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By admin
After much anticipation, Kelly and I finally got away for a few days vacation. We enjoyed an incredibly memorable time with family on their boat out in the Keys. We just relaxed, grilled hamburgers and snorkeled. My brother in law Louis and I tried unsuccessfully to hunt for lobsters which are in full season here. I worshiped this morning with my family and studied the life of Moses from Deuteronomy 34. One of the most tragic verses in the Bible for me is verse 4, “Then the Lord said to him, this is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said I will give it to your descendants, I have let you see it with your eyes but you will not cross over into it. ”
There are many things that can prevent us from entering into Gods best for our lives :
- Personal unholiness
- Rebellion
- Fear
These are just a few of the everyday challenges that God’s people faced then and now. I am grateful for the faithfulness of gp and especially thankful to my neighbor and friend Dr. Peter Grant for holding down the fort and allowing Kelly & I, a much needed break to recharge and reconnect with family, each other and most importantly with God.
Even as we are away on vacation, you are never totally free from the obstacles that lie in our way and seek to keep us from entering God’s plans. I Peter 2:11,”your sinful desires which wage war against your soul.” Who ever may be reading this has your own promise land. God has something in your future that you are looking forward to. Enjoy the journey, savor your times with friends and family, but remember everyday is one step closer to your destination, one that is defintetly worth waiting for.
By admin
Today was an awesome day at gracepointe . We had the opportunity to host the North Paulding high school football team for breakfast and worship . I am so grateful for Coach Webb and the coaching staff of North Paulding giving us the opportunity . The worship service closed with a special time of prayer for all students and faculty. Thank you gp members for working so hard to make today possible. Paulding begins school this Friday , my prayer is that this will be the best year ever for the wolf pack. I can’t think of a better way to begin the season!
By admin
This past weekend was all about getting hot , dirty , and wore slap out for our community. This year for community makeover we were a part of over 80 other Churches who joined together to serve Christ by serving our community. The various gp projects mostly took place around North Paulding High School, the current location of gp . I was so grateful for all our folks and humbled to serve as their pastor . The service continued beyond the weekend to this mourning when a couple of our men and myself gave out cold drinks to the school football team .
As we stood there under the hot sun I once again was so grateful for the opportunity to serve , yet I noticed I was also conscious of how appreciative everyone was, and they were . Each of the athletes and their sponsors were truly grateful but what if they were not ? What if instead of gratitude they responded with an attitude of entitlement , very popular these days. What if even worse , the pervasive response was to lash out at our attempt at giving a cup of cold Gatorade in His name?
No sooner had I left the school feeling , I must confess , rather good about myself for all my contributions to society over the last few days was I faced with a situation where the true spirit of a servant was put to the test .
I remember hearing someone once say , if you want to see what kind of a servant you really are , take a look at how you acted the last time someone treated you like one. To be a servant means simply put , to be of use , to be worthy of reliance . Our ultimate example of of what it means to be a servant is Phil.2:3-8 , the actions and attitude of Christ.
Sadly I my confess that this attitude often is absent from my typical response when someone takes advantage of me or treats me like the servant God has called me to be on a daily basis . Can I rise , or more accurately stoop to the level of servant hood that I do what I do for Christ and Him only , not the affirmation or the appreciation of others ? I truly believe that if my motive is anything other than to please the one I am ultimately serving I am missing out on the true joy of giving of myself .
By admin
Can you believe it, Ringo Starr turned 70 last week! One of my favorite Beatles tunes was from the Abby Road album, “Come Together”. Allegedly written about Richard Nixon during the Vietnam war era. I’m not sure what the lads from Liverpool had in mind, but but this week is about coming together in a different way.
This past Tuesday I had the opportunity to come together with some of the other pastors around our area to talk and pray about how WE can pray for and better serve our community. Another opportunity for WE to make a difference this week is Community Makeover. Gracepointe along with over 80 other Churches in Paulding and Cobb counties will be coming together to serve and shine for our Lord. Churches are also holding a benefit concert in our neighborhood for a young boy named Nicolas struggling with a serious medical condition. A very busy weekend indeed.
In John 17:20-21, Jesus prays for all future believers and His prayer was for unity, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be of. Father, just as you are in Me and I am in You, may they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one.”
Notice that the glory of Christ’s followers and the way in which we glorify God and give evidence of who Christ is, is by our unity. I believe that not only this week, but everyday, we have the opportunity to be an answer to our Lord’s prayer by doing 3 simple things …
1) Remember God can use anyone
2) We need each other
3) WE can always achieve more than just me
For far too long the body of Christ has focused on and celebrated our differences instead of our commonalities, lets be an answer to His prayer, lets strive to come together for His glory and pleasure .
By admin
I grew up a good Baptist. I learned early in my faith, when God forgives He places our sin as far away as the east is from the west. The Bible certainly tells us that when God forgives, He ceases to hold any record or recollection of our sin but I am thankful for the things God never forgets.
This year has so far been a beautiful Summer. Normal amounts of rainfall for a change have produced some of the most spectacular and most frequent rainbows I have ever seen. Once in late Spring, we saw two at one time over our neighborhood. I took this to be a good sign for the Mabry family.
One of the Bible lessons we all learned as a child, is the story of the flood. God placed the rainbow as a sign in Genesis chapter 9, a reminder to Noah of the covenant that God had established with Noah and his family. In verse 15, God told Noah whenever the rainbow appears in the sky, “I will remember my covenant between me and you.” Thank God for the things He chooses not to remember against us, but that He is committed to keeping his promises with us!
By admin
Last month was Father’s Day and like many other dads, I enjoyed a meal (or in my case meals) of some of my favorite things. Father’s Day cards, gifts and resting by the neighborhood pool. My favorite gift by far was getting to spend time with my wife and kids. Father’s Day and the Foo Fighters help me remember who my hero has always been; my father.
Like most young boys, as a child I too looked up to my dad like he was some kind of super hero. When I hit those all wise and knowing adolescent years, sadly like other teens my fathers super powers (or at least my view of him) began to suffer. I still deeply loved my father, but as is naturally the case, the dominate influence my parents had, began to be replaced with a need to impress and win the approval of my peers.
Mark Twain is attributed with saying, “when I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant, I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in 7 years. Whether he actually said those words are irrelevant, what I do know is that as I got older not only did my love and respect for him grow, but now that he has been gone for 5 years, I can say he has returned to the almost super hero status of my childhood. Just think of all the descriptive that I could easily use to help you know who my father was… advisor, bus driver, counselor, defender, entrepreneur, best friend, grandfather, handy man, investor, jokester, kindhearted, leader, motivator…I could go on and on. I miss my father everyday, but I am so thankful for the time I had with him and our relationship we had. I hope as my kids grow older when they see me they can truthfully say, “there goes my hero “
By admin
What a week this has been for the Mabry household. After much anticipation and many false alarms our oldest Jodi and proud papa Jesse gave birth to identical twin boys, Brody and Tatum. I was out running errands when Kelly text me to tell me because of a complication with Tatum the twins were about to delivered NOW. What made this occasion even more unforgettable was that Jesse, the unsuspecting father, had “just happened” to be off work and at the hospital to celebrate Jodi’s birthday and their wedding anniversary when the moment came. The twins and mom are doing great with much prayer they should all come home soon. When the babies were delivered the umbilical cord had been so twisted and knotted the Dr’s. immediately commented this is a God thing. One by one each and every doctor, nurse and staff member who entered the room commented on how the had never seen or experienced anything like this in all of their careers . One nurse said in over 32 years at Cobb Hospital (by the way the staff at Cobb were some of the most kind and dedicated I have ever seen) she had never seen a cord in such a twisted mess. Truthfully many experts were bleak to say the least, in their opinions of the boys odds. If this were not amazing enough our other daughter Jonilee, and proud papa Chris gave birth today to a beautiful baby girl, Addison at the same hospital. Their rooms are just 3 doors down from each other.
The passage of scripture I think is most appropriate at this time is Psalm 118:23 “This is the Lord’s doing, it is marvelous in our eyes.” Thank you for everyone who have joined us in such intense prayer for the arrival of these 3 miracles. I heard someone say years ago that the birth of a baby is God’s way of saying there is still hope for the world. Yes the economy and job market still stinks, yes were in a terrible war with the constant threat of more terrorist attacks a real possibility, yes the oil still flows in the gulf threatening our fragile ecosystem, but in Dallas, Georgia God is doing something brand new . “To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
By admin
One of the first passages of scripture I can remember committing to memory is II Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore , if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! What a deal, not only when I enter into God’s family do I have eternal & abundant life, but also a brand new existence in Him because of grace. Membership really does have its privileges!
Yesterday was baptism at gpc. This is never an easy task for our folks who have to pick up the baptismal pool, set it up, fill it up and heat it up, then pump the water out before we leave. Though baptismal service may be challenging in a High School auditorium, the service is always one of my favorite occasions. Baptism is always a beautiful picture of II Corinthians 5:17, but yesterday it was one of the most meaningful I’ve ever seen. A family of 4 baptised together, children and youth beginning their journey with Christ. A young man struggling with a broken back who had to be helped in and out of the pool. A woman who had never been under water; she had taken showers her whole life for fear of water. Another young lady struggling with breast cancer. Each of these stories of grace had to make the Father smile.
If any man be in Christ he is a new creation, behold all things are new.
By admin
Summer is finally here! Paulding Counties last day was Friday. It’s time for swimming, cook-outs, vacation, fresh fruits & vegtables and all the other things I love about this season in the South.
I can remember as a child having gardens and working with my Granny at the State Farmer’s Market.
Summer also means freedom, release. I always as a child had a wonderful ritual on the last day of school of throwing away every piece of paper, notebooks and anything else related to my year of bondage.
If you are a church planter like myself who meets in a public school, Summer is a less demanding time for our set up teams. Summer has always been about freedom and fun but also about progress, growth and moving on to the next level.
As a follower of Christ, I’m not so sure that vacation is a one of God’s inventions but progress defintely is. Our children in addition to their normal school work undergo a barrage of tests designed to measure growth, progress and wether or not they are ready to advance to the next level.
As a believer, am I ready to be promoted to the next “grade?” (responsiblity, opportunity or promotion!) Are there any victories, changes or developments in my relationship with Christ and my usefulness to His Kingdom? How much progess have I made compared to this time last year?
In II Corinthians 11:3, Paul shares his concern for the believers in this region that, “their minds may somehow be led astray from their sincere devotion to Christ”.
I believe school is never really our spiritually. Daily we should be making progess in our simple devotion to Christ. Our Lord’s words to Peter in John 21 were “Follow Me.” Pretty simple, how are you doing?
By admin
This has been a great yet busy holiday weekend. Cooking hot dogs for the entire faculty and student body of NPHS on Friday, a wedding on Saturday, going by the hospital to see our daughter Jodi and numerous other cookouts, not to mention church on Sunday morning.
I always say on weekends like this, “I am going to do my best to do nothing at all”, but that never seems to work out. Yet one thing I intentionally have tried to do this weekend is remember what this day is all about. Though I never served in the military, I was proud of the opportunity when I turned 18 just to register for the draft. My father served in the Korean war, his father in WWI and was injured in service. On my mothers side, her father served in both World Wars, along with numerous other uncles. I can still hear my grandmother tell before she went home to be with Lord at 91, about her grandmothers tales of her father who had been married just 2 weeks going off to serve in the Confederate Army for 2 years.
I love the old hymn “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and my favorite part of that wonderful song is, ”Oh to grace how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be.” As we enjoy our extended weekend I hope each of us will remember the enormous debt we owe to the thousands of men and women whose sacrifice made our celebration possible.
My prayer is that we will take time to remember the greatest sacrifice of all which made our spiritual freedom possible for all time.
Happy Memorial Day!