Many requests have been made for the video teaching the last two weeks from Dave Ramsey.  Although we don’t have the rights to post the videos on our sites, Dave’s talks can be viewed online here:  Life.  Money.  Hope Videos

Find the “Upside” of the downside when you commit to learning new money behaviors…try it and see!

We were privileged to hear from Dave Ramsey this week at Westport.  Dave’s humor, mixed with truth, has encouraged and challenged many people to do something about their bondage to debt.
I wish you could read the comments I’ve been reading from you this week!  You have Gazelle Intensity - and I can’t wait to see the results.  I’ve been praying individually for EVERY single comment you made on your connection card this week - praying that God will give you courage and wisdom to find your UPSIDE in the middle of the downside - and learn a new money behavior!

You may be interested in learning more from Dave Ramsey on this subject, so here is a great place to find resources:

www.DaveRamsey.com

Let’s break the bondage of debt so we can be the generous people we really WANT to be!

The topic of lament is a hard one to bring up in public…at least in America. We celebrate the successful. We’re a country of winners!!! Aren’t we?

Life just doesn’t always work; God is not bound to our plans and desires; and grief is always a part of life, even during the best of times. In Romans 9, Paul wrestles with his desires and emotions on the one hand (vv. 2-5), and God’s sovereignty on the other hand (see especially vv. 14-21). Maybe we should do the same. If you missed my sermon in our Upside series, listen here as I speak in more detail about worshiping through lament.

We learn to lament, not because we are masochists looking for more pain, but rather as an honest response to the pain that is present in a fallen world (John 16:33). Tremendous portions of Scripture are devoted to people voicing their pain and confusion. We can learn from them, and take heart from their honest cries. Something is available to us in lament that is not available through praise alone.

If you find yourself compelled to go further into this “darker side” of worship, then I recommend a couple good guides. First, from someone you are used to me recommending, Dan Allender, is Cry of the Soul. This book mostly focuses on the darker emotions found in the Psalms - anger, jealousy and fear - and then seeks to guide you to learn more about God in these places, and worship Him.

The second book is from singer-songwriter Michael Card: A Sacred Sorrow. Card combines personal reflection with excellent biblical scholarship in looking at the lives of Job, Jeremiah, David and Jesus, and how each of them practiced lament amidst challenging life circumstances. The book is both reflective and practical. Card also produced a CD called The Hidden Face of God, and a DVD called Journey with Jesus through Hopelessness, each equally well done.

God knows your pain. Jesus suffered partly in order to meet us in our suffering (Hebrews 2). You are not alone.

May you have courage to worship through lament amidst the pain and disappointment in life. And may such tear-full worship lead you on the path to greater joy.

Shane