Went out on a date with my eldest daughter last weekend. Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader came out, and so being Narnia junkies we went to go see the movie. I must say we loved it! C.S. Lewis wrote these novels with a Christian worldview inner twinned throughout the story. For instance, the author once wrote about the character of Aslan, the Son of the Emperor Beyond the Sea: “He is an invention giving an imaginary answer to the question, ‘What might Christ become like if there really were a world like Narnia, and He chose to be incarnate and die and rise again in that world as He actually has done in ours?’” (Narnia Beckons: The Christian Worldview of VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER; MOVIEGUIDE® Founder and Publisher Dr. Ted Baehr and Dr. James Baehr, available at www.movieguide.org.; 12/6/10) In the movie, whatever some may say, the Christian message of hope through Christ is still evident. I would love to share some of those scenes with you, but I do not want to take away all the joy a...

This past week I took some time to read through the Christmas story in Luke. I always enjoy reading the Christmas story during this time of the year. In a culture where it seems that the meaning of this season has been swept under the rug, its nice to remember the purpose for this time of year. Last year, at this time, I was driving home with the radio on. The host was sharing about the Christmas story. At that moment I began to play devils advocate with the host. I do this with my students to help build their critical thinking skills, so at that moment I begin asking questions out loud. I began to think like anyone in our culture who questions the validity of Christ birth, let alone the reason for Christmas. How could I be sure that the Christmas story is true? It sounds crazy! Angel meets Mary. Mary a virgin, gives birth? Angels in the sky? A child is born and declared divine? Sounds crazy to one who may have never really looked or even heard the story. So I went to Luke to find some...

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. - Acts 20:4 (ESV) It was about 66-67 AD. Paul had been imprisoned, again. Yet this time it was different. He had been imprisoned by Nero. His accommodations were not all that great as before. Prior imprisonment included house arrest. This time, he was in the inner bowls of a dungeon. Cold. Wet. Probably rat infested and dirty. I think he new that his time was coming to an end. We read it in 2 Timothy 4:6-8: For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. 2 Timothy was Paul...

Timothy. Silas. Tertius. Lucius. Jason. Sosipater. Tychicus. Epaphras. Luke. Erastus. Onesimus. Epaphroditus. Mark. Trophimus. Linus. Eubulus. Pudens. Just a few of the men mentioned who worked with Paul. These men were Paul's companions. They were his students and he was their mentor. Paul knew that the success of the Gospel of Christ impacting the marketplace was going to happen by equipping others to do the work. In John C Maxwell's book, "Developing the Leader Within You" pg 180, he writes... A great leader develops a team of people who increase production. The result? The leader's influence and effectiveness begin to multiply (working through others) instead of adding (working by oneself). A mentor trains, equips and then sends out. Train. One of the greatest learning tools of learning is observing others. In the Jewish culture of the New Testament, a disciple of a rabbi would spend nearly 24/7 with his teacher. Listening. Observing. Taking in all of his surr...

Take a minute and write down one word character qualities of a leader. As we look at Paul's ministry in the marketplace, he loved what he did. He went on three mission trips and his trip to Rome, which lasted years at times. He was stoned, put into prison, beaten, rejected, yet he continued on! We see him talking to people in the marketplace, dialogue with others with confidence in his faith. We see him as a man with a vision and passion to share this hope that he received through Christ. He planted churches and trained others to lead them. His leadership qualities help spread the Gospel through out the Roman Empire. Why was Paul successful? He took what he knew and applied it to the church. What do I mean...remember in "Paul the Business Owner", the tradition of the Jewish culture was to learn the Scriptures through a Rabbi. Once their education was over around 12-13 years of age, they learned a trade from their father. That meant being with him and learning the b...

It is possible to fail in many ways...while to succeed is possible only in one way. - Aristotle Ahhhhh, philosophy. Do remember sitting in class with a glaze look as the professor taught the process of reason? Usually when anyone hears this word its an automatic turn off. It makes us think! Sometimes that hurts! Yet this one word has shaped mankind's thinking and ideas for centuries! The word means... the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct. Whenever I begin my apologetics class with my seniors, this is one area that I begin with. It lays down the foundation and challenges my students to be thinkers in this age of information. We have heard all our lives that God exist...yet what makes us so sure? We have grown up believing the Bible to be God's Word to man...yet how can we be confident in such a statement? What is my purpose in life? Why do I exist? Questions that have plagued mankind throughout time! So lets take a look at philo...

In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. -Paul (Romans 12:6-8, NLT) So many times we may think in order to be in ministry or have an impact on a persons life we have to be behind a pulpit. Not so. A pastor serves as an integral part in equipping and training the church to be effective in their culture. Yet it is you who has the opportunity to take the message of hope through Christ, to the masses! To understand Paul's position as a business owner, we have to take a step back into time and understand the tradition. Paul grew up in Tarsus, ...

"Early Christians made the marketplace the focal point of their ministry because their occupations regularly took them there" -Ed Silvoso (Anointed for Business,2002) To understand the marketplace of our time is to take a step back in time into Paul's culture. Paul spent allot of time in the marketplace. Whether it was setting up shop or discussing philosophy, it seems Paul was comfortable in the marketplace. And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks. Acts 19:8-10 (ESV) The marketplace was the center for political, commercial and social life. It was the place where shopping took...

Now I know that I had said we would take a look at the Marketplace this week, yet throughout the week I could not get Paul the student out of my mind, so we are going to start with that. Next week we will look at Paul and the Marketplace. I believe there is a reason, which will tie in greatly with next weeks lesson! ...though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. -Paul (Philippians 3:4-6, ESV) To understand how Paul impacted the marketplace we need to begin at the beginning. Paul was effective in his culture, not only because he had encountered Christ on the road to Damascus to persecute Christians (Acts 9), but that he was a student first. His understanding of Scripture (Old Test...

For the next couple of weeks we will be looking at Paul. There is so much we can learn from Paul when it comes to impacting our surroundings. Paul understood that people would not come to the hope of Christ in a building...it was going out into the community. The place where people did business, talked politics and philosophy. Paul knew his mission... For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I di...

For You did form my inward parts; You did knit me together in my mother's womb. I will confess and praise You for You are fearful and wonderful and for the awful wonder of my birth! Wonderful are Your works, and that my inner self knows right well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was being formed in secret [and] intricately and curiously wrought [as if embroidered with various colors] in the depths of the earth [a region of darkness and mystery]. Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them. Psalm 139:13-16 (Amplified Bible) Sit back and ask yourself a simple question. You may of asked it many times before. Why am I the way I am? David wrote an answer that through science we can actually see what he meant. For some reason David understood that it began in the womb. Maybe one night as he looked into the stars, he began to question his purpose...his reason for livin...

Recap: When the walls are down in our business, we have a choice...look at the rubble, be overwhelmed and walk away. Or we can look at the rubble and speak life into the wall and begin taking steps to rebuild. It may take a while, yet lessons from Nehemiah gives us a game plan to rebuild. Last week we started with two points: 1. Nehemiah had a vision to rebuild the walls. Remember, Nehemiah had never seen Jerusalem, he had only heard about it. His brother gave him a report that provided the walls of Jerusalem to be in shambles! Yet, in the midst of negativity, he saw Jerusalem complete and whole! 2. Observe your surroundings! Before Nehemiah began to rebuild the wall, he went out secretly to observe the destruction. He needed to acquire knowledge so that he could have the right materials to finish the task! This week lets finish it up! 3. Nehemiah and the people worked hard! They worked day and night! Nehemiah 4: 6 reads, "So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its h...

PART 1 Have you ever woken up, walked into your office and asked yourself..."How did I get here?" Just months ago your business was flying high. Now it lays in ruins. We have all been there. Whatever profession one is in, there will be times that the wall must be rebuilt. It will take courage. It will take boldness. It will take remembering your call and walking in the anointing that God has given to you. We can take a look at Nehemiah and learn from this Jewish cup bearer for King Artaxerxes of the Babylonian Empire. A quick look at the Book of Nehemiah Chapter 1. Nehemiah's Call Nearly ninety years had passed from the time King Cyrus let some of the Jewish captives return and rebuild Jerusalem. We learn the state of Jerusalem through the eyes of Nehemiah's brother in Chapter 1:1-11. Nehemiah, who was born in captivity, had never seen Jerusalem. Overtaken by emotion he weeps for the city after finding out that the city is in shambles. Nehemiah's great sorrow and...

Have you ever had someone give you words of wisdom? You know the ones that make you think and say "I can do this thing!" Words that Inspired you to be the best. I had one of those moments. Not from a relative or friend, but from a person who created a legacy. Walt Disney. Angie and I have always loved Disneyland! A matter of fact when we were dating we celebrated our one year together at Disneyland. Every time I visit the "happiest place on earth", memories of childhood come back, so now it is neat to create new ones with our children. Four years ago, Angie and I decided to take the girls to Florida to visit Disney World and a small getaway on the Disney Cruise ship The Wonder. Now this was our first time to Disney World. We had seen pictures, seen it on TV, but to experience it...oh my! The memories created were priceless! As our trip was coming to an end I was thinking back to the great memories and trying to relive them in my mind. One evening as Angie and I we...

OK this week includes participation. So when you see... Play the video clip , press play! Let's practice... Play the video clip . Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere hand breadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath. -David (Psalm 39:4-5) Have you ever felt like Mr. Holland? You have a dream. You have a goal. It plays out in your mind everyday. You even stand in front of the mirror and practice your wave across the stage. You practice your speech with the dog, knowing that one day you will speak before thousands. Yet life happens. Obstacles get in the way. Doubt sometimes sets in. You question your abilities. You even ask yourself "What am I doing here?"...yet you keep moving forward. I know you have heard it many times...its the moving forward that counts! Being a teacher I have asked and experienced each of these emotions. In our...