Freedom Experience Benefit Concert

I, for one, had a blast at the Freedom Experience benefit concert this past week. Despite being a little under the weather, I still had a great time. There was a GREAT crowd on hand for a Tuesday night in Pleasureville. I'd like to say THANKS to everyone who came out and donated to the cause. We raised a very healthy amount of money - praise God! We hope you enjoyed the new songs! Leave a comment to let us know some of your favorites. 'Til next time.... -Andrew

Who' it gonna be?

LSU, Florida, George Mason, UCLA Give me your picks.

Wednesday Devo

How to Make Big Decisions “Love God and do as you please.”—Augustine Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.—Psalm 37:4 “Love God and do as you please.” That is a motto that all of us should apply to our decision-making. Now for some of you, that is just not spiritual enough. It took me along time to realize that God is not playing hide and seek with his will. He doesn’t go hide it somewhere and then ask us to go find it. He has very clearly shown us in scripture where it is and how to know it. Through the past few years of working with youth, many have struggles when they graduate high school. They want to go to college but seem torn between deciding on where to go. They say, “ I really like these two schools but I want to make sure that what I decide is God’s will.” To this I would reply, “Are either of these choices blatantly sinful? Can you be salt and light in either of these places? Do you have a desire to please God? If it’s not sinful, if you can be salt and light, and if you have a desire to please God, then for just pick one and go. There is no reason to think that it would not be God’s will. Somewhere along the line we have picked up this notion that discovering the will of God is nearly impossible. We pray and pray and pray and pray and receive no clear signs of which direction to go or decision to make. Don’t misunderstand me, we need to always pray and seek God about decisions because we are sinners and need our pride and selfish desires to be revealed to us. But if our desires be Godly desires, what make us think that it would not be God’s will? God has called us to live holy lives, to love Him with our whole being, and to love our neighbors. He has called us to live lives that glorify him and that treasure him above all things. He has also called us to delight ourselves in him and that is when decision-making becomes much easier. If we are delighted with all that God is for us in Jesus, we are going to want to please him. And that means that our decisions are going to reflect our love for Him. How often do we wait for a feeling or sign before we act. God has given us his word and most of you who are reading this have several copies of it. One thing is certain; we will not know God’s will if we do not know his word. Don’t rely on feelings or signs. That churning in your stomach that you think may be a sign from God may only be the White Castle you had for supper last night. Our emotions and feelings are incredible, God-given gifts. But if you are not grounded in his word, they will lead you astray. Jesus did not entrust himself to man because he knew what was in man (John 1:24,25). Neither should we trust ourselves. The only place that we can trust is the Word of God. God’s word tells us that for those that delight in him, he gives them the desires that they have. These desires don’t come from ourselves, they come from God. How do you tell the two apart? Ask yourself these 5 questions. This is what I do now when I have to make a decision and want to make sure that it is a Godly one. 1. Is this decision grounded in scripture? 2. Is this sinful? 3. Is this wise? (Thanks Bert) 4. Does this decision reflect my Love for God? 5. Will this Glorify God? If the answers to these questions are godly answers, then I do just as Augustine said to do, “Love God and do as you please.” Some of you aren’t going to buy into this. This is going to sound way too unspiritual. The opposite is true. There is nothing more on target than delighting ourselves in God and making our decisions based on his word.

The most hated team in college Basketball

I think that last nights cheers from the west virginia, texas, and lsu fans proved a point that most know, but has been unspoken. Everybody hates Duke. When LSU pulled out the victory last night, the WV and TX fans went wild. It wasnt' because they didn't want to play duke, it was because they don't like duke. It has nothing to do with Duke's ability to play or the fact that they get a lot of calls in their favor. People just don't like them. This is tough for me because Coach K is arguably the best coach in college basketball. But I still don't like duke. If you mention 1992 I automatically think of the same game that you think of. It's like a mental default. Are you a Duke playa' hater? Give me your thoughts.

Holy Rosary Cigars

The new "Holy Rosary Cigars" are a must try for anyone looking for a good, clean time. They make great sermon illutrations. Your congregation can smell the fire and brimstone of hell right on your fingertips. No bingo function will ever be the same now that "Holy Rosary Cigars" have come on the scene. If you order by phone you get 3 Hail Mary's credited to your account. Your years in purgatory will fly by while your smoking the these dandy cigars. Get them Today!

New CD Name

Have we decided on a name for the new CD? I know we threw around "Not So Easily Pleased". Is that still the thought?

Wednesday Devo

A Saint and A Sinner Romans 7:21-24—So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? It was few years ago that I sat with a youth group on a Wednesday night heard one of the youth pray, “God I thank you that I am no longer a sinner, but that I am a saint.” The youth minister said a hearty “that’s right!” Let there be no mistake, sin is no longer the master over those who are in Christ because we are not under the law, but grace (Romans 6:14). Pride is no longer my master, but I still struggle with it. If the righteousness of Christ has been counted for you, then you are a saint—but you are still a sinner. When the righteousness of Christ is imputed to our credit, did that become a moment in which we no longer sin? Obviously, the answer is no. Of course we sin. It is 9:02 on Tuesday morning and I can already specifically name sins that I have committed today. If being a Christian means that you are a saint and only a saint, then I must not be a Christian because sin is still a daily activity for me. But if it is possible to be a Saint and a sinner, and be a Christian, all at the same time, then that is what I am. I also find my self in good company. The apostle Paul evidently had similar struggles. “…when I want to do right…” Paul suffered from being a saint and a sinner just like we do. Paul says in verse 18 that he desires to do what is right, but lacks the ability to carry it out. He wants to do right, but does wrong and he explains why in verse 20. He says, “Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” Paul has just confessed that he wants to do right (v18), but he does wrong (v19), and that is because of the sin within him (v20). Paul was a Sinner. It’s that simple. The greatest letter ever written was written by a sinner. And if this was the end of the letter we might despair, but it not the end. The very next chapter is full of hope for all of us sinners who are just like Paul. Chapter 8 starts with an incredible truth that we sinners can cling to if we know Christ. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Paul wrote this because Paul knew this. We are sinners and yet we are saints. In R.C. Sproul’s book, “Grace Unknown” he writes, “Luther captured the idea of forensic justification with his famous Latin phrase, simul iustus et peccator, ‘At the same time (simultaneously), just and sinner.’ Luther did not intend to affirm a contradiction. The two assertions, just and sinner, refer to the same person at the same time, but not in the same relationship. The person considered in himself remains a sinner, yet at the same time, by virtue of the imputation of Christ’s righteousness, the person is considered just in the sight of God.” We are all sinners regardless of our standing with Christ. And we are also saints if we have been freely justified by what Christ did on the cross in our stead. Can a man be a sinner and not a saint? Yes. Can a man be a saint and not a sinner? No. Not as long as we are human. The grace of God is our only hope for being counted righteous. A saint and a sinner is what I am.

Back from Boone's Creek

Saturday evening we had the opportunity to minister at Boone's Creek Baptist Church. It was a great evening. Roddie Taylor from Trinidad was the speaker for the event and we praise God for the decisions that were made in the lives of the young people that evening. The event started out with prizes given out to random people who would come rushing down the isle for different reasons. If the game asked for a blockbuster video card and you had one, you ran down the isle to get your prize. But you had to be the first down the isle. Roddie made an illustration out of that by saying if we really knew what Christ had to offer, we would all come running down that isle. What Christ has for us is so much better than a free cd. It was great evening. josh

Something you may want to see

On my own blog at www.180tabletalk.blogspot.com I have posted something about the KY gambling protest. I can't speak for everyone in the band so I didn't put it on here. Check it out if you are interested. It's call "I need a second to vent". josh

Wed Devo

Struggling to be Satisfied with all God is for us in Jesus Psalm 73:25,26—Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. “Every one of us is, even from his mother's womb, a master craftsman of idols.”—John Calvin I am convinced that it is the “good things” in life that keep us from knowing the great things. Television in and of itself is not a bad thing, but it often keeps me from the kind of relationship with my wife that would be far more satisfying than “Everybody loves Raymond.” Family is a great gift that God has given to some of us, but even the “good” that family can bring, if held higher than our Lord, is keeping us from the “great” that he has prepared for us. In C.S. Lewis’ sermon “The weight of Glory” he says, “If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. I have written a song entitled “Not so easily Pleased” as an encouragement and challenge to myself and all who listen to daily strive to not be satisfied with the fleeting pleasures of this world. Honestly, most of the time, I am too easily pleased. But if we will taste and see that the lord is good, then we will want to savor all that He is for us in Jesus. Sin has so affected our thoughts, wills, and desires that it is a battle to be satisfied with Christ. As long as we are sinners, we will have this struggle. But in the times when those desires for “good” things are defeated and we truly desire the “great” thing (God), at that moment we know that this is what we were created for. This is all you could ever want. This is all you could ever need. David wrote in Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Being in God’s word and spending time in worship whether corporate or personal, is the only time that I can honestly say I have found “fullness of joy”. I challenge you to not be so easily pleased and not settle for “good things”. Do not settle for mud pies when a holiday at the sea is offered those who repent and believe. We are wired for pleasure. That may sound unspiritual but that is the truth. None of us can honestly say, “I hate having a good time.” Or, “I sure do wish it would rain today so that we don’t enjoy playing golf.” The fact of the matter is we are wired for enjoyment. We surround ourselves with things we enjoy. I really enjoy reading. I have books in my office; books at home, and sometimes even carry books with me when I go places just in case I find a free moment to read. I enjoy it! I don’t hate it! So instead of trying to stifle my pleasure driven ways, why not direct them toward the one who by his side are “pleasure forevermore”. What greater way could I show my love for God than by enjoying being with him? I married my wife because I love her and enjoy being around her more than anybody. If I tell her that is she going to respond, “Josh, you are so selfish! It’s all about you!” She would like nothing more than to hear that. How much more would our Lord like for us to feel that way about him? Once again, we get the benefits, he gets the glory. Praise God for wiring you in a way that we can enjoy him forevermore!

Thanks to the great technology here in America, I have discovered the identity of KGBME. Beware of the photo. Ok. Maybe it's not kgbme, but it's the best guess i got.

Wed Devo

This Sunday’s Sermon in a Nutshell I have been asked to speak at Turners Station Baptist Church this Sunday and thought I would use this Wednesday’s devo to bring about some thoughts for Sunday. Ephesians 2:8—For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. I am going to speak on the topic of the sure salvation of believers. In the Baptist church this is often referred to as “once saved, always saved”. I find this phrase to be a little misleading. I believe that if you are truly saved, you remain saved but this phrase can be taken in the wrong way. If when we say, “once saved, always saved” we would be correct if we were referring to placing faith in Christ. But if we are simply referring to walking an isle, praying a prayer, and putting our name on the church roll we may be sadly disappointed. Before you talk about how one would stay saved, you must look at what saves us to begin with. When asked about this subject, many would say, “You can’t get saved and then just do whatever you want and stay saved. You lose your salvation if you don’t continue in the faith.” True believers will not “get saved” and then do whatever, whenever. But this whole debate or argument will fade away when we see that what we “do” has nothing to do with our salvation. Paul wrote that it is by grace that we have been saved and our salvation is not a result of works. The fact of the matter is we aren’t good enough to save ourselves, much less good enough to keep ourselves saved. What we “do” before or after has nothing to do with saving us. It is strictly grace! In Romans 11 Paul speaks of salvation saying that, “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.” If we were saved by “works” or “do’s” they would nullify grace. Which in turn would give us something to boast about. Our works do not save us and they do not keep us saved, these both happen by grace alone. Ephesians 2:10—For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. I hope that you understand that we are saved by grace alone and nothing is owing to ourselves. If you don’t get that, this last part will not make sense. Paul writes that we are “his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus”. The reality that you are saved is due to the fact that your salvation is the work of God. He created you (as a believer) in Christ. The new creation inside of you (2 Corinthians 5:17) was created by him and only through Christ. Once again, we do not “do” this-God does it. We were created for good works and they will necessarily follow in the lives of believers. Necessarily. They are not necessary for salvation, but they must follow. If I put you on an invincible chain and drag you around, you will necessarily follow wherever I go. The same is true with saving faith and works. Works or “do’s” are chained invincibly to saving faith. They must necessarily follow. God saved us that we would walk in them. Can a believer lose their salvation? Absolutely not. The only way this could be possible is if God ceased to be God. How can I lose something that I did not create, hold, or manipulate? God will not allow boasting before His throne. This has been ensured by the fact that since we are saved by Grace and not by works, we have nothing to boast about. We get the benefits, and He gets the glory.

Ok, I'll Post

Seeing Josh's post saying he missed me and the rest of the guys brought me out of the woodwork. I think I've created a monster with Josh and his blogging. Anyway... I'm sure all of our great fans would love to hear about one of my recent purchases - an electronic drumkit. As most of you will soon found out, our recent recording sessions spawned a new side of the Josh Martin Band - an 80's power pop dance band. Next time you hear "Trading My Sorrows," it won't quite be the same version you're used to hearing. See you all at the next gig! :-) -Andrew

Liking this guy more and more.....

“I have no use for cranks who despise music, because it is a gift of God. Music drives away the Devil and makes people gay (happy in a straight way); they forget thereby all wrath, unchastity, arrogance, and the like. Next after theology, I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor.”-- Martin Luther

Where did you guys go?

I miss you guys! We need to play soon. I miss your blogging too.

The Rich Young White Middle-Class American

The Rich Young White Middle-class Amercian Luke 18:21,22—And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” There have been many times in the past few months that God has used the voice of Derek Webb to convict me about biblical truths. Derek (do you like how I call him by his first name as if we know each other) has written a song entitled “Rich Young Ruler”. There are several lines in this song that absolutely tear me up, because if we will be honest with ourselves, we are no different than the rich young ruler. It is very easy to justify ourselves based on our works. When I read the story of the rich young ruler, I want to believe that that does not really pertain to me for a couple of reasons. First of all, I’m not a rich man. I am middle-class at best. And I didn’t walk away sad when Christ spoke, “Come follow Me”. So, obviously, the only way that this passage pertains to me is by possibly teaching my youth that being rich can be a dangerous thing. It is a dangerous thing, but after a little more meditation these verses, the Lord began to speak more than what came at face value. I have a few questions that I must ask myself and hopefully you will apply them to you. Have we moved out of Jesus’ neighborhood? Jesus said that what we do to the least of these, we do to him. Christy and I live in a brick house in the country where we don’t really have to worry about being bothered by anyone. We don’t have to worry about too much about a neighbor calling on us for anything because we are just far enough away from folks that it would be too much of an inconvenience. We don’t live anywhere near the least of these. We have moved out of Jesus’ neighborhood. Do you believe that you are basically good? John Piper said in a sermon once that we as Americans “swim in a sea of arrogance.” At the beginning of this passage of scripture, the rich man referred to Jesus as “good teacher”. Jesus responded by saying no one is good. I think that each of us basically think that we are good. We don’t lie all the time and we don’t disrespect our parents. We will admit that we are not perfect. But maybe we think of ourselves more highly than we ought (Romans 12:3). The fact is we are not good. That flies in the face of everything that this American culture wants you to think. But God’s word boldly speaks that there is nothing good within us (Romans 3:10-18). Romans 3:20—For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes the knowledge of sin. In Derek Webb’s song Jesus says, “Come follow me, sell your house, sell your SUV, sell your stock, sell your security and give it to the poor.” To this the rich man responds, “What is this!? Hey what’s the deal? I don’t sleep around and I don’t steal.” Then Jesus responds, “I want the things you just can’t give me.” I think that this is probably what he is saying to most of you just like he is saying to me. We will view the loving the “least of these” as “ministry opportunities” and not as a way of life. How arrogant we are! We will gladly give our money to missions and pray for the homeless and possibly even bring them something to eat. But rarely will we go in front of our money. Would we invite a homeless man to live in our “guest bedroom”? Could it be possible that our guest should be the least of these? Jesus said they will know we are his by the way that we love one another (John 13:35). I know that this is a lot to think about and I definitely don’t want to take anything out of context. The passage of the rich young ruler is talking about salvation. But these are just some thoughts that I believe that the lord has laid on my heart to meditate on and I thought I would share them. “I want the things you just can’t give me.”

Quote of the Day

"You won't go to hell for smoking, you'll just smell like you've been there."--Author Unknown