Shepherds

I know I haven’t blogged in a while, but it’s truly been a tough last couple of weeks.  Without going into detail, I ask that you guys pray for my family.  We are transitioning in a big way with our children.  They are growing up and in most ways that’s great, but in some ways it’s hard on our family who’s been so close to see some of that separation in our lives.  Oh well, I said I wasn’t going into detail.  Just pray for us through this and if the blogs are a little more scarce for a while, please understand.

I do want to say this.  We could not ask for better care from our shepherds at Creekside.  I don’t mean any slam on others when I say this, but I don’t know of a time in our ministry lives where we’ve been able to sit down with an entire eldership and just open up and spill out our hearts like we did last night.  Another interesting thing is that these men saw our need and sensed our need to pray and receive counselling before we asked for it.  They called us together to pray with us and told us that we could share as much or little as we would like about our situation and then listened as we told our story.  Following that story, they offered gentle advise with love and concern followed by prayer.  WOW!!!  What a blessing it is to be shepherded and feel confident that we will not be judged for our struggle, but loved through it.  Thank you God for our shepherds and friends in our church family.

Thank you my blog family for listening too.  You guys are wonderful–all of you!!

Really Cool Experience

Today I had a realy cool experience.  It all began last week when, at our regular monthly show (The Country Shindig), I met a man named Roger Clark.  That name may or may not mean anything to you, but it meant a lot to me.  Roger is a studio musician and back “in the day” played for several major stars. 

Anyway, at our show, he came up on stage after the show and was very kind to say the least about how the show sounded  to him.  He was so excited that he invited me to come and talk to him and his partner (who is the drummer for the group Shennedoah) about our band Showdown recording in Wishbone Sudio.  Wishbone has so much history.  Many hits and many stars have recorded there.  In fact, at one time Muscle Shoals was known as the hit recording captial of the world.  There were more hits recorded here than Nashville, and LA.  All of that has changed, but Roger, Mike and others are trying to revive the musical spirit that still exists in our area today.

I had an experience similar to today when I was a teen.  When I was sixteen years old our garage band decided to go and see if we could tour Wishbone Studios.  We ended up meeting the bass player for Lynyrd Skynyrd, who at that time were the gods of southern rock and enjoyed listening to the Muscle Shoals Horns–the premier horn section of the time in our area.  Little did I know then that not long after my 43rd birthday I would be talking about the possibility of recording there myself. 

Not much of an experience to some, but to a musician it was an awesome time. 

Be Strong and Courageous

I receive a daily email from Dr. David Jeremiah who has a broadcast that airs on local radio here in the Shoals.  This guy is a tremendous speaker.  In his email this week he shared a passage of scripture that has blessed my life today and I wanted to share it with you–my blog family. 

When Joshua was commisioned to lead the Israelites into the promised land, there was something said to him by Moses that is such and encourgement to us all in our walk with the Lord.   Here is the passage:  Deuteronomy 31:1-8 Then Moses went and spoke these words to all the Israelites: ‘I am now one hundred twenty years old, and I cannot lead you anymore. The Lord told me I would not cross the Jordan River; the Lord your God will lead you across himself. He will destroy those nations for you, and you will take over their land. Joshua will also lead you across, as the Lord has said. The Lord will do to those nations what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, when he destroyed them and their land. The Lord will give those nations to you; do to them everything I told you.  Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid of them and don’t be frightened, because the Lord your God will go with you. He will not leave you or forget you.’

Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in front of the people, ‘Be strong and brave, because you will lead these people into the land the Lord promised to give their ancestors, and help them take it as their own.  The Lord himself will go before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forget you. Don’t be afraid and don’t worry.’”

Encouraging One Another

The Christian walk is difficult at best.  Paul talks about it as a war within him in Romans 7.  Peter tells us that Satan is a roaring lion.  Then there’s the world that is constantly against anything Christian.  I don’t know about you, but I need you–every one of you to help me in my walk.  Not only you, but especially my immediate family and certainly those people with whom we worship week to week.

I never ceases to amaze me how that knowing all that we do about the adversary and the difficulty of walking with God in this present world, the first thing people do when they begin to walk away from God is to stop meeting together with the church.  They leave the one thing that can recharge their spiritual batteries as much as, or maybe more than, anything else in the world.

I believe that God has placed within us a desire to need Him more than anything else, but there is also the desire to need one another and human companionship.  He said it from the beginning–”It is not good that man should be alone.”

Hebrews tells us (Hebrews 10:24-25 NLT)  “Think of ways to encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds. {25} And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near.”    This verse has been used as a whip for so many preachers to “whip” the brethren into not missing church services.  I just want to remind us that being together is important–yes necessary–not because God will be angry at us if we miss, but we miss out on encouragement and love, both the giving of it and receiving it when we make a habit of not meeting together.

Thanks to you my blog family who is always there to encourage even when I’ve been away from the blog world for a few days.  I love you all!