Black Jesus

After receiving this email from "Lewis and Nanette at Christian Entertainment Alliance" instructing me to petition a new show called Black Jesus on ADULT SWIM, I wrote this reply. However, the email address from which the original came from doesn't exist. So, I will post my reply here in hopes that some may see it.

Lewis, 

I'm not sure how I got on your mailing list, but please, please LEAD WITH LOVE in speaking with those who don't share our Christian faith. Build a bridge with those you are offended by. Love them first. Then share your concerns. Your efforts to "Defend Jesus" may do more to disgrace Christians than "Stop the sinners." Please use wisdom in your efforts and your leadership along with the teachings of Jesus himself (Matthew 5:39).

I will not participate in a petition since Jesus never used this type of strategy in trying to reach the lost or in defending himself. I believe it does more harm than good for the Christian faith. We cannot legalize Grace and Love.

Finally, please be aware that "our ways are not always his ways." When the disciples thought they were doing what Jesus wanted, over and over, He had to correct them because they weren't (Luke 9:54; John 18:10).

Pray for these people and their families. Have compassion on them and seek to share the real Jesus with them (Matthew 5:44).

In His Love,

Tim Severance
Associate Minister
Kalkaska Church of Christ

Top 10 Christian Communicators

"When are we gonna to eat?" my 11-year old daughter asks my wife and I. We hear that question on almost a daily basis. Truth is that we actually eat three times a day often with snacks in between! Yet, my daughter's tank quickly runs dry. Our weekly visit to the grocery store keeps the kitchen cupboards filled with food. My wife is an excellent cook. She's endlessly serving meals up for the family.

In addition to eating at home, we also enjoy dining out. Taco Bell is my daughter's favorite restaurant. My son enjoys pizza ANYWHERE. I like the steak houses. Still, every day, we desire to eat more. It's natural. That's the way God made us.

Perry Noble from Newspring Church

In the same way that physical food is essential to our bodies, a regular intake of God's Word is critical to our Spiritual life. If I only ate once a week, say on a Sunday morning, I would end up weak, lethargic, and unable to function properly on a day to day basis.

As Christ followers, we should desire a steady diet of God's Word. Bible reading is the primary source of spiritual food. A daily time in God's word ought to be a priority for every Christian. That goes without saying.

Another means of ingesting God's Word is through Godly communicators. Men and women who have devoted their lives to preaching and teaching the Gospel can supplement our daily reading of the Bible.

I have assembled a list of my top 10 Christian communicators. These are preachers and Christian authors who have influenced my life over the years. Check them out and "snack" on God's Word through their ministries!

Tim's Top 10 Christian Communicators

10. Randy Alcorn - Author of "If God is Good" and "Heaven." I actually fell in love with Randy's writings after reading "Money, Possessions, and Eternity." He fully develops his subject matter using scripture and engages easily with his audience.
9. Max Lucado - Max's gift is writing with over 27 books to his credit. His style is simple, yet poignant and applicable to the Christian life.
8. Judah Smith - I was first intrigued by Judah when I heard him read scripture. His ability to dissect the Word and teach truth is exciting and fresh.
7. Rene Schlaepfer - I first heard Rene speak on the now defunct Church Communication Network. His exceptional usage of illustrations, stories, and quotes make listening to him a joy.
6. Craig Groschel - Craig pioneered the Multi-Site Church model with his video teaching. Craig and wife Amy, have 5 children, homeschool, and make their own butter! (Just kidding on the last one.)
5. Rick Warren - Best known for his New York Times bestseller, "The Purpose Driven Life," Rick's heart is committed to building great churches through obedience to the "great commission."
4. Mark Driscoll - Mars Hill in Seattle, Washington. Mark is a dynamic teacher fearlessly speaking bolding with no regards to man's opinion.
3. Francis Chan - Anyone who will sell their house, leave a mega church pastoral, and move his family of 5 to Asia for the sake of Jesus Christ and the Gospel is worth listening to!
2. Andy Stanley - Author and Pastor of Northpoint Church in Atlanta, Georgia, Andy teaches with down to earth conviction and passion for the local church and the message of Jesus. 
1. Perry Noble - Dynamic, influential, and pastoring one of the fastest growing churches in the nation! Perry's style doesn't appeal to everyone, but there is no doubt he is all about winning people to the Lord!

Be Still

Cartoon Network has a new app that allows you to Play Games and Watch TV AT THE SAME TIME! No longer will our youth be restricted to just the flashy, mind-numbing, unintelligible sights and sounds of Adventure Time, but they can also simultaneously play Ride 'em Rigby on the same screen.

Now, honestly, that's not a novel idea because my son has already been doing that for some time! He will watch his iPad Netflix app with ear buds all the while playing Minecraft on the computer. We used to think just checking email and working on a spreadsheet was impressive, but that was novice multitasking compared to what's ahead for today's youth.

Parents and teachers alike are concerned about the effects of technology on the brains of young people. Many claim they are being rewired, and not in a good way. Attention spans are diminishing. Recently it was reported that the average young person's attention span is 9 seconds - the same as a goldfish!

We lost electrical power the other day. It became quiet and all the lights were off. It was strange, almost a foreign feeling. It felt unnatural. But should it? I stepped outside on the back deck where I simply sat down in a lawn chair. I could hear the birds chirping. The squirrels scampered along the ground. Then a question popped into my head.

Do we ever "turn it off" anymore? You know, just unplug?

I'm reminded of a verse in Psalms. "Be still and Know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

Be still? Be still. Stop. Unplug. Turn off. For how long? What if...? Yeah, I know, it's hard. Yet, I'm convinced God is being pushed away by all our technology. The busyness of life keeps us...well, busy. And if we're always busy, fluttering from pixel to pixel, when is there any time for God?

Now I'm the last person to be anti-technology. But I see the need to take breaks from it. Jesus didn't have tech like we do today, but he was a very busy man! What did he do? He took breaks. Luke wrote, "But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed."

Jesus went off by himself to be alone with the Father. He removed the distractions from His routine life. He "unplugged." He was "still."

It behooves (love that word!) us to do the same!
Turn it (fill in the blank) off for a little while.
That app isn't going anywhere.
Your phone calls will go to voicemail.
Your emails will sit patiently in your inbox.
Your show can be watched on demand, from the DVR, or online.

Take the time to "Be still" today. In fact, I would encourage you to do it every day, if even for 5 minutes. Protect that time. No interruptions. You might have to go away somewhere quiet and lonely like Jesus did. But do it.

Who Do You Think You Are?!

How do you define the Kalkaska Church of Christ? What kind of church are we? Not what type of denomination. Not whether we are Catholic or Protestant. But what's our focus? There are many pairs of buzz words out there to describe churches in regards to their focus. Missional vs. Attractional.  Inward-focused vs. Outward-focused. Evangelistic vs. Teaching. On what side does KCC come down? It seems like we have to pick a side. But do we have to be one at the exclusion of the other?

Truth is we need to be both! Both sides of the coin are necessary to function as a church. It's a delicate balance that must be maintained to function in the culture we hope to influence today.

First of all, the church must be mission minded. It must be reaching out to new people in order to experience growth. Growth is important because it's the next generation that will carry on the mission of the church. Without growth, any living organism dies. Jesus stated that he came for the "sick" and the "lost." Surprisingly His focus was not on the core "healthy" Jewish Pharisees and Sadducees.  He wasn't saying they weren't important, although they did need to modify many of their man-made concepts of the law, but He was saying we must reach out to others with God's love.

Secondly, the church must also be healthy and that comes from feeding the body. Teaching, preaching, and discipleship are vital to a healthy spiritual body. These inward-focused feedings are found through the Sunday morning gathering and at Small Groups both on Sundays and during the week.

The balance is that we must be both inward-focused and outward-focused. Leaning too far to one side or the other can be detrimental to the church. One blogger has said the church should be "upward-focused." This makes a lot of sense. It's not totally about people whether they are inside or outside the church. It's actually about Him!

I'm very excited about an upcoming sermon series entitled, "Just Jesus." In this series we will explore the life of Jesus and see how He evangelized the lost through his stories and parables as well as how he took care of Himself. He maintained a balance of outreach while at the same time kept spiritually fed through prayer, fellowship, and worship. So, the next time someone asks you what kind of church we are, just tell them we're a church all about Jesus!

Ragamuffin

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.” ~Romans 7:15-19

This is the verse that comes to my mind as I sit in Reardon Auditorium at Anderson University with my family and some friends watching Ragamuffin - The True Story of Rich Mullins. My wife, Anita, knew Rich personally. He used to stay at their home in Vestaburg, Michigan when we would volunteer at the local Rock Lake Christian Assembly down the road. She’d always told me Rich was different, but Rich was real. Now seeing his story on the big screen, I knew what she meant.

Rich Mullins was taken from this life way too early in my opinion. He was a gifted song-writer, singer, and musician. His songs were sung by the likes of Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Third Day, and many others. His most familiar song is Awesome God. Rich had taken a vow of poverty and his lifestyle showed it. He took no more salary than what the average person in America would earn. The rest of his earnings went to his church and to charity. He died tragically in an auto accident on September 19, 1997.

Rich Mullins was far from the traditional, contemporary Christian Musician. While his heart was totally devoted to the Lord, his earthly struggles remained. After the film, I overheard someone say, “Wow. I didn’t realize he struggled so much.”

What strikes me is that we all struggle with our faith. We struggle with our sins. We fight to do what is right, but often fail. It’s not just Rich who struggles in his faith, but if we’re honest, it’s every one of us.

After the film, there was a Q & A with the director and actors. One of the questionnaires said, “Thank you for the most REAL Christian movie ever made.”

Ragamuffin is a gritty, real, honest film depicting the life of a man who wrestled with temptation, sin, and culture. It’s coming to KCC Friday, March 28 at 7:00 PM.

Tickets are avaiable for $10 online at itickets.com or in the church office.

Apps to assist your Christian Walk

Here is a list of my personal Top Ten must-have apps for your iPad or tablet. These apps have been
compiled with the purpose of helping you grow in your Christian faith through Bible reading, Prayer, and Study. They are all free and all are available in the Apple app store. Many are also available on other platforms such as the Google Play Store.

1. Bible - Youversion's Bible app can't be beat. It includes every English translation you can think of and over 100 languages. Read or listen to the Bible. Make a reading plan. Keep notes, highlight, and share directly to social media sites like Facebook. 
2. Bible for Kids - Youversion just came out with a new version of their amazing Bible app for kids. Hear, watch, and interact with this fun, interactive Bible Story book for young children.  
3. Prayer Notes - If you are like me, you may not remember everyone time you tell someone you'll pray for them. The app I use to keep my prayer list up to date is called PrayerNotes. This app allows you to keep a list of those you are praying for right on your tablet. Keep track of requests and answers to prayer. Categorize your prayers by topic and add in the details of each request. 
4. Memorize Anything - The Bible says, "Your Word have I hidden in my heart so that I might not sin against you." Memorize scripture using this simple app. Read it once and then the app will play your verse back to you over and over. Repetition is the key to memorization. Memorize has 4 settings to change the playback so that it fades out from time to time allowing you to fill in the missing words and phrase. 
5. Evernote - Evernote is your virtual filing cabinet accessible from all your devices. I use Evernote to save articles, emails, and all my electronic notes. Search inside all your documents, even PDF files. Make Notebooks to keep everything organized. It's the last note-taking app you'll need. 
6. Facebook - It's no longer easy to knock on doors and show up unannounced at a strangers home. The new living room is online. And one of the best ways to join in a conversation is through Facebook. Pray for someone, discuss theology, or encourage a lonely single. 
7. Podcasts - Listen and watch sermons and leadership podcasts right from your device. Some of my favorites include Perry Noble from NewSpring Church, Andy Stanley from Northpoint Church, and Rick Warren of Saddleback. 
8. Kindle Reader - You don't need a Kindle from Amazon to read ebooks. Just download the Kindle reader app and you can read your books from your smart phone, table, or computer! Plus, most books are cheaper on the Kindle app than in paper copy. 
9. Spotify - Music on demand. No more are you confined to just a radio station. Formally a subscription service on tablets, Spotify is now offers free and unlimited listening on mobile devices. Thirsty for some classic Petra or Imperials? Want to know what's new in Christian music? This is the place! It's the songs you want, when you want them. 
10. Todo - Life is so busy, you need to keep on top of appointments, tasks, and projects. Todo is what I use daily to keep me on track. Separate Home, Work, and Other tasks. Set up due dates and times, repeat tasks, and so much more. 

What apps to you use that help you in your Christian walk? Drop me an email or send a Facebook message, and I'll share them in next week's KCC E-News. 

Tim Severance, Associate Minister at KCC

Habits for the New Year

Welcome to 2014! Happy New Year!

This is the time of year people make New Year's Resolutions for the coming months. A resolution is a "firm determination" to do something. Once you begin doing it, and practicing it over and over, it will become a habit. I've put together a list of habits I hope are on your radar for 2014. These may begin as resolutions, but with repetition, they will become good habits. Here's my list:

• Pray Perpetually - Keep a prayer list on paper or electronically. Make notes as God responds to your prayers. Drop the prayers for safety, an easy life, and material blessings. No one prayed like that in the Bible. At least not in the context we Americans pray. Instead pray for boldness, contentment, and the Lost to come to Christ.  (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
• Read the Bible - Pick a plan and read DAILY. You eat every day, don't you? This is spiritual food for your soul. You need a steady diet of God's Word. (Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 119:105)
• Give to God - Give first to God. Make it a priority. Don't give God your leftovers. A good guideline is 10% of your income. Then save some money, pay off debt, pay bills, and if any is left, you can spend it. Remember, we are stewards, not owners. (Malachi 3:10; Luke 6:38)
• Volunteer - We have to be reminded that life isn't "all about us." The best way to remember that is to serve someone else. It takes the focus off of us and ironically makes us feel good ourselves! Those who fall into the trap of self-pity rarely see beyond their own needs and wants. It's a dangerous spiral, but with service to others it can be escaped. (Mark 10:45; Matthew 20:28)
• Worship Weekly - Join other Christians in worshipping the God we serve each week. Even on vacation, I would bet you can find a church where a group of Christians meet on Sunday mornings. You need the fellowship, the teaching, the communion, and encouragement the large group of believers provides. (Hebrews 10:25; Acts 20:7)

As you practice these habits in 2014, remember the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson and know you are paving the way for a heavenly destiny that can never be taken away from you.

“Sow a thought and you reap an action; sow an act and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson