One Step At A Time
Monday, March 16, 2009
It’s great how God parallels teaching moments in the midst of crisis in our lives. Let me start with today and work backwards. Today I went for hike. I needed to get away due to some of the crisis that I’ll talk about later. Anyways, I went Mt. Madonna and I found a trail to go on. Now at the core of who I am, I’m a average athletic guy, except right now in my life I am overweight and out of shape, so the mere fact that I’m on a hike is a big step. Anyways, as I’m hiking on the trail I realize that I’ve been going downhill for a while and it pops into my head that what goes down will go up, but I continue anyways. I get to the bottom of the hill, I rest for a while and then start the ascension up the hill. I was fine for a little while and then it got hard. My heart was pumping, I was sweating like a pig and it seemed like the hill never ended. It came to the point where looking up at the hill and was a bit overwhelmed, so I just looked down at the ground and took one step at time. It worked. I got into a rhythm and was less overwhelmed and began making great progress.
I got me thinking to where I am currently in life. The last 7 months have been a whirlwind of craziness, but good craziness. My daughter was born 7 months ago and we purchased and moved into a new house about a month and half ago. Life is good, I’m cruising, going downhill. On Thursday I get the news that due to the financial status of our church, my full time position with benefits is being cut to part time position with no benefits. Crap (or other not family friendly expletive). A giant hill just sprung up. The last couple of days have been crisis mode basically figuring out how we’re going to make it. Needless to say, I’ve been a bit overwhelmed. Today I went on a hike to clear my mind and focus not only on what my personal life will look like during this change, but how my ministry will change and as I climbed the hill at Mt. Madonna, it hit me, one step at a time. When I look up and look at how big the hill is, I get overwhelmed, but when I look at what’s in front of me and take it one step at a time, I know that I can do it. I’m not sure what God is doing right now, all I do know is that my focus needs to be small right now in order to get over this hill. Pray for me and my family and my ministry as we go into new experiences in the following weeks. I know God will take care of us, I just don’t know what it looks like, but I’m taking it one step at a time.
Common Sense
Thursday, February 12, 2009
So I’m at the place that I get in any Bible reading plan that is the toughest for me. I’m in the middle of Leviticus. When I read Leviticus it’s sometimes hard for me to reflect on what can be applied to my life. Today as I reading chapters 18 & 19, I noticed that many of the rules and regulations that God laid down for the Israelites were really common sense things. Don’t have sex with family, don’t do witchcraft, don’t be deceiving. These are all very common sense rules to live by. We serve a very reasonable God. Sure, He calls us to be above reproach and anti-culture, but that’s because our culture is ridiculous. When we live in a culture that is living in a non common sense way of course God should ask us to live with common sense.
All I’m saying is that when non christians really look at what we believe and see the common sense in it, their view may change.L
The Beautiful, Creative Movements of God
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
“And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?” Acts 11:17
When God moves in the lives of people who are we to argue?
Many times when we hear people’s testimonies about how God has moved in their lives, we are skeptical. Growing up a conservative church culture, my view of how God moves is different than others view of the hand of God. But does that make it wrong or invalid? No way. I’ve learned over the years as I’ve expanded my church culture experience that it’s not my place to judge how God works. How boring would the Christian life be if God only moved in one way. God is so much more creative and beautiful than that. God’s going to do what God’s going to do. It’s my job to support the work that He’s done.
Thank you God for being so creative and beautiful to move in our lives in different ways. Help me to keep an open mind to not judge others, but to support your work in their lives.
Jealousy At It's Best
Monday, February 02, 2009
S- “You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you.” Exodus 34:14
O- God is jealous of His relationship with us. He doesn’t want anything to get in the way of us and Him.
A- Our culture is full of gods. Whether it’s tv or movies, music, friends or the economy, we have many gods. One thing that I forget is that God is a jealous God. He wants us all to himself, not as a bad thing, but because He loves us. He doesn’t want anything to get in the way of our relationship. I know for me, it’s easy to let things get in the way. For me media (tv, internet, movies) gets in the way. I’ve also realized that my personal life (family, household duties, friends) have been taking precedence over my relationship with God. God wants me for himself, I need to give up the other things in my life to give God what He wants.
P- God, show me what you want. Tell me what to give up. Thank you that you love me and want desperately to have a relationship with me. Show me how to draw closer to you.
Resolutions Jan. 4
Sunday, January 04, 2009
So these are my resolutions for 2009. I’m officially starting them today because this last weekend I was still vacation and I wanted to wait until I went back to a normal routine. Anyways,
1. Read 26 books this year.
- I’m in the process of reading two books right now, Sacred Rhythms by Ruth Barton and The Seven Checkpoints For Youth Leaders by Andy Stanley
2. Lose 25 lbs.
- Diet starts today, still trying to figure out when the gym will fit into the schedule.
3. Read the Bible regularly
- I changed this one from the last list of resolutions, mainly because every day seems too legalistic. Anyways, regularly is a better. This also means reading it for myself, not for
sermons or Bible study prep. So far, haven’t done this today, but it’s only 7:45am right now.
4. Blog more
- My goal for this one is to blog 3 times a week, but only if I have something worth blogging about.
5. Watch less tv.
- Heather and I discussed this one yesterday. We decided that we’ll have a two hour limit Sunday-Thursday (my work week) and then watch whatever on the weekends. I know this
still sounds like a lot of tv, but to be honest, it’s a lot less then we watch now.
Steve Gold
Junior High Pastor
South Valley Community Church
(408) 848-2363 ext. 106
Our Ikea Adventure
Saturday, January 03, 2009
So a couple of days ago, we went to Ikea because we’re remodeling our kitchen and wanted to get out cabinets from there. Now going to Ikea isn’t like running into Wal Mart or Target, going to Ikea is an adventure. First of all, I have to compliment Ikea for designing a store focused on keeping families there all day buying furniture. They have childcare, a cafeteria, diapers and baby wipes in the bathrooms. If you can think of any excuse for leaving a furniture store, they’ve already thought of it and have a solution. So that was impressive.
So we got to Ikea at 1:00pm we started to walk around and I realized I forgot some paint samples in the car so I had to go back to the car to get them. Here’s another great design strategy of Ikea. The store is designed so that there is one entrance and one exit. In order to get to exit you have to go through the whole store. So it took me ten minutes to run to the car. In the meantime, I bought a bedroom set, a tv stand and a bookcase. Not really, but I wanted to to.
We finally get to the kitchen area where they have computer programs to design your kitchen. So about an hour later we had our kitchen designed and ready to order. We call one of lovely employees in the yellow and blue shirts to help us and wouldn’t you know that we asked the person training the new employee. This meant that everything took twice as long and Abby was having a meltdown. Awesome. We get our kitchen ordered and then it was off to the rest of the store to buy some more furniture.
Once we get through the maze of a store, we get to the checkout stands. Now we went on New Years Day, a day of the year that most people have off of work, so you would think the Ikea would have planned for this with extra checkout people. You would be wrong. Being that Ikea is the Costco of furniture, they had about four lines open and lines a mile long.
So finally, 4 hours after we entered Ikea, we left with a new kitchen, some lamps and completely exhausted.
Goodbye 2008, Hello 2009
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
With my birthday merely minutes away and 2009 coming soon, I wanted to take a second to look over the blessings of the last year and look forward to the next. This year was a busy one. At the end of last year we got the amazing news that Heather was pregnant and on August 15, Abigail Elyse Gold came into this world. She is now 4 months old and it’s been an amazing learning time both as a father and as a person. It’s amazing how selfish you realize you are when there is another human being that is dependent on you.
Another blessing has been the fact that we are buying a house. If all goes well, the first week in January we will officially be homeowners! It’s been a crazy process beginning way back in February, be we super excited to be moving into a 3 bedroom 2 bath house. As many of you know, we had to move out of the house we were living in back in April because it had toxic mold in the basement. Since then we’ve been living in a 1 bedroom apartment that was o.k. until Abby was born. Then the walls began to slowly close in on us. Praise God that we are moving!
Finally, ministry has been great this past year. The highlight for me is to see a ministry that runs without me in many ways. It’s awesome to have a team of staff that can do ministry without me being there.
2008 has been a great blessing and in 2009 I have a few goals that I’d like to share.
1. Read 26 books this year.
2. Lose 25 lbs.
3. Read the Bible everyday
4. Blog more
5. Watch less tv
I know those sound like random things, but I believe that if I accomplish those, it will make me a better husband, father, pastor and friend. So goodbye 2008, and hello 2009!
Steve Gold
Junior High Pastor
South Valley Community Church
(408) 848-2363 ext. 106
Who's Your Timothy? Who's Your Paul?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
S- But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance. (2 Timothy 3:10)
O- Timothy knew the life, heart and passion of Paul, because he spent time with him and did ministry with him.
A- We all need a Timothy, we all need a Paul. We need someone who we are building into and someone who is building into us. I think that one of the biggest problems as a pastor that I face is that I have Timothys, I'm expected to and enjoy having Timothys. The problem comes when I don't have a Paul. I need someone who can not only speak into my life, but someone that I can do ministry and life with and who can speak into my life. Balance comes when we have people whose lives we are speaking into and are speaking into us.
P- God, thank you for the people you've put into my life as my Timothys and Pauls. Help me to continue to seek these people out and guide me to lead and be led by them.
O- Timothy knew the life, heart and passion of Paul, because he spent time with him and did ministry with him.
A- We all need a Timothy, we all need a Paul. We need someone who we are building into and someone who is building into us. I think that one of the biggest problems as a pastor that I face is that I have Timothys, I'm expected to and enjoy having Timothys. The problem comes when I don't have a Paul. I need someone who can not only speak into my life, but someone that I can do ministry and life with and who can speak into my life. Balance comes when we have people whose lives we are speaking into and are speaking into us.
P- God, thank you for the people you've put into my life as my Timothys and Pauls. Help me to continue to seek these people out and guide me to lead and be led by them.
It's All About Love
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
S- For the commandments say, ""You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet." These-and other such commandments-are summed up in this one commandment: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God's law." (Romans 13:9-10)
O- Loving others is the answer to all the commandments. If you're loving others, you will be fulfilling many of the other commandments, because love does no wrong.
A- Many people spend so much time focusing on what laws and commandments they are following or not following. When we really look at the underlying intention of these commandments from God, we see love others as the theme. I need to be focusing less on rules and more on love and things will be good.
P- God, show me how to love others. I want to focus more on loving people, rather than focusing on commandments. When I do that, everything else falls into place. Thank you God for you blessings in my life.
O- Loving others is the answer to all the commandments. If you're loving others, you will be fulfilling many of the other commandments, because love does no wrong.
A- Many people spend so much time focusing on what laws and commandments they are following or not following. When we really look at the underlying intention of these commandments from God, we see love others as the theme. I need to be focusing less on rules and more on love and things will be good.
P- God, show me how to love others. I want to focus more on loving people, rather than focusing on commandments. When I do that, everything else falls into place. Thank you God for you blessings in my life.
Focus on the Important Things
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
S- What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees.Hypocrites! For you are careful to to the even the tiniest income fromyour herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law- justice, mercy , and faith. You should tithe yes, but do not neglectthe more important things." (Matthew 23:23)
O- Focus less on the small things, and focus on the important things.
A-One of the major themes I see in the Matthew is focusing on theimportant things. In church we tend to focus on the wrong things. Weget so caught up tin the rules and what we should do as a Christian,that we forget what's truly important to Christ. Justice for those whoare being mistreated, mercy for those who need mercy and faith that Godis going to take care up us and others. These are the things thatimportant to Christ, but we forget that sometimes. I need to keep myeyes open to see the things that important to Christ, not just what'simportant to church.
P- God, help to have eyes like you to see the important things in the midst of everything going on in this world.
The Possibility of the Impossible
Monday, November 24, 2008
S- The disciples were astounded. "Then who in the world can be saved?" they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible." (Matthew 19:25-26)
O- There is nothing that we as human beings can do to save someone. It is only through God that the impossible become possible.
A- I've had people in my life that are non-christians that I've worked hard to talk to and minister to, but there's no conversion or even movement toward conversion. It's like their eternal life with Christ is an impossibility. Then I read a verse like this and it reminds me of two things. First that the eternal salvation of someone has little to do with me from a human perspective. It's only God working through me that someone is able to walk towards a life with Christ. Second, God can do anything. When I look at people who I believe are impossible to get through to, I need to remember that with God, it's not impossible. God can and will get through to that person.
P- God, I pray for perseverance. I pray that I can continue to pray for those impossible people in my life. That you would continue to use me and work through me to make the impossible possible.
O- There is nothing that we as human beings can do to save someone. It is only through God that the impossible become possible.
A- I've had people in my life that are non-christians that I've worked hard to talk to and minister to, but there's no conversion or even movement toward conversion. It's like their eternal life with Christ is an impossibility. Then I read a verse like this and it reminds me of two things. First that the eternal salvation of someone has little to do with me from a human perspective. It's only God working through me that someone is able to walk towards a life with Christ. Second, God can do anything. When I look at people who I believe are impossible to get through to, I need to remember that with God, it's not impossible. God can and will get through to that person.
P- God, I pray for perseverance. I pray that I can continue to pray for those impossible people in my life. That you would continue to use me and work through me to make the impossible possible.
The Anti-Culture Revolutionary Jesus
Thursday, November 20, 2008
S- "Don't misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose." (Matthew 5:17)
O- Jesus came not as someone who was going to make a new world order, but and anti-cultural revolutionary who will fulfill the law that is already written.
A- I read through Matthew 5-7 today. It's traditionally titled Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. He begins by saying that He came to earth not to get rid of the law that was currently there, but to fulfill it. Many times when we read the Bible we don't know the context of the story. At this time God had been silent to the Israelites for some 400 years. In this time the religious duties and voice had been the priests and officials of the temple (pharisees and sadducees). In the midst of God being silent they interpreted the Bible at the time to fulfill their perspective on what God wanted, in the process they created many rules and laws that didn't necessarily coincide with what was originally written by God, but they stressed the need to follow these laws in order to be close to God.
Now this revolutionary teacher Jesus comes onto the scene and throughout the whole New Testament, but more specifically through the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is teaching how living in the kingdom on God or living a life follow God and His plan is more than just following the laws. My favorite phrase is "You've heard it said. . . But I say. . . " Time and time again Jesus lays out a law that was common at the time but then continues with what the heart of the matter is that Jesus is worried about.
You've heard it say. . . but what I really care about is . . . You've heard it said that lust is bad, but what I really care about is what you look at and what's in your heart. Jesus went beyond the normal laws of the current culture and focused on caring for the people affected by that culture. Many times in the American church we get so focused on whether we're obeying this law or that rule that we forget that what Jesus was worried about was not legalism and following rules, but it was at what was going on in the hearts of the people He interacted with. He was more worried about why they did what they did, rather than the actual action they did. Christ more focused on who we are than what we do.
P- God help me to have your attitude when I interact with people. I want to care for people for who they are rather than what they do. I want to help people be changed from the inside, not just their outside actions. In the same way, show me what and how to change who I am inside to be more in tune with your plan for my life.
Stars in the Sky
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
O- The star that the wise men follow guided them to Jesus.
A- Have you ever thought about the fact that there is a guiding light or a star in everyone's life that guides them to Jesus? For some people it may be several stars, but there's always some guidance to Jesus. That light continues even after we make the decision to meet Jesus. There are events and actions that guide us to Jesus. Whether it's a loved one talking to us about Christ, a celebrity talking on tv. A sermon we hear or a conversation we have. There is a guiding star in each of our lives.
The key is that many times we don't bother to follow the star. Imagine if the wise men didn't follow the star they saw. They wouldn't have experienced the gift of Jesus, God in the flesh. What a missed opportunity. I need make sure I don't miss those opportunities to see God.
P- God continue to show yourself to me. I want to see you and follow you guidance. I know that many times I'll miss an opportunity, but thank you for continuing to pursue me. I love you Jesus.
Bear Traps and Freedom
O- Praise God for not letting Satan take over us. God has saved us and now we don't have to worry about the trap of the enemy.
A- Freedom is a great thing. It's something that we take for granted many times. Can you imagine being told what to do every moment of the day and the consequence of not doing what you were told was death or severe physical punishment? I can't imagine. What I can grasp onto is the fact that God, in his loving kindness has freed us from the bondage of Satan, when we take the step to believe in Him. We are free from Satan because of what God has done.
The imagery for me is as if I was wandering through the forest and I stepped into a bear trap. It's as if my life is over. If the hunter doesn't get me, something else will. But Christ steps in and releases the trap and I'm free to live. Now my only reaction to that is to worship the one who saved me, the one who set me free.
P- Thank you God for setting me free. For giving me life. God thank you for giving of yourself to see me live. I want to live my life in such a way that it bring glory to the one who saved me. Live my life to honor the name of the one who gave me freedom.
Cheerful Giving
Monday, November 17, 2008
O- When we give with generous hearts, God will produce good things from our giving. The key is when we give cheerfully, not out of obligation.
A- Especially right now in our current economic times, giving is a hard thing. Churches all over America are having financial problems, which produces a need based appeal to give. At the same time, the holidays are upon us where the feeling of helping others gets emphasized. We get this overbearing feeling of the need to give, yet when we read in the Bible about God's view of giving we see that giving should be cheerful and from the heart.
It's hard to decide what is giving out of pressure and what is cheerful. I believe when we give in order to see God's love shown to the world around us, that is cheerful as opposed to giving in order to keep up an impression to others.
P- God, I want to be a cheerful giver. Give me the courage to give when you want me to give and the ability to discern your voice in the midst of a pressured culture.
Advent Conspiracy
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Alright, so I have no discipline when it comes to blogging, so I've decided to stop trying and only blog when I have something interesting to talk about.
Anyways, this is a promo video for a new series we're doing at Incarnate Faith and also in Junior High. I'm super stoked about it because it really challenges us to think about what we focus on during Christmas and how that is the complete opposite of what Jesus focuses on.
If you want to find out more about Advent Conspiracy, check out the website or come to Incarnate Faith on Sunday nights, 6:00pm.
Advent Conspiracy Promo Video
Anyways, this is a promo video for a new series we're doing at Incarnate Faith and also in Junior High. I'm super stoked about it because it really challenges us to think about what we focus on during Christmas and how that is the complete opposite of what Jesus focuses on.
If you want to find out more about Advent Conspiracy, check out the website or come to Incarnate Faith on Sunday nights, 6:00pm.
Advent Conspiracy Promo Video
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