Everyone has a picture in their minds of who they want to become. You think about it – dream about it – and even plan for it.

As a matter of fact, this time of year many people make resolutions that revolve around molding them into the person they want to BECOME. Sadly, most people drop their resolutions within weeks.

According to A Marist University Poll,

Keeping Their Word?

33% of Americans recall making a New Year’s resolution last year, but how successful were they?  Of those residents, 65% said they kept their promise for at least part of the year while 35% did not.  Men were more steadfast than were women.  70% of men kept their resolution for at least part of 2009.  This compares with 59% of women.

Dedication has grown among Americans who have previously made a resolution.  While 65% of residents kept their resolution for 2009, 60% did so in 2008.

Why do we fail in our New Years Resolutions? Because we don’t know how to change. The Bible gives us clear instructions on how to BECOME the person we would like to be.

Starting this Sunday, I will share with you how you can BECOME all God intended for you to be. I will examine change in general, and then over the next few weeks we will look at some of the New Years Resolutions everyone makes and what the Bible says about them.

If you want to improve your family, finances, organizational skills, and many other things – don’t miss a service.

Check us out at www.libertybaptistchurch.ws

See you Sunday – prepare to leave changed!!

What makes the way we do church different than everyone else?

LBC is making a real impact in our community and we are constantly showing and sharing the love of Christ. In the last couple of months – Here is a small sample of what we have done:

• We raised over $1,500 to help Dawnville Elementary buy food to send home with children they think are going hungry
• We handed out book bags and school supplies to communities and schools in the hundreds
• We took up over $7,000 [so far] for our world missions offering that will help support missionaries all around the world
• We bought “snacks” for Cedar Ridge Elementary to help them feed hungry kids – $ cost and value in the hundreds
• We have bought – and are buying – coats for children that Cedar Ridge can give out to kids who are cold
• Many of our SS classes adopted families and bought Christmas who would not have anything otherwise
• Our Men’s Ministry took up an impromptu offering and bought Christmas for families who wouldn’t have had it otherwise
• You pledged over $18,000 for FAITH missions for next year
• We took up shoe-boxes for Operation Christmas Child
• We covered communities on Halloween and handed out candy and church information. We gave candy out to hundreds of children
• We wrapped Christmas presents at Walnut Square Mall for 4 Saturdays for FREE – yes FREE! We wrapped around 1,000 gifts

There is more – I just can’t think of it all. And that’s in just the last few months!

That is what separates us from everyone else – we’re not just talking about Christ – we are trying to act like Him as well.

Liberty  – you are doing a great job! You are the Best!

Why do Athiest feel the need to ‘evangelize’? It strikes me as humurous that they would spend thousands of dollars and countless hours fighting something they don’t believe exists!!

A group in NY City is promoting their atheism with their dollars and time. You can read about it here: http://bit.ly/INBsv

Shouldn’t we as Christians be much more motivated than the atheist? After all, we believe God is real and that there are dire consequences for NOT believeing and trusting in Him!!

So, lets do the world a favor and be more vocal and more zealous and more committed to telling people about Jesus than the atheist are in telling people He doesn’t exist.

Go to work ~ school ~ community ~ family and share the love of Christ and the gospel message!!

Psalm 14:1

Only fools say in their hearts,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and their actions are evil;
not one of them does good!

A church in London was recently told to be quiet – literally! [Read about it here: http://bit.ly/2miyW6 ]

They were worshiping too loud – causing a disturbance – making too much noise – GOOD FOR THEM!!

Wouldn’t it be awesome if people complained that YOUR/OUR church made too much noise? I don’t mean just audible noise – I mean the “news” kind of noise. The kind of “noise” that told about how:

• God was at work in the church
• Lives were being changed
• Sin was being confessed & forsook
• Exciting worship was being engaged
• The community was being changed
• People were leaving false religions and turning to Christ
• The Gospel was being preached on every street corner
• Too much Jesus was going on

Let’s do it! Let’s go out into the world and make a lot of “noise” about Jesus!!

Go to work ~ school ~ community ~and make much ado about Jesus!!

Acts 17:6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.

Last week on Wednesday night we had 165 youth and children on campus – that is 91 youth and 74 AWANA kids! What an amazing number! This week there were 173 on campus - 90 youth and 83 AWANA kids. Wow!

And its not just the numerical growth that is great, but Spiritual growth is taking place as well. Next week I will baptize over 1/2 dozen teenagers and college kids who have been saved recently. I am texted & Facebooked regularly by college and high school kids who ask me Bible questions and Christian living questions. Right now, we have college kids who are fasting from food, media, and television in order to draw closer to the Lord. Every week when I preach it is a huge encouragement to look down at the first 5 or 6 rows in the middle section and see our youth sitting there listening to every word or raising their hands in worship!!

With all of this going on here, I am reminded of something – God often sends revival through youth. One of the greatest revivals the world has ever experienced was the Great Welsh revival of the early 1900′s. Evan Roberts, who was just a young man, went about the countryside preaching a 4 point sermon:

1. Confess all known sin
2. Deal with and get rid of anything ‘doubtful’ thing in your life
3. Be ready to obey the Holy Spirit instantly
4. Confess Christ publicly

Evan was full of the Spirit of God and for 2 years (until he collapsed from exhaustion) he saw hundreds come to Christ. People were changed in so many ways. The crime rate dropped, drunkards were reformed, pubs reported losses in trade. Bad language disappeared and never returned to the lips of many – it was reported that the pit ponies failed to understand their born again colliers who seemed to speak the new language of Zion – without curse and blasphemy – even football and rugby became uninteresting in the light of new joy and direction received by the Converts.

So, pray for your youth at Liberty. Pray for revival at Liberty. If you know someone who has a teenager invite them to church.

One of the greatest things they can do is to get that teenager involved in a youth group that is on fire for Jesus!

Right now – @ Liberty – they are on fire!!

This past Monday night I had to take a trip to the Emergency Room. It was the third time in about a month I have had an allergic reaction to something – but this was the worst time. [Yes, I have an upcoming appointment with an allergists to find out what it is]. I tried not to go to the ER and to take care of things myself, but it got really bad. I was turning purple and swelling …. kind of like Will Smith in the movie “Hitch”. I’ll spare you the details, but suffice to say I HAD to go to the ER.  So, I live close to the Murray Hospital and that’s where my wife drove me. I stayed for several hours, got better, and went home . . . but I learned a few things from that night….

1. Life comes at you Fast!

The thing about the allergic reaction was it didn’t happen over much time. It starts with the palms of my hands itching. Within minutes, my face was swelling, I couldn’t breath, I broke out in a rash and hives, and I was getting faint. . . all in about a 10 minute time span!!  I went from well to a “near-death” feeling in a matter of seconds.

The point is – It is a great reminder that life often happens that way. Often we can have things change in our lives in just the span of a moment and we have to learn to be prepared for it. When the reaction started, I didn’t have time to “get right with God”. I was what I was in that moment.

Walk with God so you are close and clean to Him and ready for whatever sudden changes might happen in your life.

James 4:13-17

¹³ Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” ¹⁴ How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. ¹⁵ What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.

2. Sometimes you need Intervention from others.

OK – you would think with all that going on I would have ran to the ER – but not so. Even though I could barely breathe, I insisted on treating myself at home constantly saying, “I’m OK”! It was until my daughters and my wife said – “Get in the car you are going to the hospital” in a tone I couldn’t refuse that I came to my senses and realized I needed help.

The point is - sometimes we all need intervention from those that love us. We can get stuck in unhealthy spiritual, emotional, relationship, or physical ruts in our lives that we don’t even see the need to dig our way out of. Listen to those around you whom God has placed there to speak truth into your life. It is not always pleasant, but normally it is for the best.

Proverbs 17:17

¹⁷ A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

3. The right ministry from the right person can make such a difference

I can’t say enough good things about the way the hospital ministered to me. When I got there, the ER waiting room was packed. I couldn’t breathe and I told my wife that if we had to wait our turn I’d probably die! Well, I didn’t have too – within 2 minutes of walking in the door I was in a room. Then my nurse, Krista, was awesome. My wife and I both thought she was nice, informative, patient, and caring. Her ministry made such a big difference in our lives that night.

The point is - You never know what your life can mean to another person who is going through a difficult time. What you may view as your normal “job” can make a big difference to someone else if you do it with the joy of Christ in your heart. Wherever you are today and whatever you do, do it with the joy of Jesus and you’ll really impact those around you having a hard time.

Galatians 6:10

¹⁰Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

4. Things can go from bad to better quickly

When I walked in the ER I thought I would be there all night or longer. They put me in a room -asked me some questions – ran some tests  -and then started an IV with several medicines. I was a mess – swollen, hives, rash, etc….but, within a couple of hours of treatment I was much much better. I walked out of the hospital very sleepy [Benadryl via IV will do that] but feeling much better.

The point is - If things are difficult for you now, don’t despair. They can turn around faster than you think. Just trust the Lord through your situation and you might be surprised at how much better things will get. You may not get all of your questions answered right away, but be thankful for the favor of God when it shines in your life.

Lamentations 3:17-24

¹⁷ My soul has been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is. ¹⁸ Then I thought: My future  is lost, as well as my hope from the LORD. ¹⁹ Remember  my affliction and my homelessness, the wormwood and the poison. ²⁰ I continually remember [them] and have become depressed. ²¹ Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope:

²² [Because of] the LORD‘s faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. ²³ They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! ²⁴ I say: The LORD is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in Him.

An ER visit is no fun, but it did reinforce some Biblical truths in my life.

I have spent the day preparing for Sunday’s sermons and I wanted to give you a heads up. I am planning on preaching on “B the 1….to go to Heaven”. I think it is really going to be a powerful Sunday.  In order for that to be true, I need you to do a couple of things:

1. Pray. PRay. PRAy! PRAY!!!

2. Invite people to be here. It is going to be a great Sunday to invite unsaved friends and family. They WILL hear the gospel!

Hey guys. I’m officially starting my blog. Now, this blog is going to be about anything and everything – here are some topics that will definitely be discussed:

God

Church

Family

Sports

Southern Baptist Convention

Georgia Baptist Convention

Christianity in general

Ministry

The “I can’t believe this … ” file.

Anything else that just seems interesting…

So, sign up and enjoy!!