Tim Tebow - a man to be respected

I have a ton of respect for Tim Tebow.  His immense football talent was so often overlooked by his unapologetic confession of Jesus Christ as His Lord and Savior.  Tebow faced his critics head on by giving credit to God for the gifts that enabled him to be an athlete that accomplished so much.  He won the Heisman Trophy as the best college football player while playing at Miami and he led the Denver Broncos to an exciting playoff run in 2011.

I enjoyed reading his book, "Shaken," and copied down a couple of quotes that rang true:

"Bitterness is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die." Page 100

"The purpose of life is not to be happy.  It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well."  Page 120

God delights in us too

The delight and pleasure of God are in His beloved Son, and that is where we are too.  What is ours is His; what is His is ours.  So God delights in us too.  If our hearts would take this in, Martin Luther said, that would burst for joy into a hundred thousand pieces.  In a world that is given over to sin, death and the devil, there is one point where the delight of God dwells.  "This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased."  That is where we are in solidarity with Jesus.  With Jesus there is God's delight.  God, Christ, you - all together like one thing.

From "Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel" page 44

What moves us to cry out "Lord, have mercy?"

Only when we hear the bad news that makes us cry out, "Lord, have mercy," are we able to hear the Good News of "It is Finished!"

RJ Grunewald, "Reading Romans with Luther," page 52

Top 10 Signs That Your Pastor Enjoyed Vacation Just a Little Too Much

10) Has ushers greet all worshippers with complementary leis

9) Suggests that the apostle Paul's missionary journeys would have been so much easier with the right "maps app"

8) Encourages the congregation to tithe their frequent flyer miles

7) Wears a different souvenir t-shirt over his alb every week

6) Wants to include a can of mosquito repellent in every visitor gift bag

5) Has congregation file into the sanctuary as if boarding a flight on Southwest Airlines: "Now seating A 1-30 only"

4) Orders clergy shirts from Tommy Bahama

3) Replaces office furniture with beach chairs

2) Stops work at 4 pm each day for a Pina Colada

And the number one sign that your pastor enjoyed vacation just a little too much:

1) Keeps reminding you that is was 65 degrees where he vacationed 

Connected to God the Father

A wonderful insight from Norman Nagel:

It is only because God has come to be our Father that we can pray to Him.  Only because Christ has taken away our sins on Himself and wiped them out by His victorious death can we stand before God, forgiven, His children in Christ.  Only as we are bound to Christ can we come before God as His children, for then God sees us in Christ, wearing the garment of Christ's righteousness.  This is the key to a living connection with God our Father.  All contact, all prayer with Him must be in Christ, in the name of Jesus, that is, with faith in Him.

Isn't that good news!

From "Selected Sermons" page 139. 

Martin Luther on the law and Jesus Christ

 "To the extent we are Christians, we stand above the law and sin.  Christ is the Lord of the law.  He is present and locked in our hearts, just as a precious stone is firmly mounted in a ring.  When the law accuses us and sin terrifies us, all we need do is look at Christ.  When we have taken hold of Him in faith, we have the victory over the law, sin, death and the devil...Because Christ rules over all of these, we won't be harmed." 

From "Faith Alone" devotional, July 14

Top Ten Signs Your Church Consultant Is Off Kilter

10) Consultant believes that the church cannot gain new members by singing old hymns and songs; forbids the band to play any song written before 2005.

9) Consultant has pastor begin each sermon with a joke "just like Joel Osteen."

8) Consultant creates outrage in the congregation by cancelling the coffee and donut hour and installing vending machines.

7) "If you follow my plan, work my plan and don't deviate from my plan, I guarantee that I will fill up this church with new members.  With God's help, of course."

6) Consultant instructs the pastor to always be smiling to project warmth during the service; this becomes especially off-putting during confession and absolution.

5) To increase attendance, consultant creates "Bring your Pet to Church Sunday" which infuriates the custodian on Monday.

4) Consultant urges the church to focus on the important 18-34 demographic group of soccer dads with 2 and 1/2 children who drink microbrews and make less than $30,000 a year.

3) Consultant recommends a new way to increase attendance: let guests and visitors take money out of the collection plate.

2) Consultant replaces small group ministry with a "smaller group ministry" consisting of one person or less per group.

And the number one sign that your Church Growth Consultant is off-kilter is:

1) Consultant suggests that the pastor change his name to "Max Lucado."