Pastor's Prose

Go To My New Blog

2011-01-19T15:40:00.000-08:00

Just in case anyone ever reads this blog or discovers it through a search of some sort. I want to encourage you to go to my new blog: Chad Stuart's Prose

The Need for Change

2010-01-21T11:38:00.000-08:00

Hey Y'all here is a link to an article I would encourage y'all to read. It was written by Frederick Russell and it is entitled: Is There a Better Way? I believe there is a better way and we need to start pressing our leadership to step out in faith and make real changes for our denomination! I appreciate Elder Russell's precient voice in regards to this issue.

New Year's Resolutions 2010

2010-01-02T19:15:00.000-08:00

Here are some New Year's Resolutions the first is the most ridiculous as you can see if you ever come and check out this blog--

1. Update my blog more frequently!
2. Read at least 1 book a month.
3. Try to keep my car from becoming my personal trash bin.
4. Continue to run, but add some weight training as well.
5. Grow as a leader.
6. Be more faithful in my daily devotions!
7. Do a better job about having a date night with my wife.
8. Visit more folk.
9. Pay more attention to our daily finances.

Okay there are 9 I can think of. What about you? What does 2010 have in store for your personal growth?

Yes Another Heritage Singers Song!

2009-10-27T23:42:00.001-07:00

Gotta love Adventist music videos! This is one of my all time favorite Christian songs--great message, no matter what the music. My mom was trying to find it online the other day, so here it is mom.

A Family Expecting Guests--What To Do With Your Shoes

2009-09-11T23:41:00.000-07:00

Christina was raised in Guam and Singapore, not living in the United States 'till she was 11 years old. In those cultures the custom was always to take off your shoes when you enter a home or even some buildings. The culture in our country though doesn't have clear expectations in this area. And because there are no clear expectations there can be confusion when going into a person's home for the first time. I have walked into people's homes and made my way into the living room, only to be asked, "please go take off your shoes." I've also gone into a person's home, removed my shoes, only to be told, "oh go ahead and keep your shoes on." The custom is not clear. So here is what I have done to overcome the custom confusion. When I enter a home I look at the host's feet. If the host has shoes on, I leave my shoes on. If their shoes are off I will take them off. I take my cue from the family members that live in the home! Church life can have a lot of unfamiliar and undefined "customs", even if you were a Christian raised in a church, attending a new church will bring about an entirely new set of customs and expected actions. Therefore we as the family need to help our guests out by making it clear what our "customs" are. When it is time to sing, we should all sing--even if we can't sing, or if we don't know the song as well we can do what my choir teacher used to teach us, "even if you forget the words just keep singing quietly 'watermelon, watermelon.' People will still think you are singing:)." When it is time to fill out the "Connection Card" or to turn our "Connection Card" in we should fill it out and turn it in. Our guests will take their cues from the family. Remember you may be very familiar with church life, but not everyone is and the worst spot to be in is to be standing at the door not knowing what to do with our shoes. So help our guests out, not by saying anything, but by demonstrating our "customs." The guests will take cues from you the family, and just maybe they will one day take off their shoes, kick their feet up, and stay--as part of the family!

A Family Expecting Guests--Be On Time

2009-09-11T23:38:00.000-07:00

Andy Stanley once said, "A church should be and act like a family expecting guests." So recently in the weekly e-mail I send out to our church family I started a new section entitled: "A Family Expecting Guests"--I thought it might be of some interest to y'all to receive these little postings as well.

Most of us have been invited to another persons house for one occasion or another. When I go to someone's house for the first time I usually don't know what to expect. I am not sure about the food, or the temperature of the house. I am not sure if the conversation will go well or not. But here is what I do know, the person that invited me will be there waiting for my knock to open the door and welcome me in. What am I saying? When I am a guest I expect the residents to be waiting for me when I arrive. I won't have to wait on the door step, I won't have to let myself in, I won't have to sit there awkwardly petting the dog wondering if anyone is going to show-up. When a guest comes to our church it is nice for them to see that the family is waiting. A lof of us arrive late...later than many of our guests. I wonder what this communicates to our guests? Some of us have small children and their schedules can throw-us off. Others of us may run into some other quandary in our church preparation. There will be times that we are all late and for good reasons. But for a few of us maybe we have just never thought about the significance of a timely arrival to church. If that is the case I want to encourage each of us to consider in the weeks, and months, and years ahead that we are a family expecting guests and we want to make sure we are home before they get there!

2009-09-01T20:29:00.001-07:00

Greetings Y'all I am on Twitter, so if you want to follow me through twitter my twitter account is: cnstuart.

Keepin' It Real...Real Old With Another Heritage Singers Classic

2009-03-22T07:14:00.000-07:00

More from Pastor Carron

2009-03-21T09:14:00.001-07:00

What Items Should We Pack in a Church Bag?

Depending on the age of your child, you will need to pack the necessary items for his/her comfort. Ie. Bottles, diapers, etc.

Other things to include:

Wipes and/or hand sanitizer

Mess-free snack, like Cheerios (the perfect food, no crumbs, no grease, etc.)

Soft sided toys (nothing that makes sounds—no electronics)

Sabbath books

Felts books, stories

Coloring books, crayons (if bringing markers, use washable only)

TIP: Keep the Church Bag put away until Sabbath; adding a new item every so often. That way, they won’t tire of it too quickly. It remains special, like Sabbath itself!

ALSO: There are some Sabbath bags in the Library that may be checked out for that day only.

New Children’s Nursery Opens Sabbath, March 7!

We are so excited to announce the opening of a new nursery for the children of our church aged 0-3. This will be a place for parents to drop off their children with caring adults during the worship service at times when the children may need to “get the wiggles out.” We remodeled the old Parent’s Room to better suit the needs of our growing church family. The nursery workers will be able to hear and see the church service as well as sing and pray with the children when the congregation sings and prays, et cetera. The nursery will be open every Sabbath (with a few exceptions) and parents can also use it to change a diaper or settle a child for a few minutes before going back into church. Sherrie Jacobsen is the nursery director and is dedicated to using the nursery as a “stepping stone” for children and parents to use on their way to learning to be a part of Family Worship.

"Family Style Worship"

2009-03-21T09:13:00.001-07:00

“Family Style Worship” What Is It? and Why We Want It?

“Family Style Worship” has become a popular phrase in the Christian world today. It means worshiping as a family. It includes everyone, from the newborns to the seniors and all ages in between. It is a coming together of all church members to worship, praise, sing and learn together, as one family unit. Sound familiar? Of course! We, as Seventh-day Adventists have been using this style of worship for decades. We just never thought to “coin a phrase” or market the idea.

When we come together Sabbath morning, we bring all ages into the Sanctuary for the worship service. Most parents pack a “church bag” (again, we should probably patent this), that includes quiet books, soft sided toys (to keep the noise level down) and Cheerios (or other non-messy, non-greasy, finger foods) and other necessary items. We try to keep children as quiet as possible, teaching them at an early age to treat the worship hour as a special time with Jesus, respecting those around them. We also teach our children to walk in the Sanctuary and to speak softly, (we teach these same principles in any public store), always remembering that Jesus loves them and wants them to be in church with Him.

When our children get too loud to hush, or they are crying inconsolably, we quietly smile and take them out to the foyer so as to allow those around us the ability to enjoy the service. When our children are quieted down, we reenter the Sanctuary and begin again. It is an ongoing process that sometimes takes years of up and down, in and out, but the lesson is well worth the effort. And children do learn it! I remember fondly, packing the church bag, and entering church with my two girls and “tag-teaming” with my husband as we took them in and out of the Sanctuary. It wasn’t long before they were sitting all the way through the service. (But if we forgot the church bag, we were in trouble!)

Although it may seem frustrating at times, and it may seem like you will never hear an entire sermon again, remember that what you are teaching your children is equally important: The love for, and respect of , Jesus. You may wonder if they CAN learn to be in the Sanctuary for that long of an amount of time, and the answer is YES! Keep in mind, they sit in the car seat, they sit in the grocery cart, they sit for a story, etc. And you will have the Church Bag! (for tips on the church bag, see side story.)

There are, however times, when you may need to give them a break and step outside of the Sanctuary. Or, your little one may be going through an especially hard phase and need more space. And that is why we started a nursery last year, under the direction of Sherrie Jacobsen. She was using the Chapel, off the foyer, but we have now remodeled the old Parent’s Room and that will now house the nursery for children ages 0-3. (See related article below.)

God Bless you, parents, in your endeavors to bring your children up in the ways of Christ Jesus. Your efforts will be rewarded! We hope that we, as a church family, are helping you. Helping you to bring your children, not only to Sabbath School, but to Big Church as well, so that the whole family can worship together in this bright new idea, called Family Style Worship!

`Carron Kuns, Children’s Pastor

Reflections on the story of David and Bathsheba: Deal with the consequences

2009-03-15T00:24:00.000-07:00

The last thing I wanted to mention. Sin is forgotten but consequences remain. We live in a society where the acceptance of an apology is expected to also let people off the hook. We need to learn from the Lord...especially with young people, we forgive and even forget the sin, yet we still allow the consequences to carry through. Something I value greatly about my upbringing and I believe it has made me a better person now--I never felt unloved! Never, I always knew my parents loved me, but that love rarely dismissed the consequences. If I got in trouble at school, even if the teacher had been unreasonable, I still had to pay the consequences at school and at home. If I missed homework or didn't do my homework in a timely fashion, I wasn't bailed out, my parents never did my homework. I paid the consequences of having to learn through a poor grade or having to sit out recess. We need to learn forgiveness on this earth does not always mean abdication of consequences. So let your kids, let yourselves learn the hard way, but let them know while they are going through it--like Nathan said to David, "You are not going to die." We mess-up. We have to maybe pay the consequences here, though at times God even spares us in those areas, but if He doesn't and we or our kids are suffering through the consequences always remind them and us, "you are not going to die." In other words--ultimately we pay the consequences here, but in Christ Jesus the ultimate consequence was paid on the cross, and we call that mercy--unmerited favor!

Reflections on the story of David and Bathsheba: It is ALL against God

2009-03-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

Next, let us all remember the words of David, "I have sinned against the Lord." That is where it all starts, let us always keep that in perspective! I am only affecting me, no we are affecting God too. This is between my family and me...and God too. All sin is sin against the Lord first and foremost. Rather than rationalizing it out (which I know I do to often), just be honest...this is a big mess up against God. I think if we start there we will find the ending peace of mind, heart, and maybe even results much better.

Reflections on the story of David and Bathsheba: Abuse of Power

2009-03-13T00:19:00.000-07:00

A third point we don't see Bathsheba resist, nor do we hear of her consent--everything seems to be of David's will and desire. Dr. Richard Davidson at Andrews University has written on this as a form of Power Rape. Where men (or we would probably even have to say women now) that are in an authoritative position use their position to pressure folks into unsought after sexual encounters. If any of you have power think about how you use it. Whether it be sexual or even non-sexual; just b/c there isn't a "no", does not mean it is your right to assume a "yes". Think of how we request things of our subordinates, more time, more work, things that go above and beyond job descriptions...they may not say no, but do we know that they won't say no because of our power. It may not be David's sin, but abuse of power in any form is destructive. I speak to myself in that too.

Reflections on the story of David and Bathsheba: What roof are you strolling on?

2009-03-12T00:16:00.000-07:00

Part II:

The text also said, he went up for a walk in the evening. At the seminary one of the great benefits was getting to engage with so many different kinds of people, from all different places around the world. And in one class we had a young man that had served in the middle east as a missionary and another that was from the middle east. And they were sharing with our class about how the culture even to this day dictates that you do not walk on the roofs of houses at certain times of the day due to the likely hood of seeing bathers. They said David would have known this and was aware what he may "happen" to see. An interesting thought--the old days of pornography--we can take just a casual stroll as well, through the internet, a book store, video store, etc.. We call it innocent, oops how did I end up here...we know where things are and when those things will be most tempting, just like David did. We all need to be careful!

A Little Old School

2009-03-11T18:30:00.001-07:00

Hey Y'all,

Here some old school Heritage Singers...this takes me back to Saturday afternoons in Angwin, CA.. At that time I was always wondering, "when will Sabbath end and we can turn this craziness off?" Now, I search for videos like this to remember and sing along!

Reflections on the story of David and Bathsheba: Go to Work!

2009-03-11T00:13:00.000-07:00

I want to spend a couple days sharing some thoughts on the story of David and Bathsheba: First of all he was at home when it said King's went out to war. It is true that laziness or carelessness in work leads to other destructive behaviors. In Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell, he shares that social scientists have noted as one of the factors in decreasing the out of control crime in NYC in the early 90's was in part a result of the Welfare reform under Bill Clinton that forced many folk back to work. What were we taught, "Idle hands are the devil's tool."? So are you struggling with some things, maybe look into what is going on at work? Are you still putting your all into your career. It is a thought.

My Stunning Wife

2009-02-18T12:38:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow is my wife Christina's birthday, and in recognition of that I want to share a few thoughts about the value of a quality woman. The older I get the more I realize the absolute gift of my wife! She is not perfect, nor would she ever claim to be, but she fits me well. She represents to me in so many ways the description of the Proverbs 31 woman. My heart trusts her completely. She is unassuming and never one that seeks to draw attention to herself. I see so many women, even Christian women that go out of their way to make sure they are recognized, that they are central in conversation, Christina does no such thing; her humility builds my trust in her. The only attention she desires is mine and her sons, and she is content with that. She is also as is described in Proverbs 31 a woman that works hard. No one could EVER accuse my wife of being lazy or unproductive. She sets her hand to a task and works hard to see it through to completion. She does as Proverbs 31 says, "rises while it is yet night" to get ready for work and head off to save lives. I also appreciate that she takes care of herself, Proverbs 31:22 reads, "She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple." I think what that text is saying is that she takes care of her appearance...not in an arrogant way, but in a way that honors the beauty God has given her. I value my wife and I thank God because in the above ways and so many others she sets an example to me to continue to grow towards Jesus. Christina, "many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."
Happy 30th!

Some Quotes I Appreciate:

2009-02-07T16:01:00.000-08:00

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed." ~ Gandhi

"I know God wouldn't give me anything I couldn't handle. I just wish he didn't trust me so much." --Mother Teresa

"A wise architect observed that you could break the laws of architectural art provided you had mastered them first. That would apply to religion as well as to art. Ignorance of the past does not guarantee freedom from its imperfections." --Reinhold Niebuhr

"Christianity has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried." --G.K. Chesterton

"Every calling is great when greatly pursued." --Oliver Wendell Holmes

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them." --Mother Teresa

"I am more afraid of my own heart than of the pope and all his cardinals. I have within me the great pope, Self." --Martin Luther

"A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus." --Martin Luther King Jr.

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." --Martin Luther King, Jr.

"I've read the last page of the Bible. It's all going to turn out all right." --Billy Graham

"I tremble for my country (CHURCH) when I hear of confidence expressed in me. I know too well my weakness, that our only hope is in God." --Robert E. Lee

"If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this." --C. S. Lewis

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt." --Abraham Lincoln

"Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren't very new at all." --Abraham Lincoln

Sabbath

2009-01-23T22:02:00.000-08:00

Some quotes from "The Sabbath" by Abraham Joshua Heschel

"The higher goal of spiritual living is not to amass a wealth of information, but to face sacred moments." (p. 6)

"Time is man's greatest challenge. We all take part in a procession through its realm which never comes to an end but are unable to gain a foothold in it. Its reality is apart and away from us. Space is exposed to our will; we may shape and change the things in space as we please. Time, however, is beyond our reach, beyond our power. It is both near and far, intrinsic to all experience and transcending all experience. It belongs exclusively to God." (p. 99)

Speaking Truth to Power

2009-01-19T01:40:00.000-08:00

January 19th is Martin Luther King Jr. day. I don't know how you feel about the holiday, but I hope you pause on that day to remember that there is a time and a place to speak truth to power. There is a time to stand-up for right even when it brings suffering. There is a time to embrace the oppressed even when the laws of the land subjugate them further. There is a time to remember that we are all God's people. I watch this speech every year to remind me of these realities. Take 17 minutes if you have never seen this before:

Welcome...

2009-01-15T15:00:00.000-08:00

This is my second welcome on this blog, because my wonderful church family is receiving the link to this new blog. So thank you for stopping by, I hope you will be back! Feel free to comment, discuss, argue with me, or say nothing.
You will find on here that I will be talking about politics, sports, and of course God and church...oh and I am sure a number of other things! Please don't hold my foolishness against me. Enjoy!

Chad

Yes We Can...and Did

2009-01-12T23:09:00.000-08:00

The speech that caught the attention of many and set a course to The White House.

7 Days Left, Just Leave Him Alone!

2009-01-12T22:37:00.000-08:00

This is our President. He is our President for the next 7 days. So I wish we would give him the respect a President deserves. If you want to comment on his failed plans or the areas where you feel he has erred in judgment, then do so. Please though do it with respect, addressing the ideas and not denigrating the man. Whatever you or I may think of his policies he served the United States in the highest most pressure packed position in the world for 8 years, and for the willingness to serve those 8 years for that alone he deserves our appreciation. Let him leave office peacefully! One of the noble realities of this country is that we can vote for a change in the political landscape and actually see it take place. But an even nobler reality for mankind is to win and keep one's mouth shut! I am sick of the polls showing again and again that George W. Bush is the most disliked or disapproved of President ever. We get it, now let it drop. I am disappointed with where our country is at, I believe he has played part in that, some decisions have disappointed me, but at the end of the day, I find myself respecting him, because for the next 7 days, he is still my president. I say we let him go back to Crawford, TX--thanking him for his service and letting history be the ultimate judge, we have enough issues in the present to waste breath and brain power saying how horrible someone is (Please take note Sen. Harry Reid--he's gone the political war is over, now do something with your new power!) let us utilize our minds to find a way to recovery.
These are my ramblings.

Books of '08

2009-01-01T22:28:00.000-08:00

So I have obviously been really swell about keeping up with this Blog. Maybe I should make a resolution to do better in the New Year...I think I did that last year...but I have forgotten...oh resolutions, so easily stated, so easily forgotten! Well, I am writing this to list some of the books I read this year that I enjoyed (to copy my buddy Rodlie over at modern Ekklesia.

So here goes:

"Tipping Point" --Malcolm Gladwell

"Truman" --David McCullough

"Launch" --Nelson Searcy

"Activate" --Nelson Searcy

"The Automatic Millionaire: Homeowner" --David Bach

"The Sabbath" --Abraham Joshua Heschel

Here is my goal this year...to not start so many books without finishing them. If I finished the books I started I could have listed quite a few more I liked. There are some I did read that aren't worth mentioning...and why I finished those and not some great ones I am not sure, oh well.

New Chapter

2008-12-04T00:33:00.000-08:00

I am beginning a new chapter in life, and thus a new blog. I actually have begun several new chapters as of late. I moved to California, became the Senior Pastor of the Visalia Seventh-day Adventist Church, and most importantly became the father of Dayton.

So these are my new chapters. In this blog you will probably read about The Trinity, Spirituality, Religion, Church Work, Sports, Politics, Books, my Family, etc.

Enjoy the journey with me.

Chad