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What do you do when you are afraid? Typically, fear causes us to recoil and withdraw. We recoil from a snake. A child withdraws from something they are afraid of. We also cling to what we trust when we are afraid. A scared child will run to mommy or daddy. When you are a teenager watching a scary movie with your girlfriend, she holds on for dear life…and you both like it…a lot.

Funny thing about many Christians is that they run from what they trust and cling to what they fear when they are afraid. For example, when people are afraid of the economy, or of losing their job they cling to their money rather than God. When the economy is bad or when things are shaky financially WE SHOULD RUN TO GOD NOT FROM HIM! But for many Christians, the very time they need God the most is the time that they cling to what they fear. In an economic downturn we should tithe and give more rather than disobeying God. It is during this time that we need Him most.

Moses said it this way. Deuteronomy 6:24 (NLT) And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all these laws and to fear him for our own prosperity and well-being…
Interesting.

So…what are you clinging to right now? Are you holding on to what you fear or to the God you trust?

Peace. Ritchie

• I have to tell you that the weekend services were on a HNL –a ‘hole ‘notha level. When I looked out at the 9:00 service, which is the smallest of the three Sunday morning services, I knew that either lots of people decided it was their one Sunday out of the month to attend church (a subtle hint to those who are not faithful in one of the most important aspects of the Christian life, yet still wonder why their Christian life is not on a HNL. Somebody help me stop preaching!), or that this marriage series we are in is REALLY needed.
• Once again, the worship was off the charts. I feel like we are really growing in our worship. The quality of the music is always fantastic and I sense that many people are really starting to connect with God. Great job!
• Andrew, you always pick songs that blow me away. Dusty, Over You was the jam, bro!
• I do not know when I have been more exhausted after three services. The subject matter and the preaching just really took it out of me. I felt like I gave more spiritually than I have in a long time. Also praying with over 100 couples about their marriage was wonderful and draining at the same time. It was wild; I finished praying with the last couple about two minutes before I got up to speak again for both the 10:15 and 11:30 services. I saw some folks leave the line because there was so long of a wait. I hope you guys will e-mail me this week.
• I need at least twelve prayer warriors to stand in the gap for me and my family. Whenever you go to a HNL in ministry, preaching, church, etc. the enemy is going to ramp up his attacks. I need hundreds of you to pray for my family and me every day, but I need twelve warriors that take it upon themselves to minister in prayer in a deep way for me and this church. This is not just a quick kind of 30 second prayer each day, but a true warrior in prayer that will pray down God’s power, protection, blessing, and direction in my life. It could take between 30 minutes to an hour a day, but I sense in my spirit that Avalon needs this more than anything right now. If you are interested in being a prayer warrior that stands in the gap I want you to e-mail me.
• My small group is amazing! We had such a good time last night. We read the Bible together, prayed together, ate together, and nearly laughed our heads off. If you are not in a small group you are missing out on one of the BEST things in life. I am serious. Some of you know that I am very used to being the leader and being in front of people, but when it comes to the smaller, more intimate setting I get a little out of my comfort zone. Bro, if I love small group anybody will. I hope you will not cheat yourself out of a blessing.
• I did not do my movie review this weekend. I guess it is because I did not go see a movie. I kind of wanted to go see the Narnia movie, but I wasn’t too amped about it. I can promise you that if God allows me to live I will go see the new Indiana Jones movie this weekend, though.
• Anyway, that’s about all I have to say about that.
• Stop reading this blog and get to work before you get fired!

Have a great day! Ritchie

I crack up when I hear how some of our young people talk. (That sounds really old and not cool doesn’t it? …young people…) My kids sometimes say, “Don’t be hatin’,” whatever that means. I do want to challenge you not to be a hater this Sunday, though.

I have been really burdened lately for the marriages in our church. This Sunday I will continue the series “Lovers, Haters, and Clueless Daters.” I will be talking about “haters” or how to avoid a divorce. There will be a lot of humor in the message, but there will also be a lot of powerful truth in it. Here are a few reasons I think you need to be there or listen to it on the website:

1) The devil wants to destroy your marriage. I have received more e-mails, letters, and phone calls from faithful Christians who are thinking of ending their marriage than I ever have. He knows if he can weaken the home he will weaken the church and its influence for reaching people for Jesus Christ.

2) Marriage is wonderful, but good ones are hard work. Let’s face it. Marriage is one of the best things that can happen to you, but a marriage can fall apart quickly if we do not work hard at it. It must be maintained and that takes lots of prayer, hard work, and attention to detail.

3) You need to learn how to manage your expectations. Our creative team has put together a powerful video of a woman reading a personal letter to me asking for help in her marriage. When I first saw it I almost wept. You will not want to miss this, I promise you. MOST people have unrealistic expectations in their marriage and that is a big reason that they struggle.

I am really praying that God will put a hedge of protection around all of the marriages at Avalon and that He will protect all of our singles who want to be married one day. This is a huge challenge and I believe the health of the home is one of the biggest issues facing the church today.

Peace. Ritchie

This past Sunday I wore a suit in honor of all the mothers on Mother’s Day. Don’t expect that again this week. The different reactions to my wearing a suit were so funny. Most of the comments that I got from the ladies were akin to, “Oh, you look so nice in a suit.” The majority of comments that I got from the dudes were like, “Hey, we are not going to have to start wearing suits to church are we?” Relax guys. You are safe. No one hates wearing one of those more than I do.

The Hope Walk is getting closer. It is less than four weeks away. I will walk across the state of Georgia from the South Carolina line to the Florida line. I hope you will go online and sponsor me. All the money goes to the book bag giveaway in July and the bicycle giveaway at Christmas.

Here are a few pics from the last HOPE event.

Have a great day!

Ritchie

I had an AMAZING experience at the restaurant on Mother’s Day yesterday. As usual, Kim and I were some of the last people to leave the church. It is not that we have to stay that long, we just love it. Anyway, I had the kids in my car waiting on Kim. We asked her to choose where we would eat since it was Mother’s Day. She made her choice and we went and had a nice lunch. It was good having a Sunday afternoon lunch together, talking, being sarcastic, making jokes, and making fun of the people in the restaurant. You know the adage…the family that makes fun of people together stays together. Is that the way it goes? Hey, before you get all judgmental, we do not make fun of less fortunate people, people in need, or things that people can’t help. We just laugh at the funny things people do.

So after we finished eating we got up to pay our bill and this woman in front of us began making this HUGE scene. Everyone in the restaurant could hear her and it was very uncomfortable. Brandon started saying sarcastic things that I just knew was going to get somebody punched. The reason this woman was angry was she thought they had charged too much. In spite of the fact that the price was on a giant board when you came into the restaurant she thought she needed to yell at the people who could not even speak English very well. She said it was more than they normally charged. (It was not) Her teenaged son was about to die of embarrassment. What tipped the whole event over into the ridiculous was that the woman ended her tirade with this yelling this statement so loudly that it could be heard in the next county: “If I were not such a good Christian I would not let this go!”

Are you kidding me? Good Christian? Really? Railing on people that can barely understand you? Is that what Jesus would do? Even if you were ripped off (which you were not because the price was posted on a giant sign as you came in) is that the Christian thing to do?

Please. Stop being a freaking jerk to people and then claiming to be a Christian. It made me wonder how many times we Christians do things to make non-Christians despise the idea of ever becoming a follower of Christ. Something to think about, isn’t it?

If I were not such a good Christian, I would have punched that lady. Just kidding. On the other hand, if Brooke had tripped her…

Have a great day and stop yelling at people!

Ritchie

Sunday nights are when my brain is fried after speaking in three back-to-back-to-back services on Sunday mornings. I like to look back and take stock of the day as well as belch out whatever is on my mind. Here are the ramblings of a mad man. Mad as in crazy, not angry.

• I thought the baby dedication was off the chain. I think we dedicated somewhere around 25 babies. All the babies were beautiful and all the parents looked great. Great job all of you wonderful volunteers and staff in A+ Kids!
• Dusty did a great job leading worship in Andrew’s absence today. Have you ever noticed that God has dumped a boat load of talented people on Avalon? I am so glad for it and I am NOT complaining, but it seems almost SICK to me. It’s like God turned on the talent faucet and it got stuck before He turned it off. We have talented, smart, and beautiful people. Now if we could just get some people with money…
• Sitting here watching Tom Hanks in Castaway for the umpteenth time. Say what you want, but anyone that can talk to a volleyball for an hour and hold you spellbound is good.
• Mauricio Cardona is a BIG DOG VOLUNTEER! He works on our parking ministry team and our greeter’s team. He always has a big smile and a friendly face. He also makes these AMAZING Mexican corn pancakes every Sunday for many of our volunteers. THANKS BRO!
• The HOPE Walk is coming up in just four weeks! I had a member come up to me today and tell me that he was going to give $1000 to HOPE if I made it all the way across the state of Georgia. Bro! Do you know who you are talking to? I would make it if I had to crawl! Or cheat. All I am saying is get out the pen because it’s happening!
• I do not know why, but this afternoon I was overcome with just how good I have it. It does not matter what you are going through, if you live in America and you are a Christ-follower you have it better than 95% of the people on this orb we live on. Thank you God for EVERYTHING!
• I also want to thank my mom for all she did in raising me. Thanks, Ma! I love you.
• Iron Man freaking ruled at the box office again this weekend! Amazing!
• This week I read a book by Nancy Ortberg called “Unleashing the Power of Rubber Bands.” It is a great book on leadership. I think you have to read it.

That’s it for me. Peace out! Have a great week. Ritchie

I have no desire to go see Speed Racer or anything else that comes out this weekend. Iron Man was so good I may go see it again, which is rare for me to go see a movie twice at the theatre. I will pick up next Friday on what I think about the movies I see. I do plan on seeing Prince Caspian next weekend and I also plan to see the new Indiana Jones movie the following weekend.

Instead of going to a movie I will probably just play a couple hours of racquetball instead. That is much healthier, I know. Anyway, I plan to enjoy my day off and get ready for Mother’s Day. Hope you got your mom something. If not, GET IT TODAY! She deserves it for carrying you inside her body and then putting up with your crap all these years. To all you moms, WE LOVE YOU!

Peace. Ritchie

Brooke, my youngest daughter, is helping me write my blog post this morning. She is almost ready to leave for school, so she is going to drop some knowledge on you this morning. Brooke, what do you have to say?

I just looked through the shopping ads in the paper and I saw this really cute, pink camera that I would like to have and I also saw some “granny shoes” that I think my mom would like. I want some aviators, the coolest sun glasses in the world. That is all I have to say. Deuces. =DD

Wow. There that is. From the mind of a twelve year old girl. I hope “deuces” just means “peace” or something like that. Pray for me. I need lots of help.

Deuces…I think. Ritchie

I can remember some of the things I did as a boy that I got punished for. My mom believed in old-fashioned spanking. She would use whatever was most convenient at the time. Don’t worry, I do not feel warped, abused, or have suppressed memories of hating my mom. I deserved every dispensing of justice I got…probably a lot more, to be honest. I did get her to laugh so hard one time that she did not spank me, though.

This particular crime did not make me feel like I deserved to be punished, but my mom saw it differently. She sent me outside to get a “switch,” since she was busy doing something. That is a small, flexible tree branch for you those of you too young to remember actually having to get up to change the TV channel, not something you use to turn on a light. A switch was not harmful, but it really stung. Now I may not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, but I knew that I had just received a major break. My mom was too preoccupied to choose her weapon, so I got to choose for her.

I chose wisely.

I brought in a switch. Actually, it was more like an embarrassment to switches. It was about six inches long and virtually inept at inflicting pain. Well, this infuriated my mom. Her face turned red, her veins stuck out on her neck, and I thought I saw steam coming out of her ears. She informed me that if I did not make a “proper” selection that I would get even more of a spanking because she would go get her own “instrument of instruction.” Still not willing to concede, I went to my dad’s tool shed and found an ax. I walked into the woods behind our house and chopped down a small tree. It was about fourteen feet tall and several inches in circumference. I chopped the branches off and then drug it into the kitchen where my mom was working. I mustered up my best “puppy-dog eyes” and with a quivering lip I asked her, “Is this one big enough to fit the crime?” She laughed so hard that I got out of a spanking.

I remember some years later that my son, Brandon, committed the exact same crime that I had on that particular occasion. I was ready to spring into action. Just as I was about to begin dispensing some well-deserved discipline, my mom looked at him with a big smile on her face and said, “You little character, you.” Are you kidding me? She used so many switches on me at that age that I think it started global warming. Now she looks at her grandson and says, “You little character, you.” That’s it? That’s all you’ve got? Tree hugger!

Maybe she was just testing my character.

I always have to remember that God wants to test my character as well. When things get tough in life I have to recall that God has a plan and a purpose for everything. The Psalmist wrote, “Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.” Psalm 105:19 (NLT)

Commit this to your memory. God will always wait until it is time to fulfill my dreams. Until then, He will test my character. He knows what I am made of. He just wants me to find out too. I think, just maybe, there are times when I imagine He is getting out His big switch, but actually, all He is doing is winking at what I cannot see and saying, “You little character, you.” He has a way of developing little characters so that we become more like Jesus.

Peace. Ritchie

I have heard many people say, “Just let the Spirit lead you.” What they mean is, “Just do what you feel like.” This philosophy often leads to tragic errors and deep sin. I have seen people justify things from an unnecessary divorce, to having an affair, to disobeying God about brining the full tithe with this kind of thinking. They don’t feel “led” to stay in a marriage, or “led” to be unhappy, or “led” to give because they can’t afford it. Now do not misunderstand what I am saying, because I do believe God promises that the Holy Spirit will lead us, guide us, comfort us, bring wisdom to us, empower us for living, and a host of other things. However, these promptings and leadings of the Spirit are ALWAYS in conjunction with obedience. So many Christians miss out on the blessings that God wants to pour out on them because they do not really understand what it means to be led by the Spirit of God.

The prophet Isaiah foretold how the Spirit of God would characterize the life and ministry of Jesus. He described characteristics that are necessary for living a blessed life.

Isaiah 11:2 And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

The next time you pray ask God seven questions based on this verse. If you are bold enough to pray them your life will be changed forever.

1. God, will you use me? When the Spirit of the Lord rested on anyone in the Bible it was always for a specific task or purpose. It was an anointing for ministry. Are you willing to ask God to use you for the very purpose He created you?
2. God, will you lead me? The spirit of wisdom allows us to make wise choices with money and other practical areas of life. I really believe the reason many Christians struggle is because they cannot truly ask God for wisdom because they are willfully disobeying what they already know to do. As a result, they continue to make bad choices, bad purchases, bad investments, etc.
3. God, will you teach me? The spirit of understanding is the ability to have discernment. Do you need discernment in your job, in a dating relationship, or in dealing with your boss? What would it be like if you had the Holy Spirit to help you discern what you should do?
4. God, will you direct me? What would your life be like if you actually had the counsel of the One who knows everything about you, the future, and the people you are dealing with?
5. God, will you empower me? I believe the spirit of might deals with the physical and emotional. Do you eat properly and exercise? Do you need to lose weight? Do you think God might have more power than Jenny Craig?
6. God, will you take me? The spirit of knowledge implies a commitment to God and an involvement in His plan. You get to know God by doing what He asks. Are you willing to ask God to take you completely?
7. God, will you amaze me? The fear of the Lord means that we reverence Him out of a state of awe and wonder. When is the last time you were amazed by God?

I really believe if you will ask God these questions and obey Him your life will be changed forever and you will know what it means to live a blessed life.

Peace. Ritchie