You Can't Make This Stuff Up...

My friend Other sent me this. It's a portion of the transcript from Monday night's press conference. Here LSU football coach Les Miles is speaking, for lack of a better term, on if he has received any negative feedback on his comments about the booing after the game Saturday…

“Not really. I don’t necessarily spend a lot of time with my ear to the phone. I’m not necessarily looking for reviews. I think those things are personal choices, and I guess I’m stuck this way. I’m a purest when it comes to sports. I always felt like when you step in between those white lines, it was without regard to race, creed or color, that any obvious advantages of station and life were lost and that those people who stepped in between those white lines played for score and competition, and any time you stepped onto the field with an opponent, you stepped onto the field his equal and not more than, and in fact your greatest accomplishment to your opponent would be the great effort that you would use to prepare and play that team. I’ve never in my life seen the reason to root negatively. I root strong for the team that I support.”


Uh.....what?

It will be a sad, sad day in my life when he is fired. I mean, you can't make this stuff up. You just can't. Bless his heart...

1-2 Thessalonians (3rd in a series...)

(My note-taking from Sunday, if you trust it. From Dr Chris at FBC Ruston.)

BEING RIGHT ON THESE

1 Thess 2: 13-16

Paul is writing to this relatively new church about some things they must be 'right' on ..

1. The Word (v. 13)

a. The divine expression of the ultimate authority
The Bible IS the word of God, not just the words of God.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 --"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

2 Peter 1:20-21 -- "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

b. Points us to salvation
2 Timothy 3:15 "...and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus..."

c. It will continually feed the soul of the believer
* A lot of us are bored with Christianity, and when a friend asks if we're in the Word, we are usually NOT. (We want growth by osmosis.)
Heb 4:12 "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

2. Suffering (v. 14)

a. Make sure you suffer for the right reasons
b. Know it is part of the Christian way (v. 14-15 and ...) Mt. 5:11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me."
c. Suffer well (v. 14) "...imitators of the churches of God..."
* Be consistent
* Be Christlike
* Positive attitude
Persistence and optimism and a happy heart; that's how to "suffer well."
Suffering, even at the hands of religious people, is a part of the Christian walk.

3. Don't Hinder the Gospel of Jesus (v. 16)

* Romans 10:14 "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"
* Be a springboard to the Gospel, not a barrier.
* ANYTHING we do to hinder the spreading of the Gospel is of the devil
* 2 Peter 3:9 .."The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

How do we hinder the Gospel?
* We don't share it.
* Bad example
* We stay mad at the church or 'religion'

-30-

Whale Wars (3rd in a series)

(My notes from Sunday if you trust my note-taking. From Dr Chris at FBC Ruston.)

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

Jonah 1
Jonah 2:1-2

1. God Is Always Trying to Move Each of Us Into Closer Relationship With Him

2. Sometimes It Takes Extreme Measures to Get Our Attention
a. Certainly not all tragedies are from God. The Bible says we all die, and the Bible says it rains on the just and the unjust alike.
b. Satan is alive in a broken world
c. But some tragedies, God may have his hand in them.

* This is a literal story. Matthew 12:40-41, Jesus speaks of Jonah.
* "The Lord 'provided' a great fish..." (v. 17) Here 'provided' means 'prepared' or 'arranged' or 'planned.' ... God might be preparing a great fish for you....Or you might be in a Big Fish now....
* Romans 8:28 ... "God works all things for good to those who love him..."

3. Will You Hear/Obey God Now?
(2: 1-2) ...Jonah hears ...God keeps the heat on until we respond

4. The Fish Might Be More of a Provision than A Problem...
* What will it take for God to get your attention?

-30-

Issues...

Pilot loses control of aircraft. Avoids big crowd of onlookers, but crashes into 4 buildings...

Thessalonians (2nd in a series): "Lessons From the Battlefield"

(notes from church if you trust my notetaking. From Dr Chris at FBC Ruston...)

1 Thess 2: 1-9



This passage offers principles from Paul for life's battlefields.



1. Your Work For Christ is Never in Vain

* Paul was aware that his work in Thessalonica was not in vain (v. 1), though his time there was only three weeks.

* Every prayer and deed is noticed in heaven and matters on Earth

* Working for Christ ALWAYS matters



2. Sharing Christ is Tough

* (v. 2) Paul faced strong abuse, violence, harm ... in Phillipi, Paul was beaten and jailed. Why is sharing Christ tough?

a. Because eternity is at stake: Satan fights for your soul too

b. You have to share your LIFE to be effective (v. 8-9) "We poured out our lives to you..." ... People who are soulwinners, on average, spend about an hour a day in personal prayer.



3. Play Ultimately to an Audience of One (v. 3-6) The word "please" in "please God" here means, in the Greek, to excite God. Live to please God (v. 4).

a. This is not a license to be weird or mean. Those are Pharisees, who don't live by the Scriptures but who say they live to please God and don't care what anything thinks at all; their standard line for their actions are "this is to please God," but their actions show that their hearts are not pure and their motives are selfish.

b. The key to failure is to try to please EVERYone.



Love God and People --- work to please Him.



Paul, who was IN THE BATTLE, can teach us a lot.



-30-

Whale Wars (2nd in a series): "Are You Running From God?"

(My notes if you trust them. From Dr. Chris at FBC Ruston.)

Are You Runing From God?

Jonah 1:1-11

Tarshish, where Jonah ran against God's command, was likely in present-day southern Spain, 2,500 miles from Jonah's home and 2,000 more miles away than Nineveh, where God had asked Jonah to go and preach. "But Jonah ran..."

Running From God Is a Race You Cannot Win

* Jonah had legitimate reasons NOT to go to Nineveh, but ...

* God never calls us to something without equipping us with all we need.

Why is it Unwise to Run from God?

1. Victory is not Possible

2. You Put Yourself in a Dangerous Position When You Run from God

3. You Put Others in Harm's Way (v. 5-11)

Runing from God is a Race Nobody Wins...

Doc Witte

Happy First Day of Autumn!

I wish you'd have known our friend Jack Witte. Many of you did. Lucky break.

We'll celebrate the Dr. Jack R. Witte Memorial Golf Day next Thursday, Sept. 30, at East Ridge Country Club in Shreveport. It's one of the biggest fundraisers of the year for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes' Northwest Louisiana chapter.

We’ll play 36 holes at East Ridge. (We used to play 24 hours straight and I'd ask you for a per-hole donation; remember those days?) I’m asking for your sponsorship again. My family will donate $100. If you'll match that, sweet. If not, all will be well. I just thank you for your help.

Here’s a note Terry Slack, head of FCA in Northwest Louisiana, wrote about Doc Witte, who was a beautiful person … “ Jack was a great friend and he loved the Lord, and FCA. We started the Ironman Golf Marathon about 15 years ago, and Jack was an original Ironman. The first few years we played for 24 hours, Noon till Noon. Jack took two days off of work and played golf for 24 hours. He raised much money for FCA and loved the Marathon. That is why we put his name on this event and will play on the 30th in his memory. Jack sacrificed for the cause. I am asking you to do the same. Please consider playing with us in the Dr. Jack Witte FCA Golf Day on Thursday, Sept. 30th, or if you cannot play, please sponsor someone. We are asking each golfer to donate $100 and ask at least 24 people to match their gift, or give a gift of any amount.”

Doc Witte passed away in May of 2001. I’ll never forget playing golf with him at 2 and 3 and 4 in the morning. Or coaching Little League with him. He always aggravated me because he was so naturally good at everything! He would love that his name is on the tournament and that he can still help raise money for and change lives through the spreading of the Good News through FCA.

To donate, you can

1. email me with your pledge and home/business mailing address and I’ll take it from there and send you forms in the mail;

2. OR, you can send a donation to Dr Jack Witte Golf Day, 3018 Old Minden Road, Suite 1121, Bossier City 71112, which is the FCA office. Make your check out to FCA Northwest Louisiana and in the memo line put Teddy/Golf Day

3. Mail me your donation to Teddy Allen, PO Box 3172, Ruston, 71272, and I’ll give it to FCA on the 30th;

4. Or, you can email Terry’s second in command, Andy Stroup, at astroup@fca.org, for more information.

5. Finally, you can donate online at www.nwlafca.org/Golfmarathon.lsp (click on Sponsorship Payment in the upper right hand corner).

Thank you for your prayers and support of FCA in general and this Golf Day inparticular. (Is inparticular a word?) FCA maintains 70 Huddles that help 10,000 area students, sends kids and coaches and their families to special summer camps for discipleship, and much more. Your donations do make a difference. Doc knew that, which is why he was among the event's biggest supporters.

Thank you... seeya!

Thessalonians, 1st in a Series: "What Do Others Think of You?"

1 Thessalonians 1

* How To Live To Make A Godly Impression

* Thessalonians is one of the earliest books of the New Testament, probably written 50-51 AD by Paul. Thessalonica was a port city of 200,000 in Paul's time, along a main Roman highway. (Acts 17:1-9 tell of Paul in Thessalonica, which is modern day Thessaloniki, the second-largest city in Greece.)

* When you live for Christ, not everyone will like you. Which is OK. Remember, Jesus was killed, and Paul, and James, and likely all of the disciples except John. Many Christians then, and still today, are killed.

1. Live Properly in Christian Community (v. 1)
* Some people will say they want to be spiritual and believe in spirituality but don't "do organized religion." Remember that God is a proponent of organized religion. The speaker of Hebrews reminds us, "don't neglect gathering together..." Their are 'bad apples' in every bunch, but 'organized religion' in the way God intended his the body of Christ. There are two churches...
A. The Universal church: the all time saints.
B. The Local church: of the 120 or so times the church is mentioned in the new testament, 80 percent or more of those times, God is talking about the local church body. Isn't it God's will for us to be sold out to Christ, through the local body? The local church supernaturally builds us up and allows us to help others.

2. Live A Life Of True Good Works (v. 3)
* We're not saved BY works, but we are saved TO work.
* Does service flow from your HEART? What motivates your "good" deeds?
* (v. 9) They turned from wrong to do right things from hearts of love and service.

3. (v. 3-6) Live Consistently For God
* A cheerful pushing on is "endurance"
* Each of these 5 chapters in 1 Thessalonians ends speaking of the Second Coming, of HOPE, which in Greek is a stronger words than the English hope. Hope in Greek is assurance, an anticipation and longing based in certainty.
* It's not how high you jump, it's how straight you walk.

4. Live As A Model For Others (v. 6-7)
* a model = a mold or imprint
* Do I live consistently in a way worth modeling?

5. Live Loudly and Positively for Jesus (v. 8-9)
* "the word sounded forth like a trumpet..." a trumpet is LOUD; God doesn't want secret agents.

-30-

WHALE WARS (1st in a series) "God Is Calling You"

(My note taking from Sunday, if you trust it. From Dr. Chris at FBC Ruston.)

Jonah 1:1-2

The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come before me."

* What could God be calling you to do?

1. Salvation -- 2 Cor. 6: 1-2 "...Now is the day of salvation..."
2. Go Back to Him -- Rev 3:20 "...I stand at the door and knock..." a verse written, in context, for Christ followers
3. A Specific Act of Obedience -- Jonah 1:2 "Go to Nineveh..."
4. A Specific Life Direction -- Jonah 1:2 "Go to Nineveh and preach...

Jonah lived 2 miles from Nazareth, 500 miles from Nineveh, in about 750 BC. Many of us have placed our direction on a life of east and comfort. But Jonah was being asked of God to do something very difficult and uncomfortable.

* Some Costs of Answering The Call
1. It Won't Always Make Sense: Ninevites/Assyrians were the great enemy of the Jews; Jonah was a Jew
2. You Often Won't Want to Do It: Jonah didn't; he was a racist, and pretty smart, knowing he'd likely get killed. But God is not as concerned about our comfort as he is about getting us where he wants us to be, for his sake and for my good.

* It Is Always Best For Everyone in the Long Run (to answer the call)
* God Is Calling You Today. What Will You Do With The Call?