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Old vs. New

January 5, 2021 / / 0 Comments

A New Year typically brings time for a reset. We start a year with goals and ideas and images of the new you that you’d like to see in the new year. But this new year I imagine is a little different. We all made plans for 2020 and most of them really didn’t pan out the way we had planned!

As we kick off 2021, we’re slowing down a bit here at Living Word and looking back to see forward. Our series in church as we kick off the new year is all about getting a fresh reset. Sometimes we reset because there’s a problem. Sometimes we reset because we just feel the need for a fresh perspective. Whatever the reason, doing a little reset is a very good way to start a brand new year.

The first stop in the reset series is to compare old verses new. There’s nothing wrong with the old. And you don’t want to move onto something new just because you are easily bored. But evaluating the benefits and drawbacks of where you’ve been will better prepare you for what adjustments you need to make moving forward.

Jesus did something similar in Mark 12. He took the people of his day back to the Old Testament so they could better see why he was there and what he was going to accomplish. Our first message in this series looks at the rules of the Old Testament then gives them a fresh perspective. Perhaps this was the original intent to start with and we missed the point all along? Perhaps the reset was needed to help bring deeper meaning to the truths they had known since long ago?

Whatever the reason, Jesus brought a hard reset to the way the first century followers of God saw life. And I think we’re due for that same reset today!

No Hold On Me

January 4, 2021 / / 0 Comments
Matty Mullins - No Hold On Me

As we begin a new year it’s time to bury the old and put on the new. The old said we weren’t enough. The old said we didn’t have what it took to thrive. The old said we’d never measure up. But what does the new say?

The bible tells us to put off the old and put on the new. To let the old ways die the pitiful death they deserve. But we are then to clothe ourselves in new things. The new things are the grace and mercy and forgiveness of God. The new says that even though the world will tell you that you’re not enough, Christ says you are His and that’s more than enough.

This week’s MusicMonday is all about reminding the old ways, reminding the devil, and reminding yourself that none of that stuff has any hold on you. Today is about losing the chains that once held you back and striving for what lies ahead.

Enjoy the first MusicMonday of 2021! Lose the chains. And live the life Christ has in store for you today!

Little Drummer Boy

December 24, 2020 / / 0 Comments
for KING & COUNTRY 'Little Drummer Boy' video goes viral

I know this song is an annual hit for me. On this Christmas Eve, I want you to know how important this song is to me. Every year for Christmas I listen to this song over and over and this version of it just takes it to a whole new level.

The song Little Drummer Boy is pretty simple and there’s not a lot to it to be honest. It started out as a song that was a little boy playing a drum and singing his simple song because that’s all he had to offer. Over time this song has been filled with a lot of extra fun stuff but the gist remains. It’s about a simple song with a crude instrument that some find annoying.

The joke in my family whenever someone has a child is that we’re going to buy that child a drum set just because you can’t turn a drum volume down and getting started it’s just a lot of pounding that makes very little sense.

But the song Little Drummer Boy reminds me a lot of who we are at Christmas time. We decorate our homes and turn on the extra lights. We make a mess while we make cookies and wrap our presents. But all of that, no matter how great you are at baking or wrapping or any of it. All of it is nothing if we don’t just play our drum.

Playing our drum means that we use the gifts God has given us to the best of our ability. We lead. We sing. We dance. We preach. We work on cars. We play sports. We paint. We love on people. Whatever it is use it. Play the drum. It may not sound like much but it’s your song. It’s the song He wants to hear from you!

So turn up the volume. Crank up the bass. And listen as these guys play with everything they have the song God gave them to play.

Breath of Heaven

December 23, 2020 / / 0 Comments
Amy Grant - Breath of Heaven: The Christmas Collection - Amazon.com Music

There are some songs that just push you over the edge. Songs without which you would have a hard time seeing the season of Christmas in its fullest. This song is probably one of my favorite songs for Christmas. But not just any version of this song. Every year on Christmas Eve at the church I serve we are gifted with this song by one of our members.

Now, you have to understand most churches can’t get Amy Grant to sing for them every Christmas. And we are one of those churches that can’t have this pop Christian singer songwriter with us in person. But what we do have is far better in my book. Susan has been with Living Word for longer than I have been here. She’s been gifted with the ability to sing like no one I’ve met. She’s one of those talented people that drive you nuts because she doesn’t need to practice and still sounds better than most people who practice all the time! I only wish I had her recorded singing this so you could enjoy it as much as I do! But if you join us for our Christmas Eve services, you will get to hear her sing. And if you’re lucky she’ll sing this song.

The song Breath of Heaven is sung from the perspective of Mary as she travels to give birth to the baby Jesus. She is in awe of her chosen status. She’s terrified to be a mom. She’s fearful of being the earthly mother to the Son of God. She needs the breath of God to breathe into and for her so that she can have peace on the very first Christmas.

I pray this very Breath of Heaven falls upon you and fills you as you prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus. May you offer to God all that you are as He fills you with all that He is.

Let It Be Christmas

December 22, 2020 / / 0 Comments
Alan Jackson - Let It Be Christmas - Amazon.com Music

Every day this week I’m going to highlight a Christmas song that is either a favorite of mine or one that’s been suggested. Today’s song is really outside of my genre of choice, but it was suggested so here you go. Let it be Christmas! Who wouldn’t want the magic of Christmas to last all year!

I mean really if you think about it something happens in most people at Christmas time. They get happier. People are more kind. We show our love more intentionally. We’re generous. We’re more together. Who wouldn’t want that?

Now before some of my Jesus following friends go too far with the whole magic of Christmas idea. No I’m not saying the magic of reindeer and jolly old Saint Nick. I’m not talking about some weird form of sacrilegious magical incantations. I’m talking about the magical way that Christmas makes us feel! So let it be Christmas!

Let is be Christmas in your home and all around the world. Let the magic of Christmas transform your sadness to joy, loneliness to the company of all the family and friends. Let it be Christmas wherever you are!

Forever Amen

December 21, 2020 / / 0 Comments
Forever Amen (Glory To God) by Michael Neale | Loop Community

Have you ever experienced one of those moments that you didn’t want to end? We call those forever moments. They happen once in a lifetime, or if you’re lucky you’ll get a few of these. They start off simple and yet something about those moments make you never want to let go. What’s your most recent forever moment?

This year as we make our final push toward Christmas, we know that things in our lives have been different to say the least. Even Christmas this year is sure to be something different than in every year past. But what would it take for this Christmas to be one of your forever moments? What would it take for you to see past the disturbing events of this year, beyond the disruption to your Christmas normal to find something truly worth holding onto this year?

Today’s MusicMonday is a new song to me but the message is important enough that we need to hear it today. Forever Amen. Christmas was God’s forever amen moment. It was the moment when everything he had promised throughout the Bible came to fulfillment. Christmas was never just about Christmas. The point of Christmas wasn’t just about a baby’s birth. It was so much bigger! It was the start of a forever moment that would be God’s gift to you and me.

Less Media

December 18, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Simply put media can suck the life out of us. I don’t mean mainstream media necessarily. I’m talking media of all sorts! From movies to tv shows and social media to games on our phones and computers these things can be colossal time sucks! And time is our most precious asset. We can’t make more of it. When we squander it, it’s gone. And we have a limited supply of it.

Be wise in how you use your media time. Today’s weekly habit is to create a system to organize and monitor how much media time you’re actually indulging in. Then setting healthy boundaries and limits on what is right for your particular situation.

Now I can hear some people saying that they’re not doing anything wrong on their devices or when they watch tv so why is it a problem? Well, think of it this way, you don’t have to be doing something wrong to be missing something good.

Practical Steps

  • Use your screen time function on your cell phone or tablet to help you see how much time you are spending on different forms of media.
  • Make a list of your go to forms of media and how much time you think is reasonable to spend on each one. Add up all the times to see how much time you’ll be giving to your technology.
  • Turn off autoplay on your video streaming devices.
  • Set timers for how long you will be on a device and stop when the timer goes off. No excuses.

Our technology is a wonderful tool and a great asset. These things can really provide the breaks in our day that we need and allow us to shift our focus to something mundane for a needed break. But they can also be a terrible waste of time that we will never get back. Be mindful of who and what you’re giving your precious time to!

Good Friend, Good Conversation!

December 15, 2020 / / 0 Comments

For the past week or so we’ve looked at four different daily habits we can start right now to help improve our outlook on life and help us manage some of the challenges we face. Now we turn to some key habits that aren’t really feasible to be done daily but more on a weekly basis. All of these eight habits in total can be started in whatever sequence you’d like. None of them are magic, but they are all things that can be very beneficial if done intentionally.

One of the greatest blessings in life is having good friends! A really good friend can be a rock to lean on when times are tough. A shoulder to cry on when sadness strikes. Someone to laugh with at the good times. Someone to sing off key with to the favorite song on the radio. And someone to just talk to who will help keep you grounded in life. That’s today’s habit actually.

Time to Talk

Having a good friend is great but making time for that friend to share your good times and bad times is really important. Today’s habit is about intentionally setting aside time to talk to a friend for about an hour a week. This can be one friend for an hour or a couple of friends for shorter times, but don’t cut these conversations too short!

Practically speaking you can do all sorts of things. You can schedule this as a time to talk face to face over coffee or supper. You can make this conversation happen while exercising. If you’re married, then you can have this weekly conversation as a couple. However it works best for you is how you should do it.

The point of this weekly conversation with a friend is to just talk and catch up on life. So take a few minutes to list out the friends who you truly value. Then set times to call them to catch up. You can talk to the same person each week or a different friend each week. Just feed your soul with a good conversation with a great friend and enjoy all this life has to offer as you do life together.

Phone Second

December 14, 2020 / / 0 Comments
The Pros and Cons of cellphones in schools – Dobie News

The final daily habit we want to take up in our creating a new daily habit series is to not grab the phone first. This is probably harder than most people realize. Unfortunately the phone has become an extension of ourselves to the point that we grab it before we grab anything else.

This isn’t a healthy scenario. Grabbing for our phone, whether it’s for work or social media or even just playing games, it sets our minds and hearts in a distracted place. When we reach for our phone to scroll our social media feeds, we are all too tempted to start comparing ourselves to the likes and shares of those around us. We don’t have teeth as straight as the perfectly polished selfie we just saw. Our tree doesn’t look nearly as nice as theirs does. We wish we could lose weight the way she did. Or be as strong as he is.

There are so many things that happen in our social media lives that are just not healthy or good. But it’s not just there either. When we roll out of bed and glance through our work emails or fiddle with our virtual games we set our minds on things that don’t provide any lasting benefit.

Instead a practical first step for us should be to grab our Bible and start each day as followers of God with a quick read through something from God’s word. It may sound cheesy or like a bit of a gimmick but it’s honestly the best way to start the day!

When we open the bible first thing in our day, we automatically set our minds to be looking for the ways that God is already at work around us. Try it for 7 days and see what happens. Let me know how it works for you. Tomorrow we’ll begin looking at some weekly habits we can start that will again be helpful in setting us up for greater success in life.

All I Need For Christmas

December 14, 2020 / / 0 Comments
All I Need For Christmas by TobyMac & Terrian on Amazon Music - Amazon.com

Trying to find newer songs for Christmas isn’t really all that easy, so when I find one I like to highlight it here. This one was brought to my attention recently and I feel it has a pretty good upbeat feel. Add to it a good message and we have a hit!

Today’s MusicMonday is about your Christmas list. What’s on your list? Do you know what you want for Christmas this year? For many our lists contain clothes or additions to our home. Some have electronics on their list while others it’s all about jewelry. Whatever is on your list perhaps there’s something better.

This year has been especially difficult for many people. We’ve all struggled in ways that we weren’t expecting to say the very least. I heard someone talking recently about their Christmas list. And it struck me that their list didn’t contain anything for themselves! They built their list around what they wanted to get everyone else. Wouldn’t it be great if we all thought like that? How much different would the world be if we focused on what we could do for others instead of what we want for ourselves!

This year as you prepare for Christmas, stop for a minute and take inventory of all the amazing things you already have in your life. Think about the many blessings and the tremendous relationships that surround you. These and so many more moments in our lives are all part of what we already have. So essentially everything we need for Christmas, we probably already have!

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