6 months in Chincoteague Island

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Good morning one and all. It has been a while since I last wrote. I have been busy getting acclimated to living full time on an Island. First and foremost, I am grateful that God has brought my family down here. There have been challenges and successes since we moved here. I would not change a thing that has happened.

Stacey and I have found a great church, and have met some really great people here. Let me take a moment and go back to October 1,2015. We left NJ on September 30 in the rain, and arrived down in Chincoteague in the rain, the causeway (the road leading to the island) had water on it, and the water was threatening to overrun its banks. We got to our cottage, and fell in love with it as soon as we walked in. We did not unload anything as it was raining, and slept on the floor that night. The next morning it was still raining, but we started to get things off the truck. We stopped and prayed that the rain would stop, and it did!! Father gave us a 3 hour window of no rain, and we unloaded the entire truck. After unloading the truck, we got settled into the house quickly. Stacey and I were so grateful for that small window that He gave us. Yes, we thought it was small, but for the two of us it was doable. Not knowing what the Lord had in store for us 2 months later.

That Sunday, we attended our first service at Chincoteague Church of God. We both loved the service. The worship was similar to what we had experienced at Fellowship Alliance Chapel in NJ. The sermon however, was a little different and kind of eye opening to me, not so much for Stacey. Pastor Thorne was preaching, and every once in awhile you would hear someone yell out an “Amen” or clap. I was not used to that at all. It was a really good sermon. That Monday, I met with the executive pastor, and we had a wonderful talk. We outlined how things would progress with me doing Propresenter for the Sunday service. Well, Father had a different plan than we did. I started doing the Sunday service after 3 weeks of being down here, and attending church service. I so love what I do at the church, and bringing God all the honor and glory.

Stacey started looking for a job, and we did not anticipate that it would be hard for her to find one down here. She is a hairdresser and well, everyone needs one. Father finally came through with a job for her. In November she got a job at Shore Cuts in Pocomoke City,MD. to this day, she still loves her job. For those that do not know the area, it is about a half hour away. It would not be so far, if the road to the island was not 10 miles long.

After the storm passed, and after we got settled in, Stacey and I went to the beach almost every day. The weather was still warm, and the water temperature was still nice. We found a lot of seashells and started collecting them. We saw some wild horses also. The wildlife here is nothing like it is in NJ.

Winter was not that bad down here, yes it got cold and we did have some snow, but nothing like when we lived in NJ.  The major thing that is different down here is the shops close for the winter season. Christmas day, everything was closed even Wal-Mart was closed!! In NJ they would have been open, even for a little while. Well, our Christmas dinner was Chinese food!! That was the only place that was open down here.

Now, the weather is turning to spring, and everything is getting ready to open. It is pretty cool watching everyone fix up things to get ready to re-open for the season. I can not wait to see how things are down here in the Spring and Summer!!

Church wise, I am there everyday and loving it. I am slowly getting more and more things to do there. We still love it here and are extremely grateful that Father brought us here. We have met some wonderful loving people here on the Island. There are so many people that we have met, too many to mention here.  I am so grateful for what I do at the church, and that it brings God all the glory and honor. We do miss our family and friends in NJ and PA!!

I almost forgot that December, brought Autumn down to live with us. We are now a complete family again, and I am so glad that she is here. Yes, there are challenges but we have no fear that Father will take care of us. I do have to thank Him for using Bill Whitcraft as an instrument to bring us here and help us grow closer to Him. We got complacent in NJ, and He wanted us to step out of our comfort zone.

I know this is long, and thank you for reading this. I will try to be more diligent to write more. As always please read and pass along to others, and of course leave a comment. Our cell phone number and emails have stayed the same, would love to hear from y’all.

May Father bless you all that are reading this!!

Moving to Chincoteague Island,VA Part II

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Good morning, and Happy Friday to all that are reading it. We are now down to 12 days until we take the road trip to Chincoteague Island, and our new home, and new chapter in our lives. I am finding this to be an exciting time and also a time of trepidation.

Let me explain, we are excited to be following God’s call and stepping out in faith, that He will provide for us. We are excited about starting a new chapter in our lives, and seeing where He is taking us. We are excited about meeting and getting to know new people, and places. It is one thing to go and visit a place, and meet people, but it is totally different to up and move to a new place and meet new people.

In the same token, it is scary to move to a new place and meet new people. You start thinking: “What if they do not like me?” During my meeting this past Wednesday with Pastor Marty, he had a great answer to that question. He said, (and I am paraphrasing him) do not worry about what other people think of you, be yourself! He has gone through what we are going through, when he moved to New Jersey from Texas. He really stepped out in faith and started Fellowship Alliance Chapel, and by doing this God has blessed him and his family abundantly. My one prayer that has been constant during this time is that Father will bless Stacey and I abundantly. His love will never fail!!

We ask of all of you to keep us in prayer during the next week, as a lot of last are coming up for both Stacey and I, here is a brief list of what is going on. I have included dates, so that you can pray specifically on those days for those things. We greatly appreciate it!

9/23/15: My last breakfast with the men of Fellowship Alliance Chapel, Band of Brothers, and also my last evening of Alpha, also at Fellowship Alliance Chapel.

9/25/15: Stacey’s last day at work. i will be taking her so, this day please pray for her and I. For her to get through the day and for me for safe travels to and from her job.

9/26/15: Our last worship service at Fellowship Alliance Chapel. We will be back up when the new sanctuary is open, and also in January for the Men’s conference, as I will be pinned for completing the Timothy Project.

I am keeping this short today, but know there will be more coming. We are not saying good-bye, we are saying cya, as we will be seeing everyone again, maybe not as often as now. Know that you all are in our hearts, our prayers and our thoughts.

His great loves endures forever!!!

p.s. we will be posting pictures of our new place and the beautiful scenery of the island once we get settled!!

Moving to Chincoteageue Island, and following God’s call

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As most of you reading this already know, Stacey and I are moving on October 1,2015 to Chincoteague Island, VA. We heard Father’s call to us to go there. There are so many thoughts going on in my mind about doing this, that at times it is very noisy and at times very quiet and calm. I will try and explain what I am thinking, and feeling.

The first thing going through my mind is that I am leaving New Jersey. This is the only state that I have ever lived in, unless you want to consider the year and a half that I lived in Philadelphia, when I was first born? I have lived the majority of my life in Cherry Hill, but have lived in other towns, Pine Hill, Swedesboro, Delran,and Wrightstown, just to name a few places. I even lived with my sister in Erial for a short period of time. So basically I have lived in NJ for 50 years. That is a very long time. There are good and bad memories during this time. I will miss all of my friends that I have known for many years, and even those that I have know for a short period of time.

The one sad thing, among many sad things is that we are leaving Fellowship Alliance Chapel. Father brought us to this place through my mother-in-law and father-in-law. For that I am eternally grateful for. I have mentioned before the story of us going there. Stacey and I have spent 9 years going to this wonderful church, learning from some pretty great people. They have been there to support us spiritually, and emotionally. I have served God with so many wonderful people, that I simply can not mention them all. The one person that I really will miss is Jeff German, we have had so many great conversations. I will always remember, taking my Entertainment Law class and we would discuss the topics that I would have to do papers on, he was a great help in listening and giving his advice, even though it was not his specialty. I always loved his answer to me, when I would say that when I get home, I would ask God…. and he would reply “At that point what does it matter?” I will miss our time together on Wednesday night at Alpha, and our once a month on Wednesday for Band of Brothers!  I also need to thank Nick Simpson, for allowing me to do what I love to do once a month and sometimes more, in serving our Heavenly Father.

Another challenge at not a bad one is adjusting to Island Life. It is so much slower there, then here. I have to remember that I am NOT  a tourist, but I live there. I pray that Father will help me and Stacey get use to this small fact, and that the adjustment will come quickly and easily.

We will be starting a new chapter in our life, we will be starting at a new church, and meeting new people. There will be challenges to this, but the one thing that I know that will not change is that fact that God loves us and will protect us in our new place. I will try and explain all that I am feeling and going through, please bear with me as this is a work in progress, just as I am a work in progress. If I did not mention your name or what you have added to my life specifically I am so sorry, but know that you are in my heart.

For His great love endures,

Joe

The Sermon on the Mount- Introduction

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Good late Friday morning (July 3, 2015), as I sit here at the laptop, I distinctly heard God telling me to do a series of blogs on the Sermon on the Mount. It is a major teaching that Jesus did, although if you look through the New Testament, there is a lot of His teachings. He did a majority of them through parables or what you would call stories today. This sermon is a major teaching in my opinion, because it covers a wide variety of topics, that even today still apply to our life, as Christians, but more importantly as human beings. He spoke/taught about such topics, as Anger, Lust, Divorce, Oaths, Retaliation, Love your enemies. I will not be discussing all of it, but certain topics that I think really pertain to us today, especially with recent events.

This blog will serve as the Introduction to it, and further ones will really go deep into the teachings. I would so appreciate any and all feedback. There is a space below this blog for you to do just that. When I use scripture, it will be taken from either the ESV translation or HCSB translation. The HCSB translation was written by Dr. Gene Getz. He is a mentor to my Senior Pastor at Fellowship Alliance Chapel, Marty Berglund. I had the pleasure to meet Dr. Getz, and he is extremely knowledgeable in scripture.  I beg of everyone that reads this, do not take my teaching as the final word on the Sermon on the Mount, but do your own research and study of it, draw your own conclusions.  Fasten your seat belts and let’s get started.

The Sermon on the Mount is found in Matthew, beginning in Chapter 5. The first four (4) books of the New Testament are known as the Gospels. The purpose of these Gospels is to show that Jesus is the Messiah and to encourage people to put their faith in Him. The meaning of gospel, is the “good news” that anyone, whether you are a Jew or a gentile, who trusts in Jesus can receive the gift of eternal life. The four gospels are: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These are the disciples that left what they were doing to follow Jesus.

Transformation

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I was listening to KLove on the way to church yesterday, they were talking about transformation. When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you leave your old life behind and your life is transformed into a new life. I am going to try to explain exactly what it means, so fasten your seat belt and enjoy the ride. I will try to use some personal stories and maybe even include some of my friends’ stories as well.

What does it mean to transform? Here is the one definition that dictionary.com gave me and I think it works for what I am talking about, “to undergo a change in form, appearance, or character; become transformed.”  I think it means to change your personality, and your thoughts, how you think, what you think, and your actions and reaction. 

The bible speaks of this very clearly about transformation, in the New Testament, we see it in 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” , or jump up 3 verses to verse 14 and continue down to 17, I will not be putting it in here, but please read it. The concept is really hard to understand, but once you wrap your head around it, it is so simple!!

Before I accepted Jesus as MY personal savior, I did what I wanted, spoke the way that I wanted to speak, and thought the thoughts that I wanted to think. Let me further explain, or try to further explain. Some people will disagree with me, but that is ok for we live in a country that is free, and we are allowed to disagree with one another. Here is a great example that I just thought of (umm, He gave me), I was at my sister’s house and the topic of reading material in the bathroom came up, my brother-in-law mentioned something about Playboy, and I said that I do not read it, and he some what gave me a hard time. Well, pornography is not right, it leads to lustful thinking. Looking at another in a lustful, wanting way is not  what Jesus tells us to do, in fact He tells us the opposite, that it is sinful. Here is what Jesus has to say about it. This is from His teaching from the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:27-28: ” You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery”, but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”. Before I accepted Jesus, I would so look at those type of magazines, website, and  movies. I am not saying that I am perfect, I am NOT!! I want to revisit the story that I told you about regarding my rent and wondering, worrying, and being anxious about where it was coming from. Before, I accepted Jesus I would be panicking, looking for help from anyone that I could, now I simply pray about it and give it over to Him. Jesus told us again in the Sermon on the Mount, in Chapter 6:25 says: “.. do not be anxious about your life…”  He will provide everything that you NEED, not what you WANT!!

Before I continue, let me stop and say one thing. Jesus did not come to abolish the laws that were set out by God to Moses, but He came to fulfill the Laws. The only major commandment is to love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. And, to love one another. So when I use scripture, it is to show His teachings, not His laws/commandments. We have free will, to do what we want, it is up to us as individuals if we follow His teachings or not.

Transformation, or changing one self is extremely personal, and varies from person to person. Please I beg you transformation, or changing oneself  is not a one time thing, it is a life long process that does not end, until we are “home” with Him!

I was looking for a way to finish this, but my dear friend and brother in Christ did it for me, I love how God puts the right people in our lives for a reason. Please read his comment in the entirety and comment!!!  Thank you Jeff German!!

Here it is: ” I have been through a couple of radical transformations in my life. The first was when I got sober, and that transformation certainly involved a dramatic change in form, behavior, outlook on life and spirituality. However, I did not need Jesus to undergo that initial transformation to stop drinking and to begin to change. Christ was not at all part of that transformation at first, and it is true that millions of people in AA have gotten sober without giving their lives to Christ. What I eventually learned was a transformation without Christ was not enough for me.

Through Christ, I have been transformed in ways that only He can accomplish – a far greater and more profound transformation that any other. Transformation through Christ involves change, but it is more than just behavioral or theological. Christ provides us with healing and forgiveness that is available nowhere else; complete freedom from the sins of our past and the opportunity for abundant life in His kingdom – on earth and in heaven. He provides us with a deep abounding love that no human or other spiritual force can provide. We become a new creation with a brand new identity in God’s kingdom – a complete transformation only available through Christ.”
I truly hope this helps you to truly understand what transformation is!! Please leave a comment below!

Hearing God’s call and following it Part 2: Giving

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Good morning everyone. I hope that you all enjoyed your weekend. Time for another blog from me! I was reading a post on Facebook this morning from my friend Lisa Collins Contino who lives in Arizona. She is doing so amazingly well there. She started a “project” out there, feeding the homeless in Phoenix. It started out with 25 lunches and toiletries a month, now it has grown to around a 100 lunches a week, sometimes more. She clearly heard God’s call and is following it. I am NOT asking for you to help, but if you feel led to, please contact me and I will give you her information. She has some amazing friends and family that are helping her out there. I spoke with Lisa via email and here is her response:

“I hesitate to talk about the Hope Bag Project on Facebook because of that exact verse you included.  I don’t want people to think I’m saying, “Oh, look at me!  Look what I’ve done for the needy.”  Actually, it’s more like, “This is something that I started because I couldn’t stand to see people suffering one more day and kept wondering how this community could just ignore a huge need that was staring them squarely in the face.  Perhaps the challenge was too great or perhaps they’ve grown immune to it and it required a fresh pair of eyes to see it.  I want people to see just how easy it was to just do SOMETHING…..and look how easy YOU also can do something.  You can start SMALL and see what happens when God orchestrates things–you’ll be amazed!”  I made a promise to Him that I would continue doing it as long as I could afford to continue and as long as there was a need to help.  He’s made it clear that this is my purpose right now, because he continues to bring people to help me and also continues to provide items to hand out.  For example, a woman showed up with TEN cases of water on Friday night.  Such a blessing! “

I mentioned before that I helped the homeless in Camden as a service project for my Timothy Project from church. It is the most amazing thing to do. He truly called me to help those that need the help. Our church that my wife and I attend truly believes in helping others. The church has a benevolent center to help those in the area that truly need the help, whether it is financial, need some food, or spiritual help. The church does mission trips to help people all over the world. I am NOT trying to toot the horn of the church, but this is what we do, we hear God’s call and follow it. Just like we are expanding, “making room for you” at the church with a new 2,000 seat sanctuary. The church as a body heard God’s call to expand and that issanctuary2 what we are doing.

Here is a picture is a picture of the new sanctuary going up!! I am so proud of the church and being part of it. We are growing not to grow, but to have more people come to know our true Savior, and our Heavenly Father, and to be able to help more people who are in need of help.

I have been to several Bat/Bat Mitzvahs and each one has stated that they are taking some of their gifts that they receive and donating it to a charity. Professional Athletes donate their time and money to others that are in need. Whether they admit it or not, they are following God’s call, to help those that need the help. My brother and nephew do the city to shore ride for MS every year, and the proceeds of what they raise goes to MS. They are helping others through giving to the research for this disease. I am sure there are many more people who are helping out where they can. Where am I going with this, well we are called to help one another.

In Matthew, Jesus taught to give to the needy. He clearly speaks of giving, but to do it in private, not sounding your own horn to let others know. Here is what Jesus says about giving to the needy, the verse is from the ESV translation. Matthew 6:1-4 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. 2 Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,  4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”  In the Old Testament, it also tells that God hears the cry of the poor man, and that God helps the poor man (Proverbs 34:6). There are more instances in the Old Testament about helping the needy. 

Giving to the needy is not just solely about giving money to those that need help. It is about giving of our time to those that may need our help. I was in need last fall to get the leaves raked up, I contacted the church, as we have ministry that helps with those things. Well, 3 men came out and in about an hour the yard was totally cleaned up!! I needed the help and received it, they truly heard God’s call and followed it.  It could also be spending time visiting with people who can not get out.

I just saw this great quote by Denzel Washington, and think it is so appropriate for what I am talking about today. “Put God first in everything that you do… Everything I have is by the grace of God. it’s a gift….I didn’t always stick with Him, but He stuck with me.”  So by helping others and giving to others whether it is time or finances, it is putting God first in what we do!!

The one piece of advice that i can give you is the following, and Thank you Stacey for sharing this on Facebook, it is a verse from the bible, Proverbs 3:6 “Listen for God’s voice in everything you do and everywhere you go, He is the one that will keep you on track”. Not sure what version this is from, but I do love it. Step out of your comfort zone and He will help you!!

I would like to thank Lisa Collins Contino for the help with this blog.  I also want to thank my wife Stacey for her input and encouragement and putting up with me when I hit a brick wall when writing these blogs.

His Love endures

Joe

Praying and prayer

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I was looking at the blogs that I have done, and I noticed that I have not done one on praying and prayer. When I re-committed my life to the Lord, I struggled with it. I heard other people pray these long elaborate prayers, and felt my small prayers are not heard by Him. As I continued my journey, or as some people call it “my walk” with the Lord, I realized He does hear my prayers.

So, the question begs to be asked, “What is prayer?” Let me first start with what Dictionary.com has for the definition..”a spiritual communion with God or an object of worship, as in supplication, thanksgiving, adoration, or confession.”  I love how it mentions worship!  My definition of prayer is real simple, it is a conversation with God! Prayer or praying does not have to be limited to when you are in church or synagogue!!  Yes, as part of worship we sing songs, and listen to a sermon, but we also pray to the Lord. 

Praying to God is not just about asking Him for things, whether it is for us or for others, but it is also a way to thank Him for what He has given to us, asking for His forgiveness when we do something that is wrong. I never understood growing up, why I had to wait until Yom Kippur to ask for forgiveness and be written in the “Book of Life”, now when I mess up, I immediately ask for forgiveness, although it is not necessary as Jesus paid the price for my sins. I am not saying that gives me a free pass to sin, but I know that I am forgiven. I am also confused as to why the Catholic church requires confession and have the priest ask Him for your forgiveness? I hope that one of my catholic friends can explain this to me. Please, I beg of you as you are reading this, do not think that I am putting down your religious beliefs or practices, as I am NOT!

I have found that my prayer life changes at times, it still is a conversation like i would have with you(the reader), my wife, step-daughter or anyone. It is something that is so intimate, because it is between me and my Heavenly Father. There are times that I ask Him for something for myself, or my family, or a friend. There are times that it is more asking Him for something for other people. There are times, more times then I care to remember that I apologize for something, but no matter what I take the time to thank Him for loving me exactly where I am in my life. There are times that I find myself demanding that He shows me what He wants me to do, or show me where He is taking me in my journey. That really does not work out well, but sometimes it does and He makes it clear to me.

There was a time a few years ago, that rent was coming due, and we did not have it. I started praying, talking to Him tell Him of my concern, well He heard me loud and clear, and we got the rent money, not sure how or where it came from, but we did and I thanked Him for answering my prayers.

I have learned through my walk, and talking to others, that no matter what He hears our prayers, whether it is the long elaborate prayers or the real short one. I am still a work in progress and will keep learning, and I will keep on talking praying to Him, and also learn to just sit back and let Him respond to the conversation!!

I hope you have enjoyed reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Please as usual leave your comments.

In His grace and presence.

His Love never fails

Joe

Hearing God’s call and following it

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A friend of mine, Steve Scarduzio suggested a topic of talking about my journey after I accepted/re affirmed my commitment to Jesus, and how that looks like with FAC (Fellowship Alliance Chapel). I think it is a worthy topic.  Please keep in mind that I am a work in progress and that at times I fall, but He is there to pick me up and tells me to move on!

If you remember my last blog about how I came to FAC in 2006, after I took the Alpha course, I asked the Pastor at the time how can I help? Well Pastor Joe put me behind the sound booth and said this is where you belong!! My first time back there was January 2007, and I was nervous because I never worked a soundboard in my entire life. It was definitely a learn as you go process for me.  I did well, and even enjoyed being there. I felt really good that I was able to help people explore Christianity. It was something that Father was definitely calling me to do.  At that time Jeff German was playing his guitar and singing before the video.  If you attend Alpha, you will still see me behind the board doing the sound and the video, but now I have a great team that is helping me.

Also, in January of 2007, I started attending Band of Brothers, which is the men’s breakfast on Wednesday morning. It was a small group and we had breakfast in the Chapel. It was led by my mentor Pastor Bob Chaffee (whom recently went home to be with Father).  When we moved to the sanctuary where we are now, I somehow was again behind the sound booth.

I am not sure what year I started helping with the worship team, but I do know that I started with the cameras, we video record our sermons and worship. At some point, I moved behind the sound booth again, but not as a sound engineer, but I was a video person putting the words to the song and the sermon on the screen. I do believe, that we were using Power Point in the beginning, and moved from that to EasyWorship, today we use ProPresenter 5. I believe that I started with the worship ministry about 8 years ago, and I am still there. While doing this, I felt so close to the Lord, because I was helping those that attend the weekend services worship Him, and learn about His word. If it helped one person come closer to know the Lord then I did my job! It never was and still is not about me and what I get out of it, but what He gets out of it!! Serving Him has been a huge blessing in so many ways. It is really hard to explain, especially if you do not have a relationship with God.

Slight diversion, in September of 2009, I started at Burlington County College to get my degree in Entertainment Technology: Sound and recording engineer. In May of 2011 I got that degree!! All because of dong sound at FAC, and the encouragement of my wife Stacey Silverman. I really felt good to graduate. I finally accomplished something and finished something.  During this time, I really had to learn how to rely on Him for our needs. Whether it was physical needs to get through the day, or financial needs to meet our bills.

In 2012, I believe it was I started the journey of discipleship with the CMG group at FAC. I met a great group of people during this time. We took a 2-3 year journey together, which culminated in the Timothy Project. I can say that doing this I have grown in my relationship with the Lord. I did things that were totally out of my comfort zone.  I have a great group of men that were right alongside of me in the journey.  I learned to feel comfortable about praying with people out loud and even volunteering to help feed the homeless in Camden. During this time, especially going through the Timothy Project, I was able to “teach” a devotion. A devotion is taking a passage/verse from the bible reading it, and really tearing it apart to understand it.  Trying to convey what God is telling us about that particular verse.  It is very humbling to teach something like that, and have a group of men listen and learn what you feel the verse is saying to you!  As far as helping to feed the homeless, it is so humbling. I really do not think had it not been for my group of men or FAC that I would have volunteered for that. It really makes you think hard, that the hardship that you may be going through at the time is NOTHING compared to what they go through on a daily basis!!

It is so humbling to serve Him, whether it is praying for someone, or helping to feed the homeless. Serving Him and following Jesus is not about being comfortable, it is about being uniquely equipped to do it and He provides that for us!! So follow God and His calling for you, for He knows what is best for you and will be there to help you!! Look at Jeremiah 29:11 ” For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope”

Take that leap of faith!

My Life and How I got to became a Judaic-Christian

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Before I start this entry, I would like to thank Kristy Davis for the inspiration to this. She said in a post on my Facebook wall, it would be interesting to see how you came to this decision, a kind of life history of Joseph Silverman if you will.  So, here it goes my life story. unfortunately, I do not have a baby picture, or of me younger.

I was born October 10,1964 at Misacordia Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, my family moved to Cherry Hill in December of 1966 ( I believe that is what my mother told me). I was diagnosed sometime around 1968 with congenital rubella syndrome, which developed in Cerebral Palsy, more specifically mild spastic diplegia. This form of CP primarily affects my legs and feet. I spent many, many years at Children’s Hospital with physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech, and other things. i was not inpatient but out-patient, which meant my mom would take me there. I grew up pretty much normal, going to school, during the summer I went to day camp (at Mountain Run Day Camp in Medford, and the JCC camps in Medford).

I failed to mention that I grew up in a conservative jewish household. We went to Beth-El which at the time was located on Chapel Avenue in Cherry Hill, NJ. I went to hebrew school, and hebrew high school there. I even had my Bar Mitzvah here.At the timBar Mitzvah picturee I tried to go weekly to services, but for the most part mainly high holidays.This a picture of me from my Bar Mitzvah at age 13. The exact date was November 26,1977. It was one of my happiest days, and also the happiest days for my parents. Shortly after my bar mitzvah I stopped going to Hebrew High School.

Fast forward to 1997, I believe it was, my wife at the time(now ex-wife) was raised Catholic, and I being Jewish were trying to find something that would be middle road for the both of us. Well, we fell upon Messianic Judaism. Which in short believes in Jesus as Lord and Savior, but still maintains the traditions of Judaism (lighting the sabbath candles, saying the prayers over the bread, and wine, and worshiping on Saturday). Conservative Rabbis will say that Jesus was a Rabbi (teacher), not the messiah, which they are still waiting for. It was at Beth Yeshua in Philadelphia, that I first accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Well, in November of 1999, I was officially divorced and ran as fast as I could from God, blaming Him for my divorce.

In January of 2000, I met Stacey and we started dating and eventually(actually very quickly) moved in together. I was still not even remotely interested in religion, and she was going for her catholism classes. Well, the week before she was to take the “oath”( I think that is what they called it), the woman whom was her sponsor called and said she could not do it since she was divorced and living with me. She did not want Stacey to call her, but had me tell her. Before we got married in 2002, she converted to judaism, and even took my grandmother’s name as her hebrew name. We got married February 17,2002. We both attended Temple Emmanuel in Voorhees( could have been Cherry Hill),and we attended services there for a period of time, but I was not being fed spiritually. So, we stopped going there, and just did nothing.

Fast forward to 2006, and my mother-in-law and father-in-law were attending Fellowship Alliance Chapel in Medford, their church that they were attending in New Egypt closed. She started dropping not so subtle hints that we should come to the church. Well, we did, my original thought was to go and say alright we went and leave it at that. That was not the case, shortly after we started going, I re-committed my life to Jesus. Stacey and I both took the Alpha course to learn more about our beliefs. That is where we met some great people, after that session, I started helping with Alpha and am still doing it today, with my dear friend and brother in Christ, Jeff German.  January 7,2007, I was baptized at Fellowship Alliance Chapel. This is an outward symbol proclaiming that you believe and will follow the teachings of Jesus. I was baptized by the senior Pastor, Marty Berglund!!  This is my picture from the baptism, the man on the left is Pastor Marty Berglund!!Baptism Picture

There you have it, my life story in a nutshell. I finally found what I was looking for, I was being fed spiritually. I am still a work in progress and will always be a work in progress, until the day that I am called home to my Heavenly Father.

Worship

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I was driving to church for breakfast with the men at Band of Brothers yesterday, and a thought popped into my mind about worship. I normally do my best thinking in the car where it is just me and my Heavenly Father! For whatever reason He put that word in my head. What is worship? Who do you worship?

As I sit at the kitchen table, I wonder if I truly worshiped when I was younger? Did I really understand what it meant to worship? I need to stop and explain, I was brought up in a conservative synagogue, and went to services on a weekly basis where I heard the passages of the Torah (Old Testament) being chanted. I understood what was being chanted, and the Rabbi explained the portion and tried to apply it to life experiences. I chanted the prayers along with those that came, whether it was in the youth service, or as a teenager in the adult services. The main sanctuary was huge, but never filled except for high holidays (Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur). At some point in my life, I stopped opening the prayer-book, as I knew these prayers by heart. Looking back, I realized that I was NOT worshiping, but going through the motions of being there, and doing what I was supposed to do. The sermons never really provoked me to think about God’s word. I was Bar Mitzvah at the age of 13 and continued my Hebrew education for a short time thereafter, still not really learning His word, and how it applies to me and my life.  Which brings me to 9 years ago, when my mother-in-law told us about the church that we are still attending, and asked us (Stacey, my lovely wife) to come. I told Stacey, we will go there once to make her happy. Well, as I stated earlier we are still there 9 years later. Something was there, that I never had before. The people who attended truly were worshiping, they were raising there hands, singing loudly to the Lord. Pastor Marty Berglund preached a great sermon! Please do not ask me what he spoke about that day 9 years ago. The people there had something that I truly wanted!!

OK, bear with me, I am getting back to the topic at hand, which is worship, in case you forgot. I am just taking the long road to the topic. Here is the definition of worship from dictionary.com. reverent honor and homage paid to God or a sacred personage, or to any object regarded as sacred. So the question that is begged to be asked is What do you worship? or Who do you worship? I asked this question because some people will worship money, their job, their alcohol, etc. It means placing importance of objects, worldly things above everything else. I have learned that worship is so much more than singing songs or chanting prayers to Him. Worship can be tithing, praying( talking to Him), and other things.

People today tend to place athletes on a pedestal, and when they fall from that pedestal they get angry at that person. So they are worshiping that athlete, which is wrong. Some people worship money, and want to get as much of it as possible. I am not saying that is it wrong to want money, or to like a professional athlete, what I am saying is it is wrong to worship them, and place them above everything else.

In my opinion in order to worship God(our Heavenly Father), we must first know Him, and have a personal relationship with Him. In the New Testament the wisemen went to worship baby Jesus. Matthew 2:2b ” For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him”  The wisemen understood it! Not all religions teach this, about a personal relationship with God. I am not saying that it is wrong, but we should. As a dear friend and brother in Christ said “We all were created Spiritual beings with a built in desire to worship.People today worship what they know, because you can not truly worship what you do not know.  You can not truly worship God unless you know Him.”

I feel that today, I am closer to Him then I was during my formative years. As I have learned I am a work in progress, and my form(s) of worshiping Him(my Heavenly Father) will continue to grow. What are you worshiping? Who do you worship? Think about it and let me know in the comment section. ALL comments are welcome and appreciated. Thank you