White Flag

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War is a funny thing. I doubt there has ever been any army that ever went into battle authentically with the thought in their mind that they would raise the WHITE FLAG of surrender. They actually thought they could win. Typically, you believe that somehow, some way, you will find a way to win. In battle, a white flag is not always raised. Sometimes there is a fight to the death. Even with insurmountable odds, they chose to keep fighting to the last man. We often immortalize their bravery in poems like "The Charge of the Light Brigade, " in broadway plays like "Les Miserables", and in historical movies like "The Alamo". But, the point of war is not to sacrifice, it is to win. Sacrifice might be the means to the end, but no one would sacrifice if there was not a sincere belief that their sacrifice would not make a difference.

Yet, as believers, we are called to surrender to our God and His will for us. Job understood this when He said:

Surrender your heart to God, turn to him in prayer, (Job 11:13 CEV)

It is in our surrender that we become so much more. We join God in what He is doing, and it that act of surrender that makes us more than we ever thought we could be doing it on our own.

Today I wrote this on FaceBook concerning Jacob's wrestling with God, found in Genesis 32:24ff:

The man that Jacob wrestled could have been either 1 of 2 beings: 1) an angel 2) the pre-incarnate Christ. We are told this by the prophet Hosea, "Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him." (Hosea 12:4 HCSB) It seems to indicate that this was an angel Jacob wrestled. To deal with an angel was to deal with The Almighty. But, when [the words] the Angel of the Lord is used, we normally associate him with the pre-incarnate Christ. Either way, the point is - you will lose when you wrestle against God's will. You see, God has a way of humbling you and letting you know who is in charge. He is God and you are not. It will be in your humility that God is able to do the greatest work through you. The deceiver (Jacob) became the father of many nations (Israel) once he submitted to God and lost. Isn't it time we raise the WHITE FLAG?

It is time that we give up. In case you haven't gotten to this place in your life, the battle cannot be won. The sacrifice has already been made through the Cross of Christ. We don't need this battle. God will win, and we will lose. When God wins, we all win!

As we close our "Strapped" Series, many of us have been struggling with how to deal with our financial resources. We have held our money so close to our hearts that we can't release it. We (and I'm including me) can't seem to decide to "live like no one else so we will be able to live like no one else." We can't put our minds around this idea that "We're going to give up things now that we love for things we love even more." As I said this past Sunday, no one who claims the name of Christ doesn't tithe because they somehow hate the LORD. It is because we have become so strapped that we can't get seem to get to the place of tithing. Let's get free!

That is why I tithe. I can't make it on my own with my money, so I've got to tap into the resources of God. My tithe is my WHITE FLAG of surrender to God. It is me telling Him that I put Him first place in my life. It is me saying, "I'm going to get rid of my debt and I need you to supernaturally help me with my bills." It is me saying, "I believe you will open the windows of heaven and pour out so many blessings that I can't catch them all" (Malachi 3:10).

Here's the deal, if I go to war with God, I will lose. Isn't it time you and I both surrender to Him? God can then start His best work in us, and truly the best is yet to come.

Pastor Trey Rhodes

Modern Family Series Begins this Sunday - From "Leave it to Beaver’s" Cleavers to "Modern Family’s" Pritchetts, TV producers have been offering us models of what the modern family is for years, but is that what it should be? Many of us have realized neither model works. Let’s be honest, all we really want is a family that works. Families may have changed, but God's principles about the family haven't. Join us at Oceanside Church for a real-life journey into seemingly revolutionary concepts that have worked for thousands of years, and still work today. The style of the modern family may have changed, but the way to have a great modern family hasn’t.

Valentine's Not Just for Couples Banquet - This Sunday night, February 10th 7p.m. Games, Dinner, Pictures for $5.

 

 

 

RVGC Video Game competition - 6 p.m. Friday Night February 22. $5 entry for Super Smash Brothers Competition. $75 grand prize. Total purse to be awarded, $150.

 

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A Few Good Men

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Your family in Fallujah...on patrol?

I am giving you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies previously made about you, so that by them you may strongly engage in battle, having faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and have suffered the shipwreck of their faith. (1 Timothy 1:18-19, HCSB)

We live in a world where men have chosen the easy way. But, those Men who think that life is simple and can coast through it are just fooling themselves. The proof of that last statement is validated by simply reading the newspaper or watching the latest network or local news report.

As a general rule, men are horrible examples. And it seems to me that men who should have the most responsibility to lead us, are the ones who tend to disappoint us the most. I wish I could say that it was only men from a certain line of work, like a politician, who blow it. But it's just not that way. There seems to be just as many "religious men" that fall with increasing regularity.

Has it always been that way? I guess you could make an argument for that. But, it seems that now more than ever, men are taking a backseat when it comes to living upright, clean, and moral lives. Is it really any wonder that we see the next generation tripping and stumbling like blind men without a lead? Examples of good lifestyles are few and far between, especially when it comes to men. Men, let me say this, "These things ought not be!" You see, we live in a war zone. Not a war zone of bullets and bombs, but a war zone that is after the lives of our own families.

I have been reading a book once again called Point Man by Steve Farrar. He was talking about welcoming us to a war zone. Let me read a little bit for you:

"On this particular day, you would give anything not to be here. For you are going out on patrol. You've been on patrol before, but today is different, and that's why there's a knot in your gut and and icy fear in your heart.

"Today is different because the patrol leader has appointed you to be 'point man' point. In essence, you're the leader. Everyone else will fall behind you. And as you move out to encounter the enemy, you realize that the survival of those seven men stepping cautiously behind you will depend upon just one thing: your ability to lead. Your judgment may determine whether they live or die. The responsibility hangs over your head like the suffocating humidity and anxiety in the air."

Then it happened:

"You never saw it coming. The violent shock and utter surprise of gunfire momentarily paralyzes you, despite your 'instant reaction' training. Before you can respond, a bullet tears through your flesh and explodes the bone in your leg. 1000 thoughts instantly floods your mind: Am I going to die? Where are the shots coming from? Is there more than one? Will I lose my leg? Where's the patrol leader?

 "One glance...tells you that the family of the patrol leader is now fatherless. You're trying to determine what to do next, just what is the situation? What are we up against?

"Two other men beside the patrol leader were hit. One is dead, the other bleeding profusely."

"Men ought to pray always..."

Ah, you say, but such are the perils of war, so let's change the scenario slightly. Yes, you're still in battle, on patrol, in the same battlefield, but something about the patrol is different.
Imagine now... you're leading your family. This time it's not your patrol behind you but "you see your wife and your children following behind. Your little girl is trying to choke back tears, and your boy is trying to act brave. Your wife is holding the baby and trying to keep him quiet. On this patrol, you don't want to engage the enemy, you want to avoid him." He continues:

"What would you be feeling under such conditions? The survival of each member of your family – and his survival as a whole – would completely depend upon your ability to lead through the maze of possible ambushes, unseen booby-traps, invisible snipers, and all the extraordinary hazards of combat."

It might sound far-fetched, but the reality is that we are in a war. And it is a war that we must win for our wive's and children's sake. It is a battle and we seem to be outnumbered, but it can be won. You can win.

Men, will you choose to make a difference today?

In the battle with you,
Pastor Trey Rhodes

Don't miss Part 2 tomorrow for Battlefield Instructions


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