Still a Friendly, Family Church

 Our Sunday night service was awesome. It was our time to say good bye to the building that we have been in for the past 20 years. I was curious how this church would handle this event. I was in Prescott for two of it's three major moves. I wanted to compare between Prescott and SA. I was impressed and inspired by what I saw and heard and felt last night.

One thing about this church is it has managed to maintain it's friendly, family feel. This church has planted workers and launched missionaries. This church is active in personal evangelism. This church hosts conferences. But this church has not become tired or jaded or defensive by it. They still are excited by it all.

Last night there was no sermon. There were testimonies by those who have been here all this time or who got married here or who got saved here. And we spent time in worship. Afterwards we had fellowship in our suddenly too small fellowship hall. It felt like we had Heaven's favor last night.

This is a young church. This is a faithful church. This is a family church. My old church could learn a lesson from this church. I have told you many times how different it is for me here. Last night was just one more example of how different it is here for me.

The Door in San Antonio is still a friendly, family church. Just like it used to say on the original Ruth Street sign in Prescott.

Making The Best Of It

 Last night pastor Rubi used the story of the vacationing couple who thought that they were going to Sydney, Australia and instead ended up in Sydney, Canada. Their story ended well and gives us a lesson that life does not always end up how you planned or how you hoped it would end up.

Moving to San Antonio sounded like a good idea for me a year ago. I did my homework and prayed and this seemed like a good move. Now that I have been here for a while I have begun to wonder if instead of San Antonio, Texas I am in San Antonio, Alberta. Not for the weather, but for how life is here.

The lesson for me today is, make the most out of your choices even if those choices aren't working out like you planned. If life isn't working like you hoped that it would find out what does work and do that. I choose to be happy anyway and I refuse to let life dictate how I live. I have a nice home and I have a new church and I have my daughter close by and I have good health. God is good and He is working on my behalf even when nothing seems to be happening.

Marriage Truths

 "Then he charged them and said to them: I am going to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite," Genesis 49:29

"There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah." Genesis 49:31

As I wrote recently, after being married will your husband chose to be buried with you in death? In this text we see that in this cave were buried the patriarchs and their wives. Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, And soon Jacob will join Leah, not Rachel. Many widowers who marry again still choose to be buried with their first wife in death. This shows the powerful connection of men and women, especially your first marriage.

Today as I read this it seems like Jacob almost reluctantly issues the order for him to be buried with Leah. Jacob loved Rachel almost too much. But in the end Leah was a better wife and she was true to her vows and she earned a place by Jacob in death that she never enjoyed in life.

Marriage is more deep and binding than we understand. Widowers may marry again out of loneliness. But they will never love anyone as deep and as much as they loved the wife that they buried. Widows need to understand that they may get a companion for their latter years but they will never be loved like they wish they could be by a man who loved his wife until death did them part.

Finally, Our Grand Opening

It is official. The date has been announced. The Door in San Antonio is having it's first ever service in our new building on February the 6th. And we will be having our official Grand Opening on March the 6th with pastor Harold Warner from Tucson.

I am so excited to see what God will do in this church this year.

Service times

 When I was first saved in Prescott in 1973 we didn't know anything. We didn't know that Foursquare was a denomination. We were just glad to be saved and Spirit filled. We had the old Foursquare schedule of services. Sunday School at 9:45, Sunday morning at 11, and Sunday evening at 7. Wednesday Jubilee was at 7:30pm. We could not get enough. Revival meeting all of the time which began at 7:30pm during the week.

Over the years, as the Prescott church grew apart from Foursquare, the schedule of services changed. Prayer went from Thursday mornings at 10 to every morning Monday through Saturday at 7am. Today the Prescott schedule of services is Sunday School at 9:30, Sunday morning at 10:30, and Sunday evening at 6:30 with midweek on Wednesday at 7pm.

A quick survey of some leadership churches showed me that some old timers still have the 11am Sunday morning time but most have switched to 10:30. Mostly Sunday night is at 6:30 and Wednesday at 7pm.

This is not really that important except when you have done things one way for so long and then find yourself in a place where it is different. I used to get home from church by noon on Sunday. Not here.

Grades Are In

For the first 20 plus years of my married life we moved a lot. Mostly it was due to pastoring and pastoral changes. A few times it was just an opportunity to escape a bad situation. Every move had it's challenges but most moves were exciting. Until now. This move for me has been the most difficult and unsatisfying move of my life.

I did not leave Prescott because I was running away from something or someone. I did not burn any bridges to leave. I left with my pastor's blessing. But I never dreamed how hard it would be t adjust to living here. People are people everywhere. And visiting people is easy. But living in a strange place is different. 

I am coming up on the one year mark since I moved here. So far I give this move a C-. Hopefully this new year will raise that score a little.

The Bible: A Book About Christ

 The first three chapters of Genesis are not as complicated as some people make them out to be. The story of creation in 6 days. The story of Adam and Eve. The serpent and the forbidden fruit. It all is divinely inspired, and it tells us what is important for us to know. And it tells us of God and His involvement in our history. First and foremost Genesis chapters one through three is a story about God.

The natural world has been around a long time. How did it all begin? How long ago did that happen? The Bible tells us that the natural world was created by God out of nothing. God spoke and the universe, including planet Earth, came into existence. When or how long ago is unimportant. It is here as it always has been and it will continue long after we are no longer here.

Adam and Eve are simply the first humans. They did not evolve. They were mature and perfect from the moment that God created or formed them from the dust of the Earth. They are God's answer as to where did we come from and how did we get here. The why of all of that is unimportant.

The temptation and the deception and the fall in the garden really happened. There were real trees. The serpent is a real personality. The whole story is God explaining to us how sin entered the human race and death through sin. Why it happened like this is unimportant.

The important things in the Bible are easy to understand. They are truths that must be believed and obeyed not dissected and understood. What is important is to know that the Bible is a book about Christ and God's plan of redemption. Before the foundation of the earth redemption had been thought up and the plan put into the works of human history.

Whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ will be saved. That is important to know. Even a child can understand that simple yet life changing truth.

Random Ramblings

 There is no hero without her. There is no her without he. Only he stands on it's own.

Pray for your pastor. Especially if you notice that he says I, or me, or my, or mine a lot.

There is no I in Team. The local church is a team. We all play our part. We all matter.

The phrase, from the least to the greatest, is a common phrase in the Bible. 

God makes important things easy to understand. If it's too hard or too hidden watch out.

Most vehicle trips are under 2 miles. Most phone use is in seconds, not hours. Bigger seems like it should be better, but is it? Jesus flew under the radar on purpose. So did pastor Mitchell.

Rachel was buried alone and has a monument. Leah was buried with Jacob and the patriarchs. Rachel was beautiful, but Leah was a better wife. Will your husband want to be buried with you?

Fear God, Not Google

 God knows every sparrow that falls in the field. God knows and numbers the hairs on our heads. God knows the thoughts and the intents of every human heart. God knows history before it happens. Google knows what we looked at online. Amazon knows what we shopped for online. Alexa knows the local weather. Big tech knows nothing of any value.

We ought to fear God, not Google.

Pastor Is Home

 It was so good to have our senior pastor, Richard Rubi,  back yesterday. Our assistant pastors do a fine job ministering to the church. But there is no substitute for your main pastor. The shepherd cares for the sheep. Hirelings just do a job. Also, pastor Rubi preached to us the message that he preached in Prescott. But I am sure that the word that we heard was not exactly the same word that the conference heard. That shows wisdom and maturity.

Welcome home, pastor Rubi. God bless those who serve us in the Gospel.

Conference Vision

 It is amazing to me that after all of these years since conferences first began in Prescott they are continuing on in pastor Mitchell's vision for church planting. Couples are still willing to go. Local churches are still willing to support and send. This past week was no exception.

If you want to read a list of the conference announcements they are on the Prescott Potters House page.

The Need For Leadership

 "Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." Exodus 32:1

1. People need leadership. The people recognized that it was Moses who led them up out of Egypt. And in Moses' absence they sought out Aaron to be their leader. Leadership matters. Leaders not only serve the Lord, the serve the Lord's people. People left to themselves go astray. Poor leadership produces carnality. Absent leadership produces idolatry and a backslidden church.

2. Aaron did not seek to be their leader. He did not ask to lead the people. They sought him out. They asked him to lead.

3. Those who serve the leader in any group are not the same as the leader. They may be at some point, but they fail when leadership responsibility is laid upon them. Moses would not have built an idol, but Aaron did.

4. Moses was not on vacation or playing games. He was with God on the mountain. The trouble was that the people were not up there and therefore got no immediate benefit from his time on the mountain. Leaders need time away. But trouble happens in a leadership vacuum. 

Leaders not only tell us what God says and what is required of us. They also are a reference point and an example for the people to follow. Pastor Mitchell was not just a great leader. He was first a great Christian. He was a Christian man, husband, father, grandfather as well as a pastor and apostle. And it was a rare event that pastor Mitchell was not there on Sunday morning to minister to us. No matter how busy he was.

Verify Your Miracle

 In the story where the Lord healed the man with leprosy I have wondered why the man was told to go show himself to the priest and offer the sacrifices required by the law for cleansing.  And then it occurred to me that in so doing it would not only be a testimony that Jesus had actually healed him, but that it would be legally binding so that no one could condemn him or accuse him as to whether he was truly healed. It is like getting a doctor to affirm that the tumor is gone or that the cancer is cured. That way no family member or employer or insurance company could deny you due to your previous condition.

The same idea seems to be when Paul was released from the Philippian jail. He called for the legal release witnessed by legal authorities so that they would not be accused of breaking out of jail and subject to future prosecution.

Faith is fine and it works. Because God is real and He works. We need to take steps to be sure that the legal or medical or financial authorities see that it is done legitimately. God is not lawless and miracles only interrupt the natural flow of life, they do not change the times or the laws.

Praise the Lord for divine healing and strong deliverance and miracle power. Let your doctor or the judge or your employer's insurance plan see what the Lord has done too.

Just saying you are healed or you are delivered is not enough. 

Practical Righteousness or Just More Verses?

Pastor Mitchell was know for preaching and teaching and living what some called practical righteousness. Simply put this is when you can study the scriptures, pray, and serve, in a way that takes the Bible out of the book and into real life. We all believe that Christ died for sin and rose from the dead. And we all believe that you can be saved. But then what?

How does Christian living work if you are not called to preach or to be a missionary? How does faith work when you are out of work and have a family to support? How do we keep Christ in our marriage when the honeymoon years are over? What are we to do when our children reject the things that we hold dear? I could go on, but you see what I mean? Practical ministry for real life, not theology for Bible experts. Not just Go Ye over and over.

Jesus told us that the letter of the Law kills, but the spirit of the law give us life. You may know Bible verses backwards and forwards. You may be able to put together a 3 point sermon. But does it change anyone or help anyone? Is anyone stronger in their faith as a result of your ministry? Will my marriage or my family survive another year? What can I do when I am too old to do what is preached that I should do?

I am grateful for ministry, in song service and in pulpit ministry, that turns my heart toward the Eternal and towards Christ at God's right hand. 

Favorite Song of All - The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir

My Corona Virus Thoughts

 My thoughts on the on-going corona virus issues.

1. If you are sick, stay home. It seems silly to have to say this. But Pentecostals are prone to do silly things and call it faith. If you are sick, stay home. We will miss you and we can lift you up in prayer. And if the Rapture happens during service while you are at home Jesus knows where you are all of the time.

2. We have been conditioned to respond. The news report everything as the worst-case scenario. And we react to what we see and hear. Yesterday everywhere that I went people had masks on. Except me.

3. Corona viruses are dangerous and they can be deadly. Two of the widows at the grief support group yesterday told us that their husbands had died due to covid-19. We all know people who have died from CV. But there are worse things than getting sick or even dying. Living in fear is worse than dying.

4. If you have not been vaccinated, get vaccinated. Stop listening to the anti-vaccer liars. Vaccines save lives. These CV vaccines work. They are safe. It is amazing how quickly they were developed. We ought to thank them for the great work that they are doing.

5. Turn off your television. 

My Grief Support Group Visit

 Griefshare is a Bible based, Christ-centered, Church sponsored grieving support group for adults. I discovered this group in Prescott when my grief over the death of my wife, Kathy, was overwhelming me. At Griefshare I felt safe and I felt familiar and I felt understood. Griefshare saved my life.

I found that there are local Griefshare groups in SA and that one local church was sponsoring a one time session on the loss of a spouse. So I signed up and I went. That was yesterday. It was a group of 6 women and 2 men and a nice man was the moderator. I was familiar with the concept but I had forgotten how strong and fresh and raw the emotions would be. Not just tears, though there were plenty of those.  People in our group were very recent widows. One lady had not yet buried her husband's body yet. But we all had that common bond that someone we had loved and that we had married had died and their death had affected us deeply.

It is okay not to feel okay. Even for Pentecostals who believe in God's miraculous power we suffer loss and we grieve the death of those we love. Cliches and Bible verses carry no weight and have no balm of healing for the broken hearted griever. 

I am glad that those awful, dark, confusing days of grieving are behind me. The only thing that seems to remain is the nagging loneliness that is unique to widows male and female.

I am glad that I went and that I was able to share my story. 

Just My Thoughts

 One interesting thing happened to me on Wednesday night. I was in the prayer room before service and I was praying with everyone else for the service. As I was praying it seemed through my closed eyes that a very bright white light was shining in the room. I opened one eye and saw nothing unusual. But with my eyes closed the brightness remained. I do not know what that was but it was there.

Pastor Rubi implied that wisdom or intellect is invalid for true Christian living. I think that emotion without wisdom is fleshly and illegitimate. Could it be that there needs to be a balance between wisdom and emotion, between understanding and experience?

I am asking the Lord to help us occupy our new conference center. I am tired of talking about it. I want to occupy it ASAP!

Ending The Fast. Some Things Never Change.

 Tonight in San Antonio we ended the fast. I was curious how this church does this. First, our service was as long as any usual service. A little more intense in some respects. It's like we aren't going to give in to hunger and we are going to see the Holy Spirit work no matter what. Pastor Rubi did shorten his sermon but only a little bit. He still preached for 23 minutes. And after his sermon there was a 22 minute alter service with 3/4 of the church at the alter. Every one of our pastors who spoke tonight talked too much and too loud and too long. We get it. Give us a little credit. We are not as dumb as we look.

Pastor Greg spoiled us when he began the 15 minute sermon with no alter service. When people have not eaten anything for 3 days they are not thinking about God or revival. They are thinking about food. One thing to keep in mind is that pastor Mitchell invited Greg to preach on the end of fast service many times before Greg took over as pastor in Prescott. The good people did what you asked and they want to end this sooner rather than later. This is another area where the maturity and the power of the Prescott church is visible.

One final thought. After church not one person even asked me if I wanted to join them for a meal tonight. The person that I was talking too got asked. But no one asked me. So I am sitting at home alone eating by myself while folks are eating and laughing and loving each other. They just forgot about the new kid in town. Some things never change with me.

And yes, I timed the service. From the start of service to pastor Rubi's sermon was 30 minutes. We started at 7:30 and we closed in prayer at 8:45. Pastor took the service at 8:00. He bowed our heads at 8:23. And he dismissed the service at 8:45. Prescott is one hour behind and they might have gotten out before us.

The Arrogance Of The Experts

 "Then the Lord said in his heart, I will never again curse the ground for man's sake, although the imagination of his heart is evil from his youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living thing as I have done. While the Earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease." Genesis 8:21-22

The arrogance of the experts is only eclipsed by their ignorance of the Bible. Arrogant environmentalists prophecy the destruction of nature and the end of life as we know it. They are often ignorant except when they are lying. God made a vow to all living things, men and animals, to never drown the world with a flood again. God created it, God sustains it, and God preserved it until the time of the end when it will all be consumed by fire. God will make a new Heaven and a new Earth for us who are His people to the end.

Any time you hear outrageous claims in the news or in science or in school there is a good chance that those claims began with a sodomite. They are so arrogant and so deceived that they get things wrong and that they cannot keep their ideas or their lifestyles to themselves. Homosexual's pride is always their undoing. 

Why do the heathen rage? It is their nature to rage against God and against Christ.