Author Archives: geoffsnook77

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Hard work?

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This year’s Heisman (giving to nation’s top/most influential football player) trophy winner was Robert Griffin III. I didn’t watch the Heisman award ceremony, but heard just a snippet of his speech. But I think the snippet spoke volumes. So did ESPN.
He took a few long strides up to the stage and let out a laugh when he got there, making a joke about the Superman socks — complete with capes on the back — he was wearing before going into his acceptance speech.
“This is unbelievably believable,” he said. “It’s unbelievable because in the moment we’re all amazed when great things happen. But it’s believable because great things don’t happen without hard work.”
What I did notice was an emphasis on the role of hard work and how it enabled him to achieve this goal. Here are my takes on how Griffin’s acceptance speech differed vastly from Tebow’s.
1.) Praise. One praised His God for the drive, opportunity, skill, and ability to put in the hard work necessary. The other praised himself for his hard work, and his teammates’ for their hard work in enabling him to win the award. It is interesting to me how it is more offensive to give credit to someone’s God than to take credit and praise oneself. Usually in life, we call people who praise themselves arrogant, self-absorbed, or sometimes narcissistic. Yet most people were clearly more offended by Tebow’s humility and deflection of praise.
2.) Credit where credit is due. The Heisman trophy winner is about perception. Again I didn’t hear the whole speech, so he might have credited the media who threw its support behind Griffin the final few weeks. I tend to doubt that though. Most athletes don’t recognize the media for giving them their fame but only for the media’s not granting them fame or coverage. Without much of the media’s coverage and backing, a QB from Baylor does not win out over a big name quarterback or running back at a big name school like Stanford or Alabama.
3.) Hard work? Whatever we do, whether playing football or operating a toll booth (that seems like one of the harder jobs), we are to work at it with all of our hearts; for in such cases, as in all cases, we are ultimately serving the Lord  (Col 3:23-24). Are those who win necessarily those who work the hardest? Did Griffin work harder than others with known ‘work ethics’? Despite hard work, let’s remember this is football. Each game can bring out a career or season ending injury. Peyton Manning, known for being one of the hardest working quarterbacks in the NFL, couldn’t outwork God’s providence. He didn’t play a down this year because of neck surgery. Providence can always trump hard work when someone hits you below the knees like someone did to the seemingly untouchable, hard working, Patriots QB Tom Brady several years ago.
4.) Opportunity knocks. No matter the amount of hard work, there still comes a time where the opportunity, or lack thereof, will more often than not, trump hard work. For instance, if you had been born in some small village in India, undernourished, and lived in poverty, you would not be playing QB for the NFL. You would be fortunate to work hard and hope to eat and feed your family. Last time I checked, we didn’t have a say on who our mothers and fathers would be. We didn’t have a say on where or when we were born. We didn’t have a say on our DNA make up. We didn’t have a say on how athletic we would be, or how much IQ we would possess. If you have risen to the top of your profession-whether it be mother, athlete, real estate, medicine-hard work obviously played a part. But it only played A part. Your station of life, what you have to work with, plays A part as well. Whether it’s an acceptance speech, or simply a prayer each night before you God to bed, don’t forget the God who grants you the plethora of opportunities that allow your hard work to pay off.
Unknown's avatar

I like my women a little on the trashy side

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Yesterday I preached a sermon called “A Scandalous Christmas.” The title change was a last minute change from my previous title: “I like mine a little on the trashy side.” I had three people very close to me encourage in me that direction. Since I figured I could have been wrong to unnecessarily offend folks, I willingly, though somewhat begrudgingly, changed it.
And I’m glad I did. But what ended up being more controversial than the song-I still referenced the song “The Trashy Side”-was the fact that I attributed it to George Straight instead of Confederate Railroad. That might be the last country song reference I make. If I do, I will be sure to google its origin!
I first heard this passage preached-actually the only time I’ve heard it preached at mega-church Northland in Orlando, FL. I was in seminary at that time, perhaps 7 or 8 years ago. I couldn’t believe how scandalous the genealogy really was. God didn’t shy away from the scandalous and would use people such as I in His plan of redemption.
Then I forgot about the message. I don’t think I necessarily ignored or forgot the truth altogether. But in some sense it didn’t seem to resonate as much. I’ve had plenty of opportunities to preach during the advent season and even on Xmas Eve (this Xmas will be my first time preaching on Xmas Sunday), but never even thought about the passage again.
I don’t think this is all that abnormal. While its not abnormal to forget such a passage as this, it is terrible.
Let me explain. We realize that our lives are messed up and sinful. Some of us look worse than others on the outside-though we’re all in the same boat in reality. Then God says, “I can forgive your past, present, future, and offer you my righteousness in place of your sin and trash.” And we’re declared righteous and holy.
Then our life changes a bit, and we think we really ARE righteous and holy. We forget that we are DECLARED righteous and holy NOW, but that one day we will BE righteous and holy. But not now.
Someone told me that he preached this passage for Mother’s Day and got quite an uproar from the church. Perhaps it wasn’t the best timing on Mother’s Day? But people get really offended when you talk about God’s love for trashy people. And its God’s people who seem to get most offended.
They forget how trashy they really are. Jesus is just as offensive to religious people as he is to irreligious people. As much as it might make us uncomfortable, we have to talk about God’s love for those who are, according to the world’s as well as the church’s eyes, trashy. If we never talk about such people (and thus keep everyone feeling good and comfortable), we will never believe the truth that by faith God STILL washes such people. Prostitutes, adulterous, murderous people do by faith enter into the Kingdom of Heaven (I Cor 6:9-11). If we never talk about such folks, we will very quickly forget this truth.
When we’re offended by the mention of God’s love for prostitutes, adulterers, murderers, all of which he clearly displays in the scripture, then we can rest assured it’s not out of an elevated concern for God’s Holiness, but an idolatrous celebration of our own.
God doesn’t stop showing love for trashy people even though His people, including myself, often have. But this Xmas, remember your Savior entered the trash to save-and continue to save-trashy people. And his character doesn’t change. 
God does like His women and men a little on the trashy side.
Unknown's avatar

Carols sung and Carols believed

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I’m a huge fan of Christmas carols. I’m also a huge fan of the folks who take the standard Christmas carols and tweak them a bit. I mean, how many, “O come, O come Emmanuel’s,” can one hear before it seems like his Ipod is on “repeat?” So I’m thankful for the many good albums I’ve collected over the years, particularly for those free on noisetrade.com. Recently I’ve been really digging all of Joel Rake’s Christmas music and some of Drew Holcomb and the Neighbor’s Xmas album.
What amazes me with many of the Christmas carols is their rich lyrics. Aside from “Away in a Manger’s” apocryphal description of Jesus not crying (hate that one), I’m blown away by almost all of them. I mean look at these:
Joy to the World:

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

Hark the Herald Angels Sing:

Christ by highest heav’n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin’s womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!” 

What amazes me the most are unbelievers who sing these songs, but simply don’t believe that Jesus is who He says He is. To sing of something so sublime, but to think of it as little more than a fairy tale, is to me surprising at best, and disingenuous at worst. 
Nevertheless it reminds me of the times when I, as well as many other brothers and sisters in the Lord,  sing such great truths in our carols and hymns but don’t actively believe what we’re singing. For instance, when I sing, “My chains fell off, my heart was free, I rose, went forth, and followed Thee,” how much of that do I believe? If I hold my tongue when I need to say something hard but remain quiet due to fear of man, have I really believed the truth that the gospel sets me free? If I refuse to love an enemy, have I really “bought in” to the saving and transforming power of the gospel? Thinking and feeling the lyrics are a great first step. But actually believing, and then living out the implications of the truth found in such great carols is something even harder. I think that only comes as we bring the carols with us throughout the week. They’re too good to only think, feel, believe on Sunday.

The unbelief of a Christian is of a different variety altogether, but it should still shock us just as much. I think the church singing “Silent Night” is different than Faster Pussycat (an 80’s hair band) singing “Silent Night” on Monster Ballad’s Christmas album. Nevertheless, the unbelief of the “musical artist” (and I realize that is getting a little loose with the language), can still remind us of our unbelief and the disconnect between the gospel we sing and the gospel we live out.

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Why churches and Christians should worship on Xmas Day

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I guess it happens every so and so (maybe 7) number of years that Xmas Day falls on a Sunday. If you have a problem with me writing “Xmas,” and plenty of Christians do (including several on a search committee I interviewed with a few years ago), let R.C. Sproul straighten things out for you. 


Anyhow, many churches wonder what to do when with Christmas falls on a Sunday? Some see great opportunity. Some see great difficulty because numbers will be down. Some wonder whether or not to move or cancel services.


A recent LifeWay Research study of 1,000 Protestant pastors shows that 91 percent of Protestant pastors plan to have services on Christmas Day while 69 percent said they plan to host Christmas Eve services.

Here’s why I think its a good idea to have worship this Sunday Dec 25th.

1.) If you believe that worship should be held on the first day of the week, as seems to the implied pattern in scripture (John 20:1,19; Acts 20:7; I Cor 16:2) , as well as the practice of most churches not called “Seventh-Day Adventist,” then you probably should continue corporate worship that day.

2.) Our actions always teach something. Now of course those actions are always subject to interpretation unless one is given in conjunction. In other words, you can’t simply assume what your actions teach. But let’s consider what a service cancellation most likely teaches. What would be the main reason why people wouldn’t want to come to church on Xmas Sunday morning? Family traditions. Presents. Family. That’s what Xmas is often “about.” If not Santa and presents, then it soon becomes about family. So by canceling a worship service because of, or so that, people can spend time with family, it seems to me that you’re teaching “family first, Jesus second.” According to Jesus, the order is actually reversed (Luke 14:26). What suburbanite doesn’t need to not only hear this, but to practice this? Our families are often our idols. I know from experience: MY OWN! 

3.) In looking at some of the comments on Ed Stetzer’s blog post, I noticed that some folks believed they were loving their pastors well by giving them Xmas Day off to spend time with family. My family and I (well at least Amy, but I can’t imagine my 3 year old not being excited because he wants to be at church every day) are excited to be in church. Part of it is that we don’t have family here. But part of it is that worship is our favorite time of the week. I don’t say this because I think I’m holier or better than you if you don’t. I’m just saying I WANT to be there. Last week my wife talked to a mother who said, “I’m so excited that Xmas falls on a Sunday. I can’t wait!” We’re not alone.

4.) What better way to elevate Jesus above presents, even above your family or family traditions, than by setting those aside in order to worship Jesus with your brothers and sisters in the faith? It gives you an opportunity to teach your children why you worship. It gives you a chance to declare before your extended family, that Jesus is your King. You will follow Him first even when it conflicts with family “obligations.”

5.) Many Christians literally risk life and limb to come to worship. We don’t need to feel guilty that we don’t, but isn’t our tendency only to worship when it doesn’t involve risk or cost to us?

Just some of my thoughts on why church’s should have worship on Xmas Day, and why I think Christians should seriously consider doing family stuff before or after worship. 

Here are some unhealthy motivations (we probably all need to repent from) for going to worship on Sunday Dec 25th

1.) You think your church is better than others. God will soon prove that He thinks the same way too.
2.) You just want to teach your kids that Xmas isn’t about Santa or gifts, but don’t consider the importance, need, desire for you to be there as well
3.) You are jealous and angry of the others getting a head start on the sticky-buns and sausage balls and the real fun.


Unknown's avatar

Tell people you are praying for them

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The other day I had the opportunity to talk with another pastor I hadn’t talked to in a long time. In fact, I don’t really ever remember meeting him. He said he met me, so I just agreed. I could be, and often am, wrong.


He recounted, “I remembered you speaking before presbytery and explaining that Hope Presbyterian couldn’t afford to keep you on any longer. And so I spent some time in the back by myself praying for you. To see where you are is an answer to my prayers!”


I remember that day very well. It was kind of a sad day. But the Lord soon turned sadness into joy as I very soon received a call from Redeemer. 


This conversation taught, or at least reinforced to me a few things about prayer.


1.) Prayer is a way to play a part in someone’s life 
For him to hear that I was enjoying my call and experience at Redeemer was a blessing to his soul. Somehow he played a part. Even though I didn’t know him at all, he still played a part. How cool is prayer? It allows us to partner with other people whom we may not know well or at all.


2.) You should tell people you’re praying for them. You really should. When I heard that this lad broke away from the “business” of the meeting and personally prayed for me, I was astounded. I was moved. Someone really took the time to do this for me? Wow. It showed love and really encouraged me. I like to know that people are praying for me. I’m probably not alone in this. 


Sometimes I think we’re afraid to tell people we’re praying for them because we would rather remain anonymous. Sometimes me might be afraid because we don’t want to come off as prideful. If that’s the case, then confess the pride, but don’t let that stop you from encouraging your brother and sister in the faith who may really need encouragement that day. Be aware of false humility that keeps us from encouraging others and receiving encouragement. 


We have ample scriptural warrant to tell others we are praying. Paul regularly tells his churches that HE (Col 1:3, Phil 1:3) and OTHERS (Col 4:12) are praying. Don’t worry about “sounding” prideful. He didn’t.


When you’re praying for someone, do yourself and them a favor: tell them. You and they will be glad you did. 

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When people in your church move away….

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Several of the families that my wife and I consider close friends are being transferred out of state. That means we won’t be seeing them much anymore. And that is sad for us. And it is sad for our church not only because we loved them for who they were, but because they brought their gifts and passions to Redeemer. We’ll miss them personally, as well as their gifts.

Two nights ago I pondered this “exodus” for a bit. Is it worth getting close to people who may very well move in a year or two? Should we protect ourselves from this potential heartache? Should we be careful to befriend those who are more likely to stay in the area for a while?
Here are some thoughts
1.) Love vs. Self Protection: Much of what passes for love these days is nothing but self-protection. In other words, we say, “Yes” to some people and “No” to others to protect ourselves from their displeasure.  But if love keeps no record of wrongs (I Cor 13), it always opens itself to being wronged or hurt. Sometimes this hurt is not caused by any intentional or even unintentional sin (though this is often the case). Sometimes its caused by a job transfer. And if we let the “well this person could move and then I’d be hurt” mentality to creep in, we’ve protected ourselves but not loved. And love that Christians have for another ought to appear unique before the world: by this all men will know we are His disciples, if we love one another (John 13:35).
2.) God’s love moves toward people. That has to be our definition of love. This quote from Ed Welch’s When People are Big, God is Small, offers much to the challenge of befriending people who may move away from us.

In light of Hosea, such a strategy (never allowing oneself to get hurt by someone who could leave) is no longer an option for the Christian. God’s love is a costly love. It never takes the easy path away from relationships. Instead, it plots how to move toward other people. It thinks creatively of ways to surprise them with love. 

3.) Losing people?  I hate “losing” people whom I love and who love me, and support and serve the local church. I’ve “lost” friends time and time again due to moves (I still keep in touch with some, but its obviously a different relationship). But I have to remember that they are not MY sheep. They’re not yours either. They’re Jesus’ sheep. I’m just an “under-shepherd”(I Peter 5). So if He sees fit to shuffle sheep by moving them out of state, He has that right. I don’t have to like it, and I can be frustrated and saddened, but I do have to recognize His right. And He seems to know more than I do, so that really helps too.
4.) A mindset of sending, as opposed to hoarding. Naturally we tend to hoard our blessings instead of sharing them, whether it be a good dessert, friends, family, or finances. Pastors and parishioners alike can be guilty of this when it comes to people in the church. But hoarding products or people is really contrary to the purpose of blessing (Gen 12:1-3). After a season of being blessed with good relationships and fellow laborers in the gospel, do we even consider that God may want us to bless others by sending our dear friends out or releasing them? Are we really quick, or even open, to send out families we love to serve as missionaries, or plant churches, or to move?

When people are “sent” in the traditional way missionaries are sent, that’s one thing. We have a category for that. Yet often God sends people to serve in different places via a job change. They are still sent, as God determines the exact places where we live (Acts 17:26). And that’s how the gospel really went out in the beginning: some were commissioned to go, but others were “sent” or “scattered” by persecution (Acts 8:1-4).

5.) It is always better to have loved/been loved and “lost” than not to have loved/been loved at all. When people love us and we love them, we and they are always better for it. One lad told me the other day that he had a “mini-revival” while at Redeemer. I’m glad for HIS SAKE that he was here. And I’m glad for MY SAKE that somehow I, and the rest of the church family, played a part in that. Despite the sad departure, loving them and being loved by them was worth it. It always is and always will be.

Just some things to think about when friends leave your church family. Simply writing these down has helped me look at people leaving in a different way.

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Advent: Week 1 devotion

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There’s nothing greater to me than the Christmas season. I love it. I know that some folks have a hard time with Christmas because of the number of bad experiences with previous Christmases. For instance, one of my idols Steve Brown, has a rough time because of an alcoholic father. Others experience the loss of loved ones for the first time, and I can only imagine how hard that is. 


I guess that’s why I appreciate advent so much. It’s more than just Christmas.


Advent is a celebration and thanksgiving for what Jesus has already done, and yet a longing for him to finish the work He started. It’s a time of thankfulness. It’s a time of hopeful petition: the very nature of petitions is that you need something!

Advent marks a mixture of celebration, the kind of which John the Baptist experienced in the womb of Elizabeth (Luke 1:44). And its a time of longing, like John must have experienced in prison, when he wondered, “What’s the deal with this Messiah?”(Matthew 11:2-3). Jesus responded to him, “I’ve done enough now that you can wait and trust me to finish it later.

Advent helps us capture and couch our emotions and center them around Christ. I hope our joy would be more robust and grounded, while our longings bust forth more honest and hopeful. Can you tell I’m a advent fan?

Here is a link to week 1’s devotions. It comes with 6 daily devotions and one family devotion. Hope you enjoy them.

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Thankful for a different kind of present (amended)

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A Sunday or two ago I preached a sermon on anxiety (since I’m well qualified to speak about the subject!) from Phil 4:6-7 called “I got a peacful easy feeling.” In it I referenced the book A Praying Life by Paul Miller. If you haven’t read this book, it’s definitely worth checking out. CBD Reformed has it on sale Black Friday for 5 dollars. It is the only book that I’ve seen on prayer which has really connected prayer to life. That and its one of the better devotional books I’ve ever read. Check it out. No one has ever returned my recommendation with anything less than praise to God for it.


The book is so honest and real, just like our prayers should be. Our prayers are not detached from life. In fact, even when we are invited to lay our requests before the Lord (activity), we do this with thanksgiving (lifestyle). I tend to think the command in Phil 4 means more than just saying “thanks” the way we make our kids say “thanks” when the bakery gives them a cookie. It means a regularly thankful heart.

Paul Miller does a fine job of explaining the connection between thanksgiving, asking, and the experience of peace in the life of a believer. I would include a snippet if I could find it in the book-but believe me, it is not for lack of trying. He reminds us that a thankful heart is a life constantly on the lookout for God’s hand in the story.

And sometimes the things we should be thankful for are those which we are not usually thankful for. It’s not too hard to be thankful for friends, family, food, or football on Thanksgiving. In seminary, one my professors encouraged us to be on the lookout for people who would be hard to deal with, and who may possibly drain or annoy us. He said, “You need those people as well. Look at them as a present from the Lord giftwrapped with a bow on top.” He instructed us to consider them presents, not problems, because God would use them to teach us more about our need to grow in grace. God could use them to develop us in special ways where “easier” types of folks would not “grant” us the opportunity. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t necessarily take his own advice in one particularly important instance. However, that truth is nevertheless still true and timeless. I’m thankful for his challenge, although I’ve not done the best job of heeding his council.

We can be on the lookout not just for those obviously thank-able things, but for those “presents” which at first glance don’t seem very much like presents. God loves us too much to leave us where we are. He loves us too much to not reveal more of our need for His Son Jesus. Knowing more of Jesus is just too great a gift for Him to withhold from us (Phil 3:8). When we see God really does love us so much he won’t deny us such presents, we may find ourselves less burdened and more receptive to what God is teaching us through them. We’ve then opened the door to real thanksgiving and ultimately a greater experience of a Christ-centered peace.

This thanksgiving season, try not to overlook such “presents,” remembering to be thankful for more than family, food, friends, and football on Turkey Day. 
Unknown's avatar

Gospel-centered social media

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This post is intended to be a recap of what we’ve been doing in Redeemer’s Jr High youth group. However, it is quite applicable to all of us insecure generations living in the age of social media.
Social media like Facebook can be very helpful to stay in touch with people that you don’t regularly see. The youth were quick to pick up some positives about things like texting/social media, but a little slower to see some of the negatives. However, most of the kids eventually either pointed out or agreed with the fact facebook/texting provides a “great” place to hide from people. Folks will often post or text “bold” words that they will not say in person. 
So we considered the simple question: Why? 
Genesis 3 gives us a pretty good picture of why this happens. As soon as sin entered into the world, Adam and Eve tried in vain to cover themselves and their shame. They hid behind leaves. That’s why we have a tendency to hide behind a computer or cell phone screen.
So when we text message or do facebook posts that we would never say in person, it goes back to the fact that we really are not believing the gospel as much as we think. Since our sin is rooted in disbelief-as it always has from the beginning-we need to recognize that hiding behind a screen is tantamount to not believing the gospel: what Jesus has already accomplished. 
Romans 8:31-35 says that we are not condemned and no one can bring a charge against God’s chosen ones. The more we believe that, the less we’ll hide behind a screen. We can say things that people need to hear even if they don’t want to hear them. We can then not write things that we should say in person. We can then not text things we shouldn’t say at all. The more we believe the free we are to love each other.

The following Sunday we considered  how to actually use facebook/texting in a positive way. Ephesians 4:25-32 lays out some commands for verbal communication. But since much of our communication is now not verbal (for better or worse-probably latter), but written, the same thing applies to texting and facebook. Things like speaking truth in love, as opposed to responding hastily in anger or with slander, seemed to resonate with the youth. 
We instructed them to NOT EVER respond by facebook or texting while angry. I promised them, they will NEVER say, “I really wish I would have responded right away, because I would have had such great gospel centered things to say to that person that ticked me off.” They will always be glad they waited. But few of us ever take the time to not respond right away. It’s hard, but not impossible.
Of course the only way to do this behavior, is to go back to the gospel. Ephesians 4:32 reminds us that we forgive others as God in Christ has forgiven us. Regardless of whether the other party has repented or not, we can have compassion because God has first shown us compassion. And when we screw up on facebook and texting, and don’t believe the gospel as deeply as we need, we can be rest assured that Jesus never hid behind fig leaves or a computer screen. He never slandered though he was slandered. He did it for us so that need not fear God’s retribution. 
In the end, that’s really the only way we become motivated to encourage one another through our text messages and facebook posts. We could have spent 30 minutes telling the youth to NOT post/text mean things, but instead TO post nice things. That would have been practical. However, that would have been no different than if they were being taught in a synagogue or a mosque. The gospel is what sets our message apart from the rest, providing forgiveness as well as power. After going back to the gospel, we then discussed some practical implications which stem from belief in it.
If you made it this far, and God bless you if you did, you’ve probably realized this post is just as applicable for you as it is for youth.