Friday, February 26, 2016

Love Remains by Joey Kincheloe


Love Remains

 

The passion was gone when he walked out. There was nothing left to keep him there.

 

When she closed the door for the last time, the fire had died. She was off to pursue the next thing.

 

Its kinda like the day or the week after Valentines Day. The chocolate has been eaten, the flowers have wilted and the shiny new necklace has already become just another part of our wardrobe. As the bling loses its shine and the mundane once again takes over, whats left?

 

Love.

Love remains. At least, I hope it does. Love keeps me going when I want to quit. Love keeps me running when I want to stop. It keeps me coming back when all I want is to bail out. When frustration mounts and tension soars, when apathy threatens and hopelessness swallows me - love keeps me going. It remains.

 

 

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

                                      - 1st Corinthians 13:13

 

I love you for who you are. I love you for what youve done. I love you, for my life, my history and my future are tangled in you.

 

I love you because you first loved me. I love you because without you, I am hopeless. I love you because you allowed a beautiful life to be extinguished in the most terrible way for me - for all of us.

 

So what happens, Father, when my passion is gone?

What happens, my dear LORD, when the fire has died?

 

Tell me please, so that I may renew my passion for you. Guide me please, so that I may once again live and die for you. Take away my weary spirit and give me wings to fly, to fly to you.

 

 

I have loved you with an everlasting love - out of faithfulness I have drawn you close.

                                                - Jeremiah 31:3 (the VOICE)

 

I dont want to walk away - I want to come close. And as I try to come back to you - back to when I was passionate for you - I thank you that your love remains.

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

A Note from the Midwest Food Bank-John Whitaker Provided By Tom Holtz

John Whitaker is the director and founder of the Midwest Food Bank.  Unlike Gleaners, we do not have to pay for any food that we receive from them.  With their help, we were able to provide food and assistance to 1753 families and over 7025 family members from babies through elders in their nineties.  We have been with them since 2008.  John was a guest speaker at one of our Men’s Breakfast events last year.  It is a very Christ-centered organization
-Tom Holtz

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (NIV, 1 Peter 1:3)


As we enter our eighth year of operation at the Midwest Indianapolis Division, it is joy to look back at God's faithfulness and His hand of protection on the work to which He has called us. Every year is a new adventure and brings new steps of faith as we reach out to tens of thousands in Indiana who fall into the ranks of the food insecure. In the past seven years, by the grace of God, we have been able to distribute over $100 million of food and relief to our neighbors in their time of need. To break it down further this amounts to about 50 million pounds of food or 25 million tons which is the equivalent of over 35 million meals! Over the years, many have asked, how do you do it? My answer is always the same, we do it by following God's lead day by day, by following His example, and by not withholding the good we have to share with those to whom it is due as outlined in Proverbs 3:27. We do all this so that God may receive glory, honor, and praise, but as a result we, ourselves, are filled with joy as God has promised to those who obey and serve Him (Heb. 12:1-3)!

Every year is different with exciting opportunities for growth in this ministry through our donors, staff, and volunteers.   You are receiving this because you are part of what God is doing at Midwest Food Bank! Without faithfully stepping out to give, serve, and sacrifice for the glory of God, the lives of those we are called to serve would be filled with hopelessness and despair. In giving and serving you are demonstrating an unconditional love for others who through these acts of kindness are being made aware, through our faith-based agencies, of the living hope that only faith in Jesus Christ can give. Our prayer for 2016 is that God might allow us to distribute over $27 million of hope and relief to those in need in our Hoosier communities while growing our reach through new partnerships, and giving more emphasis to the rural and under-served areas of our state. Please pray for us as we seek new opportunities to do the most good!

Many things change from year to year but our hope this coming year is not based on something fading or inconsistent but in a living unchanging God and a lifetime of hope in Jesus Christ our Lord. Our staff, our board, and I wish you a joyful new year full of hope, and thank you again for your prayers, support and encouragement in 2015.


Warmly,
John Whitaker

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Do You See What I See by Lesha Colglazier


Do you see what I see?

By Lesha Colglazier

 

As many have shared at various times, how thankful they are to be a part of the Southeastern Family. I, too, share their sentiments. As the body of Christ at 6500 Southeastern Avenue, I have witnessed how this body works as each person or limb/organ functions at whatever level for God’s glory. I have experienced many things myself in my time at Southeastern and observed it as my brothers and sisters are acting great as God’s kids! J

Mike Decamp had asked me a long time ago to write something for the blog and I’ve tried to think of things over time, but nothing came – a writer’s block so to speak. But in the last year or so, as I observed, you, my siblings, on any given Sunday morning these thoughts stirred! “Do you see what I see?” The song often sang at the Christmas holiday came to mind “Do You Hear What I Hear?” which caused even more reflection about my family here. The song references seeing, hearing, knowing and listening on that special night that Jesus was born.

 

What I see –

Families by birth origin and by marriage, but greater still, siblings as God’s children!

A visitor invited to sit with someone more than once.

People I’ve known for all my life.

People I’ve been blessed to cross paths with in the last year.

Best girlfriends sitting together with their babies on their lap, while their husbands serve us in worship.

A son or daughter, whose parent had died, comforting and being concerned with their parent that is still here.

Teen friends sitting together—worshipping, some with parents that are here, some whose parents that aren’t, but still choose to be at Southeastern on their own!

Couples married a short time or a long time holding hands!

Mature couples that have years together in marriage and friendship.

A widow or widower sits with a more recently widowed brother or sister.

An elder becoming emotional in sharing thoughts is comforted by one of his spiritual brothers.

A brother or sister singing that in previous years didn’t sing.

One being comforted who has lost a loved one, by spiritual siblings whether they have experienced this type of loss or not.

Dear brothers and sisters, our siblings, that are worshiping post major surgery and/or with health challenges, cancer, etc.

A parent becoming emotional during worship with concern for their ill adult child, and their spouse reaches to hold their hand or touch them.

A father encouraging a young son, as we learn a new song, to sing along, too!

Children not sitting with their parents, but they are sitting with others that have concern for them.

A brother or sister moves to a different seat to support someone struggling emotionally or with their children.

HUGS!

 

What I hear –

Wonderful praises lifted up to our Father.

Prayers offered with thanksgiving and supplication.

A child—saying Amen at the end of a prayer.

A baby—laughing with joy or cries of sadness.

God’s word read and preached.

Plates being passed sharing communion together and sharing our blessings both here and afar.

Lots of chatter during greeting time and post worship time.

The song by Louie Armstrong, “It a Wonderful World” comes to mind too. “Friends shaking hand saying how do you do?” J

 

What I know –

Many prayers are offered in silence, as we worship, that a heart would be touched or a life would grow closer to the Lord.

We all are gifted differently, yet we are all connected.

Many of your stories--and most haven’t had an easy or perfect path, but to see you journey on in faith inspires others.

Psalm 124 – vs. 1 “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side” then the following verses list many things that could overtake us. vs. 6 “Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth.” He’s Got Us!

 

Listen to hearts growing toward God in various seasons of life. As we pray for peace everywhere! To coin Greg York, “What does done right look like?” What do you see when we come together? I challenge you to take a good look around; you might be surprised at what you can really see when you look with your heart at your siblings and those visiting. Jesus came to give us goodness and light!

 

The song “The Greatest Command” says it all. I remember being on a mission team in Guatemala and it was taught to the church there in Spanish with four part harmony, not common in Guatemala, just sing loud! As the local members sang in Spanish and the team from the US sang in English – Love one another!!! It was beautiful and truly what He wants for his children (us). So get to know your family here at Southeastern and look around when we gather and while we worship – I know if you do you too will be overwhelmed by God’s amazing love and grace for each of us He saw fit to create in His image! 

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Giving Principles by Terry Gardner

Giving Principles
By Terry Gardner

“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give.   I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.”  — C.S. Lewis

According to Bob Herndon, a number of years ago, a man asked his wife to
put all of his prized possessions in their attic, so that he could take them
with him when he died. His wife thought his request odd, but she complied.
A few years later he passed on to the next life. After the funeral she found
everything untouched in the attic. “Well!” she exclaimed. “I knew I should
have put it all in the basement!”

When we think about giving to the work of the Lord, some questions may come
to mind. First, to whom do all things belong? Second, to whom do Christians
belong? Third, what are the basic principles of giving? When we answer these
questions, then we may usefully ponder the example of John Wesley.

The Earth is the Lord’s
The Psalmist reminds us that “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness
thereof” (Psalm 24:1) Nothing belongs to us; everything belongs to God. We
brought nothing into this world and we can carry nothing out. (1 Tim 6:7).
We used to sing an old song, “this world is not my home.” Do we believe
that our citizenship is heaven or do we store up treasures on earth that
rust will corrupt and thieves will steal?

Christians belong to God … indeed we are His servants or slaves
We are not our own, if we are Christians. “For you have been bought with a
price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Cor 6:20). Like the
Macedonians we should first give ourselves to the Lord (2 Cor 8:5). We may
remember that our Master, Jesus Christ, gave up everything in heaven and on
earth that “through His poverty we might become rich” (2 Cor 8:9). Jesus
also teaches us that a servant is not above his master (Matt 10:24). In
our giving we may become like Jesus who, “though he was rich, yet for your
sake He became poor” (2 Cor 8:9).

Basic Principles
Our giving is acceptable based on our ability—“According to what one has,
not according to what he does not have” (2 Cor 8:12). We should not wait to
give until we have more to give, because God in interested in our readiness
to give what we have.

We should seek equality in giving. I do not mean that all should give
equally in either a fixed percentage (as in a “tithe” of 10 percent) or in
absolute dollars, but each Christian should give proportionally as we have
been prospered. If we load ourselves with debt by over consuming, we
demonstrate selfishness and are without excuse for not giving. No matter
the amount of our income we can render ourselves unable to give as we ought
by spending all we receive . . . and sometimes more.
As someone has said, “The trouble is that too many people are spending money
they haven't yet earned for things they don't need to impress people they
don't like.”

Covetousness is the enemy of giving. Paul (2 Cor 9:5) defines
“covetousness” as “idolatry.” The tenth commandment is, “You shall not
covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his
male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that
belongs to your neighbor” (Ex 20:17). Romans 13:9 repeats this commandment
to Christians.

If I give sparingly I will reap sparingly (2 Cor. 9:6) of spiritual
blessings here and in Heaven. Some argue that God distributes to believers
special material blessings, as he did in the Old Testament; but if so, then
why are some of the best givers poor like the widow who gave all she had
(two mites)? Some of the greatest givers are highlighted in Hebrews and
they “went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted,
ill-treated” (Heb 11:37). No one gave more than Jesus but he didn’t even
have a place to lay his head. What small value are material blessings
anyway, since I can’t take them with me?

A gift that costs us nothing is not much of a gift. David refused to give
God something that “cost him nothing” (2 Sam 24:24). How special does
someone think you are if they re-gift you?

John Wesley’s Example of Giving
The New Testament does not provide a specific amount that we are to give,
but it should lead Christians generally to be more generous . . . not less.
We give as we are prospered realizing that we are not our own and that the
earth is the Lord’s.

John Wesley was the founder of the Methodist Church. He was a great
preacher of love but there was one word that he hated. Wesley described
that word as “idle,” “non-sensensical,” “stupid,” “miserable,” “vile,” and
“diabolical.” He said it was “the very essence of hell.” A word that
obviously no Christian should ever speak . . . the exceedingly evil word was
. . . “afford.” “But I can afford it,” replied the Methodists when Wesley
preached against extravagance.

Wesley hated the word “afford” due to an embarrassing experience in his
early life. A poor young woman was cleaning Wesley’s small apartment and
shivering from the cold. Wesley reached into his pocket to give her money
to buy a coat, but he had none. He just framed some prints that were
hanging on the walls and he realized that her coat hung on the wall. Wesley
determined from then on to live only on what he truly needed and to give
everything else away.

As one of the most successful writers of his time, Wesley eventually earned
the equivalent of nearly $2,000,000 from his published work. In 1776 the
English tax collectors wrote Wesley, “We cannot doubt but you have a silver
dinning set for which you have neglected to report on your tax return.” The
tax collectors assumed that a man of Wesley’s prominence and wealth surely
had silver dinnerware. “I have two silver spoons at London and two at
Bristol,” Wesley replied. “This is all the silverware I have at present,
and I shall not buy any more while so many round me want bread.” Wesley was
giving away almost all of his earned income every year.

If I want grow better in my giving then I need to look to examples of those
who know how to give, like Wesley and the poor widow who gave but two small
coins and yet she gave all she had. I may not ever match them in their
liberality but shouldn’t that kind of giving be our goal?