From "The Applause of Heaven"

"As long as Jesus is one of many options, he is no option. As long as you can carry your burdens alone, you don't need a burden bearer. As long as your situation brings you no grief, you will receive no comfort. And as long as you can take him or leave him, you might as well leave him, because he won't be taken half-heartedly."

-Max Lucado

Out of Eden - Praise you

"Lord I really don't know how to write a song.
I'm not always eloquent, sometimes I get it wrong.
But the thing You've doing in me I can't describe,
what a fool I'd be if I chose to hide,
this transformation, new motivation.

Thought that we were close, I've known You all this time.
But I was just living life my way, just getting by.
Thought that if I'd do a good deed or two,
that'd be enough to please You.
I kept the parts I wanted to,
and missed out on the real You.

Now with every step and every breath,
I give it all, hold nothing back.
With all I am, this is my choice,
to live to worship You.

So with all my heart, my soul, my mind,
I'll love You, leave it all behind.
To live my life in awe of You,
is the least that I can do.

I've held on so long to all my hopes and dreams,
while You were asking me to place them all at Your feet.
Let my praise be more than a song I'll sing for You.
Let me change all my ways in response to You.
I've lived for myself, Lord I need Your help,
not I who lives, but You.

For You are worthy of all honor,
and You deserve the sacrifice I'll give.
You've touched my heart and now I see,
what it is You want from me.
So I'll lose the things that hold me back,
so You can set me free.

Now with every step and every breath,
I give it all, hold nothing back.
With all I am, this is my choice,
to live to worship You.

So with all my heart, my soul, my mind,
I'll love You, leave it all behind.
To live my life in awe of You,
is the least that I can do."

True Fasting (Isaiah 58:2-7)

For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.
'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?'

"Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists.

You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.
Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

From "The Accountable Man"

"The accountable man is committed to telling the truth regardless of how much it hurts. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to admit our struggles to others, especially when they are difficult or humiliating. The honest man, however, hates all that is phony or false. He develops a strong distaste for image creating or hypocrisy in lifestyle."

- Tom L. Eisenman

From "Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire"

"If a meeting doesn't end with people touching God, what kind of a meeting is it? We haven't really encountered God. We haven't met with the only One powerful and loving enough to change our lives."

-Jim Cymbala

From "Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire"

"Prayer is the source of the Christian life, a Christian's lifeline.....That's why the great emphasis on teaching in today's churches is producing such limited results. Teaching is good only where there's life to be channeled. If the listeners are in a spiritual coma, what we're telling them may be fine and orthodox, but unfortunately spiritual life cannot be taught."

-Jim Cymbala

You Complete Me

On the ride back from Wonderland me and Eileen got to talking about how we've changed over these last bunch of months. I thought about it some more the day after, and when I think back to the things that have changed in my life, the things that changed my life, a lot of it I think was just monkey see monkey do. Not that my faith is based on people or anything, but I really admire and respect each of your lives so much. And honestly that's what it was when I first got here, I saw what God was doing in and through your lives, and I just wanted a piece of the action.

I saw in Judy how to continuously challenge and spur on those around her, from Adrienne a warmth and friendliness that surrounds all who work with her, Eileen bringing energy and excitement to God's kingdom, from Tae faith in every situation and a heart of encouragement for the broken, from John a heart of amazing generosity and such humility, from Alex a heart simply overflowing with love and acceptance, from Paul how to instruct, correct, rebuke with gentleness and respect, from Solina a genuine heart of care for the burdens of others...I only talk of the core team right now as i see them a lot, but I've seen something amazing from each of you here.

I was, and still am, very convinced that God delights in you, not only that you're serving him and committing all this time and effort and all that, but that he delights in you simply for you being who you are. And if you think about it, that's just God delighting in His own handiwork; your entire life, your entire being, has been prepared by God for His purpose, for this purpose. And I am absolutely certain that he will continue to prepare us for our final place in heaven, and that He would be with us every single step of the way.

In Philippians 1:4-6 the Apostle Paul says,

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

I think to myself, if you guys are this amazing now, I can't even imagine how you'd be like when God's work is complete in you. And I think the same way about Westside Hamilton too, we're going to be one year old soon, and God is already working wonders here: the lost receiving Christ, leaders being built up, people being brought into new and renewed, passionate relationships with Christ. Perhaps you have seen much more amazing things, but to me, God is working so much here, moving so powerfully. Let's pray that just as God is working in us to complete our lives, that He will continue to complete Westside Hamilton, that this will be a place that raises up a generation that is Holy, a people that is truly set apart for God. Let's pray that His work will be complete here, in us, and through us.