Much has been made over the years of how literally to take the Sermon on the Mount - should we really do exactly what it says, or is there a fair amount of interpretation that must be done?  Personally, as I've studied for our current sermon series, I think that the answer's fairly complicated: both answers are correct.

On one hand, Jesus means precisely what he says.  We shouldn't take revenge, and the meek will inherit the earth, and we shouldn't worry and on and on and on.  At the same time, though, we need to understand that this was a sermon, and so Jesus gave illustrations and examples to teach the principles he was getting at.  Therefore, our goal is to live out the principles, even if the exact situation Jesus describes is tough to find a parallel for in our world.

Such is the case in Matthew 5:33-37, where Jesus talks about oaths.  Technically speaking, we make vows all the time: any written or binding legal contract falls under the umbrella of a 'vow' that we can make.  And last time I checked, swiping your debit card at Wal-Mart is the equivalent of signing a contract that you will pay for the products you're walking out of the store with.  So when Jesus told us that we should not make any vows, he meant it, even if it doesn't make as much sense in today's world as it did then - but there's a principle for us to apply.

The fact is that we should be people who can be trusted, because we are people who consistently tell the truth in whatever situation we're in.  We should be the types of people that can look anyone in the eye, because we're not afraid of the ramifications of telling things how they are.  The spirit of making a vow ('seriously man, I swear I'm telling the truth!') goes totally against that principle - you shouldn't have to swear to anything!

I bring this up because recently, I was faced with a tough decision: a person I have a great deal of respect for asked me to do a favor for him, and it was a favor that would force me to trust him.  A lot of people would be skeptical of what this guy was telling them, but for me, I've learned that this particular individual is worth trusting.  He is a man of integrity and respect, no matter what the situation is, and so he doesn't need to promise me anything - I trust him at his word.

I would like to hope that other people would afford me the same opportunity, and I would hope that the life that I lead is one of integrity.  The question you need ask yourself is the same I ask myself: can I be trusted?

And if that's not enough, well then, I promise I'll come up with something else...

We've done quite a bit to promote Camp Mocomi the past couple of months, and as camp season comes to an end this week, it seems like a good time for a bit of reflection.  I know for me personally, it's really hard to pick up for five days and expect to come back hitting the ground running again - the week is simply physically, mentally and spiritually exhausting, and it's very difficult to get back in the swing of things after a week away.

With all that being said, however, I cannot begin to describe just how worth it that exhaustion is.  At ACC, we truly believe that God wants us to Connect, Call and Cultivate, and a week of Camp Mocomi is a microcosm for that aim.  The Connection comes from the kids who are from a variety of churches (and some, no church at all!); the Calling comes through the worship and sermons and classes; the Cultivation is not simply for the kids who are already Christians, but for the workers, since there's no better way to grow as a Christian than to serve.  In five days, there's every aspect of what the Church has been instructed to do, and it's amazing to see God work.

Of all the craziness and ridiculous things that go on at camp (and believe me - there's a lot of it), perhaps my greatest joy comes from seeing people who are involved in our ministry ministering to others.  See, being a Christian is not something that's intended to simply bless us.  Instead, our Christianity should affect those around us, and through our example and our lives, other people should come to a faith in Jesus Christ.

That's why four of the baptisms this week meant more to me than any others - not only this week, but maybe ever.  At camp, each student has the opportunity to choose someone to baptize him or her into Christ, and the decision, we tell them, should be based on someone who has helped lead them to the decision they've made.  That's what makes it so cool that Josh Pugsley, Frankie Lightfoot and Leah Goudschaal (twice!) were asked to baptize students into Christ.  Check it out:







The bottom line is this: for my brothers and sister to, in five days, help lead students to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, they're doing something awfully right!   And good news is that you and I can do that in our lives every day!  I absolutely love it when you guys, as the members of Ashland Christian Church, have baptized your husbands and wives and sons and daughters and mothers into Christ - there's no better feeling for me, personally!

So, the question is pretty simple: who do you know personally that needs to know Jesus?  The answer to that question will dictate who you're going to Connect and Call and you are Cultivating in your own life.

Next week is the 5th and 6th grade week at Camp MOCOMI, and that can only mean one thing: I'll be out of the office and out of town from Sunday through Friday.  Never fear, though, loyal blog readers: I have everything under control!

For the next four blogs, I'll be sharing the morning devotions from next week.  Sure, they may not entirely make sense, since you aren't in fifth grade at camp, but hey - you can interpret, right? 

The theme for the week is 'Storyline,' so we'll be focusing on different Biblical stories and how they relate to the story of each camper.  For our morning devotions, we're diving into the story of Peter, one of my most admired of all New Testament figures (hey - you've got to love a guy who's as terrible at life as I am!).  So, without further ado, pretend it's Monday, June 15, and you're at Camp MOCOMI....

The Story of Peter
Day One: Leaving Everything Behind
Luke 5:1-11 

If there was anything that Peter knew, it was fish.  He might not have been the most handsome man or the smartest, and he might not have been what we like to call ‘socially aware,’ but if you put that guy on a boat with a net, he could get you a healthy meal and a fine living! 

If there was anything Jesus knew, it was that Peter knew fish.  And so it came about that when Jesus wanted to turn the page on his friend’s life in a powerful way, He used what he knew and loved to show that God wanted to know and love Peter.   

It happened like this: it was early in the morning, and Peter had just had a rough night.  Fishing’s like that sometimes: you do everything right, and at the end of the day, you come away with nothing.  He and his crew were cleaning up, getting ready to head home and get some sleep, when they saw Jesus walking on the beach.  And in those days, when you saw Jesus walking somewhere, you’d see something else: an enormous crowd of people!  Jesus was as popular as the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, and cast of ‘High School Musical’ all rolled into one, and so everywhere he went, hordes of people would follow. 

This was nothing new to Peter; after all, he had spent nearly the last year following Jesus everywhere He went.  Peter had learned over the past twelve months that there was something different about Jesus, something that no one else had ever seen.  When He taught, He did so with a passion and enthusiasm that made you take notice, and He performed miracles that no one had ever imagined before.   

With the crowds closing in all around Him, things often got hectic when Jesus tried to teach, and so on this particular day, Jesus employed the help of his friend.  He asked Peter to hang around a little longer, and He taught the people while He stood in Peter’s boat on the water.  When He was finished, He asked one more request of Peter: try to catch some fish one last time. 

Now, if there was anything Peter knew, it was fish, and since he knew fish, he knew that this was the craziest request in the world!  After all, the type of fish he was after were only active at night, considering the fact he hadn’t caught anything, they weren’t even active then!  Peter was cranky, tired, and wanting to forget the previous night had ever happened… but he decided to trust Jesus and He did what He said. 

Life is funny like that sometimes: we may be confused, or we may think we have all the answers.  We may be in a foreign environment, or we may be at home in our beds.  But no matter where we are and how we feel, there’s one thing that we can allows rely on: we can trust Jesus.   

When Peter trusted Jesus, he was amazed at the results - after all, he caught the greatest haul of his lifetime!  But more than anything, seeing what Jesus was capable of and who He truly was caused Peter to take a look at himself, and he didn’t like what he saw.  He saw a man who was arrogant, and he saw a man who didn’t like being told what to do.  He saw a person who thought he had all the answers, and who selfishly looked out for his own wants and desires over the needs of others.  When Peter looked at himself, he saw a person a lot like you and I.  He saw a person who desperately needed Jesus in his life. 

This week, we’re going to explore a lot of stories, but the most important story we’re going to explore is YOURS.  Jesus called Peter to a life of service, a life that would count beyond this world and this existence; and He has called YOU to the same.  Take a look at Jesus.  Take a look at yourself.  Now answer this question:

Are you ready to trust Him?

When I was ten years old, it was the single coolest thing I had ever seen.  Unfortunately, when I was still playing with it twelve years later, something probably needed to change.

I can still remember how excited I was to get the Super Nintendo when I was a kid - it was not only the greatest Christmas present I've ever recieved, but it was something that I had pined after for months and months before.  There was nothing like the Super Nintendo in 1994 - it boasted 'Super Mario Kart,' which had Mario and his friends racing in Go-Karts; it had 'Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball,' in which the Cincinnati Reds actually WON  more than they lost (at least when I played);  it had 'NBA Live '94' and my brother Neil and I could build ficticious teams called the 'Mod Squad' and the 'Sqaud Squad' and play for hours on end (there was also a theme song we created for these epic battles).  The Super Nintendo was absolutely amazing.

Unfortunately, for the next decade, I never upgraded my video game system.  The Sega Saturn came and went, as well as the Nintendo 64 and the Playstation I (at that point, it was simply called a 'Playstation' - no number needed), and while the rest of the world enjoyed crisp graphics and deeper gameplay, I continued to plug away at side scrolling 2-D action and flat sports players.  Sure, I dabbled in high school with the better systems, playing with friends and all that, but as far as my primary video game system went, the SNES was where it was at.

By the time I graduated college and bought a house, the XBOX and Playstation 2 were old news, and so my late night affairs with Zelda and Mario and Ken Griffey Jr. were embarrassing, to say the least.  While it didn't bother me in the least, I was, apparently, the butt of many a joke by the youth group, and so one Christmas a few years back, they decided to chip in and buy me the PS2.  I have to admit, the games are a whole lot better, and the Reds can win just as easily on 'MLB 09' as they can on 'Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball,' so all in all, it was a great gift.

Well, one of the games that I quickly fell in  love with was 'Guitar Hero.'  Guitar Hero, if you're out of the video game loop, is a game where you play songs with a controller shaped liked a guitar.  It's dumb and silly... and ridiculously fun and addicting.  Of course, there came copycats, and soon, 'Rock Band' came out with guitars and drums and mics and all sorts of pretend music family fun.  

Of course, I'm weirdly loyal when it comes to mundane things like video games, and so I refused to play Rock Band.  I played nearly every Guitar Hero game, but Rock Band was unacceptable - since I had played Guitar Hero first, I could only assume that it was vastly superior.  Recently, though, Stephanie's brother Jonathan bought Rock Band and we've been plowing through it.  It was then that I was startled with a discovery:

They're the same game.

Honestly - outside of an aesthetic difference or two, the games play the same, sound the same and feel the same.  Sure, Guitar Hero seems a little more challenging, but for the most part, the games are twins.

I give you all this useless video game information because of what we're talking about for the next couple of months at church: Jesus has called us to live radically different lives than the world around us.  We should be as different from the world as the PS2 is to the SNES: we should be living better, emotionally and spiritually healthier lives.  No, we aren't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but we should be setting the bar for morality, ethics, love and compassion; we should literally be living heavenly principles here on earth.

Unfortunately, far too many Christians are as different from the world as Guitar Hero is from Rock Band.  Sure, there's a different name and maybe a superficial change or three, but at the end of the day, it's the same life.  For many believers, their relationship with Jesus has been compartmentalized to the point that He affects little to no aspect of their lives outside of when they're at church... and that's exactly what Jesus did NOT teach.

For the next couple of months, we're going to learn just how we can live PS2 lives instead of SNES lives, and I couldn't be more excited about it.  The choice, is ultimately up to you, however, as to whether or not you'll be that different person that Jesus wants.  It's an upgrade, for sure, but it couldn't more worth it in the end!

Now, with all that being said, who's buying me a PS3 this Christmas!? 

We call him Bad Bronson.  The reason, is simple: Bad Bronson is not very good.

This week was my birthday, and with my beloved Reds doing battle with the mighty St. Louis Cardinals at the same time, it seemed like God had spoken: I was to go to the games.  I know, the Major League Baseball schedule is not quite a burning bush, but still - it was good enough for me.

My dad and I went Tuesday night, and Bronson Arroyo was pitching for the good guys.  Now, Arroyo is Cincinnati's resident rock star/fun loving/groupie flocking/All-Star pitcher, and no matter what, when he pitches, it's always interesting.  He had just come off of a complete game victory five days before, and that's Good Bronson, the guy everyone loves.  He's the guy who routinely is among the league leaders in innings and wins, and he's the guy we were hoping for.

It was not to be.

Bad Bronson is the other guy, the guy who last season gave up 1o runs in one inning in Toronto, who only recorded three outs and lost 15-3 to Milwaukee this season, and who sported the worst earned run average among the Reds top four starters.  Bad Bronson is no fun to watch as a Reds' fan, and unfortunately, Bad Bronson is who showed up Tuesday.  Within three batters, the Cardinals were already up 1-0 en route to a 5-2 win, and it was obvious all night: Good Bronson had stayed in Cincinnati, while Bad Bronson was on the road trip.

The maddening thing about Arroyo is his inconsistency.  It's one thing to root for a good player and it's normal to root for guys who aren't so good.  But what do you do with someone who's half  and half?  What do you do with someone who seems great at times and seems like he should be kicked off the team in others?

As Christians, it should be our goal to live consistent lives - we should live for Jesus Christ in every situation, no matter what our mood is.  It shouldn't matter if we've had a bad day or a good one, if we're happy or sad - being a Christian is a full time endeavor.  There should be no 'Good Christian' or 'Bad Christian' - we are, simply, Christians.

Tuesday also marked the release of 'New Again,' by Taking Back Sunday (one of the greatest bands on the planet).  On the final song of the record, singer Adam Lazzara croons about his much publicized breakup with one of the members of Eisley.  She is a professed Christian; he is not.  They called off their engagement after they moved in together, and while it's foolish to read too much into lyrics about breakups, it's hard for me not to cringe when I hear the lines,

"You quote the Good Book when it's convenient.  But you don't have the sense to tame your tangled tongue."

It's my prayer and honest desire that no matter where we are in life, no one will ever accuse us of being Christians only when it's 'convenient,' and that we are not hit or miss in our Spiritual lives.  The fact is that while no one is perfect, we can all consistently follow Jesus Christ to the best of our ability.  Because we DO fail all the time, it's imperative that we hold on to our faith for dear life - in every situation we find ourselves in.

After all, even though the Reds won the next night, I'm still a little afraid which Bronson is going to show up his next start!

There have been several times in my life when I wanted to completely give up on my faith.  It's not as if I doubted whether the Bible was true or not (my common sense and education has always convinced me of this), but sometimes, it just seems too hard.  It's tough trying to love a being that you can't see; it's tough fighting a battle we know is already lost, since we know most people will not give their lives to Christ; it's tough fighting instincts that seem so ingrained in our being that they are a part of us.  Being a Christian, in many ways, is difficult.

Last week, as we explored what our attitudes should be when it comes to the goverment legislating laws that reflect Biblical ethics, one thing that was lost in the discussion was this: what about the things which ARE legal, but are sinful nontheless?  What should our attitudes be towards people caught in those types of sins?  And specifically, what do we do with sexual temptation, considering we live in a society where sex is glorified and considered 'normal' for every person above the age of 13?

Obviously, this is a hot-button issue in the church, and it's one that many people want to avoid other than saying, 'sex is supposed to be saved for marriage.'  The problem with that type of thinking is simple: while the above sentence is factually accurate, it does nothing to answer the question of 'why?'  Why should sex only be a part of a marriage? Why shouldn't you experiment, fool around and figure things out in your formative years?  What's so wrong with acting on the urges that every person has?

To these questions, I find myself coming back to a specific Bible verse constantly.  In John's first letter to the church, he's describing love, and when he talks about our love for God, he says that we should obey God's commands... and then he adds, almost as an aside, that 'God's commands are not burdensome,' (see, in context, here).  In other words, when God tells us that we should do something or that we should not do something, He doesn't do so to hold us back from living an enjoyable life.  In fact, it's quite the opposite: God's commands are intended to free us from the oppression that comes from our sin! 

This is similar to when you tell a kid to avoid playing in the street; he may not understand, but you know that he may get hit by a car.  In the same way, God understands that while physically, sex may be fun in any setting, it's only emotionally and spiritually healthy within a committed, loving relationship.  So, God gave us a committed, loving relationship to enjoy sex in: marriage.

I can't help but think of a song by the phenomenal band, Brand New, when I think of this subject.  On their 2003 record, 'Deja Entendu,' they have a song called 'Me VS Maradona VS Elvis,' and in it, they describe a one night stand.  What I love about this song is that it doesn't glorify sex or sin, but instead, honestly examines the battle that people feel when they live lives apart from God.  I know that for me, I've experienced that battle (whether it's in this situation or not), and at the end of the day, the only place where I can find peace from it is in the love and forgiveness of my savior, Jesus of Nazareth.  The bottom line is that sinful actions hurt us, and THAT'S the reason that God has asked us not to do them.

I thought I'd share the lyrics to this song with you guys.  The line that stands out to me the most is 'If you let me have my way, I swear I'll tear you apart.'  It's true: when we get what we want and act on what we feel, we truly hurt the people around us. 

Me Vs. Maradona Vs. Elvis by Brand New

With one or two I get used to the room
We go slow when we first make our moves
By five or six bring you out to the car
Number nine with my head on the bar

And it's sad, but true
Out of cash and I.O.U's

I've got desperate desires and unadmirable plans
My tongue will taste of gin and malicious intent
Bring you back to the bar
Get you out of the cold
A sober, straight face gets you out of your clothes
And they're scared that we know
All the crimes they'll commit
Who they'll kiss before they get home

I will lie awake
Lie for fun and fake the way I hold you
Let you fall for every empty word I say

Barely conscious in the door where you stand
Your eyes are fighting sleep while your mouth makes its demands
You laugh at every word trying hard to be cute
I almost feel sorry for what I'm going to do
And your hair smells of smoke
Who will cast the first stone?
You can sin or spend the night all alone

Brass buttons on your coat hold the cold
In the shape of a heart that they cut out of stone
You're using all your looks that you've thrown from the start
If you let me have my way I swear I'll tear you apart
Cause it's all you can be
You're a drunk and you're scared
It's ladies night, all the girls drink for free

I will lie awake
And lie for fun and fake the way I hold you
Let you fall for every empty word I say

Being a Christian can be hard sometimes, and life doesn't always make sense.  At the end of the day, though, God has our best intentions in mind, and that truth is what we hold on to, no matter what.  Our lives truly are a battle against the world, but we WILL overcome when we hold on to Jesus!