Great news! I just spoke with Chad, and Eliana has come through surgery with flying colors! Her diaphragm is in its proper place and both of her lungs are able to inflate fully.
Thank you all for your continued prayers for Eliana. Please continue to pray for her healing as she is still in intensive care coming out of surgery. God is taking good care of her.
Just got off the phone with Chad and found out Eliana has to go in for another surgery, this time on her diaphragm. Chad and Leah are discouraged because they were looking forward to taking her home in the next several days.
Please be in prayer for Eliana and the Clems. Pray that Eliana’s diaphragm surgery will go well and will allow her lungs to work at full capacity. The surgery should take a couple of hours.
Here is what I believe: God has not brought Eliana to this point to stop her healing. This is just part of the healing process.
Thank you for your prayers and encouragement; they have meant more than you know to Chad and Leah. Please continue to let them know here.
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I ambushed my team with authentic Philly cheesesteaks from my good friends Nate and Vaughn over at Liberty Bell in Saratoga Springs. The team loved it and we all sang “We are the Champions!” Yes…that is a cheesesteak on my head.
Don’t forget…this weekend Daylight Savings ends. Saturday night, before you go to bed, turn you clocks back one hour and enjoy the extra hour of sleep.
Over Our Heads?
Through the years, I’ve heard a lot of Christians take on Matt 24 and 25. I’ve read a lot of “experts” as well. From confident debating, slicing and dicing, and cutting and pasting the passages, they have passionate and persuasive views on the time line of events Jesus predicted.
Could it be that they missed the whole point? Could it be these scriptures are so clear that they are over their heads? Could it be we “buy in” to their opinions so that we miss the point as well? I have a theory that when our lives are through and Jesus Christ does His eternal audit…He will not ask us our take on the time line of Matt. 24 and 25. But, He will ask ALL of us, did we live our lives in the reality He could return anytime?
As a communicator, I have a disciplined question I ask myself while preparing my talk. What’s the ONE THING I want my audience to take away? In other words, after a 30-40 minute talk…if they don’t get anything else…what do I want them to remember? I also think about stories that illustrate the application. To a communicator, stories are everything…people may not remember what you said…but they will remember stories.
If you think about Matt 24 and 25 through a communicator’s perspective, what’s the one thing that Jesus is trying to communicate??????
BE READY ALL THE TIME.
Jesus concludes His talk with 4 stories all having the same central theme. People thought they were ready, but they were not. People who were confident they knew Christ, but they didn’t. It’s easy to find security in our titles…pastor, leader, scholar, worship leader, educator, missionary, volunteer…the titles go on and on. Jesus won’t ask about our titles…He will ask all of us…
WERE WE READY ALL THE TIME?
Out Of The Box.
I’ve been reading Matt 24 and 25 on and off again for several months now, and to be candid, they’re really not my favorite scriptures. I would read these passages and because they didn’t fit in my box…I shelved the box. Then, I would pretend that the box didn’t exist.
I know…issues, right?
For the record, I do like the other teachings of Jesus. I guess thats a good thing since I’m a pastor. I like the sermon on the mount stuff…the helping people stuff…the good news stuff…the Jesus loves me, died for me, rose from the grave for me stuff…the can wipe out all past, my sin, my junk and funk stuff…….you get the idea. But Matt 24 and 25…not so much. I don’t think the disciples liked these teachings either. In fact, I’m confident they wished they had never even asked Jesus this question …..
When will this happen? What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age? Matt 24:3.
I guess the point is…it doesn’t matter whether I like them or not. It doesn’t matter if the disciples like them or not. I don’t want to shock you, but it doesn’t even matter if you like them or not. This is beauty of Jesus. It’s what makes Jesus…Jesus. He is Grace and Truth. Now, I love the grace side of Jesus but not always the truth side of Jesus. But, either way it doesn’t matter.
What matters is the complete package of GRACE and TRUTH…that’s not tied to any box…JESUS CHRIST.
In my life time, I don’t know of a time when people are hungrier to know the future. From the water cooler world to the church latté world, the questions are the same. What in the world is going on? What’s next? How will all of this end up?
We don’t typically think of Jesus in these terms, but He was continually predicting the future. Think about it; He completely fulfilled all the prophecies of the Old Testament about the Messiah. And as the Messiah, He repeatedly made outrageous predictions about the future. Once He even shared with His team…that He would even rise from the dead!
Here we are today, and no one in human history has had a greater impact on the world. So, here is my question…if we are fascinated with the future and we ALL want a heads up about what’s coming down the line…wouldn’t it be wise to know…what the guy who rose from the dead said about the future?
Emotional Idols
Managing your emotions in life is the secret of success. However, many times, our emotional gauges as leaders are the most neglected.
In Part 2 of CC, Brandon cuts thru the complexity with a question…who have you set up as your emotional idol? Ouch!
Cremeans Couch airs every Monday on my blog.
CREMEANS COUCH: Brandon Thomas – Part 2 from Cremeans Couch on Vimeo.
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