Here’s the Wave post:

[wave id="googlewave.com!w+CDiAnrEER"]

“Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.”

You see, there is nothing at all wrong with communism. It is essentially what we all as believers should be striving for. The difference between what I am talking about and what you might have had in mind before reading this post is that God is our leader. He leads us to worship him with our belongings. That means that God has given some of us more on purpose – to show the love of God by giving to others. At the same time He has also not given us as much so that He can show his sovereign care. The idea of socialism and communism is beautiful. The part that breaks it down in our world is when we have sinful, greedy rulers. That is why it has never worked – in the sense that it had grown the people. It has worked in the sense that everyone has had everything in common, but it led to tyrant-led countries. Our God is no tyrant, but many of us are greedy. I encourage you to see where you are. We are of His kingdom – not Obama’s. Worship the King with what you have and trust in his sovereign care.

Josh

“What’s the difference?”, you may ask. For me, purity of heart clearly was not something I can humanly do before God. He knows my heart. The only way for me to be clean before Him is to be cleansed by the blood. To be pure in heart to others means that I keep my intentions before others clean. No, I cannot do this one perfectly either. However, God knows my heart – people don’t…usually. My loyalty is to others through Christ. Yes, the battle is within me. Yes, people may never know the “indignation” that I hold toward them, but I answer to Christ about it.

The result lies in the rest of the verse – “…for they will see God.” I have seen God more vividly this week than I have in a while mainly because I have seen my need for Him. I cannot do this on my own. To live pure in heart toward others is going to take a supernatural strength that I do not have. I have seen how pure God is. It has been amazing. I am shocked that I have lived with this arrogance…but then again, why should I be so shocked? This is who I have been my whole life. I need His strength. Through this I will be able to see Him more clearly because I see myself more clearly.

What has God been doing in yourlife to change your view of Him?

Josh Blaha

Today I noticed that “Chuck Norris” was a trending topic on Twitter. I found it very humorous to go down the list and see what Chuck Norris jokes were being spread on Twitter. Here is a sample:

@Nakialjackson Some people wear Superman pajamas. Superman wears Chuck Norris pajamas.

@reborn2603 When Chuck Norris jumps into a pool he doesn’t get wet, the water gets Chuck Norris.

@PHrozenPHiasco Chuck Norris doesn’t read books. He stares them down until he gets the information he wants

@_HughBris When Chuck Norris runs with scissors, other people get hurt.

@russdog Chuck Norris doesn’t need Twitter. He’s already following you.

@cstella23 When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris.

@psicojames Chuck Norris doesn’t even need a hashtag to be a trending Topic

@thatgirlkarla chuck norris isn’t afraid of the dark, the dark is afraid of chuck norris

@MainShain There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures Chuck Norris has allowed to live.

@dirtysuzy The world was flat until Chuck Norris roundhouse kicked it, which made it curl up into a ball.

@PastorDuncan Chuck Norris doesn’t do push-ups, he pushes the world down.

@jordanknight Chuck Norris doesn’t sleep, he waits

@kayesays for Chuck Norris every street is one way —- his way.

@RhodaSona Chuck Norris’s calendar goes straight from March 31st to April 2nd NO ONE FOOLS CHUCK idiots

@kayesays Chuck Norris has never won an academy award for acting … because he’s not acting.

@mikeybd Giraffes were created when Chuck Norris uppercutted a horse.

@yoimmatthewww Leading hand sanitizers claim they can kill 99.9 percent of germs. Chuck Norris can kill 100 percent of whatever he wants.

- It takes Chuck Norris 20 minutes to watch 60 Minutes.

@_HughBris Liberals are what happens when people who’ve been roundhouse kicked by Chuck Norris live.

@petewall Chuck Norris doesn’t need a vacuum cleaner because dust is too afraid to settle in his house.

@sneakfetish Chuck Norris can make a paraplegic run for his life.

@giantsuberfan: Chuck Norris CAN believe it’s not butter.

@JasonMendelson Death once had a near-Chuck-Norris experience

@liveitfull If you have five dollars and Chuck Norris has five dollars, Chuck Norris has more money than you.

@evatemperical HAHA: Chuck Norris is currently suing NBC, claiming Law and Order are trademarked names for his left and right legs.

@PRLTGL There is no ‘ctrl’ button on Chuck Norris’s computer. Chuck Norris is always in control.

@Endersrun Chuck Norris’ Rollerblades have real blades on ‘em

@JoelAPInto Chuck Norris speaks French in Russian!

@TheTrueCatch22 Chuck Norris doesn’t pay taxes, he just mails the IRS a picture of himself crouched, and ready to attack.

@tessanoodles if you have $5 and Chuck Norris has $5, he has more money than you.

@sneakfetish Chuck Norris is the reason Waldo is hiding.

@cstella23 Chuck Norris counted to infinity – twice.

@oh_angie Chuck Norris was there before the chicken AND the egg

@_HughBris Global warming isn’t caused by human emissions; Chuck Norris simply scares ozone.

@Robert_Holland Chuck Norris destroyed the periodic table, because he only recognizes the element of surprise.

@Sengupta Google won’t search for Chuck Norris because it knows you don’t find Chuck Norris, he finds you

@Robert_Holland Chuck Norris is suing Myspace for taking the name of what he calls everything around you.

@exchangedliving Chuck Norris can set ants on fire with a magnifying glass. At night.

@USRNAMEiguess Chuck Norris is not capable of hitting a target on the broad side of a barn. Every time he tries, the whole barn falls down.

@jblaha When Chuck Norris rides a bike, he doesn’t move. The earth rotates faster.

@apeezy925 Chuck Norris has two speeds: Walk and Kill

@apeezy925 Chuck Norris uses pepper spray to spice up his steaks

@_HughBris Chuck Norris knows Victoria’s Secret.

@tinychuck Chuck Norris can play the violin with a redwood tree

@DSSully Chuck Norris can divide by zero.

@1confusedgirl Chuck Norris once shot down a German fighter plane with his finger, by yelling, “Bang!”

@brnsugrmama There is no such thing as global warming. Chuck Norris was cold, so he turned the sun up.

@cliosguy Chuck Norris’ smile once brought a puppy back to life.

@Nicoleeeeeeeee Chuck Norris can blow bubbles with beef jerky.

@RyanGrant25 When Google runs out of answers they call Chuck Norris

Just in case there are some fans of Chuck Spurgeon (Charles H. Spurgeon), some people put these together for your entertainment. Check them out on Andrew Caudill’s blog.

We have been going through several stages over the past several years. We have gone from having a pastor to no pastor (for about 1.5 yrs – I think…I may be wrong) to a pastor to change. Through all this many have chosen to leave the body for reasons from job transfer and ministry opportunities to family concerns. While they are all understandable, our church has completely changed in the three years that I have been attending. Many of the people who were there in the beginning are not there. The complete make-up of the body has changed. This leads me to ask the following questions:

• If the church is the people, what am I supposed to commit to if the people come and go?
• If I stay, am I not just committing only to the teaching elder and the doctrines that have been set up?
• What is the church now?

I have no intention of leaving at all. I believe that God is doing a wonderful work at Grace Bible Church. Sometimes things like this happen for us to refocus on Him, our true prize. I am very excited about the friends that God has led me to as new members, but the recent events cannot be ignored. I am not as concerned about the reason people are leaving as I am the implications of their leaving. What are we now? Sure, we still have a good body, but those who I committed to when I became a member are gone.

I am sorry that I do not have many answers on this post. Sometimes I write just to clear my head and try to provide fuel for the thoughts of others. I doubt that we are the only church going through such circumstances. I praise God for his work in our lives no matter how misunderstood his actions may be. Nothing that I have seen is wrong with our leadership, teaching, or practice. Just people’s actions leave me to wonder and reconsider the meaning of the church.

Trusting in the wisdom of God, our wonderful gospel

Josh

As I already mentioned, I got a concussion on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Basically, a bunch of us at the church Memorial Weekend Campout were playing a game of Ultimate Frisbee. Our outnumbered team was not doing well. There was a low throw from someone on the other team. Josh Hurst and I both took a dash and dive for it. Unfortunately, we did not see each other and were both on the same team. From what I understand, I hit the ground with the right side of my face and my right shoulder. I believe Josh landed on me somehow with his left arm stuck underneath me. I ended up with a concussion and he ended up with a broken arm in three places. Josh was rushed off the scene to a gracious doctor who was with our church. He knew that is was broken and tried to brace it as much as possible. I walked back and was in a daze of what just happened. From what I hear from others, my eye looked like a black eye and I had a really bad look on my face. The people decided that I needed to go to the hospital with Josh.

The closest hospital was about 20-30 minutes away. Our doctor came with us and called the hospital ahead to get Josh’s information in. Josh and I were both admitted. They ran some x-rays on him and a CT scan on me. The verdict was a broken arm for him and a minor concussion for me. There was no bleeding in my head for me (Praise the Lord). They said that it would not take too much time before I was healed. For Josh, his arm might have to be reexamined to see if they need surgery for a little triangle piece that was “floating” around in his arm.

I have not heard anything since then about Josh’s arm. As for me, there has been a lot of pain through headaches and a lot of dizziness/dazing out for me. I think this last Friday was the first time since the accident that I have seemed “aware”, as my co-workers say. The headaches also seemed to be mostly gone. I asked my younger brother to come over on Saturday to help me with my yard work since the grass needed to be cut for a long time. In just the time time that it took for me to get the lawn mower going and the weed eater going, my headaches all started coming back. I took a pain killer that the doctors pescribed for me. The pain went away. Not realizing that it was the pain killer that helped my pain go away, I thought that I felt well enough to go help with the weed eating. I helped a bit but soon we had to leave. I could feel my headache coming back slowly. As I went to drop my brother off at a graduation party and go to my brother-in-law’s birthday party, the pain from the headache increased. When I got home that evening, I was in a lot of pain. I didn’t realize how much pain I was going through until the pain killer wore off. So, in the end I am doing well as long as I do not do much. It is a bit frustrating to me, but I know that it is good for me. While I am not normally that active of a guy, I do enjoy walks, working out, and other things like that. All of these start headaches back up for me. So, for now, I am just doing my office work and doing some household chores while I slowly heal.

Please keep the Hursts in your prayers as they deal with the results and bills from the accident.

I think the main thing that God has used in my life from this comes from my reaction and their reaction to the incident. When asked about the first reaction from the accident, Miriam Hurst (Josh’s wife) replied that she prayed. As Josh Hurst got into the vehicle to take him to the hospital, his reply to everyone was “God is sovereign, but you can pray if you want to.” Although humorous, he is right and yet different than my reaction. My reaction was more to the worry of the bills and if I really was going to be alright and what was wrong with me. God was teaching me a lesson of reliance on Him and not to worry. It is a lesson that Hannah and I have been learning since this spring. Read through Matthew 6 for me. That has been the passage that God has used most to teach us.

Well, I must get back to life here. I hope to be able to write some more on here now that I have more free time. We will see though. For now, may our good God bless you with grace and peace.

Josh Blaha

It finally hit me today. The problem is not with God. The problem is with me. I have to understand the goal of God and the material that He is working with – clay. I am but dust, yet He is forming me into the shape of His perfect, holy Son. The weakness is in me – not in Him. I am His weakness. He chose me and is perfecting me. The clay is weak and the goal is precise. “Why doesn’t He change me already?” It is because He is good and does not wish for robots to give Him praise. It is because I am so messed up that to change me that drastically would be to destroy me. It is so that I can taste His goodness and faithfulness. He is winning me with His love. I am now glad to be called His weakness. I am glad that He is delicate with each precise movement and etching that He makes in my feeble life. I look forward to the time that I can worship Him wholly and purely. That will be a great day indeed! For now, I will rejoice in my weaknesses and praise Him for what is has done and is doing.

I leave you with one of my favorite passages in all the Bible.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
– 2 Cor 12:9-10

What misconceptions have you had that drew you closer to Him when you finally understood them correctly?

– Josh

Life has been crazy lately. I guess it gets like this around this time of the semester. I have two 10 page papers due this week. In a couple weeks, I have major project due. That is going to be from 15 – 20 pages. Needless to say I am going to be busy.

Several topics have been swimming around in my head lately though. Here are some of the topics. Maybe you can help me choose which one to write on first.

- Church: The Showcase for Elite
- Denominations: Human Branding of Christ’s Body
- Silence: The “Loving” Kiss of the Enemy
- Life Without Facebook

Well, I had a few more, but they slipped my mind at the moment. Off to do some more research for my psychology paper on addiction.

Drop in a line to let me know that you are there too. haha

BTW: Who is the one from NY that frequents my page?

Pray for me,
Josh