thanksgiving | Craig T. Owens

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A Day In The ER

March 25, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Betsy had been experiencing a lower back pain for a couple of days, but yesterday morning it really intensified. She made an appointment to see her doctor, and after just a few minutes of being examined her doctor announced, “I need to send you to the ER. I think you might have a kidney stone.”

So I swooped in, picked up my bride, and off to the ER we went. After the tests there, the doctors believe that it is not a kidney stone but a severe muscle spasm.

I’m grateful for…

…the fact that ER trips for our family are few and far between.
…relatively easy access to medical care.
…the wisdom of doctors.
…the kindnesses of nurses.
…the genius of scientists who design medicines.
…health insurance.
…technology that allowed me to communicate with family during this time.
…friends who pitched in to help.

I’m not anxious to make another ER trip anytime soon, but it was a good time to look around and recognize how much I have to be grateful for every single day.

What are you grateful for today?

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: blessing, gratitude, healthcare, hospital, Philippians, thankful, thanksgiving. 2 Comments »

Spurred On

December 24, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

There are times when it’s not so nice to have someone behind me who is pushing me forward. Like when I’m standing in the check-out line at the grocery store. After all, I can only go as fast as the person in front of me, right? So I start to have this imaginary conversation with the shopper behind me, “Look, you can nudge and prod and bump me all you want, but I can’t go any faster.”

But it’s a whole different story when the way in front of me is wide open. Now my imaginary conversation changes, “Okay, here we go! You’re nudging and prodding is really going to make me fly now!”

I think this is might have been what the Apostle Paul was thinking when he wrote, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” In essence, it was a thank you note to those behind him, “Thank you for spurring me on to preach better, teach better, live better, be better.”

Here’s what Jesus did for us: He was spurred on both by those of us who would be following Him and by the calling of His Heavenly Father. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting Him, He endured the Cross, disregarding its shame. Now He is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

So Paul said he could follow that example in his own life. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

I’m in awe of what God has called me to do.

I’m grateful for the way Jesus has opened up the way for me.

I’m thankful for those who spur me on every day. Especially my family and my congregation. You make me want to preach better, teach better, live better, be better. Thank you!

Who’s spurring you on?

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Corinthians, apostle Paul, example, gratitude, Hebrews, initiative, Jesus Christ, learning, lifestyle, Philippians, thanksgiving. Leave a Comment »

Lest We Forget

November 26, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

Days set aside for giving thanks to God have been observed throughout the history of our great nation. But in 1863 in the midst of Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln designated an annual Thanksgiving Day. Lest we not forget, our first and greatest thanks should be to God from Whom all blessings flow. A portion of President Lincoln’s proclamation reads:

“No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.

You can read the full text of President Lincoln’s proclamation here, or for those of you who would rather listen to the proclamation, enjoy the video version.

Make today “a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father.”

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Abraham Lincoln, American history, blessing, Civil War, God's blessing, thanksgiving. Leave a Comment »

Serious Fun

November 25, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

I believe of all people, Christ-followers should be able to do the most serious of work, but those who are in love with Jesus ought to be able to have the most fun too, as they enjoy the fullness of that relationship.

We proved this yesterday.

My loving congregation donated food for us to bless some needy people with Thanksgiving groceries. We then contacted our local elementary school to ask if they could recommend a couple of needy families to us. They did, but “needy” might be a major understatement. It was a joy to be able to deliver all of the Thanksgiving fixin’s to them, but heart-breaking to see the conditions in which they were living. I pray that this simple act of compassion will help open a door for further ministry opportunities.

Then we met with our Impact youth group for some serious fun (pictures are here). We had a carnival-like atmosphere with wild-and-messy games going on everywhere. I loved seeing our students dive into (sometimes literally) these fun events. It wasn’t just the students: Betsy challenged me to a pie-eating contest. And let’s just say, apparently I have a bigger mouth than she does!

It’s great to address the serious conditions that surround us, and we should do so with love and hope. And it’s just as wonderful to have some fun. I believe that people who get stuck on either extreme are missing out on the fullness of a Christ-centered life.

I hope you have a seriously fun Thanksgiving celebration. And not just on Thursday this week, but all year long.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Calvary Assembly of God, Christian, compassion, fun, Impact! youth group, Jesus Christ, relationship, thanksgiving. Leave a Comment »

Thanksgiving Challenge

November 23, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

Yesterday I began a two-part series at Calvary Assembly of God sandwiched around Thanksgiving Day. The series is simply called Thanks and is based on the premise that thankfulness is the soil for healthy growth.

Have you ever grown a garden? If you have, you know that even though you plant the best seeds in the best soil, if you simply leave it unattended, weeds will find their way into your well-manicured garden. If you leave your garden unattended for long enough, the weeds will eventually take over.

It’s just as true for our minds. We can cultivate the best soil in our minds and plant only the finest seeds. But if we do nothing more, the weeds will take over and eventually choke out anything good that was growing there.

A spirit of continual thankfulness will keep the soil free from the choking weeds. But pulling out weeds by our thankfulness must be a continual process. So I gave our church the 365/730/1095 challenge.

Start a thanksgiving journal. If you just write down one unique thing every day for which you are thankful, you will have recorded 365 things in a year. More challenging: write down two things every day, or even—are you brave enough to attempt this?—three things every day. If you find two things each day, you will have 730 weed busters by the end of the year, or three items will give you 1095 weed busters.

Are you ready for the challenge?

I’m going to attempt to find three unique things each day for the next year. I hope this is encouraging to you, and I hope you will accept the 365/730/1095 challenge too.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Calvary Assembly of God, creative thinking, Ephesians, gratitude, personal growth, sermon, thankfulness, thanksgiving. 2 Comments »

The Soil Of Thanks

November 19, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

This Sunday we kick off a two-part series around Thanksgiving. I know it’s a day we celebrate once per year, but thankfulness is also the soil that grows excellent things in our lives. Come and join us at 10:30 AM on November 22 and November 29. And in the meantime, start counting your blessings.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Calvary Assembly of God, gratitude, sermon, thankfulness, thanksgiving. 2 Comments »

Celebrating Stones Of Remembrance

February 26, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

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In 1 Samuel 7, there is a story where God defeated Israel’s enemies. After the victory, Samuel erected a stone of remembrance and said, “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” Year after year when Israelite families would journey past this monument, and children asked, “Dad, what does that big stone mean?” They could be reminded of God’s protection and provision and they could celebrate.

We setup our own stone of remembrance at church last night. We took an evening to gather together and celebrate what God did for us in 2008:

People became followers of Jesus Christ and began their discipleship journey, others became disciple-makers.
We offered our first Vacation Bible School, and made great relationships with the families in our neighborhood.
Our Back 2 School party provided bags and bags of school supplies to area students.
Light The Night was a great alternative to a dark-and-scary Halloween night.
The Gift told the true story about the greatest gift.
We were able to show the true meaning of CHRISTmas to some special families.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! What a joy it is to know that “thus far has the Lord helped us.” And what anticipation energizes me as I’m already looking forward to an even bigger stone of remembrance next time!

There are so many people to thank. I won’t start naming them all here (you know who you are!) so that I don’t accidentally leave some people out. But I do want to single out my wife Betsy. She is my constant companion, my best friend, my favorite playmate, my wisest counselor, my daily encouragement, and a great pastor’s wife. I couldn’t celebrate all of these stones of remembrance without you!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: 1 Samuel, Betsy, encouragement, family, friends, outreach, team, thanksgiving. 4 Comments »

When Nothing Is Something

February 13, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

I’m not a typical Type-A person, but I do find it very hard to take time off. As soon as I find I’m doing Nothing I’ve immediately got to start doing Something… Anything.

When I’m doing Nothing I feel guilty.

“Who do you think you are? What makes you so special that you can do Nothing! Everything is not finished, so get up and do Something. Do Anything. Just don’t do Nothing!”

By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done (Genesis 2:2-3).

God did Everything in six days. There wasn’t Anything left to do.

So God did Nothing.

And yet that Nothing was Something special.

The Hebrew word for rest is shabath which means, “sit down and sit still.” Why? Was God tired? No, the resting is not Nothing; it is Something.

God paused from His work because He wanted to reflect on what He had accomplished. That’s the point.

Doing Nothing is really doing Something. When we take a shabath we’re taking a day to reflect on God’s blessing, His provision, His faithfulness.

I did Nothing today.

My Nothing was really Something special! I began the day by thanking God for all of the blessings in my life. And the more I gave thanks, the more reasons I realized I had to give thanks! After all that thanks-giving, I found that I had one of my most creative and encouraging days.

It’s amazing how Nothing can be a very special Something.

If you’re not already, find a day to do Nothing. I think you too will discover that Nothing is Something.

***A postscript for my pastor friends. Just a reminder: If you have church services on Sunday, then Sunday is not your shabath—it’s a day you’re doing a whole lot of Something. Find another day to do Nothing. God will bless the rest of your week when you do.***

I have some other posts about sabbathing that are worth your time here, here, and here.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Genesis, rest, Sabbath, sabbathing, thanksgiving. 1 Comment »

The Carbon Monoxide Of Anxiety

November 30, 2008 — Craig T. Owens

Carbon monoxide can poison our bodies and our emotions

Our human red blood cells have a unique protein that carries life-promoting oxygen throughout our bodies. Hemoglobin binds to both oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) in a way that holds them “loosely” so that they can be released at just the right place and time in our bodies.

Carbon monoxide (CO) is the enemy of this respiration process. CO binds to hemoglobin 240 times more firmly than oxygen and CO2. With the CO so firmly attached to the hemoglobin, O2 and CO2 cannot be exchanged properly in our bodies. In other words, CO hijacks the respiration process. The sneaky thing is that CO is odorless, tasteless, and colorless, so it’s subtle poisoning. It simply brings about a lethargy that deepens into death.

As we move past Thanksgiving Day, I believe that a similar process can take place in our emotional lives. Thankfulness is the “oxygen” of our souls, and anxiety is the “carbon monoxide.”

In Philippians 4:6 Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything,” where he is echoing the words of Jesus in Matthew 6:25: “Do not worry about your life.” Anxiety and worry can begin to dominate our emotional life: they bind so tightly that thankfulness and gratitude are forced out. This leads to emotional lethargy, and—if not corrected quickly—emotional deadness.

The cure for carbon monoxide poisoning is to twofold: (1) remove the victim from the toxic environment, and (2) give the victim pure oxygen to breathe. The same cure holds true for emotional CO poisoning—(1) Get out of that environment: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6); and (2) get the pure emotional oxygen: Philippians 4:8 gives us the checklist for the pure oxygen of our emotional thought life: “Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.“

If you find yourself sighing, or emotionally drained, or even depressed, it could be that the carbon monoxide poisoning of anxiety has snuck in. Get out of that toxic environment by praying and giving thanks to God, and then guard against future hijack attempts by breathing deeply on the things which are pure and lovely and excellent.