While I am no cook, I know that for a dish to turn out right you have to use all the right ingredients.  In 1 Corinthians 13:13 Paul shared his recipe for a happy New Year.  It’s a simple recipe containing only three ingredients.

The first ingredient is FAITH.  Paul started with faith because faith is foundational.  Without it, nothing else matters.  Consider the rhetorical question presented by Jesus in Matthew 16:26, “What profit is there if you gain the whole world – and lose eternal life?”  You may achieve success in every other aspect of life.  But without faith, what good is it? 

And it isn’t just faith we need; it’s abiding faith.  A skyrocket is fun to watch on the 4th of July, but it doesn’t last very long.  A candle on the other hand isn’t as spectacular, but it has lasting value.  Faith that blazes for a while only to burn out is of no value.  To live successfully we need abiding faith that will stand the test of time. 

The second ingredient is HOPE.  Nothing can drain the life out of a person faster than hopelessness.  Many today have lost hope because the things they trusted in have failed. I can think of nothing worse than going through the motions of life with a sense of futility that moans with backslidden Solomon, “All is vanity and grasping for the wind” (Ecc. 2:11). 

But when you have the fundamental ingredient of faith fully functioning in your life, you can “rejoice in hope” (Romans 5:2).  That’s because your hope is in God.  And you know that no matter what happens God is in control!

The third and final ingredient is LOVE.  Paul saved the best for last.  If we are really going to have a blessed New Year, we must have the ingredient of love in our lives.  The ingredient of love operates on two dimensions:  1) love for God (the great commandment); and, 2) love for others (the second greatest).  The one leads to the other.  The more you love God, the more you will love those around you.

As you look forward to 2013, make sure you have all the necessary ingredients for a happy New Year.   “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

 

Pastor Todd Weston

 

Three times in the Christmas story you will read the phrase, “Do not be afraid.”  The first time it was spoken to Mary as the angel Gabriel explained her role in God’s redemptive plan (Luke 1:30).  The second time it was spoken to Joseph in a dream as the angel of the Lord instructed him to take Mary as his wife (Matthew 1:20).  And the third time it was spoken to the shepherds by the angel of the Lord who appeared to them announcing the birth of the Savior (Luke 2:10).

In a world full of fear, the message of Christmas is this:  Do not be afraid. God is with us!  
 
The recent tragedy in Connecticut reminds us that we live in a dangerous world where evil occurs.  Evil isn’t just a concept; it’s a supernatural person the Bible calls Satan.  Three times in John’s Gospel Jesus called Satan, “the prince of this world”(John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11).  Jesus also told us that Satan has a threefold agenda for humanity: steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10).  When we witness tragedies like the one that occurred in Connecticut last Friday, we are witnessing the handiwork of Satan.  Satan specializes in death; God in life.
 
So what about, “peace on earth, good will toward men!”?  It was fulfilled in the spiritual sense when Jesus died on the cross to reconcile sinful people with a holy God.  In Romans 5:1 Paul said, “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

But peace on earth in the sense of the absence of evil and its painful consequences is futuristic.  It will occur at the Second Coming of Christ when the prince of this world is cast out, and the Prince of Peace reigns.
 
So what do we do in the meantime?  We remember the words of Jesus in John 16:33. Jesus told us that in the world we will have tribulation.  That’s a reality.  But Jesus also said that in Him we could have peace.  In a world full of fear, we can have perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).
 
So do not be afraid.  Be of good cheer.  Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us.  And He has overcome the world.
 
Pastor Todd Weston

For those of you who had the privilege of attending this year’s Estero Christmas Celebration, I am sure you were moved by the song, No More Night.

 Psychologists tell us that fear of the dark is one of the most common fears or phobias among children.  Even adults can struggle with it.  Fear of the dark is usually not fear of the darkness itself, but fear of what might be hiding in the dark.  Like the boogeyman in the closet, or the monster under the bed, or the mugger down the dark alley.  
  
I think we could call it fear of the unknown. And there are a lot of unknowns out there right now as we stand upon the threshold of 2013.  Things like tax increases, the fiscal cliff, the rising price of food and gasoline, the implementation of Obamacare, increasing tensions in the middle-east; it’s enough to make an insomniac out of Rip Van Winkle!
 
Ok, so the world is a dark and scary place and it’s just getting darker and scarier.  Just remember that as a Child of God you are in the world but you are not of it!  While the Egyptians were enduring the plague of darkness that was so dark it could be felt, the Children of Israel were basking in the light (Genesis 10:21-23). That’s how it is for the Children of God!  While the world is bathed in darkness and fear, you can walk in light and faith. Hallelujah!
 
Yes, there are a lot of unknowns out there. But Job 23:10 promises that God, “knows the way that I take.”  The God you serve today was there in all your yesterdays, and has already been in all your tomorrows.  Don’t worry.  He can take care of you!



Pastor Todd Weston

 I will be the first to admit there are a lot of things I’m not very good at.  I love working around the house and in the yard.  But when it comes to home repairs I’m a disaster.  My wife and kids love to laugh at my handyman horror stories. Just ask them about them time it took me an entire day to hang blinds in our house!
 
And then there is the wonderful world of auto mechanics, of which I know nearly nothing.  I’m the last person you should call if your car ever breaks down.  If it wasn’t broken before, it will be by the time I’m done with it.  
 
I really enjoy playing the game of golf, but I never know what to expect from one day to the next.  Sometimes I play respectable.  Other times you would think I had never touched a club in my life. I’m telling you, it’s enough to give a
person a complex.
 
I’m a lousy cook.  I barely survived freshman algebra.  I have never beaten Sheri in a game of ping pong.  I went hunting once and wasn’t invited to go again.  I’ve never been asked to sing a solo in my life. Need I say more?
 
But the truth of the matter is it doesn’t really bother me that I’m not very good at those things.  None of those things listed above appear on the priority list of my life – well, maybe golf!  
  
But there are some things in this life that I do want to get right.  Two things really matter to me.  First, I want to be the best Christian I can possibly be.  I really want to get my relationship with God right.  The other thing that matters to me is my family.  To be the kind of husband and father God wants me to be is a high priority in my life. 
 
So what if I cannot fix the dishwasher, or rebuild an engine like my brother-in-law?  So what if I cannot cook?  So what if my wife beats me mercilessly at ping pong?  If I can be a faithful man of God and a loving husband and father, I will consider my life a success.  Those are the things that matter most to me.       
 
Pastor Todd Weston
 
PS– I really would like to break 80 before I die!  : )