Calvin and Hobbes: Boy do I miss this comic!

I loved to read the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. I have a number of the books published containing the collections of the popular comic strip from the mid 80's to the mid 90's. It always made me laugh in large part due to the fact that it reminded me of...ME!

If Calvin were a real little boy he would have been likely diagnosed with ADD or ADHD and put on medication. Calvin was always a day dreamer and heading off to a far planet in a space ship or talking to his best friend Hobbes- a stuffed tiger. I wonder is being a dreamer a bad thing these days? I hope not. 

If you were in worship last week you heard me share my story about my ADD. We can sometimes allow ourselves to be labeled by the world and those labels can become definitions and limitations in our life. That is what I let happen to me. I convinced myself they were right and I would have no chance of college and my best bet in the world was to do trade school. 

No one helped me think differently until many years later and much wasted time had passed that was self-destructive. What I found was that I just needed to explore ways for me to learn and cope in order to succeed. I was not stupid or damaged or less of a person- I just learned differently than the majority. I found I learned best by writing things down over and over if need be. Memorization was tough for me but if I wrote it I got it down fast and with much less effort. I also found I could stay on task if I developed a calendar and a "to-do" list. I would start by writing down what needs done and then prioritize it into 3 lists. I have a daily list, a weekly list and finally a broad to do list.  I then take the list and plug it into my calendar and assign a time to do that work. This works for me but everyone is different. I went from a guy who was torn apart inside and haunted by the labels that told be what I cannot do to a guy who found a way and went not just to college but to grad school where I received my Masters.

Now I have to give thanks where thanks is do. That thanks goes to God who as I stated in my sermon does not make trash. I am his and I am fearfully and wonderfully made! I believe that now. Years ago it was different because I looked at myself as trash. The little boy that is inside all of us could not see beyond what was placed upon me. That shaped and molded me instead of the truth of how God saw me as His child being what shaped and molded me. 

Three things I leave you with this time:

1. Do not buy into the label other put on you. Our lives are too complex to be stuffed into a bottle that small. 

2. Be careful how you label others. What we say and how we treat others can have a lasting consequence in a person's life. 

3. Do not ever forget: YOU are fearfully and wonderfully made! Psalm 139:14. YOU are God's masterpiece! 

God bless you all!

Pastor Andy

A good song and video is Remind me who I am Lord by Jason Gray. Click on the link to see the video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QSIVjjY8Ou8

Practicability wins out...

One of the disciples here at ALC made the comment recently about the Alaskan spring thaw. He said to me that practicably wins out to many things in Alaska. This he said after I was complaining about how when I came to church at 6:00am in morning I was walking on a ice covered parking lot but by the time I left church at 1:00pm I soaked my good black shoes as the ice turned to water with the warming sun. The results: a slush filled parking lot with about 3" of standing water and cold feet! The place where I normally walk down hill had become a mini raging river of water and left over gravel and ice. It would have been a great river rafting adventure for a squirrel!

He made me think though about the truth behind the idea about practicability winning out over all kinds of things! 

Practicability wins out over comfort- you may be more comfortable in a short sleeve shirt but you dawn a long sleeve shirt because it is cold. 

Practicability wins out over desires. You may desire to go fishing in the middle of an Alaskan winter but if you do not have an ice auger or some other way to cut through the ice- well you are just going to have to settle for playing the Rapala fishing game on your computer for a few months until ice out. 

Practicability wins out in our financial lives as we cannot spend what we do not have since we are not allowed to print money like the U.S. government. 

Practicability wins out in our physical lives when our bodies age. At some point if we live long enough, our bodies age to a point where we cannot walk, run, do cartwheels, hear, or see as well as we did when we were 20!

So what are we to do?

My dad always told me to use my head. I remember him saying that A LOT to me when I was growing up and doing stupid things! Now that I am older and still doing stupid things I often think back about my dad's words while I am saying some of the same things to my kids now. So how could I have kept my socks dry, my good shoes from getting soaked with water, and my toes warm? Well....

I could do the Alaskan practicability thing! Put my boots on and carry over to the church my shoes is the practical thing! The "Alaskan" people who lived through a winter or two learned that practicability wins out! 


That is way to simple of a solution for me to grasp!!


I hope and pray practicability wins out in our life! Time and again I have been told by those who have served our county in war the old familiar saying: "There are no atheist in foxholes!" That I believe is an example of practicability winning out! God desires all to be saved and come to the knowledge of His love for them. When people face death and if they have stood against what God desires for them, I pray that the Holy Spirit uses that moment as a fox hole moment for them. It was kind of like that on the cross. Two thieves hung there with Jesus.  One had a fox hole moment and other from the account in scripture did not. That did not change God's love for them both or the sacrifice of His one and only son Jesus our savior on the cross. Yet one rejected what was freely offered and one simply said thank you. God made it really easy. It is not about what we do, who we are, but what God does for us. It is very simple and that means very practicable! Our father in heaven knows what He is doing!
I hope it does not take a fox hole moment for you. 


God bless and happy Easter!
Andy 

Persecution

 Book of Jude

Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”  These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

I want you to understand now that you have watched this video, that this is nothing new. Persecution happened in the days following the death and resurrection of Jesus and has been going on ever since. We are not any closer to the end times than the day that Jesus ascended to Heaven. He could be back any time and we are simply to be ready for his return  by trusting in him as the one who saved us from our sin!  There are people and groups that scoff and attacked followers of Jesus yesterday,  who are currently doing so today and will be attacking tomorrow. There is really nothing new under the sun. It is upsetting and brings up fear and worry within our life. I want to pray and have prayed; "come soon Lord Jesus"!

That prayer is fine but remember not to let these attacks divide us as the text above reminds us. We can stand together and stand united. The faith we have been given can not be extinguished by the hands of men. It can be pushed underground. It can be made illegal by governments and rulers. These things have happened in history but the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ continues to spread and grow. 

Pray for those who persecute our faith. Come together as a body of Christ and be built up in order that the faith we have been given will remain strong until the day we experience eternal life. 

Until next time...

God's Peace!

Pastor Andy

Happy Ground Hog Day!!!

Well, Ground Hog Day does not have the luster and excitement to it in Alaska as it does in other parts of the United States. I was reminded by a friend that is because we have eagles, bears,and wolves that would eat this little furry rodent! 

Yes, poor Punxsutawany Phil would have a hard time surviving up here in the Last Frontier. 

Ground Hog Day was a day my wife decided to make it into a celebration for the kids one year awhile back. Cheeseburgers (ground meat for Ground Hog Day), root-beer floats, and yes, brown colored noses to match that rascally weather forecaster!

(Don't believe me, see the photo below!) 

You can go on line and see how poorly his weather prediction abilities stack up. His predictions are pretty much a miss most of the time. Poor Punxsutawney Phil will most of the time simply slip back into his house, fearful of his shadow or the thousands who show up to party in this little town in PA. 

My Anchorage ramblings are pretty simple this time. 

I have to say I am really glad that when Jesus came out of the tomb, he did not go back in. When he came out of the tomb is was good news for all people in all places.  

That the predictions from the Old Testament that pointed to Jesus were right on the nose! (yes-it is a pun!!! Did you expect anything less from a pastor!!)

Happy Ground Hog's Day!

until next time...

Blessings and be safe!

Pastor Andy

How Big Is Our God?

Well?? What do you think?

How big is our God? 

Right now Alaskan's are getting record snowfalls all over the state. 18 foot of snow in one place, 20 foot in another! I've heard of roofs collapsing and people climbing out of their 2nd floor windows to get out of their houses. In Anchorage as I see it, we have had it easy. We have 88 inches of snow so far this season. The experts say we are on track for a record snowfall this year which would break the 1950's snowfall record. We have also had in Anchorage near record cold temperatures in the single digits and even negative numbers which is unusual for this coastal city. 

As you can see I have to pitch the snow pretty high up to clear the driveway. OK, well maybe I had some front end loader help with this pile but the city, the businesses, the residents are all running out of places to put snow in Anchorage and we have not gotten hit as hard as places like Cordova. Long time residents have begun to complain that they are tired of the cold and snow. Everyone is snow shovel weary. It is a lot of heavy, laborious work even if you have a plow or a snow blower. 

The snow removal seems like a never-ending task this winter. You know if we had to shovel this mound of snow by hand to another place we would likely throw down the shovel and give up. The mountain of snow over shadows us. The mountain of snow is just to hard, to depressing, to large, to enormous!

Living life can seem the same way. The mountain and shear volume of our problems overwhelm. We try to put our shoulder to the grindstone, our back to lifting, our arm to work and swing the shovel. You seem to no sooner clear a problem and another one dumps upon you.  How can we deal with life that continues to dump upon us?

Back to the question: How Big Is Our God?

HE IS BIGGER THAN OUR PROBLEMS!!!

When we understand that we can put down our shovel we find we can again breathe. We can stand up straight. We are moved from the bottom of the mountain of snow to the top where we are guided by the Holy Spirit to look to the cross of Christ and stand beside it. No hill or mountain of problems can over come us when we stop looking at the mountain and start looking at Jesus. Jesus did what no person could do. He climbed and conquered an impossible mountain called Calvary. Many thought the mountain of death crushed Him. Many thought He was broken but they were all wrong. Jesus was victorious. 

1st Peter 5:7 says Cast all your anxieties on him, because he care for you.

If it is important to you...

If it matters to you...

If it is something that causes you concern...

If it keeps you awake at night...

If it robs you of your peace...

If it is a part of your hearts desire...
If it gives you joy...
If it makes you happy...

Jesus want you to tell him about it- good or bad! He celebrates with you and cries with you. He wants you to share your problems and pains. He always answers but you may not get the answer you want. But you can bank on the fact that He cares for you and if it is important to you it is important to Him! He will help and guide you through everything in life for we have a bigger God than our "big" problems!!

Until next time...

God Bless! 

Pastor Andy

Chinook Winds

I keep learning and experiencing new things in Alaska. One of the things I have learned that I never heard of before is the weather phenomenon called a "Chinook wind". It is my understanding that these winds are also called "pineapple express" winds for it is a weather pattern of warm air and wind that come up from Hawaii and hits the coast of Alaska. These winds can come through for a few hours or a few days. The winds have caused temperature swings from -52 to +48 degrees and back again in a very short period of time. 

I've experienced a couple of these Chinook winds this winter. We have had better than 5' of snow but then the Chinook winds came in and so it does not appear that we have had that much snow. These very warm winds carry a lot of moisture with them so we get rain on top of the snow. It often times will then freeze at night making driving in the morning a bit of a bumper car ride. I watched snow plow mountains shrink significantly in size. The snow clad yard in front of the parsonage shrivel from a knee height, blank of snow, to ankle deep ice covered snow. Anchorage does not use salt on the roads but spreads a lot of gravel for traction. The result of not using salt on the roads is over time snow and ice build up that the plows and road graders can not seem to knock down. The Chinook winds came in and I got to see blacktop again on a lot of the roads.  

I like winter. I love the snow. Yet I have to say that the Chinook winds were a nice cold weather break. I guess the Chinook winds mentally thawed out me out. It was a welcome break in this cold winter wonderland.

It is nice to have a change of weather like that. It made me feel better and reminds me that winter does not last forever.  

Just a few days ago we got one of "those calls". You know the phone calls I am talking about, right? The ringing wakes you up in the middle of the night or the wee hours of the morning and your gut tells you: "Something is wrong".

News from the family, Michelle's 87 year old grandmother was deteriorating rapidly and it was not going to be long. The sons of Grandma Rita were right. She did past into life eternal a short time later. Grandma Rita had 7 boys no girls. She buried 3 of her boys, one a birth and two from cancer. She buried her husband some years ago. That was painful but all and all she was blessed with a good life. She did not have to work and yet she and George (Grandpa) had the means to travel all over the world. One of the things I will always remember about grandma was - she loved to go out for dinner and was a food critic. Not only could she tell you what she had last week (or the week before) and what was good or bad about the meal but she was able to tell you what everyone else had at her table. 

Grandma Rita was not an imposing figure. She was short, had a raspy voice, and a little round shouldered in her older age. Yet she commanded respect and attention. She had this glare where she would raise her one eye brow and slightly close the other. If she wanted your attention she had a voice that did not seem to match that little frame of hers. I guess she learned how to use what she had to keep those boys of hers in line. Over 21 years of marriage to Michelle I spent time with the "uncles" and they are a handful, crazy, fun, and wild but they listened to their mom- even as adults! It was odd seeing them all together for a family photo for as short as she was, her boys were all blessed with long legs that made them tower over her.

We saw her just a few months back before we left for our new home in Alaska. Michelle, the kids and I went out to eat with her- of course! She was a gracious host and she enjoyed her meal and especially her pie she ordered for desert. Sorry but I cannot recall what kind of pie it was, I have my limitations! She will be missed that is for sure. 

With the loss of a loved one it feels a little like winter. Death makes us cold and shiver. Death seems quiet and dark. Death can make us withdraw, to retreat, to seek shelter from the cold wind of reality. Reality like: one less at the table, and we are getting older and will have to face death too. The Apostle Paul used words from the Old Testament to help us deal with the cold reality of death. “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” It is a chilling verse for me to read in some ways for I see the word STING and death does sting...it hurts...like a cold winter wind that slaps you in the face! 

That feeling is only temporary! Paul was right that as we look to Jesus we feel the warmth of a Chinook wind that thaws us out. A wind of blessing that refreshes us in the midst of a cold season in life. Death does not have the final word. There is victory through Jesus. I know grandma Rita had lived a good long life. She saw much - some good and lived through some not so good things. I know she was strong in her faith and she loved the Lord. I know she was loved by Jesus and she is with him. That is the Chinook wind in all of this mix of feelings and emotions that is going on inside of the family as we we say: "until a little later" to Grandma Rita. 

I do not know how people who are facing their own death or working through the grief of a loved one who has died can do it without Jesus. It just seems like life would be a long winter with no reprieve. No Chinook wind that comes to knock the frost off and melt the snow from the road of life.  Call belief in Jesus a crutch. Call faith in our Lord and savior  a weak man's refusal to deal with reality. I do not care what those who have no faith in Jesus call it but I am thankful for the Chinook winds Jesus provides in the Bible. 

Death has no sting, no victory because of Jesus!

Thank you Grandma for the memories!

Thank you Jesus for the warmth of your love- towards her and towards us! 

Until next time...Peace of Christ be with you! 

Pastor Andy

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A Worthy New Year's Resolution...Protecting Your Fruit!

There is a tree just outside my backyard that still has "fruit" on it this time of year. As you can see it is blanketed in snow and frost. This is a tough time of year for the trees. The cold winds blow and many of the limbs that branch off the main trunk of the trees become brittle and break. The left over "fruit" of this tree is not any good except for the moose and birds to digest. Come spring any "fruit" left will drop to the ground and rot. Broken branches will be gathered up by the rake and burned. 

It is part of nature and life but it is kind of sad to see how nature can cause damage to a growing and living tree. 

Our families are growing a living trees. Parents try to be as best they can, a solid influence and supporting trunk that the children can be attached to and fed by. Parents are not perfect. I do not believe a parent sets out to say: "I want to be a bad parent and I will do all in my power to mess up this kid for life!" Yet this happens. 

As a parent I am very aware of the mistakes I make and the flaws I have. Yet, I am constantly trying to do better and seek God's grace and help in raising my children. I know I only have a few short years with them but they are important and influential years. 

I want my children to grow into strong trees themselves that bear much good fruit. As a parent I want to work and improve at controlling the foul weather that has an influence on them. I cannot protect them from every bit of frighting and rotten things that will happen to them in this world. I can be there though to speak to those things if I am willing to address them now.

My son is in 5th grade. He is becoming keenly aware of the differences in the sexes. He is curious. That is natural and I believe healthy. I see my 3rd grade daughter moving from the admiration of the elegance of the Disney princess to a different kind of "cool" that gives most dad's (me included) a bit of heartburn. Daughters beginning to decide what is cool and what is not is nothing new either. I believe that is a part of growing up.  

Our kids today are faced with sex much earlier than you or I were likely exposed to this topic. A walk through the mall brings us face to face with models and mannequins dressed in revealing under apparel. TV has ads for Viagra, feminine products, contraception, date sites, phone "hook-up", shows and music programs that are tasteless as well as a variety of other things to numerous to list here. The internet brings into the home a entirely different set of issues with websites, chatting, video conversations that can go to dangerous areas. Even our children's school classrooms have become places where questionable subject matter is taught and passed off as "the norm."

S.B. 49 was recently signed into law by California's Governor Jerry Brown. The law states that beginning in January the schools will, at ALL grade levels, make a positive presentation regarding the contributions of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders as part of the teaching in the classrooms. Having stated that, law S.B. 49 makes me wonder: Is this really necessary when kids are not learning how to read well or even know their basic math skills? I do not know how exactly this new law is being instituted into the classroom but for me the question is not "how" but why! Why is a question I have on many level like why the TV ads, shows, bedroom issues, inability to securely block internet images and so on that rob the innocence of our children.

It makes my wonder about making a different kind of New Year's resolution. Normally a New Year's resolution is about a self change or improvement. I think I need to make a different commitment in the coming year, a better one not focused on myself but about my relationship with my children. A commitment to be more active in being present and helping my kids navigation through the foul weather that can cause branches to break and fruit to fall and rot. 

I could address this law but it is only a symptom of a bigger problem. It is a disease that needs addressing that is all through our culture. The bigger issue I want to address here at this time is: 
CARING FOR YOUR FRUIT!!!! 
HELP THE BRANCHES OF YOUR FAMILY GROW STRONG!!!

The Bible talks a lot about sex. There are over 800 references to sex in the Bible. Mostly references are negative. The reason for that is humanity took what was good and natural and created by God (Yes, God created sex!!) and turned it into something foul. God's gift of a loving relationship between man and woman which sex is a natural expression of that relationship, has ever since the fall of humanity been distorted and twisted. 

As parents we have a tendency to not want to talk about sex. That should be a warning to us as parents that if God created sex, and we are embarrassed to talk about it with our kids there is something wrong somewhere! The TV is willing to talk about it. The internet is willing to talk about it. The music video is willing to talk about it. The book is willing to talk about it. The school classroom is willing to talk about it. So as parents if we want a word with our children we better start talking about it. If we wish to help keep our fruit from rotting and the branches of the family strong, we had better think about a New Year's commitment to talk with our children about sex. 

It bothers me that our children are having their innocence robbed at such an early age but we cannot protect them, help them make wise choices, and survive the foul weather unless we are part of the conversation and the drivers of the conversation. 

Honestly I never got "the talk" from my parents. My mom brought it up to my dad once in front of me. His response was: "he will figure it out". Well I did and "figuring it out" left its marks and scares upon me and others. I do to want that for my kids. As a parent I hope you do not want that for your kids. 

It is my time as a parent to help them understand the "plumbing", the morals and the ethics. But also most important for me is to emphasize once again who God is, how they are part of His creation, how God has created them, and most importantly where they find value and worth as a human being. Value and worth is not found in having sex or being "sexy". Value and worth is not found in a person's sexual orientation. Value and worth is not measured in who we marry, how many kids we have, how much money we make, what we look like or what we did in life. Our value and worth is bigger than these things. Value and worth is something that lasts and does not fade like our looks or our bodies. Value and worth is not found in a job that can be lost or money that can be stolen from us. 

Value and worth comes from who we are in Christ Jesus.

I want my son and daughters to know what unconditional love is. The only way they will ever see that consistently and perfectly is by looking at Jesus and how He looks and views them as human beings. I can not love them that way always for I am imperfect. Their future spouse will not always love them that way for they are imperfect. They will not always love that way for they are imperfect. Yet Jesus will and does love them unconditionally! 

It is our duty as parents to be the ones teaching our kids about sex, their bodies and morals that will shape and mold their world view. I want my role as a dad to control when and how I present "the talk" so they would feel comfortable coming to me as other questions arise. I want my kids to know what I base my beliefs in and opinions on. 

This is a worthy New Year's resolution. 

Get involved with your kids and take an active role in their education. Talk with them and do not let others have these important life conversations without your input. 
One last thought: think about Christian education. Yes it is expensive and it is not perfect but it does have its pluses. Do not misunderstand me for I know there are great teachers and many Christian teachers in the public schools but they have their hands tied by laws passed by the government that tells them what to teach and what not to teach. They have rules and laws that restrict them from speaking about their faith. That is sad but it is a reality. 

Still the bottom line remains the same whether you send your kids to a Christian school or a public school, you can and your children need you to be involved with their life and education. 

Care for your fruit!

Strengthen your family tree!

Until next time, Do not fear for the Lord your God is with you!

God Bless! 

Pastor Andy