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Sermon Podcast – “Walking With a Stranger”
Date: April 27th, 2014 At The Brainerd Lakes Salvation Army Corps.
Also available for free download via itunes/podcasts/brainerdcorps

Luke 24:13-35 (NIV) 13 Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him. 17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 “What things?” he asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” 25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. 28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” 33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

“Walking with a Stranger”

April 27, 2014 0

A Little RobBellion…a Jesus Show or Sell-out?

I’m open minded…and hopeful.
Recently, famous preacher, thinker and author Rob Bell announced via numerous social media sites that he would be beginning a new television show. Relevant Magazine reported it here: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/tags/rob-bell. Rob’s new television show will be called simply “the Rob Bell Show”…interesting. He’s also on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/therealrobbell

Again I’m open minded, but images like these pop into my head when I think of “Christian” television shows:

Anybody else?

I don’t want to prejudge something before it happens. I don’t want to think the worst, but I physically shiver when I think of the likes of Jimmy Baker and the “golden” throned TBN channel…I seriously hope that his show doesn’t go THAT way.

on the other hand…

I really hope Rob Bell’s new show doesn’t become a Universalist show where everything is embraced as truth. That notion to me is also troubling.

Again, I don’t want to prejudge the new show before seeing it, but I have to wonder were Rob Bell’s critics right? Has he sold out?

I have been seriously challenged by his books (yes I’ve actually read them). Some of Rob Bell’s critics even rushed to write books to challenge His book “Love Wins” before they had even read it or even before it even hit the bookshelves in stores. His book was more about asking tough questions like ‘does God’s grace actually extend far beyond our human grace and our understanding?‘ and less about dispelling doctrinal and bible truths. Rob Bell asked more questions than he did present some “heretical theology” like some had assumed of him and that of his teachings.

Still I wonder about this whole tv show thing.
I wonder if the lure of courting fame has taken its toll.
I wonder about a lot of things.

Unlike many of the critics of Rob Bell, I’ve been truly challenged by him.
I have found him to be honest and refreshing.
I have found him to be a break from the old fashioned traditional molds of what the “Christian Teacher” should look like.

Was he just a trend?
or was he for real?

I guess time will tell. Like I said at the beginning I am keeping an open mind. I’m hopeful.
After all, the Christian church has certainly had its fair share of sell-outs, wanna-be’s and phonies.

My only fear in all of this is that if this doesn’t pan out and his television show is all Universalist wishywashy mumbo-jumbo …how many people will it lead astray?

Again…for now, I’m hopeful and waiting with an open mind.

April 25, 2014 0

TOUGH QUESTION: Do you REALLY know your Enemy?

Matthew 5:43-45 …“You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ 44“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.…”

April 24, 2014 0

TV Review of CW’s “The 100”

I’m a sucker for Science Fiction television shows. If you’re anything like me then perhaps you have your DVR set to record many offerings within this genre too. I’m still upset after all these years that they canceled Firefly

I digress:

The new television show “The 100” follows a group of young people (It’s like Peter Pan’s “Lost Boys” meets “Lord of the Flies”) who apparently were all imprisoned for being rebellious while on Earth’s final hope, the space station, which has been orbiting Earth for nearly a hundred years.

Earth nearly destroyed itself through nuclear war and those who survived on the Space station currently don’t even know if Earth is able to sustain life yet. So they send the prisoners…oh here’s one more catch – the Space Station is quickly degrading and running out of oxygen. The population on the Space station has outgrown the original design of sustaining life.

back to the prisoners –

They are sent to earth in a space pod (wow they can fit a hundred people in that thing? that must be cramped!) and each of the 100 has been given a vital signs life tracker on their wrist.

The adventure begins and the world isn’t as empty as they once suspected. There are others living on the ground that ironically the 100 pod-people label “grounders” (how original).

Long review short –
There is suspense. The directors and creators of the show ensure that you are clinging to your seat and take nothing for granted because ANYTHING could happen. Sure, it’s a teen/young adult catered audience…most actors look like aeropostale or abercrombe and fitch models…but death and betrayal permeate the plot like a pair of stinky gym socks in a locker-room.

Society and Culture:

For me, one the underlying themes of this show is that anarchy reigns within the 100 although there are a few trying to keep the order and peace. Some have their own selfish agendas, some are power hungry, and some are just psychopathic killers…this really bodes well for us on post-apocalyptic Earth! Another message – don’t trust a bunch of teenagers and young adults with an important mission to go to Earth in the hopes of saving the human race. As a matter of fact don’t trust ANY of these (or many) of these “criminals”.

It is rather telling that the Adults in Space also have ulterior motives, plots lead to real curve balls and just when you think you figured out where the writer is taking the story you get kicked to the curb.

Conclusion:

If you like a little drama/soap opera with a Science-fiction flair then perhaps you’ll like this show. One word of caution though, the writers seem intent of killing off numerous characters as the episodes continue so don’t get too invested in many of the sub-characters because anything could happen. It’s a roller-coaster sort of ride, there is some adult themes from time to time so parents please be advised!

My grade – I give it a

But what do I know, I’m just a Sci-fi Junkie who is still bitter Firefly was canceled.
let me know what YOU think, respond below with your comments. I’m interested in your television recommendations and thoughts.

April 24, 2014 0

Beware of the Relapse

“But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” –2 Corinthians 11:3

Christ-follower beware!

Salvation
is freely available…BUT

It
can
be

We have
this thing
called

Free Will
allows us to
choose It allows us to
live beneath God’s

Here is
a
Truth:
A Relapse

into

is a very
real
Danger!

It begins in our Hearts
&
Minds.

A Saint (that’s You & Me)
is still

to the
trappings

Don’t
be
swept
away
by it’s lure
and its
sultry voice.

Stand Firm…
Meditate
on

Do Not
become Prideful
and think for
one second You are
Invulnerable!

Spiritual
Relapse
is very
real!

so….

Just
more of this
Pastor’s

April 24, 2014 0

Reasons why I dislike waiting on God…but…

“Wait on the Lord…and He shall strengthen your heart.” (Psalm 27:14)

The Reasons I dislike waiting on God:

1. I am impatient.

I am not the most patient man. My children know this. I must temper this very often when things are not done now. We live in a fast paced society, it is “fast-food” driven. We even have slogans from these “fast-food” establishments that back that claim up like “have it your way”.

When it comes to waiting on God I am not patient. I often want Him to answer me now. I want instant responses and yet I know He doesn’t work like that.

2. Waiting on God reminds me of how powerless I truly am.
Besides impatience, this waiting reminds me that I live in a temporal body and ultimately I can do nothing in this body to save my self from some certainties in life. Death, sickness (in some regards), Taxes, laws of our world. I am powerless and yet I must wait with that knowledge in mind. Perhaps you can relate to me when I say that I am stubborn…are you? In my stubbornness I, at times, refuse to admit that I cannot do something. I must do the impossible. I must becomes Superman and superdad, and superpastor…but when I am forced to slow down; when I am forced to wait on God I am reminded of just how powerless I truly am.

3. Waiting on God humbles me…it’s a matter of pride.
I just mentioned how stubborn I can be. To ask for help from God and then having to wait for an answer can be a serious blow to my pride. I’m just putting it out there…I can admit that pride is ~~sometimes~~ often a bane of mine. I am proud of what I can do. Proud of what I can accomplish. I am proud that I am self-sufficient…and then BAM, I am knocked to my knees again. Circumstances sometimes do not go my way, things I had planned don’t pan out, and I am humbled by the outcome. Can you relate? I sure hope so. Please tell me I’m not alone in this human failing. I dislike this waiting, at times, because it means I have much more to surrender in terms of my pride to God.

BUT…

This isn’t a bad thing.
When I have to discipline my children, it’s not because I hate them or want to harm them, it is because I love them deeply and I want them to grow and make better decisions next time.

This is sometimes why I find God will at times take His time in answering me. He wants me to make better decisions. He wants me to depend more on Him. He wants me to tear down the fortresses of pride that I have erected and are now keeping me from Him. The waiting isn’t because He is withholding His love from me…no, the waiting is because He loves me so much He wants me to be willing to surrender completely. I dislike it severely at times (honestly It’s sometimes a “hate” thing), yet I know He loves me so much that He will not forget me. He will not forsake me.

FOR YOU AND FOR ME:

Truth: waiting sucks! There I said it.
But in the waiting on God the discipline of surrender and humility can further shape us. In the waiting we can also learn to trust Him more. In this waiting we can learn to love Him and discover how much He loves us.

-Just another thing for us to ponder.

April 23, 2014 1

Heaven is for real…and so is pain and suffering.

Yesterday I blogged a bit about not living completely in the Christian-ecosystem that sometimes is known as the “Bubble”.

Today…

I would like to explore what people are saying about Heaven as well as pain (even if the pain isn’t even spoken about).

What are people saying about life after death?

As a Christian living in this world I recognize that to me this life is a gift…but that doesn’t always mean there isn’t pain and difficulties along the way. Life is not just about the destination but also about the journey.

QUESTIONS ABOUT SUFFERING

Sometimes the journey is painful.

Why do some people endure more pain than others?
Why is there suffering in this world?

I understand that suffering and pain is a part of our fallen world but to me that answer sometimes just isn’t good enough…I want more. I yearn to get to the bottom of this whole pain thing. Isn’t that why some doctors feel called to their practice in the first place? They want to help ease the pain in this life? Isn’t there relief in sight? Sometimes I look around me and am staggered by friends who have lost parents and other loved ones through the blight of cancer and other terminal diseases.

It hurts my heart to see servants of God, who deeply love God and serve Him and yet they are afflicted with these cancers that eat away and ravage the body. I often ask “Why God?”

When I think of the verse that Jesus said (even within the context of loving your enemies) – “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” I recognize that God is fair and just in this world. I also recognize that the fallen nature of this world is the ultimate cancer that ravages our world. The rains can, and some times do, include times of emotional and physical drought for the sinner and the saint. The rains can include times of healing and times of sickness…and even death.

Although I know this to be true, can I be honest with you? It doesn’t do much to ease my hurt when I see friends hurting. I hurt right along with them as they suffer…but as a Christian I do know that there is ultimate healing and that death is not the end.

What other people are saying…

Last night I asked friends of mine a question. The question was -” who else do you long to see in heaven besides Jesus?“
Their answers ranged from grand parents, spouses, relatives and friends and even children that some had lost.
Even though we have this hope and assurance of Eternity with Christ we still endure hardships and sufferings. Life is not easy and we still carry these wounds of those loved ones we have lost along with us. Sometimes their memories comfort us while other times they help us to endure through rough patches we ourselves are going through.

BUT HEAVEN IS FOR REAL…RIGHT NOW!:

Here’s a revelation, perhaps you already know this – We don’t have to wait for heaven to get here to experience God’s Kingdom now!
Luke 17:20b-21 (NIV) Jesus said, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst [or,within you].”

Jesus experienced suffering in His very human life. He was hurt by betrayal, but abandonment and He even suffered the worst of deaths. I think it is safe to say that Jesus knows a little bit about human suffering and what we go through still today. Despite the fact that suffering exists here’s a source of hope for you and for me: The Kingdom of God is here and now! Jesus may have been implying the He was the Kingdom in physical form and though He isn’t physically here His Presence in the form the Holy Spirit is. We are not alone in this world…we never were. God’s Kingdom is among us still. Eternity is around us…we just haven’t recognized it yet.

It is true that when we die we will see Eternity in all of its glory, but we do not need to wait for that day to experience God’s presence every day! His presence is the essence of eternity and despite the sufferings of these human forms and the fallen world we live in, He can provide us the victory through it all! This may be difficult to swallow for some of us…I still struggle with it myself, but I do believe despite pain and suffering God is very present with us right here and right now!

Heaven is for real, so is pain and suffering, BUT the Almighty is also very, very real as well!

-Just a thought.

April 22, 2014 2

Heaven is for real…and so are we! (Don’t be a blind label follower)

I wouldn’t attempt to criticize “Christian” movies coming out onto the silver screen. I think perhaps they have a message that might reach certain people. Take the most recent movie, for example – “Heaven is for real” based on the book and real life account of Colton Burpo:

I am certainly not in a place to judge the authenticity of his story, this isn’t my purpose for this blog entry. I recognize too that Heaven is for real. That when Jesus said that He was going there to prepare a place for us (starting with His original disciples) that He meant it. Life does not end at the final exhalation of breath, but continues…How or where that will be is still a mystery to us all. But here is where faith comes in.

Still…

I don’t draw my criticism of the content of this story nor the content of other such movies recently released that also have faith-based themes. Where my criticisms lie is in the cheap budgets and production content.

I understand the need to be relevant in the world…and I don’t necessarily go to see a movie just because it is labeled “Christian” just as I don’t necessarily patronize certain businesses because they also happen to be “Christian(s)”. Does that label make the product better in some way? Will their services far exceed the services of others who don’t label themselves as “Christians”?

Another thought that comes to mind within this realm of “Christian” labeling is: Do I solely live within a “Christian” bubble then?

Every where I go, everyone I see, the things I choose to buy are they all “Christian”? Is my worldview solely engaged in other Christians out there so much so that I have no contact…with “those“. “Other“. “People“. ????

Don’t get me wrong, I need to hear encouraging and challenging teachings about Christ and about faith too, but what happens next? What will I then do with those teachings if my entire ecosystem is “Christian”? How does that impact the lost? How can I reach out a compassionate hand of understanding…if I don’t understand?

I’m not knocking the movie “Heaven is for Real”…I think there is some serious merit in exploring Eternity and our destination there one day…but what I am knocking (for lack of a better word) are Blind Label Followers.

Ephesians 6:12 says – “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

This is sandwiched right in between the verses about putting on the whole armor of God.
In one hand we put on our armor and gird ourselves against sin, temptation and the dark forces of evil. In the other hand we recognize that people around us who are lost (as we once were) are not the enemy! Sin is the enemy and we wage a spiritual war within this world.

If we only exist within the “Christian” label ecosystem how can we reach out to those who are completely blind to sin and its trappings?

Here’s what I am not saying:
I am not saying stop watching strictly “Christian” movies…there’s a time and place for them and at times an active evangelistic tool.
I am not saying don’t buy anything “Christian” either…that’s just plain dumb and we need edification and challenge through authentic Christ-following authors and teachers.

What I am saying:
Break the Christian bubble if you’re living in one.
Reach out into the world (don’t be conformed to it mind you) and love as Christ did to the whosoever.
Be wise and allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in discerning how you should act and be instead of living through “group think”.
Live out-loud your faith but take the time to listen to the needs of the unsaved around you!

-Just a thought.

ATTENTION: Join me tomorrow as I explore what others have said about seeing Jesus face to face.

Just something else to ponder.

April 21, 2014 1

Easter Sermon Podcast “Death is Dead” (Peeling back the labels) -Brainerd Lakes Corps The Salvation Army

Please find the link to the podcast here –

http://scottstrissel.podomatic.com/entry/2014-04-20T11_12_49-07_00

Podcasts are also available for download via iTunes/Podcasts/Brainerdcorps

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25, 26 NIV)

John 20:1-9 (NIV)
1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.
4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there,
7 as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.
8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

April 20, 2014 0

“Flip That House!” – Sermon Podcast Brainerd Lakes Salvation Army

Sermon Podcast check it out (2 Parts links below) Also podcasts are available for download via iTunes/Podcast/Brainerdcorps

http://scottstrissel.podomatic.com/entry/2014-04-19T15_55_57-07_00

http://scottstrissel.podomatic.com/entry/2014-04-19T18_21_55-07_00

Psalm 15:1-5 (NIV)
1 LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill?
2 He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart
3 and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
4 who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD, who keeps his oath even when it hurts,
5 who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken.

Questions:
• Where do you M______a H__________ for yourself?

• Where is Your H___________?

Inward:

• What does a B____________ walk look like? (v.2a)

• How do we D____ R________________? (v.2b)

Outward:

• Inward F________ has a way of impacting our

O__________ A___________s! (vs. 3-5a)

Flip the House:

It means we MUST A__________ Faith and live F__________!

Vs 5b – “He who does these things will never be shaken!”

April 20, 2014 0

Author: Pastor'sPonderings

“Walking with a Stranger”

A Little RobBellion…a Jesus Show or Sell-out?

TOUGH QUESTION: Do you REALLY know your Enemy?

TV Review of CW’s “The 100”

Beware of the Relapse

Reasons why I dislike waiting on God…but…

Heaven is for real…and so is pain and suffering.

Heaven is for real…and so are we! (Don’t be a blind label follower)

Easter Sermon Podcast “Death is Dead” (Peeling back the labels) -Brainerd Lakes Corps The Salvation Army

“Flip That House!” – Sermon Podcast Brainerd Lakes Salvation Army

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