Church Retreat 2010

The Florida Hospital Church Retreat, held at Camp Kulaqua (www.campkulaqua.com) in High Springs, FL, is the most-anticipated event of the year for FHC members and attenders. With attendance generally between 500-600, it is the perfect opportunity to engage and connect, discover a fresh understanding of God, and relax with family and friends. Here are just a few comments from last year’s Retreat Surveys:

• Loved the zoo! Best in Florida!
• Relaxing – just what I needed
• The Bluegrass vespers on Friday night was my favorite.
• My kids loved the children’s Sabbath School.
• Our family really enjoyed the canoes on Sabbath.
• Saturday night . . . David Banks . . . need I say more?
• Music – uplifting, powerful, spirit-filled
• So glad we came - next year I'm bringing friends!
• Please bring back the Russian dancing again next year!
• Danny Howell’s Sabbath School class was the best ever!
• Walka!! Walka!!
• Relaxation, time with friends – just what I needed.
• The serenity and spiritual experience of the weekend fed my soul.

Applications are now available, but be aware that the Chalets, Efficiency Apartment, Guest Cabins, and Spring View Cottage are all filled. There are still Mini Lodge Rooms, Cabins, Tent Spaces, and RV Sites open for reservations. If you do not need accommodations and decide to just drive up for the day, an application is still required, and a small day-fee will be charged (see application). Applications must be returned with payment in full, and are available online.

PLEASE NOTE: No worship services will be held at the Florida Hospital Church on Saturday morning, April 10, due to Church Retreat. Please make plans to join us at Camp Kulaqua!

Going for the Gold by Tami Cinquemani

All around the world, eyes are riveted on the events in Vancouver – the 2010 Winter Olympics. Jeff and I were watching the other night as the female snowboarders competed in the Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe Finals. Americans Hannah Teter and Kelly Clark, both previous Gold Medal winners, took the silver and bronze medals, respectively. The gold medal went to Australian Torah Bright.

What an exciting, yet frustrating, night. We watched these talented young women jump, flip, and spin in hopes of attaining the gold. We watched the ipod karaoke . . . the mental determination . . . the strength and talent . . . and we watched the frustration of unmet personal expectations. But here’s the thing that made the greatest impression in my mind – the smiles. These girls smiled.

When the runs were over, and it was apparent they did not achieve their ultimate goal, they were still able to smile. No anger, no tears, no flinging of equipment. Just smiles. How does that happen? How do you spend years in preparation of an event, confident that you have what it takes to be the best, and then not fall apart when you don’t make it?

Could it be knowing, without a doubt, that you did your best? I believe these young women gave it all they had. They didn’t hold back, they put it all on the line, they truly went for the gold. Then life happened . . . and they moved on.

Ecclesiastes 9:7-9 (the Message) says:

“Seize life! Eat bread with gusto,

Drink wine with a robust heart.

Oh yes—God takes pleasure in your pleasure!

Dress festively every morning.

Don't skimp on colors and scarves.

Relish life with the spouse you love

Each and every day of your precarious life.

Each day is God's gift. It's all you get in exchange

For the hard work of staying alive.

Make the most of each one!

Whatever turns up, grab it and do it. And heartily!”

Life is filled with failure, disappointment, and sadness. I’m not advocating a mindless denial of this fact. That reality needs to be addressed and dealt with. Solomon knew this very clearly when he penned Ecclesiastes. Solomon spent the majority of his life training for “the gold”. He was known for his wisdom, his wealth, and his writings. But in his old age Solomon floundered and fell. He lost his integrity, the respect of his people, and his dreams.

But the counsel of this wise man, familiar with failure, is clear. Live life without a net. No regrets, no “what-ifs”, no “if-onlys”. Go for the gold.

Tami Cinquemani

Looking Beyond the Labels by Tami Cinquemani

I find bumper stickers fascinating. Though adverse to adhering one to my own car, I enjoy reading the auto postings of cars around me at a red light. Whether commercial, political, sports-related, thought-provoking, or humorous, they can be seen as a window into the personality of the vehicle’s driver and an insight into their views. After all, if you’re driving the car, you’re promoting the label . . . right?

Several years ago, a friend was living with my husband and I while making a location transition. For some reason, my own car was unavailable, so my friend graciously offered me the use of his. While driving around town, I couldn’t help but notice the strange and curious looks I was getting as people drove by. One woman in particular looked at me and gestured with obvious hostility. I was perplexed. As the woman drove on I noticed an ichthys, or Jesus fish, on her bumper.

I arrived at my destination and exited my car. A man was walking by who looked at my car bumper, looked at me, shook his head, and walked on. It was when I saw the back of my car that I realized what had been causing the reactions. My friend is gay, and his bumper sported a small rainbow flag.

My understanding is that the rainbow flag is used in many cultures around the world to represent diversity and inclusiveness. In our culture it also represents gay pride. However, for the people passing the car I was driving that day, it represented an opportunity for judgment, disgust, and anger – all directed at someone unknown to them. I thought of the woman in the car with the Jesus fish and wondered if possibly she was borrowing a friend’s car as well.

Tami Cinquemani

Let the Good Times Roll by Chad Hess

In my Bible study with my AV team leaders, we just started looking at the book of John. We talked about how different John is from the other gospels. Many scholars believe that it was probably the last gospel written, and John probably tried to fill in some of the gaps from the other gospels. There are many stories that John leaves out, and there are also several things that John includes that the others leave out.

Matthew, Mark and Luke tell the story of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness as one of the starting points of Jesus’ ministry. In John, Jesus’ ministry begins with a party. In fact, John makes sure to point out that turning the water into wine was Jesus’ first miracle (John 2:11). This then makes it interesting that Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding. Jesus obviously wasn’t invited because he was hugely popular; he was a new teacher with a small following, who hadn’t done anything noteworthy yet. It seems that Jesus was invited because he was fun to be with. Jesus knew how to have a good time. And he began his ministry by quietly keeping the party going. His first act of divine power was to “keep the good times rolling”, or should we say, flowing. What a far cry from the somber, tight-laced killjoy that many people think of when they hear the word “Christian”.

I think there is a reason that Jesus did his first miracle at a party. It’s very similar to the reason why a God of infinite power choose to rest for 24 hours at the end of creation. I believe it was God’s way of reminding us that we need to rest and we need to have fun. There is something cleansing about a deep belly laugh among friends. There is something refreshing about good food and great conversation. There is something invigorating about a great party. It is so easy to get caught up in all the things that need to be done, that it can be difficult to make the time for fun. But it is important, and it is necessary. After all, Jesus didn’t come to give us a to-do list; He came “to give [us] a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10).

Chad Hess

Love in War by John Monday

Saturday night my family and a bunch of friends went to the Monster Truck Jam at the Citrus Bowl. It’s become a much-anticipated annual event. The first year my son, Luke, and I went alone. The second year Luke and I took four friends. Now it’s become four or five adults with fifteen, six- to ten-year-olds. We go early, cook hot dogs, toss a football, go through the pits, and maybe get a ride in a monster truck.

I’ll admit the Monster Jam is not the opera; it tends to bring out a different side of its fans. In fact, each of the last two years fights broke out within a few feet of our seats. They were both minor incidents that were no doubt exacerbated by too much beer and Grave Digger fans sitting to close to Maximum Destruction fans. I viewed the fights as a minor annoyance, but for a dozen nine-year-old boys, it was very memorable.

Last week Luke spent a big part of two days working on a special project in preparation for the Jam. I wasn’t aware of the project until I saw him and my six-year-old daughter, Taylor, playing with what I thought was a stick. Taylor would put the stick in her back pocket, act nonchalant, then quickly pull it out and take a defensive position like she was a gang member in a knife fight. While she was practicing her stance, Luke was advising her about how to hold the stick and what to do with it. Upon interrogation of the kids, I found that the stick had been specially chosen by Luke, cut to a specific size that would easily fit in Taylor’s pocket, and sharpened to a very intimidating point. You see, if a fight were to break out, Luke didn’t want Taylor to be defenseless.

After a teaching moment, I wasn’t sure whether to be scared, entertained, proud or angry. I leaned toward proud and entertained. But it made me reflect on the words of a friend, Danny Howell. He told me we’re all born in a war zone. He told me that the fight predated our arrival here on planet Earth and is bound to affect every one of us. He also told me that in war there is collateral damage; in other words, bad things happen. The Haitians know it, widows and widowers know it, parents sitting in NICU lobbies know it, my kids even know it. We try to prepare for it, we try to avoid it, and we try to convince ourselves that we’re exempt from it, but bad things happen.

I think Danny’s right - we’re all battlefield babies. The thing that I think is really cool is that Taylor found a defender on the battlefield. Luke cared for Taylor enough to make sure she was protected. His hand-carved weapons and diligent training won’t be enough to protect Taylor from all the evils of the war, but I wonder if there is a model here. Every one of us either has been or will be hurt in this great conflict. When the pain becomes personal, or we witness hideous wrongs committed against the innocents in our world, or the earth itself seems to harbor malevolence like it did in Haiti, no explanation will be sufficient to answer the question: Why?

But wouldn’t it be great to know that there is someone out there searching for us on the battlefield, in the rubble. Someone who will help us, prepare us, arm us, throw himself on a grenade for us. Someone who will never leave us, someone who will save us from this inescapable war… There is. That’s the gospel and his name is Christ.

John Monday

To The Thieves Who Stole My Car by David Achata

Saturday, January 16th, I walked outside to get into my car, and it wasn’t there. I thought for a moment that someone must have borrowed it, or maybe I forgot where I parked it – then I realized it had been stolen.

I called the cops. As we were filling out paperwork, my car was found, but it had been stripped to the bone. I guess a freshly painted Black 1997 Honda Civic EX with 205,000 miles is a hot commodity in Orlando! As I learned this new information, I thought to myself, “I can’t believe someone would steal a little Honda Civic . . . how low can you go?” I mean, why not steal a Lexus or an Audi or something with little more cash value?

As the thieves drove my car away and stripped it, no doubt they had to toss my bible from the driver’s seat into the passenger’s seat. Had they opened it, they would have seen “Pastor David Achata’s Bible” written in the front cover. Next to it they would have seen the notes from the sermon I had just preached to our Florida Hospital College students at Sonset Café’ that night. On the front page they would have seen written these words in bold:

“Our actions on the surface aren’t most significant; it’s what takes place in our secret lives, below the surface, that God is concerned about . . . ” How ironic.

I just finished studying through the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. If you’ll read it through you’ll see that God is very concerned about what’s done in secret (Mt. 5:22, 28, 6:3-4, 6, 18, 28, 7:1 etc.). This is interesting because we are mostly concerned about what happens in public.

I was talking on the phone recently with my friend Ron. He told me that “spirituality is like an iceberg. What’s above the surface isn’t as significant as what’s below the surface.” Think about that for a moment.

Here’s my question: Are we more concerned about what goes on in public or in private? Jesus is more concerned about the secret life, and it’s not just the car thieves who have secret lives—everybody’s got their secret lives. What does your secret life tell you about the state of your heart? The same question goes out to the guys who stole my car.

While we look at the outward appearances of things, God is looking at the heart. (1 Sam. 16:7) This is why Jesus is so significant. While we spend so much time piddling around with surface issues, Jesus wants to go to the heart, because that’s where he can heal and change the whole organism. So let Jesus go there. Sometimes it takes time, but it’s so worth it.

In Matthew 7:24-25, Jesus said, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” A person secure in the solid foundation of Jesus has no need of a secret life . . . or someone else’s ’97 Honda Civic.

David Achata

Life or Knowledge? by Stanley Pomianowski

In the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were given the option of at least two extraordinary trees: the Tree of Life (ToL) and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (ToK). The fruit from the ToL must have been really rich in anti-oxidants and other nutrients because by eating the fruit you would live forever.

Awesome.

The fruit from the ToK must have been full of omega-3s because it increased your “knowledge.” The fruit also killed you.

Not as awesome.

Satan promised Eve that she would be “like God” when she ate from the forbidden fruit; also, that she would be smarter and that God didn’t want her to be that way. We definitely know that becoming more like God from eating the fruit was a lie, but what about the knowledge part?

Online and in real life, I have run into an increasing number of atheists. They all seem to have one general idea about Christians: we’re stupid.

You see, to an atheist, Christians seem to have one answer for everything: God did it. And that just doesn’t jive with their scientific method. (In my opinion, we’re not being stupid or ignorant when we give this answer for this is what our textbook, the Bible, tells us about creation.) I wish I knew better how to communicate with them in their language so that they could understand that Jesus loves them. To me, faith and God make so much sense! The information in the Bible has logic to it.

I think that the devil is very crafty, but he has a very singular and repetitive technique. He’s still convincing people to eat from the Tree of Knowledge over the Tree of Life. People are giving up life! He’s got people believing that we need knowledge over Life AND that you can’t have Life and knowledge. I think that God wants us to be more like Him, and have Life eternal, and grow in wisdom.

“But grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever! Amen” – 2 Peter 3:18

So my question to you, dear reader, is: Is “God did it” a good enough answer?

Stanley Pomianowski,

Church Member and Guest Blogger