However, I would like to.  Before MLK, blacks had to drink at “colored” drinking fountains, use “colored” restrooms, pick up food at the back door of restaurants, sit in the back of the bus IF there was room.  If not, they could either stand or not be admitted at all.

Martin Luther King had a dream of his people being treated fairly. Equal. With respect and dignity.

Has his dream been accomplished?  To some degree.  But I still see that our churches are segregated.  I have a new vision for 2012.  It’s for my church because I cannot cast the vision for any other church.  My vision is for racial reconciliation in my church.  I want to see blacks and whites and Hispanics worship together — after all, we worship the same God.

I attended a beautiful service yesterday at the New Christian Church near Greenevers.  What a celebration.  They were clear on the past — they discussed the horrors the blacks suffered at the hands of the whites.  But the awesome part is their clear on their future.  It’s a bright future and a future of freedom.

I hope it’s a future of unity.  Unity in worship.  We have “let them in” (those words nauseate me, just so you know) our schools, on our busses, and at our restaurants.  It’s time to involve them in our worship.  We worship the same God, and heaven will not be segregated!

This will offend some of you, and that’s fine. It’s where I am, and where God is leading me.

And that’s how it looks from here, in a nutshell.

Then came my fall.  And when I fell, I fell flat.  And then came the judgmental attitudes.  I would stand on my front porch and watch people drive by who had been friends and they wouldn’t dare look my way — maybe for fear of contaminating themselves.

Then came God’s redemptive grace.  One thing I had to learn was how full of grace God really is.  It doesn’t matter how many times you have fallen, God isn’t keeping a score book saying, “oops, that’s one too many.”  He’s waiting with grace to forgive.

I read in Amos today.  An obscure book that many of you would have problems finding.  In chapter 2, it seems God is on a roll of calling everyone to judgment.  Moab, Judah, Israel — all called into judgment.  He says, “You have sinned again and again and I will not let them go unpunished.”  On and on he lists the sins of the people of these lands.  All judgement, all sending them away, all turning his back on them!

Then in chapter 5 I found it!  Finally God’s grace comes through.  I knew it had to be there.  He says in verse 4 “come back to me and live.”  Wow!  You mean the ones who have sinned again and again?  You mean the ones that you’ve turned your back on?  Yep!  That’s the ones.  Come back to me, and you will live!

God loves us, he puts up with our faults and failures and even our falling.  He has grace there abundantly and available for all of us, no matter how many times we have fallen.  He issues the call to you, “come to me, and live.”

And that’s how it looks from here, in a nutshell.

I didn’t live through the great depression, obviously, and my parents have explained how terrible it was.  But you know what I hear when people talk about the Great Depression?  Family.  Faith in God.  Those were the things that got them through.

I wonder what we are depending on today.  Do we trust in the government to get us through?  It will eventually fail.  We need to all realize that when all around us fails, we can still depend on God.  Even your family will fail you, but God never does. 

Oh that we would understand this lesson.  Often we have to go through something like a depression to get us to realize our need of Him.  Let’s learn it early and often so we can be ready for the tough times before they actually hit.

And that’s how it looks from here, in a nutshell.

Was 2011 as good as or better than you had hoped?  It was for me!

Did you have an “error free” year?  I didn’t!

So looking back on it, how do we treat those mistakes?  Can we change them?  Well, I’ve not found a way to do that.  Do we ignor them?  That’s an easy way to deal with them, although arguably not the wisest way.  Or should we build on them and make sure we don’t repeat them?  Now, there’s a plan.

Whether it’s financial mistakes, moral mistakes, family mistakes, job related mistakes or others, the important thing is that we recongize them, and learn from them. 

Sweeping them under the rug just makes dirt accumulate under the rug. 

I think we should hit them head on and recognize we have failed and then learn from them.  Paul said he put the past behind him (and he had a pretty bad past), and pressed toward his ultimate goal — heaven!

That’s my prayer for 2012.  I want to have learned from 2011.  Not that I will be perfect next year because I certainly won’t, but God willing,I won’t make the same mistakes that I did last year!

And that’s how I see it, in a nut shell.

How often do our prayers start with selfish questions, request, motivations?

Our prayers are often so short that the can only include our quick request of need. However, we need to realize that our prayers do start with God and should start with glorifying him. He is worthy of all of our praise.

And that’s how it looks from here, in a nut shell.

Well, the jury is still out on it, but his premise from the very first pages of the book is that our concept of serving Christ is nothing like what Christ actually taught.

I often wonder what is God’s concept of who we are and what we are doing.  Is our emphasis what Christ’s would have been?  He taught 12 men consistently.  As soon as his “church” grew, he talked of sacrifice and went back to the original 12.

I am asking God to use this book to teach me.  I am trusting that it will change my heart, not just my head.

And that’s about it, in a nutshell.

This morning, as I was reading my way through 1 Timothy, it occurred to me that we need to obey God’s word.  I wonder if sometimes we read something and say to ourselves, well he didn’t mean that for today.  That was then, this is now.  It’s interesting the things God says to the Bishops and Deacons of the church in I Timothy 3.  It’s interesting what he says about their spouses!

And yet we dance around it.  I wonder how our lives would change if we would stop dancing!  I wonder if we were to stop and ask about our lifestyle, does it line up to what God has said.  Is it a fair representation of HIS will and HIS word?

God help me to be more Bible accurate in all I do.  In my words, my thoughts, my deeds, my life!  I pray that You will be glorified in me, just as the song I’m listening to right now is saying.

And that’s about it, in a nutshell.

Paul speaks of the hope we have in I Timothy 1:15.  He states that even though he was a terrible sinner, in fact, he claims to be the worst, he received mercy so he could be an example of receiving eternal life.  That’s hope.

We can have that blessed hope of eternal life because He has seen fit to save us.  And to that, Paul said “Hallelujah!”  We serve God here on earth, life for Him, enjoy His blessings, but our ultimate goal and blessing is spending eternity with Him.  That’s the greatest thing that has been offered to us.

And what a hope it is!  It’s better hope than the President gives us and better hope than the miners had.  It’s the hope of eternal life and enjoying the best gift that is given us from God.

Let’s live like it!

And that’s about it, in a nutshell.

Paul talks in I Timothy 1:12-14 of the same problem.  He makes it clear that he wasn’t qualified to be counted faithful by God and appointed by God into His service.  He then lists his past sins that he was guilty of.

I look at what Paul is saying and realize that I am not qualified to hold down the job of the Minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Now, I have friends who are spotless.  I have friends who could say that they’ve always been faithful and always done exactly what God’s will is, but I can’t say that.  I have a spotted past.  Just like Paul!

However, Paul says that the grace of God was poured out on him abundantly.  I feel kinda like Paul.  I needed an abundant supply of God’s grace.   A little might not have done the job.

I do know this.  My failings and rebellions against God have made me more understanding to those who do have a spotted past.  I feel more compassion to the one who is wayward.  I find it easier to walk in the shoes of those who are hurting.  And while there are many people who would feel I am disqualified to serve in my position, I thank God that he considers me faithful, appointing me to his service.  Just like Paul.

And that’s about it, in a nutshell.

As I thought about this, I think I understand what it means.  I think that Timothy was speaking against comparing who has the best heritage!  In other words, you cannot get to heaven because of the heritage you have.

I believe that heritage is very important, don’t get me wrong.  Today happens to be my mother’s birthday!  She’s a godly example of love.  She lives her life pleasing to God and that’s her life goal.  But that doesn’t get me into heaven.

Grandma pulling Kyler Up Hill

So, what do we need to learn from this verse?  You cannot bank on your heritage.  You can appreciate it, and try to follow it, but that does not give you a free ride into heaven.

Heaven is based on your relationship with Christ.  Hopefully your heritage has taught you that.  Hopefully you were taught from a young age that the most important thing in your life is to have a close personal encounter with God.  Until you have that, your heritage is wasted.

And that’s about it, in a nutshell.