1. Give your kids your self first, rather than stuff. Many dads get caught in the trap of giving stuff when really our kids want us. Don’t misunderstand. Providing for one’s family is biblical. First Timothy 5:8 calls the man who fails to provide for his family’s needs “worse than an unbeliever.” But the temptation I’m referring to goes far beyond the basic level of need. It’s the toys vs. time battle: a dad’s desire to make up for his long hours and absence by unloading material stuff on his family rather than being there when he is needed. Like in the bleachers during ball games or in the audience during a band concert, like by your child’s side when the homework calls for a father’s encouragement. Nothing takes the place of a father who gets involved.
2. Save your best for home, not work. Nobody has an endless supply of emotional energy, creativity, enthusiasm, ideas, humor, leadership drive, and a zest for life. How easy it is for dads to use up all those things at work, leaving virtually nothing for the end of the day. As a result, the wife and kids get only the leftovers. Fathers, our families deserve better! By failing to pace ourselves, by not deliberately saving some of our creative energy for home, we tend to be listless, negative, boring, and predictable around the house. How rare are those unselfish men who think ahead, maintain right priorities, and keep their families surprised by joy.
3. Make sure you listen and learn and not just lecture. James 1:19 is worth a look, here: “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (NIV). When things get out of hand at home, it’s our normal tendency to reverse the order James suggests. First, we get mad. Then, we shout (lecture No. 38 . . . or is it No. 39?). Last, we listen. When that happens, we get tuned out (I’ve learned that the hard way). Our family members may stop. They may look. But they aren’t listening. They go through a slow burn. It’s a sobering realization, dads, but our home is not an extension of the office . . . and our wife and children are not employees. Maybe we get respect automatically where we work, but at home we must earn it the old-fashioned way. We must work for it.
4. Nobody's perfect. So don't expect your kids to be. We fathers can be extremely unrealistic, can’t we? It does me good to remember that a .350 batting average is considered tops in the big leagues. That means the professional ballplayer swings and misses well over half the times he’s at the plate. Yet .350 means that he’s still considered the batting champ. In fact, if he keeps that up long enough, he’s Hall of Fame bound. Sure is easy to set our expectations for the wife and kids out of reach, expecting them to bat a thousand. Fathers are commanded not to exasperate their children (Ephesians 6:4), which suggests being an annoyance, an irritation, one who causes grief. An exasperated kid is one who can’t jump quite high enough, thanks to a demanding father who mistakenly thinks good coaching means always raising the bar.
5. The greatest gift we leave our kids is a legacy of faith in God. Kids are blessed to have dads who love and trust God with all their heart. Kids are blessed to have dads who lead the family spiritually. Never underestimate your role as the spiritual head. If your wife is running circles around you in this area, that tells me a lot more about you than about her. And don’t think the kids don’t notice, and wonder. Leaving a spiritual legacy of faith for our kids is a gift that gives for all of eternity!

Happy Father's Day!

Pastor Tim

I am making final preparations for my trip to Brazil. There are 10 of us from EVC who will be spending 10 days in three cities doing short term mission work. We are looking forward to spending time with our missionary Philip Smith and the organization he founded called Hope Unlimited for Children.
Brazil is a beautiful and wealthy nation but many of its children are begging on the streets. It’s estimated that approximately 20 million children live at or below the poverty level in Brazil. Many choose to live in poverty rather than face abuse from family members. Others live on the streets because they have been abandoned by their parents. Hope’s vision for Brazil was launched in 1991 when thousands of vulnerable street children were being systematically killed by gunmen largely hired by local business leaders. Their purpose for these killings was to eradicate a “public nuisance”— street children. Hope Unlimited is reaching out and saving many of these children. The mission of Hope is to shelter and love these children. They provide education and job skills. But as Philip Smith says, “The greatest thing we provide is the love and grace of Jesus Christ to these kids.” Spiritual transformation is first and foremost to fulfilling the mission of Hope. Last year 31 kids graduated from the four year program and are now productive members of society. Lives that were thought to be a nuisance are now being transformed for the glory of God.
Our team will be serving alongside Hope’s staff in two of their orphanages. We will be doing some re-modeling of dorm rooms, playing games with the children, listening to and praying with the kids and staff and getting a better vision of how God is using Hope Unlimited for His glory. Please be praying for our team while we are away. Here’s how you can pray:
Pray that God will provide His protection over us while we travel.
Pray that all the supplies we are bringing will make it safely through customs.
Pray that God will use us to be a blessing to the staff and children of Hope Unlimited.
Pray that our eyes will be opened to see what God sees and to feel what God feels.
Pray that God will give us opportunities to share His grace and goodness with others.
Pray that Matthew 25:40 will be real to us, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did it for Me.”
To learn more about Hope Unlimited visit their website at http://www.hopeunlimited.org/
Thanks for praying.
Pastor Tim

I just completed a sermon series called, "He's Risen and I'm Changed." The focus was the post-resurrection appearances that Christ made to some of His followers and how it changed their lives. I have enjoyed studying and teaching on these great stories. I hope it extended Easter Sunday into Easter Season.
I believe 1 Corinthians 15:58 is a good way to wrap up this series. This verse says, "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord, because you know your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
After 57 verses of explaining the power and the importance of the resurrection, Paul concludes with three commands and one promise.

The first command is to stand firm. This means to be firmly settled. It means to be standing on solid ground. Don't let anything or anyone move you off the solid ground of Jesus Christ. The other day I noticed that the gate to my side yard doesn't close properly. After some investigation, I discovered that the fence post was not embedded in the concrete anymore. That caused everything to be askew. Similarly, when we are not firmly embedded in the concrete of Jesus Christ, things get wobbly and don't work properly in our lives. Jesus lives, so stand firm!

The second command is to not let anything move you. This means to be unshakable. Don't be tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceit.

The third command takes us a step further: Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord. Pour yourself into it. Don't grow weary in well doing. Don't grow slack. Don't get discouraged. This implies the ability to recreate ourselves day by day; it is the idea of resiliency.

And the promise? That are labor for the Lord is not in vain. We may not always see results like we want to see them but our labor for the Lord is effective because the results of ministry belong to the Lord. As Paul stated, "God gives the increase". The words "we know" are important words in this promise. Sometimes I have to remind myself, constantly tell myself, that what I do for the Lord produces eternal effects. It's easy to fall into the trap of measuring the success of ministry like someone measures the success of a business. We count nickles and noses. We measure success by how many show up or by how much is given. But God has a different measuring standard. I need to be faithful to serving the Lord and trust Him to be faithful in producing eternal effects. Jesus lives and what I do for Him counts!
Jesus died on the cross, He rose from the dead, He gives us the victory..."therefore, my dear friends, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that you labor in the Lord is not in vain."

Pastor Tim

I hope all of us thank God for our Mom’s this weekend and if possible, tell them. I was raised by a single mom. My father passed away when I was eight years old so my mom raised me by herself and worked full time. That’s no easy task. I was a handful to raise. Then add on top of that having to work full time? I think you get the picture. I didn’t fully appreciate the enormous task of being a single mom until I became a parent. I experienced the challenging responsibility of raising kids but, I was blessed to have a wife to help me (more about Pam later). My mom faced this task alone and in an era when being a single parent wasn’t that common. Today, there are more resources available to help single moms than there were available in the 60’s. But my mom did the best she could and showed me the most important thing – How to trust God. She really wasn't alone because her faith was firmly planted in the Lord and in His Word. So, while I may not have had all the stuff the other kids with two parents had, I had the best thing – a mom that trusts the Lord. So, I thank God for my Mom!!
I thought you might want to read tributes from some of our other staff members to their Mom’s.

Pastor Dave writes:
My experience with my mom has paralleled that of Timothy in the New Testament with his relatives. My Grandmother and Mom were my preschool Bible teachers. To this day my mom is a woman of prayer with a passion to reach the lost and a love for serving the church -- I hope my life will reflect at least a portion of her deep calling and desire to follow Christ.

Pastor Dennis writes:
My mom has always loved and cared deeply for her family. Through the years I experienced my mom continually expressing her love just as deeply to my children and grandchildren. Two things that touch me deepest about my mother’s love is how she has loved my wife, Sherry, as her own daughter. Sherry did not grow up with the kind of family I had and my mom took the role of loving her like a daughter. The other expression of love I will never forget is how my mom cared and loved my father with a deep passion. When he suffered through cancer for over a year and eventually died my mom stayed by his side, cared for his every need, and loved him unconditionally. Even though it took a toll on her physically and mentally, she never wavered in loving and caring for my father.

Susan writes:
I consider my mom to be one fantastic person. I don’t know how she raised 5 kids without going insane! My mom has been the best example on how to be a mom and I love her for setting that example for me

Eileen writes:
My mom never stopped being a mom. I learned what unconditional love was from her, and I truly felt sorry for my children when she passed, because their greatest cheerleader was no longer around. She had a unique way of tapping into our strengths, and focusing on those, rather than our short comings. My mom’s last verbal prayer was: “May I be able to do in heaven, what I was unable to do on earth.” It gives me goose bumps just writing it.


Finally, I want to thank God for the mother of my children. Pam is the best mom I’ve ever seen. I don’t think I could ever express how immensely God has blessed me by giving me such a great wife and such a wonderful mother to my kids. Like the Proverb says, “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies” Proverbs 31:10.
“Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her. Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” Proverbs 31:28-29.

Happy Mother’s Day!
Pastor Tim