Three months have passed since I last sent out a Maple Moment. To be honest, I’ve sat down a number of times and started several “moments”, but none ever came to fruition. I’ve had several people share with me how much they’ve missed receiving them. I appreciate that support, and apologize for the hiatus.

It seems fitting that I begin sending out the Maple Moment again the week before we celebrate the 3rd birthday of MTC. I can’t believe it’s been 3 years since we began worshipping in Movies 8 cinema. A lot has happened in the last three years, both things to celebrate and things to grieve. However, when I think about the next three years (or even 30), I am thoroughly excited by the direction God is leading us into. I invite you to join me in that excitement as we continue the journey that God has laid before us; only He knows what will happen and where we’ll be, all I know is that it will be an awesome ride!

There are a lot of things going on our world right now that make us wonder if things are going to be ok. Maybe there are things happening in your life, in our church, in your family, at work, at school, and beyond that make you wonder the same thing. Gas prices going over $3.50, frustration in government both local and national, unrest in Libya, Egypt, and other places around the world… times are tough. Will things ever be ok?

We are constantly searching for answers; sometimes we even find ourselves just living through this day in hopes that tomorrow will be better. When will things settle down? Will things ever be ok?

I heard someone say the other day, “In the end it will ok; if it’s not ok, then it’s not the end.” Sometimes I think we are so desperate for things to be ok, our culture forms us into that way of thinking; but we are so desperate for things to be ok that we forget that when things become ok it will be the end. In line with scripture, the teachings of Christ, we are reminded that we must endure the world and its frustrations faithfully realizing that Christ will return and He will do so triumphantly and when He does everything will be ok.

The things in our lives that are constantly grinding at us, at times making us question whether existence is even possible, are the very things that force us to cry out to God and plead for His help. God’s response shouldn’t be a surprise, although it frustrates us each and every time, is patience, endurance, and a renewal of faith. He calls us into Himself not so that everything will be ok, but so that we will know that even when they’re not He is there. His strength, His love, His promise of eternal life will never be taken away; they may not always be realized, but they will always be there when we choose to use them.

It’s a scary world, but it’s also a world full of beauty and hope. “In the end it will be ok; if it’s not ok, then it’s not the end.” Let me remind you that we don’t define the end, only God does that. However, we do define how we live and endure until then. Join me in that realization and recognition, join me as we remember that things aren’t ok for everyone in this world and the knowledge that someday it will be for those who know Jesus. If you’re reading this, then it’s not the end. And if it’s not the end, we can’t expect everything to be ok.

So even when it’s not ok in your life, celebrate that God is still using you to bring people into Him. When the end comes, when things are finally ok, I hope I am able to stand before God and hear those precious words… “Well done my good and faithful servant.” And I pray that as I hear them I’m able to look around and see you standing in the crowd of faithful with me.

This will be the focus of our church moving forward. Join me this Sunday for an unforgettable birthday party for MTC. Our time of worship will be spent thanking God for creating us, for birthing us, and for allowing our church to touch countless lives, and for continuing to give us the strength and hearts to win new people for Jesus.

Let me pray for you… Heavenly Father, thank You for the many blessings You’ve poured out on us. Especially Lord, we thank You for those that we never realized were there. Please, provide and protect the person reading this e-mail; not just physically, but spiritual and emotional as well. Help us all more fully realize our need for You and do everything in our power to help others realize that need in their lives too. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

In looking back at previous Maple Moments I realized this week marks the one year anniversary of this mid-week e-mail. I hope you’ve found them as enjoyable to read as I have to write them.

Last week I did a repair on our refrigerator. Ok, so repair might be a little strong since I only changed the light bulbs. But you’ve got to understand our refrigerator has been without light for well over a year. I was able to accomplish this repair without Crystal seeing me, so her surprise when she opened the fridge for the first time was classic… “I see the light!”

Adding light to our refrigerator makes a huge difference, we had forgotten how nice it is to actually be able to see what you’re looking for. For me, it just makes it easier to find the Pepsi. There were things in there we didn’t even know we had; which was both nice and disturbing. There were some outdated things that took a B-line to the trash can.

So what can our refrigerator light bulbs show us about our spiritual lives? A lot of times we keep our lives in the dark. Just because you know Jesus Christ doesn’t necessarily mean you’re walking in the light; it just means you know where the light is. In our world today walking in the light can be very scary because you see absolutely everything. All the ugliness of our lives; the things we do, say, and even think become revealed. That type of exposure is scary because in most cases we aren’t necessary living the exact life we profess to be living. God always know, but for some reason we find comfort in being able to keep some of the darker aspects of our lives hidden away from the rest of the world.

Even though we might feel comfortable having some aspects of our lives living in the shadows, it doesn’t make it right. God wants us to live abundantly and without fear, in order to really do that we have to turn the light on every aspect of our lives. That doesn’t mean you provide an exposé to everyone you come into contact with, it simply means you live your life without being afraid of what others may see. It means there will be some stuff that you’ve been use to that you just throw away because you realize it stinks, looks nasty, and has some weird green fuzzy stuff growing on it. Why would you want to live with that in your life anyway?

Allow Jesus Christ to define you by the light he shines upon you, as opposed the shadows the world casts. That doesn’t mean live perfectly, it means that we all have to realize when the light’s on we all have yuckiness. That yuckiness is the sin we live with. The funny thing is we work so hard to hide that sin in the shadows of the world, but when we walk in the light of Jesus Christ those sins disappear because we are forgiven. It seems to be the case that there are those sins in which we would rather just hide than get rid of.

Let me encourage you, despite how comfortable the shadows may feel, to bask in the glory of Jesus’ light. I think you’ll be amazed at what you see and the freedom in which it gives you.

Let me pray for you… Heaven Father, I ask your blessing upon the person reading this e-mail. Allow your light to shine upon every inch of their lives so that your righteousness can eradicate all the darkness. Forgive us God when we fail to live as we ought, but we are so thankful that grace and salvation is offered to us all. Help us feel your presence wherever we go. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

PS – Tomorrow is Election Day, so let me encourage you to vote. Some may argue the church has no place in the election process, but if our goal is to transform the world how can we avoid those which lead the world? I’m not going to offer any suggestions on who to vote for, but I will suggest that as you are making your choice for the future of our communities and country that you pray for guidance and discernment. I firmly believe we should have Christian leaders, and with all the junk being thrown from one side to the other it is hard to know the truth. Ask God to show you the truth and vote accordingly.

“Faith like a child,” is a statement highly regarded as something we should all work towards in our spiritual walk. However, as I’ve experienced life as Andrew’s (our not-quite-sure-what-adjective-to-use son) father it has made me realize that although his faith is great his love serves more as an example of what the world is and not what the world should strive to become. This isn’t a shot at Andrew, I mean he’s just a few days shy of three, it’s more of a recognition that our world continues to act like a child and refuses to grow up. Let me explain…

Andrew is in this “daddy’s my best friend” stage where it seems like whenever I’m around he chooses me. I won’t lie, my ego jumps a little when he abandons his mother and latches on to me the second I walk through the door. I love that little monkey! And there isn’t a doubt in my mind that he loves me. He will proudly proclaim he’s a daddy’s boy and will latch on to my ankle as I drag him through our house. He won’t go to sleep until I tuck him in and say a prayer with him. He wants me to hold him, play with him, sit with him; until… he doesn’t. His love is strong, and yet remains easily distracted. If you dangle a doughnut in front of that kid he ditches me faster than he can devour a bowl of mac n’cheese. He barely remembers who I am, I become like a second class citizen to him in light of that delicious doughnut. This isn’t a secret, it’s a scene easily witnessed on Sunday mornings as he goes from grown-up to grown-up asking for a doughnut until his sweet “innocent” face convinces someone to give him what he wants.

It’s awesome being the most important thing to Andrew, but extremely deflating to know that his love can so easily be distracted by something as simple as a doughnut. Our world, including many Christians, is just a fickle as Andrew. We love our God. We need Him, pray to Him, seek Him, worship Him; until… we don’t. In many ways we are just big kids when it comes to our love for God. The minute something better comes along we ditch God, turn our back on Him, and go after whatever it is that we want.

I don’t know what it is that distracts you from God; I just know that there is something that does. We can deny it and become offended by it; but let’s be honest… No matter how hard we cling to God, we all have that one thing (many times more) that causes our grip to transfer to this world. Consider that one thing the personal bait the devil uses to lure you away from God. The biggies all exist: power, sex, drugs, money, etc. I’m not doubting your love, I’m just saying that your love is like the fleeting love of a child; easily distracted. It’s an unfortunate side effect of being human, of our sinful nature.

As we grow and mature in our faith the goal would be that our love begins to mimic the love God has for us. You see, He never loosens His grip on us. We are always His priority; He has, does, and will do everything He can to provide for and protect us. He loves us when we are good; He loves us when we are bad. He loves us when we don’t love ourselves. He loves us so much that even in the midst of our sin He sacrificed His one and only Son so that we would have a chance at salvation and eternal life.

It’s really kind of sad that the picture of a beautiful woman, the high of the next hit, and the many temptations of life can cause our love to be distracted away from a God who loves us so much. I know that we can’t always love with the perfection He loves us, but we can be aware of those things in this world that cause our love for Him to be distracted. Once we are honest about those things we can try to stay away from them. What does Satan use to lure you away from loving God? What in this world causes your love to be fleeting from moment to moment?

As much as I love it when Andrew’s love is fully focused on me I am sure even more so God loves it when our love is fully focused on Him. Andrew will always be my son and I will always be his father, I will always love him. We will always be God’s children and He will always be our Father, He will always love us… will you always love Him?

Let me pray for you… Heavenly Father, thank you so much for loving the person reading this e-mail. I pray that he or she may feel the power of that love this very moment, and be overcome by your grace. Forgive us when our love has been distracted away from you and help us to more fully love with all our might… help us to mimic your love. Bless us this week as experience the world and help us stay focused on the cross. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

PS – I put a challenge to my Facebook friends to see how many cases of soda we can bring in to church this week. Right now Meijer has a sale… 2 24-packs of soda for $10. I thought I would extend that challenge to those of you who read the Maple Moment. Notice, I’m not defining what kind of soda, just asking for you to help MTC stock up for Sunday mornings down the road. So, pick up your favorite soda from Meijer and bring it to church. Who’s in?

This past Sunday Crystal and I experienced something pretty amazing. As many of you know by now, a little over a month ago we discovered that we lost the baby we had been expecting. This has been a tough journey for our family. Just the other day Noah asked, “When we die and go to heaven will we get to see our baby sister?” We never discovered the gender of our baby; Noah must know something we don’t. Experiencing the love of our church family and beyond has made the process of grief and healing much easier. We have a great God; and even when I don’t understand or like what happens in this world, our God is still great!

When Crystal went in for her procedure we were told about a memorial service the hospital offers for those families who experienced a miscarriage and the like. We agreed to be notified when the service was to be held, but at the time we weren’t sure if we’d attend. It turned out that the service was held at Washington Park East, right in our own church backyard. So, we decided to attend not knowing what to expect.

The words offered were comforting to our hearts and honoring to our loss. But I think what amazed us the most is the amount of people who attended this memorial service. There was literally standing room only as people who experienced similar loss to ours gathered to grieve. You could hear the faint cries as one by one family members were invited forward to place a ribbon on a wreath that would memorialize our collective losses. You see, what they did was take all the tissue collected from these miscarriages and cremated them. They were put in an urn and together we processed down to a memorial specifically created for us; slowly the urn of ashes was deposited into an ashuary where the remains would join the countless other lives that never would see this world. It was an emotional service, but at the same time this service marked the compassion of our community who was willing to reach out to the families who had experienced loss and walk alongside us. I am told that as recent as 5 years ago something like this was unheard of… For the sake of my family I am glad we we’ve come a long way. A sincere “Thank You” to the Clarian and Community hospital organizations; as well as Flanner & Buchanan and all who made this possible.

I share this mostly to highlight the shear amount of people who attended this service to honor a loss, not to mention who knows how many others chose not to attend. It made me feel like we weren’t alone in our pain. And even though I know in my mind many others have had miscarriages, being there together had a greater impact on me. We are now a part of a group we never wanted to be a part of, but are very glad there is a group. It’s not like we’ll really ever see these people again, but at the same time the earthly remains of our loss children are forever intertwined… there is something very spiritual and real about that to me.

We all need to realize that no matter what we are going through there are others who are experiencing the same frustrations, the same pain, the same grief, etc. I believe the hurt in this world is much more difficult and intense for those who do not know Jesus. And yet, most often Christians rally around Christians who are going this hurting because we are connected together through the body of Christ. But what about those non-believers who’s pain is that much more intense without Christ in their lives? Who reaches out to them?

It is our responsibility as Christians to reach out into the hurting world and offer comfort. I think that’s what we are called to do when we experience pain in our lives; use that experience, coupled with the strength of Christ, to reach out to others who are without that strength in their times of need. The book of James tells us to rejoice in our troubles. One of the reasons for us to do so would be to help those who have had similar troubles.

Who in your life could be helped by the pain you’ve experienced? Who in your life is experiencing a similar disease and would benefit from a card of encouragement? Who in your life is experiencing similar family problems and could use an attentive ear? Who in your life is experiencing financial difficulty and needs someone to offer hope? The list could go on forever; find where you fit into the list and reach out to someone in need. This would be the church being the church in a world that needs the church. It’s not just the church that needs the church; it’s the world that needs MTC to reach out to them, walk alongside them, and love them unconditionally to show them Jesus.

Let me pray for you… Heavenly Father, help the person feel your comfort and peace in the midst of their current struggles. Give this person the discernment and strength to reach out through the power of your Holy Spirit to someone walking down that same painful path as they are. We thank you for hope and grace that lead to eternal life with you. As we experience the frustrations of this world help us to never lose sight of that hope and grace; but to also use it for the glory of your Kingdom as we reach out to one another. Lord, help us be the church to the world. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

I admit… I’m tired. My first ever Riley Days Festival wore me out. It was MTC’s first time to ever do a booth at the Greenfield event too. It was a pretty amazing event I have to say; coupled with the beautiful weather, there had to be close to 100,000 people converge on downtown Greenfield over this past weekend. MTC gave away about 1,000 frisbees, 1,000 ice scrapers, 1,000 helium balloons, and 700 cups; all branded with our “More Than Church” logo and website. It was a wonderful opportunity to get our name out and invite people to church; I just hope there are a few who come to see what a truly awesome church family we are.

Between Thursday and Sunday I worked over 50 hours; so my exhaustion is somewhat understood. I know, there’s some tough guy or gal reading this thinking, “suck it up pastor.” I do have to say however, that my exhaustion would have been much more debilitating if it weren’t for the great people who volunteered their time to work in the booth too. Crystal also graciously took the role of a single parent for the weekend.

I absolutely loved the time working side-by-side with the volunteers this past week. It was great, as one shift left and another came in my energy got revved up a little each time. It was one of the things (besides Pepsi of course) that kept me cruising along. I enjoyed catching up with people I don’t normally get the opportunity to do so with and even hearing a few stories I’d never heard before. In every case my church family brought a little wind to my sails.

This made me think a lot about how important we are to each other; it not only effects of physical energy, but our spiritual as well. I know how difficult life can be sometimes; it feels like we are fighting an uphill battle all the time. The world pushes, and pushes, and pushes on every level and it really doesn’t take too long before spiritual exhaustion sets in. Spiritual exhaustion can sneak up on us without us ever realizing it; we’ll feel deflated, burnt out, and find every excuse to get out of the spiritual disciplines like worship, scripture, and prayer that keep us so connected to God.

I think the same effect people had on my physical exhaustion this past weekend applies to our spiritual exhaustion. The more brothers and sisters in Christ we are around to offer us support and encouragement the more difficult it is for the world to frustrate us and for spiritual exhaustion to set in. At the same token, our brothers and sisters in Christ can bring us out of exhaustion much quicker than almost anything else. There is something unexplainably powerful about the human connection. It has been used by the world and Satan for much evil, but the Holy Spirit can use it for amazing things. When we connect with one another, our souls connect, and we have the potential to greatly impact each other.

I’m suggesting we take this power and look at it from two different directions. First we should recognize the impact it can have on us. We have to be able to feel when the world is literally kicking our butts and spiritual exhaustion is beginning to set in. And then we have to be able to reach out to our brothers and sisters in Christ and connect with them so this exhaustion does not pull us away from God and our faithful responsibilities as His people. So when you feel too tired to be the disciple God calls us to be, muster up enough strength to reach out for the power within the human connection. Secondly, we as Christians need to be more aware of one another as spiritual exhaustion begins to set in. A lot of times we allow the exhaustion of a brother or sister in Christ to go by unnoticed. It is crucial that we are involved enough in one another’s lives that we become aware when one of the faithful is getting tired. And in response of that recognition we must be willing to reach out to them in faith, hope, and love. We have a duty to not only keep ourselves focused, but to offer encouragement and support to one another.

Are you are the brink of exhaustion? Have you already fallen off the edge? Do you know someone who is or has? Statistics say that you’ve answered YES to one or more of those three questions. Never under estimate the power of the human connection, a power that is tied together by God, because of Christ, and through the Holy Spirit. Let’s use that power to combat the frustration of this world; to be inspired, encouraged, and energized for Jesus! I know there are many times I need it, and I would be willing to bet you’re right there with me.

Let me pray for you… Heavenly Father, thank you for the person reading this e-mail. Thank you for blessing them beyond their imagination. In the times they feel beaten and exhausted I ask that your Spirit uplift them and encourage them through those around them. Protect them and provide for them, as you draw them closer to you. I pray they have a blessed week, full of life and energy for you. We love you God, and we know you love us. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

PS – Crystal and I would like to thank our church family for recognizing us this past Sunday during Pastor Appreciation Month. You are a very gracious and loving church family, but most importantly you are an encouragement to us.