For the accuser of our brothers,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
      has been hurled down.
¹¹They overcame him
      by the blood of the Lamb
      and by the word of their  testimony;
   they did not love their lives so much
      as to shrink from death.
¹²Therefore rejoice, you heavens
      and you who dwell in them! – Rev 12

Satan is an accuser.  He stands before God and accuses followers day and night. What does he accuse me of?  Do his accusations have any merit?  When God hears his words, are there any truth that he speaks about me?  Do I give him cause to substantiate his claims? 

How can I fight against such a thing?

1.  The death of Christ on the cross

2.  My speech concerning what God has done for me

Along the way, I can take comfort in knowing . . .

¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, . . . – Rom 8:1

photo by a2gemma

²⁰Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?") ²¹When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?"

²²Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me." – Jn 2

Jesus was reinstating Peter, having conversations around breakfast, asking Peter about his love for him.  In that context, Jesus gives a foreshadowing of Peter’s life as he gets older. Peter responds by saying "What about him [John]?”  Jesus’ answer is brilliant.  "It’s not really your business, Peter.  Your business is to follow me."

You ever look around and wonder why some other people may get some breaks and you still struggle along?  Ever feel like you are getting passed over?  Feel like things are not quite as fair as they should be?  Every wonder to yourself, “What about them God, are they going to go through some tough stuff like I am?”  Maybe he would say:

"It’s not really your business.  Your business is to follow me."

photo by tipiro

(note:  evidently this guy was later sued for breech of contract)

Reminder:  This Sunday at MCC we continue the Acts series.  Bring your Bible and make sure to read through Acts 3 this week!

Sunday at MCC, we started  new series called Acts.  It’s a look at the book of Acts (brilliant title for a series, don’t you think?)  A friend e-mailed me today.  She writes, I thought today as I was sitting several rows behind you, that your body language seemed very stressed even from the back.

My response:  “Heck yes!” I am usually wound pretty tight when it comes time for the sermon.  Why?

1.  This is serious business.  I still look around and wonder why they allow the bald guy to speak about God every week.  People listen as I represent the one who created us.  I seriously don’t want to mess that up. I don’t want to mislead people or misrepresent Christ.  That is a heavy thing.  Extremely heavy.

2.  People give me their time; and that is a precious gift.  Each week a ton of people stop and listen to what I have to say (which causes even more anxiety – see #1 above).  If you are going to give me 35-40 minutes of your week, I better have something good and accurate to say.

3.  Boring people with the Bible should be outlawed.  A boring presentation of the greatest story in the world is my nightmare.

4.  I value you.  I want you to know Christ better.  I want you to give your life to something bigger than yourself.  I want you to become the person God dreams you to be.  I want to make sure that you hear the message crystal clear without me getting in the middle of it.

There is much at stake, and it makes me nervous; and I think that is OK.  When I am so comfortable that I can walk up and teach totally calm with the thought that I know everything, well, you need to make for the exits. 

That being said, I am excited (and nervous) about our Acts series.  God has been revealing some great things to us through his word.  For Sunday, read Acts 2 and come and listen to what God has to say to you.  I’ll do my best not to look a bit uptight; but I can’t make any promises!

1.  They love Jesus.  They are the real deal.  It’s not about music.  They know it and live it.

2.  Street credentials.  The list of individual accomplishments are off the chart.  Studio musicians, national and international touring experience, recording contracts, product endorsement, CD’s, and songwriting; just to name a few.

3.  They love Jesus.

4.  Justin is an amazing songwriter and the band are creative arrangers.  Think David Crowder meets Coldplay meets Matt Redman.  Puree on high for 20 seconds and serve over ice.

5.  They love Jesus.

Catch the band live at Elevate 2010 with Jars of Clay and Need to Breathe; Monday, July 5 in Martinsville, IL at 6PM. 

For an audio sample, click here.  Hope to see you in Martinsville!

1.  A ultra hip husband and wife call and invite Justin to open with some music and invite me speak at an event called “Elevate 2010”

2.  They explain that the headlining bands are Jars of Clay and Need to Breathe.

3.  They ask if we are interested.

4.  We say "Well, maybe we can make room in our schedule.”

5.  I polish up the teaching for the event.

6.  Justin puts together a band (including a bald acoustic guitar player).

7.  Justin writes some killer original tunes.

8.  The band practices like mad.

So, throw the kids and the lawn chairs in the SUV and head to Martinsville, IL (30 min West of Terre Haute on I-70).  Elevate kicks off at 6PM (Il time) on July 5. Tickets are available at the gate or on-line by clicking here.

Be sure to follow me on twitter or facebook for an inside look of the events of the day!

Note:  This is a festival-type event so bring blankets, chairs, etc (there is no seating).

⁶For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.  – 2 Tim 1

Do you ever look at someone and wish that you had the skills that they do?  Come on, be honest.  I know you do.  So do I.  I see someone who is doing what I would love to do and I think “Man, I wish I had his talent.”  One problem, their gifts belong to them, not to us. 

The good news is that we have gifts, and they are not far away.  The scripture says to fan into flame the gifts that are IN US.  You have a gift (at least one), in you.  That’s right, you.  You have gifts; in you.  Instead of looking at what others have, and feeling bad about what you don’t, fan into flame what you have.  You may feel like you have nothing, but you do.  What are you good at?  What do you enjoy?   What experiences (good and bad) have you gone through? Can you use those to help others move closer to Christ? Those gifts might be smoldering.  You may have used them in a previous season and been ignoring them now.  Why not blow some air on the embers and get the fire going again?

Forget about what others have. It’s time to get your fire going; the fire he put IN YOU.

photo by dominic’s pics

Meet Raymon.  He is waiting for a sponsor through Compassion International.  For $39 per month, Raymon can receive better nutrition, health care, education, and spiritual influence.  I have visited Compassion sites and I can tell you first-hand that your sponsorship literally changes the direction of life for kids.

Make Raymon part of your life, and change the world for one kid (and yourself).  To find out more about sponsoring Raymon, click here.

Name: Raymon Antonio Cardoza Valle (NI2420069)

Birthday:
August 30, 2005    Age: 4

Personal and Family Information:
Raymon lives with his father and his mother. At home, duties include running errands. His father is employed as a laborer and his mother maintains the home.
Soccer, playing ball games and running are Raymon’s favorite activities. In kindergarten his performance is average and he also regularly attends Bible class.
Your love and support will help Raymon to receive the assistance he needs to develop his potential. Please pray for him

Oh baby!  We may have very well saved the best for last.  Out of all the One Prayer videos I have seen, these are two of my favorites.  I am excited that MCC will hear from Chris Hodges and Herbert Cooper as we wrap up the One Prayer series.

During our 10AM gathering, Chris will bring a great message on how we can live with an unstoppable focus.  At 6PM, we will feature Herbert Cooper who will challenge us on how to make an unstoppable comeback.  These guys really fire me up and I am looking forward to Sunday.

This has been a great series for us and we are excited to partner with all of the other One Prayer churches.  To look at the One Prayer videos we used at MCC, head over to the MCC website.

This coming Sunday, June 20, MCC will hear from two outstanding preachers as part of our One Prayer series.

Steven Furtic from Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC will be teaching (via video) at our 10AM gathering.  Our 6PM gathering will feature Brian Houston, all the way from Sydney, Australia.  Brian leads an incredible movement called Hillsong.  I can’t say enough about these Pastors and the message that they will bring on Sunday. You don’t want to miss it!

Here is a look at the upcoming One Prayer schedule at MCC.

(For previous week’s One Prayer teaching, click here).

June
20
AM: Unstoppable Power: Steven Furtic, Elevation Church, Charlotte, NC
PM: Unstoppable Life: Brian Houston, Hillsong Church, Sydney, AU
27
AM:  Unstoppable Focus: Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands, Birmingham, AL
PM:  Unstoppable Comeback: Herbert Cooper, People’s Church, Oklahoma City, OK