oasisCHURCH

Reflections from a Sunday

Yesterday morning... Such a great time of worship with kids leading the way. At about 10:00 on Saturday night I just about made other arrangements for the worship leading and teaching. I had battled the sore throat from hell all week. On Thursday it seemed like it was getting better, and so I let up on the rest and antibiotics on Friday, then paid for it immensely on Saturday. At one point on Saturday evening I thought my throat was going to close completely shut. I was ticked. I hate the thought of going to the doctor for a sore throat. So when we laid down to go to bed on Saturday I asked April to lay her hand on my neck and command the swelling, the soreness, the infection, to go away. I realized I had done very little spiritual battle all week long on this... and if we want to see physical manifestation of spiritual things (i.e. healing) we have to step in the ring. So she prayed. I fell asleep. Woke up Sunday still a little sore but not nearly as bad. I tried to sing in the shower but it still hurt. So we prayed some more. Between the time we left Athens to the time we pulled up beside the Legion Hall something happened... the physical manifestation of the spiritual battle. It was simply gone. I sang my head off yesterday morning with those kids. You are a good God. Thank you for giving us every good gift you have to offer, and thank you for giving us the power to release the gift of healing in our lives here and now.

Teaching Download: "Faith Like A Child"

Yesterday evening... At 6:00 a number of us gathered at the legion hall meeting place for a time of prayer and ministry to one another. This was very simple gathering. Chairs in a circle... candlelight... acoustic guitar... people expecting to hear from God, and be used by God. It happened. I would guess every life was blessed who was there. But I want to comment specifically on the children who were present. There was one point I remember in particular where tears could not be held back in my eyes. Everyone was gathered around Des, praying for him and giving him words of comfort, encouragement, and strength... including the kids. Josh, Justin, Lindsay, Brock, Cara all stood with their hands extended to touch and encourage Des right there with the adults. It was a beautiful picture (speaking of pictures, I forgot to take the digital camera yesterday and so I have no pictures... bummer). But the scene spoke so much to me about not underestimating children. They are gaining experiences in the presence of God that will mold and shape them forever. Adults... thank you for being patient enough with the children of Oasis to allow them to walk with Jesus right beside you, allowing them to watch you and learn from you. If the truth be known, and if we are willing to admit it... after looking back on our experiences with children... we probably learn more from them than we ever could hope to teach them.

+ + + God, thank you for children. I enjoy them so much. Like today, I had so much fun with my kids. My heart felt such an appreciation for their playfulness, their spontaneity, their loyalty, their seeking fun at all moments of the day. They are always seeking an "experience." They are not satisfied with a dull life. I know no child who has a dull life. They find ways to make it interesting. They are so free... so open... so honest... so outgoing. I love to hear them sing. They don't think about being on key... they just sing. I love to listen to them tell a story. They shar funny details, and then leave out others that may be more significant... but they don't fret about how they communicated. Just being able to tell you a story is what was important to them. I love their dependence. My kids know they need me. They are dependent upon me without giving it a second thought... it's almost an involuntary action. At what point in my life did I lose all of those child-like qualities? I want them back. Bring me back to life. + + +

"Open Range" | a movie

After a full morning of studying and preparing for Sunday I like to relax a little in the afternoon. There's no better way to relax than to watch a movie. I love all kinds of movies. I'd been thinking about doing some movie reviews on here every now and then, so... here's one for you.

I've never been a big fan of the western genre. I can probably name all the westerns I've watched on both hands (and three of them have the words "young" and "guns" in them). But I have to admit that I really liked this movie! It was very character driven... with Robert Duvall and Kevin Costner playing the lead roles of Boss and Charlie, two cattle-herders who've been working together for 10 years. For the most part it was just a good story about two men with conviction and character (a refreshing thing to see in a film). Not a whole lot of spiritual symbolism. But as you can probably guess, I had to find some...

This is a movie about tough decisions. The world isn't always as black and white as many who walk the Christian walk like to try and force it to be. There are tough decisions to be made every day. Sometimes all we can do is pray for wisdom, and then make the best choice we know. It's a matter of trust. This film is laced thoughout with the theme of trust.

Because this film is so character driven you can see how Boss and Charlie grow both personally and relationally. One last thought I had after watching the movie was about the "human condition" and the fact that it really hasn't changed after all these years, and never will in this world. Perhaps in small ways it has, but not in the grand scheme of life. There has always been injustice, pain, and hurt... and there always will be. I've been studying the book of Ecclesiastes this week, so maybe that's why my mind is in that particular train of thought. The author of the book had many experiences... but in physical life was unable to find a cure for the human condition. More on that later.

Hope you enjoyed the movie review. Oh, by the way, if you decide to watch it I wouldn't recommend watching it with young children. It gets pretty violent.

Celebrate KIDS! 2

This Sunday's Oasis gathering should be a rambunctious one. It's our second "Celebrate KIDS!" gathering. Back in October we experimented with an idea to center our morning worship gathering around the celebration of the many kids who are present with us in our fellowship. The entire morning was absolutely incredible. There was so much joy, freedom, and excitement as we worshiped and as the kids played along with various percussion instruments (and even a couple guitars). Well, we're going to do it again this Sunday.

What is Celebrate KIDS? Simply, there will be no separate activities, lessons, or worship for the children during our gathering. Instead, we will make special effort to include them (every age) in every aspect of our worship gathering. We encourage everyone to gather as many kids as they possibly can. And we also encourage them to bring various kinds of percussion instruments for the kids (and adults) to play during our praise and worship time. Even if they have to create them out of Pringles cans or whatever... it will all come together to be a joyful sound to the Lord.

Some of you might be thinking, "But I thought you guys were all-inclusive anyway in your gatherings, encouraging families to worship together and learn together?" That is true. However, we recognize the incredible diversity in children of all different ages, and the need to provide "extra" activities and learning opportunities geared especially for them. Therefore we do make provisions for young children on a typical Sunday morning gathering. But we also make it very clear to parents that their children are not just welcome, but encouraged, to participate in the experience of the Lord with them together. There is no "expectation" for where the kids should be in our gatherings. The only expectation is that moms and dads assume the primary role in the spiritual upbringing of their children. If a child is at our gatherings and his or her mom and dad is not, then we obviously have provisions for helping lead that child... with the youth workers serving as a sort of "adopted" spiritual parents for a while.

If you are in the area, come Celebrate KIDS with us this Sunday. Breakfast and conversations begin around 10:00 a.m. at the Old American Legion Hall. Worship and praise usually begins around 10:15.

under the weather

I've been a little under the weather the past two days. I don't know what happened. I normally don't get sick more than once or maybe twice a year, but this has been twice in the last two months. Bad sore throat, fever, aching joints... the whole deal.

Back to bed.

a library blog

That Wile E. Coyote must have finally caught up with the Road Runner... our internet at home has been pooped out all day today. Therefore, I am blogging from the local library this evening and will be brief. I just wanted to make mention of a couple new uploads.

First, yesterday's beautiful exploration of Exodus given by my wife April can be downloaded and listened to here (or you can always get it later from the column to the left).

Second... I have uploaded a new photo album from the Superbowl party. See it at the right. Very special thank you to the Meadows'... Mitch, Lisa, Jessi, and Jaxon... for the hospitality. We had a great time.