Slowing Down And Shaping Up!

They say you can’t teach an old dog a new trick, but I say if the dog is willing, anything is possible.  Let me illustrate my point by telling you that a couple of weeks ago this “old dog” learned a new trick concerning my weekly exercise routine.  As I shared in a recent article, over the past few years I’ve become a regular at the fitness center.  My routine involves some light weight lifting followed by an aerobic workout.  Time is always of the essence, so I try to get in and out as fast as possible.  This means that from the moment I walk through the door I go at full throttle (no surprise there). However, I have learned recently from my daughter that in the area of muscle toning, the slower you lift your weights the better.  It is not about speed, but steadfastness.  Since I respect Jami’s insight and want to maximize my gym time, I decided to follow her advice.  The first sign that she knew what she was talking about came when I felt this incredible strain on my muscles as I slowly worked the weight machines.  I had been on the same machines before, but now with a slower pace, I really felt my muscles tightening up.  Old habits are hard to break, but I am learning that fast is not necessarily good.  Likewise, I think this lesson has some genuine spiritual implications. Perhaps today you are rushing through your church experience or your quiet time. Like me at the gym, you are missing the full benefits of these experiences.  Changing your pace always involves a little more time and in my case, a little more pain, but the end results can be profound.  Today we might want to ponder the words of the psalmist.

“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

Slowing down and shaping up,

Shaping Up!

Although I don’t have any scientific data to substantiate it, I imagine that “getting in shape” is one of the top resolutions most people make at the beginning of the year.  This speculation is primarily based upon an observation.  The fitness center is packed with “rookies.”  They seem to be everywhere… in my parking space, using my machines, and to be honest, sometimes in my way. I am a veteran of the fitness scene.  They are not.  I have a schedule.  They do not.  I have a plan.  Many of them do not.  I am sweating.  Most of them are not.  I will be back tomorrow.  Some of them will not.  They wander in and around as if they think just being in the gym is somehow going to help them.  They have their exercise outfits, their water bottles, and their MP3 players.  However, what most of them need to get into shape is what they don’t have.  You can’t buy it in the store, you can’t find it on Amazon, but it is essential.  They need commitment.  But as I ponder all of this, it suddenly hits me that I was once the same way.  Have I become so smug in my own fitness routine that I fail to recognize the struggles that others are having?  Struggles that not so long ago I also faced.  I may be a veteran now, but I also was once the rookie, walking around lost in a sea of machines, feeling very out of place and inadequate.   Could it be that I need to be a little less judgmental and a little more understanding?  Could it be that the bigger lesson is not just about the fitness center and physical health, but also about the church and spiritual health?  Another resolution that probably is high on the list for some is to “get in (or back in) to church 2012.”   May those of us who are veterans be a little less critical and a little more compassionate in helping them make their resolution a reality.

Shaping up,

365 Is Coming Back

I don’t know the origin of this much used cliché, but when trying to state the obvious you often hear people say,“It is as plain as the nose on your face.”

I’ll be the first to admit that within the pages of the Bible there are some directions for us that are more obvious than others.  Some are probably a matter of interpretation, while others are just “as plain as the nose on your face.”  One very obvious direction given us by Jesus Himself is found in what we commonly refer to as “The Great Commission” “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 28:18-20

A great commission church must not only focus on evangelism, but also discipleship.  At DHBC we want to “make disciples.”  One aspect of that desire is reflected in our mid-week emphasis that we call 365: A Weekly Experience for a Daily Endeavor.  Discipleship classes resume on January 18 along with our Wednesday night meals.

Schedule

5:00 Meal begins
6:00  Praise, Prayer and Proclamation in Multipurpose Center
6:30  Adult  Discipleship Classes begin
6:00 H20 (youth/college service) in the Attic
6:00 Children’s mission studies and choir

Reservations for the meal can be made by filling out the form in the worship guide or calling the church office on Monday.  Make DHBC your Wednesday night place to be in 2012.

See ya here,

Blessed Beyond Measure

It probably goes without saying, but I will say it anyway…  2011 was a monumental year for the Lewis household as we welcomed not one, but two new members to our family.  Riley Blair Lewis joined us on February 6 and her cousin, Alexis Grace Carver, made her big entrance on November 12.  Wow!  What a year.  I have not only been blessed by their safe arrival, but by the fact that they both live near me and I can see them often.  I just can’t get enough of them.  Kathy has been keeping Riley during the week while her folks teach and now Alex has joined her.  My morning schedule has been altered slightly so that I can spend a few minutes with them prior to heading to work.  With Riley, the routine has been the same for months now.  We greet her at the car, bring her in the house, remove her from the car seat, kiss those wonderful cheeks, and then move over to the light switch. You see, she is her father’s daughter and is fascinated with lighting.  Who knew that trait could be inherited?  There is a chandelier hanging in our dining room that she stares at every time she comes in the door.  Months ago we began to help her turn it on and off.  She loves it and her face lights up with wonder every time she does it.  She looks at the switch, then the light, and looks at both of us with a huge grin on her face as if to say, “Did you see that?”  The truth is she is fascinated by what we take for granted.  Maybe that is in part what Jesus had in mind when He said:

“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”   Matthew 19:14

I pray that in 2012 all of us will seek to be less childish and more child like.

Blessed beyond measure,

Happy New Year

Well, it’s Monday morning, the day after Christmas. Many of us are discovering how true the words to the classic 5^th Dimension song really are…“What goes up must come down”.  All those Christmas decorations that we excitedly pulled out a month ago must now be put away.  I’m normally as ready to see them go as I was to for them to come out.  However, this year I am reluctant to take down our tree and drag it to the street.  This may be due to the fact that the process of getting it up this season was rather stressful, and at least for a time drained all the holiday cheer right out of the Lewis household.   The journey started with trying to find time to go choose a tree.  We’ve always enjoyed heading to the Christmas tree farm and cutting a fresh one.  We checked the calendar and made our plans, but the weather literally put a damper on them. After all the rain, one thing after another happened so Christmas was almost upon us before we finally made it to the farm.  I was already thinking, “ What is the point of putting one up at this late date?”  The bright point was that this year trip to the tree farm involved a new participant.  Riley came along with us.  Her eyes were open wide as we climbed aboard the trailer and the tractor pulled away to take us in search of a tree.  We found what appeared to be the perfect tree, but when we got home the trouble really started. After much struggle, we finally managed to get it placed in the house and discovered that our perfect tree was not as perfect as we thought.  The trunk was crooked and it looked like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  Back outside it went to try again. It was getting late and Kathy called “time out”.  To make a long story short, the next day after some considerable tugging the tree was on the stand looking straight as a board.  The kicker is I believe it ended up being one of the most beautiful trees we have ever put up.  Not only was it worth the wait, it was worth the journey.  There may be some “crooked trunks” in your life, but don’t lose heart.  The Lord is an expert at taking crooked things and making them straight again.

Happy New Year,

Hospitals…

The first church I served was West Corinth Baptist Church in Corinth, MS.  I wasn’t “fresh out of college” when I went there…I was “fresh in college.”  However, they called me as their part time Minister of Music and Youth.   The pastor was Wayne Campbell.  Bro. Wayne took the time to take me under his wing and teach me some valuable lessons about ministry.  I am sure I was much more trouble than I was worth, but I believe he saw some potential in me. J   One great lesson he taught me was how to make hospital visits.  More precisely I should say he taught me “to” make hospital visits.  He mentored me by taking me with him and I literally use those lessons on an almost daily basis.  Recently however, I was at the hospital in a different capacity.  I was there as a dad, not as a pastor.  Normally I am in and out pretty quickly, but on the day Alex was born we were there something like 19 hours straight.  Our lengthy stay gave me a greater sense of compassion for those who have extended stays, but it also afforded me the opportunity to experience something unique.  Every time a new baby is born at Methodist Germantown Women’s Pavilion, you hear the sweet opening strands of Braham’s lullaby being played over the intercom.   All day long it was a signal that new life had come into the world.  Shortly after 10:39 pm, we at last heard it heralding the arrival of Alexis Grace.  It was a precious sound.  Signaling the birth of new life is certainly not something new, in fact the scripture reminds us that when someone comes to know the Lord that heaven rejoices.  Let’s join in the celebration and do our part in helping folks experience “the Prince of Peace” this Christmas season.

“…there will be… rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents…”  Luke 15:7

Growing Older Has Pluses!

Growing up in the 60’s, commercial jingles were a way of life.   They reflected their times by being very light hearted and I guess, even a little corny.  However, they were catchy and had a tendency to stay with you.  I remember one for Double Mint Gum that always featured twins and a jingle that said “…double the pleasure, double the fun….”  That jingle could certainly be the theme song for the Lewis family these days as we finally are able to celebrate the arrival of granddaughter # 2 Alexis Grace Carver.  She was born on 11-12-11 at 10:39 PM weighing 6lbs 10oz and was 20 inches long.  She is already taller than her mom. J   I will tell you that so far, Riley is less than impressed with her, but we feel sure that this will soon change for the better.  There is plenty of love to go around and you know BoBo will not let either one of them feel slighted in the least.  Riley was especially concerned when her mother was holding the little one, so I scooped her up and headed down the hallway of the hospital trying to explain the situation to her.  I am not sure she was buying it, but at least it distracted her for a while.  Thanks to all of you who have been praying for Alex’s safe arrival.  So far we are 2 for 2 with grandchildren coming on the weekends.  I missed being with you last Sunday, but I was exactly where I needed to be.  It is a great time in life for us as we gather with our growing family and give thanks for all the Lord continues to do.  I am also thankful to be your pastor and don’t intend to let the grandparent status (x2) slow me down too much.  Growing older definitely has some pluses.

Amendment 26

Well, the results are in and it was not what many of us had hoped it would be.  I guess more precisely, I should say not what some of us had hoped it would be.  The “many” have spoken and Amendment 26 was soundly defeated.  I must confess that I went to bed on Tuesday night after hearing the returns feeling disappointed, discouraged, and quite frankly, a little disgusted.  I was disgusted with the voters of Mississippi who were so worried about the “what if?” that they did not choose to speak out on the “what is!”  For decades now, America has been ignoring the fact that life is precious and does begin at fertilization according to the Scripture.  The majority in Mississippi chose to do “that which was right in their own eyes” Judges  17:6.  I am also disgusted with myself and other pastors who perhaps did not speak out early enough, fervently enough, or clearly enough on this issue.  I am disgusted with politicians who seem to intentionally cloud the water.  I am disgusted with those who drafted the amendment for not wording it a little better in order to head off some of the opposition.  However, in the end I am reminded that the real battlefront is not at the voting polls, but rather in the human heart.  Our calling is to fervently and consistently point people to Him.  We must continue to speak out on issues that affect our world, but also we must speak about the One who
“…so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever   believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life”
John 3:16

Jesus is still the answer.

THANK YOU!

Many of you probably remember a television series that ran from 1983—1987 about a group of ex-military personnel who were on the run from the government because they were falsely accused of crimes.  Along the way, these “bad boys” (who were actually “good guys”) were always helping folks out of jams that required some muscle.  They were called The A-Team.  Their leader, Hannibal, had a favorite saying, “I love it when a plan comes together.”  I want to paraphrase that today and say, “I love it when a church comes together.”  Thank you, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for helping us pull off another very successful Fall Fest.  We literally could not have done it without you.  The lines were long as usual at the Cotton Candy so I didn’t get to visit with many of you, but I knew you were faithfully (and frantically) working your station.   It was a great afternoon.  I had one teenage boy come by and ask the question of all questions,  “Is this all free?”  I took great delight it telling him, “Yes, it’s all free”, even as he reached out for some cotton candy.  Perhaps that is the greatest lesson our Fall Fest teaches…it’s an afternoon of “giving” on our part, not “getting.”

I also want to thank all of you for praying for me during the Mississippi Baptist Convention.  It was an awesome experience and I felt your prayers as I addressed the messengers on Tuesday afternoon.   You would have been blessed and so proud of our choir and orchestra.  They hit a home run and filled the sanctuary at FBC Jackson with songs of joy and praise as they led us to the throne. I’m glad to be back home and looking forward to what the Lord is going to do among us.

Because He lives,

Mark Manning… 10 Years Strong

October is a month for commemorations at DHBC.  A few weeks ago, we celebrated our 5^th year anniversary on the Getwell property.  In case you haven’t heard, the church answered the challenge of paying off the side note that day by giving some $27,000.  Now we can set our sites toward other needs.  If you have been giving regularly toward debt retirement, please continue to do so.  We will use it to whittle down our other obligations so that we can move closer to expanding our facilities.   However, there is another milestone we should pause to remember today.  Mark Manning is celebrating his 10^th anniversary as Minister of Music for the DeSoto Hills family.  Five of those years were at Carriage Hills and five of them have been at this location.  We are so blessed to have some longevity among our staff and a cooperation that helps us continue to move forward.  Bro. Mark is never satisfied with the status quo, but is constantly seeking to enhance our worship through the avenue of music.  For those of you who may be new to our family, I just want to let you know that Bro. Mark is a Mississippi boy who grew up in the Delta.  He is a graduate of New Orleans Seminary.  He and his wife Celeste (also a Mississippi delta native) have two children.  Lyle continues to work on his engineering degree from Mississippi State University.  Their daughter, Calland, is working on her degree at The University of Mississippi, a choice her father has learned to live with, even though he is a dyed in the wool Mississippi State fan.  Please join me today in thanking them for their years of service among us.  I pray that we will all be together for years to come.