Category Archives: Faith

A Man Unlike Any Other

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This man is a man unlike any other.
He was not only man, but also God.

God.

No matter where you’ve been,
what you’ve done,
or whether you believe it or not,

He died for you.

To say this man was only a man,
but a good man, a prophet,
is illogical. He himself claimed to be

God,

and if it were not so,
he would have been a liar,
a cheat, a blasphemer.

But this man was not only man, but also God.
This man is a man unlike any other.

It doesn’t seem finished. But then, most of my poems don’t. Works in progress, just like me.

31/365: Laying Down Trophies

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We used to sing that old hymn, “The Old Rugged Cross,” in church.

(As a matter of fact, Kevin and I sang it a number of years ago at my parents’ church … completely impromptu!)

The chorus goes like this:

“So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross, Till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown.”

When I was taking the scenic route home from school today, checking out houses listed for sale on my Realtor.com app, I drove down a dead-end street. As I was backing around to three-point-turn myself out of there, I noticed the trash pile at the street in front of the last house on the left:

Trophies. Big, shiny trophies. All laid out for the trash truck.

I wondered about the person who decided those trophies had lost their value. Did he work hard for them? Did she love them when she won them? Has he now died and left them to someone else who didn’t see them as valuable as he did?

I thought about the trophies that I’ve won, the awards and books and ribbons. Many of them are stored in a big plastic box that’s nothing more than a huge pain to move when we finally do (and we will). Why do I hang onto those things? Are my memories not enough?

When I read this to Kevin, he said it ties in with the words of his patron saint, Juan de la Cruz, that have been ringing in his ears all day:

“In order to arrive at possessing everything / Desire to possess nothing.”

The trophies, along with the status and prestige we “earn” through the years, hold only the value that we place on them, nothing in themselves.

And when we place value on these things and qualities, we distort the very reason we exist: to praise God every second of every day.

3/365: It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over

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Still up!

Today’s picture is a collage of pictures of our Christmas tree and a few of our ornaments, all of which still grace our living room.

But Christmas is over, you say.

Bite your tongue!

Don’t you know that Christmas doesn’t even begin until midnight Christmas Eve? Did you skip Advent altogether? Haven’t you heard about the Twelve Days of Christmas?

Well, don’t feel so bad. We didn’t know any of this until the last year or so either. 😉

According to the Christian tradition, the Twelve Days of Christmas link the Nativity to the Epiphany on January 6th, when the Christmas season ends.

So why do we start putting our trees up and humming carols closer and closer to Halloween? I think we can blame advertisements for this.

Regardless of when we get our tree up (usually the second week of December), we won’t be taking it down until after January 6th.

I can just hear Topol’s Tevya (is there really another? 😉 singing, “Tradition!”

Mary, Mother of God

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Mary at Sacred Heart's entrance

Today marks the first picture in my picture-a-day project, and there’s no better day to start it because today is not only the first day of the new year — 1/1/11 — but it’s also the Solemnity (or feast day) of Mary, Mother of God.

If you’re not Catholic, this may sound weird to you. It did to me not too long ago. As a matter of fact, calling Mary the “Mother of God” was one of the big things that hung me up about becoming Catholic. (We started the RCIA program to convert in August 2009 and were confirmed in June 2010.)

The only time I remember my Protestant churches spending much time on Mary at all was around Christmas, and that was mostly relegated to the kids’ nativity skit. I never even wondered why.

I really had to analyze what it means that Mary is the Mother of God. As a Christian already, I believed that Mary is Jesus’ mother and that Jesus is not only the Son of God but IS God, as well. So the fact that she’s Mother of God is simply a logical deduction.

In this new year, I hope to be able to weed out any more subconsciously ingrained beliefs I may have and be inspired to understand more about my faith through this project.

Atticus says the Hail Mary … in Latin!

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Thanks to our resident lover of Latin, Kevin, we’ve been starting our mealtime blessings with the Latin version of what’s called the “Trinitarian formula”: In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti (In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit).

The kids picked up on this really quickly and over the last year or so, it’s become a habit. (Lucas, aka the Prayer Police, keeps us reminded. 😉

Well, Kevin has also been praying and saying the Hail Mary in Latin, and obviously somebody’s been paying attention.

This morning on the way to the sitter’s/bus stop, Atticus wanted to say the prayer but wasn’t satisfied with English. I said the couple of lines I know in Latin, and then he kept right on going!

I was in awe, to say the least. I mean, he’s only four!

This evening before bed, he must’ve said the prayer in Latin at least 15 times. He said it’s easy. Hmmm…He obviously didn’t get his memory gene from meeee…

Ave Maria

Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum.
Benedicta tu in mulieribus,
et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.
Sancta Maria, Mater Dei,
ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc,
et in hora mortis nostrae.
Amen.

Sunday evening theology for kids

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IMG_0244
Creative Commons License photo credit: Samuraijohnny

Kevin’s spent the last couple of hours watching The Passion of the Christ with the boys.

Lucas sat on the sofa the whole time, engrossed. (Yes, it’s violent, but its impact is definitely worth the gore, unlike most of the superhero movies we usually watch around here in boy-central.) Asking question after question of Kevin, Lucas clearly took in the big picture.

Atticus ran around the house with his 3-D “bird-man” glasses on (“This is my red eye, and this is my blue eye”), but spent enough time in the living room to be able to share his commentary with me (“Jesus has blood on his face”…”There’s a hole in Jesus’ hand”).

And Kevin? He ran commentary the whole time, rendering himself a bit hoarse afterward, even.

One sliver of conversation:

Lucas: How did Jesus turn the water into wine?
Kevin: He’s God. He can do anything. He could turn you into wine if He wanted to.
Lucas: Then I would be spilled all over the couch.

I was grading papers and planning the whole time, so I didn’t get to watch and listen to all the conversation like I would have liked. But I started thinking afterward about how I may view it differently if I saw it through their eyes.

Kevin said he was trying to see things the way the kids (mostly Lucas) would, so he could explain what they may not understand. A couple of his observations:

  1. When the Jewish priests were spitting on Jesus, Lucas said, “I thought they were holy people.”
  2. Lucas wanted to know when the Devil and the demons were coming back all the time. Kevin told him to focus on Jesus instead, but it reminds me of watching The Wizard of Oz and watching for the Wicked Witch the whole time.

By the end of the movie, the kids both agreed that Jesus is the best superhero ever. Not only is he powerful, but he also heals the people who would hurt him (like the guard whose ear Peter cut off when Jesus was first seized).

Work in Progress: ‘More of You’

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One of the songs I’ve been working on over the last month or so finally took its first baby steps this week. The half-chorus I had now has its second part (I think):

More of you, less of me
That’s the way it ought to be.
Fill me Holy Spirit, let me be your light,
shining like a candle in this cold, dark night.

Atticus 2007
Atticus at about a year old, taking some baby steps 🙂

Aww…

Really, though, they’re just like babies in many ways, “my” songs. 😀

I’m very attached to them, very sensitive about them, and very protective over them just like I am my babies.

And I’ve also come to know more and more that they aren’t my own production.

While my babies came to me via God and man, my songs are pure gifts from God (no matter how I’ve distorted them in the past by not acknowledging their origin or seeking to retain their original value).

I think the main inspiration for this piece of a song came from what our priest, Father Charles Breindel, said was his chosen Bible verse, John 3:30:

“He must increase; I must decrease.”

Kevin’s brought it up many times since, especially when I’ve been in a whiny mood. 🙂

(And I promise to send the audio as soon as I figure out my WiFi issue… It’s really sweet, sweet like I used to avoid like crazy.)

UPDATE:
Wow. 2010. It’s been five years, but I’m adding a recording of this sweet little chorus.

I found this file when I was sending all of my Voice Record files to Dropbox, so I’d have room to record an interview for my grad class, so it’s probably not the one from way back then, but who knows. I’m not sure why Voice Record made it into a video (MP4); maybe I did something wrong. Regardless, it plays. 😉

And…I haven’t made any further progress on it, but I still sing it a whole lot in the car (which is probably where all of the background noise in this recording is coming from).

Immersing yourself in the now

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My bubbles of air by riandreu

How often are you fully immersed in the moment?

I mean not mentally wandering off down one mental path after another and winding back around again (maybe), but so involved in what’s happening right this second that you’re not even having to focus or think about having to focus. Because at that moment there are no options; you just simply are … in the moment.

Most of the time I’m involved in activities only partially, to varying degrees.

At the same time I’m experiencing the activity, my mind is working in a bazillion ways about a bazillion other things, related and unrelated. I may be thinking about other related activities or ideas or music or whatever may have grown from or be a reflection of what’s happening: how I could write about (or blog about or tweet about or — gasp! — even tell someone about) what’s happening or how other people would react to the activity were they in my position, for example. Or I may be thinking about all the other things I should/could/must/want-to do instead of said activity. Or I may be bouncing back and forth between or swirling around in a tornado of it all.

The now is usually part of where my head is, but it’s not solely where my head is.

And if you were to ask me exactly where my head was at a given moment, I’d have a hard time giving you a straight, honest answer. Because it’s usually a myriad of thoughts and feelings, much of which I can’t even put my finger on. (“How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?”)

I was reading The Shack earlier this summer, and a lot of it has stuck with me. One idea in particular comes to mind now.

In the book, which has raised a lot of controversy over its theology, the main character, Mack, is talking with Jesus, who is presented as a rugged carpenter in flannel, no less. (Long story!) Jesus tells Mack that humans were designed to live in the present:

“When I dwell with you, I do so in the present. I live in the present. Not the past, although much can be remembered and learned by looking back, but only for a visit, not an extended stay. And for sure, I do not dwell in the future you visualize or imagine.”

It makes so much sense. Not that God is within our time at all because he’s not, but that our versions of “past” and “future” are really only figments of our imagination. Sure the past happened, but our memories of it aren’t reality.

I don’t know if it’s possible to work on being more in the moment. It seems like trying to do it would defeat the whole purpose of it, huh?

But I don’t want to spend my life vicariously experiencing it, as I’m prone to do, through books, TV, movies, blogs, chats or even my own thoughts and memories.

Visits, yes. But I want to be and experience the now.

Songs & Sermons: The Rev. Hawke site

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Since we’ve decided to do away with the Rev. Hawke website (being that, as a Catholic, Kevin can’t actually even be a Rev.), we’re going to fill this post with what encompassed that site from 2007.

A screenshot of the Rev. Hawke website

For posterity’s sake, maybe. Also, because most of it was and is still valid.

The site’s tagline was “Praise God every second of every day!” Sounds kinda familiar, huh? 😉

Here’s what’s included:

The “About” page:

On July 27, 2006, my wife and I stepped inside St. Bartholomew’s Cathedral in Manhattan, New York City, and I was immediately filled with a peace I had never before known. I was on fire for God.

On October 23 of that same year, I was ordained through St. Luke’s Evangelical Christian Ministries, and I have been ministering to friends, family, coworkers, other ministers, and whomever the Holy Spirit leads me to.

I am married to the most beautiful woman ever, and I have three adorable children. I work as a certified correctional officer. I believe it is my duty to lead everyone to Christ, including those incarcerated at the prison, some of whom have been forgotten by everyone.

Currently, I am enrolled in the Rhema Correspondence Bible School and loving it! My motto is “Praise God every second of every day!”

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“One Wall Down” (published Sept. 29, 2007)

I just had lunch with my mom and dad. I have been concerned about my mother’s health for quite some time now. But, I’ve been even more concerned about her depression. I tried to talk to her the other day about reading the Bible. She told me that she didn’t have time. I told her that I find time to study God’s word even though I work a very serious job and I have a wife and three children at home. It was obviously just an excuse. But, she obviously didn’t want to hear any of this from her son.

I couldn’t give up. I explained to her today that she could never truly be happy unless she knew God and the only way to do that is to know God’s word in her heart. I told her that she needed to accept Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She said that she already had. I believe that.

I’ve always thought that she believed in Jesus. My mom still has a lot of guilt connected to my conception. My conception involved adulterous acts. She went on to marry my dad and to try to do the right things, but she hasn’t forgiven herself. Her first husband’s family never forgave her and it affected her ability to see my older brother. After all these years, she still harbors the guilt and anger that resulted from this situation. I told her that God commands that we forgive others. If we don’t, then He will not forgive us. Forgiving includes forgiving ourselves.

My mom started crying. I could tell that I had really hit on something. See, it’s very hard for a child to get their parents to take instruction from them. Even though I’m grown and I am a reverend, it’s still difficult. I finally broke down one of her walls. I’ve at least sparked her interest.

With God, all things are possible. I told her to praise His holy name every second of every day, and she must forgive. Then, ask the Lord for forgiveness and it will be forgiven and forgotten. I suggest that people surround themselves with God. By this I mean you should listen to Christian music, listen to Bible teaching, post Bible verses all around your house, put a Bible in every room so it is always available, and live every second of your life for Him. I know that neither my mom or anyone else can attain true happiness without God. We must study God’s word and live by it. Thank you Lord for helping me help my mother.

IHS,
Rev. Kevin R. Hawke

*Originally posted at the First International Church of the Web Bulletin Board.

3 comments for “One Wall Down”:

  1. Rev Hawke,

    You said “I suggest that people surround themselves with God.” I completely agree. There is one thing that I would like to add to that. We go through everyday life with people we call our friends. However, people that are trying to live the life of a saved being need to realize if their “friends” are not trying to be on the same path as them, they need to part themselves from them. So many people would be much closer to God, however, they are trying to maintain the same sinner filled relationship with their “friends”. People need to remember, our God is a jealous God. He wants all of you, and as you said, you are either for or against him. This is not just for friends, its also for family. We need to realize friends and family can block so many blessings. I want all that God has for me. Keep walking in it Hawke.

    Comment by A. Adams — Nov. 4, 2007 @ 8:40 pm

  2. This is especially for you Adams. I’ll make sure I respond to all of your posts from now on. Thank you so much for posting. By the way, we had a great Bible study tonight. It’s a continuous study on healing. I already have another sermon just begging to be preached. I don’t know when it will be, though.

    I tell you. I have been accused of taking Jo away from her friends (by her friends). Frankly, it’s true. We couldn’t continue to hang out with these people because they weren’t living right. Most of them have no respect for marriage, God, or even themselves. That just wouldn’t do. You really have to be careful who your friends are when you are married with children and following God. Like you said, “…you are either for or against him.”

    Here’s another little tidbit for you. We don’t like to believe it, but the devil even uses our closest family members to try and destroy us.

    We can do all things through Christ which strengthens us. It was pointed out to me the other day that “Christ” here is actually referring to the anointing, not Jesus himself. I just thought that was interesting. Maybe we’ll talk about that more later.

    In His Service,
    Rev. Kevin R. Hawke

    Comment by Rev. Kevin R. Hawke — Nov. 8, 2007 @ 11:55 pm

  3. I’m asking the two of you to forgive me. I should have asked you a long time ago, and I’m asking you to forgive me for that as well. Peace!

    Comment by glenwood — Jan. 21, 2010 @ 3:04 am

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“Do Not Judge” (published Sept. 29, 2007)

I wanted to comment on a situation that I was made aware of yesterday. A pastor friend of mine has a terrible temper. He knows it because I’ve talked to him about it. Don’t get me wrong. He is a wonderful person and a soldier for Christ; however, he cannot lead anyone to Christ who is not already heading that way because he becomes too judgmental and condescending.

I’m far from perfect, but I encourage all of the clergy to practice their listening skills. When you’re dealing with a person that has to see the logic in everything and see everything to believe it, you have to use gentle words. I was that kind of person myself. Christianity and faith were not logical to me. Faith goes against our human logic.

Anyway, this pastor keeps his grandson everyday after school. The boy’s father is a self-admitted agnostic. Frankly, this irritates the mess out of my fellow clergyman. This dad does not talk about God to his son because he doesn’t believe. It’s hard for a minister to see his grandson in fellowship with a non-believer. The grandson has never done what he should in school, and nothing has changed this year. I know for a fact that he lies, steals, and is as lazy as he can be. He is fourteen. I know the child very well.

My minister friend tells the dad that if his grandson would have been kept in church all of these years that he would be a better person. I’m not going to argue with that, but the dad didn’t like it at all. The minister was really questioning the dad’s parenting ability. We must also realize that some parents do all the “right” things and their children still go astray. This incident led to a big yelling match and the minister told the dad that maybe he should get someone agnostic to watch his child, and the dad did. So, the minister basically ran his grandson off. He’s going to regret that statement, I think.

I’m gonna do what I can to help. I talked to the dad about an hour and a half last night and told him that anger between him and the grandpa is bad for his son. The dad told me that I was the first person that he had ever discussed religion with and felt at ease about it. Everyone he ever discusses it with gets mad and defensive.

Look, people!! We’re not going to bring the lost to Jesus by getting mad and defensive. We must be compassionate and understanding. We talked about all kinds of world religions. I’ve studied quite a bit about world religions. He asked me questions, and I tried my best to answer them. This dad is very hard-headed like myself. There was a time when I was a non-believer too. So, a lot of the things he says are the same kinds of things that I used to say. Oh, all religions are trying to get to the same place. They’re just going down different paths. Nothing could be further from the truth, but that’s what a lot of people believe. There’s only on God and one way to Heaven.

If I’m able to stay in contact with this dad, I believe he will become a great soldier for God. Compassion is the key. We have to listen to people and try to understand their ideas and feelings in order to help them the way that we are called to do. Don’t be self-righteous. None of us are perfect and we don’t know everything. The more you try to force someone to believe, the more they fight it. We must lead by example and people will follow.

PRAISE JESUS EVERY SECOND OF EVERY DAY!!!!

IHS,
Rev. Kevin R. Hawke

*Originally posted at the First International Church of the Web Bulletin Board

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“Sermon #1: Forgiveness” (published Oct. 31, 2007)

Good morning. I said good morning. Let’s praise the Lord this morning. Everybody lift your hands up to the heavens and say hallelujah! Say it loud. Let God know you’re here. If we know what glorious things we have through Christ, we have to be excited. Amen?

All right. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to be here today to worship and praise you. We are here for you today, Lord. We live to praise your holy name forever. Lord, give us the understanding to know your Word and your will and may we all leave here this morning better than we came in. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

I wanted to sort of freely talk to you a little this morning before we get to the sermon. I hope everyone here is saved, and if you’re not, that can be changed today. I can’t tell if you are or not. The only person I can truly know about is me. Amen? I want all the things that the Word of God says are mine. I want salvation; I want good health; I want to be filled with the Holy Ghost; I want to speak in different tongues; I WANT IT ALL!!! Hallelujah!! I said Hallelujah!! Come on, people! I want everything God has for me and you should, too. If you don’t know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you’re saved, then after the sermon, let’s take care of that. If you need healing or to be filled with the Holy Ghost like it says in God’s Holy Written Word in Acts 2:4, then let’s fix that today.

We need to praise God every second of every day, without exception. No matter what I’m doing, I’m praising God. He is to be our number-one priority. In my life, it’s God, my wife, my children, the rest of my family, and then my job. We’re not here to be sucking up oxygen, people. We are here to praise God.

Let me tell you, I was forced to go to church as a child. I went to a United Methodist church where the only time I heard anything about the Holy Ghost was at the end of the Doxology that they sang every Sunday. They never spoke about healing or being filled with the Holy Ghost, or speaking in different tongues. Don’t get me wrong. There were some very sweet people and good people that went there and some very nice pastors whom I really liked, but they had probably never been taught these things. The most excitement you ever see there is someone saying amen every once in a while.

Look! I believe in the Holy Bible. Amen! Well, I was raised that way. When my grandpa died, I turned against God and didn’t believe in anything. I was so smart (HA! HA!) that I had to see it to believe it. God just wasn’t logical. And let’s face it; our logic comes from our minds. You can’t believe in God and worship God from your mind. You have to worship God from your belly or your spirit. In my early twenties, I started studying Wicca, which is a pagan religion. By the time Jo and I got married, I believed in a higher power, but didn’t know what it was.

But let me tell you something, my friends, God had not given up on me and he hasn’t given up on you, either. On our one-year anniversary, we walked into a church in Manhattan. We left the busy, bustling street and walked inside this absolutely beautiful church. When the door shut behind me, I felt a peace that I had never known. This feeling washed over my whole body. I knew then that God had me. My whole life changed that day. Just about all I could think about was learning about God and worshiping God. Several months later, I felt the call to minister, so I became ordained through St. Luke’s in Georgia.

I think for the first time in some time, Satan woke up and started noticing me. See, before, he didn’t have to notice me because he already had me. You are either for God or against God!! Did you hear me? You are either for God or against God. If you are not a follower of God, you are hanging out with Satan. See, Satan wants new converts, too. I was starting to realize the gifts God had given me and was starting to use them. Satan actually made me think that I wasn’t good enough to be a Christian and especially a reverend. I took my cross necklace off because I couldn’t stand it being around my neck. I took my ordination certificate and put it in the drawer and stopped reading the Bible. Whoa! I struggled with this for several months.

One day, in my spirit, I heard, “You can’t run from this.” Then, I realized that whether or not I wore my cross or displayed my certificate, I was still a child of God and a minister of His Word. God said, “You’re still mine.” So I displayed the certificate and put on the cross and nothing can stop me now.

You see, the devil is going to go after some people harder than others. He’s not after the crack head on the street. He’s got him. It makes the devil nervous when someone like me comes along who believes in Jesus and will do everything I can to lead people to him. When you are a soldier in God’s army, you can expect the devil to come after you. But I will resist and he will flee. He’s already been beaten. I just have to remind him sometimes. I’m now enrolled in Rhema’s Correspondence Bible School, and I promise you that there is not a second of any day that I am not worshiping God. And I love to pray in tongues. That gives me a wonderful peace and leads me to an understanding that I’ve never had.

So here we are this morning. What I want to talk to you about today is forgiveness. I know some of you sitting out there today really believe that you are going to receive the promises of God. You believe that you will not go to hell and that you will go to heaven. But let me tell you something. The Bible says that you will not be forgiven if you do not forgive others. And if you’re not forgiven, what does that mean? Well, you can’t go to heaven if you haven’t been forgiven.

This is a serious deal. Just about everyone I encounter will admit to hating someone if they’re honest. We’ve all been wronged before. I’ve talked to people that claim to be spirit-filled, Bible-believing Christians, and then they tell me, I hate so-and-so. Whoa! Back up! Why do you hate them, I ask? Oh, he stole some money from me one time, or he tried to mess up my marriage, or whatever. If you hate someone, you sure haven’t forgiven them.

I have been the same way in the past. I hated this guy so much that I probably would have spit on his cold, dead body. Isn’t that terrible to say? But it’s true. That was before I was made into a new creature by Christ Jesus. Most often, your hatred of someone else doesn’t affect them at all. As a matter of fact, they probably take pleasure in it.

As my wife says, what angers you controls you. That is so true. You won’t hear me admit that she’s right very often. God orders us to forgive for our own sakes. I really thought to myself one time, God wants me to forgive this person, so he won’t have me hating him. No!! God is demanding this for my own sake. Hatred will, without exception, eat you alive. To tell you the truth about it, when you hate someone, Satan himself is controlling you. When you forgive the people that have wronged you, you get rid of a heavy burden on your shoulders. It’s so nice.

People hold grudges forever. Either for something done to them or their son or daughter or other person in their life. People even hold grudges over total misunderstandings that could’ve been solved if they would have just talked about it. You must forgive. You have no choice. If you want to receive all that God has to offer, you must forgive! You must forgive! You must forgive! Before you get totally tired of hearing me talking, let’s look at some Bible verses to illustrate my point.

In Matthew’s gospel, we read in chapter 6, verses 14 and 15:

  • For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Boy that says it all, doesn’t it? I don’t know how it could be more plain than that. This was part of the greatest sermon ever preached, the Sermon on the Mount. And as we know, that was preached by Jesus Christ himself. These two verses are the words of Jesus. I’d say that’s proof positive that we need to forgive, wouldn’t you? Is there a limit to how much I should forgive someone?

Let’s look at Matthew chapter 18, verse 21. There, Peter asks Jesus,

  • Lord how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? ‘Til seven times?”

Jesus answers in verse 22:

  • I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.”

Hey, that’s 490 times a day that you’re supposed to forgive one person. It would be virtually impossible for them to wrong you that many times in one day. So Jesus is saying in an exaggerated way that there is no limit to how much you are to forgive someone.

Let’s look at Mark 11, verses 25 and 26. Jesus says in verse 25,

  • And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”

And in verse 26, he continues,

  • But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

I don’t know about y’all, but I want to be forgiven. I don’t want to suffer what I deserve. Unforgiveness can keep you from being healed; it can keep you from receiving the gifts of God. I want what God has for me. We have to do what God says. Accepting that God commands me to forgive is what enabled me to forgive. My human self didn’t want to forgive. But isn’t it wonderful that we don’t have to do anything alone because God is with us? God doesn’t expect us to do anything without Him.

In Luke chapter 17, verses 3 and 4, we read,

  • Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repeat, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying I repent, thou shalt forgive him.”

And, in Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians, which contains Paul’s doctrine concerning the Church of Christ, we read in chapter 4, verse 32,

  • And be ye kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

In Colossians chapter 3, verse 13, we read,

  • For bearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.”

Let’s look at the Old Testament. Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18, states:

  • Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shall love they neighbor as thyself: I am the Lord.”

In closing, I want to say this: God’s willingness to forgive is dependent on our willingness to forgive others. We MUST forgive and walk in love. So I encourage you to examine your hearts and if you have any ill will towards anyone, get rid of it! Pray for them to find God and to be great soldiers for God. Praying for them can help you to forgive them.

Praise God every second of every day.

Pray.

By Rev. Kevin R. Hawke and the Holy Ghost. Written for Sunday, October 28, 2007, at Victory Family Church, Danville, Virginia.

6 comments for “Sermon #1: Forgiveness”:

  1. Rev Hawke,

    I must say I love it. Not only do I love it, I also agree with every word of it. I must say, you know that I have known you for 4 years now. What you have become, and what God has made you, is beautiful. It is also something that only our God can do. I am so proud of you, and mostly happy for you. Anyone who can experience God and the Holy Ghost move within them, I am always happy for them. It is a feeling that is actually undescribable. I pray that you continue on you journey with nothing but success. You continue to move higher with the Holy Sprirt. Always keep in mind “The Devil is a liar. You can do it.”

    Comment by A. Adams — Nov. 4, 2007 @ 8:29 pm

  2. Thank you so much for checking out my website and my sermon. I really appreciate it. I told Jo that you were one of the people that immediately knew something had changed about me when I met her. You could see the difference. My primary goal is for the Holy Ghost to guide me in every word I say and every single thing that I do, without exception.

    In His Service,
    Rev. Kevin R. Hawke

    Comment by Rev. Kevin R. Hawke — Nov. 5, 2007 @ 10:15 am

  3. Well Well, how fast does the will of GOD work. Not even 2 years ago I could not imagine hearing such wonderful and true things coming from THE HAWKE, much less the Rev. HAWKE. I new early on from the time that I met you that you were a man of conviction. Whether it be the love for your wife, how to raise kids or just talking to people in general you always say what you feel. From the many conversations we have had I felt early on that you were convicted by GOD to do great things. I just didn’t realize that you and GOD were ready to go to work so fast. I recall numerous times of praying and asking God to take charge of your path. It makes me proud to see a young man not afraid to speek his mind especially about his love for our Lord. I am a firm believer in leading by example, I can not stand people who try to force JESUS down others throats, I whole heartedly believe that man spreads the love of Christ through example and action. You, my friend have whole heartedly taken that stand. I am glad that there are still good Christian men who put their faith in God and make the love and worship for him the highest priority in their homes. God Blesses those who bless him, and you my friend are the prime example of those words. Keep up the good work and continue on the path of the richeousness that you have begun.

    “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

    Mark

    Comment by Mark Moore — Nov. 12, 2007 @ 9:45 pm

  4. Mark,

    Thank you very much for taking a moment to check out the sermon. I don’t have a counter on this website, so I don’t know how many people are actually looking at it. I feel that some people are coming here, but they’re afraid to respond for whatever reason. I specifically know of a couple of ministers that have done just that.

    I really feel like I could take on a full-time job in the ministry. This is what God is leading me to, I believe. I always know that I’ll have a sermon when it’s time to preach.

    Praise God every second of every day.

    IHS,
    Rev. Kevin R. Hawke

    Comment by Rev. Kevin R. Hawke — Nov. 13, 2007 @ 10:00 pm

  5. I can only say that God can do all things. I only pray you let Him(GOD) lead you in all things.

    Comment by Chris Lampkins — Jan. 1, 2008 @ 9:31 pm

  6. Hi,
    Rev. Kev
    That is very well put and Forgiveness is a key that needs to be placed in the believers heart .
    Keep seeking the light. God is working a work in you.
    I.H.M.S
    Rev. Oz

     

    Comment by Rev. Oz — Jan. 10, 2008 @ 1:57 pm

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I, John (published Nov. 7, 2007 @ 16:58)

The day of my first sermon, my wife, Jo, and I (and my dad, too!) were commissioned to sing songs until the digital camcorder was unloaded, so my sermon could be taped. I think a lot of the music was recorded, but the only thing I have now is part of a song Jo recorded on her cell phone.

“I, John” 
vocals by Kevin Hawke
(words & music by William J. Gaither)

The first time I heard this song, it was Elvis was singing it after a concert in a hotel room, but it’s a very old song. This was the first time I’ve ever sung it in public.

2 comments for “I, John”:

  1. Dude you are a lot better than Elvis 🙂 Cool Song Comment by Mark Moore — Nov. 12, 2007 @ 9:17 pm
  2. Mark, That’s really nice of you to say, but I could never feel that way. I don’t know if you ever saw Elvis’ last concert. He looked terrible. He had a twisted colon, glaucoma, drug addiction, etc. But, he sounded awesome when he sang. He had a gift. In His Service,
    Rev. Kevin R. Hawke Comment by Rev. Kevin R. Hawke — Nov. 13, 2007 @ 9:47 pm

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“My current favorite song” (published Nov. 22, 2007)

I really love this song, “Agnus Dei,” by the band Third Day. It just makes me feel good inside. The first time I heard it was on the radio, 91.1 FM out of Roanoke. I didn’t realize Michael W. Smith did it originally until I bought a Third Day CD and a Michael W. Smith CD at the same time, and the song was on both CDs. Smith’s version is awesome, also! (He wrote the song…) If you buy Third Day’s “Chronology” CD, you can see them do the song together, which is really coooool!

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“‘Amazing Grace’ by my favorite singer in the whole world!” (published Nov. 22, 2007)

We finally got an audio track of the day of my first sermon! (Thanks, Nancye! 🙂 )

I had tears in my eyes when Jo (Mrs. Hawke) was singing this — and not because it was bad. (I have had tears in my eyes from listening to some people that can’t sing… It’s true. I know it’s not nice, but it’s true.)

This song was actually one of the songs that was scheduled to be sung on that day, October 28th.

“Amazing Grace”
vocals by Jo Hawke
words & music by John Newton (1725-1807)

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“Impromptu music on the day of my first sermon” (published Nov. 24, 2007)

Ironically, when the time came for me to preach my first sermon on October 28, 2007, we found out that there was a problem with the video camera, so we had to wait for the camera to be fixed. Nancye, my mother-in-law, asked me and Jo to sing some songs in the interim.

We had no idea what to sing, and many of the songs we ended up singing we had never sung before (and some we had never heard). I even coerced my dad, Ryland, into coming up and singing with us on a few songs. He’s been singing forever, and probably even coined the word song. Really.

Also, while we were singing, which ended up being over an hour, we had no idea we were being recorded. The small digital recorder was sitting on a nearby table; our 14-year-old son, Ryan, found it at the end of the service.

The first song we sang was my grandfather’s (my dad’s dad) favorite song, “A Beautiful Life.” All of my family on my dad’s side either sing or play music or both. Every time we got together, my grandfather requested this song. My dad sang bass and baritone on the song; I sang lead; and Jo sang tenor (though she’d never heard the song before…).

  • “A Beautiful Life” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/a-beautiful-life.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke and Ryland Hawker
    (words and music by William M. Golden, 1918)

The next song, “I, John,” I already posted a partial version of from Jo’s cell phone.

  • “I, John” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/i-john.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin Hawke
    (words and music by William J. Gaither)

This is one of the songs we’ve all known forever. I can remember singing this song when I was a little kid, back in 1812. I liked this song then, and I like it now. My little munchkin, Lucas, who’s three, sang with us and stole the show. I never realized how high Lukie’s voice is — and how low and country-fied mine is.

  • “This Little Light of Mine” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/this-little-light-of-mine.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke and Lucas!
    (Traditional spiritual)

On “I’ll Fly Away,” I sang lead, my dad sang baritone, and my honeybunch sang tenor.

  • “I’ll Fly Away” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/ill-fly-away.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke and Ryland Hawker
    (words and music by Albert E Brumley, 1929)

I fell in love with this next song, “Peace in the Valley,” when I heard Elvis sing it when I was a kid. I used to get up on the steps in the living room at my Grandma’s house, and I’d bang on the guitar, sing the songs, and pretend I was Elvis. But not to this song…

  • “Peace in the Valley” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/peace-in-the-valley.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke and Ryland Hawker
    (words and music by Thomas A. Dorsey, 1939)

The next three songs were ones that Jo knew from growing up in church.

  • “Victory in Jesus” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/victory-in-jesus.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke and Ryland Hawker
    (words and music by Eugene Monroe Bartlett, 1939)
  • “I Love You, Lord”” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/i-love-you-lord.mp3″]
    vocals by Jo and Kevin Hawke (and others)
    (words and music by Laurie Klein)
  • “Allelujah” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/allelujah.mp3″]
    vocals by Kevin and Jo Hawke, Ryland Hawker, and Nancye Ricketts
    (traditional)

This next song, “Old Rugged Cross,” was my mom’s dad’s favorite song. Jo is singing lead.

  • “Old Rugged Cross” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/old-rugged-cross.mp3″]
    vocals by Jo and Kevin Hawke
    (words and music by George Bennard, 1913)

The first time I heard this song was on the movie, “O, Brother, Where Art Thou?” and Alison Krauss was singing it. Neither of us had ever sung the song before in public.

This is one that I had sung at the Hawker Family Reunions, but Jo had never even heard it.

And the last song was another Jo knew from growing up in church.

  • “More Precious Than Silver” [audio-clammr mp3=”revhawke/more-precious-than-silver.mp3″]
    vocals by Jo Hawke (and others)
    (words and music by Lynn DeShazo)

2 comments for “Impromptu music on the day of my first sermon”:

  1. I know that you are doing it for God. And I know that he appreciates it. However, I really feel if you decided not to sing for him again, he would really appreciate that.

    “a little christian humor”

    A. Adams

    Comment by A. Adams — November 25, 2007 @ 5:13 pm

  2. Who are you again?

    *A little Christian humor*

    Comment by Rev. Hawke — November 25, 2007 @ 6:47 pm

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“Listen to the actual sermon from October 28, 2007” (published November 24, 2007)

I already posted

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