Some missionaries need your help

As a follow-up to my previous post, I want to ask for your help.

The Lord has blessed me by placing me in an office whose job it is to promote what God is doing in people's lives around the world. One of our recent assignments was to create promotional resources for an offering that will help send missionaries to unreached people groups all over the world. It will also help keep many missionaries on the field.

The International Mission Board (IMB) is one of the largest missionary sending agencies in the world. The only way it is able to send missionaries is through the giving of Christians like you and me.

At Christmas time every year, an offering called the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering is taken up in churches across America. Last year, that offering fell $30 million short. This shortfall has resulted in the suspension of critical missionary endeavors and the reduction of full-time missionaries they can send. There are missionaries who are called by God, trained and ready to go, but the funding is not there to send them.

The "Christmas in August" offering is a grassroots movement to make up at least a portion of the $30 million. It's simply a call for people to give whatever they can during August to make it possible for more missionaries to bring the Gospel to people all over the world.

You can visit www.swbts.edu/christmasinaugust for more details. The video above is available for free on the site so anyone can download it and use it in their churches, on their web site, or to send out as an e-mail. There are also other free resources available on the site and instructions on how you can give.

We have a critical mission, and it will take all of us to make it a success. For those willing to help I would ask that you consider which of the following would be appropriate for you:

1. Contact your pastor and ask him to raise an offering at the church during August.

2. Make sure the Mission’s Committee at your local church knows about the effort.

3. Send an e-mail to all of your friends making sure they know about the offering and the available resources.

4. Download the video and post it on your church’s website, your personal website, or anywhere else you can to raise awareness.

5. Pray that God would use this to heighten awareness of our missionary endeavors bringing unity and revival.

6. Skip lunch one Sunday after church to pray and fast. Then give the money you would have spent to the Christmas in August offering.

7. Give whatever God lays on your heart to support our missionary endeavors.

Romans 10:14-15

¹⁴How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ¹⁵And how are they to preach unless they are sent?

Christmas In August

There are 6.5 billion people inhabiting planet earth. Of those, 1.6 billion have never heard the name of Jesus.

At the same time, Southern Baptists gave $12 billion in 2008 to buildings, missions and budgets. Of that $12 billion, only 2.5% of that went to the IMB for international missions.

In 2008, the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for international missions fell short of its goal by nearly $30 million, resulting in the suspension of crucial missionary endeavors and a reduction in the number of full-time missionary appointments.

SBC President Johnny Hunt and others have challenged Southern Baptists to rally around the Great Commission and take up a Christmas in August offering. The Christmas in August offering is a special emphasis designed to draw awareness to last year’s missions giving shortfall and to ask churches to make a special effort to give in August as well as December this year to recover the deficit.

Southwestern Seminary has created and launched several videos and other free promotional resources to support local churches in partnering together for this unique offering.

What is the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering?
Southern Baptist churches collect the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for the sole purpose of supporting international missions. Every penny of the offering goes to the International Mission Board’s overseas budget, thus supporting our missionaries and their work.

How to Give to the IMB Lottie Moon Christmas in August Offering
Churches and individuals can give to the Christmas in August offering just like they do for the annual Lottie Moon Christmas offering.
IMB encourages Southern Baptists to give through their local churches to the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. IMB does, however, offer an online option for those who want to make a gift now.

If you would rather give by check or money order, make it payable to IMB and reference the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering in the memo section. Send to:

Development Office
International Mission Board
3806 Monument Ave
PO Box 6767
Richmond, VA 23230-0767

Explaining Christ's Death to a 4-year-old

Tonight after our church's Good Friday service, I took the opportunity to explain Jesus' final days on earth to Will and Blake. Will seemed riveted as I started with Jesus' final meal with his friends, washing their feet and celebrating the Passover. I had to give a quick explanation of Passover, but that didn't faze him.

We then talked about Jesus going to the mountain to pray and Judas' betrayal, followed by Peter's denial. I shared with them how Jesus stood trial and how the people wanted a murderer released and Jesus killed. Will said, "But Jesus never did anything wrong."

I explained how men beat Jesus with sticks and whips and pressed a crown of thorns, like a hat made of needles, onto his head. They nailed him to the cross, pounding large nails through his wrists. We talked about the thieves on either side and the response of the soldier at the foot of the cross. I ended with Jesus' death, hoping to leave some suspense about what happened next.

I asked Will if he had any questions. He said, "What did they do with Jesus' dead body?" I gave him a teaser, saying we are going to look at that tomorrow. Then, Will said excitedly, "But then Jesus rose from the dead!" His enthusiasm united with mine as I gave him a high-five for the resurrection and told him that's what Easter is all about.

Explaining Christ's death to a 4-year-old is both sobering and exhilarating. It was sobering to talk about death with him because you don't know how a 4-yr-old will take it. It was exhilarating because he was zeroed in on the message. I'm praying for Will that the Spirit would continue to draw him to the day of salvation. In our family prayer time tonight, we thanked Jesus for His death/resurrection and prayed that people would hear that message this weekend and yield their lives to the Savior.

What about you? Where do you stand on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus? Have you put your trust in Him? Are you following Him? (for more info, click on the "2 Ways to Live" button to the right)

Are you regularly joining with other believers to celebrate Jesus and unite with them in fulfilling His commands? Jesus died for individuals and for the church (Rom. 5:8 & Eph. 5:25). We must obey him personally and in with a local body of believers.

"... and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised."

2 Corinthians 5:15

Songs of a Pious Heart

Blake Hicks, a good friend of mine, has just released his new album, titled "Songs of a Pious Heart." The album was birthed out of reading St. Augustine's "Confessions," and I would call it a mix of ancient thought with a modern sound. I've been listening to the album for a week or so, and I have been truly blessed by his songs. I'm not just saying all of this because he's my friend, either.

Blake's the kind of guy I would fight in the spiritual trenches with anyday. His heart for the Gospel and sincere transparency are evident within his lyrics and his life.

Please go to Blake's website: www.blakehicksmusic.com, or find him on Facebook, to listen to some of the songs. This guy is so humble and genuine, that he's actually making his songs available for free on noisetrade.com so that others can be blessed by it. He didn't ask me to say this, but you need to listen to the songs, and then if you like the music, purchase the album, either through his site or iTunes or Amazon. At $10, it might just be the best Christmas gift or stocking stuffer you've ever purchased, and it has eternal value. It will also help support Blake, his wife, and two boys.

How do we avoid Christmas consumerism?

I want to start off this post with a humorous video:



One quick note about the video: the X in X-mas actually stands for the Greek letter "chi" which is a symbolic letter for Christ, so I get why people have called it X-mas.

But, like many Christians, I struggle with knowing just how much to embrace the holiday season. Nostalgia and excitement draw me into the "Christmas spirit" that our culture promotes as the goal of the Chrismas season. But how do I make sure this isn't my goal? I believe it's fine to enjoy the festivities, the parties, the music, and the decorations of the holiday season, but I also know that it's a challenge not to let this become all that Christmas is.

How do I lead my family in making Jesus the centerpiece of Christmas without jettisoning some of the fun things associated with it? Maybe it's impossible. Maybe I should follow suit with some who reject all the things like the festivities, the parties, the music, and the decorations.

As I was typing all of this, Will came up and gave me a huge hug and told me I was a great daddy. I took the opportunity to ask him what Christmas was all about. Unprompted, he said, "It's about Jesus' birthday." I guess I might be doing some things right after all. But, I will continue to strive to keep this on the forefront of our minds. Here's some thing we've been doing with this in mind:

- Each night, we read from the Bible and focus on an aspect of Advent. With the kids so young, I generally have to modify it, but they really seem to be picking it up.

- We don't do Santa. I know this sounds horrible for some, and my kid might be the one who blows it for your kid. I even know that I grew up believing in Santa Claus and it didn't destroy my faith in the long run. We basically tell the boys that he's pretend, just like Elmo or Bob the Builder, and that mommy and daddy are the ones who give the presents. We also tell them that there are some boys and girls who think he's real, and we will let their mommies and daddies tell them when they think it's the right time. The underlying principle for me is that I don't want to blur the line between reality/make believe to the point that my kids question the reality of Jesus Christ.

So, here's the question: What do you and your family do at Christmas to keep Christ on the forefront of your affections for the season? Post a comment or two and share how your family does it.

Vietnam Video

Here's a video about our team's work in Vietnam. One of our guys put this together while we were cooped up in the hotel during some of the flooding.

Thanksgiving - What question should we ask?

In a little more than a week, the United States will indulge in the national holiday called Thanksgiving. I, personally, love Thanksgiving and consider it possibly the best holiday of the year.

I know what you're thinking...what about Christmas? Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas, and I consider it and Easter to be the most significant holidays of the year. My problems with the holiday called Christmas is that it has become over-commercialized, including in Christian circles, as we have commercialized the over-commercialization of Christmas. (For example, I've seen "Jesus is the Reason for the Season" plastered on everything from bumper stickers to throw pillows.) But, this is all for a separate blog post, so I'll get back to Thanksgiving.

The most common question surrounding Thanksgiving is "What are you thankful for?" I would contend that this is the wrong question to ask. We should be asking, rather, "Who are you thankful to?" As with many originally religious holidays, society has watered it down. While the Pilgrims expressed thankfulness to the LORD on that first Thanksgiving for giving them life and the necessities of life, we now express thankfulness for the things we have (much of which is above and beyond the necessities of life). As is common with humans, we've turned our thanfulness inward. We focus on what we have over Who gave it to us. In this context it's nothing for a Buddhist or an atheist or a Wiccan to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Psalm 24:1 says, "The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." My prayer is that we would recognize that everything we have belongs to the LORD and that we are merely stewards of it ... that we would recognize the Giver over the gifts. Who knows, maybe when we start doing that at Thanksgiving, the meaning of Christmas will take on a clearer meaning as well.

Now for a confession...I have realized that the primary reasons I love Thanksgiving are selfish reasons. I love hanging out with my family, overloading on incredible food, and watching NFL football. Sure, we say a prayer of Thanksgiving, but I don't usually dedicate the day to expressing my gratitude to God. The Bible says I should live everyday this way.

LORD, forgive me for failing to recognize You as the Giver of all things with my thoughts, my actions, and my words. Remind me each day in Your Word how blessed I am to know You and walk with You. Not only are You the reason for Christmas, but You're the reason for Thanksgiving and every day!