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for June, 2009.
By pastorbillwalden
I thank God that he is so honest with us about His children.
The Bible doesn’t whitewash any of God’s children. It shows us both their good and bad, their highs and lows, their faith and failures. That encourages me, because I have faith, and I have failures. That doesn’t make me unique amongst God’s people. It means that I am one of many with the same tendencies.
Sometimes God’s people can have the best intentions but be totally wrong in what they are doing. Thank God for good intentions, but let’s realize that we all have blind spots, and we need to constantly be checking the direction of God’s pneuma, (wind, Spirit).
A couple of passages about good intentions being off kilter come to mind.
In Matthew 16, verses 13-19, Jesus asked His disciples who He was. After sharing different public opinions about who Jesus was, Peter made his great confession of faith, and said in verse 16: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Peter could not have been more right at that moment, and Jesus explained that this had been a divine revelation right from the Father in heaven.
Ahh…score one for Peter.
Jesus then proceeded to tell them about His coming death by the hand of the Jewish religious rulers.
In verse 22 we read: Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!”
Good intentions Peter. Peter would be the one to talk Jesus out of going to the cross, (and dying for the sins of mankind). Aren’t you glad that Peter failed on that good intention?
Peter must have felt on top of his game for a moment or two, until verse 23, when Jesus said, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”
Oops. Good intentions Peter, but your response was not of God. Time to regroup. Lesson to be learned. Cierra la boca hermano!
Good intentions, but not God’s leading.
Another passage brings Peter to center stage once again.
The setting is the Last Supper, and Jesus has girded Himself with a towel, and demonstrated love and servanthood by washing the feet of eleven of the disciples. Then Jesus comes to Peter to wash his feet.
We read in John 13:8: Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Good intentions Peter. But wait…
Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
Peter saw the inappropriateness of Jesus washing His feet, so he tried to stop Jesus from doing this.
Good intentions Peter, but wrong thing to say.
But don’t be alarmed. Peter will quickly correct his mistake. Now he knows what to say…
John 13:9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”
Ahh, this time well done Peter. Surely your good intentions are right on this time. If Jesus washing His feet was a good idea, then surely a total bath must be the best idea. Peter was sure that he had corrected the problem.
But wait…
John 13:10 Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.”
Wrong again Peter. You need to let Jesus wash your feet, like He tried to do the first time. You don’t need to have Him give you a total bath though, because He is trying to teach you something.
Peter, good intentions, but not God’s leading.
I can relate. Anyone else?
(Editor’s note)- If you are feeling Peter-ish on a regular basis, don’t be discouraged. Peter was later filled with the Holy Spirit, and went on to change the world.
The secret? Keep checking the wind.
By pastorbillwalden
One of my favorite Olympic memories is that of gymnast Kerri Strug vaulting in the 1996 Olympics.
She was injured, and had severe pain in her left ankle, but she willed herself to give her all for the American team.
It was of special interest to our household, as, at the time, our daughter was involved in gymnastics, and we had a bit of the Olympic fever about the whole thing.
The result of Kerri’s effort was a great vault, and a gold medal for the American Women Gymnasts. It was an incredible moment.
Kerri’s efforts were very inspiring, and were appropriately praised for quite some time. Watching the video clip got me emotional all over again. She proved herself worthy of the title “Olympic Champion”.
You can watch the video of Kerri’s vault here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsQcwHc1Jfw
The Apostle Paul sat in a jail in Rome, and wrote these words to his beloved Philippian brethren.
Philippians 1:27, 29
27 Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ…that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel…
29 For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake…
“Striving together”. The Greek word is synathleo, a compound word made up of syn- which means “together”, and athelo, which means “to engage in a contest”. We get the words “athlete” and “athletic” from athleo.
It gives us the picture of athletes striving together for a common goal which is bigger than personal recognition. It speaks of a team mentality, as opposed to the “me first” mentality we increasingly see in today’s world of professional athletes.
Kerri was granted the privilege of being on that team. It was a very special position to hold. Kerri was willing to suffer for the team, her parents, her coach and for America, as she wore the Stars and Stripes on her uniform. There was, undoubtedly, a great deal of personal achievement that she had, but it was bigger than just her.
Paul also told the Philppians that, “it had been granted to them to suffer on behalf of Christ”.
The Greek word for the phrase “granted to them” is charizomai, which means “to give graciously”. From that word we get the word charis, which means “grace”. The Philippians had been “graced” with the opportunity to suffer for Jesus.
Let’s connect the dots and come to a conclusion.
Paul exhorted the Philppian believers to live a life worthy of what Christ had died to give them. They were to live their lives in such a way as to resemble what a Christian is. As Kerri lived out the heart of a champion gymnast, so we too, are called to live out what we are: “Christians”. (That is assuming that you, the reader, are indeed a follower of Jesus)
Secondly, we are to have a goal in life that is bigger than ourselves. Have a big picture mentality. The goal is Jesus and His kingdom. It isn’t just you and your personal wants. Make the decision to strive together with other Christians for a goal bigger than yourself. The trouble with many of us is that we strive against each other for personal gain, instead of with each other for Jesus’ honor.
Thirdly, we have been graciously granted the opportunity to suffer for “Team Jesus”. Those young American women were incredibly privileged to be on that that team. Yes, they earned it, but it was still a privilege. Since then, the team no longer exists with that line-up.
We have been graciously granted the privilege of being part of the Body of Christ, which is eternal and has existed for nearly 2000 years. The 1996 Olympics have come and gone. The Kingdom of God is eternal. People earn their way onto an Olympic team. God the Son came to Earth, put on flesh, and died on a cross to grant you the privilege of being in God’s family.
Kerri suffered for an inspiring, but temporary cause. Christians have been “graced” with the privilege to occasionally suffer for that which will never pass away.
We don’t “have to suffer” for Jesus. We have been granted that privilege.
Christians comprise the most privileged people group on Earth. It isn’t because of who we are, but because of who Jesus is. It isn’t because of our temporal personal goals, but because of His eternal purposes.
We, more than any other people group, have the best reason to endure suffering.
The “Voice of The Martyrs” ministry tells us that presently, 500 Christians die each day for their faith. Thousands more suffer daily. They don’t get the earthly recognition that an Olympic athlete does. Their recognition goes far beyond that.
To us it has been granted the opportunity to live, suffer, or even die for the greatest cause mankind will ever know. We are among the most privileged group.
(Editor’s note) For those interested in further thoughts on this, my sermon notes are available on this blog site.
By pastorbillwalden
Here’s a link to a true story that happens to be part of the inspiration behind the new Rambo movie.
I am not advocating seeing the movie, but it’s nice to know that some Kingdom work is being recognized, at least according to this article.
In fact, the movie is rated “R” because of lots of violence. Be forewarned. I am blessed enough to know the inspiration behind the movie was a local Nor Cal brother in Christ.
According to the newspaper article, Pastor Joe Tuccinardi is doing some awesome work for the Lord in Burma.
Praise the Lord.
Take some time and read the article. It was inspiring to me.
Editor’s Note- Since originally posting this, the link changed, and the story can’t be found. I’ll keep checking. It’s a shame, it was a good interview. 
New Editor’s Note- I found a blog that shares the story about Pastor Joe. It quotes the newspaper article. Here’s the link.
http://www.pastor-art.com/node/159
By pastorbillwalden
BIG TIMBER, Mont. — Without their consent or knowledge, a pastor in rural Montana has sold his church and congregation on eBay for $3 million.
“I finally got good and sick of them,” says Tad Marshall, pastor for 15 years who completed the secret sale last week. “This serves them right. All of them.”
But many in the church are stunned by the Marshall family’s sudden departure. “We had such a good relationship,” says Winifred Barnes. “Whenever I called him in the middle of the night to pray for my psoriasis, he was happy to help. I’m surprised he would treat us this way.”
Others expressed similar feelings.
“We would stop by for surprise visits every time he had a day off, and his wife was always quick to put a pot of coffee on,” says Fred Souther. “We’d sit there and chat for hours. Those were wonderful times.”
One woman recalls how Pastor Marshall responded to her plea to visit her ailing mother every day during her prolonged illness at a hospital 78 miles away. “I don’t think he did it because we threatened to quit the church. I think he was genuinely concerned for Mother even though she was in a coma,” she says. “We would sit with her for hours singing hymns to her. I could tell he was blessed by it.”
Another longtime member recalls the day a group of women surprised the pastor’s wife with an impromptu shopping trip.
“It was clear she was unable to afford modest clothing, so we charged right in and threw away everything in her closet,” she says. “Then we bought her new ankle-length dresses with long sleeves. She cried tears of joy that day. She kept saying, ‘I can’t believe you’re doing this.’ It was a bonding moment for all of us.”
Even the board, which had its share of differences with Marshall, recalls him fondly. They say he happily abided by the church’s Dress and Grooming Code, kept sermons to 23 minutes as the board required and even abandoned his use of the New Living translation on Sunday morning.
“Once he understood it is a devilish translation that twists the words of the original spoken English, he said he’d be happy to go back to using the Authorized King James Version,” an elder says. “That’s the way Tad was. A real go-along guy.”
Friends from out of state say Marshall came to rural Montana hoping to find a friendly lifestyle where he could help good-hearted people grow closer to Christ. Instead he found “an enclave of faux-Christian Pharisees” who demanded he serve their every whim, says one seminary buddy.
One day while selling old exercise equipment on eBay to supplement his church income, which had been docked by the board because a service had gone too long, Marshall decided to rid himself of the congregation in a creative way. His eBay listing emphasized the positive: “This delightful country church sits on 2 acres of land. Comes complete with congregation and 35 regular tithers! Sunday school wing, no mortgage. Bids start at $200,000.”
Recent Bible college graduates bid first, hoping to gain a built-in congregation on the cheap. Then several entrepreneurs with ministry ambitions swooped in, driving the price up. Kevin Silver, a 39-year-old former Internet company founder, won with a last-minute bid. He is looking forward to “leaving the spiritual corruption of the big city behind” and taking the helm of the rural congregation.
“I always wanted to serve at a little country church where decent people just want to pursue God,” he says. “My wife and I are looking forward to settling into community life and getting to know these wonderful folks. This will be a great second chapter of life for us.”
(Editor’s note) I hope you enjoyed this bit of fictional humor with me…
Proverbs 17:22 (NLT) A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.
By pastorbillwalden
Can you dig it? That is a very “old school” phrase that people used back in the ’60′s and ’70′s. I don’t know about that personally. I read about it in a modern American history book.
Actually, I did live during that time, but I never used that phrase. I never thought it sounded as cool as everyone thought it did.
In 2 Kings, God told some people to “dig it”.
2 Kings 3:15, 16 (Elisha said)…But now bring me a musician.” Then it happened, when the musician played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. 16And he said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’
Take a few minutes and read that great account found in 2 Kings 3, then come back and read this article.
You can find 2 Kings 3 here:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%203&version=50
God did an amazing work for those people that day.
He not only brought them water, but He encouraged them emotionally and spiritually through this miracle, and then used the miracle to fool their enemies into defeat.
God did His part, but only after the people did their part. They could have come up with many reasons to not dig those ditches.
1. They were extremely tired and thirsty, and didn’t have the energy.
2. They were going into battle the next day, and needed to save their strength.
3. It didn’t make sense to dig ditches. Why couldn’t God just “make it better”?
4. It wasn’t part of their plan, and that wasn’t what they were there for.
But, they obeyed, and were blessed according to their act of faith.
Small trenches would have brought a small blessing. Larger trenches brought greater blessings. God blessed them way beyond their expectations.
All they did was dig holes. Not too glamorous or impressive. But God blessed their acts of obedience.
What are the very real needs in your life? What are the trenches that God is asking you to dig? Prayer? Forgiveness? Having a quiet heart? Reading God’s Word? What reasons might you be giving for not doing your part?
Many times, we believe we have legitimate reasons for not obeying God. Imagine how it would have turned out for these people if they refused to follow God’s instructions.
I’d love to hear from some of you about the trenches that you have dug, and how God has filled you with His blessings.
By pastorbillwalden
If you are a Christian, you have at some point in your life experienced a “holy frustration”. You are wanting something good, something Biblical, and something that is inherently a blessed thing from God. It may be a better job, marriage, or a new ministry whereby you can serve the Lord.
You have good intentions, and what you want isn’t a bad thing; in fact it’s a good thing, but the frustration is that God doesn’t seem to be giving you the opportunity to experience that good thing.
I call that a “Holy Frustration”.
Frustration can lead to us blame people for our lack of opportunities and fulfillment. We blame society, the people in our churches, the pastor, our parents, our kids, or our spouses. We feel that others are holding us back from a good and godly thing.
When God explained how He would bring the newly freed Israelites into the Promised Land, He told them that it would be gradual, and that things would happen in stages.
Exodus 23:27-30 “I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. 28And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you. 29I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. 30Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.”
God wouldn’t drive the people out of the land all at once. That would leave the land uninhabited, and wild beasts would multiply, and create a different kind of problem for the time when the Israelites would eventually come to receive God’s blessing for them.
They needed to grow numerically in order to receive the blessing. God would create the opportunity for them, but they needed to be ready for it. If God drove out the inhabitants too soon, that vacuum would create a new problem for the Israelites.
The Israelites needed to “increase”, in order to have the ability to receive the blessing. Their numeric growth would be the result of their obedience to God.
Just before this promise to drive out the inhabitants of the land, God had instructed them about how to live.
Exodus 23:24-26 “You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars. 25“So you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. 26No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.”
God would take away sickness, and no one would miscarry. They would grow. They would increase.
I believe that the application for us is this: We can have “Holy Frustrations” because we have a desire for something good and godly, but that opportunity is not coming our way. There may be lots of reasons for that, but consider this one reason:
What if you aren’t ready to receive that blessing? What if there is still a lot of growth that needs to happen in your character? What if you aren’t mature enough? What if you aren’t as ready as you think you are?
You may be wondering why God isn’t creating that opportunity for you.
(He might be mercifully saving you from a lot of pain and grief.)
God is probably wondering why you aren’t getting ready for it.
(As if God wondered!)
Having a godly desire is only the beginning of the process.
There also needs to be a consecration of self in order that the heart and life might be prepared for the responsibilities of that blessing that God has for you.
Getting married is designed by God to be a blessing. Getting married before you are mature enough often turns out to be a disaster. The same is true for ministry, job advancement, friendships, having kids, and buying a house.
Desiring a good thing is just the beginning of a holy process. Growing into that good thing is a non-negotiable. Maturity and readiness is mandatory, if the blessing is to be enjoyed. Otherwise, the blessing becomes a burden.
If you are experiencing a “Holy Frustration”, ask God to show you how you might not yet be ready. Don’t rush the process, and don’t desire the blessing more than you desire the One Who brings the blessing.
By pastorbillwalden
I am posting a recent comment by Susan regarding a young man who is a mutual friend and loved one. We are both privileged to know him. I really mean it when I say privileged. My coming to know him was through some tragic circumstances, and it is always bittersweet to see him, since he is now in prison for life. My visits with him are far more sweet than bitter.
A person who is living for Jesus, even under the most difficult circumstances, can make times of visiting really sweet. Such is my experience with our common friend. Every time.
All who know and love my friend understand the limitations and imperfections of the human justice system. We understand what the law sees and what it doesn’t see. We understand that man’s inability to bring perfect judgment is the nature of the world we live in.
None of us are trying to overturn the judgment that was made. In our hearts we wish it were different, because we have a perspective that only a few have. We also undertand that we are not feeling the incredible pain of others, who would also disagree with the judment in an opposite fashion.
I thank God that we have a judicial system, but it is not perfect. Thankfully, as Christians, we live under God’s grace and not just human law. God’s perfect grace tempers human law, at least within the soul of a child of God. Our friend has an eternal perspective that tempers what could be a deadening sorrow of the soul.
He is following the admontion of the writer to the Hebrews, who said, “…looking unto Jesus…”. (Hebrews 12:2) That decision brings life to him in the near lifeless world he now inhabits.
Finally, these comments are not intended to criticize the system. Rather, the focus is to point out a young man whose life has been radically altered by his sin and the sins of others, but who is choosing to live for Jesus, in spite of the wrongs done againt him, and the wrongs he himself has done.
Here is Susan’s post, which I wanted to highlight. I also wrote about our friend on November 14, 2007, in an article called “The Birth Of Compassion”.
Here is the link to that previous post: http://pastorbillwalden.wordpress.com/2007/11/14/the-birth-of-compassion/
Susan wrote:
Yesterday, I visited a young man who is in prison for life. He made some huge mistakes, and now he is paying a terrible price. Yet every step he has made behind bars has been a step deeper, and farther, with God. I feel truly privileged to be a witness to what God is doing in him, and to be his friend.
At the same time, to see such a young man living in such dreadful conditions, and to know he will spend his whole life, maturing, growing old, and dying, in a crowded and dirty cage, fills me with such bitter sorrow at the waste and suffering, and such disillusionment with a society that would perpetrate this and feel righteous about it, that I am tempted to the despair spoken of in Pastor Bill’s writing. (Referring to the “Things Unseen” post, February 9, 2008)
What saves me from giving in to it is that I see, before my own eyes, God’s power at work. I know that what He has begun in this young man, He will finish, and what looks like dead-end hopelessness is in reality the anteroom of fulfillment. I praise and thank our God for the blessed hope only He can give.
By pastorbillwalden
I am presently reading a book called “Things Unseen”, by Mark Buchanan. It’s a book about Heaven. It’s speaking to me like no other book has for quite some time.
So far in the book, Buchanan has been writing about the dissatisfaction that all people have with life. God made humans with a sense of eternity, and the temporal nature of life can never fill what only eternity can fill.
Read Romans 8:18-27, and then consider these words by Buchanan.
Romans 8:18-27 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:18-27;&version=50;
Buchanan- “The world is booby-trapped. It’s rigged for disappointment. On Earth, everything falls short of some hoped-for ideal. Everything good down here has a tragic brevity and a funny aftertaste to it. It all falls short, and shortly falls apart. None of it possesses any ultimacy.”
“In response, we can become so cynical that we poison ourselves, so self-indulgent that we devour ourselves, so despairing that we collapse into ourselves. In fact, pity and self-indulgence, boredom and despair, envy and greed-such are only yearning gone sour. They are just the greasy residue that remains after yearning has gone unfulfilled too many times. A sadness like ash settles on our doings and our desires. We find trinkets to fiddle with, trivia to distract us. A once burning zeal dwindles to a dry itch, and everything becomes a frantic attempt to get the passion back, or a plodding resignation to its death.”
The answer is, of course, drawing close to God, and realizing that there will always be a bit of this despair for “Things Unseen”, because we weren’t made just for Earth. We were made for heaven.
By pastorbillwalden
Isaiah 61:3 “To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for their heaviness…”
I “officiated” a candle light vigil tonight. I actually was one of the minor players in the event, though I was officially leading it. The families and friends of four people who died in a house fire (including two kids) were the ones who spoke volumes to me tonight. They didn’t say anything I haven’t read or heard, they just “spoke”, and their words were full of substance and passion. Though in deep sorrow over losing their loved ones, they spoke with dignity and integrity.
Ten and eleven year old kids spoke of losing their cousin and best friend. They spoke, cried, held each other and sometimes wailed. It was terribly sad and admirable all at once.
The familia was courageous to share (in both English and Spanish) with 200+ people that had gathered together to comfort and be comforted. I stood near them. I overheard as they said to one another that they didn’t think they could speak, and then somehow they found the courage to share their hearts, and the comforting continued to all who had gathered. I admire their courage and love for one another.
It was an intense night.
Earlier in the day a pastor friend of mine, Daniel Fusco from Calvary Chapel, Mill Valley called me about something unrelated. In the course of our conversation, he asked what was happening, and I told him that I had been asked to lead this vigil. He prayed for me, and prayed that God would give me “beauty for ashes”.
I immediately knew that that was a word from the Lord. The victims had died in a fire. (Smoke inhalation) Their bodies came forth from the ashes. God wanted to use that picture to illustrate what He wanted and could do for those who were grieving.
When the ancient Jews grieved, they would put dust and ashes upon themselves. The thought took me back to my Catholic roots of Ash Wednesday, the day when the priest would make a cross on our foreheads with ash, reminding us that “from dust we were made, and to dust we would return”. Ash Wednesday is the first day of the Lenten season.
Some of the grieving family is Catholic, and they had attended an Ash Wednesday service earlier in the day. They arrived with ash crosses on their foreheads. They wore the reminder of our origin and the brevity of life.
Long story short: I was able to share with the crowd that God does bring forth beauty from the ashes, if we will receive it. Tragedy does make us appreciate life more. We can go on to love family and friends better. We realize that our days are numbered. For me, it makes me want to love and serve God more, and communicate Him in any way that people will receive. (Hence, this blog)
I am so proud of the folks from our church and other churches that serve as community chaplains, along with lead chaplain Lee Shaw. When the fire occurred, there were six chaplains needed to minister to the extended family, as well as classmates and faculty of where the older child attended school. Even more chaplains showed up tonight to help with the vigil. These folks are all volunteers, and are there to help during the worst of the worst.
You can read more about their ministry at http://www.cityofnapa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=155
There was no altar call tonight. We didn’t hand out tracts. I didn’t get too preachy (I think), or give a three point sermon. We got to help some people in need, and share a few of God’s promises with them. We got to serve some folks tonight, and I am supremely blessed and proud to be in God’s family with some mighty fine people.
And I love how the Lord can speak to my heart through the prayer of a friend.
By pastorbillwalden
My friend Michael Sewell and his wife Jody have been traveling the nation and beyond for many years, sharing about Jesus via dramatic presentations. Michael has written and produced many plays and music cd’s, and he is now getting into film.
I want to encourage you to watch this video. It’s really good.
It’s called “Wheel Of Knowing”.
The video is about an adult daughter struggling to take care of her aging father who has Alzheimer’s, and lives with her family. The story has an awesome ending. It will be well worth your time to watch this.
The video can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTuEzY1s_vc
Drop Michael an email at pastoractor1@aol.com.
His web address is http://www.michaelsewell.com/.