Wright Ministries

Preparing for the Mission Trip

2011-01-13T08:33:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, Hagood has a church-wide mission trip June 12- 17th. Its an annual trip to Cleveland, TN. It is a life-changing experience not just for those we reach out to, but also for those of us who attend.

The January issue of Homelife had an interesting article on p. 48 called the "Mission Trip Prayer Countdown". Since we are six months out, I thought I would share the 6 month preparation.

6 months prior to the trip we should start praying for encouragement for each individual who is preparing for the mission trip. I pray that God lays a burden on the hearts of Hagood members to be involved in this mission trip in some way. Be it prayer, service, or financial support.

What the Bible says:

Hebrews 10:24-25 (New Living Translation)
24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Why is God so Narrow Minded?

2010-11-05T20:29:00.001-07:00

Hey ya’ll, not much to talk about today…but I do want to put this awesome quote from a book I’ve been reading on. Hope ya’ll enjoy it!
Peace Out Ya’ll!!!!!!!!!!

Why is God so Narrow Minded?

We are still left with the problem, however, of a narrow-minded God who provides only one way of redemption. Does this not mean that the people who live in a culture where one religion is proclaimed have a decisive advantage over people living in other cultures? …but lets examine the deeper question of the narrow-mindedness of God who provides only one way of redemption. We remember the words of Jesus when He said, “Broad is the way and wide is the gate that leads to destruction and many are they who go in thereby. But straight is the way and narrow is the gate that leads to life and few are those who find it” (Matt. 7:13). What kind of God would have such a narrow gate? The question implies a serious accusation; that God has not done enough to provide redemption for mankind.
Let us examine this accusation from a hypothetical perspective. Let us suppose that there is a God who is altogether holy and righteous. Suppose that God freely creates mankind and gives to mankind the gift of life. Suppose He sets His creatures in an ideal setting and gives them the freedom to participate in all of the glories of the created order with freedom. Suppose, however, that God imposes one small restriction upon them, warning them that if they violate that restriction, they will die. Would such a God have the right to impose such a restriction with the penalty of forfeiture of the gift of life if His authority is violated?
Suppose that for no just cause the ungrateful creatures disobeyed the restriction the moment God’s back was turned. Suppose when He discovered their violation instead of killing them, He redeemed them. Suppose the descendants of the first transgressors broadly and widely increased their disobedience and hostility toward their creator to the point that the whole world became rebellious to God, and each person in it “did what was right in his own eyes” (Judge. 21:25). Suppose God still determined to redeem these people and freely gave special gifts to one nation of people in order that, through them, the whole world would be blessed. Suppose God delivered this people from poverty and enslavement to a ruthless Egyptian Pharaoh. Suppose this priviledged nation, as soon as it was liberated, rose up in further rebellion against their God and their liberator. Suppose they took His law and violated it consistently.
Suppose that God, still intent on redemption, sent specially endowed messengers or prophets to plead with His people to return to Him. Suppose the people killed the divine messengers and mocked their message. Suppose the people then began to worship idols of stone and things fashioned by their own hands. Suppose these people invented religions that were contrary to the truth of the real God and worshiped creatures rather than the Creator.
Suppose in an ultimate act or redemption God Himself became incarnate in the person of His Son. Suppose this Son came into the world not to condemn the world but to redeem the world. But suppose this Son of God were rejected, slandered, mocked, tortured, and murdered. Yet, suppose that God accepted the murder of His own Son as punishment for the sins of the very persons who murdered Him. Suppose this God offered to His Son’s murderers total amnesty, complete forgivness, transcendent peace that comes with the cleansing of all guilt, victory over death and an eternal life of complete felicity.
Suppose god gave these people as a free gift the promise of a future life that would be without pain, without sickness, without death, and without tears. Suppose that God said to these people, “There is one thing that I demand. I demand that you honor my only-begotten Son and that you worship and serve Him alone.” Suppose God did all of that, would you be willing to say to him, “God, that’s not fair, you haven’t done enough”?
If man has in fact committed cosmic treason against God, what reason could we possibly have that God should provide any way of redemption? In light of the universal rebellion against God, the issue is not why is ther only one way, but why is there any way at all? I know no way of answering that question.
From Reason to Believe by R.C. Sproul

Cultural Revolution

2010-11-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

In his book How Now Shall We Live?, Chuck Colson says, "Yes, cultures can be renewed--even those typically considered the most corrupt and intractable. But if we are to restore our world, we first have to shake of the comfortable notion that Christianity is merely a personal experience, applying only to one's private life. No man is an island, wrote the Christian poet John Donne. Yet one of the great myths of our day is that we are islands--that our decisions are personal and no one has a right to tell us what to do in our private lives."

While Christianity requires a personal commitement and decision, it as a whole requires us to expand our faith beyond merely ourselves. We are called to live in such a way that our lives not only are different from the culture in which we live, but actually influence that culture. Part of our commision as Jesus followers is the redemption of the culture. Every part of Gods perfect creation was corrupted by the sin of man, and the redemption offered through Christ is for more that just us as people. It is for the rest of creation, and for the culture in which we live. As Christians, we should be involved in the culture in order to transform that culture. We cannot separate ourselves from the world like monks, and we cannot simply condone the evils of the culture in which we live. In this spiritual battle, we have to get into the fight. Culture can be renewed, but only if we are willing to do our part in that renewal.

Weakness

2010-09-08T07:26:00.000-07:00

Weakness. This is a word that many of us are uncomfortable with because when we see that word it reminds us of the weakness we have. None of us really thinks we are without fault. We may put on a brave face and act strong, but inside, where our self-deceptions do not reach, we realize the truth--that we all have weakness. Now, those weaknesses may vary from person to person, but we all have weakness. Saul of Taurus, or as we know him, Paul, had a weakness. In the Scriptures we see him talk about that "thorn in his flesh," and though we may not know what that weakness was, we can all relate to it. Paul saw his weakness in a different light that we usually do though. While we see weakness as a terrible thing and something to be hidden and avoided, Paul saw his weakness as an opportunity. In the book Pivotal Praying, they say it this way, "The difference is clear. Paul began to love his weaknesses, because they reminded him he was always in over his head. He had nothing to prove, nothing to lose, nothing to hide. When he stared at huge challenges, he'd boast about God's strength..." How awesome is that! We do not need to be ashamed of our weakness, because it is in that weakness that God is shown strong, and through that weakness we get to tell of God's strength. We will never face a situation that we cannot handle, because God is with us. Next time you seem to face insurrmountable odds and feel weak, remember that in your weakness God is strong, and take heart!

2010-06-09T07:44:00.000-07:00

The Bible teaches us that God has great plans for each of us. God gives each of us who follow Him a dream and a plan which is custom made for us. And so many of us fail to realize that dream, fail to even really seek after it. The reason for that is simple. We are comfortable where we are. We don't want to leave our comfort zone and go after that dream, because it is scary.
When we hit that wall of fear that comes with leaving our comfort zones, too often we freeze up and give in to that fear, or tell God that we will be happy to go when he provides the way and removes the fear. But God doesn't take our fear, rather he tells us to take courage and to not be afraid. The true definition of courage is not the absence of fear, but rather choosing to
act in spite of it. When we realize who the God we follow is, those walls of fear will crumble before us, because we will realize that no matter how large the wall is, our God is bigger! This coming week, we have a lot of people from this church who are leaving their comfort zone to go and live out part of God's dream for Hagood Ave Baptist Church. I pray that any wall of fear we might run into there, or here back home would be met with
courage.

2010-04-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

"Courage is a hard thing to figure. You can have courage based on a dumb idea or mistake, but you're not supposed to question adults, or your coach or your teacher, because they make the rules. Maybe they know best, but maybe they don't. It all depends on who you are, where you come from. Didn't at least one of the six hundred guys think about giving up, and joining with the other side? I mean, valley of death that's pretty salty stuff. That's why courage it's tricky. Should you always do what others tell you to do? Sometimes you might not even know why you're doing something. I mean any fool can have courage. But honor, that's the real reason for you either do something or you don't. It's who you are and maybe who you want to be. If you die trying for something important, then you have both honor and courage, and that's pretty good. I think that's what the writer was saying, that you should hope for courage and try for honor. And maybe even pray that the people telling you what to do have some, too. "

I saw The Blindside for the first time this weekend, and this quote from the movie stood out to me. To often, no matter what our position, we forget to think about what the "other guy" is going through. Courage is a hard thing to find in many situations, and is impossible to fabricate. You can maybe fake it for a while, but when the pressure is on, your facade will fall. True courage, true honor, and true power is found only in Jesus Christ and His resurrection, and that is why we celebrate Easter with such vigor. With the Resurrection, we can have courage and honor and power in the face of even death itself, because our Lord has already defeated him. Next time we face a hard situation, we must lean on Christ and His resurrection power. HE IS RISEN!

Freedom

2010-03-09T08:41:00.000-08:00

Wallace: I AM William Wallace. And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What would you do without freedom? Will you fight?
Veteran soldier: Fight? Against that? No, we will run; and we will live.
Wallace: Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you'll live -- at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!!!

This is one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite movies. It is absolutely an amazing scene in Braveheart. And what really stands out to me is that final questions he asks them. "Would you be willing to trade all days from this day to that for one chance to stand up for your freedom." We are faced with situations in life so often that are a challenge to get through, and sometimes, in those situations, there are easy ways out. However, sometimes, to take the easy way out you give up some of your freedom, you place yourself into bondage to something else, just to avoid the trial. How often do we make that comprimise? How often do we avoid pain and danger by slinking away and running? God doesn't want His followers to live that life. In Gal. 5:1, Paul says this, "1It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. As Christians, have been set free through the work of Christ, which is so awesomely enacted in the Passion Play. We must cling to and stand up for that freedom, and never trade that freedom for a life of bondage again. We must not live a life of regret, but rather, one of boldness and power.

Fear

2010-01-15T07:34:00.001-08:00

I've been reading a book called "The Chronicles of Nicodemus" where the premise of the book (a historical novel) is that Nicodemus and Joseph (who secured the tomb to bury Jesus) when out after His resurrection to talk to various witnesses to the events and chronicle the events of Jesus' life, death and resurrection. It has been a very cool book so far, and i would like to share a section of it with you. This section comes from the discussion with Peter, and this is what Peter says; "Fear, it was fear that motivated His execution. Religious charlatans crucified Him for fear He would expose their hypocrisy. Out of fear they posted a gaurd at His tomb. Even in death, they wer tormented by His life. Out of fear, the Temple Gaurd trembled at the angel's message of 'He is Risen.' Faithful women left His empty tomb with mixed emotions, both fear and joy. He allayed their fear with His words, 'Do not be afraid...' Fear stalks each of us like a cunning assasin. At the end of life awaits our greatest fear, death. One day regent Death will point his caustic finger at each of us and say, 'Your turn.' Death offers noone an appeal. Our peace is found in the fact that He defeated death and demonstrated by His resurrection there is life beyond the grave. Regarding death, the greatest fear, He said... 'Fear not.'" (The Chronicles of Nicodemus, page 141) Now, does the author not hit the nail on the head with this section. We as human beings live so much of our lives in fear, and make so many decisions we make based on fear. There are many people who get married just b/c they are afraid to be alone, and that often leads to much heartache for both parties involved. Sometime we put way too much time into our job, b/c we are afraid of losing it, and that often comes at the cost of family. Many young ladies in the world give up their virginity and innocence with some boy, just b/c they are afraid to lose him, and often with disastrous consequences. Many people get involved in drugs or alchohol b/c they are afraid to stand up and say no, and others still do so to cover up some other fear or hurt which they are going through. And then ultimatley, we all end up doing something stupid and fear death, simply b/c we don't want this life to end. Fear is sadly one of our biggest motivatiors as human beings.... But what does Jesus say about fear? He says, "Fear not!" What an amazing comfort and encouragment to us who follow Him. Paul goes on to say that we were not given a spirit of fear, but of boldness and of power. If you are a Christian, you are indwelt with the very spirit that calmed the waves, created the universe, split the veil, drove out demons, died on the cross, nullified the power of hell, and spat in the face of death and said, "NO MORE!" Don't let your flesh make you live in fear, but live in the power of that spirit that endwells you. Now, if you aren't a Christian, then you don't have that spirit yet... you still have the human spirit of fear, and I encourage you to seek out someone to help you meet the Jesus that I serve... the Jesus that told death it would no longer have the victory over His people....

2009-08-11T08:05:00.000-07:00

United States of America
Looks like another silent night
As we're sung to sleep by philosophies
That save the trees and kill the children
And while we're lying in the dark
There's a shout heard 'cross the eastern sky
For the Bridegroom has returned
And has carried His bride away in the night
America, what will we miss while we are sleeping
Will Jesus come again
And leave us slumbering where we lay
America, will we go down in history
As a nation with no room for its King
Will we be sleeping Will we be sleeping
United States of America Looks like another silent night

These lyrics are from a song called "While You Were Sleeping," by Casting Crowns. I was listening to this song this morning and I was struck by it. The beginning of the song talks about how Jerusalem and Bethlehem slept through the arrival of their King (Jesus) and did not have anything for Him. But it is the above lyrics that really struck me. We in America are blessed with material blessings, with great freedoms and with wonderful ability to worship freely. These blessings are not b/c of anything America has done, but b/c God has ordained and allowed it. And b/c of these freedoms which God has allowed, this country has taken it upon itself to pass laws to save trees and at the same time allow the slaughter of millions of unborn children. We have used our material blessings to uplift and endorse ourselves, rather than be a blessing to those who are around us and around the world in need of things we could so easily supply. I am afraid of the direction which this country is heading, and afraid that if we as Christians do not start to make some stands for Christ, then the same fate that befell Jerusalem will befall us as well. I would challenge each of us to get the names and addresses of our congressmen and senators, and let them know that we are not going to stand for these things anymore. We have to stand tall for God. God has blessed us, lets be a blessing to everyone else!

2009-07-24T07:37:00.000-07:00

There's a day that's drawing near When this darkness breaks to light

And the shadows disappear And my faith shall be my eyes

Jesus has overcome And the grave is overwhelmed

The victory is won He is risen from the dead

And I will rise when He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain

I will rise on eagles' wings Before my God fall on my knees And rise I will rise

These are some lyrics from a song that we sang a lot at camp last week. I was just singing it a few minutes ago b/c it was stuck in my head, and I got to thinking about the words. How awesome is it to know as a follower of Christ that there is a day drawing near where our faith will be our eyes. We are one day going to see Jesus in the flesh, so to speak. Faith will be obsolete at that point because we won't need it! And then to realize that He has overcome one of the most "final" things in the human experience, death and that because He has overcome it, we have the Resurrection in our future. Death is not the end, we can even rejoice in death. It is b/c of those facts that I think we can sing that chorus with such ease, "I will rise, when he call my name." With a God that has overcome death and given us new life, how can we help but to rise when He calls to us. I want to challenge each of us to pray through this song, and really tell God what the song is saying.

Party at a funeral?

2009-06-28T15:00:00.000-07:00

In the past couple weeks, there have been lots of stories in the news of famous people who have died: Farrah Faucet, Micheal Jackson, Billie Mays just to name a few. The response of the media and such has of course been sympathy and grief, and rightfully so, b/c death is a horrible thing to face. It is made even more difficult by the fact that with many of these people, their eternal destiny is questionable. It is hard to know where they are now. Maybe they found Jesus at some moment, maybe not, but the fact is we don't know. How awesome is it for those who are Christians thought to know that we can be sure of our eternal fate. When we face the death of a loved one, or even our own death, we can do so with a godly grief, a grief that is supported by hope and the resurrection. The next time we hear of someone famous dying, or even someone who is not famous, let it remind us that for those of us who have Christ, death is not a reason to fear, b/c for us, death is simply a door to eternity with our God. Grieve for loved ones, miss them, but celebrate the fact that they are finally home! I want my funeral to be a party, b/c I'm going to be partying with my Lord.

Just a thought

2009-06-09T07:52:00.001-07:00

I was checking my email today when one of the headlines just jumped out at me. The headline was "Gingrich at Republican Fundraiser Says Obama’s ‘Already Failed.'" The article was not really that interesting, just talked about a speech Gingrich gave where he made the comment that President Barack Obama’s plan to fix the economy through stimulus spending and government intervention to boost companies like General Motors Corp. has "already failed." Now, my point is not make some political argument, my point is that the American people have put much of their hope in Obama, and to some he has already failed their hopes. The point however is that as followers of Christ, we don't have to worry about the One we put our hope into failing. God has said he will never leave us of forsake us, and that is the truth. We can go through even hard times like we are in now with a sense of peace and excitement knowing that our hope is found in Christ and his righteousness. So the next time you are having a rough day, week, month or year, I urge you to make sure you have placed you hope in Christ alone, and God gaurantees that you won't be disappointed!

Faith?

2009-05-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

We see this image and chuckle at it... but the reason we chuckle is it seems outlandish. I don't think that many of us in the church today really believe that our faith can accomplish miracles. We read where Jesus said with the faith the size of a mustard seed we can move a mountain, and think it is great for preaching, shows how important faith is and all that, but i don't think we really believe it! I think that when Jesus said that, that is exactly what he meant. He later said we would do greater things than He did in His earthly life with faith. Our faith is powerful, and can change lives. What mountains are we letting get in our way today? and the better question is what does it say about our faith if we are unable to move those mountains with our faith? Get out there and move some mountains for God...

Summer is coming up soon!

2009-05-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

Hey yout's! Summer is right around the corner. Soon it will be the days of sun and fun and no school again. It is an exciting time when summer rolls around. Yet sometimes I thing and wonder if it is taken advantage of to its fullest. I know when I was a youth, for the most part i just relaxed all summer and had fun, and did not really put much thought into trying to do something productive, and looking back on it I have some regret for that. The challenge I would give each of you is to use some of the multitude of free time you will have this summer to do something extra for God. There are people all around this area who could use some help. We are to be His hands and feet, so lets use this summer to do that. If you can't find someone who could use the help, let me know, and I'm sure we can find something for ya!

Advancing the Kingdom of God

2009-04-29T11:38:00.000-07:00

hey ya'll..... I was looking back at an old Xanga blog where I was working at CentriFUGE (the camp the youth are going to this year). The support staff had a devotion thing from tracy turner. He has always had something good to say, and the thing he said that specific day was awesome.

He was talking out of Matthew 11 when john the baptist sent his disciples to Jesus. He was looking at it from the point of view of John. John was a preacher with a message burning in his heart, in the prime of his life, and he was in prison for a crime he did not commit. His plans were obviously not working out as he had forseen, and he was obviously doubting God's plan in some way, i mean, he had to ask if Jesus was the one. Despite all of that, in verse 12, Christ says to the disciples that the Kingdom of God is still forcefully advancing.....

Even when our plans are not going as we would like and we feel like things just are not working, God's plans are working and God's kingdom is advancing, often in the most unexpected ways.....
I just think that is a message that we all need to hear in life, and i know it encouraged me, so i thought i'd share it with you.....

Anyway, peace out, and ya'll keep on doing God's work

1 Chronicles 22:19

2008-07-16T16:13:00.000-07:00

Today i was reading from 1st chronicles where David was talking to his son Solomon about building the Temple of the Lord. in Verse 19, David says "Now seek the Lord with all your heart. Build the sanctuary of the Lord God so that you can bring the Ark of the Lord's Covenant and the holy vessels of God into the Temple built to honor to Lord's name." I got to thinking that in this new covenant age, we are told the same thing. God tells us to seek Him with all of our heart, so that the ark of the new covenant (the Holy Spirit) can fill our hearts and lives and give us power so taht we can honor God's name. We have to give him everything we have if we want to be able to be used by him as we should be. It reminds me of that song....

Lord prepare me...

To be a sanctuary...

Pure and Holy...

Tried and True...

With thanksgiving...

I'll be a living...

Sanctuary, for you....

if only we would all pray that little chorus to God every day when we wake up, imagine the glory God would get...

Independence day

2008-07-08T08:32:00.000-07:00

Romans 13
Submission to the Authorities 1Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. 6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

Tony talked sunday morning about the paths this country is taking. One main point he made was the point about respect for the president and how so many people in this country today seem to desire to speak ill of the president b/c they don't agree with what he has done or said, but the problem with that is it doesn't matter if you like him, or agree with anything he has done, we as Christians are commanded to respect him as our authority bc God has placed him there as the leader of our country, and it is our responsibility to respect, protect and defend him as such, no matter what we feel about him, so, God bless the USA and God bless President Bush.

Freedom

2008-06-24T18:22:00.001-07:00

As the 4th is coming up, i got to thinking about freedom and what it means. As great as the freedom we have in America is, there is nothing compared to the freedom we have in Christ. ...How many times have we said this prayer or something like it, "Lord, please free me from -insert your struggle here-" we all have that thing we struggle with as far as our spiritual lives go, and we so often go to God asking him to free us from it. i actually had a little chat with God about something i am struggling with right now and i was reading Psalm 69 and in that Psalm it talks about asking God to free him from his enemies, and i prayed through that part to God with the struggle i'm having, hoping to recieve some help with it.... then as i was getting ready to close my bible and end my study time for now, i happened to flip past my fav book (Romans) and just stopped to ready through a part of it real quick, and here is the part i stopped at..... 1Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,[a] 2because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature,[b] God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.[c] And so he condemned sin in sinful man,[d] 4in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.and as i ready through that, God said to me, "see, i have already freed you from the power that struggle has over you.... if you are struggling with it, the reason is b/c you are choosing it over me, not because it has any power over you.... i took that power from sin on the cross!!!!!!!".... so i sit here tonight humbled at that realization, and just wanted to share it.... if you are having trouble with some sort of sin, it is you that is the problem... you are choosing that thing over God himself..... think about it!

Rejoice!!!

2008-06-02T19:28:00.001-07:00

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" - Phillipians 4:4 NIV
To often those who have the saving knowledge of Christ within them don't live their lives in a way that would show it. We so often complain and groan about the things that happen in our lives. So often we are given blessing from God but since they are not exactly what we want we complain about it, like a child who is given a piece of candy by their parents, then complains because they are not given the whole bag. We should all examine ourselves to see if we are complaining about God's blessings instead of thanking him for them. This verse needs to be true in the lives of all Christians. We have to rejoice no matter what happens!