Thursday, December 24, 2009
Live with Hope in the Heart
In a couple of days the madness will be over. The stores will be back to their normal hours. The Christmas lights – well most of them – will be coming down. Parties over. Wrapping paper in trash. Fudge eaten. The important thing for us is what we do after we have seen Jesus. After the angels left and heaven was silent, the shepherds went to see Jesus. After the angels visit, Mary said “let it be.” Joseph chose to marry Mary. Gideon led an ill-equipped army. Moses marched with the Jews through the desert. Fishermen dropped their nets and followed the Master. What have you done with the grace you have been given? When I was going to Candler I always saw this car with a bumper sticker that read, “Safe women don’t change the world.” A group of psychologists got together to study regret. They asked the question, “As people reflect on their lives what do they most regret?” The surprising answer is that most people regret the things they left undone more than the mistakes they’ve made. The shepherds had heard from heaven and they acted. They would never have to look back on their lives and say I wish I would have done something with the message that the angels had shared with us. Never would they have to say, “I wish I would’ve ….” How many times will we say that? On December 26th and the days following what are you going to do with your encounter with the Christmas miracle. Do something. Live the life that God has given. Empower others. No regrets! Howard Thurman has a poem entitled “The Work of Christmas.” He says, “When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among the brothers, To make music in the heart.” Go ahead live life like the shepherds. Live with hope in the heart.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Incarnational Living
Faye Yu lives in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in the postwar horror of a punishing ten-year conflict. She has been sent by God to this region of the world in order to incarnate the good news of Christ among the children who were enslaved by this horrible war. Ten thousand children in this small country were forced into the war, some as young as five years old. If they refused to kill on behalf of the rebel army their limbs were cut off. They witnessed the killing of parents, forced to participate in the killings of family members, brainwashed, and drugged. Many of the girls were uses as sex toys for the older soldiers. In the wake of this childhood robbery, Faye is called to embody Jesus Christ. She has been sent to “flesh out” her belief in Jesus Christ. Her call as she sees it is to give children permission to be children again.
Faye understands a concept of the gospel that many of us have failed to capture. We cannot live out the gospel from a distance. We cannot be Christ from a distance. We cannot be unattached when it comes to fleshing out the good news. Jesus Christ didn’t stay in the heavens to save us. He entered our world. He became as us, a particular person, in a particular place, at a particular time. God calls us to the same. Incarnational living places Christ at the center of our life and our life at the center of what God is doing in the world. Living incarnationally gives perspective. It helps us see others, God and ourselves in new ways. To each one of us God has called us to incarnate the Gospel in a particular way at a particular time and a particular place. Each day incarnation is a choice. We are always tempted with finding easier ways out, compromising the message, or refusing to live out the gospel. Our journey with Jesus and movement closer to God is lived out when we make a conscious decision each day to live incarnate. It’s the little choices to live simply and give our lives for the sake of others that defines incarnational living.
John writes, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5). God enters the darkness. God refuses to remain in heaven and allow the world to be consumed by darkness. Instead, God climbs down into the darkest places of our lives to be with us. The message of Christmas is that darkness does not overcome. In Jesus, the light has come. We are not alone. The hope of Christmas is that God is present, God has given company. God has moved into the neighborhood.
This Christmas I challenge you to carry that light into someone’s dark world. Be the light in someone’s darkness. Make this Christmas the time for you to start living the life of Jesus, incarnational living.
Faye understands a concept of the gospel that many of us have failed to capture. We cannot live out the gospel from a distance. We cannot be Christ from a distance. We cannot be unattached when it comes to fleshing out the good news. Jesus Christ didn’t stay in the heavens to save us. He entered our world. He became as us, a particular person, in a particular place, at a particular time. God calls us to the same. Incarnational living places Christ at the center of our life and our life at the center of what God is doing in the world. Living incarnationally gives perspective. It helps us see others, God and ourselves in new ways. To each one of us God has called us to incarnate the Gospel in a particular way at a particular time and a particular place. Each day incarnation is a choice. We are always tempted with finding easier ways out, compromising the message, or refusing to live out the gospel. Our journey with Jesus and movement closer to God is lived out when we make a conscious decision each day to live incarnate. It’s the little choices to live simply and give our lives for the sake of others that defines incarnational living.
John writes, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5). God enters the darkness. God refuses to remain in heaven and allow the world to be consumed by darkness. Instead, God climbs down into the darkest places of our lives to be with us. The message of Christmas is that darkness does not overcome. In Jesus, the light has come. We are not alone. The hope of Christmas is that God is present, God has given company. God has moved into the neighborhood.
This Christmas I challenge you to carry that light into someone’s dark world. Be the light in someone’s darkness. Make this Christmas the time for you to start living the life of Jesus, incarnational living.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Joy to the World!
Jesus told his friends that his aim was that they should be filled with joy, but not just any kind of joy: “I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” According to Jesus, the problem with people is not that we are too happy for God, but that we are not happy enough. Lewis Smedes puts it this way: “To miss out on joy is to miss out on the reason for your existence.”
Jesus is the joy-bringer. We see that in the announcement on the first Christmas. We read it through the pages of Scripture. Wherever Jesus went he seemed to bring a renewed sense of joy. He gave joy to those who were fearful when he said, “Fear not, for I am with you.” He gave joy to those weighed down by guilt. He gave joy to those who were self-centered by redirecting their focus outward. Jesus is the joy-bringer.
At the end of the Gospel of Luke, we have a story of two disciples of Jesus coming from Emmaus. They were on their way home from Jerusalem after Jesus was crucified, and they were dragging along as if they’d lost their best friend. Suddenly Jesus appears and walks with them. They don’t recognize him. But he asks them, “Why are you so sad?” They reply, “You mean you were in Jerusalem and you have to ask? We thought Jesus was going to be the Savior of the world, and today he is dead.”
Jesus begins to remind them of all the scriptures that speak of the Messiah. He tells them how the Messiah must suffer and die. When the disciples reached their home, they beg Jesus to come in and have dinner with them. As the blessing is being asked over the meal, they suddenly realize who he is and he disappears from their eyes.
They were so thrilled that they can’t contain their excitement. It was dark and the roads dangerous, but that didn’t matter. They rush back to Jerusalem and tell their friends they had seen the risen Christ. They could not forget how they felt. “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he spoke,” they said. And the gospel says, “They returned to Jerusalem with great joy.”
The Jesus story starts with a joyful birth and it ends with a joyful resurrection. It is slammed packed full of joy. We can experience the joy of this message when we commit our lives to Jesus, the joy-bringer and start viewing life from this perspective.
Jesus is the joy-bringer. We see that in the announcement on the first Christmas. We read it through the pages of Scripture. Wherever Jesus went he seemed to bring a renewed sense of joy. He gave joy to those who were fearful when he said, “Fear not, for I am with you.” He gave joy to those weighed down by guilt. He gave joy to those who were self-centered by redirecting their focus outward. Jesus is the joy-bringer.
At the end of the Gospel of Luke, we have a story of two disciples of Jesus coming from Emmaus. They were on their way home from Jerusalem after Jesus was crucified, and they were dragging along as if they’d lost their best friend. Suddenly Jesus appears and walks with them. They don’t recognize him. But he asks them, “Why are you so sad?” They reply, “You mean you were in Jerusalem and you have to ask? We thought Jesus was going to be the Savior of the world, and today he is dead.”
Jesus begins to remind them of all the scriptures that speak of the Messiah. He tells them how the Messiah must suffer and die. When the disciples reached their home, they beg Jesus to come in and have dinner with them. As the blessing is being asked over the meal, they suddenly realize who he is and he disappears from their eyes.
They were so thrilled that they can’t contain their excitement. It was dark and the roads dangerous, but that didn’t matter. They rush back to Jerusalem and tell their friends they had seen the risen Christ. They could not forget how they felt. “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he spoke,” they said. And the gospel says, “They returned to Jerusalem with great joy.”
The Jesus story starts with a joyful birth and it ends with a joyful resurrection. It is slammed packed full of joy. We can experience the joy of this message when we commit our lives to Jesus, the joy-bringer and start viewing life from this perspective.
Friday, December 18, 2009
New Birth
Sharon and I have loved two wonderful boys into the world. The birth of Jaden was more routine - if you can say any birthing process is routine - than with Cohen. If personality is a reflection of the birthing process then Cohen is going to lack any kind of patience. Birth is a passive act. The enwombed child contributes nothing to the delivery. It is the mother who is celebrated after the birthing process. No one gives the newly born infant high-fives and congratulation hugs. No, we give the baby a pacifier not a medal. Mom deserves the gold. She exerts the effort. She pushes, agonizes, and delivers.
After witnessing the birth of both of my sons, I have a new appreciation for girl-power. It is the mother who pays the price of birth. She doesn't enlist the child's assistance or solicit the child's advice. Why would she? The baby can't even breath without umbilical help, much less navigate a path into new life. When the mother's body says it's time the baby comes.
Jesus says neither can we navigate a path into a new life without the help of our Parent. Spiritual re birthing requires a capable parent, not an able infant. How much were you involved in the decision when you first came into the world? Were you consulted? Were you asked? Did your parents get your permission? Just like you were loved into existence by your parents. We are also loved into a new birth through our heavenly Father. Everyone knows John 3:16 (For God so loved the world . . . ). Most of the time we read this passage as though it is saying, "For God had such love for the world that he gave his only Son." But a more accurate way of understanding this passage is by interpreting it saying, "For this is the way God loved the world: he gave his only Son." The way we understand God's love is in the giving of Jesus Christ. How would your life be altered if you truly believed that God loves you with a sacrificial love? Fully grasping this might just bring a born again experience!
After witnessing the birth of both of my sons, I have a new appreciation for girl-power. It is the mother who pays the price of birth. She doesn't enlist the child's assistance or solicit the child's advice. Why would she? The baby can't even breath without umbilical help, much less navigate a path into new life. When the mother's body says it's time the baby comes.
Jesus says neither can we navigate a path into a new life without the help of our Parent. Spiritual re birthing requires a capable parent, not an able infant. How much were you involved in the decision when you first came into the world? Were you consulted? Were you asked? Did your parents get your permission? Just like you were loved into existence by your parents. We are also loved into a new birth through our heavenly Father. Everyone knows John 3:16 (For God so loved the world . . . ). Most of the time we read this passage as though it is saying, "For God had such love for the world that he gave his only Son." But a more accurate way of understanding this passage is by interpreting it saying, "For this is the way God loved the world: he gave his only Son." The way we understand God's love is in the giving of Jesus Christ. How would your life be altered if you truly believed that God loves you with a sacrificial love? Fully grasping this might just bring a born again experience!
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
No Room In The Inn
Yesterday in staff meeting I was encouraging the staff not to allow Hallmark or Charles Dicken's to dictate for us what Christmas should look like. I was studying the passage in Luke 2: 1 - 7 and became curious about the phrase "No Room in the Inn." The word inn can be translated with two Greek words. The word in Luke 2:7 is "kataluma" and is used in Luke 22:11 as "upper room" or "guest room." The word translated "inn" is also the word "pandocheion" and is the word used in Luke 10:34 when the Good Samaritan puts up the wounded man in a hotel.
What does this mean? It helps us to understand what is going on behind the scenes in the Christmas story when we are told that there is "no room in the inn." The "inn" referred to in this passage is not like what we think of as a Motel 6 but more like there was no room in the guest room. Consider this: they are in Joseph's hometown surely he had a cousin that would have let him stay in his house. I believe the reason there is no room is because Mary and Joseph was rejected by the family. They chose not to make room for this mother who got pregnant out of wedlock. The birth of Jesus in a room where animals lived gives the impression of shame and rejection. So "no room in the inn" speaks more of rejection instead of a lack of accommodation.
The lesson: The whole Christmas message begins with parents who are poor, a mother in labor with no place to go, a newborn child with no crib for a bed, and now rejection. If this is how the Prince of Peace enters the world then there is no person too poor, too uneducated, or too insignificant.
What does this mean? It helps us to understand what is going on behind the scenes in the Christmas story when we are told that there is "no room in the inn." The "inn" referred to in this passage is not like what we think of as a Motel 6 but more like there was no room in the guest room. Consider this: they are in Joseph's hometown surely he had a cousin that would have let him stay in his house. I believe the reason there is no room is because Mary and Joseph was rejected by the family. They chose not to make room for this mother who got pregnant out of wedlock. The birth of Jesus in a room where animals lived gives the impression of shame and rejection. So "no room in the inn" speaks more of rejection instead of a lack of accommodation.
The lesson: The whole Christmas message begins with parents who are poor, a mother in labor with no place to go, a newborn child with no crib for a bed, and now rejection. If this is how the Prince of Peace enters the world then there is no person too poor, too uneducated, or too insignificant.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Lion of Judah
The first movie my wife and I saw as a couple was "Legend's of The Fall." Besides "Tombstone" it happens to be my one of my favorite movies. The movie is set in the beautiful mountains of the frontier. A log home surrounded by forests. The plot revolves around three brothers and their father. The eldest brother is focused on wealth and power. He moves to the city, starts a business, and later gets into politics. The youngest brother dies in the world war. The middle brother, Tristan, played by Brad Pitt is restless and dangerous. He is the untamed lion of the family. His heart will not him be controlled. He is wild at heart. An old Native American in the movie says he has the spirit of the bear. He says the spirit of the bear cannot be tamed.
The Spirit of Jesus cannot be tamed. Howard Mocey says, "The spiritual life cannot be made suburban; it is always frontier and we who live in it must accept and ever rejoice that it remains untamed." The poodle us suburban, tame, and domesticated. The lion is frontier, untamed, and undomesticated. It is very difficult to put a lion on a leash. Yet this is what we have attempted to do with Jesus when we replace the missionary pioneering presence of the Spirit of God with the domesticated, safe lifestyle of doing church.
I am convinced that Jesus has a lot more to teach us if we are willing to go. We miss out on the blessings of God because we have settled. We have not gone all the way with Christ. We have stopped and placed ourselves in comfortable seats when Jesus is challenging us to press on with the message of hope, love, and peace. What is it going to take to reach the 1.6 billion people who have never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ? It is going to take a pioneering presence. It is going to take a church that does not settle for comfort and safety. It is going to take people of faith who go out in boldness possessed by the Spirit of the Lion of Judah.
The Spirit of Jesus cannot be tamed. Howard Mocey says, "The spiritual life cannot be made suburban; it is always frontier and we who live in it must accept and ever rejoice that it remains untamed." The poodle us suburban, tame, and domesticated. The lion is frontier, untamed, and undomesticated. It is very difficult to put a lion on a leash. Yet this is what we have attempted to do with Jesus when we replace the missionary pioneering presence of the Spirit of God with the domesticated, safe lifestyle of doing church.
I am convinced that Jesus has a lot more to teach us if we are willing to go. We miss out on the blessings of God because we have settled. We have not gone all the way with Christ. We have stopped and placed ourselves in comfortable seats when Jesus is challenging us to press on with the message of hope, love, and peace. What is it going to take to reach the 1.6 billion people who have never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ? It is going to take a pioneering presence. It is going to take a church that does not settle for comfort and safety. It is going to take people of faith who go out in boldness possessed by the Spirit of the Lion of Judah.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Character
It's a wonderful thing to have a good reputation. Your reputation is what people think of you. It's who you are when others are watching. A reputation takes a lifetime to build, but it can be lost in a moment. One stupid act might wreck and destroy a reputation. However, reputation is not the most important. In the book of Revelation, chapter 3, Jesus speaks to the church in Sardis. The church is seen as having a great reputation. Outwardly they are respected. Them seem to be doing the right things. And yet, Jesus says, "I know your works, you have a name of being alive, but you are dead." The church had a good reputation but was lacking in character. Not everyone in Sardis had this problem. There were some in the church who understood that if you take care of your character your reputation will take care of itself. Jesus says, "Yet you have still a few persons in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes; they will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy."
Reputation is what you are supposed to be; character is what you really are. If we are consumed with building a good reputation but neglect our character then we are simply playing games. John Wooden, legendary basketball coach for UCLA says, "Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what other people think you are." God could careless about our reputation. But God is deeply concerned about our character. It has been said, "Reputation is what people will say about you at your funeral. Character is what the angels say about you before the throne of God.
Reputation is what you are supposed to be; character is what you really are. If we are consumed with building a good reputation but neglect our character then we are simply playing games. John Wooden, legendary basketball coach for UCLA says, "Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what other people think you are." God could careless about our reputation. But God is deeply concerned about our character. It has been said, "Reputation is what people will say about you at your funeral. Character is what the angels say about you before the throne of God.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
We Are Going On A Bear Hunt
For the past three months the choice bedtime book in my house has been We’re Going On a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury. The classic book describes a family going through the elements of nature in search of a bear. We have turned the story into a fun game as we explore God’s beauty in search of an imaginary bear. We’ve been chased by the bear a few times. But our family likes to chase the bear.
Have you ever had one of those moments where you do something crazy and ask yourself in retrospect: what was I thinking? As a family sometimes hunting our imaginary bear I tell myself this is crazy. Normal people don’t chase bears, we run away from them with all the strength we have. But looking in the rearview mirror, I have come to realize that the biggest risks were the greatest opportunities. The greatest opportunities were the largest bears. I’m not a risk taker, but I have realized that taking no risks is the greatest risk of all.
Sometimes God-given opportunities are disguised as blood-thirsty bears. And how we react when we encounter those bears will determine our destiny. We can cower in fear and run away from our greatest challenges. Or we can chase our God ordained purpose and seize it for all its worth.
In the church we talk about sins of commission and omission. Sins of commission are those made up of the list of don’ts. However, there is also the sin of omission. This is those things that we should have and could have done. Just because you don’t do anything wrong doesn’t mean that you actually have done anything right. Goodness is not the absent of badness. Some Christians simply focus on running away, staying away, and putting away. We need that at times. But sometimes we are called to go on a bear hunt. In the church we have become too passive. Most of what we see in the church is a spirituality that is reactive instead of proactive. Following Jesus is dangerous! It will always cost you something. Yet if we are going to discover our God-given purpose, live our God-given life, and use our God-given gifts we must be willing to chase the bears. Our greatest regrets in life will be missed opportunities. “I’m going on a bear hunt, I’m going to catch a big one!”
Have you ever had one of those moments where you do something crazy and ask yourself in retrospect: what was I thinking? As a family sometimes hunting our imaginary bear I tell myself this is crazy. Normal people don’t chase bears, we run away from them with all the strength we have. But looking in the rearview mirror, I have come to realize that the biggest risks were the greatest opportunities. The greatest opportunities were the largest bears. I’m not a risk taker, but I have realized that taking no risks is the greatest risk of all.
Sometimes God-given opportunities are disguised as blood-thirsty bears. And how we react when we encounter those bears will determine our destiny. We can cower in fear and run away from our greatest challenges. Or we can chase our God ordained purpose and seize it for all its worth.
In the church we talk about sins of commission and omission. Sins of commission are those made up of the list of don’ts. However, there is also the sin of omission. This is those things that we should have and could have done. Just because you don’t do anything wrong doesn’t mean that you actually have done anything right. Goodness is not the absent of badness. Some Christians simply focus on running away, staying away, and putting away. We need that at times. But sometimes we are called to go on a bear hunt. In the church we have become too passive. Most of what we see in the church is a spirituality that is reactive instead of proactive. Following Jesus is dangerous! It will always cost you something. Yet if we are going to discover our God-given purpose, live our God-given life, and use our God-given gifts we must be willing to chase the bears. Our greatest regrets in life will be missed opportunities. “I’m going on a bear hunt, I’m going to catch a big one!”
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
A Christmas More Meaningful
This is an article I wrote for The Paper (Braselton) last year.
Have you ever seen the construction of a Wal-Mart Supercenter? What a sight! A mammoth structure that houses everything from a grocery store to a place to get new tires. You can purchase your blue jeans along with your office supplies. You can buy a lamp shade and get a loaf of bread. And we flock there because it’s one-stop shopping, famous low prices, and a quick get in and get out affair. Don’t forget about the official smiley face mascot that greets you on every sign. It just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy as you spend your money.
This Christmas I have struggled. I had a friend give my wife and I some toy catalogs to look through because we were struggling with what to get our children for Christmas. So one evening we sat our oldest son down on the couch and said we are going to look through some toy catalogs. He jumped up in between us on the couch and for the next hour we combed through a wonderland of consumption. The next night we said we were going to read the Christmas story from the Bible and you would have thought that we said we were going to force him to drink soured milk – at least from the look on his face. To his credit he has changed and now has been retelling the Christmas story to us. We made a decision this year that we were not going to let Toys R Us tell us what our children need for Christmas.
Imagine yourself a shepherd. You have finished registering with the census. You are back caring for your sheep. Being away from the lights of the city you are able to catch a glimpse of the stars. You sit staring into the heavens with thoughts of family in mind. You imagine that back home your wife is snuggling your children into bed. As she lays down to sleep she whispers a prayer for “peace on earth.” In the stillness of the night you worry about your family. “What kind of world will your children find themselves in?” What kind of life will they live?” Who will they grow up to be?” “Have you raised them right?” Have you taught them the importance of life?” “Have you given them enough?” “Do they trust in God?” “Do they long for Shalom?” At that moment the silence is broken and your heart is beating out of your chest. The voice assures you “do not be afraid, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” What do you do with such a message? Do you get up at 4 a.m. to rush to Kohl’s because they are having an after Thanksgiving sale? Do you borrow credit off of your sheep and spend all that on gifts to bring to your children? And spend the rest of the year working overtime to pay off the debt that is owed! Or do you go on a search for the Christmas child. You don’t look in malls or advertisements. You don’t search for the Christ child on the internet or in magazines. Instead you go to the simplest of places. You find him wrapped in cloth not from Gap or Abercrombie and Fitch but handmade cloth. You find him in a manger and not in a decorated mansion. The beauty of the Christmas story is found in its simplicity. We are attracted by its simplicity. I believe one of the reasons we come back to it every year is because we long for that type of wonder and beauty. Remember the line from How the Grinch Stole Christmas: “And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! “Maybe Christmas, “he thought, “doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more!”
Have you ever seen the construction of a Wal-Mart Supercenter? What a sight! A mammoth structure that houses everything from a grocery store to a place to get new tires. You can purchase your blue jeans along with your office supplies. You can buy a lamp shade and get a loaf of bread. And we flock there because it’s one-stop shopping, famous low prices, and a quick get in and get out affair. Don’t forget about the official smiley face mascot that greets you on every sign. It just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy as you spend your money.
This Christmas I have struggled. I had a friend give my wife and I some toy catalogs to look through because we were struggling with what to get our children for Christmas. So one evening we sat our oldest son down on the couch and said we are going to look through some toy catalogs. He jumped up in between us on the couch and for the next hour we combed through a wonderland of consumption. The next night we said we were going to read the Christmas story from the Bible and you would have thought that we said we were going to force him to drink soured milk – at least from the look on his face. To his credit he has changed and now has been retelling the Christmas story to us. We made a decision this year that we were not going to let Toys R Us tell us what our children need for Christmas.
Imagine yourself a shepherd. You have finished registering with the census. You are back caring for your sheep. Being away from the lights of the city you are able to catch a glimpse of the stars. You sit staring into the heavens with thoughts of family in mind. You imagine that back home your wife is snuggling your children into bed. As she lays down to sleep she whispers a prayer for “peace on earth.” In the stillness of the night you worry about your family. “What kind of world will your children find themselves in?” What kind of life will they live?” Who will they grow up to be?” “Have you raised them right?” Have you taught them the importance of life?” “Have you given them enough?” “Do they trust in God?” “Do they long for Shalom?” At that moment the silence is broken and your heart is beating out of your chest. The voice assures you “do not be afraid, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” What do you do with such a message? Do you get up at 4 a.m. to rush to Kohl’s because they are having an after Thanksgiving sale? Do you borrow credit off of your sheep and spend all that on gifts to bring to your children? And spend the rest of the year working overtime to pay off the debt that is owed! Or do you go on a search for the Christmas child. You don’t look in malls or advertisements. You don’t search for the Christ child on the internet or in magazines. Instead you go to the simplest of places. You find him wrapped in cloth not from Gap or Abercrombie and Fitch but handmade cloth. You find him in a manger and not in a decorated mansion. The beauty of the Christmas story is found in its simplicity. We are attracted by its simplicity. I believe one of the reasons we come back to it every year is because we long for that type of wonder and beauty. Remember the line from How the Grinch Stole Christmas: “And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! “Maybe Christmas, “he thought, “doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more!”
Monday, November 30, 2009
Full Court Press
Article by Malcolm Caldwell from The New Yorker:
When Vivek Ranadivé decided to coach his daughter Anjali’s basketball team, he settled on two principles. The first was that he would never raise his voice. This was National Junior Basketball—the Little League of basketball. The team was made up mostly of twelve-year-olds, and twelve-year-olds, he knew from experience, did not respond well to shouting. He would conduct business on the basketball court, he decided, the same way he conducted business at his software firm. He would speak calmly and softly, and convince the girls of the wisdom of his approach with appeals to reason and common sense.
The second principle was more important. Ranadivé was puzzled by the way Americans played basketball. He is from Mumbai. He grew up with cricket and soccer. He would never forget the first time he saw a basketball game. He thought it was mindless. Team A would score and then immediately retreat to its own end of the court. Team B would inbound the ball and dribble it into Team A’s end, where Team A was patiently waiting. Then the process would reverse itself. A basketball court was ninety-four feet long. But most of the time a team defended only about twenty-four feet of that, conceding the other seventy feet. Occasionally, teams would play a full-court press—that is, they would contest their opponent’s attempt to advance the ball up the court. But they would do it for only a few minutes at a time. It was as if there were a kind of conspiracy in the basketball world about the way the game ought to be played, and Ranadivé thought that that conspiracy had the effect of widening the gap between good teams and weak teams. Good teams, after all, had players who were tall and could dribble and shoot well; they could crisply execute their carefully prepared plays in their opponent’s end. Why, then, did weak teams play in a way that made it easy for good teams to do the very things that made them so good?
Ranadivé looked at his girls. Morgan and Julia were serious basketball players. But Nicky, Angela, Dani, Holly, Annika, and his own daughter, Anjali, had never played the game before. They weren’t all that tall. They couldn’t shoot. They weren’t particularly adept at dribbling. They were not the sort who played pickup games at the playground every evening. Most of them were, as Ranadivé says, “little blond girls” from Menlo Park and Redwood City, the heart of Silicon Valley. These were the daughters of computer programmers and people with graduate degrees. They worked on science projects, and read books, and went on ski vacations with their parents, and dreamed about growing up to be marine biologists. Ranadivé knew that if they played the conventional way—if they let their opponents dribble the ball up the court without opposition—they would almost certainly lose to the girls for whom basketball was a passion. Ranadivé came to America as a seventeen-year-old, with fifty dollars in his pocket. He was not one to accept losing easily. His second principle, then, was that his team would play a real full-court press, every game, all the time. The team ended up at the national championships. “It was really random,” Anjali Ranadivé said. “I mean, my father had never played basketball before.”Read more: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/11/090511fa_fact_gladwell?yrail#ixzz0YLJO3pdN
How much more productice if life was approached as a full court press? We cannot give up any ground in life. It might keep away the frustrated shouts!
When Vivek Ranadivé decided to coach his daughter Anjali’s basketball team, he settled on two principles. The first was that he would never raise his voice. This was National Junior Basketball—the Little League of basketball. The team was made up mostly of twelve-year-olds, and twelve-year-olds, he knew from experience, did not respond well to shouting. He would conduct business on the basketball court, he decided, the same way he conducted business at his software firm. He would speak calmly and softly, and convince the girls of the wisdom of his approach with appeals to reason and common sense.
The second principle was more important. Ranadivé was puzzled by the way Americans played basketball. He is from Mumbai. He grew up with cricket and soccer. He would never forget the first time he saw a basketball game. He thought it was mindless. Team A would score and then immediately retreat to its own end of the court. Team B would inbound the ball and dribble it into Team A’s end, where Team A was patiently waiting. Then the process would reverse itself. A basketball court was ninety-four feet long. But most of the time a team defended only about twenty-four feet of that, conceding the other seventy feet. Occasionally, teams would play a full-court press—that is, they would contest their opponent’s attempt to advance the ball up the court. But they would do it for only a few minutes at a time. It was as if there were a kind of conspiracy in the basketball world about the way the game ought to be played, and Ranadivé thought that that conspiracy had the effect of widening the gap between good teams and weak teams. Good teams, after all, had players who were tall and could dribble and shoot well; they could crisply execute their carefully prepared plays in their opponent’s end. Why, then, did weak teams play in a way that made it easy for good teams to do the very things that made them so good?
Ranadivé looked at his girls. Morgan and Julia were serious basketball players. But Nicky, Angela, Dani, Holly, Annika, and his own daughter, Anjali, had never played the game before. They weren’t all that tall. They couldn’t shoot. They weren’t particularly adept at dribbling. They were not the sort who played pickup games at the playground every evening. Most of them were, as Ranadivé says, “little blond girls” from Menlo Park and Redwood City, the heart of Silicon Valley. These were the daughters of computer programmers and people with graduate degrees. They worked on science projects, and read books, and went on ski vacations with their parents, and dreamed about growing up to be marine biologists. Ranadivé knew that if they played the conventional way—if they let their opponents dribble the ball up the court without opposition—they would almost certainly lose to the girls for whom basketball was a passion. Ranadivé came to America as a seventeen-year-old, with fifty dollars in his pocket. He was not one to accept losing easily. His second principle, then, was that his team would play a real full-court press, every game, all the time. The team ended up at the national championships. “It was really random,” Anjali Ranadivé said. “I mean, my father had never played basketball before.”Read more: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/11/090511fa_fact_gladwell?yrail#ixzz0YLJO3pdN
How much more productice if life was approached as a full court press? We cannot give up any ground in life. It might keep away the frustrated shouts!
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Joy
Joy can be a real challenge at Christmas. Ironically it is a season where joy should be a part of our life. We sing “joy to the world” but feel depressed. Christmas is the season where we pursue joy. We fill the parking lots of malls, we pack bars and clubs with friends, and we exchange gifts at Christmas parties all in the name of joy.
Many of us are finding it harder this Christmas to express joy. The economy has left a dark cloud over many of our Christmas festivities. Limited funds have us making tough decisions when it comes to picking things off of the children’s wish list. The turkey meal becomes chicken and the Honey-Baked Ham is bologna soaked in honey and covered in Baked Beans. I have even heard some ask can we just skip over Christmas this year. The reason some of us want to skip over Christmas may not be the bad economy. It could be a relationship that has broken up. It could be children who have wondered away. A bad doctor’s report that says this could be your last Christmas together. With so much bad news in the world today it is hard to proclaim “Joy to the world!”
It is times like this that it is important to go back to the heart of Christmas. The story of Jesus’ birth explodes with joy. In the story we find shepherds living in fields. Shepherds were considered unclean, lower-class, and not very popular among the majority of the Jewish people. The shepherds provided the sheep that were needed for the sacrifices in the Temple. They still were not highly regarded because they did not participate in the social or religious life of the people. They kept to themselves. Raised their sheep. Lived in the fields. Isolated. Lonely. Separate. And yet, it was these men that God chose to announce the birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world. The sense of joy that the angels felt in giving the shepherds this announcement is obvious. The first word to the shepherds is “I am bringing you good news of GREAT joy . . .” It is almost as though this angel could not get the words out before the whole host of angels break forth in praise.
I remember once when I was a child that my cousin came running into the house one Christmas holding what looked like a baseball bat wrapped in Christmas paper. In excitement he could not control himself and he says, “I can’t tell you what it is but it looks like a bat doesn’t it?” This same excitement bursts from the angels as they tell the shepherds the good news that Jesus has bee born. The joy is contagious. The shepherds leave immediately to go tell this good news to those in Bethlehem. They take a huge risk leaving their sheep behind. They leave their livelihood and seek after the meaning behind the joy. The meaning behind the message that brought the angels such joy is worth leaving everything behind to discover it for themselves. Then once they discover the source of the angels joy they leave announcing it to the world. This is a world they had rarely participated in but insisted that this world experience the joy that they knew.
What was it that had the angels of heaven acting like little children who can’t keep secrets? What was it that forced the shepherds to leave all they had known behind? What was it that brought so much joy to the world? What was it that they had that so many of us miss?
Joy. The story of the angels and the shepherds teach us that joy is not found by seeking joy. Joy is a by-product. It is the result of another great event. Joy is a product of experiencing the Good News of Jesus Christ. Joy is not self-induced. We can’t find joy by fighting crowds at shopping malls. We can’t turn on joy by watching our favorite Christmas movie. Real, abiding joy does not come after receiving that “salad shooter” that we always wanted. These thing may bring us pleasure but they do not produce lasting joy. Joy is not a present. Joy is a presence. Joy is found in Jesus. Imagine what difference it would make if you put retelling the story of Jesus to your children instead of spending some much time making wish lists for Santa.
Many of us are finding it harder this Christmas to express joy. The economy has left a dark cloud over many of our Christmas festivities. Limited funds have us making tough decisions when it comes to picking things off of the children’s wish list. The turkey meal becomes chicken and the Honey-Baked Ham is bologna soaked in honey and covered in Baked Beans. I have even heard some ask can we just skip over Christmas this year. The reason some of us want to skip over Christmas may not be the bad economy. It could be a relationship that has broken up. It could be children who have wondered away. A bad doctor’s report that says this could be your last Christmas together. With so much bad news in the world today it is hard to proclaim “Joy to the world!”
It is times like this that it is important to go back to the heart of Christmas. The story of Jesus’ birth explodes with joy. In the story we find shepherds living in fields. Shepherds were considered unclean, lower-class, and not very popular among the majority of the Jewish people. The shepherds provided the sheep that were needed for the sacrifices in the Temple. They still were not highly regarded because they did not participate in the social or religious life of the people. They kept to themselves. Raised their sheep. Lived in the fields. Isolated. Lonely. Separate. And yet, it was these men that God chose to announce the birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world. The sense of joy that the angels felt in giving the shepherds this announcement is obvious. The first word to the shepherds is “I am bringing you good news of GREAT joy . . .” It is almost as though this angel could not get the words out before the whole host of angels break forth in praise.
I remember once when I was a child that my cousin came running into the house one Christmas holding what looked like a baseball bat wrapped in Christmas paper. In excitement he could not control himself and he says, “I can’t tell you what it is but it looks like a bat doesn’t it?” This same excitement bursts from the angels as they tell the shepherds the good news that Jesus has bee born. The joy is contagious. The shepherds leave immediately to go tell this good news to those in Bethlehem. They take a huge risk leaving their sheep behind. They leave their livelihood and seek after the meaning behind the joy. The meaning behind the message that brought the angels such joy is worth leaving everything behind to discover it for themselves. Then once they discover the source of the angels joy they leave announcing it to the world. This is a world they had rarely participated in but insisted that this world experience the joy that they knew.
What was it that had the angels of heaven acting like little children who can’t keep secrets? What was it that forced the shepherds to leave all they had known behind? What was it that brought so much joy to the world? What was it that they had that so many of us miss?
Joy. The story of the angels and the shepherds teach us that joy is not found by seeking joy. Joy is a by-product. It is the result of another great event. Joy is a product of experiencing the Good News of Jesus Christ. Joy is not self-induced. We can’t find joy by fighting crowds at shopping malls. We can’t turn on joy by watching our favorite Christmas movie. Real, abiding joy does not come after receiving that “salad shooter” that we always wanted. These thing may bring us pleasure but they do not produce lasting joy. Joy is not a present. Joy is a presence. Joy is found in Jesus. Imagine what difference it would make if you put retelling the story of Jesus to your children instead of spending some much time making wish lists for Santa.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Becoming Great
A few things on my life goals list:
* Run a marathon
* learn to sail
* build a sailboat
* Learn to foreign languages: Spanish and Arabic
I am just thinking one day that I am going to wake up and be able to accomplish everything on this list (25 things) without learning, practicing, or studying. Somehow I will possess the necessary skills or abilities. Yeah right! It is true though if you haven't noticed that the time frame for mastering a skill is shrinking. Some books say "30 days" to a new language.
I guess God could just give you the ability in a moment but God doesn't usually work that way (remember how long the Israelites wondered in the desert or the story of Joseph?) God works more by the pressure cooker method than the microwave.
If we are going to master a skill or ability it takes one thing: PRACTICE. Here is the steps to accomplish things on your life goal list:
1. make sure you have a life goal list.
2. Do it.
3. Do it again.
4. After you fail, do it again.
5. Keep doing it.
“Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person.” - Albert Einstein
* Run a marathon
* learn to sail
* build a sailboat
* Learn to foreign languages: Spanish and Arabic
I am just thinking one day that I am going to wake up and be able to accomplish everything on this list (25 things) without learning, practicing, or studying. Somehow I will possess the necessary skills or abilities. Yeah right! It is true though if you haven't noticed that the time frame for mastering a skill is shrinking. Some books say "30 days" to a new language.
I guess God could just give you the ability in a moment but God doesn't usually work that way (remember how long the Israelites wondered in the desert or the story of Joseph?) God works more by the pressure cooker method than the microwave.
If we are going to master a skill or ability it takes one thing: PRACTICE. Here is the steps to accomplish things on your life goal list:
1. make sure you have a life goal list.
2. Do it.
3. Do it again.
4. After you fail, do it again.
5. Keep doing it.
“Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person.” - Albert Einstein
Friday, November 27, 2009
Great Day
Yesterday was a real blessing. We started the day out eating muffins. Then we went to the restaraunt where we served meals to 300+ people. It was a great experience for our children to serve those among us who are less fortunate. I was amazed at the amount of volunteers who came out to serve and many who stayed all day. We invited a hispanic/latino congregation to join us. The one thing that serving others will do is break down barriers of language and culture. It was a lot of fun seeing people attempting to communicate and build relationships.
After we got home yesterday I prepared a meal. We had fresh green beans, corn, potatoes, and ham. As a family we sat around the table sharing what we have to be thankful for.
Then we topped off the evening with putting up the Christmas tree. It was a great way to end a great day - telling the children about the birth of Jesus.
Some of my lessons:
1. We got to love our city. In loving our city we must know our city. We must take the time to get to know the people of our city. We can't remain divided among class or race. As followers of Jesus, we are called to love the people in our town.
2. We must live the gospel. Our lives must be a reflection of the life of Jesus. We must live incarnationally. We can't just speak of God's love. We must embody God's love.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Give Thanks
What I am thankful for:
* Sweet Tea
* Chocolate ice cream
* a truck that runs
* Socks that don't have holes in them
* Sunrises and sunsets
* the feel of sand between my toes
* my children thinking I'm a rock star, hero, and superdad when I am none of these
* cold weather that doesn't stay around forever
* summer nights
* for new life, resurrection moments, and second chances
* for a God who loves, who forgives, and who sends
* a church that serves
* a staff that laughs, works, and encourages
* a wife who likes a clean house and lives with three messy guys
* a wife who is a best friend, lover, and traveling partner
Just a few things . . . . .
* Sweet Tea
* Chocolate ice cream
* a truck that runs
* Socks that don't have holes in them
* Sunrises and sunsets
* the feel of sand between my toes
* my children thinking I'm a rock star, hero, and superdad when I am none of these
* cold weather that doesn't stay around forever
* summer nights
* for new life, resurrection moments, and second chances
* for a God who loves, who forgives, and who sends
* a church that serves
* a staff that laughs, works, and encourages
* a wife who likes a clean house and lives with three messy guys
* a wife who is a best friend, lover, and traveling partner
Just a few things . . . . .
Monday, November 16, 2009
Cowardly Thing
When I was in school I usually ended up cramming for tests. I would want until the last minute to finish deadlines and to turn in reports. If I am not careful I can treat my own spiritual life the same way. How many of us wait until a crisis to start praying? Or we go weeks without reading the scriptures and then try to read a whole book in one sitting on a Sunday afternoon (in between the Falcons game of course!) In speaking to a large crowds Jesus says, "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it" (Luke 14:28)? What if you decided to build a house and the contractor showed up without any drawings and said we were going to wing it as we go? Yeah that will be fun (and costly)! Laziness means more work. C.S. Lewis says, "The cowardly thing is also the most dangerous thing." The Christian life takes preparation. It takes planning. It takes centering our lives on Jesus. It takes stepping back DAILY from the demands of the world to re-position ourselves, re-center ourselves, and to re-gain our grip on the life we have been called to live in Christ.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
The Love Truth
The one thing that has gotten Christians in trouble with people down thru the ages has been that we have to say: “Well, yes it does make a difference what you believe.” The problem is not with what we believe or what the Bible teaches. Christians have always believed that Jesus is the only way to heaven. As the world grows smaller and we rub shoulders with people from different religious backgrounds, how do we explain what we believe in a way that they can understand? Leslie Newbigin, missionary scholar gives us some suggestions:
First, “We should recognize that God’s grace is at work in the world. At work even in those who do not call on Jesus as Lord. My relationship to my fellow human being should be modeled on Jesus who gave his life for the sake of all humanity even those who do not profess allegiance to him. Secondly, we should be willing to join side-by-side with those of other faiths who are working and striving toward a better humanity. We stand with all faiths to a call for peace. We work with Muslims to end world hunger. We join with Hindus to create equality. We strive with the Buddhist to reduce pollution. We join hands in the struggle for justice and freedom even though we know that the ultimate goal is the coming of Christ and his glorious reign. Third, it is this connection that creates a context for dialogue. And our mission is to tell our story. We are called to tell others the story of Christ. Newbigin argues if we as Christians are demonstrating love the opportunity for dialogue will be provided by the other person. We will be invited to tell our story. They will recognize a shared humanity but also see distinction. They will be aware of different motivations and different goals. This will give us an opportunity to share our story, the story of Jesus, the story of the Bible. The story itself, as Paul says, the power of God for salvation. The Christian must tell it, not because she lacks respect for the sincerity of her co-worker, neighbor, or friend of another religion. She tells it simply as one who has been chosen and called by God to be part of the company which is entrusted with the story. We are not called to convert, that is the Holy Spirit’s business. We will pray that it may be so and we will conduct our lives as to embody the story that we profess with our lips to believe.
Sharing the Christian message is not a matter of truth but a matter of love. It is not a love which encourages people to believe a lie. “As a human race we are on a journey and we need to know the road. It is not true that all roads lead to the top of the same mountain. In Christ we have been shown the road. We cannot treat that knowledge as a private matter for ourselves.”[1]
We all are called to assist others in the journey. We are challenged to guide others to the light that shines in Jesus Christ. If Jesus is the only way, the unkindest thing in the world would be to keep it to ourselves. If Jesus is the only way, the most loving thing is to share it with others. Let’s suppose that you and I are standing 50 feet away from the edge of a cliff. If you fall off, you will drop 1800 feet before you hit the jagged rocks ion the canyon floor. There are no guard rails to keep you from falling. As we stand there chatting, we see a man walking slowly toward the edge. As he nears the edge, we realize that he is blind and has no idea of the danger he is in. Suddenly, he calls out, “Which way should I go?” What would you think if I yelled out, “It doesn’t matter? Go any way you like?” Would I not be criminally negligent when he falls to his death? If I care about him at all, I will call out, “Don’t take another step. I’ll come and get you.” And then I will take him by the hand and lead him to safety, Love compels me to speak the truth and to do what I can to save his life.
[1] Newbigin, Lesslie. The Gospel In a Pluralistic Society, (Eardmans: Grand Rapids, 1989) 183.
First, “We should recognize that God’s grace is at work in the world. At work even in those who do not call on Jesus as Lord. My relationship to my fellow human being should be modeled on Jesus who gave his life for the sake of all humanity even those who do not profess allegiance to him. Secondly, we should be willing to join side-by-side with those of other faiths who are working and striving toward a better humanity. We stand with all faiths to a call for peace. We work with Muslims to end world hunger. We join with Hindus to create equality. We strive with the Buddhist to reduce pollution. We join hands in the struggle for justice and freedom even though we know that the ultimate goal is the coming of Christ and his glorious reign. Third, it is this connection that creates a context for dialogue. And our mission is to tell our story. We are called to tell others the story of Christ. Newbigin argues if we as Christians are demonstrating love the opportunity for dialogue will be provided by the other person. We will be invited to tell our story. They will recognize a shared humanity but also see distinction. They will be aware of different motivations and different goals. This will give us an opportunity to share our story, the story of Jesus, the story of the Bible. The story itself, as Paul says, the power of God for salvation. The Christian must tell it, not because she lacks respect for the sincerity of her co-worker, neighbor, or friend of another religion. She tells it simply as one who has been chosen and called by God to be part of the company which is entrusted with the story. We are not called to convert, that is the Holy Spirit’s business. We will pray that it may be so and we will conduct our lives as to embody the story that we profess with our lips to believe.
Sharing the Christian message is not a matter of truth but a matter of love. It is not a love which encourages people to believe a lie. “As a human race we are on a journey and we need to know the road. It is not true that all roads lead to the top of the same mountain. In Christ we have been shown the road. We cannot treat that knowledge as a private matter for ourselves.”[1]
We all are called to assist others in the journey. We are challenged to guide others to the light that shines in Jesus Christ. If Jesus is the only way, the unkindest thing in the world would be to keep it to ourselves. If Jesus is the only way, the most loving thing is to share it with others. Let’s suppose that you and I are standing 50 feet away from the edge of a cliff. If you fall off, you will drop 1800 feet before you hit the jagged rocks ion the canyon floor. There are no guard rails to keep you from falling. As we stand there chatting, we see a man walking slowly toward the edge. As he nears the edge, we realize that he is blind and has no idea of the danger he is in. Suddenly, he calls out, “Which way should I go?” What would you think if I yelled out, “It doesn’t matter? Go any way you like?” Would I not be criminally negligent when he falls to his death? If I care about him at all, I will call out, “Don’t take another step. I’ll come and get you.” And then I will take him by the hand and lead him to safety, Love compels me to speak the truth and to do what I can to save his life.
[1] Newbigin, Lesslie. The Gospel In a Pluralistic Society, (Eardmans: Grand Rapids, 1989) 183.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Work to Live
We find some part of our identity in our work. Our minds are geared around the fact that we enjoy accomplishing tasks, fulfilling obligations, and meeting deadlines. We enjoy the excitement of knowing that we have created. This is because we were created in the image of a God that creates. The Bible opens up with the account of a working God creating a world. You and I, created in the image of God, were given a world to care for and a life of creative, purposeful work opportunities. God revealed himself in Christ, a carpenter. Work is a part of creation. The stars shine, plants grow, sun gives off heat, animals gather, and when we work we’re doing what we’ve been designed to do. Psalm 104: 23 says, “People go out to their work and to their labor until the evening.” Work is our contribution to God’s amazing creation. For this reason Paul gives the command, “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.”
Now if you have a job, or worked for many years and now retired you enjoy quoting this verse. If you are without a job, you don’t like this verse. I want to be clear: there is a big difference between those who cannot work because of circumstances like illness, injury, disability, or age and those who are not inclined to work because they simply have chosen not to work. It’s one thing when someone has a genuine need. It’s quite another when someone thinks the world owes them a living. The problem with our government based welfare system is that it cannot tell the difference between the two groups. In our passage, Paul is speaking to people who have willingly left the workforce and are now relying on the rest of the Christian community to support them in their laziness. It’s hard to pray for daily bread for the family when steps are not being taken to provide the bread. It also takes away resources from those that are in real need. “If you can work”, Paul says, “You should work.”
Mother Teresa was once asked by a reporter one day, “What is your biggest problem?” Mother Teresa answered with one word: “Professionalism.” She said, “Here are these servants of Jesus who care for the poorest of the poor. I have one who just went off and came back with her medical degree. Others have come back with registered nurse degrees. Another with a master’s in social work, and when they come back with their degrees, their first question always is, “Where is my office?” Then she said, “But you know what I do? I send them over to the House of the Dying where they simply hold the hands of dying people for six months, and after that, they’re ready to be servants again.” Whatever our occupation, our vocation is to be a servant. Some folk will only see God through us and at work is when most folks see us. It is true we work to live, but it can also be said we work so that others may see Christ live in us. Many occupations, one vocation: being a servant of Jesus Christ.
Now if you have a job, or worked for many years and now retired you enjoy quoting this verse. If you are without a job, you don’t like this verse. I want to be clear: there is a big difference between those who cannot work because of circumstances like illness, injury, disability, or age and those who are not inclined to work because they simply have chosen not to work. It’s one thing when someone has a genuine need. It’s quite another when someone thinks the world owes them a living. The problem with our government based welfare system is that it cannot tell the difference between the two groups. In our passage, Paul is speaking to people who have willingly left the workforce and are now relying on the rest of the Christian community to support them in their laziness. It’s hard to pray for daily bread for the family when steps are not being taken to provide the bread. It also takes away resources from those that are in real need. “If you can work”, Paul says, “You should work.”
Mother Teresa was once asked by a reporter one day, “What is your biggest problem?” Mother Teresa answered with one word: “Professionalism.” She said, “Here are these servants of Jesus who care for the poorest of the poor. I have one who just went off and came back with her medical degree. Others have come back with registered nurse degrees. Another with a master’s in social work, and when they come back with their degrees, their first question always is, “Where is my office?” Then she said, “But you know what I do? I send them over to the House of the Dying where they simply hold the hands of dying people for six months, and after that, they’re ready to be servants again.” Whatever our occupation, our vocation is to be a servant. Some folk will only see God through us and at work is when most folks see us. It is true we work to live, but it can also be said we work so that others may see Christ live in us. Many occupations, one vocation: being a servant of Jesus Christ.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Hakuna Matata
When I get out of the center of God’s will I find myself worrying a lot about life. I worry about rather or not I am doing the thing God would have me to do at this moment. I worry about whether or not I need to be changing and doing something else. I worry about my children. Are they getting what they deserve from me? Am I giving them enough of myself? I worry about my marriage. Am I demonstrating my love enough to my wife? Am I giving her enough of my attention? I even find myself questioning my role in ministry. I tell myself that I could be doing something else. I could be going down another career path. One where I would not have to carry it home every evening. I know when I am living outside of God’s will because the worry factor goes up and I have more restless nights and more wasteful days trying to figure out the future.
We all have a tendency to worry. We worry about our careers. We worry about our children. We worry about our future. We worry about past mistakes coming back to haunt us. We worry about making the house payment. We worry about insurance bills. We worry about the economy. We worry about the war. Another word for worry is “anxious” and comes from the idea of being distracted. Worry distracts us from the task of living in the moment. It takes away our attention from the moment. It creates a preoccupation of our mental and physical powers with the things that are beyond our control. The more time we spend worrying, the less time we spend doing what needs to be done. Worry is misguided in its focus. It is an impractical and meaningless activity. By worrying about tomorrow we leave unfilled the tasks of the today. Worrying makes the cares of the future take precedent over the necessity of today.
Over the past month how many of us have worried over something or someone? Worry is an enemy. Worry is a reversal of priorities. It is a signal that we are not striving after the reign of God in our life on a daily basis.
In his book First Things First, Stephen Covey tells the story of a man teaching a time-management seminar. In order to make a point, the man pulled a wide-mouthed gallon jar from under the counter that served as his podium. He picked up some fist-sized rocks and put them in the jar. Then he looked out at the class and asked, “Is the jar full?”
Some of the students, not knowing where he was going, blurted out, “Yes.” The teacher laughed gently and said, “No, it’s not.” He pulled out a bucket of pea gravel and began to pour it in the jar. The class watched as the pea gravel filtered down between the rocks, filling the spaces until it reached the top. “Now, is the jar full?”
The class was a bit reluctant to answer. After all, they’d been wrong before. Instead of waiting for their response, the man poured a bucket of sand down among the pea gravel and the large rocks. He shook the jar gently to let the sand settle, then added more, until finally the sand reached the mouth of the jar. Then he asked again, “Is the jar full?” Andy they said, “Probably not.”
Now the teacher reached for a pitcher of water and slowly poured the water in the jar. It filtered down until it was running out of the jar at the top. “Is the jar full?” the time-management consultant asked. The class answered, “We think it is.”
“Okay, class,” he said. “What is the lesson in this visual aid?” Somebody in the back raised his hand and said, “No matter how busy your life is, there is always room for more!” “No,” the teacher said as the class broke into laughter. “That’s not it!” “The lesson is, class,” he said when the chuckles subsided, “if you don’t put the big rocks in first you’ll never get them in later.”
What a powerful picture of priority living. It sounds like the same point Jesus was attempting to make when he said, “Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”[1]
[1] Story taken from Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World by Joanna Weaver, pg. 103.
We all have a tendency to worry. We worry about our careers. We worry about our children. We worry about our future. We worry about past mistakes coming back to haunt us. We worry about making the house payment. We worry about insurance bills. We worry about the economy. We worry about the war. Another word for worry is “anxious” and comes from the idea of being distracted. Worry distracts us from the task of living in the moment. It takes away our attention from the moment. It creates a preoccupation of our mental and physical powers with the things that are beyond our control. The more time we spend worrying, the less time we spend doing what needs to be done. Worry is misguided in its focus. It is an impractical and meaningless activity. By worrying about tomorrow we leave unfilled the tasks of the today. Worrying makes the cares of the future take precedent over the necessity of today.
Over the past month how many of us have worried over something or someone? Worry is an enemy. Worry is a reversal of priorities. It is a signal that we are not striving after the reign of God in our life on a daily basis.
In his book First Things First, Stephen Covey tells the story of a man teaching a time-management seminar. In order to make a point, the man pulled a wide-mouthed gallon jar from under the counter that served as his podium. He picked up some fist-sized rocks and put them in the jar. Then he looked out at the class and asked, “Is the jar full?”
Some of the students, not knowing where he was going, blurted out, “Yes.” The teacher laughed gently and said, “No, it’s not.” He pulled out a bucket of pea gravel and began to pour it in the jar. The class watched as the pea gravel filtered down between the rocks, filling the spaces until it reached the top. “Now, is the jar full?”
The class was a bit reluctant to answer. After all, they’d been wrong before. Instead of waiting for their response, the man poured a bucket of sand down among the pea gravel and the large rocks. He shook the jar gently to let the sand settle, then added more, until finally the sand reached the mouth of the jar. Then he asked again, “Is the jar full?” Andy they said, “Probably not.”
Now the teacher reached for a pitcher of water and slowly poured the water in the jar. It filtered down until it was running out of the jar at the top. “Is the jar full?” the time-management consultant asked. The class answered, “We think it is.”
“Okay, class,” he said. “What is the lesson in this visual aid?” Somebody in the back raised his hand and said, “No matter how busy your life is, there is always room for more!” “No,” the teacher said as the class broke into laughter. “That’s not it!” “The lesson is, class,” he said when the chuckles subsided, “if you don’t put the big rocks in first you’ll never get them in later.”
What a powerful picture of priority living. It sounds like the same point Jesus was attempting to make when he said, “Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”[1]
[1] Story taken from Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World by Joanna Weaver, pg. 103.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Small Voices
There is a story about a little boy who one night during dinner was not being heard and decided to make sure everyone around the kitchen table knew he was present. He let out a loud screeching scream that vibrated the dinner plates. His mother sent him to his room.
Life is filled with tiny voices often lost beneath the noise of a busy world. Those tiny voices remind us that the importance in life is most often than not found in the little things. Many times we discover that our lives are not changed by the enormous events but by happenings so small that we almost miss them.
Centuries ago there was a Roman official in a small obscure village on the outskirts of the Roman Empire. One day the priests of this region sent the official a case to review. It seems that a local carpenter was turning this little part of the world upside down with his teachings and miraculous wonders. The local officials did not like it so they attempted to present their case before the Roman official. The Roman official didn’t see a reason to get involved. He considered it an insignificant manner. He turned the manner back over to the local officials. Pilate, the Roman official, did not know that this carpenter would shape the course of history forever. The carpenter from Nazareth would become the hope of redemption for all of humanity. Pilate saw him as an inconvenience.
We need to remember it is the inconveniences of life that give direction to our lives. People who are careful about little things can be trusted to handle larger things. Businesses run more efficiently when attention is given to detail. Homes are built by small deeds of kindness. In life it is the little things that count.
Life is filled with many voices. The people who seem to manage life well are those who listen carefully for the small voices and who are alert for the small things. I’m still learning. Maybe next time I will listen to my son as we sit around the dinner table and he is trying to tell me something that I have already wrote off as unimportant. I guess I was the one that needed to be sent to his room that evening. I am discovering that it could be the tiny things could change your life. Hear
Life is filled with tiny voices often lost beneath the noise of a busy world. Those tiny voices remind us that the importance in life is most often than not found in the little things. Many times we discover that our lives are not changed by the enormous events but by happenings so small that we almost miss them.
Centuries ago there was a Roman official in a small obscure village on the outskirts of the Roman Empire. One day the priests of this region sent the official a case to review. It seems that a local carpenter was turning this little part of the world upside down with his teachings and miraculous wonders. The local officials did not like it so they attempted to present their case before the Roman official. The Roman official didn’t see a reason to get involved. He considered it an insignificant manner. He turned the manner back over to the local officials. Pilate, the Roman official, did not know that this carpenter would shape the course of history forever. The carpenter from Nazareth would become the hope of redemption for all of humanity. Pilate saw him as an inconvenience.
We need to remember it is the inconveniences of life that give direction to our lives. People who are careful about little things can be trusted to handle larger things. Businesses run more efficiently when attention is given to detail. Homes are built by small deeds of kindness. In life it is the little things that count.
Life is filled with many voices. The people who seem to manage life well are those who listen carefully for the small voices and who are alert for the small things. I’m still learning. Maybe next time I will listen to my son as we sit around the dinner table and he is trying to tell me something that I have already wrote off as unimportant. I guess I was the one that needed to be sent to his room that evening. I am discovering that it could be the tiny things could change your life. Hear
Monday, November 2, 2009
Update on the Turtle
We told Jaden he had a choice. He could keep the turtle in the plastic habitat of a swimming pool and potentially see the turtle die or he could let it go in the woods and let it live. He wrestled for a while with what was the right thing to do. He wanted to take responsibility for it. He wanted to feed it and give it water. He wanted to be the one to protect the turtle. But he also knew that by keeping it in the plastic swimming pool that the turtle would probably die.
He was fearful of turning loose. Do we protect at the risk of losing the soul? Do we shelter at the risk of destroying life? Religion keeps people in plastic pools. Religious people use manipulation to convince people that God lives in plastic pools. Some people will spend their lives in plastic pools because someone has told them that is where God is.
Jesus comes along and says, "If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed"(John 8:36). Jaden, my son, one afternoon walks down by himself picks up the turtle and takes it to the edge of the woods. He walks back in the house with tears in his eyes and I ask him where he went. He says, "To let the turtle go so that it may live."
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHill
* 9:45 Engage Day: breakfast, fellowship, and community - Our God is a Great Big God!
* 11:00: Worship. Generosity. Great things for the Kingdom.
* HeartStone after the service. Taking generosity to the street.
* Teaching the boys that leaves don't get up themselves. Patience on my part for playing as much as working to get up leaves.
* Playing baseball on the front yard with the whole family. Priceless.
Lessons of the day:
- There is a difference between volunteers and servants. Volunteers serve based on their own time. Servants serve when and where needed. Liberty Hill has servants!
-Preparing messages are essential. I cannot allow circumstances to take away from what is important.
- No moving forward until facing the facts.
* 11:00: Worship. Generosity. Great things for the Kingdom.
* HeartStone after the service. Taking generosity to the street.
* Teaching the boys that leaves don't get up themselves. Patience on my part for playing as much as working to get up leaves.
* Playing baseball on the front yard with the whole family. Priceless.
Lessons of the day:
- There is a difference between volunteers and servants. Volunteers serve based on their own time. Servants serve when and where needed. Liberty Hill has servants!
-Preparing messages are essential. I cannot allow circumstances to take away from what is important.
- No moving forward until facing the facts.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Letting Go
Jaden has a turtle. He has had it for a few months now. It lives in a plastic swimming pool. My father found the turtle and to dress it up a little he painted a peace sign on the shell. I would have probably let it go sooner but felt sorry for the turtle. I didn't want him to get ridiculed for being different. He would be the only turtle I know who walks around in the woods advocating world peace.
It is time to let it go and Jaden is having a difficult time. The turtle needs to be in the wild. It needs to roam (slowly) through the woods. It doesn't need to be hanging out in a plastic pool in a garage. But Jaden is convinced that he can give the turtle what it needs and is worried that it won't be safe outside in the woods.
Letting go can be hard. I know its just a turtle but there is a lesson. The ability to let go gives power back to the source of our power. We cannot be in a power struggle with God. Letting go of the things we are powerless to change or control is an act of trust. I am confident that God cares for Jaden's "peace turtle" and that God knows better than we do what brings "peace turtle" life. So tomorrow we will let the turtle go. Jaden will cry. But he will also learn a lesson - letting go brings life.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Quiet Time
The reason I believe in a quiet time is because I believe in more than that God exists. I believe that God longs to be intimately involved in our lives. God is personal. God wants to be included in our decision making process and we need God to be involved in our decision making process. The life of Jesus gives witness to the importance of setting aside time to commune with God. Throughout the gospels we read where Jesus goes off to pray. He separates himself from the crowd to get personal with His heavenly Father.
Another reason I believe a quiet time is important is because it establishes the boundaries of our lives. It reminds us that we are not controlled by people or circumstances that fight for our attention but instead our life is governed by the God we serve. By setting aside a time for prayer and study of God's word it reinforces the fact that the flow of our lives is not based on each and every crisis but on the overflow from our time with God.
Another reason I believe a quiet time is important is because it establishes the boundaries of our lives. It reminds us that we are not controlled by people or circumstances that fight for our attention but instead our life is governed by the God we serve. By setting aside a time for prayer and study of God's word it reinforces the fact that the flow of our lives is not based on each and every crisis but on the overflow from our time with God.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Understanding God
This morning as I went to wake up the children I asked Cohen (three years old) if he had any good dreams. He said, "yeah!" I asked if he dreamed about me. He said, "No." "Then what did you dream about?" I asked. "God" he said. "What did God look like?" "He looked like God" Cohen said. It's like duh daddy!
A.W. Tozer says, "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us." He also says, "the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God." Uncontainable. Psalm 145:3 says, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.” God’s greatness is beyond our discovering. Because God is infinite and we are finite, we can never fully understand God. As the psalmist says, “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Psalm 147: 5). In chapter 11 of the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul goes to great lengths to speak on the history of God’s plan of redemption. As a way of conclusion he says, “O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and inscrutable his ways” (Romans 11: 33)!
The uncontainable nature of God can be overwhelming when considering all we have to rely on is finite language to express an infinite nature. The incomprehensibility of God implies that if we are to know anything about God then it must be revealed to us. We understand God best by looking to Jesus. God is made known to us through Jesus. He (Jesus) says, “All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son expect the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11: 27).
Even though we cannot know God exhaustively, we can know God personally. Some people say that we cannot know God personally, but that we can only know facts about God or know what God does. Others have said that we can only know God as he relates to us. I John 5: 20 says, “We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ.” The richness of the Christian life is that we can have a personal relationship with God. We have far greater privileges than knowing facts (nature, characteristics, etc) regarding God. We speak to God in prayer. God speaks through the Word. We are aware that God dwells among us and within us to bless us. I am reminded of this when the temptation comes for ministry to become routine, mundane, or less personal.
A.W. Tozer says, "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us." He also says, "the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God." Uncontainable. Psalm 145:3 says, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.” God’s greatness is beyond our discovering. Because God is infinite and we are finite, we can never fully understand God. As the psalmist says, “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Psalm 147: 5). In chapter 11 of the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul goes to great lengths to speak on the history of God’s plan of redemption. As a way of conclusion he says, “O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and inscrutable his ways” (Romans 11: 33)!
The uncontainable nature of God can be overwhelming when considering all we have to rely on is finite language to express an infinite nature. The incomprehensibility of God implies that if we are to know anything about God then it must be revealed to us. We understand God best by looking to Jesus. God is made known to us through Jesus. He (Jesus) says, “All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son expect the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11: 27).
Even though we cannot know God exhaustively, we can know God personally. Some people say that we cannot know God personally, but that we can only know facts about God or know what God does. Others have said that we can only know God as he relates to us. I John 5: 20 says, “We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ.” The richness of the Christian life is that we can have a personal relationship with God. We have far greater privileges than knowing facts (nature, characteristics, etc) regarding God. We speak to God in prayer. God speaks through the Word. We are aware that God dwells among us and within us to bless us. I am reminded of this when the temptation comes for ministry to become routine, mundane, or less personal.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Visioneering By Andy Stanley: Faith
Chapter Five: Faith, the Essential Ingredient
Quotes:
"Faith is confidence that God is who he says he is and that he will do what he has promised to do."
"Embracing and owning a vision is in itself an act of faith."
"God-inspired visions ultimately lead back to God."
"Success often leads to self-sufficiency"
"When hopes become realities it is so easy to shift our faith onto the thing we have dreamed of and off of the One who was the source of our provision."
Evaluate Your Prayers
Stanley says, "I think it is safe to assume that most Christians are not attempting anything that requires God's intervention. If you want to know how you score on this issue, listen to your prayers and prayer requests. What do you pray for? What are the things you find yourself praying for night after night? Those are your passions. Those are the things that matter most to you. Other than heaven, and possibly your health, what are you consciously depending on God to do?"
Quotes:
"Faith is confidence that God is who he says he is and that he will do what he has promised to do."
"Embracing and owning a vision is in itself an act of faith."
"God-inspired visions ultimately lead back to God."
"Success often leads to self-sufficiency"
"When hopes become realities it is so easy to shift our faith onto the thing we have dreamed of and off of the One who was the source of our provision."
Evaluate Your Prayers
Stanley says, "I think it is safe to assume that most Christians are not attempting anything that requires God's intervention. If you want to know how you score on this issue, listen to your prayers and prayer requests. What do you pray for? What are the things you find yourself praying for night after night? Those are your passions. Those are the things that matter most to you. Other than heaven, and possibly your health, what are you consciously depending on God to do?"
Friday, October 9, 2009
E. Stanley Jones
E. Stanley Jones
E. Stanley JonesE. Stanley Jones (1884-1973) Eli Stanley Jones was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on January 3, 1884. He studied law briefly at City College before moving to Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky.
In February of 1905, Jones and three other men were having a private prayer meeting when, about 10pm, the Holy Spirit seemed to enter the room. Other students joined them, and revival spread across the Asbury campus and around the town of Wilmore. There were confessions of sin, powerful prayers, and new deeper commitments to the Lord. In his spiritual autobiography, Jones said that this revival liberated him from a sense of superiority, which prepared him for future work as a missionary, opened his ears to the Holy Spirit, and led directly to his calling to the mission field.
Jones graduated from Asbury in 1907 and became a missionary to India under the Board of Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In India he met a fellow missionary, Mabel Lossing, whom he married in 1911.
Jones began his mission work among the lowest class of people. He did not attack the predominant religions of the area, but tried to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ without attaching Western culture to it. As the Methodist Board of Missions' "Evangelist-at-Large" to India, Jones conducted large meetings in Indian cities. He presided over "round table conferences" where people of all faiths could sit down as equals and share their testimonies of how their religious experiences improved their lives.
Jones' ministry soon became worldwide in its influence as he stressed that the reconciliation brought through Jesus Christ was intended for the whole world. He helped to re-establish the Indian "Ashram" (forest retreat) where men and women would come together for days at a time to explore each others' faiths. Jones would later go on to establish Christian Ashrams around the world.
His reputation as a "reconciler" invited him to many political negotiations in India, Africa, and Asia. He was a close confidant of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the time preceding World War II, and after the war he was greeted in Japan as the "Apostle of Peace". He played an important role in establishing religious freedom in the post-colonial Indian government. He became a close friend of Mahatma Gandhi and even wrote a biography of Gandhi, a book which Martin Luther King said influenced him to adopt strict non-violent methods in the American civil rights movement. Jones had a strong influence in preventing the spread of communism in India.
Jones died in India on January 25, 1973. A prominent Methodist Bishop called E. Stanley Jones "the greatest Christian missionary since St. Paul." (From Asbury College)
E. Stanley JonesE. Stanley Jones (1884-1973) Eli Stanley Jones was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on January 3, 1884. He studied law briefly at City College before moving to Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky.
In February of 1905, Jones and three other men were having a private prayer meeting when, about 10pm, the Holy Spirit seemed to enter the room. Other students joined them, and revival spread across the Asbury campus and around the town of Wilmore. There were confessions of sin, powerful prayers, and new deeper commitments to the Lord. In his spiritual autobiography, Jones said that this revival liberated him from a sense of superiority, which prepared him for future work as a missionary, opened his ears to the Holy Spirit, and led directly to his calling to the mission field.
Jones graduated from Asbury in 1907 and became a missionary to India under the Board of Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In India he met a fellow missionary, Mabel Lossing, whom he married in 1911.
Jones began his mission work among the lowest class of people. He did not attack the predominant religions of the area, but tried to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ without attaching Western culture to it. As the Methodist Board of Missions' "Evangelist-at-Large" to India, Jones conducted large meetings in Indian cities. He presided over "round table conferences" where people of all faiths could sit down as equals and share their testimonies of how their religious experiences improved their lives.
Jones' ministry soon became worldwide in its influence as he stressed that the reconciliation brought through Jesus Christ was intended for the whole world. He helped to re-establish the Indian "Ashram" (forest retreat) where men and women would come together for days at a time to explore each others' faiths. Jones would later go on to establish Christian Ashrams around the world.
His reputation as a "reconciler" invited him to many political negotiations in India, Africa, and Asia. He was a close confidant of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the time preceding World War II, and after the war he was greeted in Japan as the "Apostle of Peace". He played an important role in establishing religious freedom in the post-colonial Indian government. He became a close friend of Mahatma Gandhi and even wrote a biography of Gandhi, a book which Martin Luther King said influenced him to adopt strict non-violent methods in the American civil rights movement. Jones had a strong influence in preventing the spread of communism in India.
Jones died in India on January 25, 1973. A prominent Methodist Bishop called E. Stanley Jones "the greatest Christian missionary since St. Paul." (From Asbury College)
My own missional theology has been shaped by two of his writings: "The Christ of the Indian Road," and "The Unshakable Kingdom and the Unchanging Person."
Here are some Stanley Quotes:
At the cross God wrapped his heart in flesh and blood and let it be nailed to the cross for our redemption.
If the Holy Spirit can take over the subconscious with our consent and cooperation, then we have almighty Power working at the basis of our lives, then we can do anything we ought to do, go anywhere we ought to go, and be anything we ought to be.
Prayer is commission. Out of the quietness with God, power is generated that turns the spiritual machinery of the world. When you pray, you begin to feel the sense of being sent, that the divine compulsion is upon you.
Many live in dread of what is coming. Why should we? The unknown puts adventure into life. ... The unexpected around the corner gives a sense of anticipation and surprise. Thank God for the unknown future.
Fear is sand in the machinery of life.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Early Morning Conversations
* I wake up at 4:00 A.M. and feel a nudge from the Lord to get up because he wants to have a conversation. I try to stay in bed. Then I hear a door slam. My six year-old gets up and goes to the restroom. So I get the message. I get up.
* I read in Jeremiah 31: 32-33 where God talks about a new covenant. He says, "I will put My law within them and on their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people." They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord, 'for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
For some reason as I read this I started thinking about my M. friends and how God longs to give them a new heart. How he longs to extend forgiveness to the M.
* Then I read a poem by Samuel Moor Shoemaker entitled "I Stand by the Door."
He ends:
I admire the people who go way in.
But I wish they would not forget how it was before they got in.
Then they would be able to help the people who have not yet even found the door,
or the people who want to run away again from God.
You can go in too deeply, and stay in too long, and forget the people outside the door.
As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place, near enough to God to hear him,
and know he is there, but not so far from men as not to hear them, and remember they are there, too.
Where? Outside the door - thousands of them, millions of them.
But - more important for me - one of them, two of them, ten of them,
whose hands I am intended to put on the latch.
So I shall stand by the door and wait for those who seek it.
"I had rather be a door-keeper . . . "
So I stand by the door.
* I started praying:
That I will be a door-keeper in the M world so that when Jesus is revealed I may simply be able to guide a hand to the door.
* I open outlook and the first email that is in my box is from a M connection I made a few months ago.
Salaam,
Jamey
* I read in Jeremiah 31: 32-33 where God talks about a new covenant. He says, "I will put My law within them and on their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people." They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord' for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord, 'for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
For some reason as I read this I started thinking about my M. friends and how God longs to give them a new heart. How he longs to extend forgiveness to the M.
* Then I read a poem by Samuel Moor Shoemaker entitled "I Stand by the Door."
He ends:
I admire the people who go way in.
But I wish they would not forget how it was before they got in.
Then they would be able to help the people who have not yet even found the door,
or the people who want to run away again from God.
You can go in too deeply, and stay in too long, and forget the people outside the door.
As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place, near enough to God to hear him,
and know he is there, but not so far from men as not to hear them, and remember they are there, too.
Where? Outside the door - thousands of them, millions of them.
But - more important for me - one of them, two of them, ten of them,
whose hands I am intended to put on the latch.
So I shall stand by the door and wait for those who seek it.
"I had rather be a door-keeper . . . "
So I stand by the door.
* I started praying:
That I will be a door-keeper in the M world so that when Jesus is revealed I may simply be able to guide a hand to the door.
* I open outlook and the first email that is in my box is from a M connection I made a few months ago.
And all this before 5:00 A.M. on Tuesday morning.
Salaam,
Jamey
Monday, October 5, 2009
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHIll
* Sunday Small Group: role of the conscience, difference between guilt and conviction, and other thought provoking stuff!
* Infant baptism - love recognizing God's grace at work in our lives.
* Celebrating communion - dancing to the table!
* Worship old school with new flavor. Jason and the gang did a great job.
* Message: Ruth - God's purposes are worked out through our loyalty.
* 17 join the church. 4 Professions of faith.
* Food and fellowship at the lake.
* Baptisms in the lake - cold but warmed by the Spirit of God.
* Hearing wife singing to the boys - priceless.
* Conclusion: God was all over the place today.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
What's In a Name
Do you know the meaning of your name? My mom got the idea for my name from a soap opera. I really don't know what to think about that. While I was studying the first chapter of Ruth I came across interesting discoveries when it comes to the names of the characters in the book. Elimilech means "My God is King." Naomi means "pleasant." Ruth means "friend." Orpah means "back of the neck." Mahlon means "sickness." Chilon means "spent." Boaz means
in him is strength." Now that you know the meaning of each name take an opportunity to read the book and see how each name has significance in understanding the story.
in him is strength." Now that you know the meaning of each name take an opportunity to read the book and see how each name has significance in understanding the story.
Maybe you don't like your name. Maybe your name has been the source of ridicule. Maybe your name has you associated with abuse, pain, or hurt. The Good News is that God knows your name and he wants to give you a new name. A name that stands for forgiveness and love.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Fail to Plan
"What could we do that would guarantee we never see our vision materialize?" The answer: fail to plan. As a pastor one of my duties is to preside over weddings. I usually do a minimum of three counseling sessions with the bride and groom before the wedding. It never fails that brides will come in with a plan for the whole wedding event. Many will have a schedule printed out on what needs to be ordered by a certain date. The whole wedding day is broken down into thirty minute blocks. She has everything planned out. But I ask if they have a goal, a plan for the marriage and most look like they don't have a clue. One thing I require for couples desiring to get married is that they have a marriage plan. I want them to have a vision for their marriage. A sure way to fail at anything is to NOT plan.
While in college we took a trip to South Carolina. On the bus trip I sat beside a guy who was looking through a notebook. I asked him about the notebook and he said it was his plan for the life that God was calling him to fulfill. After law school he had plans to build an orphanage in Eastern Europe. He had a beautiful vision. And a plan to back it up. What could we do that would guarantee that we never see our vision/s materialize? We never plan. Take an opportunity to plan today. Write down on paper the steps necessary to fulfill the vision. Jesus says, "Count the cost."
While in college we took a trip to South Carolina. On the bus trip I sat beside a guy who was looking through a notebook. I asked him about the notebook and he said it was his plan for the life that God was calling him to fulfill. After law school he had plans to build an orphanage in Eastern Europe. He had a beautiful vision. And a plan to back it up. What could we do that would guarantee that we never see our vision/s materialize? We never plan. Take an opportunity to plan today. Write down on paper the steps necessary to fulfill the vision. Jesus says, "Count the cost."
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Visioneering by Andy Stanley
Chapter Three: Positions Please!
Quotes:
- Just about every God-ordained vision appears to be impossible.
- God-ordained visions are always to big for us to handle.
- God is using your circumstances to position and prepare.
- If you are "seeking first" his kingdom where you are, then where you are is where he has positioned you.
- Success is remaining faithful to the process God has laid out for you.
- You are as successful now as you will be the day you see your vision materialize.
- To focus on what's around you diminishes your ability to focus on what's before you.
- Waiting time is not wasted time for anyone in whose heart God has placed a vision.
QUESTIONS:
1. What does remaining faithful in your current situation entail?
For me, it is doing with excellence what is before me.
2.What is the main thing about your current situation that makes it difficult for you to believe God is preparing you for his vision?
- it takes a lot of time and energy
- people do not share the same passion
Would you be willing to pause and express your faith in God's ability to use your present circumstances to position you for the fulfillment of his vision for your life?
Quotes:
- Just about every God-ordained vision appears to be impossible.
- God-ordained visions are always to big for us to handle.
- God is using your circumstances to position and prepare.
- If you are "seeking first" his kingdom where you are, then where you are is where he has positioned you.
- Success is remaining faithful to the process God has laid out for you.
- You are as successful now as you will be the day you see your vision materialize.
- To focus on what's around you diminishes your ability to focus on what's before you.
- Waiting time is not wasted time for anyone in whose heart God has placed a vision.
QUESTIONS:
1. What does remaining faithful in your current situation entail?
For me, it is doing with excellence what is before me.
2.What is the main thing about your current situation that makes it difficult for you to believe God is preparing you for his vision?
- it takes a lot of time and energy
- people do not share the same passion
Would you be willing to pause and express your faith in God's ability to use your present circumstances to position you for the fulfillment of his vision for your life?
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Drought
It is with irony that I read I Kings 17 today in my devotion. The story starts out with Elijah prophesying NO rain for the land to King Ahab. As I write this we are receiving record rain falls and people are being evacuated from their homes in and around Atlanta. Elijah was told to go hangout by the brook Cherith. If I was to go to a brook at this moment I would need to take my kayak for fear of getting washed away. It was this time last year that the news media was feeding on our own fears of drought by telling us we only had so many more months of water left in the reservoirs. How things change in a year. We may not know what is coming but we can trust in the One who does.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHill
* Great presentation on Latvian Angel Project. Check it out: http://www.latvianangelproject.org/
* Chad rocked on drums
* Great to see the commitment level of folks on a Sunday with all the excuses to stay home
* 9:45 Small Group: distinguishing between what is essential and nonessential.
* Karina shined in reading scripture
* Most folks didn't know that we had issues with the lights early on - thanks Karen you rock!
* Mark, Walt, Daniel, Karina, Jim pulled trailers and set-up in the pouring rain - the rain will not even stop us from praising God - even if we have to do it from an Ark!
* Don't forget to pray for the New Orleans Mission Team
* Ran into a colleague from Sears at the gas station - small world
* mom cooked some GOOD vegetables
* put up fence posts in the rain with dad and brothers
* niece staying with us for two nights
* my wife looks beautiful tonight
* Chad rocked on drums
* Great to see the commitment level of folks on a Sunday with all the excuses to stay home
* 9:45 Small Group: distinguishing between what is essential and nonessential.
* Karina shined in reading scripture
* Most folks didn't know that we had issues with the lights early on - thanks Karen you rock!
* Mark, Walt, Daniel, Karina, Jim pulled trailers and set-up in the pouring rain - the rain will not even stop us from praising God - even if we have to do it from an Ark!
* Don't forget to pray for the New Orleans Mission Team
* Ran into a colleague from Sears at the gas station - small world
* mom cooked some GOOD vegetables
* put up fence posts in the rain with dad and brothers
* niece staying with us for two nights
* my wife looks beautiful tonight
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Time
You know the cell phone commercial where the mother is fussing over "unused minutes?" I have a few of those "unused minutes" in my past. They are the wasteful hours that I spent doing mindless things. It is more than just staring at walls. It is filling my schedule with pointless things. I would love to be at a place in my life where I live so intentionally that I never have to ask "What might have been." It is important to remember that heaven can be won or lost in one tiny moment. God never gives the future. He gives only the present. Jesus says, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." It is here. This is the moment we are meant to live.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Apricots
If you have the privilege of being in my presence today then you will notice a unique aroma. I ran out of my "man soap? and had to use my wife's body wash. I noticed on the bottle that it is apricot. So today I get to walk around smelling like a fruit. I have never figured out why we want to bathe our self in an aroma similar to a bowl of fruit. It makes me want to start smelling people: she is an orange, here comes a peach, there stands banana.
Did Jesus say we will be known by the fruit we "bear" or "wear?" Paul says we are to be a walking fruit tree. I just hope we don't let it go bad- have you ever smelled bad fruit?
It stinks.
Still Believing,
Jamey
Did Jesus say we will be known by the fruit we "bear" or "wear?" Paul says we are to be a walking fruit tree. I just hope we don't let it go bad- have you ever smelled bad fruit?
It stinks.
Still Believing,
Jamey
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Visioneering by Andy Stanley
Chapter Two: Praying and Planning
Quotes from book
* We see often what we are looking for, we often miss what we don't expect to see.
* Prayer sensitizes us to subtle changes in the landscape of our circumstances.
* Pray for opportunities.
* Dreamers dream about things being different. Visionaries envision themselves making a difference.
* Dreamers think about how nice it would be for something to be done. Visionaries look for an opportunity to do something.
* Pray for favor.
* Focus your prayers on what you know needs to happen in order to get your vision off the launching pad.
* Plan as if you knew someone were going to come along and give you an opportunity to pursue your vision.
* Opportunity apart from preparation results in missed opportunity.
* Why should God bring an opportunity your way if you are not in a position to take advantage of it?
* If you were God, to whom would you give opportunities? Wishful thinkers, Dreamers, or Planners?
* Vision usually precedes just about everything necessary to bring it into the sphere of reality.
Questions
1. What opportunities do you need to be praying for?
- relationships w/ M.
- open doors into M.E.
- connections with persons of influence
2. Who are the people who could help you accomplish your vision?
(I have a list of people/organizations)
3. What changes would need to take place in their thinking in order for them to support your effort?
- realize the need/opportunity
- more support
- vision to reach out
- clarity of call
- become followers of Jesus
4. Write a simple plan
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
(working on this)
5. What can you do now?
(pray and plan)
Quotes from book
* We see often what we are looking for, we often miss what we don't expect to see.
* Prayer sensitizes us to subtle changes in the landscape of our circumstances.
* Pray for opportunities.
* Dreamers dream about things being different. Visionaries envision themselves making a difference.
* Dreamers think about how nice it would be for something to be done. Visionaries look for an opportunity to do something.
* Pray for favor.
* Focus your prayers on what you know needs to happen in order to get your vision off the launching pad.
* Plan as if you knew someone were going to come along and give you an opportunity to pursue your vision.
* Opportunity apart from preparation results in missed opportunity.
* Why should God bring an opportunity your way if you are not in a position to take advantage of it?
* If you were God, to whom would you give opportunities? Wishful thinkers, Dreamers, or Planners?
* Vision usually precedes just about everything necessary to bring it into the sphere of reality.
Questions
1. What opportunities do you need to be praying for?
- relationships w/ M.
- open doors into M.E.
- connections with persons of influence
2. Who are the people who could help you accomplish your vision?
(I have a list of people/organizations)
3. What changes would need to take place in their thinking in order for them to support your effort?
- realize the need/opportunity
- more support
- vision to reach out
- clarity of call
- become followers of Jesus
4. Write a simple plan
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
(working on this)
5. What can you do now?
(pray and plan)
Monday, September 14, 2009
Book Review
If you have teenagers, work with teens, or have children who will one day rise up to be teenagers then you need to read Do Hard Things by Alex & Brett Harris. Better yet, read it together with your teen.
The premise of the book is that as a culture we have set the expectations of teenagers too low. They say, "Where expectations are high, we tend to rise to meet them. Where expectations are low, we tend to drop to meet them. And yet this is the exact opposite of what we're told to do in I Corinthians 14:20: "Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults." Our culture says, "Be mature in evil, but in your thinking and behavior be childish." The authors argue that teenagers have proven strength and God-given potential that is not being tapped into because as a culture we put low expectations. Their goal is to show that deep down teens what to do hard things, that they were created to do hard things, and they can do hard things.
They outline "Hard Things" into five categories:
1. How to do hard things that take you outside your comfort zone.
2. How to do hard things that go beyond what's expected or required.
3. How to do hard things that are too big for you to do alone.
4. How to do hard things that don't pay off immediately.
5. How to do hard things that go against the crowd.
The book ends by telling personal stories of teens doing hard things. It is a book for teenagers (and adults) written by teenagers.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHill
* 9:45am Small Group: Acts 9 Paul's Conversion or Commission/Call? Great Discussion. Relationship w/ Jesus is dangerous
* Great to see some of our college students come back and visit for the weekend (even if one of them does put up a fake b-day on FB :) )
* Andy gives an awesome testimony.
* Sign up today for Rock Eagle Men's Retreat: http://www.ngcumm.com/
* Commission New Orleans Mission Team. They will be leaving Saturday. Pray for them.
* Habitat Home dedication this upcoming Saturday - Don't forget.
* Mission Trip to Kenya on Oct. 25th. Spaces available
* Challenge: Write letters to the person/s who introduced us to Jesus Christ
* Charge Conference: great to have a D.S. that is passionate for people being introduced to Jesus
* Falcons win!
* Great to see some of our college students come back and visit for the weekend (even if one of them does put up a fake b-day on FB :) )
* Andy gives an awesome testimony.
* Sign up today for Rock Eagle Men's Retreat: http://www.ngcumm.com/
* Commission New Orleans Mission Team. They will be leaving Saturday. Pray for them.
* Habitat Home dedication this upcoming Saturday - Don't forget.
* Mission Trip to Kenya on Oct. 25th. Spaces available
* Challenge: Write letters to the person/s who introduced us to Jesus Christ
* Charge Conference: great to have a D.S. that is passionate for people being introduced to Jesus
* Falcons win!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
My Thoughts on the Health Care Debate
I am not sure if I am intelligent enough to dig through all the misinformation so I will keep my comment simple.
I am happy with my insurance. The United Methodist Church provides excellent insurance for the clergy in our system. Unfortunately, the cost for churches continue to rise but that is for another day.
The point is not that I am happy with my health care. As a follower of Jesus, I have to ask, "Am I happy with my neighbors health care?" I am part of a church that takes seriously meeting the needs of the poor. Weekly we have people walk in our office looking for assistance for house payments, car payments, rent, and medical bills. I don't know the answer to the debate. I do know the faith community needs to be part of this debate. BTW: health care has its beginnings with the church. The church is called upon to serve the poor and the widow. Would we be having this debate if the church took serious its call to serve the "least of these?"
I am happy with my insurance. The United Methodist Church provides excellent insurance for the clergy in our system. Unfortunately, the cost for churches continue to rise but that is for another day.
The point is not that I am happy with my health care. As a follower of Jesus, I have to ask, "Am I happy with my neighbors health care?" I am part of a church that takes seriously meeting the needs of the poor. Weekly we have people walk in our office looking for assistance for house payments, car payments, rent, and medical bills. I don't know the answer to the debate. I do know the faith community needs to be part of this debate. BTW: health care has its beginnings with the church. The church is called upon to serve the poor and the widow. Would we be having this debate if the church took serious its call to serve the "least of these?"
Monday, September 7, 2009
Burden turned Vision
Starting this week the staff is going through Andy Stanley's book "Visioneering." We are not doing it so much for the sake of developing a clear, articulate vision for the church but that the individuals leading the church may be able to understand their own vision or lack of vision. Stanley says visions are multifaceted. My goal is that the staff come to discover God's vision for their life as it relates to children, spouse, fiance, and ministry. I want to use this blog as a way to redefine the visions of my life. I would love to hear from you as you think through these categories as well.
Project # 1 (from Visioneering)
1. You have multiple visions for your life. Some are clearer than others. To begin clarifying what you believe your future should hold, write a one-sentence summary of how you believe life ought to be in the following areas.
* Career (Church): I believe the church structure should serve to help people discover the passionate life that Jesus came to give us.
* Finances: I want to be completely debt free and able to serve God in financial freedom.
* Spouse: I want to love my wife with a passion that grows deeper over time.
* Children: I want my children to have a joy about life that radiates in whatever they do.
2. Visions are born in the soul of a man or woman who is gripped by a tension between what is and what should be. Are you gripped by a particular tension? If so, take a minute to describe your dilemma
* What's bother you? I am bothered by the fact that a particular people group (those that know me know what I am talking about) are not being engaged with the Gospel.
* What is the solution? The solution is intentional engagement through incarnational living among this particular group.
* What should be? The unengaged group should be discovering the life found in Jesus.
3. Have any burdens begun to feel like a moral imperative?
It is imperative to share the Gospel if we are convinced that the gospel is Good News. We cannot allow fear and ignorance to limit the stretch of the Gospel.
4. Do you see a connection between your vision and what God is up to in this world?
God wants all people to come to know Him. He is raising up people now to extend the Gospel into this area of the world. We just need more creativity and the ability to think outside the traditional missional way.
Share your thoughts here or on FB.
Jamey
Project # 1 (from Visioneering)
1. You have multiple visions for your life. Some are clearer than others. To begin clarifying what you believe your future should hold, write a one-sentence summary of how you believe life ought to be in the following areas.
* Career (Church): I believe the church structure should serve to help people discover the passionate life that Jesus came to give us.
* Finances: I want to be completely debt free and able to serve God in financial freedom.
* Spouse: I want to love my wife with a passion that grows deeper over time.
* Children: I want my children to have a joy about life that radiates in whatever they do.
2. Visions are born in the soul of a man or woman who is gripped by a tension between what is and what should be. Are you gripped by a particular tension? If so, take a minute to describe your dilemma
* What's bother you? I am bothered by the fact that a particular people group (those that know me know what I am talking about) are not being engaged with the Gospel.
* What is the solution? The solution is intentional engagement through incarnational living among this particular group.
* What should be? The unengaged group should be discovering the life found in Jesus.
3. Have any burdens begun to feel like a moral imperative?
It is imperative to share the Gospel if we are convinced that the gospel is Good News. We cannot allow fear and ignorance to limit the stretch of the Gospel.
4. Do you see a connection between your vision and what God is up to in this world?
God wants all people to come to know Him. He is raising up people now to extend the Gospel into this area of the world. We just need more creativity and the ability to think outside the traditional missional way.
Share your thoughts here or on FB.
Jamey
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHill
* Worship was totally "INTERRUPTING" today.
* Impressed with the crowd during small group hour - great to see LibertyHill folks waiting until Monday to celebrate Labor Day.
* Nice lunch w/ missions pastor.
* Got a chance to reconnect w/ Jon Poole and the gang (i.e., Echoing Angels)
* Dinner at Cracker Barrel w/ folks who make me feel like "family."
* Miss my family. Can't wait until they get back.
* Nascar race in Atlanta at night - cool!
* Impressed with the crowd during small group hour - great to see LibertyHill folks waiting until Monday to celebrate Labor Day.
* Nice lunch w/ missions pastor.
* Got a chance to reconnect w/ Jon Poole and the gang (i.e., Echoing Angels)
* Dinner at Cracker Barrel w/ folks who make me feel like "family."
* Miss my family. Can't wait until they get back.
* Nascar race in Atlanta at night - cool!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Engage:Part Four
Jesus wants us to have an abundant life. An exceptional life, or as Eugene Peterson translates John 10:10 in The Message: “A life that you could never dream of.” A passionate life. Can you honestly say right now that your life is “passionate?” Jesus is not interested in how religious we are. Jesus wants us to live life passionately wherever we find life. He wants you to be a passionate father, husband, and friend. He wants you to be a passionate mother, wife, and friend. He wants you to be a passionate teenager. A passionate child.
A passionate life is not a life of comfort. It is not dependent on outside circumstances to make us happy. It is not obtained quickly. A passionate life is a life abundant in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. It is a Christ-centered life. It is a life with purpose. It is more than existing. It is engaging.
An engaging life truly exists for others. It gives up luxury so that others may have necessity. The engaging life rejects the lone-ranger mentality and lives in a sacrificial and compassionate community. Those engaged in the life of Jesus view money as a resource of God’s kingdom and not as an object to be consumed. They are people that trusts the Spirit and takes risks for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Engaged in a passionate life is the abundant life.
A passionate life is not a life of comfort. It is not dependent on outside circumstances to make us happy. It is not obtained quickly. A passionate life is a life abundant in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. It is a Christ-centered life. It is a life with purpose. It is more than existing. It is engaging.
An engaging life truly exists for others. It gives up luxury so that others may have necessity. The engaging life rejects the lone-ranger mentality and lives in a sacrificial and compassionate community. Those engaged in the life of Jesus view money as a resource of God’s kingdom and not as an object to be consumed. They are people that trusts the Spirit and takes risks for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Engaged in a passionate life is the abundant life.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Engage: Part Three
The irony is we are not comfortable. The mom driving the SUV with the child star on it is soulless. The father who takes on a suffocating commute for the sake of the family is exhausted. The teenager who is taught to put on a “perfect face” even when things are not is lost. The child who is taxied to one event after another has forgotten how to dream and have an imagination. In the opening paragraphs of Message in a Bottle, Walker Perry asks, “Why does man feel so sad? Why do people often feel bad in good enviroments and good in bad enviroments? Why do people often feel so bad in good enviroments that they prefer bad enviroments? Why is it that a man riding a good commuter train home from Larchmont to New York, whose needs and drives are satisfied, who has a good home, a loving wife and family, good job, who enjoys unprecedented cultural and recreational facilities, often feels bad without knowing why?” That is a great question. “Why do we feel bad in good enviroments and good in bad enviroments? Another way of saying this is “why is ‘Desperate Housewives’ the most popular show being watched in the suburbs?”
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Engage: Part Two
Churches in the suburbs buy into the honor code as well. Whole staff meetings are focused around how to make people comfortable. We discuss parking issues, easy access points, and how not to be too offensive. We stand up and say we are going to go to downtown Atlanta to visit a homeless shelter on Monday night but we can come home to our comfortable beds instead of saying we need two families who will move to downtown and live among the homeless for a year. We create sports programs that pull kids out of public sports with unchurched kids because they need to be in a “Christian environment.” We do the same with school choice. We send our kids to private “Christian” schools where they don’t have to be salt and light in a dark world. They can just hang out among other salty kids. Why do we go to extreme measures? Because we are following the honor code: everything is fine and my life is in order – We are comfortable.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Engage: Part One
During the week I will post excerpts from last week's message.
People are attracted to the suburbs for many reasons. We want to get away from the hectic lifestyle of in-town living. We want to divide our lives in that I work over here and I live and play over here. We like the safety of the suburbs. We want our kids to go to good schools. Suburbia is the context and the setting for the fulfillment of people’s hopes and dreams. A place for new opportunities. The suburbs promise prosperity, upward mobility, a healthy life, safety and tranquility, the best place to bring up kids.
When you moved into the neighborhood you probably signed a covenant. The covenant says you won’t put your car on blocks in the front yard, you will not use the old toilet for a flower pot, the grass will not get as high as your knees and your child or dog won’t leave a smelly gift for the neighbor in his front yard.
We also sign an imaginary honor code. It is a code that rather we were aware of it or not by the simple fact of moving into the suburbs all of us sign. It is obvious in our conversations or lack of. It is obvious in the way we structure our lives. Most of us live by this honor code until the end but we don’t ever bring it up. Men ignore it on the golf course by talking about sports, politics, or nothing at all. Women out of pride refuse to bring it up in conversation around coffee or tea. It is an honor code that destroys life, destroys family, and destroys children. It is an honor code that leads to a shallow life, a life with no depth. Here is the honor code of suburbia: “Everything is fine” and “my life is in order.” The day you arrived at your new house you stood in the drive way as the movers moved you in and you looked around at your husband, children, house, and neighbors and you said, “Everything is great and I am finally getting some structure to my life.” That is the secret pledge every person makes to live in the suburbs. Don’t believe me try this experiment when you are at the little league field this week. Ask someone how they are doing. What will they say, “I am fine?” Then ask about their family and they will tell you about little Timmy who is a great soccer player, little Suzie who is at choral recital, and daddy, husband Jim Bob who is working late today so that he can take off on Friday to go play golf with the guys. Ask her how she is doing she will in one way or another tell you: “I am fine.” Which translates I have my SUV with my child is a star student at perfect elementary sticker on the bumper. I am not saying this is bad. I am just saying this is the honor code: “everything is fine and my life is in order” that we in the suburbs live by. The problem is we continue to live by this honor code even when life is not fine and my life is not in order. Or that we have come to define a “fine life” by the things we own, drive, or live-in and order is understood as comfort. Another way of saying the honor code is that I am comfortable.
People are attracted to the suburbs for many reasons. We want to get away from the hectic lifestyle of in-town living. We want to divide our lives in that I work over here and I live and play over here. We like the safety of the suburbs. We want our kids to go to good schools. Suburbia is the context and the setting for the fulfillment of people’s hopes and dreams. A place for new opportunities. The suburbs promise prosperity, upward mobility, a healthy life, safety and tranquility, the best place to bring up kids.
When you moved into the neighborhood you probably signed a covenant. The covenant says you won’t put your car on blocks in the front yard, you will not use the old toilet for a flower pot, the grass will not get as high as your knees and your child or dog won’t leave a smelly gift for the neighbor in his front yard.
We also sign an imaginary honor code. It is a code that rather we were aware of it or not by the simple fact of moving into the suburbs all of us sign. It is obvious in our conversations or lack of. It is obvious in the way we structure our lives. Most of us live by this honor code until the end but we don’t ever bring it up. Men ignore it on the golf course by talking about sports, politics, or nothing at all. Women out of pride refuse to bring it up in conversation around coffee or tea. It is an honor code that destroys life, destroys family, and destroys children. It is an honor code that leads to a shallow life, a life with no depth. Here is the honor code of suburbia: “Everything is fine” and “my life is in order.” The day you arrived at your new house you stood in the drive way as the movers moved you in and you looked around at your husband, children, house, and neighbors and you said, “Everything is great and I am finally getting some structure to my life.” That is the secret pledge every person makes to live in the suburbs. Don’t believe me try this experiment when you are at the little league field this week. Ask someone how they are doing. What will they say, “I am fine?” Then ask about their family and they will tell you about little Timmy who is a great soccer player, little Suzie who is at choral recital, and daddy, husband Jim Bob who is working late today so that he can take off on Friday to go play golf with the guys. Ask her how she is doing she will in one way or another tell you: “I am fine.” Which translates I have my SUV with my child is a star student at perfect elementary sticker on the bumper. I am not saying this is bad. I am just saying this is the honor code: “everything is fine and my life is in order” that we in the suburbs live by. The problem is we continue to live by this honor code even when life is not fine and my life is not in order. Or that we have come to define a “fine life” by the things we own, drive, or live-in and order is understood as comfort. Another way of saying the honor code is that I am comfortable.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Sunday @ LibertyHill
* Great response on vision sermon: engaging people in the life and mission of Jesus
* Altar full of folks praying for God to give us clarity on the direction of the church
* We are not going to just be "comfortable"
* Tyler takes his small group to Starbucks to share testimonies
* Hanging w/ the family on a rainy day
* UGA football next Saturday.
* Altar full of folks praying for God to give us clarity on the direction of the church
* We are not going to just be "comfortable"
* Tyler takes his small group to Starbucks to share testimonies
* Hanging w/ the family on a rainy day
* UGA football next Saturday.
Monday, August 24, 2009
SafeHouse
Tonightmy family joined a group of about thirty folks on a journey to experience the face of homelessness. We journeyed with an organization in Atlanta called SafeHouse (http://www.safehouseoutreach.org/). Here are some of my thoughts:
* Homelessness has a face: Christian, four years old. Him and his mom sleep on the street every night and if they are lucky they can get into a shelter. He ran up to Jaden started hugging him and said we are going to be "cousins."
* I am proud to serve a church where a challenge to go to downtown Atlanta and walk among the homeless can be given on Sunday morning during a sermon and thirty people show up ready to go.
* I am proud to serve a church where students and elderly are ready to serve
* I am proud to serve a church where the staff understand that ministry happens on the streets and what we do in the office is preparation. When it comes to walking the streets the division of church staff and church member is stripped away and we just become brothers and sisters.
* The truth is my children learned more about Jesus and missions through their experience tonight and the conversations leading up to and after the experience then they would sitting in five years worth of Sunday School lessons. We learn through experience. The stories of Jesus are real and not something we just find cute and cuddly in a classroom.
God revealed a powerful truth to me as I walked the streets of Atlanta tonight. God said, "There is a difference between "sheltering" and protecting your children. A lot of parents don't get the difference. I never want to shelter my children from the hurts and pains of the world because that is where God is. We are not protecting our children if we shelter them from the experience of life. As a parent I am to protect. We have had our children pray for kids who don't have homes, food, or a mommy or daddy. Because tonight we chose not to shelter our children, the prayer was real.
"Dear God give Christian, my new cousin, a home, a daddy, food, and help Christian know Jesus" - Jaden Prickett, 6 yrs old.
You only get this kind of good stuff when the church hits the road!
Still Believing,
Jamey
* Homelessness has a face: Christian, four years old. Him and his mom sleep on the street every night and if they are lucky they can get into a shelter. He ran up to Jaden started hugging him and said we are going to be "cousins."
* I am proud to serve a church where a challenge to go to downtown Atlanta and walk among the homeless can be given on Sunday morning during a sermon and thirty people show up ready to go.
* I am proud to serve a church where students and elderly are ready to serve
* I am proud to serve a church where the staff understand that ministry happens on the streets and what we do in the office is preparation. When it comes to walking the streets the division of church staff and church member is stripped away and we just become brothers and sisters.
* The truth is my children learned more about Jesus and missions through their experience tonight and the conversations leading up to and after the experience then they would sitting in five years worth of Sunday School lessons. We learn through experience. The stories of Jesus are real and not something we just find cute and cuddly in a classroom.
God revealed a powerful truth to me as I walked the streets of Atlanta tonight. God said, "There is a difference between "sheltering" and protecting your children. A lot of parents don't get the difference. I never want to shelter my children from the hurts and pains of the world because that is where God is. We are not protecting our children if we shelter them from the experience of life. As a parent I am to protect. We have had our children pray for kids who don't have homes, food, or a mommy or daddy. Because tonight we chose not to shelter our children, the prayer was real.
"Dear God give Christian, my new cousin, a home, a daddy, food, and help Christian know Jesus" - Jaden Prickett, 6 yrs old.
You only get this kind of good stuff when the church hits the road!
Still Believing,
Jamey
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