Rock Harbor Christian Fellowship
Ministry & Group Pages
His Face…
This morning, I was reading of an encounter between two brothers who were at great odds. One had run away years earlier to truly save his hide; the other lived in years of bitterness with a personal commitment to literally kill his distanced brother. As fate has a way with destination, these two siblings met one day out in the countryside! And, to Jacob’s surprise, Esau ran up to him, with huge tears running down his checks, to embrace & kiss him all the while displaying his overwhelming love & forgiveness for him. Jacob went on to say, “…inasmuch as I have seen your face as though I had seen the face of God…”
This really grabbed my heart. Esau had every reason, humanly speaking, to hate, despise & desire his brother’s demise. However, he chose the more excellent way - he chose to replicate & mirror the heart of the Heavenly Father; he willingly allowed the Father to live His love through him. And guess what? God’s Face, God’s Image, God’s Life was reflected through Esau. When people look at us, do they see the face of God?
You know Rock Harbor Family, as we love the Central Coast for our Savior, may we be like Esau was that one day: a man committed to represent the Father in unprecedented ways! May Jesus not only live His love, grace, mercy in us - may He live it through us to the end that God’s Face is on us for all to see! Lord bless you today; Tami and I will see you in a week!
For His Image,
Pastor Randy & Tami
A Shield & an Exceedingly Great Reward!
Yesterday, they took our house away. Well, not literally, however, they did haul off our worldly possessions, our cherished memories and our trinkets of joy! Twenty years of recollections, two decades of reminiscences, some 7,300 days all on an orange big-rig, 18,000 pounds of stuff driving away down our dear Iron Bark Court. Well, the good news, all those things will arrive in Morro Bay on Saturday, to be received by an amazing gal named Tami (my wife…). You know, as I woke up this morning, I was directed to Genesis 15:1, which says “After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.’” Yes, our homes, our things, our stuff is great — but our sustenance, our life, our future & our hope is truly in Him. A number of years ago my son Sean was playing golf and low-n-behold, his club slipped out of his hand and landed on the hood of my brand new 1995 white Ford Ranger. I looked at Sean, obviously angry and ready to scold him when he said, “Daddy, don’t worry…it’s going to burn anyway!” Yipes, how do you punish a kid with such profound insight? Likewise, as Tami and I transition to the Central Coast, after these things (the past twenty years in Temecula), our focus remains upon the Biblical truth that when all is said and done, He is our Shield & our Exceedingly Great Reward!
Rock Harbor Family, my encouragement to you is the same: direct your attentions on the Lord and focus on His love for you for today He is your Shield & your Exceedingly Great Reward! There is simply no greater life than that of an intimate relationship with a God who promises to be our Shield & our Exceedingly Great Reward.
May the Lord totally bless your day and we will see you in two weeks!
Pastor Randy and Tami
Urgent or Important?
It’s one of those early mornings, its 3:15 and my mind is spinning with the things to do. Sometimes life simply takes over; do you know what I mean? We have to do lists to check off, must finish projects to complete and deadlines to conquer. These so-called urgent things can be overwhelming and can actually send us into a perpetual state of stress, irritability and anxiety! Worse yet, they keep us from the important; namely, that intimate, quiet place before our God, before our Maker. Have you ever felt this way? I have, just ask my wife!
You know, I once heard a phrase that really spoke to my heart, a phrase that many a time I must re-visit in my cluttered world of things to accomplish. The phrase goes like this, Don’t Allow the Urgent to Preempt the Important! When all is said and done, the Important is really what matters, not the things we deem as Urgent. The Important: alone time with the Lord; the Urgent: the things of life!
I’m reminded of a verse in the Bible that speaks directly to this. It is from Psalm 46:10a and it says, Be Still and Know that I Am God! Wow, talk about a direct response to a chaotic existence! Be still and know that I Am God is an amazing antidote to a busy heart and a hectic life. Be still and know that I Am God is a wonderful directive from a God that wants to still us, rest us and relax us with the reality His Presence. It’s an edict from a God that wants us to tap into His economy of peace, serenity and calmness & give us that necessary break from life’s demands. Yes, we must do those things to survive, no question about it. However, may we do those things only after being still and knowing that He is God!
Rock Harbor Family, this New Year is already moving at a rapid pace - be mindful that life will overtake us if we forget the Important; namely, alone time with the Lord. Hence, why not get away right now and be still to know that He is God? In other words, go spend some alone time with our Lord right now! Grab your Bible, prepare your heart, start praying and know that He is God! Oh, if you do - look out, your life will be radically changed! May the Lord bless you all; Tami and I are so excited to be a part of your church family & a part of what our God is doing on the Central Coast!
Take care; we will see you all in a few weeks! In the hope of Psalm 27:4,
Pastor Randy and Tami
New Years Resolutions!
No doubt we’ve all made them and most? definitely we’ve all broke them.? From losing weight to eating better, from saving money to spending less, our motives are sincere & noble.? ? For this New Year, 2008, in addition to our predictable New Years Resolutions, let’s include a Spiritual Resolve, if you will.? Namely, let’s commit together, pray alongside one another and encourage each other to grow in the Grace & Knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18).? Seriously, at the end of this year, we all may look better, we may have saved more money, we may reduce our debt…however, if we leave Jesus out of the equation, we will miss out on the most important ingredient to a meaningful & joyful life.? Hence, let’s include the Lord in our planning and let’s seek Him this year as we collectively pray for Him to be Glorified in our lives at home and at Rock Harbor!? Pastor Randy
