Yesterday, I went to see The Passion of the Christ. This film is definitely worth seeing. From the opening scene on, this presentation of 12 hours leading up to Christ's death on the cross, grabbed a hold of me and would not let go! Powerful imagery! Many people throughout history have suffered similarly for various causes, including Christianity. But Christ's suffering and death was different. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, is without sin but yet took on all of sin so that we can become righteous. (2 Cor. 5:21)

This film will move you and change you. In fact, you cannot leave this film as you entered. Many will move closer to Christ, some will distance themselves, some may even wonder why they are so desenthesized and have no feelings. All are affected in some way. I am still processing it and expect I'll be blogging more on it in the future.

For tonight's showing, our church bought out 3 auditoriums and sold all 1,000 tickets.

Final Word: Is. 53:1 (Message) "Who believes what we've heard and seen? Who would have thought God's saving power would look like this?"

With gratitude,
DpD

This was good day...full but good. I had an opportunity to play tennis at lunch which provides the absolute best stress relief and relaxation. Tomorrow I'm going to see The Passion of the Christ - a sneak preview. I'm looking forward to seeing it after hearing the constant hype about this film. In fact, I'm listening right now to a couple of talking heads on Fox News. They are talking about CBS's Andy Rooney, whose recent comments about Mel Gibson were very negative and extremely inappropriate. CBS will probably take some heat about these comments as well. They have to be reeling after the Ronald Reagan story fiasco, Janet/Justin fiasco during the Super Bowl. They are in need of a moral compass.

I am praying that Christ will use this film to draw millions of people to Himself.

Be bold, but stay cool,
DpD

Welcome to the many new visitors to this blog! Some of you may even be asking about the origin of the name of my blog. So what's in a name - especially the name of this blog? Plenty, and the name: Dave's Dusty is pregnant with meaning...but more about the meaning in the coming days and weeks. Stay booted.

We as a church are progressing through 40 Days of Purpose and I am continually getting pounded by truth. Many times during the past number of days, it has felt like I'm attempting to drink out of a fire hose. How much can I really take in? I've learned the importance of focusing on one or two truths per week...processing, absorbing, and then attempting to apply them.

One of the many takeaways for me, 30 days into the journey is that I an too concerned about my comfort, while God is far more concerned about my character. While I'm praying for protection and safety and smooth sailing, God's wanting to develop my character, wanting to mold me, wanting to shape me into someone who looks more like His Son. That molding and shaping happens through circumstances and experiences - often difficult, and sometimes painful; His Word - I've got to be in it and putting it in me in order for it to shape me; and finally, the Holy Spirit - without Him, everything's an exercise in futility. God continually uses all three in my development. My prayer life is changing as a result.

Continuing thoughts from the "dome" (a moniker given to me by my son, Steve - Thanks Dibs!),
D-squared

Robert Lewis wrote a book recently, entitled: The Church of Irresistible Influence. It's a great book because it talks about how churches can make a difference in their communities and around the world.

The church, first of all, is you, me and all other believers who call themselves followers of Christ. We are the church. So how can we - you and me - be an irresistible influence in the world we live in?
Here's some thoughts on how we can be an INFLUENCE:
Implement an innovative strategy to meet needs in your community
Never say "I can't do that" or "that won't work."
Freshen your faith and get serious about your purpose
Love and accept all people as God loves and accepts them
Understand that your responsibility includes those whom God places in your path
Elevate your passion for Christ and His work
Now is the time - don't wait!
Challenge those around you to get involved with you
Evangelize wherever you go

I just received the latest Newsweek yesterday and there's a cover story on The Passion of the Christ. This movie is getting a huge amount of publicity and, at the same time, there's a great deal of controversy flying around it. I understand that this movie is real...it's bloody...it's in your face. It may just get our attention long enough to remind us of the incredible suffering and sacrifice Jesus endured for you and me. This is a great opportunity to have open and meaningful spiritual discussions with those who've seen the movie - believers and unbelievers. Let's go for it.

Hanging on,
Dave

This weekend, I went to see the just released movie - Miracle. This movie is one of those "feel good" movies, kinda like Rudy, Remember the Titans, and Radio and other "R" movies.

The movie is based on the real-life story of the 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team. In the movie, there was a great illustration of the power of "surrender". Herb Brooks, the coach of the Olympians, recruited amateur hockey players from around the country to play on this special team. The first practice set the tone for the challenges he would face trying to meld 20 individuals, some who hated each other, into a team that would seek to do the impossible - beat the Russians.

During each practice, Coach Brooks asked a couple of players to give very basic information about themselves to their teammates. This consisted of their name and the university they played hockey for. As the time for the Olympic competition got closer the players continued to be at odds with each other.

Immediately after a pre-Olympic warmup game with the Norway team, which ended in a 3-3 tie, Coach Brooks ordered his players back on the ice for a series of "windsprints" from the goal line to the blue line and back again. He kept pushing them and pushing them, and even when the lights were turned off in the arena, he ordered them to continue to skate. The players were exhausted and some of them were on their hands and knees on the ice - totally wasted. Then something special happened. Mike Eruccione (sic), shouted out his name and then instead of finishing it with the name of the university he played for, he instead said he played for the USA. Coach Brooks then excused the players and allowed them to go to the locker room. At last, they had become a team. They had finally surrendered their personal identity and identified with something greater - the USA Olympic Hockey Team.

There are certainly obvious parallels and similarities for us as Christians. For some reasonm, we hold on to our identity with a death grip until at some point, after being broken time and again, we surrender - we give it all to God - all 100%. It's at that time that we are finally able to fully experience Him and all that He has for us. We are part of His team, implementing His game plan - executing His plays - making a difference right where He has placed us. Just as the USA team experienced victory and the won the gold medal in 1980, we too can claim the victory and the prize. "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:14.

Pressin on,
Dave

I'm standing here with my good bloggin buddy, Hosh, and he's having trouble getting his thoughts published on his new blog. This is a demo message and I'll give you his blog site as soon as he gets it up and running!
Dusty

What we see happening around us daily, is really cause for alarm and concern...but yet we often find ourselves momentarily outraged and then, after a short period of time, we shrug our shoulders once again and walk back into our little box where we live. The problem is the box keeps getting smaller and smaller.

What happened during the Janet and Justin halftime extravaganze during the Super Bowl, should not have shocked us, at least as much as what brought us to this point. There's an old Simon and Garfunkel tune entitled: Slip Slidin Away, and our culture has been doing just that for the past 35-40 years.

The Christian community has been preaching against this cultural "slip slidin away", but we often leave out the "preaching for" part of the equation. When will the world be ready to listen to us? Do you think it may be when we ourselves are living out the very solutions we offer? Think about it...
Keeping the dust from turning to mud,
Dave

Yesterday was a great day in so many ways. We kicked off our 40 Days of Purpose last week and on Sunday handled the topic - What On Earth Am I Here For? It's amazing that there was a minimum of overlap between the message during the worship service, the Sunday AM class, and small group discussion later in the day. The topic was the same but the thoughts shared and discussion went in different directions...all good stuff!

The opening line in the first chapter of Rick Warren's book: The Purpose Driven Life: "It's not about you!" sets the tone for the rest of his book and enables me to adjust my perspective. As I reflected on that 4 word sentence, I thought about all the advertising I see all around me in this culture. Each ad screaming at me: "It's all about you!" or "You deserve a break today!" or "Have it your way!" This all flies in the face of the fact that I am created by God and for God.

Good questions to ask: Since each of us are living for something or someone, who are you living for?
How should the fact that life on earth is just a temporary assignment change the way you are living right now?

Grace-full,
Dave
Ezekiel 36:26