Looking Back on 2011

On the last day of 2011 I am finally doing what I have thought about doing for the last two weeks; writing a few thoughts about the year that ends today. My buddy Mark Wingfield gave me that last bit of inspiration I needed. He writes so well and so often and I really enjoy reading his notes. Thanks Mark and hope you keep notes coming!


Here is my lookback:


Early 2011 was a little rough as my Mom passed away in January. She had suffered for several years with COPD and we all knew that the day of her passing would not be far away. It was difficult, especially for my Dad as he said goodbye to his bride of 60 years. Mom was personally ready to go and had that peace of God that Jesus gives right to the end. I know she is with the Lord.


The year brought some more death of people I knew well. Bruce’s Dad, Cecil passed away in March. We all miss Cecil, especially at the Coffee House this year as he used to wear his powered Santa hat and make us all laugh. I also lost a very special friend right before Thanksgiving, Mr. Tom Bass. I spent some great days with Mr. Bass over the last few years. That man taught me a lot and he did it with very few words. I will miss him greatly. I would love to see his face at the table that is set before him now!


At the beginning of 2011 Jordyn got involved with the Richmond Christian Youth Theatre (CYT). She was in two shows and loved it. We enjoyed the process as well and even all the trips to Richmond were fun as we spent that extra time together. We knew Jordyn would be leaving for college in the fall so we tried to squeeze in as much family time as we could this year. Speaking of college, in preparation for those financial challenges, Becky went back to work (outside of home and church) in May after many years devoted to being a teaching Mom and Volunteer Church Administrator.


Jordyn left for Liberty University in August and has completed her first semester as a resident student. She loves it and is doing quite well if I may brag about my daughter. Before she left for college we enjoyed our annual beach trip with Johnny and Pat, Ryan and Holly and Amanda even made it with Jaelynn in tow. That was a great week as always.


2011 was year seven for Community Christian Fellowship. Once again God amazed me through the people that are CCF. I would mention specific church events, worship services, bible studies, prayer meetings, service projects, or the fact that more were baptized through CCF than any other previous year (guess I just did) but it sounds like I am talking more about our accomplishments instead of God’s work. It is all God. Little CCF is part of God’s massive Kingdom here on earth and it is good and just so awesome to be a part of His work. “This is the LORD's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.”- Psalm 118:23


As 2011 came to a close for CCF we had our annual Christmas Coffee House and on Christmas Eve Eve, CCF had a first ever impromptu “Christmas Pageant.” It was fun and a blessing as we worshipped the Lord remembering the indescribable gift of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.


On Christmas Day my new baby granddaughter arrived! Zoey Maria Rivera was born to Amanda and Josh and Jaelynn has a little sister. Beck, Jordyn and I were able to head down to Fayetteville the day after Christmas and see that beautiful child! Wow! What a way to end the year! Amanda and baby are doing great and Josh is not on deployment (praise the Lord!) so he is able to be with his family.


As 2011 began I read a biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas and was inspired to focus more on personal self-denial, really taking up my cross and following Jesus. Looking back on 2011, I know that self did not like that idea at all and resisted constantly but on the eve of 2012, the call is the same. I still hear Jesus say “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”


Another year, another chance to die.  I’m preaching about that tomorrow. I pray I can live it in 2012. Happy New Year!

An Unexpected Trip to Bizarro World

Today I drove my Dad to an appointment and while I was sitting in the waiting room the surreal feeling that I once again, was in the “Bizarro World” began to come over me.

The first thing I suddenly found bizarre (although it is becoming rather common) was the obnoxious presence of two wide-screen HD TVs in a small (relatively speaking) room. I noticed my Dad’s voice apparently yelling at the receptionist and then realized that he was not “yelling” but forced to raise his voice over the sound of the televisions and the “surround” sound that was piped through the ceiling speakers. Where was I, “HH Gregg?”

It seems like not long ago that waiting rooms consisted of softly playing“Musac” and “Field and Stream.”

Not that I particularly cared for either of these entertainment choices of yesteryear but it was the ambiance that one expected in a “waiting room.” Never thought I would actually miss that, but I guess those days are gone.

So as I settled down for a protracted wait, I wished I had brought a book to read but wondered if I could have pulled that off anyway in such an environment. The sound was overwhelming!

And what I  heard through the cinema-style speakers, and saw on the wide-screen televisions was the most bizarre element of my whole experience. CNN.

It was CNN and it was bizarre.

Before you label me as an ideologue or hater, know that I used to watch CNN all the time. Way back when the voice of James Earl Jones simply stated “THIS IS CNN.”

I can remember rushing home from work in the 80’s to follow the Iran-Contra Hearings on CNN and watching (and taping) live coverage of the Gulf War in the 90’s as well as following major political campaigns and other big stories through CNN’s coverage.

It was not extremely difficult to detect the liberal slant buildingthrough the years but even with that, you could still get NEWS on CNN. They were in fact “The Worldwide Leader in News." But today, what I saw and heard emanating from CNN was…well, bizarre.

The particular “news” program that was on today was reporting the attack of Anderson Cooper as he tried to cover the story in Egypt.

That in itself is newsworthy but it didn't take long for the coverage to descend into the Bizarro World. The “anchor” began playing clips of David Letterman and Conan O’Brien “yucking it up” about the situation in Egypt climaxing with O’Brien sarcastically wondering about the safety of American journalists in Egypt and how we could “get Glenn Beck over there?”

While such “humor” is expected on late night comedy shows, the look of glee on the CNN anchor’s face while these clips played was nothing short of (repeated for effect) bizarre.

And then as  this “news” program continued, emphasizing the crisis in Egypt, a CNN contributor “reminded” listeners that although “schools were closed, the police force had quit, wide-spread looting was rampant, food was in short-supply, all cameras except for the ones operated by the Egyptian government were banned, and the death toll was climbing because the sheer violence in the streets was continuing to escalate,” it really wasn’t “that bad” over there. Really?

Should we at least consider the importance of the Suez Canal or the statement of the Muslim Brotherhood to its members to “Prepare for war against Israel?”

Should we just maybe, report some of those facts? Maybe keeping in mind a cursory knowledge of world history?

 What about the revolution in Iran in 1979? It didn’t turn out as Utopian as some hoped. Neither did the Weimar Republic in Germany or what followed, the Third Reich. How about some rather notorious regimes like Hitler? Mussolini? Stalin?  How about Mao Tse-Tung in China? How many people died as a result of these regimes?

These men (and their ideas) all rose to power when the people shared a common denominator: a desperate desire for revolution.

And lest we say “but what about the American Revolution? That turned out pretty good!” Remember, those revolutionaries fled to a whole different continent to start a new life. The radicals wishing to force their ways on us followed us to the new land…they came here to fight.

I hope the best for the Egyptian people but I fear that they are ripe for a radical power-grab. Should we not at least inform people of this possiblilty?  What I saw on CNN today was more like the coverage of an anti-war rally from the sixties in America getting a bit out of hand. And to be fair, I have seen a little of this on other “news” channels as well.

Sure, Mubarak may be a dictator but did Obama and Hillary just make that discovery? Or did they just find out that we give the Egyptian government 1.3 billion in aid annually? Ooops! And please don’t say this is a partisan rant.

I know full well that this has been going on for 30 years so the aid is not Obama’s fault alone. The government probably has very strategic reasons for pumping all that money that we don’t have into the Middle East but how does this make sense with the sanctimonious demands for freedom in Egypt now?

Don't forget that the President made his first official international visit to Cairo. Did he demand Mubarak step down then? Or at least make the revelation that the people of Egypt were ruled by a brutal despot?

What are we going to do if there is an uprising in China? Discover a long-lost disdain for communism and demand freedom for the Chinese? Shhhh! Don't you know we owe them almost a trillion dollars? We have to be nice!

I personally think we need Glenn Beck’s voice in this country. Someone who is willing to consider facts. He reports the very words of the players in this very serious game. Their own statements and creeds. Not talking points. Not naïve hopes of a sudden desire for “democracy” to make everything OK. And again, I know this administration's rhetoric is nothing new from an American President.

Glenn Beck doesn’t even claim to be a journalist but at least he tells the truth to the people. I may not agree with all of his opinions and predictions or theories but his perspective comes from documented fact. I personally like truth. 

But yet today I see an anchor on the gentile and compassionate CNN that is working hard to “tone down the hateful rhetoric” beaming at the thought of Beck being beaten in Egypt! Bizarre indeed…and I was forced to continue watching…and listening.

 And then came the CNN coup de grâce: A giggly “Hollywood reporter” excitedly talked about the President’s Super Bowl Party and how Mark Anthony and “J-Lo” were on the guest list.

The “anchor” then joins in with the giggle fest and agrees with the Hollywood girl in dreaming of being on “that guest list!”

While this may interest many and one might expect such material on “The View,” “Inside Edition” or “Entertainment Tonight,” watching this display on CNN as the Middle East teeters on the verge of anarchy gave me that too familiar sensation that I had been transported to the “Bizzarro World.”

And then, none too soon, my Dad came out from the back, apologizing that I had to wait so long. “No problem” I said but couldn’t help but silently rejoice that my little trip was coming to an end and as Dad and I drove home, we talked… a lot! And that was good. I had successfully escaped from the world that seems to lurk in every venue of life...that crazy little place that can only be described as the Bizarro World.

Postscript:

My “Bizarro World” observation is just that, an observation. Egypt is on the southern border of Israel. That in itself makes it a very serious situation so I will continue to follow the news (when I can find it). I am interested but do not fret. Despite any level of violence or threats of any kind, I believe the ultimate outcome in the Middle East is declared in the word of God. For another one of my blogs on U.S. and Middle East relations check out a post of my observations from 2009:

http://thewaxle.blogspot.com/2009/03/as-many-knowpresident-barack-obama.html

Meeting Time

This past Sunday was weird.We didn’t have worship service at CCF. Along with many churches in our area, the snow put a halt to our normal activities. Not having worship service on Sunday was even more significant as we had not met during the week before Christmas either.

It was a strange Sunday. I wrestled with regret for not having a meeting of some kind during the week and wondered how we might manage to have an extra service in the coming week. Hopefully our CCF Family has been able to enjoy some extra time with family and friends but it’s Christmas right? “Jesus is the reason for the season” and all that…you know, if you are a Christian you “should” be in church at Christmas. Even people who never attend church any other time of the year go at Christmastime.

“Why didn’t you all have a Christmas Eve Service?”

These are some of the thoughts and questions that have been looping through my brain over the last 48 hours or so.

A pastor’s mind can sometimes drive a person crazy!

It was really good to have extra uninterrupted family time. We laughed and ate and Jordyn and I watched a lot of football and laughed some more when Becky said “The Giants just don’t look right in green and gold!” (she thought the G on the Packer helmets was for Giants). My wife is an awesome woman but definitely NOT a football fan.

We certainly made the most of the snow day but I was unable to completely escape the questions and concerns that I incessantly ponder this time of year about worship services, special events, etc. Like I said, I sometimes drive myself crazy!

I finally gave up thinking about it last night and escaped into a book that I received as a Christmas gift. “Bonhoeffer- Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy” by Eric Metaxes. As Christianity Today accurately says, it is a massive biography so I only read about one fifth of the book last night. I have read Bonhoeffer’s writings before but not a biography. From Metaxas’ book, I am getting a better understanding of this compelling figure of modern history. Bonhoeffer questioned the status quo. He was raised in a family that placed great importance on the truth and as a result, his theological studies alone would not satisfy his soul. The very existence of theology suggested the existence of God. And if God was, then knowing Him had to be more than religious exercise. The church had to be more than just a place for ritual and formality. The God of the universe could not be confined to a building or organization. Bonhoffer observed, in his day, that the church had become “the most grandiose of all human attempts to advance towards the divine.” And further stated that it is“far too easy for us to base our claims to God on our religiosity and our church commitment, and in doing so to utterly misunderstand and distort the Christian idea.”

 Of course Bonhoeffer was observing a different culture and time. The German Lutheran Church in the 1920’s was probably quite different from the average evangelical church of America 2010, but the principle is the same. The Christian “idea” is that God came to us. This is Christmas right? At least what Christians say is the reason we celebrate.  The Word became flesh and we received grace and truth through the person of Jesus Christ.

Our religiosity may be less formal but just as capable of serving as a distorted substitute for an actual personal relationship with God, which is the most incredible gift and only hope that any of us have.

As much as I love my church (and I do). As much as I love worshipping with, praying with and preaching the word at CCF, it is all about the real and living person of Jesus Christ. He is. He has always been and He never changes. He never leaves or forsakes us. He is never snow bound or hampered. Nothing slows down or prohibits Him. He is not dependent on us keeping our scheduled worship services intact.

Along with the instruction to preach the word, pray together, worship together and love one another, God’s word also says: “Be still and know that I am God.” “Come unto Me all who are weary and heavy laden.” “Pray in secret.” To His disciples He reveals the “secrets” of the Kingdom and scripture promises that God will judge the “secrets” of man in Christ Jesus. He is personal and involved in every aspect of our personal lives.

He is the God who revealed His glory in the Temple and promised that the gates of Hell would never prevail against His church.

He is also the God who ministered to Elijah in a cave, appeared to Moses in the wilderness, rescued Jonah from the belly of a whale and revealed His future plans to the Apostle John while he was in exile on Patmos.

He has been faithful to His own in the cathedral and the dungeon. The King’s Courts and the slave quarters. He makes poor and makes rich. Brings low and exalts. There is no place where He does not see and the darkness is as light to Him.

His Spirit knows no bounds and He is unimpressed with the loftiest expressions of religion, largest of churches or number of meetings.

He runs to the humble and heals the broken. He is love! He is life! He is salvation! He is our righteousness! He is! When we worship and when we don’t. When we meet together and when we don’t. When we “have church” and when we don’t.

Our most grandiose attempts to reach the divine have failed but He has reached us!

In human form, with all the fullness of God, He came to us as a servant and although our sins had separated us from God, He made peace by the blood of His cross. In His body of death He has reconciled us to God. By His resurrection He has defeated the last enemy, death. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together and still He stands at the door of our hearts and desires personal fellowship with us! You! Me! Think about that. During this time when we can’t meet together, I have been reminded that the Lord of the universe stands waiting to meet with me. I hope you have too.

If He is willing, I will see you soon. We will sing to Him, pray to Him, talk about Him and celebrate Him together! 

Time to Post

2010 is almost gone. Wow. What a year it has been for the Burton family! We even went to Narnia! OK, it was Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs (we were there in April).
As usual my blogging has been lacking. My last entry was lamenting the end of summer and now here we are on the verge of Thanksgiving! It has been quite a year and looks to finish with a real bang.
My oldest, Amanda, her husband Josh and my grand daughter Jaelynn are in town and it has been great to see them some. My brother-in-law, Ryan is getting married the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend and then of course, the Christmas festivities begin and take us blazing into 2011...whoa!
Just amazes me how time keeps moving faster. The Lord is good and we keep trusting Him. He is good and His mercy endures forever! I am so glad that my God is not intimidated by time. He is not intimidated by anything!

Where Did Summer Go?

I haven't blogged in quite a while so I thought I would write a short one. About time right DP?
Seems like I have been busier than ever. Don't know if I really have or I am just older and get tired quicker.
It has been a good Summer. Hot but good. We took our annual family beach trip and enjoyed it immensely. I did some serious reading and had some great time with the Lord. No cellphone. No computer....I needed that. Probably need a lot more of that.
Jordyn and I have not played much tennis this Summer. She is a busy girl...working and everything else and it has been super hot outside. We did go to the court this past Sunday night and played a set. It was so fun.
Maybe we will get some time in when the weather breaks a little but since she is starting college that could be a challenge. Oh well. There are certainly more important things than tennis.
Every year about this time I get a little sad that Summer is winding down and this year is no exception but I am excited that Beck and I will celebrate 20 years of marriage this September! I love that woman. She is simply the best! And she is my wife. Wow! God is so good to me!
Amanda has been here most of the Summer while Josh serves in Afghanistan. We have enjoyed spending time with her and our granddaughter Jaelynn.

CCF is always cool. I love being a pastor!
God is always working and we have been blessed to see Him continue to move and work in Community Christian Fellowship. We love our family in Christ and look forward to seeing what the Lord will do next in and through the believers of CCF.
So that is about it for this one. Did not have any philosophical comments or observations on my mind. Just checking in. Sometimes it's cool to go back and look at old posts. Kind of like a journal. Man I wrote some lengthy ones in the past. Once I get started sometimes I can't stop (just ask the people I preach too!)
See you soon!

In The Clouds

Beck, Jordyn and I had the opportunity to travel to Colorado Springs last week and we were amazed at what we saw. First, the reason why we went: Amanda had a baby! Yes, I am a grandfather...kind of freaky.
It is another one of those milestones in life that reminds me how fast time is flying and how fleeting this life is.
I can remember like it was yesterday, the first time I met Amanda. I went to see Becky (I was in love...still am) and she crawled up on my lap, looked me dead in the eye and said: "Are you Jim Burton?" She was 2. That was 20 years ago.
Now Amanda is a mother!
Her daughter's name is Jaelynn Isabella Rivera and she is beautiful and healthy, by the grace of God.
For more pics of our trip and to see Jaelynn click on my wife's blog: http://www.beckums.blogspot.com/
Amanda and Josh (her husband) are doing well. Josh is an officer in the Army and currently stationed at Fort Carson. They hope to be moving much closer to Virginia before too long but for now they live in beautiful Colorado Springs so we got to go there.
So while we were in Colorado Springs last week, we visited a couple of popular sites. Garden of the Gods and Pike's Peak. The above picture was taken from about 13,000 feet, near the summit of Pike's Peak. In the  clouds. It was awesome. 
We were "in the clouds" all week, literally, spiritually and emotionally. God is awesome. As the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1: "His invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made."
He made it all. Pike's Peak. The Garden of the Gods. Amanda. Jaelynn. Me...and you. He made it all and it (you and me included) all belongs to Him. Psalm 24:1
"The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof,
   the world and those who dwell therein."
Have you acknowledged your maker? The One by whose will you live and move and have your being? This awesome Creator has revealed His eternal power and divine attributes in the things that He has made and He has revealed His divine love through His Son Jesus Christ.
Even though mankind saw the mountains, the sea, the stars and the miracle of  new life, we rebelled against God. 
We all went our own way. We all broke His Holy Laws. We all alienated ourselves from the very God who created us...but He still loves His creation so He made a way for us to be reconciled unto Him.
Jesus said "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes unto the Father except through Me." 
The Bible says there is no other name given under heaven by which men might be saved other than the name of Jesus. 
He took our sins. He took our rebellion. He took our shame. He took it upon Himself and went to the Cross. Laying down His life. Shedding His blood. Dying a criminal's death and paying our price. He rose again on the third day, defeating death and He has ascended into heaven and has all authority in heaven and on earth and one day all will know this. 
The Bible says that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus is coming again to judge the living and the dead. The One who made those peaks. The One who knit together Jaelynn in Amanda's womb. He is coming. What will you say when you stand before Him?
Look at His creation. Look at your life. Look at your heart. Confess your sins and your need to be forgiven. Repent and trust Jesus to save you. He will lift you from the pit into the clouds! 

Investment Strategy

Have you seen any of these commercials recently about buying gold? They warn of the falling dollar, rising debt and volatile stock market while talking about the solid value of gold.

Yesterday Becky and I were eating supper and the TV was on when an ad for “goldline.com” came on. It depicts a professional looking couple in their mid 30’s, preparing some dinner maybe, as if they just got in from “the office.”

They are discussing money and the man says something like “Maybe it’s time we rethink our investment strategy.”

I started pondering this statement. “Maybe it’s time we rethink our investment strategy.”

The ad was obviously designed to convince people with stocks or savings of some kind to consider investing in gold but I began to think about my own investment strategy. I have no stocks to worry about or other monies that I need to be careful with but I have been blessed with very valuable commodities. We all have.

One very valuable commodity that we all are given is time. Time is so precious. We are only given a certain amount and we only have one chance to invest it.

It is not hard to see, in our day, that much time, if not most of our time, has been invested in earning money. So we can have things…more things…bigger homes…newer cars…security for the future. Is this really a wise investment of our time?

What have we sacrificed for more money? Many times we trade our one and only chance to raise our children for more money. Is that a wise investment of our time? Has this strategy been good for our families?

We sacrifice time with our spouse in this endless pursuit of money. What kind of returns have we received on this investment? Dividends of broken homes and shattered lives, but we have more money! Guess the divorce lawyers are getting that return.

 We foolishly put very little investment into the most precious of earthly relationships and then wonder what happened. Why didn’t it work? Where did we go wrong?

Marriage and children are precious gifts. We would be wise to rethink our investment strategies in these areas.

And if we are courageous enough to rethink our strategies to invest the precious commodity of time, what about our faith? How much of our time are we investing in such a precious gift as our faith?

There seems to be less and less time left in our ever busy schedules to invest in our faith these days and so many appear to be trapped in the relentless cycle of busyness. So consumed by this world.

The Bible says that our faith is more precious than gold and the outcome of our faith is the salvation of our souls. So how can we invest time in our faith?

If we really would rethink our strategies and invest less of our time in the pursuit of money, we are, at the same time, cultivating and exercising the precious gift of faith so its genuineness may be tested.

If we consider what scripture says is valuable instead of all the other influences and desires that we follow, the constant pursuit of money is just not a priority.

But what about our stuff? What about our standard of living that we have worked so hard to achieve? What about our retirement goals? Education and travel plans?

The Bible says the world and its desires are passing away but the one who does the will of God will abide forever. I believe that is why Jesus seemed to care so little about obtaining money. Why he said that God considered the successful farmer who built bigger barns to store his crops a fool. Why Jesus said not to worry about what we would eat or wear….that a man’s life does not consist of the abundance of his possessions.

Maybe that is why Jesus said even to sell your possessions and give to the poor and provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old. Treasures in heaven.

Time to rethink our investment strategies?

1 Peter 1:3-9

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.