The Joy of Restoration!

Dear Crosswalkers,

Leanna and I just returned from a short but sweet trip to visit our family in Florida. Here's something I came across in my reading. Not long ago one of the greatest masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance was restored to its original splendor and returned to its home at the world renowned gallery in Florence, Italy. The Madonna del Cardellino (Madonna of the Goldfinch) was painted by Raphael in 1505 for the wedding of his friend. It portrays the Virgin Mary with two children: John the Baptist and his young cousin Jesus. The three form an almost perfect triangle. This is by design as there is nothing artificial about the positions of the three figures. Mary holds a book which shows her to be Sedes Sapientiae (the “Seat of Wisdom”). Most importantly, John the Baptist holds a small bird, a goldfinch. Because the goldfinch feeds among thorns, this is interpreted as representing our Lord's future suffering. Interestingly, the toddler Jesus reaches out to gently stroke the tiny bird that foreshadows his crucifixion.  

But something happened to this painting. Forty years after it was created, there was an earthquake which shattered the work of art into 17 different pieces. Another artist took long iron nails and tried to patch the pieces together. Then he tried to paint over it to conceal the damage. But over the years, there were so many layers of paint added and so much dust and grime over this painting that the original art was completely obscured.

A massive restoration project was undertaken. It took fifty people ten years of working on this painting to restore the original color and repair all the damaged parts. Now the cracks are gone, centuries of dust and grime are also gone. The dulling veneers have been painstakingly stripped away, and the finished product now glows with all of the deep colors of the original masterpiece. Given how badly it was damaged, the restoration of Raphael's painting is arguably even more amazing than the painting itself. The original was splendid, but the miracle of restoration makes it even more of a treasure.

The spiritual parallels are significant. The Bible says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus…” (Eph 2:10 NLT). Sadly, the beautiful design of who God created us to be has been marred by sin and the hurts and disappointments of life. Layers of spiritual neglect and bitterness have been put on our lives. You thought you could paint over the damage, but it didn't work. The veneers and patchwork that you applied seemed right at the time, but in reality they have just made things worse. Some of us may even have been devastated by emotional and relational earthquakes that have left us shattered.  

So in the Bible, David prayed, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation…” (Psalm 51:12 ESV). When the restoration came, he could say with deep contentment, “He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:3). The restoration God gives is so therapeutic and satisfying it’s like a dream come true! "When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy…” (Psalm 126:1-2a).

In our series from Mark’s gospel, Simply Jesus, we have seen that our Lord has the power to make all things new. His miracles and his teaching reveal a far greater masterpiece of restoration, the one that the Lord wants to do in your life and in mine! This Sunday we will feature what is considered, aside from his resurrection, the most popular and talked about story of Jesus. Come and find out why!

Love in Jesus,

Pastor John Christie

The Reality of Christophobia!

Dear Crosswalkers,

There are three big stories that have to do with faith and spirituality in the news. One of them, the sad death of Whitney Houston, we will not deal with here, although I hope to cover it next month in our sermon series. The other two are Christophobia and Lin-sanity! Today we will look at Christophobia. Tomorrow I will share the phenomenon of Lin-sanity!

Last week I read a powerful and shocking account of the persecution of Christians across the globe. I tend to keep my finger on the pulse of this issue, so it wasn't the content that shocked me (although the content is shocking). But that it came from a politically correct mainstream media source such as Newsweek was a real but pleasant surprise. Though the years, Newsweek has been assailed for it's progressive/liberal/secular bias, but in this case, the magazine deserves credit for bringing to light what most of American media has kept in the dark. The article was written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who was born in Somalia into the religion of Islam but is now an avowed atheist. Her reporting of the persecution of Christians however, is spot on. Here is a portion of what she writes:

..A fair-minded assessment of recent events and trends leads to the conclusion that the scale and severity of Islamophobia pales in comparison with the bloody Christophobia currently coursing through Muslim-majority nations from one end of the globe to the other. The conspiracy of silence surrounding this violent expression of religious intolerance has to stop. Nothing less than the fate of Christianity—and ultimately of all religious minorities—in the Islamic world is at stake.

I highly recommend this article!! You can read the entire story by clicking HERE

After reading this account, how can we not be filled with gratitude to live in a country that was founded on freedom of religion? More to the point, how can we not amp up our prayers for our brothers and sisters living in so many parts of the world who are suffering horribly for the honor of the name of Jesus? Our Lord said this:

“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you. Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you. They will do all this to you because of me, for they have rejected the One who sent me." John 15:18-21 (NLT)

Millions of our brothers and sisters are living out the painful reality of our Lord's words. If you want to learn more about the persecuted church, you can click HERE to go to the Voice of the Martyrs website.

Crosswalk's commitment to financially, actively, and physically help those who are not free to express or share their faith has for the past year been focused on the Buddhist nation of Bhutan. I've shared with the some of the stories of the men and women who struggle to live out their faith in that place. Lord willing, Crosswalk will at least partially sponsor another event later this year aimed at training and equipping the Bhutanese pastors to have a fruitful impact for Jesus in their country.

Love in Jesus,

Pastor John Christie

LIN-SANITY!

Dear Crosswalkers, The latest rage in pro sports and really in popular culture is Jeremy Shu-How Lin. Lin plays pro basketball with the New York Knicks. Unlike many of the pros, he received no athletic scholarship offers out of high school. Unlike many of the pros, he played basketball for Harvard University! Again, unlike many pros, he was not drafted by any teams in the NBA.  However, he received a partially guaranteed contract deal with the Golden State Warriors.On December 9, 2011, the Warriors waived Lin on the first day of training camp. Three days later, Lin was claimed off waivers by the Houston Rockets. He played seven minutes in two preseason games and then on December 24, before the start of the season, the Rockets also waived him. Three days after that the Knicks claimed him off waivers with the thought that he may be a third string back-up. There have been only a few Asian Americans in NBA history, and Jeremy Lin is first American player in the league to be of Chinese or Taiwanese descent.   He has been tearing up the court in a now starring role with the Knicks. He has been a headliner practically every day, and the rest of the league is impressed by his gritty play and excellent basketball skills. Since getting his first significant playing time on Feb. 4 and being inserted into the starting lineup on Feb. 6, he has led the Knicks to six-straight wins averaging 26.8 points, 8.5 assists and 3.2 rebounds. For his amazing efforts after his first five games with significant playing time, Lin was named the ABC News World News Tonight Person of the Week and the NBA's Eastern Conference Player of the Week. He also made the cover of Sports Illustrated. All the attention has been called “Lin-sanity” because it is such a “Lin-credible” story! Unlike many pros, he sleeps on his brother’s sofa when in New York! It’s a real “Lin-defella” story! They say he’s “Lin it to Lin it!” By the way, David Letterman’s show featured the Top Ten Worst Puns about Jeremy Lin! Do you know there is a local connection with Jeremy Lin? He grew up in Mt. View and attended Monarch Christian School, where our own Mrs. Sharon Welty was his teacher for two years. Sharon says he was a great student and gifted athlete even back then. She still stays in touch with him through Facebook! Here is a portion of his testimony: My faith and my basketball began separately, then slowly converged, and now they influence each other.  But when I first started playing basketball, I was five years old, and my dad put a ball in my hands.  Ever since I was a little kid, I just loved to play this game.  I was always in the gym.  I loved playing.  That's what I did for fun, all the time.  My parents also took me to church ever since I was a little kid.  I grew up in the church, but I didn't really become a Christian until I was a freshman in high school.  That's when the gospel really started to make sense to me and I was ready to give my life to God.  Then, Christianity didn't become a significant part of my approach to basketball until the end of my high school career and into college.  That's when I began to learn what it means to play for the glory of God.  My parents had often talked about it and told me that I should play for God's glory, but I never understood quite what that meant.  That was something that really boggled my mind… I thought, "I want to do well for myself and for my team.  How can I possibly give that up and play selflessly for God?" Slowly, God revealed more to me.  I started learning how to trust in Him, not to focus so much on whether I win or lose but to have faith that God has a perfect plan… I learned more about a godly work ethic and a godly attitude, in terms of being humble, putting others above yourself, being respectful to refs and opponents.  There are really so many ways you can apply your faith to basketball! When asked, “Are you a different basketball player because you are a Christian?” Lin responded: Not just in basketball, but I think in life, when you're called to be a Christian, you're automatically called to be different from everyone else.  In today's world of basketball, it makes you really different, because the things that society values aren't necessarily in line with what God values… I've learned so many things through basketball, and God has really molded me and tested and affirmed my faith through basketball.  Given my experiences, if I look back at everything that's happened, it's hard for me not to trust God and know that he has a perfect plan for me. A couple days ago the Mercury News had an article on Lin entitled, Exclusive: Jeremy Lin says faith in God triggered 'Lin-sanity’ You can read the article HERE. It is always a blessing to hear “local boy does good” stories, and especially when that local lad is living out his faith in Jesus in the rough and tumble world of professional basketball! If he can follow Jesus and live for his glory in the NBA there’s hope for the rest of us. As followers of the Lord, we are all on a “Linning Team.” Be encouraged! Love in Jesus, Pastor John Christie

Is America Nailing Itself in the Brain?

Dear Crosswalkers,

This is a weird story from just last month. Dante Autullo, a 32 year old Chicago man, was building a shed when he thought he cut himself on the head. Being a tough guy, he decided to gut it out without seeking aid. A persistent headache, however, prompted him to go to the hospital the next day. What he thought was a surface wound turned out to be much more serious. Without knowing it, Dante had accidentally shot himself in the head with a nail gun, sending a 3.5 inch nail into his brain. The X-ray reveal that the nail was lodged just millimeters away from the part of the brain that controls the motor functions.

Dante said, "When they brought in the picture, I said to the doctor `Is this a joke? Did you get that out of the doctors joke file?' The doctor said 'No man, that's in your head.''' In a happy ending, doctors at Advocate Christ Medical Center successfully removed the nail and replaced a piece of his skull with a mesh patch and titanium plate. 

It’s amazing the harm we can do to ourselves and be completely unaware of it!

But what is true of individuals is also true of society. In the past week or so there have been some remarkable news stories about the increasing secularization of American culture that is accompanied by hostility to spiritual values and religious liberty. I wish we had the time and space to discuss the Susan G. Komen flap in detail. The issue is simply this: Shouldn’t Americans be allowed to give to a charity to support Breast Cancer research without a portion of their money going to Planned Parenthood, which does not provide mammograms and is America’s number one provider of abortions? Another hot issue is the government’s refusal to grant religious organizations an exemption from purchasing health insurance that covers abortion-inducing drugs, surgical sterilization, and contraception. There was an immediate outcry by many, especially the Catholic bishops who called it an egregious violation of religious liberty.

But I wish to highlight is story out of New York City where city officials ruled that churches could not worship in public facilities (including public schools when not in session), because it is mixing church and state. They have ordered over 60 churches evicted by February 12.  Thankfully the New York Senate passed a bill on Monday that would allow churches to rent spaces in public schools for worship services. However, the measure's fate in the state Assembly and on Gov. Andrew Cuomo's desk is uncertain.

Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Church in NYC, said this: "It is my conviction that those churches housed in schools are invaluable assets to the neighborhoods that they serve. Churches have long been seen as positive additions to communities. Family stability, resources for those in need, and compassion for the marginalized are all positive influences that neighborhood churches provide."

In his LifeWay blog, Ed Stetzer gave three reasons why NYC’s plan to evict churches should be reversed:

1.   Churches benefit communities

Schools and churches make their communities better and the public knows it. According to a 2011 Barna Research study: Three-quarters of U.S. adults believe the presence of a church is "very" (53%) or "somewhat" positive (25%) for their community. In contrast, only one out of every 20 Americans believes the influence of a church is negative. Most Americans see churches as partners in the community, but the NYC school system sees churches as a threat rather than a benefit.

2.   Discriminating on the basis of the speech content is against our values

The NYC municipal government contends religious speech should be banned from public school buildings to avoid confusing our children. (Remember churches use the schools when school is not in session.). To the contrary, it affirms our commitment to religious freedom.

3.   Religion-neutral is better than religion-hostile

Any constitutional concerns about church use of public school buildings can be answered by a religion-neutral approach. A government that is religion-neutral we will not discriminate based on the content of speech--even unpopular religious speech. Thus, I stand with my Muslim friends who wish to rent on Friday, my Jewish friends on Saturday, and my Christian friends on Sunday--all paying money to use space that belongs to us all.

My question is this: Is America thinking these issues are minor scrapes, or is it much more serious? Are we shooting ourselves in the head with a nail?

Please pray for the direction of our country and our cultural values. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 -

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.

Blessings on your week,

Pastor John Christie

AMAZING GRACE!

Dear Crosswalkers,

American Idol remains a cultural mainstay in today's world. For those of you who have been hibernating for the past 10 years, Idol is a reality TV show that aims to create the next singing sensation from among the general populace in the USA. It began airing on June 11, 2002 and has just started its 11th season. As of 2011, it was the most watched TV series in America, according to the Nielson ratings, and the only program to have been number one for eight consecutive seasons.

Periodically there have been worship leaders or other followers of Jesus whose testimonies have been featured on the program. Recently, Ramiro Garcia, worship leader at Lakewood Church, sang "Amazing Grace" on the show. He also shared his testimony of being born with no ears! The doctors told his parents that he would be deaf and mute, but against all odds, he is singing to God's glory! His rendition left the judges impressed, and they voted him on to the next level.

If you would like to see an inspiring video of his testimony and appearance on American Idol, click HERE!

THIS SUNDAY AT CROSSWALK we will look at "Things that Amaze Jesus!" This promises to be a compelling message and everyone in church will have an opportunity to amaze Jesus! This would be an ideal time to bring family and friends to church with you!

Blessings,

Pastor John