Joseph Fehlen- Testimony Sharing – December 27th, 2009
Joseph Fehlen- Going Public Part 1 – Acts 2:14-42 – December 20th, 2009
From the multi-part series “The Book of Acts”
I have been accused of everytime I talk on a Sunday that a food illustration makes its way in to the message. I have also been known to have a party just to eat. “Taco Palm Sunday” and “Meatlovers Fest” are two such occasions. But this time of the year is the best for eating. I just received some tips from a friend about how to make it successfully through the season… Hope it helps.
1.Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Holiday spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they’re serving rum balls.
2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. It’s rare.. You cannot find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It’s not as if you’re going to turn into an eggnog-alcoholic or something. It’s a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It’s later than you think. It’s Christmas!
3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That’s the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.
4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they’re made with skim milk or whole milk. If it’s skim, pass. Why bother? It’s like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.
5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Holiday party is to eat other people’s food for free. Lots of it. Hello?
6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year’s. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you’ll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.
7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don’t budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They’re like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you’re never going to see them again.
8. Same for pies. Apple, Pumpkin, Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or if you don’t like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? LaborDay?
9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it’s loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.
10. One final tip: If you don’t feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven’t been paying attention. Re-read tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.
Joseph Fehlen- Holy Spirit Part 3 – Acts 2 – December 13th, 2009
From the multi-part series “The Book of Acts”
The rebuilding of the wall continued and like any good remodeling project you will have those that like what you are doing and those that would rather have it another way. A quick read of chapter four of Nehemiah gives us a look into some fellows attitudes towards the walls going back up. They are furious, jealous, angry, they scoffed, they schemed and they started dissention among the workers. They were catapulting anything and everything the way of Nehemiah and his workers.
I have done a few home projects in my life and I sometimes have a disagreement with my wife over colors (she wins) or maybe my dad over how high quality the replacement item should be (the customer wins) or even with myself over the amount of time it should actually take to complete the project (no one wins). Sometimes we even have issues with our neighbors or home associations over the kind of job getting down, but rarely our life is threatened by someone else. They were starting to have it really bad in Jerusalem.
It was so bad that it was said that “the common laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon. All the builders had a sword belted to their side.”(4:17) Those that oppose what you are doing will go to no ends to see you fail and make like hard. It is pretty hard to work while you are worried about getting sucker punched by some guy walking by.
Which made me think about how hard it was for me to drink my coffee this last Thanksgiving.
You see my brother (www.johnfehlen.com) and I still act like kids even though we are grown men with families. One kid thing we still do is sucker punch each other when the other is not ready and when no one else in the room can see. Not a hard hit, but enough to let the other know they have let their guard down. We took this to a whole new level this year. While drinking my morning coffee my brother gave me a good flick to the gut. Good shot but I was not going to let this one go unpunished. So while he was in the shower moments later I unlocked the door and quietly entered to dump a large amount of cold water on him. As he screamed I quoted Nehemiah to him “remember when working on the wall make sure you never let your guard down”.
Yes that is a misquote but he got the picture, be ready for the sucker punch at any moment. These kind of antics are fun and can keep life fun and adventurous, but no one expects someone to get hit while they are painting, hammering or just going about life helping others. As they were in the process of rebuilding a city they had to prepare themselves for the sucker punch. And so do you when you are trying to do something good in an area that is in need of rebuilding.
Be prepared as you are about doing good for those around you to experience the punch to the gut. Usually from those that don’t care for what you are doing. Many times they will come from your biggest supporters but mostly it will come from those that gain a benefit from a city in disarray. Ultimately these kind of sucker punches never feel good. Take heart what you are doing is good and must continue through the adversity.
