Foundations For Life

Starting this Sunday we will begin a study on the foundations of life. Many people have questions about life, spirituality, religion, and the Bible. Each week we will explore a different topic and and the questions that it poses. Everyone is invited from skeptic to fanatic! We will be meeting Sunday nights at the Polk City Community Center at 5 pm. Please contact us if you have further questions. Hope to see you there!

The Paradox of Suffering

Every once in a while I run across a verse that completely blows me over. It's not just the "Hey, that's is nice and it applies to my life" kind of verse, but rather a verse that you can't get out of your head. It's a verse that challenges your thinking and raises all sorts of questions in your mind. It's the kind of verse that lets you know God is working through His Word and is speaking directly to you. I had that happen the other day going through Philippians. Philippians 1:29 to be exact. Let me quote the verse for you in the New Living Translation. "For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him." Read it again and meditate on it a bit. When we think about salvation and what God has given to us through His Son Jesus Christ, you can't do anything but stop and marvel in wonder about the glorious gift that it is. Too often I don't give my salvation the proper awe and respect it deserves. God's gift of grace to us cannot be explained in mere words nor could we ever express back to Him our thanks in a manner that He deserves. We have been saved from an eternity separated from God and even in our sinfullness God still wants us to be with Him! Incredible! Now, here is the part of that verse that completely and utterly blows my mind...suffering is equated with salvation. Paul says that salvation is a privilege and that suffering is a privilege. What? Huh? Back up, what did you say? Suffering is a privilege. I'll be the first to admit I don't find it pleasurable to suffer persecution for the cause of Christ. In fact I pretty much avoid it all costs. It's not a lot of fun. But that is exactly where our thinking needs to change. I believe that Paul actually enjoyed suffering for Christ. I think that Paul found pleasure when he was in jail. I think Paul smiled to himself after being whipped. I think that Paul sang praises after he had been stoned and left for dead. Why? Because Paul understood what suffering meant. He understood that when he was suffering for something he had done for Christ, Christ was being glorified. And since Paul's ultimate goal was to glorify Christ in all he did, he understood that his suffering meant glory, and that made him happy. When you think of suffering in these terms it really doesn't sound bad. We need to stop thinking of suffering as negative and think of it as positive. When I am made fun of or verbally abused because I just shared the gospel, I need to pump a fist in the air and get excited! And really, here in America what persecution do we really have to fear? Are we going to be beaten, thrown in jail, killed? Probably not - but how much more glory could we give God if those things could happen? You see, we in America have gotten lazy and fat and we are content to just do the "church thing" serve a little here and there, and make it through life without a lot of conflict and strife. But is that what we are called to do? Look at what Paul says about the subject again in 2 Corinthians 1:4-5. "You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. So when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your benefit and salvation! For when God comforts us, it is so that we, in turn, can be an encouragement to you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer." If you have the opportunity, pick up a copy of Jesus Freaks, a modern day Fox's Book of Martyrs, and see if your thinking isn't challenged by the testimonies of these revolutionaries. We need to experience a revolution in this area of thinking. We need a complete 180 degree about face. We need to be asking God to let me "suffer" as John Leonard has "suffered" and not to allow me to just go through my normal pain-free day.

The Splendor of His Creation

I was extremely lucky the locals told me, for this particular week was unusually clear and sunny. Traveling to the Northwest can truly be an adventure, not knowing what kind of weather you will get, but I was pleasantly surprised with my good fortune on a recent business trip.

Mt Hood

I have been in Portland Oregon only once before and it was shrouded in clouds then so I missed out on seeing how awesome the surrounding area is. The city lies on the border of Oregon and Washington and is separated by the Columbia river. One of the most incredible sites you can see in the continental US is the view of Mt. Hood from the city. On a clear day (which doesn't happen very often) it rises out of the rest of the foothills. While not a large mountain in comparison with others in the US at only 11,000 feet, what makes it so spectacular is the fact that it is very close to the coast and rises straight from sea level which makes the 11,000 feet seem more like 17,000. And it has a very traditional pointed mountain shape which adds to the mystique. Why I am pining over a mountain you ask? Well, on my way home our plane circled the mountain and from the right widow you had a perfect view and on through the left window you could Mt. St. Helens as well. Both were equally majestic and knowing that both are semi-active volcanoes only added to their allure.

Mt. St. Helens

As I sat in the plane I thought about the wonder of this creation and about the wonder of their Creator. In Romans 1:20 it says that since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen and that nobody has an excuse for not believing. Power, wonder, majesty, and mystique are all awesome attributes that our God has poured into His creation.

The Wind of Change...or just more updates

I just wanted to let those of you know who have subscribed to the updates via email that we have switched feed services. The previous service went down for quite awhile and had no available customer support, so we have switched to a more reliable feed service. What does this mean for you? Not much, except that you might notice that your updates are now coming from a different source. You don't even have to re-subscribe. Speaking of updates, there should be a lot more posts in the near future as we are beginning to implement some new ideas as it comes to the web site. Stay tuned, and if you would like to receive all the latest information via email just type your email address in the box to the right and hit the button. We do not give out your email address. Your privacy is very important to us.

Sunday Sunday Sunday!

The first service of Lakeside Fellowship is in the books! God was working in incredible ways as we saw over 45 people including 8 visitors attend the inaugural service. The Subra Family has transformed their game room loft into a very cozy meeting spot. Pastor Dave preached a great message from Matthew 5 which focused on truly being a "different church." We want to be different as reflected by our actions and not just our words. It is our prayer that our lives and not necessarily our words will impact the community. Check back soon for pics of the first service. We will be meeting same bat time same bat channel next week! Join us for an exciting time of fellowship, singing, and teaching from God's Word. By the way, the title is supposed to read how the guy from the monster truck rallies does it. So go back to the top and read the title again - the article will be that much more exciting then...

Survey Information

This message is from Kurt Subra. Jenny and I will be gone Saturday morning for our kids sporting events. We should be home by noon. We could use some help getting chairs (and any other items brought out) into the meeting room. We'll be at Saylorville Friday night and will bring chairs from there. If you're coming to our place first on Saturday (bringing kids out) could you please assist in carrying chairs upstairs? We'll probably have 50 or so. We'll unload them in one of the garage stall before we leave on Saturday morning. There is a side door on the west side of the garage that we don't lock, and most likely one of the garage doors will be open. Jenny can assist in watching kids after noon.