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Sailing Through Life

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2012-05-10T23:31:37Z

Since the weather has begun to warm up I have already been able to take my 21ft. sailboat out upon the lake a few times. (Love the warm weather!) I live in an area of the country were there are an incredible amount of lakes to sail upon. As I was thinking about my coming trip this Saturday I began to meditate upon (and looking forward too) the times I will be in my boat in the different lakes I will sail on.

Some lakes are very small and can be sailed around in a matter of minutes, while others are very large and can take more than a week to circumnavigate. (Which I am hoping to do this summer)

When you are in the middle of the lake it is amazing how the weather is so diverse and can change so quickly. Strong winds can give a person all they can handle to keep the boat upright or calm winds that will not even fill the sails and you can do is sit and wait until the wind picks up, which may or may not happen at all.

Over the years, in all of my sailing adventures, I have always been able to return home safely, although there were more than a few times I wondered if I would make it home at all.

As I was thinking about sailing this summer I began to reflect upon how much life is like sailing on the lakes in this area.

Like the blustery weather that can come up so quickly and seem overwhelming and hinder you from arriving at the destination you desire to reach, in the same way I have had many challenges in my life that have caused me to have doubts if I was going to be able to move forward in life as well.

However, there have also been many times I felt like I was stuck in life's doldrums, no wind, no motion, going no where and never knowing if you were going to get past the point you seemed to be stuck at in life.

Yet, many times I have had smooth sailing, a comfortable ride and cool breeze in my face while I ate a nutritious lunch (well mostly junk food, but that goes with sailing) but you get the idea, I have had many great times in life that I have always had fond memories of.

In the same way, like the different size lakes in this area, some people live for a very period of long time, while others only seem to be with us a short time.

In the last year, I attended a funeral for a 21 year old young man who had his life in front of him but his life was cut short when he was unexpectedly killed.Yet, I was also on the death bed of another man who was taken home in his late seventies because of cancer. Like the different size lakes, life can be short or large, you just never know when our end will come.

When ever I have gone sailing, I have always assumed I would get back home, but as I stated earlier, there were many times I understood I could have easily not made it back at all because things came up I was not expecting or prepared for.

If we compare a person's life with sailing on a lake, some of us will be on a long voyage while others will be on a much shorter one but most of us will experience times of challenges, enjoyment and times when life will seem pretty mundane but most everyone expects they will get home safely when the die. I have asked many people the question, "Do you know where you will end up after you die and most people say heaven. (Like arriving safely back to port)

When your life is over, how do you know that you will make it home safely or do you just assume you will as I have done when I left the dock.

The bible declares we live in a fallen world and we will experience many challenging and difficult things in life but we are also given many opportunities of fun, rest and enjoyment from life. However, there can also be times when life seems like it is going no where. Yet, do you know where you end up at the end of your life?

Our sin is what separates us from God and heaven,no matter how good you might think you are or how bad you consider yourself to be, none of us are perfect, sinless or perfectly righteous and that is what puts us all in the same boat.

Psalm 14:3 "They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt, there is none who does good, no not one"

Rom. 3:23 "For all have fallen short of the glory of God"

Although sin is what has separated us from God, He loves you enough that Jesus came to earth to live a perfect, sinless, holy and righteous life but He died a sinners death when He had nails driven through His hands and feet and was hung upon a wooden cross. However He did this because of His great love for us and to pay for the sins you and I have committed against Him and others. However, God hates sin enough that He cannot, and will not overlook the sins we have committed against Him and others because He is a just and righteous God.

Jesus said if you are willing to accept in faith that He died for your sins and be willing to turn from what the bible declares is sin, He will forgive the sins you have committed against Him (both large and small sins) and give you eternal life.

Rom. 6:23 The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The most important thing for us to understand, If Jesus is not in the boat with you, it is impossible to arrive home safely.

However, If you have Jesus Christ to come into your life and forgive the sins you have committed against Him, He also wants to you to allow Him to be the captain of the boat and not just a guest. When you allow Him to be the commander of your life, He will bring you through the strong winds or the doldrums of life or even when nothing seems to be happening in your life. Yet, He will give you times of joy and peace that cannot be found any where else and you can know for sure He will bring you home (heaven) safely.

Jesus is the only way to get home but the only way we can sail through life safely.

I hope you have a blessed summer and if you have any questions or comments feel free to contact me. I always love hearing from you

Rick

Are you ready for 2012?

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2012-01-14T00:29:51Z

I have found it very interesting to find so many people who are fearful of what they have heard will happen in 2012. The media has flooded us with "could happen" events that "are reported will happen" this year.

Newscasts have reported that Nostradamus predicted the world will experience a catastrophic disaster from a comet that will hit or come near the earth sometime this year.

However, these same people believe Nostradamus predicted the collapse of the world trade towers from some of his writings "“the sky shall burn…to the great new city the fire draw nigh.”

(Doesn't it seem clear that Nostradamus believed two passenger jets would hit both world trade towns and burn to the ground by this short sentence?)
For someone to conclude that Nostradamus predicted the World Tower collapse, by this verse, is the same as believing Janet Jackson's top had a unplanned mechanical malfunction at the super bowl.

If you believe Nostradamus did have insights to what will happen this year, you might find it interesting to know he was also strongly into occult, books practices and sought Satan for his answers and insights. It is also interesting that much of his other writings focused upon the coming of the anti-christ, the one world leader who will be possessed by Satan but claim to be God, to rule the earth for seven years. Which the bible also speaks of. (Just something to remember, if you are drawn to believe what he wrote)

Nancy Lieder also has proclaimed that the Planet X will hit or come near the earth this year and cause great destruction. She also stated this same planet came near earth 6,000 to 7,000 years ago and caused the global flood.
(If she would have been alive during this time she could have encouraged Noah to build faster!)
However, you might also want to know she also proclaimed aliens had placed a pod in her brain so she could receive messages from space about this upcoming event this year.
(With an idea like this I wonder if the aliens took her brain out, instead of placing a pod in her head)

If what she has predicted concerns you, you should know she also previously predicted the world would be devastated by a planet that would pass by the earth in 2003, however she later dismissed this idea. (I believe she dismissed this idea around 2004)

We need to understand, many have trusted what these people have predicted and they are the most popular and strongly held predictions which has created so much fear and uncertainty for 2012.

As a bible believer, I also believe 2012 will have challenges and trials that many will face, not because it is 2012 but because the bible speaks of growing trials and tribulations on earth that will increase before Jesus returns to earth,

Mat. 24:4-8 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

However, If you read the book of Revelation compared to what Jesus stated here, what is yet to come will seem insignificant compared to what will happen during that time.

You might ask the question, "If you believe what you state, why are you not concerned with what 2012 or the near future seems to hold?"

Do not miss what Jesus said when you see these things begin to happen in what I underlined above. "See that you are not troubled" He has reassured me that because I have placed my faith that He died for my sins upon the cross of Calvary and I have asked for Him to forgive my sins and be my Lord and Savior, He will save me from this time that is soon to come upon this earth.

I will not have the time to share all the aspects of what will happen in the near future, however, if you read Matthew 24 & 25 and 1 & 2 Thessalonians, as well as the book of Revelation in the bible, you will find great insights in what will happen but how Jesus will save you from this time, if you turn to Him in faith today.

Listen to Jesus words to you personally

John 3:16-21 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

2012 maybe challenging for all of us but by turning away from what the bible calls sin and being willing to turn to accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior in faith, 2012 does not need to be troubling but peaceful as we wait for His return.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me.

Rick

How can I believe?

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-10-09T03:01:47Z

As I begin this post, I would like to make a blunt statement:

I believe that Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again after the third day to demonstrate that I will rise again after my death because He said He would come back for them and take them to heaven to be with Him forever.

By making this simple statement, I am sure I have polarized many within a few seconds who took time to read my statement.

Like magnets that will either be attracted to each other or try and push away from each other, depending upon how they are turned. Some who read the statement would full agree while others would totally disagree.

For those who do not believe or agree with my statement, you might respond, "There is no way you can prove that Jesus rose from the grave, so why should I believe it.

That statement may or may not be true, depending upon the evidence you are looking for.The only way Jesus death and resurrection can be scientifically proven, is if someone today was alive at Jesus death who could verify the event or if Jesus death and resurrection could be reproduced and neither of these can be accomplished or recreated.

However, if we look at the legal evidence for Jesus death and resurrection from the grave and placed that evidence before an unbiased jury in a court of law, I believe you would have sufficient evidence to prove that Jesus did rise from the grave and it could be proven by the legal evidence, based on the known facts of the event over 2,000 years ago.

You might have a difficult time accepting what I just stated but so did many other brilliant but unbelieving lawyers, judges and sceptics, until they examined the evidence for Jesus death and resurrection.

Take a moment to consider the conclusion these unbelievers came too:

Dr. Greenleaf, the Royal Professor of Law at Harvard University, is among the greatest legal minds that ever lived. He wrote the famous legal volume entitled, A Treatise on the Law of Evidence, considered by many scholars as the greatest legal volume ever written. Dr. Greenleaf was a bitter opponent of Christianity. He believed the resurrection of Jesus Christ was history’s greatest hoax. After being challenged by some zealous Christian students, Dr. Greenleaf determined, once and for all, to expose the silly “myth” of the resurrection. After thoroughly examining the legal evidence for the resurrection — Dr. Greenleaf came to the exact opposite conclusion! He wrote the famous book entitled, An Examination of the Testimony of the Four Evangelists by the Rules of Evidence Administered in the Courts of Justice. After his exhaustive study to “disprove” the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Dr. Greenleaf wrote the following incredible words:

“it was IMPOSSIBLE that the apostles could have persisted in affirming the truths they had narrated, had not JESUS CHRIST ACTUALLY RISEN FROM THE DEAD, . . .”

(Simon Greenleaf, An Examination of the Testimony of the Four Evangelists by the Rules of Evidence Administered in the Courts of Justice, p.29).

Although Dr. Greenleaf was a legal scholar who came to the conclusion the resurrection of Jesus happened, so did Thomas Arnold who was a scholar of ancient history:

Professor Thomas Arnold, for fourteen years the headmaster of Rugby, author of the three-volume History of Rome, and holder of the chair of modern history at Oxford, was well acquainted with the value of evidence in determining historical facts.

I have been used for many years to study the histories of other times, and to examine and weigh the evidence of those who have written about them, and I know of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better and fuller evidence of every sort, to the understanding of a fair inquirer, than the great sign which God hath given us that Christ died and rose again from the dead.

We also find textual critics who have come to the same conclusion:

Brooke Foss Wescott, English scholar, said, "Taking all the evidence together, it is not too much to say that there is no historic incident better or more variously supported than the resurrection of Christ."

As well as professors of ancient history

Dr. Paul L. Maier, professor of ancient history at Western Michigan University, concluded that, "If all the evidence is weighed carefully and fairly, it is indeed justifiable, according to the canons of historical research, to conclude that the tomb in which Jesus was buried was actually empty on the morning of the first Easter. And no shred of evidence has yet been discovered in literary sources, epigraphy or archaeology that would disprove this statement."

As well as judges who have been on the high court like our supreme court:

Lord Caldecote, Lord Chief Justice of England, has written:

My faith began with and was grounded on what I thought was revealed in the Bible. When, particularly, I came to the New Testament, the Gospels and other writings of the men who had been friends of Jesus Christ seemed to me to make an overwhelming case, merely as a matter of strict evidence, for the fact therein stated ... The same approach to the cardinal test of the claims of Jesus Christ, namely, His resurrection, has led me, as often as I have tried to examine the evidence, to believe it as fact beyond dispute.

Others also studied the gospel account to disprove the resurrection but came to the opposite conclusion

Dr. Frank Morrison, a lawyer who had been brought up in a rationalistic environment, had come to the opinion that the resurrection was nothing but a fairy-tale happy ending which spoiled the matchless story of Jesus. He felt that he owed it to himself, and to others, to write a book that would present the truth about Jesus and dispel the myth of the resurrection.

Upon studying the facts, however, he, too, came to a different conclusion. The sheer weight of the evidence compelled him to conclude that Jesus actually did rise from the dead. Morrison wrote his book-but not the one he had planned. It is titled, Who Moved the Stone? The first chapter, very significantly, is called, "The Book That Refused to Be Written."

The great writer C.S. Lewis who wrote the books "Chronicles of Narnia" which are now being released as movies, was also a brilliant thinker and unbeliever who changed his mind regarding the evidence of the resurrection of Christ

The literary scholar, C. S. Lewis, former professor of Medieval and Renaissance literature at Cambridge University, when writing about his conversion to Christianity, indicated that he had believed Christians "to be wrong."

The last thing Lewis wanted was to embrace Christianity. However, "Early in 1926 the hardest boiled of all atheists I ever knew sat in my room on the other side of the fire and remarked that the evidence for the historicity of the Gospels was really surprisingly good. 'Rum thing,' he went on. 'All that stuff of Frazer's about the Dying God. Rum thing. It almost looks as if it had really happened once.'

"To understand the shattering impact of it, you would need to know the man (who has certainly never since shown any interest in Christianity). If he, the cynic of cynics, the toughest of the toughs, were not -as I would still have put it -'safe,' where could I turn? Was there then no escape?"

After evaluating the basis and evidence for Christianity, Lewis concluded that in other religions there was "no such historical claim as in Christianity." His knowledge of literature forced him to treat the Gospel record as a trustworthy account. "I was by now too experienced in literary criticism to regard the Gospels as myth."

Finally, contrary to his strong stand against Christianity, Professor Lewis had to make an intelligent decision:

"You must picture me alone in my room, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me. In the Trinity Term of 1929 1 gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England."

Although most of these brilliant thinkers began by desiring to disprove the gospel account of Jesus resurrection, they all became believers because of the legal evidence that Jesus rose from the grave.

My prayer for you is to also look to the evidence and be willing to acknowledge, accept that Jesus both died for you and rose again to come back for you, if you are willing to come to Him in faith.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me

May the Lord bless your week

Rick

You say it's your birthday?

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-09-07T02:45:34Z

I cannot believe it has actually been over one full year since I posted my first blog.It was actually in August of last year when I got this insane idea to use the free blog sight that came with our website purchase. I never had any intentions to try and write a blog because I knew my limited writing skills and abilities. However, I took a step of faith and the rest is history, a year of history in fact. I would like to take this moment to thank all of you who take your busy time to read the articles I have posted and share them with others.

As I was thinking about the last year, I was amazed at how fast time seems flying by and before I know it, I will be sitting here next year, wondering where the second year seemed to have gone?

Take a moment to think about that for a moment, what will you be doing or where will you be next year? What about in five years, or ten years? What about in twenty five years?

In November,, my wife and I will be celebrating our thirty first year of our marriage together and that seems like yesterday.

(If I look at our marriage photographs, I found out that I actually had hair back then but my wife is just as beautiful today as the day I met her!. When I looked at those marriage photographs I realized I was not a bad looking guy then but when I look in the mirror today I wonder what happened or who ran over me!)

However, the great question each of us must come too is very straightforward, where will you be and what will you be doing when you take your last breath?

You might respond, "No one knows where we will be or where we will go" Maybe that is your conclusion but the fact is we won't be here and it we should all be very concerned where we will be!

What if we can know but we have not taken the time to find out? Over the years I have found that most people I have spoken with just shrug their shoulders if you ask them where they are going after they die. However, some will say heaven but if you ask them why they believe they will go there, they don' really know why they should be in heaven, it just seems like a good place to be.

After all aren't we basically good people?

Here is what we must all understand, God is Holy, without sin and perfectly righteous but God gives us the freedom to make our own choices. However, many of the choices we have made have caused us to sin against God and others, even though we all believe we try to do the right thing.

God loves those He has created but hates the sin that all people have engaged in, it is because God is perfectly righteous and holy, He cannot just overlook our sins, they must be paid for.

(None of us like a wrong being done against us, and not have any justice carried out to correct the wrong that we have experienced)

It is because God is perfect, righteous and holy, He must judge our sin, He cannot just overlook it but God loves those who He has created so much, it is not His intention to carry out the judgment He knows He must bring against those who have sinned against Him or others.

He provided a way for mankind to find the forgiveness for their sins and be able to stand in right relationship with Him, even though they have sinned against Him.

Jesus who is God came to earth to dwell as a man, to live to face the same problems, trials and temptations everyone of us face in life, but He did this without ever sinning. However, for living a perfectly, holy and righteous life, He was nailed to a wooden cross and died a sinners death.

(Death upon the cross was like our capital punishment today)

If we are willing to trust that Jesus died for our sins, He is willing to cover us in His righteousness that we might stand before Almighty God, perfect, holy and righteous, but it will not be the righteous things we think we have done, but by His righteous perfect and holy life.

Jesus loves you, He was willing to die for you and He desires to have a relationship with you

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to write or contact me or take time to read some of my other blogs.

May the Lord richly bless your week
Rick

A Late Post but a Close Future

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-08-01T22:26:54Z

Well, it has been a considerable amount of time since my last post and I suppose I could give you a couple of good reasons for why it has taken me this long to get it done.

1. It is summer and I am outside enjoying the sun that seems to avoid our area of the nation during much of the winter and I am on if that was the case, I might be in the middle of Lake Coeur d' Alene with my sunglasses, hat and suntan lotion on.But then again if I were on the middle of the lake I might not even be interested in writing a post for this blog! However, if I were on the lake and interested in writing my blog, you might realize I am still in the stone age because I do not have a cell phone with internet access, because if I did, I would have had my "I phone" or "Droid" out and be writing away.

2. Maybe it is because I am lazy and just did not get around to it, You if you believe that might be the case, you might want to contact my wife, she could tell you because she knows me too well.Although you might not want to bother contacting her because I gave her twenty bucks not to say anything!

Although neither of the above comments are the real reason I have not written a post recently, I really did not feel like I had anything worth writing to you about and honestly I don't want to waste you valuable time writing something that does not mean much, but when I think about writing a post, I want to make a point that I believe the readers can meditate upon, ponder in their quiet time or use as a conversation topic to share with others.

I am amused when I look on Facebook and find people posting what they had for dinner or what time they went to bed, or how long of a shower they took. (Meditating on all of my friends thinking of me taking a shower kind of creeps me out if you know what I mean!

So why did I take time to write today?

With our nation possibly facing an economic meltdown or making a deal to raise our national debt that we can never recover from, it seems the choices are not promising. Along with this unnerving news, we have been flooded with media information regarding 2012 being the end of the world. Many groups, nations and individuals, both past and present, believe next year will be the end of this world as we know it.

I went on one website and found over 20 reasons, topics, prophesies or statements from people, nations, leaders that believe next year is it, some even use quotes from the bible to try and prove their point.

I previously said it kind of creeped me out regarind people thinking of me taking a shower, I am very sure many, many people today are feeling kind of creepy about the possibility of that next year is the end.

Is 2012 going to be the end of this world as we know it?

Although I am personally very confident the end of the world will not end next year, it does seem that next year could easily bring major changes and policies upon the earth that none of us have ever faced before. Many of the things which could come, might easily change life as we know it today.

If we keep our eyes upon the circumstances we are facing, all of us might be afraid, angry, apprehensive or concerned but if we are willing to turn our eyes upon the promises Jesus made, we find He gave us peace, when all peace seems to be gone. When Jesus spoke to His disciples before He was crucified upon the cross of Calvary, He spoke words of comfort and peace to them during a time in their near future when they would be greatly afraid of what would happen to them.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Just previous to Jesus making this statement, He made another important comment that can also apply to each and everyone of us who are willing to come to Jesus on His terms.

John 14:1-6 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴ And where I go you know, and the way you know.

Today Jesus wants to give us peace, no matter what trial, challenge or possible economic disaster may be awaiting us but Jesus also wants us to have confidence that those who are willing to trust Him in faith, will have a home in heaven that can never be taken away from us, or undermined by anyone.

What are terms Jesus gave us to gain what He desires to provide to us?

Everyone of us, that includes me, have fallen short of God's perfect commandments and standards, we are all separated from God. The only way to come into a right relationship with a Holy, righteous and perfect God, is by having our sins redeemed, in other words, someone must be willing to pay the price for the sins we have committed against a righteous and holy God.

If we understand we have sinned against God and desire to turn from our sins that have separated us from God, we can ask in faith, for Jesus to take the penalty of our sins in place of us, because Jesus was willing to die on a cross for us. He loved you enough to be willing to take your place and take the punishment for your sins, upon Himself and in return, give you His righteousness as a gift in return, if we are willing to turn to Him in faith.

Therefore, when Almighty God sees me, He does not see my sins, but Jesus righteousness that covers me.

2 Cor. 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

It is because I have trusted in Jesus promises, I have peace today and confidence in eternal life tomorrow with Him, no matter what tomorrow or 2012 might bring.

I hope you you can receive the same peace He offers those who are willing to who turn to Him in faith

May the Lord richly bless you week, if you have any questions or comments regarding this blog please feel free to contact me

Rick

All biblical quotes are from the ”The New King James Version. 1982 Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Fearful Future or Peaceful Present

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-05-01T22:31:00Z

I have the opportunity to speak with many people and one thing I have found to be very consistent with most people today, is a apprehension of the future in regard to the economy, violence, political instability, climate changes, greed, lack of morals and integrity between individuals and organizations. We also find Middle East is out of control and China is positioning themselves to take control. Many wonder what type of environment we are going to leave to our children in the future. It was not that many years ago, people felt secure, looked forward to the future and had peace in their lives but not today, it is like someone has pulled the rug from underneath them and now they are laying on their back with the wind knocked out of them while looking up and are wondering what has happened.

However, for those who have looked to place their trust and faith in the bible, we are called to have a very different outlook upon the things that are happening today because all that we see occurring, the bible proclaimed would happen, just as we see them happening.

Mat. 24:6-8 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Believers are not fear, not because they think things are good today, we are not to be alarmed because we have a peace that does not come from what is happening in the world.

Jesus said:
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Jesus did not say His peace would come only during good and prosperous times.

You might ask the question, "How can we find peace in such a troubled world just because Jesus said we are to have peace?"

The peace that Jesus is speaking of is not a peace that can be earned, achieved or found, it can only be received when we find the peace He desires to provide for us. Trials, troubles and even death are not to be fearful to the believer.

Hebrews 13:5-6 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”

Jesus has promised to be there to help us, lead us and guide us through anything we face in life but when Jesus died upon the cross and was raised from the grave, He demonstrated that He alone has victory over death and the power to raise believers from death as well.

If you do not have peace in your life, I strongly exhort you to acknowledge and turn from what the bible calls sin, (Repentance) and turn in faith to Jesus Christ and ask to be forgiven for the sins you have committed against Him and others and then begin a personal relationship with Him in faith (Salvation) to follow His word and will. Only then can you find the peace that He desires to give you.

May the Lord bless you today as you find the peace that He desires for you

Rick

All bible verses are from The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Worth the Cost

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-04-04T02:13:00Z

When is a project, task, or accomplishment too costly to be completed or when is the same task or project worth the price that is cost to obtain?

I was watching a TV program some time ago which documented the building of the Panama Canal which I found very fascinating. The French originally began the project in 1880 to allow ships to pass through Central America, to keep from having to sail around South America, which would save 8,000 miles in travel time and expenses. However, after eight years of labor and financial expenditures, therefore, project was canceled in 1888.

Not only was there a huge loss of time, material and money that were spent on the project that was never completed, an estimated 22,000 people lost their lives from the physical challenges of the project and from malaria and other diseases that overwhelmed the workers.

For the French, the project was no longer worth the cost that was incurred by attempting to finish it.

However, in 1903 President Roosevelt decided that the Panama Canal was worth the investment and effort and committed to finishing the project the French could not complete, knowing the challenges, obstacles and problems that still remained.

The two key reasons America was successful in completing the Panama Canal was because a military disease specialist was brought into stop the spread of Malaria and America decided on a "locks type" system to travel over the hills, instead of a river to pass through the hills to the Pacific.

Ten years later, the canal was completed and the first ship sailed through the canal, but the cost had also been high, not only in the financial cost it took to build the canal, but the 5,609 lives that were lost in those years it had been under construction.

Although the Panama Canal was a huge undertaking and has become one of the great wonders of the last hundred years and the cost and resources that have been saved by those who use the Canal cannot be calculated, today almost every understands the cost was worth the price.

For those who lost family, friends or love ones, the question could be asked, "Was the cost worth the price for me and our family?" For their families, they might have said no, the cost was not worth it to them, but for the majority of people in this world, we would agree it was worth the price.

We find a very intriguing similarity from history as well. Mankind has a desire to live forever, nations have spent billions of dollars to try and stop or slow down the aging process that leads to death.

Like the malaria that was killing a high rate of workers during the early years of the project, sin in our world today also kills people at an alarming rate, at the last check the ration was 1 to 1 and unlike malaria , there is no way to stop the effects of sin upon us and we all will die because of it.

Sin has also separated us from God and that is why mankind cannot see God, nor, has experienced God or has a relationship with God by our own efforts and abilities. A person might be better than their neighbor, but no one is perfect like God.

Knowing the dilemma sin had created for mankind, Jesus who was God, came to earth to live as a man, not only to show us how he desires for us to live, but even more important, He came to pay the debt of your sins and mine when He was nailed to the cross but after 3 days Jesus rose from the grave to demonstrate He has the power over both sin and death.

Why did Jesus do this? The cost that He faced was worth the price for Him because of Jesus great love for you personally. It is because of mankind's sin, we can never be good enough to be accepted by a perfectly holy and righteous God, but God by His very nature demands perfection from us.

When Jesus died for you upon that wooden cross, He died to take your sins upon Himself but He will give you His righteous life in return, as a gift to you, if you are willing to accept what He did for you in faith.

2 Corinthians 5:²¹For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
The New King James Version. 1982 (2 Co 5:20-21). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

If I died tonight, I would be forgiven and proclaimed holy, righteous and perfect, not because I could live a holy life, but because Jesus declarers me to be forgiven of my sins against Almighty God.

You can be like the French, who rejected the cost or you can be like the American's who accepted the cost to see the project through. However, the big difference, is the cost was paid by Jesus, all we must do is be willing to accept His gift in faith to obtain all of the blessing that come with the cost He took upon Himself.

If you want to know God, to have a relationship with God or to find the forgiveness for your sins, I strongly encourage you to realize the cost Jesus took upon Himself, because of His great love for you personally.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me, I would love to talk with you more about God's great love for you.

I pray you will have a great week!

Rick

Following the wind, not trying to direct it

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-04-04T02:13:00Z

John 3:8 ⁸ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Like the wind, the person who is led by the Holy Spirit cannot determine where they are being led, they are to follow where the Holy Spirit is leading them.

When I posted my first blog, I did not know anything about them, I had never read any other Blogs before, so I had nothing to compare my entries too, and I can confidently say, when it came to begin typing my first entry, I was in the dark in what to expect.

Who would read something a pastor of a small church fellowship in Coeur d' Alene Idaho would write? After all, most people don't know where Coeur d' Alene Idaho is located.

Over the first 90 days, I did not have one response that anyone had even looked at the first blog I had posted.

However, today, I found the page that showed the statistics regarding my Blogs and found not only had someone viewed this site, there are people who daily come to this site, even if a comment is not left by them.

The reason I bring this up is very simple, although I was a bit apprehensive in the beginning to start this blog, because I did not know what to expect. When the Lord leads me to share something, I will begin to write, if God has spoken to my heart regarding a issue or event, I will share what God has shown me, or spoken to me.

The reason I even began to consider writing a blog, was to allow God to use it to bring people into a relationship with Jesus Christ or help believers to be encouraged in their faith, or to challenge believers to trust the Lord and His word more in their daily lives.

Although I have not previously posted very many entries, because I did not think anyone was coming to this site, I want to thank those who have taken the time and let you know I hope it has encouraged you to come to faith in Jesus Christ ,or helped to encourage your faith.

The reason this has been my sole purpose in posting my thoughts regarding Jesus Christ and walking in faith with Him, is because once my time on this earth is over, the only thing that will really matter is what I have done for Him.

That is worth my time, I pray it will be worth your reading.

Dying to Know

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-03-01T01:43:00Z

I am now at the stage in my life where I likely have fewer days ahead of me than behind me before this body takes it's last breath and my body is buried over or burned up.

Although my wife has said she might have me freeze dried and put in the corner of our living room, if she were ever to remarry, I am fairly confident that in a very short period of time my freeze dried body would be sticking upside down in the recycle bin on the street corner, if you know what I mean.Two is a company, but three is a crowd, even if you are freeze dried.

On the upside, I won't be around to have to worry about what will happen to my body because I will no longer be in this body, so I really should not be a concerned. However, what happens after I die, should still be a big concern for everyone, because we are all going to face the same day sometime in the future.

(The last time I checked the death ratio was still 1 to 1) Therefore, it should be extremely important for us to come to peace with it because we cannot avoid it. That may sound gloomy depressing to some, but to others this has not been the case.

During the Civil War, the Southern forces had a general who was known as "Stonewall Jackson," He was given that name during the battle of "Bull Run" when the Southern troops were beginning to retreat from the battlefield but Jackson remained on the front lines, riding his horse and calling out to his troops to return and engage in the fight. He did this while bullets were soaring around him and he actually had one of his fingers shot off but did not leave the front line of battlefield.It was during this time, General Bee (who was another Southern General) was coming forward to join with Jackson and made the comment to another soldier, "Look at Jackson, he looks like a stonewall on the battlefield."

How could Jackson keep so unmoved while bullets flew around him? He was asked that question by another soldier after the battle and gave a simple response, “When you have a relationship with Almighty God in faith, you are just as safe and secure on the battlefield as you are in your bed at night. I am not going to leave this body one moment before He calls me home, therefore, I am not moved by what happens in battle."

The reason General Jackson was so unwavering by a battle that could have very easily ended his life, is the same reason I have peace with my impending death at some point in my future.

As General Jackson learned and I have come to understand, our sins have separated us from God, that is why we cannot see God, hear from God or experience a relationship with God because our sins have eternally separated us from Him. However, Jesus came to reconcile the seperation we have with God when Jesus came to earth to live a life that I could never achieve, He alone lived a sinless, perfect and righteous life, but Jesus died a sinner’s death when He was crucified upon a cross at Calvary. Jesus came to earth to save those who have realized they have sinned against a righteous and holy God, to give us a way to be forgiven for our sins. Although I should be the one to be punished for the wrongs I have done, when I placed my faith in what He did for me, Almighty God forgave my sins because I trusted in what Jesus did for me personally. I no longer need to worry about what will happen to me when I take my last breath because like General Jackson, I know where I will be and because I have a personal relationship with Almighty God in faith in what Jesus did for me personally, I am as secure now as I am when I take my last breath.

My prayer for you is that you take the time to have confidence of what will happen when you face the end of your life as well.

If you have any questions or comments I am always blessed by comments, questions or those who are interested in my comments.

May the Lord bless your week

Just an informational post

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-01-24T02:38:00Z

I happened to be looking at the information that is available to me for the blog site and I just learned something that I was not even aware of.

At the bottom of the blog, there is a place to give your email address and then you will be emailed when new post has been published. I do not have any regularity when I make a post because I wait until I am led to share something and then I take time to pray before I begin.

I only share this with you because I know your time is valuable and I don't want you to waste time looking for a post if I have not published anything to read.

However, if you just want to check at your convenience, I am blessed when anyone comes to this site.

I also do not know how so many of you have found this blog, I have not spent any time, resources or energy trying to promote it, therefore, if you have just stumbled upon this site but would like more information regarding me or the church I am the pastor of, please check out calvarychapelcda.com.

You will find my bio and the messages I share on Sunday morning. If that does not interest you I hope you will come back to this site and take the time to comment on what you read, I love hearing from you.

I just posted another blog this afternoon and I hope you will take time to read it.

May you have a blessed week

Knowing your limitations, but not bound by them

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-01-23T23:03:00Z

When I was in my teenage years (many years ago!) I did not like, nor, did I want to learn or had little interest in, English as a subject. I could not find a good reason that I would use it, so I gave very little of time, energy or resources to it.

When I began to write this blog, I was unsure and very reluctant to post something for everyone to read because I knew this was not my strength. I felt I would be standing with my participles out of place, like having a bad hair day or my irregular verbs would be very visible for all to see, like something hanging out of my nose that I am unaware of but everyone else can see plainly. (If you have ever had that happen it is not been a good day)

As I prayed and began to move forward to write what God would lead me to pen, I have been overwhelmed at the response of the encouragement and blessings many have sent. I was totally unprepared for how God would use the words He has led me to share.

In the fourth chapter of Matthew’s gospel, we are told that James and John were mending their fishing nets when Jesus called them to follow Him. John eventually wrote the gospel of John and four other books in the New Testament. If we take time to think about this for a moment, it is very remarkable that a man, who fished for a living, became a writer who has encouraged, blessed and motivated millions of people to turn to Jesus Christ in faith.

Although the bible declares the words of those who wrote God's word, were moved by the Holy Spirit to inscribe what God wanted said through them. It still amazes me that God would use a fisherman to write, unlike the Apostle Paul who was educated and well schooled in the culture, languages and religion of the Jews and Romans. Yet, John who was a simple fisherman and not well educated, was also used in God’s hands, by writing His word.

From the comments you have sent, I have seen that God is using me to touch lives and hearts, but I assumed God would rise up a man like Paul to write a blog that could bless or minister to people, but what I have found is God is willing to use an unskilled writer like me, because I was willing to respond to do what He was leading me to do.

If you have a personal relationship with Jesus through faith, I want to encourage you, don’t let your opinions, doubts or fears, hinder you from allowing God to use you, even in the areas of your life you might have thought you had no ability in. I can’t take credit for what He is doing because I know I do not have a natural aptitude in writing. Yet, as a follower of Jesus, I want Him to have the glory for what He is willing to do through my life; I hope you have the same heart and desire as well.

If you do not know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, I would like to encourage you to read the books of a fisherman who God used in a powerful way, please take the time to read the gospel of John and the epistles of 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and the book of Revelation. I don’t know how good of a fisherman he was, but I know the words of John changed my life.

As a footnote, I have a number of family members who have read my blog, all of them have at least bachelors’ degree or masters’ degree. I thought about letting them proof read my blog’s before I posted them but instead, I hope you will find the spirit of what I write, and not the comma that might be misplaced.

May God bless your day and I hope to hear what the Lord is doing in your life!

Do You Love me?

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2011-01-18T16:43:00Z

In the gospel of John we find a very well known and familiar account of a conversation between Jesus and Peter.

What Jesus said to Peter, is what grabs my attention and interest.

John 21:15 Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”

The New King James Version.

Jesus asked if Peter loved Him, and Peter responded by saying He did, however, Jesus then qualified His question by stating, "Feed my Lambs" In other words, if you love me, your love will be demonstrated in the way you treat others, not Jesus personally.

Someone can say they love Jesus, but unless a person can love others by the way the care, treat and help them, we are not loving as Jesus as He defined love.

Tending lambs is difficult, time consuming and challenging occupation, but Jesus described loving Him, as our commitment to tend to others, just as a shepherd cares for lambs, by facing the trouble, trials and tension in doing so, even when those we attempt to care for, are not interested in our efforts or time.

Paul made this very clear in the book of Romans, regarding the love that Jesus has for mankind, when he made this statement.

Romans 5:8 ⁸ But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

The New King James Version

Jesus made the choice to do what was best for you, when He was willing to be nailed to a wooden cross. Jesus did this, to give everyone the opportunity to come into a right relationship with Almighty God by simply trusting in faith that Jesus died for you personally, if you are willing to turn from your sins, and receive Jesus love.

It is because all mankind has sinned against a righteous and holy God, our sins must be reconciled or paid for, and Jesus paid mankind's debt for their sin, when Jesus was nailed upon the cross for us.

If you reject what He did for you, Jesus was still willing to die on that cross, to just give you the opportunity to come into a right relationship with Almighty God, that is the depth of His love, if you accept what He did for you or not.

Jesus bore the cost, responsibility and pain, to do what was best for us, although there was no benefit for Him personally.

When Jesus asked Peter if he love Him, the same question Jesus asks of every believer?

Anyone can say they love Jesus, but are you willing to do what is best for others, even when you must bear the cost, pain and responsibility for what is best for them, even if they reject what you try to do for them?

This is God's love in action, but it is only by seeking God's help, strength and power can believers begin to live out what we should hope to give to others. God never designed mankind to be able have this type of love in our own power, but only as we seek Him, through faith.

"Who are those people on your blog page anyway?"

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2010-09-07T23:14:00Z

Welcome back to my second blog,

As I took the time to view my first blog which I had set up, my first question was simple, "Who are the people in the picture on the blog?"

My answer is very easy to answer, I have no idea, it came with the template I set up. What do you expect for a blog which was free with our website purchase? However, for a reasonable fee, I could upgrade and get different pictures. Who knows what I could find for a reasonable cost? Maybe I could find a better looking or more intelligent looking people. (Not to be condescending for the freebies that came with my purchase, I am sure their mothers think they are cute) However, in their defense, they are younger, and most would say, better looking than I am. (My wife might make an argument against that point, but she would be the only one I know of.)

As I thought about this, it came to me, what difference does it make whose picture is on my site, the people on the site are not much different than anyone else. After all people are people, we are not that much different than those on my blog, except their color, age, culture or intelligence my be different, but we are are all, in fact, just people.

I was watch a TV documentary on the "Harlem Globetrotters" the other night, I found it fascinating to realize when they traveled in the 1940's and 1950's, many of the cities they traveled to, would not allow them to sleep in certain hotels or motels because they were black. In one Southern State, they had to sleep in the county jail because no motels would allow them to stay at their facilities!

If that was not insulting enough, during this same time, a chimpanzee that had become famous for making TV appearances on various variety shows, was able to stay in a certain hotel but the Globetrotters could not.

Although mankind has the tendency to look down upon other cultures, colors or ages of people. God does not, He sees everyone equally, He has no favorites because He is impartial to people based upon who they are or where they have come from.

Although mankind has their own reasons & excuses for why they look down upon others, God calls it sin. If we are honest, we can see the affects of sin in regard to how we view others in our world today.

Murder, hate, divorce, theft, wars, which is only a short list of what could be documented.

Yet, God has a great love for mankind, even though many fail to understand or accept His love for them.

Jesus came to save us from the sin we find ourselves under, He lived the perfect, holy and righteous life which we could never live, but Jesus died to take our place, for the sins we continually commit. He alone can reconcile our sins before a righteous and holy God.

2 Corinthians 5:²¹ For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Jesus is willing to take your sins away, if you are willing to accept His righteousness as a gift by faith.

Jesus loved you enough, to die for you, but you must accept what He did personally for you, by asking Him to forgive the sins you have committed and enter into a personal relationship with Him in faith and choose to turn away from what is sinful to God.

In the Beginning...

rickkahlbau@yahoo.com (Pastor Rick) — 2010-09-07T20:54:33Z

Good afternoon to everyone who has found or stumbled upon my first and opening blog,

Well, here I go into the world of "blogging" which is quite interesting that I would begin such a project, being that I have never read another person's blog before. At least no one will be able to state that I am a plagiarist or try to be like someone else.

I cannot really begin to predict how long I will continue to write this blog or how often I will update it, only that I know this will be the beginning of a new adventure for me. (A Genesis of shorts I suppose) Although I will be free to speak my mind, I will do my best to funnel what I say, to be filtered through what God's word proclaims. After all, my opinion should not be important to anyone anyway, it is just what I believe to be true, however, what God has to proclaim through His word, is vitally and eternally important to everyone. God's word has been the only thing that has never been in error, and will stand the test of time, which a person can be confident is true.

In a future blog I will give reasons for why we can have confidence in what God's word proclaims.

I would like to share a few things regarding my blog that I hope readers will keep in mind. First, as you will quickly see, writing is not my strength, if you become irradiated with my average writing skills, I would encourage you to find people who write for a living or have developed their skills beyond my natural ability.
When I began to think about this, I found it was humorous because I am going to send out an invitation to this site to my sixth grader teacher which I was reconnected with through facebook. Funny, she knew I was not a good English student over 40 plus years and I am going to prove her wisdom.

At this point, I will end this blog because I know most people's schedules, attention spans and retention is very short with the world in which we live, and the tons of information that is thrown at us each and everyday.

I hope my blogs will be clear and to the point but even more important, to help you think about the world we live in and what the real meaning in life is and how it is to be applied.

God Bless thanks for visiting!
Rick