Fran Trascritti culture, gospel, Jesus

The Time is Now: Wake Up

Romans 13:11–12, Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.

The feeds on my social media platform are filled with news of violence and shootings: another school shooting, a young girl brutally murdered on a train, a frame-by-frame video of Charlie Kirk getting shot, and all of it coming at once. It’s an information overload, and when you add in the many wars, political conflicts, and endless vitriol that exist in the world today, it’s overwhelming.

And we must admit one truth that sums up all that we see and hear: Evil exists in our world, and it has permeated everything. We are in darkness and in the night.

Life is fragile, and evil is real, and an existence can be ended by a virus or by an assassin’s knife or bullet. Despite many being desensitized by the media we consume, there is still a reality that life is precious and tenuous. The world is not some virtual place. Instead, it’s real, and it’s a dark, often chaotic place, with injustices and intolerable pain all around. And in this reality of the world we live in, no justification, no drama, no snarky politicizing matters.

We are in the same state: we live in a world where death, destruction, and chaos reign for the present time, and, unfortunately, no new laws, no new movements will change that significantly. And why is that? Because, to borrow a phrase from history, “We have met the enemy and the enemy is us.” No man-made action or reaction can cure the enemy of sin within us.

Sin reigns in the world, and it breeds chaos, killings, and a sea of violence. No one is immune from its power, no one is free of its influence. We sin because we are sinful, and though we pick our own pet sins to lobby against, the truth is all sin is vile, horrific, and endlessly destructive. Left to our own, we maim, injure, and hurt ourselves and others. And along the way, we justify it, doing mental gymnastics to excuse it, and even normalize it. We feel so enlightened and proud, and yet we are participants in the common destruction around us because of our sin. Our pride leads us to our doom. This is the way of the world and of the evil one, and this has been the way since the Garden.

But don’t miss the point that there is hope. While no law, movement, or politician can ever save us from ourselves, the eternal God-man, Jesus Christ of Nazareth, can. He did not come to condemn the world, but to save it. He came to restore what is the will of God, bringing a reconciliation between God and man, changing the future of each individual in a corrupted and decaying world.

It is this Jesus who snatched life from death, eternity from the temporal, and has brought hope to the despondent. This Jesus, who lived, died, and rose again, was witnessed by many who refused to deny it even under the threat of death. This Jesus, who many mock, came to save the world, and He is available for anyone to receive Him as Lord and Savior. This Jesus, who stands against evil and the chaos of its effects, brings peace, life, and hope to a lost and dying world.

Yes, this Jesus. And He calls you to wake from your sleep and become one of His own.

You don’t have to be alone in your sins, alone in the fear of the world’s random acts of violence. You don’t have to be a slave to the anxiety that rages within you or the depression that covers over you. Jesus is here and takes you through what you experience as a broken human in a broken world. He made a way for you to change your life and direction for the future. He made a way for your forgiveness, your restoration, and your eternal future with Him.

Receive or rededicate yourself to Him. It’s a life change you will never regret, a change that affects the world now and heaven tomorrow. A life change for eternity.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti Devotional, God's Goodness, intimacy, Seeking God

Even in the darkest of times…

And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days.        —Job 42:16-17 ESV

Above all, Job finished well. His horrific physical, emotional, and mental anguish did not destroy his spiritual walk with God. Despite his counsel to the contrary, Job never cursed God, never blamed God, and he never gave up. He ran the race, and he ran it well.

At the end of the day, Job lived a life full of days. He lived 140 years beyond his episodes of misery, and he enjoyed the blessings of seeing and interacting with four generations that came after him. A life well lived, a life that serves as an example to us even today.

But it wasn’t Job’s goodness that make this end so well, it was because of the grace of a comforting, faithful God. The test Job endured was because God knew Job could endure. God’s grace was made perfect in times of Job’s weakness, and times of his strength was made because of God’s presence and power. Though it may have felt like it, God never left Job, protecting his life from the evil one, softening each blow until the right time in order to demonstrate His sovereignty and might. This is why we can say that Job ended well because of the goodness of God.

You may be going through a test of sorts. It may be the darkest of times for you. Sure, it may not be a test to the extent of Job’s, but it may feel that way. If so, let me encourage you: Rest in the comfort of the Lord, draw on His strength, cry out to Him for comfort, and trust in His power. He brings joy in the morning, light in the darkness, and hope to difficult times. He is surely with you even today so you, too, can finish well.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti Pastors, Seeking God

Why I’m taking a break…

All of us should know how important it is to take time to think, to pray, and to refresh in order to be effective in their daily life. Days off are important. Vacations are important. A period of reset is incredibly important.

At key points in my life, I have been blessed to have taken time to reflect and seek the Lord, and He has always spoken in one direction or another. Time away from the grind and towards the Spirit’s leading is essential, and these past ten days have been especially fruitful.

I’m coming off of a much needed vacation, and God has spoken to me that I need to confess and adjust. What do I need to confess? Here it is: I’m confessing my over-scheduled life, my addiction to screen time, and my lack of deep, meaningful, and worshipful prayer time with the Lord.

My daily grind has been more secular than spiritual, more world than the Word, and though I have taken great steps to not fall into the “flesh trap” of doing ministry apart from the Spirit, I fear that I have been heading there. What’s worse is that after a year and a half of a daily grind to revitalize a church and turn our focus to gospel centeredness, I realize now that the greatest tragedy is the lack of the power of the Spirit of Christ in the work. And apart from Him, we can do nothing.

That’s why I am taking a break. Not from ministry and not from my church, but I’m deemphasizing activities in my life that take me away from the two greatest loves: God and people. This means less screen time, less social media, less TV, and yes, less email, text, and FB messenger. I’m instead replacing it with other things: more activities that involve me seeking to read, pray, reflect, care, share, and love life and those around me. I’ll focus less on postings and more on people. Less on “efficiency.” Less quantity, more quality. More on life. More on eternal life.

My hope is to be better, to be ever more focused on Christ and His abundant life rather than getting sucked into an inferior substitute that the world offers. This is why for the summer at least and possibly longer, I’m disengaging from social media. I’m removing it from my phone, even in some cases, deactivating some accounts.

I ask you to pray for me as I begin again at Beacon Church this week to renew our call to the gospel. Pray for a new focus, for renewed faithfulness, and for a proclaimed future in Christ, both in me and through me.

Blessings,

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti bible, culture, gospel, Jesus, Missions

Building on the Foundation at Beacon Church

Years ago, Teresa and I found out some horrible news. The house that we were living in had been renovated a few years before by the prior owner, and for some reason, we began to see stains that popped up on the kitchen floor. The stains grew bigger and bigger, and eventually, we started to see moisture from a wall. Because it looked like it might have been a water leak, I called the plumber and he quickly determined the cause of the problem: an old ice maker valve that had been attached to a pipe in a wall had begun to leak, and when they did the renovation of the house, the drywall was built around the pipe. What a terrible realization!

The leak that came from that pipe dripped throughout the kitchen, soaking all of the interior structure beneath the floor of the kitchen. In other words, all of the supporting studs were waterlogged, causing damage, destruction, and ultimately, danger for our family. Thankfully, insurance took care of everything, and soon we had workers who literally took apart our kitchen and went to the very foundation of the house to put in a new kitchen. We spent most of the weeks throughout the holidays cooking our meals on hot plates and depending on the microwave- even for our Thanksgiving meal! However, eventually, that section of the house was rebuilt, and we had a safe, beautiful place to live in: in other words, the house was better than ever before!

Now let’s apply this example to our church. When our church first began our revitalization journey years ago, some very important structural things needed to be done at Beacon. And God used Pastor Ron and many of you to make these important changes for the greater good of the gospel. Some very difficult decisions had been made, including a name change, building updates, and all this through a pandemic. It was indeed a hard journey to dig deep, get strategic, and lay foundations in preparation for the next steps as a church.

And that’s where we were when I arrived at Beacon Church one year ago. Since then, we have carefully laid a solid foundation of discipleship and fellowship at our church. In fact, nearly everyone in our church body is either in a Sunday morning small group that studies the Bible, or in our Wednesday night Bible study, or is involved in the Big Bible Challenge—and some of you are in all three! We have been intentional about having more fellowship, bonding with one another in love, supporting and knowing one another intimately, and focusing on having community as a body of Christ. These are all important foundational things in a solid, healthy church.

So what’s next? Clearly, we need to build on our foundation of discipleship: evangelism and missions. We currently are thankful that we have guests almost every week at our church, and many return to visit again. Yet there’s a need for our community that we cannot ignore: within a ten-minute drive of our church, at least 100,000 people do not worship anywhere, and many of whom do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And because we now have the ability to disciple and receive people, we need to shift to focus on creating a culture of missions and evangelism to reach our neighbors. This means that there will be training on how to share your faith, we will be improving our greeter/welcome ministry, our process for guest follow-up will be updated, and we will offer opportunities for you to serve and to share Christ in local, national, and international mission efforts. This includes a planned international missions trip in late summer/early fall (details coming soon).

Church, the West Side of Cincinnati and beyond needs Jesus, and the time is now. We’ve already laid a foundation through God and His Word, and it’s time to continue the build on this as we welcome people into our home. It’s exciting to see this happening before our eyes! I believe that we can be better than ever before as a church, but it will take your intentional effort to fulfill God’s potential in you. I believe that we can see lives transformed, families changed, and the continued presence of God’s Spirit seen among us. Please pray, seek God, and ask him how he will involve you in such a great task as to reach the West side and beyond with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Together, we can do this!

In love and faith,

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti gospel, Jesus

Did Jesus Have a Crisis of Faith?

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭27:46‬ ‭ESV‬‬, And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

As a young Christian, I came across this passage and for a long time struggled over its meaning. What was Jesus saying here? Did He give up, overwhelmed at the pain on the cross? Was He done with it all? Even more, was He having a crisis of faith?

Not knowing my Bible, I wrestled with this passage, especially reading it out of context. But as I grew in my faith and read my Bible more and more, I began to connect the Old Testament with the New. I would also dig deeper to research passages like this one. One thing that I realized is about how people in Jesus’s day would quote Scripture: they would recite the first few words of the text as a reminder of the rest of the message. For example, the Shema (hear) was a reference to Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is One.”

And as we go to what Jesus said on the cross, we see this same statement as the first line of Psalm‬ ‭22, “[1] My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?” Going further into this psalm, we can see that this text points to Christ and his cross. He was the One who bore our sins, and He did it with unbearable pain. And in case there was a doubt of what He was doing, while in the middle of His pain and suffering, Jesus referred to this psalm. He wasn’t having a crisis of faith, He was reciting this psalm, clearly making a declaration of faith!

The result is miraculous. His death gave us life. His life gave us eternity. His righteousness was placed on a people, even those not yet born. And for those who believe, they have the right to be called children of God (John 1:12). Surely He has done this!

As a result of His magnificent work, we are faced with a choice whether or not to respond, and our response should be nothing but faith in Him. We are saved, not automatically, not universally, but particularly, by the power of grace and the conduit of faith. Believe and be saved, trust and live forever.

Jesus, the One and Only, did this for you. He died, was buried, and rose again, verified by many witnesses. May you see His glorious sacrifice, respond to His offer of forgiveness, repent and be changed forever.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti culture, gospel, ministry, Missions

When Elections Fall Short…

This coming Sunday, I will be preaching on Mark 8:31-34, where Jesus shared with His disciples what was about to happen to Him when He returned to Jerusalem. Jesus was facing imminent arrest, suffering, death, and His resurrection, but all were needed to accomplish the Father’s. Peter, ever quick to react, rebuked Jesus for what He had said, and Jesus responded with a rebuke of His own: “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man” (Mk 8:33, ESV).

What was Peter thinking? I’m speculating a bit, but to be fair, he was probably concerned for Jesus’s health and well-being, but also for the work that he had given everything up for. It goes to figure that when a leader dies, a movement will usually stop, and from man’s perspective, the loss of Jesus would be devastating. This logic dictates that Jesus should never die, or at least avoid dying, and Peter’s response communicated that idea in mind.

Yet the ways of man are not the ways of God, and the ways of man will always fall short.

Photo by Element5 Digital

This brings me to today. This morning, I woke up disappointed at the news of our election in Ohio, as issue after issue fell short of what is right and proper in our state. Issue One passed, and now abortion is firmly in the constitution of Ohio. Issue Two succeeded as well, and since the recreational use of marijuana is now legal in the state, we are certainly going to be a smellier place from its distinctive “skunk smell” not to mention the real threat of having additional impaired drivers to go with its increased recreational use. Yes, in my view, the election was disappointing and sad.

And with such a result comes the reminder that people will vote as their heart believes, and we should remember that elections will miss the mark in a post-Christian society. So what is our response? More lobbying? More marketing activities? More politicking? These responses all fall short as they are all man-centered, and we end up looking more like Peter than our Savior. These ways pale in comparison to God’s ways, and although Christians should vote and passionately speak on issues, we cannot depend on these activities. Rather, elections should remind us that there is more gospel work to be done. This work is not going to happen through the ballot box, clever marketing, or gimmicks, but through the faithful sharing of the gospel. It’s on us, after all, to be the missionaries our neighbors need, as their souls cry out for someone, anyone, to share Jesus with them.

Church, wake up. Let’s love those who are without our Shepherd. Let’s stop demonizing people and instead love them with the blood-covered beauty of the gospel. Let’s care enough to get out of our comfort zones and do the real work that God calls us to do: to have gospel-centered conversations with others who desperately need eternal life. Let’s return to our own first love, sparking a fire in our hearts to reach more, teach more, and serve more with the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s change our state, one soul at a time.

We have work to do. May we step out for the Kingdom. May God use us to advance His gospel and change the world.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti culture, Devotional, discipleship, discipline

Men without Chests

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭16:13‬ ‭ESV‬‬, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.”

C.S. Lewis wrote that we are stuck in a tragi-comedy, a world where morals and virtue are not taught but expected, where ethics are relative to the eye of the beholder. What was true in his day is even more true today.

He wrote:

In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful. —Lewis, The Abolition of Man, pp. 35-37.

Our world is in need of men. Real men. Men who know the Word and step out to change the world. Men who stand for life, for their families, who think not about themselves but the ones they are called to care for. Men who are men indeed, who lead with love and love those they lead. Men with chests.

This is where the church needs to step up. Men who are being discipled to disciple others. Men who are developed, who serve Jesus well, who stand for truth and express love in a balance that is seen in Jesus. Men who become our pastors, deacons, husband’s, and fathers. Men who change lives.

This is the cornerstone of our ministry at Beacon. We have opportunities to grow, to study in the Word personally and collectively. We have shifted to be all about making disciples of men and of women and to be a light to the community around us. As we grow more, we serve more, reach more, and teach more. We can change the world when we do this faithfully and with patience.

I’m excited to be at Beacon Church, yet we’re only getting started. Pray for us as we seek to make men with chests who live and love unselfishly, as we reach Cincinnati and beyond with the gospel.

—Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti Devotional, God's Goodness, gospel, Jesus, salvation, Thirsty Thursdays

The Great Rescue Story

Or do you think that I cannot call on my Father, and he will provide me here and now with more than twelve legions of angels? Matthew 26:53, ESV

It could have been a great rescue story of the Son. He could have called 35,000, 45,000, even 50,000 or more angels to remove Himself from the grasp of His accusers. Jesus could have avoided all of this pain, the mockery, the beatings, the crown of thorns. He could have been rescued from it all.

But this was not the rescue story of Jesus. It was the rescue story of the world.

Jesus made it clear that He was saving us willingly, righteously, and zealously. He willingly endured the hatred, strife, pain, mockery, and even torture at the hands of the Jewish and Roman leaders. He willingly exchanged His sinlessness for our sin, His punishment for our benefit, His death for our life. Jesus did it for us, we who were the ones who placed Him on the cross, we who rebelled against God, sinned against Him, He did it for us. Willingly.

But why? Because of His great love for us. He loved us, so He willingly went to the cross to save us.

He died. We lived.

He suffered. We triumphed.

He was held captive. We became more than conquerors.

Because of Jesus, you have been rescued.

And through faith in Him comes no condemnation, no death, no loss of life.

In Christ, you are rescued. Freedom. Forever.

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti ministry

What is revitalization, anyway?

A few years ago, my wife and I did something crazy. We bought a house, gutted a good chunk of it, and started over. What we realized was that the basic foundation was good—the walls, the subfloor, the electrical even, but most everything else needed to be changed. With the help of some handymen, we removed walls, replaced plumbing, built cabinets, and changed the house into a home. It was tough work, but a labor of love, so much that when we moved back to Cincinnati, we bought a house that needed the same work, even more!

When it comes to the church, pastors and leaders are often in a labor of love. And yet, because the conditions of the church, the approach to transforming a church to health can look much, much different. In other words, there’s no one size fits all.

That said, there’s a difference between the terms restart (or replant) and revitalization. The term restart, for example, is just that: it is a process of completely removing existing structures in the church and starting over. The founding documents are redrawn, new leadership is brought in, the building is transferred, and the church reexists, yet completely different than the existing one. Often, the new church is considered a plant or a replant, with the exception being that the new church has ownership and possession of the existing building and assets.

Revitalization is much, much different. It is the process of keeping much of the existing church, making major changes in the structure, focus, and methodologies, and clearing a pathway so that disciplemaking can begin again. It’s plowing the field to allow the scattered seeds of the gospel to flourish and grow. This is painful, and church leaders need to know that revitalization is not a matter of rebranding…it’s a return to gospel centeredness.

Philippians 2:3–4 (ESV), “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

When we are talking about making such major changes, the passage above is so appropriate. Both methods, whether replanting and revitalization, have their challenges, but humility is key. With the right heart, breakthroughs in the attitudes and motivations can be made within the congregation. Honest conversations can occur. And with these breakthroughs and conversations, a spirit of deference such as in Phil 2:3-4 can permeate in the church!

After working with churches to grow in their leader and disciplemaking efforts, I’m now pastoring a small church that has been going through the process of revitalization. Like our work in renovating our houses, church revitalization is truly a labor of love. Our breakthroughs have come and more are to come. Yet, we are seeing progress in the gospel! In just a little under three months, people are coming to Jesus, lives are being changed, and gospel centeredness is ruling the day. The church feels alive, the members are encouraged and active, and though we have far to go, we can see our church being a light for the community through the lives of real people. May God use us to reach the West Side of Cincinnati and beyond!

Pastor Fran

Fran Trascritti gospel

Beyond the Natural

Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself, for emptiness will be his payment. Job 15:31 ESV

The world is full of those who have shut their eyes to the supernatural, seeing and trusting only the natural world that they see, hear, and feel. They trust in emptiness, temporary treasures that rust, rot, and fade away. Beauty that they cling to dissipates, physical strength weakens, and the numbers of a person’s days on earth becomes less and less. The emptiness that they trust in becomes their end.

Yet, there is hope! We have before us a greater way, the only way. Jesus, the One and Only, the path to eternity that goes beyond the natural, made us alive with Him before God. We receive Him and we live. We turn to Him and see the supernatural, the physical and the spiritual. We follow and we have eternity before us. We believe and we receive forgiveness and a new life in Him.

It’s not automatic. You must receive the Christ who paid the price for your sins. You can have hope by receiving Jesus as your Lord and Savior, make today the day everything changes!

Pastor Fran

PS- Need to talk more about your relationship with Jesus? Send me an email by going to my church page here.