MattKaltenberger.com

Kandaria here we come!

I'm excited to announce that Grace Community Church has partnered with the community of Kandaria. Kandaria is a beautiful community just outside of Kisumu, Kenya with approximately 6000 people in need. After meeting with the community leadership, Grace will be making a 3 year commitment to come alongside this community with prayer support, financial support, and short term mission trips. Please continue to pray for Grace in Kenya as we find where God is working and join Him. (More info to come!)

  

C3

What a great conference. Dana and I have been so encouraged and challenged all at the same time. Sometimes you just need to get away and be refreshed. This has been such a God sized week. The worship has been rockin and the preaching has been out of this world. We are so grateful for the privilege to be a part of all of this. God has already taught us so much. 

Dana and I with one of my biggest heroes in ministry - Craig Groeschel. His ministry been such a great help and encouragement for me and for Grace Community. It was an honor to spend time with him personally.  

TALK, TALK, TALK

It is said that the average woman speaks around 5,000 words per day while the average man speaks around 2,000 words per day. If you work full time outside of the home, the number jumps to as many as 4,000 words a day for men, and 10,000 words a day for women. On top of that, we send countless emails and text messages and Facebook updates every day. In short, we live in a world that’s all about communication.

 

THE TONGUE

Proverbs has a lot to say about what we say. If fact it addresses our talk more than any other book in the Bible and it’s a great place to start when studying this subject. Proverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue has the power of life and death.” According to James the tongue is a hard thing to control. He compares it to a bit in a horse’s mouth, a rudder on a ship, a wild beast and a small spark that can set a fire of destruction as big as hell itself. Ephesians 4:29 tells us that we should only speak “what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” In Matthew 12:36-37 Jesus says, “Men will give an account on the day of Judgement for every careless word they have spoken.” That verse made me think about the 4,000 words I speak everyday. 

THE HEART

In many ways, the tongue indicates what’s going on in the heart. Matthew 12:34 says, “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” What a constant reminder of the importance of “God's Transformation”. My prayer for the day is, "God please change my heart and make me more like You.” Because where the heart is the tongue will soon follow.

Unbelievable!

A Real Shot in the Arm!

Today I went to the doctor to get all my vaccination shots for my trip to Kenya. What a treat that was. But as I was sitting there taking each needle like a true man, it made me wonder, where did the phrase, "It was a real shot in the arm" come from. I'm under the impression that it's just another way of saying "it was a real pick me up" or "it was a shot of energy." But I've got to tell you there was nothing enjoyable or energetic about this morning shots. 

However that made me ask the question, "What does works as a shot in the arm for me?" And to answer that question, sometimes it's seeing my kids smile, sometimes it's watching my favorite team win the big game, sometimes it's spending time with my beautiful wife. But I've got to tell you the real shot in the arm for me, is when I get the opportunity to just get alone with God and communicate with Him. It's so cool to just sit and pray and read and listen. Those times of just being still and knowing that He is God is the true shot in the arm that I need to get me through the day.  

What A Game

What a phenomenal game. One of the best Superbowls ever!  So many ups and downs. As I sit here this morning thinking about the game, 1 thing I'm reminded of is, "It's not how you start - it's how you finish." That is a line my football coach burned into our heads growing up and it rang true again last night. It would have been so easy for the Steelers to pack it up with 2 minutes left, but they finished well. And they received the reward for a job well done.  

This is a great principle for life as well. 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that our work will be tried by fire and if it remains we will receive a reward. You see it's 1 thing to start well, but the question is, "How are we going to finish? Are we going to remain faithful to what God has called us to do?" One thing God is teaching me today is the importance of remaining faithful. As a Christ follower what gets me up in the morning is I want to live in such a way that one day I will hear God say, "Well done, you good and faithful servant." That word "Faithful" is such an intriguing word to me. But the definition that I wrote in my journal today is, "Faithfulness = Finishing Well!" 

Real Change

Regardless of your political position, I am so glad that real change doesn't come from a New President or a New Governmental Structure. The truth is real change comes from you and it comes from me. The church is the change that this world has been waiting for. We're not waiting for a change or voting for a change, WE ARE CHANGE. We are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. And this isn't the time for the church to sit back and become introverted; this is the time for the church to rise up and reach out and do everything we possibly can to shine the light of Jesus Christ to a world that so desperately needs change. As you go through your day today, look for opportunities to shine that light in the way you talk, in the way you act, in the way you react. Look for ways to be that change.

Let it snow

Well we got hit with a bunch of snow today. The question is am I going to complain or enjoy Gods creation?

January 26th

I just took a huge leap of faith and decided to give Facebook a try. I’ve heard so many good things about it that I could no longer turn my back on technology. Wikipedia defines facebook as a social networking website where users can connect and interact with other people.

That definition once again reminded me that as human beings we are wired for connection. We all want to interact and know that there is someone out there who cares; someone who will listen; someone we can call a friend.

To quote a famous Christian Hymn, “We want to be where we can see our troubles are all the same, we want to go where everybody knows our name.” And I guess in today’s technology that place is Facebook.

What’s amazing to me is God already knew this. He created us and called us to belong. One of the things He is teaching me is that Christianity isn’t a solo sport. I need all the help I can get. I need you and you need me. We need each other. And what I’ve discovered through Facebook is I am so thankful for Christian friends that I can call family – even if it is over the Internet.  

Romans 12:5; Eph 2:19; Gal 6:2