We shot this video as part of our marriage series, Love Handles: Getting a GRIP on God's Design for Marriage. It was a lot of fun to shoot! These are our good friends of ours from our small group. They were good sports to let us dump actual garbage in their bed!
I actually had this idea back in Vegas but never got around to filming it. It is based on the scripture in Hebrews 13:4 about not letting the marriage bed be "defiled."It's a funny but all-too-true picture of the garbage couples bring into the marriage but never deal with. They just try to ignore it, hoping it will go away or at least not cause too much trouble. But sooner or later, it begins to stink up the relationship until it has to be dealt with. If both will realize they both need God's grace and stop expecting each other to fulfill them, they can "take out the trash" so to speak and lay it at the foot of the cross.
Hope you enjoy it as much as we did at Church at the Ridge!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Love Handles
So we are starting a major series on marriage at Church at the Ridge this week. It's going to be awesome and there is such a dire need for it. But I created this video to promo the series and we showed it in church this past weekend. I have to tell you, I was laughing so hard when I was working on this, I almost couldn't hold the camera steady. Bill is my hero!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Zoom Out
Yesterday I found myself in a unique situation: I was sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on Highway 278 in Hiram -- and I was grateful to God to be there! I know, it sounds crazy to me, too. Normally, I would be frustrated or disappointed or even angry at the inconvenience. But there I was, sitting in horrible traffic, smiling like a fool, relieved to be there. How did this come to be? you ask.
For the past few days, our area had been pounded with relentless rain and the ground had become saturated. Creeks and rivers began to overflow their banks and spill into neighborhoods. Roads were washed out and many collapsed. Lots of folks lost houses and possessions, a few lost their lives. It was a nightmare.
I had tried to drive in to the office that morning but kept running into closed roads and washed out bridges, doubling back and detouring. Finally, it became clear that it was futile so I decided to head back home. Only I couldn't seem to get back home. Road conditions were worsening by the minute. Every route back was either blocked or submerged. Except one. Highway 278 was still open and passable and would get me back to where I needed to be. And it was clogged with traffic for miles.
I looked down and noticed that my gas gauge showed nearly empty. The fuel range indicator said I could go maybe 10 miles before I ran out of gas. I tried to fill up several times but every gas station was out of service due to the flooding. Traffic lights were out here and there and things were getting ugly. My only hope for gas and escape became Highway 278. Now if only I could make it there before I ran out of gas.
I finally found a way back on to 278 and found a gas station still open and working. I filled up and with a sigh of relief and a quick phone call home, settled in, relieved to be sitting in stop and go traffic, because at least I was going home.
You know what changed my attitude toward sitting in traffic? Perspective. As long as I believed there was another way, I wasn't willing to endure it. But when the truth of my situation became clear, not only was I willing, I was thankful! Was it fun? No, but it was necessary. How's that for some perspective.
Isn't that what we all need sometimes? A change in perspective. We think we have it bad until we see someone who has it worse. We think we know everything and our parents are stupid until we turn 40 and have kids who think they know everything and we are stupid. We need the curtains to roll back and give us a glimpse of the entire scene, not just our little corner of the stage. In video production, one way to do this is to zoom out. You start a shot focused on something close up but as you pull back and the rest of the surroundings come into view, the object that once seemed so big and significant begins to take it's proper place.
I think that may be what Paul was talking about when he told the Philippian church,
"Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others." (Phil. 2:3-4)He said, "Hey, look around you! There are other people here, too. There are other stories, other lives. It's not about you!"
He then points to Jesus as One who had every right to focus on Himself. It really was all bout Him! But look at what Paul says,
"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:5-11)
Scripture zooms the camera out further in Romans 8:
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God... And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified." (Rom. 8:18-19, 28-30)
We are destined for glory. We are to be conformed to His image. Justified. Glorified. even if it means suffering through the longer, harder, more frustrating route for now. If that is what it takes than we should be not only willing, but grateful.
God, zoom out on our lives until we see the big picture and our place in it. Give us the humility to endure whatever it takes with a thankful heart because it is producing in us "an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." (2 Cor. 4:16) Grant to us the grace to see each other through the lens of Your Spirit, and give each other the benefit of the doubt when it seems like we don't deserve it. Make us more like You, Jesus!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
I got to try out Beatles Rock Band!
Erik and I stopped by Blockbuster today and had a go at the much anticipated Beatles Rock Band game. Unfortunately, the guitar controllers weren't working, but we both played a song or two on the drums in Expert mode. It was really fun and the graphics looked great! Erik did really well on "I Feel Fine" and "Here Comes the Sun," but I stunk it up on "Can't Buy Me Love." Apparently you have to hit the pads pretty hard and dead center or it doesn't register.
Anyways, it looks to be an awesome game. Maybe Santa will notice that I've been extra good this year! :-)
Monday, August 24, 2009
Worth + ship = worship
Worship.
It's one of those church words we religious types like to throw around. We use it to describe our music. We use it to describe how the music effects us. We use it to describe the programming at our churches. In fact, we evangelicals use it so widely and so liberally that I fear the meaning is going to be lost to the church. If it is not already.
Our English word worship actually is a combination of two other words: worth, meaning the value of something and the suffix -ship, meaning to show or possess a quality, state, or condition. In other words, to declare or reveal the value of something. In essence, the word worship asks a question: What is God worth to me? And we answer that question, whether we mean to or not, by the way we live -- all day, every day, in everything we do or say or think.
Worship is not merely what we do in church, though that can be a part of it. Or not. We come in and sing love songs to Jesus, we lift our hands or close our eyes or sway, and those can be good things when we are loving Jesus from our hearts. But that's not necessarily worship. It's PRAISE, but that's not the same thing. Many of us praise without worshipping. In fact, we are not worshipping if our worship is lacking one thing: sacrifice.
Worship and sacrifice are inextricably linked in scripture. Because only by sacrificing something that costs you dearly can you ever answer the question, "What is God worth to me?" The greater the sacrifice, the deeper and more authentic the worship.
Genesis 22 tells the story of Abraham and Isaac. God promises Abraham a son in his old age and tells him that through this particular son He will make Abraham the father of a great nation, and that from this particular son all the nations of the earth will be blessed. Abraham waits for a long time for this promise to come true. And when it does, it means everything to him. And then God says the last thing any of us would expect Him to say, "“Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you." (Gen. 22:2) And according to scripture, Abraham didn't argue, didn't object, didn't complain or get angry or demand an explanation. The Bible says he obeyed.
He packed up Isaac, loaded the donkeys with fire wood, gathered a handful of servants, and took off for Mt. Moriah. Now when he gets there listen carefully to what he tells his servants:
“Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.” (emphasis mine, Gen. 22:5)
Abraham was declaring what God was worth to him:
Everything.
Because he believed God's heart was good and He was faithful, and no matter what it looked like on the surface to him or anyone else, God would keep His promise even if it meant bringing his son back from the dead. (See Heb. 12:2)
It was worth it.
And look at what God says in response:
"Now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” (Gen. 22:12)
In other words, "You are telling me how much I am worth to you, since you held back nothing from Me."
Thousands of years later, Paul would write to the church in Rome, "Present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Paul was saying, "Answer the question: 'What is God worth to you?' by offering your whole self to Him, freely, holding nothing back."
Worth-ship. What God is worth to me.
And then...
When we've answered that questions with our lives all week...
How we treat people He loves.
How we spend the resources He so generously gives us.
How we regard His precious word.
How we approach Him. Or not.
How we respond when others treat us unfairly.
Then, we can come into church,
and lift our hands,
and close our eyes,
and sing our love songs to Jesus
and really, truly, authentically PRAISE Him,
from the overflow of our worth-ship.
Special thanks to Jeff Riley who taught me this principle while serving alongside him at Hope Baptist Church in Las Vegas, NV.
It's one of those church words we religious types like to throw around. We use it to describe our music. We use it to describe how the music effects us. We use it to describe the programming at our churches. In fact, we evangelicals use it so widely and so liberally that I fear the meaning is going to be lost to the church. If it is not already.
Our English word worship actually is a combination of two other words: worth, meaning the value of something and the suffix -ship, meaning to show or possess a quality, state, or condition. In other words, to declare or reveal the value of something. In essence, the word worship asks a question: What is God worth to me? And we answer that question, whether we mean to or not, by the way we live -- all day, every day, in everything we do or say or think.
Worship is not merely what we do in church, though that can be a part of it. Or not. We come in and sing love songs to Jesus, we lift our hands or close our eyes or sway, and those can be good things when we are loving Jesus from our hearts. But that's not necessarily worship. It's PRAISE, but that's not the same thing. Many of us praise without worshipping. In fact, we are not worshipping if our worship is lacking one thing: sacrifice.
Worship and sacrifice are inextricably linked in scripture. Because only by sacrificing something that costs you dearly can you ever answer the question, "What is God worth to me?" The greater the sacrifice, the deeper and more authentic the worship.
Genesis 22 tells the story of Abraham and Isaac. God promises Abraham a son in his old age and tells him that through this particular son He will make Abraham the father of a great nation, and that from this particular son all the nations of the earth will be blessed. Abraham waits for a long time for this promise to come true. And when it does, it means everything to him. And then God says the last thing any of us would expect Him to say, "“Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you." (Gen. 22:2) And according to scripture, Abraham didn't argue, didn't object, didn't complain or get angry or demand an explanation. The Bible says he obeyed.
He packed up Isaac, loaded the donkeys with fire wood, gathered a handful of servants, and took off for Mt. Moriah. Now when he gets there listen carefully to what he tells his servants:
“Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.” (emphasis mine, Gen. 22:5)
Abraham was declaring what God was worth to him:
Everything.
Because he believed God's heart was good and He was faithful, and no matter what it looked like on the surface to him or anyone else, God would keep His promise even if it meant bringing his son back from the dead. (See Heb. 12:2)
It was worth it.
And look at what God says in response:
"Now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” (Gen. 22:12)
In other words, "You are telling me how much I am worth to you, since you held back nothing from Me."
Thousands of years later, Paul would write to the church in Rome, "Present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Paul was saying, "Answer the question: 'What is God worth to you?' by offering your whole self to Him, freely, holding nothing back."
Worth-ship. What God is worth to me.
And then...
When we've answered that questions with our lives all week...
How we treat people He loves.
How we spend the resources He so generously gives us.
How we regard His precious word.
How we approach Him. Or not.
How we respond when others treat us unfairly.
Then, we can come into church,
and lift our hands,
and close our eyes,
and sing our love songs to Jesus
and really, truly, authentically PRAISE Him,
from the overflow of our worth-ship.
Special thanks to Jeff Riley who taught me this principle while serving alongside him at Hope Baptist Church in Las Vegas, NV.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Take the long way home...
It seems like we have been driving for weeks! We are actually about a day behind schedule of what we planned due to a few unforeseen incidents. We left really late Tuesday so we only got as far as Kingman, AZ. Wednesday morning we got up and started driving toward Flagstaff when the AC went out in the Kia (our minivan). There was no way I was dragging 3 kids, a dog, and a bird through hundreds of miles of desert in July with no AC!
We're not cool enough (or rich enough!) to have an iPhone or a GPS so we did the next best thing and called back to Vegas and had our good buddy Eric Hoenigmann find us a mechanic in Flagstaff. He did and off we went.
Well, after about 3 hours of sitting around, the mechanic determined that it was a switch in our compressor and he couldn't do it. So we called the Kia dealership. They were booked through Friday so we called ahead to Albuquerque. One of the two Kia dealerships there said, "Sure, we can fit you in tomorrow. Come on in as early as you can." Great! So by this time we just rolled down the windows and toughed it to Gallup. It was actually pretty cool outside because of the higher elevation.
It was getting late and we were zonked by the time we pulled in to Gallup. Unfortunately for us, there was a junior rodeo in Gallup that weekend and EVERY room in EVERY hotel was booked. So we drove another hour and a half to Grants, New Mexico. We almost didn't get a room there because the spillover from the rodeo in Gallup had spread. But we did manage to find a pet friendly hotel with a vacancy, even though it was a dive. Unfortunately, for the second night in a row, our dog, Piper, had trouble settling down for the night. He was a little freaked at this whole different room every night thing. Finally, he settled down about 2 AM. Then at about 6 AM a dog in the next room started barking his head off! This dog was losing his mind, I'm tellin' you! I guess his owners went off to breakfast without him or something. Anyways, we only got about four hours of sleep that night.
So we get up and hoof it to Albuquereqe to meet up with the Kia guy and get the air working. We drive for about 2 and a half hours and when we find the place the uys says, "I can't see you today! We are booked into next week." Of course I didn't get the name of the idiot that told me to "come on in." So he called the other Kia dealer and they said the same thing. I pleaded my case to the guy but he wasn't budging.
By this time I was about done with Kia. I called their 1-800 customer relations number and told them how badly their customer service stunk. There response was that since my vehicle was no longer under warranty, they could not help me. I was hot!!!
Pastor Steve Whipple to the rescue. Steve, our pastor at Church at the Ridge, has been great to call and check on us every day. When I told him what was up, he immediately jumped on the computer and Googled a Kia dealer at our next stop in Amarillo, TX. I called ahead and made an appointment so they would be sure to see us.
We drove on to Amarillo and stopped for the night. It was cool most of that day but toward the end of the day it began to get warm, The next morning I took the Kia in to Nelson Bridges at Pete's Car Smart Kia. He was awesome!!! At last, some customer service! When I told him my story and how the other Kia dealers weren't willing to help us out, he just smiled and said in his Texas drawl, "That ain't how we do things in Texas." Well, yeehaw!
Nelson got us in and out before check out time at the hotel. Sure it cost us $600 but we had a LOT of miles still to cover and it wasn't going to get any cooler as we went. Only more humid! So thankfully, the trip turned around from that point and has been great since then.
As I write we are at our last stop for the trip, Tupelo, MS. We will get up tomorrow and drive into Georgia. Thanks to everyone for your prayers and encouragement. I gotta go eat pizza now so I will write mmore later. Later!
We're not cool enough (or rich enough!) to have an iPhone or a GPS so we did the next best thing and called back to Vegas and had our good buddy Eric Hoenigmann find us a mechanic in Flagstaff. He did and off we went.
Well, after about 3 hours of sitting around, the mechanic determined that it was a switch in our compressor and he couldn't do it. So we called the Kia dealership. They were booked through Friday so we called ahead to Albuquerque. One of the two Kia dealerships there said, "Sure, we can fit you in tomorrow. Come on in as early as you can." Great! So by this time we just rolled down the windows and toughed it to Gallup. It was actually pretty cool outside because of the higher elevation.
It was getting late and we were zonked by the time we pulled in to Gallup. Unfortunately for us, there was a junior rodeo in Gallup that weekend and EVERY room in EVERY hotel was booked. So we drove another hour and a half to Grants, New Mexico. We almost didn't get a room there because the spillover from the rodeo in Gallup had spread. But we did manage to find a pet friendly hotel with a vacancy, even though it was a dive. Unfortunately, for the second night in a row, our dog, Piper, had trouble settling down for the night. He was a little freaked at this whole different room every night thing. Finally, he settled down about 2 AM. Then at about 6 AM a dog in the next room started barking his head off! This dog was losing his mind, I'm tellin' you! I guess his owners went off to breakfast without him or something. Anyways, we only got about four hours of sleep that night.
So we get up and hoof it to Albuquereqe to meet up with the Kia guy and get the air working. We drive for about 2 and a half hours and when we find the place the uys says, "I can't see you today! We are booked into next week." Of course I didn't get the name of the idiot that told me to "come on in." So he called the other Kia dealer and they said the same thing. I pleaded my case to the guy but he wasn't budging.
By this time I was about done with Kia. I called their 1-800 customer relations number and told them how badly their customer service stunk. There response was that since my vehicle was no longer under warranty, they could not help me. I was hot!!!
Pastor Steve Whipple to the rescue. Steve, our pastor at Church at the Ridge, has been great to call and check on us every day. When I told him what was up, he immediately jumped on the computer and Googled a Kia dealer at our next stop in Amarillo, TX. I called ahead and made an appointment so they would be sure to see us.
We drove on to Amarillo and stopped for the night. It was cool most of that day but toward the end of the day it began to get warm, The next morning I took the Kia in to Nelson Bridges at Pete's Car Smart Kia. He was awesome!!! At last, some customer service! When I told him my story and how the other Kia dealers weren't willing to help us out, he just smiled and said in his Texas drawl, "That ain't how we do things in Texas." Well, yeehaw!
Nelson got us in and out before check out time at the hotel. Sure it cost us $600 but we had a LOT of miles still to cover and it wasn't going to get any cooler as we went. Only more humid! So thankfully, the trip turned around from that point and has been great since then.
As I write we are at our last stop for the trip, Tupelo, MS. We will get up tomorrow and drive into Georgia. Thanks to everyone for your prayers and encouragement. I gotta go eat pizza now so I will write mmore later. Later!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
The Davisons have left the building...
Well, this is it! We crammed the last piece of luggage into our overstuffed minivan late this afternoon and got the heck outta Dodge. Sure, it was about 7 hours later than we planned but we fin ally got on the road.
Our first stop was to gas up. We pulled into Sam's and who should we meet but Brad & Dominique Carlson! It was just like God to send us a last reminder that our time here was blessed with great friends and faithful allies. What an encouragement they were to a tired family!
As soon as we hit the road, my son Erik plugged in his iPod and Steven Curtis Chapman's "The Great Adventure" came on. This was a significant song for our family when we left Georgia 7 years ago to come to Vegas. He said he wanted it to be the first thing we heard pulling out to go back. Cheryl was in the other car and she called me on the cell phone. Some close friends had made us a CD of songs that they said reminded them of us. She was listening to it in the other car. "You'll never guess what the first song was!" she said. Yup. "The Great Adventure." When I told her that was the first song we heard too she said, "I think I'm going to cry! Isn't God good to give us that confirmation that we are following Him?" Yes indeed it is!
We also got a very encouraging phone call from Vance Pitman, our pastor from Hope Baptist in vegas. He called to say how much he loved and missed us and that he was praying for us. Then we talked for a while about how much Transformers 2 STINKS (did I mention that?) It was a great call and we are thankful for the encouragement.
So here we are in Best Western in Kingman, AZ. I know it's only a few hours from Vegas but it was important for us that we get on the road today. Even if it's just across the border, we are on the way! Can't wait to see all our Georgia friends again. And we are so excited for the new relationships God has for us at Church at the Ridge!
Our first stop was to gas up. We pulled into Sam's and who should we meet but Brad & Dominique Carlson! It was just like God to send us a last reminder that our time here was blessed with great friends and faithful allies. What an encouragement they were to a tired family!
As soon as we hit the road, my son Erik plugged in his iPod and Steven Curtis Chapman's "The Great Adventure" came on. This was a significant song for our family when we left Georgia 7 years ago to come to Vegas. He said he wanted it to be the first thing we heard pulling out to go back. Cheryl was in the other car and she called me on the cell phone. Some close friends had made us a CD of songs that they said reminded them of us. She was listening to it in the other car. "You'll never guess what the first song was!" she said. Yup. "The Great Adventure." When I told her that was the first song we heard too she said, "I think I'm going to cry! Isn't God good to give us that confirmation that we are following Him?" Yes indeed it is!
We also got a very encouraging phone call from Vance Pitman, our pastor from Hope Baptist in vegas. He called to say how much he loved and missed us and that he was praying for us. Then we talked for a while about how much Transformers 2 STINKS (did I mention that?) It was a great call and we are thankful for the encouragement.
So here we are in Best Western in Kingman, AZ. I know it's only a few hours from Vegas but it was important for us that we get on the road today. Even if it's just across the border, we are on the way! Can't wait to see all our Georgia friends again. And we are so excited for the new relationships God has for us at Church at the Ridge!
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