Photo That Captures 1 Billion Of The Milky Way's Stars.

This image is a zoomed-in detail from a larger photo that captures 1 billion of the Milky Way's stars.

I hope the photo came through on the blog but if not here's the link click here.

Psalm 8
For the director of music. According to gittith. A psalm of David.
1 O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
2 From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
5 You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
7 all flocks and herds,
and the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

For once I'm speechless, in awe and wonder,

Joe

I Am Witness.

Coming off D-now weekend has been a joy. I, admittedly, took a small coma Sunday afternoon to recover from the weekend, but it was absolutely worth it.
Our theme for the weekend was: "I Am Witness". On the first night the speaker posed am interesting question: "If I had been watching you from the beginning of the school year, without your knowing, what could I observe about God based on how you live your life."

Now, maybe you aren't in school but that's still a good question.
How do I act when I think no one's watching? When I'm with that other group of friends who may not be strong Christians?

As followers of Christ, everything we do is a reflection of Him because we have chosen to be affiliated with God and all the wonderful things He represents. But how do you live a lifestyle (even when no one's looking) that reflects Christ?

How do you live a Holy life?
That's the question I asked my group and myself.

How we live our lives can be a testimony in itself.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
-Matthew 28:19-20

I Am Witness
Hailey

Two Enemy's We All Have In Common.

I know that many of us relate to sports.
We know the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat."
Some of us would say, we live and die with our team.

That same language is used in scripture.
All of us struggle with two formidable enemies.........sin and death.

Romans 6:23a
For the wages of sin is death,

There is only one person who can defeat our arch enemies.
He is spoken about in 1 Corinthians 15

“Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

John 1:29
Jesus the Lamb of God
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

You see Easter is Victory Day.
The day we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, is also the day we celebrate the victory He gives us over sin and death. That is a championship party none of us want to miss.

Because Christ lives, so shall we.

This Easter we will sing I Will Rise, here are the lyrics to that powerful song.


There's a peace I've come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There's an anchor for my soul
I can say "It is well"

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

There's a day that's drawing near
When this darkness breaks to light
And the shadows disappear
And my faith shall be my eyes

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

And I hear the voice of many angels sing,
"Worthy is the Lamb"
And I hear the cry of every longing heart,
"Worthy is the Lamb"
[x2]

[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

See you at the Victory Celebration,

Joe

Chasing The Wind.

I was very moved as well by Stuart Rothberg's testimony on Sunday. His story was one of a man desperately seeking life everywhere but Jesus. He sought life through education and degrees...nothing...He sought life in finding a girl....nothing....He sought life in pleasure and alcohol....still nothing....He sought life in a yoga commune....empty and nothing. He searched and searched and searched and discovered, like Solomon, that it was just like 'chasing the wind'.

Ecclesiastes is a poweful book that traces the quest of Solomon to try and find meaning in life and something to truly satisfy his wandering heart. He was a king, and so he had the resources to exhaust every option from pleasure to work to accomplishments to women and on and on. Check out his conclusion here in Chapter 2 that says, '10 Anything I wanted, I took. I did not restrain myself from any joy. I even found great pleasure in hard work, an additional reward for all my labors. 11 But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless. It was like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.'

Stuart's testimony that parallels Solomon's reminded me that we truly have a 'God-shaped' void in our life that can ONLY be filled by Jesus Christ. Finally, one day, Stuart met a Christian that he truly saw something different in. He was so moved by this man that he picked up a Bible and read it from cover to cover. He said the one verse that just jumped off the pages for him was John 10:10b that says, 'I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.' Let us praise God that we have found the answer to our restless hearts....JESUS. Let us also hold out Jesus to the world around us that is still searching.

In Jesus,
Brian

Ask God For A Life That Begs A Question.

Today as Stuart Rothberg, Teaching Pastor at Sagemont Church, shared his powerful testimony, I was struck by his final challenge. He said that we should ask God for a life that was so full of peace, so full of joy, so winsome, that family, friends, and acquaintances would ask, what makes you tick? Why are you so different?

I loved how Stuart's mom recognized that his life had changed so dramatically. Stuart is home for the holidays, seeing his family for the first time since he believed in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

And how is it his mother can tell he is radically changed?
He takes out the trash without being asked to do it.
This had never happened.
Suddenly, he served not out of obligation or duty, but from the Holy Spirit giving him a heart that puts the needs of others ahead of his own.

So taking out the trash became an act of worship, an act of love and caring, an act of giving preference to others needs before ones own.
And that was so radically different, it begged the question, what has brought about such a change?

So through this one simple. selfless act, he was able to share the gospel with his family. resulting in his mother, an orthodox jew professing Jesus as her Lord within a week.

So how can our lives beg a question?

Galatians 5:22
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

And what does that fruit look like to a family member?
When we put their needs ahead of our own.

Excuse me, I have to take out the trash.

Joe

P.S. If you missed today's message go online to gostonebridge.com later this week and listen. You'll be greatly touched and encouraged.

How To Get Out Of Bed In The Morning.

Today I met a lady named Frances at the Food Pantry. She is a lady that has worked 16 years as a custodian in the school systems around here. Her husband has become disabled so she is the bread-winner for her family right now. She had just recently thought she was having a heart-attack and is still undergoing some tests that also include a potential cancer diagnosis. With rising gas prices she told me that she literally had to collect cans and turn them in for some gas money to be able to run errands and get to work.

I was talking with Tiffany Ray, the director of the SB Food Pantry, and she was saying that all the time she sees people in these types of situations and many of them still find hope and the ability to smile. These people get up and out of bed each and every day and face their dreary outward circumstances with a confidence that only Jesus can truly provide. Everyone of us is at a different place right now when it comes to our outward circumstances. There are those mornings that I feel overwhelmed and I just don't want to get up out of bed and face the day ahead. Yet, when I decide to get out from the covers and just put one foot in front of the other, I discover that Jesus gives me a strength and a power that I couldn't see when I was wallowing in my bed. The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians about the secret of being content in any circumstance. He says it in Philippians 4:13....'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.'

So when you feel like you just can't do it today, Think about Frances and then look to Jesus and receive the strength to put one foot in front of the other.

In His strength,

Brian

D-Now.

All this week, and much of last week, my mind has been consumed with the upcoming D-Now weekend that is going on with the youth this weekend.
It has been many years since I was able to go but I will always remember D-Not weekend as an awesome experience. It was a chance to connect more completely with my peers, be that my class or the entire youth program.

For those of you unfamiliar with D-Now it is a weekend for the youth that hosts a speaker and a band and a lot of community. Kids get to know each other, their leaders, and most importantly,; they get to know Christ. D-Now mixes unity with a group, healthy competition that remains Christ honoring, but it takes the time to demolish that so that everyone can come together to worship and learn together.

When I was in the youth it was always a highlight of my year. It didn't matter if I had to come late because of school functions, I made it there late because I knew what this weekend had in store. A weekend of unity and closeness Christ that I never wanted to end.

But like all retreats, they must come to an end.

My plea is that you will all join me in praying that all the leaders, myself included, will be the best leaders that God would have us to be. That we will teach the message he would have us deliver. That, most importantly, you would pray that these amazing young men and women leave this weekend with a lasting impression of Christ and an ever deepening desire to seek Him and live out Christ's word in their lives.

I Am Witness
Hailey

Need A Lawyer?

I have always loved courtroom drama. I guess I got hooked by Perry Mason.
I loved how he never lost.
When it seemed like a hopeless case,
and no one believed the defendant had a chance,
He would be their advocate.
He would speak in their defense.
Out would ring the verdict, not guilty or case dismissed.

We have such a lawyer. He is our advocate.
We were hopeless.
We stood accused.
No one would take our case.
But He faced our accuser.
He spoke in our defense.
He stood before the Judge.
He found the only possible defense that could set us free.

In the first letter of John the second chapter, the disciple Jesus' loved wrote,

"My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin.

But if anybody does sin,
we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense –
Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.

2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins,
and not only for ours
but also for the sins of the whole world."

We have an Advocate, a Defender, a full time Counselor,

And He has never lost a case.

Joe

Be Grace.

Ephesians 2:8-9 says "8 For by grace you have been saved through faith ; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God ; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." What a foundational and important truth for us to grasp as believers. Yet, so many people that attend church religiously STILL think that we EARN it. Have you pondered this question before, 'What if I died today and was standing at God's throne of judgment and He asked me, 'why should I be allowed into His heaven?' Alarmingly I hear something to this effect alot, 'I have attended church and read my Bible and been a good person...'

If that really was it then why the cross? Why would God's perfect Son suffer beyond imagination? Why? There is only one reason. He did it to make Ephesians 2:8-9 a reality. He took on the punishment that we deserved and by grace He saved us because we were DEAD in our sins and couldn't save ourselves...No way and no how....I have known this truth in my head for a long time now but I still think that I have to earn it. This 'works' based righteousness still daily creeps back into my mind and heart. I have pasted the lyrics to a Shane and Shane song called 'Saved by Grace'. I love the bridge where he is saying, I can't say it enough, or play it enough or sing it enough. It's true. So no matter how long you've known this basic truth, I challenge you to remind yourself once again today that it is by GRACE that you are saved.

In Christ,

Brian

'Saved by Grace'

Just a singin' a gospel song today
Get ready to send the years
Of guilt and shame away
The years of failing
The years of nailing up yourself
To a cross you can't bear
That's why He was there

What a beautiful day
When He washed all our sins away
What a beautiful day

By grace you have been saved
By grace you have been saved
By grace you have been saved
by grace through faith
Through faith

Even the faith I have to sing
Halle, Halle, hallelujah to my King
It's feely given
That i might not boast in myself but Him

Can't sing it enough
Say it enough
Play it enough
When will I get it
I can't earn it
And no I dn't deserve
Can't say it enough

Today I Baptized One Of My Favorite People.

Tischa Van de Reep is one of my favorite people and today she was baptized in our slightly chilly baptism pool.

First let me say that the pool is usually very warm, but the heat pump malfunctioned and so the waters were a little cooler than normal.
I felt bad about the water because Tischa is originally from Trinidad, so warm water is much more to her liking.

But in spite of the cool water it was a special day for many reasons.
Tischa's parent's were in visiting from Trinidad.
She was surrounded by her beautiful family, her husband Harald, (not a typo, the name is Dutch) and their two handsome young sons.

Baptizing someone is a great joy and privilege. And It is full of meaning.

Baptism is a symbol of the Resurrection.
"We are buried with Christ and rise to walk in newness of life." is often spoken as someone is baptized.

It is a symbol of unity.
"one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:5.6

It is a public declaration of our love and devotion to Christ. So all those gathered were blessed by Tischa making a public profession of Christ. As she came up out of the water, her joy was evident as she radiated God's love and grace in her life.

But that's no surprise.

You see Tischa does that every Sunday. She sits on the second row.
And as she told me in her elegant and musical Trinidadian accent, " I may not be the greatest singer, but I will dance before the Lord in worship."

And dance she does, to the delight of her Heavenly Father and to the great encouragement of all who are helping to lead worship.

While we sing, she dances.

Her joy and freedom in the Lord. help throw off any bit of self consciousness I or the praise team might be struggling with.

And so the worship of our Great God is fuller and less inhibited, in part because of the encouragement we receive from our dear sister from Trinidad.

And that is why Tischa is one of my favorite people.

Joe

Loving God With Our Minds.

Our Creative Arts team has been reading through a book entitled 'Worship Matters' by Bob Kauflin. One of the chapters in the book dealt with the mind of the worshiper. For some people, there is a fear of reading, learning, and studying when it comes to theology, or the study of God. The reality is, though, that true worship is loving God with our heart, soul, mind and strength. There are many in the church today who never really study their Bible or read a challenging theological book that expands their thinking about God. I remember in college a guy named John Gunter took me and three other guys under his wing and challenged us to all read a book together called 'The Attributes of God' by Arthur W Pink. That booked took my worship and understanding and awe of God to a whole new level.

One of the take-aways for me from the book was the chapter on 'the Wrath of God.' After reading that chapter I understood what Jesus did on the cross for me in a whole new level of depth. I used to always just see the cross as an expression of love but what I hadn't really understood was that the cross was equally an expression of justice. I used to think that the cross was horrific purely because of the physical pain that Jesus experienced but perhaps the worst pain was drinking the cup of God's wrath for all sin. I remember that year, after reading that book, coming back from Florida. I stopped on the side of the road by a little church with three crosses. I got out of my car and just kneeled down in front of those crosses. I was overwhelmed in a whole new way at the price that was paid for me. What was it like for the Son of God, who had always known perfect love in the perfect community of the trinity, to be transformed into the object of God's perfect and complete wrath and for the Son of God to cry out from the cross, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken me!'

So I challenge you today, to read, to study, to dig deep into the wondeful and awesome truths about our God! Don't run from knowledge but pursue it like silver. Delve into the depths of our faith and I believe that your worship of Christ will be more rich and passionate than ever!

in Christ,

Brian

Broken Bits, and Whole Bits.

Find You on My Knees

Trouble's chasing me again
breaking down my best defense
I'm looking
God, I'm looking for You

Weary just won't let me rest
Fear is filling up my head
I'm longing
God, I'm longing for You

But I will find You in the place I'm in
Find you when I'm at my end
Find you when there's nothing left of me
to offer you, except for brokenness
You lift me up
You never leave me thirsty
When I am weak
When I am lost and searching
I'll find you on my knees

So what if sorrow shakes my faith
and what if heartache still remains
I'll trust
My God, I"ll trust You
'Cause You are faithful

And I will find You in the place I'm in
Find you when I'm at my end
Find you when there's nothing left of me
to offer you, except for brokenness
You lift me up
You never leave me thirsty
When I am weak
When I am lost and searching
I'll find you on my knees


These are a large chunk of the lyrics of "Find You on My Knees" by Kari Jobe on her most recent album.

On Tuesday I became a very proud Second cousin (thanks to the genealogical clarification of a few friends of mine). My cousin's wife gave birth to a beautiful little baby girl. It was a beautiful moment/ several hours. The birth of a new baby inspires many prayers and a wonderful awe of God and all His creation. But, when related to this song, I'm reminded that we lean on God in not just moments of beautiful dependance, but also in broken surrender.

Life has mountains and valleys. I've just experience a beautiful mountain that is still glowing in His beautiful mercy. But this song, and a swift moment of prayer for safe delivery, remind me that we still have moments of dependance as well.

Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

All our hearts.
Even the broken bits.

Hailey

Lay Your Heavy Burden Down, Down....

Matthew 11:30
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Sometimes when I read this verse, I think, .........so am I experiencing that?

If not, why not?

So as I think about these words, "my yoke is easy" I ask myself why?
Why is Jesus' yoke easy?

I mean Jesus often talks about how His way is the narrow way, how his followers will drink from the same cup as He will. This being a foretelling of His and their suffering and death.

So why does Jesus describe His yoke as easy?

There is only one reason.

That reason is because we are yoked to Jesus.

I often get too quickly focused on how big the load is, and I forget that I'm not asked to carry it alone.

Also Jesus, my burden bearer, has removed my greatest weight.
Because of His sacrifice, I no longer carry the burden of sin.
My guilt and shame have been removed.
Death is conquered. And now hope has come.

So if your co-labor with Christ has become a burden?
Ask yourself a few questions.
Am I trying to do Jesus' work without Jesus?
Am I doing the work He called me to, a work of the Kingdom?
Am I still carrying the guilt of my sin?

I would say to all of us, lay your heavy burden down.

Learn of Jesus.
His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Good words for Spring Break,

Joe

Waves of Joy.

I truly never realized how much I would learn from being a Dad and getting to watch my kids just be kids. We are currently hanging out in Corpus Christi on a little get away for a couple of days and visiting my 91 year old grandfather (who owns an iphone and ipad and is quite handy on them). Today we experienced the Texas aquarium and then attempted to work our way over to Padre Island to experience the beach and the Gulf of Mexico. We accidentally took about a 45 minute detour as I turned one road too soon and my family and I got stuck in the middle of a sea of thousands of high school and college students in full party mode for miles. That was an interesting experience I guess you could say.

Anyway, we eventually made our way to a little more family friendly beach called Mustang Island. The last time we went to the beach my kids mainly hung out and played in the sand and weren't really sure about the whole ocean deal. This time, though, was completely different. Immediately, they ran out into the very choppy surf (which was quite chilly by the way) and just couldn't get enough of it. They would wait for the wave to come and then they would run towards it, jump and get knocked over on their back side. The best part was that at the precise moment the wave would knock them over they would just unleash complete and uninhibited squeals and giggles of pure delight. We were on a pretty tight schedule but I just could not shorten this little moment. I was just taking in the sight of such complete joy and laughter on both of their faces.

I was thinking about verse 11 of Psalm 16 that says, 'Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; In Thy presence is fullness of joy; In Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.' Perhaps I got a little sneak peak today of our faces one day when we will fully be in the presence of Jesus and our joy will be full and we will giggle in pure delight and just be knocked on our feet by the overwhelming love and peace and life that will be ours for eternity. May His joy be your strength today!


in Christ,

Brian

Gimme a Break!!!

So I began spring break with a laid back Saturday, then a wonderful Sunday morning of worship with my spring forward StoneBridge family.

After that Jane and I took off to Denton Bible Church, braving the rainy driving conditions, to join our son Andrew as he led the evening worship, with Tommy Nelson teaching.

After an awesome hour and a half service, we headed to Rudy's for a late dinner.

After eating nearly a half a chicken, cole slaw, Barbeque beans and washing it down with some fresh brewed sweet southern iced tea and topping it off with some banana pudding, we headed back to the hotel to crash. I was in a sugar coma, lights out, just ready to sleep it off when the Holy Spirit whispered, "you need to get up and write your Devo.

My first thought was Gimme a Break!!!

It strikes me as funny and a bit ironic that after a full weekend of unbelievable blessing from God in my life, that I could first forget and then resist writing a few sentences of Christ centered thanks. But I did....resist that is.

But as I write, I am reminded that in spite of my own sometimes roller coaster mood swings and energy deficits, God is faithful. His mercies are new every morning.

And while I always look forward to a much needed vacation, Our Great God doesn't take a Spring break.

He just makes sure that the one I take not only recharges me physically and emotionally, but He fills my soul as well.

"Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to thee, How Great Thou Art, How Great Thou Art"

Getting Better Than I Deserve,

Joe

Many Parts, One Body.

Earlier this week I was having lunch with my daughter and some of her second grade friends. One of the girls sitting next to me mentioned that she was collecting cans and turning them into the Conroe animal shelter to help raise money to rescue animals. The next thing I know about 5 of the kids all around me are talking a mile a minute about how they could all pitch in to help raise more and more money. Here's a sampling of some of the ideas they were throwing out there: 'I will bring a box to store all the cans.' 'We can print off pictures of all of our animals to decorate the box.' 'I can bring some paper from home to help decorate.' 'I will make a webpage' (not kidding). And the ideas kept on coming.

As I sat back and observed this humorous little interaction erupting all around me, it occurred to me that each kid was really passionate about wanting to help animals. What also struck me, was that each kid had a different ability or skill that they wanted to use to help the effort succeed. You had the communications people, the marketing people, the graphics people, the strategists, etc. all pitching in their efforts. I was thinking about Romans 12 where it says, ' 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others. 6 God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. 7 If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.'

So just like this group of second graders, it begins with a passion in our heart to make a difference. As believers, that passion is to know Christ and make Him known. It takes every member of the body discovering their God-given gifts and using them for God's glory and His kingdom work. So whatever your gift is, I challenge you to step out there and begin using it today!

in Christ,

Brian

Letting Go.

I've been listening to Todd Agnew's new CD all week and I've decided that "Letting Go" is my favorite.
It's a simple song that takes the classic hymn "I Surrender All" (another favorite song of mine) and makes it a bit more modern while adding a different chorus that dives a little more into the mental struggle that we experience.
Relating this song to Me, Myself, & Lies was very easy. We're talking about taking captive every thought we have and claiming it for Christ which isn't easy because it takes real commitment and discipline to police your thoughts constantly, but what a reward we will reap! Many of the thoughts that we can end up focusing on are worries and discouraging things that bring us down. If we focus our thoughts on heaven and the words and wonders of God, we become radiant and filled with a new life; His life.

Here's the chorus to Todd's song Letting Go:

So I'm letting go
of the chains that are holding me down
I'm letting go
of the lies that I believe
I'm letting go
of the shame I let define this hurting heart of mine

When I let go of my life
You give me yours
So I'm letting go

Hailey

She Cares, So I care.

I care about inner city kids. I believe that they deserve to be taught, lead and loved. Not only do I believe that, but I have and will continue to invest my time going to the inner city schools to support students. I will accompany them on field trips, attend their music concerts, clinic their choirs and help with fund raisers

So why do I care so much about Inner city kids? Well, because the person I love the most in this world works inside the loop teaching middle schoolers choral music. For the last eight years my wife Jane has commuted down the Hardy toll road to pour her love into nearly 200 students through the choral arts.

I care because she cares. Her heart is touched, so my heart is touched. If she is excited about the success of a student, then I celebrate. If she is hurt because of a difficult situation involving a student, together we share that burden.

I'm pretty sure if it weren't for my wife, my caring for these students wouldn't be nearly as great. It's not that I don't have a heart of compassion, it's just that this has come into my life because I love her.

In John 21:15 Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. Peter answered three times that yes he did love Jesus. Each time Jesus said, then feed my lambs, take care of my sheep.

Jesus is clearly saying that if we love him we will care. We will care for people that he loves. Though our relationship with Jesus we will come to care for people that we might otherwise have little concern for. But because we love Jesus we will find it in our hearts to feed the hungry, help the homeless, care for the sick, visit the prisoner, and care for the widow and orphan. And it won't just be out of duty or obligation. If it breaks Jesus heart, then it will break ours.

Because He cares we care,

Joe

Matthew 25:35-40
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. ’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you? ’
40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me. ’

Be Hospitable.

On Sunday, some of our small group leaders gathered together for a meeting. One of the topics we discussed was the art of hospitality and how this was a critical trait in being a good small group leader. As we went around the room some of the characteristics that we felt like described a welcoming home were food, feeling comfortable, good handshakes, humor, welcoming, people knowing your name (sounds like 'Cheers'), sharing, and being real with each other. In 1 Peter chapter 4 it says, 'Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.'

I think hospitality is the practical application of loving people. It's not about the house, or the furniture or the decor but rather it's about the spirit of the host. If someone is genuinely glad you are there and engaged in knowing you and making you feel at home, then you want to stay there all day. As we meet people in general, are we welcoming and real? Do we help create an environment where people can truly be themselves? Do we like people and genuinely and practically care for them? As Christians, showing this kind of hospitality to our friends, neighbors and new people creates an environment where people can experience the practical love of Jesus and perhaps some may even give their lives to Him.

in Christ,

Brian

Story Behind The Song: You Are Good by Todd Agnew.

(I thought the StoneBridge family might enjoy knowing more about the song Todd lead for today's communion. I encourage you to go to toddagnew.com to read other blogs and to stay informed of concerts and conferences. Together in grace, Joe.)

It was Wednesday. I was preparing to lead worship at my church here in Austin for the first time on the upcoming Sunday. I got a phone call informing me that there would be communion in the service. So I went to look up what communion songs we did at this church and found none. Then I went to see what communion songs there were in the world at large and found 3. Okay, maybe not 3 exactly, but I did enough research to find that there is a severe shortage of worship songs about communion. The only song that jumped out at me was “In Remembrance of Me” which we sang at my church as a kid every single time we took communion for almost 2 decades. So I decided to try to write one.

And write one I did. Now if you’re not a songwriter, you may not know this fact. Every songwriter thinks the song they just wrote is the greatest song they’ve ever written, possibly the greatest song anyone has ever written. So over the years, I’ve grown to understand that when I have a new song, I have NO idea if it’s any good or not. This time, it needed to fulfill a function and I thought it could at least do that.

So I played it on Sunday. And honestly I thought that would be it. When I was called to lead again a couple of months later, I had no intention on bringing that song back. But one of our teaching pastors immediately asked, “Are you going to do the sweeter than wine song?” I told him I hadn’t planned on it, and he informed me that I should be planning on it now. So I did.

And so, a song that I had no confidence in, no plan for, became one of the songs of our church. Because there is some inherent value in lifting up the goodness of God. It’s a simple song. There is no theological brilliance, no melodic pinnacle acheived. It’s just “God Is So Good” for grown-ups. And I think there’s some real value in that. Even if I didn’t recognize it at first.

So thanks to Jeff Mangum for seeing the value in a song. Thanks to the Stone for worshipping with me. And thanks to my friend Ted Dekker for one of our very strange conversations that inspired a bit of the lyric.

Thoughts?

Todd

Just Right.

My friend was talking to me yesterday about a movie he had seen called 'The Good Earth' based on a novel written in the 1930's. The movie takes place in China and depicts a poor family that depended directly on the harvest of their land to live year by year. At one point a hail storm comes and totally destroys their wheat crop thus leaving them no food for the winter. They attempt to obtain a small field of rice but a famine from the north spreads down to them and so they are forced to move to the city to try and survive and find work. Their abject poverty causes them to steal and do things out of desperation. Later on in the story, the wife steals some precious jewels that they are able to sell for a large sum of money. They take the money and become quite propserous. However, the prosperity ends up nearly breaking up their marriage and causing much heartache in their life.

This story reminds me of a great little passage from Proverbs 30. Check out what it says in verses 7-9:

7 "Two things I ask of you, O LORD; do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. 9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

Truly, this story and these verses remind me to pray the prayer Jesus taught us to pray, 'Give us this day our daily bread.' Every day people are ruined by poverty and are equally ruined by riches and prosperity. Only our heavenly Father knows what we can truly handle. Their is a blessing in having 'enough' (not too little and not too much). Let's depend on His provision and His timing today and be content in Him!

in Christ,

Brian

The Distance Between Your Head and Your Heart.

When God decides to make a point in your life, He has a way of conveniently placing His message for you in everything you're involved in. Passing conversation, a discussion between friends perfectly matching up with a message you've received and whatever else He can think of.
Right now it seems to me that God is, decidedly, going to teach me about that distance between our heart and our head (I fantastic illustration I received from Brian Dunn just the other day).
If you go look in a mirror and measure the actual distance from your heart to your head you would say that it is a pretty short distance when compared to just about everything else. A very short physical distance. But the core of our hearts and the thoughts in our mind can be, at times, miles apart.
I just began a Bible Study, called "Me, Myself and Lies", about giving your "thought closet" a little Spring Cleaning. The woman who wrote this particular study gave her testimony about how she had, due to personal health reasons, unintentionally conditioned her own brain to make some very mean quips and derogatory comments about herself all through the day. She is a Christ filled woman, now and even in those times, but she couldn't help but cry out to God for help because her heart loved Him but the thoughts in her own mind were out of control and just tearing her apart.
I took special note of this line, "We have the potential of saying things to ourselves that we would never say to anyone else," because we truly do reserve our most harsh criticisms for ourselves.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our Design Team read through the second chapter of "Worship Matters" where the author, Bob Kauflin, talks about really getting his heart in line with God because he found himself, in the position of an experienced worship pastor, seeking approval and validation in what others thought of him and how worship had gone that day. There was never a question about his love for God but his silly human mind was trying to make him seek value in what other people's opinions.

Our society can present us with standards and goals that are simply not feasible; unrealistic body images, ridiculous aspirations for everyone to become a millionaire entrepreneur and many others, and when we don't live up to these standards we can beat ourselves up.

We can beat ourselves up or we can discover that our true value is in Christ, not this world and the pencil marks on walls it wants us to live up to.

A couple other things I drew from this new study were based on Psalm 19: 14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

-The words of your mouth include the ones you speak to yourself because your thoughts turn into actions, and those actions turn into your character.

I'm so excited to continue sharing with you what I will be learning these next few weeks!
Hailey