I am writing this entry from my new computer in my office. It is faster than my old computer, has a much bigger and brighter screen, as well as new programs my old computer did not have. It is definitely an upgrade. But I must admit, there are a few things that will take some getting used to. Now don't get me wrong, I don't want my old computer back, but this upgrade will require some work on my part to learn new applications. I will be challenged to learn new ways of doing things that will in the long run make me more efficient in the use of this computer. I could be satisfied with what I had, or step forward to embrace the new and allow it to enhance my work.
God has a way of doing new things within us, challenging us to think and act differently as we study scripture and are led by the Spirit to follow the way of Christ. In some moments we recognize this new path as obviously better than our old ways, yet at other times we find ourselves tempted to return to our old, contented ways. The apostle Paul said that to be in Christ is to be a new creation and that in Christ, all becomes new. You and I have the opportunity to live in newness every day, shaking off the contentedness of routine, learning new lessons from Christ that empower us for every moment.
Don't settle for the familiar routines that limit possibility...embrace the new, accept the upgrade that God brings to your life every day through faith in Jesus Christ. There are wonderful possibilities that lie before you if you are willing to try something new. Make the most of the upgrade...live in the possibilities before you as offered through the living God.
Jim Abernathy
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
The Car Wash Dilemma
The recent snows and their messy, muddy aftermath have left a lot of things looking quite dingy. My car is one of those dingy things. I should get it washed, after all, the salt and grime left on the roads has formed layers of dirt that may never come off...or so it seems. Yes, I should wash the car, but to tell you the truth, it is still so messy on the roads that after a washing, and a few more minutes back on the road, it would be dirty again in a matter of moments. Maybe I will wait for spring when all the snow has melted road spray from the salt and puddles is gone away.
Truth is that in the spring, there will be enough dirt, mud, and rain on the roads so that washing the car will not last long either and will probably just be a waste of time. Perhaps in the summer when it is dry and hot, I will wash the car. Yes, the summer's drought will afford the best opportunity to keep the car clean...except for the dust and dirt that collects on the finish when there is no moisture to sate the earth. Maybe there's no good time to wash the car. Maybe it's just not worth the effort when it will just get dirty again!
We have entered the season of Lent, a time of reflection and repentance as we journey toward the cross. Seems like just yesterday we were at this same place. Every year the season of Lent calls us to introspection and confession...to recognize anew our need for forgiveness when confronted with the matchless gift of God's love in Jesus Christ. In reality, repentance and forgiveness are continual themes for the Christian as every day we recognize our sin and ask God's forgiveness through Jesus Christ. I suppose, like a dirty car in the middle of winter, we might assume it unnecessary to find cleansing in the forgiving grace of God, after all, we will just sin again. Yet, unconfessed sin is a barrier to right relationship between God and sinners like me. Perhaps like a car, there are stains that after a while begin to eat away at the paint and damage the finish if not cleaned. Continuing to carry the burden of my sin without repentance allows that sin to compromise a vital, empowering faith. New Testament writer John encourages sinners to be intentional in seeking God's forgiveness, as he writes, "If we are faithful to confess our sins, God is faithful to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." To ignore that sin is carry the dirt and filth of sin when it could easily be cleansed.
I think I will take my car and get it washed right away. Yes, it will get dirty again, but I must admit that keeping it clean will make a difference to the finish of the car, and probably make me feel better as well. Confessing my sin and seeking the forgiveness of God regularly, makes a difference in my life as well. That is a truth for Lent and every season of the year.
Jim Abernathy
Truth is that in the spring, there will be enough dirt, mud, and rain on the roads so that washing the car will not last long either and will probably just be a waste of time. Perhaps in the summer when it is dry and hot, I will wash the car. Yes, the summer's drought will afford the best opportunity to keep the car clean...except for the dust and dirt that collects on the finish when there is no moisture to sate the earth. Maybe there's no good time to wash the car. Maybe it's just not worth the effort when it will just get dirty again!
We have entered the season of Lent, a time of reflection and repentance as we journey toward the cross. Seems like just yesterday we were at this same place. Every year the season of Lent calls us to introspection and confession...to recognize anew our need for forgiveness when confronted with the matchless gift of God's love in Jesus Christ. In reality, repentance and forgiveness are continual themes for the Christian as every day we recognize our sin and ask God's forgiveness through Jesus Christ. I suppose, like a dirty car in the middle of winter, we might assume it unnecessary to find cleansing in the forgiving grace of God, after all, we will just sin again. Yet, unconfessed sin is a barrier to right relationship between God and sinners like me. Perhaps like a car, there are stains that after a while begin to eat away at the paint and damage the finish if not cleaned. Continuing to carry the burden of my sin without repentance allows that sin to compromise a vital, empowering faith. New Testament writer John encourages sinners to be intentional in seeking God's forgiveness, as he writes, "If we are faithful to confess our sins, God is faithful to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." To ignore that sin is carry the dirt and filth of sin when it could easily be cleansed.
I think I will take my car and get it washed right away. Yes, it will get dirty again, but I must admit that keeping it clean will make a difference to the finish of the car, and probably make me feel better as well. Confessing my sin and seeking the forgiveness of God regularly, makes a difference in my life as well. That is a truth for Lent and every season of the year.
Jim Abernathy
Monday, January 25, 2010
Love in Action
In I John 3:18, the wise apostle writes, "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth." In other words, don't just talk about love, do it. We are fairly proficient, particularly in this national capital region, in talking a good game, whether it is a political hot potato, fiscal challenge, or simply a competition between friends. But talking is not the end-all when it comes to exercising significant change...there must also be meaningful action.
New Testament writer James said that it is not enough to tell a person without a coat to go and be warmed...to truly make a difference one must give the coat that helps keep another warm. As the old adage says, "actions speak louder than words."
The pictures from Haiti are hard to fathom. Hundreds of thousands dead, millions homeless or at the very least, displaced by the terrible earthquakes that have ravaged the country. We might grieve such hardship and mourn such devastating loss of life...to do so is to recognize the need. But if that is all we do, we have done little more than the disinterested person James describes who did nothing to warm a cold body and soul. How will we respond to the massive needs in the country of Haiti?
Westwood will do so in at least four ways. First, we pray. This is not a last resort when nothing else can be done. Prayer is the first response when there is any need. Second, we receive a special offering February 14th...indeed, a perfect day for a "love offering." This offering will be divided among our ministry partners, The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and the Baptist World Alliance, who have persons on the ground in Haiti and are working through local congregations there to meet needs. Third, in March we will receive medical and personal hygiene supplies that will be shipped to our ministry partners there that will be used for the foreseeable future. Finally, we hope at some point in the future to send a team to Haiti, though we know that will probably be quite some time before this happens.
Is love truly love if it does not motivate one to action? To love others in Jesus' name is to show that love. I invite you to join the Westwood family as we seek to love the people of Haiti in word and action.
Jim Abernathy
New Testament writer James said that it is not enough to tell a person without a coat to go and be warmed...to truly make a difference one must give the coat that helps keep another warm. As the old adage says, "actions speak louder than words."
The pictures from Haiti are hard to fathom. Hundreds of thousands dead, millions homeless or at the very least, displaced by the terrible earthquakes that have ravaged the country. We might grieve such hardship and mourn such devastating loss of life...to do so is to recognize the need. But if that is all we do, we have done little more than the disinterested person James describes who did nothing to warm a cold body and soul. How will we respond to the massive needs in the country of Haiti?
Westwood will do so in at least four ways. First, we pray. This is not a last resort when nothing else can be done. Prayer is the first response when there is any need. Second, we receive a special offering February 14th...indeed, a perfect day for a "love offering." This offering will be divided among our ministry partners, The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and the Baptist World Alliance, who have persons on the ground in Haiti and are working through local congregations there to meet needs. Third, in March we will receive medical and personal hygiene supplies that will be shipped to our ministry partners there that will be used for the foreseeable future. Finally, we hope at some point in the future to send a team to Haiti, though we know that will probably be quite some time before this happens.
Is love truly love if it does not motivate one to action? To love others in Jesus' name is to show that love. I invite you to join the Westwood family as we seek to love the people of Haiti in word and action.
Jim Abernathy
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
A Starting Place
During this season, a great deal of time is spent pondering the future and talking about all that lies ahead, and all that we are going to do to bring meaningful change to our lives and the lives of others around us. Resolutions are offered as verbal proof of our good intentions. Sometimes we follow through...sometimes we don't. In the heat of the moment, the shadow of guilt, or the blazing light of inspiration brought on by the threshold of another new year, it is easy to make resolutions, but the dark, cold days of January have a way of tempering our good intentions, and the momentum of hopeful expression gives way to the deflation brought on by the difficulty of following through.
Perhaps we try to change too much...to so radically change our lives that given our other responsibilities and distractions, our actions simply can't keep pace with our good intentions. Perhaps there is one thing, one aspect, one characteristic we could focus on and from that one focal point, meaningful change could truly occur.
Jesus said, "A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."(John 13:34-35, TNIV) We often speak of impacting the world around us and we think globally, as we should. But what if we allowed that love to impact our world, beginning right where we live, work, go to school, and worship. What if, for this new year, we focused on loving others as Christ has commanded. Would such radical change make a difference?
Maybe that's a starting place for you and me. Losing weight, managing time more effectively, taking up a new hobby, keeping your room clean...these are all worthy goals, but maybe, just maybe, making the love of Christ the priority for the new year will help you and me put everything in its proper perspective.
May the love of Christ be yours to share throughout 2010!
Jim Abernathy
Perhaps we try to change too much...to so radically change our lives that given our other responsibilities and distractions, our actions simply can't keep pace with our good intentions. Perhaps there is one thing, one aspect, one characteristic we could focus on and from that one focal point, meaningful change could truly occur.
Jesus said, "A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."(John 13:34-35, TNIV) We often speak of impacting the world around us and we think globally, as we should. But what if we allowed that love to impact our world, beginning right where we live, work, go to school, and worship. What if, for this new year, we focused on loving others as Christ has commanded. Would such radical change make a difference?
Maybe that's a starting place for you and me. Losing weight, managing time more effectively, taking up a new hobby, keeping your room clean...these are all worthy goals, but maybe, just maybe, making the love of Christ the priority for the new year will help you and me put everything in its proper perspective.
May the love of Christ be yours to share throughout 2010!
Jim Abernathy
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Where Have You Been???
Life gets complicated at times. Distractions are many and some things just don't get done! Issues and events, expected and unexpected, demand our attention and things we have been doing can be pushed aside or forgotten. Such is the story of this blog. I started writing this blog several months ago and have kept it current...until the last month. I could list the many things that have commanded my attention over the last several weeks, but then you would have to get out your list of complications to compare and we would both wind up whining on each other's shoulders.
Perhaps someone might bring up better time management, or a re-prioritization of schedule and focus. Someone might say, "You're doing too much...you need to let go of something." There is truth in all of these concerns, but I also know that at times, life simply presents you more than you can effectively handle and something slips. Most of us could manage our time better, but then again, many of us do a pretty good job given the number of dates, events, and life situations we have to handle. Yes, it is good to occasionally evaluate an re-evaluate our schedules and the way we manage them, but so many of the things that demand our time and effort are important to us and to others. It is easy to tell another that they should let go of something, but are we willing to let go of those things that are important to us? Sometimes we just get overwhelmed in the busyness of this 21st century world, and some things just don't get done. I am not offering an excuse or rationalization here for poor performance. I am, however, reminding myself, and hopefully you as well, that grace must often be applied in the context of our and other's shortcomings. To recognize our failures and commit ourselves once more to the tasks before us is to admit our humanness, and to strive toward a better understanding of who we and others are. And at the heart of this discussion is the One whose grace, mercy, and forgiveness restores and empowers us for the tasks that need to be done.
I will keep a closer eye on this blog, and I hope you will too. I will also seek to live more fully in the grace, mercy, and forgiveness of the Christ, whose birth we celebrate...and I hope you will too!
May you know the wonder of God, present within you through the gift of Bethlehem's baby, during this busy and blessed season.
Jim Abernathy
Perhaps someone might bring up better time management, or a re-prioritization of schedule and focus. Someone might say, "You're doing too much...you need to let go of something." There is truth in all of these concerns, but I also know that at times, life simply presents you more than you can effectively handle and something slips. Most of us could manage our time better, but then again, many of us do a pretty good job given the number of dates, events, and life situations we have to handle. Yes, it is good to occasionally evaluate an re-evaluate our schedules and the way we manage them, but so many of the things that demand our time and effort are important to us and to others. It is easy to tell another that they should let go of something, but are we willing to let go of those things that are important to us? Sometimes we just get overwhelmed in the busyness of this 21st century world, and some things just don't get done. I am not offering an excuse or rationalization here for poor performance. I am, however, reminding myself, and hopefully you as well, that grace must often be applied in the context of our and other's shortcomings. To recognize our failures and commit ourselves once more to the tasks before us is to admit our humanness, and to strive toward a better understanding of who we and others are. And at the heart of this discussion is the One whose grace, mercy, and forgiveness restores and empowers us for the tasks that need to be done.
I will keep a closer eye on this blog, and I hope you will too. I will also seek to live more fully in the grace, mercy, and forgiveness of the Christ, whose birth we celebrate...and I hope you will too!
May you know the wonder of God, present within you through the gift of Bethlehem's baby, during this busy and blessed season.
Jim Abernathy
Monday, November 2, 2009
Who is Your Hero???
What does it mean to be a hero? Our society struggles with the concept of heroism, at times conflicted over whether to build our heroes up or tear them down. The late tennis great, Arthur Ashe, was once quoted on the subject of heroes. He said, "True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” To serve, regardless of the cost...now that is an intriguing definition of heroism.
There were many in ancient Palestine who believed that Jesus just might be the hero they had been waiting for. His words were powerful, his ability to draw large crowds, amazing, his reputation as a miracle worker, captivating...and yet, he was ultimately crucified because he did not turn out to be the hero that many thought he should have been. Perhaps his words were to blame...words like those found in Matthew 20:26-28; "...whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave...just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
To become great, according to Jesus, is to become a servant to others. That doesn't sound very heroic to a modern world bent on the sensational...enamoured with celebrity, and yet, to serve others selflessly in Jesus' name is to follow the way of Christ, regardless of cost. "Whoever wants to be my disciple," Jesus said, "must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." Perhaps people of faith need to redefine their understanding of heroism. The kind of heroism Jesus encourages is often tedious, dirty work that might go largely unnoticed, but that doesn't diminish its value....perhaps that is the greatest indicator of a heroic act.
"The urge to serve others...whatever the cost." Ashe's definition is a good one...it finds it greatest example in the servant of all, Jesus the Christ. As followers of Christ, may we be heroes to others in Jesus' name.
Jim Abernathy
There were many in ancient Palestine who believed that Jesus just might be the hero they had been waiting for. His words were powerful, his ability to draw large crowds, amazing, his reputation as a miracle worker, captivating...and yet, he was ultimately crucified because he did not turn out to be the hero that many thought he should have been. Perhaps his words were to blame...words like those found in Matthew 20:26-28; "...whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave...just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
To become great, according to Jesus, is to become a servant to others. That doesn't sound very heroic to a modern world bent on the sensational...enamoured with celebrity, and yet, to serve others selflessly in Jesus' name is to follow the way of Christ, regardless of cost. "Whoever wants to be my disciple," Jesus said, "must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." Perhaps people of faith need to redefine their understanding of heroism. The kind of heroism Jesus encourages is often tedious, dirty work that might go largely unnoticed, but that doesn't diminish its value....perhaps that is the greatest indicator of a heroic act.
"The urge to serve others...whatever the cost." Ashe's definition is a good one...it finds it greatest example in the servant of all, Jesus the Christ. As followers of Christ, may we be heroes to others in Jesus' name.
Jim Abernathy
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Change
There's an old Baptist joke that goes something like this: How many Baptists does it take to change a light bulb? CHANGE!?!?!?!?! Now the joke may lose a little something as it makes its way through the blogosphere, but the idea translates well in most any environment....most of us don't like change!
Yet, at the heart of the Christian faith is the undeniable message of change. In Matthew 18, Jesus said, "...unless you change...you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Paul wrote in II Corinthians 5:17 that "if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!" (TNIV) To find forgiveness and grace in the living Christ is to find change every day. Faith calls us out of the ruts that trap us in the predictable patterns of daily living and challenges us to walk along new pathways that are defined by the steps of Christ. As he called his disciples to join him, he said simply, "Follow me."
We are certainly cautious about change, but apart from it, what a dull world this would be. As people of faith, our hope is built on the transformation that comes through faith in the risen Christ. CHANGE!?!?!?!?!? Yes, and thank God for it!
Yet, at the heart of the Christian faith is the undeniable message of change. In Matthew 18, Jesus said, "...unless you change...you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Paul wrote in II Corinthians 5:17 that "if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!" (TNIV) To find forgiveness and grace in the living Christ is to find change every day. Faith calls us out of the ruts that trap us in the predictable patterns of daily living and challenges us to walk along new pathways that are defined by the steps of Christ. As he called his disciples to join him, he said simply, "Follow me."
We are certainly cautious about change, but apart from it, what a dull world this would be. As people of faith, our hope is built on the transformation that comes through faith in the risen Christ. CHANGE!?!?!?!?!? Yes, and thank God for it!
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