an attitude of gratitude...

This past Sunday I believe we discovered a true attitude of thanks as we lifted our voices to God and said, “Thank You!” That expression of honor is some of the best music our Father God can hear. To hear our thanks for all He is and all He has done is a sweet time for each of us. These words filled the glass of worship to overflowing this past Sunday. That glass is filled every week with praises from people who love and honor God with their voices and their commitment. This past Sunday was special to me in that, we seemed to have such an attitude of gratitude.

I sense many times in my life I might say, “Thank you, God”, but lack in the truth of my attitude about really thanking Him. As our pastor shared about the Essentials of Easter and the details of the grave, it brought to mind just how much we need to be grateful for what He did for us. He died, was buried and rose again. Eternity was changed forever…..Thank you, Jesus!

As we approach this Sunday and the Passover, may our hearts be stirred even more as we continue to build on each essential of what Easter is all about for each us. May the crucifixion, the grave and the resurrection stir us, and change our attitudes from one of platitude (the quality or state of being flat, dull, or trite) to one of gratitude (the quality or feeling of being grateful or thankful). It will make this Easter one that will change how we live our lives. It will change our perspective and put Christ at the CENTER of it all. That is the least we can do…

The Pilgrimage continues...

David Warren

The Crossing...

When I was a youth, my parents leased a lot by a river in Arkansas called Spring River. At that time it wasn’t too commercialized, so during the early part of the summer we had that part of the river to ourselves. We would fish, swim and canoe all over the place and, of course, it was an awesome place for someone my age to have a great time with no “electronic fun” needed. The fun was there.

Since it was a river with a pretty good current, most of our canoeing was done in the area around the lot because it was so hard to make your way upstream. But every vacation we would take the hour long trek to canoe against the river upstream to a group of water falls. We would stay close to the bank, out of the main current, and paddle for a while, rest and then paddle some more. This particular time I went by myself and actually made good time getting to the falls. When I got there I tied up the canoe to a tree and swam out to the falls.

After swimming for a little while I noticed the bank on the other side, and remembered it was the place we never ventured to because you had to “walk the falls” to get to it. Walking the falls could mean slipping and plunging some fifteen feet into the rocks below. This particular time curiosity got the best of me and I climbed up on the falls and began to walk across. It didn’t take long for me to see that I was in a very tough current with water pushing my feet off the rocks and my balance compromised with every step. As I continued forward, I hadn’t noticed that I had made so much progress, that I was actually closer to the other side than the one I had left. I looked around and thought to myself, “What do I do now?” Fear grabbed me at that point and after gathering myself, I decided to go on.

I finally made it to the other side and looked back at what I had just crossed and shuddered, realizing what could have happened if I fell. But I also felt a great amount of satisfaction, knowing I had faced an obstacle and went through it. This was my Crossing. A crossing that seemed almost impossible, but with just a little faith became a reality. The Crossing for me made it possible to make many more crossings in the days ahead, and helped develop a life of faith in many other areas of my life. I will never forget The Crossing.

Our journey in life will have many such crossings. We will look at some and walk away because we just don’t believe we can do it. We will attempt some, and fail, and get back up to try again. The crossings we do make will help us develop a system of belief that will undergird our life choices in the future. Whatever the “Crossing”, at least make the effort! God is right here with us as we attempt to make crossing after crossing in our walk of faith. There are always obstacles in front and behind, and sometimes treacherous areas all around, but don’t let that keep you from crossing. The person who crosses will always see what others only dream about, and that faith makes the crossing worth it. Is today your Red Sea experience? Are you going to cross? Decide!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

custom connection...

From time to time I will have someone come up to me and say, “Boy, the worship team is so connected. How is that?” Basically they are saying they notice a kindred spirit, or oneness in purpose. I never tire of hearing those words and it stirs my heart to keep us focused on keeping that one heart. Honestly, I always marvel at how God can take people from totally different backgrounds and life experiences, and draw them together for one purpose. I mean drastically different people. When you see that kind of connection, it is true UNITY! Almost unexplainable to those who are not a part of it.

This unity is not a secret club for those who “have it” or an exclusive group that knows the right things to say or do. This unity happens because of a very custom-made connection. That custom connection was made on the cross by Christ. We are all drawn to each other by that cross. The “drawing” together is the drawing made possible only by the Holy Spirit. The result of that connection is UNITY! Unity is contagious!

All believers are looking for a place to make this custom connection and when they see it, they are drawn to it. It is their light in the tunnel that illuminates the pathway to living for Christ and makes it even brighter. The connection makes us stronger, bolder, more loving, and more connected with each other. This custom connection takes the new life we individually received from Christ and joins it with others who have the same thing. It makes us the church and makes us useable. We all want to be useable.

Where are you in the connection? You have the capacity to make a stronger connection a reality by living your witness for Christ — the witness that shows who He is and what He can do in a person’s life when they totally believe. You are a conduit, not a restrictor. In the case of our worship team, I believe we have mostly conduits who let Christ’s love pass through them. To those who are restrictors, I say, “Let go and let God!” Letting go means living for God alone, and letting the sacrifice He made for you be seen by how you worship and how you lead worship.

As we concentrate on the sacrifice and victory of Easter, may each of us be seen as those who are connected to the cross as we take up our crosses daily and follow Jesus. He is the power source and the designer of our custom connection.

The Pilgrimage continues...


David Warren

building the house...match the bricks!

I was in construction work for a while and during my brief time, I helped build a few houses and remodel others. One house I remember in particular we built from the foundation up. We got to the point where the outside brickwork was to be completed and one of our sub-contractors was being used. A big truck pulled up and unloaded enough pallets of bricks to complete the job. The bricklayers went to work and started laying bricks, hoping to get a lot done before the day was done. We went back to the trim work on the inside and after about three hours the bricklayer came to my boss and said, “You’ve got to come and look at this.” We all went outside and to our surprise there was most of the front of the house completed, but one thing was wrong. The brick company had unloaded two different types and colors of brick, and the bricklayers had put it up not even thinking about it. It wasn’t until most of the front was done that it became very clear. It didn’t match!

After much discussion on the phone, and some red faces, the brick was taken back down and the next day they started again with the right brick. No matter how much work had been put into the bricklaying, the fact that the brick didn’t match nullified the whole thing.

In 1 Peter 2, Peter says to rid ourselves of the many different things that look normal on those who don’t know Christ. He then says to long for spiritual milk, or nourishment, so that we will grow in the godliness we received through the Holy Spirit when we accepted the Lord. He continues to tell us how this is possible by explaining that Christ is the cornerstone of the “living stones” and that we are all living stones also. As living stones we are joined with Him, the living cornerstone, to build that spiritual house. That way when people look at our house the bricks match! No mistakes, no teardown and no redo. MATCH! He also quotes a promise in scripture from Psalm 118:22 that shows that people will miss this until they realize how precious this stone, Christ, is.

We are all building something — it may be a reputation, a lifestyle, a witness, or whatever. We need to remember to build it right from the foundation up. The house that is built will be right if we build it according to the plans set before us through God’s Word. That way when people look at our lives, they will not be looking at two different bricks, two different styles. There is only one acceptable style and it is God’s style. Long for that style and let God build your house to glorify Him. Believe or not, that house will sell to those looking for a good house investment. Why? Because there is no depreciation on the worth of what was done to build that house. Think about it...and live it. It’s worth it.

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

asleep at the wheel...

A few years ago I was travelling to visit someone in the hospital in another town that was about 2 hours away. I took one of our church members with me to help me stay awake on the drive home. I had lost quite a lot of sleep for one reason or another in the days preceding the trip to the hospital and felt like I would maybe fall asleep if I didn’t have some good conversation going. This guy liked to talk, so it seemed like a good plan. We got up early, talked all the way up to the hospital and had a great time of fellowship. We had our visit at the hospital and decided we would eat lunch at a favorite restaurant before we headed home.

We were both pretty hungry and finding ourselves at a buffet, well...we pigged out! After they rolled us out of the restaurant with rolls clutched in our hands, we proceeded to stop for gas and then hit the road. He offered to drive and I said I felt pretty good and declined his offer. We got out on the interstate and after about five miles I noticed we had a lot less discussion. After about 5 more miles I heard the faint whisper of snoring from the passenger seat of the car. I smiled and murmured, “Wimp,” and drove on.

A few more miles down the road I began to notice that the roadside had really changed a lot and there was a lake off to the side I hadn’t noticed on the way up. I was really enamored by that lake, and could not take my eyes off of it. Pretty soon I saw the biggest bass I had ever seen jump out of the lake and he jumped so high that he landed on top of the car — I woke up to sound of rocks hitting the bottom of my car as I road down the shoulder of that interstate leaning at least 45 degrees to the right. I had fallen asleep and I was dreaming about fish and a lake. I was immediately wide awake and yelled out, “Oh, no!” in perfect harmony with my partner in the passenger seat. He had heard the rocks, woke up, and his eyes were the size of silver dollars. I know because he was looking at me and yelling.

I finally got the car slowed down and back on the upright side of the shoulder and came to a stop. I looked at him and said, “You were supposed to keep me awake!” He said, “You shouldn’t have taken me to a buffet.” After much name-calling, and blame, we both admitted we had fallen into the slumber you cannot afford going 70 miles an hour on a busy interstate. From that moment on, we were both wide awake and ready and willing to keep the other from falling asleep. It meant our lives.

I fear we have gotten tired, fat, full, and gone to sleep in some ways. The watchman has let down his guard and we didn’t even know we had lost reality until we had a jolt to wake us up. It has happened to almost all of us. We should have stayed awake to keep us all awake and alert and even that has failed. It’s time to wake up and get back to the basics of our faith and get out of the dream world we have created. We need to do it now or we will surely crash. The good thing about it is we have landed on the shoulder — the shoulders of our Savior. Now is the time to wake up and encourage one another to greatness in the face of a world that is still asleep. God can wake them up….He woke us up! The old statement for fighters is to be lean and mean. The new statement for believers is to be lean and clean. Repent now. Don’t be found asleep at the wheel. You don’t want to be a part of that crash! Remember the words of Peter…

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift You up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. Be self-controlled (awake) and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

--1 Peter 5:6-9

The Pilgrimage continues....


David Warren