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Transcript of June Edition - Valley Christian Magazine
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Ju
ne
20
11
BT Worship Pastor Job Gonzalez: In His Words / At Home with Pastor Phil Corzine / Vacation Bible School
Time! / RAK: Random Acts of Kindness @ The Family Church
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Family is God’s Masterpiece
Dr. Theresa Valladares
Family Medicine as it was intended
:
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Christian Torres
Henry Miller Editor
Irma d’Santiago “morett”
PHOTOGRAPHERS
The Studio - Jenny Hollis & Cliff Ranson
Lee Jinks
CONTRIBUTORS
Jerrell JobeMilton Gonzalez
Job GonzalezMiguel Paredes
Lance Phy
For Advertising contact:[email protected]
956.314.0161956.688.6336
www.valleychristianmagazine.com
Valley Christian Magazine is a free monthly magazine published by
Volume 1 Issue 3
179
On The Cover
Cover Photo Courtesy of Job Gonzalez
14
index
National Columnists
Valley Contributors
48events
Features
41
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I have three daughters. Yes, that’s right…three daughters. For some, that would be enough for you to relate (and sympathize) with me! Whether you have 1, 2, 3, or even (gulp) 4, 5, 6, 7 kids (I’ll stop there where a friend of mine named their seventh….you guessed it – seven!) they have different interests, personalities, skills, likes and dis-likes, ways they express themselves, and different ways they understand and receive love.
In this edition on page 46 of Valley Christian Magazine,we spotlight books called the 5 Love Languages. Each
lives: 5 Love Languages of Children, 5 Love Languages of Teenagers, 5 Love Languages: Men’s Edition – The Secret to Love That Lasts, and The 5 Love Languages – Singles Edition.
I was introduced to author Gary Chapman when I went through my pre-marital class. Stephanie and I learned about each other’s different love language. I really gained insight on how to communicate with my future spouse and meet her needs. Chapman says if you want to give and receive love most effectively, you must speak the right love language. Different people express love in
of love:
GiftsActs of ServiceQuality TimePhysical Touch
Fast forward 14 years! We have an 11-, 8-, and 6-year-old and I am reading the 5 Love Languages of Children. These languages apply to each one of my children. Every child “speaks” each of these different languages but one particularly stands out for each one of my children.
As fathers (and mothers, too!), our ultimate goal is for
learning that as each year goes by, I have one less year to prepare them. Fathers, our role in shaping our chil-dren’s live is becoming even more paramount. When we were growing up, society’s role models and expectations were similar to that of the church. We were expected to live up to those standards. Now, to be a successful
our kids thousands of times a day, of immorality, self-
Numerous studies have shown the greater the in-volvement of the dad with the children the better the outcome, the better the grades, the less likelihood for delinquent behavior. Realize that discovering and apply-ing your child’s love languages does not mean everything is going to be perfect. We will have setbacks, but apply-ing these languages will have an everlasting effect.
Maybe, instead of two parents giving and showing love through their marriage, love now is only coming from a single mother or father who is tired, wounded, lonely and pressured. Numbers from the 2000 U.S. Census show about one in every four children (27 percent) under the age of 18 lives with one parent. These situ-ations may have occurred from divorce, death, or some may have never married. No matter the situation, as a single-parent, you can show love to your family particu-larly by speaking your children’s primary love language.
Christian TorresPublisher
Christian Torres and his wife, Stephanie (Love Language: Acts of Service), live in McAllen with their 3 daughters Madeleine (quality time), Natalie (quality time-sports),
For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.For me? It’s 3.
How many languages do you speak? How many languages do you speak? How many languages do you speak? How many languages do you speak? How many languages do you speak?
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Pastor Phil Corzine (41)
Trish (not disclosed)
Lauren, 15
Lenzy, 10
Married 18 years
Pastor at CFC McAllen 9 years
2201 Trenton Road
Church services:
Sunday 9:30 a.m., & 1 1 a.m
www.cfcmcallen.com.
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When did you decide to become a pastor?
What did you do then?
But you're pastoring now, what finally gave?
You're musically gifted, how's the rest of the family?
You're a huge music lover, what do you jam out to?
If you weren't pastoring what would you be doing?
What hobbies do you have?
The Corzine Girls at a local coffee shop.
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What got you so hooked on golf?
Does your wife have any hobbies?
Is there something out there that your congregation would be surprised to know about you?
Your church has been growing. What do you attri-bute that to?
What's your favorite sport to watch?
I have never seen so many Cowboy jerseys at a church service. Is that part of your membership criteria?
(Hey Phil, we checked this out with
out expert theology department and we
haven’t been able
this as
/ 11 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
heresy but we’ll keep looking. Unfortunately the publisher is a Bears fan and the editor is a Jets/Gi-ants fan so you’re probably out of luck ;)
What's the best concert you've been to?
So I guess your daughters have an appreciation for 80s music?
Finally, what are the last three books you've read?
Trying to preach to the jury huh? And they are?
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Let Jesus dwell in your life
By greg laurie
Greg Laurie is the senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California.
He began his pastoral ministry at the age of 19 by leading a Bible study of 30 people. Since then, God has transformed
that small group into a church of some 15,000 people. Today, Harvest is one of the largest churches in America.
For more about Pastor Greg, visit
www.greglaurie.comUsed by permission from :
Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie, PO Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514
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Veronica Gonzales
41District
Contact Information:P.O. Box 210Austin, Texas 78768-2910Voice: (512) 463-0578Fax: (512) 4630-1482
Representative
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When the music changesHymns making resurgence in Worship services
By Henrry Miller
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Mark Southwell, CFP®
Senior Vice President
Financial Advisor
7000 N. 10th St. Ste C-2
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956-683-1700
© 2010 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC.
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Job Gonzalez
Milton Gonzalez is married to Ele-
Academy and is a member of The
Champions in His eyes...
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“I should pray more… I should read my Bible more… I
should give more… I should love more…”
How often have you heard a person say this? How
often have you? The list goes on and on. There’s nothing
wrong with any of these things. In fact, each is admi-
rable in its own right.
These thoughts result from unknowingly losing connec-
tion to God. Subconsciously, we conclude that doing
more, reading more, praying more will change all that.
What if, instead of adding more spiritual practices to
our already busy day, I learned to use what I already do
to connect with God? What if I just add God to our life
routine? Perhaps, Christian spirituality is more than
doing certain kinds of practices (prayer, reading the
bible, serving, etc), and about seeing that which I am
already doing in a new light.
It is important as Christ-followers, that we intentionally
practice our faith. Practicing our faith is essential, but
could there be practices (normal, everyday routine mo-
ments and rhythms of my daily life) that I could be more
intentional about faithing.
Instead of only practicing my faith, what would it look
like to be mindful of faithing my practices? Take these
simple elements and use them as connection and con-
versation moments with God.
The following are examples and how
I’ve personally been exploring
how this could be integrated in
my everyday walk with God in-
stead of cruising through them
on autopilot:
Each morning as I lay in bed, my body is still,
on God. In a simple, yet intentional way, I
commit my day to God, praying something to the ef-
fect of: “God… This day is Yours. I am Yours. Today…
may I be sensitive and aware of Your nearness and your
promptings. May I actively respond to these prompt-
ings, move with them and walk with You.” God is the
myself to Him and His purposes.
Somewhere between waking the kids, making
morning cup of Joe. As I’m pouring the beans
another prayer emerges, “God, as these beans have
been ground, broken and crushed, may I so be before
You. Take the hard places in me. Change them. Break
may You use my life today to bring life to those around
me…” I imagine that I if were reading this in a maga-
zine somewhere (much like you are now), I would be
inclined to think this is pretty cheesy – but it works for
me. It serves to connect me to God, remind me that He’s
at work within me to form me into the image of Christ.
And, in order for this to take place, I must be willing to
become broken and poured out for Him.
Biblically, teeth often represent relationships.
So, as I brush my teeth I’ve been praying for
someone I know. I pick up my toothbrush and
instantly a name of someone comes to mind. Recently,
I’ve felt prompted to pray for the same two people.
Brushing one’s teeth is a pretty mindless activity – mo-
ments spent staring at one’s self in the mirror, but for
me it’s become a moment of connection with God
and intercession for someone I otherwise
probably wouldn’t have prayed for.
How many times do you boot
it up or wait for a program to
start? At least once? How
long does this take? Thirty-
seconds? One-minute? What if
you took that time to simply sit
silent before God? Or, per-
haps rest in the verse from
Faithing Your PracticeBy Jerrell Jobe
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Psalms, where God says, “Be still and know that I am
God…”
Do you work on a hallway where people
throughout the day walk past your door?
Sometimes they stop to talk. At other times,
they simply wave. Do you look up? What if, while
you’re already distracted from what you’re doing, you
said a quick prayer for that person? It may only be a
sentence or two. But isn’t that a sentence or two more
than normal? Another point nonetheless, of intention-
al connection and conversation with the Creator of the
Universe.
A small group friend shared how he was a
car fanatic. He absolutely loved cars. As
he drove around town he would admire and
desire various models. Now, he has changed. No lon-
ger is he jealous or envious. As he recognizes various
car models, he is reminded of a friend with a similar
vehicle and prays for them…with his eyes open of
course.
At the end of the day, I return to the place
where it all began. I remind my wife one last
time that I love her and that she’s awesome.
-
ing, I told You this day was Yours… I wanted to be
sensitive to Your promptings… I wanted to respond to
the whispers and guidance of Your Spirit… How did I
do…?
Did I live as if You are on the throne or me…?
Were there times I indeed sensed Your leading and
responded…?
Were there moments where I missed Your Spirit’s lead-
ing…?
God… Thank You for walking with me today… As I
awake tomorrow, help me to walk closely with You…
Growing in my awareness of Your Present-Nearness…
This is simply practice, however I can honestly say,
see the mundane moments throughout my day trans-
formed into space and time where I connect with God
in ways that are very tangible, meaningful and heart-
felt.
“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
We all have routines and activities that we
cruise through as in autopilot. What if you
typical daily routine (waking up, show-
ering, breakfast, coffee, driving, etc...),
write down a few ideas that stick out to
you. These can be simple, yet profoundly
powerful ways to connect and converse
with Christ throughout the day as you add
faith to what you already typically do.
The possibilities are endless.
Jerrell Jobe is a teaching pastor at Palm Valley Church in Mission. He is married to Charissa and has three children: Micah, (8) Naylah (5) and Avi (3).
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Andrea Garate looked into the elderly man’s eyes as
“You look like my daughter,” he said, the hint of a smile struggling to
“She would’ve been 24,”
A tenant at Arbor View -
len, the gentleman is one of many people blessed monthly from the Family Church’s youth group, called
Ignite, and part of the church’s weekly RAK
(Random Acts of Kind-
The RAK min-istry started in January 2008 with a group of volunteers
handing out free cokes on street corners, said Star Funk,
“In the culture of the Valley we’ve found that it’s a natu--
bers have taken this to another level by connecting with
to reach out into the community and transition the church from an inward to outward approach – putting
the needs of the poor and hurting at the top of their pri-
-
“Many people respond in disbelief as we wash their car for free, clean their yards, give them cold water on a hot
Random Acts, Specific Purpose by henry miller
Family Church puts others
Andrea
Garate
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first with RAK ministry
we always hear is ‘why are you doing this?’ Our answer is this is
the way to demonstrate the love
One of the most recent RAKs was when a group of about 30 young people went to a house and re-
The project was also part of Keep
The church also opened a non-
open during the week to provide food and clothing to those in need
“I feel the world has been turned off by the church for many differ-
read that many in the world have a positive view of Jesus but
important for the church to meet
to open doors in the future for us
Garate remembers the story of how the gentleman lost his
daughter and wife both within a
until he started forgetting who she
“It just broke my heart,” said Ga-
what Christ asks of
sanitized Christianity and
raw and ancient faith that
Pastor John Brady
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Our Savior Lutheran Church-McAllen
First United Methodist Church - McAllen
First Baptist Church - Weslaco
Vacation Bible School is a time when children and
teachers gather together in the summer for a good time and, most
importan, a God time. Literally thousands of men and women
across the Valley will be volunteering to teach children
about what it means to follow Jesus Christ. Thank you to all
the the volunteers. Several churches supplied Valley Chris-
tian Magazine with their VBS schedules and themes. Check ‘em out and
have a great summer!!!
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James MacDonald i s f o u n d i n g a n d s e n i o r
p a s t o r a t H a r v e s t B i b l e
C h a p e l i n t h e n o r t h -
w e s t C h i c a g o s u b u r b s .
J a m e s ’ t e a c h i n g c a n
b e h e a r d o n W a l k i n t h e
W o r d , a d a i l y 3 0 - m i n -
u t e r a d i o p r o g r a m
r e a c h i n g o v e r 3 m i l l i o n
p e o p l e a c r o s s N o r t h
A m e r i c a . Fo r m o r e i n -
f o r m a t i o n , v i s i t
www.walkintheword.com
B
GOD IS AWESOME!
/ 33 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
Individual & Group Health,
Individual & Group Life Insurance,
Medicare Supplemental,
Disability and HSA
Hope Torres, LUTCF
Taken from “Gripped by the Greatness of God” by
e-devotional, please visit:
Listen to Walk in the Word locally at 5:30 a.m. Monday through Friday on 96.9 FM KVMV
Neve
r alon
e - th
e One
is w
ith y
ou Lonely.
Camilla Ann Miller (seen here with her big sister Mariana) is
burn Elementary. She loves karate, soccer, gymnastics and riding her scooter at 500 mph. Mariana is soon to be a junior at McHi. Mariana loves dance, theater, traveling and shopping for eons at a time.
/ 34 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
/ 35 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
Help me to
Help ThemSmile Ministry with Maffy the Clown,
we are Christian volunteers with over 15 years helping remote communities near San
Luis Potosi, Mexico ... Delivering aid, medical service and smiles to children and families in
extreme poverty.
We are collecting: Used Clothing, toys, school supplies, medicines, bottled
water, non-perishable food ... & volunteers!!!
Next mission : august 11-14
More info: Maffy Sonrisas956.240.8605
COLLECTION SITES:
There is a
lot of w
ays to des
cribe my fa-
ther. He is
loving, lo
yal, hones
t, a man of
his
word, a ser
vant. These
are all c
haracteris
tics
a true fat
her should ha
ve. But the
re is one
thing that
is differ
ent about my fat
her that
makes him
shine abo
ve all oth
er fathers
. He
loves God an
d serves h
im every minute of
his
time. He devotes
his time by
preaching
His
word to eve
ryone he
can reach
, especial
ly
to the ch
ildren of C
CA. By seein
g him serv
e
The Lord,
makes an e
xample toward e
veryone
around h
im, especial
ly me. I’ve a
lways wanted
to follow
my father’s
example.
I’ve wanted
to follow
his trait
s that he
has arou
nd
people an
d his joy
to serve
people, b
ut I also
follow his
humor. Very f
ew people k
now my
dad as I do.
He can be f
unny, a hyp
er guy,
and just m
ake my day
. One thing t
hat I’ve
always loved
about my dad
is how he l
oved my
mother in
such a spe
cial way. T
hey had su
ch
a deep co
nnection
towards each
other. H
e
was always b
y her side
whenever s
he needed
anything. H
e would have to
risk work j
ust to
take her t
o the doc
tor. By s
eeing him
treat
my mother in
such a deep
loving way si
nce I
was a todd
ler made m
e love and
respect m
y
mother and
do whate
ver it too
k to make h
er
happy. W
henever in
the future w
hen I have
a
family, I will do
my very bes
t just to be l
ike
my father,
because h
e is the o
ne I look
up
to and adm
ire. He is,
and always w
ill be, my
role model.
I love you
dad:)
Dear Dad,
I first of all would like to say how
thankful I am for you, and how proud I
am to be called the daughter of such a
wonderful man. You are a genuine person
who always sees the best in everything,
and I admire that about you. I am very
thankful that the Lord brought you home
safely from Iraq. You were so brave to
leave to a foreign country without anyone
or anything. But you left to serve our coun-
try, something you will always be honored
for.There wasn’t a day that passed while you were
away when you weren’t on my mind, and I
prayed daily for your safe return home.
After four long years of you being away,
I hope and pray you never have
to go back again!
After all, I never enjoyed there being an
empty seat at the dinner table. Thanks for everything, Daddy! I love you tons.
Katie Hoppenstedt
Fathers are very loving and
sweet and always neat. They
are the headmaster of the house.
They help us clean, exercise, wake
up, and learn. Fathers are very
nice, so I give my father a hug ev-
ery day. I love you Dad!
Happy Father’s
Day!
Daniel E.
8 years old
2nd Grade,
CovenantChristianAcademy
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My HeroDaddy,I’m writing this letter to you beca
use I just want to
tell you how thankful I am to have such a wonderful
dad that loves and cares for me. Every night when
I went to sleep I thanked the Lord for keeping you
safe, because it was His will for you to come back
home from Iraq in one piece every time you left!
I thank you for protecting me and providing me
with a safe and loving home. I couldn’t ask for
a better dad than you. I love you with all of my
I love you so much. Happy Father’s Day!
Your daughter,
Kelsey M. Hoppenstedt
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Dear Dad,
Thanks for being the best you can be.
You drive me from school, to karate, t
o volleyball
and you still have time for fa
mily.
I don’t know how you do it, but I do know
you’re my super hero!
Love,
Carly
/ 38 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
Imagine going to church and not singing a single song.
Not a single one.
Music is an everyday part of our lives. �ink about how often you hear music – your alarm clock, bathroom, kitchen, car, elevator, doctor’s o�ce, grocery store, church sanctuary – just about everywhere. Most church-goers will spend 30 minutes of their Sunday worship service singing, performing or listening to music.
But when the worship leader strikes up the band, are we entering into worship, or being entertained? Is music even a necessary part of worship?
Matt Redman, British singer/songwriter and worship leader, makes his living with music. He has authored or co-authored more than 160 songs. Chances are you will
sing one of Redman’s tunes in a worship service this week.
Redman knows the di�erence between entertainment and worship. More than a decade ago he was the worship leader at Soul Survivor, a congregation in Watford, England. Redman’s pastor, Mike Pilavachi, wanted to change the worship apathy invading his congregation. Pilavachi described his �ock as “worship connois-seurs” but the worshippers were “stale” and “going through the motions.”
Pilavachi said of the attitude in his church, “people would say, ‘what did the wor-ship do for you today’, as if worship was meant for us.” So Pilavachi canceled the
music. He joked that he had “�red” Redman. Members arrived at church to �nd no sound system, no instruments, and no song leader.
Pilavachi said it was awkward at �rst.
“You’ll not have a church if you continue to have services like this,” someone told him.
“I’d rather not have a church than a church that doesn’t know how to worship,” he replied.
Eventually, people became responsive, breaking into a cappella songs and open worship to God. �e sound system and musicians eventually returned. Red-
man hadn’t been �red. Redman and the church had a new perspective – worship is all about Jesus. From this experience, Redman penned a per-
sonal testimony we know as “�e Heart of Worship.”
When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus
A worship service is not made up of the Worship Leader, per-formers and an audience. We are all performers. God is the audience. Worship Leaders are facilitators, not entertainers. We are worshippers, not consumers.
�e message in “�e Heart of Worship” is a great example of what the attitude of our heart should be; “It’s all about You, Jesus.”
----------Lance Phy is a Houston native living in McAllen.
He is Asst. Music & Media Director for First Baptist McAllen and has been a performing musician
for 27 years.
e-mail him at:
Imagine going to a worship service and having no music.
None.
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A Special To Valley Christian Magazine
The Big Jump
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What Goes Around, Comes...
/ 43 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
1. Laura Story : Blessings
CD: Blessings
2. Francesca
Battistelli :This Is The Stuff
CD: Hundred More Years
3. Mandisa :
Stronger
CD: What If We Were Real
4. Josh Wilson :
I Refuse CD: See You
5. Casting Crowns : Glorious Day
(Living He Loved Me)
CD: Until The Whole World Hears
6. Natalie Grant: Your Great Name
CD: Love Revolution
7. Third Day Children Of God CD: Move
9. Jonny Diaz – The
Beauty Of The Cross CD: Jonny Diaz
8. Tenth Avenue North :You Are More
CD: The Light Meets The Dark
In an unprecedented six-year span with nearly 4.5 million career album sales, a GRAMMY Award, an American Music Award, 23 Dove Awards and 8 chart-topping radio singles, Casting Crowns remains focused on discipleship through music. With lead singer and songwriter Mark Hall’s 18 years in youth ministry, the band’s message remains rooted in the student ser-vices he has led on a weekly basis since 2001, at Eagles Land-ing Baptist church near Atlanta. The songs start as messages for his 400 teenagers and their families. With boldly honest, hard-hitting lyrics, the band continues to challenge, strengthen and pour into the body of Christ, giving listeners a fresh, relevant perspective on loving God and loving people.
Living life with a kingdom focus, a reaching-out, loving-the-world-like-Jesus-does purpose – that’s the focus of the band’s fourth studio album titled Until The Whole World Hears. Mil-lions of fans won’t be disappointed as these seven gifted musi-cians continue to speak truth into today’s culture through this new 12-song collection.
Mark Hall shared, “Our main purpose, above all else, is to know Him more.” It’s that unwavering desire and the intent of a personal friendship with Jesus that drives Casting Crowns and shapes its latest offering of message-centered songs into power-ful tools for discipleship. “The hymn ‘One Day’ was a big hymn for me growing up. All I knew was hymns until probably 21 or 22 years old; that’s what we had in our church. The chorus: ‘Living He loved me, dying He saved me, buried He carried my sins far away,’ that has just been a part of me from the start. As a youth pastor, you want your students to hear the theology of the hymns and sometimes you have to play it a little different way.
After all the accolades, all the awards, all the time on the road and in the studio, why does Casting Crowns continue to do what they do? The answer is simple: It’s their calling – God’s calling on the lives of these seven committed and talented musicians. To pour their lives into the students and families God has placed in their paths. To set discipleship to music. To challenge and strengthen the body of Christ. It’s what brought them together.
Miguel Paredes
Is a teacher at Edinburg North and leads the
Limitless ABF Ministry at Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen. He is married to Brenda and has four chil-
dren, Diego (9), Karla and Andrea (6) and Charis (2).
Just like faith is a gift, so is suffering for the sake of Christ. Christ chose suffering in obedience to the Father, and for the benefit of the people God made in His image. Ultimately, God is glorified in the suffering of Christ.
Paul chose suffering for the benefit of those to whom he ministered. The “embracing of suffer-ing is not just an accompaniment of our witness to Christ; it is the visible expression of it. Our sufferings make Christ’s sufferings known so that people can see the kind of love Christ offers.”
How is there pleasure in suffering? “Paul wanted what would bring the deepest and most lasting satisfaction to his life, namely, being with Christ in glory.” Paul’s suffering was for the purpose of sharing the gospel with the people of the world. These people who came to faith would also be with Paul in eternal glory enjoying Christ.
What price are you willing to pay for the glory of God?
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Author: John Piper
By Miguel Paredes
Who doesn’t seek pleasure? Every human seeks and desires to be fulfilled by something or someone. Many Christians might say that we should be careful in seeking the pleasures of the world.
John Piper argues that it’s all right to be a Christian who lives for pleasure; that is a Christian Hedonist. Yet he is clear to point us to the One who can truly satisfy all of our longings. The Christian’s delight, pleasure, and joy are found in the Creator.
John Piper’s goal is to convince you that The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.
Desiring God is a classic work which has been re-released as a 25th anniversary commemorative hardcover edition. It includes a new introduction from Piper, who reflects on the writing of the book and the past 25 years.
Christian Hedonism is rooted in “The Happiness of God.” In the life of a person it begins with conversion, and it grows in worship of the perfect God. Love is an expression of it, and Scripture and prayer are catalysts of Christian Hedonism.
The newest chapter Piper added to the book is “Suffering: The Sacrifice of Christian Hedonism.”
It seems paradoxical to say that there is pleasure to be found in suffering. Yet some of the first followers of Christ who were sharing the gospel were flogged and ordered not to speak the name of Jesus. Luke records the following in Acts 5:41, “They went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.” Piper defends the premise that suffering is a part of faithful Christian living.
Most of us are familiar with uninvited and unwelcome suffering such as cancer or the loss of a job. We are also accustomed to self-afflicted suffering because of foolish choices. But to choose suffering?
Piper writes that “[Paul] chose a path that leads to trouble and pain virtually every day of his life.”
D e s i r i n g G o d :Meditat ions o f a Chr is t ian Hedonist
We here at Valley Christian Magazine wanted to recommend some books for men,
especially for dads, as we close in on Father’s Day.
The great thing about these books, however, is that they can
be read anytime – so even if you stumble upon a copy in
July, August or whenever, reading them will be well worth
your time – and the time of those of you love the most.
Blessed reading!
win a copy of the Five Love Language books!
To Be Perfectly HonestOne Man’s Year of (Almost) Living Truthfully Could Change Your Life. No Lie
Phil CallawayVeteran author and popular speaker Phil Callaway accepted a 12-month truth challenge and To Be Perfectly Honest is a hu-morous journal of what happens when a Christian author does his best to tell the truth.
“For some, a lie-less year would be an easy assignment. Their natural habitat is the truth. Not me. I lie for a living. Oh, I’m not a lawyer or a politician. Nor do I write copy for bank advertise-ments. I’m even worse: I’m a humorist,” Callaway writes. “I stand in front of audiences and tell them funny stories. These stories are 96 percent true – at least as far as I can remember. But sometimes I add just enough salt to keep a story savory, just enough falsehood to keep peo-ple interested. Some of these things may not technically have happened, but they might as well have.”
Callaway’s book is full of suc-cess, near-success, and admit-ted failure on his quest to tell the truth. He debated imagined opponents, made a really bad in-
-tions from strangers and friends, attended a class reunion and encountered numerous awkward situations. This bare-knuckle ad-venture in truth-telling is at times humorous and often uncomfort-able, and at all times it is enlight-ening, inspiring and encourag-ing.
Every Man, God’s ManEvery Man’s Guide to Courageous Faith and Daily Integrity
Stephen Arterburn Kenny Luck
Average JoeGod’s Extraordinary Calling to Ordinary Men
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The5LoveLanguages
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Call 956.314.0161 to advertise your business or ministry.
Hillsong
UnitedJune 18th
Austin, TX
www.itickets.com
True
Sacrifice: Armed and Dangerous
June 11th
Borchard Fairgrounds
Corpus Christi
Aaron GillespieJune 10th
Living Way Family Church
350 West 302 – Brownsville
www.livingwayrgv.com
ISLAND OF PRAISE June 11th-12th
Isla Blanca Park &
Schlitterbahn
Come Worship with Island of
Praise with over 90 Worship
Leaders on 7 different stages
Free Admission
Parking Fee at Isla Blanca
Park $4
Schlitterbahn admission
apply
www.islandofpraise.com
Vacation BibleSchools
First Baptist Church
Vacation Bible School
June 20-24
8:30 am – 12:00 noon
4 years old through 8th Grade
1200 Beech – McAllen
www.fbcmcallen.com
Check out our VBS
info on page 27/ 48 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
Houston Astros BaseballFaith & Family Night
Minute Maid Park-Houston
July 16 & August 8
www.astros.com
AbandonJuly 31stHarlingen Municipal Auditorium
Sponsored by: Lifeline Hear of Worship Church
Call 956-212-4540www.lifelinehow.comFireflightJune 16th
Laredo Civic Center Ballroom
2400 San Bernardo Ave – Laredo
Doors open at 6:00
/ 49 / www.valleychristianmagazine.com /
Dear Dave,I own a small company, and lots of times I feel like I’m devoting too much time to the business and not spending enough time with my family day to
-
I started running a few years ago, and I’m out of balance if I’m
to work hard, and occasionally this can bleed over into
-versations with your kids instead of watching televi-
we should all stop wasting the time we have!
Dear Dave,We currently pay to have our lawn mowed each
budget, but we’re not quite out of debt yet. My wife says this is a luxury at this point, and I should cut the grass myself until we’re out of debt. What
Dear Ty,
a surgeon making $350,000 a year, then making lawn care part of your monthly budget is proba-
the mower and start pushing it yourself!
-sonal time worth in the marketplace, and should you be plying your trade out in the world rather than mowing the lawn?
Let’s say you’re an attorney who charges $400 an
better off out there lawyering—especially if you’re trying to get out of debt—than you would pushing
idea for you to be cutting your own grass, isn’t it?
-For more financial help, please visit
www.daveramsey.com
Finding life balance
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-
Raul “Rudy” Rodriguez
Phone: 956.380.1421 / Toll Free: 877.480.1421 / Fax: 956.380.2920 / Mobile: 956.655.5455
511 W. University / Edinburg, TX 78539 / e-mail: [email protected]
www.raulrudyrodriguezlaw.com