100 Days to A New Beginning Update - 12/2/2010

A Joshua Generation - CFNI Spring Graduation 2010

Sorting through some files on my computer today, I came across this video recording of the message I preached at the Christ for the Nations Institute Spring Graduation Ceremony earlier this year entitled, "A Joshua Generation." I am so thankful for the opportunities God has given me to minister there. Nothing gets my "juices" going like a chance to share my heart with a bunch of young "leaders in the making...!" I attended CFNI myself in 1978 and my life was profoundly impacted, particularly in the areas of worship and missions. Experiencing the manifest presence of God day after day in chapel service and sitting in classes taught by John Garlock, the World Missions teacher, changed me forever...!

Happy Thanksgiving...!

From My Study - Seeking God With All Your Heart, November 17, 2010

Word and Spirit - Expanded Broadcast Schedule

Our Word and Spirit telecast has recently moved from cable to satellite. We are also broadcasting over-the-air in Dallas, Columbus, Miami/Fort Lauderdale, Phoenix, Houston, San Antonio, and Midland.  (We expect to be on the air in Fresno, Sacramento, Orlando, and Los Angeles in the near future.)

CHANNEL AND STATION INFO:
(NOTE: All showings are listed in CST / Central Standard Time)

Monday - Friday
2:00-2:30am
7:00-7:30am
2:30-3:00pm

Saturday
7:00-7:30am
12:00-12:30pm (noon)
10:30-11:00pm

Sunday
7:00-7:30am
12:00-12:30pm (noon)
10:00-10:30pm

CITY / STATION INFO:


Satellite: 


All of North America - Channel 103 (Glorystar satellite network - www.glorystar.tv)


All of North America - Galaxy 19 at 97.0°W Non-encrypted (TP Freq = 12060 H; TP = 20; Band = Ku; EIRP =  46.5-48.5)

Over-the-Air:


Dallas, TX - Channel 38.2

Columbus, OH - Channel 32.1

Miami / Fort Lauderdale, FL - Channel 38.1

Phoenix, AZ - Channel 50.3

Houston, TX - Channel 21.3

San Antonio, TX - Channel 10.2

Midland, TX - Channel

INTERNET:


Live - www.mikesimons.com

On Demand - www.wordandspirittv.com

We are grateful to the Lord and to our friends, Mike and Hazel Simons, for making this ministry outreach possible. Please join us in prayer that God will use us to bless many people!

From My Desk - Hurry Across

I’ve been thinking about the Joshua narrative a lot lately. Here is one verse that captured my attention a few days ago,

“Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua was done by the people, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried over, and as soon as all of them had crossed, the ark of the Lord and the priests came to the other side while the people watched. ” (Joshua 4:10–11, NIV)

As each of us walks with God, seeking to know and do His will, we must strike the right balance between haste and caution.

Rushing headlong into major decisions is often a recipe for disaster. Familiar folk proverbs warn us away from that extreme.

Haste makes waste...Marry in haste, repent at leisure...Look before you leap...

Those statements are very good advice - unless God has suddenly parted the Jordan in front of you. When His deliverance instantly appears, you must respond quickly or you will miss your miracle.

Standing on the banks of the Jordan River at flood season, the people of God were facing an enormous obstacle. Perhaps they intended to search for a better location upstream or to wait for the river to go down. God suddenly showed up with His own ideas and the muddy waters rolled back.

When that happened, the Israelites did not call a committee meeting or a consultant; they did not speculate or hesitate; they did not casually saunter over to the other side. Instead, they ran across an eerily dry riverbed and into their destiny.

Most of the time, we should make major decisions slowly and carefully. When God suddenly points the way forward, delayed obedience becomes disobedience.

Do you need God to show up in your circumstances? Are you prepared for Him to do so in the way of His choosing? Are you willing to walk through whatever door He opens? Answering “Yes” to those questions helps position you for a miracle.

When you get this email, I encourage you to pause for a moment and pray these words,

Heavenly Father, I thank you for promising you will never leave me or forsake me. I know you are wise beyond anything I can imagine. Intervene in my life in whatever way you choose. Solve my problems in whatever way you know is best. Help me recognize when your hand is at work in my circumstances. Give me the strength, the faith, and the courage I need to run through whatever door you open into my destiny. Help me encourage others to do the same. In the name of Jesus, Amen!

He who knows and he who knows not...

I came across this Persian proverb today, while reading Joel Rosenberg's, "The Twelfth Imam,"

He who knows not and knows not that he knows not is a fool - shun him.
He who knows not and knows that he knows not is a child - teach him.
He who knows and knows not that he knows is asleep - awake him.
He who knows and knows that he knows is wise - follow him.

HC Family Conversation - Day 5

Do you believe in Providence? That God’s unseen hand can guide human events?

According to the New Testament, the early church did to an astonishing degree. Consider this description of the process they used to choose an apostle to replace Judas,

"Then they prayed, ‘Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry…Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles. ” (Acts 1:23–26, NIV)

They followed an ancient Jewish practice similar to throwing dice or drawing straws. The Lord had directed Joshua to divide the land of Canaan among the tribes of Israel in this manner. (Josh. 13:6; Ezek. 45:1; Mic. 2:5; etc.)

The book of Proverbs promises God hand can overshadow such an approach,

“The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD. ” (Prov. 16:33)

It also gives a very practical reason why this is sometimes healing and helpful,

“Casting the lot settles disputes and keeps strong opponents apart. ” (Prov. 18:18)

Why do Spirit-filled people need to reflect on such passages?

Because even on our best and most spiritual days we only, “…know in part and prophesy in part.” (1 Cor. 13:9, 12) None of us is able to perfectly discern the mind or will of God. Neither will we always agree concerning His will.

As you contemplate the decision that is before us, perhaps you feel a bit like the Apostle Paul when he wrote, “Who has known the mind of the Lord?” (Rom. 11:34)

I have some good news for you…

God has promised to keep His providential hand upon our faulty, frail, utterly imperfect human processes if we call upon Him.

As one country preacher put it, “I believe God is so great that He can draw a straight line with a crooked stick!”

Are you willing to join your faith with the rest of our church family for God to guide us this way? Will you accept the outcome of our congregational vote as ordained by Him?

Are you willing to pray these words?

“Heavenly Father, Thank you for promising to help our weakness. Thank you for promising to overshadow our process. Please settle my heart and calm my fears. Help me think your thoughts today. I trust you to lead us by your Providence into your perfect will. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen!”

HC Family Conversation - Day 4

Here is a verse that is on my heart tonight,

“Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.” (Ephesians 4:2–3, NLT)

Unity is never an accident. It requires purpose and very hard work. The more important an issue is, the harder we have to work to keep legitimate disagreement from resulting in disunity.

Disagreements are like sparks; our words are either like water or gasoline. Right words extinguish the fires of controversy; wrong words can cause explosions.

One measure of our spirituality is the way we disagree with others. Division is a sign of carnality (I Cor. 3:3) and God hates every person who sows it. (Proverbs 6:19)

You recognize a divisive person by the impact of their words and actions. Run away from them like they have the plague! (Romans 16:17) This can be hard if they are people you love, admire, or appreciate, but that verse is in the Bible for a reason.

Division is like an infection. It spreads through personal contact. We can pick up a spirit of division without even knowing it, just like we would some other germ.

When you receive this email, please pause for a moment and pray these words,

“Heavenly Father, Help me to walk in unity with my brothers and sisters at Hillcrest Church. Give me grace to listen as well as speak. Help me see things from other people’s point of view. Give me the courage to walk away from conversations that are divisive. Help me speak words that bring unity in the Spirit. Show us your will. Guide our decision. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

HC Family Conversation - Day 3

Emotions are squishy things, hard to wrap your thoughts around sometimes, yet very real and very powerful.

Confusion… Anger… Fear… Sadness… Joy… Faith… Love…

Feelings like these have shaped the flow of human history. Armies have marched, kingdoms have fallen, and continents have been explored all because of ideas...and because of feelings.

Important decisions sometimes provoke intense emotions. Those feelings are real and they are not wrong. As I have contemplated the prospect of selling our church campus over the past several weeks, I have often felt like I was riding an emotional roller coaster!

Through it all, here is what I have come to realize in a new way,

As people of the Spirit, God does not want us to deny our feelings. Neither does He want our lives to be governed by them. He calls us to be Spirit-filled and Spirit-controlled so we can make decisions that are Spirit-led.

The Apostle Paul put it this way,

“…those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ” (Romans 8:14, NIV)

When you receive this email, please pause for a moment and join me in praying these words,

“Heavenly Father, I thank you for the precious gift of your Holy Spirit. May He come and settle my heart by filling me today with His thoughts, His wisdom, His power, and His strength. Lead us your people as we make this decision. Help us to know your will. May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, for yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever! Amen!”

HC Family Conversation - Day 2

Here is a verse that is on my heart today,

“If the LORD delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm… ” (Psalm 37:23, NIV)

Here is the way it is rendered in a another translation,

“The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” (Psalm 37:23, NLT)

I recently noticed again how many verses in Scripture promise God will guide our steps. That gives me great comfort because when I think of steps I also think of decisions. God has promised to guide our steps so that means He has also promised to guide our decisions! If that is true for us individually, then it is also for us true corporately.

Let’s believe God together that He will guide our church through the decision we face. When you receive this email, please pause for a moment and join me in praying the following prayer:

“Lord, I thank you for promising to guide us through every moment of our lives. Please keep your hand upon us, your people, as we confront this vital decision regarding our church property. May your will be done so that your Kingdom may come on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.”

God has opened up a possibility for us to be debt-free...!

What Does Water Baptism Mean? (Family Day Sermon, September 5, 2010)

We are now streaming live video from our Sunday morning services

We have now started testing live streaming video from our Sunday 10:30am and Wednesday 7pm services. This is hosted by a free, ad-supported company so occasionally you will see some kind of ad pop up, some of which may not be totally in line with our values! To see a sample of what we are doing, please click on the image above. Today we made a change in the settings which seems to have greatly improved the video and audio quality. Please give us your feedback.

Hymn Lovers - It's Your Turn...!

An old farmer went to the city one weekend and attended a big city church. He came home, and his wife asked him how it was.

“Well,” said the farmer, “It was good. They did something different, however. They sang praise choruses instead of hymns.”

“Praise choruses?” asked the wife. “What are those?”

“Oh, they’re OK. They’re sort of like hymns, only different,” said the farmer.

“Well, what’s the difference?” asked the wife.

The farmer said, “Well, it’s like this: If I were to say to you, ‘Martha, the cows are in the corn,’ well, that would be a hymn. If, on the other hand, I were to say to you, ‘Martha, Martha, Martha, Oh Martha, Martha, Martha, the cows, the big cows, the brown cows, the black cows, the white cows, the black and white cows, the cows, cows, cows are in the corn, are in the corn are in the corn, are in the corn, the corn, corn, corn’ – well, that would be a praise chorus.”

Meanwhile, a young Christian went to the country one weekend and attended a small rural church. He came home, and his wife asked him how it was.

“Well,” said the young man, “it was good. They did something different, however. They sang hymns instead of regular songs.”

“Hymns?” asked his wife. “What are those?”

“Oh, they’re OK. They’re sort of like regular songs, only different,” said the young man.

“Well what’s the difference?” asked his wife.

The young man said, “Well, it’s like this: If I were to say to you, ‘Martha, the cows are in the corn, well, that would be a regular song. If, on the other hand, I were to say to you:

‘O, Martha, dear Martha, hear thou my cry
Inclinest thine ear to the words of my mouth.
Turn thou thy whole wondrous ear by and by
To the righteous, inimitable, glorious truth.

For the way of the animals who can explain
There in their heads is no shadow of sense,
Hearkenest they in God’s sun or His rain
Unless from the mild, tempting corn they are fenced.

‘Yea, those cows in glad bovine, rebellious delight,
Have broke free their shackles, their warm pens eschewed.
Then goaded by minions of darkness and night
They all my mild Chilliwack sweet corn have chewed.

‘So look to that bright shining day by and by,
Where all foul corruptions of earth are reborn,
Where no vicious animal makes my soul cry
And I no longer see those foul cows in the corn.’

“Then, if I were to sing only verses one, three and four and do a key change on the last verse, well, that would be a hymn.”

Author unknown.

(Courtesy of Moishe Rosen's blog at http://moisherosen.org/2009/09/08/hymn-lovers-its-your-turn)

City Plan Commission Denies Our Request for An SUP for Coram Deo Academy

I am sorry to report that this afternoon the Dallas City Plan Commission (CPC) denied "without prejudice" our application for the Special Use Permit (SUP) that we need in order to host the Coram Deo Academy Christian school (CDA) here at Hillcrest Church. This action was taken by the CPC in spite of the fact that the CPC staff had recommended our SUP be approved.

CDA is currently located a mere 600 yards or so up the street on Hillcrest Road on the premises of the Trinity Hillcrest Episcopal Church. CDA would like to move onto our facility in order to be able to grow from their current enrollment of approximately 90 students in grades K-6 to a maximum daily presence of 250 students in grades K-12. Their unique scholastic approach blends traditional classroom education with home-schooling, yielding outstanding results both academically and in the formation of the students' character. They have been a great neighbor and an asset to our community since they have been at Trinity Hillcrest and we would be thrilled to partner with them in the Christian education of children from our congregation and beyond.

Please pray that God would give us wisdom regarding any steps we should now take and that He would bless our neighbors and the members of the CPC.

Watch Real-Time Decisions for Christ from Around the World...!

My friend, Eric Celier, and his team over at Jesus.net have put together this real-time display of people who have just given their heart to the Lord Jesus somewhere around the world via one of their websites in various languages. If you have the free Google-Earth software installed, the second window below will display an even cooler 3-D version...!

Why Jews Hate Palin - Jennifer Rubin in Commentary magazine

Teresa and I have a special love and appreciation in our hearts for the Jewish people, but I found this article in Commentary magazine fascinating. It's entitled, "Why Jews Hate Palin." Author Jennifer Rubin details several ways in which Sarah Palin is the antithesis of much of what modern, secularized American Jewish women hold dear. Whatever one's views of Sarah Palin, Rubin's analysis is worth thinking about. I would love to hear your comments!

CLARIFICATION - How Sweet Is the Victory

A sweet friend just emailed me saying that she thinks that the words I have given are to a song that is already in circulation. I am SO thankful for that clarification...! Apparently, Dad heard them and wrote them down and was learning the song so he could sing it. Either way, it certainly expresses his heart and causes me to think that he sensed he was soon to go...

Celebrating the Life of Kenneth Brand

My Father, Rev. Kenneth F. Brand, went to be with the Lord last Monday afternoon. We are having the visitation this afternoon, Thursday, January 7th from 5-6pm and his funeral service tomorrow morning, Friday, January 8th at 11:00am in the auditorium of the first church he and Mom pastored, the Full Gospel Tabernacle at 1801 Guthrie Avenue in Paducah, Kentucky.

Dad will be interned on Saturday, January 9th in Edwardsville, Illinois. Due to the inclement weather and the size of the cemetary chapel, this ceremony will be private but our our family will host a reception for our friends in the greater Saint Louis area who would like to express their condolences to Mom immediately following from 2:30-4:30pm at Calvary Life Church at 4650 Maryville Road in Granite City, Illinois, thanks to the kindness of their Senior Pastor, Mark Maynard.

We request that in lieu of flowers consideration be given in his memory to the Hillcrest Church World Missions Fund, 12123 Hillcrest Road, Dallas, Texas 75230 for world outreach or directly to Mom for her ongoing care.

If you would like to stay in touch with Mom you can do so via the email address we have set for her at: VeraMaeBrand@gmail.com or by postal mail c/o Hillcrest Church, 12123 Hillcrest Road, Dallas, TX 75230.

Oh How Sweet Is The Victory

This afternoon, we have the visitation and tomorrow the funeral for my father, Rev. Kenneth F. Brand. He often wrote songs and always dated them when they were finished.

We found the following, handwritten words on his piano's music holder after he died. The paper was undated, which means it was still a work in progress. My brother, Jason, was in their home in the days leading up to Dad's heart attack, but he had never noticed the paper on the piano, even though it sits in a very prominent and visibile place in the living room. That makes us think that he had written it in the last day or so before he died. He was a very early riser and may even have penned the words early Christmas morning. Late that evening he was taken to the hopsital.

Unfortunately, we do not have any idea of the melody...

Oh How Sweet Is The Victory!

I.

Oh the storm has come and passed,

I can see the sunshine at last.

There's a rainbow appearing just for me,

Sure, I've suffered for a while,

But, He gave me a brand new smile,

And oh how sweet is the victory!

Chorus

Oh how sweet is the victory,
After the battle has been won,
Well, I've got the valley far behind,
Living on the mountain, walking in the sunshine,

Oh how sweet is the victory!

II.

Well the ole river was dark and wide,
But He was waiting on the other side,
Jesus has set me safely across the rolling tide.
There were many times I thought I'd drown,
But He was standing on solid ground,
And Oh how sweet is the victory!

(repeat chorus 2 times)

It's something...as I was just typing those words in on the computer, I had a melody come to mind that fits perfectly. It's as if I can hear him playing the piano and singing this song in my head...One thing's for sure, if he could speak to us now, this song expresses some of what I think he'd say.

"...thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1Corinthians 15:57 NIV)