Waypoints

People

This Sunday we will begin a new series called “Relationship Status.” Each week we will explore biblical relationships with the goal of enhancing our personal relationships.

Relating to people is just a part of life. If you live a typical lifestyle, you can’t avoid them. Some people choose to live like hermits by moving to a mountain cabin in order to avoid dealing with people. Such isolation is just not an option for most of us.

People are all around us! Some are such a blessing while others can turn into your “thorn in the flesh!” Ecclesiastes 4:10 (NIV) tell us “If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” All of us fall…in fact when you work with people sometimes you fall because someone pushes you down.

I remember John Maxwell saying that “leadership is lonely so you better remember why you are there.” When you walk with God and step out against the current, you can anticipate someone trying to push you down…yes, notice “when you walk with God!” On a number of occasions I have been the target of that downward push. It doesn’t matter that I am in God’s will, being obedient, working as hard as I can and being sweet. Someone always comes along with a push.

So who gets me up? Home. I can go home and find a loving place filled with people that believe in me. They pick me up. Staff. Some are intuitive enough to check on me and encourage me when they know I am being shot at from all sides. Deacons. Words cannot explain what it means to know there are 60 Godly men standing on all sides of you when things get tough. They provide strength and courage. Friends. A few God-given people that love you…no matter what. While one side of the relationship coin tries to push you down, stay focused on the flip side of the coin that provides daily “pick-me-ups.”

Everybody will fall. You are going to fall. Who will pick you up? Probably some of the same ones that you have picked up.

Reactions

It simply happened before I knew it. I certainly would not stoop to such low standards in my life, but I did it before I even knew what happened. Then I did it twice!! It was a surreal moment…an out of body experience! It just wasn’t natural.

Let me explain. I was in a real hurry, which is nothing new. The morning had been filled with a number of at home activities and my next assignment was coming fast. Over the past few days the afternoons here have been warm. My car has one of those remote starters activated by a button on the key chain. I knew the car would be hot so I just walked over to the window in our bathroom which is right above our driveway and quickly pulled my keys out of my pocket. Feeling rushed, I didn’t take the time to get a good grip on them. Did I mention that the little window is right above the toilet? Quit laughing! The next thing I knew my keys were flying in the air. My efforts to catch them failed miserably. The toilet proved to be a much better receiver than my hands.

I knew water could mess up the electronics of the key chain, so before I could even think, my hand went diving in the bowl. I quickly yanked (that’s southern talk) them out of the water, but they were wet and slippery and before I knew it, back in! By now, I was laughing as I made a second plunge into the water. Taking my time I got a better hold on the slippery rascals. Once out, I began the process of drying them off. Fortunately, the toilet water was clean…is that an oxymoron? But it was the reaction that got me!

Reactions always get me in trouble! I was raised by being told, “think before you act.” Paul says in Philippians we are to be like-minded with Christ Jesus! We can hear the words, “swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to become angry” and “out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” Reactions don’t give you time to pray and get ready. They just happen. What is in you comes out and it happens fast! Preparing your mind today, gets you ready for tomorrow’s reaction.

Team Work

I lived the first 12 years of my life in a neighborhood on the south side of Birmingham in an area called “Rocky Ridge.” The street was a big loop that was full of families. From time to time some of the neighbor’s dogs would all meet together and seemingly pick sides. I guess looking back on it, all the dogs could have been gathering together because of one really pretty dog…but since this is a family blog we will leave that subject! Whatever the motive for those get-togethers, it seems that they would always break out into a free-for-all fight! While the dogs growled and rolled in the dust, the kids franctically tried to separate them. Did you experience that as a kid?

In a very positive way that reminds me of the team around here! It seems like every week we have huge projects with a long list of tasks that need to be completed…and soon! Everyone jumps in and the dust begins to fly! It really doesn’t matter if it is “their area,” they just all jump in and make it happen. It is a lot more fun to watch than a pack of dogs fighting.

First Baptist Trussville has a pack that sticks together and surrenders personal desires for the cause! There is a verse about that you know. Do you work in a place like that? If not, remember change has to start somewhere. Today, get out of your area and find someone that is swamped. Lend a helping hand. Take one for the team. If you take a few minutes, you will notice that Jesus is always pleased when we serve others. He taught us the servant way of leadership. It’s All About Him!

The Mission

For several years we have been taught about “mission statements,” “vision statements,” “strategies,” and “procedures.” I’m not sure what all that means and it seems way too complicated to incorporate all that terminology around here. We just simply say we strive for people to be “committed to God, know His ways and do His work because it’s all about Him!” Of course, this was first described by Jesus in what we call the Great Commission. Life’s most important fact is: “It’s ALL about Him.” Whether things are going well or we are experiencing tough times…it is all about Him. Today I was at www.fbctmen.com and came across this great clip by Pastor Voddie Baucham. Listen to this and see if it changes your perspective on today!

In the Springtime when the weather’s just right, birds sing and sing…

It is a beautiful time of the year! I can’t pinpoint exactly what is most beautiful. Perhaps it is the new growth on the trees, or the flowers blooming or maybe it is just the rebirth from ole man winter…or maybe it’s because it’s Turkey season?! Anyway, have you noticed the beauty? It is amazing how creation screams about God as a new day begins. If it has been awhile…or maybe never…since you have quietly sat outside and experienced the beginning of a new day, then I would strongly encourage that you it try this season. Creation seems to be so happy and energetic with each sunrise. God gives humans each day, but creation itself begins the day with a song and a burst of excitement. That’s not really how I begin my day! I roll out of bed with joints popping and get a wake up call with hot water hitting my head! Several hours later, I am ready for coherent discussions about problems and opportunities. We have heard it said that he/she woke up on the wrong side of the bed. In reality, our mood has nothing to do with a certain side of the bed but with the choice we made when we got up! Nature makes the right choice. If creation can sing His praises when they have never known His forgiveness, how much more should I when I am the one that has been changed by His presence!

An Invitation

Holy Week! It is an incredible experience for the believer and gives unprecedented opportunities for outreach. Have you noticed this week that the History Channel, Discovery Channel and The Learning Channel have all had programming that is researching the life and ministry of Jesus? The world thinks about Jesus this week! So what will happen Sunday in Trussville? Most who read this will be at an Easter service somewhere.

My main concern is: who will YOU bring to church?

Easter is a time of celebration by believers and inquiry by seekers, but it is also a great opportunity to do what we are here to do…share the love of God! That’s why we gave out free coffee bags this past Sunday. We set the stage for you to invite someone to the cross! How can we make it any easier? We will conduct four services (five, counting the Annex overflow) with various styles of music but proclaiming the same message: Everyone needs Jesus! Even if you have asked someone 100 times to come to church…ask them one more time!

Pray for Sunday and bring someone with you! I’ll see you then.

Hard Times

Flip the coin of life and up pops the opposite of the fulfilled dreams I talked about in the last entry. Almost daily I see people watching dreams crash. In a matter of minutes, people can transition from celebration to discouragement. Sharing life when dreams come true is easy. However, when bad things happen to those good people, life gets hard. Good people lose their jobs, get sick, go through tragedy, and experience a host of other devastating things. When it happens it is not fair, right or easy to swallow.

So what do you do? At some point, bad things happen to all of us. How do you respond?

Determine to get better not bitter

Use the opportunity to learn

Capitalize on the situation to be a witness for Christ

Trust Christ…He was not surprised

Remain extraordinarily faithful

Believe and live in light of Romans 8:28

Anticipate God’s blessings in the days ahead

Pray for peace, wisdom and His perspective

Everyone likes a success story. You know, good guys doing well. However, my guess is we gain greater strength and encouragement observing good people remaining faithful in hard times. We admire them and want to emulate them because they give us hope for the hard day waiting for us.

Be A Dreamer

It has been said that “sometimes the good guys win!” Don’t you love it when good guys do well? Success stories are just fun to watch.

Yesterday John Calipari became the new Kentucky basketball coach. According to Calipari, the Kentucky job had been a dream of his for many years. His dream came true! I’m not a Kentucky fan and really don’t understand making that much money just to get some guys to put an orange ball through a ring. How sweet it is to watch a dream become reality!.

Some people are filled with jealousy and envy when others do well. In their opinion, dreams don’t come true without a long list of inappropriate activities taking place. Accusations of lying, cheating, deceiving, and other unacceptable behaviors are fired at the successful person. The truth is, on some occasions, the complainers are right on target.

However, sometimes people react negatively to others dreams because they simply don’t dream themselves. An elderly friend of mine scoffed at the notion that someone would go out to a swamp in south Florida and build a theme park. But for Walt Disney his dream became a reality. Many people thought launching a “plane” into space and expecting a return flight to earth was the height of foolishness. Today the shuttle proves dreams can come true. A friend of mine in Huntsville speaks of politicians who ridiculed the thought of shooting down one rocket with another…have you watched the launches out of Hawaii lately? Bullseye!

If you are dreamer, seeing others accomplish great things will motivate you to pursue the dreams God plants in you. God is a God of dreams/visions/blessings. Want a dream? Dream that one day you will hear “well done good and faithful servant!” When you chase God’s dreams for you, expect to come in first!

Lessons from a Chicken

Last Sunday, I told one of the worship services about the new addition to our family…a chick! Now, it’s not another female club member to the Champion “sorority house.” It is a baby chicken! She is now about 4 weeks old and has a few little feathers but is mainly still fuzzy and yellow.

Tuesday night I was working outside and Lynn came out of the barn and told me the chick was missing and Sadie (our black lab…yes, a female) just left the barn with something in her mouth. I ran around the front of the barn and yelled (not in a nice tone of voice) for Sadie. She soon came with her nose to the ground. It is always amazing to me that her body language matches what she has done! When she came to me I opened her mouth to look for any remnants that were to be found – nothing. For the next few minutes Sadie’s back feet walked on the ground while I pulled her by the collar to her kennel.

As I got close to the kennel I heard the “chirping” of little “Penny” (yes, chicks have to have names at our house)! Soon we found Penny walking around in the woods with not a bump or bruise to be found. Sadie had grabbed Penny out of the gage, carried her across the yard to her kennel and never consumed or even bit down on her new fuzzy friend. She even dropped her and came to me instead of enjoying her new morsel and then obeying me. I was amazed!

Why can’t I be that kind and tender with my mouth? When I hear God’s voice, why can’t I quickly turn and obey to avoid the results of my…mountain dew and Reese’s cup?

Competition

Since I am a pastor then I am qualified to question my profession, motives, and perspectives. We are a peculiar bunch…watch the reactions from the people in our church! Every Christ follower has his or her own set of doctrines, beliefs, and interpretations of Scripture. Often, the more study we give to the Bible makes us more grounded in those beliefs. But why do they have to divide us?

We classify our doctrines as “right and wrong” instead of “my understanding of God’s Word.” Now be careful, stray from the Word of God and you will lose the presence of God! I’m not talking about the major tenets of our faith, just the minor stuff that God isn’t really clear on! Sometimes we even wish negative things upon those who are not in our own “camp” and confess the same doctrines we do! I don’t understand it…does that thought come from the pews or the pulpit? To make matters worse, the more God blesses a place the more we tend to be critical of them.

Just for the record, Chris Hodges and Church of the Highlands were recently named the fastest growing church in America…Go God!!! I am pumped that Chris answered God’s call to start Highlands and, as always, God is blessing their socks off! I’m sure we have differences but we have the same Jesus!

May God continue to bless and anoint their efforts. By the way…God bless Crosspoint, North Park, First Methodist, Holy Infant of Prague, North Point, Willow Creek, Saddleback (you get the point) and God anoint First Baptist Church of Trussville too…that pastor needs your help!!!!

BUDDY CHAMPION

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