I could see it coming.  Zach asked for a poptart for breakfast.  With the help of my awesome wife, my determination to forever change my eating habits has gone very well since about mid-January.  Poptarts are not in the equation.

The vices that commandeer our self-control don’t simply give up on us after we begin our awesome lives with Jesus Christ.  Failures happen on our spiritual journeys when we risk confronting the things that tempt us in the Name of Jesus Christ.  If you tango with a poisonous snake there’s a very good chance you’re gonna get bit.  The Bible has a different take on dealing with temptation.  Run away!

The Bible tells us to flee from sexual immorality and evil desires and whatever else that isn’t a part of a pure life (1st Timothy 6:17; 2nd Timothy 2:22).  We’re from heaven, but we’re still on earth and are still vulnerable to the things that used to keep us in a prison of self-defeat. In fact, that’s where Satan will hit you the hardest because it’s the best way to make you fall.

When Zach asked for the poptart I immediately thought of the idea that he almost never finishes it, and that Vanda had just left for work so my accountability was gone.  It is too easy for me to finish off what he started.  I caved (though I only had about 1/4 of it).  When you allow a small opening in your resistence you have to expect the fact that you will eventually enter in.  If you’re struggling with sin . . . run away!

Christianity Today reported a disturbing, though not unbelievable trend in their most recent issue.  They reported that a recent Barna group survey found “that a majority of American youth raised in the church have left it by age 29.”  That is the first passion that spurred me on to dream of a church where little or none of the people left because of a lack of loyalty to the One who saved them and gives them life.  How that must break God’s heart!

Why do they leave?  People have come and gone at The Gate and we’re really okay with that because they have found church homes elsewhere.  So, they haven’t really “left” in the sense of leaving the Body of Christ.  Not everyone worships God the same way.  He’s cool with that.  So are we.  The article suggests that Christianity has done a poor job discipling people, that is, equipping them to understand what it means to have a meaningful, growing life in Jesus Christ.  Relevance of the Christian life to the “real world” is not made apparent and so people leave to find meaning somewhere else.

We have a target group at The Gate.  We aim at people in their late 20′s to early 40′s who desire a more casual atomsphere in worship with a much more modern style of music than is found in most churches.  We strive to live life the the fullest extent which requires relevance in what we do to real life.  if you’re in the population that has left church by age 29, we may be just what you were looking for.

I had coffee today with Steve Bracco of Converge Worldwide, the national office of the association of churches that The Gate belongs to.  It was a great opportunity to let him know what God is up to at The Gate and to offer expertise in our church planting endeavors.  It’s good to talk about these things because it gets me energized to reflect on what God has accomplished through The Gate.  What an awesome group of people!  Many who hadn’t gone to church are now faithful participants in our worship of Jesus Christ.

This meeting was right after another conversation I had with our friends at The Dutch Village Inn in which they agreed to let The Gate have a baptism service at their pool on Sunday, March 29.  What a blessing!  Many who would like to become members of The Gate are ready to take the plunge and give their public witness to what Jesus has done in their lives.  We’ll meet @ 5:30 pm for the baptisms and afterwards we’ll let the kids swim for another couple of hours as the adults chat and chow on the deck.  Sounds like a great time!

Steve was very pleased to hear the news about the baptism.  It’s what he’s in business for.  The Gate is indeed in good company.

Our house has a leaky basement.  So, Vanda called a reputable company to come and give us an estimate as they had advertised – with no cost and no obligation.  The man knows his stuff about basements!  A very likable man, he came into our home and gave many proofs that we indeed need to improve the quality of our basement.  He showed us what his company does and gave more evidence of the company’s good standing with past customers and even the Better Business Bureau.

I know very little about being a home owner.  We had no idea of the extent of the work that needed to be done, which was why we took them up on their offer for a free estimate.  Well, the total came to about $15,000!  Not likely anytime soon.  Ninenty minutes of smooth talk ended with us telling the man “no” to the work because we simply can’t afford it and we aren’t willing to go into debt for it.  He added that he’d give us a special deal because he “likes us” more than his other potential customers even though he had just met us. An advantage of not knowing much about homes or cars: my guard is always up.  Even the best of salesman have an ultimate goal of selling the product and the more unethical ones can figure out very quickly how much bull they can sling your way to get what they want.  Everything that is said, even the true stuff, is said with that in mind.  A few more attempts to entice us into financing didn’t work and he was on his way.

This episode of Knickerbocker life reminded me of Jesus’ teaching in John 15.  People in this world will always have their own interests at heart – at least those not sold out to the message of Jesus Christ.  Jesus said that his Words are truth.  In fact, He is the very personification of Truth.  There is no ulterior motive with Jesus.  There’s no need to worry about Him feeding you a line so that He’ll get what He can from you.  He wants to save you and help you live life to the fullest extent.  So go ahead.  Let your guard down.