by Pastor James Bell

The whole idea of dads, moms and kids started when God designed the human body to reproduce itself by two becoming one and that union resulting in a third little human arriving on the scene. While some may disagree on whether or not it takes a whole village to raise a child, the necessity of a male/female relationship to produce babies is a slam dunk. There has to be a contribution from each. This might be the only thing left that social conservatives and progressive activists agree on. Facts are stubborn things.

We didn’t choose our mothers. In most cases, they didn’t choose us either. Parents who adopt make a choice, but for most people the introduction to childhood did not include any multiple choice questions. Mothers emerge out of the fog of our earliest memories. It was their face, their touch and their voice that introduced us to the planet.

Moms ensure their baby’s survival, calm their infant’s fears, confront their toddler’s rebellion, focus their pre-schooler’s energy, influence their grade-schooler’s curiosity, freak out at their pre-teen’s transformation, manage (yeah, right mom!) their teen’s activities, and then release them, reluctantly and prayerfully, as young adults. That’s the job, folks. That’s what mothers do.

God has provided props to help mothers do this all-important job. Here is a partial list of “things” moms really need to get the job done well:

• Pull up disposable diapers. Millions of them.
• Juice boxes with straws attached.
• A kitchen table / pulpit.
• Dad (a good one is priceless).
• A locked bathroom door.
• GPS (Oh yes, they do!)
• MDO. What does that mean? Sanity!
• Thick skin and a tender heart (think “teenagers”)
• Discernment.
• A good (read nurturing) church.
• A personal relationship with Jesus.

by Pastor James Bell

by Pastor James Bell

When Suzanne was single and living in an apartment, she would see a little girl named Shawna on her bike, flying down the street with her hair blowing in the wind. When Shawna became a part of Suz’s class at church, God began whispering some things to Suzanne. When I first met Shawna she was at the awkward pre-teen stage, not above giving me a few “whatever” stares. When she became a part of our family she was also celebrating her thirteenth birthday. That’s when all this started.

I doubt if any of us knew how much we needed each other. There were two crooked roads, with many a twist and turn, that merged when we got married. Then came this third person, who had her own twisted road to contend with. How this merger ever ended up in ministry is a miracle in itself.

We lived from day to day, crisis to crisis, and often made the best of difficult situations. The church was small, money was tight, and at times we literally laughed to keep from crying. On many occasions, when things were looking bleak, Shawna would say or do something as a result of her “unique perspective” on life. Suz and I would look at each other, then crack up laughing. Shawna never fully understood how she was the sunshine in many of those dark days.

The church grew, many wonderful folks like you became a part of Hosanna, and we got a little older and wiser. Shawna became our youth pastor and touched the lives of teenagers, some of whom have their own kids now. She met Scott, the only boyfriend she ever had that I liked, and they got married. They gave us grandkids! How good can things get?

Then came the call to ministry in Minnesota. For the last six years we have stretched out our emotions over the long route from H-town to St. Paul. Long trips for the Borens, and tearful departures when they left. But God grew them both. Scott has an outstanding reputation as a writer and consultant. Shawna became part of the preaching/teaching team at mega-church. Good stuff. For them. Okay, for them and lots of others to whom they ministered.

Now the best news. The Borens are headed back to Houston! Scott will be working for Hosanna part-time and pursuing his writing career as well. Shawna will be our Dream Team Pastor and will oversee our small group ministry. I probably need to wait until they are all settled in before I share what the Grandkids and I have planned. Don’t wanna blow this thing. Suz can be “Grammy” to Deklan, Gavin, Jensen and Afton as only Suz can be. After all, they are going to live right down the street!

When Shawna was at ORU, we had this father/daughter conversation. She asked, “When a kid gets adopted, and she goes off to school and her parents move (we had), is that new place still her home? Do kids get to come home again, even when they’re grown?” I replied, “When school’s out you’re still our daughter. When school’s out you come home to our home. Your home.”

Thinking I might not have communicated our love for her enough, I added, “When you get married, you’re still our little girl. When you have kids, they will be our grandkids. No matter what happens, now or later, you are still ours, you and yours…and you can always come home.”

They are coming home. I couldn’t be happier.

Wanted you all to know,

Pastor James

by Pastor James Bell

For years now, that phrase has graced our church sign and all of our media. But now, more than ever before, we are becoming that. What do you think it means to be a church for all people? Non-denominational? Multi-cultural? Accepting of everyone, no matter how, er, “different” they might be?

I think it means a place where anyone would feel at home. That can be a challenge because Houston is a huge melting pot of many races and cultures. Those who sit in our sanctuary today grew up experiencing a wide variety of religious experience. It’s very possible that on any given row you will see hands raised and voices lifted in worship by believers who were raised Catholic, Pentecostal, Baptist, or one of many denominations represented here.  Some didn’t attend church while growing up, yet they have become united in their love for God and for each other.

You will hear a lot of accents around here. It might be South American, Nigerian or Scottish in it’s origin, but when it’s spoken here, it’s still family talk. Our building is not rented out or shared with a Spanish-speaking congregation. That congregation is a part of us! We have the same heart and the same vision. Katrina was instrumental in sending us some “cajun conversation”, as well as some good, solid leadership. At Hosanna, we don’t have Hispanic friends, African-American friends, Asian friends or Caucasian friends. We just have friends. And that’s enough.

At any point in time, we have generous folks who have been greatly blessed financially and other good people who are struggling. Some have experienced miraculous healings, and others are dealing with severe health issues. We have blended families, single-parent families, racially-mixed families and just plain- old-vanilla families, and they have become great friends to each other. It is important to note that this is not how we became a church for all people, but rather it is a result of us being a church for all people. God blesses and multiplies unbiased hearts. God brings the healing of past hurts, and love flows from unselfish caring. The result is pretty awesome.

We might well be on the doorstep of something even more amazing. When worship and pray as one, the windows of Heaven are going to open. During the outpouring of the Spirit upon the infant church in Acts 2, there were worshippers of many different cultures, backgrounds and nationalities who saw and experienced it. Being in “one mind and one accord” was the focus that started it all.

If we all agreed on just a few things about worship, moving into a new dimension of intimacy with God would spontaneously happen. If, for example, we agreed on these:

• Gathering with hearts already focused on the glory and majesty of God.
• Lifting up praise together, unanimously speaking forth words of worship to God.
• Interceding corporately for needs brought before the congregation.
• Praying prophetic words of positive affirmation to Jesus, the head of the church.

The first churches in West Houston to erase barriers and worship passionately in unity will need to quickly expand to make room for the harvest God has already prepared for churches that are “for all people.

Believing,

James

by Pastor James Bell

I am really excited about being back in the Sunday services this week! So many of you have called, come by, sent cards, phoned me, texted me or spoke to me by email or Facebook. I keep saying that I’m better and will be back soon. Well, this Sunday I will be back! I want to stand before you and simply say thanks for being the kind, compassionate people that you are. Also, I hope I remember how to preach a little…

I am continuing the series taught so well by the anointed group of ministers that you have been hearing. Isn’t it wonderful that we have such gifted speakers right here in our church? You will be hearing more from them in the future. The “Blessed Are” series has two more lessons and then we are into our Christmas series. I know this will be one of my best Christmases. I hope it will be for you and your family, too.

Hope to see you this weekend!

James

p.s. My scar is healed. I can hug now.

by Pastor James Bell

Great weather, encouraging words, and wonderful people expressing a “family” kind of love in myriad ways are all good reasons to be thankful for this rehab time. An assortment of minor-but-nagging aches and pains and the patience required to do everything more slowly for awhile balances the experience to some degree. But the time alone with God is the most significant aspect of this time of healing. Here are some “aha!” thoughts along the way:

1. Intimacy with God can be hindered by service to God. God is relational in his dealings with us. To the extent that we categorize and systemize God, we quench the work of the Holy Spirit. We have a tendency to see service as “assisting God in his work”. God views service as the “obedience aspect” of a loving relationship. We can serve our way out of relationship with God if we substitute our methodology for the consistent, yet spontaneous, voice of God speaking to our spirits according to his will.
2. Each one of us is in some way…broken.  It is our human condition. Sooner or later our brokenness will bring us before God, acknowledging that we really are, and really have, nothing without him. Intimacy with God often begins with the realization of our own brokenness and the dependance on God that follows. This might be why the scripture states that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”.
3. Lots of good people love religion. True believers love Jesus. There is a huge, though often invisible, difference. The Apostle Paul was pulled away from his obsession with religion by his love affair with Jesus. Many who consider themselves “Christian” are substituting a religious lifestyle, filled with regulations and guidelines, for a profound spiritual connection with Christ. The key to conversion from religious Christian to relational Christian is the Holy Spirit. Being filled with the Spirit is to really know Jesus.

I want to acknowledge the outstanding preaching and ministry from the anointed members of Hosanna who have stepped up to replace me during this time. The Elders, Deacons, and other servant-hearted people in our church family have been providing excellence in all phases of ministry. I am blessed and deeply moved to see our anointed leadership team moving our church forward.

I hope to see you before long. Thanks for your prayers and kindness during this time.

More love than ever,

James

p.s. I can follow the sermon series by hearing the podcasts. How cool is that! 

by Pastor James Bell

It has been said that sometimes one meets his destiny on the road he chose to avoid it. Being blessed with good health for most of my life, I didn’t spend a lot of time thinking about health issues. But there had been some recent worries. My blood pressure was high and the meds didn’t seem to get it where it needed to be. Were those chest pains or just indigestion? I applied my thinking to more pressing issues about church and ministry life. But there was that nagging worry. In fact, the worry was worse than anything I actually experienced in the solving of this problem.

I had been in practically every hospital in Houston. I knew where the waiting rooms were for surgery  and ICU and where to park for emergency room visits. I had been present in many serious situations in Hospitals all over town. But I had never been the patient. It was easier for me to pray for others than for myself. In fact, I had been so close to various procedures that I had never experienced personally that I began to develop a kind of personal fear, hoping that I would never know that feeling as the patient. Well, now I know a lot of those things, and it’s not nearly as difficult as I feared.

Okay, here’s how my “experience” went down:

1. I went to have a small cyst removed from my forearm at the office of my family physician. During the procedure, which was simple and painless, I had an “involuntary nerve response” which caused me to pass out for a minute or two. My pulse rate was very low. My doctor called an ambulance to take me to Memorial Herman – Katy ER, about five minutes away (first ever ambulance ride, first IV during the ride, first ever EKG in the ER). Because of an abnormality in the EKG, they kept me overnight and did several more, as well as hooking me up to a monitor overnight (first hospital stay, monitor, etc.) Cardiologist said my heart looked good, but scheduled me for an echocardiogram and a stress test at his office.
2. Feeling like a medical veteran now, I did my testing and went back in a couple of days for the results. The abnormality in the stress test bothered my cardiologist. He said it might be that I needed a stent, or maybe not. He scheduled me for a heart cath. On the inside, I panicked. Didn’t like words that included “cath”. My cardiologist smiled, “If it’s nothing, I’ll have you headed back home in an hour or so. If I put in a stent, you’ll stay overnight. You’ll be fine.”
3. Went in for the heart cath at Memorial Herman – Memorial City. It was 6 p.m. before they finally got to me. Piece of cake. We talked about baseball during the prep and the techs were laughing and caused me to relax. Great technology, no pain. Cool. Until my cardiologist asked, “Who is your primary physician?” Then I heard him calmly-but-firmly say to a tech, “Get Kashani on the phone.” Dr. Kashani is my father-in-law’s cardiologist and a partner in my doctor’s office.  After a brief consultation, my cardiologist said, “Mr. Bell, you are going to need a double bypass.” Shocked, I said something brilliant like, “Are you sure?” Then I asked when, and he said first thing in the morning. I was glad about that. Not much time to worry about it.
4. Stayed in the hospital that night and early the next day I was rolled into surgery. My cardiologist, Dr. Feldman, had discovered a 95% blockage and another 65% blockage silently scheming to bring me down at any moment. They bumped some people to take me first. At that point, many of you were praying. Suz had been by my side, encouraging me, and now she waited.
5. I awakened to the reassurance of the surgeon that had been called in to do the bypass, Dr. Gomez. He said he used shoulder arteries instead of arteries from my legs. He said they would last a lifetime and that my heart was strong and that everything went wonderfully well. “A good attitude, Mr. Bell, that’s  what you need to recover well.” Yeah. Sure. Whatever that means.
6. Suz was encouraging, Shawna flew in from Minnesota, and people sent me word that they were praying. I felt good about it all. The nurses were unbelievable. In the Cardiac Care Unit I received such care, encouragement, and concern that I was deeply impressed and touched. It is a calling with these fine people, not just a vocation.
7. After a few days I came home. The prognosis is great. I did not have a heart attack. The timing of the events was nothing short of God’s providence. I feel blessed. I am weak, but getting stronger. Prayers and kind words come in from every direction. The Hosanna staff and elders are moving things forward with skill and anointing.

Now you know my story. God orchestrated my situation. He knew my weaknesses and overcame them. I simply did what was right. I think of all the times God has healed me. This time he chose to heal my body AND my fears. I will bring me closer to Him and make me a better pastor.

Love you guys, and look forward to seeing you soon,

James

by Pastor James Bell

To all Hosanna Men…

How do you feel when someone mentions a “Men’s Group”? Do you quickly do a mind-search of reasons you just can’t make it? Would you actually prefer a root canal or driving your Mother-in-Law to Beaumont? Or is it just sort of not interesting to you?

You probably want to live closer to Jesus than you currently are, but the thought of “relating” to men you don’t know that well, in some small room somewhere, kind of gives you the “willies”. You also don’t relish standing in a circle holding sweaty hands, listening to a nervous prayer in “Christianese”.

You would honestly like to laugh and hang out with some other males you can relate to, without pressure, obligation, or feeling like you’re at a lecture about what’s wrong with men today. And you don’t think it’s very likely that you will find that at church.

Well, we may be able to change all that!

Some time ago, I felt the Lord speaking to my heart about you. Some of you feel like you don’t have many (or any) friends at church. Some feel like slaves to the job and wish you had more time for guy friends. You might wish you had some guys you enjoyed hanging out with, but schedules, family and other obligations seem to always interfere. As a result, so many of us don’t know each other very well.

What if we got together and found out a little more about who we are, what we do, and where we came from? What if you had a “no pressure” opportunity to hang out with Hosanna men and find out more about what we’re really about?

NEXT MONDAY NIGHT AT 7 P.M. WE WILL DO THAT VERY THING!

I really hope you will come be a part of it. I would like to introduce some subjects, get your thoughts, have some laughs, and maybe hit you with a couple of surprises during our time together. We are going to call it “Impact” and it will start very simply with our guys enjoying an evening hanging out with each other and having a good time.

I believe just stepping out to do something like this could bring some good, positive changes into your life in the very near future. Would you consider joining me at the church this Monday night?

Your friend,

James

by Pastor James Bell

A few days ago I read an article where Christian leaders were predicting the direction of the church during the next decade. There seemed to be a consensus that some radical shifts are beginning to happen and will continue.

For example, Larry Stockstill believes that “results will no longer substitute for character, and gifts will no longer replace anointing”. Jack Hayford predicted the demise of “convenience oriented sermonizing that tickles ears preoccupied with personal fulfillment more than service to God and the church”.

When will we “get it” about church? How you feel about church reflects your actual relationship with God. Someone recently told me, “I loved the spontaneity of the services where my family and I attended previously, but I would have never invited my extended family or friends to come.” When I asked why, my friend said that the services were just too “out there” and would be hard to explain or difficult for non-believers to understand. I could relate.

Others have said they seldom, if ever, felt the presence of God in the churches they attended while growing up. They endured a formal church service, with teaching from the word of God, but no sense of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Been there, too.

While far from being a paragon of all things ecclesiastical, we welcome the Holy Spirit’s involvement in every service. He is invited to interrupt our agenda anytime, or lead us in a different direction while we are planning a service. We are also committed to spiritual and scriptural order, and will protect our congregation from false words and self-glorifying displays of emotion.

On Sunday mornings we are sensitive to the fact that non-believers often come with their Christian friends. We want them to feel comfortable and included in our worship. On Sunday nights the services are less structured and often result in a strong, prophetic move of the Holy Spirit. There is also more time for personal ministry.

Some Christians, in countries suffering religious persecution, meet several times each week. Some underground churches in North Korea, Vietnam and China, meet every night. Some new Christians at Hosanna wish we had more services, and try to find small groups to attend in addition to Sunday mornings and evenings. What these believers have in common is that they “get it” about the heart of the Lord for his church. They have fallen in love with Jesus.

A backsliding Christian will begin to see church as an inconvenience. Idols are not seen as idols, but rather entitlements, deserved and needed as they attempt to replace the Holy Spirit with “stuff” that brings momentary pleasure.

How do people “get it” about church? Usually it happens something like this:

They reconnect with Jesus through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
They realize and consider the importance of knowing Jesus.
They consider that, at the end of this life, only what we have done for God will have value to us.

They change their schedules to include church as a top priority.

When you develop a passion for God, everything else will come into focus and have meaning for you. And you’ll probably start to wonder why some people don’t “get it” about church.

Believing for the best for you,

James

by Pastor James Bell

Authentic Christianity is, more than anything else, a reflection of Jesus. This Easter we we were caught up in joyful, exuberant worship. The welcoming of many visitors and the fellowship of our church family was highlighted by a new peak in attendance. We had 701 in our combined (9:00, 10:45 and 2:00) services! I am so thankful for two people who came. It doesn’t matter which two. 701 just sounds better than 699, doesn’t it? What a great weekend it was!

I think many of those who attended Friday evening were surprised at what a powerful move of God we experienced. The videos, the communion service, and the connection of the worship songs to relevant truths about the cross were all a part of a strong presence of the Holy Spirit.

Saturday brought us face to face with more visitors than you might have imagined. So many thank you letters were sent out to families who were experiencing Hosanna for the first time. Many of those families returned to one of our services on Sunday.

“Exuberant” would be one word to describe Sunday’s worship. It seemed like waves of the Holy Spirit were moving across the congregation. Expressions of joyous praise echoed heavenward as everyone was blessed and refreshed.

On behalf of the Elders, Deacons, and staff, I want to say thanks to you. Thanks for coming, thanks for helping, and thanks for bringing your friends to church with you. It was one of the most memorable weekends we have ever had. Glorious worship on Friday night, wide-eyed kids finding multi-colored eggs and having a blast on Saturday morning, and then wonderful Easter services on Sunday.

Oh, and there is one more thing I want to share with you. Why not keep this going? As we begin our new series “The Church and the Kingdom of God”, let’s bring the same anticipation and enthusiasm to every service! The tomb is still empty, Jesus is still alive! All we have to do is bring the same heart for worship. The same Lord will show up with the same power in our services. Are you ready for a continual outpouring of the Spirit? Me too!

He is risen indeed,

Pastor James