On Friday and Saturday, July 20-21, 2012 The Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist Church will hold our annual Family Summit. This year's theme is, "Dear Daddy...I'm Moving Forward."
The Family Summit is a place where the community comes together to face some of the sticky issues that plague our families. This year, we will address the impact of our fathers' absence or presence in our lives. We are so excited that our neighbors at the First Rock Baptist Church are on board with us this year because we can't have these important conversations alone.
Fathers are designed to be the anchors in the family. Yet, far too many of us have never experienced what it's like to be anchored and covered by a man who seeks after God's own heart and leads his family as God leads him. Most of the ones who didn't cover us had no one to show them what a covering really looked like. As a result, they fumbled through fatherhood and made a fumbling handoff to the next generation.
We have seen fatherhood foiled by the same frustrating fumbles time and time again. As I asked last week, when will we stop going around in circles and finally move forward? Just imagine you were watching a football game and no matter who the players were, they fumbled at the same point, every time. You would probably not just shrug it off or adjust your expectations to accept it as normal. So why do we continue to accept family dysfunction without attempting to reverse the curse and cancel the cycle?
One of the sessions at the Family Summit is entitled, "I'm the Daddy Now! But Daddy Never Taught Me How...." That session is not designed to condemn fathers, but to commend those who are willing to see that they can't give what they have never been given. Instead of going around with empty spiritual and emotional tanks, we want to encourage fathers to allow the Lord to enter into their broken and empty places and fill them with the power of His holy Spirit.
When we come together and work through our common challenges we can begin to stop the cycle of anger, frustration and insecurity that has marred generations of good men and left too many families without an anchorman.
There will be special sessions for men, women, teens/young adults, and children. If you or your family are in the Washington metropolitan area, make every effort to be at this year's Summit. And, bring someone with you. The more people we have moving forward, the less we will have left behind.
The Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist Church
Annual Family Summit
Friday and Saturday, July 20-21, 2012
3000 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, DC 20020
e-mail myfamilysummit@gmail.com for details.
BNcouraged!
Rev. karen
A weekly posting of encouraging and challenging thoughts about life from Rev. Karen W. Curry, a pastor's wife and mother of two who is also --in her "spare time"-- a dynamic preacher, teacher, motivational speaker, facilitator, writer, reviewer, poet, MC, liturgical dance/drama consultant and storyteller. Contact Rev. Karen at BNcouraged247@msn.com to speak at your next service or retreat.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Will it Go 'Round in Circles?
Will it go 'round in circles?
Will it fly high like a bird up in the sky?
Billy Preston asked those questions in his song, "Will it Go 'Round in Circles," which was a number one hit on the Billboard chart in 1973.
Yes, it's an oldie, but a goodie. Unfortunately, as old as it is, it describes the direction of some of our lives today. Some of us simply go around in circles and never really move forward in life.
"Like a dog returns to its vomit, is a fool who returns to his folly." (Proverbs 26:11)
Some of us have become so comfortable having drama in our lives that we actually embrace it because we don't know how to live without it. We prefer to go around in circles because it will always bring us back to a familiar place.
Our fear of the unknown, fear of failure, or even fear of success causes us to give in to thoughts and emotions that lead us further into bondage. When we think we are "standing our ground" we are sometimes actually digging our heels into quicksand.
"On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand..."
No matter how "reasonable" our anger may be, if we allow it to overtake us and cause us to sin, we are simply spinning swift circles in slowly sinking sand.
No matter how unjustly we may have been treated, two wrongs will never make a right and to seek revenge would only put us at odds with the only true and righteous judge who has declared that "vengeance is mine...."
No matter how much someone tries to bait us into circular, pointless arguments, we must remember that "for lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down." (Proverbs 26:20) In other words, if we learn to stop feeding into the foolishness of others, it will eventually die down.
No matter how long we have resisted temptation and feel we deserve to yield to it "just this one time" we might find that our "one time" is one time too many, as it was for Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, and far too many others.
At some point, going around in circles should make us dizzy enough to say, "Enough!" and brave enough (or weary enough) to finally jump off. Jumping off the merry-go-round in mid-spin can certainly cause some bumps and bruises, but those growing pains will yield a great reward in the end.
I would rather endure growing pains from moving forward, then growing stains from digging deeper and deeper into the same hole.
Billy Preston asked two questions in his song. In fact, those questions were actually the refrain, which means he asked them over and over again,
Will it go 'round in circles?
Will it fly high like a bird up in the sky?
When it comes to your life, don't settle for silly circles. Don't feed into the negative emotions of others--or yourself. Let God show you how to rise above the torturous schemes of the enemy and "fly high like a bird up in the sky." The view is much better from there.
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
Will it fly high like a bird up in the sky?
Billy Preston asked those questions in his song, "Will it Go 'Round in Circles," which was a number one hit on the Billboard chart in 1973.
Yes, it's an oldie, but a goodie. Unfortunately, as old as it is, it describes the direction of some of our lives today. Some of us simply go around in circles and never really move forward in life.
"Like a dog returns to its vomit, is a fool who returns to his folly." (Proverbs 26:11)
Some of us have become so comfortable having drama in our lives that we actually embrace it because we don't know how to live without it. We prefer to go around in circles because it will always bring us back to a familiar place.
Our fear of the unknown, fear of failure, or even fear of success causes us to give in to thoughts and emotions that lead us further into bondage. When we think we are "standing our ground" we are sometimes actually digging our heels into quicksand.
"On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand..."
No matter how "reasonable" our anger may be, if we allow it to overtake us and cause us to sin, we are simply spinning swift circles in slowly sinking sand.
No matter how unjustly we may have been treated, two wrongs will never make a right and to seek revenge would only put us at odds with the only true and righteous judge who has declared that "vengeance is mine...."
No matter how much someone tries to bait us into circular, pointless arguments, we must remember that "for lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down." (Proverbs 26:20) In other words, if we learn to stop feeding into the foolishness of others, it will eventually die down.
No matter how long we have resisted temptation and feel we deserve to yield to it "just this one time" we might find that our "one time" is one time too many, as it was for Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, and far too many others.
At some point, going around in circles should make us dizzy enough to say, "Enough!" and brave enough (or weary enough) to finally jump off. Jumping off the merry-go-round in mid-spin can certainly cause some bumps and bruises, but those growing pains will yield a great reward in the end.
I would rather endure growing pains from moving forward, then growing stains from digging deeper and deeper into the same hole.
Billy Preston asked two questions in his song. In fact, those questions were actually the refrain, which means he asked them over and over again,
Will it go 'round in circles?
Will it fly high like a bird up in the sky?
When it comes to your life, don't settle for silly circles. Don't feed into the negative emotions of others--or yourself. Let God show you how to rise above the torturous schemes of the enemy and "fly high like a bird up in the sky." The view is much better from there.
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Oh, Wow! I AM My Brother's Keeper!
"Am I my brother's keeper?" is an age-old question raised when someone wants to declare that it is none of their business what happens to their brother or neighbor. The question is not really a question but a statement that declares, "I don't know what or how my brother is doing, I'm not responsible for anything he is doing, and I really don't care how he is doing."
That seems to be the flavor of the day every day for those who declare that their riches are theirs and theirs alone, and that everyone else (their "brother") merely has to pull themselves up by the boot straps in order to gain anything in life. Nevermind that their riches are often built on the backs of consumers (brothers) who will never afford the life of luxury experienced by those at the very top of the pyramid. Furthermore, with no one filling out the bottom level, there wouldn't even be anything in place to support the top.
Even more disheartening is that some who claim to be Christian have somehow overlooked or outright ignored God's instructions to us regarding how we are to look out for the poor and our neighbors and persons from other countries.
Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the Lord your God....Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight...When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19:10, 13, 33)
Contrary to prevailing capitalist views, God has made it clear that we are, indeed, our brothers' keepers. The life God has blessed us with is not an every man for himself rat race where only the strong survive. It's a one for all and all for one situation, exemplified most poignantly by Jesus' death on the cross--one man dying for all to have access to the One.
God also declares to us that we are to show hospitality to aliens or strangers because we all were once aliens. How quickly and conveniently have we forgotten that, except for Native Americans, every other "American" is here as the result of an alien (many illegally) that came or were brought here to what was foreign soil centuries ago.
Let us never forget that we cannot serve two masters--God and money--or we will love one and despise the other. We see that at work in our relentless drive to acquire the most money and the most toys with no regard for those whose circumstances do not lead them to the road of financial or material success.
The current state of the economy is now opening eyes and ears that were once blind and deaf to the plight of those less fortunate. Now, we have former loan officers facing foreclosures themselves, and consequently coming clean about the dirty tactics they once used to lure and trap people into bad loans. Now the lenders and the borrowers are both suffering and in need of compassion.
And, now we can see that some people are suffering financially, not because they were lazy, greedy or irresponsible, but because they were not financially savvy enough to sort through the double-talk of those who knew exactly what pipe dreams they were selling. The last time I checked, fraud was considered a crime, not naivete.
Perhaps now those of us who call on the name of the Lord will return to His Word for guidance that will help us weather this financial storm. Perhaps the storm will finally begin to lift after more persons repent and come clean about their roles in "defrauding their neighbor or robbing him." (v. 13)
God not only holds us accountable for how we treat our neighbors, He also has clear expectations regarding how we treat those who are foreign. How many Christian political officials keep Leviticus 19:33-34 in mind when addressing our current immigration challenges? From the looks of things, not enough. How many even look to Leviticus 19:14, "Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, fear your God. I am the Lord" when considering accessibility issues? The part of that verse that says, "fear your God" says that God is intensely serious about how we treat persons who are disabled or differently-abled.
At the end of the day family and friends, there is no way around it. Yes, we know that God, the Great I AM, is ultimately our brother's and everyone's keeper. But, according to God's Word, not only is "I AM" my brother's keeper, but I am, too.
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
That seems to be the flavor of the day every day for those who declare that their riches are theirs and theirs alone, and that everyone else (their "brother") merely has to pull themselves up by the boot straps in order to gain anything in life. Nevermind that their riches are often built on the backs of consumers (brothers) who will never afford the life of luxury experienced by those at the very top of the pyramid. Furthermore, with no one filling out the bottom level, there wouldn't even be anything in place to support the top.
Even more disheartening is that some who claim to be Christian have somehow overlooked or outright ignored God's instructions to us regarding how we are to look out for the poor and our neighbors and persons from other countries.
Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the Lord your God....Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight...When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19:10, 13, 33)
Contrary to prevailing capitalist views, God has made it clear that we are, indeed, our brothers' keepers. The life God has blessed us with is not an every man for himself rat race where only the strong survive. It's a one for all and all for one situation, exemplified most poignantly by Jesus' death on the cross--one man dying for all to have access to the One.
God also declares to us that we are to show hospitality to aliens or strangers because we all were once aliens. How quickly and conveniently have we forgotten that, except for Native Americans, every other "American" is here as the result of an alien (many illegally) that came or were brought here to what was foreign soil centuries ago.
Let us never forget that we cannot serve two masters--God and money--or we will love one and despise the other. We see that at work in our relentless drive to acquire the most money and the most toys with no regard for those whose circumstances do not lead them to the road of financial or material success.
The current state of the economy is now opening eyes and ears that were once blind and deaf to the plight of those less fortunate. Now, we have former loan officers facing foreclosures themselves, and consequently coming clean about the dirty tactics they once used to lure and trap people into bad loans. Now the lenders and the borrowers are both suffering and in need of compassion.
And, now we can see that some people are suffering financially, not because they were lazy, greedy or irresponsible, but because they were not financially savvy enough to sort through the double-talk of those who knew exactly what pipe dreams they were selling. The last time I checked, fraud was considered a crime, not naivete.
Perhaps now those of us who call on the name of the Lord will return to His Word for guidance that will help us weather this financial storm. Perhaps the storm will finally begin to lift after more persons repent and come clean about their roles in "defrauding their neighbor or robbing him." (v. 13)
God not only holds us accountable for how we treat our neighbors, He also has clear expectations regarding how we treat those who are foreign. How many Christian political officials keep Leviticus 19:33-34 in mind when addressing our current immigration challenges? From the looks of things, not enough. How many even look to Leviticus 19:14, "Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, fear your God. I am the Lord" when considering accessibility issues? The part of that verse that says, "fear your God" says that God is intensely serious about how we treat persons who are disabled or differently-abled.
At the end of the day family and friends, there is no way around it. Yes, we know that God, the Great I AM, is ultimately our brother's and everyone's keeper. But, according to God's Word, not only is "I AM" my brother's keeper, but I am, too.
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Oh, No! Go Slow on Lolo!
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Olympic runner Lolo Jones' bold confession that she is a virgin who views sexual intercourse as a special gift reserved for her husband.
I commend her stand and recommend that we look to her example of courage and committment in the face of relentless societal pressure to have pre-marital sex.
It was brought to my attention, however, that there is a photo of Lolo in the nude, which could send a seriously mixed message about her stance. Thankfully her private parts are not at all visible in the photo, and there is always the possibility that it is a doctored photo and not even her at all. But, I encourage parents to take it slow in sending your children to the internet to learn more about Lolo.
Make sure you look up articles and not images. Most of the articles will already contain her image, so you don't have to look up her image separately and risk seeing a photo you might find offensive or confusing to the abstinence message you want your children to take away.
If the photo is real, we have a job to do--and that job is to seriously pray for her. She is a young lady who seems to have the right intention and has the world's attention, which would make her an excellent target for the enemy to try and move her in the wrong direction.
In the meantime, if we need any more fuel for helping people stay abstinent until marriage, just look to Oregon where the Associated Press reports that a 49-year-old woman was just awarded $900,000 from a 69-year-old retired dentist who infected her with the herpes virus. They reportedly met on E-Harmony and had sex on their fourth date.
Family, friends, let's not fall for the hype that says because we are adults we are "grown and sexy" and can do whatever we want to do. When God instructed us to flee fornication there was no age limit placed on that directive. And, the last time I checked, the word "flee" meant to move quickly and deliberately far away from, to escape or run away.
Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
1 Corinthians 6:18-20.
There is too much at stake for us to let something God gave us that was designed to be so beautiful and life-giving become the subject of lawsuits, scandals, heartache and death.
God expects us to do better and I think our families, communities and future generations deserve better. I'm not trying to condemn anyone. I pray that I'm helping someone who might be single and your hormones are starting to tingle. Sex is a powerful drive, or as some would say, it's "the bomb." So, if you possibly can, hold out for the bomb, don't settle for a firecracker.
If you are looking for a way of escape, prayerfully this message is the encouragement you need. Just hold on just a little while longer and God will make it more than worth the wait.
They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength
They shall mount up with wings as eagles
They shall run and not be weary
They shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
I commend her stand and recommend that we look to her example of courage and committment in the face of relentless societal pressure to have pre-marital sex.
It was brought to my attention, however, that there is a photo of Lolo in the nude, which could send a seriously mixed message about her stance. Thankfully her private parts are not at all visible in the photo, and there is always the possibility that it is a doctored photo and not even her at all. But, I encourage parents to take it slow in sending your children to the internet to learn more about Lolo.
Make sure you look up articles and not images. Most of the articles will already contain her image, so you don't have to look up her image separately and risk seeing a photo you might find offensive or confusing to the abstinence message you want your children to take away.
If the photo is real, we have a job to do--and that job is to seriously pray for her. She is a young lady who seems to have the right intention and has the world's attention, which would make her an excellent target for the enemy to try and move her in the wrong direction.
In the meantime, if we need any more fuel for helping people stay abstinent until marriage, just look to Oregon where the Associated Press reports that a 49-year-old woman was just awarded $900,000 from a 69-year-old retired dentist who infected her with the herpes virus. They reportedly met on E-Harmony and had sex on their fourth date.
Family, friends, let's not fall for the hype that says because we are adults we are "grown and sexy" and can do whatever we want to do. When God instructed us to flee fornication there was no age limit placed on that directive. And, the last time I checked, the word "flee" meant to move quickly and deliberately far away from, to escape or run away.
Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
1 Corinthians 6:18-20.
There is too much at stake for us to let something God gave us that was designed to be so beautiful and life-giving become the subject of lawsuits, scandals, heartache and death.
God expects us to do better and I think our families, communities and future generations deserve better. I'm not trying to condemn anyone. I pray that I'm helping someone who might be single and your hormones are starting to tingle. Sex is a powerful drive, or as some would say, it's "the bomb." So, if you possibly can, hold out for the bomb, don't settle for a firecracker.
If you are looking for a way of escape, prayerfully this message is the encouragement you need. Just hold on just a little while longer and God will make it more than worth the wait.
They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength
They shall mount up with wings as eagles
They shall run and not be weary
They shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31
BNcouraged!
Rev. Karen
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)