Natalie
was our waitress. We gave her a
brochure and a CD.
In the afternoon, Cathy and met with
Omar
and about four other guys at CCC
this afternoon. Omar said that they
were coming back.
I also met with
Nick
(9) about his conversion, baptism,
the growth plan (bases loaded), and
the Lord's Supper.
Ann
Arthur asked me if I had
a copy of the 'testimony' for our
upcoming speaker,
Irene Spencer. From our
church website, I got on Irene's
website and found her testimony from
the 700 CLUB
Irene
Spencer: Click Here
Duncan Holmes is here today. Please come to the church by 10:00 because he is playing the prelude as well.
Our church website now has links to all upcoming guests, please find them on the home page: www.bellroad.org
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Bob and Diana Knapp have headed up
to Dunsmuir where he will preach
tomorrow. He is quite excited about
a message he has planned. We both
got online and briefly discussed the
Greek words
in Matt. 24:14
I'm at the church for Men's
Breakfast. Don't forget that blind
pianist,
Duncan Holmes, will be
with us tomorrow at 10:00am. I'm
picking him up from the Sacramento
airport late this afternoon.
Pastor Matt and I have set up large
screen projection of his face and
the keyboard to assist those who are
hard-of-hearing.
Click here for a copy of the
Bulletin. We are preaching through
the drama of both Baptism and
Communion during the service. I'm
especially excited about Duncan's
Children's Message.
Here's an excerpt from a morning chat with Eva Moore in Michigan. She used to be a member of our church in Galt.
5:56 AM
me: Hi Eva
eva:
good morning Rob.
me: your mom and dad sent an
offering to our church
eva: ya I know. They
didn't really feel a connection with
any churces here, and wanted to
still give to whereever you were.
me: but it seems like it was
sent before you and I had chatted
about them. Is that accurate?
eva:
yep.
me: WOW
eva:
they had planned that for a while. I
am glad that it helped lift your
spirits then. They have always loved
you.
me: ...so it realy blessed me
as if to hear God still saying,
"You're doing OK, Rob."
eva: ah. I am so glad.
That is awesome.
me: Yes, I love them too. I
still remember meeting your mama and
you back as a teenager
...but when I first met your Dad, I
felt right at home with him
eva:
oh yes...back when I was a wonderful
well mannered young woman. lol
me: haah. You were quiet and
well-mannered upon that first
introduction, yes. in the pews
eva:Yah
I was pretty good--compared to most
teens. My grandparents were pretty
good about makings ure I knew how to
act in church.
me: That's interesting. Yeah,
I remember going out to meet your
great-grandma, Mrs Wright, right?
She was working really hard!
eva:
thats right. lol
me: had the lawnmower turned
over
fixing something on it
I met your great-grandfather too
eva:
she is a hard working lady. Just
turned 90 too.
me: both were very nice to
me. was that Scofield bible you
carried his?
eva: My great grandfather
was amazing....I still miss him. But
i have his Bible...which keeps me
close to him.
yep! lol
me: I've never read the
Scofield bible notes
eva: I still use it and I
love how whenever I am at church ad
they want us to go to a certain
verse my grandpa already has it
underlined.
me: but apparently they have
influenced the people who have that
Bible
yeah, that underlining is wonderful]
it shows a time in a person's life
when they were really learning God's
Word
and excited about it
eva: the Scofield notes
are good, they don't have
everything, but they have lot. I
have learned though not to just take
all the notes as truth tough, my
bible study classes have been
teaching me to research the bible by
using the bible.
me: that's what I wanna
hear!!!
eva:
oh yah. My grandpa read the
bible everyday and read it through
over 10 times I think.
lol
Well, you would be proud of me...I
have really been growing with God
and learning a lot....changing a
lot. Although I am still a smart
a--.
me: Does your g-grandma still
live in the same house?
eva:
lol yep she does. We will be back in
California in July...so maybe as we
are driving in we can stop by your
church or something.
me: Pastor Wesley is coming
to America
sometime late April
eva: that will be
awesome.
how long is he staying?
me: Probably a few weeks.
I am gonna try to help him raise
7500 dollars for the Transmitter,
Tower, and Studio equipment
He was granted a license from the
government
eva:
wow that will be a big project.
I hope he gets it.
me: and has already built the
little building for the studio
if you look on my journal page at
the RockYou slide show...
you'll see a small, 2 story square
bldg. between the sanctuary and the
medical clinic
---that will be home to the radio
station
eva:
Whatever happened to ...oh
whats his name......the guy who came
to live here from Liberia....
me: Macdonald is in
sacramento
eva:
macdonald!!!
yes.
me: he works as an LPN
at a nursing home Yah, it's kinda
hard to get ahead anywhere right
now.
eva:
the economy is dragging
everyone down I think.
but that is whole different topic.
lol
me: not really
I was just thinking about asking you
if I could use excerpts for my
journal entry today
haha
eva:
of course you can....
me: so the economy is very
important
HOWEVER
my weekly 'retirement' report came
in this morning
and it has made a significant leap
in one week
eva:
awesome. We have an IRA
now too and have been saving up for
when we are old like you. lol j/k
me: it still is far from
where it was last October
but that's OK
cuz the ol' street preacher would
say...
"Don't put yo' faith in yo'
retirement account..."
....You can lose yo' retirement account!"
eva:
lol very true. That's good that you
have it though, I think a lot
people are realizing that they
didn't plan a head and they don't
have anything saved for when they
can't work.
Wish my parents would have had
something like that...but sadly no.
My mom has her retirement from work
I think, but it's not gonna be
something significant to live off of
for the rest of their lives.
me: mine isn't much compared
to people who have made 'making
money' their primary goal
because I've been self-employed for
so many years
I've had to pay my own social
security contributions
but the annuity fund was something
that old preachers drilled into the
younger guys
eva:
that is awesome.
me: so they wouldn't be
totally broke when nobody wants an
old preacher
eva:
lol
right....
old preachers are SO
useless.
me: We'll see about that!
eva:
I can't see you ever acting old.
me: Your Dad and I are the
same age, I think
eva:
My dad turned 51 last month.
me: Yeah, I'll be 51 in July
eva:
bunch of old guys. ;)
me: rock and roll
Friday, April 4, 2008
Other than his roles in Ferris
Beuler's Day Off, the Wonder Years
(and a more recent TV show about his
money), I don't really know anything
about Ben Stein. Today, however, I
have come across this blog about a
movie that is being released. This
film pertains to my entry today:
Expelled
On Tuesday, I met
Andrew Edwards at the
pastors' prayer meeting. His pastor,
Cedric Lee, introduced him to us.
Andrew began sharing his purpose in
coming to us by showing us two
magazine covers (Time and National
Geographic) with 'scientific' proofs
for the evolution of man.
He asked us, "How do you respond to
stories such as these? How are our
young people supposed to respond?"
Andrew adequately addressed my
concern in approaching the topic of
Creationism vs. Evolution.
Unfortunately, some who hold to a
6-day literal view of creation have
brought unnecessary dissension to
those who might desire the
intellectual freedom to think
differently about whether God's Word
intends for the reader to believe
that each day of Creation was an
earth-centered 24-hour day.
It is important to present a humble,
balanced presentation of the
biblical materials which will help
our young people to be informed
contributors in their cultural
setting at public schools, community
colleges, and at the University
level (and in the popular culture).
Andrew told us that he holds to a
view of the Earth as being about
6,000 years old. I would like to
hear more from him simply because I
like his attitude.
FAQ about Andrew
and his third-base interest
By looking at Andrew's website it
appears that he has prepared himself
to help pastors and teachers better
equip our precious young people. I
have watched my own teens begin the
process of reconciling what they
have already been taught with their
own unanswered questions and
uncertainties as they have surfaced.
They will surely face more
challenges in the years ahead.
Last night before going to bed, I
got online and another evoution-based
'teaser' from WIRED popped up. It
opened with a line that affirmed the
scientific community's widespread
acceptance of evolution ("except
for a few dogmatic religious types").
Welcome to the way it is.
May God bless Andrew in his ministry
of sharing information and
challenging the prevailing
presuppositions of our culture.
Don't forget: Duncan Holmes
is ministering at Bell Road on
Sunday morning.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Last night I wrote letters to all
the CCC visitors who were among us
last Sunday. I also wrote to a
couple other people who needed some
contact.
Slept in until 6:30 this morning. I
immediately sensed a need to write
letters of a similar nature to two
sisters in our local church. I have
heard people note that they thought
my last Sunday message (Obedient
to the Vision) was better
than most.
Having preached hundreds of messages
since I was called to preach, my own
evaluation of a message might differ
in criterion.
I recall from my earliest study of
Jeremiah
that his messages are
assembled in a unique way. Like
letters stored in a shoebox, the
reader might reread the messages out
of sequence but the overall message
is still intact.
I learned this from the introductory
notes of the NIV Student Bible
(Yancey, maybe?). We gave a
significant number of those Bibles
to teens in the eighties. My old
friend, Al Dines, served as the
benefactor for those Bibles (as I
fondly recall the spontaneous
gifting of an older couple...hah).
That's my view of the messages God
has granted for me to preach. The
effectiveness of any given message
has yet to be realized.
"As much as someone may like Brother So-and-So's
preaching, the message ain't much unless it has
impacted someone's mindset, attitude, and ultimately
her/his faith-based behavior."
--Brother
Do-and-Do, 2008
Reflecting upon
Brother DD's
quote strengthens my own assertion
that one message truly
'heard'
by one chosen soul might be worth
more
than
a steady diet of messages
which bear
the
'God-Housekeeping Seal-of-Approval'.
Tom Shoneff once shared that
a message from God ought to
comfort the
afflicted and
afflict
the comfortable.
I don't know the origins of that
pithy saying but it rings true to my
heart. My own conviction about the
purpose of any given message shared
from my heart is tri-fold:
Comfort for the one who has been hurting
Correction for all assembled sinners
Confirmation for one who is
seeking direction
It was Mike Bowling who told me that
in the minds of most 'a preacher is
only as good as his last sermon.' I
think I've observed that truth over
the years of preaching inside the
walls of weekly congregations.
One who is a receptive listener can
hear the same message over and over
and yet continue to receive fresh
manna. Here's is one brief message
that I have pulled out from my own
stash of letters. It is a simple,
three-point message (with thematic
repetition and guitartistry). Click
on the title if you have 2:30
minutes to spare.
Give
Thanks
1. Give thanks to the Lord
2. Call on His name
3. Make known among the
nations
what He has done
This message is only 2:30
minutes long. Because of the brevity
of this sermon, one might mistakenly
call this a 'sermonette'. The length
of a message should not be a primary
concern. This short message stands
the test of time. Contrary to a
misguided view of what to do with
God-given talent, the guitar solo is
not irrelevant and unnecessarily
showy. If one would want to argue
that point, the argument would be
best taken up with the Creator of
blind eyes and visionary fingers.
Actually, when the lyrics to that
song were first voiced, a certain
critic (Michal) watched from her
window with disgust. We might wanna
be careful around Michal. "Bad
company corrupts good character."
...as soon as Jesus was alone,
"His followers, along with the twelve,
began asking Him about the parables.
He was saying to them,
"To you has been given the mystery
of the kingdom of God,
but
those who are outside
get
everything in parables,
so that
while seeing,
they may see and not perceive,
and
while hearing,
they may hear and not understand.
Otherwise they might return and be
forgiven."
The reader might ask,
"What was bothering Jesus that day?
Others might choose to invest their
precious opportunities in the
knocking down of straw men that
they, themselves, have created.
I'd rather just set fire to my
convictions. That is what I hear
Paul saying at the Lord's Table:
"judge yourselves". The legitimacy
of what we do will be judged by God
anyway.
The local context within which and
with whomever God has chosen for us
to work remains His process.
Enough of that.
Back to the
black-and-white
of the
day-to-day:
Yesterday,
Matt, Emma, and I had a
2-hour staff meeting to work on
tightening up the role of 'Pastoral
Staff' as we relate to making our
Leadership Council fulfill the heart
of the church constitution.
Point-by-point, we addressed the
primary issues involved.
Then, it occurred to the hungriest
of the group that there had been no
provision for food so we went to
Chevy's for lunch mid-afternoon.
A couple
last-night chats:
9:39 PM
me: What did you do tonight
during classes?
Matt:
I was in youth
me: mm
prayer was good. we really focused
on intentional ,directed prayers
small group but powerful
Matt:
cool
me: Faye
was really happy tonight
She attended the
promo mtg
with Les, Tom, Bob,
Cyde, and whoever else
She was really
excited about it
Matt:
yeah... I saw them
through the window
me: let's move that piano
tomorrow
and set up a camera and see what
stuff looks like
Matt:
sounds good
me: oh
I talked to Duncan Holmes
He's fine with doing something
special for the kids
Matt:
cool
me: ...and Heidi too.
She really wants to
keep them in for it
Matt:
that will be nice
...and this short chat before my
connection was lost:
9:50 PM
me: you there?
how was youth tonight?
Brandon:
good
we prayed for revival in the youth
group again
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
I awoke around 5:00am. today. I
messed around a bit with a graphic
idea in the process of setting up a
new webpage design for this daily
journal. As you'll see below, before
I went to bed, I chatted with Matt.
He had made a mock-up header for a
new webpage and had wondered what I
thought of it.
The chat involved the creative
process and I ended with "I'll think
on it."
So I woke up thinking on it. In the
process of thinking I had to get
this idea out of my head and into
paint. Probably won't use it but
here it is. Click on the
photo.
The top part is the current header
that Pastor Matt created for the
homepage at
www.bellroad.org
So, in this quick idea, my
journal page would be leaving the
walls of the church building and
entering an oceanic voyage (with the
all the real possibility of 'sea
billows rolling' and other such
hymnic poetry).
Then, of course, I have to add this
version just to remind
me
of my original waking-moment idea
(though is really much different).
editor's note:
This is strictly my idea. All
potential questions of artistic
vision should be directed to me
alone.
Some don't understand allusions to
rolling sea billows and the like.
Maybe I'll have an over the shoulder
of my desktop,
concordance, dictionary, papers,
all kinds of research...
and then something out-of-place in
the corner
or something like that
I saw Randy at the Gym yesterday.
He's a biker (a couple years younger
than me). I met him there during the
week before Easter. Randy is a new
member at the Gym.
He told me that he had wanted to get
online and see this page but hadn't
yet. He also mentioned that his
girlfriend and he had planned on
coming to church too! That sure was
a good feeling.
a chat earlier
in the evening last night:
7:25
me: I pulled an April Fool's
Day Joke on Matt today.
Christy:
where is that boy!
me: he's at home now
why?
Christy: i IM'd him to
send the sac bee a pic of the
Johnson Family - they are going to
give
us a bigger spread than the usual 4
or 5 lines
me: he's not online that I
can see
Christy:
I will email him
me: I just sent you the joke
I pulled on him
Rena and Wanda were also in on it
Christy: ok
you guys are bad!!
me: it was about his Youth
Room...
I think you'll enjoy it.
Christy: knife in the
heart
oh that is bad - did he just croak
or what?
me: Since I had to leave to
pick up Clarice,
the letter gave him about 20 minutes
to sweat it out...
THEN, he turned around and put my car
for sale
for $1 on Craig's List...
but I made him take it off...
I said, 'that's not April Fool's..
that's just an annoyance.'
Christy: hah!
me: he tried to disprove it at
first by checking
my email on my desk computer but he
seems
to have convinced himself that it was
bonafide.
So..that worked.
He was thinking through the
constitution and stuff
so I guess I pretty much had him!
Christy:
that was a good one
me: Cathy and I prayed a
sinner's prayer with
a 27 yr. old today. Hillary...a
girl that we had met
a week before.
I figured she wasn't saved so I
started emailing her.
Christy: how awesome -
praise God from whom all blessings
flow
--and this
chat happened last night too
8:06 PM
me: Hey Karla. Are you
online?
Alba, Jesse, Cathy, and I went out
door to door this afternoon
Karla:
hi, how did it go?
me: We did really well. We
handed out fliers, brochures,
Karla: oh good
me: CDs, and a few Jesus
Spanish videos
Alba went with Cathy
and Jesse went with me
Karla: when are you
planning in going again?
me: We will decide on Sunday.
Alba made a good Spanish contact with
a lady
named Angelique who was part of a
spanish
fellowship at another church with
about 20 people
cathy just told me that it is a
current group
that went from 4 to about 20
anyway, Alba went back and took her a
video
Karla:that is great
me: and she says she may come
this sunday at 2
Karla:
I meet a lady in the mall the used
to go to a church in spanish in
auburn, but she say in the end
everybody start fighting, so she
only go to English church, but she
call me to go this sunday with me,
but we left with david, and my
cellphone was not working during the
weekend. I had her voice mail, but
not her number. I am hoping she
calls again
Monday, April 1, 2008
Up before 6:00 today. Duncan
Holmes will arrive in Sacramento
on Saturday--much to do before he
gets here.
Cathy is going to go to
the Orientation for Bible Study
Fellowship this morning. Since
before we started hosting BSF at
BellRoad, we felt it was important
to have our ladies involved. Thus
far,
Phyllis and Faye
have been our primary ambassadors.
Last week,
Clarice attended.
Today, at 4:00pm,
Jesse
and
Alba
are going to meet us at the church.
We plan to take Spanish 'Jesus'
videos to the Latino neighborhood
nearby. At 5:30, I have another
appointment at the church. I'd
rather not put the Spirit on a
time-limit, but we'll see what
happens)...
On Easter Sunday,
Caitlyn
sat in the balcony and shot footage
of our program (No More Night).
Yesterday, I converted the DVD of
Caitlyn's angle to an mpeg4 and
uploaded it. Last week I was told
that our CCLI license covers the
internet presentation of the musical
score since it was presented in a
live setting.
So....if you have an hour click on
the player below. Thanks to
Patrice
Rosenau,
Curt Harjo,
and
Matt Klein for their
collective efforts. This is the
firstfruit effort for our
nearly-new minister of media. The
vision to get our projectors, center
screen, and videos online is
yet-in-process.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Daniel
returned from Camp Cazadero rather
late last night. So,
Cerissa
and he stayed over and are leaving
for their classes soon. I burned a
copy of yesterday's sermon for him
to hear on the way, then he will
pass it on to his brother,
Jeremiah.
Click here
for "Obedient to the Vision
I also burned a copy for
Mary.
She is leaving for Sierra College in
a couple minutes. Mary doesn't mind
working in the Nursery on Sundays if
she gets a CD of the message.
Wolfgang
was in the Nursery as well, so he
got his CD last night (as did
Mike
& Nancy
who were still on vacation that
morning).
Last night we also delivered CDs to
BellRoad
Bob,
Conductor
Jane, and
BellRoad
Heidi--our Children's
Church ministers.
So...one more to deliver (to
Karen)
today and we'll have taken care of
our children's workers for this
week! I'd like to have copies for
our other missionaries who went to
Camp Cazadero (Tom,
Dan, and
Rachelle).
All of the child care workers for
last week's Easter program have now
been given a copy of the DVD as
well.
Our precious
Minister of Music-Media & Youth
has been
working his altoids off
making sure that we have what we
need to minister to God's ministers!
Thanks, Pastor Matt!
See the church's media page:
click here
and the brochure's page here:
click here
Someday, most of these people will
be all be set up to 'burn' their own
CDs or iPod recordings from
their computers or phones...
...but all-things-tech move a bit
slower up here in the foothills than
they did down in metropolitan
Galt (or even Huntington Beach,
I suppose). Still, Cathy and I don't
mind delivering the CDs
house-to-house...like "Little House
on the Prairie".
We have a 10:00am. home visit
scheduled with a couple of our
seniors this morning.
If you're already digitally-versed,
just click here:
www.bellroadradio.com
You can access or download all the messages for the last year in a variety of formats.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Here is the sermon I preached this
morning:
Click here
for "Obedient to the Vision
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Last Sunday our church presented a
dramatization of the Gospel for
Easter. In the program was a song
interpreted by two sisters (Polly
and Cathy). This is one camera's
view from the front row.
Click here
for Amazing Love (in
stereoscope)
There were a couple other
cameras running from different
angles. If I find some time to do
it, I may mix in some shots from
that footage.
Today, Wolf and the guys are gonna
help move a newcomer to our church.
That's where I'm headed now.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Wolfgang and I met for prayer
early this morning. Cathy and I met
with a senior couple for their
check-up at 10:00. We closed in a
circle prayer at 1:05; I don't think
that any of us had realized how much
time had elapsed.
There is another group from our
church headed up to Camp Cazadero
today. Our son, Daniel, is going
along for another working mission
trip.
Yesterday, Pastor Matt and I further
discussed theological and
methodological convictions. A side
issue that came up is the nature of
study that I undertake in order to
nourish a pastor's heart in my
ministerial context.
One issue I have considered in the
last couple days involves the burial
of
Michael Elledge in nearby
Placerville. I had been looking at
the website of the 'church' that
pickets military funerals and saw
that they had placed this memorial
on their schedule. Apparently they
don't always show up for the
scheduled picket but they cause a
stir by even stating that they plan
to.
From that thought, I also felt the
need to study through a couple other
'related' issues. Nothing that I
wish to go into today but only need
to journal a mention for future
reference.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Joe and I watched "The Apostle" last
night before going to bed. My
favorite scene is when the
antagonist shows up with a bulldozer
and says he's gonna take out the
church. E.F. places the Bible
down on the ground in front of the
bulldozer and says, "Nobody moves
that Book".
The radio announcer watches on and
whispers about the importance of the
moment. The antagonist winds up
kneeling down as E.F.
(Duvall) places his hand on his back
and tells him to receive the love of
God.
The announcer whispers that this is
their first on-air conversion. Joe
and I enjoyed listening to the final
sermon that Duvall 'preaches' before
the cops take him away. He uses the
A.B.C. plan of salvation. When he
lifts up a little baby's hand to
speak of a father putting a nail
through his son's palm, he says,
"I couldn't
do it; there not enough love in me."
That was the movie that Robert
Duvall wanted to make for many
years. I listened to Duvall's
commentary on it a few years ago. He
said he picked up pointers from
actual sermons he had heard. I
enjoyed his insights about the
subculture he had encountered in his
earlier days.
Here's something kinda fun:
Keith Green at age 11 on TV:
click here
If you watch through to the end, he plays a song with the band. Quite a talented youngster. It makes his biography more meaningful to understand how dashed his hopes would become at age 16.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Thank you, Lord, for another sunny
day in northern California. Early
this morning I received direction
from the Holy Spirit about Sunday's
Message. The connection that God
chooses to make between Ananias and
Saul has relevance for us today:
Click Here
Yesterday, Cathy and I had a 10:00
checkup with yet another widow in
our church. We discovered that her
ministry within the church is
washing dishes and keeping everyone
encouraged. What a blessing to know
the value of one's calling!
Afterwards, we ate lunch at a place
called Edelweiss in downtown Auburn.
I left one of
our church brochures
along with the tip.
Pastor Matt just finished burning a
master DVD of last Sunday's Easter
Program. If you didn't get a chance
to see it, we will post the entire
live performance online later today.
Here is another testimony that was
part of the program. I trust that
Rachelle's story will touch your
heart.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
We left our evening 'check-up' at
10:15. This couple (just a bit older
than us) have lived out a very
interesting calling from the Lord. I
wonder what God has in store for us
as we further commit ourselves to
one another.
Earlier in the evening I met with
the granddaughter of one of Bell
Road's longtime members.
Hillary
and her fiance,
Joe,
have asked me to officiate at their
wedding. I gave each of them a copy
of 40 Days of Purpose that I had on
my shelf. Hopefully, we will be able
to interact online about issues
discussed in that book during the 40
days ahead.
Cathy and I also had a checkup with
a senior yesterday. She has agreed
to be set apart for prayer on Sunday
mornings and also showed an interest
in BSF, so I am going to pick her up
this morning to try it out.
There's yet another 'check-up'
scheduled for 10:00am. These have
been very fruitful times for all
concerned.
Monday, March 24, 2008
I'm not writing this journal entry
until nearly 11:00am today. Our
weekend had been packed and
yesterday (Easter) was non-stop
people groups from 6:30 Sunrise
Service until we left "Experiencing
God" at 9:30.
God is at work around me. I like to
journal in order to give myself
reminders of whatever I have
learned, received, seen, or heard on
any of the Lord's Days. Putting
revelation in practice (or faith
into action) requires some way to
evaluate my own degree of obedience.
I drove to the Office at 8:30am in
order to open the door for BSF
Leadership. Then, Cathy, Joe, and I
went to the Gym where I started
reading Week 9 of Blackaby. This has
been an important book in my journey
as a pastor-teacher-leader since
first being given a copy by Nan
Bragg (Home Missionary: Michigan c.
1990).
This same book has helped me
interpret God's Voice as Pastor at
Praise Baptist Church (Kalamazoo),
Snyder Lane Baptist Church (Rohnert
Park), First Baptist Church (Galt),
and now, afresh, at Bell Road
Baptist Church (Auburn). Mr.
Blackaby's teachings were not really
new concepts to me. Most of what I
read at the onset already resonated
with my own developing theology and
prayer life. If anyone has
difficulty understanding why I do
the things I do, reading Blackaby
might help...
On Friday, Pastor Matt suggested we
make a gift CD for Easter, so into
Studio 1 we went. Here is the
result:
click here
for Easter 2008
Free Gift CD
The sound has been compressed at
64kbs for the Internet. However, if
you would like a copy of the 5 track
CD, just write to me:
pastorob@bellroad.org
I preached at the Sunrise Service
yesterday. I hope to take some time
today to journal the flow of thought
that was spurred on by the Scripture
verses and the gathered people of
God, the intimate setting, and the
rising sun.
As well, I hope to put together a
glimpse of
Polly and Cathy
and their stereoscopic
interpretation of 'Amazing Love'.
Then, our missionary to the Deaf (Alisha)
will be able to enjoy a bit of our
Easter program yet today.
Alisha
is stationed at Rancho Sordo Mudo in
Mexico.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Up at 4:30 this morning. Since I'm
up, Lord willing, I'll drive to the
Three Crosses around 6:00 and see
how the weather feels at this time
of year. Tomorrow, we are starting
our Sunrise Service at 6:30.
Last year, Easter was on April 8th.
Cathy,
Mary, and I had stayed
the night in the trailer next to the
Reeves home. I remember clearly the
sense of mystery we experienced as
we arose while it was yet dark (and
made our way East on I-80 toward
Exit 123).
Brandon,
Vicky, and I had agreed
to meet with our acoustic guitars
and provide simple music as a
backdrop for the other pilgrims who
would make the early morning trip to
the hilltop.
We provided a half-sheet, Songs &
Scripture page for those who joined
us. Meanwhile, at the bottom of the
hill, we saw the picketers beginning
to arrive. That surreal scene may be
a kairos
moment for the church that gathers
at 707 Bell Road (rob's journal:
April 2007)
Here was an extra seven-day
devotional I shared online in order
to prepare myself for Good Friday
and Easter Sunday in 2007 (click
here)
This year, personal preparation for
Holy Week has been accomplished
primarily by reading Week 8
along with my 'partners' in
"Experiencing God."
For Good Friday, I had lunch with
Cerissa,
Daniel, and Mary. We
rehearsed the 7 Words from the Cross
that we had taught Cerissa a few
months back at the Biblical Gardens.
In the evening, Joe, Cathy, and I
went to the Community Good Friday
Services, sang corporately, heard
the Word, and shared the
Communion.
After the service,
Diana, Bob,
and Aaron Knapp
joined us at Applebee's.
Today, we are driving to Galt to
visit a wayward soul in need of a
pastoral house call. We will then
attend the matinee of
Picture of Jesus (Jebby's
Rock Opera in Lodi), and drop in at
a surprise birthday party for one of
our dearest friends. At 7:00pm,
we'll meet with BellRoaders at the
Union Gospel Mission (Sacramento) on
our way back home.
A couple years ago (while trying to
help James
and Eva Moore
transition from California to
Michigan), I met
Bobby Gilstrap
online. He is the Director of
Missions for two different Baptist
associations there.
Bobby went to Michigan as a
missionary himself. I was impressed
at how well he had managed
technology to provide learning
opportunities for the people of his
association. As Pastor Matt develops
the infrastructure for our new
website, I will probably pass on
some ideas gathered from Bobby's
work. Bobby Gilstrap's Resource
Page:
click here
Here's one of the pages he linked to
from a local church in Tennessee:
Church health and Growth (click
here)
Here's a chat I had with
Christy
Sandhoff yesterday.
me: Hi Christy
How you doing today?
Christy: typical Friday -
hurry here, hurry there,
hurry everywhere for everything -
and you?
me: We have new brochures for
giving out on Easter...
got 1,000 color tri-folds
printed for FREE by a friend
Christy:
FREE , my favorite price
me: and then today, Matt
and I recorded a bit of
'radio-like' banter to piece
together three of my
songs and two of his songs as a
special CD
gift for visitors.
Christy: on your blog???
me: we can put it up, yeah...
Christy: I would like to
hear that
me: but the CD will have
tracks so it can be played over
and over
Christy:
even better still!
me: Hey, can you get the
WELCOME TEAM together?
for AFTER EASTER service in the
foyer and
hallways to gather names of
unknown faces?
I'm gonna try to
'connect' before the presentation
and introduce Matt after
the program which will be
quite good...
Christy: I am really
looking forward this Easter.
It is going to be special for us
being as it
is our first Easter with our new
church family,
so to speak.
me: I've asked the Choir,
Testimony people, and
narrators to step down to the altar
to serve as Prayer
Intercessors
...then, we'll invite people forward
but we won't draw that out. Like
other times,
I'll dismiss in prayer and ask that
the altar stay
a place of prayer..but if we could
have you,
Kurt, Bobbie, Les, Tom, Francie,
Jimmie,
Christy:
Sure. I heard from Olan Mills this
week, and
we should be getting our black and
white proof
directory soon
me: etc. already be in the
foyer, then we could do
a good job of gathering names and
numbers
for follow up
Christy:
sounds good to me
me: anything we do will
help..
Good news about Olan Mills
Christy: do you know if
any of the 3 new couples
are coming
me: Rex and Janna might be
here.
Their son has been hospitalized in
San Jose.
Did you see the brochure page on our
new website?
Christy:
not yet - haven't looked yet today
me: The other two couples
probably will be here..
then, there's others who have
just been slacking
on Sundays...who aren't going
anywhere else..
but who haven't
'connected' more than the 10:15
service...periodically
(Here I have some omitted some
time-sensitive 'sending'
stuff that cannot yet be published)
Background for what follows
Comedian: Stephen B
(click
here
for video)
*If you aren't able to stream videos, you can still learn
more about Stephen B if you'll
click
here
me: Hey I spoke with the
Comedian yesterday for about
an hour. He told me that FBC Galt had
given him
his first 'entry' into doing Comedy
at a church
He had done clubs for over 20 years
but hadn't gotten
serious about Christ until 2000
and later felt led to try to
'minister' through his gift of
'getting people to laugh.'
That's when we had him do a COMEDY
NIGHT
in our fellowship hall.
Man, he was FUNNY...for all ages!
Christy: I think a
comedy night performance would be
awesome
me: He's ready to help as much
as we need
God can really use outside
relationships like that
Christy: I would like to
put his performance
on the concert calendar ASAP.
me: to come in once in awhile to
touch base
Are you coordinating calendar with
Tom and Les?
Christy: I think it would
be a BIG draw, and a good
change-up from musical concerts.
me: Yeah, me too. He has
PLENTY of material
that is REALLY funny
Christy: I am letting
them do the scheduling
and I am doing publicity.
----That's over an hour of
journaling.
Time to head up to the hilltop.
I'm gonna wake up Cathy to go with me.
Friday, March 21, 2008
I'm about to leave for our Deacons'
Prayer Meeting but first, I would
like to invite everyone within
driving distance to come to the 7th
Day Adventist Church in Auburn
TONIGHT at 7:00pm. for a
Community Good Friday Service.
Nine area pastors are sharing the
pulpit. Our focus is the "7
Words of Christ on the Cross".
Last night I watched the entire
presentation of 'No More Night'
which will be presented at our
morning service on Easter. It will
touch hearts and minds.
I have been up since 4:40am checking
out our NEW website design
www.bellroad.org put into place
yesterday.
It shows signs of intelligent
design: Our own
Pastor Matt
Klein (Music-Media-Youth)
is the man behind the curtain.
There are some
cool
new features will should prove to be
quite helpful to those who want to
expand their personal borders and
start 'reaching out'. There is now a
way to download brochures, tickets,
and posters to publish at home (or
Kinko's). This will make 'outreach'
much easier for those who
spontaneously decide to promote an
upcoming event.
This morning I began to prepare
myself for the upcoming
Duncan
Holmes visit by listening
to the interview:
Radio Interview
with Duncan Holmes
Meanwhile, I read his biography that
Pastor Matt uploaded on our website
(click
here). Duncan will be our
special guest on Sunday, April
6th morning service. I am
beginning to get excited about
picking him up from the airport and
having him stay with us a few days.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Check out our NEW website design:
www.bellroad.org
Yesterday was a great day full of
action. Fruit from the outreach of
Iglesia
Bautista de Bell Road has
come in the form of a boy named
Victor.
His mother,
Carmin, was in prayer
meeting with Karla, Chet, Jimmy,
Joe, Christy, and me.
Sometime last night,
Victor
prayed to receive Jesus as his Lord
and Savior.
Jesse (who also
volunteers for our Wednesday night
TeamKID program) has been able to
build a relationship with this
precious young soul.When this was
reported last night after Choir
practice, someone asked,
"Is that 'Victor' from the CD?"
"Yes."
I don't recall who asked
the question but it most likely came
from someone who worked in
Nursery,
the BellRoad Express, or
who had been away on the
Men's Mission
to
Camp Cazadero.
The CD referenced would have been
the
BellRoad Radio edition of
Bases Loaded. That
message featured
Jesse
Medina.
SG
Spirit-Guidance suggested
In seminar and in the annual
checkups, I am learning of those who
have never had the experience of
'leading' a person to pray for
forgiveness of Sin and to receive
Christ Jesus as Savior. My hope is
to personally take individuals 'out'
on spiritual adventures. My greater
hope, of course, is to watch as
souls are born again.
There is no greater joy!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
I am looking forward to Easter
Sunday here at Bell Road Baptist
Church. We are starting with a
Sunrise Service at 6:30 a.m.
Patrice Rosenau, Curt
Harjo, and Pastor Matt
have worked together to present a
very special musical dramatization
with which to present the Gospel
Story at our 10:15 service.
Yesterday a friend of mine agreed to
print 1,000 free copies of this
church brochure that Pastor Matt
and Les Andrews designed.
Click here
to take a sneak peek.
The price is right! If you would
like to share some copies with
people in order to invite them to
church this Sunday, send me an
email:
pastorob@gmail.com
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
There are some memorable moments and
quoteable quotes on it. Before the
Message, you'll hear the Bell
ringing as the kids head off to
Children's Church. I left this
transition-time on the audio track
so I wouldn't forget some of the
context.
If you have find that the audio
download is moving slow today, try
listening to the message on the
SermonPlayer (click
here).
I slept in until 6:00 a.m. today.
Must be in at the Office by 8:45 to
set up a microphone for BSF (Bible
Study Fellowship). Pastor Matt
better sleep-in himself this
morning. It looks like he was up a
little later than me!
We had a late night with the
Saints last night.
G.R.O.W
covered some most-important
biblical territory for how best to
conduct ourselves as 'leaders' in
our local church.
Since we didn't video (or
audio-record) the session, we will
probably need to provide a way to
recreate the Message. This
particular message ought to be up on
our webpage (accessible for anyone
who wants to come alongside us on
the Journey ahead).
I'm happy to report that we're gonna
move full-speed ahead with video
testimonies at
BellRoad Radio.
Last night (after
G.R.O.W.)
a few of our folks went into the
producer's 'studio' to do their
interviews.
Click on the photo to see and hear
the testimony of David Browning
and his wife, Rita:
Here
is
Matt Woodin:
These videos will be used (among
others) as part of the musical-drama
being produced at Bell Road this
Sunday morning for Easter (10:15
AM). Thanks, Pastor Matt. See the
chat below for 'Director's
Commentary ' about these video
testimonies.
Today, I'll meet with the local
pastors as I try to do on Tuesdays
at Noon. I'm sure we will pray over
all of the outreach going on
throughout the world this week.
On Good Friday, in Auburn,
our pastors' fellowship will host a
'Community Service' in the 7th Day
Adventist building. We will present
the 7 Words from the Cross. I'm
responsible to present "It is
Finished".
I had wanted to go south down the
road to Lodi this Thursday night to
see the the first performance of
Jebby's musical drama. Then, I
learned that Thursday is our dress
rehearsal for "No More Night" (Cathy
is in the Choir here). So, maybe I
can get down there on Saturday
afternoon.
Here's some
info that their church sent me:
Picture of Jesus,
an original musical-drama depicting
the life, death and resurrection of
our Lord, Jesus Christ. The
performances for this powerful rock
opera will take place at:
7:00 pm on March 20th,
21st and 22nd
and a matinee at 2:00pm on
March 22nd.
So join us at
Bear Creek Community Church
11171 North Lower Sacramento Rd.
Lodi, California (209)
369-2202
Admission is Free. It is recommended
that children under 13 are
accompanied by an adult.
So, why should Pastor Matt
sleep-in today? See for yourself.
12:35 AM
Matt: you still up?
me: yeah
I bought a 3 DVD mccartney set
and am watching disc three
Matt: oh???
me: it is called 'The
Mccartney Years'
Matt: any good?
me: all his videos and a few
concerts along the way
post-beatles
yeah, quite good
Matt: very cool
me: I bought it at Walmart a few
days ago
Matt: how much?
me: 25 bucks
I'll let you borrow it
golly what a talent that guy
has been
Matt: sweet
12:36 AM
me: his videos have
documentaries too
so that's quite interesting
I have another called
'Wingspan'
that's quite good too
I ignored his Wings stuff while
it was happening
but actually his wife was
amazing considering
that he basically taught her
how to keep up...
It is a good retrospective
Matt: well I just got done
with Rachelles testimony...
only 2 more to go :)
me: cool about the
testimonies. put 'em online
and let me have the links, OK?
I listened to Matt Woodin's
It was certainly discernible on my
laptop
what a nice guy Matt is
Matt: I brought the music
down on
and brought his vocals up
he's cool
I like him
me: very good
Matt: I'm doing Eleanor's
Testimony now
ok sir... I'm off
me: I think
Patrice is very happy right now
ok bud
night
Matt: good to hear
see ya tomorrow
me: yeah this is her era to
shine...
just ahead..
Matt: cool
me: ok bud cu 2mr2
Matt: k
10 minutes
12:50 AM
Matt: [Just finished
Rachelle's video testimony]
The "head" to
"frame" ratio is better
me: I'm watching it...
nice.
Matt: I think so
me: ...I edited her testimony
on the day Alana was
baptized.. it was a great audio
testimony
what a sweet girl this is
this is a good video
Matt: cool
well back to work
me: very touching
Matt: yeah
(rob finishes the DVD ...and Matt?)
2:28 AM
Matt: Well it's done... I'm
off to bed...
I shall upload
David Browning's tomorrow
Testimony from Eleanor Bailey
Monday, March 17, 2008
Slept in until 6:35 today! Cathy and
I are gonna run to the Gym before
going in to work. She's helping a
senior couple at a private residence
and I'll be heading to the Office.
I'm usually alone at the Office on
Mondays, so I'm not in a position to
do 'annual checkups' (except with
guys...so I'll see).
That process has been going very
well. Tonight is a very important
G.R.O.W. meeting. I told the
congregation yesterday (during
announcements) that I plan to
address an issue that isn't really
appropriate for Sunday morning with
visitors.
Last night's 'Experiencing God'
fellowship-class went extremely
well. There is definitely some
Body-synergy going on there each
week.
I received a call from my son,
Jeremiah (20), at around 12:30 in
the morning. He was stranded on a
roadside after work. Fortunately, I
was online and was able to quickly
pull up the Emergency Road Service
information.
However, an hour later Allstate
hadn't been able to get any of their
cooperating Tow Services to answer
their phone.
He asked how to use his ATM to get a
cash-advance because he would have
to pay a non-allstate service and
get reimbursed. That makes
LatenightDad
concerned.
What's the point in paying for
Emergency Road Service if your kid
is stranded for a couple hours...
Cathy asks, "What if that was our
daughter?!"
So, I have a choice...go work
out, think about it, and pray before
calling Allstate this
morning....or...
-- 'or' ... I'll just go with option
# 1.
It is coming to pass--what the
elders have been telling us for
years. One never gets over
'parenting' their children. We
remain concerned, protective; we
hurt over their hurts; we lament the
thought that Life is gonna dish out
some real suffering....
We are making plans for a huge
commemoration of Memorial Day in
2008. There are some World War 2
veterans in our congregation (as
well as all the other battle-stages
since). Having watched a few of the
movies about our men and women in
Iraq, I was reminded of the
importance of becoming more
intentionally prayerful for our
nation's situation.
An unexpected letter arrived last
night. Below is a compilation of
excerpts from a back-and-forth as
Auburn and Iraq connected through
the night:
Could this
possibly be the same Rob Patterson
that was youth pastor at Trinity A/G
in Kalamazoo, MI?
(1985-88).
It has been years! I happened across
Al & Shirley's website. Then
onto their you tube site, and saw
the link to your site. How is
everything? How is California?
Let me catch you up a little on me.
Let's see.. I'm in Iraq right now,
with the Army. Married almost 15
years. Two beautiful boys, ages 2
and 1.
We are residents of Florida but (of
course) don't actually live there.
My Dad passed away almost seven
years ago and Mom got remarried in
2006.
I've been here 8 months so far this
time. Got about 7 left. My wife is
home at (withheld) with the boys.
The 2 year old is ill, so it is a
GOD thing that Mom stays home, and
that we have great insurance.
AJ
Saturday, March 15, 2008
I was looking at quotes by Charles
Darwin and noticed that the Mormons
are using target-advertising by
tagging Darwin (click
here). You might need to click
on a few different Darwin quotes
before you'll see a Mormon ad but
that's how they are tagged. My
friends who don't think there's much
point of being online might better
understand why I differ.
Cathy
is heading to an all-day women's
conference at Combie Bible Church
with the ladies from our church.
We have an Annual Checkup with a
couple at 6:30 tonight but since
Joe's at work and my other kids
aren't planning to be in Auburn this
weekend, I have 'the day' completely
to myself.
Just me
and the LORD
(Father-(son)-Son & Spirit)
Where shall we go?
What shall we do?
First off, I'm gonna talk to Him
about Sunday's Message.
For now, He seems to be leaving it
up to me where we will go. We'll
take the dog out for a walk in the
park and get some sunshine.
Then, I figure we'll take the Book
to talk over at the Gym.
We'll do the Treadmill together, the
biking, the upper-body stuff, Spa,
Sauna... that will be some 'quality
time'.
Much of that time we'll be talking
quietly to each other...
or I'll just be thinking; He knows my thoughts.
The theme of today's journal entry
seems to be the unique relationship
that a father is given with each
individual child
(to get
it...don't skip last
night's chat with Christy below)
For the fun of it, I have associated
a song with a son that could be sung
with Abba and other Father-figures
(dad, pa, opa, papa, grandpa)
"Take me out
to the _________ " (Billy
Sunday)
Friday, March 14, 2008
I woke up around 4:00 this morning.
The sword-wielding character played
by my friend, Rex Ruth came to my
mind.
I wrote him a quick note and
mentioned my concern that those of
us who are called to be messengers
need to be careful that we don't
limit ourselves to a ministry of
'preaching to the choir'.
God seems to be working
on/in/through
me regarding:
* Primary Sources
* Personalized History Lessons
I was reminded of a project called
"Brothers" written by my good
friend, Jebby Moates.
This is a page I put together to
promote the full-length musical
drama the last time it was performed
at FBC Sacramento.
Click Here for
'Brothers'
I was the Southern Preacher (second
row from top) who went along on the
Battlefields (listed on the page).
I preached to our boys about facing
"the Philistines" who were marching
upon our land from the North...
That was an interesting role
(especially for a real-life Yank to
play).
Brothers is an opera in the sense
that all of the dialogue is sung. I
once arranged for
Jebby
to come into a high school history
class where I was teaching. He
shared his passion for reenactment
and we promoted the musical.
Here is a poster (click
here) for
Picture of Jesus.
Since my first day with Jebby, I
have been personally involved in his
Easter time musical drama. But,
alas, not in 2008. That's kinda sad
but he has a new job/new church...
as do I. Cathy and I will probably
go to Lodi to watch it.
I continue to pray alongside yet
others who are seeking God's
step-by-step map in their own lives.
We must come to know God's Word (and
Listen, Trust, and Obey).
1) Go South down the Road toward
"Gaza"
2) There...see that?
--that Chariot? --that man? Go up to him.
3) ...and onward into the Story for
such a time as this.
For a recent sermon on the topic:
Intentional Evangelism
or (even)
Bases Loaded: The Billy
Sunday Sunday
My newly-found 'Internet cousin' (Dinah)
belongs to a sister church in Katy,
Texas. Check out their webpage. They
have some features that I'm gonna
ask Pastor Matt to put on our site:
Click Here for Dinah's local
church.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Back from a morning walk, Cathy just
left for work and I'm having a bowl
of cereal before going in to do
Thursday from the Office.
Some time ago, someone signed me up
for Jay Sekulow's newletters.
Although I frankly don't have time
to keep up on 'everything' that
people send me, I did click on this
short video clip and saw something
that is relevant
click here about human
injustice in Turkey.
What do you think about this
statement?
click here for further awareness
of
our 'cultural acceptance' of gay parenthood
On a different note, you guys all
know that I'm friends with
BellRoad
Bob, right?
Well, some nice folks from another
church took a ride on the BellRoad
Express last Sunday in order to get
to know him better.
... and What about Bob?
He was so inspired by hanging out
with them after church that he
created a modest webpage for them.
Last year, right after the 2007
version of
www.bellroad.org was uploaded, I
encouraged a few of our web-capable
members to begin journaling,
reporting, or somehow interacting
with others via the Internet.
Click here
to check out the Dunsmuir
Page
I'm a strong advocate of following
the Apostle Paul's example of
appropriating existing technology
and transportation to broaden
communication potential. I am happy
to see how far Bob's abilities have
come to put his acquired skills to
work for the Kingdom of God.
Brandon
worked on a devotional
for a few months;
Stephanie
started a page for young families
but marriage plans kept her busy. My
hope is for an ever-expanding
capability to glorify God together
as we 'watch and pray' together.
For Mary's next school assignment, I
will have her revive her public page
for the publication of her semester
projects. I think that her recent
work is worthy of broader
distribution. The girl is learning
how to read for comprehension, think
critically, and write with maturity.
Note to all team members: The
second installment of
G.R.O.W.
will take place this Monday night.
Last night after the prayer meeting,
I sat down in my office for another
annual check-up. The 30-something
couple are long time members at our
church.
Mary graciously agreed to
help out with childcare. Cathy
joined us after she got out of
choir.
Each of these checkups have been
insightful. I am hearing the voice
of the Spirit as I have the
opportunity to experience Him
through His people.
Cathy and I took one of our original
Baptist Babies out on a walk in his
stroller yesterday.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
"To Bell Road again,
I'm headin' on the Road to Church again,
Gonna hear the Word of God,
(then share it with my friends)
--oh, I can't wait to get up to Bell Road again."
First, I give honor to God
my Father,
who loved me when I was
yet a sinner,
and who gave His only
begotten son,
my Lord Jesus, the Christ,
who hung from the Cross--
looking
2,000 years ahead--
interceding on my behalf,
and
prayed, "Forgive him Father,
for he knows not what he does...",
and to the Holy Ghost, the very Spirit of Christ,
the fullness of 'every good and
perfect gift',
sent from above to live His abundant
life through me--
who empowers me with the 'yea' and
'amen' --
to the Glory of God.
Yes, I do thank the Lord for being
baptized,
sanctified, and filled with the precious Holy Ghost.
Learned and earned, each of my
phrases are stored in my heart and
are paraphrased whenever I open my
heart's Book (the Living Word) to
testify to another.
In the church these phrases
can be further defined
and lovingly refined;
memorized,
lyricized--melodized and harmonized--
dramatized--even scandalized.
In the prayer closet, there is no
missed-communication. No barriers of
language, generation, or background.
Every subtle reference is fully
understood by the One who hears my
confession--whether one of
thanksgiving, praise, sorrow,
mourning, or indifference.
I can pray through the One who
continually gives me strength. My
prayer is confidently voiced because
I have been assured that the Blood
of Jesus has forever stamped my
backstage pass into the Holy of
Holies.
"To Bell Road again,
I'm headin' on the Road to Church again,
Gonna hear the Word of God,
(then share it with my friends)
--oh, I can't wait to get up to Bell Road again."
Yesterday, Cathy and I conducted two
annual checkups with church members
in my office. What a wonderful time
we all had! We didn't head home
until 10:40 p.m.
Now, that's what I call church!
My newfound, long-lost, Cousin
Dinah (from Texas) just emailed me a
'hand-written' letter that my great
grandfather, Frank Peterson wrote to
her great-grandmother, Effie May
back in 1947 when she was trying to
reconnect with her biological
family.
As we learned in yesterday's
episode, Effie lost both of her
parents before she was seven. She
was adopted by others who took her
to live out her life away from
Michigan.
My Grandma (Peterson) Patterson
would have so enjoyed a conversation
about meeting Cousin Effie's great
granddaughter, but alas, Grandma
left this world back in '93 (at the
age of 93) to be with our Good
Shepherd in ForeverLand.
Hey, I'm having a good day. I've
been up since 5:58; woke up to the
sound of birds chirping in the
darkness. I stayed up until nearly
2:00 a.m. with Mary helping her with
a paper due at Sierra College this
morning. She had already written a
lengthy analysis on the parenting
style of 'her parents' and had not
realized how much work her second
paper was going to require to
prepare for submission.
The girl hardly ever gives me a
hug...but she did so this morning
when she sent me to bed while she
faced the rest of her 'late night'
college days. That felt good.
Have a good day, dear reader.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
I had a headache all day yesterday
but am feeling better today. After
the funeral, Cathy and I had lunch
with one of our seniors then I came
home.
More trouble in Pakistan. My friend
sent me
this story. There have been 600
terrorist-related deaths since the
new year. The Thief comes to steal,
to kill, and to destroy.
Last night, I received a sweet
letter from a brother in our local
church. He was pumping some
encouragement from God's Word into
my 'love tank'. That is always much
appreciated.
I've never met Cousin Dinah until
this morning. She found me on the
internet and requested any further
information I have on her family.
"I am wondering if you are from the
Peterson family from
Hillsdale, MI. My great-grandmother was Effie May
Peterson born Oct 17, 1873 in Howard City, MI. Her
father was Charles W. Peterson born Jan 21, 1818."
From her letter, I learned
that Dinah's g-grandma (Effie) had
lost both her parents before she was
seven years old and was adopted.
However, she had reestablished
contact with her first-cousin,
Frank, later in life.
Frank was my great grandfather.
I sent Cousin Dinah a page
that I put online back in 2005.
Although it doesn't have a
photograph, there is a silhouette of
the ancestor we both have in common,
our g-g-g grandfather, James
Peterson (1791-1846).
His 'picture' is halfway down this
page:
click here).
Monday, March 10, 2008
After church yesterday, we joined
with a couple others to set up all
the chairs for a funeral this
morning. Then, I started
experiencing a dull headache to
accompany the morning's chest and
head congestion, so I crawled into
bed and rested. I had to miss going
to the 'Experiencing God' class.
The headache is gone but I still
don't feel good. In yesterday's
message, Pastor Matt called me up to
the platform to question me. He
asked what's the first thing I do
when I wake up; my answer was "I
talk to God." That is usually what I
do. Sometimes it is a simple
expression of thanksgiving for His
love and involvement in my life.
Sometimes if I've been 'pressured'
during the night, then my first
words in the morning are, "Help me,
Lord."
I think that Matt may have been
looking for something like "I get up
and get dressed." I don't usually
just hop out of bed because I wake
up too early for that. We live in a
small apartment; Joe's on the couch
in the livingroom, so there's no
place else to go.
Anyway, my bedside wireless laptop
lets me check my lines. Sometimes I
have early morning letters that I
want to make sure will become part
of my waking thoughts.
This morning, there was an email
from my friend in Pakistan. He
wanted me to know:
Brother, today I request to all school children they pray
for you. All school Children (Muslim and Christian
Children) Pray for you. I hope your problems solve now.
My Prayer God fill your heart with Joy forever.
His own prayer for me was to
have a heart 'filled' with JOY
forever. That's a good prayer. I'm
gonna say 'yea' and 'amen' to that
one. May God fill your heart
and mind with a joyful song
today. The joy of the Lord is our
strength.
Do you love Him today?
Sunday, March 9, 2008
I woke up at 5:30 (allowing for the
time change) and it is still dark.
I'm preparing my mind for Sunrise
Service which starts at 6:30--two
weeks from today.
Brother Lou
is probably thinking ahead this
morning as well.
We sometimes call the preaching spot
'the pulpit'
(from the Latin
pulpitum:
An elevated platform, such as one
used by harpooners in a whaling
boat). As much as I enjoy the
preaching moment, I am usually under
some level of stress until the bell
starts to ring and the children
dismiss to Children's Church.
That is why I value a good time of
singing our teaching hymns and
worship songs, prior to hearing the
week's message together.
It will be enjoyable to go to the
House of God without carrying the
burden of an undelivered
message--and simply worship at the
altar.
I've found fresh manna for each day
in the process of transcribing that
unusual message: Bases Loaded.
Built around my understanding of the
'Greatest Commandment' (click
here), as the head of my
household, I wanted my immediate
family to hear the CD.
Last Sunday,
Mary was in the
Nursery;
Cathy was home sick;
Daniel
was still at Camp Cazadero.
Jeremiah
lives in Galt and doesn't here for
church.
Joseph was Dad's only kid
in the assembly to hear his father's
heart for the local church.
Seven days later, everyone in my
family has now heard it except
Jeremiah--he is going to listen to
it today.
Here is the yet-unfinished
transcript of the message if you
would like to read along (click
here).
Pastor Matt (my associate) will be
preaching this week's message
entitled "An
Attitude of Worship'. May
he speak with unconditional love and
Spirit-led authority as he steps up
to the platform (from the first word
of the first song to the final
Amen).
I look forward to going to the Altar
and allowing God to speak to me in
the midst of the assembly.
The
website server for this column sends
me a report every Saturday night.
Back in 2005, I was keeping track of
stats on a nightly basis and had
months of nearly 20,000 page views
(for the entire local church page in
Galt--of course, that was a
different context and there were
still several cooperating writers).
I don't know how our church page (www.bellroad.org)
has been doing but for this personal
site (pastorob.com), here are the
summary stats for the last seven
days (click
here).
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Anyone reading this who can make it
to 707 Bell Road by 9:30 a.m. can
join our caravan to Gold Discovery
Park in Coloma, California.
New church attendees,
Rex and
Janna Ruth, will be
meeting us there. Rex will be
dressed and ready to 'entertain' and
challenge all who attend this
California History Reenactment. My
new friend will come to us through
the integrated Christian witness of
California's own
Lt. Col. John Charles Fremont
(1830-1890).
Unfortunately, I will miss the
Sunday School teachers' fellowship
out at Sharon's house! That
important meeting starts at 10:00
a.m.
]Last night, we watched the Mayberry
Video (on the big screens) for
purposes of prayerful reflection and
reunion. Before we played the
video, I shared about a number of
significant outreach events which
will be taking place in April.
Our numbers were humble but
meaningful to me.Les
and Maria, Joe,
Cathy, David, Tyla, Karla, Thelma,
Dennis, Scott, April, Donald,
Autumn, Matthew, Elizabeth, Joshua,
(Scott's parents), Les
Andrews, John Walker, Cathy, and
me.
Wow, what a difference the Otis
Music Video makes. It brought a
sweet sense of purpose to everything
that proceeded. (If you missed the
video, click on this photo and
you'll have your chance to view it).
After everyone left, Cathy and I sat
at the piano and at the altar to
share our hearts with the Lord. We
went home at 10 p.m.
As the preacher asks, "Do you love
Him today?"
My answer remains, "AMEN"
Yesterday morning, after the
deacon's prayer time, I invested
more time 'transcribing' last
Sunday's Message. Yesterday's
newspaper shared that the
constitutional right of parents to
school their children is being
challenged in California.
This morning, my retirement account
report shows signs 'that the sky is
falling...the sky is falling.'
By reading the transcription (or
hearing afresh the Message), I am
pleased to remember that my faith
has been built on Solid Rock of
Jesus Christ. I am edified in the
Body of Christ as I listen, type,
and rehearse what I was sensing
step-by-step during the Message
entitled:
Bases Loaded: The Billy
Sunday Sunday
(click on the photo to hear the
message)
Here is the yet-unfinished
transcript of the message if you
would like to read along (click
here). It may take a couple
more days before I get around to
completing it. I am enjoying the
movement
and
laughter (in the worship
space and in the participant's
lives).
Some of the brothers and sisters
have told me that they couldn't
receive the Message on Sunday. Yes,
that truly saddens me but all is not
lost. Hopefully, 'reading' may be
more conducive to seeing/hearing
than 'watching'.
That's the Body of Christ. I am
still being given the opportunity to
humble myself and listen to those
who hold to a different
interpretation of the Spirit's
leadership. It should be about
'waiting upon one another' as we
share the Body and Blood of the Lord
Jesus in the church.
For those who prefer to use the
Sermon Player, all the sermons from
the last year can be accessed at:
www.bellroadradio.com
Friday, March 7, 2008
The Deacons' Prayer Meeting takes
place at 6:30 a.m., so I will
attempt to press on with this task
until I must leave (about 2 hours
from now).
I woke up at 3:30 a.m. and have
decided to continue 'transcribing'
last Sunday's Message. I desire to
better understand 'why' I continue
to believe that in the delivery of
Bases Loaded:
The Billy Sunday Sunday, I was
truly putting one foot in front of
the other in my own Christian Walk
and Calling as a messenger (as
described in the prior week's
message:
Intentional Evangelism).
I've only received one letter that
affirmed the value of 'Bases Loaded'
but others are still weighing in:
"I wanted
to let you know that I thought last
Sunday's message was outstanding. The fact that
several of the men from the church had gone to help
rejuvenate the buildings at Camp Cazadero just added
more meaning to the message of commitment."
That letter still seems to be the
'minority opinion' ...and I haven't
even fully weighed in myself yet!
I delivered the message from
'pitcher's mound' as I responded to
the sounds of the congregation .
Some allowed their vocal cords to
affirm that they were, in fact,
listening--evidenced by laughter.
That laughter figures in as I will
make my final assessment of whether
I was concerned about 'pleasing God'
or 'pleasing man' in the preaching
event.
On the other hand, I have yet to
fully experience what it must have
been like to sit in the bleachers as
a quiet, reflective spectator. The
harder work of trying to put myself
in their 'seats' is coming as I
listen closer and transcribe the
message...thought-by-thought.
It is sometimes very humbling to
serve God's people as 'the preacher'
and as 'their pastor'.
Astute observers are correct in
stating that I didn't read from the
Bible until just prior to sharing
the Lord's Supper. As announced at
the very beginning of the Service,
the Lord's Supper was intended to
serve as the climactic focal point
of the entire Morning's Service.
Extrapolating on a little boy's
desire to share his memory verse for
Sunday School, I began the
extemporaneous message by bringing
his Sunday School teacher up to Home
Plate. From there, I began to work
out the meaning of that very verse
for our own local church. Within the
frame of a childhood teaching method
I referenced the three, primary
aspects of the Greatest Commandment:
"Love the Lord Your God with all your
mind"
(giving deep thought to 'our ways' i.e. Billy Sunday's
ways but moreover to God's Way)
with all your heart, (all
of our emotions; the laughter
and sentimentality expressed throughout the message),
and all your strength."
(expressed in the 3rd Base
illustration of own men having completing 20 out of 25
jobs in one day).
No, I didn't 'open the Bible' but I
opened my heart to share my own
convictions about the importance of
possessing the integrity to become
the person God is forming you to be
(i.e. Running the Bases over and
over again).
My prepared message was to have been
from Romans about the Extent
of our Sin,
the Abundance of
God's Grace to cover Sin,
and the wonder of
God's Plan for Saul
(that would go way
beyond our wildest imagination).
Having delayed the introductory
message of Saul's radical
conversion, last Sunday's Message
about Billy Sunday's life still has
the potential to remind us of the
importance of today's conversions
(and those of the precious souls yet
to be saved, baptized, discipled,
equipped for ministry, and
challenged about their own Life
Mission).
Rather than opening the Bible and
'preaching the Word', I opened my
mind and heart and proclaimed
"The Biblical Basis for Running the
Bases" (of our Church
Constitution's Mission Statement).
Of course, this wasn't my best
sermon but, more than ever, I
realize that it needs to stay
'on-the-record' as what the preacher
chose to deliver as 'Sunday Message'
on March 2, 2008.
Although this is a controversial
message, I must stand by it because
of the manner in which it
unfolded--given the week of days
lived out just prior to its
delivery, the ministry events that
led to the Worship Gathering, the
songs, the demonstration at the
altar, and finally, the Lord's
Supper that was to serve as the
focal point. The morning ended with
most of the Congregation looking
upward, arms lifted in unity,
singing the old hymn "How Marvelous,
How Wonderful' without the aid of
printed lyrics.
So, sometime soon, the transcript
will be available. Hopefully, others
might glean some insight in the
years ahead.
Yesterday, Cathy and I visited with
Christina
(who just gave birth to
Jadin
a week ago Sunday). She, Jason, and
the baby plan to be in church this
Sunday. While we were there,
Amber
came in the room with her 2 year
old, Kaylee. Amber also expressed a
desire to be back in church this
Sunday. Her husband,
Chad,
(who we baptized recently) is now in
Hawaii where he has found work to
sustain their family. The parents of
this 'oikos' is heading for Fresno
this weekend.
Keith and
Brenda
are taking a week together. Brenda
will train for her new job she has
started in Auburn.
I gave a copy of an 18-song
compilation on the new CD label that
Pastor Matt
designed (see photo of CD in the
slideshow above).
So, the first three gift CDs, on the
new BellRoad label have gone out to:
1) Christina and Jason
2) Amber and Chad
3) Keith and Brenda
Although these songs are 'old-rock',
(with the exception of 'Blessed
Assurance', they are all original
creations and are steeped in the
Word of God.
Tonight, we are replaying the
Mayberry project on the Big Screen
at 7:00 p.m. and, afterward, will be
hosting a pre-Easter, prayer meeting
until midnight.
Tomorrow, Les Andrews and I are
hosting a trip to Gold Discovery
Park in Coloma in order to watch
Rex Ruth
share the Christian witness of
Lt. Col. John Charles Fremont.
Rex
and his wife,
Janna,
have been attending our church for
several weeks.
This was announced at Men's Breakfast last Saturday. Anyone (all are welcome) who would like to go should meet us at the church parking lot at 9:30 a.m. (This does conflict with the Sunday School Teacher's Meeting. That should be the first priority if you're a teacher or a substitute.)
Thursday, March 6, 2008
I woke up at 4:30 this morning.
Yesterday, I received two responses
to Sunday's Message. Two
highly-respected sisters weighed in
with nearly opposite conclusions.
My reply to the first responder was
a long, thought-provoking apologetic
which expresses my mind and heart
about that particular message in the
context of that particular Sunday
morning.
In reply to the second responder, I
suggested that I may ask the first
writer for permission to somehow
publish our interchange (or
extracts) in order to allow for
better communication as a pastor and
as a preacher.
I am greatly appreciative when
anyone demonstrates Christian love
and mutual respect by interacting
with me in hope of being an iron to
sharpen iron. So, we'll see what
happens as "A Billy Sunday Sunday"
continues to create ripple across a
week of days (before it is
forgotten) and the next message gets
preached.
To hear the message, click on
this photo of Billy Sunday.
I
have also received oral feedback but
the act of writing allows us all to
come back and revisit the times with
some sense of objectivity later.
My own subjective memory of oral
communication is rarely as helpful
for long-term personal and practical
growth as is the process of
rereading and reflecting upon
written correspondence.
Since the public remembrance of this
one man's conversion has stirred an
interest in others, I awoke today
and decided to look further into
Billy Sunday's impact upon his
generation.
Here is an interesting primary
source. See also the accompanying
article on the same PDF page--
"Sin for Catholics to Attend His
Meetings".
Billy
Sunday Hurts Church
(NY Times, 1/17/1917)
Here is another 'primary source'
that speaks of the impact that Billy
Sunday made upon the people around
him:
Click here
for Billy Sunday Funeral
The memorial message
delivered by Dr. Harry Ironside is
quite interesting and brings some
balance to the article above.
As a musical pastor/preacher,
I am always interested in seeing how
preachers have interacted with the
chief musician in his context.
Mr. Homer
Rodeheaver had worked
alongside Billy for twenty years. I
particularly enjoy this thought
shared by the brother:
"Mr. Sunday
loved to hear us sing this song: he
didn't
care so much about it being soft and sweet;
he
wanted it to be powerful enough to
reach the man in
the back corner, and would give his orders
in back of
us and say, "Hold that note now; hold
it;"
"Where the Gates Swing Outward Never
."
I'm not familiar with the new
song (1917) used by Sunday and
Rodeheaver in their meetings.
However, I know the feeling of
wanting to let special musical
themes fulfill their role in
preparing the hearts of a people for
the Message of the day.
I found the tune to the song online
(click
here) and the interesting story
behind this old song: (click
here).
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
A couple days ago, Mary sat down on
the edge of our bed and talked with
me and mama about a lecture she had
received in one of her Sierra
classes: the idea of left
brain-right brain distinctions and
the importance of REM during one's
sleep.
Early this morning I woke up and
began to talk with God about a few
pressure points. I must have drifted
back to sleep. Later, I awoke with a
clear picture of an exercise I could
learn from. It was apparently about
'cynicism'.
I was shown a large interior
photograph of a livingspace and
directed to write a cynical caption.
I think I was directed to brainstorm
a few more cynical remarks.
I woke up at that point. The
Interior shot had no special
connection with me. It was a neutral
picture in my mind. I had remembered
that I was praying about
life-specifics (left-brain). Perhaps
I was 'answered' with an unfinished
life-in-general assignment.
Unfinished in that the exercise
would have ended with 'us' writing
an upbeat caption (and brainstorming
other optimistic remarks).
Finally, I think the final
optimistic view is much better for
one's life but the fact that the
cynical view is often voiced first
makes it hard to overcome and, once
voiced, might never be forgotten.
With that in mind, for those who
would like to help me get the most
out of my morning prayer, please
click on these three frames and
write a caption that has been drawn
from the abundant
wellspring of Life (Philippians
4:8).
Send all captions, remarks, and
brainstorm reports (left or right)
to
pastorob@bellroad.org
...or in the case of the video
frames,
you can leave a comment right there at googlevideo.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
In preparing for our upcoming Easter
events, I am also looking ahead at
the rest of the calendar dates in
2008. Today should serve that
purpose well.
This Friday night at 7:00, we will
host a Mayberry reunion and show the
last edit of our in-house production
of
CHRISTMAS IN MAYBERRY (the Auburn
Cast)
on the big screen(s). This version
includes our 'live' portions with
captioning during the Live Nativity
scene.
Then, we will pray over the entire
event which was four months in the
making. I am convinced that our Lord
has more assignments for us related
to that 'simple' experiment in
'trial, error, and redemption'.
I plan to stay in the church until
midnight to pray through all the
rooms and ministries which take
place on that hallowed ground.
Here's a short, edited-chat to
assist with over-the-shoulder
communications:
me: hey matt, how are you
this morning?
Matt: hey good... just
starting out
me: I slept in until just 15
minutes ago
Matt: you prob needed that
me: had an ear ache/sore
throat yesterday and just getting
over it today; allergy related I
think, so sudafed can take care of
that...not fever or
flu...fortunately
are you at the church?
Matt: I had a sore throat
last night and a little today
Yes, I'm at church
me: No BSF today
Matt: I know
me: I need to get there by
9:00 because a music minister is
dropping by. His name is Riley and
he's the new guy at Sonrise.
Matt: cool
me: He wants to borrow some
hymnals for an
'old-fashioned' singspiration on
Sunday night.
...but they looked around and didn't
have any hymnals
nice story to tell as we do our
'good deed' and loan them 30 hymnals
So.........have you seen a box of
'old' hymnals anywhere?
If not, we'll take them out of the
chairs that are stacked
Matt: not a box.. there are
some old ones from time to time
me: I'll bet there are some
in a box somewhere...
but no time to look around
anyway, it'll be good to welcome
Riley with a kind
gesture.
me: Did you notice people
going to the altar during the
Worship time 'before' the sermon?
it was a touching sight for me...
especially since Bob had enacted that
bit for us...
...about leaving all our burdens on the altar.
Matt: I enjoyed worship on
Sunday... I like having 'altar time'
during worship
me: I continue to pray and
ask God to send forth laborers.
Maybe one of them will come forward,
called out, from among the
spectators who watched the Game
this last Sunday Morning...
I am calling that sermon
a
BillySunday
Sunday
at BellRoad
SG
Spirit-Guidance suggested
Matt: it earned that title
me: I mentioned the Memorial
Day Sunday picnic idea to Rena.
She's ready to roll with that, to
help line up keynote speakers on the
hour.
She also is planning for a May 3rd
Garden Club Extravaganza earlier in
that month. We should have our CDs
and other stuff at a table there.
....I'll be in just before nine to
meet Riley have him help me retrieve
the hymnals from the extra chairs.
Matt: k
me: hey, try to get a ad for
the Sunlight service up if possible.
I'll try to find what I put up last
year
Matt: I'm workin on it as we
speak
me: Caitlyn had an artsy shot
of the crosses on one of her posters
I think... I seem to remember that
there was a cool angle
My sermon that I never preached
"Grace through the Cross" could get
real good between now and GO-TIME
Matt: indeed... brb
me: what's your message this
Sunday gonna be called?
*chat ends
Monday, March 3, 2008
up at 4:15 a.m. Cathy is still
feeling sickly. She stayed home from
Sunday church for the very first
time in our entire marriage (except
for a Sunday that she was in the
hospital having given birth).
I'm experiencing some chest
congestion this morning but feel
alright. Hopefully, I will miss out
on the flu(s) and other sicknesses
that folks have been experiencing. I
really hope so!
Here is a link to yesterday
morning's 'message'...
CLICK HERE
for a
BillySunday
Sunday
at BellRoad
Click on the photo to enlarge
the images of Billy Sunday.
These photos were on the two screens
behind me as I preached, pastored,
and taught our local church. I left
behind the sermon for which I had
'prepared' and opted
(extemporaneously) to expand upon
one 'adjustment' that had to be made
to the prior week's illustration
about the ministry of Billy Sunday.
The adjustment had to do with a
quotation from Pastor Don Bisagno's
mention that Billy Sunday had
'thrown a bible'(see yesterday's
journal entry).
For some reason, that didn't sound
right to my ears. I looked for a
primary source and couldn't find one
so I wanted to publicly question the
secondary source.
I don't think that I'll have time to
'trim and edit' the sermon so, for
now, here is the 'uncut' version. It
is rated SG
because some might think it too much
talking and not enough Bible;
granted you'll have to listen for
Bible references (even if
book/chapter/verse are not stated).
SG
Spirit-Guidance suggested
The uncut version of the message
includes a portion of our observance
of the Lord's Supper. There is some
teaching that takes place and some
of Pastor
Matt's
piano-vocalizations as well.
This accounts for the length. It is
nearly an hour long beginning with
the last ring of the
BellRoad
Express.
CLICK HERE
for a
BillySunday
Sunday
at BellRoad
Since the uncut version is a long recording, it may take our dial-up listeners more time to download. If that is the case, please try accessing the message from our SermonPlayer at www.bellroadradio.com
btw, a boy named
Nick
prayed a sinner's prayer in
Children's Church during this
sermon. Thank you,
BellRoad Bob,
Conductor Jane,
and
SnackShop Heidi for your
ministry among the children
yesterday.
Thank you,
Maria, Mary, Rita, Stacy, and
Rachelle for your
ministry among the littlest ones
during the same hour.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
update:
**phone rings at 7:30 from CAMP
CAZADERO
(read more at the bottom of today's
entry)
me: Have you ever
talked to yourself? Note below that
in
today's broadcast, we'll bring
in some names to
make the point of the day.
Rob: which is?
me: "Please don't
let me be misunderstood"...the song.
Rob: sung by Joe
Cocker?
me: yes...
and no. Richard sang and
played it.
Rob: your brother?
me: of course. It
is a blessing to think that He
lives.
I praise God that
someday,
I'll 'see' him again.
That's my hope.
When I preach I know that I'm
preaching primarily to
myself...that's OK. I need to hear
it!
I'll listen to the message more than
once. The first time to edit it...to
cut out long pauses, mispronounced
words... and, of course, the heresy
or other errors... (smile, guys)
I'll probably actually 'get it' the
second, third or fourth time around.
That's why I am so looking forward
to having a Minister of Music and
Media do his thing alongside me.
There are many issues that a pastor
must address when trying to have a
meaningful relationship with a wide
variety of individuals of diverse
backgrounds and from different
generational groups.
It is important to remember where we
came from. So, part of a pastor's
job is to observe the lives of those
for whom he prays, and for whom he
is called to feed them their portion
of God's Word.
In order to 'really get to 'know'
someone, we usually need to look at
some of the photos they have on
display.
me: Sometimes I find it
necessary to share a slice of life,
a biopsy to see if the DNA of any
given Christian Witness is healthy.
pastorob: Hey guys, I really
only got up at 3:40 because I figure
a 'sermon' outline might be helpful
today, so I'm outta here.
Rob: ttyl
Mrs. Hayes would have
written a positive comment,
had I chosen to write
upon "I am, therefore I write" as
a theme in 'Literary
Philosophy'.
me: mm... I remember
that class. Peggy Lackey and a few
other girls were at my table--maybe
another guy too.
It was definitely a first-time,
cross-generational experience for me
as an 11th grader. We sat in small
groups at round tables. Peggy was a
year ahead of me and Cathy-something
was in the class behind me.
We did have fun crossing the
class-barriers (even as we started
to learn how to reflect upon the
sentence Mrs. Hayes had written on
the board, and were required to
respond somehow through writing).
pastorob: Well, that's the
reason I tweaked some of the
dialogue between
Sharon
and me yesterday. Remember, that old
song that brother Richard used to
sing,
"Don't let me be misunderstood"
?
me: You're still
here...No printed outline, huh?
Still, check out these quotes
and photos of
Billy Sunday.
CLICK HERE and print this off
for your sermon.
I had heard about
Billy Sunday through the years
(the 'christian' years that
is...) but I only started
studying about him yesterday.
Don: He jumped from pianos,
threw his bible, stormed
across the stage
and preached to over 100 million
people.
John: The whole world
is my parish...
me: Wesley,
how'd you get in this chat room?!
We're
baptists.
pastorob: Hey, Don Busagno, I
'quoted' you last Sunday
in my sermon.
Intentional Evangelism
but...I googled all day looking for
an original source..
In a conversation with Pastor
Matt, we agreed that we think it
isn't wise to throw a
bible...
...even if one was trying to make a
point.
Most people would never get past
that kind of ...umm...'irreverence'
for the Holy Book.
HOWEVER, I googled 'threw bible,
Billy Sunday" and like combinations.
I wonder if he really did throw it?
It would be a good thing for someone
to say as 'gossip' to make him 'look
bad'....
Although I couldn't find any
occurrence. I did learn more about
Billy Sunday (and the unique times
in which he lived out his calling
from Christ).
Don, did you get it from a
biography?
Don?
<Don is
offline>
pastorob: Well, from what
I've read, I don't think he normally
did that as part of his
'attention-getting' stances
click here for some
really interesting photos and quotes
from the life and ministry of Billy
Sunday
I did find a slice of life where
Billy Graham threw a Bible. It was
in his autobiography (Just as I am).
It happened in Sunday School. He
threw a bible across the room to a
girl in the class. The teacher
corrected him and told him that it
was a Holy Book.
...but hey, its already 4:36 and
I've really got to get ready for
SundayMessage which will be formally
delivered at Bell Road Baptist
Church (707 Bell Road, Auburn, CA)
today at 10:15.
me: ttya'll later
Dad: ...and, Sharon, I tweaked
some of yesterday's dialogue to
better represent the heart of my
chit-chat.
**phone rings
at 7:30 while Dad is back
online to fix some spelling errrors.
Daniel: If you're
not too busy...could you share that
we accomplished many tasks during
this mission trip to Camp Cazadero.
The Camp Director, John, made a list
of twenty-five tasks that needed to
get done. We completed twenty out of
the twenty-five in ONE DAY.
I only have a partial list
here...but we'll give you the final
list when it is compiled.
1. repair leak in water supply
to the Pond
2. repair water line to the trailer
supply faucet.
3. repair drinking fountain
4. remove pews from the patio and
burn them
5. remove shade netting from patio
cover
6. cut goat pen in half and close
in the pen
7. concrete stones around the
campfire pit
8. run electricity supply in the
chapel for overhead TV
9. cut up the tree in the parking
lot
10. move bridge, and other debris
fromthe volleyball court
11. clean grille filters and hood in
the kitchen
12. fill in holes behind the walk-in
refrigerator
13. fold 200 newsletters
14. trimmed inside dorms
15. clean up debris between dorms
11, 12, and 13
16. clean the debris off certain
dorm roofs
Even though it wasn't on the list,
the younger guys took it upon
ourselves to clean up much of
the grounds, especially the place of
prayer.
There were fifteen guys working. Ten
of our guys from Bell Road and five
others from Trinity in Vacaville.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
4:45 a.m.
me: hey girl
sharon:
hi Daddy
good morning
me: good morning to you
just so you know...I've been going
through challenges
so....
much of yesterday's chat on my end
was to deal with
a couple other issues through my
journal...
you being a Filipino who 'knows' me
only through
through reading (or listening to) my
'journal-stuff'
strengthens the resolve to which I
adhere.
sharon:
oh :D
me: haha I had
Daniel's girlfriend (Cerissa)
read it...
cuz I told her that she was in it
...the girlfriend of African descent
through
her Dad; I don't know her mama's
ancestry...
but there are other issues that a
pastor must deal with
among different people of varying
ages and backgrounds
sharon: yeah.. :D
me: In order for some who
don't 'know' me as well as you
do, they need to see some of my
'fruit'. Most families
have an old scrapbook (photographs,
slides, films,
videos...whatever).
It is important to remember where we
came from...
sharon:
that's true, dad
me: Sometimes I find it
necessary to pull something out of
my online scrapbook(s) or to quote a
song that Joe
wrote, etc..
sharon:
yeah... it's nice to
remember those
me: Do you remember the month
that I had 'pink hair'?
sharon:
yeah!
me: Even though we hadn't
even met face-to-face ever?
sharon: yes
I saw your picture
and the article in the paper with
your dad
me: Did you get to see a
video
of a sermon during
that era?
sharon: yeah
me: really?
sharon:
we watched the video
when we were in Bangkok
:D
we read
the Auburn newspaper article too
me: hmm....
what did you think?
sharon:
it was nice
me: Did your Dad ever color
his hair as a result of a VBS
challenge? probably not?
sharon:
yeah...he didn't ever
me: haha
Have you ever had a pastor, a
teacher,
or a leader who did something 'crazy'
for effect?
sharon:
hmm.. not yet
me: to stir up some
enthusiasm?
sharon:
not yet
me: among the kids?
sharon:
nope
me: hmm
sharon:
because it's different here
coloring hair is strange...
especially for adults in church
maybe it's cultural difference
we are not allowed to color hair in
schools and offices
sharon:
I mean strange colors
me: of course.
Are all preachers the same in
the Philippines?
sharon: I think
preachers have different styles
me: It is the same here...
sharon:
of preaching, church
administration
and it also varies in different
cities
and church sizes
different personalities and
backgrounds
me: My purpose was to stir up
enthusiasm about 'GIVING'
to missions each night of VBS
So, I told the kids that we'd have a
challenge
between the boys and the girls...
and the winners could choose the
color of my hair
sharon: ha ha
me: We raised a
thousand-something
during one week with the kids
sharon: I know boys love
the color blue and girls pink
me: ...and, of course they
chose HOT PINK hair color...
it was much fun!
sharon: yeah
that's my favorite color too
me: it wasn't shock value for
shock value's sake...
sharon: ha ha
me: it was FUN to give, to
challenge,
to watch kids ENGAGE
sharon:
yeah...
I like that kind of stirring up
enthusiasm
for kids
me: I had shown them photos
of children in Liberia
and of children in Pakistan
We had email interaction with the
pastors in both
settings---during VBS week...
So, we raised the 1,000 something
during 5 nights of VBS
then, the hair was colored on
the last night
with temporary color...
sharon:
that's great! especially the
children
know where their offering went
me: ...but come Sunday
Morning,
it would be DYED as
promised!
...then a couple in our church,
CLYDE and FAYE were
asked to stand with baskets....
Clyde for the 'boys' (men)...
and Faye for the 'girls' (women)...
another $1,000-something came in
spontaneously
ABOVE the tithe and offering already
given
One Answer for All
(part 1)
20 minutes
sharon:
wow... it was really fun
me: The funds were sent
immediately
sharon: yeah
me: I was STILL on course
with my three-year sermon
series...
and the place in Scripture was about
'John the Baptist'...
and the STRANGE sight he must have
been..
...so, it all fit well with the way
that a preacher's personality, and
commitment to mission, and to the
right-division of God's Word...works
together for the Good.
sharon: yeah.. it did
me: People in public
asked me about it everywhere we
went..
sharon:
putting mission in the
hearts
of both young and old
:D
One Answer for All
(reel 2)
31 minutes
me: but a month of PINK HAIR
was plenty of time to prove to the
kids that they had a pastor who
wasn't afraid to do something
'different'
Thanks to the
Coldwater Daily Reporter for
sharing this story with us (license).
sharon:
:D
me: a simple 'means' for a
'cause'...
it worked otherwise, there wasn't
even a 'missions-offering' planned
for VBS
sharon:
it was very exciting
especially for those kids
me: Hey, I've gotta go at
5:45 to help get ready
for Men's Breakfast at 8:00
sharon:
Oh
me: ..but first I have to put
up the video
of the John the Baptist
message
so...I'll post this chat
with 'extras
sharon:
yeah .. it's ok
Dad, I listened to your sermon
titled
The Overnight
me: How was it for you?
the sermon?
sharon: I was comforted
last night as I listened to your
sermon as you emphasized the phrase
COME TO ME
that's very comforting
me: Yeah, for me too!
sharon: Jesus said that
many times
a never ending invitation to come to
him
thanks, Dad!
me: I thought that was in
Come and Dine (the sermon)
which was the week before? maybe?
sharon: oh..
me: Of course, you just
listened last night?
sharon: yeah
me: "Come to me..."
though was the song that
the choir had sung...
so maybe I did reference
that in
The Overnight
(I really don't remember)
The Overnight: a full
night of prayer for
Jesus before choosing his 12
apostles
sharon: OH..
maybe I interchange the the
filename.. haha
me: it doesn't matter...
sharon:
yeah.. Jesus in overnight
prayer
me: I'll post both and we
will soon know for sure.
g2g to get this done
love you!
sharon: love you too
me: ttyl
sharon:
bye
Leap Year day: I have to run to Deacons' Prayer time...but here's two areas upon which I'll write and hyperlink to other areas of related interest sometime later today.
1) Letter from Pastor Wesley in
Liberia
2) Filipino Daughter-in-Law
and the
Death March of Bataan
(researchers: take your pick of many
sources)
Hello
Pastor Rob,
I'm happy about the plans you are
putting in place to have
missionaries come to Liberia to help
us out. I appreciate that very much
as the ministry is huge and needs
helpers out here. May God bless
every effort of yours.
Your friend and brother in
Christ,
Pastor Richard Wesley
and this 'chat' with my
daughter-in-law in the Philippines
was an opportunity to lay out some
of the shared truths in my
children's ongoing Home Education.
5:09 AM
me: hi honey
sharon: hi Daddy
good morning
me: were you able to hear the
entire sermon from Sunday?
sharon: yeah... You're
right I can relate to it
me: I'm glad that Joe is so
'free' to encourage you to help with
a mission cause....while you wait
upon Him for further directions.
If YOU will take his daddy's
teachings seriously...
and apply them in your life
(lives)...
I think that God would honor you
with great blessings...
and that He would somehow show me
that my labor has not been in vain.
Likewise, if you would pass on to
me...
your father's teachings, I will try
to apply that which I have 'heard'
...or 'received'... or
'learned'...from him (through you)
sharon:
yeah... It's a great encouragment to
me, Dad
me: We might see what could come
of his 'witness'...
sharon:
God's word will never return vain
me: a couple friends of mine
(members of our church) are sisters.
Their father is still living. He is
a WW2 veteran and was involved in
something that our nation may soon
forget...
Perhaps this relates to YOU
somehow...
It was called the "Death March of
Bataan"...
Have you ever heard of it?
sharon: yeah
me: It was from WW 2
Death March of Bataan
(take your pick of many sources)
sharon: It's in our
Philippine History
yeah
right WW2
me: What do you know about
it?
Does it have any PERSONAL
application to you?
This is important because the war
veteran is still living.
I've heard the elders lament that
this current generation has
forgotten the Death March. (They're
right...)
How best should the children of a
generation preserve and pass on the
heritage for which their elders laid
down their lives?
Sharon, this will serve as my
journal entry today. I'm gonna link
to some history as well.
sharon: yeah.. I
remember those captives and
those soldier who have given up
their lives
me: Your nation has an annual
commemoration of the
Death March on March 30th this
year.
sharon:
yeah
It was an important part of our
country's history
me: For some reason it is
exactly 26.2 miles
which is the same as a 'marathon'...
but if it is an actual march down
the path of Death...
then maybe the route
was 26 miles
...interestingly, Daniel's marathon
for Leukemia research is also
something that I am currently
planning to promote.
sharon:
oh.. yeah
me: Frankly, I've never heard
of the Death March of Bataan until a
member told me (with much respect)
about his own father-in-law.
sharon:
a war veteran?
it was a hurtful march
me: Yes. The Japanese were
very inhumane
according to the reports.
sharon: yeah
me: Americans my age have
been taught much more about the
Nazis in WW2 rather than the Pacific
fronts.
I suppose that my own children
learned VERY little about WW2
because MOST of what I know was
self-caught from my own research
beyond public education
..and I won a history award in High
School from the Daughters of the
American Revolution
sharon:
yeah...even me I need to remember
those people who'd given up their
lives for my freedom that I'm
enjoying now.
me: Why do I bring it up to
you today?!
sharon: wow!
congratulations, Daddy!
me: well, because now you are
in my family!
...and that is something I am very
pleased about...
sharon: :D
me: my oldest son has married
an Asian woman (you).
My third son (Daniel) is seriously
relating to a woman of African
descent...
It occurs to me that Cathy and I
have done 'something' right in the
way we have raised our children.
sharon:
yeah... You are such a good
parents... leaving your children a
legacy.
me: I fully expect that I
will be BLESSED by all four of my
children because they KNOW that I
have great expectations for them.
sharon: yeah.. that's
right
me: They, of course, are
still in process
Perhaps the greatest lesson that I
have taught them is 'TRUST'
sharon: you and mom
left us a legacy that we will
treasure with and pass on to our
children
me: by 'trusting' each of
them
sharon: yeah. that's
true
me: sometimes that trust has
been violated
but we have acknowledged that and
have continued to trust reminding
the kids that God will reveal that
which we need to know. As parents,
He has been faithful to keep us
informed on a need-to-know basis.
Likewise, as a pastor at age 50, He
has been giving me confidence that I
need to stay on track.
sharon: that's true
me: keep walking on His Life
Path
He is not inhumane
sharon: right.
me: He sustains, provides,
protects, and trusts me...
over and over, mile by mile.
sharon: everything...
He is gracious
me: He suffers 'with' me: sym-pathy
with-suffering
God 'with' us
in the
midst of our own DeathMarch,
He brings
us LIFE
and that...
more abundantly
We, in Christ, are SURVIVORS...
Veterans of life-saving, rescue missions
sharon: right!
Daddy, what are your most difficult
experience of raising children?
me: We have had it 'easy' in
that our children have all been
healthy, well-behaved, and
socially-adept individuals.
The
most difficult experience?
sharon:
yes
me: Havingour trust betrayed
by disobedience
to the 'laws' we set forth to
protect and to provide for them
Nothing much different than God's
experience with His own creation's
FREEWILL...
So, it hasn't been too
'difficult'...only eye-opening...
that the freewill of man will
sometimes choose to disobey LAW for
self-centered reasons
(not for the noble purposes of doing
what is RIGHT)...
--that kind of law-breaking would
make me proud...
So, my final answer is that we have
not had much 'difficulty' in raising
our children.
For many years, all four children
attended 2 Worship Services EVERY
single Sunday morning.
They rarely put up resistance and I
KNOW that some of that teaching has
been received and is being lived
out.
sharon: yeah... I
always remember Joe to be present on
every Sunday worship wherever we
are... we find a church to stay with
me: Their 'public' education
has been minimally helpful thus far
me: The training received 'in
the church' has been good....
Philippians 4-something
Joe wrote this song
Whatever is true and noble;
Whatever is right or pure;
If anything is excellent or
admirable;
lovely or worthy of praise;
think on these things
...and Rejoice in the Lord always;
I will say it again
Rejoice in the Lord always..
hahaha
that was a good song
Think on These Things: Joe's Video
during his ten years growing up at
our local church in Galt, Joe saw
some great fruit of his parents'
obedience tot he Vision.
(Matt, --no 'pink' hair..but lotsa
other good stuff!)
sharon:
yeah.. when we think on those
things.. Godly things.. we are able
to rejoice in Him
me: He didn't actually write it
He just sang the Bible like his
Daddy taught him to do.
sharon: we used to
sing that song together :D
me: Hey, honey, I g2g
sharon: just like
DADDY
me: prayer meeting with the
deacons
Your REAL Dad was a deacon, right?
sharon: Yes
me: I'm happy about that
happy about you being a deacon's
daughter
sharon:
:D My
father would wake up early everyday
for devotional at 4 in the morning
me: very good
sharon:
God bless you more, Dad
me: Did he write?
sharon:
yeah
me: Did he leave you much
'personalized' witness?
...akin to my 'songs' I'm leaving
..and sermons
sharon:
:D
I treasure them in my heart
me: Well, listen, like I told
you before...
You can pass on to me anything that
was of great importance to your Dad
and I will reference it publicly
from time to time...
That way, I'll help pass on the
legacy he entrusted to you
that's also Philippians 4-something
and I wrote a song about it...
sang the Bible, I mean....
"Whatever" is the name of the song
Whatever you have learned...
or received
or heard from me
or seen
in me
Put it into Practice
Whatever
with some latency issues; Jebby
(lead guitar)
Whatever
2
later produced by Bob Kilpatrick w/
Jebby (lead guitar)
sharon: yes
me: ...and the God of Peace
will be with you
I wrote the tune in Liberia in Feb.
2004
Yeah...it has yet to see its
greatest impact...
but Joe liked it enough to commit it
to memory.
His pianistic abilities is hiding
under a bushel
I used to put him to 'work' on the
piano quite often...
but its there for someday in the
future.
sharon: yeah
me: well, g2g. Love
you.
sharon:
ok Dad. Take care
Thursday, February 28, 2008
4:30 wake-up today. Last night at
the weekly, corporate meal,
Sister Ann
came up to me and told me she had
read yesterday's entry (below). She
shared a couple memories of her own
that related to my experience.
Another moving facet (among several)
of the evening meal was the need to
'look out for the new kid'. Last
night the new kid appeared as a
mother from El Salvador (married to
an Honduran) with three kids of her
own. Only one had come with her--Victor.
Carmin
doesn't speak English very well;
Victor, a 6th grader speaks English
fluently.
I introduced
Carmin
to several people then sat at the
next table and took note of various
clusters. It was good to see
Justine
sit across from Carmin. I watched as
Justine wrestled with an angel (the
3 year old) while trying to eat her
meal. Certainly, Carmin could
relate, having had three of her own.
I was very glad when
Karla
finally arrived. A language barrier
helps me better understand other
difficulties with meaningful
communication and the need for
church Bridge-builders (interpreters
with a heart for ministry).
Cathy
and I had taken a hand-holding walk
around the Regional Park just prior
to supper. During the walk, I called
Dan Clark who is
coordinating the work project
weekend for guys up at Camp
Cazadero (click
here). He and I were giving
the 'yea' and 'amen' to all things
working together. He had called
Scott Cameron
(Opie's Dad) who has been with us
only rarely since Mayberry. He is
stationed in Santa Rosa, so a drive
up there to Cazadero will work for
him!
Dan's wife,
Renee,
told us that Rick Warren was saved
at that very camp. We rehearsed that
bit of trivia that very easily could
be used in a story similar to the
closing story in Sunday's Message (Intentional
Evangelism). I recall Rick
saying that he was a fourth
generation preacher whose
great-grandfather was one of Charles
Haddon Spurgeon's boys. I wasn't
initially reached through a Church
Camp experience but I've had many
mountaintop and valley experiences
associated with 'camp' through my
years.
On Sunday morning,
Rene Webb
publicly testified that she had her
own Camp Cazadero experience. One
year, a pastor with polka-dot
pajamas had made an impression on
her son,
Kevin.
Today's question: Who was the man in
the polka dots?
An unanswered question: Who
vandalized our church?
For those enrolled in BellRoad
University's current offering of
'Experiencing God', either question
is an invitation to watch and pray.
Another unanswered question:
What all was God doing at the close
of 2007 through the Mayberry
project?
Perhaps this hidden link to a full
video of that one-night event will
stir the viewer to pray for God's
perfect will to come on earth as it
is in heaven:
(click
here
for the hidden Mayberry Video)
I invested the first 20 minutes
reviewing the first 37 pages 'The
Joy of Preaching'. It has been
fourteen years since I was required
to read and write about it as part
of my formal training for the
pulpit.
From page 37:
"...there is
an unmistakable tendency to the
repression of the individuality of
the preacher. It is seen in little
things: in the uniform which
preachers wear and the disposition
to a uniformity of language.
It is seen in great things: in the
disposition which all ages have
witnessed to draw a line of
orthodoxy inside the lines of truth.
Wisely and soberly let us set
ourselves against this influence.
The God who sent men to preach the
Gospel of His Son in their humanity,
sent each man distinctively to
preach it in his humanity.
Be yourself
by all means, but let that good
result come not by cultivating
merely superficial peculiarities and
oddities. Let it be by winning a
true self full of your own faith and
your own love. The deep originality
is noble, but the surface
originality is miserable. It is
so easy to be a John the Baptist as
far as the desert and camel's hair
and locusts and wild honey go.
But the devoted heart to speak from,
and the fiery words to speak, are
other things.
Bob
Knapp,
shared an email that he is
one of two at the top of
consideration to become the
pulpiteer-pastor for an entire local
church. One day, during the lecture
series in 1887,
Phillips
Brooks also ran out of
time. Today, (right here on this
stage), we will pick up where he
left off. That's another way of
saying let's chew on this together:
"...I close
this lecture with three suggestions
on which I had meant to dwell at
large, but I have used up all my
time.
1. You never can make a sermon
what it ought to be if you consider
it alone. The service that
accompanies it, the prayer and
praise, must have their influence
upon it.
2. The sermon must never set a standard which it is not really meant that men should try to realize in life.
3. No
sermon to one's own people can ever
be conceived as if it were the only
one. It must be part of a long
culture, working with all the
others."
Pastor Matt will be
preaching-teaching on Worship
Sunday, March 11th. It will be the
first Sunday after the guys get back
from their Mission to Cazadero.
Were Matt
to take Brooks' suggestion #3 to
heart, he might re-visit
any of the 41 sermons from our
three-year series. Other local
voices in 2007 could easily be used
of the Lord to better prepare us by
listening to:
A New Beginning.....Matt
Klein
Salt and Light.....Bob Knapp
Defining Love......Brandon Willette
Lord willing, I will locate and
provide links for those online
messages later today.
Likewise, as I almost
always observe the heart of
Suggestion #1, I'd like to share
that another 'song on
Jimmie's
heart' from 2 weeks ago
(The Solid Rock) cannot
possibly be sung in unity and with
understanding unless some more
'communication' takes place.
Allow me to explain. In order to
cross a language barrier in prayer
meeting last night, we first sang
some hymns.
Bernhardt,
Elfreida, Joseph, Faye, Clyde,
Karla, Wolfgang, and I
each took turns paraphrasing the
verses from that old hymn. Then,
Karla
translated the witness in Spanish
for
Carmin
before we corporately sang each
verse and chorus.
"...As to the doctrinal message of
the hymn, several key thoughts and
phrases qualify it as a "Hymn of
Grace." Of course, the chorus itself
clearly sets forth the message of
grace. The metaphor of Christ as a
rock is one with a firm basis in
Scripture (1 Cor 10:4)." (source
link)
Yes, the opening phrase and the
chorus is easily sung. Yet, there
was much discussion about the
lyricist's intent for various
phrases and ideas attached to the
simple melody. When
Joe
got home, he immediately did an
online study of the old hymn. Even
after that discussion, we still
don't know how to sing all of the
verses with our hearts AND our
minds.
While translating,
Karla
asked us "What is the meaning of
gale?" That was easy--a strong wind
in the storm. However, we questioned
the intended meaning of 'the
sweetest frame' and 'the veil' (in
some hymnbooks 'vale').
Clyde
had some good input for that phrase.
This may not interest others but I,
for one, want the people of God to
KNOW the meaning of the songs they
so dearly love. Otherwise, how can
one possibly say yea and amen with
integrity?
In the Worship Service, I would
rather sing five intelligible words
than a thousand words in tongues
(unless there be an interpreter).
Therefore, here's my challenge:
anyone who loves that old hymn, The
Solid Rock, should take a closer
look at the words and share a
witness for those who might shrug
their shoulders when asked to stand
and sing something that doesn't make
sense to them.
The Solid
Rock: Here are the lyrics
and the context in which he first
sung it (click
here)
This research page (click
here) reveals that the tune we
know wasn't the original. Joe
chuckles that the original published
title was "The Immutable Basis of a
Sinner's Hope".
Speaking
of Joe,
his
wife
wanted me to pass on a message. I
thought you might like to read our
morning chat along with him:
5:17 AM
sharon:
Hi Daddy
me: hi sharon
sharon: I'm trying to
figure out how to upload your sermon
on the mp3
me: I'm writing my blog. Do you
want the URL of the mp3?
sharon: yeah please. Joe
did it when we were in bangkok
me:
click here that should do it
sharon:
it is now playing
but I wanna have it in the mp3
me: yeah.
sharon:
so I can listen to it even if I'm in
bed
me: the mp3 is at the URL
above and is what you'll need to
save it to your own mp3 player
sharon: ok. It is now
copying the file. maybe this will
work what time is it there now?
me: 5:22 a.m.
sharon: good morning, dad
:D
me: good morning to you, my dear
daughter. Is it OK to publish this
chat so people will feel like
they've met you?
sharon: yeah.. it's ok.
thanks for the link. I'm gonna
listen to it more tonight before I
go to bed
me: great! If you listen
carefully, it will relate to your
current experience. I trust that.
sharon: yes daddy..
me: have you tested if it
uploaded OK? does it work?
sharon: thanks daddy.
yes, it did!
me: very good. Have a good
sleep.
sharon: thanks dad.
please say my good morning to Joe
and a morning hug too
me: He'll read it right here!
I'll ask mama to do that for you
sharon: yeah
me: ttyl
5:46 AM
sharon:
love you daddy. I'll be off to bed
now
me: good night
....and, that, dear reader is one
morning's journal entry.
This is Rob Patterson, signing off
from today's international broadcast
and get on to Thursday's continuance
of pastoring a Jesus-lovin', soul-winnin',
disciple-makin', ministry-equipping,
missionary-sending local
church.
G.R.O.W. '08 is about to
reveal new signs of growth.
JetBack to where you once
belonged...
Read it but don't let it weigh you
down. Be ye filled with the Spirit
(regardless of the cost of
gasoline)...
In the 'annual check-up' sessions, I
have been addressing my current
understanding of the Yea and Amen
that is needful in order for an
appointed-anointed preacher to do
his job with the joy of the Lord.
Having now invested nearly half of
my life in frontline ministry, I
have gained a better understanding
of cross-cultural dynamics in the
transmission and reception of the
Gospel. I'm not ready to fully
articulate my discovery but have
found an article that might help
those who don't understand my
preaching style.
I sent this to Matt at the close of
our early morning conversation. I
fully expect him to read this
sometime today (from the
Encyclopedia of Southern Culture):
The Black Preacher
Here is an excerpt:
"...while
much of the sermon cannot possibly
be heard distinctly, something is
being communicated, and the
congregation will feel that it has
received God's Word.
This may happen because many of
the congregation know the Bible
almost as thoroughly as does the
preacher, and they creatively
anticipate his message; also, in
these services the congregation
participates actively and creatively
in the service, and may for long
periods be "hearing" their own
celebrations."
It should help him to better hear
the heartfelt message I have
attempted to deliver on Sunday
mornings.
Although, this current congregation
is primarily 'white' and do not
vocalize the 'yea and amen', (nor do
they get overly emotional in song,
dance, or other demonstrative
action), I have discovered other
ways to experience the 'yea' and
'amen' from those who are feasting
on the riches of His Word. I will
write more about it in the months to
come.
It is with great respect for the
office of pastor-teacher, that I
proceed with confidence as a
foot-washing pastor serving the
Word--straight from the Oven.
I spoke with my primary influence,
Pastor Ezell Plair, last July. He is
now 80-something and doesn't preach
much anymore. However, back in
1982-84, he was used of God as a
model of Spirit-led, Bible-based
preaching. There were older saints
in the services but a small group of
young men stood with him on Tuesday,
Friday, and Sunday nights (as well
as the Sunday morning schedule).
With Bible open, I was among those
who stood alongside the Preacher.
Pastor Plair preached the Word and I
was hungry for it.
On a parallel track, last night I
began to reread a book called "The
Joy of Preaching" which was
originally delivered as a series of
lectures by Phillips Brooks at Yale
Divinity School in 1877. (Brooks
wrote the song 'O Little Town of
Bethlehem').
More on 'The Joy of Preaching'
later...
Monday, February 25, 2008
This morning Joe is scheduled to
fly into Sacramento from his trip to
the Philippines. I'll pick him up
just before noon.
Here is a copy of Sunday's Message:
Intentional
Evangelism
It recounts the story of Philip the
Evangelist and his trip toward Gaza
in Acts 8:26-40. There is a guest
appearance by
Jack Summers
(adoptive grandfather to three
children who had lived at the
Greater Love Children's Home in
Liberia).
This coming weekend a group of our
men will go away on a mission trip
to Camp Cazadero. Two of our
families discovered a great need
over thanksgiving and, wanting to be
helpful, thought to rally the troops
around going for a weekend to help
them prepare for the upcoming
season.
Here is a link to the camp's
website:
click here
Friday, February 22, 2008
Today, I have interacted with our
son Daniel. He is writing a paper
about decisions based upon his own
sense of morality. He needed help
with designing his thesis statement
so I gladly reworked his opening
sentences. I am pleased that Daniel
has been honest and thoughtful as he
has pursued academic assignments in
recent years.
I shared a good time of prayer
with the deacons this morning. My
plan for today is to pursue my own
thesis statement for Sunday's
Message:
Intentional Evangelism (here's
one of many articles)
One of my favorite examples of a
personal relationship with the Lord
comes from
Acts 8:26-40. Not wanting to
simply repeat myself for the
umpteenth time, I have delayed
getting to this story for at least a
couple weeks.
Yesterday, during my study, I came
across an interesting interpretation
of this verse from the realm of
'gay' theology. As I explained to
the leadership on Monday night, I
feel that it is important to stay
informed.
A gay view of the Eunuch's
experience with the gospel is
promoted on this page, 'Would
Jesus Discriminate?'
I don't 'go for it'...gay theology,
that is. Still, I invested more of
my time reading another teaching
found on this page and revisited
what some have to say about the
relationship between
Jonathan and David.
That's part of preparing to preach
in this setting. There are members
of our church who have loved ones
who are openly gay. As a shepherd, I
feel it is important to try to be
empathetic toward these parents who
don't know how to best to proceed in
these days.
I was online looking at the surveys
in bulletins sent and received among
young people. 'Do you support gay
marriage?' is a question that comes
up regularly. Scriptwriters for
movies and TV shows have taught a
generation that the correct answer
should be supportive of the idea.
I remain strongly opposed to the
redefinition of marriage. My view
will not change. By preparing
myself, I might be useful to the
Lord Jesus in helping to set one
person free.
I pray that the Lord will grant me
faithful words of abundant life in
opposition to the Thief's agenda in
this generation.
May God also direct your steps as
you face the challenge of being His
light in any dark region.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Our first session of
G.R.O.W.
took place last night. This is a new
Leadership emphasis that
Pastor Matt,
Emma, and I are planning
on a monthly basis as church staff.
For a first effort, it was
well-attended and helpful to begin
getting the various components of
our local church on the same page.
I have a full day of appointments
today. An annual checkup with two
long-time members, a luncheon with
Curt
and a rep from the Baptist
Foundation, then a home visit with
Jack
to a couple who are inquiring about
our church.
On Saturday,
Cathy and I drove to
Galt so that I could preach at a
funeral for
Richard Hult.
Although Richard hadn't attended our
church, he had requested that I
speak at his funeral. He died after
a bout with cancer at the age of 81.
There were 181 people in attendance.
I surmised that many of the people
were unchurched. The Spirit gave me
a clear path to follow as I led the
service and shared basic truths from
God's Word that people ought to hear
when they are considering the issue
of death and their own mortality.
I had met Richard through a 'guitar
circle' we had offered at the church
one year but hadn't had the
privilege to ever share the plan of
salvation personally. He had been in
different settings (funerals) where
I had shared God's Word, but I never
had that specific conversation with
him.
Fortunately, Richard's first cousin,
Howard, was invited to share the
gospel with him before he died. I
spoke with Howard the night before
the funeral and asked him to share
his testimony about sharing Christ
with Richard on a personal level.
Near the end of the funeral, I
invited those without a church home
to consider attending services at
FBC. I introduced R.B. McCartney and
asked him to lead us in the closing
prayer. Cathy and I are aware that
some members have left FBC with
plans to plant a new church. It
appears to be an amicable departure
but we know that it hurts those who
remain to 'lose' the fellowship of
these co-laborers in Christ. They
grieve the loss of people who have
left (including us).
Yesterday, R.B. wrote with this
encouraging news:
It was good to see you guys Saturday. We had a
good day at First Baptist this past Sunday. We had a
young father saved Sunday morning, and a young boy to
rededicate his life Sunday night. Praise the LORD!
We all need that emotional lift of
knowing that God is still
working--no matter how circumstances
appear. There are always people who
have no connection with the past who
simply need the love of a church
(big or small).
So, LORD, thank you for opening the
eyes of this young father on Sunday
morning and for meeting this boy at
an altar of rededication on Sunday
night.
Thank you, Lord, for encouraging our
friends in Galt. May we all remember
the secret of contentment that Paul
speaks of in
Philippians 4:10-20.
Mary and Cerissa attended a very
small church down the road from Camp
Cazadero (where they were
on-mission) with the Clarks and the
Ronks. Both reported that God
blessed those who attended in that
humble meeting place last Sunday.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Daniel brought the video he shot on
February 3rd, so I've just converted
the audio to mp3. That was the
Sunday after the vandalism occurred
in our sanctuary. We held our
service in the Foyer.
So, here is that message, if anyone
wants to hear it:
Have You Ever
Been Simonized?
Joe is on his way to the Philippines
to visit his wife, Sharon. He
revealed that he was listening to
yesterday's message online:
The Overnight (click
here)
joseph: hey papa
free wifi in Portland, Oregon
me: hi joe
good
How long are you there?
joseph: boarding 1125am
soon I will be able to use my
headphones built for two :)
I have a splitter hooked up to
headphones
havent used them since I left the
philippines last time
me: mama will be on in a
minute
joseph: is christianity an
emotional faith?
me: it has to be (for me
sometimes)
so you're listening?
joseph: yeah
me: I trimmed off some of the
header...
joseph: hm...
me: Some of the people
weren't singing during worship. We
were missing some of our people,
some of the musicians...I kept on
pressing through to sing the words
of truth. One of our seniors was
standing with her hand lifted high.
That was a pleasant vision to
behold.
When the children were leaving for
the BellRoad Express, I started
counting the bell rings and by the
time we finished I was getting
pumped up 'emotionally'
actually, I had asked, "Is it OK to
get emotional?" There was a
resounding 'Amen' before my
immediate reply,
"Christianity is an emotional faith."
I qualified it with the balancing
factors...
"Christianity is a 'rational faith.'
but, my, rationale alone sure
wouldn't work for me
dya think I ought to trim it
further?
joseph: well
me: since it rubs you the
wrong way
joseph: it has to have
emotional elements
I was just quoting so you knew I was
listening
of course it is an emotional faith
since God cares so much about our
emotions
me: well, since you've heard
more...what do you think?
leave it?
joseph: God cares what we do
why we do it
and how we feel about doing it
me: The point is 'Come to me,
you who are weary..."
rather than...."Suck it up. Its not
about 'feelings'....
put away your weariness with REASON'
crying "Abba, father, is an
emotional act of faith, I think"
Brooks Phillips said,
"Preaching is truth through personality."
That's what my personality needed to
do to get over my feelings and into
the Word
Still, everything is editable...
So, give it some thought.
joseph: yeah, Jesus doesn't
moan and groan about them not
accepting them
me: have you heard me say
that yet?
joseph: yeah
me: That thought was
'liberating' as I preached
Still, it might seem that I'm
comparing 'my' listeners to them...
and that really isn't the case
BUT....it is good to know that we
can have confidence if we're walking
close to Jesus in the Sabbath Way...
joseph: just as much
preaching to ourselves
me: yeah
joseph: I think it sounds
like let US go
get me through
get us through
you are switching enough
you , us , me
me: yeah...I figure that
every person there has a withered
hand...and most likely it is UNSEEN
emotionally-based response that
should be brought with us to Jesus
that's why I'll say...
"I'll get through this myself,
Jesus. You just keep singing 'Come
to me'...but I'm not coming. I'll
handle this myself.
No need to bother you with it. I'll
just work a couple more days and pay
this bill..."
that line of stinkin'-thinkin',
self-reliance ...
Friday, February 15, 2008
This is the day that the Lord has
made. Its 8:40. I just returned from
the Deacons' Prayer Meeting which
started at 6:30. We have a Minister
of Landscaping who is here with his
team serving as they do on Fridays.
Last night, another couple came in
for their 1st Annual Check-Up with
Cathy and me. What a wonderful time
of learning more about God's Will
for us. Our check-ups are helping me
better understand how best to grow
this church.
R eaching in as we reach out
O vercoming all obstacles
W
orking together with God
Pastor Matt and I continue to pray
and bind our hearts together with
our secretary, Emma. We are
committing ourselves to be filled
with the Spirit. May God grant us
the fruit of JOY (our strength for
the mission ahead of us).
I've been listening to a CD of
Sunday's Message in my car. I also
have it playing on the computer as I
write.
Here's a pop quiz from the message:
Come and Dine, Come and Dine,
You may feast at Jesus' Table ______________ .
a)
some of the time
b) once a week
c) all the time
A full day's activity ahead of me.
May you hunger for God today--to the
point of seeking Him for the meal He
has prepared for you today. I'm
hungry. How 'bout you?!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
So, last night Justine came down
with the flu but Pastor Matt was in
bright and early. We talked and
prayed at length about the next
season of sowing and reaping ahead
of us.
Cathy and I are going to look at
another property today. Our 6 month
lease at Miner's Station runs up in
15 days. If there are going to be
any changes, they might happen soon.
This Sunday's sermon is entitled
"The Overnight". I will be
meditating upon it as I attempt to
address the after-flood positioning
of furniture in my office.
Here is the audio for last Sunday's
Message:
Come and Dine
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Our son, Daniel, is training to
participate in an endurance event (a
26 mile marathon) as a member of The
Leu
kemia
& Lymphoma Society's
Team In
Training. He is raising funds
to help stop leukemia, lymphoma,
Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from
taking more lives.
Daniel writes: "I'm completing this
event in honor of all individuals
who are battling blood cancers.
These people are the real heroes on
our team, and we need your support
to cross the ultimate finish line -
a cure!"
(click
here for Daniel's webpage to
donate to the cause)
I just made a contribution (with
credit card) because...well, first,
that what a father ought to
do--support his son in a worthy
endeavor. This was his first
donation and it is tracked as 7% of
his fundraising goal.
Daniel was also visiting Iglesia
Bautista de Bell Road, when our own
Karla Hopkins tearfully shared her
experience with Leukemia when she
was a child. That day, Karla's
mother led us in prayer over
Victoria. The entire scene impacted
Daniel. Next thing I know, he is
running this race as a personal
response.
Daniel hasn't ever gone on a mission
trip (or raced funds for like
cause), so he might be surprised at
how tapped everyone already feels.
However, here's something cool that
might help some people decide to
give:
If you work for a company that
'matches' gifts, you can elect to do
so on Daniel's webpage:
click here
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Today Pastor
Matt has the flu with lots of symptoms! So,
please dear readers, lift him up in prayer
today. I know a variety of people who really
need to see God at work in the midst of their
circumstance, so I must pray. Prayer is
therapeutic.
Cathy and I have been deliberating over a major
housing decision so the circumstantial pressures
which have recently impacted our church campus
(vandalism, theft, flooding), have taken a toll,
I suppose.
The most recent message (to be continued this
coming Sunday) has made me hungry for the Word
from Jesus.
After I preached a brother asked me about a
conflict he had seen in his Study-Bible notes
about the definition of Shabat (sabbath). I had
made a quick reference to a point in
an article I had recently read by Ray
Stedman:
"...the supreme meaning of sabbath is rest. In fact, the
word "seven," the word "sabbath," and the word
"rest,"
are all the same basic word in Hebrew, Shabat,
seven,
sabbath, rest. Therefore, the heart of the
meaning of
sabbath is rest. That is its primary
significance."
Mr. Stedman may have been mistaken. Check it out
for yourself and let me know what you think,
Hebrew scholars:
Sabbath
Seventh
The situation does apply to Dr.
Nelson's admonition in our Theology class (the
Principle of Human Fallibility i.e. 'No
matter how careful we try, we will pass on error
from time to time'). Therefore, let us reason
with one another.
At least I can go back and edit the 1 second
mention of an etymological tie from the sermon.
Mr. Stedman cannot (he's already passed on).
Then again, maybe he would stand by his
assertion--even today.
This also applies to my concern about
church-watchdogs who write with a mean-spirit
against their contemporaries. There must be a
better way.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Good time at Iglesia
Bautista de Bell Road yesterday
afternoon. In session with two or more gathered
(four of us) we acknowledged afresh our shared
adventure with the Holy Spirit.
Likewise, Pastor Matt and I have a deadline to
meet. One week from tonight, we will launch our
first session of G.R.O.W. (Leadership Training
Practicum).
Here's a cheeze-whiz rendition of
'Come
and Dine' (an old-timey song that Jimmie
Bent has planted up on the hill during these
days of Recovery (post-vandal/post-flood).
I dare you to click on the link, follow the
imaginary bouncing ball and try singing this
song. Warning: if you do you might find yourself
singing it later in the day. The people I live
with have been spontaneously singing bits of it
through the hours since
SundayChurch™.
Someone recently questioned the validity of
taking the church off-campus for a
BellRoad University.
Our hostess prepared 2 kinds of soup and other
snacks. I arrived a few minutes late (5:36)
--just ahead of Tom and Francie and found that
the church was busy binding and loosing. Yes,
the idea of a pre-class koinonia was loosed and
binding-bonding was taking place.
"No rush," modeled the host who allowed the
remote control to rest for at least two cycles
of 7-minute shabbat.
We had a wonderful time in Session Three of
Experiencing God.
This trans-generational class is rich soil for
planting good seed and watering seed planted in
years past. Nobody was in a hurry to close down
last night. Even the host and hostesses
encouraged the stragglers. I wasn't the last to
leave after FIVE hours there!
Yesterday's sermon (Come and Dine) should be uploaded soon. I notice that my 'daily' journal reveals an unintentional 7-day sabbatical has been taken. There are a variety of reasons for that but I think I could probably recount the lessons of the unwritten pages years from now.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Although there should be an audio copy of
'Have You Ever Been
Simonized?' forthcoming, it is currently
stored along with video on Daniel's camera. He
didn't bring his transfer cable with him so I
will have to wait to retrieve that Sunday
Message.
Last Sunday's Message was about 'persecution'. I
opened the teaching with an acknowledgement that
most of us haven't suffered much persecution for
Christ's sake, so the Word might be hidden in
our hearts and minds for future help.
Then, mid-week, after I had written my journal
entry (see Thursday, Jan. 31), we discovered
that our church building and property had been
vandalized. Some musical equipment had been
stolen. The vandalism involved is what might
stir up the idea of persecution.
A sledgehammer was discovered out in the Rose
Garden where several freshly-painted trellaces
were knocked over. Inside, the total contents of
a fire extinguisher had been sprayed in the
sanctuary during the burglary. A blanket of
powder covered the floor, the altar, the pulpit,
the piano, and all the chairs.
During the days between the discovery and the
following sermon, I experienced the power of
rehearsing the Spirit's last pulpit message by
playing the CD in my car. God is above the
entire scene. He was in the Room when the Thief
was directing the steps of the individuals
involved. Several prayers have gone up regarding
what happens next in their lives.
Perhaps, (as in Acts 8:1), someone was standing
and watching giving his approval. Perhaps, that
'someone' is going to hear the Risen Lord
calling him/her by name with this question:
"_______, why do you
persecute me?"
Yesterday, we held our church service
in the outer court. The worship team led in some
beautiful hymns and choruses. The Choir sang.
The Word was preached and the Lord's Supper was
shared among us.
On a parallel track of 'troubles', I came across
a terrible article that accused the people who
had just been in Liberia to bring home some
children. The title of this article was most
disturbing to me. It was about my friends who
have been very careful to do everything to
follow the Lord in a manner which is above
reproach:
Liberia: Seven Children Sneaked Out
I wrote to John and HollyAnn to inform them of
this article and they gave me the link to their
response:
Addy's Hope Responds to Accusation
From now on, when I think about "Persecution for
Following the Lord's Direction", I will probably
throw this last week's episodes in the mix.
This afternoon (1:00 p.m.), I will be speaking
to the guys in the Drug and Alcohol
Rehabilitation Program (at the Union Gospel
Mission). I plan to share from the same passage
I shared down in Mexico under this title:
'From the First Day until Now...' (Philippians
1)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Yesterday, I had a great time filling the
God-given role as a 'pastor' in our local
Baptist church.
A new couple came in for their
First Annual Check-Up
with the pastor at BellRoad (me). We established
early on that they will enroll in our membership
class and join us for the new adventure ahead.
They gave me a packet of "Ten Commandment"
bookmarks. I passed them out at prayer meeting
and we prayed the Word. Our midweek prayer
meeting was very enriching last night. There
were eleven of us in attendance.
Of course, there's a 'Power of a Praying Woman'
goin' on down the hall...and kids in TeamKID,
and youth in their torn-up remodel, and babies
in the nursery, Curt preparing for Choir, and
Clean up in the Kitchen after the weekly
supper...
(yeah, its good to see the House of God open on
a Wednesday night)
Now, us old-timers in the circle of prayer chose
to pray through the Ten Commandments and it was
powerful for us.
By the way, we kinda feel especially involved in
anything good that happens or is gonna happen at
BellRoad. Why? We are praying. We are
acknowledging God and asking Him to direct our
steps. We are confessing our sins and asking Him
for correction and direction. It's that simple.
Oh, I also spent the evening hours watching Rick
Warren's Sunday morning message at the National
Cathedral and at the Sunday Forum beforehand.
My friend, John,
had sent me some links to negative criticism
(and sarcasm) from a couple of 'church
watchdogs' (or 'blogdogs' ...I guess they're
called). He asked what my current opinion of
brother Rick was/is...
I was rather blunt with him in a few notes about
my opinions of these people. I'm not a disciple
of Rick Warren...but um...yeah, I think we're
serving the same Jesus.
Here was the forum (click
here). This is basically the same material
that Rick delivered to the gathering of 200
pastors when I went to Saddleback last December.
Rick's jokes don't get many chuckles from this
crowd.
And...here was his morning sermon at the
National Cathedral (click
here). Rick Warren in a suit and a tie, see
it for yourself...
I'm not going to link the critics because I
don't respect them very much at this point. If
you wanna find them, you can google it for
yourselves.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
The mother of 3 siblings adopted from Liberia
wrote to me at 1:00 a.m. this morning. I had
mentioned this family in yesterday's blog but
hadn't thought that any of the email addresses I
could find for them were current. Here is an
excerpt from Jen's
letter:
You are not going to
believe this, but I am pretty sure that my
father-in-law was a member of Bell Road for
about 4 years until he recently retired (he was
in the blue grass group there)! What a small
world we live in!
Anyways, we are pretty close - we are just up
north on I-5. I would love to go into more
details and we would be happy to talk with you
and would LOVE to come and share about Liberia,
Greater Love Children's Home, Pastor Wesley, and
adoption sometime (and I'm sure Dad would like
to come along too!).
I was thrilled that the rest of the
letter was so warm and trusting. How pleased I
am that God has given us the gift of 'close
proximity'.
I also heard back from Pakistan this morning.
The meetings did happen so I'll have more to say
on that someday soon. I don't have freedom to
write whatever I'd like because it jeopardizes
ministry potential in this situation.
Cathy and I are off and running now. It is 6:20
a.m. Hey, listen to Sunday's Message if you
missed it.
Caution:
This isn't a 'feel good' message (not that
sermons are supposed to feel good...)
Persecution and Proclamation
Maybe next week's message will be more
playful:
"Have You Ever Been Simonized?" (Acts
8:4-26)
(not that sermon's are supposed to be fun...)
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Here's my latest letter from Pastor Wesley:
Hello Pastor Rob,
May I share with you what the Lord has been
doing during 2007?
As you can see from the attached photos, we have
2 medical clinics, an FM Radio Station
still being constructed located between church
and clinic, a guest house still under
construction near our house where visitors will
stay on short missions' trip, latest family
photo of the Wesleys and 5 couples who got
married on December 16, 2007 at our church.
Praise God for His excellent greatness!
Pastor Wesley
The Lord hid some direction for me in last
Sunday's text until 4:00 a.m. that very morning.
I was prompted to make mention of issues facing
us again at election time. My primary issue
(abortion) seems to be connected with another
(definition of marriage). Through the local Body
of Christ, I see that the prompting was due to
in-depth inquiry into the histories of my
co-laborers at Bell Road.
Persecution and Proclamation
That's the sermon. Not much of a 'feel good'
message but it is what God delivered through me
(in spite of my congestion and tongue-tied
moments which have been mostly edited out).
Amazing: Sunday's Message also made
mention of this word (amazing). Although it was
just spontaneous, illustrative material, it is
not a throwaway thought. Today I've chosen to
meditate upon the mystery of the words we put
together. We sing songs (old and new) that
utilizes this modern-sounding word as adjectival
preface to both of these BibleStudy words:
Grace:
charis
Love:
agape
Grace is used as a noun but, like the word
'Love', I sometimes consider it to be action
verb. The Spirit 'graces' me by going
beyond my thoughts and imagination in response
to the earnest prayers I've heard voiced in
prayer meetings.
On Sunday night, in our
Experiencing God small group, I
referenced one God-sized assignment (Liberia)
given to listening Christians over the several
years' time.
In December of 2002, our initial contact with
Pastor Wesley could not at first be
substantiated through web searches. Today, there
are a number of adoptive families who have
brought some of the Greater Love children to
America to grow up among us. Although I haven't
met them, I know we have a mutual interest in
Pastor Richard and Laura Wesley (and all the
kids who have been fed, housed, or educated
through the ministries of Greater Love).
I discovered a homeschooler's blog (click
here) about one humble ministry family who
had adopted three siblings from Pastor Wesley's
home. Cathy and I remember this very children. I
read in the blog that this family had moved to
California. I wonder if they are anywhere near
us?
Another blog graces me with a sweet story about
these same three kids (click
here).
In 2004, Cathy and I worked with photos and
prayed for your little guys we see pictured.
Then, in 2005, my dear friends, Mike and Robin
McCall spent a month there--living right at the
Children's Home. In 2006, our son Joe lived with
the Wesley family for 80 days.
It is a great blessing for me to read of
families who have decided to publicly share what
some might have chosen to keep completely
private.
Before coming to America, Macdonald Wreh visited
Pastor Wesley to take the photos of the children
on our behalf. At that time, Pastor Wesley told
him that some of the children would not have
survived had they not gotten to the Children's
Home when they did.
God has brought several other people into the
Big Picture since we started. For that, I give
Him thanks for loving me and gracing me in such
amazing ways.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Yesterday, after church,
Pastor Matt
handed me a clean, digital recording of the
SundayMessage. Cathy worked in the Nursery so
she and I listened to the recording during an
afternoon drive.
Here is a link to yesterday's message:
Persecution and Proclamation
Cathy and I are up early and heading to the Gym
together before starting going to our respective
job sites. I also have an email from one of our
recently-baptized members awaiting further
thought and action. This correspondence extends
a request made at the altar.
Over the next 2 days, I will be watching for
emails from Pakistan. I have contacts there who
are supposed to meet up with each other. I hope
all goes well.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
May His House be a House of Prayer.
Something like 'centripetal force' seems to be
happening in the prayer clusters I've recently
experienced: Monday Night at the
Leadership Council,
Sunday afternoons at
Bautista Iglesia de Bell Road,
Tuesday's pastors'
prayer group, Friday mornings with
the Deacons.
Last night, Jimmie,
Chet, Wolf, Joe,
Karla
and I had the privilege of welcoming
Larry
to pray alongside us. We had a sweet hour
of prayer. Larry had a special testimony for us.
A man who Larry knew through work had been
'visited' by a knock on the door recently. He
apparently spoke of a young lady from Bell Road
Baptist Church because, from his descrption,
Larry figured it must have been
Karla.
Karla
thought about it with wonder and asked,
"What country was he from?"
"El Salvador, I think,"
Larry
responded.
Karla nodded
and said she remembered that they had shown
great interest (Karla is from Honduras).
Larry said,
"He said he was going to go there when it gets
started!"
Well, it has started. Jesse and Elba
should be returning from Southern California
soon. They were planning to visit my friend,
Pastor Francisco Camerana,
while they were there.
The first quarter of the
Pastor's Annual Check-Up
(free, Spirit-led consultations) will be an
ongoing process through March, 2008. Cathy came
up with this idea and we are having a really fun
time with it. I think the Lord will use this
idea to establish 'His Health Program' among us.
Write me for more information:
pastorob@bellroad.org
By the way,
www.bellroad.org is under new management.
I received news yesterday that
Matt Klein™
had put his creative genius at work online. I
look >>forward>>
to seeing what our youthful leader comes up with
in the days ahead.
Please send all accolades
(and complaints...about anything, really) to:
pastormatt@bellroad.org
Remember, folks: all rights reserved
"I don't get it." thought Brother Tom (or
Dick) to himself.
"I don't either!" said Sister Betty (or
Jane)
--knowing his thoughts.
Sally looked over
at Susan and asked,
"What's that?"
"My granddaughter's iPod." answered Susan.
"Oh, I've heard about those!" added
Sally.
"She can download Sunday's Message on it."
"Really?
How?!"
"Go to
BellRoadRadio.com
and ask for Matt. He's the
Minister of Youth, Music, and
Media over there."
"My, my. How
everything has changed."
"Not everything." said Susan.
"How's
that?" asked Sally
as she pulled out
the GPS from her purse.
"See Evan run. Funny, funny, Evan." laughed
Susan.
"Little boys running in the church..."
laugh the girls, in
unison,
from one generation to the next.
"May His House be a
House of Prayer,"
adds the aging pastor.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
If you haven't had a chance to review last
Sunday's Message, click below:
Calling All Sinners:
New Wineskins for Old
Alas, the old wineskin is bursting. Upon my
request, Pastor Matt composed an initial theme
to be used as our bridge from Proclamation to
Movement. Symptomatic of the burst is that you
will not hear his commissioned theme on our
recording. Attempting to mix in the music
during post-production would an interesting idea
except that I broke into a brief melody
that coincided with the theme.
Does our Minister of Media have enough George
Martin in him to make it work? Yeah, he could do
it but I will not commission for that. As you'll
see below, my own area-of-focus must be
different in this season. I can hardly wait to
see what Matt's been sittin' on!
Contentment about the soon-realization of the
vision for our own 'local media' allows me to
rewind and pause during the following
paragraphs:
Yesterday our pastors' prayer meeting went on
awhile...(2.25 hours--mostly listening). Of
course, we don't share the topics discussed
among ourselves and before the Lord. I write
about it so I won't forget the timbre of that
intimate gathering.
Zooming Out
(from the intimate circle), the question asked
of each other has given me a milestone to be
remembered for the Big Picture. This particular
prayer group is one of the reasons God brought
me to Auburn.
Likewise, Monday night's Leadership Council
(which is 'not' confidential) was an important
gathering. Most precious was the encircled,
hand-in-hand intercession with which we closed
our time together. That gathering had also
allowed the Big Hand®
to transcend the allotted time (6:30 to
8:20--before our little hands grasped each
other's hearts).
Before leaving for Mexico I purposed to adjust
my lens (to the 30-60-100-fold setting). The
final half of my 50th year should be more
reflective than proactive. Plenty of seed from
our sack of beans has already been sown during
the pre-matt months. Now, we will watch and see
how that first season of preparation brings
forth the first year's harvest.
Recently someone asked me if I thought we would
get picketed again this Easter. Nope...well, not
by Luke anyway. I never mentioned that Luke and
I had a 'chance' meeting at Sierra College a
couple weeks back.
The
BoundaryLines for
Cathy®
and
Rob©
have truly fallen in pleasant places.
Together, we're moving ahead with 2008 annual
check-ups (of those who belong to our
fellowship--including ourselves). This change of
focus could be exactly what the pastor needs to
hear more clearly our Father's Plan for our
church and family.
May God bless you (pl) as you read-btwn-theLines©®
Monday, January 21, 2008
For over three
years I've written here nearly every single day
so to see that I haven't posted since Thursday
is a surprise! I'm about to start editing
yesterday's sermon so that will be available in
a couple hours.
Someday, maybe I'll write a bit about these
topics. Pastor Matt teaches that there are eight
bits in a byte. I'll probably write more than
that.
Deacons' PrayerTime.
Photos.
A GPS walk around our backyard pond.
Jerry's Window.
Saturday Drive with Joe.
Saturday Night Drive with Mary.
Sunday Headsets.
Spanish Service Ripples.
Today, Cathy will work from 10:00-6:00.
I'm asking Anna Gabbert for prayer support.
At 1:00 I will meet with Kurt about finances.
I told Madeline that I will visit this
afternoon.
Tonight is our Leadership Council Meeting.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
The reason I haven't been writing much is due to
software and hardware issues. Due to Mayberry
video storage needs, I had moved my website
software onto an external harddrive must be
connected to AC. That means any bedside writing
(which seems to work well for me) is difficult
to do since I also desire adequate lighting (a
third outlet). Nothing that an extension cord
couldn't solve!
I just had a long talk on the phone with our
Associate Pastor Matt Klein. Again, I am so
happy that God has called him to serve alongside
me (among us). We are planning for a powerful
ministry yielded to the leadership of the Holy
Spirit.
Today, I spoke with
Rev. Tim Lane from the Union Gospel
Mission (Sacramento). He has asked me to speak
at Spirit Week (a time of encouragement for all
those who are enrolled in their
6 month Drug and Alcohol program). I am
honored to have been asked.
Valerie
Harris (Auburn's Police Chief) and
Bayside's
Ray Johnson are among others who have
also been invited to bring an encouraging
message during Spirit Week. Thank you Tim and
Union Gospel Mission for the open door you have
extended to us throughout the years.
My SundayMessage is entitled
"Calling
All Sinners!
New Wineskins for Old"
Today, it is still thawing and I'm preheating
the oven. Gonna butter up this turkey, pat her
down with some real butter, and get ready.
It's THURSDAY...but SUNDAY'S COMIN'....
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
I had a terrible sinus headache that started at
5:00 a.m. It has really been bothersome
throughout the whole day. Jack and I went out on
a visitation and the med I had taken for the
headache was making me embarrassingly tired.
An old friend
from Michigan called tonight. We prayed together
and I hope to stay mindful of my brother's need
for God's Direction. I suggested that he may
wanna listen to one of these recent sermons.
When the Word is preached, the message goes out
for 'somebody.' Maybe the Lord would speak to
him through it.
On Monday night, I called
Alexander Plair (son of Pastor
Ezell Plair). We had a good conversation. He
told me that his Dad (my preaching-style mentor)
is now 80 years old. The last time I spoke with
Pastor Plair he told me that he isn't preaching
much anymore.
Monday, January 14, 2008
I began this morning at 6:15 a.m. My reply to
one of our members was sent at 1:58 and I
dropped off to sleep within minutes I'm sure.
So, today I'll run on a bit less-than-normal
sleep but as our Latino friends have said that
is what siesta is for. Si, we'll see if there's
a siesta along the way.
Somehow (with holiday-shifting of church
furniture), our senior-friendly, church clock
has been hidden from my view. That fact, along
with zeal for the preaching hour (and perhaps
the lack of the request for a tinkling music
cue) has resulted in two full-length messages (H.O.M.E.
and One More for Jesus). Last night, I
discovered the close to the H.O.M.E. message on
side 2 of Micah's tape. I also digitized the
analog of yesterday's tape, so I gave it an
initial review and will upload these 'preachable
moments' later today.
In the H.O.M.E. message, I mentioned going to
Bear Creek's website and seeing something that
stirred me up over significant uses of new
technology.
Here is a copy of what it was I saw there.
DID YOU KNOW?
The first ever vocal radio broadcast on
December 24, 1906 consisted of a reading
from Luke chapter two?
During yesterday's message I alluded to a bit of
Baptist History but paraphrased the 'famous'
quote and didn't cite the proper names involved.
So, I thought I'd share this:
In 1785, William Carey
was appointed the schoolmaster for the village
of Moulton. He was also invited to pastor the
local Baptist church. During this time he read
Jonathan Edwards'
Account of the Life of the Late
David Brainerd
and the journals of the explorer James Cook,
and became deeply concerned with propagating the
Christian Gospel throughout the world.
His friend Andrew Fuller had previously
written an influential pamphlet in 1781 titled
The Gospel Worthy of
All Acceptation, answering the
hyper-Calvinist belief then prevalent in the
Baptist churches, that all men were not
responsible to believe the Gospel.
At a ministers' meeting in 1786, Carey raised
the question of whether it was the duty of all
Christians to spread the Gospel throughout the
world.
J. R. Ryland, the father of John
Ryland, is said to have retorted:
(and here's the attributed quote...)
"Young man, sit down;
when God pleases to convert the heathen,
he will do it without your aid and mine."
my flawed
paraphrase usually goes like this:
"Young man, sit down;
if God wants to save the heathen,
he'll do it without your help!"
Upon citing this quote in my early morning
letter I read this disclaimer:
"Ryland's son, John Ryland Jr., disputes that
his father made this statement." (wikipedia)
Yesterday, a church Grandma wrote to me from
sunny Arizona and says she reads this blog to
keep up on stuff (at least from my perspective).
After yesterday morning's message and our time
at the altar, we waited until noon for our own
local church's Quarterly Business Meeting.
Although only 40-some corporate members were in
attendance, we had the quorum and we 'did our
business'...
(that sounds funny, huh Grandma?)
Toward the very end of our our Quarterly BM
(again, that sounds funny) the issue of
separation of church and state arose. Again I
let a loose recollection of 'facts' roll off my
tongue. Here is something I found in a quick
google to substantiate my recollection.
The Danbury Baptist
Association of Danbury, Connecticut sent a
letter, dated October 7, 1801,
to the newly elected President Thomas Jefferson,
expressing concern over the lack in their state
constitution of explicit protection of religious
liberty, and against a government establishment
of religion.
In their letter to the
President, the Danbury Baptists affirmed
that "Our Sentiments are uniformly on the side
of Religious Liberty — That Religion is at all
times and places a matter between God and
individuals — That no man ought to suffer in
name, person, or effects on account of his
religious Opinions - That the legitimate Power
of civil government extends no further than to
punish the man who works ill to his neighbor..."
As a religious minority in Connecticut, the
Danbury Baptists were concerned that a
religious majority might "reproach their chief
Magistrate... because he will not, dare not
assume the prerogatives of Jehovah and make Laws
to govern the Kingdom of Christ," thus
establishing a state religion at the cost of the
liberties of religious minorities.
Thomas Jefferson's response, dated
January 1, 1802, concurs with the Danbury
Baptists' views on religious liberty, and the
accompanying separation of civil government from
concerns of religious doctrine and practice.
Jefferson writes: "...I contemplate with
sovereign reverence that act of the whole
American people which declared that their
legislature should 'make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of
separation between Church & State."
Sunday, January 13, 2008
After watching an interesting set of interviews
with Composer Earle Hagen, I decided to withdraw
the public view of the video clips from our
Mayberry project until I have had the chance to
speak personally with Earle (Lord willing).
I will leave certain scenes on my video page but
feel it is best to see if I can get Earle's
permission to use his whistling theme song on
our tribute video.
(click
here to
meet Earle Hagen)
I found a phone number for him in Palm Springs,
California but it answers with a fax tone.
So....I'm gonna try to send him a fax. The video
interview with Earle spans 10 clips over four
hours. I watched a few of them today. I think it
will be helpful to listen to the entire
collection.
I did listen to
Going Deeper and am still praying about
tomorrow's message.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Yesterday morning,
Wolf, Mike, and I met for early
morning prayer. Then, Mike and I sat and talked
and prayed over a few important issues facing
our precious church family. I shared with Mike
how pleased I am to have Pastor Matt on-board.
We should be able to move ahead with effective
ministry in 2008.
Before I forget, I wanna acknowledge that Alisha
sent me a card from Mexico. She thanked me for
coming there with her family and for being her
pastor. Her note came as a great blessing to me
so here I am saying, 'Thanks for the note,
Alisha.' By the way, Alisha's brother, Zack, has
gone back to his mission field (though we are
not as free to discuss what it is he does).
Yesterday, Mary
went back to Galt to stay the night with
Victoria, and to babysit today for one of her
little flocks.
Daniel and
Cerissa came to Auburn. We showed
them the property over which we are praying.
Joe drove to
Rocklin, then to Galt (and back) dealing with
paperwork for college and for Sharon's
Immigration.
This run-through has served as a refresher, so now I'll click on Going Deeper while moving ahead toward the simple outline from which I should preach tomorrow's message: Luke 5:8-27.
Friday, January 11, 2008
On Thursday night, Mary
and I finished her orientation at Sierra
College. Now all four of our children are
simultaneously college students! That fact makes
this papa feel really good.
Mary is beginning her formal study of Early
Childhood Education with a course called
Human Development 1. She also is taking a
class in Word Processing. On the first
day of classes, she will seek Professor
Quinlan's approval to enroll in Child,
Family, and Community.
Before going to the Sierra Campus, we visited a
mother and newborn child in the hospital.
Karen had
just completed a course in the local R.O.P.
class. Her fellow student,
Kim, was also visiting Karen.
Kim provided
Mary with information about how to enroll there.
This way she could work at our nearby hospital
or in another local placement to enrich her
resume before she finishes her private schooling
at
EducationPlus.
Here's a note from an old California girl who
moved to Michigan a couple years ago.
Hey Rob,
I am stilling reading your blogs and I notice
something. You haven't mentioned Joe and his
wife for a very long time. Are things going ok
with them still, or are there some problems? I
am sure being separated by an ocean is very
hard. I hope Joe is handling all of it well.
Love,
Eva Moore
Yeah, I'd say that Joe is doing quite well. He
works at U.S. Bank part-time and at Rosenau
Motors on the other days. He lives with Cathy,
Mary, and me and chats for hours online with his
wife, Sharon, nearly every night.
I did just mention Joe in yesterday's blog as
helping me with the music video:
New Meaning to Tomorrow
Sharon's father died last year. She has adopted
me as her Daddy and we chat every couple days.
Joe has filed papers with the good folks down at
U.S. Immigration, so we all are awaiting the day
for them to be reunited.
Here's a recent email that Sharon sent to me:
Daddy,
Thanks for sharing to me the Christmas in
Mayberry video.
I really enjoyed watching it. I like the scene
that sung the song and it showed the lyrics and
the effects were nice too. I really like the
song as a whole, the music and the message.
"Jesus gave the meaning to tomorrow"
Oh, I like the picture sketch drawings and the
slow motion of the camera on that scene.
Also, I was touched about the message of the
unconditional love that the boy mentioned to his
Dad
Overall production is GREAT!!! The effects,
songs, people and message. Thanks Daddy!
Joe has purchased airline tickets to go visit
Sharon in February. He has been granted the
time-off his jobs. Speaking of Sharon, I saw her
online on Thursday night (Friday for her...)
me: hey sharon how you doing?
sharon: hi
Daddy I'm doin good
me: I've already written my blog for
tomorrow.
sharon: wow
me: So, I'll post it when I wake up
sharon:
thanks for the song "new meaning to tomorrow"
me: but anyway, I mention you in it
sharon: I
have read your blog... I'm now playing the song
me: a friend had written asking how it
was going for Joe and You
oh...
sharon: :D
oh Joe and I are doing good
by God's grace
me: how's the day?
sharon:
good! I'm keeping on track with my
devotional and writing notes for Joe in a small
papers. I enjoyed the article from Focus on the
family...
"Bridging the Distance" I
learned from it.
me: hmm
sharon:
Oh... I sent him present last Christmas. I just
took a picture of it and sent to him
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Last night's prayer meeting was wonderful.
Chet Bent is
bringing a 'father's teaching' on short, Old
Testament stories every Wednesday during the
weeks ahead. Chet is ninety years old. He said
he figures he can be a father to all of us!
Anhelika was
visiting from Honduras and daughter
Karla
interpreted portions of my introduction to
F.A.I.T.H.
We all agreed that God is gonna have to take us
step-by-step in order to realize the hope of
developing intentionally evangelistic outreach
teams who go out consistently on a weekly basis.
So....we begin with intentional prayer.
The day started at 6:30. I have converted the
Otis music video (new material) from the
Mayberry project into a wmv format.
New Meaning to Tomorrow
(Otis Campbell Music Video)
This music video is only 3:10 so most of you
ought to be able to download it regardless of
your connection speed.
Jebby wrote the song and they used
it as a reflective scene in the Lodi LIVE
version. As you may recall, Cathy and I saw the
first two shows by the Bear Creek church. During
the first show, I clearly recall the desire to
make a music video (but I knew how much editing
still needed to be done for the second and third
reels).
So, I didn't get to create the Otis music video
until after I returned from Mexico. I assembled
the useable extant Otis clips and asked Joe to
begin juxtaposing the visuals with Jebby's song.
Joe worked on it for a couple hours then, at the
point of weariness, I tag-teamed with him and
finished it. I also edited Jebby's song by
cutting to the end early so please contact:
pastorjebby
@ bearcreekchurch.com, if you would like to hear
'New Meaning to Tomorrow'
in its entirety.
While googling to see if the Lodi church had
uploaded any of their production of A Mayberry
Christmas, I came across a guy named
Job who had reprinted an article by
Ingrid Schlueter.
Ingrid had chosen to publicly critique Jebby's
creative work based solely on reading the Lodi
News article (with no further research of
primary sources).
In fact, her own article reveals that Ingrid
didn't spend adequate time with her secondary
source before she started writing. Barney
tickets
who?
when?
Her personal website (Slice of Laodicea)
apparently serves as a 'watchdog' for the church
of Jesus Christ.
You can read Ingrid's article for yourself (click
here) and here's the site of her radio
program (click
here).
Unfortunately, Ingrid
linked her article about Jebby's offering with
other articles under the headings of
abominations and
circus church. Personally, I think this
is somewhat insensitive (maybe rude, even).
Ingrid Schlueter
probably doesn't realize how much her article
would hurt the feelings of my beloved friend and
brother-in-Christ. She wonders aloud if
Jesus
shows up anywhere in the Script. Maybe she'll
come across this entry and rethink her own style
of public 'witness'.
I don't have much 'extra' time to keep watch
over these and other self-proclaimed
church-watchdogs that I know.
Fortunately, the Risen Lord Jesus isn't wringing
his hands bemoaning the fact that His children
are sometimes insensitive to each other. He
knows that fact and has revealed it in His Word.
Therefore, we are called to pray for each other
(especially for those who open their mouths to
boldly testify).
I offer
this wmv to bring some balance to our
penchant for negativity in the Body of Christ.
For those who seek after redemptive scenes in
life, the struggle between Clara and Aunt Bee
over religious opinion might be of some help
here (see
December 24th) in the Mayberry script).
The Mayberry Nativity Scene
(click
here)
As performed by the Auburn cast, this video
clip is 11:19 minutes long and features the
voice of Roy Jones
(as Sheriff Taylor narrating the Nativity). I
opted for the feel of a LIVE, local church
Christmas Pageant, so the ambient sounds of
babies rustling and elders coughing remain
intact.
This clip also features
Francie Wirth as Sally Rogers,
KC Jones as Otis Campbell (in the
Santa costume),
Jean Harjo as
Granny Clampett,
and Grace Earl
as Miss Jane Hathaway.
Pastor Matt Klein
directed Roy
for the audio recording of the narration and
provided original piano accompaniment for the
track. That's Matt's wife,
Justine, playing the role of the
Virgin Mary holding Baby Jesus (played by our
own newborn, Aaron
Knapp).
I have added closed captioning to make certain
LIVE scenes more accessible to the viewer who
may have missed important dialogue in the LIVE
portion of our program. I also experimented with
some special FX for the angel(s) sequence
(featuring Jaci Kirk
as Clara Edwards and the BellRoad Children's
Choir).
Remember, the depth of resolution goes down
after converting an avi file into a
wmv format (however, it is much quicker to
download). For those who are taking the Intro to
Computers class at BellRoad University, all of
this will start to make more sense. In fact it
may even help you better understand
SundayMessage and the various formats involved.
"Like applesauce, wmv
files download faster".
--pastorob February,
2008
For the next few sermons, I would like to
give the left-brainers some easily-accessible
sermons. Therefore, I am starting with this
week's message:
One More for Jesus (Luke
5:8-27) May the Holy Spirit give me grace to
convert the adventurous right-brain stuff of my
last two BellRoad messages
(C.O.M.E.
-
H.O.M.E.)
into a format more easily downloaded by those
who march to the beat of a ...um
... a 'whiter' drum. We'll see... (or rather,
we'll hear).
For several months I have been corresponding
with a spiritual descendant of Lottie Moon who
is currently in Pakistan. For purposes of
security, I'll call him Mr. Bill.
He sent out a letter today to those in America
who have sent him there.
As you may have already
heard on the news, there
was a bomb blast that reported to kill (as of this minute)
20 people. Yesterday at this same time I was at the
location of the blast! Not just once but twice I passed the
exact location where the bomb went off.
I went to the Bible
Society and their office is located
in a 150 year old building that's less than a quarter of a
mile from the blast site.
Not only do we not have
electric most of our day,
but now our gas and water is off part of the day
along with this many of our gasoline stations are closed
for they don't have fuel.
We've learned to live
with little or no electric. How to
cook around the gas and water problems. Yes, life here
is difficult. We can't deny that.
May God bless
Mr. and Mrs. Bill as they
serve the Lord in Pakistan. I was encouraged to
hear that our gifts in remembrance of Lottie
Moon have already surpassed our Christmas goal.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Yesterday it
snowed most of the time we were in Grass Valley
getting Mary's
assessment to enter
Sierra
College as academic enrichment (through
EducationPlus).
Today, Cathy and I spent the morning working
through personal finance issues in preparation
for acquiring prope
rty
in Auburn.
On the international front, we've received
long-awaited news from Liberia. Click on this
photo to see for yourself.
Tonight, the Wednesday evening meal, TeamKid,
and BRU classes continue on our campus.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
I slept in until 6:00 this morning. My sleep
wasn't restful because an old friend sent me
this comment about
CHRISTMAS IN MAYBERRY
(1 hr 26 min) last
night:
Rob,
I hope I'm the only one who did not enjoy the
production. I felt the dialog was amateurish and
having a couple of questionable women follow
up after presenting the 23rd Psalm was in poor
taste.
Sorry,
John
My quick response to John went something
like this:
No need to be sorry. I disagree...
love ya,
rob
Before I went to bed, I read John's comment to
Joe and to Cathy on the phone (she was working
an overnight last night). Upon my re-reading of
his note, I realized that I had not correctly
interpreted John's first sentence.
I thought he had written,
"I hope I'm not
the only one who did not enjoy the
production..."
Either way, John's
feedback causes me to reflect.
He lives several hundred miles away
from Auburn so he wasn't able to attend the LIVE
presentation (Dec. 23rd) of
Jebby's
script (nor could he have seen the primary
source produced LIVE by members of
Jebby's own
local church).
Had John been there for the public presentation
on the 23rd, he could have had the benefit of me
stating that I, myself, had concluded that the
'fun girls' scene was steamier than I had
intended.
Editing with less-than-sufficient footage for
that scene caused me to make some editorial
decision which looked quite a bit different on a
4 inch preview monitor at 2:00 a.m. I had to use
the same clip several times. For more details on
the initial introduction of
Daphne and
Skippy, please
watch the Director's Commentary (if one should
surface in the month's ahead).
In fact, I had told Jebby about the difficulty I
had trying to rightly represent
Daphne and
Skippy
(especially in a 'church' setting). That reminds
me. I think that Jebby's live play was 'funnier'
than our filmed version. Another online friend,
David
pointed out,
'Well, there's a learning curve involved here...'
For a taste of
the difference, check out this bootleg video of
the Lodi Cast during their opening song.
IN MAYBERRY
John's use of the word 'amateurish' would be
better aimed at everything BUT the script.
The dialogue (as written in Jebby's script) is
actually carefully aligned with the characters
as presented by professional writers (albeit
60's writers) during the eight seasons of the
Andy Griffith Show.
If a closed-caption version is ever rendered,
then we will reveal Jebby's full script. I think
the Auburn Cast did well at getting most of the
words correctly.
However, the amateur
cameraman was sometimes pushing 'standby' when
he thought he was pushing 'record'... (yeah, I
hate it when that happens!). Again, the
Director's Commentary would probably address the
scene where Andy asks Floyd
WHY he is
staying at the jail or 'whatever-it-is' that
Helen says instead of this line:
"Why did Gomer want us
to go to the Courthouse?"
I simply did not have the actual words for
either scene anywhere on tape.
Now, this brings me to a quick remark after
seeing a questionable drama in a church years
ago. While visiting a sister church, I clearly
remember leaning over to Cathy and whispering,
"mmm, this would be hard, having a drama team
perform something
every single week."
I was thinking as a 'pastor' of real church
people (and not-a-one-of-them a working
professional actor or writer).
And while we are on the topic of amateurish poor
taste and inferior production, here are links to
my last two sermons. The latest one was poorly
recorded on a cassette (tech problems....again).
Still, God's Word is there if you don't mind
using a fork and knife:
O Come, O Come
(December 23rd)
and
If God's House Becomes
Your Home (January 6th)
I also delivered a message in between these two.
On Sunday night, December 30th, I addressed the
staff (and staff-family & friends) at
Rancho Sordo Mudo.
That message was entitled
From the First Day until Now.
It dealt with passages from Paul to the church
at Philippi. I'll probably wanna write down
remembrances from that message before too long.
Now, if you are really hungry, you may wanna
check out Pastor Matt
Klein as he delivers his first sermon
to the good folks up the hill on Bell Road:
A New Direction
(December 30th)
Any of these messages can be downloaded as an
mp3 or for your iPod from the sermonplayer.
Here's another
video of related interest. I found it while
googling Christmas in Mayberry:
Mayberry at the River
(people we
haven't met with a totally-different script)
Click
here to watch a 'real' Mayberry
Christmas from the first season of the Andy
Griffith Show.
Monday, January 7, 2008
The morning started at 5:00 a.m. I will be
leaving soon for the office. I will try to edit
and upload my last two sermons sometime today.
Pastor Matt and Justine are on the road, Lord
willing, to Utah to visit his sister. I sure
enjoy Matt's leadership in our new music
ministry. Yesterday's service was helpful to me
as I grow in the faith. Below is a link to the
latest version of our 2007 Christmas Drama.
Certain scenes have had the editing tightened
and music added.
Especially enjoyable is Jebby's song for Otis
(following his discovery of the Mayor's Bottle
at 55:00).
As a busy
pastor,
it was a challenge to also serve as cameraman
(and real-time 'drama' coach). Serving as my own
Production Assistant, I needed to carefully
preserve the myriad video clips gathered during
seven scheduled taping sessions.
CHRISTMAS IN MAYBERRY
1 hr
26 min
You can also download the video onto your
iPod from this link.
The days (and nights) before our public
presentation were sometimes dominated by
assembling, tweaking, editing, reviewing,
re-editing, and rendering the extant source
materials.
Knowing from the beginning the inherent risk
involved, we planned for the need to remain
flexible with the idea of adding last-minute
changes to the mix of taped and LIVE
performance. Therefore, our actors were asked to
attend 'in-character' (and in-costume).
Friday, January 4, 2008
me: hi friend. how's the day going?
a friend: Hi Pastor Rob. God is good
me: AMEN and all the time He is
Good...right?
a friend: Angels sure are breathing
heavy today
me: haha. good way to think about it
(heavy winds)
POWERFUL
a friend: How have you been??
me: I had a slump while in Mexico...
but
that's 'normal' for me
a friend: Its been a year since we spoke;
thought you no longer loved us.
me: at least, I kept the LORD in the
midst of it...
but, after a whole year of whirlwind activity,
I had to leave the family the day after
Christmas...
a friend: Slump??
me: and go on that mission trip.
My 'heart' just wasn't in it but I knew it was
an
important thing to do so I stuck with the plan
AND
Faithful God comes through as usual.
Lots of GOOD STUFF is coming to the surface now
and I expect much more in the next month!
Yep,
a new year!
a friend: In the midst of strife stands
God's love.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
We're leaving Mexico in about an hour. I worked
through some of the post-production editing of
the Mayberry Project (for our Director and for
her missionary sister).
It is good to have finished up some of that
leftover to-do work. Cathy and I have chatted
online nearly everyday while I've been in Mexico
(even though the connection was lost several
times in each conversation).
The highlights of this trip, for me, have been
to observe Luke Everett (the founder's son and
current director) of Rancho Sordo Mudo. He is a
gracious man of God. It is inspiring to be
around him as he tells his father's story and
hopes that it motivates others to seek God for
their mission in life.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
DeLynn, Jonathan, and Ben gave me a walking tour
of Rancho Sordo Mudo this morning. Then, we went
on a long hike up into the hills. It is windy
and cold here in Baja Mexico today.
Internet is a bit hard to get to here so I
probably won't write much until I get back to
Auburn.
Pastor Matt is preaching the year-end message.
Sorry I won't be there to hear it. I'm bringing
a message at the staff church service on Sunday.
I was asked to speak from the Book of
Philippians.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Sittin' at the airport waiting for a flight to
San Diego, then off to Mexico with the Rosenaus.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
It is Christmas Morning at 6:00 a.m. I've been
up for about an hour. I had moved my software
for this webpage to an external drive (so I
could try to finish editing Mayberry).
Therefore, I haven't had ready access to update
this page.
Here's the plan: Cathy, Joe, and Mary will come
get me around 8:00 a.m. Then, we're driving to
Galt to meet with Jerry and Daniel. We will
light some candles and have a Christmas Morning
Family Service and will give gifts to each
other.
At 10:55, there is 'family movie' time at the
Lodi Stadium 12 theatre to see
National Treasure.
Then, we will have a meal together. Right now, I
hope to burn a DVD of the Mayberry project to
show Jerry because he missed it.
Tomorrow, Lord willing, I will be leaving with
the Rosenau family to visit Alisha at Rancho
Sordo Mudo.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Last night Cathy and I attended the opening of
'A Mayberry Christmas' at
Bear
Creek Community Church (in Lodi, CA). We
stayed over in Galt and will go to the
Saturday Matinee today at 2:00 p.m.
It would bless me immensely if people from
BellRoad would make the trip today. Last night's
audience was a full house. I am guessing that
500 people were there. It is a new building and
my first time in that space.
Click here to read the article in the
Lodi News-Sentinel.
The set was wonderful and the acting was 'loud'
and 'clear'. It should take 1 hour and 19
minutes to get from our church:
707 Bell Road to the Lodi Show:
DIRECTIONS HERE
Afterwards, we will continue to edit for our own
version of the original script but I'd like to
get to the Union Gospel Mission tonight, if
possible. It may be an all-nighter editing
session. I had software issues yesterdays so
didn't very far on Reel Two.
Our show is Sunday Night at 6:00 p.m.
Friday, December 20, 2007
Too busy to write on Wednesday
and Thursday.
Cathy and I are going to Lodi on Friday to catch
Jebby's opening of 'A Mayberry Christmas'...
and I'll continue to edit video for our version
of his script (Christmas in Mayberry).
Tuesday, December
18, 2007
update: I stayed up until 4:50 a.m.
editing scenes for the Auburn presentation of
Jebby's original (unreleased and yet-unlicensed)
script. I had my work cut out for me because two
of the scenes involved human error on the part
of the cameraman (me)...
I woke up at 7:30 and am ready to start again.
It has been a long time since I've worked on a
project with this much zeal (not since the
all-nighters of school days).
Yesterday, Jebby affirmed that we are placing a
note in a bottle, and launching it into the sea,
in hopes that Mr. Griffith will somehow receive
it. We hope that he will be blessed by the
impact that his own creativity had us.
We both still remember a memorable
Pop-HistoryTalk™
in which we discussed how
Dick Van Dyke
sought out and found
Stan Laurel. Likewise,
George Harrison
eventually met Carl
Perkins (even Keaggy jammed with
McCartney after a wedding). There's nothing new
under the sun. It's fitting to pay tribute to
the most-important influences in one's life.
About the IP Attorney who started the public
comment about acquiring proper licensing, she's
right. We have no problem with rendering unto
Caesar what belongs to Caesar (and, as I said,
'paying tribute' where 'tribute is due').
I'm gonna invite Ms. IP
Atty to help me facilitate our own
small-townspeople(s) to empower Jebby with the
means to formally 'publish' his unique tribute
to The Andy Griffith Show.
Click here to read the article in the
Lodi News-Sentinel.
Yesterday, my ol' friend, Ross
Farrow, ace reporter from the Lodi
News-Sentinel tipped me off about a storm a-brewin'
on the Internet over Jebby's Script
There is a 100 word limit to the comment section
of Mr. Farrow's story. I submitted an abridged
comment as a 2-parter.
Through the years, I've thought long and hard
about the popular culture which 'raised' this
motherless child. A myriad of legal opinions
about subjective laws and the registration of
ideas certainly abound.
If anyone wants to discuss their ideas with me,
I would like to invite you to travel to Liberia
with Cathy and me in February, 2008. The long
and arduous trip will give us plenty of time to
discuss the nature of creativity. In the
meantime, I'm still editing visuals as I
reconcile my own upbringing by CBS and NBC
during the sixties. Our old Sylvania only picked
up two channels! So, my 'depression-era'
consisted of walking to school in the snow and
not being able to engage in conversations about
Star Trek or the Addams Family.
Monday, December
17, 2007
It is 3:06 a.m. as I start this day. I just
turned on the light (1/2 light); Cathy is asleep
still. The wireless laptop put us to sleep
listening to the Message from yesterday morning:
Reconciling Joseph(s).
As soon as I finish this entry, I must get
started on the final creative stretch of the
Mayberry Project.
Here's the plan as I see it:
1) Scene by scene, Lord willing, I shall edit
the remaining video footage we shot during the
last month. Hopefully, there will be no
unforeseen emergencies to draw my attention away
from this most-important task.
2) On Tuesday, Cathy
is scheduled to teach in Galt. She wonders
whether I'll go down for the day with her. I
don't think so, I'm sure that my nose will still
be in the screen working on assembling scenes. I
would like to be 'done' with editing the video
by Wednesday afternoon so that we'll be able to
make final decisions about the 'flow' of events
on Sunday night before our Dress Rehearsal.
3) Dress Rehearsal of the LIVE portion for the
production takes place on Wednesday night.
There's an audio sequence that needs to be
dubbed with Auburn Andy's voice. Roy Jones
doesn't yet know that our Director,
Patrice Rosenau,
has made this request. I told her that I'd do my
best. Patrice, Zack, and Robin are gonna work
out the staging on Tuesday.
Lodi's Dress Rehearsal of the entire production
will also take place Wednesday night.
4) We had
a screening of the Psalm 23 scene in church
yesterday morning. Even using the wmv file on
the sanctuary wall, the picture quality seemed
adequate for our performance.
Scene one (7 minutes)
I had really wanted to have our
big-screen installed by this time but its not
the first time I've had to say,
"Well, we tried..."
5) Thursday and Friday we will try to figure out
how best to assemble the complete black and
white video in three acts. I will need
professional counsel for this as I don't have
much experience (other than VBS family night
video shows) with church-budget, video-computer
equipment
(nearly non-existent in my own experience).
Well, we've put some a/v-vision 'in the budget'
for 2008. We'll vote on that budget Sunday after
morning church.
6) On Friday
night, Cathy and I plan to get a room in
Lodi or Stockton and attend the opening of 'A
Mayberry Christmas' at
Bear
Creek Community Church (Lodi, CA). We also
want to attend the Saturday Matinee.
Then, we will meet up with our folks at the
Union Gospel Mission in Sacramento on Saturday
night before returning to Auburn.
7) My sermon on this 4th Sunday of Advent will
be on Stephen's testimony where he speaks about
Moses. Today, I will also try to decide upon my
key passages from Luke and Romans to accompany
the Acts 7 passage. This way, I can marinate the
meat of next Sunday's Message while I work on
Mayberry editing.
Master filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock stated that
all the fun ended after the final storyboard had
been assembled. With actual shooting his
projects then became 'work'. For me (on this
project), the fun begins now.
It was definitely 'work' trying to set up camera
angles (almost all single camera shoots),
adequate lighting, and help well-intentioned,
non-seasoned performers have the confidence to
give us 'character' for the camera. Yeah, that
was stressful. However, I think we shot more
than enough footage to have some fun editing.
Unfortunately, this laptop is the best I have to
work from. Even though we now have a
Music-Media & Youth Guy
he informed me that he is gonna stay
in his pajamas the entire day today!
Well, months ago, I warned
Pastor Matt that he'd have a hard
time keeping up with me. Like Sarah, he laughed.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
It is now 6:30 a.m. and I am nearly ready to
head out for the morning. Today is our 23rd
anniversary. Cathy and I are gonna celebrate by
getting a cup of Java City coffee at the Valero
Station. We will see if we can set some Mayberry
tickets at the counter.
During my tubtime scripture reading and
meditation, I made some plans for Cathy and me.
She has told me several times that she will go
wherever I feel we should go.
Just weeks before the Search Team from Auburn
discovered us (in Galt), I had asked Cathy to
seriously consider flying to Liberia to stay for
six months as a teacher at the Greater Love
Children's School (part of Pastor Wesley's
outreach plans). At that time, there were 100
children in attendance with just five or six
teachers.
Shortly after Cathy said, 'yes and amen' to my
idea, her father was hospitalized and we learned
that his death was imminent. Then, Auburn
happened. Still, I want Cathy to have the
opportunity to see what our initial investment
in Liberia has blossomed into. Therefore, Lord
willing, that's what we will do in the early
part of 2008.
Below is a 'report page' of videos that I have
posted on google. One of the videos is entitled
"Timeline in Liberia".
If you would like to see it,
click here, then look for 'timeline in Liberia'.
You can also find all the Mayberry Project clips
that I have posted up to this point.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
me: wanna see an artsy mayberry clip?
click here for scene 7
Its got some digital noise...but it may be OK as
is...
or I'll go re-edit it
but there is an essence to it
Last night the choir performed tremendously. If
you missed it, please come to watch their final
performance this Sunday evening at 6:00 p.m.
Up pops David Burkhardt, the grandfather likened
to Abraham in last Sunday's Message.
David: How did program go last evening?
me: great! I really missed Diana...
but she would have been so proud of her
soloists!
David: Well you know, babies just don't
cooperate the way we would like sometimes. We're
going up this afternoon and taking dinner.
me: Hannah was FRONT ROW
smiles and movement, great confidence...
compared to last year
David: ...thanks to New America Singers
me: yeah
me: She has made some good connections
with some of the new faces this way.
David: Any news on Sharon? Thanks for the
video link...I've already looked at one of them.
How long will the film be?
me: Joe wants to go to the philippines
but his new job just told him 'no'
the filmed portions should be one hour total
with live pageantry in the mix
I'll have more than enough footage
but can't cut too much without interfering with
the storyline...
so, it is all a bit iffy still...
but...I'm sure glad we plowed ahead and
started
David: I didn't realize that there would be
the live element. I'm going to try to bring my
Creative Arts Director up for the event.
me: yeah, the Nativity will be pantomimed
in costume to the Andy voice narratin' the Story
in his country style
I saw it staged by the cast in Lodi
it works quite well
and should make it feel better watching our
filmed scenes
as you see costumed people around in preparation
for the big scene ahead
it is all being done LIVE in Lodi
we're gonna go see their Saturday matinee
they have a show friday night, a saturday
matinee, and a saturday night
then Jebby is planning to come to our on Sunday
night
May I use this chat for my blog?
David: Yes, no problem.
me: g2g to ready myself for a funeral in
a few...
Friday, December 14, 2007
I've started uploading clips of video from our
Mayberry Sessions, so others who can't be here
might watch along. As always, if someone wants
to help take it all up a notch, please do write
or call:
CLICK HERE
Our Choir is doing a good job in rehearsal all
week for tonight's show at 7:00 p.m. Both
Cathy and Joe
are in the Choir this year.
Mary's
primary role has been watching the little ones
in the Nursery.
Mary and I brought the little ones (Evan,
Isaiah, David, Peter, and Joshua)
into the sanctuary to practice sitting and
watching a Choir presentation. Yes, we were
outnumbered by these energetic children but felt
the call of God to give these guys some
'culture'.
This is the first time I haven't joined a Choir
for Christmas. However, it has been a good move.
With everything else going on, I am happy to not
have had to add all the rehearsal and
memorization required.
Pastor Matt
and I had lunch together yesterday at the
A Towne Sandwich Shoppe. We further discussed
plans for presenting a musical passion play for
Easter, 2008.
I'm about to leave for Friday morning prayer
meeting with the deacons. Tonight,
Daniel is
coming to Auburn. He is an experienced Video
Editor so he plans to help me knock out a
majority of the scenes we've captured for
Christmas in Mayberry.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
mmm...mmm.....mmmm, the aroma of this
StoneSoup®
is startin' to really stir up the townspeople.
CLICK HERE
to see what I mean.
(this link may take a moment to buffer
so may it be a kairos-moment).
One might ask, "what's
Andy and
Barney got
to do with StoneSoup®?"
"You'll see . . ."
(with Barney Fife melodic expectation),
you'll see."
Our Gomer,
Tom Ronk has
now familiarized himself with Jebby's entire
script and is acknowledging the giftedness of my
VisionWalk™
partner.
You may remember Tom
Ronk. He had made this impression (click
here) upon my imagination during an early
Sunday morning at
BellRoad.
Pastor Matt
(our new Music-Media & Youth Guy) has likened
his initiatory weeks among us as hoppin' a
moving train.
That's right, Matt. Look around--you're on none
other than the
BellRoadExpress (and it is very
likely that we're goin' somewhere real special
by the end of 2008).
That's on-the-inside for a certain local
gathering of less than 500.
It was just Jimmie,
Joe, Jack
(and Jesus) for
prayer meeting last night but we said "yes",
by the Spirit, we said it (yes
and amen)
to the glory of God (click
here) but seriously don't forget to
CLICK
HERE
to see what I meant earlier.
(remember, this link may take a moment to buffer
so may it be yet another kairos-moment).
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Today, I am meditating upon next Sunday's
Message:
Reconciling Joseph(s)
Acts 7:9-16 (Genesis
37-46)
Luke 1:76-79 (Matthew
1:19-21)
Romans 5:8-11
Well, that's a chunk of meat to chew on as I
ready myself to put a Sunday meal in the oven.
So, anyone who wants to read along, feel free to
drop me an email with your insights.
I dropped Joe
off at the Park & Ride at 6:30 a.m. and passed
on the money to pay
Wolfgang
for my plane ticket to San Diego right after
Christmas. Lord willing, I will join the
Rosenaus for a mission trip to
Rancho Sordo Mudo
for the last few days in December.
Then, I wrote Pastor
Shamas (Pakistan) a note. He has been
good about writing me regularly and sending
many, many photographs of the people among whom
he ministers. I have made another contact in
Pakistan and have tried to help connect these
two brothers as a form of mutual accountability.
Yesterday, Mary
and I stopped by the hospital to visit
our newest baby: Aaron
Jeffrey Knapp. He is beautiful. I
remarked that Mother didn't show any sign of
being battle-weary; she was as glowing as ever.
I told both parents that the Knapp Blessing(s)
was/were-is/are-will be mentioned in the Message
they missed:
Jacob's Altar
Mary also finished the biography of
Keith Green last
night. She read some of it aloud for me in the
afternoon. Today, she is gonna spend the day
helping Hannah
care for her little brothers in
preparation of the baby coming home.
It is entitled 'No Compromise' (click
here)
My last conversation from yesterday
went something-like-this.
11:40 PM
Matt: Good evening
me: hey bud
Is your lady still awake?
Matt: yes
me: I am uploading one of her scenes
It's at about 22 percent
Matt: oh... very cool... that will be fun
to watch
me: As soon as this is uploaded, I'll
send you the link
We're gonna watch an episode of
Mayberry now...
Matt: cool
me: the video is at 32%
so a few minutes more...
we shot two important scenes over
tonight
it will help...
Matt: how did that go
me: better
Matt: good
11:44 PM
me: but, yeah, it will be lots of
editing...
but
it should be OK
41 % now
Matt: cool
me: 55%
Matt: oh... I'll be up... trust me
me: tell her its the overlapping voices
scene
Matt: ok
11:47 PM
me: Mary's says "Justine is sooo cute in
this scene"
Matt: sweet
me: there's a spot where her eyes shoot
up
(searching for her next line)...
but it is a keeper because Barney's
eyes
are moving around too...
so, its visually interesting
11:48 PM
....and there wasn't an overall take that was
any better.
Matt: awesome
me: kinda hard working on the equipment I
have...
Matt: first of the year I wanna push to
get you something better
me: I'd like to set up some place with
adequate equipment to do this sort of thing.
so, in your prayers, please remember this.
11:49 PM
Matt: will do... I'm with you on that
me: God could always choose to 'bless' us
in some big way in this arena
74%
The esprit de corp that has been
built
through this project is gonna be a
lasting
investment as well.
11:50 PM
Although there weren't 'parts' for lots of
actors, the ones who have been used come from a
wide variety of 'groups' within the church...
so as far as a 'whole-church' feel-good, this
will be one!
Matt: nice
me: I just don't wanna be embarrassed at
bringing
in the outside public to see it.
Auburn has a thriving artistic-theatrical
crowd
It'd be cool if some of them would get
connected
with us
92%
Matt: sweet
11:52 PM
me: oops...that wasn't uploading..only
rendering...
now I've gotta upload it
11:53 PM
Matt: really... haha
me: it shouldn't be very long...not that
big of a file
Matt: like i said... i'm up :)
11:57 PM
me: 15 MB for the file
Matt: nice
me:
click here
11:58 PM
it will take awhile...just check it in what?
7 minutes? maybe?
14 minutes
12:13 AM
me:
here it is
that is the correct link
me: it's up now...
Matt: I'm a watchin'
me: I wasn't the cameraman
Matt: watchin
12:16 AM
Are you going to add sound effects to this?
12 minutes
(the Pattersons were watching
'The Rehabilitation of Otis' during this
time....)
12:28 AM
me: Gotta think on the scene in context
12:29 AM
Matt: ah
me: just needed to get this much done for
now
Matt: got it... very good
me: mayberry never had a scene quite like
that...
Matt: true
me: it is a psycho-drama piece...
Matt: very contemporary
me: so it might serve its purpose better
without laughs...
12:30 AM
maybe some music though
and a fade-in, fade-out music theme
I'll have to wait to see what is on either side
of it...
well I'm goin' to bed now
bye
Matt: bye
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Cathy woke me up at 5:00 a.m. this morning. We
have been having a
Kaironversation.
It is now 6:07; Cathy just brought me a coffee
and we're gonna read her PRISM material.
One word from her study leapt off the page, in
light of the logos-rhema from yesterday's
editing session:
Energy: In
the sermon (Jacob's
Altar) this word is
applied (chosen over another word...'wild') in
reference to all the little guys in our church
family. I see how 'energy' is a good word in
reference to these precious boys. On the adult
level, new energy (daily manna) and excitement
(hope) applied to the process of transformation
is a gift from God.
Recently I watched Dennis-the-Menace with Mary
and Daniel. Apparently they had really liked it
as kids. Funny, today...for the first time, I
find myself identifying with good, ol' Mr.
Wilson (hmm...)
Last night I experimented with this promo:
click
here
So happy to hear the news that
Aaron Jeffrey Knapp
has provided his parents with an awesome
kairos
moment just before 5:00 p.m. on Monday night.
21 inches long and weighing in at 9lb.
6oz., this special baby (as well as his
brothers and grandfather) is(are) referenced in
Sunday's Message:
Jacob's Altar
Monday, December 10, 2007
Here's some of the music from yesterday:
click here
Alisha, in
Mexico, will be happy to hear her little
brother, Jonathan, playing the piano for the
Offertory.
Here's the sermon: Jacob's
Altar
We had been at 'the church' from 8:00 until
4:30. After our morning service, of course, I
went to Iglesia Bautista de Bell Road. After our
worship time and songs by a visiting la Rancho
band, we heard a bit of Pastor Francisco's
message, then we were encircled in a
hopeful
prayer toward the launch of this
important ministry. The individuals who have
been meeting each week seem to be called by God
for this work. I told them from the depth of my
heart, that there is no place I'd rather be at
that time each week. God will bring the
Increase.
Cathy and Joe were in Choir Rehearsal from 1:00
to 4:00 and Mary helped Jeane Harjo watch over
all the little ones from 11:30 through 4:00...so
all of us Pattersons needed a break. Cathy and I
went for a long, long walk while Joe and Mary
napped.
Afterwards Joe, Mary, Cathy, and I had dinner in
downtown Auburn (something we rarely do). I
struck up a conversation with the family seated
next to us and shared one of the new
invitational tickets to 'Christmas in Mayberry'.
We then went to the Old State Theatre to see a
movie the girls wanted to see: August Rush.
This morning, Lord willing, I will edit the
sermon from yesterday and upload it before noon.
Here's a note from my dear friend, Greg Brayton
(that blind guy who is responsible for all the
guitars and production in my online songs). He
has been in the classroom of suffering:
I go tomorrow for
another Ctscann
to see how the new medicine is working.
I should find out on Friday. The last
couple weeks haven’t been the nicest for me. I
haven’t felt real good physically and that’s
dragged me down a little, but I know with your
prayers, I’ll get through the hard times.
I hope we get some good news on Friday
and
I’m just asking you to pray the same
way
if you have the time during the next week.
I’ll write more after Friday I’m sure.
Especially if the news is as good as I hope. I
pray that The Lord will bless you were ever you
have need. I hope to be back in touch, real
soon.
http://www.gbrayton.com
Lord, I pray for Greg, and ask that you sustain
Him
by Your Grace in this very hour.
O, Holy Spirit fill my brother with Joy
Unspeakable and Peace Unsurpassable.
Hope, Lord, give us true hope.
In Jesus' Name, I pray,
AMEN.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
hot off the press:
7:25 a.m.
Here is a PDF of the sermon outline (click
here)
It is now 5:15 a.m. After restfully meditating
upon the Lord's goodness to me (and praying a
heartfelt prayer for my sleeping companion...
you know, her name's Cathy...), I decided to get
up and put together a sermon outline for the
Sunday Bulletin. So, I'll get to that...but
first, I just gotta record some of last night's
events.
We shot video footage of the Mayberry Project
from 10:00 until 2:30 yesterday (see yesterday's
entry). Then, we went home to back-up the video
files onto an external harddrive. Mary was at an
all-day CPR Certification seminar and we knew,
upon her arrival home, she would be putting on a
sleek dress with high-heels, make-up, and
planning to go back to Galt for the Winter Ball.
She had already arranged for Cerissa to fix her
hair before she would leave.
During the time awaiting for the grand arrival
of our high-maintenance teenager, I began to
develop a bit of a headache...and my body was
still aching from a slip-and-crash I endured two
days before. Still, I decided that it was up to
me to make the 60 minute drive to Galt in order
for Mary to attend the Black-and-White High
School event.
This would mean that I would have about 5 hours
to 'work on my sermon' before the midnight hour
when I would pick up my girl and head back to
Auburn.
"Go south down the
road...to Galt"
On the way down, I turned on the
overhead light and had
Mary read aloud for me. She started
in Genesis 12 and, during the next hour,
worked her way through Genesis 18 (with a
few interruptions so that Daddy could
preach-n-teach).
Once in Galt, we turned the corner of A Street
and Palin Avenue (toward the boyfriend's house)
and noticed a full parking lot at First Baptist
Church of Galt. It was a few minutes before
7:00...it looked like it was the annual
Christmas pageant. So, after dropping off the
top student at
EducationPlus, I walked into the local
church where I had served from 1996 to 2006 and
sat down next to Mike
McCall.
It was a wonderful program! I really enjoyed
seeing and hearing the story of Baby Jesus
afresh.
Afterwards, I ran by our house to touch base
with my son, Jeremiah, and then drove out to the
home of Eli and
Barbara Tavarez.
Elias Jr. (from Michigan) was
visiting so I was really blessed to sit at the
table, eat authentic Mexican food, and do more
oral research for this upcoming sermon:
Jacob's Altar.
We talked over the situation we have shared in
the nation of Pakistan
(and rehearsed church history from the
seventies....before my time).
I stayed there until about 11:00, got a cup of
coffee and waited in the car, reading the Word,
until Mary's formal evening came to an end. I
picked her up at 11:53 and she read aloud for me
from Genesis 27:1-32:32
We arrived in Auburn around 1:10 a.m. Once
safely tucked into the Nest, I read through the
night Jacob wrestled with God and then met his
estranged brother face-to-face. 20 years of
alienation came to a close as Esau through his
arms around Jacob's neck.
(read
it for yourself, click here)
Hey, CONGRATULATIONS are in order for
David Burkhardt.
Sometime yesterday (last night or this morning),
his most recent grandson should have been born!
Oh yeah, I suppose that
Mama Diana and
Papa Bob ought
also to get some acknowledgement too.
HEY...GOD BLESS you guys!
It is now 5:48 and I've really gotta get going
on the sermonic bulletin insert I envisioned an
hour ago.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Here is another clip assembled in a crowded
courtroom. There's a whole lot more people in
that little room than you can see at the moment:
click here
Friday, December 7, 2007
This is how I spent Friday night. It has been an
interesting experience trying to get together
everybody at the right time. Just for some
'laughs'...
CLICK
HERE for a quick video
(dedicated to my VisionWalk buddy, Jebby)
Thursday, December 6, 2007
My Dad called me yesterday. I had him speak with
his granddaughter, Mary, as we were driving to
Galt. In Galt, Cathy worked a partial day at an
elementary school and I took our three younger
kids out to breakfast.
I needed to meet with Kristy (a friend who shot
video for us on Sunday night). That project is
starting to weigh heavier on me. That's OK
though. The Lord is with me continually
reminding me to get 'filled up.' That is what I
intend to do through this month by God's grace.
We were privileged to have Mary (a visitor from
out-state) at our Prayer Meeting last night.
Although there were only five of us in the
circle of intercession, we shared a powerful
time together before the Lord.
Mary told me that I looked 'tired'. I told the
folks that I've been trying not to ignore people
when they make mention of 'rest'...
I'm going to work from home on my message for
Sunday:
Jacob's Altar
Acts 7:8-9 (Genesis 28:10-22)
Romans 5:6-8
Luke 1:54-55
So far we have Paul (15) and Punk Rock Lisa (?)
scheduled to be baptized on Christmas Eve
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Several us of went out to Jaci's house last
night to tape scenes from
A Mayberry Christmas. We received
a call from the media asking for details so I
sent this background information and figured you
all might enjoy reading it:
Members at Bell Road Baptist Church have been
busy preparing to bring our community a special
Christmas event: Christmas in Mayberry . A
multi-media production, Christmas in Mayberry,
will be presented on Sunday, December 23rd, at
6:00 p.m. in our church sanctuary.
Why would a church produce a Christmas play
based on a television show from the early
sixties? My good friend,
Jebby Moates, an accomplished
composer and recording artist, wrote this play
and is simultaneously producing it at Bear Creek
Community Church in Lodi, California (where he
serves as the Pastor of Worship).
Click here for
the performance information for the Lodi Show.
In a recent church newsletter, the playwright
discusses his current project:
"The Andy
Griffith show has been playing non-stop since it
first aired in the early sixties and is
popular world-wide. I believe that people like
me love the show because we identify with many
of the characters and deep-down long for a
simple life surrounded by friends and family.
Mayberry is a fictitious town in North Carolina,
based on Andy Griffith's home town, Mount Airy.
Mayberry is such a small town that there's only need for two
law-enforcement officers, one barber, one
grocery store, one gas station, one department
store, one movie theater, one telephone
operator, one diner, one pharmacy, one doctor
and one church. Every citizen in Mayberry knows
each other, accepts and loves each other, quirks
and all. Hmmmmm, sounds like the very thing
we're striving for in the Church.
I like to tell people that Andy
Griffith's character, Sheriff Andy Taylor is one
of my role models. Sheriff Taylor seems to
bring out the best in the people around him. I
love how he protects his bumbling deputy, Barney
Fife from ridicule, and creatively finds ways to
encourage Barney's critics to appreciate Barney
as a person.
There's also a good lesson in how Andy Taylor
shows love and respect to all his eccentric and
high-maintenance friends like, Floyd, Gomer,
Otis, Goober, Howard and Clara. Most of all,
it's great to watch a television show that
depicts a caring father raising his son to be a
moral, polite, responsible young man.
Andy Taylor is not perfect; he often must
apologize to people he has offended. For me,
the most moving episodes, are the ones where
Andy has heart to heart talks with his son, Opie.
It's interesting to note that Andy Griffith
originally had plans to be a minister before
becoming an actor. Each episode of the Andy
Griffith Show has a moral, and good always
triumphs over evil. The Andy Griffith show is
the only sitcom, I can think of, where hymns are
sung by the characters. Sinners Lose Their
Guilty Stains, Leaning on the Everlasting Arms
and Away in the Manger have been featured on the
show. There is even an Andy Griffith Show Bible
study available; a friend of mine used it at his
church recently.
In the play, A Mayberry Christmas, the citizens
prepare for the town Christmas Pageant, a live
Nativity Scene. As the story unfolds, different
characters lose sight of the reason for the
season; tempers flair and things get out of
hand. However, when the message of Christ is
presented during the pageant, the characters are
reminded of the true meaning of Christmas, and
their hearts are moved by the Gospel Story.
I suppose A Mayberry Christmas is also a tribute
to a special television show. I have always
admired the lovable characters, fine
storytelling and exceptional humor of the Andy
Griffith Show.
I'm excited about working with our wonderful
cast and doing this Christmas play that has some
very funny moments. But it's so much more than
that; it's an opportunity to direct
everyone's attention to the most important
story, the story of how Jesus Christ came to
earth to save us all!"
--Pastor Jebby Moates, December, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Here is Sunday's Message:
The Friend(s) of God:
click here
There will be some variance in the amplitude of
the signal because apparently when I set out to
shoutin' somebody figured they needed to turn it
down.
I'll have to tell our audio people that I don't
mind distortion when the preacher is yelling. I
want the normal voice to be the prime level and
allow distortion at the high moments.
Kinda like leaving the feedback at the intro to
"I Feel Fine", I learned this technique in the
country church of my early days.
It is 2:39 a.m. and I'm up because Cathy arose
for some reason. I was thoroughly thirsty...so I
asked 'mama' for a glass of water.
Sitting up, sipping that which truly quenches, I
have been thinking over last night's prayer
meeting with our deacons. I won't go into detail
but will share that 'the elders' had been called
upon to pray over an individual for an important
health concern.
Since I had picked up Joe from work, he had to
wait for me in my office during my meeting with
the deacons and our prayer for healing. From
6:40 until 8:15, Joe did some intern work for
BellRoad
Radio by editing out empty space in Sunday's
Message: The Friend(s)
of God. In addition to
and-um...s,
this empty space happens whenever the preacher
asks the people to 'turn to' any passage of the
Bible. Edited out by radio ministries, it
results in a shorter 'message' and is almost a
necessity for an audio-only transmission.
Well, poor ol' Joe
lost all of his work when the operating system
unexpectedly needed to 'shut down'. I knew that
simply meant that my message would be in the
same shape as it was when I left to pick him up
3 hours earlier.
For some reason this reminds me of 'Experiencing
God'.
Blackaby (my loose
paraphrase) said, "If you ever lose your
way, go back to that place where you last heard
from God. Ask yourself (or Him) if you ever left
anything undone about the direction given at
that time."
I should try to go back to sleep (yet I am wide
awake)... for I have many expectations to meet
on Tuesday. I guess I went to bed before 11:00
as evidenced below:
9:31 PM
pastor matt: You there?
me: yup
pastor matt: Is it "A Mayberry Christmas"
or "A Christmas in Mayberry?"
me: Christmas in Mayberry
That's all.
pastor matt: got it
me: that's MY title
Lodi's title is "A Mayberry
Christmas"
Shouldn't you be offline and lovin'
on your wife?
Ordering avon...or somethin'?
pastor matt: I would but my boss asked me
to update the webpage...
(www.bellroad.org)
9:34 PM
me: a simple 'under new, anointed
leadership'
announcement page would suffice
pastor matt: I'm a workin on it boss ;)
me: alrightee. I'll send you a couple
action shots
of Auburn Barney and Andy
pastor matt: k
me: in a minute
pastor matt: I don't have my flyer on
me...
what are the dates again
I should know this by now...
9:37 PM
me: Christmas in Mayberry
pastor matt: yes sir
me: Sunday, December 23rd
6:00 PM
pastor matt: at 6 or 7?
me: 6:00
pastor matt: thank you sir
9:38 PM
me: Christmas Eve Candlelight Service
starts at 7:00
but it will be shorter
1 hour
11:02 PM
pastor matt: are you there?
(No, I wasn't there. I had fallen asleep trying
to watch a commentary by Jerry Seinfeld about
the rapid pace that their creative team had to
keep in order to go from 'episode idea' to final
taping...week-after-week.)
I need to be alert for this full day with starts
with BSF and ends with a one-man shooting of
important scenes for 'Christmas in Mayberry).
It is now 3:15 a.m. Back to layin' down
for some sleep.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Cathy and I
got home from 'church' around midnight. We
hadn't had supper yet so we drove to the
Newcastle Denny's (not knowing any other
midnight spots around town).
I'm not even saying, 'Whew!'...
I had just experienced a very full weekend but
was refreshed--having gotten through the
evening's taping of several important Mayberry
scenes.
Church went well during the morning. On Saturday
night we had put up our new glossy placards for
the BellRoad Express
(and our large Mayberry posters). Then, of
course, with the Christmas-decorative makeover
in our sanctuary space, the children were
excited.zz
The music was good. The preachin' .... well,
we'll hear later today whenever I get a chance
to edit and upload the sermon. (I dropped
Joe off at
6:30 a.m., am currently at the office waiting to
open up for BSF
Leadership, and then am meeting
Aunt Bee and
Clara for some location shots in
Downtown Auburn.
Our Spanish Service workers joyfully received
some first-time visitors:
Clyde, Faye, and Alisha.
g2g
or maybe these days,
more realistically, I oughtta say,
g2g2
Sunday, December 2, 2007
I think I went to bed at 11:00 but I woke up at
2:00 a.m. so I answered a couple emails and
started working again on my sermon outline.
I am settled on this outline for
Friend(s) of God:
CLICK HERE
It is now 4:50 a.m. the sermon is still in the
oven.
I figure I'll go back to sleep until 6:00 a.m.
Yesterday was a pletha of relational cooperation
including (but not limited to) the men's
breakfast, decorating the sanctuary, creating
BellRoad signage, entertaining angels from
Oklahoma by hosting atop the
BellRoadVista,
sharing the Downtown-OldTown walking tour, and
experiencing the Festival of the Lights in
Downtown Auburn with Kurt and Christy.
Here's a chat from last night for more
background on a chapter (sermon prep) in my yet
un-published *yet un-written trans-doctoral
dissertation:
A Theology of Integrity
8:32 PM
me: Tomorrow is gonna be WONDERFUL
Everyone's gonna be buzzing with excitement
pastor matt: Indeed.... I'm looking forward
to Monday
me: whats on monday?
pastor matt: The "Screen" Dream! Monday
1pm
me: yeah that'll be GOOD, I hope!
pastor matt:
It will. Check your e-mail...
I'll send you a few skies...
Tell me which one you like the best
8:38 PM
me: I like stars2 better
click here and go
through the pages
here's some cool ones too
click here God of Wonders
could use these
me: please keep me in prayer ALL thru
until the sermon
cuz, although, I have made some decisions about
what to do. I have no real clear-cut directive
from the Lord YET
...and then, there's the risk of preaching too
long.
So, some definitive limitation of a MAIN point
would be helpful I've just been attending to
lots of other important stuff. Its all good.
I trust that by being fully yielded tonight and
tomorrow that
we could have the very BEST God wants for us...
See, one of my points from the Day of Pentecost
(vital to a series which includes ACTS)
pastor matt: I'm back...
let me catch up and read what you typed :)
me: is that Peter didn't 'prepare' a
sermon that day
He stood, opened his mouth, and God made him wax
prophetic...
"This is that...."
Modern Christians don't like to trust the Holy
Ghost to do that for us....
pastor matt: this is true
me: we seem to want 'Charles Stanley'
and that's good too....
So, I just wanna strike a cool balance of
preparation
and spontaneity
pastor matt: Maybe we should have
"Drive-through"
Church for today's busy christian
me: that will make a funny video skit for
our
NEW-SCREEN days ahead...
We can set up a drive through around
the church...
where the driver orders sermon CDs from recent
weeks
pastor matt: "Yes I would like some Paul
with a small side of Jesus to go please"
me: and a donut and a coffee
it could be some tongue-in-cheek
poking at
BellRoad Radio... CDs and DVDs
8:49 PM
me: Well, I'd better stop this kinda talk
and get to my
sermon prep
postscript: It's 4:50 a.m. I'm goin' back to bed...
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Up at 5:30 with a congestion-headache. Sweet
Cathy already brought me some medicine, so
hopefully it will go away. Today, I will work on
the message entitled The Friend(s) of God.
So far, I have selected too much material to
cover Tomorrow we will also feature Lottie Moon,
Candles of Advent, and a two special song
interpretations, so there will be need to be
some deep thought and a morning-bath meditation
to get started today.
Click here to see my notes (4 sides) for
The Friend(s) of God
There is a men's breakfast today at 8:00; Daniel
is going to come with me, I think. I took Joe to
Sacramento last night so he could meet up with
the New America Singers who are serving a
musical message at Camp Pendleton (in San Diego)
tonight. He will travel back here tomorrow.
Cathy and I look forward to meeting
Andy and Becky Deck
who have traveled here from Oklahoma to run the
Folsom-to-Sacramento marathon.
Friday, November 31, 2007
Up at 3:00 this morning. I am wide awake. No
email in my box but much work-to-do yet-undone.
Whenever I have been overseas on a mission trip,
I have also been awake at 3:00 a.m. It is a
fact-of-life for me when I am on a short-term
mission trip. It is definitely not worry, fear,
or anxiety which awakens me and escorts my body
from the bed to the desk, or onto the path under
the stars. At times like this I have the
opportunity to be refreshed by gazing at the Big
Picture (which is much bigger than I have yet
seen).
Samarang, Indonesia (April, 1995)
San Vincente, Mexico (1997)
La Mision, Mexico (1999)
Tallin,
Thursday, November 30, 2007
Woke up at 5:45. Something was missing
when I woke up. No joyful song, no jump-outta-bed-ready
to go....
Felt empty needing a fill-up. So, I'm gonna
drive Joe to the Park & Ride where he will meet
Wolfgang.
I hope to commune with God in that car
Spirit-father-son (YHWH-rob-joe).
Then, it will be an I-and-Thou
discussion on the way home...
Whew! What a day yesterday.
Bob Knapp
was bein' Bob...a
bit pushy, yes....BUT,
a 15 year old named Paul gave his life to
Jesus after Youth Group. Hallelujah!
update: just
got back from the drop-off at 6:53. We did pray
together and rehearsed a bit of advent-season
history. It was 12-12-02 when I received my
first letter from
Pastor Richard Wesley in Liberia.
Joe and I had
just shared an hour of devotional (reading
through Blackaby's
book called Abraham:
the Friend of God).
Joe is praying about the process of 'reclaiming'
his 'stolen property' and allowing other(s) to
come alongside him as he learns an object lesson
in 'redemption' and the after-effect.
As we were praying I thanked the Lord for his
boundary lines. As men, it is important to show
other guys that one can decide to 'nip it' (nip
it in the bud) in regards to one's besetting
sin(s). That decision of the will is definitely
helpful to sinful man who realizes that except
for the grace of God, bondage is a fact. Yet for
those who will know the Truth, Jesus gives
freedom to walk into the day of rest.
As we were praying I recalled the end of my
night's dreams. It was a public altar call (not
unlike the two nights we shared with brothers
Greg, Phil, Jason, and
Lazarus at Placer High Stadium in
July).
In this dream, I wasn't 'working' at the altar,
I was 'watching-and-praying' from the bleachers.
I saw the movement of sinners and saints at the
altar. As the music played softly (I assume
there was music), I recognized some of the
individuals who were moving forward to serve and
to be served.
A little boy and his sister were standing alone
facing the bleachers. Then, I spotted Joe
heading to them. He squeezed the girl as if to
say, "Hey, its great to see that you've come
forward..."
I wondered if he had just been culturally
inappropriate. Yet, Joe was bent down on his
knee at their eye level and continued to be
available to the Spirit's leadership.
He was Joe
bein' Joe...at
the altar.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
4:14 a.m.
About multi-tasking: I'm getting too old fer it!
Whew! Yesterday about wore me out. The young
whipper-snapper (pastor matt...tho' not all that
young himself anymore) looked at me at 1:47 p.m.
and asked,
"Pastor, are you
alright?"
Well, it had been one long, long string of phone
calls, live folks, important to-do ministry
fulfillment, sermon-editing, office-talk, seed
planted, growth watered, and very-important
visions further launched forth.
"Pastor, are you
alright?"
Yeah, lol...I was just wondering
where my keys were because I was heading out the
door with seventeen minutes to get to the
cemetery, in my suit, tie straightened, hair
combed, Bible in hand, mind stilled, and
thematic, chosen hymn more-fully embraced:
The keys were...in my hand (like I
said...'whew'...)
Ironically, the hymn chosen by the deceased for
this very day was:
My Faith has Found a Resting Place (click
here)
The service around our sister's burial site was
intimate and Word-based (Philippians chapters
one and three). Every member of the family and
the caregiver-in-attendance are confessing
members of the Body of Christ, so we took our
time in the Word (in the pleasant context of
sun-warmth, birds-song, and lightbreeze). We
hallowed that ground for generations to come and
to reflect upon the meaning of a long and
fruitful marriage-ministry.
Afterwards, Cathy and I met to visit in the home
with this family. Much to our joy, we continued
to 'connect' on several levels with the children
of the deceased.
They will be accompanying their father this week
for the First Sunday of Advent.
Returning home after dropping off newly-copied
CDs (sermon and Gomer stuff) to
the Ronks,
and then (The
Face of an Angel) to
Conductor Jane, the day's ministry
schedule was nearly over.
Then I saw this pop up on my kitchen table
laptop:
9:17 PM
pastor matt:
you're still up?
me: yup you?
pastor matt: of course
me: well, my
day's responsibilities are finally done...
pastor matt:
I'm amped about the thought of having a
charter school*
thinking about the potential
*a
phone call that had come during our business
lunch
me: I'm home
now
pastor matt: Can I call you on an
unrelated matter?
me:
(withheld stuff)
9:23 PM
pastor matt:
very cool... may I give you a call for 5 minutes
of your time?
So...he called. Then, last night and this
morning I wrote two letters to our own
home-grown missionary,
Alisha Rosenau. She is coming back to
Auburn this Sunday for a week's visit. A group
of us are planning a short-term mission trip to
her ministry-setting (Rancho Sordo Mudo) after
Christmas.
Here is a link to Alisha's website:
click here
It is now 4:55 a.m. I think I'll sing along with
this hymn before I get out of bed:
My Faith has Found a Resting Place (click
here)
(in memory of Thressie)
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
A busy day today. Joe and I got up around 5:00;
he enrolled online for next semester at Sierra
College while I continued to edit Sunday's
Message (click
here).
BSF is here; I'm their soundman.
Pastor Matt and I are planning to map out the
music selections for December. Then, I have to
turn in the Expert Advice column...and the
weekly pastors' prayer mtg. is in Colfax today.
At 2:00, I will join an intimate circle of
family at the cemetery this afternoon for a
graveside burial. I must prepare myself for that
important opportunity to serve our Lord. Its
raining in Auburn today. I hope it lets up for
the burial.
Patrice has informed me that shooting begins for
The Mayberry Project this week.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Yesterday's Sermon:
The Face of an Angel
(click
here) It begins with an excerpt from
Pastor Matt's new song: 'Its Not Too Late'
recorded as an offertory.
Here is that new song in its entirety:
It's Not Too Late
©
2007 Matt Klein All rights reserved (we mean
that...we really do)
Yesterday was another blessing for me and Cathy.
Christy Sandhoff
stayed busy at the Photo Directory table in our
reception area.
Pastor Matt
sang his latest song, "It's Not Too Late".
His piano-playing and voicings were refreshingly
KeithGreen-ish. I love it!
BellRoad Bob
and the Mrs.
were away on Anniversary Leave. Many others were
gone for the holiday as well. Still, God brought
in visitors and we had a good time in the Lord.
I especially enjoyed meeting John Walker's
daughter, Lynn. She told me that she's been
praying for me ever since I started here. Lynn
lives in Chico. I sure wish she were here! Well,
maybe someday.
This weekend, Andy and
Becky Deck are flying from Oklahoma
to Sacramento. They are here for a running race
(in Folsom).
They're gonna drive down I-80 to
EXIT 123 and
visit the campus of
BellRoad International.
Unfortunately, they will not be here for Sunday
Service, but we will have our receptionists (cathy
and mary?) give them a Visitor's
Pack...and yours truly will give them a
full-scale tour (including our
Memorial Rose Garden
and the Rooftop Vista).
Lord willing, I will edit and upload the sermon
before noon for those who missed it...and for
those who don't get it all the first time (like
me!).
I was happy to see
Josefina in attendance. I quickly
introduced her to the others who are praying and
planting seed towards a harvest through
Iglesia Bautista Bell
Road.
I've written two important letters regarding my
ongoing attempts to resource
Pastor Shamas Pervaiz
with the kind of love described in 1
Corinthians 13. May God grant a great blessing
to him as we continue to write back and forth.
Cathy, Mary,
and I drove to Galt, then to Lodi yesterday. I
met the Lodi cast of "A Mayberry Christmas" and
video-taped several of the scenes. It was fun to
watch a completely different cast work the
dialogue.
The next thing I hope to do after uploading my
sermon is to make a DVD for our Director,
Patrice Rosenau,
so she can she how Lodi is staging the scenes.
Another example of how we are rollin' in Auburn:
'Working smarter...and working
harder'
Sunday, November 25, 2007
I woke up
a
little before 4:00 a.m. and felt refreshed to
tweak my sermon outline. This message is still
in the oven because we hope to serve it pipin'
hot for those who come to the Table.
(wanna take a look?
click here)
Stephen will prepare the way to learn from
four Old Testament characters during the Four
Sundays of Advent:
1) Abraham
2) Jacob
3) Joseph
4) Moses
The fifth candle will be lit on Christmas Eve to
celebrate the birth of our Savior, the Lord
Jesus Christ.
I was happy to see that
Lynette and her
son Paul
made it to the Union
Gospel Mission last night. I invited
them to also come to our gathering this morning
at 10:15.
I fully expect to see
Josefina at church this morning as
well. I met her at BSF on Tuesday and told her
about Iglesia Bautista
Bell Road. She had prayed that God
would open a door for Spanish-speaking ministry.
"mm....mm.....mmmmm (with andy-like
expression)
the proof is in the
eatin' "
Saturday, November 24, 2007
I went to bed at 11:20 last night. Woke up at
5:15 and am looking ahead (tomorrow) to work out
details for taking a group to Lodi. We will meet
the Lodi cast at their 1:30 rehearsal of "A
Mayberry Christmas". We will leave right after
our morning service. That means I'll have to
find someone to fill in for me as 'techie' at
Iglesia Bautista Bell
Road (in room 900 at 1:00).
Qualifier:
must share a desire to be a part of something
greater than oneself while operating a DVD
machine and video projector.
Tomorrow's message is entitled
The Face of an Angel. Our three year
series is approaching the first intersection
with the 'christian' calendar. In this Advent
Season (2007), we will consider Salvation
History as told by Stephen before he is
martyred. I preached it this way in 2002, I
believe. Each week, we read a portion of
Stephen's testimony and focused on one of four
Old Testament characters whose life he cited as
character witnesses.
Tomorrow's
sermon will serve as our introduction to the
primary witness (Stephen) before the
First Sunday of Advent (December 2nd).
Tonight
(7:30)
is our outreach at the
Union Gospel Mission
(Sacramento at Richard & I-5)
A long-standing tradition is to first meet up
with the Wolf Gang (The Rosenaus') at
5:30 for a
home-cooked meal, then leave for Sacramento
promptly at 6:30. the services are timed to be
over at exactly 8:30. I have made a commitment
to being there as much as possible.
The Director, Tim Lane,
called me last month and asked if I would be
part of a 'Staff Renewal Emphasis' that is
scheduled for January, 2008. I told him that it
would be my honor to feed the lambs who are
serving in such a vital ministry.
If anyone wants to join us, please call me
on my cellphone:
(209) 323-0727 ...or here's
the map.
By the way, Tim Lane
was previously a member at Bell Road. See what
God has done by taking him at his 'yes', and
moving Tim along a path chosen for him. Tim now
directs the UGM and pastors a church in our
denomination. Here is a piece he wrote about one
of our historic missionaries.
Heroes of
the Faith: Lottie Moon
Yesterday, Cathy and I drove to Downtown Grass
Valley for an afternoon date. We had a wonderful
lunch at a little cafe, walked all the streets,
visited several antique and specialty shops,
stopped for a cup of coffee and walked some
more. This was a very special time of discussing
and praying over our family concerns. Someone
had told me that the downtown district was run
by hippie capitalists. So, that thought was on
my mind as I visited with shopkeepers. Yeah, it
felt like home. It was a perfect day on planet
earth (walking hand-in-hand with my bride).
On the way there and back, we listened to the
Practice CD of the Auburn Cast for
Christmas in Mayberry.
The playwright, Jebby, called us to share
that he had just heard it online and wanted me
to bring a master with me Sunday, so he can make
copies for his cast and crew.
Cathy worked an overnight for Home Instead. It
is now 6:10; I think I'll sleep a bit more
before she gets home and the day continues...
all of November, 2007: click here
for
September, 2007:
click here
for August, 2007:
click here
for July, 2007:
click here
for
June, 2007:
click here
