Mike Fisk & Built with Grace

Breaking the Generation Gap

February 1, 2010 in Uncategorized | Tags: generations, hymns, songs. worship | Leave a comment

How great are His signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation. Daniel 4:3

When I was growing up purchasing a Bible was relatively easy. You had one version to choose from (KJV) which came in black (boys) and red (girls). If you wanted the deluxe versions of each you could get one with maps and the words of Jesus printed in red!

Going from church to church was relatively easy as well. First of all you only went to a church that had the same title on the sign as the one on the front of your home church. Secondly you could be assured that you knew the songs sung because each church had the same hymnal. The music was led by a song leader who told you what verses to sing and helped you follow the organist and pianist as they played for you.

Everything was predictable, well spelled out in advance and made it easy to settle into a rut.

Today, things are different. Walk down the aisle of a bookstore to buy a Bible and you are met with numerous choices of translations, versions and study Bibles of all shapes, sizes and colors!

If you are visiting a different town and wish to go to church you find a variety of different churches. Some have the same title you are used to, many do not and even the churches that belong to the same ‘club’ yours does don’t always tell you that.

When you enter the church there may not be a piano or organ to be seen. Rather you are met with a group of varying sizes that have guitars and drums and keyboards and any number of other musical instruments! Don’t bother looking for a hymnal because they are collecting dust in a closet somewhere. The words of your songs will be displayed on a screen and you may sing along from those words IF you know the songs that this particular church sings.

Now, before you dismiss me as some sort of ultra-conservative nay-sayer let me tell you this. I love the change! But that doesn’t mean that the way I grew up was ‘wrong’ or ineffective. Many people came to Christ then just as they do now.

Sure, I miss some of my favorite hymns, and others sound great with drums and guitars. I enjoy the spontaneity of live worship. I understand some portions of the Bible I didn’t understand before because of the new versions and study guides.

With all the changes that have taken place over the years since my childhood, two things have remained the same. One is that: Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Secondly, I have friends and neighbors that will spend eternity in hell unless they are introduced to the love, forgiveness and eternal life only Jesus can offer.

What a great and awesome God we serve. A God that can speak through the words of a hymn or praise chorus. A God that can reach us through the words of a KJV, NIV or any other version of the Bible.

Father God is not tied to one style of worship, one version of Scripture or one title on a church building. His greatness spans all generations. As followers of Jesus Christ we must learn to embrace every generation and accept the changes while we respect the traditions of our faith. Jesus Christ: the same yesterday, today and forever!

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you for the diversity that we can experience through the body of Christ. I ask that you will bring all generations into unity under the power of your mighty Holy Spirit. May your love permeate every generation for your name sake. Amen.

True Friendship Strengthens Faith

January 30, 2010 in Uncategorized | Tags: friends, friendship, relationship, trust | Leave a comment

And Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. 1 Samuel 23:16

David was just a simple shepherd boy given a huge opportunity by God. Being a shepherd was a lonely existence in which you would sometimes spend months alone in the hills with just a bunch of sheep, facing the elements, attack by wildlife and tending to a bunch of animals prone to wander off.

All that changed when David was thrust into the political spotlight as a result of God’s choice for him to be king. He must have felt every emotion imaginable during this time of his life. Loneliness and fear may have gripped him from time to time in the hill country. But he learned during that time to trust God for safety, wisdom and provision.

He no doubt was overwhelmed when the Prophet, Samuel, anointed him and informed him and his family that David would be the next King of Israel. The excitement of the possibilities no doubt grew when he was invited into the palace to live with King Saul. Here he learned the political ins and outs of ruling a country.

He learned to be patient during the confusing times when the king tried to kill him during Saul’s frequent fits of rage and anger. Where was God’s promise? Why did he bring me here only to face more danger? David knew how to fight lions and bears, not kings.

There must have been times he was ready to give up on God’s promise. To return to the hills and tend sheep as his family had done for years. But something kept him going. One of those things was a friendship with Saul’s own son, Jonathan. Time after time Jonathan intervened on David’s behalf, risking his own life so that David would be safe.

Jonathan had nothing to gain and everything to lose being David’s friend. David was the one person who stood before him and the throne. He was well aware of the fact that in order for David to be King he would have to die. Yet he encouraged David to be strong and encouraged his faith by telling him to stay strong.

In each of our lives we encounter hardships and trials. These are painful life experiences that seem to want to sap the energy and strength from our very lives. During these times we need to seek out good, Godly friendships. We need people who we can rely on to encourage us during the down times, be honest with us when we need to hear honesty and listen to us when we just need to vent.

Surround yourselves with sincere, Jesus following friends who lift you up and spur you on to greatness. Godly friends are those who selflessly encourage us to rely on God and pursue the very best for our lives.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, thank you for the examples you give us in the Bible of true friends such as Jonathan and David. Lead me into circles of your followers who will listen to my dreams, be patient with my struggles and lead me into a closer relationship with you so that I can attain all you want me to be. Amen.

Buried Treasure

January 29, 2010 in Uncategorized | Tags: dreams, hopelessness. listening, Hopes | Leave a comment

LORD, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will listen to their cries and comfort them. Psalms 10:17

The townspeople called her ‘Old Mary’. It was a term of affection for the frail old woman that lived in a small log cabin near the center of the little town where she was born and lived her entire life. Mary never got married. She spent her entire life working and helping to take care of her aging parents. After they died, “There just wasn’t time for that foolishness”, she told a neighbor lady in a rare ‘over the fence’ conversation.

Mary kept to herself. She was a very private person. She never drove a car but would be seen walking the three blocks to the grocery store every other day for a few meager supplies. As she got older her walks became slower, and less frequent. A few of the woman from the local church finally got her to accept an occasional ride to the store or church and in the cold winter months she’d even let them pick up a few things for her. Her home was rundown and her poverty was evident. Still it was with great reluctance that she accepted an occasional hand out.

One winter morning a neighbor made a call to Mary, who hadn’t been seen for several days. Upon entering the small home Mary was found sitting in her favorite chair with her Bible open on her lap, but Mary wasn’t really there. She had died a day earlier, just as she had lived: Alone.

The ladies from the church began the task of cleaning up the small cottage. A distant nephew was notified of Mary’s passing, but never responded to the calls.

Tucked beneath the soft mattress in Mary’s bedroom workers found nearly a half million dollars in cash and stocks! Mary had died in poverty as a very wealthy woman!

We have everything we need in Christ to accomplish the things God has in store for us. But like Mary, we sometimes tuck those gifts and opportunities for success under our mattress until, ‘things get better’, ‘the kids are out of school’, ‘we get out of debt’ or any other number of reasons.

Pursue the things God has for you now! Let His power work through you where you are. We have a loving, compassionate Father that hears our hopes and wants to accomplish great things in our lives.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, I thank you for your great love and forgiveness. Thank you that you not only see my need, but want to give me my dreams as well. Help me to grow in you, to be in unity with you and empowered by your Holy Spirit to rise above my helplessness into your power. Amen

Breaking Free from the Family Tree

January 28, 2010 in Uncategorized | Tags: abuse, divorce, Family, Family Tree, Heritage, relationship | Leave a comment

That same night the LORD said to him, “Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one seven years old. Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. Then build a proper kind of altar to the LORD your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second bull as a burnt offering.” Judges 6:25-26

Gideon was chosen by God to do mighty things for the people of Israel. God’s people were under constant attack from enemies that surrounded them. From time to time He chose common, ordinary, unsuspecting people to do courageous, heroic, acts of deliverance for his people. Often these people were not only unsuspecting but somewhat unwilling to do the task prepared for them.

Perhaps no one was more hesitant than Gideon. When he received God’s word that he was the new go-to guy for Israel’s deliverance he balked at the idea. He wasn’t strong enough, powerful enough or wise enough to be a hero. Besides, from Gideon’s perspective, his family tree was a mess. The backyard at home was strewn idols and altars to false gods.

God saw things differently that Gideon. Gideon measured the possibility of success according to his strength. God measured success by God’s ability and willingness to use Gideon for the purposes He had ordained. God did not wait for Gideon to become a spiritual role model. He didn’t choose him because of his standing among his people. God told him to simply “go in the strength you have”. He refused to let Gideon’s heritage be an excuse for God’s ability to use him in a mighty way. Gideon went on to lead the people of Israel to great victories over their enemies.

People still use the same excuse Gideon used when approaching life. We base our success ratio on the heritage handed down to us from our parents or those in our family tree. We measure our dreams according to ‘the cards we’ve had dealt to us’ without adding the ‘God factor.’ The only ones that should be tied to the family tree are monkeys. They were born there and will spend their entire lives there.

The mistakes, abuse and poverty of our youth should not keep us from living up to the potential we have through Christ. He isn’t interested in our past. He is only interested in how he can use us for his glory in the future. God can use us even if we are unsure, outnumbered or weak. He alone is our strength and our deliverer.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I thank you for the fact that You can use me no matter how strong or weak I may feel. I thank you for Jesus and His forgiveness. Like Gideon, I have some idols in my yard, things that keep me from pursuing you. Please forgive me for not believing. Empower me through your Holy Spirit to remove those idols so that you can work through me in mighty ways. Amen.

When the Walls Crash In

January 27, 2010 in Uncategorized | Tags: relationship, second chances | Leave a comment

Yes, the Day is coming when people will notice The One Who Made Them, take a long hard look at The Holy of Israel. They’ll lose interest in all the stuff they’ve made—altars and monuments and rituals, their homemade, handmade religion—however impressive it is. Isaiah 17:7-8 (The Message)

Isaiah gives the people of Israel hope for the future. As usual, it seems, God’s people had once more strayed from the relationship they had with God. They had become distracted with making money, building for the future and making life as comfortable as possible.

God was ‘in their lives’ but He was just a part of many other things going on. He was a safety net. God, or in this case religion had become an activity, not a relationship. They believed that everything would be okay as long as they did all the rituals of ‘church’ and said the right things.

The Israelites hadn’t gotten to that point overnight. It was a slow gradual process like the frog in a boiling pot of water. Put a frog in hot water he jumps immediately to safety. Put him in cool water and turn on the heat he will boil to death as his body adjusts to the heat to a deadly level. When death comes it comes quickly.

Jesus doesn’t ask for 99% of our lives. He wants all of us, 100% or more! When we harbor sin, ignore our spiritual food or make our relationship a ritual, we will lose touch with what the spiritual life, the Christ-life’ is all about. It’s easy to do. We seek after houses and toys and ‘respect’ and power. Even under the name of ministry or serving God. But beware of making our actions and our accomplishments the basis of our spiritual being. Just as with Israel, the walls of our accomplishments can come crashing down.

Sometimes, it takes the destruction of the ‘walls of our accomplishments’ to see Jesus in all His fullness. It’s when we reach bottom that we can renew our life in Him and restore that relationship. Fortunately that is JUST what He wants. Jesus isn’t impressed with the church you attend (or lead) or the number of Bible Studies you attend, or the fact that you’ve read the Bible through every year for 50 years, or that you have remained faithful to your spouse for 75 years, or that you sing worship songs (add your own activities to this list).

These are all things, activities, actions. Some are very valuable. But it’s the heart that matters. It’s about relationship. Jesus spent more time reaching out to those of us that had failed, that struggled with our faith, our family, our kids and our jobs than He did the ‘nice clean religious folks of his day’.

Forget your past. Forget the accomplishments you’ve made for whatever the reason. Where is your heart?

PRAYER: Dear Jesus. Thank you for the many things you have given me. Thank you for all of my gifts, my talents and my accomplishments. Forgive me for the times when I’ve made those accomplishments into idols that displace the relationship you want with me. Empower me through your Spirit to have a heart that is right with you. Amen