Isabella and I were sitting in the living room tonight.  I asked her if she smelled anything and she said smoke.  We immediately started to try and find where the smell was located.  We determined it was coming from the dryer.  I turned it off.  The smell seemed to be getting stronger.  My dad told me to turn off the breaker, so I did.  I told Isabella this time of year we had to be very careful about fires.  Ironically, Chad came home from working the ballgame and announced a neighbor’s house was on fire.  Sure enough the police, fire trucks, and emergency responders were on the scene.  I can’t imagine what it would feel like to stand and watch your house burn.  We work so hard to pay our house payment, or maybe to buy new furniture, and on and on.  One of the most gut wrenching things I thought about was pictures, keep sakes, heirlooms, all the things that cannot be replaced.

 As I was thinking about all these things as we watched the emergency team work, God reminded me of this scripture:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

How hard it would be to see the things precious to you gone in a minute.  Once they have time to grieve their loss, I hope they can take comfort in the fact that the Bible tells us that God has an inheritance for us that is imperishable!  God convicted me instantly about putting this World before Him, and reminded me that only actions and deeds for the Lord would stand the test of fire.  We do not know how much time we have, so we need to spend it telling the one thing that will last forever; God’s gift of salvation.  I pray that our neighbors will recover quickly, and that God would truly show his presence in their great time of need.
 I love the following song “Not For A Moment”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08s3GKRict8

You were reaching through the storm
Walking on the water
Even when I could not see
In the middle of it all
When I thought You were a thousand miles away
Not for a moment did You forsake me
Not for a moment did You forsake me

[Chorus]
After all You are constant
After all You are only good
After all You are sovereign
Not for a moment will You forsake me
Not for a moment will You forsake me 

[Verse 2]
You were singing in the dark
Whispering Your promise
Even when I could not hear
I was held in Your arms
Carried for a thousand miles to show
Not for a moment did You forsake me

[Chorus]
And every step every breath you are there
Every tear every cry every prayer
In my hurt at my worst
When my world falls down
Not for a moment will You forsake me
Even in the dark
Even when it's hard
You will never leave me
After all

[Chorus]

Not for a moment will You forsake

This week I was asked why we should study theology? Theology is defined as “the study of the nature of God and religious belief.”  Who is it for; professors, ministers, lay people?  In trying to answer this question I came across several quotes I thought I would share with you.  Indeed Theology is everyone's responsibility to learn, without it, we have no direction.

 “Theology is all about knowing how to sing the song of redemption: to know when to shout, when to mourn, when to be silent and when to hope. But in order to enjoy the song and sing it well, we must learn the words and the music.”  (Kapic)

Redemption is the action of saving or being saved from sin.  As Christians we can definitely rejoice (shout) in the fact God has redeemed us, and called us by name. (Eph 1:3)  I will say depending on the church this may or may not be received well, but my mammal can give a “Praise the Lord” with the best of them.  It also goes on to say there will be deep times of mourning.  Life has a way of throwing many problems our way.  It may be mourning of a loved one, a relationship, a certain circumstance in our life, and on and on the list goes.  The next line says a time to be silent.  Sometimes in our life we just need to stop speaking and allow God to control our thoughts.  Last but not least is hope.  Hope is so important to us in life, without it I am not sure we could survive.  Hebrews 11:1 says Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.  Then the quote uses that tiny little word “but”.  Basically we can have comfort in all these seasons of life “but” we must learn the words and the music first.  The words are simply the Word of God, and the music the way we demonstrate the Word.  You see you can know the Words to a song, but without the knowledge of how they flow to the music they would be useless.  So is our Theology in life without demonstration.  We can know God's Word, but unless we live it out in our lives we are like words on a paper, without the majestic music that accompanies it.   Without Theology, the knowledge of God, we would be unable to have confidence in the song at all. Without studying God’s nature we would be unsure he could sustain us during difficult times, that we should rejoice because he has redeemed and set us free, or that he gives us enough hope for a lifetime.  A true Christian is able to flourish in all these conditions because they know the ending to the song.  TRevelation 21:4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” So if we are singing the song, and singing it well we must be growing in our knowledge of the Lord.

"Growing in our knowledge of God changes our view of everything else. It is not that we lose sight of all except God, but rather that we view everything in light of God and through the story of his creation and redemption." (Kapic)

The study of God should change us in such a way, that we are unable to remain the same. What would our life be like if we truly viewed everything in light of God.  I think we would have a totally different take on situations, and circumstances we are forced to deal with in life.  I think we would think twice before we made a hurtful comment, belittled someone’s idea, or took God for granted.  When we look at everything in light of God, there is no more us- simply God and all his glory.

God has chosen to give us his Word in its entirety.  He has given us more ways than ever to study it.  We have the ability to see the beginning, as well as the end of the story.  So I ask you today when we stand before the Lord; what will be our excuse for not singing his song, and singing it well?

Kapic, Kelly M. (2012-07-05). A Little Book for New Theologians: Why and How to Study Theology (Kindle Locations 147    

This month in worship we are talking about “Game Changers”.  I got this slogan from Chad.  We love football at our house, so as Chad recalculates the plays he will end the big ones with “that’s a game changer”.  So I started thinking about what a game changer would look like spiritually.   We defined Game Changer in worship as an event that totally, and radically affects someone’s life for the good.

So as we get started let me ask you a question, “Are you a game changer, or a spectator?”   You see there are people who are always willing to see a need, but few who are willing to go out and meet the need.

In 1 Samuel 25 we find a man by the name of Nabal.  Nabal was known for being a rich man with thousands of sheep and goats, but was also known for attributes of harshness, and arrogance.  David had been on the run from Saul, and ended up in the Desert of Paran, close to Nabal.  It was the time of the sheep sheering celebration. (say that three times fast)  The Bible tells us that David and his men had been providing protection for Nabal’s men as they went about their jobs.   After it was over there would be a huge celebration with great food and wine.  So in return for the protection David freely offered, he asks Nabal for food and goods for his men.  This was very common and is actually still practiced today.  When Nabal denied David’s reasonable request with words of contempt, David’s men were ordered to strap on their swords.

Have you ever witnessed an ego battle? This is exactly what is about to take place.  Two men are about to let their pride override what is best for everyone around them. Nabal is thinking how dare he assume he should get what is mine.  David is on the other side thinking how dare he not give us what he owes.  So David is literally about to march into a town and level it with 400 men.  David has been in a lot of battles for the Lord, but this one is simply for him.  Nowhere do we see God commanding him to go, but instead his flesh drawing him into battle.

Then enters Abigail into the picture.  She is unaware anything is going on until her servants bring her the message of Nabal’s insults to David.  The Bible says, “18 Abigail acted quickly. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs[b] of roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. 19 Then she told her servants, “Go on ahead; I’ll follow you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.20 As she came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, there were David and his men descending toward her, and she met them. 21 David had just said, “It’s been useless—all my watching over this fellow’s property in the wilderness so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. 22 May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!”  23 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. 24 She fell at his feet…..

Let’s stop and really visualize this in our mind.  Here is a woman who is married to a very mean, and unloving man. She has just found out he has insulted the next King to be, and her whole family is about to be destroyed.  She gathers a ridiculous amount of food together in record time, and rides as fast as she can to confront 400 men looking for a battle.  I don’t know about you, but I like her.  She is riding into what could easily be her beheading, yet she presses forward.  Immediately when she gets off the donkey she falls before David.  Notice what Abigail does neutralizes David’s anger.  She is on her face before him calling him master eleven times, and herself his servant six times.  She is defusing the situation with humility. She knows God would not want him to shed blood over someone like Nabal, so she continually reminds him of the God he serves.  She reminds me of the verse found in Proverbs "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."  Could it be that Abigail has just stopped 400 warriors in their tracks because of a kind word?  I think we easily under estimate the power of words.  It's easy to be loud, and always have the answers, but its totally different to choose a servants words.  Due to Abigail's good judgment, and kind words, she in fact stopped 400 warriors where they stood. 

I find it fascinating that only one chapter ago David spared Saul’s life after being hunted like an animal, and now he wants to destroy a whole city because of a small offense.  When left to our own we will always fail God.  I am so thankful for the Abigail’s in life that help keep us on track.  David has this to say to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. 33 May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. 34 Otherwise, as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by daybreak.”

Have you ever had an Abigail in your life?  Sometimes things are hard to hear, and we really don’t like the message, but it’s exactly what we need.  There have been times in my life I have taken offense at first to advise, but in the end it saved me so much heartache.  I am truly thankful for the Abigail’s that are willing to stand up and remind me it is about God’s plan, not my own plan.  Abigail was no doubt a “Game Changer” that saved not only her family, but David from having needless blood on his hands.  God never promises it will be easy, but that He will be with us. Are you willing to be a “Game Changer” or are you content to live on the sidelines only seeing the need, but never meeting it?  I encourage you today to get in the game!!