“The LORD Who Made You”

“Thus says the LORD who made you and formed you from the womb, who will help you, do not fear…” Isaiah 44:2

I am writing this article on Tuesday, November 15 and the memories of this day 12 years ago are as fresh as if they happened yesterday.  So please allow me to indulge myself in sharing this story.

I had been at a Church Conference in Phoenix AZ for 5 days prior to November 15, 2004.  I had flown back in on Saturday the 13th and planned to attend Terry’s (my wife) appointment with her doctor before going to work on Monday the 15th.  She was 34 weeks pregnant at that time and there had been some concern of our child’s size in development during her pregnancy.  Terry had had two miscarriages prior to this pregnancy and we knew that there was a risk of problems with this pregnancy also.  Early on in the pregnancy, as she had in past the months that the prior miscarriages occurred, our doctor suggested that we have a Amnio test done to make sure the baby was OK, so we could have the option to abort if needed.  We both looked at him and said about the same time NO!  There is no need to do that.  We would not abort regardless of what the test would show.  We were not going to be a part of the 3,000 + abortions that take place daily in the USA.  God had formed her.  She was alive!

A few weeks prior to November 15, 2004 during one of Terry’s appointments, our doctor said, “I would like to give you a hormone shot that will help to develop the lungs of the baby.  I am just not sure you will carry her to your due date, which by the way was our oldest sons birthday, December 31st.  They felt Terry may be able to go as far as 38 of the 40 weeks.  So we agreed.  Man, did that turn out the be the right call!!!

Back to our appointment on Monday, November 15th.  We arrived and were waiting, talking about the things we needed to do that day and the rest of the week.  Thanksgiving was coming and plans for Christmas, knowing the baby would be arriving around that time.  We were called back to the examination room where there was an Ultrasound machine for the doctor to take a look at the development of the baby since our last visit.  The doctor came in and started the exam, the minute she put the wand on Terry’s abdomen, she said, “We need to get you to the hospital immediately.  The baby is in stress.”  Tears welled up in both of our eyes.  The doctor said she would call ahead and let them know we were coming and for us to go straight up to the OB floor.  I don’t even remember driving over.  We both were in shock.  Once we were checked in and were waiting for the “on call” doctor to come in, I remember we prayed.  “Father, you have brought us this far, this baby is in your hands.  Please Father, let her live.”  

Things began to move very quickly by then and not long after that Terry was in the OR prepping for a C-Section.  I was dressed in OR clothes so I could be with her.  And at 2 PM, Monday, November 15th Emma Grace Duffell was born at 34 weeks.  She weighed 2.7 lbs. and within hours dropped to 2.5 lbs.  We were immediately cautioned of all the possibilities.  The Nic Unit doctor made that very clear.  But here is the thing, Emma Grace never had to have any intervention.  No breathing tubes, nothing.!  They told us that their requirement was for a premature baby to be 4.5 to 5 lbs before going home.  Emma Grace was doing so well they let her come home at 3.5 lbs.  The NICU doctor told us as we were leaving that he would see us back in the unit over the winter months.  To that Terry said, “No you will not.  God’s got this little one.”  And He did!  Every time the doctors have told us she will develop slower, be behind all her peers, they have been wrong.  She is, in our eyes, a miracle baby.  

Isaiah tells Israel, “… the LORD who made you and formed you from the womb…” reminds me that every child is a gift of God.  Yes, I know our story is not everyones story as far as the outcome.  I understand that.  But each of these babies are His creation and we don’t understand why some live and some die.  We don’t understand why some are lost to miscarriages.  And as far as Terry and I, we do not understand how anyone can abort these precious babies.  What we do know is that each child is knitted in their mothers womb by a gracious and loving God and all are in His hands.  God is creator, not only of the universe, but of all of us.  So do not fear, as the prophet says, for we know that God is Emmanuel - God with us!   Folks, that is with the “born” and the “un-born.”  Terry and I experienced His presence that day in a special way and are so ever grateful to Him!

I am thankful that God has allowed us to enjoy His daughter, our daughter, Emma Grace.  Happy 12th birthday sweetheart.  We love you!

Blessings,                                                                                                 

Pastor Marty

Worship, Grow, & Serve                      

"Fear God"

There are a couple of meanings the dictionary has for the word “Fear.”  First it says:

A distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.  The second meaning is where I want to go today and that definition says: reverential awe, especially toward God.

It appears to me that we, and when I say we I mean the church, believers, have lost their fear of God.  No, I’m not saying we have lost our belief or our salvation, or our desire to serve Him, but it seems to me we have lost our reverence for Him.  We have lost our awe of the creator God, the God of the universe, the One and only True God.  The Apostle Paul tells the Romans that:  

 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”       Romans 3:18

I know this has been prevalent for centuries, but it seems that the lack of the fear of God has permeated the church more than ever.  Why has this happened?  Because we have lifted one of the great attributes of God and left the other by the wayside.  

What does the church lift up?  God is a God of love.  He loves us and a loving God would never be a judgmental God.  A God of love would never be a God of justice.  Many churches, pastors, leaders, and congregates have dropped the God of justice.  When we do that, the fear, the reverence for God stops.  

God is a God of love and His desire is for all to be saved.  But as scripture tells us, there will be those who are not saved, never coming into a relationship with Him and will be judged to eternal damnation, hell.  We can leave those verses out of our teaching, but it does not change the facts.  

“And he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.’”                Revelation 14:7

I believe the church has to be more intentional in the teaching of “Fearing God.”  We have dumbed down our Christianity to the point that God becomes our sugar daddy.  Let’s go to Him when we need something or when something is not going right or we find ourselves in a health crisis and want Him to fix it.  The world, along with many in the church, has lost its fear of God.  We need to be teaching our children and adults to have reverence, awe, fear for God.  Why?

Here is why.  The “fear of God” changes our attitude towards Him.  When we revere Him we view Him as He really is.  He becomes the LORD of the universe and the LORD of our lives.  We realize that nothing else will do.  There is NO one else that can fill that void in our life but Him.  When we “fear God” our worship changes.  When we “fear God” our obedience changes.  When we “fear God” everything changes.  Not only should we “fear God,” but He commands it.

“You shall fear only the Lord your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name”.  Deuteronomy 6:13

“Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him.”  Deuteronomy 8:6

 “Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy; for all the nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed.” Revelation 15:4

Church, let’s “fear God” and glorify His name for He is worthy of our praise.  Let us teach our children what it means to “fear God.”  Bringing the “fear of God” back into our church vocabulary, I believe, could be a good thing.  Again, something for us to think about!

Blessings friends,

Pastor Marty

Worship, Grow, & Serve                      

"Know Him"

As some of your know, 6 of our nine kids have attended Sandhills Classical Christian School.  Yesterday was the first day of the 2016-2017 school year.  The High School grades opened the school year with a day called “Opening Academy.”  This is a day when the Principal of the Rhetoric brings in outside speakers to talk to the students on different topics.  At the end of the last school year the Principal asked me if I would be willing to come in and talk on one of the aspects of bullying.  My topic was on Bullying from a “Spiritual” perspective.  I said yes.  So yesterday, Tuesday, August 2nd I was up.

I have thought much about this topic over the past few months.  I’ve seen report after report of those who have been bullied and taken their life.  Bullying comes today in so many forms.  When I was in school it was mostly verbal and physical, but today you have to add social and cyberspace.  It is unreal the cruelty many kids unleash on other kids.  Here is the things though, the more I thought about it, it comes back to “Spirituality.”

Before I spoke a Pediatric MD spoke about these four types of bullying I mentioned above and did some role play with the kids on how to handle different situations that they may face.  She gave some really good advice.  But again I was sitting there thinking it’s “Spiritual.”

I won't go through the entire talk, but I wanted to share a few points and scriptures with you that I shared with the students.  I opened with two questions.  First I asked, “Please raise your hands if you have heard of Jesus of Nazareth?”  The second question I asked was, “I don’t want you to raise you hands on this question, but answer it in your mind with yes or no.  No other answer will work.  Your answer has to be Yes or No to this question.  Do you know Jesus of Nazareth?  Really know him?”  If you answered yes to the question then you need to know what the scriptures say about one who believes.

First, John 14:16-18 tells us that those who believe will have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, two characteristics of this person of God deals with us on this topic.  Those being “Guidance” and “Conviction.”  We cannot have Jesus Christ in us and think it is OK to bully someone.

Second, Matthew 22:34-39 (as well as Mark 12:29-31) states, “And He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.  This is the great and foremost commandment.  The second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

So here is the deal, to love God with all your being, and to love your neighbor cannot include bullying.  So the answer to my second question is so important.

1st John 2:9 “The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness…”  You cannot say you know Jesus and treat your brother with hatred.  So again the answer to my second question was so important.

Then I shared this question, “What if you find yourself in a bullying situation?”  The good doctor had given some good advice, as I said, but Jesus gives great advice as well from a “Spiritual” perspective.  Matthew 18:15-17 gives us the biblical process of handling conflict with others.  I talked a little about that with the students.  If you are unfamiliar with this passage, I would encourage you to read through it today!

After closing with a personal story from my grade school, I had to go back to address that second question again.  “Do you know Jesus of Nazareth personally?  If you answered ‘Yes,’ that was great.  But if you answered ‘No,’ I want you to think about that answer.” Then I said, “The answer to this question is the most important answer you will ever make in your life.  Every other question pales to this one.  Answering ‘Yes’ to this question will affect everyday of your life.  It will affect how you relate to others and how you glorify God.  By answering ‘Yes’ to this question you are to glorify God in all you do.  You will experience a peace like never before.  Your  love of God and love of neighbor will lift up your witness of Christ where bullying will degrade it and getting that positive witness back will take a long time.” 

I asked those that did not answer “Yes” to this question to talk to a teacher, pastor, parents, or the Principal or me if they would like to know how to answer that question “Yes.”

Folks, if you have read this far, I want you to know, how we live our life in this fallen world is dependent on whether we know, really know Jesus of Nazareth, the very Son of God.  Know Him, honor Him, let your witness Glorify Him and then you will marvel at who His is and what He’ll do through you.

As for the students, my hope is that I planted a seed in each whether they answered “Yes” or “No.”  God’s Word is so great and true that my prayer is that it will dwell in their hearts and minds.  My desire is that they all know Him.

Blessings,                                                                 

Pastor Marty               

Worship, Grow, & Serve                      

'Fatherhood"

“Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

Proverbs 22:6

I remember sometime after I was married I heard the verse I’ve quoted above.  Yes, I grew up in the church.  I was in Sunday School just about every Sunday from as early as I can remember until I graduated from High School.  The verse may have been quoted or preached on, but to be honest with you, it really had very little meaning to me, thus I don’t remember hearing it.

BUT let me tell you, when I began to contemplate the idea of being a father, wow, everything from secular and Biblical writings on being a father began to infiltrate my life.  I thought, “If I’m going to be a father, I have to be the best father I can be.  So, I need to learn all I can to do just that.”  A great plan, but plans are just plans unless they are executed.  All of you in the business world know that.  You may think you have the best business plan in the world for your business to succeed, but unless it is executed, it is just a plan on a piece of paper.

What happen to my plan?  LIFE!  EVERYTHING!  My intentions were good, but I allowed everything else going on in my life to get in the way of allowing God to help me be the father HE wanted me to be.  I allowed work, my desire for play, etc, to fill my life.  My preparation time to be a father really never happened.  Some of you can relate.

Then the call came, “We have an infant baby boy for you to adopt.  You can pick him up and sign the paperwork on Tuesday.”  The call, ironically came on Good Friday.  I’m going to be a father I shouted inside of the store I managed.  I thought, here is comes, ready or not.

That Tuesday, as I was introduce to my son, Christopher Martin Duffell, Chris (as we lovingly call him) decided to introduce himself to me.  His diaper was full, so I told the Social Worker I would change it.  As I folded back the cloth diaper, Chris decided it was time to christen me as his dad.  Yes, a nice upward flow wet me all over.  I smiled, laughed knowing it was just beginning and I was going to love being a dad!!!

Marrying Terry, who had 7 children and one of those in diapers, then 2 years later having our daughter Emma Grace, fatherhood has been challenging and hard at times. I have dealt with things I thought I would never have to deal with, but it has been fantastic all at the same time.  I would not change it for a moment.  I love ALL my children dearly and love to hear the word “DAD” spoken everyday.

Over the years this verse in Proverbs 22 has been ever present on my mind.  How am I living into this call of God as a father?  How am I training my sons and daughters to be godly children of our heavenly Father?  Am I setting a godly example for them?  When I fail, do I ask for their forgiveness?  Yes, theirs!  It is a tough job being a parent.  But it is also a blessing.  

This Sunday is Father’s Day 2016.  Some of us, like me, will remember our fathers who have gone on from this world and probably remember the good times and bad.  Many of you will call or visit your dad this Sunday.  I pray it will be with love and happiness.  But for some this will be a sad day.  They will remember only the bad times and the poor job their father did in raising them.  

Here is my prayer for us all.  We have the absolute best Father there was, is, or ever will be.  That father is our Heaven Father.  He loves us beyond measure.  Enough to allow His Son to died for us!  How awesome it that.  I love being a father, even with all its ups and downs.  I love it!!!  But the bottom line for me is my Heavenly Father has trained me so that, I know where I will spend eternity, because of the Father He has been to me.  Celebrate your earthly father this Sunday, but don’t forget to thank the heavenly one!!!

Blessings my friends, 

Pastor Marty

Worship, Grow, Serve                      

Lessons From Children

As I watch my little girl grow and play with Emma, Benjamin, Mary, Nathan, Dhuart, Christian, Charlotte, Caroline, Josiah, and Ezekiel – ‘the Entourage’ - I can’t help but pause and picture how Jesus would interact with each of them. There’s always a picture in my mind – many of you may have one similar to it in your minds. It’s a picture of Jesus surrounded by little children. He is smiling. The children are speaking to Him, sometimes even showing Him their most valuable possessions. I see heartfelt laughter and pure motives to just play – no hidden agenda, no inhibitions to seek an ideology – just to play until utter exhaustion. There is no indication of awkwardness between Himself and the children; there is no harshness of discipline. There is only innocence, peace, joy, and a fond loving relationship. You don’t get the sense that the children have a desire to be anywhere else, but to be right with Jesus.

How does Jesus do it? How does He hold such love for them? How does he never turn away one child? How does He have time for each one of them? How does He take the time for each one individually? I don’t get the sense that anything they say is insignificant to Jesus. He hears all they say. How does He deal so patiently with them? And we can’t forget this - how would He discipline them in such a way that His only goal is love, repentance, and growth? These questions run through my head. They motivate me to be a better parent, but they are also a constant reminder of how I fail him daily because they serve to let me know where I am and where He is as our Father who loves us more than our earthly parents ever could.

There are a number of verses that give us a clear idea of how Jesus views little children:

“One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.” (Mark 10: 13-16 NLT)

“Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.” (Matthew 18:10 NLT)

In each of the verses above, Jesus clearly tells us that heaven is made up of ones like these. Why? The answer starts with the character of Jesus. He is love, patience, and tenderness exemplified. These are only a few adjectives that will be used to describe Jesus in this article. One could use a thousand more to describe Him; there are not enough words or paper to contain all that He is.

Little children desire a parent who loves them unconditionally. The next couple of verses articulate it perfectly and no further explanation is needed:

 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety- nine that didn’t wander away! In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.” (Matthew 18:12-14 NLT).

THAT IS POWERFUL. A child needs to know that his/her parent would be willing to do whatever it takes for the child to be safe and secure. Patience and tenderness go hand in hand. They have to. Children will get into trouble, and Jesus is aware of that fact. Jesus patiently endures these “mishaps”. Jesus is the master teacher; He seeks to teach and train the children on the proper way to live. He makes it no mystery. His aim is for us to have a right relationship with Him. Again, my words cease to have meaning compared to His.

“I will teach all your children, and they will enjoy great peace.” (Isaiah 54:13 NLT)

“And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.
Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.” (Deut 6:5-7 NLT)

“But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim 3: 14-15 NLT)

“As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. (Hebrews 12:7-11 NLT)

Do you see the goal of His patience, His training, and His discipline? The greatest Father of all desires nothing but for His children to grow in His likeness. He wants to spend all of eternity with His children. Do you remember that image of Him in a garden surrounded by His children. He desires nothing more than to bring that image to life. The work has already been done. It is up to us – His children - to make the decision to follow our Father in obedience.

In His Name,
Sherif Mikhael, Elder, HOPE Church - Raleigh