ARE YOU READY for the weekend?

It's Labor Day weekend and hopefully your plans include attending one of three worship gatherings at Calvary Austin! You don't want to miss week three of the new message-series ONE. We're going to be talking about the subtle temptation to settle for second best in our lives. The temptation to accept less than God's best for us. We do it for any one of a number of reasons. Learn more this weekend.

To dig deeper . . . For background on this weekend's message, check out Numbers 32 (read here). Last weekend I talked briefly about a land of rest for the Israelites and a life of rest for us. I said that for them, it was about a place but for us it's about a Person - Jesus. For insight into the spiritual dimensions of the Joshua story, check out my overview of Hebrews 3-4 (listen here).

FOLLOW UP to "It Takes Courage"

If you missed the weekend message It Takes Courage, watch here. One thing we talked about was the borders of the land promised to Israel as described in Joshua 1:4. Today, in addition to Israel, it would include all or part of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan! For a little perpective on the situation in the Middle East, check out this article by my friend, David Hocking.

Another thing we talked about was the importance of Bible reading. Do you have a daily Bible reading plan? If not, consider using one these great plans. Remember that this is the week to combine 'strength from knowing' with 'courage for doing' and take that first step - or that next step - in the direction God's called you to go! It takes courage to be 'the ONE'!

RAMP UP for this weekend!

Last weekend we launched our new message-series - One - with an E!-True-Hollywood-Story style look at Joshua's spiritual formation (listen here). I mentioned two scenes from Joshua's life that we didn't get to explore as part of the message.

In the first, we find Joshua twenty-four seven at what Moses called the "tabernacle of meeting" - a place where God spoke to Moses (read here). How much time did he spend alone there? In silence? In solitude? What difference would it make if we could spend more time alone with God?

In the second, we see how loyal Joshua was to Moses (read here). Joshua was upset because he felt like the ministry of others somehow threatened Moses. Though Moses corrected him, he must have been touched by Joshua's loyalty. Are we as loyal to our leaders as Joshua was to his? What do Moses' words of correction teach us to do when we feel threatened by the success of others?

This weekend we'll be studying Joshua 1:1-9 (study here). Hint: Look for recurring words and phrases in the text.

To dig deeper . . . Listen to my pastor, Chuck Smith, overview Joshua in three messages (one, two, and three)!

NEW SERIES this weekend

Looking forward to exploring the book of Joshua together. It's been a couple years since we did a weekend series from the Old Testament (X - The Ten Commandments). A few months ago I read through Joshua several times to get a sense of what God might be wanting to say to us through this series. The thing that stood out to me was the difference that one person could make. For good. Or for bad. Joshua, Rahab, Achan, Caleb, and others made a huge difference.

This weekend we'll start with a prequel. We'll intro the series by looking at the spiritual formation of the man Joshua. He was born a slave but 80 years later succeeded Moses as leader to millions. What did the shaping process look like? What can we learn from it? That's what I'll be talking about this weekend as we start the new message-series One.

To dig deeper . . . Look at the verses in the Torah that talk about Joshua. Remember to read them in their original context and consider journaling your observations.

Living the Resurrection

When two or more things come together, we say that they converge. Two parallel lanes may converge into one. Perpendicular lines converge at the point where they intersect. Even people's lives and love intersect when they say, "I do." But what happens when eternity comes together with time? When Heaven comes together with Earth? When God comes together with man? Now that's what I call convergence! And that's been the name of our 11-month message-series, Convergence, a verse-by-verse study of The Gospel According to Mark.

Convergence isn't just something that happened 2,000 years ago when God became a Man and died on a cross for our sins. Convergence is something that happens every time we come together with God to worship Him and seek His will for our lives. Don't miss it this weekend as we complete this life-changing series talking about Living the Resurrection. Calvary Austin meets in multiple gatherings at different locations in the Austin area. Please join us this Saturday evening or Sunday morning at a time and place convenient for you!

Voice Messages

World Trade Center - the new Oliver Stone film - opens Wednesday. It's about the rescue of two police officers from the towers on 9/11. They are reportedly planning to donate ten percent of the opening weekend box office receipts to several 9/11-related charities. Pretty cool.

Much of what we know about what happened inside the towers comes from thousands of pages of transcribed radio transmissions, phone messages, and emails. Many of these came from people who died when the towers collapsed - office workers, visitors, and the rescuers who tried to save them. These were their last words. Some of them were personal. All were poignant.

Now let's go back in time two thousand years. What if, from the cross, Jesus could have left voice messages? In effect, that's exactly what He did. Over six hours Jesus left seven voice messages. Some of them were personal. All of them poignant. What were Jesus' last words? That's what we're talking about at all three weekend gatherings. Join us at a time and location convenient for you!