Thank you, Lord, for Dave and Sue Marsh!

As the pastor, I sometimes have the blessing and the burden of knowing certain things before they go public.  I have known since before Christmas that Dave and Sue Marsh would be leaving HBC and heading west to be nearer to their children and their grandchildren.  Since that time, there hasn’t been a day that I did not wish they would reconsider, that the Lord would change their minds, that their kids would all suddenly receive transfers back east..  When you have that long to get used to something, it doesn’t always hit you.  The early announcement of Dave’s resignation coupled with the the fact that Dave and Sue have continued to minister faithfully to our children and young families even as their departure became more imminent pushes it even further from the forefront of one’s mind. 

Last week, though, it hit.  As the work week came to an end for us in the church office, the reality set in that this week would be the last week to work with Dave in this ministry and in the church office each day.  I’m really going to miss Dave.  Truth be known, after all these years of ministry I have found that I always miss staff members, some because of how good they were at their jobs and others in spite of the frustrations they often caused the rest of us who worked with them.  Dave is a good one.

Two years ago, when his resume came across my desk for the very first time, I knew that this was a man that, at least on paper, loved the Lord and loved people.  After working day-by-day with Dave and Sue for the last year-and-eight-months, I know that it was more than just on paper.  So, I want to take a moment in a blog I seldom write to talk about the phenomenal blessing that the Marshes have been to me, my family, and this church.

On the day they arrived (we were moving out of the parsonage, and they were moving in), Cassidy (seven at the time) was just home from school and needed to do homework, but all of our furniture was already gone.  As Dave and I began to walk through the house and talk a little, Sue sat down on the floor with Cassidy and began helping her with her homework.  Here we are so many months later, and just yesterday I heard a mom talking about Sue helping her child prepare for the CRCT tests going on in the public schools this week.  From art lessons to tutoring, from summer trips to game nights here at the church, Sue Marsh has ministered so personally and lovingly to our children (yours and mine) – and I am so thankful for her and her heart for kids.  It is always great to hire a good church staff member – it is a double blessing when you hire one with a spouse like Sue, a true partner in the work. 

I hope you have had the opportunity to get to know Dave like I have.  Our children love and respect him, as do we all.  I cannot sum up in a blog what this man means to me.  He has been to me a gifted minister, a trusted colleague, and a faithful friend.  I simply have not known of a task, great or small, that Dave has not tackled with enthusiasm and a servant’s heart.  He has, as we all do in church work sometimes, kept late hours at hospitals while one of you was sick, shared in memorial services for our church family members, cooked hot dogs, moved furniture (only to move it back an hour or two later), cleaned toilets (that’s in neither of our job descriptions), prayed with children, loved broken families back to health, baptized new believers, grieved over prodigal children and prodigal parents, served the homeless, chaperoned teenagers to camp, and taught the Word of God with conviction and clarity.  For all of that, and so much more, I am grateful.  With my parents both ill and hospitalized multiple times over the last year, I have had to call on Dave to cover for me in one way or another several times.  He always cheerfully agrees to do whatever needs to be done, and then he goes above and beyond and does even more!  He has ministered to and cared for this pastor as a pastor, as well as as a friend.  God has given me a great blessing in Dave Marsh.  He is everything that I think of when I think of someone being a Christian!  His love for Jesus spills over into every single aspect of his life.  His love for his wife and children and grandchildren is matched only by the way he loves all of us, our spouses, our children, and our grandchildren.  I could go on and on…

I know I am not telling any of you anything that you did not already know about Dave and Sue.  But many of you do know and understand that in ministry we deal with difficult situations, spiritual warfare, and heartache (many times with some of you) that no one else gets to know about.  May I just add to what I’ve already said that as I look back over the last twenty months of ministry together, through many of the most difficult moments Lee Anne and I have had allies in Dave and Sue, and I know that God gave us them to weather some of these battles together.  I’m not sure I would have survived some of what the devil has thrown at me had it not been for the colleague he sent to serve alongside me. 

Thank you for being a church that believes this ministry is eternally important.  Thank you for allowing me the blessing of serving alongside such faithful men and women as have been part of our staff, past and present. 

This weekend we’ll say farewell to Dave and Sue, I refuse to believe that it is “goodbye.”  Instead, I just think that God is expanding HBC’s ministry to the Dallas, Texas, area, and we’ll celebrate across the miles all that God continues to do through Dave and Sue.  We are so blessed…  I pray they have and will feel the warmth, love, and gratitude we have for them.  I love you Mr. Dave and Mrs. Sue!

How Might Christians Respond to the Question of Homosexual Marriage?

This pastor in Texas has some very good thoughts on the way we, as Christians, approach the issue that our Supreme Court will discuss this week.  I encourage you to read it.  I’d love to know your thoughts.

http://doughankins.com/how-might-christians-respond-to-the-question-of-homosexual-marriage/

Sometimes Christians Annoy Me!

Yesterday, circumstances placed me in two different places with two different groups of people. The first was a group of people that make the claim of Christianity in their lives. I have no idea what the claim of the second group is, and I am not yet in a position with this group to inquire. However, in the group of Christians, I encountered rigid rule-keeping and the natural result of such—self-righteousness. In the second group (the ones whose religions beliefs I do not yet know), I was met with genuine interest in me, a smiling face, approachable attitude, and a sincere respect. In fact, I even got a hug from a man I did not really even know. That was his way of saying hello. The events took me back to a time in college, my freshman year, when I encountered a self-interested group of Christians in a particular campus ministry. Each was very confident in his own standing with God, in his own practice of righteousness, and his own understanding of scripture. This group, much like the one I met yesterday, lacked that thing that John talks about in John 15 when he says, “love one another as I have loved you.”

For me, one of the most frustrating things I deal with in life is people who say they know Christ yet lack the love that is characteristic of Him. I fear I fail too often to communicate to you (those of you who are Christians and those of you who are not) that I love you. I hope you know that I care deeply.

You do realize don’t you (church) that if the world loves better than we love, we lose?!?

Thoughts from Yesterday

What a great day at HBC yesterday!  You endured a history lesson on the Apostle John.  Doesn’t it draw you in to the story when you remember that we’re reading the words of the guy who touched Him, saw Him with his own eyes, and heard Him with his own hears?  Remember that our beliefs, according to John, are inextricably LINKED to how we live and love.  We’ll see more in the days ahead.

The Message is Linked to the Man!  We don’t have a message outside of proclaiming Christ.  Remember that.  Our gospel (good news) is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is a relief, I believe, for the Christian to realize that you don’t have to become bogged down with getting the message right—our message is JESUS, and our joy is bringing Him to our friends, neighbors, classmates, co-workers, and relatives.  You cannot separate the message from the person…and neither can they.  If you take JESUS to them, the MESSAGE will be clear.

Sunday’s Message

Talking about the Wrath of God is never a fun task, but it is necessary.  Paul reminds us of the reality of it in Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”  Yesterday, though time was short in the 9:00 a.m. service, we tackled this uncomfortable aspect of the Character of God.  It is only by wading into the deep waters of wrath that we can enjoy the swim in His grace.  Today, I’ll simply remind you of the truth we discovered in our time together on Sunday.

1.  God’s wrath is never impulsive.  He is only angered when anger is just and right and fair. 

2.  God’s wrath is revealed against all sin and against all sinners.  Without two elements, our sin and God’s wrath, the gospel makes no sense.  Paul goes to great lengths to make sure we understand the bad news before he ever gets around go glorying in the gospel.  We must understand what it is that we need to be saved from, God’s wrath against us for sin.

3.  We see examples of God’s wrath in the death that comes to all humans (Romans 5:15 & 16); in the events of this life that seem useless and futile, when  suffering and misery abound (Romans 8:18-21) – but suffering is allowed in “hope” of a Savior; and in the sinking degradation of the human heart (Romans 1:19-28).

4.  For the unbeliever, that hope is always present, even in experience of suffering – God’s mercy is always the undercurrent and those who see it, heart it, sense it can run to Jesus.

5.  For the believer, “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1), and “God has not destined us for wrath” (I Thessalonians 5:9).  The Christian’s experience of the wrath of God is forever altered by the cross of Jesus Christ. 

Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

(In Christ Alone, by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend)

We must not avoid or retreat from talking about the wrath of God.  For only in embracing that aspect of God’s character can we truly understand His love and tenderness toward us.

I’ll leave you with the quote I shared in the message Sunday from Dorothy Sayers:

"We have very efficiently pared the claws of the Lion of Judah, certifying Him ‘meek and mild,’ and recommended Him as a fitting household pet for pale curates and pious old ladies.”

A Little Appreciation

So, what ever happened to the pastor’s blog?  I must confess, time is short these days.  I’m going to be attempting to write more in the days ahead, but in the meanwhile, I am posting this link.  You probably never knew this about me.

http://en.tackfilm.se/?id=1269370869531RA18

An Email from A Missionary

This is an email from a friend of a friend, but I wanted to share it with you all as we think about International Missions and our Lottie Moon offering!

Merry Christmas 2009

I have returned to the thick of things in the office in these past weeks.  The overwhelming theme that continues to permeate everything that we are doing is where we can cut the budget.  Where can we find a little more money so that we are able to have funds for ministry?

My task this week was to purchase a vehicle for a new missionary family.  I planned for it last year and had budgeted enough for the task based on the value of the dollar last year.  The issue is the dollar is no longer worth as much and when converted to the local currency, I did not have enough money.  No big deal.  This is God’s domain.  He has it figured out while we stand around pondering what to do.

So, the car salesman comes in and begins to tell me about all the bells and whistles on each of the vehicles, and I permit him to go through his pitch.  When he finishes, I thank him and explain that this is the amount of money that I have to work with, and I know that your prices are higher than that, but would you be willing to negotiate?  I think the definition of car salesman is the same no matter in what culture they are found, and we began the negotiations. J

But as we completed the negotiations, the conversation turned in a spiritual direction.  It began that evening at the car dealership and continued the next day in my office.  He wants to come back from time to time to discuss “spiritual matters.”  When I completed with the car salesman, I then journeyed down to the bank to look for our funds that had been transferred and for some reason had not shown up on the books.

That conversation also took a while and was one with the beginnings of building of a relationship with an office filled with young professionals that desired to speak English.  I inquired as to whom they were able to find to speak English so that they could improve. He began to tell me how they will choose one day a week to speak only English to each other.  I suggested that I could come and speak English with them once a week if he were interested.  I enjoy telling stories, and I would be glad to come and share some stories from God’s Word with them every week.  He was thrilled, and we are going to begin this week.

But then the kicker was last night.  I had dinner with several from the travel agency with whom I work almost every day.  They are from India and were asking me so many questions about what I do.  What is my purpose for being in the country?  How are you funded?

Clearly the Lord opened that door to share His reason for me and my colleagues to be here, and then I was able to tell them about you.  You, all of the people that continue to work cooperatively to fund the Lord’s work around the world.  Because of your part, 1 car salesman heard the Gospel.  Because of your part, 5 young bank professionals will hear the Gospel in the coming weeks.  Because of your part, 3 people from India were asking what does the Baptist Mission do and heard the Gospel.  Because of your part, the truck drivers in West Africa will hear.

We are one body in Christ.  The feet are ready to go and going.  Thank you for giving to Lottie Moon so that we can continue……………………….

Merry Christmas!  I love you, Kathy