Christmas?

Approximately 2000 years ago prophecies hundreds of years old, a few perhaps thousands of years old, were fulfilled with amazing precision when a baby was born in the city of Bethlehem.  Nothing has ever been the same since.  The way we record time even changed and we now refer to the day after His birth as the common era (C.E.), or year of our Lord – Anno Dominus (A.D.).

Jesus didn’t stay a baby though.  He grew in stature and wisdom.  He showed us the Father.  He died.  He arose from the dead.  He ascended to the right hand of the Father.  He now makes intercession for those of us who have our faith in Him.  Soon he will return to receive us to Himself.

The celebration of Christmas is under scrutiny within the church and from outside the church. Outside the church, the effort is to silence the message of Christ, plain and simple.  Within the church the efforts to stop the celebration of Christmas, by the Christian, is usually based in the belief that it this celebration is pagan in its origins and shouldn’t be participated in by Christians.  Sometimes though, it is rejected simply because of the materialism that the holiday has become known for.

While Christmas isn’t a holiday that is reported in scripture, or even necessarily celebrated by the early church, not beginning until around the year 336 AD, most of us have chosen to commemorate the birth of Christ on this day.  Was Jesus actually born on December the 25?  No, very probably not.  It was more likely in March. Is this a celebration instituted by God?  No, it was instituted by the early Catholic Church, thus the name “Christ Mass.”  Don’t the celebrations of the day, have roots in paganism?  Some of them do.  Hasn’t the day become just a marketing ploy for the materialistically greedy corporations to take advantage of the public?  Perhaps, because it truly has become far too materialistic.

So, is it wrong then to celebrate Christmas?  I think not, if we keep Christ at the center, but I’ll show you why.

In the celebration of Christmas we, as Christians, look back to the birth of the promised Messiah of whom it was foretold that He would come to save His people from their sins.  We also have opportunity to look presently into our own hearts and their condition, whether close to God or distant from Him; as we are reminded of the greatest gift ever given to anyone.  “For God so loved this world, that he gave…”  Hopefully in this season we will allow the reality of Emanuel, God with us, to cause us to let go of any greed and follow the example of our Father, giving our best gifts to God and men, as well of telling others about our Lord and his life-changing power.  We can, and should, also remember that His birth represents only the first coming of this Messiah, and that He is soon coming again.

If these things happen at Christmas, then the day serves as a great reminder of how we should actually be living our lives every day because of the appearing of our Savior, and because our relationship with God now, through Christ.

While Christmas may not have been celebrated by the early church, the birth of Christ was surely celebrated by the angels of the Most High God, as we read of the heavenly hosts praising God at Jesus birth.  It was celebrated by wise men who left their homeland and traveled far to look upon Him and to bring offerings.  It was celebrated by the shepherds who left their flocks, and so their livelihood, for long enough to see this amazing child – the Holy One of God.

Also, the pagan influences from ancient times have lost their meaning to us and are not the reasons of our celebration.  Just as the names of the days of the week, also had roots in paganism but have lost the association.  In fact, many of the traditions associated with Christmas, that were originally pagan in practice, were repurposed, and refocused, by the church to point people toward Christ.  This is much like the Apostle Paul’s use of the altar built to the “unknown god” as a way to preach Jesus to the people of Athens, Greece.  That altar was built in pagan worship simply out of superstition, to some god – whoever he might be – just in case they had failed to remember or recognize him.  So Paul claimed it for the Living God.  He told them that Jesus was the man appointed by God, the God previously unknown to them, but who might now be known by them, through Christ.

Another reason I think the celebration of Christmas is appropriate for us, if we choose to celebrate it as Christians, is found in principle in, Romans chapter 14 and in 1 Corinthians chapter 8.  The Apostle Paul made it clear that some of us would see things differently than others.  While one would NEVER eat meat offered to idols, someone else may not see that as anything to even consider, knowing that idols are ‘dumb’, simply objects and not truly God.  He admonishes us to not judge one another in these things, but adhere to our own God given convictions, knowing that God who knows our hearts, will judge each of us.

If you feel it is inappropriate to have a tree in your home, or to even celebrate the day, be true to that conviction.  If you have no such conviction, don’t feel pressured to give up your celebration.  Don’t judge one another though, if you don’t see eye to eye.

Here I’m sure all will agree, Jesus is the reason for this season.  He deserves worship.  He deserves praise, so if you do any celebration this Christmas, be sure HE is at the center of it: not materialism, not paganism, but Jesus. 


Merry Christmas from the Laudermilk family.

The Debt Ceiling

The "Debt Ceiling" as it is being called is nothing more than actual, physical (and fiscal), bankruptcy in our government. The name debt ceiling sounds so much nicer though, doesn't it?

The fact is, we're broke. We're flat broke! We’re in debt up to our eyeballs. What the House and Senate (and perhaps the President; I'm unsure of his motives) are trying to do is simply come to some agreement on what 'plan' we should put in effect to put off the date of reckoning for our lack of fiscal responsibility. If an agreement is not reached we face ‘judgment day’, so to speak, NOW. If they can come to some agreement, we keep the judgment at bay another day.

I’m no expert on world affairs and I may not have all the facts but the way I see it, here's what's at stake… If we pass through the deadline tonight, at midnight, without a solution in place, then our country defaults on it loans and therefore has no money to pay its bills. What bills does a country have? Well, there are plenty but I'll name a few: US Savings Bonds that are mature seem to be what's making the news. They seem of little consequence to most people, but read on because I'll deal with them in a moment. Another big news item is governmental employees paychecks. I agree this is an issue, however much bigger problems are just down the pike. “Like what?” you ask. A MUCH bigger problem is Welfare, Unemployment, Disability payments, Food Stamps, and etcetera. The people receiving these payments would very soon stop receiving anything what-so-ever. Then, because of savings bonds having no value, (here we go) interest rates would rise making inflation run rampant. Finally, in light of all the other things, the US dollar devalues. If the dollar is devalued, it doesn't even matter if you have money, it will be nearly useless. This could happen because our US dollar is no longer backed by gold. It’s just paper. The bible talks about a loaf of bread costing a day's wage. That is exactly what will take place if our dollar loses its value. All of this would be devastating and would cause widespread panic and unrest, perhaps even civil war or a revolution, but certainly riots at the least.

Even more disturbing, is the fact that a loan in default suggests a borrower and a ‘lender’. We are the borrowers, but who do we owe this money to? Mostly, we owe China, the other world superpower. What happens next is anyone’s guess, but if there is a loan, whether it’s defined or not, there is also collateral. If we default on our loans to China, no matter what the analysts might say, we are in danger of invasion because if we aren’t able to keep our commitment in paying off our debts they will want something of value in return for their loan. Besides just wanting repayment, if they are defaulted on then their economy begins to tank as well.

Here’s the long and short of it. Even if the Senate and the House come to an agreement and the debt ceiling is raised and the deadline is extended, until December; or whenever. Even if they make an allowance and give the U.S. Government more money to operate on, we are in a very precarious position as a nation. We had better wake up and look around us, these are the end times. Months or years aren’t needed for things to fall apart in the world, or even for us as a nation. Within days, our nation could be on its knees because of poor management. Within weeks the world economy could follow. We are in a precarious position indeed, and perilous times I might add.

Be wise. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, but expect the return of Christ soon. What does that mean to the common person? First, know Christ intimately. If ever there was a day to be close to God, it’s now. Second, don’t follow the example of our nation. Get out of debt if you can, and don’t go further in debt. Put aside some reserves; by that I mean food, water, bartering items, and procure means of protection for your family - whatever that may mean for you.

I warn you of this not out of fear, but for wisdom’s sake. Proverbs 22:3 says, “A shrewd person sees danger and hides himself, but the naive keep right on going and suffer for it.” Even if the ‘judgment’ of this nation is stayed tonight, it’s coming shortly. If it isn’t the judgment of God, it will be the judgment of our peers, and we have brought it upon ourselves. We as a nation have allowed for no other option than judgment. When it’s coming is the question.

Will Jesus come before all this? Who knows. Even so… come quickly Lord Jesus.

Do-over Days

I woke up this morning thinking about how nice it would be if we had 'do-over' days. If rough days, like yesterday for my daughter Lauren, could be relived with the knowledge we have now, we would certainly make different choices! For her, it would have probably been to skip that soccer practice...But we don't get do-over days. However we live today, whatever we do, goes straight into the record books.  

Live your life today with the leading of God's Spirit. He knows what today holds. Live it right the first time, because we don't have a second chance at some things. 

IF you mess up, and we will some days, learn from it and move forward. If you sin, repent. If you break a bone at a practice that hardly anyone else even showed up for, you'll heal with the knowledge that you were doing your best and you were faithful. Keep going. 

We don't get do-over days, but hey, that's what 'new days' are for. Start today with yesterday's knowledge and go forward. Better days are ahead for you if you just keep going. 

Simplify - What a Complicated Word!

Nothing is ever easy it seems, and we are all too busy. Clearly, most of us need to simplify our lives...  But, simplify - what a complicated word!

Summer is always a busy time and if you are like me, you want to take in every day to the fullest.  As a church, I enjoy our going into the community to serve, church picnics, cookouts and Sunday Services. Personally, I love the warm temps, the fresh garden foods, soccer games, family time, and vacations.  I even enjoy the time I spend at home on my riding lawn mower.  Yet, I don't love being so busy that it seems I'm always behind on something, or more accurately, everything.

One thing I love most about winter, and those things are relatively few, is that things slow down in the winter.  Even then though, if we aren't careful, we'll be too busy even then.

We, honestly, try to squeeze too much into too little time.  We over commit, we're over worked, we're overly entertained and we allow our lives to be overly complicated. I believe it is a sign of the times we live in, but I also believe its a trick of the enemy to keep us focused on 'the now', rather than on eternity. If we aren't careful, we'll focus on what's pressing at the expense of what's precious. We need to stop for a moment and see what it is that is has brought us to such busy complicated lives.

I left my phone at home today. It wasn't intentional, but I didn't have time to go back and get it so I've done without it.  Guess what? I have had a much more productive day and life hasn't felt quite so complicated.

Modern conveniences like the smart phone, lap top computer, tablet, or even the microwave, may make things faster but they often serve to only make us busier. A smart phone, for instance, can be used as a communication device, a calendar, a camera, an MP3 player, a GPS, a game station and so much more.  Why then does it make us busier?  Because the shortcut it offers, gives us a few more minutes of free time so we try to pack more and more into those extra minutes.  Instead of a helping us to be more efficient, it often becomes a time trap.

Am I saying that these things are evil? Of course not.  The gadgets really aren't the problem.  The problem comes when we allow our priorities to become clouded.

If we want to simplify our lives, and many of us would benefit from that, then how can we do it? Must we get rid of the phones, computers, and other modern conveniences?  No. If we want to simplify, we just have to choose to intentionally de-clutter our lives. That may look like watching less T.V., listening to less radio, putting the phone away, or any number of things, but really it's about priorities.

Focus on the important things, and put aside some of the less important things, and you'll probably find your life will be more enjoyable and less complicated.  Sounds easy doesn't it?  But even when we  know how to simplify, it's still very complicated.

Spinning Plates

You've probably seen it before. It's a variation of juggling. One person by himself, or perhaps with an assistant, places plates, one after another, on vertical rods and tries to keep them all spinning. They add more and more until they are running back and forth at a crazy pace.

The principal is of course not to let any of the plates drop, but to impress us with the skill of doing so much at one time. 

It's great to watch, and very entertaining, but it takes skill and determination to keep those plates spinning and no matter how talented the performer is, he will drop some plates. 

That's what being a pastor feels like to me. I'm not sure that's how it's supposed to feel, but it does. There is just always too much to do, and no pastor wants to drop plates.

I know many think that the 'job' of a pastor has to be an easy one, just preach Sunday you're done for another week. But the truth is, it's the hardest thing I've ever done... by far. 

There are always people that are in need of either a visit, or prayer, or encouragement, or counsel, or correction... or the list goes on. There are always things that need to be done, or said, to further the gospel or take ministry forward that it 'seems' that only the pastor can do. There are always a multitude of little things to be done around the church, waiting for someone to get to them or at least approve them. 

Yet, spinning plates is a form of entertainment; it's show business. As I said earlier, it requires talent, skill, and determination and it's done to impress the viewer. That's what much of the church has come to expect of a pastor too... But, it's not God's call on the pastor to impress or display his talent or skill. The pastor is not a performer. The pastor is called to care for, to equip, and to 'lead' the flock of God, not to display his giftings... And not to spin plates. 

Am I saying that I have no one to assist me? No. We have some great workers in our church, yet honestly many, if not most, are content to sit back and take in the show. I think that's the way it is in most churches.

There is so much to be done, and so little time to do it. My prayer today is for laborers in the field. I'm tired of feeling like I'm spinning plates... Probably many pastors feel this way! But, I don't want to impress any more, I want to equip, and empower. Will you join the team of assistants and take your place along side me? If you aren't from ALT, will you take the place beside your pastor?

We aren't in the business of entertainment, we are in the business of winning souls. Let's do the business of this Kingdom together!

Here is a link to a video that illustrates the performance. This one is based in comedy too,so I hope you enjoy.  http://youtu.be/FK4nh5I0jpE

We say God is our friend...

We say God is our friend, but we treat him like a stranger.

We treat him like a waiter:
"If he's lucky," we give him a nod and say a quick "thank you" when he puts the food on our table.  If he treats us really good, we might give him a little extra.

We treat him like a neighbor:
We speak to him in passing. "Hello there sir!" Then we go on by, without stopping to get acquainted.

We treat him like the young lady behind the doughnut counter:
We ask for what looks good to us that day, expecting him to just give us whatever we ask for, but without a hint of relationship.  "Can I get one of these please, and Oh! could you please get me some of the others, over there, too. They look so delicious."

We treat him like the attendant at the gas station:
We will give him what we feel is required, but not without complaining that the price is too high.

We treat him like someone who looks familiar to us on the street.
We'll give him a second glance, or we may even "wave at him" in a worship service... But we don't stop to spend time face to face, so we never really know him. He's just a little familiar to us.

We say God is our friend...
..but we treat him like a stranger.

Take time to get to know him today. He's the best friend you'll ever have.

The Church Needs Rehab

Today’s church needs rehab!  Rehabilitation, is the process of restoring to a condition of health or ability to work. It means to restore to a former capacity, standing, rights, and/or privilege. It can also mean to reestablish a good reputation.

When a person has an injury, they must often set up an appointment with a therapist for rehabilitation for that injured part of their body. Or, if a person has fallen into a lifestyle of substance abuse, for instance, they sometimes must undergo rehabilitation. Rehab allows the person to regain what was lost by the injury or abuse, to take back their life and again start living more fully.

I believe the church has come to the place that it needs rehabilitation. The Body of Christ, is in need of restoration, renewal, or to use a better known term associated with the church, revival. 

We are not operating at our former capacity of faith.  Our ability to ‘work’ has seemingly been stripped away, by complacency and American commercialism. We’re losing rights and privileges daily. We are losing our good reputation as we are so wrapped up in our own agendas that we fail to be the light of Christ that we are called to be. We have lost effectiveness because we operate like a club, rather than a living entity.

The church has wandered from the standards of biblical holiness, and I’m not referring to style of dress.  We have shirked responsibility in our communities. We have compromised, because we didn’t want to seem politically incorrect. We have failed to love those who are in opposition to us, acting as though we can win them by some militant action.

The truth though, is that the church is a living body.  It includes many members, who each have a function.  Christ is the head, the one who is calling the shots. As members of His Body, it’s our responsibility to act according to His mandate. 

This is why I say we need rehab. The head (Jesus) is sending signals to the body, but the body (the Church) isn’t getting them. We’ve lost our ability to hear his instruction, and we’ve been acting independently.  Rehab, renewal, revival, can fix that.

You may be thinking, if we go back to some former capacity, we will lose our edge in being relevant to today’s world.  That’s completely untrue. Our God is bigger than history, he’s bigger than our present.  He’s certainly God enough to handle the future. Jesus has just what this world is in need of, and if we the church can get the signal from the head of the church, we will be fully equipped to handle the challenges of today, and the days to come. We need to be rehabilitated.

So what does the rehabilitation of the church look like?  I believe it starts with prayer and returning to the Word of God (the Bible).  We need to reestablish the communication with the head of the church, Jesus. We need to hear what Christ is saying in His Word, not just what we hope or believe He is saying.  We need to pray together, until the walls of our pride and arrogance fall.  We also need to begin to talk to one another, across our lines of demarcation and love one another again.

We need to then create new habits. We need to learn to walk again, according to His Word. We should ‘be’ love personified. Not just showing love, but habitually being love.  Not some watered down version that condones godless living in the church, but love that will speak the truth to a world going to Hell in a hand basket. Love that says that you don’t have to stay in the bondage you are in, because there is a way to become new in Christ and that freedom comes by His power not ours. We need to bring integrity back to the pulpit and the pew, and make truth a habit like it was in the past.

Rehabilitation in the church may be difficult, and it won’t happen overnight, but regaining what was lost is rarely easy.  Rehabilitation takes commitment and determination, but it’s worth it, and it’s needed. The church needs rehab right away, and the good news is that our therapist (God’s Spirit) has openings available. Won’t you sign up to regain what we have lost? Make your appointment for rehab today.