Friday, August 29, 2003
Well, another day goes by. Marilyn is doing much better this week. Se came home from the hospital last Friday, and is still weak and tiring easily, but doing better every day. She went to the doctor for a follow up exam yesterday and he tweaked her medicine a little bit. What she was taking for the last week was keeping her from sleeping well at night. She slept pretty well last night and woke up this morning rested and rearing to go. It is good to see her feeling good again!
Monday, August 25, 2003
It was a long, difficult week last week. My wife Marilyn was not feeling good on Tuesday evening, so around 1:30 in the morning on Wednesday I took her to the hospital emergency room. They said that she had had a heart attack and was suffereing from congestive heart failure. The doctors were a little stumped when it came down to why she was having a heart attack. Neither Marilyn or I smoke or drink and we both eat pretty healthy, and we are only 29+ years old. So, they didn't have a clue why she had had the heart attack.
Wednesday was a day full of tests for Marilyn. She had a CAT Scan, X-Rays, an Ultrasound of her veins/arteries, all with no help as to the reason she was sick. When Marilyn was being transferred from her hospital bed to a gurney for her X-Rays she passed out. When she woke up there were 13 people towering over her, the crash cart was there, and they were getting the difibrulation paddles ready to zap her heart back to life. When she woke up just before the paddles were ready it scared her enough to wake her up very quickly. The doctors said she was pretty much dead for a minute and a half to two minutes.
Marilyn had one of those near-death (or in her case death) experiences. As a Christian it was very nice and peaceful for her. It was so nice that she didn't want to return. What a difference it makes when you know where you will spend eternity. I think if she had not been a Christian it would have scared Jesus right into her! She has a great testimony of what it feels like to be in God's presence!
Thursday Marilyn had a heart catherization (a dinky wire with a mini television camera on the end of it) inserted into her heart to show the doctors pictures of what her heart looks like. No blockage, no problems with arteries or veins, only some detection of some heart damage caused by the heart attack. But unfortunately, no information to help us determinwe why.
It all comes down to the doctors giving us their best guess. Marilyn had some surgery in June that they think may have triggered a blood clot that blocked one of her veins bringing blood to her heart. When they thinned her blood down to try to reduce her blood pressure in the emergency room it might have dissolved the blood clot. There is no trace of a clot now.
So, we had a very exciting week and weekend. Marilyn feels better each day that goes on, and is getting stronger as time goes by. Hopefully, we can get her back to her good young self sometime very soon.
1 Corinthians 15:40:
There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.
Wednesday was a day full of tests for Marilyn. She had a CAT Scan, X-Rays, an Ultrasound of her veins/arteries, all with no help as to the reason she was sick. When Marilyn was being transferred from her hospital bed to a gurney for her X-Rays she passed out. When she woke up there were 13 people towering over her, the crash cart was there, and they were getting the difibrulation paddles ready to zap her heart back to life. When she woke up just before the paddles were ready it scared her enough to wake her up very quickly. The doctors said she was pretty much dead for a minute and a half to two minutes.
Marilyn had one of those near-death (or in her case death) experiences. As a Christian it was very nice and peaceful for her. It was so nice that she didn't want to return. What a difference it makes when you know where you will spend eternity. I think if she had not been a Christian it would have scared Jesus right into her! She has a great testimony of what it feels like to be in God's presence!
Thursday Marilyn had a heart catherization (a dinky wire with a mini television camera on the end of it) inserted into her heart to show the doctors pictures of what her heart looks like. No blockage, no problems with arteries or veins, only some detection of some heart damage caused by the heart attack. But unfortunately, no information to help us determinwe why.
It all comes down to the doctors giving us their best guess. Marilyn had some surgery in June that they think may have triggered a blood clot that blocked one of her veins bringing blood to her heart. When they thinned her blood down to try to reduce her blood pressure in the emergency room it might have dissolved the blood clot. There is no trace of a clot now.
So, we had a very exciting week and weekend. Marilyn feels better each day that goes on, and is getting stronger as time goes by. Hopefully, we can get her back to her good young self sometime very soon.
1 Corinthians 15:40:
There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.
Friday, August 15, 2003
Looking forward to teaching James Chapter 3 this week in Sunday School. We are reorgainzing Sunday School and moving our classroom around to the other side of the church, but there seems to be a lot of inertia right now and things are going OK.
Rick
Rick
Thursday, August 14, 2003
I received a phone call from my wife today that my 9 year old daughter Bethany wants to be baptized on Sunday. Awesome! We talked it over with the Pastor of our church and he agreed. So, Sunday it is! Bethany has wanted to be baptized for a year or so now, but we wanted it to be something she will remember. I think she is old enough to understand the implications of being baptized into Christ's life, death, and resurrection. She is a very mature 9 years old and it very much in tune with the Lord at such a young age. The timing is great too. Bethany's Grandmother Shirley is flying in from California on Saturday for 3 weeks. She will be thrilled to see Bethany baptized on Sunday.
My 11 year old son Matthew is also in tune with the Lord, but thinks that being baptized is "too embarrassing" of a thing to go through. He will come around some day soon. He knows the Lord intimately in his life and will understand the significance of baptism in a short time. Hopefully, Bethany's baptism on Sunday will serve to inspire him to want to make that public display of commitment to follow the Lord through baptism.
My 11 year old son Matthew is also in tune with the Lord, but thinks that being baptized is "too embarrassing" of a thing to go through. He will come around some day soon. He knows the Lord intimately in his life and will understand the significance of baptism in a short time. Hopefully, Bethany's baptism on Sunday will serve to inspire him to want to make that public display of commitment to follow the Lord through baptism.
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Women as ordained Pastors
Jordon Cooper has a very good doctrinal statement on the Bible's position of women in the ministry in the Lakeland Church webpage. I know in my heart that women are created equal in God's eyes, and am looking for doctrinal help from people like Jordon. I grew up in an environment that taught women are not to be ordained as pastors, they can only serve in positions where they don't teach and have authority over men (read Children's Ministry). I have been looking for scriptural documentation to counter this teaching. I believe Jordon's doctrinal statement goes a long way to help me see beyond my culturally influenced eyes.
Jordon Cooper has a very good doctrinal statement on the Bible's position of women in the ministry in the Lakeland Church webpage. I know in my heart that women are created equal in God's eyes, and am looking for doctrinal help from people like Jordon. I grew up in an environment that taught women are not to be ordained as pastors, they can only serve in positions where they don't teach and have authority over men (read Children's Ministry). I have been looking for scriptural documentation to counter this teaching. I believe Jordon's doctrinal statement goes a long way to help me see beyond my culturally influenced eyes.
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Hello everyone.
Well, I have decided to make a commitment for once in my life. I am not going to straddle the fence any longer. I am tired of being active in church, teaching Sunday School, and following someone else’s lead on how they think our relationship with Jesus Christ should look, feel, smell, and sound. So, I feel the Lord calling me to plant a new style of church in the St Louis Metro East area. It will be different, and I even hesitate to call it a church. Most people consider the word Church to be a verb, but I think it should be a noun. I think this concept will force me to stop calling Sunday services church and start calling it a gathering point for believers. In fact, we’ll call it The Point.
I am convinced many people have blurred the concept of going to church with their personal relationship with the Lord. It is important to fellowship with other believers, and to gather as a “Body of Christ”, but to gather as a corporate body just because we feel we should be gathering is not what I believe Christ wanted us to do when He commanded us in Mark 16:15 to, Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. We will strive to redefine the relational, personal meanings of what it means to worship the Lord, spread the gospel, feed the flock, and commune with God.
Let me set forth some basic, primary beliefs that will help embrace the concepts of The Point:
1) We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, equal in power and glory; that this triune God created all, upholds all and governs all.
2) We believe in God the Father: an infinite, personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love; that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of mankind; that He hears and answers prayer; and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.
3) We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, and teachings, His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, bodily ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people and personal, visible return to earth.
4) We believe that all people are sinners by nature and choice and therefore under condemnation, that God regenerates by the Holy Spirit those repenting of their sins and confessing Jesus Christ as Lord; that Jesus Christ baptizes the seeking believer with the Holy Spirit and power for service. often subsequent to regeneration.
5) We are a Bible based gathering. We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God, fully inspired without error in the original manuscripts, and the infallible rule of faith and practice. Our teaching will come out of the Word of God. We will use supportive texts, but the primary message is God’s written Word. It is endless, timeless, unchanging, and applicable to our every day lives. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness. As Christians living in a postmodern world, the Bible serves as our plumbline, or our guide for living. God’s Word is the only truth that endures forever. Isaiah 40:8 says, the grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever. The Word of God, through the Holy Spirit and God’s perfect timing, will provide us with insight and application in our daily lives.
6) We believe in the universal church, the living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members. As such, our desire is to take our ability to worship to a new level. Worship is a two way process of communicating with the Lord. We worship and adore Jesus Christ for who He is, so our worship must flow out of our desire to elevate Him to His place of prominence as the Lord of Creation. At the same time worship provides us an opportunity for us to look inwardly and savor our individual personal relationship with the Lord. We are only meaningless specks on the horizon of time, but somehow the timeless Creator of the Universe believes that we are important and has chosen us to have a relationship with Him. These concepts should be the inspiration behind all that we do whether it be music, media, drama, message, and fellowship.
7) We believe in the Holy Spirit. He was sent by the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify and empower for ministry all who believe in Christ; We believe the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Jesus Christ and He is an abiding Helper, teacher and guide. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and in the exercise of all the Biblical gifts of the Spirit.
8) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ committed two Ordinances to the Church: (1) baptism and (2) the Lord's Supper. We believe in baptism by immersion and communion open to all believers.
9) We believe in the personal, visible return of Christ to earth and the establishment of His Kingdom; in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment and eternal blessing of the righteous and endless suffering of the wicked.
10) The Point is a non-denominational fellowship of believers. Our desire is to know Jesus as our Lord and Savior and to be conformed into His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus said: Learn of Me
Therefore: Our services are designed with great emphasis on the teaching of the Word of God that He might instruct us on how to live our daily lives.
Jesus said: You must worship God in Spirit and truth
Therefore: We give great place to worship in our service and desire to remain yielded to the Holy Spirit, in order that He may guide us into true worship.
Jesus said: Men ought always to pray
Therefore: We encourage everyone to fellowship daily with God through prayer that we might be filled with the fullness of His love and power.
We believe that the true basis for Christian fellowship is God's (AGAPE) love. We believe in expressing that love one to another.
Please come back for more information. I will be posting here frequently.
Take risks and live for the Lord,
Rick Marshall
Well, I have decided to make a commitment for once in my life. I am not going to straddle the fence any longer. I am tired of being active in church, teaching Sunday School, and following someone else’s lead on how they think our relationship with Jesus Christ should look, feel, smell, and sound. So, I feel the Lord calling me to plant a new style of church in the St Louis Metro East area. It will be different, and I even hesitate to call it a church. Most people consider the word Church to be a verb, but I think it should be a noun. I think this concept will force me to stop calling Sunday services church and start calling it a gathering point for believers. In fact, we’ll call it The Point.
I am convinced many people have blurred the concept of going to church with their personal relationship with the Lord. It is important to fellowship with other believers, and to gather as a “Body of Christ”, but to gather as a corporate body just because we feel we should be gathering is not what I believe Christ wanted us to do when He commanded us in Mark 16:15 to, Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. We will strive to redefine the relational, personal meanings of what it means to worship the Lord, spread the gospel, feed the flock, and commune with God.
Let me set forth some basic, primary beliefs that will help embrace the concepts of The Point:
1) We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, equal in power and glory; that this triune God created all, upholds all and governs all.
2) We believe in God the Father: an infinite, personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love; that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of mankind; that He hears and answers prayer; and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.
3) We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, and teachings, His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, bodily ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people and personal, visible return to earth.
4) We believe that all people are sinners by nature and choice and therefore under condemnation, that God regenerates by the Holy Spirit those repenting of their sins and confessing Jesus Christ as Lord; that Jesus Christ baptizes the seeking believer with the Holy Spirit and power for service. often subsequent to regeneration.
5) We are a Bible based gathering. We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God, fully inspired without error in the original manuscripts, and the infallible rule of faith and practice. Our teaching will come out of the Word of God. We will use supportive texts, but the primary message is God’s written Word. It is endless, timeless, unchanging, and applicable to our every day lives. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness. As Christians living in a postmodern world, the Bible serves as our plumbline, or our guide for living. God’s Word is the only truth that endures forever. Isaiah 40:8 says, the grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever. The Word of God, through the Holy Spirit and God’s perfect timing, will provide us with insight and application in our daily lives.
6) We believe in the universal church, the living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members. As such, our desire is to take our ability to worship to a new level. Worship is a two way process of communicating with the Lord. We worship and adore Jesus Christ for who He is, so our worship must flow out of our desire to elevate Him to His place of prominence as the Lord of Creation. At the same time worship provides us an opportunity for us to look inwardly and savor our individual personal relationship with the Lord. We are only meaningless specks on the horizon of time, but somehow the timeless Creator of the Universe believes that we are important and has chosen us to have a relationship with Him. These concepts should be the inspiration behind all that we do whether it be music, media, drama, message, and fellowship.
7) We believe in the Holy Spirit. He was sent by the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify and empower for ministry all who believe in Christ; We believe the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Jesus Christ and He is an abiding Helper, teacher and guide. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and in the exercise of all the Biblical gifts of the Spirit.
8) We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ committed two Ordinances to the Church: (1) baptism and (2) the Lord's Supper. We believe in baptism by immersion and communion open to all believers.
9) We believe in the personal, visible return of Christ to earth and the establishment of His Kingdom; in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment and eternal blessing of the righteous and endless suffering of the wicked.
10) The Point is a non-denominational fellowship of believers. Our desire is to know Jesus as our Lord and Savior and to be conformed into His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus said: Learn of Me
Therefore: Our services are designed with great emphasis on the teaching of the Word of God that He might instruct us on how to live our daily lives.
Jesus said: You must worship God in Spirit and truth
Therefore: We give great place to worship in our service and desire to remain yielded to the Holy Spirit, in order that He may guide us into true worship.
Jesus said: Men ought always to pray
Therefore: We encourage everyone to fellowship daily with God through prayer that we might be filled with the fullness of His love and power.
We believe that the true basis for Christian fellowship is God's (AGAPE) love. We believe in expressing that love one to another.
Please come back for more information. I will be posting here frequently.
Take risks and live for the Lord,
Rick Marshall
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)