.

Jesus warned us to be careful of becoming legalistic because nobody wins.

2011-09-22T18:16:00.001-05:00

Legalism is dangerous because it attempts to lower others in the attempt to elevate oneself, ignoring the very issues of impurity within one's own life. A careful study of the Pharisees demonstrates that they were not all bad people. In fact, in many ways, the Pharisees were actually trying to increase the people's sensitivity to God by constructing rules that would keep God more visible. The fatal flaw in their thinking was that they believed holiness could be brought about or achieved through outward cosmetics. So they started writing laws that would prohibit people from "eating" this or that, or associating with "this" person or "that" person. Again, it was all done in the hopes that these rules or regulations would somehow bring about a form of holiness. Did they succeed? Well, not exactly. It got so bad that many of the Pharisees could not follow their own rules and regulations, which turned them into real phonies, distancing them from God. Jesus pointed out that the aftermath of such rules only led to the Pharisees cleaning the outside of the cup (the exterior) while neglecting the interior (the heart) - which was most important. And worst of all, their self-governed rules prevented others from seeing the true nature of God and His love for people.

I love what Mark Batterson , Pastor of National Community Church, wrote as it relates to this topic -
"We need to be people who transform our culture and not condemn it."

Legalism serves only as a fantasy step toward holiness. Don't be fooled by imitations. Unfortunately, there are still people leading churches today who spend a lot of time waxing the outside of their cup while constructing negative statements about the world. That's not the shine that Jesus was talking about.

If you're feeling crushed by the weight of legalism, turn to the teachings of Jesus. Certainly, God doesn't love you less when you blow it or miss the mark. Conversely, God doesn't love or approve of you more when you surpassed the holiness of Mother Theresa. It doesn't work that way!

For a deeper study on this, go to Matthew 7 (how to avoid hypocrisy).

Truth is transforming and transformation takes courage.

2011-09-02T13:49:00.006-05:00

Most people resist change. In fact, the hardest thing to break is a habit. And of course, the more you repeat something, the stronger the habit becomes - only reinforcing the pattern. When you think about it, it is surprising that anyone can really change. And yet, as pastor, I speak every weekend about the importance of change. But here's what I've learned; all the words in the world cannot produce change unless truth is accepted and courage is applied. When these two align with each other, transformation begins to happen.

Someone rightly said, "The truth will set you free, but it will make you miserable first." I strongly agree with this. Most people would love to change without any discomfort. For example, I would love to become more muscular without lifting weights, but - no gain without pain. I would love to become more knowledgeable without reading, but it ain't going to happen. Truth is transforming, and transformation takes courage. To speak on change isn't enough. Instead, we must present truth and pursue courage.

Just today I spoke on the phone with a gentlemen who's entire world is falling apart (marriage, job, parenting, etc.). Instead of speaking to him about how he needs to make changes and adjustments in his life, I instead encouraged him with some timely truths from God's Word and told him that he will need to be strong and courageous as he approaches the hill for battle. After 45 minutes on the phone, I could tell that his entire demeanor had "changed." He was far more positive and he was ready to go out to battle.

Maybe today, like me, you need to focus less on how to change things and more on living in the truth while pursuing courage. God says that the only way that we can worship Him is through spirit and in truth (John 4:24). And friends, that takes courage.

We are losing sunlight each day. The fall season is a constant reminder that darkness always returns.

2011-08-29T09:15:00.001-05:00

If you live in the Midwest you've probably noticed that your car lights are turning on just a bit earlier each evening? Brace yourself. This pattern will continue for the next several of months, right into December - and there is NOTHING you can do to stop it. In Minnesota, we call this a season. I've been told that we have four of them. In a similar fashion, our own personal lives can go through a rotation of seasons as well. For example, it's not uncommon for people to experience seasonal depression. In fact, seasonal depression occurs most, of all times, during the Christmas holiday. Many psychiatrists suggest that the lack of sunlight produces this funk or feeling of isolation and sadness in us. It just comes with the season and the absence of light.

However, fall can also usher in extreme beauty (the turning of the trees produce amazing colors). This, too, is confusing. With darkness comes amazing beauty. During dark days I often grab hold of this verse that reads,

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.- James 1:17

In a world with so many shifting shadows, it's great to know that God is our One constant. There is no change or shifting in Him. There are no seasons that apply to His nature. In addition, James writes that God is filled with light. If we've ever needed light, today is the day. Walking in darkness is awful. Just ask my toes, as they stumble through the house bumping into things until a light is found.

Notice that even in our dark days, God continues to give us good and perfect gifts. Unfortunately, it might take a little more work on our part to discover or see our many blessings - but they're there.

Take a moment this week to thank Jesus for being your CONSTANT. Thank Him for his continuous presence in your life, even during the dark days of fall. And keep your eyes WIDE open to the blessings that He pours out to you. Remember, the best place to shine a light is in the darkness. God knows this, so keep looking for Him.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Here it is: The Minnesota Ten Commanments

2011-08-22T09:06:00.001-05:00

1. Der's only one God, ya know.
2. Don't make that fish on your mantle an idol.
3. Cussin' ain't Minnesota nice.
4. Go to church, even when your up nort.
5. Honor your folks.
6. Don't kill. Catch and release.
7. There's only one Lena for every Ole. No cheatin!
8. If it ain't your lutefisk, don't take it.
9. Don't be braggin about how much snow you shoveled.
10. Keep your mind off your neighbor's hotdish.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

You win friends to Christ, not your enemies.

2011-08-20T04:29:00.001-05:00

When it comes to evangelism or sharing your personal faith story, the bridge to conversion is through a frienship. I find it intriguing that Jesus was tagged or branded with the name, "friend of sinners." And indeed, that's what he truly was. And it was this relational connection that Jesus had with sinners that allowed conversion growth to explode.

It's rather simple. You don't win enemies to Christ, you win friends. Enemies will not listen, but a friend will.

Romans 2:4 states that it is God's kindness that leads us to repentance. The woman caught in adultery was not condemned by Jesus, but instead she was befriended by him and was coached out of the sinful life. God's kindness led to her transformation. And most importantly, it came through the voice of a friend.

God calls us friends as well. And that makes all the difference for me in my transformation into his likeness.

While we were yet enemies with God He came and made peace (frienship) with us via the cross. It is this image that allows us to share our faith in a loving way with all people, not condemning our culture, but in a manner worthy of our Savior who continues to be a friend of sinners.

The more complete challenge of evangelism is not so much through the verbal sharing of God's Word, but by befriending the person that you are sharing the gospel with. Jesus exemplified this by living up to the title, friend of sinners.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

My God must be more than Apple Jacks to me. Do cravings produce hunger, or does hunger produce cravings?

2011-08-08T05:42:00.001-05:00

Okay. I'm up at 4 AM and this thought keeps entering my mind, "Right now, I'm really hungry for a bowl of Apple Jacks." But to get up out of bed would risk waking my entire family for this craving of mine. Not a good scene. Besides, I just had a large snack before bedtime (chicken pot pie). How healthy is that? So I'm thinking, there is no possible way that I could still be hungry. So where does this craving come from?

Hence, the question: Do cravings produce hunger, or does hunger produce cravings?

Hunger is the body's physical expression or signal that it must be fed for life to continue. A craving is an emotional response to something that is lacking. Cravings come and go, but hunger is a continuous cycle.

My God must be more than Apple Jacks to me. Don't get me wrong. Having a craving for God is a good thing. But if I build my relationship with Him simply on raw emotions, I will be quickly defeated and disappointed. Why? Because you and I are one big craving factory. And it is impossible to keep our cravings in line or to place them in a certain order of priority. In other words, I could sell out on God for a piece of chocolate if I let my immediate cravings rule. This is what the Devil tried to do with Jesus in the desert. He showed Jesus several big bowls of Apple Jacks and said, " If you bow down to me, I can get that for you." Fortunately, Jesus didn't go for the bait. Jesus, although physically hungry, even resisted the craving.

Okay, let me land the plane.

To hunger for God might be a better direction to go than to have a craving for Him. Hunger is a natural signal for the body to absorb the right amount of daily nutrients from God. Cravings tend to produce outrageous size bites that, if not monitored, can leave you sick to your stomach. Some people approach church or worship this way. They crave the experience more than the hunger of the relationship. As one theologian once stated, "My flesh and my heart may fail, but You, my God, are the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:26)

May God be your portion today. May your spirit always hunger for Him. And lay off the Apple Jacks.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Sometimes a song stays with you for an entire day, whether you want it to or not. This is one of those songs. It comes from Building 429.

2011-08-06T12:44:00.001-05:00

This is a great song, but a better reason for the song.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

And Jesus turned to them and said, "Are you going to leave me too?"

2011-08-04T06:45:00.002-05:00

How would you answer that question, let's say, if you just witnessed far less fruit this year at your church or business than the previous years? How would you answer that question if you learned that several key leaders were considering stepping aside from serving? How would you answer this question when fincial support is lacking? Or when the vision or dream for the church has become more like a nightmare?

It's my hope you will never find yourself in this position, but there's a high likelihood you will.

This is precisely why leadership must answer the most important question that Jesus raised with his followers, "Will you leave me too?"

Anger, jealousy, and frustration.

Often times our personal egos get in the way of personal obedience to Christ. We find our value in the results rather than the relationship.

This is why Jesus asked his disciples this important question.

The truth of the matter is this: Christ followers will not always receive favorable results in life. In fact, if truth be known, we often finish each season with a losing record - as it relates to worldly success. That's why, as followers of Jesus, we must put our trust in our relationship with him and not soley in the results.

I love Simon Peter's answer to his Savior's question. After watching multitudes leave the ministry, he responds, "WHERE WOULD WE GO? YOU HAVE THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE." (John 6:68).

In other words, success is not eternal. But a relationship is. The voice of success is misleading. The voice of God is liberating.

If you're in a season of drought, try your best to answer this question. What might cause you to leave Jesus? It's a great question that targets our motives to why we serve or follow God.

Trade your results for the relationship! Think eternal.

Help. Identity theft. Lost my identity for a number of hours, but quickly found a way to get it back.

2011-07-20T16:29:00.003-05:00

Identity theft! This week someone tapped into or hacked into, not only my email account, but my wife's email account as well. The hacker sent out a message (via my account) explaining that I was in "tears" because I was in need of money and staying somewhere in England. Go figure. Well, I spent much of my morning "re-establishing" my identity and getting my email account back on track. Unfortunately, by the time I had it straightened out, hundreds of people had already contacted me, letting me know that my identity had been stolen.

If you're a Christ follower - beware. The devil is constantly trying to hack into your identity. In fact, Jesus stated that the Devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). The Bible points out that the devil's tactic of hacking is much more subtle and far more dangerous. For example, the devil may hack into your physical appearance. You look in the mirror and you don't feel very special. The devil may hack into your past failures and steal your identity. The devil may keep you powerless over your addictions and steal your identity. And yet, the Bible says that if you are in Christ, you are a NEW creation, the old has GONE - and the new has COME (2 Corinthians 5:17). How important it is that we subscribe to the proper anti-devil virus on our hearts and minds? Download Jesus today - and see yourself through the lens of Christ.

On a side note: Special thanks to the many of you willing to send or wire your money to us in England. Did you know that the word, gullible, isn't in the dictionary? And special thanks to Bruce Anderson, who was in the process of boarding a plane to visit us. What a true friend you are!

What does it profit if a man gains the entire church, but loses his family? Sadly, this happens more often then we care to admit.

2011-07-13T14:08:00.002-05:00

I read a survey a number of years ago done by George Barna. In the survey they interviewed spouses of pastors - along with a segment from their children. And although the survey was lengthy with many things to ponder, one thing stood out in my mind that I will not soon forget. When it came to marital satisfaction, the spouses of the pastors gave their marriage a whopping 33 percent approval rating. However, even more amazing to me was that only 5% of these marriages were involved in counseling. Why not more? Well, according to the survey the number one barrier to seeking help (according to the pastors) was the ability or inability of others to handle the needs of the church if they were to take time off. Ouch! That has always stuck with me.

Okay...what about you? If you're a leader and your marriage is going south, would you be willing to step aside to get your family back? I believe how you answer that question will determine if you're really the leader the people in your church need. The best gift you can give to your family and to your church is a healthy marriage. Seek it first. God is more than big enough to love His people and be the CEO of your church. Think about it.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Tomorrow morning at 4 AM I will face a personal challenge that will tax my willpower.

2011-07-08T09:39:00.005-05:00

Have you every said "yes" to something, but later come to the realization that your initial enthusiasm outweighed your ability to actually perform the specific challenge? If so, then you might be able to relate to my particular situation. A group of men, (neanderthals from my church) who live for 100 mile trail runs, have invited me to go with them tomorrow to the Superior Hiking Trail north of Duluth Minnesota for a 13.8 mile trail run that takes up to 6 to 7 hours to complete because of the brutal terrain. In fact, this particular trail has "danger" signs posted due to the steep cliffs and jagged rocks. And I'm getting up at 4:00 in the morning to do this - really? When it comes to running I'm a novice. My style of running incorporates living. I can't imagine what I will do when I see my first cliff tomorrow. I think that part of my brain that deals with discernment is broke!

Are there things in your life today that you need to rethink? Is there a trusted friend that you can turn to for advice and a grip on sanity?

I love this verse:

Proverbs 11:14
Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory.

My prayer is that God surrounds you with friends who love you enough to speak truth in love - and that you would also seek them out. Everybody faces cliffs and jagged rocks in life. But to go through these obstacles with willing friends to advise you - is definitely a gift from God.

If you're a leader you need to be a reader. I heard those words spoken nearly twelve years ago from Rick Warren. And those words are just as true today as they were over a decade ago.

2011-07-07T13:09:00.002-05:00

Eleven years ago my family, along with a number of dedicated families, started a new church in Minnesota. And like most first time planters, we had no idea of what we were up against (I think that actually played into our favor - or I may have backed out). Just prior to starting the church I had the privilege to attend a church planters gathering at Saddleback Church. Pastor Rick Warren spoke on the importance of leadership. And as only Pastor Rick can do, he kept the cookies of Biblical leadership easily reachable and digestible for us hungry church planters. And the one thing that I really devoured during the conference was a particular statement in which he said, "leaders are readers." I quickly admitted to myself that this might be my Achilles heal. Reading is not my strong suite. I'm such an "experiential" type of guy. I'm such a visual learner. Besides, with my ADHD, reading was a mental chore. And who likes doing chores? And yet, I stuck with his advice. I would suggest that 60 percent of my week is now made up of reading. However, I must confess that it still a discipline for me. And yet, reading has produced some very strong nutrients for my knowledge of God's truth.

What are you reading today? Are you like me, fighting the notion of sitting down to read, when your feet would rather race to the fire? I just want to encourage you to slow down and glean the value of reading - whatever your interest is when it comes to leadership. I know for me, reading has become a surprised treasure in my life. Go for it - start reading.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

When you live in the past, your life is history!

2011-07-04T06:56:00.001-05:00

This statement was sent to me by a friend yesterday following my life talk message. How profound those words are to all of us who desire to follow after Jesus, but just have a really hard time overcoming our past. Our new series on Sunday had to do with getting past our past. Every key person that God called to advance His mission had a past to get past. From Abraham, Jacob, David, Peter, Apostle Paul, and the list goes on - even today with you - to overcome a terrible past. If you reflect too much on your past, you're history. This is why Paul writes, "I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us (Philippians 3:14)." Paul is not stuck in his past. He's moving forward. He realizes that God has cleansed his past sins and that he has now been made a vessel to transport this same grace to others who need to get freed from their past.

What about you? How are you doing with your past? Trust Jesus to move you forward when you just can't get past your past. Press on!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

New series at Willowbrook begins today: When Normal is Broken

2011-07-03T07:13:00.001-05:00

Sunday, July 3rd: Some of my fondest memories growing up had to do with my dad tossing me the baseball in our front yard. From the moment I could stand, dad attached a baseball mitt to my hand and baseball became a part of my life. But it didn't take too long to learn that I wasn't going to catch every ball thrown to me. Nobody goes through life error free. We all drop the ball from time to time. And when this happens, most of us have a hard time forgetting our failures. Today's message is entitled, "Getting Past our Past." It's the first message I'm giving in our five part series. Join us today and discover that, with God, failure is never final.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Chased down by something weighing less than 2 ounces is a bit embarrassing

2011-06-29T12:09:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I discovered that a deer fly weighs less than 2 ounces. "So what?," you say. Well, yesterday I had an encounter with a particular deer fly than ran me out of town. This deer fly buzzed my head until I retreated into my house - and fast.

Headlines at the Reis home:

"A Two Ounce Deer Fly Defeats Grown Man."

Yep. Wasn't even close. Wasn't very pretty. If the neighbors were watching they were treated to bizarre moment in which they caught me running for shelter using zig-zag patterns with no apparent reason why. So, I Googled "deer fly" only to discover that they weigh less than two ounces. But man, they have tenacity!

Here's a question for you: What's chasing you today? It doesn't have to be anything big. In fact, it could be relatively small. The only sign of its existence is a buzzing noise. You hear it when you're awake at your job or when you can't sleep at night. A constant buzz - chasing you. The buzz says, "You're a failure." The buzz says, "You're not good enough." The buzz says, "You'll never measure up." Hard to see it, but the buzz is there - all too often. You find yourself running zig-zag patterns - trying to retreat or avoid the buzz. God has an answer for this buzz. I guess you could call it God's "buzz repellent." It's a simple promise that reads, "Cast all of your anxieties on God because God cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7). In addition, God says that every hair on your head is accounted for, and that if God sees every sparrow (sold for less than a penny), how much more of value are YOU? God constantly reminds us that our self worth is not to be tied up in the things of this world, but in the very fact that God loves you.

Take a moment today to reflect on this truth and see if it changes you. It may take time for the buzz to go silent in your mind, but keep repeating the promises of God's Word and watch those 2 ounces disappear!

Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

2011-06-18T21:34:00.001-05:00

This is one of those moments in which our entire family is vacationing in California, and yet, I will truly miss the fellowship of our church tomorrow back in Minnesota. Christ's body is the most amazing gift God gives to His children. And as I text this message from my phone, my heart and prayers go out to this awesome group of believers! Have a great Sunday worshiping our King.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

I'm jazzed up about our new TWO week series in June called, "I've Got Questions." This is an interactive series that allows audience participation, via cell phone.

2011-06-03T08:33:00.002-05:00

I'VE GOT QUESTIONS PREMIERS THIS SUNDAY @ WCC

Remember those days in which we warned our congregation to quiet their cell phones? Well, for the next two weeks, we are encouraging young and old to power them up! For the next two weeks our pastoral staff at Willowbrook will be on stage to answer the questions that come directly from the phones of our audience. In the past, when we have done similar question series, we allowed our church to email us their questions prior to Sunday's message. But not this time. We're going live. Obviously, we will still be able to moderate the questions as they come in (amazing technology), but it will all be very spontaneous - and without any notes. Just think of all of the potential questions that people have about, and for the church today. Will we even be able to scratch the surface in the next two weeks? Join us this Sunday - and we'll find out ~

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Did you know that an ostrich's eye is bigger than it's brain? This could be said of humans as well.

2011-05-29T21:16:00.002-05:00

Mark 9:47

And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell..

Jesus knew that if we looked at something long enough it had the potential to consume us. Companies know this too. This is why enormous amounts of money are spent to lure us in through visual advertisements. This visual lure has been around for thousands of years. In the case of young man, described in the book of Proverbs, he kept his eyes on a woman far too long who was married, and the result led him to a proverbial snare (Proverbs 7). For King David, when all of the kings were suppose to be at war, David was at home looking at a married woman that he couldn't take his eyes off of (2 Samuel 11). It was an ostrich moment. Our eyes are not limited to sexual seduction. Our eyes can also lust after the things of this world - such as material things. Sometimes we have this hunger inside and we compromise our values by ordering off the world's menu instead of God's food pantry.

Are there areas in your life in which you have experienced an ostrich moment? Do your eyes sometimes override your brain? According to Jesus, the lens of our eyes can let in things that can be potentially harmful to us. Take a moment this week to examine your vision and to align your eyes with those things in which brings glory to Jesus.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

We've been FLOCKED! This morning our family woke to this on our front yard Meet the Flockers!

2011-05-27T08:05:00.001-05:00

Our senior high student ministries program at Willowbrook Community Church was out in full force last night, flocking multiple yards as an effort to raise money for their trip to Puerto Rico in several weeks. Forty senior high students from our church will be serving the poor in Puerto Rico at the end of June. One of the many fundraising events is flocking yards (with those wonderful pink flamingos). Our church offered "flocking insurance" to our members of the church for the past month (50 dollars per-home) to keep these birds from landing on their yards. However, if three or more families from the church were willing to pay 35 dollars each to target a home, well...the birds are now destined to land on your yard - even if you purchased insurance (such was our case). It's been such a huge hit that even the local news paper is doing a full length feature on it this week! Cars drive by, stop - and actually take pictures of this scene. During the course of a week, six to eight homes are flocked in our community. The total amount of money raised, which gets into the thousands, all goes to the ministry in Puerto Rico.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

The slowest moving creature in the world is the the dwarf sea horse (Hippocampus zosterae). It never attain speeds of more than 0.001 m.p.h. However, God be even slower.

2011-05-26T10:15:00.001-05:00

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promises as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Sometimes the best remedy to a fallen situation is patience. How quickly we love to pull the trigger and finish off the job. In this case, Peter is sharing that God is giving us good reason for His patience or slowness. Because of God's slowness, it ultimately allows more people to reach for Him. God's conclusion to our rejection - patience. It's like playing the "wink" game. Two people start out staring at each other until the eye ball starts to hurt and begins to dry up. Eventually, someone ends the game by blinking. Similar to this, God doesn't blink. He would rather wait patiently than turn his eyes another direction. Certainly God can move swiftly, but as it relates to our sin , He is more patient than the Hippocampus Zosterae when it come to repentance. And that's a good thing for us! Have you ever thanked God for his patience? Probably not. Most often we would prefer a quick response.

Questions: What is Peter trying to reveal to us about the very nature of God? What are some areas of our own life that we can practice slowness when we are confronted with a fallen situation? How might it slowness work better in situations such as judgment, anger, wrath, or condemnation?

Posted via email from Brad Reis

The defining moment for the church is its willingness to respond to those in need. And yet, it is so easy to become desensitized to the many problems our culture faces.

2011-05-25T18:42:00.001-05:00

And yet, the Bible teaches that our position or role as a follower of Christ is to build others up - regardless of the situation. In fact, the Bible says that we are to count others as better than ourselves (Philippians 2:3). Having such a mindset places us in a position to serve, and to see the best in others. Apostle Paul writes to the church of Ephesus:

Ephesians 4:29

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

Translated: "Never look down on anybody unless you're helping him up."

What is one need that you see around you that you may have the opportunity to "build upon?" Ask God for His strength and take the courage to step in.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

A frequent question I receive from those attending our church is this...

2011-05-24T15:36:00.001-05:00

How do you know if God is talking to you?

John 10:27 - My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me

If you're someone who is serious about your relationship with Jesus, the answer to this question is pivotal for wisdom and direction in your life. But let me start by saying that I have never heard an auditory sound from God. And what I mean by auditory is a voice that you would hear from a parent, family member, or friend. In fact, as far as I can remember, every Bible teacher that I have had, would say the same thing. Because of this, John 10:27 come with some real challenges. Let's face it - if God would simply speak to me (in English preferably), that would make is so much easier to follow Him. And yet, Jesus is pointing out that his followers (sheep) that, indeed, we should be able to listen to his voice. But how?

Quickly, let me point out a number of ways (but I'm sure that there are several more).

1. His Word (the Bible). The Bible explains to us that each word we read from it is "God breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16). In other words, each time you open the pages of the Bible, God chooses to communicate to us through His written Word. There have been times in which the Bible clearly spoke to me during a crisis or trial in my life. The words seemed to jump off the page and into my heart. The Bible continues to be the number one way God communicates with His family.

2. Church message. One of the primary reasons that church is so important is that God's Word is proclaimed to us through teaching. As the pastor shares from God's Word, it is profitable for direction and correction. There have been times in which the pastor's message was speaking to my heart just as if Jesus was sitting next to me whispering in my ear like a friend. I leave the message feeling empowered to serve Jesus in a much grandeur way.

3. Holy Spirit. No doubt, the greatest source of communication from God to us is actually - "in us." Jesus said that when he left the earth he would give to us the Holy Spirit. Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit would actually comfort us, teach us, and guide us in all truth and knowledge. Have you ever wondered, like I have, why so many Christians connect so well on so many different levels? It doesn't matter where you live in the world, the color of your skin, your past, what job you do, somehow we all share the same conviction of the Holy Spirit. Because of this, we are bonded together by hearing the same voice of Jesus. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would unify his people. It's amazing to think that we have the actual presence of Jesus in us. And because of this, we can hear his voice while the world misses out.

4. Christian brothers and sisters. If you have invited Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, you now belong to a family. And because of this, we all share one Father. Like any father, God communicates to all of His children via. the Holy Spirit. Did you know that over 60 percent of Apostle Paul's teaching has to do with the church (God's family) communicating with each other? Most of what Paul writes is about "how" we are to speak and communicate to each other. When we do it the proper way, God's voice is heard and He is glorified in the process. When we fail to do it properly, people stray away from God. That's how important it is to have Christian brothers and sisters in our life. That's why we are warned not to forsake gathering together often. The Bible says that as iron sharpens iron - so does one person sharpen another (Proverbs 27:17).

5. Worship. The ultimate moment of hearing God's voice can often be found through music/worship to Him. For thousands of years, the Hebrew children were taught songs of their Savior, reflecting the very nature of God. In fact, over 90 percent of the writings of David were put into music called, the PSALMS. When we sing to God, we do not sing alone. His Holy Spirit cries out with us in harmony. This is why music is such a great gift from God to His children. When I'm feeling distant from God, I often try to sing. There's something about a song that awakes my heart to His voice.

How do you hear the voice of God? Are there other ways that we can hear from Him that you could add?

Posted via email from Brad Reis

When I get a break in my ministry schedule, this is where I typically head to get refilled. Where is the place you go to be refilled?

2011-05-24T09:23:00.001-05:00

There's something about being on the lake with a fishing pole. I think it might have to do with my early years of life. My dad would often take me fishing and I would enjoy the smell of his thermos jug filled with dark blend coffee. We wouldn't really have to catch much to catch much. Not sure if that makes sense, but it's true. Just being out on the water and sharing life together was the biggest catch - with no slot limit.

Where do you go to get refreshed?

Posted via email from Brad Reis

An early morning toothache led me to my dentist this morning. I learned, once again, the importance of preventative care.

2011-05-23T20:07:00.001-05:00

Are you like me? Do you often wait until the last possible moment to seek treatment or help? Perhaps, like me, you think you can weather the storm of nagging pain or discomfort. It had been close to three years since I last sat in a dentist chair - and those three years caught up with me today. Several weeks ago a section of my back molar broke away while eating a box of candy DOTS - go figure! And last night, I slept less than four hours with a throbbing mouth. Not fun. Truth be known, I've been dreading this day. And yet, preventative care is essential to staying ahead of the game. It's not only true of our teeth, but it is also true of our spiritual lives. We just can't afford to go weeks without any spiritual maintenance and still expect to grow healthy in our relationship with Christ. Unfortunately, many people wait until something breaks off or decays in their life before they get serious about spiritual healing. However, God never wanted us to live this way. Instead, it is important for us to exercise preventative care via: prayer, reading the Word, serving the church, and stewarding our resources. As I discovered today, it doesn't take long for cavities or decay to form. As someone once said, "Ignore your teeth and they will go away." The same is true in our spiritual lives. It is my prayer that we will refocus our attention on God and commit to living for Him daily before we go into crisis mode and fall into a huge cavity.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Tomorrow Willowbrook features a message on the antidote to forgiveness.

2011-05-21T21:19:00.001-05:00

Join us tomorrow at 10:00 AM

Forest Lake High School Auditorium

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Our "In it 2 Win it" Series focuses on the importance of forgiveness - tomorrow at Willowbrook.

2011-05-21T11:47:00.001-05:00

The scene was the San Diego Superior Court, 1991. Two men were on trial for armed robbery. A female eye witness took the stand. The Defense Attorney, defending the two men in question, begins to question the eye witness. He paces back and forth and says to the eye witness: Were you in the store when the arm robbery took place? The woman nodded her head and said, "yes". The Defense Attorney continues: “And did you see a vehicle leave the parking lot at a high rate of speed?” The woman nodded her head and said, “yes.” The Defense Attorney continues: “And did you observe those two occupants in the car?” The lady nodded her head and said, “yes.” And the defense attorney said. “And are those two occupants in the court room today?” AND AS SOON AS THE DEFENDANT SAID THOSE WORDS, HIS CLIENTS BEHIND HIM “SEALED THEIR FATE” BY RAISING THEIR HANDS!

Okay…let’s admit it. At some point of our lives, we can all say, “I DID IT.” Our hand goes up and guilt typically follows. Many people today are carrying with them regret and remorse from years of guilt. But I believe that the Bible teaches that God uses guilt as a warning light. Guilt tells us something is wrong. But the good news is that God doesn't want us to remain in our guilt and has the antidote to our remorse and regrets as His children. It's called, forgiveness. The famous psychiatrist, Karl Menninger, once made this statement, "I believe that over 75 percent of the clients that I work with could be set from from their personal prison if they could embrace forgiveness." Personal forgiveness comes from understanding the truth of the Scriptures. According to 1 John 1:9, we must take "one" action step and that action step is to "confess our sin." What's remarkable is what follows. For our one action step, God follows with three of His own. 1. God will be faithful. 2. God will be just. 3. God will cleanse our sins. Tomorrow at Willowbrook I will go into greater detail of this amazing formula of forgiveness. If you miss it, you can always watch on our Media Channel.

"If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Just decided to write my message for tomorrow's service.

2011-05-21T10:55:00.001-05:00

Well, I delayed as long as I could, but as the events of this day unfold, it has now become evident to me that God may grant us all tomorrow, but who knows? Well, according to Matthew 24:36, nobody.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

I'm just sayin' this might be one of the best photos I've seen. It will preach!

2011-03-04T10:14:00.003-06:00

I opened my Twitter today and clicked on a link that uploaded this picture. I must say, my jaw just dropped to the floor. I really don't know if words can describe the spiritual relevance or meaning behind this picture ( "a city on a hill cannot be hidden," or "you are the light of the world"), but it comes close. The very nature of a frog is to hide or to blend into the environment when prey approaches. Well, this frog may be in for a bit of trouble because he or she has fully committed himself/herself (how can you tell, anyone?) to the light.

I love this frog! What a great reminder and challenge for all of us as we completely sell out to the Light of this world, Jesus!

Light up everyone!

Recently a stir has started over a pastor's view on salvation, that strongly suggest a universal belief for heaven

2011-03-02T15:25:00.005-06:00

Universalism, although more complexed than my description, is the essential belief that, ultimately, everyone will be saved. The posture of this position opens the door to the notion that no matter one's focus or object of worship, in the end, all humanity will end up in the same place. At the heart of this belief is a dangerous notion that truth is not exclusive, but inclusive. In other words, if you have been taught that two plus two equals four, universalism will challenge the narrow path of this conclusion by suggesting that two plus two should also equal five, six, or why not, seven? Inclusive math will get you a failing score. Hence, when Jesus said that no one comes to the Father but through me (referring to his death and atonement), universalism takes his words and expands them to infinite possibilities or interpretations. Fortunately, truth, by its very nature is narrow. Truth is always exclusive. When I turn on my GPS, I'm expecting it to navigate me to a narrow coordinate (within a few meters) of my destination. The GPS is useless if it directs me to all locations. And yet, some people have a challenging time believing in a God who not only speaks truth, but is the Truth, and points humanity in an exclusive direction. Certainly, universalism has a deep attractiveness about it. But so does sin. At the end of the day, God will have the final word.

Can you create a rainbow that is 1200 feet long and 300 feet high?

2011-02-22T08:34:00.004-06:00

Michael Jones McKean, an artist and assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, has created a machine that uses a large-scale sprinkler system and the sun to create rainbows nearly four football fields in length.

The machine is being installed atop a five-story industrial building in Omaha.

Using customized nozzles and pressure pumps, McKean expects to produce a rainbow for 15 minutes twice every day. McKean plans to harvest thousands of gallons of rainwater and use biodiesel fuel to power the machine.

"It's run by the sun. ... Essentially I'm providing the water and the timing," McKean said.

"When you actually see the phenomenon, it's almost like all of those things go out the window and it just becomes this beautiful ghost image in the sky that totally mesmerizing," he said. "It goes from being very scientific to just being wondrous."

How do you respond to God's rainbows in your life? Do they remind you of God's promises and His faithfulness in your life? Do you stand mesmerized and captivated by His remarkable wonders? Or do you look for the scientific reasons as to how it can be explained?

Perhaps people can manufacture a rainbow. But only GOD can bring the PROMISE with it.

One of the views that I get the privilege to see each Sunday as good news is proclaimed.

2011-02-14T14:56:00.003-06:00

I have the honor each week of speaking to many people. And what I've learned in my ten years of of leading WCC is that each seat represents a unique journey. In fact, each seat represents a work in progress. It's also fair to say that the guy on the stage (me) is a work in progress, or as my wife often says, "a piece of work." Nevertheless, we all come together with this basic understanding: I'm not okay and you're not okay, but that's OKAY. We are broken people. When we finally grasp this, and when we open ourselves up to this reality, we are now in a posture to receive healing from Christ.

In just a few short months, our church will be relocating to a spacious "strip mall" in the heart of our community. It will be our first permanent location. It's a big GO GOD! And what we want to extend to our new community is this hope that Jesus is our healer. We believe that God is bigger than any of our problems. We believe that God is bigger than our doubts. And we believe God will meet us in our questions. Why? Because we are all people in process. And it's the most amazing view to me!

I just did one of the world's dirtiest jobs. Have you ever tried to...

2011-02-11T11:51:00.000-06:00

I think one of the world's dirtiest jobs is cleaning hair out of a bathtub. I had the chance to experience this job today. Now, it's one thing if it's your own hair, but the hair or hairs of someone else tends to creep me out. With a little help from EXTRA strength Drano, and a plunger, I was able to dislodge the clog. Unfortunately, most of the hair re-surfaced into the tub during the process (ugghh). I had to LOOK at it.

What I found interesting is that Drano advertises that most clogs can be cleared in just 7 minutes. Impressive! But it also states, "For the most difficult clogs, allow up to 15 minutes." Hence, I waited the full 15 minutes before even running the bath water. I was expecting the worst!

As it relates to our spiritual life, I think the same might be said about us. All of us have those clogs that form in our relationship from time to time with our heavenly Father. The Bible states that all have sinned and fall well short of God's glory (Romans 3:23). And of course, the nature of sin takes well over 15 minutes to remove. Sure, God will forgive us immediately upon asking, but this is not to say that the consequences of our sin won't have a residual affect on us. Just like hair in the sink, our sins can leave some strong debri. And to make matters worse, like any clog, it causes good things to be backed up. One sin can easily stop or prevent us from receiving many good things from God. And before you know it, instead of experiencing God's very presence, we are standing neck high in sin.

Today might be a good day to do a little "clog research." How is the life living water flowing through you? Are there areas in your life that are backed up or clogged? The good news is that every clog is capable of being reopened. The key, however, is to be in a posture of receiving God's ultimate Drano by accepting the discipline and love of the Father. Sure, your pipes might heat up a bit during the cleansing. But the outcome will bring many favorable blessings.

It's been a year or so, but it was time to self clean our stove.

2011-01-21T11:30:00.000-06:00

I noticed today, as I was removing my personal pizza from our stove, that there was a tribe of little food particles gathered together at the bottom of our oven. These little particles of food appeared as if they were having a little bonfire of their own. Smoke was rising up. Instead, of taking the time to scrub them out, I noticed that on our stove there is this little button that reads, "SELF CLEAN." By pushing the self clean button, and by latching the oven door shut, it sets in motion this extreme heat that dissolves all of the impurities - leaving the oven spotless. Wow. That will preach!

How are your impurities doing? Are there there impurities in your life that have yet to be removed or eliminated. Certainly, it is impossible for us, humanly speaking, to do any self cleaning. Our best attempt would fall way short. But the good news of Jesus is that he is MORE THAN able to purge us from our sin or impurities and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

I want to encourage you to allow God to move that latch in your life right now - into the position of "cleaning," and to have HIM begin that process. The heat may feel uncomfortable at first, but the results will be transformational.

Go for it!

Mark Batterson's book, Soul Print. Early review before release.

2011-01-05T08:40:00.000-06:00

Soul Print, discovering your divine destiny, challenges the reader to think about the possibilities of a God who delights in His creation of YOU. In fact, not to be YOU would sadden the very heart of the Creator, Himself. How effective is this little 150 page paperback book in conveying this message? If you're not familiar with Mark Batterson and his style of writing, he's one of few authors today that tends to have five ace cards in the deck. Just when you think that Mark has played his final card, the next chapter trumps the last hand. Soul Print offers insightful direction on how to explore your own personal story in the backdrop of God's blueprint or soul print on your life. Mark's authenticity and transparency remains refreshing in each chapter. The book reflects back at us like a mirror, helping us to pause and analyze the truth of God's Word in light of being His creation. Do I wish the book was longer? Certainly (I was surprised by its size). But like a short walk to a friend's house, there was plenty of substance to keep the terrain interesting. If you have had the opportunity to read Mark's previous books, you'll find this book very similar in genre. Good stories, scientific logic, Biblical evidence, and a push for application. Special thanks to Multnomah for the early preview of this book. I would highly recommend Mark Batterson's book, Soul Print.

It's Monday morning and my teenage daughter is making quick use out of her gift card.

2010-12-27T10:06:00.000-06:00

Christmas is all but done for another season. Or at least, I thought that it officially ended at 12:01 AM on the 26th. But hold your horses. My teenage daughter has persuaded me into a four hour run to MOA. Of course when she asked me to go with her, I smiled and said, "Sure." Why? It was check mate! What happened is this: Her mother and I decided to get her a 'gift card' for Christmas (saved us a lot of time trying to figure out what she likes and doesn't like) that treats her to a shopping spree at MOA. Yikes. We thought it it was a great maneuver at first, but now I'm going to PAY for it - today! PLEASE PRAY FOR ME!!!

It's one of those moments in which I can't sleep and the Lord speaks softly into my life.

2010-12-26T03:48:00.001-06:00

I've been fighting a challenging head cold the past few days and it tends to be worse in the middle of the night. Such is the case at this moment. As I type, the clock in my room is showing 3:32 in the morning. My head is plugged and my eyes are watering. I also know that I must be up in 3 hours to begin setting up for our church service, not to mention (but I will), deliver the message. It's times like this that God tends to show up and add His comfort and encouragement. Someone, years ago, told Billy Graham that God was dead. Billy looked at this person and said, "That's impossible because I just spoke with Him a few minutes ago." That's what I'm feeling this morning. In the darkness of my room, I type on my phone that God is surely alive and speaking into my life, even though my head and nose is plugged, my heart remains wide open. I love Thee Lord Jesus!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

I love audacious generosity! An elderly home in Ukraine is the recipient of thousands of Depend under garments!

2010-12-20T08:02:00.001-06:00

Certainly, this is a first for me. In my 20 plus years of ministry I've never had to make a request like this one! The announcement went something like this: "Dear friends of Willowbrook, many elderly people from Ukraine are in need of under garments that will protect them from disease and irritations that are caused by cloth-like material. Ukraine DEPENDS on us!" A couple of months ago I was in Ukraine (Willowbrook has started a couple churches in Ukraine) with my great pastor friend, Sergei. Sergei brought me to an elderly home in which an amazing man named, Pasha, opened his own home to house roughly 20 elderly people who were rejected by their own families. It was a humbling sight. In speaking with Pasha, he shared that their greatest need at the moment was under garments for the elderly. Currently, they are using cloth-like material. He asked me if our church could assist him on this project? For the past couple of weeks I've brought this need to our Willowbrook attenders and we have responded with more than 5,000 Depend under garments! At this present moment, we are gearing up to ship them to Ukraine. I love audacious generosity. Go God!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Police car in my driveway last night. I thought I heard the theme song for cops playing.

2010-12-15T08:42:00.000-06:00

I quickly met the policeman in our driveway before he reached my front step. I hurried to him, not because I had something to hide in my home, preventing him from seeing the stolen goods, but I truly wanted to be polite and to save him a long walk. I must admit, my heart started to race as he opened his car door and stepped out into the sub-degree weather. Like an old western movie, his breath trailed his shadow in the moon beams as he approached my shadow to meet me. His eyes honed in on me as he said, "Do you own this home." I said, "Yes." He said, "City ordinance states that you must not only shovel out your driveway following a blizzard, but you must also clear the snow from you sidewalk ... that currently has five foot drifts." Busted! I thought I could wait it out until July. Who would notice?

It may be sometime before I recover from this snow fall. Now, each time I hear the weatherman suggest that there could be a chance of snow, I will also add, "And a chance of cops!"

New Blog: The darkness of life serves as terrific back-drop for Christmas.

2010-12-07T08:05:00.000-06:00

I was clicking through some television channels the other day and I happened to land on Dr. Oz. And although I might have been the only male watching his show (99% of his audience is made up of women), I was lured to the bottom of my television screen in which Dr. Oz had listed a number of statistics that pertained to mental health. For example, Dr. Oz shared that the Holiday season produces "twice" the bouts of depression than any other time of the season. In addition, he shared that the average wait to see a doctor or a psychologist is typically "three" times longer than any period of the year. He pointed out, strangely enough, that Halloween tends to be a more favorable period for people emotionally. Go figure.

Of course, my mind started to ponder why the holidays, especially Christmas, produce the greatest bouts of anxiety in our lives. It could be broken relationships among family members. It could be financial strains. It could be the pressure of trying to demonstrate to those around us that everything in our lives is merry, when indeed, it's not. As a Pastor, I can also add that during the Christmas season, I have more appointments with those who are struggling, big time, with emotional and chemical imbalances.

But here's the game changer: I believe that Christmas is the perfect antidote to exposing this darkness and giving real answers to our despair. I think we really miss the big picture if we try to make Christmas something that it's not. Christmas is not about trying to make people feel good or to help them forget their past. Instead, Christmas is like a kiosk, pointing out our deep sense of dependence upon God, along with our lack of strength and power for our lives. Christmas exposes the depth of the darkness, and calls a spade a spade. This is why the angels called it, "Good News." Think about it. Whenever you get some good news, there had to be a prior condition that wasn't so great. I think that the church in general unintentionally ignores the darkness to some degree, and forgets that the backdrop of Christmas is all about emotional and spiritual despair. That's what makes the Christmas story so BRIGHT. What an amazing contrast. That's good news. It's a game changer.

Funny what you can learn from Dr. Oz.

Spent time with a 9 year old with cancer today and learned a huge lesson.

2010-10-20T21:56:00.000-05:00

I know that it sounds like a cliche, but God whispered into my soul today, "Brad. It's not how many days you have in life, but how much life you have in your days."

I learned that lesson from Malia, a 9 year old who was diagnosed with cancer a year ago this day (October 20th). Unfortunately, her prognosis is not good. The doctor's give Malia just months to live. But don't tell Malia that! She tired me out within minutes of my arrival. Her parents, who attend our church, our truly amazing. Their faith, unshaken. We are learning to love and live. It's the best lesson to be captured.

What would God do if He had to write the Ten Commandments for our generation of Tweets? Take a look:

2010-09-06T13:30:00.000-05:00

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS ON TEXT

1. no1 b4 me. srsly.

2. dnt wrshp pix/idols

3. no omg's

4. no wrk on w/end (sat 4 now; sun l8r)

5. pos ok - ur m&d r cool

6. dnt kill ppl

7. :-X only w/ m8

8. dnt steal

9. dnt lie re: bf

10. dnt ogle ur bf's m8. or ox. or dnkey. myob.

I attended an amazing funeral this week that celebrated the life of a man who broke the generational curse of unbelief.

2010-05-10T20:02:00.001-05:00

This man was the father of five sons and a daughter. All six of his kids are walking with God. Several of his sons shared at the funeral that dad broke away from a generation of unbelievers and changed the entire trojectory of his family over night. He was not famous. He had a quiet and gentle spirit. He never had much money. The last ten years of his life he could neither see nor hear. And yet, he spoke Scripture to his kids through memory.

I was reminded of Ecclesiastes which reads:

Better to attend a funeral than eat dessert at a wild party, for we can all learn something about our life by viewing the dead. (Eccl. 7:2).

I learned a lot that day. Life took on a new meaning for me as I reflected on the love of a father for his children and the legacy he left behind...and certainly ahead.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Sitting at Tires Plus getting my tires rotated.

2010-05-03T08:41:00.001-05:00

The Guy from Tire Plus is telling me that if I continue to rotate my tires on a regular basis, I can prolong the life of my tires by two years or more.

I think that this analogy can represent our spiritual life as well. So, today I'm thinking about getting more tread in my life by rotating my mind towards the things of God.

I think Romans 2 is a great chapter to start the rotation process. We are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

That's my passion as I start out on another busy week.

See you down the road!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

Is it possible to be "conferenced out?" Just got off the phone with a friend of mine who shared that it feels great to be back home.

2010-04-28T12:27:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I read a Twitter from someone who said that this was his 11th leadership conference that he has attended "this" year. I'm thinking... "stocker." If you do the math, that is nearly three conferences a month - or nearly every weekend. I didn't have the guts to ask this guy if he was married. To be honest, I was afraid that he might start following me.

Now before I go any deeper, I want to let you know up front that I believe leadership conferences are, and continue to be, a great tool or resource for church leaders throughout the world. I've attended my fair share of them and have left with a plethora of great stuff. So, don't miss this point. I'm only addressing my "steroid" conference friends. And so I just wanted to interject a question or two below (and I really do have more than just these two) about my particular feelings as it relates to the conference junkie.

So...hold on and here we go:

Why you may consider taking a break from the conference "tour:"

1. Do we really need another leadership conference on being "relevant?" Maybe so. But can anything else be added that we haven't already heard? Perhaps. But it seems like every speaker is now saying the same thing, but being more creative and doing it with a twist. Remember the movie, Ground Hog Day? Okay...that was below the belt. But when I asked my friend if he had learned anything new at the last conference he attended, he had a hard time sharing with me anything that he didn't already know - or at least hadn't heard before. Trust me. I'm asking the question not trying to be cynical. I just wanted to know if he got his 500.00 dollars worth (now that's more cynical). I apologize.

2. Must we always hear from the same speakers, or is that what brings the crowd? From their books and seminars, insightful information has been shared and passed along to us. And for that, I am truly blessed. Don't get me wrong. These men and women are a great gift to us all. But like a great song, and overtime, we tend to enjoy playing them over and over again, not so much for their content, but because we love how they make us feel. In the secular world, we call them, "motivational speakers." The truth of the matter is this: Most of the content hasn't changed that much over the years, but the tune has. In fact, we even have a "Creative" Conference that we can attend if we lack the proper tune. But just like music, there are many new artist out there that we tend to overlook because, and I know that this might be hard to believe, they actually serve in a small or rural church. Unfortunately, they don't get much air-time. It's hard to feature them on the Conference schedule because they don't serve at multiple campuses or have their name on a book endorsement. And of course, the name Jim Sheflizztig isn't a common leadership name, so I doubt I would book my airline ticket tomorrow if he was the keynote speaker.

Now remember, I'm not against attending conferences. What I'm addressing here are those of us who are conference junkies. Hence, you will need to determine if that best describes you, and perhaps more importantly, the motivation behind why you attend.

Here's an important thought: Let's put into practice what we already know.

God's favor and blessing upon your ministry! Go get em!

Does Jesus know everything? My first thought is, "Of course he does." But after further review...

2010-04-21T17:54:00.000-05:00

I'm the type of person who believes that every word of Jesus can be banked on. Call me simple minded, but when Jesus states a fact, put a period behind it. Unfortunately, there are those moments in the gospels in which the words of Jesus confuse me greatly. For example, it's hard for me to imagine Jesus mumbling the words, "I don't know." That concerns me a bit. This is especially true when it relates to our final days on earth and how this world will be changed in the twinkling of an eye. And yet, this is exactly what Jesus proclaims - "I don't know."

Take a look:

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. (Matthew 24:36).

Okay. I can go for people not knowing. I'm even willing to believe that the chain of communication may not reach the angels, although strange. But there is no way that I can believe that the Son of God doesn't even know. That's just plain bizarre to me.

Now, this is the place in most of my blogs in which I would try to shed light or to explain this mystery (how can Jesus not know). But in all honesty, I think it is better to allow the mystery of his words to play itself out. I'm sure it might have something to do with "Jesus being fully human," and how he also "emptied himself" as he came to earth as a baby. But what I think makes these particular words of Jesus even more impactful is that they are truly bizarre, and - we simply must trust him.

What are your thoughts? Does Jesus not knowing something cause you to think more or less of him? Do his words trouble you or confuse you?

In a twinkling of an eye - it will all be revealed.

Although this guy was my foe several months ago, I do forgive him and I always have to pull for my brother.

2010-03-22T18:37:00.000-05:00

Take a look at this wonderful testimony from "thee" man who knocked out my beloved Vikings in 2010!

Why do so many people put up with good, when "great" is standing right next to them?

2010-03-10T09:05:00.000-06:00

One of the most fascinating stories in the Bible is recorded in the fifth chapter of John. In fact, we get the name of a famous hospital on account of this story, Bethesda. In a strange and miraculous way, people were getting healed by going into this particular pool of water. John shares little about how this healing pool worked from a logistical stand point. But what we do know is this, there were "many" waiting in line to be healed, day after day. In fact, there was one man who had been waiting for his healing to happen for most of his entire life, 38 years!

One might suggest that this man was "sick and tired of being sick and tired." And yet, there he waited - again and again. John records that when Jesus saw him he recognized this man and knew that he had been ill for a long time. So here's where I scratch my head. Here's where it gets a bit crazy. Jesus approached this man and he asked the man this question,

"Would you like to get well?"

Doesn't that seem a bit odd to you? Is that really even a question? It would be equivalent to asking a starving man if he would like a bite of your sandwich. And yet, I want to contend that this question is perhaps one of the most important questions that we will ever answer in our lifetime. I would position this question in the top three questions for all of humanity.

WHY?

Because it doesn't allow people to make excuses for their low level of satisfaction. Jesus is not about that. Do you want a life of abundance - or don't you. And yet, we settle for good, when we could have GREAT.

How is your marriage doing? "Well, okay, I guess. We're happy"

How are you doing emotionally? "Well, pretty good, I guess."

How is your health? "Well, not bad, but could be better."

How are you doing in your relationships? "Alright. Could be worse."

That's doesn't sound like abundantly living to me. In fact, it's a pretty sad life.

Do you want to get well?

What an amazing question. And yet the sad fact is this: Some people do not. They are truly afraid of their own healing, so they settle for sickness. And I'm talking about Christians! That's so sad to me. No wonder our "salt" has lost its flavor to this world. No wonder our light is not shining so bright. And even worse, we teach our own children this crazy lesson that goes something like this:

"Even though your marriage is hard, stay in it. It will please God."

We think that by saying this, it pleases the Lord. And sure, it sounds good at first...but what an awful legacy for our kids. I think it grieves the Lord.

Instead...it would be far better to say to our children,

"When your marriage is good, don't settle for that. Instead, go for great!"

Now we're talking.

Jesus is asking us, in every area of our lives, "Do you want to get well?"

Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?

Then do something about it - today.

GREAT IS STANDING RIGHT NEXT TO YOU. DON'T SETTLE FOR GOOD.

When you hear of moral failure from a Christian leader or pastor, what will eventually surface are those six familiar words...

2010-03-05T12:40:00.000-06:00

"It all started out pretty harmless."

For Eve, the craving for more. For Adam, the value of acceptance. For Abraham, a small fib in getting Sarah to say that she was his sister. For King David, deciding to go to his roof top rather than to war. For the rich young ruler, his concern for status. For Sampson, the need to feel wanted or loved.

In each case above, and for hundreds of others, it all started out pretty harmless. Although a red flag may have appeared to an outsider, I guarantee you that most moral failure that happens among Christian leaders or pastors today happens, just as it did back then, under the radar. And the only thing we are left with as the debris begins to clear are those six punishing words, "It all started out pretty harmless."

Following Easter I will be teaching a five week series at WCC entitled, you guessed it, "Harmless."

The purpose of this series is to help us identify the beginning stages of a deceptive heart. I believe that much of what we do in churches today is "reactionary" at best. In other words, we wait until the injury happens before we send in the paramedics. The hope in this series is to address some of the preliminary "signs" that can appear before the damage occurs. I call it a doppler series for our soul.

Mark Batterson, Pastor of National Community Church in D.C., once made this great statement. Mark shared that most sin could be defined as someone trying to meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way. People don't start out by thinking that what they are doing is pure evil. In fact, it all seems pretty harmless at first. But that is precisely the origin of how it all starts. I need love, I crave acceptance, I desire attraction, are all legitimate needs and must be addressed. But the key is how we attempt to satisfy these desires - the real motives.

I have watched too many leaders and pastors, including myself, walking as close to the edge with the opposite sex, or the need for success among peers, or to be valued in their career, only to discover months down the road that just as little pieces of Styrofoam sticks to the hand, clinging by static to stay on, so too, the magnetic force of sin to the unchecked heart.

Yep...it all started out pretty harmless. But the way it ended.....

Creativity is great. But if you go too far, clever can replace clarity leaving people confused.

2010-03-03T13:46:00.001-06:00

I am a church planter. I started my journey ten years ago with a simple goal in mind - to reach unchurched people. As our core team continued to increase in size, the goal or vision remained the same size. I would take every opportunity to share this simple vision again and again. In those days, it was so easy to remember and repeat. It was, let's say, crystal clear to all who attended WCC.

In addition, when it came to teaching, I incorporated a very simple approach to speaking and made sure that the audience left each Sunday with a clear principle or application. The results were wonderful! We were able to watch many people come to Christ as well as participate in many baptisms.

Now, somewhere down the line I started to mix in a heavier dose of creativity and cleverness into each message. I replaced simplicity and sincerity for a more fun and dynamic approach to reaching my audience. I felt that if I could get them to think in more of a dynamic way, it would produce, well, more dynamic decisions for Christ. Again, I love creativity. In fact, I believe it's a missing gift in many of our churches today. But what I discovered five years into my ministry is that people were actually longing for more clarity than cleverness. In fact, there were times after my message that my wife would share with me, "Honey, I really enjoyed the message this morning, but I couldn't really tell you what it was about." Yikes. I over-shot the runway! And to be real honest with you, I, too, couldn't remember what my message was about. However, I did have a lot of fun at the expense of Biblical truth.

With so many creative conferences taking place across the globe (which I do support and love), I'm yearning a bit more for clarity, along with her close relative, sincerity. Less might be the new more in today's culture. Creativity does have its place - but not at the expense of clarity. Keeping the balance of these two in check will provide for some exciting ministry.

Fortunately, I was able to "auto-correct" the situation early on and get back to the basics.

How do you balance clarity with creativeness?

Can you imagine the heart of these parents when God changed the rules? This story is seldom mentioned, but it had to be confusing and heart wrenching

2010-02-16T09:13:00.000-06:00

Say the word, "treasure," and I immediately think of my family. Nothing can ever occupy my heart more than my wife and children. That's how God designed us to be. In fact, as I write this my nine year old daughter is home from school with a 102 temp. Of course, I am giving her meds and lots of water because she is one of my treasures. The ultimate goal for my children is that they grow strong in the Lord - as well as live a long and fruitful life - which hopefully extends into their 70 or 80's.

But...what would happen to your heart today if God informed you that your children, in fact all children, would live no longer than 7 years! That's right. Seven years. Would it not tear your world apart? Would it destroy you? Would it cause your faith to be challenged?

And yet, tucked away in Genesis chapter 6 is this amazing verse by God which reads:

Genesis 6:3

Then the Lord said, "My Spirit will not put up with humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh. In the future, their normal life span will be no more than 12o years."

No big deal, right? One-hundred and twenty years seems like eternity for us today. But we must remember that in those days it was extremely common for people to live up to 700 and 800 years! And so when God proclaimed this decree, what God did to those aging parents in Genesis had to totally crush them. Their children's lives were now cut short by 1/7th of their life span! They were watching their babies die.

It's so easy to just to jump past this verse and move on to Noah's Ark. But let me contend that this was a significant hit to humanity. It was a "battle-ship" sinker. It had to destroy people - especially parents.

God could no longer put up with humans, at least, not for long periods of time.

We must remember that our days our truly numbered. We must remember life is fragile and life is indeed short. And while we are here on this earth, we must embrace our treasures and prepare them for the most important life to come.

Back to being Doctor Dad.

I will be freezin' for a GREAT reason. Why would anyone in their right mind attempt to try this? Well...there's a whole lot of us.

2010-02-05T10:05:00.001-06:00

I will be freezin' for a reason. On Saturday, March 6th, my wife and I will be taking the icy plunge for a great cause - Special Olympics. This will be our second year in a row. Our hope is to raise awareness and money for a great organization that has been helping men and women around the world reach their dreams.

So...I'm ready to take the dive!

Below is an opportunity to assist me in reaching my goal of 200.00. If you can help out, awesome. If I go over the goal, even better.

http://specialolympicsminnesota.org/Polar_Plunge_App.php?regid=12554&step=pledge&action=showwebpage&event_id=9&team_id=0

It's time to start eating some "LARD" to put on some important body fat.

SEE YOU IN THE LAKE!

Brrrr

How can a young person keep his or her ways pure? A key verse in the Bible points to the compass.

2010-02-01T13:57:00.000-06:00

Psalm 119:9
How can a young man keep his ways pure? By living according to Your Word.

As a human father, parenting can be down right scary, if not, altogether confusing. Neither of my two daughters came with any list of instructions upon arrival. Instead, we simply took them home and prayed that famous parent's prayer, "Oh Lord, help!"

At the heart of every parent is this deep passion to see their kids make the right decisions at each and every intersection of life. And the Bible verse highlighted above presents us with this holy "nudge" that, even though our own words are extremely important in the development of our children, we must also acknowledge that God's Word is the purifying factor in their moral decisions.

As a parent, I've learned that I must be in God's Word to help set the pace for my own children. I must model what it means to have a consistent quiet time or prayer time with my wife, their mother, during the course of the week for them to understand what it means to be "in" His Word daily.

When I get to heaven I do not want to be accused of spiritual malpractice with my children. Instead, my life should model what it takes to keep the compass pointing true north. The rest is up to God.

Don't leave it to the church to train your child/ren up in the faith. Instead, as parents, let's make that commitment together to lead the way. Model what you want them to become. Avoid double-standards. Aim north.

Most would agree that King David was perhaps one of Israel's best leaders, but his own son might suggest otherwise.

2010-01-28T14:53:00.000-06:00

I'm reminded of a story about a prideful preacher who was teaching a class about outreach and evangelism to his church. As his finger was elevated high into the air, gesturing to his class while he shared that he had reached hundreds for the Lord, closed his speech by asking his audience this question:

"And why do you think that even complete strangers label me a Christian?"

In the back of the audience the Pastor's son raised his hand and blurted out,

"Probably because the don't know you."

Ouch. What a comment coming form your own flesh and blood. Although humorous, a bit sad.

There is a verse in the Bible that my wife pointed out to me the other day that truly haunted me. It was about the great leader of Israel, King David.

As King David was nearing the end of his reign, there was a lot of talk about who would become the next great leader to take his place. And as one could imagine, King David would be a very tough act to follow, especially for a son.

And yet, tucked away in 1 Kings - verse 6 - is a sad commentary about David's relationship with his youngest son, Adonijah.

It reads...

⁵ Now Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith, put himself forward and said, "I will be king." So he got chariots and horses ready, with fifty men to run ahead of him. ⁶ (David had never disciplined him by asking, "Why do you behave as you do?")

This is a story about investment. David and Adonijah missed out on those rare opportunities that a father and son share during the highs and lows of life. Because of this, Adonijah is ill prepared to lead. He is not at all like his dad. In fact, his behavior was never corrected.

Okay pastor dad. Is is possible to reverse this title to become dad pastor?

The Bible gives some important warnings to church leaders and their ability to manage their home. In other words, God cares for the ministry in our homes just as much, if not more, than the church we are overseeing. As Pastors we tend to be great at identifying the issues of our church, but often give little thought to the needs of our own children.

Unfortunately for David, he would never get that chance to seal the deal with Adonijah.

Imagine a great preacher, incredible intelligence, and a stunning faith. And yet, he still ended up as nothing.

2010-01-23T10:35:00.000-06:00

^{1 Corinthians 13}

²If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

In his days Apostle Paul must have observed some tremendous preachers and church leaders. I would imagine that as the gospel of Christ spread in the first century, Paul would have been an eye witness to a handful of amazing preachers that dazzled the crowds with creative stories, perfect timing, and smooth words. In addition, Paul must have seen knowledgeable leaders take the crowds to new heights of maturity, as well as inspiring people beyond the depths of despair with their dynamic faith. However, at the end of the day, Paul noted that something was, indeed, missing. In fact, these high profile leaders really turned out to be nothing at all. How can that be? What could have been missing? Answer. Paul called it, love.

This verse is all about motive. Paul discovered one of the most important missing ingredients in the life of the gospel messenger. It was love. Which means - although outstanding and gifted, their motive was not necessarily pure. They were loving their ministry more than those they ministered to.

Paul's observation now makes me evaluate the purpose behind leadership conferences. It makes me evaluate blogging. It makes me evaluate my own ministry. In other words, why do we do what we do? Behind the mask, what lies on the other side? According to Paul, if you are not serving out of love, the rest doesn't really matter. The outcome of such a life is nothing.

Jesus broke down all of the Commandments to just two: Love God and love people. Question. What is the key word in our Lord's statement about God and people? Sure. It's "love."

This verse also is about personal "legitimacy, " (what bring legitimacy to your ministry) but that's for another day.

What brings meaning to your ministry? Is it size? Is it creativity? Is it a faith-filled vision that moves mountains? Is it flattery? Is it following or leading something great or big? Don't get me wrong, these are all important. But, according to Paul, if it is not done in love for people, it is really all about nothing.

Something to think about.

Question: Does a Godly Home Guarantee Godly kids? I will be speaking on this topic this weekend at WCC.

2010-01-20T13:57:00.000-06:00

Larry Osborn, author of the book, Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe, writes that many of our urban legends or Christian cliches that were taught or raised to believe are just not true. One of the cliches that I will be speaking on this weekend is: "A Godly Home Guarantees Godly Kids." Larry does a fabulous job demonstrating the difference between a promise and a proverb - as it relates to Proverbs 22:6 which reads, "Train a child up in the way of the Lord and when he is older he will not depart from it." A proverb is all about probabilities. A promise is a done deal. A proverbs says that there is a high likelihood that it will happen. A promise says it will happen. After 14 years of student ministries, and nine year serving as a lead pastor in my church, I couldn't agree "more" with Larry's conclusion. The two side-effects of believing this proverb to be a promise is that if you are failing as a parent you may face UNWARRANTED GUILT. In other words, you feel totally responsible for your child's poor outcome even though your son or daughter may have attention deficiencies or biological behavioral disorders. On the flip-side, if your son or daughter is doing great, you begin to experience FOOLISH PRIDE. In other words, you want to take "credit" for their situation, and may tend to offer advice to other parents. How exciting! Not really.

So, I'm excited to bring this study into our church this week and see where it goes. I know that as a parent, I can easily find myself on both sides of the track. Some days are diamonds and some days are coal. But what is most important is to keep training our kids in Godliness. Bottom line: Leave the results to the Lord.

There are few things more disturbing in life than to watch someone who lacks discipline.

2010-01-06T11:23:00.000-06:00

The author of Hebrews spells out the importance of discipline when he writes,

"Our (earthly) fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (Hebrews 11:10-11).

As we begin the New Year one of the ingredients we need to adopt into our lives is the ingredient of discipline. But let's face it, who wants to be disciplined? In fact, the Bible even suggests that it will be quite unpleasant. Can you imagine praying for an unpleasant experience? Hardly. And yet, we are told that without discipline we will lack righteousness and peace in our lives. Isn't that an interesting result? Discipline = righteousness & peace. Conversely, this outcome would also suggest that the reverse is true as well. Namely, lack of discipline produces unrighteousness and a spirit of chaos.

But let me take this idea of discipline one step farther. If you're like me, the New Year brings about the opportunity to try something new. Maybe it's reading through the Bible in a year. Maybe it's losing some lbs. Maybe it's overcoming jealousy. Whatever it might be, it will certainly take a lot of "discipline" to make it happen. And what is clear about discipline is this: It will be unpleasant. Losing 30 lbs will not be so fun. Reading through the Bible comes with a cost. Removing jealousy will not be easy. And yet, without discipline, according to the Bible, we will never be able to produce a crop of righteousness and find peace that our soul longs for.

Here's the challenge:

1. What things in your life right now are hard, but you know that if you stick with it, it will pay off in positive ways and bring fulfillment or peace to you?

2. How might you view unpleasant circumstances in your life right now as God's way of disciplining you as a loving Father?

3. Is it possible that you might be able to view discipline as a product of making you more like Christ and finding peace that makes you more mature?

Let's face it. There's nothing worse than watching someone who lacks discipline. And can you imagine what you might appear like before our Lord if you resist it?

Something happened this Sunday that has never happened before in my ten years of preaching...

2010-01-04T07:46:00.000-06:00

I once read a story about a pastor of a small town church who received a call from the fire department late in the evening explaining that his church was on fire and burning to the ground. The pastor jumped into his car and drove just a few miles down the road to see a seizable crowd gathered around his church as the flames soared high into the sky. The pastor frustrated by the scene, approached a gentlemen who happened to show up to get a closer view of the blaze. The pastor tapped this young man on his shoulder and said to him , "I've been the pastor of this church for nearly 20 years and I must admit, I've never seen you at my church before. And yet, here you are now." The man looked at the pastor and said, "Well, pastor. This is the first time that your church has ever been on fire."

Yesterday, following a rockin' worship time, I approached the platform to share my life talk message and before I had the chance to open my mouth, the fire alarm went off at the high school - and out we went! In my ten years since starting WCC, we had never had this happen before. As you can imagine, the service ended with the fire department arriving, only to discover that a main water pipe had burst, triggering off the alarm.

I had a number of people compliment me on my message and shared with me how it was, by far, the best message that I have ever preached in my ten years. Question: Is murder still a part of the Ten Commandments?

Have you ever given a message that was "smokin" hot?

My wife and I just returned this afternoon from the Minnesota Art Institute. I snapped a photo of Picasso...

2010-01-02T16:51:00.000-06:00

It's been a while since I've been to the Minnesota Art Institute. And with the weather hovering at 4 billion below zero, we took advantage of going inside. One of the most fascinating paintings was the work of Picasso (pictured above). Listed next to his picture was an explanation for his inspiration for this odd design. Picasso had just went through a disturbing break up in his marriage at the time of this painting. For those closest to Picasso, they shared how extremely distraught he was over the loss of his wife.

As I studied this painting I couldn't help but reflect on the fact that many marriages, if put on a canvas, might look a lot like Picasso's painting. There is nothing in this painting that suggests harmony. Instead, his work is filled with chaos.

What would your marriage look like if you had to put it down on canvas today?

Started out my New Year by running in a 5K race in Minnesota. Can you spell...cold?

2010-01-02T09:01:00.000-06:00

I think that I have started a New Year's tradition. There's nothing like waking up in Minnesota on the first day of January with a pair of running shoes and a "parka." But let me just tell you, I wasn't the only "nut" looking for attention. Roughly 100 men and women competed in a 5K race in White Bear Lake, MN. And the weather? Clear and - 14 below. I was joined by two close friends from WCC who had never competed in a race before. How "cool" is that? What a way to break yourself in.

Sometimes in life we face some serious obstacles on our path. In our case, the New Year presented freezing temps to our frozen path. And yet, like the great Barry Manilow song goes, "Looks Like We Made It." And when we finished, we were all greeted to a warm reception by our spouses.

What's next? Well, at the end of January, a large number of people from our church (WCC) will be taking the "Polar Plunge" for Special Olympics. Yes, we are diving into a frozen lake.

Makes you want to move to Minnesota, yes?

Happy New year - and keep running the race!

I'm reaching for something profound during this final day of the year, but I'm finding it quite challenging.

2009-12-31T10:23:00.000-06:00

I'm trying to be nostalgic today. I really am. As I reflect back on this year it is my desire to do some real soul searching, in hopes to find some hidden treasurers. I truly admire so many bloggers who are are able access a rich file of personal memories and to glean knowledge from the past 12 months. What a gift this is. But what I'm oddly discovering, on this final day of the year, is that the ordinary day to day activities with my family is what truly revitalizes my life. Of course I know that this doesn't make for a fun Christmas card. Most of us love to write about our vacations, our amazing trips, the highlights of the year, and such. And let's face, it does make for some entertaining reading. But at the heart of contentment, comes the pleasures of the mundane. In fact, I believe it truly reflects our soul. Eating a meal around our table with our entire family present, helping our children with their homework, date night with my wife, a quick jog around the town, a late night run with our kids to McDonalds for ice-cream, and connecting with some friends at a restaurant - makes me who I am. In other words, it's not the big events in my life that I find my nostalgia drifting towards today, but the simple-mundane blessings. In fact, it will be what our kids remember the most as well.

Hey - the church will always be able to find a new pastor, but my wife and kids have only one shot at a husband and father.

Let's live in the moment - as long as it is called "today!"

What about you? Does the big event define you? Or can you finding contentment in the mundane?

Happy New Year!

One Christmas song I don't quite understand still leaves me thinking, "Counseling may be needed."

2009-12-25T09:07:00.000-06:00

Last night our family experienced Christmas Eve together by attending a local church that performed a number of our favorite and most popular Christmas songs. One of the Christmas songs performed was, "Do You Hear what I Hear?" If you're familiar with this song then you know that there is a whole lot of talking going on (the night wind speaks, the lamb speaks to the shepherd boy, etc) - but the one verse that really had me thinking was this verse - "A child a child, shivering in the cold, let us bring Him silver and gold, let us bring Him silver and gold." Now, I don't know about you, but if I had a child shivering in the cold, silver and gold isn't going to warm him up. Not going to cut it. I'm thinking more like a blanket, or even a "snuggie" for that matter. Why didn't they bring Jesus what he really needed?

Do you ever wonder about songs? Why do we allow the words to roll over our lips without really questioning the value of the statement. The same might be said of prayers. Jesus warned the pious elite to be careful with using many words in their prayers - only to look good in front of their audience.

Obviously, it was a great night and our family enjoyed the service very much. But it was just one of those things that made me go, "Uh.... Why do we sing what we sing?"

In 2010 I want to strive to be more intentional in my own authentic thoughts toward God. I want to stear myself away from Christian cliches that are popular, yet tend to gloss over the true meaning of life.

Just something to think about!

First day of ice-fishing with a good friend produced a few crappies (for those who don't fish, I know that word looks like something else)

2009-12-21T13:16:00.000-06:00

There are times in a man's life that catching the limit is big deal. I believe that the limit for crappies is 15 per-person in Minnesota. I think for walleyes (our State fish) it is four per-person. Mosquitoes? Unlimited! But more importantly, it is just a great time to get away from the hustle and bustle that life can bring. I was privileged to spend four hours in a 4 by 6 house with a great friend of mine this morning. We were both amazed how fast four hours can zoom by when you're sharing life together. And every so often, a fish would turn up in our fish house.

Do you have a friend in your life in which four hours seems like four minutes? Conversely, we all have those people who can make four minutes feel like four hours. But I'm talking about that friend in which you can just be yourself, talk much, talk little, not talk at all, and yet the rhythm of life flows at a perfect pace. If so, this is a gift from God.

Listed above is my first crappie of the year. I know that this picture doesn't do justice to this fish, which weighed slightly over 20 pounds. Okay...maybe 20 lbs less. Let's just say I'll take it.

Today it felt like I caught my limit. How about you?

Say it isn't so. Okay, I have to feel a little bad for this kid, but it certainly makes me smile.

2009-12-19T22:56:00.000-06:00

Now, let's get on with Christmas!

The American Broadcast Company lost a legend this year, Paul Harvey.

2009-12-18T15:28:00.000-06:00

As a kid growing up I didn't know the person, but I did know the story - "the rest of the story." Paul Harvey took a common story and gave us a story inside the story. That was his trademark. And of course, he would end each story by saying, "Good day."

As I reflected on Paul Harvey's life and legacy, I couldn't help but think that this might be a little like the Christmas story. Namely, there is a story within the story.

Hebrews 1:1-2 says that, "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us through His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe."

In the Old Testament we got glimpses of what was to come. God did this through many different people and in various ways. Indeed, God spoke and the story went out. And from time to time, people listened. Unfortunately, through the years the message seemed to get lost in translation. However, according to this verse, in these last days God tells the story again, but this time through His Son's birth, life, and resurrection. This becomes "the rest of the story."

Christmas is the rest of the story. Christmas is about God coming to earth as a baby, living a sinless life, paying the randsom for our sins, teaching us the truth of salvation, and coming back through the resurrection. If Paul Harvey would have been present in Palestine during the time of Christ's birth, no doubt we would have heard him say, "And now you know the rest of the story." GOOD DAY - and GOOD NEWS!

Mark Batterson's new book, Primal, now under review.

2009-12-16T10:20:00.000-06:00

I was one of several hundred pastors fortunate enough to receive a free copy of Mark Batterson's new release, Primal - A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity. This hard cover book, featuring 171 pages of Mark's insights on the challenges that modern day Christianity faces, is a great little read. At the core of this book is a stirring question that moves the reader in and out of each chapter. And what is that question? Will there be another reformation? And if so, what will it look like? Will it be similar to Martin Luther at Wittenberg and his ninety-five theses? Or will it come out of a great love movement (the Great Commandment) for God - and for people? Mark confronts this question throughout his book, taking us through historical data, personal stories, and scientific inquiry. If you're familiar with Mark's previous writings (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day and Wild Goose Chase), this book will carry a very similar writing style. This is not a bad thing. In fact, in many ways, if you enjoy Mark's creativity and demeanor, you will not be let down. Mark is very careful in handling the Scriptures and illuminating his thoughts on each page, not destroying the work of Christian history. I believe that the very nature or genre of his book could have offered up some strong negative reflections on how the past 100 years of church leadership may have missed the target with the heart and mission of Christ. But Mark refuses to go there (good move). Instead, Mark chooses to inspire us. He raises the bar of potential. He takes us back down into the deep caves of primal Christianity and tries to elevate our hopes of recapturing the very essence of Christ's mission for his people.

Overall, if you like Mark's style of writing (which I do), you will enjoy his third book, Primal. Would it make a good Christmas gift? Absolutely. But don't stop there. The hope is that all of us will be a part of this God-led movement to recapture the lost soul of Christianity.

What time did Christmas start for God? What day? What hour? Apostle Paul gives us a glimpse...

2009-12-12T14:20:00.000-06:00

^{Galatians 4
4}But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, ⁵to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.

How does a person define, full? Well, Webster defines full as - "Containing as much as possible." The Greek word for full is pleres. It denotes the idea of a lack of containment - spilling over.

"But when the time had fully come..."

It hard to imagine that our omniscient God could ever reach a point in which He could no longer contain anything. But such is the case. A tipping point. A boiling point. A time that was talked about and prophesied over for many millenniums. Christmas exploded on the scene. And the result, according to Paul, is that we joined a new family. We became sons and daughters. We received the full rights to our Abba - Father. Christmas is about us becoming a family - during a birth. As Jesus breathed his first breath, we took ours as well. Life breathed into death.

What a great "time" for Christmas!

A special thanks to @MarkBatterson at National Community Church for the opportunity to review his latest book, PRIMAL.

2009-12-05T10:19:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I was one of many who received a freeeeee copy of Mark Batterson's new book, Primal. After twenty-five minutes of trying to rip through the secure packing (Fed-Ex) to unveil the book, only later to discover a convenient tear tab on the side of the package (I'm such a dork), I pulled out the hard cover copy and started reading. The premise behind Mark's book is for the Christ follower to reclaim or rediscover the lost soul of Christianity.

For a number of years I've been a great admirer of Mark's ministry at National Community Church. But even more impressive to me is the author, himself, - and his authenticity as a Christ follower. Of course, I might be a bit bias towards Mark since he was born and raised in Minnesota. But if you've ever had the chance to meet Mark in person, than you know that he is the type of person who says, "There you are," rather than, "Here I am." His previous writings, including Primal, never wander from this truth. Mark writes with deep humility and places his own life at the core of his work. His life personifies the challenges that we all face in our quest for the lost soul of Christianity.

Okay - I'm only on page 47 right now of Primal, and my goal is to finish it by today.

A review will follow.

The book will be made available to the public around the 10th of December. It's a must read.

How do you define an atheist? I just found another suprising way.

2009-12-04T10:31:00.000-06:00

Fridays, writing , and coffee all fit together nicely for me. Fridays are set aside for my final notes and preparation for my weekend message, while coffee makes me look alert and intelligent (I guess). And there's no better place for me to gather my thoughts than at the local Caribou miles from my home. And positioned next to my table this morning are two men, openly discussing their religious understanding or opinions on Christmas. Within ten minutes, they had both basically covered the entire Old and New Testament. I was impressed. One man arguing for the validity of the scriptures, while the other man questioning them. And from out of this conversation came the words that truly impacted me. The man in doubt said, "I think that the true atheists are the Christians who hide in the church and deny their God by not serving the poor. Their faith has no validity." When I heard this statement, I quickly hit my return bar several times to clear some free space on my Word document. I had to record the power behind his words. And the response from his believing friend? Nothing. It was like watching a great chess match. Check mate. And of course, the subject quickly changed to sports when both men lost their will to battle any longer.

I must confess that from time to time I wanted to engage myself in their conversation or chess match. Sure, I might have moved the pawn or knight to a more strategic place. However, I must confess that I would have had 'no' answer or maneuver to his atheism statement. It was spot on. In fact, in a surprising way, it is one of the most accurate descriptions that I have heard to define true atheism. Maybe the problem is not the non-believer. Maybe the problem is the believer - in hiding.

Something to think about today.

Maybe...nothing more than a big wake up call.

Let's live it OUT LOUD.

If God is not first, is it at least possible to move Him into second?

2009-12-02T15:46:00.000-06:00

Recently I have been given some thought or reflection to the concept of positioning. For example, if you own fine china, you may want to position your fine china on the top shelf of your hutch for protection, while placing your paper or plastic plates on the lower shelf for casual use. Here's the point. Things we typically love or esteem tend to rise to the top, while those less in value are lowered to the bottom.

I also believe that we can use positioning as it relates to friends, cars, clothing, homes, schools, and even churches. Positioning becomes a natural way of keeping order to our world and bringing value to things that are most important to us. In addition, we also tend to give our primary focus to those things on top rather than those things on the bottom.

So how does positioning relate to God?

Over the years I have observed a large number of people who openly proclaim their love for God by calling Him their Lord. The word, Lord, denotes thee highest position one can attain. We're talking - top shelf! Unfortunately, as life unfolds with a number of challenges, our tendency is to position ourselves ahead of God, suggesting that maybe we can control our situation better than "upper" management. No, we don't want to fire God. But, we could at least move him into second position. BUT WILL GOD STAY THERE?

Now, here comes the bomb. When God proclaimed to us that we are to have "no other gods" before Him, what He is essentially saying to us is that He will not be reduced to a lower position. Indeed, He cannot, for His very nature is above all things (Colossians 1:16). Either God is number one or He may as well be number 7928388497... to infinity. Of course, it's not that we want to eliminate God altogether. In fact, last I checked - number # 2 is still good, right? But we deeply wrestle with God's supremacy.

John Piper once wrote, "All sin is the result of lowering the supremacy of God in our lives."

So, what position does God have in your life today? Top shelf or 7928388497? The Disciple John writes, "He must become greater, I must become less" (John 3:30). I think John has it right.

My prayer is that we all get a little "John" in us this week.

Just discovered the Sandra Bullock nearly turned down her role in Blind Side. Why?

2009-12-01T19:03:00.000-06:00

If you haven't had the opportunity to attend the movie, Blind Side, you'll want to make the effort. But what might be more interesting than the movie itself is what occurred behind the scenes. Sandra Bullock recently shared with the public why she had some strong reservations about this movie because of her perception of Christians.

I've included the link to her story below.

http://www.boundlessline.org/2009/12/sandra-bullock-on-christianity.html

Blind Side may have taught us a bigger lesson on how, as Christians, we are to walk the talk. As someone once said, "The world isn't reading their Bibles, they are reading Christians."

I was excited to learn this week that I will be receiving Mark Batterson's new book, Primal.

2009-11-30T20:27:00.001-06:00

I had the privilege to spend time with Mark several months ago while my wife @t66reis (Terri) and I were visiting Washington D.C. At that time Primal was still in its early infancy. What a treat for me to have the finished project sent to me and to be able to write a review for his publisher. And now for a real twist: My wife also wrote to Mark (without my knowledge) and she will also be receiving a copy for review. Yes, we will both be reviewing Mark's book together. Go figure.

I now know why they call it, Black Friday.

2009-11-27T06:25:00.001-06:00

For the first time ever (and last), I thought I would try my luck beating the crowd to purchase a Christmas gift for my daughter. So, I set my clock to 4:30 AM (Black outside) and ventured out of my home. Huge mistake. As I reached the store I was greeted by thousands of other hopefuls who had set their alarm for 4:29. I truly felt every emotion that you see on your left.

Bottom line: I drove home, grabbed my laptop, and ordered the item online - which by the way, was 13 dollars cheaper. Gotta love the Internet. Now, it's back to sleep, while it is still black out.

I'm doing something tonight that I would have called so irrational years ago.

2009-11-26T22:14:00.000-06:00

I'm waiting up tonight to run out to a local store at 12:01 AM and compete with the public for a limited Christmas gift. There are just "so many" in the store. And of course, my 14 year old daughter wants that "so many" item.

Of course, I can save a ton of money on this item if I can nab it before my neighbor does. Wow, that's the Christmas spirit. So proud of me.

I'll let you know how it goes. But for now, I'm psyching myself up with a strong case of the nasties! If anyone dares to come close to me, look out, I will punch you in the throat - in a Christian sort of way. Let the games begin!

My wife and I recently joined an organization that we are so excited about: Charity Water.

2009-11-23T08:57:00.000-06:00

The math isn’t hard to understand: A $20 donation can give one person clean water for 20 years. 1.8 billion people around the world don’t have access to safe water. That’s 1 in 6 human beings on the planet.

Charitywater.org

Life is a highway, and I wanna ride it all night long. Well, maybe not.

2009-11-19T10:40:00.000-06:00

Jesus said, "In this world you will have troubles..."

In those seven words, Jesus identified a pattern of life that each of us are all too familiar with. We turn the key each morning and we drive out into this massive highway called, the world. We are cruising down the road of life at a pretty good rate of speed and bam - a tire goes flat. We shake our fist in the air as if this was not suppose to happen.

Life is just one big road filled with unwanted guests and - a few great surprises. How in the "world" do you ever prepare for it? What kind of "insurance" will protect us from such troubles?

Well, maybe the answer isn't found in the insurance business, but maybe the answer comes from the "assurance" business. Jesus did assure us that we would have troubles in this life. And Jesus also assured us that in this world we would not find peace. And so I mumble, "I don't like that kind of assurance. I like the kind of assurance that works in my favor."

I think that as Christians we are conditioned to easily accept the good surprises in life and call it a "blessing." But there is also this responsibility, as a Christ follower, to enrich our commitments to Him during those other moments when unwanted surprises test our character.

Bottom line: Unwanted surprises come into our life to help elevate our trust in the God of the high-way and low-way. As that old familiar song goes, "He gives and takes away. But blessed be the name."

Not sure what intersection you find yourself at today, but keep your eyes open because God has you on this road (like me) filled with surprises to grow our character. Buckle up!

A thief tries to siphon gas from RV and discovers something else is waiting for him.

2009-11-18T07:37:00.000-06:00

I had a good laugh this morning as I was driving my daughter to school. Our local radio station reported that a State Trooper from Missouri has in custody a 45 year old man who was making his first attempt to siphon gas from a parked RV in a local rest area just 20 minutes outside of Kansas City. Unfortunately, for this thief, he had hooked up his 12 foot hose to the RV's "waste" tank instead. According to the report, after his first suck on the hose (to start the process), the man passed out from the fumes. However, the story doesn't stop there. As you might guess, the waste followed the path of the suction and the man was buried several inches deep in....oh ya.

Apparently, the thief was quite sick and immediately rushed by ambulance to the hospital.

Okay...so I'm wondering, how does this relate to spiritual matters? Does this story preach? It did not take long for a verse to come to my mind. It goes like this:

2 Peter 2:22

"A dog returns to its vomit,"and, "A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud."

Peter is demonstrating a sad truth about our sinful condition. You would think that with every bad example that we have in life it would produce a smarter and more productive method in our walk with God. However, many people, like a dog or a pig, go directly back to their sinful and dirty condition - even after they left it for a period of time. It's like they have siphoned the wrong tank. Instead of getting fuel for living, they return back to the same waste of life.

Something to think about today. What hose are you drinking from?

Does conservative mean non-relevant? Does traditional mean more conservative?

2009-11-12T08:50:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I had a bizarre conversation with a lady at the post office as I waited in line to ship a package. She started the conversation by properly identifying me as the Pastor at WCC. I acknowledge her and greeted her back. But now is where it got a bit strange. Within seconds she shared how she had attended Willowbrook a number of years ago with a close friend (who still attends WCC), but she went on to add, "I guess I'm just more conservative in my beliefs than my friend and your church." With about a dozen people standing in line with us, I didn't want to get into a theological discussion, but I did say to her, "You mean that you prefer a more traditional service?" She said, "Well, I do enjoy more traditional music, but I am deeply rooted in a more conservative approach to the Bible." Now, I thinking, what the heck did I preach on that Sunday that gave her the impression that I do not hold to a conservative view of the Scriptures? As you might guess, my brain was really spinning. So I didn't let it stop there. I said to her, "Sometimes we get accused of being too relevant at WCC." Good Brad. Nice zinger. She looked at me and said, "Ya, for some reason, it just wasn't for me."

Okay...herein lies the rub. Do you feel that a relevant or creative church is more apt to veer away from a conservative approach to the Bible? In other words, does relevance equal = liberal? Another question: Was Jesus relevant to his culture? I would say that you couldn't get more relevant. I would also suggest that Christ's relevance was not liberal, but in fact, - liberating.

Okay... so I wonder if people sometimes confused traditional with conservative. Is this making any sense? Do people wrongly make statements about your church being less conservative rather than saying "less traditional?"

And most importantly, why does any of this even matter when all a guy is trying to do is mail a stupid package? !!

When it comes to money, this boy has got it RIGHT.

2009-11-05T20:03:00.001-06:00

Elijah Offering Video from Elevation Church on Vimeo.

Steven Furtick, Pastor of Elevation Church, has done an outstanding job training his son on the importance of living a Biblical life with the $$$$$. Take a look and enjoy!

Sometimes you just can't add to things. There is nothing really to comment on. Just take it in.

2009-10-30T12:09:00.000-05:00

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works - so that no one can boast. - Ephesians 2:8-9

Let's not confuse it. Let it stand.

We've got the whole church praying for this charming 8 year old who was just diagnosed with cancer.

2009-10-27T19:16:00.001-05:00

There's nothing like hearing that six letter word - cancer. And when it happens to a child, the pain and fear can run extremely deep.

Malia will be heading home for a few days of rest before she begins chemo at Minneapolis Children's Hospital. If you just happened to click on this site, then please take a moment to share your love for her through a moment of prayer with our Father. We are asking Him for a miracle. God bless.

We love this family in our church!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

It takes 40 days to grow a pumpkin, but it takes 40 years to grow an oak tree. Which one are you growing?

2009-10-21T07:25:00.000-05:00

If you're like me, I typically want instant results. I want quick results in my prayer life, my work life, my marriage, my parenting, and in my physical workouts. No doubt - I'm not alone. As we have seen by the rise of steroids use from many famous athletes of our day, shortcuts to success can be very attractive.

But that doesn't work with God. Instead, God desires to develop our character and to mold us to be like Him. In doing so, it takes a lifetime of years to happen.

“Therefore since we also are surrounded with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily besets us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (NKJV).

Yes, this is an "oak tree" verse. I need to be planting oak trees, not pumpkins.

Something for us to think about during this season of the year - Halloween.

Dad fixed the scooter. My daughter still thinks I'm the "bomb.com"

2009-10-17T14:42:00.000-05:00

I felt great today. I was able to fix a scooter that was totally out of commission last year. My youngest daughter, Madi, gave me that look today that said, "Hey. Aren't dad's suppose to fix things?" I'm not going to lie. I only own a hammer. That's all I've got in my tool belt. So, every problem looks like a nail to me. Fixing things is not my spiritual gift. Now - breaking things - I'm really good at that. But with a little prayer, some banging around, and a couple taps on the battery, the scooter took off. Is God amazing or what?

Let me ask you: When you're unable to fix things, do you often feel a twinge of guilt or inadequacy? If so - you're not alone. Hang in there. There may come a day in which God shows favor on you and - pow, a miracle happens.

Do you see a problem here?

2009-10-15T16:53:00.001-05:00

I'm not sure how things like this happen, but it does make for an intriguing picture. On a side note: I'm not sure what's more dangerous - driving your car with a fuel line connected to the vehicle, or trying to navigate your car while taking a picture of this poor driver? Maybe both.

Okay...is there a spiritual lesson in all of this?

I'm going to take the next few days to process this picture and come up with something.

This is why I pray! My daughter is driving ~

2009-10-11T15:23:00.000-05:00

On a cold Saturday morning, the girls still find a way to bribe dad...

2009-10-10T10:13:00.000-05:00

"All flying insects that swarm are unclean to you; do not eat them. But any winged creature that is clean you may eat." - Deuteronomy 14:19-20

2009-10-09T15:09:00.001-05:00

Question? Did the Hebrew people of that day really have a problem with the consumption of bugs? I just can't imagine Abraham sneaking out on Sarah in the middle of the night to chase down a delicious firefly. And as we all know, once you bite into a firefly, the evidence is all over your teeth. Those babies stay lit up long after they're dead!

I just don't get it. I can barely read this verse without cracking a smile. I would like to suggest to you that this is one of those sins (bug eating) that I could easily avoid. If tempted, I would just pray, "Bug off." I know it would work. And yet, there must have been people who couldn't get enough bugs in their diet. Thus, God gave this commandment to obstain from particular bugs. But why? Why would God impose such regulations upon His people?

Okay...so here's what I'm thinking: Could it be possible that when we get to heaven someday that we will all look back at our sins only to discover that what we consumed was just as gross as those swarming bugs? Will we look back and think, "How in the world could we have ever digested that horrible, slimy, and grotesque sin? What were we thinking?" Will we see it that way?

Now I know that there are many theological and ceremonial meanings for the potential reasons as to why God made a distinction among the bugs. I won't go there. But I will add this: Sin tends to be a lot like the bad bugs - swarming us. And if we don't run from it, it has the potential to invade our body with some real nasty bites.

Next time you are tempted to sin...think about swallowing a bug before you give into it - and don't. God made frogs for a reason, so don't steal their meal.

Something to think about...

Does God really need to explain Himself? Have we reached such a position that we do not understand that God is calling the shots? The answer…yes!

2009-10-08T10:35:00.000-05:00

Isaiah 43:11-12

I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from Me there is no Savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed – I, and not some foreign god among you. “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God.”

Revealed – saved – proclaimed. Those are three impactful adjectives that God uses to describe Himself to us. Just one problem: we not only forget God’s status among us, that God is indeed calling the shots, but we also continue to search for more – another god? To make matters even more disturbing, God is saying that we were there to behold all three (Revealer - Savior – Proclaimer). We were eye witnesses to this fact. So, how could we still miss Him?

Do you ever have those frequent moments in which an obstacle really challenges your faith? Your head begins to question if God will come through again. You’re feeling really dry or parched spiritually, and this obstacle appears much larger than your God. It’s during these times in my life that I must force myself to go back and recall this important truth: “I am an eye witness to God.” In other words, God has carried me and sustained me in every aspect of my life, why would He suddenly decide to drop me now? Such an act would be contrary to His nature (Revealer – Savior – Proclaimer).

Okay, so today, I’m facing several obstacles in my personal life which impacts my leadership life as well. What a great verse to remind me that God is God. He’s calling the shots. And I must learn to trust in the process of His work and not search elsewhere for the finished project.

Life is a roller coaster ride. Hang on and don’t jump off. Keep your eyes open and be a witness of this amazing adventure. (Sure, you can put your hands up in the air - if you're really feeling confident).

There's nothing like a little morning coffee in this wonderful coffee maker that my dear bride, @t66reis, surprised me with...

2009-10-08T09:54:00.000-05:00

I'm more of a conventional coffee guy...but I'm not going to lie, this machine has converted me over!

Must see inspiring video by a little boy imitating Herb Brooks, Miracle on Ice. Classic! This will preach ~

2009-10-07T09:33:00.000-05:00

Sometimes the church needs to be reminded of our calling, and not to shrink back.

Martha was distracted with much serving. —Luke 10:40 // Is it possible to be so busy that it actually hinders your relationship with Christ?

2009-10-06T15:54:00.000-05:00

In data collected from over 20,000 Christians in 139 countries, The Obstacles to Growth Survey found that, on average, more than 60 percent of Christians around the world say they “often” or “always” rush from task to task, while admitting a deep sense of exhaustion. Result: The busyness of life can often interfere in the development of our relationship with Christ - and challenge our physical well being.

It would appear from Luke that Martha too allowed busyness to distract her from spending time with Jesus. When she welcomed Him and His disciples into her home, she was occupied with preparing the food, washing their feet, and making sure they were comfortable. All of these things had to be done, but Luke seems to point out that Martha’s busyness in preparation degenerated into busywork that distracted her from reflecting on Jesus’ words and enjoying time with Him (Luke 10:38-42).

What about us? Why the need for speed? What is at the true motive of adding more and more to our over-crowded schedules?

Time for a gut check.

Seek the LORD while he may be found; - Isaiah 55:6. Does this verse bring comfort or discouragement?

2009-10-05T09:36:00.000-05:00

Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.

I don't know about you, but the availability of God is a big thing for me. I want to believe that God is always there. I would like to dial up God, no matter what time or day, and to know that He would always answer my call. I don't know about you, but it would disturb me if I called on God only to receive a "busy" signal. That would be really discouraging. And yet, these first eight words seem to promote a God who just might be on vacation when we finally decide to seek Him out. Could that be right?

The verse continues by saying, "while He is near." Listen, not only is the availability of God a big thing for me, but equally so, God's very presence. Again, this verse tends to promote a God who may not always be near to us. Could that be right?

So what's up? Comfort or discouragement? If you're like me, there are times that I totally lose site of this amazing God who gives all men/women life, and breath, and everything. When this happens in my life, I quickly lose dialogue with my God, and of course, I fail to seek Him out. Why should I? I have everything under control, yes? Who needs God's presence? Why bother Him? And this exactly what God is sharing with Isaiah. God is certainly present. God is certainly near. But there is no "matching" going on in this relationship. There is a lack of connection.

This verse is built on satire. It's like someone rudely bumping into you, but instead, to be polite, you say to them, "Oh. Excuse me." In a similar fashion, what I believe God is saying in this verse is this, "Excuse me. I might have missed you seeking Me. Are you still around?"

Maybe this verse reflects both comfort and discouragement. Comfort that we have a God who is at least willing to wake us up a bit and to point out His presence in our lives. And yet, discouraging, that we often neglect his presence and fail to "match up" in a relational way with Him.

Short verse - but big implications.

I don't think that this would make Willard Scott's Smuckers Birthday list.

2009-10-03T14:32:00.000-05:00

No comment needed.

Does looking back on our past really help? Sometimes it might distract us from looking foward.

2009-10-03T11:39:00.000-05:00

Not sure where this picture originates, but it is pretty unsettling. But this picture does raise an interesting question: Is it helpful to look back on your past when it brings back unsettling feelings?

In my many years of ministry I have heard more than a fair share of train wreck stories. And in many cases, these stories have left a strong and lasting impression upon the lives of those who truly want to move forward - but really struggle to do so. It's as if the past has become their trademark or signature. There is no doubt that these stories have the potential to change us for the better, but to be realistic, the reverse is often the case. Sometimes these stories, if replayed over and over again, have the potential to stunt our future growth.

Someone once said, "When the memories of our past replace the dreams of our future, the end is near."

So, what do you think? Do you find yourself looking back more than forward? What is God calling you do to today as it pertains to your own personal growth and transformation? Maybe the past and future can build a bridge to God size dreams for your life.

Some great words of advice I received years ago when it comes to giving a weekend message at church.

2009-10-01T12:00:00.000-05:00

One of the more challenging situations that a pastor faces each week is delivering the message. After hours of preparation, going over each and every paragraph again and again, it's now time to deliver. And what comes out - and how it comes out, makes all of the difference in the world.

My preaching professor at Seminary once told me something that has stuck with me for years. And here's what he said:

No matter how good your message is going, or no matter how poor your message is going, never end your message by saying to your audience, "But then again, what do I know?"

The Fear of such a statement:
It erodes your authority over your audience

The Truth of such a statement:
Sometimes you feel like the message is more for you than anybody else in your audience that day. Humble pie.

Oh yes, there are more than a few Sundays that I feel underqualified as the messenger with the content of the message. But to be real honest with you, I believe, now more than ever, that this honesty with your listener is more than just "okay", but I would suggest,"refreshing." In fact, I believe that there are times in which the audience must know that I, too, struggle with what the Bible is calling for us to be or become. I've been told that many people leave churches because they feel more preached "at" each Sunday then understood. That's really too bad. Because the real truth is this: "Sometimes we really don't know what we are talking about." It's a mystery. It's a challenge. And like every other human in the audience, we very much need God's grace to help us every step of the way.

Okay...the cookie is out of the jar. Much on it a bit!

This is a special night for me and my special needs Olympian. Tyler has inspired my life in so many ways. So tonight, I helped him fulfill one of his dreams.

2009-09-29T19:35:00.001-05:00

Tyler has always wanted to be a police officer and ride in a real police car. Well, guess what? My younger brother is a law enforcement office for the Minnetonka Police Department (MN). Tonight my brother agreed to give him a one hour tour of the life of a police officer (donuts, donuts, and donuts....J/K). So, as I sit drinking coffee at Caribou right now, my brother is helping my friend (Tyler) fulfill one of his dreams through a ride-along program. I'm so proud of both of them! Over and out!

Posted via email from Brad Reis

The Television Challenge. I took on the challenge reluctantly, but the payoff has been enormous.

2009-09-28T17:52:00.001-05:00

What is the television challenge?

A little over a year ago my wife came straight home from a busy day of teaching 1st graders at her school - and she went straight for the Tylenol drawer. She calmly looked at me and said, "I can't take anymore noise today. My life is filled with noise and clutter all day long. I just need our home to be a quiet sanctuary as I recover for tomorrow." I looked up and nodded, appearing to show some empathy. At that exact moment I was watching a special CNN report about our nation and what was happening in the political culture of our day. In the next room, our two daughters were occupying their time by playing their music (loudly) so that dad had to keep nudging the volume up on my remote to keep pace with the decibel level of their music. One might say, "something hit the van" at that very moment. And the challenge began!

That evening my wife and I took the challenge to eliminate television from our lives for just a month. Purpose? We wanted to see what, if any, effect that this "noise" had on our lives. And to replace television, we agreed that we would take walks around our neighborhood with our dog to simply decompress our engines.

Well...that was over a year ago. The result? IT HAS BEEN AMAZING!

Although I could write a novel on this, I just want to encourage you to explore the "noise" level around you today. There is something so valuable about solitude. It is so good for the spirit and it helps you connect on such a deeper level in your relationships.

Okay...there's my challenge. Give it a one month shot. See what happens. I think you'll be totally surprised by the results.

Posted via email from Brad Reis

My new Life Talk Series starts this weekend at WCC - and do I ever have a great start to it already: Thank you Favre!

2009-09-28T09:55:00.001-05:00

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This weekend I begin my new Life Talk Series entitled: Great Comebacks.

In all honesty, this series has nothing to do with any sporting teams, including the Vikings. However, I might be able to squeeze this video into my message just to please the many Packer fans that to attend our weekend service!

The Bible contains some incredible stories of men and women who were left for dead...only to come back again and bring glory to God's amazing plan of redemption. Who doesn't love a great comeback?

So thank you, Mr. Favre.

And to all of you cheese heads out there - see you on Monday night!

Posted via email from Brad Reis