River Valley Rockford Blog

One Month to Live: Enter the Story

Recently I told the church about the terrifying time I was chased from the house by a scar-faced man slashing a knife. I barely escaped out the back door and barricaded it shut. Catching my breath, I eventually leaked out a smile and shouted, “This was the best haunted house ever!” I’m inviting you to the same experience right now.

It isn’t a haunted house to which you are invited, but it is to the same intentional suspension of disbelief, to the same potential emotional-state change. A haunted house is fun only if you get scared. And the only way to get scared is to stop criticizing the obvious make-up scar and the fake headless horseman. You have to allow yourself to believe it could be real. You have to suspend your disbelief. Then the fun begins.

You are invited to do the same right now with this scenario: you have been told you have one month to live.

The Stars Remind Us

We so easily forget how great God is. And when we do, we quit trusting him enough to follow him.

Even with the evidence of his brilliance and his power and his love surrounding us, we often forget. Yet, a peak at the stars reminds us. Browsing through a photo album from space can provide a prompting for worship, an encouragement for faith, and a spur for trusting God. Take a tour with the Hubble telescope and be reminded how big and grand our God is.

By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. (Psalm 33:6-8)

And the ESPY Goes To...

I saw this story again, and it stirred me.  This time, however, instead of being just another news piece, it was honored as the Best Sports Moment of the Year, a recognition of sportsmanship, at the 2008 ESPY awards.  And it made me wonder, “What would I have done?”

On April 26, 2008, Sara Tucholsky, a softball player for Western Oregon University, hit the first home run of her career. As she rounded the bases, her knee blew out, rendering her unable to complete the triumphant jog under her own power.  Her teammates couldn’t touch her or she’d be called out.  And this was the championship game.  And her run would put her team ahead.

What would you have done if you were on the opposing team? 

Thoughts on The Shack

We discussed The Shack, by William P. Young, in a book club this week. This book is experiencing phenomenal popularity. Written by a father who first printed and bound it at Kinko’s for his kids, publishing it with his pastor, it has now sold over one million copies. It has certainly touched a lot of people. You should read it. You should be wise, however, when you do.

Baptism

Today we celebrated the step of Baptism with some of our River Valley friends today, and I have to tell you , it was great!  It's always so meaningful to be there and get to share such an important spiritual step together.  Today's celebration was particularly emotional for me as some of the people being baptized were close friend (including someone who's in our small group!).

We'll be sharing video from the celebration in a weekend worship service coming up soon.  In the meantime, feel free to share your baptism highlights and experiences by hitting the 'Comments' link below. 

UPDATE: Click here to check out the video. 

Broken Cisterns

If there were a fresh, spring water fountain available, why would we want a cistern? I’ve been consumed with this question since Sunday. Here is God’s powerful accusation in Jeremiah 2:13, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
Why would someone do that?

The spring water is there free of charge. Just bend down and drink. No maintenance required. No cost charged. Just take it and relish the refreshment—ahhh.

Lights Out!

I thought this morning was beautiful.  In having the electrical power go out during the service, I was reminded of the pure power of God's people gathered together in worship. 

Today, Rodney talked about "evangelism" (and his sandwich making skills).   For many of us, evangelism is a tricky and difficult thing . . .

Answers From the 'Worship Why-Fi'

So last Sunday technology failed us at River Valley.  No, a GPS unit didn't make us drive into a lake, but we weren't able to get any of the text messages you sent in during the service.  As it turns out, we received more questions during last weekend's service than any 'Why-Fi' weekend so far. 

Our bad.  So as a way of saying sorry, Heather Camacho (one of our Worship Leaders here at RVCC) and I have sat down and written up answers to ALL of the questions you wrote in.  Hit the link below to check them out . . .

Worship

Sunday we discussed worship and its role in the Christian life.  Our question was:  "Do I need to go to church to be a Christian?"  Alex creatively answered by asking us the question:  "Do we have to shower in order to be human?"  No, but...

Then Alex spent some time defusing some myths about worship - reassuring us that we do not need to be people we are not, or feel things we do not truly feel.  We highlight the authentic nature of worship, heard Matt Sand's testimony about what God does in worship, and then spent some time worshiping. All the while, we were reminded that worship is an essential part of the Christian life and the life of a church community. 

So, what do you all think?  How does worship impact your life?  Do you find yourself falling into the myths Alex talked about?  Do you have a testimony like Matt's about the power of God's Spirit made real in worship?  Let's keep talking...

Would Jesus Wear Camo?

Does the Bible support war?  Tough question.  In our Why-Fi on this topic, we saw how Jesus taught a personal, moral ethic of non-resistance.  To turn the other cheek and to not return evil for evil (Matthew 5), that is the way of the Christian.  But we also saw how he affirmed Kings leading out in war and seemed to affirm that while people are to be non-resistant, there are times when governments must act with force.