We taste the appetizer when still the main course is yet to come–the anticipated marriage supper of the Lamb with the exalted Christ, fully in His presence.  But in this moment, tasting, we savor His goodness.  Just as His Word is my delight, so is the creative expression of His wonder.

There is a God, and all of creation is loudly making a declaration that is to His praise . . . for His fame and renown.

What makes this tragic is not just that people died, but that many, if not most, died without knowing Jesus Christ as Savior.  What a tragedy.  A heart cries out, “Why do these things happen?!  Why do children die, and why do an already downtrodden people suffer even more?!”  And God’s broken heart-cry resonates in the darkness of this world that sin has marred what He created as good.  But God, being rich in mercy and grace, has made a way for desperate, hopeless, downtrodden and broken people to find hope in Him . . . even in the midst of sin’s aftermath.  The garden of Eden may have been the epicenter of a Fall that would shake and shatter humanity, but the cross was the epicenter of a Holy quake that would tear the veil that separated man from God,  break sin’s shackles, and offer life and reconciliation with God through Christ His Son.  It is such hope and life that the people of Haiti need, but it must been seen and spoken through the activity of those of us who have the hope of Christ and whose hearts have been stirred to do something.  So what will you do?

You can give money.  Be careful to whom you give because there are some, to be sure, who will seek to profit off of another person’s suffering.  I’m choosing to give through the Baptist Global Response fund.  You can do so if you choose by going online to http://www.baptistglobalresponse.com/new/giving.php

Within the next several months teams who have disaster relief training will be needed to go and help in Haiti.  So what can you do now?  Put your “yes” on the table and be ready to go if God open’s that door for you.  Begin now getting a passport if you don’t have one.  Locate a group who is looking to be mobilized as the time comes.  And most importantly . . . pray that God would use you to be Jesus to Haiti.

I am thankful that our government is responding and even taking the lead in the relief effort.  My prayer is that Christ-followers will respond with as much fervor, and in doing so display the compassion and hope that is only found in Jesus Christ.  My challenge to all who read this is simple:  do something.

I want to know this God who created me; who fashioned me with His own hands; who has put His very breath in me; who has ordained the days of my life; who orders my steps.  I want to know the God who knew me in my mother’s womb; who knows the number of hairs on my head; who knows me inside-out.  I want to know this God who wants a relationship with me and loves me so deeply and passionately that He would sacrifice His son for His glory and my salvation.  I want to know this God who desires to dwell in me and change me from the inside-out; who wants to use me to change the world for His glory, beginning with those closest to me and reaching the stranger around the world.  I want to know this God who sustains me, heals me, comforts me, provides for me, endures me, and never gives up on me; this God who leads me in this journey of life, who whispers words of kindness and wisdom.  I want to know this God who makes Himself knowable, accessible, approachable, and yet know this God who, at the same time, is perfectly holy, awesome in power, gloriously majestic, clothed in splendor, unmatched, incomparable, and eternal.  I want to know this God who has promised the glorious return of His Son, King Jesus who will make all things new and rescue me from this world to Himself and His heavenly kingdom; I want to know Him!

“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.”  –The apostle Paul (A radical Christ-follower)

There are a lot of things in this world that I just don’t get. For instance, dumb warning labels. Have you ever read any of these? A warning label on a chainsaw reads, “Do not attempt to stop chain with hands.” You think? Or how about this hair dryer label for all of you who are multi-taskers, “Do not use in the shower.” I’ll remember that one.

But, there is one more thing I don’t get: treadmills. If I’m going to exert that much energy, I want to get somewhere. Nonetheless, I must confess that, not only do I use one, but have learned an important life lesson from doing so.

Have you ever felt like your life is a lot like running on a treadmill? There is a lot of energy being exerted, but you’re going nowhere. Ever feel that way? Perhaps a snapshot of your life looks like this: You wake up, get ready for the day ahead, feed the kids, go to work, come home, clean the house, cook dinner, pay bills, watch T.V., go to bed, and then it begins all over again in the morning. And that’s your life. It’s what you do, and you go through the motions . . . and exist.

But isn’t there more to life than just existing? There is more to life. This longing inside to really live, and not just exist, is in every person. The question is how do you get there? I believe that you and I were created for the purpose of living, not existing. And because I believe that God is the Creator, living can’t happen apart from knowing God through His Son, Jesus. The Bible affirms that truth:  “Whoever has the Son (Jesus), has life; whoever rejects the Son, rejects life.” (1 John 5:12)

It just makes sense. Knowing your purpose leads to living with purpose. You weren’t meant to just exist; you were created by the Life-giver to really live.  So, here’s to living life to the fullest and getting off the treadmill.

Eating Cracker Jack is like a party in your mouth, but that’s not the point; it’s about the prize in the box.  The caramel-coated popcorn and peanuts are good, but there’s something more.  Every box of Cracker Jack has a prize:  the Bozo tattoo; the decoder ring that doesn’t fit; baseball stickers; a small Chihuahua.  Ok, maybe not the Chihuahua, but how cool would that be?  It really doesn’t matter what the toy is; it’s the excitement of opening the box, digging through the popcorn, opening the prize and seeing what you got that makes it fun.  But you have to work for it, so to speak.  You have to unfold, dig, and unwrap to find the prize.

I think King David would’ve loved Cracker Jack, but then again who wouldn’t?  Here’s what David wrote in Psalm 119:30: “The unfolding of Your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” Psalm 119:30 (ESV)  David understood what it meant to unfold God’s words and to dig deeply into what He was saying, knowing that the prize was understanding, wisdom, direction, knowledge, and truth.

What would happen, if instead of just casually reading God’s word, you began to ask God to help you unfold it?  What if you began to not only enjoy the sweetness of God’s truth–“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” Psalm 119:103–but made it a discipline to unwrap, and dig deeper to find the treasure of what God is saying?  What a waste to read God’s word and walk away with a sweetness in your mouth, but empty of all the treasures of truth He wants you to discover and hide in your heart.

Savor His words, but don’t miss the prize.

I think I’m going to go get some Cracker Jack.

Laying down a promising career as an accountant, and leaving behind all that this world says is important, left an indelible mark on the lives of many people, especially my brother and me, as he surrendered to the call of God on his life to full-time Christian ministry.  Such surrender, though, is the true essence of godliness.  Not only does it reflect the beauty of Christ and His transforming power in the life of a believer, it also leaves footprints on the journey for those who follow behind, leading to a true understanding of who God is.  It is for this reason that I pay tribute to my dad, and not because he is perfect—he isn’t; but because he is one of the godliest men I know.

Throughout my life, he has shown love by investing in me, disciplining me (not my favorite, just for the record), mentoring me, and in all things showing me Jesus Christ.  The godly life that I strive to exemplify each day in my life is because I desire to be more like Jesus, and because it continues to be modeled in the life of a godly man who just happens to be my dad.  I am humbled to be so blessed.  So, in this relatively small way, it is my desire to praise and honor him.

In some sense it is easy to understand what John, who was greatly impacted by the Messiah, must have meant when he wrote in his gospel that there were more things, many more things, he could have written about Jesus; and if they were all recorded, the world would not have room for all the books written.
Because I have been greatly impacted by my dad, there are many more things that could be said about him.  But if it is even possible to sum up in a simple statement this tribute, it could be this:  the shadow of my father’s godliness has been cast largely behind him, and my brother, myself, and our families are blessed to walk in his shade.

I love you dad.  Happy Father’s Day.

One of the greatest kings who has ever ruled, David, wrote about his own experiences and what he learned from them.  He said, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word . . .It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.”  Psalm 119:67, 71 I wonder if David, who was a shepherd before he was a king, was thinking back to his days in the sheep fields.  There would be times, I’m certain, when a sheep would wander off from the flock and be in need of rescue.  Who knows, maybe David dealt with several rogue sheep over the course of his shepherding career.  It’s certainly not uncommon.

In his book “In His Hand,” Roy Gustafson tells the true story of his encounter with a shepherd in Israel whom he saw carrying a sheep that had a splint and bandage on its leg.  The guide that was leading the tour group told Roy that the shepherd himself had broken the sheep’s leg because that particular sheep had the habit of wandering off and leading other sheep astray as well.  The purpose, it was told, behind the shepherd breaking the leg of the sheep was to teach the sheep not to wander off.  I guess it could have been worse . . .”Honey, we’re eating rebel sheep tonight.”

“Before I was afflicted, I went astray . . .” Before God afflicted me, I wandered.  There were things I pursued, places I went, people I hung out with, dreams I chased, plans I made, all of which led me in a different direction away from God’s presence and purposes.  “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” Proverbs 14:12 Straying only leads to destruction.  And then God does something hurtfully loving . . .he breaks your leg.  That’s loving?  It reminds me of that line in “Evan Almighty,” when Steve Carell says, “God, do me a favor.  Love me less.”  But the truth is, He can’t love you less.  So, He breaks your leg.  Then He splints it; bandages it; and does something amazingly beautiful and gracious . . . He carries you.  And this is what I’ve learned:  it’s in His carrying us during our affliction that we learn the love of the Shepherd (Jesus), and that His ways are always the right ways that lead to life, peace, purpose, joy and security.  “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.” Psalm 119:71

Maybe your leg is broken right now, and you are feeling the affliction.  Are you letting Christ carry you, and are you learning His ways?  Or are you trying to make your own way on a broken leg only to find yourself at the edge of the proverbial cliff that leads to destruction?  Afflictions happen, but how you respond during those moments will be the difference between learning His ways that lead to life, or limping off on your own trying to nurse a wound that will never heal.

It is my desire to provide you with top quality videos that clearly communicate the life changing truth of Christ and the principles we find in His Word, as well as leave you challenged to seek out how to apply the truth.

If you have any questions, please email me at shawn.barnard@mac.com

For His fame and renown,

Shawn

Kameron is, perhaps, one of the funniest and quick-witted people I know.  He loves to laugh, and to make people laugh.  And he loves to check things out, and I don’t mean library books.  Let me explain . . .

My cousin was getting married.  You can imagine the setting; it wasn’t much different than most weddings.  It was at a large church, it was decorated nicely, and everyone was excited about this big day.  Prior to the wedding, Jennifer, the kids and I were hanging out with our family in the foyer.  I’m not certain of the exact time of the wedding, but I do know that about 10 minutes from this sacred ceremony, the fire alarm goes off.  As you can imagine, panic ensued.  The crowd in the foyer began to disperse, looking for a fire.  My natural reaction was to make sure that my family was all together, and it was then that I noticed Kameron slowly backing away from the wall which just happened to be the location of the fire alarm.  (Note to those who build buildings with fire alarms:  put it above the reach of little kids)  Yep, he did it.  Pulled the alarm handle down.  The temptation was too great, and his curiosity was just too strong.  So . . . what was going through my mind was how I was going to explain this to my cousin, and the rest of the crowd that was there.  At the same time I was fearing the worst:  that the church had a sprinkler system in the worship center.  Thoughts of candles being doused and decorations being ruined were running through my mind.  It wasn’t long . . . like minutes . . .until the fire department showed up, and I greeted them.  “Hey, how’s it going?  Um, my son, the one over there with his hands cuffed and hanging upside down, he pulled the alarm down.  There’s no fire, everything is fine.”  They didn’t accept my explanation.  As protocol dictates, they were obligated to check out the whole facility.  Great.  There wasn’t a pew large enough for me to hide under.  And then it hit me when my uncle (the father of the bride) said, “That’s little Shawn.”  Needless to say, memories were made that day . . . just ask my cousin.

Tomorrow, Kameron goes to camp for the first time.  Part of me is excited about this new adventure in his journey; and then there is part of me realizes that it is just one more step towards him growing up and the inevitable “little letting-gos.”   I have no doubt that God is shaping Kameron, and even now using him in ways that are making an eternal difference.  He certainly has made a difference in my life.

I could tell you more funny stories about Kam, but they are too many to mention here.  He is mischeiveous, curious, quick-witted, intelligent, animated, articulate, outgoing, and loves Jesus Christ with all his heart.  He has blessed my life in ways that are hard to express in words, but without a doubt he has made me a better man, and I pray a better father.