Gain from the Pain

It was the bottom of the sixth inning. Tim Raines of the Montreal Expos was at the plate. The San Francisco Giants' pitcher, Dave Dravecky, wound up and threw the ball toward the catcher as hard as he could. It was the last pitch he would ever throw. A loud sickening crack was heard all over the stadium. Dravecky's pitching arm had been weakened by undiscovered cancer and his humerus bone snapped in two. "My arm felt like it had been hit with a meat axe," the pitcher said. He tumbled head first to the ground while screaming and holding his broken arm.

He had to have his arm amputated to stop the spread of cancer. His baseball career was over.

Several weeks after his surgery, Dravecky returned to Jack Murphy Stadium to thank his teammates, fans, and friends. He received a long standing ovation. As he had many times since his surgery, he glorified God and gave praise to Jesus Christ.

After his return to the stadium he received hundreds of invitations to speak during the next year. Dravecky has been an inspirational speaker and author ever since.
(Taken from Comeback, by Dave Dravecky with Tim Stafford)

For the single-minded Christ follower, the pain of adversity is always an opportunity to grow in our faith in God, and be used by Him for kingdom work, in ways we could never have imagined before. The Apostle Paul wrote from prison to the church in Philippi, "And I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News." Phil 1:12

The witness of the Apostle Paul and many Christians, who have found victory in the midst of and after adversity, points the way for us to gain joy from the pain we are allowed to suffer in our lives. That's right, I said "allowed". I know it is more fun when we are looking at the world from the mountain tops, but real spiritual growth comes when we are traveling through the dark valleys of life. God allows us to suffer the pain of adversity so He can mold us to be more like Jesus.

Dear Friends and Family of LCC. This Sunday I will continue teaching in a series from the book of Philippians, EPIC Joy. This week's message will be from Phil. 1:12-26. I am calling it, "Gain from the Pain."

Blessings of Hope and Joy

I pray God is blessing you in ways better than you can imagine and you are seeing God and His work around you on a daily basis. A couple of weeks ago I challenged LCC people to go to bed thanking God for their blessings and to wake up ever morning with a new commitment to following Jesus throughout the day. Two different ladies have reported back to me similar results. It works..... It has not miraculously changed their lives, (yet) but they have been going to bed with more peace and feeling a heightened sense of hope during the day. It is so easy to get focused on the negative things happening in our lives that we don't see the many blessings.

Why don't you try it!!! It may seem goofy to you, but it couldn't hurt and most likely it will help... When you are lying in bed at night, in the dark, don't count sheep or focus on your problems. Focus on the many blessings you have. If you can only think of one blessing right now, focus on it. But I know there are more... Ask God to remind you of your blessings... tell Him your blessing vision is being blocked by the pain in your life. He will open your eyes.... He is a loving Father and He wants you to feel joy and hope....

For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jer 29:11

Last week I started a new teaching series from the book of Philippians, "EPIC Joy". We did an overview of the four chapter letter from the apostle Paul and this week we are going to dive right in to chapter one. I have read this book of the Bible many times and I am really enjoying digging in to it to learn for myself and to teach God's people at LCC.

In the greeting Paul says he is writing to God's holy people in Philippi. So why 2000 years later are we reading Paul's letter to this church. Because Paul's letter to the Philippians is also God's letter to the holy people in NE Tarrant County.... That's right.... For us it reads, "I am writing this letter to all of God's people at the church by 7-11 in Euless" (LCC).

God calls us, His children through Jesus, holy. In some translations it says "saints". How often do you think of yourself as a Holy Saint. Whether you do or not, God does. Isn't that amazing. Holy means set apart. When we decide to; admit we need God, recognize that God sent Jesus to pay for and erase our sins, and commit to following Jesus or making him leader of our lives, we are set apart by God to do His work on earth. That's right holy person. You know who you are.

This Sunday we will be learning from the first eleven versus of Philippians how the real secret of joy is found in "The Partnership of Joy." You can catch up by listening to last weeks teaching here,,,, http://www.lifeconnectionchurch.org/Pages/downloads.html

EPIC Joy and Father's Day

"I got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart." I remember singing that song in Vacation Bible School at Plymouth Park Baptist Church in Irving.

I loved that song. It has a catchy tune, you can clap and laugh while singing it, and we got to sing, "If the Devil doesn't like it he can sit on a tack (Hey)." My favorite line.

As a kid, I didn't spend much time thinking about joy, or why I didn't have it. It is a big deal for adults. We want to be happy. We think that God wants us to be happy. We even think that it is our right to be happy. So we spend lots of time, energy, and resources on; seminars, books, religion, possessions, and many other avenues to pursue happiness.

I searched Amazon.com books this morning and got 365,609 hits for happy, 212,539 for happiness, and 299,105 books on joy.

Two thousand years ago the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to the Philippian Christians on how to live a joyful life. Lisa and I have read these four chapters over and over again when we are a little short on joy in our lives. What is unusual and even incredible about Paul writing this letter of encouragement is that he wrote it while incarcerated. Yes, he was in jail waiting for a trial that would most likely result in the death penalty. Paul was an innocent and godly man just working hard at spreading the Gospel of Jesus and it landed him in a Roman jail, chained to a Roman soldier, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Paul knew the secret to living a life full of joy, regardless of his circumstances (Phil 4:11). Starting this Sunday, we will spend the summer learning from the Apostle Paul how to live a life of joy. I am calling this teaching series: EPIC Joy. This Sunday we will look at the situations in our lives that block our joy and start unpacking the secrets to a joyful life.

If you are part of the LCC family, you might want to read Philippians (It's only four chapters) and then bring your Bible to church. For those of you who worship elsewhere, if you don't already use this letter of Paul as a source for joy then try it out. I promise you will be blessed, no matter your circumstances.

Father's Day - Just a reminder that Sunday is Father's Day. Honor you father. The Word of God promises you will be blessed.

'Honor your father and mother, as the LORD your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God will give you. Deut 5:16 NLT

For those of you who are fathers, remember, you are the greatest spiritual influence in your kid's life. it is a responsibility and a privilege given to us by God our Father.