(1) Act Justly; (2) Love Mercy; (3) Walk Humbly

Do you know who you are?

#1–Gotta know who I am

-The “me” I pretend to be…

-The “me” I think I should be…

-The “me” others want me to be…

-The “me” I’m afraid to be…

-The “me” I fail to be…

-The “me” I am MEANT to be…

Ephesians 2:10; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6

#2–Gotta know why I do what I do

“Search me O God”

John 5:30; 1 Thessalonians 2:4

#3–Gotta know what I want to accomplish

Luke 9:51

#4–Gotta get alone with God

Luke 5:15-16

#5–Gotta Share the Load

Mark 3:14 (1) with Him (2) Send them Out

#6–Gotta Take Time to Enjoy Life

“When your strength is gone, your joy is gone.”

“The Joy of the Lord is my strength” –Nehemiah

(1) Divert Daily; (2) W/Draw Weekly; (3) Abandon Annually

#7–Gotta Never Stop learning

Proverbs 18:15; Ecclesiastes 10:10

“What if faith, not fear, was your response to whatever you are facing?”  –Mike Breaux

DNA #1: Passionately Love Jesus

DNA #2: Ruthlessly Eliminate Ego

DNA #3: Courageously Go Against the Flow

DNA #4: Selflessly Extend Compassion

DNA #5: Unconditionally Trust God

“Will we “Unconditionally Trust God?”

John 14:1, Revelation 3:7-13; Joshua 1:9; Ephesians 6:12; 1 John 4:16-18

“To TRUST is to be absolutely convinced in the reliability of God.”

At all of our weekend services, this weekend, we will collect a disaster-relief fund for Haiti.  The organization that will receive our offering is called “Food for the Hungry” (www.fh.org).  This particular organization is Christian, is recommended by respected Christian leaders, and has very little overhead/administrative costs.  According to their website: “More than 91% of their total income, including commodities, goes to field programs,” (http://www.fh.org/who/finances).  They, in turn, will direct the money to Haitian relief as quickly as possible.

During our offering times this weekend, we are going to designate all loose change to “Food for the Hungry” as well as any designated gifts.  For instance, if you are regular contributor to Crossroads, and you give $200 every two weeks via our offering envelopes, and you would like to designate another $50 to Haiti Disaster Relief, then you would write $200 in the “current expense” box on your envelope, and $50 in the “other” box, and then include a check for $250.  However, if you are not a regular contributor to Crossroads, but you want to put a $50 bill into the offering plates, then your $50 will go to “Food for the Hungry.”.

This morning, as we were getting our oldest son ready for School, we asked him if he had his money for the book fair.  He said, “No.  I’m not going to buy that book.  I’m going to save my money for our Haiti offering at church.”  Although it is a book he’s been wanting, he decided to make a sacrifice for those in need.  At Crossroads, we do a lot to serve our broken neighbors in Joliet—and we will continue to do so—but now is the time to give basic food and water to our neighbors to the south, in Haiti.  I hope and pray that you will give with a cheerful and generous heart.

Today it occurred to me that the lost younger son (in the Parable) represents modern-day liberalism, while the lost older son represents modern-day conservatism. (Although I don’t believe that Jesus ever had American politics in mind, it’s certainly relevant to the discussion.)

The lost younger son represents self-discovery and self-expression.  The lost older son represents moral conformity.  The lost younger son represents grace and tolerance.  The lost older son represents hard work and justice.  Again, the lost younger son parallels liberalism while the lost older son parallels conservatism.

Liberalism, the lost younger son, has the right heart but the wrong rules.  Conservatism, the lost older son, has the right rules but the wrong heart.  Either way, they’re both lost.

For information (or to read) the Manhattan Declaration check out/contact: Michelle Farmer or Amy Anderson (770) 813-0000 or (770) 757-4900 cell mfarmer@demossgroup.com www.DeMossNews.com/ManhattanDeclaration

“Ramadan comes once a year

Celebrate that Allah’s here

Fasting food for thirty days

Honoring [Him] with faithful praise

Celebrate with family

Holidays for all and me”

What happened to “separation of church and state?”  It was a great clause when used by proponents  to marginalize Christianity.  But now it has been cast aside for the sake of multiculturalism and pluralism.  Call me old-fashioned, but I want to go back to the good old days when religion was kept out of the schools altogether—like, you know, last year!

Lately I’ve noticed far too much racism, bigotry and especially partisanship in the church to even call it Christian.  I am not picking on the church I lead in particular; however, I am picking on the American church in general.

Really, I’m picking on those who cannot separate their politics from their religion.  That is not to say that religion shouldn’t affect politics, it most certainly should.  Too many people, however, let their politics affect their religion (i.e. they cannot divorce their political persuasion from their interpretation of the teachings of Jesus).

Case in point: I have a Facebook Friend whose “friends” are discussing the merits of taking up arms in a bloody revolution against the US government.  These “friends” are all Bible-believing Christians (so to speak).  I know they are having a rhetorical discussion that is full of false bravado; but still, the fact that it’s an item for discussion betrays a great deal of ignorance regarding the teachings of Christ and His earliest followers.

If I sound arrogant here, I apologize; but working in a fairly-urban environment has taught me a number of humbling truths.  Of utmost importance: There are a great deal of faithful, Bible-believing Christians on either side of the political aisle.

Those who focus on justice for the unborn are generally conservative.  Those who focus on justice for the poor are generally liberal.  Those who focus on the independence-aspect of freedom are generally conservative.  Those who focus on the community-aspect of freedom are generally liberal.  Those who focus on individual morality are generally conservative.  And those who focus on social morality are generally liberal.

Ironically, and in regard to the above-mentioned issues, they all tout biblically-based, Christian principles.

One significant problem in Americanized Christianity is that the extremists on both sides would prefer to put a bullet in the head of those who disagree with them than to walk “two miles” with them; and this is surely not the way of Christ.

I’m not calling for political moderation.  Nor am I calling people to come together and just “get along.”  I’m asking Christians to study the teachings of Christ and consider: Would Jesus, in our context, be conservative or liberal; would He be capitalist or communist; would He be Republican or Democrat; would He be all-of-the-above or none-of-the-above?

Frankly, I’m not sure He’d have anything to do with any of us!

However, I also believe that we need to take spiritual inventory from time to time, as well as appreciate what the “other” viewpoints believe.  So I submit the following words from partisan filmmaker Michael Moore.  Some of his points are easily refutable.  Others are rather potent.  I’ll let you work it out in the ensuing discussion that is sure to take place.  Feel free to comment.

“Amidst all the Wall Street bad guys and corrupt members of Congress exposed in Capitalism: A Love Story, I pose a simple question in the movie: “Is capitalism a sin?” I go on to ask, “Would Jesus be a capitalist?” Would he belong to a hedge fund? Would he sell short? Would he approve of a system that has allowed the richest 1 percent to have more financial wealth than the 95 percent under them combined?

“I have come to believe that there is no getting around the fact that capitalism is opposite everything that Jesus (and Moses and Mohammed and Buddha) taught. All the great religions are clear about one thing: It is evil to take the majority of the pie and leave what’s left for everyone to fight over. Jesus said that the rich man would have a very hard time getting into heaven. He told us that we had to be our brother’s and sister’s keepers and that the riches that did exist were to be divided fairly. He said that if you failed to house the homeless and feed the hungry, you’d have a hard time finding the pin code to the pearly gates.

“I guess that’s bad news for us Americans. Here’s how we define “Blessed Are the Poor”: We now have the highest unemployment rate since 1983. There’s a foreclosure filing once every 7.5 seconds. 14,000 people every day lose their health insurance.

“At the same time, Wall Street bankers (“Blessed Are the Wealthy”?) are amassing more and more loot – and they do their best to pay little or no income tax (last year Goldman Sachs’ tax rate was a mere 1 percent!). Would Jesus approve of this? If not, why do we let such an evil system continue? It doesn’t seem you can call yourself a Capitalist and a Christian — because you cannot love your money and love your neighbor when you are denying your neighbor the ability to see a doctor just so you can have a better bottom line. That’s called “immoral” — and you are committing a sin when you benefit at the expense of others.”

Gospel According to Matt’s Opinion:  Jesus would have been neither capitalist nor socialist.  He would have been something else altogether.  What say you?

You can read Moore’s editorial in it’s entirity at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-moore/for-those-of-you-on-your_b_308948.html

“O God, be Thou exalted over my possessions.  Nothing of earth’s treasures shall seem dear unto me if only Thou art glorified in my life.

“Be Thou exalted over my friendships.  I am determined that  Thou shalt be above all, though I must stand deserted and alone in the midst of the earth.

“Be Thou exalted above my comforts.  Thought it mean the loss of bodily comforts and the carrying of heavy crosses I shall keep my vow made this day before Thee.

“Be Thou exalted over my reputation.  Make me ambitious to please Thee even if as a result I must sink into obscurity and my name be forgotten as a dream.  Rise, O Lord, into Thy proper place of honor, above my ambitions, above my likes and dislikes, above my family, my health and even my life itself.

“Let me decrease that Thou mayest increase, let me sink that Thou mayest rise above.  Ride forth upon me as Thou didst ride into Jerusalem mounted upon a the humblest little beast, a colt, the foal of an ass, and let me hear the children cry to Thee, ‘Hosanna in the highest.’”

A. W. Tozer, “Restoring the Creator-Creature Relation,” The Pursuit after God

What a potent challenge!  We need to look inward not outward to examine ourselves—not others.  What are some examination question we might ask ourselves?

1. Do I believe in one God, and one Faith, and one way to God in Jesus Christ?

2. Am I filled with the Holy Spirit of God, received in faith, at the time of my baptism?

3. Do I allow biblical values/ethics/morals to trump my own personal values/ethics/morals?

4. Do I, as a disciple of Jesus Christ, share my faith with those around me who do not know God?

5.  Am I filled with compassion, rather than judgment, when faced with suffering people in need?

6. Do I respond to suffering with generosity—serving and giving to those in need?

7. Do I love the Church, the Bride of Christ, despite her spots/blemishes/sins?  Do I believe that He is perfecting and preparing her for eternity?

8. Am I more godly and Christ-like today than I was yesterday, more this year than last year; more than I was before I met Christ?

These are just some of the questions that I might need to ask myself?  You might come up with a similar or dissimilar list of questions, but the point remains that we have a responsibility to “test/examine” ourselves to see if we “are in the faith.”