Moving On-

Have you ever moved? I don’t mean just off the couch, I mean packed up into a moving truck & transplanted somewhere. I have moved many times, due to ministry. (Not sure I would have been that mobile otherwise!) It has opened up many horizons & relationships, though.

Moving on can seem good & bad. Good in the sense of exciting new prospects & fresh starts. New relationships to build as you meet new people. With a move, come new opportunities.

Of course, there is a down side too. You have to learn new streets & traffic patterns. All the familiar is gone. New numbers & information must be learned. It can almost overwhelm you.

Our Collegiate Ministry office, and the entire Baptist Convention, is moving to a new building this week. After decades of service out of a building in downtown Little Rock, the office is moving to a new complex. The ministry will carry on, simply in a different local.

My parents have lived in the same house my entire life! They have lived on Third Street for well over 55 years! They have been on vacation across the country, but always came home to that little house on Third Street. My dad was in the navy during WWII & sailed around the world, but he has lived most of his life on that little block. Yep, there’s something to be said for consistency. I have a place to go ‘home’ to. The town has changed drastically, but that little house hasn’t changed much for over half a century.

Sometimes we stay where we are because we are afraid of change. We experience xenophobia (fear of the unknown.) It traps us into a rut of existence that leaves little room for adventure & new beginnings. While God wants us rooted & solid, He also wants us willing to follow, even if that means plucking up ties & heading into the unknown.

Jesus came to this earth with a task of saving mankind. His life was in motion for God from the time He touched the ground until He arose from it!
In this passage, He had just finished sharing parables (earthly stories with heavenly messages) to the people. He no more than finished when He was led to take the message on to the next town (which was actually where He had grown up).“When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there.” Matthew 13:53 NIV

I have no idea what God has in store for your life. Only He knows that. I simply encourage you to follow however, & wherever He leads. God may take you to the farthest reaches of the globe, like some of my friends. He may lead you to live the entire of your life in the same town, or even the block where you grew up. Your task is simply to obey His lead. Keep moving your life along with Him until you are moving on to eternity.

www.myspace.com/davejacksonnewport.
Dave Jackson on facebook ASUN website www.bcmasunewport.org
Dave Jackson-Campus Minister djackson@absc.org
Cell: 870-217-9376 Dave’s Desk - http://bcmasunewport.blogspot.com

Clear Direction

My family went skiing over the holidays. We went to some places ‘off the beaten path”, so to speak. To aid in our navigation we had a GPS on board. I’m not sure If I’ll jump on the bandwagon of praise for this bit of technology. As soon as I headed out Garvin (in a clearly angry woman’s voice) began yelling for me to turn. I realize that was ONE way to get to a certain destination, but NOT the way our particular caravan of vehicles had chosen to go. Bottom line, I get enough agitated yells about my driving without buying a device to compound the issue. Garvin, or whichever one you choose to obey, is programmable with multiple parameters. These devices are not completely fool proof. They are a tool to help get to the destination.

Years ago it was mapquest. Problem there was, unless online, it didn’t account for road work or detours. I’ve been sent down a potentially disastrous direction many times at the behest of that particular bit of technology.

Don’t even get me started on ASKING for directions. I’ve shared the nightmares I’ve encountered there in previous devotions. Suffice it to say, I’m a tad more careful about with whom I receive instructions & directions now!

About life: wouldn’t it be just about the best thing since the invention of the automobile, to have someone give you the RIGHT direction for every concern of your life?! I mean, everything from what major to declare to who to date & marry, to what car or house to buy, to what job to take. It would be cool to have a machine that started sounding an alarm when you were about to dive & do something really stupid!

My church family is going through an interesting study (well, more of a tool!) called “Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God.” While I’ve been through it multiple times, I’m amazed at how much God longs to share His direction for life. I simply need to find what He’s up to & join Him in that work. I strongly recommend the study & would even go so far as to get you a book if you are interested!

We plan & scheme & prepare, but truth be known, the total of our lives are in the Hands of God. Wouldn’t it be to our best interest to simply seek His direction & plan for life rather than barreling off down so many dead end roads?! But, sadly, that’s often our way.

King Solomon, easily the wisest man to live, had this to say about God’s way: “A man's mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure.” Proverbs 16:9 The Amplified Bible

Call me, text, email, or message me & I’ll be glad to share more about some resource to help you find purpose & clear direction!

www.myspace.com/davejacksonnewport.
Dave Jackson on facebook ASUN website www.bcmasunewport.org
Dave Jackson-Campus Minister djackson@absc.org
Cell: 870-217-9376 Dave’s Desk - http://bcmasunewport.blogspot.com

Brand Spanking New!

Man! 2009! When I was a kid, back in 18 ought 5, that seemed like something out of Science Fiction. We thought we’d all have flying cars like the Jetsons & be beaming around like Star Strek for sure. Well, that ain’t happened yet, (not that they’re not researching it!) but there have been some major changes in the world. As a kid I remember those bulky-suited guys bouncing around the moon taking, “One giant leap for mankind!”

There have been many new things in my lifetime. In contrast, I’ve talked to some senior adults who have seen MAJOR new things. While I can remember space jaunts, some can remember first aircrafts! I can remember the first computers & digital watches, while they remember when cars were few and far between. My Dad used a horse & mule to plow ground, as a young man!! Now, of course, there are mammoth combines, tractors & all mapped on a grid with GPS. I won’t belabor all the changes that have taken place, but suffice it to say there have been MANY, both good and bad.

Throughout all the changes in my life God has been there. He has had His hand on me. Even when I’ve acted stupid He’s been there. His unfailing Love has been a constant, even when I didn’t recognize it.

A few years back I learned a great truth: more important than anything else new I’ll get this year, God’s mercy is new every morning. His unmerited favor & love for me is shown new each day!! If you hear me pray, you’ll likely hear me say that phrase. It never gets old to me. God loves me & everyday freshly shows that love & mercy to me. I just have to look & realize His outpoured grace.

The prophet Jeremiah wrote it this way: “The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him!” Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT

Just a reminder, you have a wonderful new gift: a new day of life full of God’s potential. You are in a new year. While there most certainly will be ups and downs, God is faithful. The great old hymn is true, “Great is Thy Faithfulness.” So, what will you do with this brand spanking new year? I trust you will make the most of it.

www.myspace.com/davejacksonnewport.

Also Dave Jackson on facebook

Dave’s Desk –blogspot- http://bcmasunewport.blogspot.com/

ASUN website www.bcmasunewport.org

Dave Jackson-Campus Minister djackson@absc.org

cell 870-217-9376

IMPOSSIBLE RESTORATION

Christmas is over. Tinsel, lights, trees & ornaments are being packed away for another year. (In the process around the Jackson household too!) Still, the story behind Christmas is still ringing on. The whole purpose of Jesus coming to our cursed soil is still relevant.

As a worship leader I have to begin listening to Christmas music in July! That’s right; the process of selecting music for the Christmas production begins in summer. Guess it’s a good thing I love Christmas. By the time Christmas is over I am fully ready to put the songs aside. While I may not sing Christmas carols year round, I exalt in the Savior of the story.

Most of us are very familiar with the traditional Christmas story found in Luke 2. Take just a moment to look at the account found in Matthew 1-2. You’ll probably stumble over the names in Matthew 1 of the lineage of Jesus. Many of those names are obscure and unpronounceable to our western tongues. Yet, in that lineage, you’ll find why Jesus came.

In the thousand years of history there you’ll find an odd thing. You’ll see the record of who God used to bring His Son into the world. There were people of renowned & great faith. Then there are women. Not surprising to us, but in eastern culture rarity. You’ll find a prostitute, a foreigner, a victim of incestuous rape & a poor unknown Jewish maiden. There are kings, both great & evil, & simple men of faith.

The whole telling creates questions: “why give us all those names?” and “why choose these flawed characters?” You’d think if God were going to send hope & salvation to a messed up world He’d choose heroes & noble people of character rather than shipwrecked lives. But then again, God’s not obligated to follow our shallow logic. Apparently, He’s out to expose us to the fact we really can’t save ourselves. It completely rests upon His power. He’s out to do the ‘impossible.’ I truly think He’s showing us our restoration is entirely out of our hands.

When God’s angel (heavenly messenger) told them (this ‘first family’ if you will) of God’s plans, they were incredulous & totally confused. So he set it pretty straightforward: “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

When Mary couldn’t see how God was going to pull this off,( remember no one had ever seen such a thing & God hadn’t spoken or shown himself in a few hundred years!) the angel told her a simple truth that’s meant to sum up all things godly: “nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37

I simply want to encourage you & me, this year when it looks like there are no answers in sight, when all hope is lost; God is still the God of the impossible. He chose an impossible way to bring His Salvation into our world & to this day is about the task of saving “His people from their sin.”

So, go ahead & pack up the trees & decorations, just leave out the hope! Sure you’ll need it this year. Pack up the nativity, just keep the Savior.

www.myspace.com/davejacksonnewport.

Also Dave Jackson on facebook
Dave’s Desk –blogspot- http://bcmasunewport.blogspot.com/
ASUN website www.bcmasunewport.org
Dave Jackson-Campus Minister djackson@absc.org cell 870-217-9376