Honoring Pastor Gary & Nancy Thompson

 

“Those to whom God is faithful become faithful.”  Sinclair Ferguson 

In the 1983 Sunday morning terrorist bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, hundreds of Americans were killed or wounded as they slept. The scenes were heartrending as dazed survivors worked to dig out their trapped brothers from beneath the rubble. 

  A few days after the tragedy, Marine Corps Commandant Paul X. Kelly, visited some of the wounded survivors in a Frankfurt, Germany hospital. Among them was Corporal Jeffrey Lee Nashton, severely wounded in the incident. Nashton had so many tubes running in and out of his body that one witness said he looked more like a machine than a man; yet he survived. As Kelly neared him, Nashton, struggling to move and racked with pain, motioned for a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote a brief note and passed it back to the Commandant. On the slip of paper were two words – Semper Fi the Latin motto of the Marines which means, “forever faithful.” With those two simple words Corporal Nashton spoke for the millions of Americans who have sacrificed body and limb and their lives for their country – those who have remained faithful. 

  Semper Fi  could be written over the lives of Pastor Gary and Nancy Thompson. Today we have the wonderful privilege of honoring two faithful soldiers of the cross of Christ. God has blessed us with a new garage that will be used as a ministry tool for many decades into our church’s future. We want those who join us in the future to know that the blessings that they are enjoying were made possible by the commitment and sacrifice of godly individuals like the Thompsons. That’s why we are dedicating it to them to honor them. And what we are doing today is just a small whisper of the words that they will hear when they arrive Home and hear from the Captain of our Souls, “Well, done good and faithful servants.”  This dear godly couple are an example for us all. 

  Since they’ve been part of the Grace Church Family, the Lord has used them to touch our lives in so many ways. Though others can share blessings about the Thompsons, let me share how God has used them to be a blessing in my own life. 

  They are encouragers. Gary and Nancy came to Grace shortly after we completed this new building. It was an exciting time! God was bringing so many new folk through our doors. To be honest, after a capital campaign and the construction of the building, I was tired. If you have been around this dear couple very long then you know that they both have the gift of encouragement. Having served in the ministry themselves and walked through the construction of various projects, they knew the toll it takes on the pastor…and they were there for me! They were like a breath of fresh air to my soul at just the right time. They have been so supportive! 

  They are visionaries and workers. This building is truly a miracle. There were many needed items though that we didn’t have the funds to finish. One of those was our church kitchen. The Thompsons from their years of ministry experience knew what an asset a full kitchen can be for a church. Today we have a full kitchen with beautiful cabinets and countertops because they saw a need. Not only did they see a need they also did much of the work. Throughout this facility, you will find their fingerprints. Little details that they knew needed attention and they took care of them. 

  They know how to speak the truth in love. Scripture teaches that we are responsible for each other. Some times that means speaking into each other’s lives and sharing spiritual truth to encourage someone to walk a more Christlike path. Though every Christian has this biblical responsibility to their brothers and sisters, few have the spiritual backbone to do it. Gary and Nancy love folk too much to not speak up. They graciously know how to lovingly correct without being critical or petty. 

  They know how to disagree without being disagreeable. For decades, the Thompsons served the Lord in Assembly of God churches. My background is independent Baptist. We don’t always cross our theological t’s or dot our i’s in the same places. Yet, we are on the same exact page when it comes to the gospel. This dear couple has an all too rare gift of keeping the main thing the main thing. They truly live out those wonderful words by Augustine, the early Church Father, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” With Gary’s biblical education, no doubt there are times he’s disagreed with what I’ve taught from the pulpit, yet never once has he told me. One time because I wanted him to minister to someone from his school of theology, I had to fish it out of him that he and I differed. This ability shows graciousness and spiritual maturity. 

  They don’t take themselves too seriously. One of the missing gifts for many Christians is a sense of humor. Look carefully and you’ll see a twinkle in their eyes. Gary’s frog statues are a crack up. These dear folk love to laugh. They’re truly a delight to spend time with. 

  They persevere without complaining. I’m not sure if I could handle listening to myself preach twice on one Sunday, yet Gary and Nancy sit through two worship services each week. Why? There are many reasons. First, they have a flock of “Just Older Youth” that they love and minister to. They want to be there for them. Then, we’ve asked them to be available to pray with folk. They take commitment seriously. They love the Lord, they love people and they love this church. 

  Yet, like the rest of us who fit somewhere in that “Just Older Youth” designation, they’re earth suits are aging faster than their souls. While they are both young at heart, they don’t always feel the best. I doubt you’ve ever heard either of one of them though ever complain. They care about others and don’t want to be a bother. 

  God has richly blessed our church with Pastor Gary and Nancy! They are Christlike models for us all! They have been a special blessing to Jane and me! Our lives are much more richer because of them. Please join us in letting them know how much you love and appreciate them today! Gary and Nancy – Thank You!

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.  

Defend, Defund...or Somewhere in Between?

 

“Cops are held to a higher standard of accountability than the rest of the population…as it should be. But never forget that they are people too. Men and women…subject to the same doubts and regrets…that all of us are. I’m not asking for anyone to cut us slack, not at all. But a little recognition…for the conditions under which our men and women operate…that’d go a long way.” 

                   NYPD Police Commissioner Frank Reagan, NBC’s Blue Bloods

 Since 2002 I’ve had the privilege of being the chaplain for the Burlington Police Department. Over the course of the past two decades, I’ve interacted with local officers from our department, as well as officers from other departments. These men and women aren’t perfect, nor do they profess to be, but they are committed to making a difference and serving for the good of the public. It’s been very hard for me to watch the national maligning and misrepresentation of law enforcement.   Usually, at this time of year, I participate in our local Fallen Officers’ Ceremony. With Covid-19 this year’s ceremony was postponed. Yet, everyone should remember that every time an officer puts on the uniform, in the back of their minds they know that it could be the last time. They don’t know who they will encounter during their shift, pull over or what call they will be sent to. Law enforcement officers are required to run in when everyone else is running out. 

  A ride along with an officer is very eye-opening. Every elected official and those critical of cops should be required to do one. I’ll never forget my first one. I was psyched up for a drug bust or at least a high-speed traffic stop. That first call quickly altered my misconceptions. It was the horrible crime of a barking dog. That was it. No assaults or batteries. No one was even letting loose a string of profanities…just an annoying, barking dog. 

  And I remember thinking, “Why didn’t the man just go over and talk to his neighbor instead of calling the police?” It’s my belief that one part of the solution for our current law enforcement crisis is not a defunding of the police and certainly not getting rid of the police entirely. Those options would be disastrous for those who most need police protection and the intervention of law enforcement. Part of the solution is found in the Bible of neighbors being responsible for neighbors. Isn’t that a key point in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan? The Samaritan was a hero because he got personally involved, even at risk and at great cost to himself. 

  To begin just learn your neighbors’ names, the names of their children…even their pets. Swapping phone numbers is a great place to start. Exchanging normal civility like speaking to them when you see them in their yard or waving as you drive by. 

  Strictly speaking, there was no police force in ancient Israel, but there were systems in place for community policing. When a crime took place, the whole community was expected to cry out, and all within earshot were obligated to assist. The seeds of that rationale are still seen in volunteer fire departments and neighborhood watch programs. 

  Our lack of knowing our neighbors has been fertilized by our placing decks and patios on the backs of our homes. We’re missing the benefit of the front porch. It’s one reason we put a bench out front of our home where I often read. It’s an opportunity to interact with my neighbors. As the weather grows warmer, we put a water bowl by the sidewalk for dog walkers to use to satisfy a thirsty pooch. 

  Many law enforcement crises would be eradicated if parents parented or when there was a problem with their child, be the parent instead of calling the cops. The same is true in marriages or other relationships. Many use cops to show the person they’re bickering with that they’re serious. It’d be better to leave, rent a room at a motel or even sleep on a friend’s couch. Obviously, if there’s a risk of violence, one needs to dial 911. Yet, often before the situation escalates it can be calmed by a simple exit of one of the combatants. 

  Jesus said, “You will always have poor people with you” (John 12:8, Good News Translation). Ours is a fallen, sin-contaminated world. Because of that reality, there will always be poor, disabled, mentally ill, homeless, fatherless, orphans, single parents, and others that are disenfranchised. They are the ones most often abused and taken advantage of by the powerful and cruel. They’re the ones most needing the protection of law enforcement. Defunding the police leaves the most vulnerable even more vulnerable. It’s already taking place in communities that have bought into the latest social fad purported as some type of solution. 

  While there needs to be a strict evaluation of law enforcement officers, the continual caricaturing by the media and public officials for political gain hurts everyone.  There are some bad cops. That’s true of every facet of society, even those in the ministry. Blanket mischaracterizations and attacks hurt everyone, particularly most needing protection. Soon men and women of character will decide it’s not worth the risk to be so maligned and choose another career. The only ones who will enter law enforcement will be the very ones who should never be in law enforcement. 

  I’d give more heed to those who are critical of law enforcement if they’d stop casting rocks from places of safety and actually live in those same neighborhoods. Years ago Chicago’s Mayor, Jane Byrne, did just that for at least three weeks. In 1981 she moved into one of the worst public housing units in Cabrini Green to demonstrate that the area wasn’t as bad as its detractors suggested it was. She also hoped to shine a light on the neglected side of the city and prove that it was an area worth investing in. 

  If the police are defunded maybe the extra funds should be used to move those voting for such shortsightedness into those same neighborhoods. Don’t hold your breath. 

  As Christians, we must be a blessing in our communities. So, what must happen from a biblical worldview and mission is for Christians to plant churches and to move into those needy communities. Whenever the light of the gospel moves into a community, the darkness of evil lessens. We can’t solve all of our society’s deep problems. Yet, we can pray for a new host of missionaries to go into the world of our inner cities and we can determine to be the Good Samaritan in the neighborhood where God has placed us.

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

The Priority of Preaching: Why We Do What We Do

 

“The preacher’s task is to declare what God has said, explain the meaning, and establish the implications so that no one will mistake its relevance.” Alistair Begg 

Once after the famous French preacher, Jean Baptiste Massillon had preached, a listener exclaimed, “What an eloquent sermon! How gloriously he preached!” When that comment was reported to Massillon, he replied, “Then he did not understand me. Another sermon has been thrown away!” 

  God has not called preachers to entertain or be eloquent. He’s called us to something so much higher and so much greater. We are to “preach the Word” (2 Timothy 4:2). That’s our commitment at Grace Church. We are not attempting to please people but a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s His Book and we want to honor Him. 

  Humanly speaking, particularly in our media saturated culture, preaching doesn’t make sense. It never has. It’s why 1 Corinthians 1:21 refers to “the foolishness of preaching.” The pulpit and preaching are not to be a bully pulpit or a place for our opinions. It must be the message from God’s Word that the Holy Spirit anoints and applies to our lives. 

  After I’m done preaching, my heart’s desire is that you can look at your Bible and understand what Scripture is saying and how it applies to your life. One day we will all stand before our Sovereign, Jesus Christ the Judge of the living and the dead. In view of that solemn day, it’s essential preachers preach God’s Word. It’s essential that you listen to the preaching of God’s Word with a view to obedience. It’s frightening when someone is goofing off, whispering or scanning their phone during a sermon. Some day they will give account for ignoring the Word of God. On that great coming day when we stand before Christ, we want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Preaching and hearing the Word are of utmost importance in view of eternity. Then, how do we accomplish this? 

  We must preach God’s Word. Our preaching must be resolutely Biblical. The task of the preacher is to expound or bring out of the biblical text what is already there. The preacher’s responsibility is to open up the passage in such a way the message is communicated clearly, accurately, relevantly, without addition, subtraction, or falsification. Preaching is not a dull lecture. God’s Word is alive and powerful. Nothing is boring about His Word. It’s a sin to be boring with Scripture. We enter the pulpit with confidence that God has spoken, that He’s caused what He has spoken to be written and we have this inspired text in our hands. It’s astounding that we have God’s Word in our hands and on our lips. It’s God’s grace. Understanding what God has written is hard and serious work. 

  We must preach to our contemporary world. God’s Word is relevant. It intersects with cultural and social issues: racism, civil liberties, morality, poverty, government, ethics, marriage, family…to name a few. As Scripture speaks to these issues, the preacher must not be silent or he has failed the Lord and his God-given mandate. Wise preachers are to equip the congregation with biblical convictions through expository preaching. It’s our responsibility to open up scriptural principles which relate to the problems of our culture in such a way as to help everybody to develop a biblical worldview. The pulpit must help listeners develop Christian thinking so they can penetrate their segment of the community more deeply for Christ. We’re not to sacrifice truth to relevance or relevance to truth, yet resolve to be faithful to Scripture and pertinent to today. 

  We must listen before we preach.  How do we learn to build bridges from the ancient biblical text to our contemporary world? The wise preacher listens carefully both to the ancient Word and the modern world to be able to relate the one to the other with faithfulness to the Word and sensitivity.  We must listen to the voice of God in the Scriptures above all. It’s the first and most important act of listening. Yet, God has called us to share His message with real people so we must listen to the voices of those in the world around us. It means listening, knowing and caring about both those in the congregation and those outside the church. Faithful preachers need to ask questions and listen to the answers. It means listening to those from varied generations, ethnic and economic groups. 

  We must practice what we preach. It’s not enough to preach well, we must live well. The message that breaks the heart of the listeners must first break the preacher’s heart. I don’t know what other preachers do, yet I find that I’m often broken and humbled before the light of God’s Word as I work through the text. Wise is the preacher who is cognizant that his actions before and after speaking will speak louder than his words. A preacher must be a person of deep convictions and commitment. He must live to serve and please King Jesus and to bring glory to His name. 

  Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones pastored Westminster Chapel in London during World War II. London suffered, with tens of thousands killed or injured. One Sunday, a bomb fell a short distance away while Lloyd-Jones prayed during a service. The sound was tremendous. Windows rattled. Plaster fell. Lloyd-Jones paused for a moment and then continued to pray. 

  The man who gave announcements came up when the prayer was over. After he’d completed his task, he dusted Lloyd-Jones off, and then Lloyd-Jones started preaching. Why would he do this? Because D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones knew that preaching was the main thing. 

  Wise are D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones words: “I would say without any hesitation that the most urgent need in the Christian Church today is true preaching; and as it is the greatest and the most urgent need in the Church, it is obviously the greatest need of the world also.” 

  With bombs falling, and the future of England in question, Lloyd-Jones kept preaching. Our world desperately needs the message from God. We need that focus today. God’s preachers dare not abandon their post! 

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

Mother's Day: A Time to Rejoice...A Time to Weep

 

“Motherhood is difficult…and…rewarding.” Gloria Estefan

 

  I’m not sure what happened to Gloria Estefan for her to make such a statement that “motherhood is difficult and rewarding,” yet I think most Moms can relate. Mother’s Day should be celebrated in that all of us have a Mom and your Mom with her attributes and foibles will be the only one you’ll ever have. More importantly, we believe in God’s sovereignty – God in His perfect plan gave you that Mom. It’s a principle that’s echoed throughout the pages of Scripture. 

  Yet, Mother’s Day can be a source of pain for many among us either as a parent or an adult child. It’s why at Grace we seek to approach Mother’s Day with wisdom and sensitivity. Romans 12:15 is a wonderful guide as we seek to love, encourage and minister to those around us. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” 

  The priority of rejoicing before mourning with someone is significant. It's more difficult to rejoice with those who rejoice than mourn with those who mourn. If someone has angelic children or successful adult ones, or if someone has a Proverbs 31 Mom – well, it’s a little hard to have happiness for such people that are not tinged with a little envy, even bitterness. Our default is contaminated by self-orientation and selfishness. Whatever our measure of success and happiness, we long for and can struggle with resentment when others gain what we desire or seemingly missed out on. 

  Rejoicing with them is the greater challenge and so Scripture puts it in the first place. Self-pity is enticing. We must be continually reminded that when “You see a friend rejoicing at some good fortune, you’re to rejoice with them.” It’s a spiritual challenge. They’ve received something we’re missing and yearn to have. It needs to drive us to be dependent on the Spirit’s power because it makes great demands of unselfishness. 

  It’s far easier to mourn with those who mourn. It’s almost natural. Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones observed, “It is a most exceptional person who is not touched by the sight of someone else weeping. By nature, by constitution, the natural man or women, however bad, feels some kind of response when someone is weeping…there is something in us all that tends to respond to weeping and we are ready, as it were, to weep as well.” 

  We must commit to weeping with those who weep. In every church, there are those with a wayward child. Perhaps the child is incarcerated or enslaved by addiction. Parents did the best they knew how to raise them in a godly way but in adulthood, they spurned it. Others buried a child. Still, others struggle with infertility. For some, there’s the grief and guilt of abortion. 

  A mother-child relationship may be strained. Either there will be no Mother’s Day celebration or it’s fraught with tension. On the other side, some were raised by an abusive, absent, or addicted Mom. Mother’s Day brings back a thousand nightmares they’d rather never revisit. All of that, and much more, is why we weep with those who weep. God has called us to be compassionate, as He has shown compassion to us. 

  British financier Cecil Rhodes, whose vast fortune was used to endow the famous Rhodes Scholarships, was a stickler for proper dress, yet apparently not at the expense of someone else’s feelings. A young man invited to dine with Rhodes arrived by train and had to go directly to Rhodes’s home in his travel-stained clothes. Once there he was embarrassed to find the other guests already gathered, wearing full evening dress. After what seemed a long time Rhodes appeared, in a shabby old blue suit. Later this young man learned his host had been dressed in evening clothes, yet excused himself to put on the old suit when he heard of his guest’s dilemma. Rhodes understood what it was to weep with those who weep. 

  We must rejoice with those who rejoice. Rejoicing with those who rejoice perhaps like no other act shows we’re resting in God’s providence. One of God’s greatest blessings is the gift of a child. The birth of a child is a gift from God (Psalm 127:3). Each milestone from Kindergarten graduation to high school and perhaps college is something to be celebrated. For a Christian, our greatest joy is for that child to accept Jesus into their heart. 

  Believers have great joy seeing a young person with a desire to walk with God. Scripture brims with accounts of those with a heart for the Lord from an early age; Samuel, David, Esther, and the Lord Jesus. A beautiful child, a smart child, a talented child is diminished in comparison to a young person who passionately loves Jesus and focuses on that with eternal significance. 

  We have a responsibility to our brothers and sisters in the faith. Because every believer is a member of the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12) and partakes together of the life of our Savior, we must care for each other. There’s great power in “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (1 Cor. 12:26). It’s a metaphor of Christian relationships. For example, a family in a church might have a child who is dangerously ill. The entire church family grieves. We all ask how the treatment is going and partner with them in prayer. Yet, we rejoice together when we see a young person growing in their love for the Lord and others. It’s seen in their kindness to the disenfranchised or their testimony to their classmates in the local high school. They’re known for standing for their faith. It’s a cause of mutual rejoicing. 

  We have a responsibility to a world without Christ. When Jesus came into this world He pitched His tent in a place where a dictator had sent his soldiers to kill every baby boy in a village, where religious men dragged a woman caught in adultery into His presence, asking Him to confirm their right to stone her to death. That’s the society the Son of God came into. 

  Here He went along, to join in the joys of a wedding. He even saved the day by miraculously making more wine when the supply ran out. Jesus rejoiced with those who rejoiced. Yet He also wept with those who weep. Salty tears ran down his cheeks. A family He loved to visit lost their brother, Lazarus to death. When Jesus saw the sisters weeping, He cried too. Most of those grieving weren’t His disciples, yet He wept with them. 

  What a powerful command - “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” This Mother’s Day celebrate your Mom or your children! Celebrate with others! Yet, please remember to also look around for those grieving and be Jesus to them by joining them in their heartache.  

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

“All saints have a past and all sinners have a future.” 

                            Anton Chekhov 

This past Sunday night (April 25^th) famous actor, Tyler Perry, won the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. Perry is the modern epitome of the American dream. Born and raised in poverty and abuse, he took personal responsibility for his life. Characterized by strength, faith, and determination he’s a true American success story. It wasn’t always the case though, as he alluded to in his acceptance speech. Here’s what he said: 

  “You know, when I set out to help someone it is my intention to do just that. I'm not trying to do anything other than meet somebody at their humanity. Like, case in point this one time I remember maybe it was 17 years ago and I rented this building and we were using it for production and I was walking to my car one day and I see this woman coming up out of the corner of my eye and I say she's homeless let me give her some money…Anyway I reach in my pocket and I'm about to give her the money and she says: ‘Excuse me sir do you have any shoes?’ 

  “It stopped me cold because I remember being homeless and having one pair of shoes and they were bent over at the heel. So I took her into the studio. She was hesitant to go in but we went in. We go to wardrobe and there were all these boxes and everything around the walls and fabrics and racks of clothes so we ended up having to stand in the middle of the floor. 

  “So as we're standing there [in] wardrobe and we find her these shoes and I help her put them on and I'm waiting for her to look up and all this time she’s looking down. She finally looks up and she's got tears in her eyes. She says: ‘Thank you Jesus. My feet are off the ground.’ 

  “In that moment I recall her saying to me ‘I thought you would hate me for asking’ but how could I hate you when I used to be you?” 

  I used to be you. Every born-again believer could say those same words about themselves and every person they meet who hasn’t met our Savior. 

  It’s a blessing to come to Christ as a child and not drink from the dregs of sin, there is also a blessing from meeting Jesus later in life. Though we’re all born sinners and all need to be rescued, when one comes to Christ as an adult, the horrible pit Jesus rescued you from is often a little more real. 

  Though we’re born-again early or late in life, it’s the same filthy pit. We’re just not as aware of it. As much as we like to think we’re nice, moral people – we’re not. None of us. If you don’t believe that toddlers have a sinful nature put two or three of them together and give them only one toy. 

   Romans 3 describes us: “None is righteous, no, not one…no one does good, not even one…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 

  Adam and Eve weren’t kicked out of the Garden because they were child molesters or serial killers. They lost Paradise because they disobeyed God on one point – eating the forbidden fruit. Immediately, they were guilty of disobeying God and were doomed. Too often we forget that spiritually, we are like that woman Tyler Perry gave a pair of shoes. I used to be you. 

  We were spiritually blind. “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ” (2 Cor. 4:4). This explains how someone can read the Bible and miss the message of sin and forgiveness. It’s how they can live as if this life is all there is. It’s how they can hold a worldview disastrous to themselves and society. They’re spiritually blind. I used to be you. 

  We were spiritually dead. One of today’s more popular shows is The Walking Dead. Ephesians 2:1 tells us that prior to coming to Christ and salvation, we were spiritually dead, “Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins.” God, heaven, a biblical worldview, personal responsibility makes no sense, any more than the living world makes sense to a corpse. I used to be you. 

  We were poor. We measure success and riches by our houses, cars, jobs , and bank accounts yet fail to realize that you can have the whole world but be impoverished. Revelation 3:17 speaks to this and a group who believed that they had the world by the tail. “You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.” I used to be you. 

  We were homeless. No one in and of themselves is on their way to Heaven. It’s God’s Home, a place of absolute perfection and we’re not. None of us would let just anyone into our homes. If someone knocked on my door that I didn’t want in my home who didn’t meet my standards, I wouldn’t let them in. Neither does God. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). If you don’t commit your life to Christ as your personal Savior, you're homeless. That was me and you before Jesus rescued us. I used to be you. 

  Like that poor homeless woman that Tyler Perry showed grace and mercy to, God did that for us. We didn’t find Him, in love, God found us! Though a big mess, to God, we’re a priceless treasure!

  In 1905 there was a baseball game between the Rhyolites and Beattys in Salt Lake City. The batter stepped up to the plate and hit a ground ball toward 1^st base. But it struck a small rock and shot off at an angle. Fortunately, the 1^st baseman (William Giffiths) easily fielded the ball and beat the runner to first. Not wanting the rock to affect the game again he went over and picked it up meaning to throw it off the field. Yet, when he took a closer look at it, he put it in his pocket. Later that night he returned to the ballpark with a lantern and spent an hour picking up most of the rocks on the field and putting them in a bucket. The next day, he took the bucket to the assay office (a lab that tests metals). They told him that he’d found what he thought he had – GOLD! So he called two friends and they quietly bought the ballpark and became very wealthy men. The name of the mine they dug? First Base Mine. That story is similar to one of Jesus’ parables. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field” (Matt. 13:44). 

  But we’re the buried treasure and what God “sold” was His own Son, Jesus on the cross for our sins so we could have our spiritual eyes opened, be alive, have riches out of this world and a Home. We don’t have to be an “I used to be you.” Jesus died so we could be forgiven and have a brand new life. But we must trust Him? We must accept His plan of salvation.

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.