A Good Place to Raise Kids

by Blake Cromwell

In the early 60’s my father left the LA basin and moved his family to Hanford. He announced that Hanford would be a good place to raise his boys. Of course, being in the 5th grade, I was fascinated with Hanford — Moe’s Toy Store, Superior Dairy and the vast countryside. That first summer I swam in the canals, shot jack-rabbits and hunted pheasant. My father was right. Hanford was and is a good place to raise a family. The Kings County is a better place for kids than many parts of our nation.

Churches are also great places to raise a family. Over the years as a pastor, I have witnessed a generation of kids grow up in our home church, Koinonia Christian Fellowship. When I first began pastoring in Hanford I was 30 and this December I will turn “The Big Five O” (December 1st if you want to send some reading glasses and Rogaine).

Over the last twenty years, I have seen toddlers grow up, graduate from college, marry and start families of their own. The vast majority of these kids have been blessed and are productive young adults making a positive impact on their communities.

Most churches provide great role models for children. Men and women raising families and living moral lives impart a visible example for kids to follow. The first experiences in drama, singing, musical instruments and the art of public speaking are often in the local church. Church programs help kids develop strong faith, healthy self-esteem, and love for song. Kids clubs, vacation Bible schools, Christmas plays, father and son outings, father and daughter dinners, and many more — all are found within the community of the church.

My own children grew in interest for musical instruments as they weekly watched the worship band in church. Every week they saw and heard piano, drums, guitars, percussions and stringed instruments making joyful music. My son’s interest in philosophy and theology was inspired by the gifted speakers he was exposed to through the church. He also was awakened to how beautiful girls are because everyone knows the best looking girls are in churches.

I think of Sean who at age 7 was involved in a our kid’s choir and drama team. They sang in churches in Hanford and traveled to many places including Jamaica to minister in churches and public schools. Sean today is in the film business in Hollywood. He attributes his love for the Fine Arts and his calling to Hollywood because of his experiences in church.

On a short mission trip to Mexicali, Rhonda at age 11 witnessed medical care being given to children in the city dump. She now attributes her profession as a nurse to her experience in that Mexicali dump.


My own personal experience of finding positive role models occurred at a local church here in Hanford, the Glad Tidings church. There at age 16, I was impacted by a man named Vernon Rogers. He was affectionate, friendly and enthusiastic about his faith in Christ. I watched how he treated his wife and said deep within myself, “I want that kind of relationship with my future wife.” There is a memory embedded in my mind of Vernon praying in church with tears upon his face as he thanked God for His goodness. I found good role models in many of the men of that church. I believe it is the same today.

In our churches in the Kings County you will find a healthy place to raise your family. The Bible promises parents, “raise up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” If you chose Hanford to raise a family please remember there are some great churches here waiting to help you.

Renewal for Your Marriage

by Blake Cromwell

Recently I was reading through a few of the marriage ceremonies I have done over the last ten years and decided to send the ceremonies to the individual couples and encourage them to re-say the vows they made on their wedding day. I am going to send the ceremony to the husband with a cover letter encouraging him to surprise his wife with a night out and then end the evening with a restatement of his vows to her.

Most marriage days are so filled with stress that couples barely remember the words spoken on their wedding. Yet those words are sometimes the most profound of their marriage. Over the years my wife, Rena, and I have renewed our wedding vows in the privacy of our home. I believe these times of renewal have bought a special grace from God upon our marriage.

It is my belief that Father God delights in doing miracles when a couple renews their wedding vows. Jesus preformed His first miracle at the wedding of Cana. There Christ transformed water into wine. He took what was natural and common and made something wonderful out of it. In like manner, God can take our ordinary lives and transform them into something wonderful.

Of course, as with every miracle we must do our part. Jesus told them to bring him six stone waterpots and out of that action Christ preformed the miracle. In the same manner, we need to bring our marriages to Christ and ask Him to bring His miraculous power to it.

Let me encourage you to renew your marital vows to your spouse, believing that Christ will add His blessing to your marriage. Go ahead and take the following martial vows I have used in scores of wedding and set a date with your spouse.

Then turn to her and make this profession of faith:

I, (your name), take thee, (her name), to be my wedded wife; to care for you, to watch over you, to bring out your best, to allow you to reach your God given purposes in life. I won’t leave you alone to do the difficult task of life, I will be there for you. I cherish you and vow to always do so. No matter the adversities of life I will love you in every circumstance of life, in sickness and in health, in abundance and in lack. I’ll do my best, I will give 100 percent so that you and our family will have an active and engaged husband and father, I will love and cherish you till death parts us, according to God’s Word I make these commitments.

Ladies, then it’s your turn:

I, (your name) do take thee, (his name) to be my wedded husband; to care for you, to watch over you, to bring out your best, to allow you to reach your God given purposes in life. I won’t leave you alone to do the difficult task of life, I will be there for you. I cherish you and vow to always do so. No matter the adversities of life I will love you, in every circumstance, in sickness and in health, in abundance and in lack. I promise to walk with you every step of the way in life and if it gets to a point where you can no longer walk I will pick you up and carry you, I will love and cherish you till death parts us, according to God’s Word I make these commitments.

Of course if you really want to make points with your wife, give her a gift that represents your renewed vows. A watch, ring, maybe flowers but please no irons or washing machines.

Know this, that the pastors in the Kings County want to help you not just on your wedding day, but everyday to help you find that supernatural wine Jesus desires to place in every marriage.

Missing Ingredients

by Blake Cromwell

During the 70’s I worked in a home for teens. Once a week the boys’ home would have dinner together with the girls’ home. It was always a fun filled time with laughter and smiles.

One night we celebrated the birthday of one of the boys. One of the girls from the girls’ home who had a crush on the birthday boy made him a cake. It was her first attempt at baking a cake and she labored diligently to impress her potential boyfriend.

When she rounded the corner that evening the 16 candles illuminated the dark chocolate cake and all of our mouths began to water in anticipation. As she portioned out the cake piece by beautiful chocolate piece, we couldn’t wait to taste this marvel. In unison we slid the first fork-full into our mouths and instantly knew something was wrong. The cake was tasteless. Something — sugar, salt, eggs — something had been forgotten.

She was embarrassed, we were disappointed, and the potential courtship was over. And all because she had missed one ingredient.

One ingredient can make or break a family just like it can make or break a cake. I meet with people often in the midst of crisis. Many times they are struggling with their kids because they’ve left out one important ingredient from the recipe for raising a healthy family. They concentrated on making money and forgot communication. They taught their kids how to study but not how to say no to peer pressure. They eat well but neglect exercise.

I read a story recently about a young social worker who had just graduated from college and taken her first assignment in the inner city. It was there she met Danny.

The boy was curled up against a wall watching his friends play stickball. Danny couldn’t walk and he couldn’t run. So the young social worker decided she would find out what was wrong with Danny. She discovered that about a year before Danny had been playing ball with his friends. He chased after a fly ball and into the path of an oncoming car. His arms and legs were broken and there was damage to his back and ribs.

Some of the children took Danny to his mom who neglected to take him to the hospital. So when the bones began to heal they healed crooked. He couldn’t walk and he couldn’t run, so his friends would carry him down and lean him up against the wall of the building so he could watch them play ball.

The social worker determined to help Danny. She took him to a hospital and there over a period of months Danny underwent 17 separate operations on his legs, arms and back. Finally that day came when once again Danny was able to play stickball…to walk and to run. After months of operations and physical therapy, they had taught Danny to walk again.

Years later the social worker was standing in front of a large gathering of other social workers from all over the country. After telling the story to the group, the social worker asked, “What do you think Danny is doing today?”

Someone said, “I bet Danny is a social worker just like you.” Another guessed Danny was a teacher. Others guessed he was a coach or a pastor of a church.

The social worker shook her head, “Today, Danny is on death row in prison for having, committed murder. You see, we taught him how to walk; we just never taught him where to walk.”

One ingredient can make all the difference in the world. This week the Pastors in the Kings County would love to add an essential ingredient to your life. That ingredient comes from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Mercy

by Blake Cromwell

Most of us have seen the Steven Spielberg movie Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark and remember the golden Ark of the Covenant that Indiana discovered. Near the end of the movie the Nazis attempt to unlock the power of the Ark and make a deadly mistake. They looked into the Ark in hopes of understanding it’s great power. But when they slid the Mercy Seat off the Ark (the Mercy Seat is the lid of the Ark of the Covenant), fire came from it and destroyed all who were looking on.

Believe it or not, the movie isn’t that far from what actually happened in the Old Testament when a group of men slid the Mercy Seat off the Ark to look inside. When they did, God became very angry and struck down over fifty thousand men. Why? Because judgment falls when the Mercy Seat is removed from the Ark. You see, God would look down upon the Ark of the Covenant constantly because it was the representation of His presence on the Earth. Inside the Ark were contained, among other items, the Ten Commandments (remember Moses’ stone tablets?). The Ten Commandments were the Law of God. The Law represents judgment. This is why the Mercy Seat covered the Ark, because God wanted His mercy to cover judgment. So when the Mercy Seat was removed, God looked down and saw only the Law, and we ALL stand guilty before God’s Law.

God’s plan is that mercy would cover judgment. That is why God sent Jesus, the ultimate expression of mercy, to the world. Christ is the Mercy Seat for everyone who has placed their confidence in Him as Savior and Lord.

When I was seven years old I learned my first lesson on mercy. It wasn’t nearly as dramatic as the scene in Indiana Jones or the story of the Ark of the Covenant in the Bible. Neither was it from a Sunday school teacher or a pastor. I learned mercy from the clerk at my local Soda Fountain. That lesson has stayed with me to this day and helps me understand God’s mercy.

My dad would give his three sons thirty-five cents every Saturday. With that huge allowance we would buy an ice cream for a dime and then go to the school matinee for a quarter.

One hot summer day my brothers and I ran to the local Thrifty’s store. I got my regular, one scoop of vanilla and one scoop of strawberry. As I left the store I bumped my arm and dropped both scoops on the hot sidewalk.

My heart melted as I watched my ice cream do the same. In the middle of my pain I heard a knock on the store window and the clerk beckoned me back in. There she mercifully gave me two scoops for free.

That’s mercy – two scoops for free. I realize that this definition of mercy may not be the most profound, but I must admit it has comforted me many times. When I have fallen and am feeling bad I try to remember that God has also given me two scoops for free. He’s covered me with His Mercy Seat, Christ.

If you are feeling beat up by failure or personal sin let me encourage you to learn more about the Mercy Seat of Christ. The pastors in the Kings County can guide you to the Mercy Seat.

An Irrecoverable Moment

by Blake Cromwell

We all have one thing in common, each day holds only twenty-four hours. On an average we sleep and rest eight hours. Our work demands at least eight hours and it takes three hours for meals and family time.

There still remains five precious hours for recreation, prayer, family time and serving others. Someone has said that the difference between one person and another lies largely in how they use those five hours.

Everyday we must look for opportunities to touch our children and community. The parent who understands how precious time is will set down the paper or turn off the TV to spend one on one time with their kids.

In his autobiography, Just as I Am, Billy Graham tells about a conversation he had with John F. Kennedy shortly after his election:

“On the way back to the Kennedy house, the president-elect stopped the car and turned to me. ‘Do you believe in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ?’ he asked.

“ ‘I most certainly do.’
“ ‘Well, does my church believe it?’
“ ‘They have it in their creeds.’
“ ‘They don’t preach it,’ he said. ‘They don’t tell us much about it. I’d like to know what you think.’
“I explained what the Bible said about Christ coming the first time, dying on the Cross, rising from the dead, and then promising that he would come back again. ‘Only then,’ I said, ‘are we going to have permanent world peace.’
“ ‘Very interesting,’ he said, looking away. ‘We’ll have to talk more about that someday.’ And he drove on.”
Several years later, the two met again, at the 1963 National Prayer Breakfast.
“I had the flu,’ Graham remembers. “After I gave my short talk, and he gave his, we walked out of the hotel to his car together, as was always our custom. At the curb, he turned to me.
“’Billy, could you ride back to the White House with me? I’d like to see you for a minute.’
“ ‘Mr. President, I’ve got a fever,’ I protested. ‘Not only am I weak, but I don’t want to give you this thing. Couldn’t we wait and talk some other time?’
“It was a cold, snowy day, and I was freezing as I stood there without my overcoat.
“ ‘Of course,’ he said graciously.”
But the two would never meet again. Later that year, Kennedy was shot dead. Graham comments, “His hesitation at the car door, and his request, haunt me still. What was on his mind? Should I have gone with him? It was an irrecoverable moment.”
“An irrecoverable moment,” what a statement. In the life of our families let us strive not to have “irrecoverable moments.” Time is ticking and eternity is in the balance for those around us. Let us make the most of the opportunities we have today.

This Sunday the Pastors in the Kings County are praying that you will come to church and that you and your family will be marked for eternity.

God's View of You

by Blake Cromwell

Everyone is loved and valued by Father God. This is a bold statement when you consider how bad you and I can act at times. Yet, the Bible says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.”

There is a word in the Bible that declares God’s love for man. It is the word, “Beloved.” It literally means, “One who is worthy of attention and affection.” It describes the visionary eyes of God that see the potential in every person. He sees what He can make out of the raw material of our lives if we only surrender to His will.

Not too long ago, we were throwing out old office equipment and furniture here at the church. One of the items marked for disposal was an old rickety desk with a formaica top. One of the pastors on staff began to rave about how nice the old desk was, and how it was a rare find. All I saw was an old desk, but he saw something I couldn’t see. He saw potential in what I saw as a problem.

I have to confess that I had a hard time envisioning the desk in any other state then what it was. I don’t do yard sales, go junk shopping, or buy un-restored items. In art classes I tend to stare at the blank sheet of paper and see a blank sheet of paper. In pottery class all I saw was a lump of clay while others saw pieces of art.

One of my favorite stories is about a married couple out one day for a drive. Suddenly, the husband spots a 57 Ford T-Bird sitting behind an old barn. He tracks the owner down and offers a sum of money so large his wife thinks he has lost his mind. What she sees is an old car with peeling paint, no tires, dented doors, no fenders, and broken windows that have allowed rain to ruin the inside of the vehicle. Before she can protest the two men are shaking hands and the deal has been made.

The husband hauls the wrecked and rusted car to the clean garage of their home. His wife is so frustrated, she refuses to visit the garage at all. Meanwhile, he disappears into the garage every evening like clockwork. Finally, he walks in and announces he has finished the car. She tells him, “Good, now I can have my garage back and you can get our money back!” He smiles and invites her to come and see.

As he opens the garage doors and the light shines on the new paint she is speechless at its beauty. He invites her to be the first one to drive it. She sinks down into the refinished bucket seat, places the car in reverse and takes it for a spin. She falls so deeply in love with the classic, her husband seldom gets to drive the car.

What is wonderful about this story is that the husband saw the potential of the car when no one else could. He had visionary eyes that saw beyond the rusted hulk of metal.

Many times I have felt like an old car that has been wrecked and had turned down the wrong streets. My failures threaten to paralyze me until I remember that God loves me and looks at me with visionary eyes. He calls me “beloved” and finds me worthy of attention and affection.

Last week I saw that old desk that had been rescued from a trip to the dump and barely recognized it. It had been so transformed into a thing of beauty that I offered to buy it back. The pastor wouldn’t hear of it, he loves the desk too much to let it go. He is one of those rare individuals who sees with visionary eyes.

This week in the churches in the Kings County there are Pastors who long to tell you how Beloved you are to God and how He can take your life and transform it into His masterpiece.

Keeping What's Yours

by Blake Cromwell

It is distressing to constantly hear that we are still losing the war against drugs, especially among our children. Reports indicate that, as a nation, we have suffered a severe setback in recent years. What progress we made in the 90s now seems to be lost.

It seems the moral landslide is all around us — higher divorce, children being abused, gambling addictions, teen suicide, are only a few of the signs of decay. In the 50s the main reasons high school students reported to the principal’s office were for talking back to the teacher or not throwing trash in the waste basket.

We have much ground to recover, and losing ground once in our possession is always discouraging. But it is far from unusual.

The Old Testament recounts an occasion when David and his warriors returned from battle to find that while they were away, another enemy had invaded their unguarded camp and made off with everything —wives, children, and livestock.

Understandably distraught over their great loss, David prayed and God said He would help. But David and his men would be required to fight for the return of their loved ones. Ultimately, the enemy, and all of David’s possessions were located. A battle ensued that lasted all day and all night. When it was over, the people of God were completely victorious.

I like that story. Satan has come to rob, kill and destroy, but it is always encouraging to see how God comes to the rescue for His people.

But there is also a certain sadness to the story. After all, did David really gain anything? In real terms, we would have to say “no.” Yes, he and his men got their wives, children and possessions back. But think of all the energy expended to simply get back what was already theirs. All because they failed to protect that which was already theirs while they focused on other conquests.

We now face the same dilemma with the war on drugs. Having made progress, suddenly we have lost ground, and will now as a country presume to spend substantial energy and money to recover our recent losses.

In all of this, though, there is a good life lesson.

Think of someone you know (it may be yourself) who lost his or her health because they wouldn’t pay attention to good nutrition or who smoked or damaged themselves with alcohol or drugs. Now they must endure pain and costly medical payments while attempting to recover the good health they once had.

Or think of the good child that goes bad because of neglect. Certainly he can make a turn around, but it usually takes a lot of tears and major sacrifices to return him to the place he once was.

You may recall an old FRAM Filter commercial that demonstrated the costly affects of an abused engine. The spokesperson reminded us, “You can pay a little now, or a lot later.”

This is that way it is with the spiritual training of our children. Isn’t it easier to take them to Sunday school now, than visit them in jail later? Isn’t it easier to read the Bible with your children now, than reading the 12 Steps to alcohol and drug recovery with them later? Isn’t it easier to pray with them now, than to have to pray for their return after they’ve run away?

Think about it. Regaining lost ground takes more energy and work then a little preventative maintenance. The Pastors in the Kings County would love to see you in church this weekend and help you to hold onto what you already have.