I believe there is an epidemic problem among believers in Christ today.  Their understanding of God is too small.  They don’t really know the God of the Bible.  I constantly hear and see Christians saying things and doing things that indicate what they believe about God is rather insignificant.  Their knowledge of God has little or no impact on their decisions, actions, feelings, stress, life direction or worldview.  Why do I say this?  Statistically, those who say they are Christians have lives that resemble any typical unchuched person.  They have the same stresses, problems, fears, life satisfaction as unbelievers.  Why?  Their God is too small!  What we believe about God is probably the single most influential issue of our lives.  What we believe about God impacts everything in this life.  Therefore, if this is true, we’d better believe the right thing.

Listen to Isaiah 40

Who else has held the oceans in his hand?  Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers?  Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed the mountains and hills on a scale? ¹³ Who is able to advise the Spirit of the Lord?^[a]
Who knows enough to give him advice or teach him? ¹⁴ Has the Lord ever needed anyone’s advice?  Does he need instruction about what is good? Did someone teach him what is right or show him the path of justice?

¹⁵ No, for all the nations of the world are but a drop in the bucket. They are nothing more than dust on the scales.
He picks up the whole earth as though it were a grain of sand. ¹⁶ All the wood in Lebanon’s forests and all Lebanon’s animals would not be enough to make a burnt offering worthy of our God. ¹⁷ The nations of the world are worth nothing to him.  In his eyes they count for less than nothing— mere emptiness and froth.

¹⁸ To whom can you compare God?  What image can you find to resemble him? ¹⁹ Can he be compared to an idol formed in a mold, overlaid with gold, and decorated with silver chains? ²⁰ Or if people are too poor for that, they might at least choose wood that won’t decay and a skilled craftsman to carve an image that won’t fall down!

²¹ Haven’t you heard? Don’t you understand? Are you deaf to the words of God— the words he gave before the world began? Are you so ignorant? ²² God sits above the circle of the earth.  The people below seem like grasshoppers to him!
He spreads out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them. ²³ He judges the great people of the world
and brings them all to nothing. ²⁴ They hardly get started, barely taking root, when he blows on them and they wither.
The wind carries them off like chaff.

²⁵ “To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.

²⁶ Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name.  Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing. ²⁷ O Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles?  O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights? ²⁸ Have you never heard?  Have you never understood?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth.  He never grows weak or weary.  No one can measure the depths of his understanding. ²⁹ He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. ³⁰ Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. ³¹ But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.  They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

WOW!

Now remember, this is the God that loves you unconditionally who sent His Son to dies on a cross for you so you could have an intimate relationship with Him.  This is the God who will NEVER leave you or forsake you.  This is the God whose awesome power is available for you.  This all-powerful God is the One who cares about every detail of your life.  This all-knowing God is the One you can rely on for wisdom and direction.

Now, what were you stressed out about again? What you believe about God changes everything.  Maybe it’s time to get a bigger God?

Hanging on to an all-powerful, all-knowing, ever present God who loves me.  Here’s praying you are too!

Pastor Dale

As I reflect on where we are at as a church I continue to hear God say to me loud and clear; “Stay the course!”  In other words, keep running, don’t stop, stay on track, press forward, or a host of other similar phrases.  We are right where God wants us.  Now is not the time to deviate from the present direction.  Now is the time to simply keep running the race God has set before us.

As we rejoice in the $70,000 offering that many of you contributed to this weekend towards our KAC goal, we all realize we still need more funds to complete the project.  This offering puts our total to around $87,000.  We still need $113,000 to go.  Now is not the time to be discouraged.  Now is the time to stay the course and trust God.

Staying the course is not easy.  There are countless opportunities to quit along the way.  What God has called us to is glorious but it is not easy nor is it for the faint of heart.  The course is not a level one either.  It is filled with hills and valleys, obstacles to overcome, and adverse conditions to put up with.  At times as we run this race, it’s easy to begin asking ourselves it is all worth it.  Is the course worth the effort, the sacrifice, and the discomfort at times?  It is in these moments we must remember the words of our Great Coach; the Author and finisher of our faith.

Heb. 10:35-36 “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.  You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”

You see…it is worth it.  Persevering on God’s course does pay off.  The promises that we cling to will one day be our reality!  Therefore, keep running.  Stay the course!  The race isn’t done yet.  There’s a lifetime still ahead of us.  God will be faithful.  He will supply.  He will give us everything we need to stay the course.  We just need to make sure we keep running the race.

Staying the course with you,

Pastor Dale

Hey…I’m back!  I realize I haven’t written anything in quite some time.  My apologies.  Life has been quite the adventure for the past several month.  Fall programs beginning, moving our offices off site, our building construction projects, 6 funerals, 3 weddings, and a host of other details that have been consuming.  I like this picture because this is how life has been lately.  It’s been a wild ride.  This image also got me thinking.

Life is a lot like white water rafting.  It’s fast moving; you can’t go backwards; you have to pay attention; you must adapt to the river; the scenery is constantly changing and it’s safer to travel together.  If you like to whitewater raft, then embracing the challenges of a changing river is just part of the adventure.

I believe that the journey God has us on as a church is like whitewater rafting.  Embracing the ever changing circumstances, culture, needs, challenges and economic climate is all part of the adventure.  Churches and people that can trust God and embrace the changes navigate safely through the rapids of life.  Those who live in fear, panic, and denial, usually get dumped out and they are left swimming for shore.

Foothills is in the midst of a season of great change.  We are in the midst of the rapids.  Honestly, I have been feeling the spray of the water in my face lately as we have navigated some pretty tough rapids.  God has shown me that for Foothills to embrace change their Pastor must embrace change as well.  God has been impressing upon my heart in the past few months just how much I need to change, grow, and mature.  How can I expect the people of Foothills to embrace change unless their Pastor does?  This season of change is not merely altering the size of our classrooms and auditorium.  It is a time to alter the condition of our hearts and the impact of our lives for His Kingdom. This is what will help us navigate safely in the future.

Where is God asking you to change?  How is God speaking to your heart?  Embracing change is not the exception to the Christian life; it is the norm.  Rom. 12:2 tells us to not be conformed to this world…BUT RATHER…let God transform you into a new person!  You see…embrace change.  It’s only by allowing God to transform us do we navigate safely.  To resist godly change is to invite disaster on the journey of life.  You see, the changes that God brings to our lives are the skills and maturity we will need after the next bend in the river.  If we refuse to grow, then we don’t have the maturity to navigate what’s ahead.  The result?  We go swimming!

May God give us all the grace and endurance to embrace the changes He is accomplishing in our lives so that we successfully navigate the waters ahead.  Here’s embracing change with you!

Pastor Dale

Fall is almost here and at Foothills, this means everything is about ready to rev up into high gear.  Ministries that took breaks, scaled back, slowed down, and relaxed a bit are on the verge of embracing the intensity of ministry for the next 9 month run.  This year we have an added dimension with our remodel projects.  It is our need to increase the amount of space to accommodate the increasing numbers of people God is bringing.  This brings us to the urgent need of volunteers.  We cannot move in the direction God has called us to go with the same level of volunteering we had last year.  It simply won’t get the job done.  God is increasing our numbers.  This translates into increasing more volunteers.  This is not a luxury…it is a NECESSITY!

The vision that God has given us is a sacred trust.  We must be committed to becoming good stewards of this vision.  Part of being a good steward is to be committed to doing your part in volunteering in a ministry at Foothills.  We all must refuse to be spectators and embrace a role and participate in the vision.  If you say you are committed to Foothills, committed to the Lord, and committed to the vision that He has called us to and you are not serving somewhere, you are fooling yourself.  You merely have “lip service” not “real service”.  It’s time for some of you to grow up and let go of being so self-centered and embrace maturity and become others centered.  A non serving follower of Christ is a contradiction in terms!  Sorry to sound a bit harsh but some of you just need the shock!

We need help everywhere as the church grows, but I want to challenge many of you to consider 4 key areas where if we don’t increase in volunteers, the vision of the church will be hindered this year.  God is bringing in so many families that if we don’t increase the number of volunteers in our ministries aimed at their children, we will lose the opportunity to impact them for Christ.  We have tremendous needs for more volunteers in Nursery / Preschool / Kids Church and Student Ministry.  The numbers of kids in some of these ministries at the end of summers is concerning.  Just last week during one of our services we had 29 preschool kids in one class.  At the 8:30 service there were 18 babies in the nursery!  This doesn’t mention the K-5th grade or the Jr. High and High School students.

Since God is entrusting these people to us we have a responsibility to minister to them.  C’mon folks!  Let’s simply embrace what God has commanded us to do in His word…Serve!  It is no longer enough to support Foothills from your chair.  It is time to support it with your hands and feet.  If you are reading this and you’re not involved, may God move you to get in the game.  If you are involved and know others who are not, it’s time for you to get vocal and help motivate others to embrace their role.  If more people do not get involved we will fail in this next step of faith as a church.  It’s not about how much the pastor or staff can do.  The Bible says that many hands make light work.  The more hands we have involved the more we can advance the Kingdom of God in our area.  We need you and we need you now!

Looking forward to serving along side of you this year,

Pastor Dale

Rev. 3:8  “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.” (NLT)

There are times during our faith journey where God sovereignly puts open doors of opportunity before us.  These circumstances are orchestrated by His hand for his purposes and for His glory.  It is our responsibility as followers of Christ to recognize these Divine opportunities and by faith, walk through them.  The Lord has placed an open door before Foothills and we are walking through it.

By now I’m sure you’ve heard about Foothills purchasing the Green House Cafe’ behind our building on Main Street.  After months of prayer and seeking after the heart of God, He opened a door to purchase this building and expand the ministry and influence of Foothills in the Molalla area.  We are now about to start 3 remodel projects.  We will be remodeling our current office space for expanded Kids Ministry.  We will be expanding the auditorium to fit another 200 chairs, and we will be remodeling the Green House for a new administration building. As for the Cafe’, we will be keeping that part of the building a Cafe’.  Yes, it is our plan for Foothills to have it’s own Cafe on Main Street.  How fun!

As exciting as all this is, this journey will still require faith.  Even wide open doors require faith in order to walk in obedience and fulfill what God desires.  Remember, after God delivered the nation of Israel out of Egypt and through the Red Sea; after He destroyed the Egyptian army, He led them right out into the desert where there was no water.  This great opportunity still required them to learn to trust God and walk by faith.

As Foothills takes another step forward through this open door, we must remember that it will require a tremendous amount of faith and trust to accomplish what’s on the other side of this door.  Open doors never mean everything is smooth and predictable.  They usually mean there is a tremendous amount of growth that we will need to embrace on the other side.

Therefore, let’s walk through this open door together.  Let’s embrace the growth God desires in our lives.  Let’s realize another piece of our destiny.  Let’s see the Kingdom of God advance in the Molalla area.  God is the One who has placed this open door before us.  Let’s walk through it well and fulfill all He has for us!

Walking through this door with you,

Pastor Dale

Following God is like white water rafting.  It’s an adventure.  As Foothills enters another Fall season in a few weeks, God has us positioned for the next great adventure.  Following God is not static, motionless, or boring. God moves, God flows, and sometimes, you had better just hold on for the ride.  This is where we’re at.  I will be giving many more details regarding this movement in the coming weeks, but today I want to share 3 qualities this adventure requires.

The first quality is faith.  It take faith just to get into the “spiritual raft” with Jesus and go on His adventure.  Most people just watch from the river banks.  This is not what God has called this church to.  He has called us to get into the raft of faith and trust Him for the journey.  Of course there are risks, challenges, scary moments along the ride.  The waters are not always calm and serene.  He has called us to travel where others have not.  We have to trust our river guide.  He knows where He’s taking us.  Jesus is taking Foothills forward into new territory.  Faith is what keeps us in the raft!

The second quality is fellowship.  Notice in the picture it is a group of people in the raft not one person.  The faith journey Jesus has us on is one where we travel together.  All the people in the raft are working together in unity accomplishing the goal together.  This is how Foothills must continue to function.  We must continue to work together in unity for the purpose for which He created Foothills.  Loving relationships, cooperation, teamwork and unity must be the relational dynamics of Foothills if we are going to successfully finish the journey.  Notice everyone has a paddle.  Everyone is working.  Everyone shares the work.  This isn’t a pleasure cruise.  It’s an adventure that requires teamwork.  Where God is taking Foothills will require an even greater commitment to relationships.  We can’t accomplish this alone.  We need each other.

Finally, the last quality is fun.  That’s right…fun!  The people in this picture are having a blast on this adventure.  If we are willing to live by faith and be committed to fellowship along this journey, it’s going to be a pretty fun ride.  Following together Jesus isn’t a drag.  It’s the greatest adventure we could ever be on.  This next year will be challenging at times.  It will require us to work on our relationships.  We may corporately hold our breathe in some white water.  But we will get to see the might and power of our God in ways we never have.  We will see transformation.  We will see things accomplished that others will be amazed at.  We will be the ones raising our oars in triumph as we experiencing being “more than conquerors through Christ who loves us”.  That’s pretty fun if you ask me!

Get ready Foothills.  The next great adventure is about to begin.  Grab your paddle and each other.  We’re about to push off into the river

.

Paddling with you in the raft,

Pastor Dale

I use this very familiar image not to highlight the events of 9-11 but to highlight the fact that there are just events that take place in this life that I don’t understand.  Haven’t you ever stood face to face with tragedy and said, “Lord, I don’t understand?”  I know I have.  I have sat with grieving relatives; been on fatal accident scenes; tried to comfort those left behind after a suicide; been with those when they heard the word “terminal”; buried teen drivers and still born babies.  There have been plenty of tragic events I have personally been involved in during my 24 years of ministry.  Unfortunately, another one happened just this week as a dear member of our church and community died in a kayaking accident.  This 31 year old man who had tremendous influence and impact in our community was suddenly taken from us.  “Lord, I don’t understand?”

I have discovered over the years that the Lord doesn’t mind us asking this question.  He knows our perspective on life is very limited.  But, I have also discovered it is a question He rarely answers.   It is one of those questions that in our humanness, we almost need to ask.  It’s in our minds.  It’s already on our hearts.  We might as well verbalize it and get it out before God in the open where He can do something with it.  What I’ve discovered is that even though He rarely answers this question He will always redirects our focus.  We think the answer to this question is what is important.  God knows better.  He knows what we need to focus on when tragedy strikes.  There are truths the Lord wants us to cling to when we don’t understand.  In these moments it’s really not understanding the tragedy we need…we need Him and His truth as an anchor.

When we don’t understand the events in life…

• We need to understand just how much God still loves us
• We need to understand His presence is still with us
• We need to understand the promises of His word are still true
• We need to understand that this world will always be painful and unpredictable
• We need to understand our hope is in the next life not this one
• We need to understand that relationships in Jesus are eternal
• We need to understand that His ways are infinitely higher than our ways
• We need to understand that His power to help us is available for whatever we experience in this life
• We need to understand that we all live in the land of the dying traveling to the land of the living
• We need to understand that the more in love we are with this life and this world the more despair we experience when tragedy strikes.

I may not understand why God allows all the pain we experience in this life.  But this is something we will never fully understand anyway.  God wants us to focus on what we can understand and what we can experience in Him while we live in this uncertain confusing world.

Not understanding it all yet trusting God anyway,

Pastor Dale

So, what is your opinion regarding the Bible?  Does it contain the actual words of God that carry authority as absolute moral truth or is truth relative depending upon the person and the situation?  Most people in America today believe in relativism.  According to the Barna research group…

• 22% of Americans believe in absolute moral truth
• 32% of those who call themselves “Christians” believe in absolute moral truth
• 9% of Christian teenagers believe in absolute moral truth.

Wow!  This doesn’t leave very many people left in our culture who believe in absolute truth.  Those who do are definitely in the minority.  If you don’t already know this, I stand firmly with the minority.  I believe the word of God is absolute truth.  It is truth for every person, in every situation, at all times, in every culture, throughout the ages. Following God’s word makes life work.  Following the word of God will bless your life.  Following the truth of God’s word protects us as we travel this journey called life.  It is God’s instruction manual for life.

People seem to have this perspective of God’s word that it will restrict their lives if they follow it.  It will limit their fun, handcuff their activities, dampen their excitement, and overall make their life boring.  Unfortunately, this is the lie most people believe.  God’s word doesn’t restrict our lives.  God’s word liberates our lives!  Jesus said that we can know the truth and the truth will set us free.  God’s truth liberates us when it is obeyed!

This week there was a hiker who fell to his death in the Columbia River Gorge.  The man ventured off the trail at Latourell Falls.  The trail starts off as blacktop, then goes to gravel.  There are barriers along the trail and also at the top for people’s protection.  The hiker apparently jumped the barriers and walked 20-30 feet off the trail right to the edge.  This is where he apparently lost his footing and fell 250 to his death on the rocks below.

As tragic as this accident is, it illustrates an important point.  The restrictions that were placed on this path are for the hikers protection.  They allow everyone to enjoy the freedom of hiking in safety in a beautiful environment.  Ignoring the barriers didn’t provide additional freedom.  It lead to some horrible consequences.

God’s word only restricts our lives in a way so that we can experience more freedom.  How many consequences are you dealing with that have resulted from your own poor choices?  These choices didn’t lead you into more freedom, they actually lead you into more bondage.

I know there is no “argument” I can give many of you that will convince you God’s word is true.  I do have an experiment for you to try though.  Will you let God prove to you His word is true?  Will you read God’s word every day for the next 30 days.  Begin in the New Testament.  Read until you find something the word tells you to do.  Without question, follow it that day as best you can.  Do this every day.  At the end of 30 days ask yourself; “Is my life better or worse for following God’s word for 30 days?”  I’m not saying everything will be perfect.  But can you see the benefits of obeying the word of God?  I am so convinced God’s word is true that it can defend itself.  Obedience really does lead to blessing!  See for yourself!

Clinging to the absolute truth of the word of God,

Pastor Dale

No…those are not my feet.  But I must confess, I do love the feeling of that powder white sand and warm Caribbean water beneath my toes.  To me this is just the essence of relaxation, satisfaction, and the removal of stress that is so important at times as we try to pace ourselves in this hectic, frenzied existence we tend to live at.  It’s good to embrace a bit of complacency where you’re just so satisfied at the moment nothing really matters.  Awe…the essence of relaxation!

A bit of relaxed complacency is entirely appropriate for a vacation.  It is NEVER appropriate for the church.  One definition of complacency I discovered this week was simply this: complacency is “satisfaction to a fault”.   Becoming so satisfied with yourself, your condition, your achievements, your progress, that you no longer notice the needs or see the dangers.  The senses get dull.  The reflexes get sluggish.  The passion fades.  Now, we are set up for a fall.  You see, complacency at the wrong time, in the wrong area, and at the wrong place can kill you.

Just yesterday on Tuesday as I was driving home from the office this principal played itself out.  I was waiting to turn into my driveway on hwy 211.  There was a car stopped behind me as well as we were waiting for oncoming traffic to pass by.  As I looked in my rear view mirror, I noticed a third vehicle coming up behind us very fast.  It was obvious he wasn’t watching or paying attention to us being stopped on the highway.  I slammed my truck into drive and hit the gas trying to avoid a multi-car pile up.  As I started to move forward, I now saw billows of white smoke coming from the third vehicle.  You know that look when all four tires are locked up?  He slammed into the car behind me as I moved ahead avoiding impact.  Now, don’t worry.  No one was injured and all are just fine.  BUT, the point is this: If I had been checked out mentally, sitting complacently on the road waiting to turn, I would have been in an accident.  Complacency at the wrong time can kill you.

As the church, we are called to follow Jesus advancing His Kingdom for His glory in this geographic area.  Regardless of our growth, success, blessings, achievements, we must NEVER become complacent.  God has much more for us to do and many more adventures to trust Him for.  There are churches all across this country who have embraced complacency instead of combat for His Kingdom purposes and have died because of it.  We will not become a victim to complacency.  We are going to press on, live by faith, embrace a lifestyle of risk, keep our senses sharp, and trust God for what others think is impossible.

So enjoy your summer.  Find some sand and let it filter between your toes.  Lay on a beach if you like and enjoy that complacent, relaxed, rested feeling.  It’s necessary!  But Fall is coming and the time for our senses to be trained and our vision sharp will soon be here.   Complacency will have to give way to combat for His Kingdom.  God is taking us where we’ve never been.  He is taking us into a land where complacency can get a church killed.  May we all be willing to leave it behind for the sake of the glorious adventure for His Kingdom!

Not even close to being satisfied with what God can do,

Pastor Dale

Ever felt like this?  Who hasn’t.  You try and try only to feel as if you never make progress.  Your wheels are still spinning, your plans haven’t worked, the benefits of your efforts haven’t paid off, and you just feel like banging your head against the wall.  As the frustration and stress mount, you wonder what to do.  It feels like your going backwards instead of forward; getting farther and farther behind instead of getting ahead.  You try to redouble your efforts only to discover your dissatisfaction with life doubled with it.  Sounds like the “American Dream” that most people are chasing after.  Is there something wrong with this picture?

People have been living in a way that doesn’t make much sense since the beginning of time.  God looked at the way the nation of Israel was living and this is what He said.

Haggai 1:5-7  “Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”  This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. (NIV)

Let me put this in modern language.  God looks down upon the insane way in which we choose to live and the lifestyles we are so committed to and says, “Hey, how’s that workin’ for you?”  “Do you like working so hard for nothing?  Do you like feeding your life with so much junk you are never satisfied?  Do you enjoy feeling like there are holes in your wallets and bank accounts?  Why don’t you slow down, think about how your living, and realize it doesn’t work!”  Hey people…How’s that workin’ for you?”

If we’re honest, the answer is; “Not very well.”  Instead of “Bang Head Here”, why don’t we try something new and “Turn Our Eyes Here”.  That would be upward by the way.  God has a way for us to live and make decisions that He will bless.  Aren’t you tired of making decisions about life that don’t work?  Why keep investing all that energy in a lifestyle that leaves you so unsatisfied?  It’s time for us to “give careful thought to our ways” and come to the conclusion there needs to be some major changes.  God wants to bless our lives but we need to realign our lives to Him so that His blessing become a reality.  How do we do this?

Beginning July 26th, we’re going to be discovering this together.  For 6 weeks the message series will be called “How’s That Workin’ for You?”   During this time we will discover how to live in a way that God blesses and in a way that truly satisfies.  You no longer need a stress reduction kit.  God will supply you with a life satisfaction kit.  I look forward to seeing you here!

Considering my ways with you,

Pastor Dale

II Cor. 10:3-4 “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. ⁴The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” (NIV)

Here is a picture of Conwy Castle that was originally designed to be the residence of King Edward I in 1283.  This English stronghold was built to control and contain the people of  Northern Wales.  Large, impressive and intimidating it is hard to imagine a fortress like this ever falling.  Yet, fall it did.  The English may have built it, but the Welsh people eventually took control of this fortress and made it their own.  Here was a fortress in their own land that didn’t belong.  it didn’t matter how big it was.  It would eventually fall.

What a great example for the church.  The bible tells us that we are at war with the spiritual forces of this world.  Our weapons are divinely powerful to destroy whatever fortresses the enemy has constructed that get in the way with the advancement of the Kingdom of God.  Unfortunately, many believers look at these obstacles as insurmountable or impossible to move.  They look at the sheer size of the fortress towering over their lives or community and shrink back in fear as the fortress continues to exercise influence it has no right authority to do.

I used this phrase several weeks ago at our services and I use it again here.  It is time for the followers of Christ to “pray big or go home!”  If our prayers are part of the divine arsenal God has given to us, then with the authority we have in Christ, we need to start praying for their removal.  We need to stop being impressed with the size of the fortress and start being impressed with the size of our God.  Our prayers need to start matching the greatness of the King we serve and the power and authority He wields.   The Bible says that if God is for us who can be against us?  Answer?  Nothing and nobody!  Our prayers need to reflect these truths.

God has sovereignty placed our church in this community to look at the fortresses impacting the lives of the people in our geographic area and fight for their removal.  It doesn’t matter how big they are or how long they’ve been entrenched.  They have no right or authority to stay.  God wants to transform a community.  It is time for us to “Pray Big or Go Home!”

Praying BIG with you!

Pastor Dale

OK…be completely honest.  What do you really think about prayer?  Do you view it as one of those necessary yet boring practices of your faith?  Do you see it as less than exciting?  Do you consider it rather monotonous, solemn, ritualistic, complicated, confusing, or even feminine?   Honestly, I think many people would use these or similar words to describe their experience with prayer.  I feel the way prayer has been portrayed in the Christian community over the past 50 years has led us to this conclusion.  The problem with this conclusion is that it is entirely WRONG!  I honestly believe one of the reasons more men don’t get excited about prayer is that we have made it into something that is more feminine.  This is why more women come to “prayer meetings” then men.  I don’t believe women are more spiritual than men.  I just feel that most men have a hard time getting excited about the way prayer is portrayed and offered to them in most churches.  They’re simply bored out of their minds!  I have a saying around here…”Whatever you do, don’t bore people with the word of God!”  I think this applies to prayer as well. ” Whatever you do, don’t bore people with prayer.”

Prayer should be exciting, challenging, edgy, dangerous, exhausting, with purpose and with passion.  How’s that for a description of a prayer meeting!  We have lost sight of the fact that we are involved in a cosmic battle between the forces of darkness and the Kingdom of Light.  Our prayers matter.  Our prayers effect the outcomes on planet earth.  The Bible says that the effective prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much!  It is high time for the followers of Christ to stop being casual observers in the spiritual conflict and embrace their role as warriors in the fight.

For the next three weeks, we are going on a prayer journey here at Foothills.  For the next three weeks we are going to Experience Power Through Prayer.  It is my goal to change how many of you think about prayer.  In fact, I may even make some of you uncomfortable.  At least I hope so.  It is time for Foothills to become a praying church.  Where God is taking us will require this from us.  We are going further into enemy territory for His Kingdom’s sake.  We need to be prepared and ready for what lies ahead.  The enemy has a strong hold on our community.  He’s not going to let go of it without a fight.

Just like this picture on my blog…”The Prayer Experiment”.  Will you be willing to experiment with prayer more than you ever have in your entire life?  Will you grow?  Will you learn how to pray strategically for those around you?  Will you learn to fight?  If you will, this prayer experiment will lead you down the road of transformation.  You will see the power of God in your own life and we will see the power of God transform a community before our eyes.

Looking forward to seeing you all this weekend.

Experimenting in prayer with you,

Pastor Dale

Beginning June 1st I will be on vacation for the next 3 weeks.  I have come to appreciate time away from ministry much more as the years have rolled on.  This year marks the 24th year in ministry for me.  I never used to understand the significance of balance and rest when I was younger.  Now, I see it as an absolute necessity.  I have come to understand that I cannot be the man of God that the church needs me to be; can’t be the husband or father my family needs me to be without it.  My family loves these times.  My children tell me how wonderful it is to not have to share me with anyone.  The “pastor hat” comes off and I get to be 100% dad for awhile. I get to make new memories with my family that are priceless and I will treasure for a lifetime.

God uses these times to replenish me.  I never realize just how tired I am until I step away.  I run on adrenaline way too much.  When it stops pumping through my veins, I feel exhausted for several days.  These are times for me to relax at a level that is simply impossible during the course of the year.  These are holy days for me.  They are times when I truly get to “be still and know that He is God.”

It is a strange thing being a pastor.  It is one of the greatest privileges and joys of my life, yet it is also the hardest and most exhausting thing I have ever done as well.  I have stopped feeling guilty for taking time off.  I admit I used to feel this way.  God has set me free from this.  This time is needed; it’s necessary, it’s even commanded in Scripture.  I am convinced all of us would be a lot more healthier if we heeded the command of God to embrace “Sabbath rests” more often.  In our culture we value productivity not rest.  I choose to embrace both!

May God bless all of you this summer.  May you embrace the rest God wants you to have…even commands you to have.  Please pray for me and my family as we enjoy some much needed time together.   See you all in 3 weeks!

Pastor Dale

What kind of image do you think of when you think of the church?  I want to give you three images that I believe are accurate ways of thinking of Christ’s church that will protect us from many of the pitfalls.  We live what we believe.  If we believe incorrectly about the church we will behave incorrectly.

Therefore, I would love for God to burn these images into the minds of everyone at Foothills.  Let’s briefly look at each one.

1.  First the church is a battleship NOT a cruise ship.  A battleship is all about the mission.  It follows the orders of the commander and chief.  The crew is willing to make sacrifices and endure hardship for the mission.  A cruise ship is all about comfort.  This is not what the church is about.

2.  Secondly, we are Pioneers not Settlers.  Pioneers are on a journey.  They endure hardship and take tremendous risk in order to travel to their destination.  They don’t stay in one place very long.  They are constantly on the move.  This is the church!  We are on a journey.  The journey requires great faith and risk.  The destination we are traveling to is worth every bit of effort!

3. Finally, we are to be rivers that channel the resources of God NOT reservoirs that try to stockpile the resources of God.  We should never worry about running out as long as we continue on the mission and commit to the journey.  God never runs out; never has a recession, and is looking for people to channel His unending resources through.

My prayer is that Foothills will continue to grow and become ever more like these images.  God will continue to do supernatural things as we continue to trust Him, follow Him, and think correctly about Him and His church.  May we be God’s battleship in this battle.  May we embrace the journey He has us on in this geographic area.  May we trust Him enough to be rivers so He can continue to bless us with the resources necessary to accomplish all he has called us to do.

Thinking correctly about His church,

Pastor Dale

What can I say…I like the Portland Trailblazers.  I have been a fan since I watched them win the NBA Championship back in 1977.  They are currently in the playoffs as I write this playing the Houston Rockets in the first round.  Do I have hope they win?  Of course I do!  I even have a hope they will return an NBA Championship to Portland again someday.  Who hasn’t rooted and hoped for their favorite team to win?  Hope really is an amazing thing.  We all know what it’s like to hope for your team to win only to see that hope not be realized.   Now we have to deal with the disappointment of unfulfilled hope.  The Bible says that “Hope deferred makes the heart sick”.  In other words, hope that is lost; hope that is unfulfilled; hope that is not realized will make your heart ache.

Because of this, it is so important for us to have our hope fixed in the right place.  The hope of my life is not placed in whether or not Portland will win in the playoffs.  That would be a false hope.  I hope they do, but if they don’t, my heart will not ache…at least not too long.  My hope is fixed and rooted in my relationship with my unchanging God and His unchanging word.  This is what I base my life, my decisions, and my future on.  The Bible says that “those who trust in the Lord will never be disappointed.”  I love this promise.  Everything else in life will disappoint us.  EVERYTHING!  If I am placing my hope anywhere else but God and His word I am set up for heartache and great disappointment.

Where is your hope fixed?  Be honest!  Is it in your job?  Is it in your money, bank account, or your portfolio?  Is your hope placed in relationships with imperfect people?  Maybe it’s in a President who you hope can get us out of the mess we’re in?  Maybe your hope is in yourself?  If you are placing your hope in any of these things you are going to experience some heartache.  Why?  Because they will ALL eventually let you down.  Now, you are left without hope.  May I suggest a change in your hope strategy?  Put your hope completely in your relationship with God and in your obedience to His word.  What you will discover is that the Lord will NEVER disappoint you.

Portland may lose tonight and that will be disappointing.  BUT, it is impossible for God to lose.  I think it best to align my life with His.  That is hope fixed in the right place.

May God’s hope be yours in abundance!

Pastor Dale

Yes, this is a picture of your pastor and his daughter Rachael.  What are we doing?  We are hundreds of feet above the Pacific Ocean parasailing in Mexico.  That’s not really fear on our faces.  We just thought while we were up there, we’d at least pretend to be afraid.  It was an amazing experience I must say.  The views were spectacular and the feeling of just floating above the water with the only sounds being the wind was surreal.  It was the ride of my life.

Parasailing reminds me a lot of what it means to follow God.  If we are willing to truly put our trust in Him, we are in for the ride of our lives.  Just like parasailing, we have to trust someone else; we have to give up control; we have to get harnessed together with other people; and what makes us soar isn’t our power but someone else.  Oh, and let’s not forget, the views are just spectacular!

Are you having the ride of your life or is life taking you for a ride?  Let me encourage you to truly put your trust in God.  Take that step of faith that is causing you so much fear.  Stop trusting yourself so much.  Let’s face it, we’re all not that reliable anyway.  Give up control.  You really can’t control much anyway.  Get harnessed together with other people by developing close friendships who are moving spiritually in the same direction.   Besides, as long as you’re going for a ride with God, you might as well have some great traveling companions.  Finally, quit working so hard trying to soar.  That’s not your job, that’s God’s job.  He empowers our lives to go where only He can take us.  If you’re willing to do all this, the views will be spectacular!  God will show you things you never dreamed imaginable.

Don’t miss out on what God has for you.  Trust Him with all you have and He will take you on the ride of your life!

Enjoying the ride and the view!

Pastor Dale

Aren’t you glad this is true?  The resurrection of Jesus changed everything!  The empty cross and the empty tomb transforms our empty lives.  The hope that we experience now becasue of Jesus is simply amazing.  We have forgiveness and our guilt removed; we have His presence and His power for life; and we have an eternity that is secure and waiting for us.  Easter has changed the shame of my past, given me a purpose for the present, and provided a hope for my future.  Yes, Easter changes everything!

Because of all these glorious results of Easter, I hope you are looking forward to celebrating this life altering event here at Foothills in a week.  I want to encourage you to be considering not just how you are going to celebrate Easter, but also how God may want you to influence others.  The power and significance of Easter is not something to be kept to ourselves.  It is something to be shared with the world.  Therefore, as Easter approaches, let me encourage you how to consider others this year.

1.  Are you praying for those you are going to invite to Easter services?  Who has the Lord put on your heart to ask to come with you to Foothills this year?  Let God use you to influence another life for eternity!

2.  Will you come to an alternate service besides 10:30am?  This is the service where the majority of our guests will come to.  We are concerned with having enough room.  Will you be willing to come to either Saturday night or 8:30am service on Sunday?

3.  Will you PLEASE not park in front of the building on the paved parking lot.  If you need to because of your physical condition, this is completely fine.  BUT, for the rest of us, would you please park behind the building or on the bowling alley side in order to make room for visitors.

4.  Finally, will you pray every day that God would use our Easter services to draw people into His Kingdom.  Would you pray that the reality Easter would change everything for many people who are in desperate need of life change.

I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to celebrating Easter.  It is going to be an amazing weekend.  Aren’t you glad that Easter changes everything?

Pastor Dale

I’m back!  I know I haven’t posted anything in a few weeks, but here I am back in the groove.  Today I want to just give you a bit of insight into my life.  I know that I encourage transparency here at Foothills.  I also know that it is important for me to model this quality.  I hope the following post helps to accomplish this and encourage others to do the same.

I am completely sold out to the course that God has called me to, but that doesn’t mean staying the course is easy.  Many people have asked me and those close to me; “How’s Dale doing?”  “How is he holding up with the three services.”  People have been concerned with me burning myself out.  So for those who want to know, let me answer some of these questions.

During the first week of march Lisa and I took a week off and spent it in Arizona.  Some dear people in the church blessed us and allowed us to stay in a home they own.  This picture is from that trip.  This was the first time in 22 years of marriage that just Lisa and I have spent a week together without kids or anything relating to ministry.  Needless to say, we had an amazing week together.

If I am going to stay the course and be the Pastor God wants me to be and Foothills needs me to be, I must have time away from the ministry.  You see, I was tired.  I was mentally, emotionally, and spiritually spent.  The three services were taking more of a toll on me than I realized.  I’m an adrenaline junky.  I can run this way for quite a while, but over time, it takes a toll.  Working 6 days a week every week is demanding.  Please understand that I am not complaining.  I LOVE what I do.  It’s just not easy.  The difficulty is not a physical issue, but an internal issue.  The lifestyle that I lead is internally demanding and draining.  I know that I may give the impression that everything just flows so effortlessly in my life but this is far from the truth.  This course is hard and it requires great effort to walk it successfully.

In order to stay the course I have to look at strategic times away.  I have to monitor my life even better.  I have to do the things that put back what was spent.  This requires that at times, Lisa and I need to be away from the Molalla area.  I know, you’re thinking why does he have to leave Molalla?  Because not only am I the Pastor of a large church in a small community, I also grew up here.   For a moment, just try to imagine how many people know me in this area.  I literally cannot go into a store in Molalla and not know someone.  Please know that I love this fact 95% of the time.  But there are moments when I don’t want to be “Pastor Dale”.  For me to recharge, I have to be away from that title and the expectations that come with it.  Therefore, sometimes Lisa and I just need to step away geographically.

So pray for me as I do my best to stay the course.  When you notice I’m gone at a weekend service, know that Lisa and I are off somewhere recharging letting God replenish us internally.  Remember that this time is strategic to be able to stay the course for the rest of my life.  This is never time wasted.  It is time invested.  The pace at which the ministry requires of me will probably mean I will be away a little bit more than I used to be.  I just ask that you would be supportive of this knowing that I am trying to be the Pastor that you need me to be.  So no, I’m not burning out.  I am staying the course!

I love all of you.  Serving you is one of the greatest joys and honors of my life.  The course may be hard, but it is truly glorious and worth every ounce of effort.  Thank you for sharing it with me.

Pastor Dale

Have you started praying yet?  If you don’t know, we are on a corporate prayer journey for the next 40 days praying for our city.  I want to just encourage you to give yourself to this course.  Maybe you have never prayed for 40 days in a row.  Here’s  your opportunity.  I love what it says on the back cover of this book.  “In drastic days, pray for great things.”  I just love that saying.  If there was ever a time for the believers of our area to rise up and pray it is now.

As you look around, what do we see people experiencing right now?  I know what I see is a lot of despair.  People are just weighed down with the circumstances of their lives and they are losing hope.  We have a tremendous opportunity to be hope dispensers in these drastic days.  As you pray you will discover how God will pour His hope into your life and allow you to dispense His hope to others.  As you pray, God will do amazing things in you.  Yes, we are praying for God to do great things in our area, but what you will discover is the first great work God will do will be in relationship to you.  As you seek God for the city you will experience the heart of God longing to seek after you.

So please don’t look at this prayer book as some religious exercise you “should” do.  I pray you discover and experience the heart of God through this journey.  As we pray through this for the next 40 days, talk to others at Foothills about it.  Share your experiences.  Encourage others to get on board.  Let’s together capture the heart of God for our city and live to see the days when God brings transformation.  I believe I will live to see that day.  I will also pray for it until I see it.

Praying for our city with you,

Pastor Dale

Talk about the crazy train!  I think it’s time for some additional options for transportation.  I use this picture to illustrate a point.  We have three services at Foothills.  The problem that we are facing is that our Sunday, 10:30am service is running out of room.  We don’t look like this train yet, but we have had some Sundays where we have literally run out of chairs.  Praise God for such a good problem.  Yet, it is still a problem that needs to be addressed.

Therefore, what I am asking of you is that many of you be willing to be inconvenienced for the sake of others.  What do I mean?  We desperately need many of you from the 10:30am service to be willing to go either to our Saturday night service or our 8:30am Sunday service.  We have plenty of seats at both of these times.  We have visitors at all three services, but most first time visitors attend Sunday at 10:30.  This is the service where we need to create more room.

Everyone is excited about the growth God is bringing, but we need to grow in a wise and understanding way.  If a visitor cannot find a parking place or they struggle to find a place to sit this does not motivate them to come back.  Being overcrowded hinders us from ministering to them and helping them feel welcomed.  We really need to balance out our three services better.  I am asking those of you who can to make a switch, maybe even a sacrifice, so others can come in and find hope in Christ at the 10:30 service.

Remember, we are here to reach the 1000s of unchurched people in our geographic area.  This will require those of us who are already committed to Jesus and the vision of this church to be inconvenienced for the cause of Christ.  Those of you who read this blog I am asking you to spread the word.  Tell others to read this.  Make the switch and drag a few families with you.  Remember why you do this.  Don’t lose sight of the vision.  Don’t forget that God has called us to be pioneers not settlers.  Embracing inconvenience is just part of the process of reaching the destination.

May God give you the grace to embrace some change for His Kingdom purposes.

Pastor Dale