New Attitude

October 17, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

“My job is boring. It’s the same-old-same-old every single day. My coworkers are incompetent, and my boss is clueless.”

If you knew nothing else about the person who made that statement, I think you could still predict how they treated their job. Would you think this person values their job? Do you think they work hard? Do they treat their coworkers with respect? Probably not.

How about this one: “My car is a piece of junk. The mileage is lousy, the radio doesn’t work when the weather is cold, and it leaks when it rains.” Can you guess how this person treats their car?

Now flip it around: What about the one who is thankful for his job, or grateful for her car. Now how will he treat his job? his coworkers? her car?

What we praise, we treat with greater respect.

Look at the last of the 150 psalms in the Bible:

Praise the Lord!

   Praise God in His sanctuary;
      praise him in His mighty heaven!
   Praise Him for His mighty works;
      praise His unequaled greatness!
   Praise Him with a blast of the ram’s horn;
      praise Him with the lyre and harp!
   Praise Him with the tambourine and dancing;
      praise Him with strings and flutes!
   Praise Him with a clash of cymbals;
      praise Him with loud clanging cymbals.
   Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!

   Praise the Lord!

Thirteen times in just six verses the psalmist says PRAISE. Because what we praise, we treat with greater respect, awe, reverence. The more you praise God, the more you will find to praise about Him. And the more you praise God, the more your attitude will change about the things around you: your job, your car, your family, your friends, your country, and on and on.

Praise will change your outlook. Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!

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The Hour That Matters Most (book review)

October 14, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I’ve been a big fan of the relationship-strengthening books from Drs. Les & Leslie Parrott for quite awhile. In The Hour That Matters Most they combine together two of my favorite topics: family and food.

I have always appreciated family meal times. Especially as my kids have gotten older—and busier—the dinner hour seems to be the one oasis during the day when we can all reconnect. This is exactly the point that the Parrotts, and co-authors Stephanie Allen and Tina Kuna, are trying to make. And they do an excellent job making their point using statistics, research, tips, stories, and even recipe ideas.

First the statistics. Research has shown that families that eat together:

  • Get along with each other better.
  • Handle stress better.
  • Have lower rates of drug abuse, alcoholism, premarital sex, depression, eating disorders, and suicide.
  • Have students who perform better in school academically and socially.

Then there are the conversation-starters. The authors give ample suggestions of how to draw everyone into a conversation around the dinner table, to gain insight into what is happening in each family member’s day.

And finally, but certainly not insignificantly, there are the recipe. Some mmm, mmm good recipes! Sprinkled throughout the book—and in full color in the middle of the book—are some easy-to-make, hard-to-resist recipes. After all, it’s hard to have a family meal without the meal!

Whether you want to enhance your family dinner times, or you are ready to (re)establish a time for your family to connect over a meal, The Hour That Matters Most is an excellent read.

I am a Tyndale book reviewer.

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Thursdays With Oswald—God’s Silence

October 13, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

God’s Silence

     Has God trusted you with His silence—a silence that has great meaning? God’s silences are actually His answers. Just think of those days of absolute silence in the home at Bethany [John 11:1-6]! Is there anything comparable to those days in your life? Can God trust you like that, or are you still asking Him for a visible answer? God will give you the very blessings you ask if you refuse to go any further without them, but His silence is the sign that He is bringing you into an even more wonderful understanding of Himself. Are you mourning before God because you have not had an audible response? When you cannot hear God, you will find that He has trusted you in the most intimate way possible—with absolute silence, not a silence of despair, but one of pleasure, because He saw that you could withstand an even bigger revelation. If God has given you a silence, then praise Him—He is bringing you into the mainstream of His purposes.

From My Utmost For His Highest

Can God trust you like that, or are you still asking Him for a visible answer? Wow! I need to think about this one for awhile…

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Powerfully Kind

October 12, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Each month I am so honored that the Solon Township officials invite me back to offer a simple invocation at the beginning of their trustee meetings. I really enjoy doing this!

I pray a short, simple prayer. It is always based on a passage of Scripture, and it is typically a prayer asking God to give our township officials wisdom in all of their deliberations. But something interesting happens each month. After I conclude my prayer, they say, “Thank you.” In other words, they feel I have done something kind for them.

And I have: I have asked God to guide them, to help them, and to bless our township through their efforts. Prayer is one of the most powerfully kind things we can do for someone else.

“Prayer molds us into the image of God, and at the same time tends to mold others into the same image just in proportion as we pray for others.” —E.M. Bounds

When a coworker tells you about a situation in their life, offer to pray for them. Right on the spot.

When a friend share about their illness, say, “Can we pray right now?”

When your pastor tells you about a tough situation, offer to pray right then for God’s discernment.

When a friend is grieving, pray for God’s peace in their life.

Praying for them is powerful, and kind, and God-honoring.

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Why Not Here…

October 11, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

…why not now?

Sometimes I get tired of the excuses:

  • “I would have loved to live when Jesus lived.”
  • “I remember when church used to be good.”
  • “I long for the good old days.”

Those are just excuses for why God isn’t moving right here right now. Surely we’re not saying God is somehow limited by a time or place! Charles Spurgeon said it this way,

“God’s power is independent of place. Think ye that there was any sanctity in the upper room at Jerusalem? Behold this room is quite as sacred as that filled by the Spirit in years gone by. Dream not that the city of Jerusalem of old, in the days of the Savior was a more proper theater for divine working than this is; He can make [your city] rejoice even as He did Jerusalem of old. Equally is the divine power independent of time. Do not dream that the ages have changed, so that in this day God cannot do His mighty works.”

I believe God wants to move in Cedar Springs today just as He moved in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost. No!! Even more… I believe God wants to do MORE in Cedar Springs!!

Now all glory to God, Who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

I’m living in this expectation: God’s power right here, right now!

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Night Of Worship

October 10, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I am so excited to invite you to a special night of worship. Dilip is a great friend of mine, and an incredibly gifted musician and song writer. His debut CD The Great Reversal will be released soon, and you are going to have a chance to hear these songs live!

Dilip will be presenting music from his album, and other worship songs, as we join together for a night of worship.

Friday, October 28 at 7pm

You will love his music, but you will especially appreciate his heart for worship. This is going to be an incredible night! Friday, October 28, at 7pm at Calvary Assembly of God.

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Do You Have Weekend Plans?

October 7, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Do you have plans for this weekend? If you’re around Cedar Springs this weekend, let me suggest a few great things you might be able to do:

1.  Take a bag (or two) of groceries to North Kent Community Services. This is the last week of the county-wide food drive. Your food donation will help two food pantries right here in Cedar Springs.

2.  Go see Courageous. The movie had a great opening weekend because it is a great movie!

3.  Come to Calvary Assembly of God on Sunday morning. We’re starting a new series called Total Freedom, exploring the incredible freedom that comes through forgiveness. I cannot wait to experience this freedom with you on Sunday.

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Thursdays With Oswald—The Mountain & The Valley

October 6, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

The Mountain And The Valley

    It is a wonderful thing to be on the mountain with God, but a person only gets there so that he may later go down and lift up the demon-possessed people in the valley (see Mark 9:14-18). We are not made for the mountains, for sunrises, or for the other beautiful attractions in life—those are simply intended to be moments of inspiration. We are made for the valley and the ordinary things of life, and that is where we have to prove our stamina and strength. Yet our spiritual selfishness always wants repeated moments on the mountain. We feel that we could talk and live like perfect angels, if we could only stay on the mountaintop. Those times of exaltation are exceptional and they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware to prevent our spiritual selfishness from wanting to make them the only time.

     …The moments on the mountaintop are rare moments, and they are meant for something in God’s purpose.

     …The height of the mountaintop is measured by the dismal drudgery of the valley, but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mountain, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the place of humiliation that we find our true worth to God—that is where our faithfulness is revealed.

From My Utmost For His Highest

God gives me mountaintop experiences to prepare me to live for Him in the valley experiences. So I must never doubt in the valley what God revealed to me on the mountain. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.

It is true: it is in the valley that I have to live for the glory of God. Otherwise, my experience on the mountaintop was meaningless.

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(Un)Forgiveness

October 5, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Charles II had a slight problem with unforgiveness

A couple of weeks ago I asked our church a simple question. So let me ask you the same thing: Anyone ever not been burned by someone, taken advantage of, or hurt by somebody else? Anyone? I didn’t think so. We’ve all been hurt, but the real issue is what we do with those hurts.

In January 1647, Oliver Cromwell captured King Charles I during the British Revolution. But a few months later, Charles escaped and managed to raise another army. In August 1648 Cromwell’s army defeated Charles’ army and once again Charles was taken prisoner. Cromwell had Charles tried for his crimes, and after the guilty verdict was issued, Charles I was executed. A total of 59 people signed his death warrant.

Eleven years later Cromwell’s son Richard had taken his place as Lord Protector of England, and there was great discontent with his leadership. As a result, the Loyalists were able to sweep Charles II into power. Charles II wanted the 59 death warrant signors put on trial, but 15 of them had already died. Charles II ordered their bodies exhumed, placed on trial, convicted, and then hung.

I’m no psychologist, but I think it’s safe to say that Charles II might have had a problem with unforgiveness!

It’s highly unlikely that you have dug up any dead bodies and put them on trial lately.

        Or maybe you have…

When someone has hurt us, we tend to keep the pain alive. Sometimes even after that person is long-gone from our life, we still exhume the corpse of their injury, put them on trial, convict them, and punish them all over again. But this process is actually punishing YOU. As long as you keep the hurt alive, you are trapped in the past.

The key to freedom is easy and yet hard: forgiveness.

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Praying For Your Pastor

October 4, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

For the past few years, October has been designated as Pastor Appreciation Month. Honestly, I feel appreciated by the great folks at Calvary Assembly of God every single week! I can only pray that other pastors feel the same love I feel.

Here’s a simple way you can show your pastor appreciation both in October, and all year long: Pray for him or her. Multiple times the Apostle Paul wrote pray for us (Colossians 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:25; 2 Thessalonians 3:1). Prayer is SO NEEDED for your pastor!

Here’s what the eminent pastor Charles Spurgeon wrote:

The members of the body of Christ should have a care for one another, but especially should the minister receive the prayers of his flock. I have sometimes heard his duties called arduous, but that word is not expressive enough. The works in which he is occupied lie quite out of the region of human power. The minister is sent to be God’s messenger for the quickening of the dead. What can he do in it? He can do nothing whatever unless the Spirit of God be with him through the prayer of his brethren.

He is sent to bring spiritual food to the multitude, that is to say, he is to take the loaves and fishes, and with them, few as they are, he is to feed the thousands. An impossible commission! He cannot perform it. Apart from divine help, the enterprise of a Christian minister is only worthy of ridicule. Apart from the power of the Eternal Spirit, the things which the preacher has to do are as much beyond him as though he had to weld the sun and moon into one, light up new stars, or turn the Sahara into a garden of flowers. We have a work to do concerning which we often cry, “Who is sufficient for these things?” and if we be put to this work but have not your prayers, and in consequence have not the supply of the Spirit, we are of all men the most miserable.

Show how much you appreciate your pastor by upholding him/her in prayer every day.

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