Bread of life

Do you love snack foods? It is amazing how much snack food that we ingest each year. It is also amazing at how many snack foods are out there on the market. But did you know that most people migrate toward the same type of snack food all the time. Some like the salty taste of chips and others like the sweetness of brownies. Some even like to mix the two by serving themselves up some trail mix. No matter what snack food is right for you the truth is that we all have some certain snack food that we like. These are sometimes called our "comfort foods". But I hope that we are all so smart enough to know that we cannot live off of snack foods alone. In order to be healthy we need a well balanced meal and daily servings of each food group. This week we will look at Jesus statement from John 6 when he says, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty". You have heard it said that man can not live on bread alone but the truth is that many would like to try. Jesus in this passage is referring to the people only following him because of the miracles that he was performing. He is letting the people know that he represents the "true bread of life". The bread which leads to eternal life. So often, we want just the things that are comfort foods and easy to swallow. But Jesus is letting the people know that his true reason for being here on earth may be hard for some to swallow. It will be more like eating your vegetables than eating your dessert. The people want to make Jesus king so that they will have someone to give them all they want and need. Jesus is moving in the opposite of this direction. Jesus points out that the true gift God's bread provided them, and does still now, was not a full stomach. It was the true bread that comes down from heaven, the bread that "gives life to the world" (v.33).

TXT TLK

There is a new language among teens. It is called text messaging. It is a language that has been said to be destroying the English language as we know it. Have you been around teenagers lately? If you have you have probably noticed that they are never without there cell phones. They always have those thumbs moving. They are constantly sending messages to friends, family, and significant others. I personally do not like texting because I am so slow at it. But for the teens they say it is a great way to stay connected and up to date on things. You know in the Bible when Paul spoke at Pentecost he did so in a way that all people could understand. Like a text message Paul did not spend a lot of time worrying about setting it up he just gave an abbreviated version of the truth. This week we will explore Paul's message and what he was saying. We will also examine if this message is still as relevant today as it was when he delivered it over 2000 years ago. I think that you will find that even though text messaging may seem like gibberish there just might be a message for all of us.

The One That Got Away

We have all heard those fishing stories about the big one that got away. I remember a few years ago I was deep sea fishing down in Orange Beach, AL. I remember that we somehow got into a really big fish. There were three of us that worked to bring this fish in for over 45 minutes. we were having to take turns reeling because this bign fish was wearing us out. We finally got it to the boat and as we were going to pull it in, it flip the hook and we missed it. I have no proof that we ever landed that fish only the story and the memory of the big one that got away. I think that many people decide not to fish because they feel that one will get away. But we all have a choice whether we will fish or not. We can not let the fear of the bing one getting away keep us from fishing.
The rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked what must I do to receive eternal life? Jesus answered sell everything and follow me. What an opportunity, an invitation to follow Jesus. The rich young ruler however got away. He walked away from Jesus sadly because he refused to let got of the world. But did the one that got away keep Jesus from dying for our sins. Absolutely not! We should not worry if while we are fishing there are going to some that get away. The lesson this week will actually come from and Old Testament story of courage. You see with courage we will not focus on the ones that got away but on the ones that we can catch.

Muddy Water

Have you ever run across a pond or creek that was so muddy that you would dare not jump in? The muddy water is scary because you cannot see the bottom or what is in front of you. A few years ago I was doing a triathlon where the swim portion was in the Ohio River. There had been a huge flood in Upper Ohio and it had dumped tons of garbage and mud into the river. I remember two days before the triathlon, I went down for the Gatorade practice swim and the water was murky and dirty. It was so polluted that you could see garbage and dirt floating around the banks. Luckily because of the rapid water it washed a lot of the mud and garbage down stream before the race. But I was still a little worried about that muddy murky water. Have you ever heard the statement "Don't muddy the water"? Sometimes with our words we can make things more confusing even when we are trying to explain something or clarify a question. Many times we are scared to share our faith because we are scared that we will muddy the water rather than lead someone to clarity. Many people refuse to teach Sunday School or Bible Studies because they are scared that they will not have all the answers. Some others are scared that there may be someone that is smarter or more Biblical literate than we are in those studies. Sometimes people are even scared to share there faith because they are scared that they will muddy the water. This Sunday we will learn some things that will give us the confidence to share our faith without fear that we will muddy the water. I promise this message will be clear as mud.