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Burning Hearts – March 9

Friday, March 7th, 2025

Back in October of 2003 Alan Jackson recorded a song which described the relationship with his wife and how they made it together through a tough time. I remember when he released that song. The previous months had been tough on them as they had filed for divorce but then backed away from it. I was glad. The song was entitled Remember When.  That is the theme of this Sunday’s sermon which focuses on Deuteronomy 8-29. Moses is telling them to remember what God had done for them. 

One of the most devastating diseases which strikes the human race is not cancer, although it’s diagnoses is dreaded. ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) or MS are two others. But I think one of the hardest to deal with the loss of memory-Dementia or Alzheimer’s. I read several books last year in an effort to understand it better. It seems to be creeping up more often.

Moses knew people’s knack for forgetting things, especially the good things God had done for them. Being forgetful people gave him an added impetus to remind them of how God had blessed them. These chapters are sort of like a trip down memory lane. We would do well to remember these highlights as well. I invite you to join us in person or via live stream as we take this trip down “memory lane” through the eyes of Moses as he comes near the end of his storied life. We have two services-one at 9:00 and one at 10:45. Please join us. If you are unable to do so, please join us online. You can send a request to join our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, In. Or you can watch via YouTube at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. I look forward to seeing you or hearing from you online.

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Burning Hearts – March 2

Friday, February 28th, 2025

“Come on in! The water is fine!” We might hear that from someone inviting us to join them in the pool or the ocean. However, a smart person will check out the person inviting them. Are they shivering? Are their lips blue? Are their teeth chattering? Or do they look totally relaxed and comfortable? We tend to be somewhat cautious in situations like that.

Why, then, are we less conscious when it comes to an invitation to join in where we are told to “Follow your heart” or “YOLO” or “Do what makes you feel good” or “I can do whatever I want. We live in an age of grace”? You recognize those statements, and others like them, I’m sure. The desire of our culture is to hide the consequences of those lines of reasoning, and “suck us into” its hideous swamp.

My sermon for Sunday finds the people of Israel seeking independence from God but also failing to see there is a consequence to that thinking and to their sin. Sort of like many of us, we want to indulge but we don’t want the extra pounds that come with indulging. They took it a step further: it had nothing to do with what they ate or did not eat. It had everything to do with lifestyle and obeying God’s law. We find many today taking that same approach. “I will do what I want. I don’t want to even think about results and consequences.” That’s a pretty scary (and dead end) philosophy.

I would appreciate your prayers for Sunday’s message. It is one that we all need to hear, but not all will take it well. If you can join us in person, please feel free to do so at 9 and 10:45. If not, we live stream both services at the same times. You can catch them on YouTube or on our website during the week. You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise. I look forward to hearing from you.

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Burning Hearts – February 23

Friday, February 21st, 2025

Grumbling and complaining seems to be a normal thing for many to do. And that includes we who should be the most thankful. The Apostle Paul wrote, “Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.” (Phil. 2:14-14 NLT)

The section of Scripture I will be preaching on this Sunday is filled with grumbling and complaining. I found 9-count them 9!-instances of grumbling and complaining.  Those 9 were just introductions to even more. Miriam. Aaron. 10 of the 12 spies. It is like the world of the Israelites was awash with it. Tragically, so are many of us.

I am going to do more this week than just preach about grumbling and complaining. With the help of a book by Jon Gordon called The No Complaining Rule, I also plan to share some thoughts on Five Things to Do Instead of Complaining. I will share them in Monday’s post. I’d like to invite you to join us in person this week at 9:00 and 10:45. If you cannot be here please join us via live stream. You can catch them on YouTube or on our website during the week. You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise. I look forward to hearing from you.

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Burning Hearts – February 16

Friday, February 14th, 2025

In the OT book of Micah there is a profound passage of Scripture that carries a big stick. That Scripture is Micah 6:8 which says, “No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what He requires of you: to do what is right (do justice in some translations), love mercy, and to walk humbly with God.” (New Living Translation).

Every once in awhile you will hear some one say, “Never forget where you came from.” I love hearing testimonies of people who have come out of a hole-whether drugs or prison or poverty or cutting or thinking of taking their own life or some other challenging life situation-and make a stand for Christ in their new life. It reminds me of the saying in the NT: “I once was blind but now I see.”

The passage of Scripture for this week is Leviticus 24-Numbers 10 and trust me when I say it would be easy to gloss over it. But we would be cheating ourselves if we did. Yes, it is hard to read, but an ever bigger “yes” is the truth it presents. While filled with laws and dedications for priests, it presents to us an even greater truth: what we deserve versus what we receive. Simply put:while we deserve justice, instead we receive mercy.

For more on this topic, I would like to invite you to join us either in person or via live stream. Our services are 9:00 and 10:45 and if you can’t make it in person, we live stream both services. If you happen to miss them, you can catch them on YouTube or on our website during the week. You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise. I look forward to hearing from  you.

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Burning Hearts – February 9

Friday, February 7th, 2025

We all have different battles we face. Some are mental-we struggle with depression, or suicide, or feelings of low self-worth. Some are physical-a long-standing physical battle like MS, or cancer, or chronic fatigue, or back issues. Some are social-we hate crowds so anxiety is a daily struggle, or we have this fear of rejection, of being seen as a misfit. Some are spiritual-we seem to struggle daily with distance from God, or of feeling guilty because we don’t keep a vow we made, or of a sin that keeps haunting us. But there is one battle we all face and we cannot get away from it, cannot rationalize it, nor can we “set the table right.” The struggle we all face is a 3-letter word:

S-I-N

“Sin leaves each of us guilty. The question is, ‘What will we do with our guilt?'” Paul David Tripp states in his little opening gambit from February 2nd.  The Scripture reading for this past in the Everyday Gospel Devotional and is the basis for this week’s message is Leviticus 5-23 and it is all about sin. As I have already stated, we all face it. It and the guilt that accompanies it is inescapable. In the OT Law system they had different kinds of offerings to make. We in the NT era of grace have Someone who had already made that offering for us. His name is Jesus.

We will be exploring that in depth Sunday morning. I’d like to invite you to join us in person if possible. If not, we live stream both services at 9:00 and 10:45. You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise. I look forward to hearing from  you.

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Burning Hearts – January 31

Friday, January 31st, 2025

In 1969 more than a few people were stunned by a band called Blind Faith. One of the main members was a man whom you may have heard of before. The man’s name was Eric Clapton and he was a founding member of the rock group, Cream.  They were famous for the iconic song “White Room.” Interestingly enough, while many thought it was a drug song, it was the exact opposite.  Back to Blind Faith. They came out with a song that seemed so strange and admittedly, bizarre, to so many. It was called Presence of the Lord. The final chorus has these lyrics: “Everybody knows the secret/Everybody knows the score/I have finally found a place to live/Oh, in the presence of the Lord.”  I have no clue of the whys and wherefores of that song. Was it 4 men searching for something? Was it Clapton searching and realizing that peace and contentment could only be found in God? I don’t know. I sincerely hope he did and still does.

Exodus 25-Leviticus 4 is not the least bit exciting to read but a closer look brings out several thoughts: God pours out His love on His people not because of what is in them, but because of what is in Him.  God wanted His Tabernacle to communicate two things: His unapproachable holiness and the mercy of His forgiveness. But even as God is speaking to Moses and giving him the Law, the people are in a “meanwhile back on the farm acting contrary to what they promised” mode. It is not good. A golden calf that “mysteriously” appeared. (More on that in a later week). 

But is spite of the breach, God still forgives. He still offers His presence to them. It was His presence they needed. So do we. This week I extend an invitation to you to join us at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship at either 9:00 or 10:45 am. If you are unable to be in person, please join us via the live stream. You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise.

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Burning Hearts – January 26

Friday, January 24th, 2025

The question of the existence of God has been one that has gone on for as long as time. C.S. Lewis once wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”  Lewis was an atheist until he could not longer deny the facts of His existence. Down through thousands of years people have desired to know God-through drug trips, idol worship, and religious rituals to name a few. But knowing God is more than a whim or a wish.

This week’s message is on whether a person can really know God. I’m using the call and story of Moses to illustrate that God calls all of us to do His work. Some, like Moses, have a dramatic “come to Jesus” moment. I mean, the call of Moses is legendary, just ask Charlton Heston. 🙂  For others, it is far less dramatic, almost like a quiet stream giving off relaxing sounds. Moses’ call was dramatic and it rocked his world. It was definitely out of his comfort zone!! But in all of it, God was making Himself and His power known.

I’d like to invite you to join us Sunday. I know many of you cannot be with us in person, but you can watch our live stream at 9:00 and 10:45.  You can send a request to our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, IN. You may also watch via our YouTube channel at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. If you happen to watch, would you mind letting us know? No pressure. I promise.

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#ToughChallenges

Friday, February 16th, 2024

There are two ways to coach someone. You can coach down. Or you can coach up. I’m guessing you are probably wondering what in the world I am talking about.  Real briefly: coaching up is a positive way to coach.  Look for signs of improvement. Look for signs of progress. To get to this week’s Scripture I would say read Colossians 3:1-4. To wrap up from last week:

  • We need to set our minds and hearts on things above. (v.1)
  • We need to reshape our perspective. (v.2)
  • We need to redefine our purpose. (verses 3-4).

Sadly, there is also a need to “coach down.” Let me explain. Coaching down in this instance means to “put to death” certain things. Verses 5-11 is a list of things Paul says we are to put to death. Here they are:

  • We are to put to death our sinful passions. (5-7)
  • We are to put to death our sinful practices. (8-10)
  • We must put to death our sinful pride. (11)

This Sunday’s message is Part 1 of Tough Challenges are Given. Pastor Ryan will be preaching Part 2 while Jo and I are gone. If you have a chance to visit, we would love to have you. If you are unable to join us in person, please check out our live stream. We meet at 9:00 and 10:45.

For another perspective on this sermon, please check out my other blog, Cycleguy’s Spin. You can link to it here.

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#JesusHonored

Friday, January 19th, 2024

The Bible is a book about Jesus Christ. The Old Testament records the preparation for His first coming. The Gospels record Him coming as God in the flesh and His life on the earth. Acts is the message of Christ as it spreads all over the known world. The epistles give us the teachings we need to know about Jesus. Revelation tells us about His second coming-the coming to end all comings.

One of the most powerful words in the human language is a small, three-letter one. That word? BUT.  Track with me please. One, God is Holy, True, and Perfect. Two, men are sinners condemned to be lost forever. The BUT changes all of that with this statement: BUT JESUS.  My purpose in this week’s sermon is to investigate why Jesus changes all of that, why He is to be honored above all. I give some more details about the sermon on my other blog, Cycleguy’s Spin. You can access that just by clicking here. In Colossians 1:15-20 the Apostle Paul makes one of the greatest presentations of who Jesus is in all of Scripture. Short. Concise. To the point. And straight on uncompromising. He is Lord of Creation; He is Head of the Church; and He is the Savior of the Cross. I love preaching about Jesus and His preeminence and His work of reconciliation (making us friends again with God) and His redemption (setting us free). This week’s sermon is going to be fun to preach but by no means is it “easy.” 

Join me/us please at 9:00 and 10:45 in person or via live stream. I would be humbled and honored if you would. Above all, please pray for us this Sunday. Along with the message, one of our elders/building team members will be giving an update on our future addition. Also, two of our young ladies will be reminding us of their planned trip to Kenya next month. Cassie and Hannah need your prayers and support.

Thanks.

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The Gospel is Preached

Friday, January 12th, 2024

So…if you go to my other blog, Cycleguy’s Spin, you will see a post about this week’s sermon also. I’m trying to resuscitate Cycleguy’s Spin with a variety of approaches-book reviews, guest posts, upcoming sermons, and even a commentary of sorts when the “feeling” arises.   If you have been there, thanks. I have a new series starting this Sunday called WELCOME HOME…where… I have been developing it and working on it since last October.  Why you might ask? Simple. I think church needs to be different these days. I don’t mean compromising different where the gospel is withheld or not preached for fear of offending someone. But the church should be a “Safe Place.” Let me explain by using my approach for the next two months:

WELCOME HOME…where…

The Gospel is Preached

Jesus is Honored

Grace is Offered

Lives are Changed

Obedience is Encouraged

Truthfully, the Gospel is often hindered or hidden by pastors and churches who are afraid of being seen as bigots or hardhearted or uncaring or narrow-minded. I realize those are and can be said about churches, and quite possibly, me. I don’t think they are accurate though of what the church is supposed to be. We can be firm, but friendly.  We can be convicted, but caring.  We can be solid, but sweet. We can be passionate, but pleasant.  But one thing we must never be is COMPROMISING.

We have a mandate in the Bible. Check out Col. 1:3-14. I Cor. 1:18-31. Romans 1: 16-17.  I found this to be quite revealing:

The goal of the Gospel is not just that we might pass some kind of test by accurately recounting the importance of Jesus. The goal of the Gospel is to produce a type of people consumed with passion for God and love for others.

As you can gather, this first sermon is on the Gospel being preached without compromise. I can honestly say that I am more excited about this series than one I have preached in recent memory. I am so looking forward to it! I hope you will join me in person if possible. If not, we live stream our service at 9:00 and 10:45 a.m.

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