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Pastor's Pen
Tuesday, October 16 2018

The circus can conjure up all kinds of memories for us- the light hearted moments with the clowns, the bravery of the lion tamers, and the dexterity of the animals all amidst the aroma of popcorn and cotton candy. But there is always one moment in the show when silence takes over pushing people to the edge of their seats- the moment when the tightrope walker takes the first step onto the wire.  I believe it’s because we all understand on some level that our individual lives are a balancing act, too.

We are always trying to do the right thing for our families, for our friends, for our career, and for God. With each step, we wonder if it’s the right one or if our misstep will throw everything else off balance. And to make it all the more difficult, as we walk along our tightrope called life, things are thrown at as from all sides, seemingly trying to knock us down. Things from little annoyances to full blown life changing drama, all disguised as unsolvable problems.

As I envision life as steps on a tightrope, I can’t help but think of that moment for Peter when he stepped out of the boat onto the raging Sea of Galilee.

When Peter stepped out, it was a moment of surrender. As his hand let go of the boat, Peter was giving up control. In his surrender, he was yielding to and trusting Jesus to guide his steps to safely reach the other side of the raging sea. But when Peter took his eyes off Jesus, he faltered and started to sink.

In our striving for balance on the tightrope of life, we too begin to falter when we take our eyes off Jesus and let the realities of the world shake us. In those moments, we must examine ourselves in the light of Jesus and seek to fully surrender our hearts towards Him.

Proverbs 3:5-6 does NOT say, “Trust in the Lord with some of your heart, lean on your own understanding and in some of your ways trust Him.” It’s all or nothing! A balanced life lived for the Lord requires and even demands our surrender.

Surrender looks different for different people, even in similar circumstances. For some, surrender is giving up control, for others it is giving up self-promotion or pride or even our own plans and agendas. Ultimately, it is a daily, transformational process with the Lord. As we falter or start to sink, our first instinct is to grab on tight to whatever we can. But in the kingdom, the real answer to our imbalance is in learning to let go. In our surrender, the circus quiets down, the raging seas quell and our steps are guided safely towards Jesus our refuge, and safety net.

Oswald Chambers describes holy surrender as a personal sovereign preference for Jesus Christ, Himself. Do the actions and decisions we make each day reflect that level of surrender? Is Jesus the focus of our devotion, our priorities, and our surrender? If life seems out of balance, maybe there is something pulling us off kilter that we need to surrender. Search your heart and ask God what you need to surrender in order to walk with Him further and higher than you ever imagined on your own.

Posted by: Pastor Kristen AT 06:44 am   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Thursday, April 05 2018
My Father is Always Working and So Am I

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” –John 5:17 (NLT)

Starting back in the 70s, there was a popular radio show hosted by a man called Paul Harvey. He presented stories that would draw listeners in but he would hold back a key element of the story till the very end.  Then he would conclude with a now famous line, “And now you know the rest of the story.”

In addition to his iconic voice and gifted storytelling, our human curiosity and desire to be ‘in the know’ made for a very popular program.  Humans have always had a curiosity and a desire to know things. It has given us great inventions and technological advances throughout history but it has also brought down nations and kingdoms in the name of espionage and brought down individuals as we sought after the gossip of our neighbors and friends. Our desire to know has driven a news industry that provides 24/7 coverage and when they run out of news to share, they will sensationalize smaller news items into what we now call, ‘fake news.’

Our desire to know can be a double-edged sword in our spiritual life, too. God, why aren’t you fixing this? God, where are you? Why aren’t you directing me? God, why are you allowing this? Our desire to know and understand can be a hindrance in our spiritual life. We look to scripture for answers but when we read the stories of others’ problems and trials, we approach them already ‘knowing the rest of the story’ and we try to ascribe that approach to our own lives. ‘God, why won’t you tell us the rest of our story?’

Knee deep in our trials and sufferings, we ask why? how? and what now? as echoes of “God will never leave you nor forsake you” reverberates in our soul. If God will never leave me, then why don’t I see Him? Why don’t I get answers or relief from my pain? In our search for information and answers, we look to the Word for the same neat and tidy story endings that our Bible characters experienced, like a modern-day sitcom where all problems are wrapped up in 30 minutes or less.

We forget that it was 13 years from the time that Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers until he became overseer to the Pharaoh in Egypt. It took Noah over 60 years of ark building before the first raindrop fell.  And poor Abraham, never saw the fulfillment of God’s promise to him before he passed from this world. We miss the big picture of the Biblical stories when we focus on the beginning and end and disregard the journey in the middle. In fact, the endings lose their wow factor when we undervalue the journey before them.

God is always working and working for our good towards His purpose for us even when we can’t see it. Joseph goes through extensive trials, from his brothers selling him into slavery and even to prison for things he didn’t do and God appears silent and unseen to him the whole time. Until in one moment, God’s plan and purpose is revealed. And it is in that moment that God’s glory bursts on the scene, displayed for all to see.

In my own life, I have been praying for over a year for a resolution and God’s will in several areas of my life and ministry and yet, here I wait. In two separate incidents over the past two weeks, He has reminded me that He is indeed working behind the scenes in preparation for His glory to be revealed.

As I prayer walked around the church building, I could hear God telling me to look closer at the path around me and there poking out of the dried and withered grass was a lone purple flower in all its beauty. A few steps more and this time yellow flowers rising up through the dead grass. A few days later, I was doing some much needed yard work in the backyard. Much to my surprise, there was an overgrown tomato plant taking over one area of the yard and covering up a passionflower vine. In fact there were over 20 tomato plants that had sprouted up across the backyard. How had they gone unnoticed before? It was as if God was revealing pieces of His work and His glory to remind me of His sovereignty and His timing. In the hard times, when we can’t see God working, we have to trust and have faith that He is working because His Word says He is.

Our heavenly Father chose us before the foundation of the world to do the good things he has planned for us. In Christ, we have destiny and God will never leave us. He will always get us to our destination in Jesus, no matter how we feel and no matter what God leaves unseen till His revelation. Be encouraged brothers and sisters, we serve a God who never tires of doing a new thing in us, through us and for us even when we aren’t able to see it!

Where are you seeing God’s revelation of Himself? What issues are you facing that you need to turn over to Him for restoration in His timing?

Isaiah 43:19 (NLT)

19 For I am about to do something new.
    See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?
I will make a pathway through the wilderness.
    I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.

                    

        

Posted by: Kristen Doty AT 10:03 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Wednesday, November 29 2017
Tis the Season to Show Compassion

Grace Vanderbilt lived a life of luxury in the early 1900s. She was a New York socialite referred to as the “Head of Society.”  Following her husband’s death in 1942, she was forced to sell her 58 room mansion and move into a 28 room home called the Gardener’s Cottage. Living with her in this new home, were eighteen servants, yet in a Time magazine article she was quoted as saying, “I’m all alone.” Imagine that!

Psychologists tell us that we are living in the loneliest of times. The technology that was supposed to bring us all together, has only pushed us further apart.  Despite our access to social media and connections with people 24/7, we are the loneliest people ever. During the holidays, it becomes even worse for people. As we connect with loved ones and celebrate the joy we have in our Savior’s birth, let’s remember to reflect His glory and compassion for others.

As we continue to Love in Ways that Matter, remember to have compassion and to take the time to listen and find the miracles in the moments. Even a warm smile can go a long way in letting someone know that you care. Jesus came as a babe in the manger to set the captives free and in doing that, adopt us into the family of God. May we remember that we are not alone. There are lives all around us. People made in the image of God who may need a glimpse of hope, a taste of grace, and a little bit of love.  When we shine the light of Christ this season, we will experience the miracle of that first Christmas so many years ago.

Blessings,

Pastor Kristen

Posted by: Kristen Doty AT 08:27 am   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Saturday, August 26 2017

Statement from the General Director: Charlottesville

 

Paul Goodloe McIntire was an investment genius, whose savvy management of stock portfolios in both Chicago and New York empowered him to be one of his hometown's preeminent philanthropists. Inspired by the City Beautiful movement dramatically brought to life at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, he dedicated himself to funding monumental public spaces, city parks and squares, most often featuring heroic sculpture. He was born in 1860 and polished his fortune in New York City before retiring in 1918; he then returned to the beloved city of his birth: Charlottesville, Virginia.

McIntire was a son of the South. The Old South. His father was the mayor of Charlottesville during the Civil War and negotiated the city's surrender to Union troops, saving its buildings and leafy neighborhoods from the firestorms that engulfed Fredericksburg and Richmond. As a young man, he attended Charlottesville's famed University of Virginia, studying under Thomas Jefferson's elegant Rotunda. He would become one of the University's most extravagant donors, endowing chairs and schools that still bear his name.

And, McIntire gave Charlottesville a statue of Robert E. Lee, straddling the horse Traveler, commanding Lee Park in the heart of the city-the park itself a gift from this wealthy favorite son, who required that access to the park be for "whites only." He also gave the city Washington Park, named to honor Booker T. Washington, asking that it be reserved for "colored children." No statues there.

In the week following the unveiling of Lee's statue in 1924 (at a ceremony in which the Confederate general was proclaimed, "the greatest man who ever lived"), the Ku Klux Klan burned crosses across the town and set bombs around a Charlottesville church popular with the African-American community. Events in Charlottesville mirrored the tenor of the times, as the Klan was in its ascendancy. During the 1920s, up to 25,000 Klansmen, in full regalia-white hoods and all the rest-annually marched proudly down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., in a show of force not lost on the minority communities they sought to both marginalize and terrorize.

There were more black Americans living (and enslaved) in Charlottesville and the surrounding Albemarle County, Virginia, before and during the Civil War than there were white Americans. When Lee's statue took the stage in the 1920s, about 35 percent of the city's population had descended from those slaves. Memorializing the vanguard of the Confederacy and celebrated by the Klan, Lee Park and its statue received mixed reviews, then and now. People of color in Charlottesville during the McIntire years, and for years, after had no voice in municipal government, having been systemically denied effective representation by Jim Crow-era laws and processes designed to move them to the sidelines. African American slaves built iconic local landmarks (like Jefferson's Monticello and much of the University of Virginia campus) but were not represented as contributors in any public space, while those who owned people as property were raised up as heroes decades after losing the War.

In May 2016, after some years of community debate, the city of Charlottesville established a "Blue Ribbon Commission" to explore the future of the Lee statue (and another one similar, also a 1920s McIntire gift, of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson, proudly on a pedestal elsewhere in town). The Commission managed many months of public conversation and research-often contentious and dubbed "a moment of rupture" by one Commission member-and released its findings in December 2016. The City Council voted in March 2017 to remove and "reinterpret" the Lee monument; this decision was challenged in court; the case remains unresolved, before the bench. This controversy and the Charlottesville story became a cause for the erstwhile guardians of white supremacy, nationwide.

In May 2017, white nationalist (and University of Virginia graduate) Richard Spencer and about a hundred others joined in an after-dark protest of the city's plans, chanting "Russia is our friend," "blood and soil" (a Nazi refrain), and "we will not be replaced" (white supremacist-speak declaring that ethnic diversity will render white Americans an "endangered" minority in "their own" country).

In August 2017, Spencer and others aligned with his tribe marched once more through town at night, torch-bearing, chanting the same, only this time hundreds strong. Defiant. Angry. And, armed. The newsreel captures of preppy and black-shirted white dudes snaking with torches through otherwise silent streets, loudly voicing toxic phrases like, "Jews will not replace us," are a chilling reprise of a world my father (and so many millions more like him) suited up to erase more than seventy years ago.

On the next day, Nazi and Confederate battle flags marched in tandem, ultimately destined for a face-off with protestors adamantly opposed to the racism and white supremacy both have been used to promote in two different centuries-and now a third. The violence, injury, and death that ensued has been the stuff of a thousand headlines and a stable of talking heads on TV in the days since, not to mention government officials, religious leaders, corporate execs, and so many more.

I share all this history to better understand the stage upon which these events have walked. The Civil War frame, the scourge of slavery, the context of the statue, a city's honest attempt to process how it should today tell its own story with public spaces and art, and the specter of racism which haunts the whole, all encompass the proscenium. Watching the drama unfold, it is time to speak up.

My Terms of Employment at Church of God Ministries specifically prohibit me from making statements that are political in tone or that carry politically-charged content. This parameter is rooted deeply in our Movement's DNA, historically apolitical and also fearful that any one voice be seen as speaking for church (in the way denominational hierarchies are prone to embrace). Consequently, Church of God Ministries during my tenure (and long before) has not issued statements in response to man-made headlines. However, in this instance, given the temperature of the controversies and requests from the field-and after consultation with our General Assembly chair Diana Swoope, and the Assembly's chair-elect, Tim Clarke-I am releasing this reply. I own the content, drawing from the General Assembly's actions and voice on behalf of the church, over time.

The Church of God must provide no quarter to racism of any kind and has consistently rebuked white supremacy. Its General Assembly has many times (beginning in 1956) unambiguously opposed racism, racial segregation, political and social barriers to racial harmony and reconciliation, and racial discrimination of all kinds.

"We base our stand toward basic human rights on the teaching of the Scriptures. God has 'made of one blood all nations of men' (Acts 17:26). 'For we are all the children of God by faith in Jesus Christ...for we are all one in Jesus Christ' (Galatians 3:26, 28). The first of these speaks as to origin, the second as to relationship. We believe that in the Church of God there should be no racial barriers because we are all brethren in Christ. We believe that man was made in the image of God, that every person is of intrinsic worth before God, and that every individual has a right to the fullest possible opportunities for the development of life abundant and eternal. We believe that these rights are given by God and that the church has a responsibility to defend them and work for their guarantee." (General Assembly Statement on Race, June 1964)

The Church of God has also consistently acknowledged the intentionality required to overcome hell's default temptation to divide on racial lines. Responding to racially charged injustice in 2015, the General Assembly overwhelmingly endorsed this text:

"We resolve to express our compassion and concern (in the face of racism and racial injustice) in the following six ways:

Leadership-we call on pastors and leaders to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit to live out a countercultural lifestyle that works to expose and repent of the sin of racial division and acknowledges the suffering of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Prayer-we pray for healing, repentance, unity and peace, and we plead for God's mercy on our nation and on those who are compliant with the racial violence and racial disparities being manifested in the church and in the systems of this world;

Lament-we mourn in solidarity and sympathy with the people of (Charleston's) Emanuel AME Church and the families, congregations and communities affected by the traumatic impact of these incidents, and we confess our past and present failure to walk faithfully and consistently in the light of our belief in a God who has no respect of persons;

Forgiveness-we affirm radical forgiveness of the persons whose motivation for doing harm to others is racial hatred and discrimination, acknowledging what Jesus taught and showed us by His death on the cross, that love is stronger than hate;

Justice-we acknowledge that ministers in our own General Assembly and fellow congregants have been victims of racial profiling, we stand for justice to be administered on their behalf in a fair and impartial manner, we urgently call for justice in all cases of racially-motivated violence, and we support those agencies and officials who enforce the law and administer justice equitably to ensure the safety and security of all of our citizens, congregations and communities;

Vision of reconciliation-we commit ourselves as people of Christian faith to envision, strategize and work toward the realization of a reconciled church, nation and world." (General Assembly Resolution on Race, June 2015)

In a world of soundbites and 140-character Twitter posts, it is easy to overlook the seminal contexts and histories of "moments of rupture." It is easy to drive by a story without pausing to explore the stage-framing events. We must all be committed to studying, listening, and thoughtfully responding in a world so desperately broken, divided, and tense. Charlottesville has become a kind of emblem, a marker for our time. It has already become a shorthand for controversy, media debate, tragedy, and the resurgence of ideas many thought vanquished years ago.

But, whatever the lens, we stand united in our defiance of racism and our vociferous opposition to all ideologies and conduct clothed by white supremacy. As followers of Jesus, transformed by His Holy Spirit, we will be neither separated or tiered by race, ethnicity, national origin, culture, gender, or economic station. We are loved equally by Him-and we must love others the same.

Charlottesville's long journey to the present hour, wrestling with a complex history that has not always honored all who call it home, has become a flashlight shining into every corner of the country. From Jefferson's plantation to Lee's defense of slavery to McIntire's vision of segregated public spaces crowned by Confederate statues to Klan autographs on twentieth century history to today's reality, let us "come to a thorough awareness that there is a disparity between our vision for reconciliation and the actual experience of many of our brothers and sisters; And, let us learn to listen to the stories our brothers and sisters share, express in word and deed our feelings of empathy, and commit to walk together as we boldly stand against every form of racism." (General Assembly of the Church of God, June 2015)

Be bold. Reclaim what hell has stolen. Jesus is the subject. The Way. The Truth. And, the Life.

I am, humbly, your brother in Christ.

Jim Lyon signature

Jim Lyon

General Director

 
Posted by: Kristen Doty AT 08:06 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Wednesday, April 12 2017

There are times in life when we feel abundantly blessed, believing God has met our every need. Then there are times of struggle and hardship when He seems strangely silent and then times when He answers our questions but we don’t like the answer. In the tenth chapter of Mark, we meet a young man who runs up to Jesus, excited to ask one question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” The young man is not asking a question in so much as he is looking for affirmation that he is good enough, smart enough. The real question of his heart is “Am I enough?”

Jesus looks upon him with compassion and love and poses another question, “Am I enough?” The implication to the young man is, “do you recognize that all you have and all you have accomplished is because of me? Young man, do you realize that when you lose all those things, you will still have me? Am I enough?”

Committing our lives to Christ is a lifelong journey of always becoming more, more loving, more peaceful, more joyful and ultimately more free. What the young man didn’t understand was that God didn’t have his whole heart. He was replacing God with other things and depending on them to make him enough.

We do the same thing. We look to our bank account or our job for security. We look to our accomplishments for our worth and value. We look to our good health as a sign of God’s favor and when we lose any of those things, we question God’s love for us. But God’s love is always faithful. It never gives up on us. On the other hand, it’s us who, like the young man in Mark 10, give up and walk away from God.

We decide that the sacrifices are too risky, too hard, and too much. What the young man did was focus on what he was losing rather than what he was gaining. The apostle Paul reminds us in the 3rd chapter of Philippians what it means to gain Christ.

Philippians 3:7-11The Message (MSG)

7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.

10-11 I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

Whatever place God has you in right now, know that He has your best interest in mind. Whether you find yourself on the mountaintop or the valley, understand that He sees the big picture and knows what you need better than you do. Trust Him to protect you, to give you security, value and worth. Let Jesus be enough!

Don’t let your fear and your insecurity push you away from God. Stop trying to ‘do’ on your own and trust the One who created you, who died for you, and who loves you with an unrelenting love. We will never be enough on our own, but the Good News is that Jesus is always enough!

Beloved, do you believe that Jesus is enough? Do you want Him to be enough for you? He stands at the door of your heart waiting for you to say, “Jesus you are enough for me. Lord, help me to believe you when you say, “I am enough.”

Blessings,

Pastor Kristen

Posted by: Kristen Doty AT 09:33 am   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Tuesday, October 11 2016

During a recent trip, I had the misfortune of arriving at the airport at the exact time that the local cruise ships’ buses were unloading all of their passengers to embark on their journey home. The airport was crazy busy with people everywhere so I chose to sit for awhile in hopes that it would soon settle down.

There was one sight that caught my attention. There was a small boy about the age of 6 walking with his dad. His father had his hand resting on the young boy’s shoulder gently guiding him through the sea of people. But this little boy was not content with his father’s direction. “I want to do it myself, dad.” He would try to escape his father’s gentle touch to race ahead saying, “I want to go this way, dad!”

Over and over, dad would respond kindly with, “It’s okay son, I see where we’re going, we’ll get there don’t worry, don’t rush.” It struck me in that moment, how much I was like that little boy. How often had I said to my heavenly Father, “Stop, I want to go this way, I want to go that way.” Or the countless number of times I’ve tried to run ahead of Him. In each of those times, I had forgotten that my Father sees above the busyness, above the chaos. He knows where I’m going and He knows the best way for me to get there. Sometimes, I just need to be patient and allow His gentle hand to direct my steps.

Church, may we be encouraged this week as we hold tight to the truth that our Heavenly Father is guiding and ordering our steps as we strive to fulfill the calling He has placed on our lives.

Blessings,

Pastor Kristen

Posted by: Pastor Kristen AT 08:13 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Tuesday, August 02 2016

Hello Sawgrass Family,

Over the last several weeks, we have been walking through the 11th chapter of Hebrews, most commonly referred to as the Hall of Faith. Along the walls of this hall, we are introduced to people of faith through only a snapshot of their lives.  This snapshot gives us a picture of what God deemed to be the best depiction of their life of faith.

In a painting called, ‘Christ’s Entry into Jerusalem’, the painter, Robert Haydon created a scene with Jesus riding on the donkey into Jerusalem. In the crowd are some of his contemporaries. Voltaire, a philosopher known for his criticism of the church, was painted in as a smiling scoffer. The poet John Keats was painted with a bright, amazed face in the background. William Wordsworth was pictured as a devout man, a disciple. Others he knew, were painted as detached observers just watching it all pass by.

Think of Christ in our world today. We are in the crowd that watches Christ coming into our world, and into our lives and circumstances. Let’s think of ourselves and our actions and our attitudes. Where would we find ourselves in that picture? What would be the best representation of our habitual conduct? Would we be the detached observer? Or might we be the ones with bright amazement on our faces?

Sawgrass, let’s commit and encourage one another to shine with amazement as we seek the work of  Christ entering into our day to day happenings. Let's reflect the glory of our Savior in all things!

6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. - Hebrews 11:6(NASB)

Blessings,

Pastor Kristen

Posted by: AT 02:00 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email
Sunday, July 24 2016

Hello Sawgrass Family,

I write this note from high above the hustle and bustle of New York City streets. It’s a time of meditating on the verses from our By Faith sermon series, while reflecting on all that I saw today. There was hopelessness and sadness among the bustling traffic and bold lights of Times Square and yet God’s goodness was still breaking through like a ray of sunlight in a dark sky.

He was present with the father who was helping his young son deliver food to the homeless man everyone else was ignoring. He was present in the kindness to help another cross the street. He was present in the friendly smiles and conversations of strangers. He is always there, waiting for us to seek Him out.

Praying Hebrews 11:6 for each of you this week. Praying that you see Jesus working in you and through you. As you seek God throughout your week and discover ways  to love in a way that matters, may our Father reward you with glimpses of Himself. May you receive the peace and wisdom of knowing that you are His and in His will.

“Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”-Hebrews 11:6

Blessings,

Pastor Kristen

Posted by: AT 10:56 pm   |  Permalink   |  0 Comments  |  Email

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    Sawgrass Community Church
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