Rev. Kratzer’s Blog

Five of the most important words you will ever say are, LORD TEACH US TO PRAY.  We all share a common problem..none of us were born with a prayer life.  This only comes through the teaching of the Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit at work in your life.

 Many Christians never get beyond the elementary stage of prayer and remain there all the rest of their lives.  What a tragic commentary on a life that could otherwise be full of fresh miracles and a daily adventure with the Lord.

 Prayer was never designed to be a playground…it is rather a battleground.  Hard work and discipline are required, but the results are well worth the investment.    Talk to any prayer warrior about what prayer means to them and you will get an incredible response.  They know what happens when you spend time with God.  They have taken seriously those five powerful words: LORD TEACH US TO PRAY.

 I am thankful for Christian parents who had prayed that prayer and set an example before their children.  Yes, prayer is the key to power through the Holy Spirit.

Pastor Tyler’s Blog

HOW HUNGRY ARE YOU?

 

Last week my wife brought home an orphaned kitten that was found on the NNU campus.  She brought it home and since then we have been adjusting to raising this little guy without any knowledge of what we are doing.  We’ve gotten the necessary items to take care of it, a litter box, food, and of course the little toys that kittens love to chase after. 

We came to name our new family member Sader, in light of the fact he was rescued from NNU’s campus.  Sader is short for Crusader, and as we thought of a name, that’s the one that stuck. 

 

After a week now of caring for this little fur ball my wife made an interesting observation.  Our little kitten loves to play, but after playing for awhile he’ll start to bite and nibble at our hands.  He’ll start to whine and cry, and we know he does that because he’s hungry.  The interesting thing however is he has to be convinced to go eat.  The practice we have is when we are sure he’s hungry we put a little food on our finger and he will then lick it off.  It’s at that time that he’ll finally walk the rest of the way to his food dish to begin eating.

 

The observation that my wife made is that, this little kitten knows he is hungry and yet doesn’t really know what to do about it.  His instinct currently isn’t to go find his food dish, but to whine and cry and bite my wife and I who are trying to care for it.  We know what he needs, but is stubborn about allowing us to provide for that need.  Sound familiar?

 

Now I am not a cat person, but God through this new member of our family revealed to my wife and then to me the reality that there are times I’m hungry for Him, and yet I act as though I don’t know where to go to get fed.  I’m too busy playing and having fun with my toys to stop and go eat.  I then get cranky and whiny when I wonder where my food is.

 

Let me apply it in this way.  God watches us when we play, he keeps an eye on us hoping we don’t get ourselves caught in a tree or in trouble somewhere.  He hears us when we start to whine or when we start to cry out for help.  He then watches as we then resist or “bite” the very hand trying to reach down and take us to our food dish.  He knows what we need, we know what we need, and yet we sometimes are too stubborn or too distracted to let him direct us to the very thing He knows we need. 

 

It’s easy in our culture of busy living, hobbies, and comfort to neglect the thing our soul cries out for the most.  It’s natural for us to cry out for help when we’re in search of something to satisfy our longing.  It’s typical for us to try and find it in our own way, rather than let God pick us up and take us to the dish. 

 

God is so good at putting a little milk on his finger and giving us a taste of what He has to offer us, and how He wants to provide for us, yet there are many who expect God to feed us that way all the time.  God lays before us a food dish to satisfy our hunger…that dish…is His very word.  The truth of God’s word has the ability to feed us in a way that gives us strength, energy and excitement for Him.  It is the Bread we are to live by, yet we seem to forget where to go when we are hungry. 

 

My wife and I have made food available for our kitten whenever he wants it, and in a place he can easily access it.  God has done the same for us.  He has provided for our very need and made it accessible for us.  How loud is your soul groaning for food?  Are you satisfied with a few drops of milk from the Father’s finger, or do you crave something more?  May I encourage you today…let us all remember where are “food dish” is and make sure we never lose sight of where to go when we are hungry.  Let’s not wait until we’re so hungry we have to cry out for God to feed us, but let us get in the habit of feeding our spirit daily from what God has made available to us. 

 

So let me ask the question…how hungry are you today?

Nate’s Blog

At the beginning of this week off my family and I went on a quick trip to New Bridge Oregon to pay a visit to my father and drop my sister off. This was a hard time for my family as my sister is now living there for the rest of the year. This was a good move for her, but for us we feel we have lost apart of our family.

            The drive home was somber as we’d left one person behind and faced the dark grey sky of a storm in front of us. There was a silence present that was not there before and I felt the absence of my sister almost immediately. Everyone was trying to have a good time but there was an absence that was felt throughout the car.

            We decided to stop in Baker City for dinner and as we sat there talking the mood was lifted but there were still dark storm clouds surrounding us, and then as we neared the end of dinner the storm hit. It started with a gust of wind that picked up the dust around us leaving us blind to our surroundings. The lightning streaked down hitting the ground and the thunder roared loud shaking the building. Then the rain fell like drops of water balloons, each one exploding on you leaving you drenched.

            Admittedly there was a small fear in me but then I remembered the story in Mark 4:35-41 were Jesus calmed the storm. This story has helped me through many of my fears growing up. As I remembered Jesus’ words “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” it struck me that in this moment of a physical storm there was also an emotional one within me and my family.

            Like the disciples I had found myself crying out to God asking “do you not care for me or my family” and it felt like he was sleeping on the deck, then those sharp words came back to me “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” I was reminded, in my storm, that Jesus IS there even when it feels like He is sleeping.

Pastor Tim’s Blog

ANNIVERSARIES AND REDWOOD FORESTS

 

Cindy and I enjoyed some relaxing days along the California Coast recently.  Along with walking the beach, we also got to take a stroll through a redwood forest.  The trees are so fascinating, so stately and so beautiful—as tall as you can see and wider at the base than most any tree I’ve ever seen!  The way in which they grow in clusters has always fascinated me: small trees sprout up around the mother tree with the roots all intertwined for strength.  It’s the primary reason they last so very long!  And even when the mother tree at the center dies, the sprouts—now tall and strong on their own—have a firm foundation found in the interwoven root system.

 

During our days in California, I was looking for a 60^th anniversary card for my parents.  60 years…Wow!  Our family will all get together next month to celebrate the anniversary together, but as the actual date of the anniversary was approaching, I had hoped to find an appropriate card.  There were cute cards and drippy cards and trendy cards…but none seemed just right!  Then I came upon a card that simply featured a picture on the front of the mighty redwoods, and I decided that was exactly what I was looking for!  I wrote some appropriate words inside and sent it—for there could be no better symbol to celebrate a 60^th wedding anniversary than the tall, stately, incredibly long-living redwoods!

 

I wish I could tell you that all the weddings I’ve performed across the years will last 60 years or more.  One wedding I did imploded during the honeymoon!  Of course, many couples don’t live long enough to celebrate 60 years of marriage, and Mom and Dad are blessed to still have one another.  But death’s not what keeps so many marriages from making it for the long haul.  (And, if you’re one who did all you could do to keep a failing marriage together, and still experienced divorce, please don’t feel beat up by my words.)  Oh, how I long to see more redwood forest kind of marriages!

 

Do you think God wants our marriages to last for a lifetime?  Yep…He sure does!  And do you think He has the power to help us make that happen?  Yep…no doubt about it!  So what’s the problem?  Could it be that too often we’re not letting God work in our lives and in our marriages the way He wants to?  Yep…probably so!  Could it be that we get so consumed with our own selfish desires and ambitions that we lose sight of the needs of our spouse?  Yep…sorry to say!

 

After we’d attended a worship service at a church in California the Sunday we were there, we passed another church whose name hit me like a lightning bolt.  It was called “The Church of Self-Realization.”  Boy!  Does that ever say in a nutshell what’s wrong with our culture!  “Phooey on worshipping God…let’s just worship ourselves!  It’s all about ‘me’ anyway!”  That really bugged me!  And I think that’s exactly why we don’t have more 40^th, and 50^th and even 60^th wedding anniversaries.

 

If you’re married, I pray God will help you and your spouse to make it for the long haul…think (and pray!) in terms of a redwood forest marriage.  God bless you, my friend!

Pastor Ron’s Blog

There has never been a greater need in the church for revival than right now. The second coming of Christ is nearer than ever before. Prophecies are being fulfilled every day. There is a growing urgency for a spiritual awakening.

According to Charles G. Finney there are seven indicators that will be present when a church is on the verge of a spiritual awakening.

l. When the sovereignty of God indicates that revival is near.

2. When wickedness grieves and humbles Christians.

3. When there is a spirit of prayer for revival.

4.When Christians are willing to make sacrifices to carry out the new movement of God’s Spirit.

5. When Christians confess their sins…

6. When the attention of ministers is dedicated toward revival and spiritual awakening.

7. When ministers and laity are willing for God to promote spiritual awakening by whatever instrument He pleases…then revival comes.

The Scriptural formula for revival is very clear in Second Chronicles 7:14: “If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” It is time for each of us to look into our hearts and examine where we are in light of the second coming of Christ.

Let us pray the prayer of the hymn writer, William P. Mackay, “Revive us again; fill each heart with Thy love. May each soul be rekindled with fire from above.” Prayer remains the key to power through the Holy Spirit.

Pastor Tyler’s Blog

WHAT IS OBEDIENCE?

Since November, my youngest cousin and I have been in the habit of talking on Sunday nights. We have already read through one book, and we are close to finishing our second. The book we have been reading is the book by Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God. My cousin, for the first time, is in fact experiencing God. About four years ago my cousin lost his dad to an unexpected blood clot. He was in his senior year of high school and it’s left a great impression on him.

This week went just like any other week; we spent a good 45 minutes talking about what we had read, what we learned, and what is presented to us as a challenge in our life. This past week he presented a question to me that really was a good question. The question he asked was simple, “What is considered disobedience to God?”

The question came after reading chapter 18 in our book. The chapter is titled, “Joining God Requires Obedience.” That’s a question that I don’t really ask a whole lot. I would imagine it’s not a question any of us asks very often. And while we may not be asking that question of ourselves, how often do we ask that question of the people or the world around us?

“You cannot stay where you are and go with God. You cannot continue doing things your way and accomplish God’s purposes in His ways. Once you have adjusted your life to God, His purposes, and His ways you are prepared to obey Him…Obedience is the outward expression of your love for God.” –page 247-248, Experiencing God.

Adjusting our life to God’s pattern, to His plan, and to His purpose is not an easy task. We often run into the conflict of our desired plan or His perfect plan. That word adjustment has been a word that continues to challenge me as I’ve read this book. I’ve had to ask myself repeatedly, “How well am I adjusting my life to be in step with God’s plan?”

Throughout God’s Word, he continually speaks of obedience being the greatest thing we could do in showing our love for Him. I think of the story about Saul and how Samuel rebuked him for not obeying God’s command to destroy an entire village. Saul however thought he was doing a noble thing by taking the best and giving it as an offering to the Lord. The Lord, through Samuel said in I Samuel 15:22, “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”

It’s easy for us to measure the many things we DO in sacrifice to the Lord. The offering we give to Him, the rituals we keep…yet in the end, all he asks of us…is to obey. The question asked of me was, “How do I determine if I’m disobeying God?” I think the best answer I could give and did give my cousin is found in His Word. Am I living according to His Word? Am I close enough to Him to hear His voice? Do I even recognize His voice in my life? God is always extending a call to us…are you able to determine what it is He is asking of you today? Might I extend a challenge to us all, to grow in our relationship to the Father, and as we do, may we out of love…honor Him with our obedience!

Pastor Casey’s Blog

I Hate Goodbyes…

The last few weeks a mother killdeer (a bird) has been sitting on a few eggs in a nest just outside the office doors, waiting…

On Monday this week, one of the eggs hatched, on Tuesday the remaining three hatched.

We were so excited to see a little flock of birds running around the church courtyard area. How cool would it be to have a church mascot?

Well, maybe its not really the same thing, but the birds quickly became part of the church family. One Wednesday, the birds already looked like little

Grown up birds, they were running around and by Wednesday evening, were flying in little amounts. These birds are less than 2 days old and flying!

Thursday morning came, and the nest is empty and no birds are in site.

This got me thinking, so I did a little research (you can research Killdeer, or anything else for yourself at our Prodégé website at http://www.vssm.prodege.com)

While the birds grow up so fast, I am reminded of our 6th grade class also growing up.

2 weeks ago, we took the 6th graders on a weekend retreat to Salt Lake City and Lagoon Theme Park to celebrate graduating from the children’s department and to welcome them into the youth group with Pastor Tyler and Carrie Lynn.

These 6th graders were just graduating kindergarten when I began my internship at Valley Shepherd Nazarene.

I have seen them quickly grow and mature over the last 6 years similar to how I saw the killdeer quickly grow in a few days.

In the same way that the birds are too old and big to all be in their nest, our 6th graders have reached the time in their life when they are too old and big to be in the children’s department. While it is hard to say goodbye, I know that great things are in store as they enter into the youth group.

I look forward to seeing how God continues to work in their lives as they grow and mature.

Keep an eye on our kids and teens. They grow up so fast!

Pastor Paul’s Blog

I’ve always been drawn to study the apostle Paul in the Bible, maybe because he is my namesake. Recently, it’s been his humility that has stood out to me. Philippians is one of my favorite books in the Bible. In chapter three of that book the apostle Paul begins by telling us of all the reasons that he could put confidence in himself. He lists his pedigree and his accomplishments in verses 4b-6. In verses 7-11 he tells us that all those accomplishments are considered as rubbish to him, “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.” Then in verses 12-14 he tells us that not only does he consider his churchy pedigree to be a loss, but he is in pursuit of Christ just as an athlete pursues a prize at the end of a race. Did you know that the apostle Paul was in his early to mid 60’s when he wrote this book? He’d already been on numerous missionary journeys. What more was there to pursue? If there was anyone who knew Christ and what the whole “Christian” thing was all about, it was the apostle Paul.

Lately I’ve begun to understand more and more of what the apostle Paul was experiencing and feeling. I think one of the main contributing factors is that Kim and I now have two teens living in our house. If anyone knows who they belong to please call . . . . (just kidding, we love all of our children).

I used to think that I had a pretty good handle on what being a Christian was all about, but more and more in my journey I’m realizing that I really know very little. Fortunately, I’ve also realized that it’s not about what I know, but it’s all about Who I know (Philippians 3:10-11). When I think back over my journey with Christ, it’s been in those moments when I felt completely lacking and had no confidence in my abilities that, through my obedience, Christ was able to use me, and through His grace, he made something beautiful out of what I thought would be a train wreck. I’m learning more and more to see the circumstances of life through the lenses of Christ’s love and grace and the possibilities of what He can do. My prayer for you today is that you would be able to relax from the worry and stress of feeling like you need to have all the answers or possess all the ability to fix the problems you face. I pray that you would rest in the knowledge that your simple obedience is all that is required and you will be able to “. . . do everything through (Christ) who gives (you) strength.” Philippians 4:13.

Pastor Paul

Pastor Tim’s Blog

A LIFE WELL LIVED

Cindy and I and our kids have been reflecting recently on the impact of a dear and cherished friend upon our lives—her name is Pat. She went to be with Jesus several weeks ago now, and while it’s been quite a while since we’ve been able to be with her, we somehow miss her terribly these days! While we’re saddened by her death, our spirits are brightened by the reality that she’s in a much better place now and that someday we’ll share laughter with her once again.

Bill and Pat welcomed our family into their home and into their hearts as family. We laughed together a lot—and shared tears too. They somehow broke past the barrier of seeing us merely as their “pastor and wife” and chose to embrace us as “Tim and Cindy”—loving us and caring for us as friends. They warmed our hearts and encouraged us. Sometimes I think Pat carried the weight of our burdens heavier than we did—for Pat was one of the most compassionate people I’ve ever known!

Their home was a place of love. Coming out of rather dysfunctional families, Bill and Pat were clearly deeply committed to their family and to making their home different than what they’d known growing up—and it was! But they also knew how to enfold others into the warmth of their home.

During our eleven years serving the wonderful people of the Bedford Church, we spent nearly every Christmas Eve at Bill and Pat’s home—along with several other families. It was a cherished tradition for every member of our family. Pat just knew how to make people feel comfortable in her home—and I can still see her face beaming with joy just in seeing that others were so much enjoying being together. The party wouldn’t begin until after we’d had one or two Christmas Eve services—and by the time we’d leave their home it would be late on Christmas Eve—but it was for all those years one of our favorite and most cherished traditions, evenings we never wanted to have end—a tradition that we sorely missed in the years after we left Bedford.

I particularly remember the way Pat’s compassion compelled her to provide love and care for some of the elderly people of the church—particularly those who had no one else who could offer such care for them. I wish I had a dollar for every time Pat transported someone to a doctor’s office! Over the ten or eleven years that the need existed, she and Bill provided transportation hundreds of times (maybe thousands!) for Hazel Congalton to make her daily trek to the nursing home to see her husband John. When Roselyn Sherman needed 24-hour care late in her life, it was Pat who took Roselyn into her home and cared for her as a loving daughter would treat her mother. Pat did the same with Patty Wise—and those who knew the three ladies I just mentioned would kindly but honestly admit that each one could be particularly challenging in her own way! Who else but Pat would do such a thing for others?! And even before Pat took a couple of them into her home, when there were physical crises that prompted a late night trip to the ER and I’d go to the hospital first thing in the morning to check on them, invariably Pat would be sitting in a chair next to the bed, not wanting them to wake up and think they were alone. She’d do this without complaint, even though she was often dealing with her own physical pain. Her deep sense of compassion for others was at one time her greatest personal strength and that which brought more pain into her life—because she cared so deeply and so much wanted others to feel loved.

Pat had a thing for angels. She and I had some personal fun with a beautiful gold cherub that sat in her home early in our years at Bedford. I teased her about having a naked angel in her house, so before we left that time, I gave it some discreet covering (with toilet paper, to be specific!). On some occasion thereafter, I received as an “anonymous” gift the gold cherub in another state of creative dress. It began to make its rounds—and was eventually returned to our family upon our farewell at Bedford. It sits in our dining room today (fully unclothed!) and is a constant reminder to Cindy and me of one with whom we shared such wonderful love and delightful laughter!

Pat was a crafty sort of person—in that she enjoyed making things with her hands! And it seemed to be an annual tradition for her to decorate her Christmas tree with angels she had made. And every year she made a different kind of angel and asked every person—young and old—who came to their home Christmas Eve to take one of her newly made angels home with them. So it would be no surprise to you that our Christmas tree every year has lots of angels on it to remind us of one who was such an angel to us in so many ways.

It’s no secret that Pat struggled in recent years in ways that baffled those of us who knew her best. When I last saw her four years ago, it broke my heart that the sparkle was no longer in her eyes. I knew that something we could not explain had stolen the Pat we knew and loved. But I have confidence that the sparkle is back in her eyes today—that she is healthy and whole! And I somehow see her waiting near the gates of heaven to give us each a warm embrace and a glass of lemonade when we finally make our way there too. It’ll be good to see you, again, Pat!

May the Lord inspire us to love others as Pat did. May we be a blessing to others as she so often was to our family! May we see the hurting and the lonely as she did, and find ways to address their needs. May we learn to give of ourselves—even inconveniencing ourselves!—in order to respond to the needs of people around us. Somehow, it seems to me that this is exactly what Jesus would do…

On the journey with you,

Pastor Tim

Pastor Tyler’s Blog

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

This morning I sat in a waiting room. As I sat there a gentleman came walking past and happened to sit down in the same area by a friend of mine and myself. He finished his conversation on the phone and we entered into conversation. Jason was his name. A visitor from Canada waiting for the ok to have his leg amputated, recovering from having his left arm amputated. A member of the Canadian Air Force Royale, he had suffered a nightmare of an injury in his recent deployment to Iraq. A misguided missile exploded near his jet as he was about to take off, collapsing the cockpit, melting his left hand to the center stick.

As we talked, he mentioned how he arrived in Boise. Because he is NOT an American citizen, he has run into road blocks to receive the proper treatment. But there he sat in the waiting room with us. He hasn’t left the hospital since he arrived, legs bandaged still, and awaiting the day where they will amputate. Awaiting cash and his family from Canada, he literally has been in a waiting room emotionally and physically.

As we talked he mentioned how much of a nightmare it has been. As he talked, he shared a brief insight into his political views and his frustration with his current situation. I’m not sure what he believes, but nonetheless, my heart was stirred, and it made me think.

“A Passion for God, Compassion for people.” What does that mean? The story above is just part of what has caused me to stop and THINK. Yesterday I listened to a conference call and a statement was made that made me THINK. “Our current world has prevented us from being bored, with all the technology and gadgets out there; we have no need to sit and be bored.”

When I was younger the word was like a four-letter, swear word in our house. We weren’t allowed to be bored. Today we’re not allowed to be bored. Or maybe the statement would be better if it stated, “We’re no longer allowed to THINK.” Scripture mentions how Mary stored up and pondered such things in her heart. When was the last time you pondered? Really stopped to think about what you believe?

The world does a great job of thinking for us. We have instant information 24/7. It’s available to us. The latest analysis, discussion, and insights are written and produced and then displayed in front of us in newspapers, television, movies, and the internet. We no longer have to THINK. We hear things and often times assume it to be the truth. We rationalize and find the opinions that make sense. The world tells us what is right. The media tells us what we should tolerate. We’re told how to vote, what to believe, and what to value. We no longer have to THINK about what we believe and why we believe it, because other sources do it for us.

What exactly is a passion for God suppose to look like? What’s it suppose to mean? What does compassion for people look like? Why should I have compassion for people? Who is God? What is truth? What is wrong? What is right?

Psalm 19 reads, “The heavens tell the Glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or a word; their voice is silent in the skies.” Have you ever stopped to THINK about the ways in which God displays himself to us?

Where am I going with this? The last couple of days I saw a rainbow declaring the promise of our Lord, I stopped to THINK. Then two nights ago I saw a moon that rose in splendor across a row of clouds that beamed with light. And I stopped to THINK. Last night, I listened to a conference call about young adults and sexuality. And I stopped to THINK. Today I sat across from a man discouraged, homesick, and hurting. And I stopped to THINK.

In a matter of days I’ve seen the beauty of God displayed, and in a matter of days I’ve seen the ugliness of the enemy displayed. It made me stop and think.

“And now dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. FIX your thoughts on what is TRUE and HONORABLE and RIGHT. THINK about things that are PURE and LOVELY and ADMIRABLE. THINK about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”(Phil 4:8) What is true? What is honorable? What is right? What is pure? What is lovely? What is admirable? What is excellent? What is worthy of praise? THINK about it!

Next Page »