Part Of The Solution

Ok, 2020. I see you there. Surprising us each month with a new set of events to navigate. Anyone else feel less and less surprised by all of the craziness of this season?

 

My family and I pray together every evening and the list of things we pray for is growing longer and longer. We are praying for people who have COVID-19 or are a part of fighting COVID-19. We are praying against racism and for healing between racial groups. We are praying for political divides to not result in division in God’s house, and for who the leader of America will be for the next 4 years. We are praying for those who have lost their jobs, businesses, or savings during this season. We are praying for those who have grown increasingly depressed or alone. We are praying for teachers, students and administrators in California’s schools who are attempting to do education in a way they possibly didn’t sign up for. We are praying for the protests happening across our country, that they would result in loving, fruitful conversations and not more destruction.  We are praying for members of law enforcement, that they would be committed to serving and protecting and figure out how to do that in the current climate, all while staying mentally and physically healthy. We are praying for victims of abuse who are potentially extra vulnerable. We are praying for kids who have been separated from their families to be returned safely. We are praying…praying...and praying.

           

Today, I woke up with this reminder from God’s word. Matthew 5:14-16 reminds us: “14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

 

I have heard it said, by some, that the Church is part of the problem in a lot of these issues. I know that, to a certain extent, this is true. We are all subject to sin at times. But, God’s plan is to use the Church to bring light to dark places. To bring flavor when the zest of life has turned acidic. To bring solutions, given by the power of the Holy Spirit and His miraculous ways, when there seems to be no way forward.

           

Here are a couple of ways to bring the light:

            -Perspective - Do you see God working through all of the events of the day? Do you take each breath with the understanding that the breaths we take are all a gift? Do you understand how the things we do, or do not do, impact things spiritually? We are called to live with a heavenly perspective.

            -Perseverance and patience – We cannot allow the troubles of this world to shake us out of the fight. We are not called to do nothing until something better happens. We are builders, disciple makers, healers, and worshipers. We are not guaranteed that the good will come in our lifetime. But we are guaranteed that God wins it all. Waiting for God to move is actually a common part of His plans.

            -Deeper Relationships – People have always been a priority to Jesus. People need to be a priority to us as His followers. How we step out and engage with people is incredibly important. When you reach out, especially when led by the Holy Spirit, it can change things in a big way. 

 

So, I am calling all Christians, members of my family, let’s be a part of the solution! Let’s reach out and love people. Let’s be victorious in this season and allow other people to share in those blessings. Let’s stay engaged and involved and not afraid to shift the light towards our savior. He can make a way. He wants to use us to do it. Do not give up on prayer. Faith can move a mountain and there are some mountains that need to be moved! You are a part of the solution because you represent the Savior of the world!

 

Candace Cortez

Executive Pastor

Rhythms and Routines

Recently, for the first time in five months, I took my wife out to dinner! Our regular date night is something that we have highly valued over twenty years of marriage. It has been one of the regular rhythms we have intentionally built into our relationship.

The dinner itself was not the greatest. We had to sit outside at a table that was in a terrible spot. They brought the wrong order. The food was cold. But it didn’t matter as I sat across from the love of my life and we chatted about mostly nothing. 

 

A missing rhythm had been restored and I felt things click back into place once again.

 

We are creatures of habit. We like our routines, even if we hate our routines. What I mean is, the routines in our life give us a sense of stability. Even if we don’t like getting up early to go to work or commuting to school, the regularity of those routines forms a structure of stability in our lives. 

 

When routines are interrupted, our stress level increases because our comfort and security go down. I’m so much better prepared mentally and emotionally for a challenging meeting, if I’ve gone through my normal morning routine. But if that routine gets interrupted or I feel rushed or a pipe breaks in my house and I have to sleep somewhere else...suddenly what was going to be a challenging meeting now becomes overwhelming.

 

Well, I don’t know about you, but I think it is fair to say the last six months of our lives has messed with our rhythms!

 

Much of the regularity of our life has been destroyed. Many people’s work schedules have been interrupted. Our kids’ school schedules have been completely turned upside down. Things as normal as going to the grocery store and, yes, going out to eat have become foreign to us.

 

This has left many of us feeling highly stressed, confused, and angry. Things we would normally have been able to take in stride, now threaten to break us. We have found ourselves expecting the worst and our worries seem to come to fruition daily.

 

What are we to do? 

 

Friends, we have to re-establish healthy rhythms in our lives. In the midst of chaos, healthy routines will help you weather the storms all around. 

 

It’s time to re-establish family dinner time. We must create boundaries around our consumption of media. We have to regularly shut off our phones and screens. And we must fight to connect regularly with Father God — getting on our knees, spending time connecting with Him and reading His Word.  

 

What rhythms and routines have you lost in this season? It’s time to start building them back in! The pastors of Kings County would love to help you build a healthy routine of connecting with God. Often a worship service can be a powerful first step. Churches are meeting online (and some outside) all over our community, perhaps your first routine to be re-established would be getting back to the Father. 

 

I already feel the stress melting away.

 

Andrew Cromwell

Lead Pastor

This is grace. This is Jesus

Have you ever wondered what it takes to be saved? Like your soul being saved forever? If you have, I may have the answer you've been searching for. 

 

Scriptures in the Bible say that we are saved by grace, and that grace is the undeserved favor of God. It means He reached out to, and set up a way for, you to be saved.

 

You see, God's heart is for people but the bridge in which He reaches people is love and grace. He requires no first steps from the people He is wanting to save. Jesus simply wants a response. A response to a free gift; the most beautiful gift anyone could ever receive - salvation.

 

God is not out to get us. He is simply waiting for us to return home. To turn around from our sinful ways and turn to Him. 

 

There's a parable in the book of Luke that tells a story of two sons who had a rich father. One day, the youngest son asked for his inheritance and the father graciously obliged and gave it to him. The young son then went off to a foreign land and lived lavishly and spent all of his money on partying and prostitutes. After a while, he found himself in a rather awful spot, broke and broken. He found a job where he would feed pigs, but this job paid so poorly that he actually started eating the pig food because it was all he could find to eat.

 

Then a light bulb went off in his head and he thought he could go back home and beg his dad to be a servant. He figured he screwed up so badly that he wouldn’t even think about trying to be his son anymore. Scripture goes on to record that, as he went on home, the father saw him from far away and ran to him. He hugged him, kissed him and threw a party. The father was overjoyed with the return of his son, so much so, that he overlooked and forgave the wrong he had done. He celebrated the fact that his son returned instead of scolding his son for leaving.

 

This is grace. This is Jesus. 

 

And this is exactly how Jesus sees us. He is looking for the people He has died for. He is searching and when He sees them, even at a great distance, He runs to them. Not to put them down, but to lift them up. Not to condemn and scold them, but to restore and celebrate life with them. This is the love that emulates from the heart of God. This is the DNA that He puts into us when we get saved. We are called to reconcile the sinner to the savior. 

 

 

Cristian Alva

Youth Pastor

Whenever I Feel Off Center

There are times when I don’t feel like myself. When, despite what I know to be true, I find myself getting sucked into what the world says is true. The news, social media feeds, and people I encounter in the store – all begin to rattle my centeredness. Have you ever felt like that – especially lately?

 

Whenever that happens, I have a handful of Bible verses that I pull out of my back pocket to remind myself of who I am and Who is in charge. Philippians 4:8-10, James 1:2-5, 19-21 and Romans 8:20 are but a few of my companion verses. Along with Psalm 139.

Psalm 139 is long but beautiful. Today, I want to share King David’s words, rather than my own, to help you re-center. Read the following – slowly, visualizing how God knows you and feels about you. Read it again and again, if need be, to receive a more truthful perspective of life than what is currently surrounding us.

 

Lord, you know everything there is to know about me.
You perceive every movement of my heart and soul,
and you understand my every thought before it even enters my mind.
You are so intimately aware of me, Lord.
You read my heart like an open book
and you know all the words I’m about to speak
before I even start a sentence!

You know every step I will take before my journey even begins.
You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way,
and in kindness you follow behind me
to spare me from the harm of my past.
With your hand of love upon my life,
you impart a blessing to me.
This is just too wonderful, deep, and incomprehensible!
Your understanding of me brings me wonder and strength.
Where could I go from your Spirit?
Where could I run and hide from your face?
If I go up to heaven, you’re there!
If I go down to the realm of the dead, you’re there too!
If I fly with wings into the shining dawn, you’re there!
If I fly into the radiant sunset, you’re there waiting!
Wherever I go, your hand will guide me;
your strength will empower me.
It’s impossible to disappear from you
or to ask the darkness to hide me,
for your presence is everywhere, bringing light into my night.
There is no such thing as darkness with you.
The night, to you, is as bright as the day;
there’s no difference between the two.
You formed my innermost being, shaping my delicate inside
and my intricate outside,
and wove them all together in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, God, for making me so mysteriously complex!
Everything you do is marvelously breathtaking.
It simply amazes me to think about it!
How thoroughly you know me, Lord!
You even formed every bone in my body
when you created me in the secret place,
carefully, skillfully shaping me from nothing to something.
You saw who you created me to be before I became me!
Before I’d ever seen the light of day,
the number of days you planned for me
were already recorded in your book.
Every single moment you are thinking of me!
How precious and wonderful to consider
that you cherish me constantly in your every thought!
O God, your desires toward me are more
than the grains of sand on every shore!
When I awake each morning, you’re still with me.

God, I invite your searching gaze into my heart.
Examine me through and through;
find out everything that may be hidden within me.
Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares.
See if there is any path of pain I’m walking on,
and lead me back to your glorious, everlasting ways—
the path that brings me back to you. Psalm 139:1-18, 23-24

 

Sylvia Gaston

Pastor of Connection and Development 

sylvia@kchanford.com

 

 

 

Good News In A Challenging Time

By all accounts the sky is falling. The economy is heading in the wrong direction. The virus is filling hospitals to capacity. The election season is as divisive and bitter as ever. Nobody knows what news source is trustworthy and which is totally false. Many people are frustrated, angry, isolated, and worried.

Some have lost their jobs. Others have watched the economy take its toll on their business. Some have found themselves unable to pay their mortgage or credit cards bills.  Still others have lost loved ones to the virus.  And even if none of these things describe your situation, you can't help but be impacted by the rampant fear that has a stranglehold on so many. 

At times like this, one of the few places we can turn to find comfort is in the pages of Scripture. Many times, we fail to recognize the great gifts the Bible holds within its pages. In it, Father God has given us a roadmap for life, a primer on relationships, and a handbook on dealing with downturns and disasters. 

So, before you give up, blow up or run away, let me encourage you with six promises from the King who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, knows no lack and wrote the end of the book.   

Promise #1 — to never leave... 

"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'  Hebrews 13:5 NIV 

Promise #2 — to care for you... 

"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?"  Matthew 6:28-30 NLT 

Promise #3 — to provide for you... 

"Don't worry and ask yourselves, 'Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?' Only people who don't know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these. But more than anything else, put God's work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well."  Matthew 6:31-33 CEV 

Promise #4 — to give you rest... 

"Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest."  Matthew 11:28 NCV 

Promise #5 — to free you from fear... 

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging."  Psalm 46:1-3 NIV 

Promise #6 — to build your faith... 

"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." 
James 1:2-4 NLT 

These are just a few of the many promises that God has for His children.  The pastors here in Kings County would love to encourage you with these and more.  This season is different, but God hasn’t changed. Perhaps you’re finding yourself praying for the first time in a long time. Go with it! He will meet you right where you are.

Andrew Cromwell
Lead Pastor
E-mail him at andrew@kchanford.com or call 559-582-1528.

Feed The Tree

We have a pretty large tree in our front yard that, after some inspection, we suspected had some termite damage. After a few seconds of panic, I called a plant guy to ask how to get rid of the wood-eating pests. I wanted to save our tree but, even more importantly, I didn’t want wood-eating insects setting up permanent residence near my house!

According to this friend, one of the best ways to keep termites out is to keep my tree healthy. A dry, damaged, or dying tree attracts the pests, who crave the dried wood. They don’t actually eat healthy trees. We got to work watering, fertilizing, and removing dead branches. 

 

This same method could be applied to the heart. To protect your heart, and avoid certain things that erode your well-being and spiritual health, you can focus on growing rather than avoiding. Filling rather than emptying. Sometimes, when we are faced with something that needs to change in our lives, we spend an incredible amount of energy trying to eliminate.

 

If I realize I have an addiction to social media, I just try to stay off social media. If I realize some of my friends influence me to make poor choices, I either fight the peer pressure or avoid the friends. If I realize I am spending every evening of a stressful week watching hours of television or drinking too much wine, I try to just cut it out. ‘Just say no’ works for a season. Well, not even a season. More like, the first couple of tries. Ultimately, what I have learned is that what I put IN is much more important than what I take OUT. 

 

Philippians 4:8 tells us “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."

When we spend our time thinking, reading, participating, doing such things as listed above, we will have little time for the less noble fillers. This is feeding the tree. Feed your heart the word of God. Spend time watering it through prayer and healthy relationships. Replace endless scrolling on your social media of choice with painting, learning an instrument, playing a game with a friend. Let’s not focus on eliminating things from our lives. Let’s focus on putting the right things in…and lots of it! 

            

Here’s an additional challenge. When it comes to words, sometimes it takes more positive words to fill than it takes negative words to erode. As we begin to grow the trees of our spirits, by filling our lives with the admirable and praiseworthy, we will change the language we use with ourselves and our people. Know that growth takes time. The leaves of a tree will not grow after a single watering session.

 

It seems like relationships and progress in certain areas can be demolished with one unfiltered phrase or one lapse in judgment. But take heart! God is with us, and is full of Grace for us. Have grace for yourself and those around you. Keep growing your tree by keeping it full of good. Eventually there will be less and less space for the pests.  

 

Candace Cortez,

Executive Pastor

It’s not too late!

I’m just going to throw this out there. I am not an organized person. I am late, I lose things, and I often don’t have a solid to-do list. I am pretty envious of people who have a system in place for all the areas of their lives. I am more ‘fly by the seat of my pants’ and troubleshoot as things come my way. Good thing I have the spiritual gift of flexibility!

Because of my lack of organization, I find myself returning home because I forgot one more thing. My kids actually play a game, as I come back in the house, that involves guessing what it is that I forgot: my phone, my laptop charger, my wallet, or my coffee. We live in a pretty small town, so nine times out of ten, I will come back home for any of the above items because it’s not too late.

If we are heading to the coast, however, there is a point where I draw the line. It’s too far to go back for that one last thing. It’s not worth the distance traveled and the time it would cost to acquire that forgotten item. Now this line is different depending on the item. If it’s my coffee, I simply drive through somewhere and pick up a different coffee. Not a deal breaker at all. If I’m traveling and it’s my passport, that would be an entirely different story.

During this crazy season we live in, there are so many issues to wade through. How do you feel about COVID-19, about the government shutdowns, about church closures, and about wearing masks in public? How do you feel about what happened to George Floyd, about de-funding law enforcement, and about systemic racism? How do you feel about kids going to school with masks on, or churches being asked not to sing?

So many of these things are in addition to all of the normal issues a person living in a community goes through. The balance of work and parenting, working out a marriage or dating, trying to figure out where you will go to school or if your retirement will work out, taking care of your body and mind, and how to live life well while answering the call on your life to serve others…the list goes on!

I want to encourage you today, not everything can hold priority at the same level, and that’s OK. Not all of these issues are “passport” issues. Some of the things in your life can be sidelined while you deal with the main issues in your world. For some of these things, if you deal with them tomorrow, it’s not too late! You do not have to fix the world or solve every problem today.

God has given each of us a lifetime, and each of those lifetimes are in a piece of God’s larger plan of restoration. So keep the following in mind: 

• It's not too late to learn! Just because I don’t know exactly how I feel today about particular issue doesn’t mean I can’t work it out. I can also change my mind depending on new insight or experiences. 
• It’s not too late to change your heart. Healing often comes in stages and the hurts or issues we deal with do not have to be for our entire lives. God wants to restore you personally. There are pieces from my childhood that the Lord is still working on within me and I am so glad that He hasn’t given up on me yet! 
• It’s OK to let some things slide while you keep the deal breaker things alive. It would not make sense to be scrubbing your floors while your kitchen is on fire! Some issues become like a fire in your life and you need to bring those before Jesus first. That is OK!
• Everyone’s house is at a different place of restoration.

Be blessed today. Know that it’s never too late for God to do a work in your life. He always wants you to turn to Him. No matter what you have done or how far you have run, it’s never too late to run back to Jesus!

Candace Cortez 

Executive Pastor at Koinonia Church