Cisco Baez

Words from the Pastor
September is a crazy month in the Sonoita area isn’t it? With the Labor Day Rodeo and the Santa Cruz County Fair it just doesn’t seem that it will ever get back to normal. But you have to remember that NORMAL is just a setting on your dryer! And to top it all off here I am, God willing, sitting under a pine tree in the White Mountains waiting for an elusive Wapiti bull elk to happen by so I can shoot at him with my stick and string! Now please, before anyone out there whose allegiance leans more towards the animal than the hunter gets upset with me, let me remind you that they are full time professional wild animals and I am a part time amateur hunter! And I use the word “hunter” very loosely my friends! I love to hunt but I can’t identify as a great hunter. Psalms 36:6 says, “Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, Your justice like the great deep. You Lord preserve both people and animals (NIV).” And in my case anyway the Lord preserves the animals when I am hunting them more time than not! That’s why I don’t identify as a great hunter.
So, what do I identify with? I would like to say that my identity first and foremost is in Christ Jesus. He should be the one that makes me what I am. I am a follower of Jesus Christ and my job is to bring others into a relationship with Him that they may too be followers of His and make Him their identity. As a Christian, that is what God has called us to. Yes, He allows us to have jobs and allows us to do things that we enjoy, but as a Christian we need to be His followers!
What does the word Christian mean? By definition it is “Relating to Christ and His teachings.” We are little Christs and we adhere to and follow His teachings as closely as we possibly can. Ephesians 5:1 & 2 tells us, “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma (NKJV).” Imitators, or followers of God as some have translated it. The Good News translating translates it like this: “Since you are God’s dear children, you must try to be like him.” So, we should be walking in love as Christ does. Showing people His love unconditionally. Showing people that we will love them no matter what their lifestyle is. Showing people that we will love them no matter how they dress. He, Jesus Christ should be our identity. Everything else is just “fluff.” When people see me, I pray that they see Jesus shining out of my life and my actions. As Jesus said, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven (NIV).”
Please let me know if you need anything. You pray for me and I’ll pray for you. Naomi and I love you all. -Pastor Steve