Love is Just Around the Corner!

You're not going to want to miss a single sermon in this next series by Pastor Douglas Na'a. Why? It's going to be on LOVE--and when it comes to love--the more the better!

What is LOVE?                                          

Love is the most powerful force in the world. It changes people! But unless you love enough to experience how love can revolutionize your relationships and turn the obnoxious people into loveable ones, you’ll have a hard time believing in its power. 

Maybe this will help: Imagine that deep in your heart there is a love cup. When it's full, life is worth living and it's relatively easy to be kind, generous, thoughtful and patient. But when it's empty, you have nothing to give. Instead, you're filled with negative thoughts and feelings.

The love that fills the empty place in your heart is agape love. It comes from God through the people around you. It is a principle, not necessarily devoid of emotion, but not dependent on it either. It is love given with no strings attached, just because the other exists. When experienced, endorphins‑‑which are chemically similar to morphine‑‑flow into your brain, producing the sense of security, peace and calm. You feel good because you feel intrinsically valuable.

Much of the time you are unaware of your love cup. When it’s full you feel like sharing. You feel alive and want to sing and shout for joy, But when you're empty, you experience the opposite. You become selfish and hurt others with your thoughtless words and behavior. 

Did you know you have the power to fill the love cups of others? And when you do, you'll be surprised at the result!

Here's an Example of Love Power

Mindy’s husband was difficult to love. He never remembered his dad saying, “I love you,” and he grew up having to look out for himself. He married, but found it hard to be warm and responsive. Mindy was just about ready to give up on her marriage when she came to the weekend women’s retreat and heard these words, “Do you sometimes feel empty and wish someone would give you a little love and attention? Well, the answer might be to first give some love away.” 

Mindy was intrigued by the love-cup principle. Could it be that her husband was unloving because his love cup was empty and he had nothing to give? If he were full and overflowing perhaps he could be loving too. She determined to try and fill him up.

            When Mindy got home from the retreat she asked her husband to sit down because she had a list of things to read to him. His back bristled. Immediately he thought about the faucet that didn’t work and the lawn that needed mowing. He sat in silence as Missy began reading her list of all the reasons she loved him. He couldn't believe what he was hearing! At the end, he smiled weakly and asked, “Is that all?”

            “Oh, no,” she said quickly, thinking of a few more things that she appreciated about him.

            Nothing like this had occurred in their marriage for a long time, and he just didn’t know how to respond.

Now I must interrupt the story to share with you something that happened a number of years before. Then I’ll tell you the ending of the story. Mindy had wanted a mixer that kneaded bread dough. She knew the budget could never stand this luxury item, but she asked her husband anyway.  

“I’ll make a deal with you,” he bargained, “if you lose weight, I’ll get you a mixer.” Mindy tried. She starved herself and gained five pounds. Two years went by. No weight lost‑‑and no mixer. And now back to the story of the love list.

 Later that afternoon her husband said, “Oh, Mindy, I’ve decided I should go down to the bank and arrange for the financing to get the jeep fixed, and while I’m there I might as well get enough money for that bread mixer that you’ve been wanting.” It was his way of saying, “Mindy, I love you, too.”

            And the result? Mindy began losing weight‑‑even with mouth‑watering loaves of fresh home‑baked bread in the kitchen!

What can you learn from Mindy's story? 

        Just this. When you feel unloved and your life seems empty, it’s time to start reaching out to others. In the process of filling others with love, the chances are that love will be poured back into your life in ways that you might least expect.

But caution! Don’t give love to get it! Give love regardless of the outcome. Give love even though it may seem wasted. Give love because God says that’s what you should do. 

"These things I command you, that you love one another." John 15:17

What Can You Do for Your Church?

Every Member Involvement

            To paraphrase JFK's famous statement, "Ask not what your church can do for you; Ask what you can do for your church!"
          Wouldn't it be amazing if every member--from age twelve to a hundred and twelve--would be Holy Spirit inspired to use their spiritual gifts, talents, and interests to further the gospel work of the Lawai Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church?

                                          It's Nominating Committee time! 
          Getting new people to accept church offices is sometimes a challenge! So by default the same willing people are often asked to do the same jobs year after year. We're thankful for those faithful workers, but what happens to non-involved members? If you don't have a job at church or don't carry a church office which allows you to have a voice in the church, it's easy to think you're not important or that your ideas don't count. And as the years go by, it gets easier to slip away from the fellowship.

        What if every member were asked to write down what they would like to do--even if it doesn't fit into the current list of church offices? Then the nominating committee could not only fill current church offices with willing people, but they could make recommendations for adding jobs that fit specific members.

HERE'S A REVOLUTIONARY IDEA!

            What if there were no such thing as a non-working church member? What if every member (regardless of age) were asked to pray earnestly that God would impress them with a work they could do at church using their spiritual gifts? 

            God knows what needs to be done in our church—and He has a plan for each member. He can impress members to say "yes" when asked, and He can impress them to volunteer to do a job that might not be on the nominating committee's list. For example, wouldn't it be nice if we had a church librarian, or someone to call each member who was absent and ask them if they would like a CD of the service? Of course, that means someone needs to volunteer to make those CDs!
        We have a women's ministry and a men's ministry (it was just voted), but what about someone to coordinate social activities for families with young children, or plan an event for members and their non-attending spouses? And what about jobs for young people? If we want to attract people under 40 to our church, we need to make sure people under 40 are actively involved in leadership positions.

            The immediate fall-out of waiting for Spirit-led church members to volunteer, is that some offices may need to be adjusted to an individual's spiritual gifts, rather than trying to find individuals who fit the nominating committee's job description.
           But long-term, if the assumption is that every member (no matter the age) has a work God wants him or her to do in the church, then we would have more active members using their spiritual gifts and more things would be done to spread the gospel.

            Let me challenge you to start THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX and see what a difference it might make in your commitment to God to do the work He has gifted you to do.

            And when God impresses you with that work, PLEASE let the pastor or the nominating committee know, or email me and I’ll pass it on. The only way to ignite a fire of enthusiasm for church growth is if each member is Holy Spirit inspired to do God's work!

                                                        God needs you.

                                                 Our church needs you.

                  Together, let's determine to commit to the idea that every member 

                             will become a Holy Spirit inspired working member! 

Mark your Calendar for October 26!

The Church Business Meeting will be held on Sunday, October 26 at 5pm at the church. This is where names will be submitted for the committee to nominate the Nominating Committee. Get involved. You can make a difference.

Help Us Find the Right Name!

Old Kahili School

Name Your School!

            Ask long-time Kauai residents, what does the word Kahili mean to you, and quite likely they will say, “That’s the school at the base of Kahili Mountain at the end of the terrible dirt road.” Or they might mention, “Some of my friends went to that school when they were kids.” On Kauai, Kahili is synonymous with the Adventist school that hundreds of island kids attended over a 28-year period.

Kahili Standards

            When asked, “What is Kahili?” a few might say, “It’s the name of the tall feathered standards that the Hawaiians used to announce to the people that the King was coming.”

            Kahili was an inspired name for our Seventh-day Adventist School—when it was at the base of the mountain—because it not only told where the school was but it indicated the school’s mission “to tell the world the King is coming.”

            The problem is, the school is no longer at the base of Kahili Mountain. It has been moved to the temporary location of the Kapaa Seventh-day Adventist Church. So what should we call the school now?

            Should we keep the name Kahili and launch a marketing campaign to explain that Kahili isn’t a place—but the name of the standard that explains our mission to tell the world, “The King is Coming?”

Kapaa church where school is located

            Or would it be better to change the name and give the new school a new identity that isn’t tied to a location or the negative feelings about the power-play that forced the school to move from the Kahili location?

           This dilemma was posed to church members who attended the schools constituency meeting last Sunday. And now we need your help!

What makes a GREAT Name?

New Preschool Classroom

                        Ideally a name should represent the school without having to say the whole thing or having to add a motto. For example, when asked what school kids attend they usually say Kahili, or Kamehameha or Chiefess. We could call the school Kauai Adventist School, but then kids couldn’t say, “Oh, I attend Kauai!”

             The name should be short. Easy to remember—and easy to pronounce. (At least that’s what marketing experts would say.)

             It shouldn't be tied to a location—because who knows where the school will end up!

4.                It should give a message about the mission of the school by using words like character, love, service, integrity, aspire, knowledge, or care. And it would be nice if it were a simple Hawaiian name—like Kahili!

5.               It should be something that the entire constituency agrees on. We don’t want to be changing the name again!

New Elementary Classroom

            A suggestion was made that since God cares for the individual, others, and the environment—that should be the school’s mission as well. Unfortunately the Hawaiian name that suggests that idea is Na Ke Akua E Malama. And then add Adventist School—and that’s quite a mouthful. For native Hawaiians, the name easily rolls off their tongues because it basically says, “God Cares.” But for the rest of us, it’s hard to remember—and tough to say. Plus, a prominent island pediatrician uses the word Malama in the name of his clinic. We don’t want people thinking this is a school that “cares” for kids—like a medical institution.

            So, what do you think? What ideas do you have? We are praying that God will give someone a flash of insight and a spark of creativity and we will end up with a name that everyone will agree is perfect! If God can bring us a pastor who everyone agreed on—He can certainly bring us a name!

            Send your suggestions—and the reason why you think it’s a great name--to Debbie Nakamara, our School Board Chair, at deborahnakamura@msn.com. If you come up with the winning name, we can’t offer you free tuition for the child of your choice—but we can say a big MAHALO!

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Our Seventh-day Adventist conference sponsored school is