Imitation IS the Highest Form of Flattery

Have you ever tried to imitate someone?

When I was a young boy, I looked up to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the world famous Los Angeles Lakers. Now, keep in mind – the guy was 7’2”, so most of the NBA looked up to him! However, when I saw Kareem play, I was certain of one thing – I was going to play basketball just like him. Now, if you’ve ever seen me before, you’ve immediately got questions in your mind like, “Aren’t you a little shorter than Kareem?” or “Did you play basketball for many years like Kareem?” or better yet, “Do you even know how to play basketball?”

Not to toot my own horn, but I was quite the basketball “phenom” at the Boy’s Club in Burkburnett, TX. Okay, let me qualify that – I was the tallest and biggest 5^th grader on our little league team – but I was a force to be reckoned with, to be sure! Of course, I played, you guessed it, center. I would easily score 20-30 points a game, only because I reached higher than the other rebounders, and put the ball back in the goal (this sometimes took 3 or 4 tries). Even though I couldn’t really dribble or shoot free throws or run up and down the court, I could shoot a three-foot bank shot off the glass with the best of them.

Yet, deep down, I wanted something more – I wanted to play like Kareem. When he took the court, he dominated the lane. He could pull down rebounds, block the shots of would-be shooters, and even knock down the occasional 3 pointer in a pinch. But if there was anything that he was known for, it was the hook shoot. I’m not certain who it was that developed this technique, but one thing was for sure – Kareem perfected it. Whether from five feet or fifteen, he was deadly accurate over the tallest of defenders.

In my quest to be like Kareem, I studied everything he did. I worked for what seemed like hours a day on the over-the-head razzmatazz known as the hook. I watched LA play at every opportunity. I even talked my dad into using the VCR (a new invention then) to record Jabbar’s smooth moves. I became a student of the hook shot, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was my model. Even though I never attained the level of success that Jabbar enjoyed (okay, I never played past the 5^th grade), I still looked to him as a mentor and a model.

If we each reminisced about our childhoods, we could think of someone we desired to be like – so much so that we sought to follow their every move. But what about in our adult lives? And what about in our spiritual walk? Are we still looking for those stand out mentors to mold and shape our faith? This Sunday, we will be recognizing men whom both God and we have chosen to serve as shepherds of HOCC. These men are to be looked upon – both for their Godly living and pastoral demeanors. But just like Abdul-Jabbar had tough nights on the court and personal struggles, so too, these men are, just that – men. With this in mind, we take it upon ourselves to honor these shepherds by following as sheep and supporting them as co-laborers. Their role in our lives and in the life of this church is to be revered and appreciated. This Sunday, we remember our leaders.

Resounding Themes:
God’s Leadership Over Us
Jesus As Our Gentle Shepherd
Submissive Sheep
Community of Faith in Christ’s Church

Ready, Set, READ

Hebrews 13

Ready, Set, MEDITATE

- Why does the Hebrews writer exhort the people to “remember” their leaders? What other words does he use that require action, in regard to them? Why do you think the author told them to “imitate their faith,” rather than to “imitate them?”

- What weight does the writer seem to put on the shoulders of the leaders? Have you ever thought of that in regard to an elder? If not, how should that change the way we interact with them?

- Have you ever had a shepherd? How you ever told them how much they meant to you? Think about that person, and how they were able to provide leadership for your life.

Ready, Set, PRAY

Gentle Shepherd, we are the sheep of Your pasture, the flock under Your care. You have led us along the paths of righteousness for Your own Name’s sake. You have lifted us up and saved us time and time again, and we humbly thank You for loving us. Father, in Your wisdom, You saw fit to allow us spiritual leaders that would work in Your Church, serving as extensions of your own heart, and tending over the sheep. May we, this day and everyday, lift up these leaders in prayer! May we ascribe to them the honor due their calling and extend willing hearts to receive their leadership. May we seek to emulate their faith in You, while applying our own individuality in our spiritual development. And may we all grow together into the head – which is Christ. To God be the Glory together in Christ Jesus! Amen.

Ready, Set, WORSHIP!

Can You Hear Me Now?

The following scene is totally fictional, and in no way represents a scenario that has ever happened in the Higgins’ household. Only the names have been left the same to reveal the guilty.

“Honey, before you go to bed, make sure and lock the front door.” “Okay,” mumbles the hearer (not to be named – CHAD) as he continues to watch Iron Chef on the Food Network, only to have the unlocked door discovered the next morning by the communicator (my wife) – much to her chagrin.

The human mind is as fascinating as it is complex. When it functions properly, the height of what can be achieved runs well out beyond what science has been able to explain. Yet, when parts of the brain malfunction, strange things occur – such as blurred vision, forgetfulness, and a loss of motor skills. One such result of a failed part of the brain is for one to develop a listening problem. On a well respected medical web site, the following questionnaire is provided as a self test to see if someone has symptoms that point to a listening problem. Let’s follow along.

Do you have a short attention span?

Are you easily distracted?

Are you sensitive or confused by multiple, simultaneous sounds?

When asked, do you misinterpret questions?

Do you find yourself frequently having to have things repeated?

Do you suffer from an inability to follow through on verbal commitments?

How did you do? The doctors who put forth this survey include that if you were able to positively identify two of the six items, you might be suffering from an identified listening problem. To be sure, there is a condition in which some people’s brains do not make the synaptic connections necessary to follow through on the above items. At the same time, there exists a huge majority of us who suffer from a “self-induced” listening problem that results in our inability to listen to the proper tones of communication.

Throughout the Bible, God uses the faculty of hearing to communicate to his people. Certainly, there were means for those lacking this faculty to participate, but when something important needed to be communicated from the heart of God to his people, he used the word, “listen.” “Hear, O Israel…” “Men of Israel, listen to this…” “He who has ears, let him hear…”Throughout the Old and New Testaments, God is shouting out his plan for his chosen people – in a clarion tone that could not be mistaken. Yet, time and time again, the people of God ignored or at best misunderstood God’s instruction because of their listening problem.

In the end, a non-clinical listening problem is simply a person’s lack of will to focus on the proper communicator – and we have so many to choose from! The media makes its attempts to gain our ear. The government, our friends and coworkers, even our churches are vying for a spot in our consciousness – and if we’re not careful, we’ll miss hearing the Voice of Truth.

Let’s take this quiz once again:

When God speaks, do you have a short attention span?

Are you easily distracted when reading the Bible or praying?

Do you listen to multiple, simultaneous voices, rather than the lone voice of God?

When God asks something of you, do you misinterpret his questions?

Do you find yourself frequently having to have things God wants you to do, repeated?

When you make a promise to God, do you suffer from an inability to follow through on your verbal commitment?

Depressing, isn’t it. Let’s face it – you have a listening problem. But there’s hope, because you find yourself in the company of some of the greatest men and women of God! The goal of our worship this week is to identify Jesus as the solo voice of truth in our lives. For Peter and the apostles, a listening problem would have resulted in the death a movement; yet, when they were able to keep Christ as their source for information and strength, they were able to stand firm. In essence, they took their hands off the steering wheel, and allowed God to drive the car of the Gospel. Likewise, when we focus our eyes on him, hearing becomes much easier, and we are more apt to follow his leading.

Resounding Themes:
Jesus as Supreme – both Lord and Christ
Listening to the Lord
Finding Identity and Belonging in God
God’s full knowledge of us

Ready, Set, READ

Acts 5:12-42

Ready, Set, MEDITATE

- How do the people react to Peter and the apostles? How do Peter and the apostles react to the people? How does the Sanhedrin react?

- In what ways can you be sure from this story that the apostles don’t have a listening problem? If they had, how might this scene have been different?

- How are the apostles rewarded for listening to God alone? How do they receive this punishment? Is your obedience to God contingent on a blessing? Are you willing to listen to God, at all costs?

Ready, Set, PRAY

Patient Father, my ears have been stuffed with the voices of this world – so much so, that your clear voice is but a muffled expression. My eyes have not been fixed on You, making listening all the more difficult. I long to hear from You – hear Your voice – but noise is my constant companion, distraction my ever present foe. Lord God, in Your power, unstop the ears of heart that I might once again hear You. Mighty Father, swab away that wax that has deadened my senses so I can return to listening to Your will for my life. My prayer is that of an old, beautiful song:

Open my ears, that I may hear

Voices of truth Thou sendest clear;

And while the wavenotes fall on my ear,

Ev'rything false will disappear.

Silently now I wait for Thee,

Ready my God, Thy will to see:

Open my ears, illumine me, Savior divine!

Illumine me, O God – and give me ears to listen to You! In Christ AMEN.

Ready, Set, WORSHIP!

Use It or Lose It

Who recalls this old song?

Love is like a lucky penny

Hold it tight, and you won’t have any

Give it away, and you’ll have plenty

You’ll end up having more

I grew up on the “Joy Bus.” Now, some of you don’t know what I mean by that phrase, while others of you know exactly where I’m coming from. I’m not sure how the phenomenon began, but in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s, there was a push among Churches of Christ (maybe all denominations) to have a ministry that got people who might not ordinarily come church to the building by picking them up by bus. I grew up in Burkburnett, TX, which is right outside of Wichita Falls, TX and adjacent to Sheppard AFB. In the early 1970’s the church I went to was running 7 full-size busses every Sunday morning to the AFB to pick up kids.

Now, the joy bus was more than a means of transportation to get kiddos from the outskirts to the church building. It was a mobile, Bible-teaching, song-singing, calorie-burning machine that pulsed with activity and excitement. At the front of the bus, a seat had been turned around and a podium installed. There was a “micked” sound system and decorations galore. Not a moment of teachability was lost on the hour-long ride each Sunday, as the children learned Bible lessons and songs about Biblical characters.

One fair Sunday morning, the bus leader (my mother) began to teach us a lesson about giving our money to God. She used for illustration the story of Ananais and Sapphira. After she told the Bible story, she taught us all a song to help us remember the truths of the story. The song (see above) was a hit! We were all singing it jubilantly by the time we made it to the building. However, as we pulled in, my mom got everyone’s attention for a special announcement. She informed us, as we left the bus, we would each receive a special penny. This was to be no ordinary penny – it was for us to give to God in the collection plate. Excitedly, what seemed like hundreds of munchkins flooded off the bus, each waving excitedly their newly acquired penny.

Bible class that morning was a wash. Rather than paying attention to Mrs. Hagstrom’s flannel board Bible story, we each took turns comparing and touting our pennies. Some were shiny and some were worn. Others had been printed that year, while the rest had dates ranging way back. As the bell of deliverance rang, we raced down the hall and into the auditorium. As usual, I found my seat next to my grandparents who ALWAYS sat on the left side, 10^th row from the back, on the aisle. They were not in on the plot with the whole penny thing, and I had already decided what I might do with it. You see, I would typically go home with my grandparents after church and eat lunch. After lunch, Pappaw and I would go to Piggly Wiggly to do the grocery shopping. Although I couldn’t by much candy with a penny, I knew that if I picked something out and handed him the penny to pay for it, he would be a softy and get it for me anyway. The plan was set.

When the plates came around that morning, I didn’t put in my penny. I gripped it tight in my sweaty little fist and awaited anxiously my opportunity at the store to exchange that coin for a Butterfinger. When the final “Amen” sounded, I bounded from my pew, put my penny in my pocket, and raced to the car. Once at the car door, I had a desperate sense that I needed to see my penny once again. To my horror, I reached in my pocket, only to discover that it was a faux pocket with no actual lining. Apparently, the penny I had placed in there for safe keeping had slid down my leg, out of my pants, and into oblivion. I was heartbroken!! My penny was gone, never to be seen again. As I thought about it later that afternoon, that silly song we learned earlier was ricocheting around in my head like a “superball” in an elevator. In fact, I had lost what I should have given away – that which was promised to God. To add insult to injury, Pappaw didn’t buy me a candy bar at the store.

Have you ever held onto something that was God’s so tightly that you lost it? Maybe its money, time, people, etc. The simple fact remains, worshippers must keep a loose grip on anything in this world – for none of it belongs to us. As we look at the “Tale of Two Givers” from Acts 4 and 5, our worship will center around the idea that the act of giving is not enough and that it’s the heart that God sees when we give and when we hoard. May our worship be transformed by our ability to “give it away” in the Name of Jesus.

Resounding Themes:
God, the Giver of All Good Things
Blessings of God
Faithful Heart, Faithful Giver
Sacrificial Behavior

Ready, Set, READ

Acts 4:36-5:11

Ready, Set, MEDITATE

- Who are the two givers identified in these verses? How are they strikingly similar? How are they drastically different?

- What eventually happened to the man who gave everything from his sale (remember, his name is Barnabas)? What happened to the couple who chose not to disclose it all?

- What is your immediate reaction to the couple’s fate? Why?

- In what ways do you see yourself in the story of Barnabas? Ananias and Sapphira?

- What are you keeping back from the Lord that inhibits your ability to stand proudly in his presence and say unashamedly, “I give it all, Lord.”

Ready, Set, PRAY

Gracious and Benevolent Father God, hear my prayer of praise today, as I elevate you above everything else in my life. As Jesus was bold to say, “all that I have is Yours, and all that You have in mine,” so we, too, come humbly into your bountiful blessing – knowing all the while that everything we have comes from Your hand. Father, grant me with the ability to grip loosely all the blessings I have in this life, and allow me to open freely the gates of my heart as I release those things back to Your control. May you be Lord over my life today – and may that begin with my giving.

Ready, Set, WORSHIP!

Exceeding All Expectations

Have you ever gotten more than you were expecting out of a circumstance?

My wife’s family has known its share of heartache and adversity. After eleven years of marriage, my mother-in-law, Charlotte, lost her husband in a fatal car wreck. His death left not only a young widow, but a four year old girl and a seven year old son as well. Weeks before, the whole family had moved to Houston with the promise of a new job. Now, in a strange place – in an even stranger situation in life – the family was forced to move back to DFW, where a consoling extended family waited to receive them.

In time, the family grew stronger, and Charlotte met a young man, Don, through church friends. They dated off and on for a while, but after the relationship grew and matured, they decided to get married. Though Don could never fully replace the man those two children knew as father, he quickly became an integral part of a family that needed both a husband and a dad. This new group of four that God had brought together grew in love and relationship as a family. After some time together in marriage, Don and Charlotte decided they wanted to have a child of their own. However, when Charlotte was younger, she had a tubal pregnancy that cost her her fallopian tubes – she would not be able to have any more children through traditional means. After going through two disappointments with IVF, the couple was very discouraged. In time, they came to the conclusion that the only way that they were going to have more children was to adopt.

After going through the lawyers, the agencies, and the red tape that goes along with the adoption process, they had their file placed on record and waited for agencies to call. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into a year with no answer. However, one day out of the blue (as God tends to do), they got a call from a children’s home in Abilene, TX who had a mother wanting to see their file. Apparently, this mom had gone through dozens if not hundreds of applications searching for the right placement, only to decide that none of them were right for her. She wanted a family that had gone through some of their own trials already – as battle scars on a returning soldier. Don and Charlotte’s story touched her, and she knew in an instant that they were the ones God had chosen to raise her children.

Yes, that’s right, “children.” Part of the catch of this match made in heaven is that she was giving birth to identical twin girls! As you can imagine, the thoughts that raced through Don and Charlotte’s heads were dizzying. How could we afford two? How could we raise two? How many diapers a day is that? Would we have to pay for both of their weddings? These and a host of other questions pounded through their minds as they thought and prayed about it. Hadn’t they asked God for a great blessing? Of course they had, but they were only expecting a single answer – not two! After much thought, the couple said. “Yes,” to this expectation exceeding surprise, and two weeks later, they brought home two beautiful baby girls. Their names are Connie and Caryn, and they are now 14 years old.

So many times in our lives, we get more than we expect out of life’s situations. Sometimes, they are great challenges that shake the very fiber of our being. Then, at other times, all that we could have hoped for was small in comparison to the enormous blessing that we receive. The same holds true in our walk with Christ. If we’re not ready, the overwhelming cost of becoming a disciple of Jesus can exceed what we expected it to be. Many times in the Bible, Jesus’ outlining of what it would take to become like him was followed by a mass exodus of those who listened. Then, at other times, we lay our meager expectations of what desire out of our relationship with God before His feet, and He rockets past them with a blessing too big to count. In your worship this week, think about the idea of “expectations” and what is to live your life with Jesus – the great expectation exceeder!

Resounding Themes:
Faith in the Precious Name of Jesus
God the Great Healer
Salvation Belongs to God Alone
A Giving, Lavishing God

Ready, Set, READ

Acts 3 & 4

Ready, Set, MEDITATE

- Why do you think Peter chose to heal a middle-aged lame man, as opposed to raising the dead or causing a mighty pestilence to destroy Rome? How does the man respond? How do the people respond?

- What are the different groups of people in these 2 chapters expecting from Peter and John? The lame man? The onlookers? The Sanhedrin? In what ways do they get more than they expected from them?

- In your opinion, how is Peter able to stand before all of these different groups and say what he does? What could happen? What does happen?

- How have ever you gotten more than you expected in your life with Jesus? If not, have you thought about what your level of expectation is?

Ready, Set, PRAY

Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your Name! Your praises flow from the mouths of both the aged and the young. There is no place on earth or in heaven that Your praises cannot be heard! In Your great patience, You deal with us kindly and with great care. And in Your great compassion, You lead us into paths of righteousness – for the sake of Your name alone. What a life we have with You, O God! Our days are filled with Your activity and work around us in the world, in our families, in our jobs, and in our commitment to You. As the Psalmist, we approach each morning with anticipation, as we lay all of our wills, wants, and desires before you and wait in eager expectation to see what you’ll accomplish. Father, move into our hearts and give us the ability to see as You see, to hurt as You hurt, and to love as You love. Exceed our expectations in all that You do. Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your Name! AMEN

Ready, Set, WORSHIP!