First Baptist Pastors

Sabbatical

2011-05-31T08:57:00.002-05:00

Greetings folks,

Well, for those of you who weren't in church on Sunday, I officially preached my last sermon until September. We have started our Sabbatical, although it doesn't really seem like it. Sunday afternoon was the crazy day we like to call Baccaluareate at Dixon High School. I don't quite know how we started this trend, but we brought all of our sound equipment from the church to the high school, and assembled it all and provided the music for the Baccaluareate service. So church got out around noon, the praise team kids and friends started disassembling things right after church and loaded it into my car. Then we had pizza together so that they wouldn't be famished when they played. Then we got to the school around 1pm, with a steady downpour putting a damper on attendance. But we got all the sound stuff into the auditorium and got it set up, all within about 45 minutes, it was awesome. John Lightner who is our sound technician, did a fabulous job. We also managed to get Kevin Dagner from the Sauk Valley Comm. Church to play guitar and sing with the girls. He's a wonderful musician with a pastors heart, and added a lot to the group. It was a nice service, although someone said that one of the class officers is Bhuddist, which surprised me that she felt like she had to participate in a Christian service. I think we'll clarify that in the future. So that was the afternoon of our sabbatical kick off.

That night proved to be another challenge. James barely slept all night with an earache/ear infection. Then Monday we thought he was feeling better so we went to a Memorial Day picnic with friends. He did alright there, but we left early becuase John was pretty tired and James became lathargic as the day wore on. He had a better night, but still woke up a few times. John on the other hand, only woke up once. (good job). It's funny how our perspective changes about what is a good night.

So our Sabbatical has not started out as spiritual as I had hoped. I wanted to sit and read and rest most days, but being a parent, that's not possible. I think I might take the boys to day care, just so I can rest and read a few days. I have high hopes for my reading list, but it's not getting off to a good start. I also have the responsibility of doing VBS this next week. I'm not a VBS kind of guy, I enjoy doing camps and games, but I was stuck with this responsibility, and I know I'm not very good, I just hope it goes alright. We are joining forces with First Presbyterian so there are added challenges in combining resources and personel. We'll see how it goes.

Back to Sabbatical, I got the resgistration for the seminar and the different workshops that I can take. I'm very pleased and excited to be able to go to Princeton Seminary, even for only a week to study preaching and to be challenged and educated a little bit more about the craft of preaching. I've always known preaching was important, but then my preaching prof. at Northern Sem. said that he led a church through transformation and growth primarily through preaching. Which I saw my dad do, but it was good to have it re-enforced. So I desire to be a good preacher, but I have to balance that with being a good dad/husband/ and pastor. I don't just want to be an orator, but i want to be a shepherd of sheep. I feel that is my calling. So we'll see how God leads me during this time of rest and rejuvenation. I pray that this will lead my to deeper sermons, which will yield deep thinkers in the congregation, and hopefully a healthy and robust church.

I'll keep this post updated with Sabbatical happenings.
Peace.

Love Thy Neighbor

2011-02-20T20:04:00.003-06:00

Everyone shows shows love in different ways, but as Christians there is no question we must show, this most excellent virtue to neighbors and enemies and everyone in between. The question is how to does this play out in everyday life. Does love mean we give everyone a Valentines card or roses? No we need to redefine love according to Jesus' definition, and his definition (as evidenced by his actions) of love is desiring God's best for a person. When the woman who was accused of adultery was brought before Jesus in John 8 how did he demonstrate God's love? He not only saved her physical life, but he cared for her spirit in this famous phrase, "Go and sin no more." The question for me is, "Do we love people enough to tell them, go and sin no more?

In our permissive culture it seems that no one wants to stand up for truth, everyone is ok, everyone is a nice and good person. No one these days takes criticism well because in a post modern culture there is no authority save oneself. Yet for Christians our authority is Christ who calls us to obedience and to discipleship through discipline. No one likes discipline but endures it for a time because they trust that it will produce the desired results. No kid wants to give in to the discipline of his parents, but they trust the parents are acting in the kids best interests. Should we think any less of our relationship with Christ. Does God not discipline those He loves? Doesn't He tell us to go and sin no more? Should we not then do that same to the people we love?

I know this seems like a tall order, but imagine the alternative to tell somone you love them and let them destroy their life. How is that love? Too many parents have enables their kids to make bad choice in the name of love, which turned out to be anything but love. In fact it is laziness on the part of parents to correct their children, or ignorance on how to in fact to teach them to live a virtuous life. Parents cannot teach something they don't know. So my hope is that as Christians we can be a voice of love and salvation for our society, a voice that says, Go and sin no more. We need to hear Jesus say it to us each day, and at the right time in a spirit of humility and peace, with respect we should say it to others to save them, and truly demonstrate God's love to them.

One of my seminary professors was fond of defining love this way. "To love someone means that I am unwilling to wallpaper their jail cell for them." What a superb definition of love. We want someones best, we don't want to make them feel good about their addiciton, their oppression, their sinfulness. Hollywood would have you think that love means we all go about our business and not get involved, and not care what other people do. But loving someone demands action, demands involvement. To love our neighbor means that we care about their well being now, and also their eternal salvation.

So my question for you is, "How well do you love?"

Parenting

2010-10-27T11:07:00.003-05:00

Hello world,

I have just a few minutes before John or J2 as he is sometimes refered to (thanks Emma) wakes up. Today was the first day that I had both boys by myself. Not a big deal, since I took James to day care, but I was at home with John and did all the Mr. Mom things, and he behaved well. I worked a bit while he slept. He didn't even wake up when I used the drill, which is way different than James. I just wanted to ask parents what they've learned through their kids. I have learned a lot about myself through the naughty stage that James has been going through. I learned that I jump too quickly to wanting to spank, I learned that I want my kids to be as close to perfect as possible, I learned that I can have patience and pity if I'm in the right frame of mind. But when I'm tired and stressed, I don't tolerate much. I used to think I was so easy going, and I am most of the time, but I take my kids discipline seriously, and I don't want them to be brats, or greedy, or inconsiderate kids and adults. But they are not my kids, they are Gods, and I have to keep praying for wisdom on how to raise them. I don't know if there will be unique challenges to raising two boys, but I suspect that they will fight, and compete, which is ok as long as they do it lovingly. :) I think i'm pretty naive here, but I can hope. In any case, God continues to teach me a lot through my journey as a parent. I think I'm becoming a better pastor because of them as well. Now if I can only make more time to visit people and work on my sermons more... that is my earnest prayer. Amen.

John Bunyan Cocar

2010-09-08T18:52:00.002-05:00

Greetings folks!

It's been a crazy few months at the Cocar household. This summer has been spent getting ready for the arrival of our new baby boy, John Bunyan Cocar. He finally came on August 27th at 3:25 AM. He was a bit of a surprise, not having him, but how early he was. We were thrilled to have such a healthy boy, he was 7lbs. 11oz. and 21 in. long. James is adjusting very well to his baby brother. Two days after we brought John home, James fell in the driveway and broke his collarbone. He was in a sling and ace bandage for a few days, which got him some more attention than usual, that has helped the transition. He is on the mend now and is without a bandage, we are looking forward to his birthday party this Saturday.
Rachel has been a doing remarkably well after the delivery. She was up and about a day after the surgery, and has not needed much pain medication. Thank you for all the prayers, God has certainly had mercy on us. Although, we don't sleep very well since John wakes up every 2 hours, we have been blessed.
I have felt a bit awkward not going to church for the past two weeks, but it's been good to spend time with the boys and Rachel. Also Jim and Arden Olsen, (Rachel's parents) have been here for the past two weeks. Life is getting back to normal, and now we just have to adjust to two boys. They say going from one to two is the hardest and I don't know if I want to find out if they are right or not. I think two boys is enough for us to handle. Praise the Lord they are healthy and we are doing well.
So that's where we're at, I promise my future posts will be more about theology and/or home improvement, but for now I have to catch up on my sleep.

Good Night.

My adventures in plumbing

2010-06-20T13:54:00.004-05:00

Greetings cyberspace,

It's been a few months since my last post, but things are fairly much the same. Our house is still under construction, my son is still not potty trained (working on it), the church is doing well, could always be better, and Rachel is still very much pregnant, but doing well. So life is good. My current project has been to put in a toilet into our basement. We had this huge walk in shower that was probably 6x6, way too big for a shower, so we decided to add a toilet. Last Wednesday I broke up a bit of concrete and made a hole big enough and deep enough to see that there is a clay pipe right under where I wanted to put the toilet. I was unsure so I asked around and it turned out that it wasn't that big a deal, except clay pipes are really delicate, they are really thick, but they crack easily. So the hole got a lot bigger real fast, and I exposes the pipes pretty much all the way around. There is the main stack for the house which is cast iron and a floor drain from the laundry room all going to this clay pipe. And wouldn't you know it, it was cracked. There was sewage leaking into the ground, it was all mud, so nasty. Anyways I should have waited for plumber, but I was impatient and didn't want sewage spilling into the basement. So I broke off the pipe and that's where I got stuck, I've never done a ton of plumbing so I didn't know what I was doing, but I knew someone who did.

The guy who told me what to do in the first place, a deacon at the church, Ed, volunteered to come over and help me fix the problem. I was ready to patch it back together and forget about it, but he knows how to do this kind of work and he was willing to help. It worked out really well because he was planning on coming to Vacation Bible School with his wife to help out, and he said he'd just come help me instead. He's a great guy, totally humble and kind, honest and hard working, my kind of guy. So we worked for 2 hours to get it all fixed up and ready to be used as a sewer again. He let me grind off the clay pipe, which I did, fairly well, I prayed before each cut, because if it broke off it would break off too deep and we couldn't get a rubber gasket on it. This happened once, but we were able to fix it. So now we have to finish putting the shower drain in, fill the hole back up with sand, then top it off with concrete, and finally add the toilet and build a glass wall in between. Piece of cake. I learned a lot this week, not much of it theological but I learned about ID and OD, important plumbing things to know. I hope my sermon this Sunday didn't suffer for lack of more preparation time. Lord knows I could always spend more time preparing. I trust in God's goodness and mercy. I didn't feel like I left the people with that one importnat thought, but it was more of an experience of loving other people. I pray that it was honoring to God.

Peace.

Since Christmas

2010-04-20T21:49:00.003-05:00

Greeting blog readers... its been four months since my last post, but it feels like only yesterday. A lot has happened since Dec. Most notably James is so much bigger and wiser. He talks more than Rachel and I do, and he's always on the go. Although recently he has learned to sit still and do one activity at a time. He has even started sitting at the table with Rachel and I. He's a great kid, and I'm proud to be his dad. One thing that is not so great is that he has yet to sit through church. On Easter he sat/squirmed through the first 15/20 minutes until childrens sermon, then went downstairs to play. I think at almost three I was sitting through church, although throughout my childhood I was always trying to find out ways to get out of church. But I'm sure as he matures he'll learn to sit through church. We'll have to make sure it's not too boring... :)
Speaking of church, that is going well. It could always be better, but I'm thrilled with how well everyone works together and how God's Spirit is present and working. There are certainly challenges, but compared to other pastors and situations, we're very fortunate. God continues to be so good to us.
On the house front we have almost finished renovating our kitchen, it's be a LOT of work, and a lot of money, but it's looking good, and we're happy to have a functional kitchen that is safe and convenient.
More theological discussions to come...
Peace

the problem of evil

2009-12-29T21:18:00.002-06:00

Recently Rachel and I were given a book about the Tsunami that happened in Asia back in the Christmas of 20o4. I remember some of the devastation, but didn't really grapple with it back then. I was still in seminary and newly married, so the event passed by like so many other tragic events. This book is entitle "Where is God in the Tsunami?" I don't usually need a dictionary when I read a book, but I do with this book. But regardless, it's a good read about the problem of evil. Why did the tsunami take place? Who is to blame? Can we say that God punished those sinful people, like some preachers claimed right after the event? The author Hart is arguing against atheists that say, "See look, there is so much evil and devastation, how could there possibly be an all powerful, all loving God?" The old question of, if there is an all loving and all powerful God, how could there be evil. Either he is not all loving, or he is not powerful enough to stop it. These are good questions, how can we as mature Christians answer these people who look at the world and say, there can't be a loving God.

I know how I would respond, right now. I'll let you all know if I get an new insight into this answer from the book. What do you all think of how to asnwer this historically difficult question?

Fall...literally

2009-10-01T08:41:00.002-05:00

Well the reason for my absence to this blog site has been due to a small but painful condition, called a hernia. I got it late August, early Sept. I was not paying attention to some of the things I was doing, and I was lifting heavy things and playing with James, (ie. throwing him up in the air), and doing some wood working, etc... And then I started having a pain in my right side. Nothing big at first, just some discomfort, but in a few days it was really hurting. Went to the doctor to have it fixed, and I had to wait for two weeks. I went to Rockford to see a dr. there and it was the same story, two weeks. So I waited in pain, I preached in pain, and then the week I was supposed to have surgery I got sick. I had a fever of 101.5 [ there was a rumor at the high school that i had a fever of 105, I think i'd be dead]. Anyways, my surgery got pushed back to last friday. It went alright I guess. I was hoping it wasn't as painful as it turned out to be. And the wierd part is that the incision is painful, but my HIP, oh... my hip really hurts. It feels like someone is tearing my hip off when I move it just right... But all the pain as subsided in recent days, I'm able to do things now, like stand up straight, walk, move, things I couldn't do before. We'll see how I do preaching on Sunday. So that's where I've been. So I haven't been to volleyball much until yesterday, and we had a home game, which we WON!!! It was great to beat a team that had beaten us so much in the past few years. We're definitely not where I want us to be, but we're getting there. The season will probably be over before we reach our full potential, but it was a good win.
On the home front, Rachel is eager to have me back to full strength. I haven't been able to help out with James too much because I can't lift him, and even putting on his pants this morning hurt becuase he squirmed too much, and it hurts for me to twist and move quickly. That's life.
I hope you all are well.
May God bless you, and watch over you. I know He has me and my family.

Peace

Cubs

2009-08-20T09:34:00.003-05:00

I thought I'd share my thoughts and feelings on the Chicago Cubs. I never played baseball in my life, except for church softball the past three years or so. But I have watched the Cubs since the late 80's when Ryno was playing second base. I started following the team more closely in seminary when I discovered talk radio kept me awake and interested on my long drives home. I was very excited when they were just five outs away from a World Series, but they broke my heart yet again after that series. What is it about the Cubs that keeps them from winning. Even when they have one of the highest pay roles in all of baseball. Can the explination be the curse, do those things even exist? I think they do. The Bible certainly has it's fair share of stories about someone being cursed. The most famous that comes to mind is that in Deuteronomy it says that anyone who is hung on a tree is cursed. Then Paul uses that as a way to explain Christ's sacrifice for us, that he took upon himself the curse that was meant for us, because of our disobedience and sin. So He who knew no sin, became sin for us.
So are the Cubs cursed, it would seem so. But more than anything, I think it's a self fulfilling prophecy. They have not won, and have been told they won't win, and so they play into it. There is a concept in Scripture called, logidzomai (Greek), that basically means calling something that is not as if it is. Saying to someone that is unpleasant, I hope you are having a good day. Or to someone who is a thief, thanks for being so honest. Paul uses this when he talks about the saints, live a life worthy of the calling you have recieved. You might not being living it now, but you can and should. In other places he calls the people saints, even though we know they were far from that. It is a way to encourage others.
We need to practice some logidzomai on the Cubs...
Currently they are six games behind the dreaded Cardinals, we'll see how the rest of the season progresses, I'm hoping against hope that they start playing better. But if not, there is always next year.

Blessings to you all, and especially all the Cub fans.

Peace

Long Time

2009-08-18T15:19:00.002-05:00

Hello there cyberspce...

I'm not sure if anyone does read these posts, but in the off chance that there is, and for my own sake I need to update you all on what has been going on in our lives. Since the middle of June or there abouts we have had a tough time with illness and death in our church. A dear sweet woman passed away very suddenly, and then a middle aged man also passed after a bout with cancer. After that we took a while to recover, and vacation couldn't come soon enough. The church has been great, but it's hard to minister to people when you are spent.

So Rachel and I went out to PA and NJ, and had some R and R with the Olsen clan. It was good to get away. But we came back a bit tired but needing to jump right back into things. I started coaching again and Rachel is back in school. It would all be fine, but our poor secretary had surgery right before we left, so we are doing some more things to keep the church running smoothly... pray for us.

More updates and thoughts forth coming...

Pentecost

2009-05-30T12:51:00.002-05:00

Happy Pentecost everyone!

I remember celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit back in Romania. Since the coming of God's Spirit upon His people means that they are made more like Him, we celebrated Pentecost with fruits. Why fruit? Obviously it's the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5, "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." So Pentecost is really a way to celebrate what God is doing in us and in our church. To honor the Holy Spirit of God who is always at work. We might be tempted to think that God is only active when we think about Him, or that He is not interested in ALL the details of our lives. But because God sent His Spirit to be among us we are assured that He is with us always.

And if God is with us and for us, who can be against us? We certainly can do all things through Christ and His Spirit that stregthens us to live the abundant life that Jesus talked about. So my friends, let us honor God by praising Him for the gift of His Holy Spirit. Without whom the church would be simply a human endeavor. Let us hold firmly to the faith that God's presence means power when we are weak, hope when we are in despair, joy when we are sad, and love when feel unloveable.

God is with us!

Enjoy Pentecost!

Bunyan

Refreshing

2009-05-23T21:24:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone who reads this post... all three of you. Rachel, James and I are safely back from Atlanta, where we had a great time at the preaching conference. We heard good preachers from across the country, people like Tom Long, Barbara Brown Taylor, Craig Barnes and others. I was touched by their desire to teach pastors, and also about how they each had a unique style. I could tell they all used notes which was comforting to know, but you could hardly tell they did since they spoke so fluidly. I have been debating with myself about NOT using notes and preaching from the text alone, but that can get difficult. I tend to ramble and say too much, and not end well. Will Willimon amazed me when he ended his sermon with a cliff hanger of a statement. I forget it word for word, but it goes something like this... Jesus does those kinds of things... and I just don't understand. Then he just walks away from the pulpit. I was litterally shocked, but inspired. I felt like it was an effective way to get people to remember the topic and content of the sermon.

Anyways, we had a good time visiting some family as well. One of the reason I chose to go to this conference was it's location. I have wanted to visit Atlanta for a while, but never had the opportunity. I got to see my uncle and his family and had a nice dinner with them, also a good friend who I grew up with. My mom and dad came to Atlanta too, they watched James a lot while Rachel and I went to the conference and out to dinner one night. Although on Thursday it was Rachel's birthday and it didn't really feel like her birthday, all I got her was a card. I plan on doing more, Lord willing. So that's where we're at for now.

I pray that we all have a safe Memorial Day, I plan on working around the house and not going in to the church. It will be there for me when I get there Tuesday.

Blessings,

Bunyan

hitting home

2009-05-04T08:36:00.003-05:00

The church father Tertullian wrote, 'the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." This topic is very near to my heart because my family has experienced much persecution, my grandfather and father both faced opposition to the Gospel. As I was reading the book I mentioned on Sunday morning, "The Persecutor" it brought a flood of emotions about what it would be like to be a pastor during those times. I often forget how much people have suffered for me to have the liberties and opportunities I have today. It certainly could have been otherwise. But God is SO faithful, He intercedes at just the right moment.

It's a good reminder that what we do on Sunday morning is a privilege, and it is of the utmost importance. People were not so fortunate to have these same freedoms for many years. So let us not neglect to meet together as some have done. It would be a shame if our spiritual ancestors knew how relaxed we are about our church attendance. But imagine if your attendance at church could include a vicious beating from secret police who would pretend to be new believers, yet tell the police of the time and location of the meeting. How many would we have in our congregation then? When I read books like this it reminds me of how serious and important the work of salvation is. Are we serious about Jesus, and the new life He gives us?

I pray that God would grant us a renewed vigor about our faith, about missions, and evangelism even in the face of opposition, whether it is financial, cultural, or personal discomfort. May the message of Jesus Christ be the most important message we share every week.

2009-04-30T11:40:00.000-05:00

How is church?

2009-04-29T22:01:00.007-05:00

Often when I speak to someone about life, they ask how is church? This is an odd question because the church is made up of so many people and situations, that it's hard to give just one response. The church building is not what makes a church. (Although it's nice to have good facilities) But the church is so much more than a structure. A church is made up of people who are all ages, personalities, and at different spiritual stages. One person might be really struggling and suffering and others might be thriving and enjoying life. So how do we answer that question? The church is not just one segment, it's the whole, many parts but one church. So how is our church doing? God has been good to us, we are seeing some growth, but more importantly we are seeing depth. The church is great because we serve a great God.
Come by and worship with us some time and find out for yourself.

Peace