Discovering Jesus

It’s Not About Winning

In my family growing up we played a lot of games, board games like Chess and Monopoly, challenge activities like who can make the biggest cannonball splash, keep a hula hoop going the longest, hold their breath the longest underwater, and then sports like basketball, swimming, tennis, track, and field, etc. This continued with our children and grandchildren
and we couldn’t count how many soccer games, tennis matches, and wrestling events we attended to cheer them on. Even now we play family games of Pickleball and every holiday meal at our home isn’t complete until we play Round the World Ping Pong. Consequently, we are a pretty competitive group but it is more than that; there is always great love, encouragement, loyalty, challenge, and much laughter! It is not about winning!

In the Bible God often uses athletic images to encourage us on our journeys! In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, we are told to run to get the prize, a crown that will last forever and to discipline ourselves. In Hebrews 12:1, God tells us to throw off that which hinders us and run with perseverance the race marked out for us. In our race we are told not to fix our eyes on the finish tape, but in Hebrews 12:2 to fix our eyes on Jesus! When I used to run track, I was always told to look beyond the finish line and to surge through it. This is certainly a metaphor for how believers should run! In John 3, we get a little glimpse of some loyalty-based competitiveness in verse 26. John the Baptist’s disciples came to him complaining everyone was now going to Jesus to be baptized. While some of John’s disciples had followed Jesus, clearly others were not committed to the One John had testified about. They longed for the days when everyone had thronged to John. But John fixed his eyes on Jesus, joyfully and willingly accepting God’s plan saying in verse 30, “He must become greater; I must become less.” It was not about winning!

There is a wonderful organization called Play as One based on the love of God for all people. They teach a new way to play with a bigger focus rather than winning, it is on reaching the hearts of children and families through athletics. It is a remarkable growing program and it is not just about winning! Look them up at playasone.org, you will be blessed. At the end of our lives here on earth, may we be able to say as Paul did in 2 Timothy 4:7-8, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also all who have longed for his appearing.” The prize isn’t just for one person but is available to all based on how we have run the race, not where we placed! It’s not about winning!
Meditation: Read slowly through 2 Timothy 4:7-8 and consider what God might put on your heart about your place in the race.

Francie Overstreet

by Francie Overstreet

Lift Him High!

John the Baptist is a fascinating character. In Luke 1 he was the baby that leapt in his mother’s womb when he heard the voice of Mary, the mother of his Savior. In Matthew 3 we learn that his clothes were woven of coarse camel hair, he wore a leather belt, and he ate locusts and wild honey. Mark 1 declares him to be a prophet crying out from the wilderness. John was rough around the edges; not called to inspire the elite but rather to proclaim truth to all. He called people away from religious piety and into total abandonment to their Creator. The beauty of his message was that relinquishment of self was not for the sake of captivity but rather for freedom. John proclaimed the truth and pointed people toward Jesus.

Israel had been awaiting their Messiah for centuries and John had the privilege of heralding Christ. He declared his coming and prepared the way. He knew what the arrival of Jesus meant therefore his message carried urgency and fiery passion.

In John 3:23-26, John’s disciples came to him concerned that people were starting to go to Jesus instead of John to be baptized. John responds with, “I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.” From before his birth, leaping for joy in his mother’s womb, he was about proclaiming his Lord. His goal was never to receive glory but only to point people toward Christ.

As I reflect on John’s motives, and on his heart’s passion, I am reminded of men and women who have paved the way for me to live out God’s calling in my own life. I am humbled by their willingness to step aside when they “deserved” the praise for their hard work in order to lift high the name of Jesus and encourage me to do the same. They were about making more disciples who were dedicated to serving God rather than just receiving credit for themselves. As I watch yet another generation rise up and proclaim Christ, I too am filled with joy as they live out God’s calling in their own lives.

As you proclaim the good news of Jesus do you do so with urgency? Do you look for opportunities to make disciples, encouraging others as they proclaim Jesus? In the depths of your soul are you crying out the words of John 3:30? “He must increase, but I must decrease.” When our hearts are genuinely for our Lord, our posture is that of relinquishment of self. Oh Lord, hear our cry, and may your name be lifted high!

Lynette Fuson
Care & Counseling Director

by Lynette Fuson

Cosmic Dust

I loved the 70’s band Kansas and for some reason the song “Dust in the Wind.” It actually kind of paraphrased Psalm 18:42 "I ground [my enemies] like dust on the face of the wind..." and Ecclesiastes 3:20, "All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return." The melody of the song was beautiful to me, but the lyrics weren't the most uplifting. It correlated with the current idea that we are nothing more than cosmic dust combined with molecules in motion. The “forces of nature” caused us to appear with no morals, no conscience, no meaning, and no grand plan. You decide how to live, love, and just do YOU, the cosmic blob you are –just a speck in the universe.

Whew! I’m so glad that is not true. Can you imagine if everyone believed that? What a dark and hopeless world this would be!

Our Creator tells a different story. Before he made you, he knew you, He stamped you with his image and breathed life into you. He loves you because he made you, you are his and he wants a relationship with you. John 3:16-17 tells us “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. The Jewish people believed God loved Israel but Jesus offered salvation to the whole world. Jesus revealed the loving heart of God for all of creation in sending Jesus.

Our heavenly Father wanted us to flourish in the light of his love, not flounder in darkness with no hope. God the Almighty, the holiest of holy loves me and you. His Holy Spirit dwells in us and he is defending us in battles we don’t even know about. He didn’t create us and then abandon us to figure out life on our own. He wants his children to experience joy and peace beyond our own understanding. Have you experienced this peace and joy even when life has thrown some curveballs? We aren’t just cosmic dust in the wind, we are his precious sons and daughters. Let’s spend some time today being grateful God promises in his word never to leave us or forsake us.

Deb Hill

by Deb Hill

Look Up!

Numbers 21:4-9 in the Old Testament speaks of divine judgment upon the Israelites for grumbling against God’s gracious provision. Rather than being thankful to God for delivering them from slavery and providing manna for them day after day during the Exodus, the Israelites showed by their attitude that they rejected God’s loving provision. So God sent venomous snakes throughout their camp, for which there was no cure except to look upon a brass figure of the very snake that was killing them. If bitten they could still be saved from the venom just by looking up at that brass symbol upon the pole. Those who did were healed. But to refuse meant certain death.

At first blush it might seem odd that Jesus chose this Old Testament story as a segue to one of the best-loved passages of the Bible (Jn. 3:16). But a further examination may suggest that Num. 21:4-9 can’t be properly understood without the insight Jesus provides in Jn. 3:14-17. Both passages declare that people are destined to perish if they remain in disbelief. Both passages reveal that in His love and mercy, God provided a means for sinners to be saved.

In Jn. 3:14, Jesus made the startling revelation that He himself would be lifted up for all to see. Like the brass figure in Num. 21:4-9, Jesus reveals that by looking upon Him in faith we too can be saved. In a demonstration of God’s unfathomable love, Jesus thus reveals he had been sent by the Father in order to be lifted up on a cross so that anyone that looks to Him in faith would receive the gift of eternal life.

All of this effort to save sinners was motivated by God’s great love for the lost. Jesus reveals the nature of God’s heart toward us in Jn. 3:17; a heart of love and not of condemnation. We can thus conclude that the LORD didn’t send venomous serpents into the Israelite camp to destroy them but rather to provide a picture of the divine deliverance available if they would look upon the brass symbol Moses placed in their camp. Even though the serpent symbolized judgment, the opportunity to be healed clearly demonstrates that God’s grace was available to every Israelite. Likewise, God sent his Son to earth not to condemn the lost but so the world might be saved through Him.

In a real sense, the cross pictures the arms of God lovingly extended toward us, waiting to embrace us into eternal communion with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. But the burden to choose is still ours, just as it was in Num. 21:4-9. Each of us has a choice to look up with eyes of faith and receive eternal life, or turn our eyes and walk away. God is waiting for all to look up!

May you be among those that look up and believe, who receive the gift of salvation, and who are welcomed into the eternal community of our loving God!

Dave Korinek

by Dave Korinek

From Above

Views are best from a good height seeing far away. I doubt anyone would refer to a scene as a view unless there was a lot to see and a good deal of height and perspective to go with it. There is something about being on top, something special about a perspective that comes from above.

A fresh way of seeing.

“Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews… came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:1-3.

The Greek word to fill in the blank is anōthen, and is most often translated in John 3:3 as “again.” The word is used 13 times in the New Testament. Enjoy a fresh perspective about what Jesus was saying as you see the other ways anōthen (in blue from ESV or NIV) is used.

Matt 27:51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

Matt 15:38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

Luke 1:3 With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

John 3:31 He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all.

John 19:11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

Acts 26:5 They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee.

Gal 4:9 But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 3:15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.

James 3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

Do not be surprised that Jesus said we must be born from above.

John Riley
Jr. High Pastor

by John Riley

New Eyes New Ears

“What do you mean?... How are these things possible?” John 3:4a, 9a

When Nicodemus came to meet with Jesus there was curiosity but also a longing, a deep longing he could not put into words. Nicodemus as a learned teacher, a Pharisee, knew a lot but he didn’t know what he didn’t know. He needed new eyes and new ears!

It reminds me of two short videos that illustrate this truth, both of which bring joyous tears! The first shows parents with a young child who has vision problems and they are trying to put on specially-made glasses so the child can see. The child struggles against it, even crying, but then opens his/her eyes and sees what has never been seen. Oh, the joy and the smile that comes over the child’s face seeing his mother clearly for the first time!

The second video is of young children having hearing problems never hearing a mother’s voice, a father’s words, or anything much. The doctor is trying to fit a child-size hearing aid into the ear and the child resists it! But then…the mom speaks and the child turns his head hearing her for the very first time. Immediately the child‘s eyes grow huge and the smile breaks out! Tears of joy stream down everyone’s faces! In each of these videos, the children were used to seeing or hearing what they knew. But when they received their ‘new eyes’ and ‘new ears’ what a transformation that took place.

Nicodemus did not know he needed to be born again! He was used to what he did know and the idea of regeneration of the spirit was not in his bank of knowledge; he resisted it. At this point in the story, scripture does not say Nicodemus believed. Perhaps later he did. But we, too, can resist what God may be trying to tell us. While this passage is about being born again, it is also about believers being transformed to be like Christ. I was born again at age 13 and more than 60 years later, I still find myself resisting what God is trying to get me to see or hear about myself. It usually revolves around my lack of trust in Him, His timing, His purpose, or His will. I am learning not to ignore that which provokes me, but to linger with it and set it before Him. I know I need new eyes and new ears and He is the only One who can reveal them.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”
Phil. 1:6

“Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand." Mark 4:23

Reflection: What are the deep longings of your heart? Where do you sense resistance to what God wants to do in you? Where might you need new eyes or new ears? Ask Him for them!

Francie Overstreet

by Francie Overstreet

Does Jesus Trust You?

Trust is a powerful word. It requires believing in what we do not see. For most, trust is not automatically given; it is earned. Giving and receiving trust is at the core of any healthy relationship.

Being married to a sailor has required long periods of separation due to deployments, work-ups, and business travel. I can’t imagine how difficult the last 20 years would have been if my husband and I didn’t have a deep trust in each other’s integrity and desire for a pure relationship. This trust has come through years of prioritizing our relationship through sacrificing comfort for the sake of connecting.

I’ll never forget one early morning phone call in 2007. The kids were still asleep and I was looking forward to a morning to sleep in, yet, I answered the phone hoping it was my husband on the other end. Sure enough, he had found a satellite phone to make the call, but in order to get a signal, he had to stand in the snow on top of a building in Iraq. (Yeah, I didn’t know that it snowed in Iraq either!) It was a short but sweet conversation that left both of us grateful to know that the other was ok and we were each deeply loved. Communicating across time zones has not been easy, and oftentimes one or both of us have been tired or hungry at the point when we were both available to talk, yet we have prioritized this time because we knew that it was good for our relationship. This continually built trust.

John 2:24-25 says, “But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew all about people. No one needed to tell him about human nature, for he knew what was in each person’s heart.” In these verses, John expresses the distrust that Jesus had in the people that he encountered. He knew their motives and the darkness of their hearts. They didn’t know him, and they were not about pursuing a relationship with him.

My husband and I know and trust each other as much as possible for two human beings, but being known and trusted by God goes much deeper. Being fully known is a deep human longing. With Jesus, there are no secrets in our lives - nothing is hidden from God. We are utterly and completely known and loved regardless of our failures. While this reality is sobering, it also offers so much freedom. Freedom to be honest and freedom to pursue a genuine relationship with our Lord.

What exists within the depths of your soul? As a human being, you are simply not perfect and God knows that. But are you invested in a relationship with him? Do you sacrifice your time and comfort to get to know Jesus? Even when you fail, God knows your heart. Does he trust you?

Lynette Fuson
Care & Counseling Director

by Lynette Fuson

Do it Yourself Whip

by John Riley