Life on the Journey

Just Not Enough

2012-03-01T12:25:00.001-05:00

“Can you honestly tell me you did a good job with my child?”Her eyes pleaded with me as she spoke. The question hung in the air as anawkward silence surrounded us. I realized there was a mountain of hurt fromwhich she spoke and I happened to be the target. She couldn’t have known thather words were like darts to the pin-cushion of my heart.

Myresponse, while unspoken, came straight from the gut. “No, I cannot say I havedone a good job with your child but I did the best I knew how.” In the manymoments of naked honesty and self-reflection that have followed thatconfrontation, I have come back to the same conclusion. I did the best I knewhow but it wasn’t good enough.

So whathappens when your best is just not good enough?

Tworealities were true for me at the time. First, I had done the best I knew howbut it was not good enough. Second, I was called to and still cared for thisministry. But these two truths did not coexist peacefully and at the moment,the second reality was rapidly losing ground. In light of the emotionalonslaught and my painfully honest response, the second reality certainly didnot feel like it could be true.

I was farfrom the place where John Piper was when he was able to say with apparentconfidence, “From that moment on I have never doubted that my calling in lifeis to be a minister of the Word of God.” I doubted. I sat there hurt anddoubtful. Yet from somewhere in the back of my head a thought slowly andquietly crept forward until it became more than a shadow or a whisper. Theremay be countless others who are better equipped and more skilled but right nowGod called me to this ministry here.

The momentthat God-inspired thought took hold in my mind, it did more than reaffirm mycalling. It reaffirmed the vision God had given. In the same manner God calledme to this ministry at this time He gave me a vision for this ministry.

Theprimary issue was not my effort. My best will never be good enough; that is why I need the Gospel message. The primary issue wasand is God’s calling and vision. The ministry was and is His. By His grace, I faithfully obey.

3 Reasons to Take the Next Step

2012-02-29T13:10:00.000-05:00

Taking the next step affirms our faith.
In 1 John 2:5-6, John says "we may know that we are in him [by walking] in the same way in which he walked." Our faith is affirmed when we take the next step in following Jesus. We walk one step at a time. With each step, we gain confidence not in ourselves, but in the One we follow.

Taking the next step builds community.
"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another..." 1 John 1:7. John tells us that not only does taking the next step draw us nearer the Father but it somehow draws us nearer one another. In contrast, a direct result of refusing to take the next step, to walk in the light, is broken fellowship.

Taking the next step brings honor to God.
"By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples" John 15:8. God is glorified in our growth. Healthy things grow. When we take the next step in our relationship with Christ, we grow.

February Reads

2012-02-28T08:43:00.000-05:00

For Calvinism

Michael Horton

I think this is an even-handed, fair and helpful look at Calvinism and its place in Reformed Theology. It is readable and easy to understand. Horton's interaction with Arminianism in relation to Calvinism is well done. He is gracious to this opposing view and those who hold it. He also does a fine job of taking down straw men and caricatures of the Calvinist position. I appreciated this book and look forward to interacting with its counterpart, "Against Calvinism."

The Screwtape Letters

C.S. Lewis

Continuing my journey through some of the works of C.S. Lewis, I realized I cannot remember the last time I read The Screwtape Letters. In fact, I can't remember if I've read it in its entirety until now. Needless to say, a classic. Worth the read a first time and multiple times thereafter.

What Does God Want of us Anyway?

Mark Dever

This small book is a flyover of the entire Bible. It's a sprint through the whole message of the Bible in the first part. Then it takes parts two and three respectively to give an overview of the Old Testament and New Testament. It is helpful in what it intends to do--give a broad overview of the whole of Scripture. Other works do this more in depth but for a quick taste, hopefully a whetting of the appetite, this book does the job.

5 Reasons to Study the Old Testament

2012-02-27T10:34:00.002-05:00

It is part of the complete canon of Scripture, and as God’s self-revelation, it is inspired.

II Timothy 3:16-17--All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and fortraining in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
II Peter 1:20-21--knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
II Peter 3:15-16--And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you accordingto the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.
I Thessalonians 2:13--And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heardfrom us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.

It was the Scripture of Jesus and the apostles.

It is fulfilled in Jesus.

Matthew 5:17--Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfillthem.

The OT bears witness to Jesus.

John 5:39--You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witnessabout me
Luke 24:27--And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerninghimself.
Luke 24:44--Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything writtenabout me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”

It was written for our instruction.

Romans 15:4--For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through theencouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
I Corinthians 10:11--Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whomthe end of the ages has come.

Learning From Jesus

2012-02-13T15:23:00.000-05:00

Following Jesus is learning from Jesus. Jesus was into teaching. He talked about the disciple-teacher relationship. He allowed Himself to be called "teacher." He taught His followers.

But pause for a moment and tell me what you think of when you hear the word "teacher." What's the first thing that comes to your mind? Go ahead, say it. Which teacher came to mind? Was it your favorite teacher? Or maybe it was one of the worst teachers you remember. Was it that time you fell asleep because the teacher was so boring? Oh for some of us it wasn't a person at all, it was fear--fear of tests, fear of bad grades, fear of being called upon. We have countless images that are stirred when we think of teachers.

Did you notice though that virtually all of our images have to do with school or the classroom. This all seems to revolve around the passing and receiving of content. Forget all that for a moment and listen to Jesus' words in Luke 6:40, "A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher."

Of course I'm not saying that content is unimportant, but "being like the teacher" sounds like much more than learning as the process of acquiring content. So when we say that following Jesus is learning from Jesus, we are actually saying a great deal. Learning from Jesus certainly includes the element of acquiring content but it also includes character transformation, becoming like Jesus.

The Moment

2012-02-13T14:46:00.000-05:00

“You earn that moment. You work towards that moment, but that is the moment towards which you must move so that the cross is never sacrificed at the altar of relevance.”
--Ravi Zacharias

Not Into Prayer

2012-02-06T14:42:00.002-05:00

A good thought from Ben Patterson (Deepening Your Conversation with God) for those of us who feel lacking in the area of prayer:

I’m not “into” prayer. I seem to have missed the religious gene or whatever it is that makes people enjoy the act of praying. It’s not my nature to pray. I’m not into prayer, I am into God! I thirst and hunger for God, I ache for God. Without his everlasting arms holding me up, I will fall. So I must pray.

Just Following Jesus

2012-01-31T12:53:00.002-05:00

"We need to be intentional in clarifying what we mean by discipleship, in outlining what the discipleship process looks like and in encouraging one another to take the next step in the discipleship process."

So what do we mean by discipleship? After all if you listen closely to what churches say when talking about ministry, you hear it all the time. "We want to be a disciple-making church." "Our church is all about discipleship." "We all need to get back to the heart of discipleship." This sounds great but it gets a little confusing when so many churches seem to say such similar things about discipleship yet those churches couldn't look more different in how they do ministry. So you begin to wonder, what is this discipleship thing anyway?

This is a fair question and one that merits further discussion. Simply put, a disciple is a follower. In this case, we're talking about following Jesus so a disciple is a follower of Jesus. Discipleship then, is followership of Jesus.

While this answers our question, it does not clarify discipleship very well. The concept of following Jesus is a good one but it remains sufficiently broad to most of us. What does following Jesus look like?

First, following Jesus is by grace from beginning to end. We come to Jesus by God's grace. We say yes to Jesus by God's grace. We follow Jesus more and more closely by God's grace. This does not minimize the importance of our obedience. It reminds us that even our obedience is by God's grace.

In fact, our obedience in following Jesus is not even our own but Christ's. It is Christ living in us effecting the change. Paul says in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

The good news of the Gospel is also the good news of discipleship--God in His grace and love gave His Son to take on the punishment that we deserved so that we could have the life that we could never earn.

January Reads

2012-01-29T20:35:00.001-05:00

The Ragamuffin Gospel

by Brennan Manning

Manning writes of "the furious love of God" for the ragamuffin--the broken, bedraggled, bruised and beaten up. A powerful, prolonged look at the amazing grace and love of God that is life-changing. He notes that all too often we are guilty of '"functional atheism"--the belief that mothing is happening unless we are making it happen. Though our Christian language pays lip service to God, our way of functioning assumes that God is dead or in a coma. Being seized by the power of a great affection does not seem to relate to the real world in which we live.'

Church Unique

by Will Mancini

This was a re-read for me because this book has so many practical thoughts to consider for ministry. I think it's worth the read just for some of the evaluative questions to consider. I love the concept of "church unique" versus pre-packaged, cookie-cutter approaches to ministry.

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

by Eric Metaxas

Interesting and engaging account of Bonhoeffer's life and his Christian response to the Nazi regime.

"I'm Watching You."

2012-01-25T15:03:00.001-05:00

A flurry of activity caught thecorner of my eye and I turned just in time to see an energetic little boyperform an acrobatic feat of heroic proportions. This was, no doubt, hisinterpretation of his actions as he hopped, skipped and jumped through the mallfood court. Then just as quickly as he had erupted into the excited activity,he stopped and spun around. His chest proudly inflated and a giant grin on hisface, he looked toward the man who was following him, his father. The little boylifted his hand and pointed with his first two fingers to his own eyes thendirected his pointed index finger toward his father. He giggled as he spoke,“I’m watching you.” His dad returned the practiced gesture while responding,“No, I’m watching you.”

It was apparent to me that this wasnot a first time interchange between the boy and his dad. His father had donethis gesture many times before and the boy knew what it meant. What struck memost at that moment while I watched this interchange unfold was the littleboy’s unbridled joy at knowing his dad was watching him. The knowledge of hisfather’s watchful eye gave him such courage, such security, such happiness.

It occurred to me that we too have aFather who is watching us. So often though our response to His watchful eye isdrastically different than that little boy’s response. The little boyunderstood that his dad was watching him for his own benefit. This gave thatlittle boy great freedom and joy. We, on the other hand, tend to think God iswatching us, waiting to catch us fail. He is not watching us for our benefit orjoy. His watchful eye is really corrective and disciplinary in nature. As aresult, we live in fear. Instead of really living, instead of attempting greatthings we simply attempt to avoid sin so we don’t get punished or feel guilty.This, however, is not living the Christian life the way God intended it.

Scripture says that God is searchingfor those whose hearts are completely His so He can strongly support them (2Chronicles 16:9). It does not say He is looking for those who are sinless. Heknows our makeup. He is aware of our weaknesses. Rather, He seeks those whodelight in Him. God calls those who know His eyes are upon them and instead ofcowering in fear they stand in joyful awe in response to this. These are theones who find courage in the knowledge that God is watching and want to stepout and do great things to make Him proud.

These are the ones who, like thatlittle boy, never really take their eye off the Father as they hop, skip andjump in confidence, security and love for their audience of One. They look tothe Father and say, “I’m watching You” effectively communicating theirdependence and relationship with the God who sees. And all the while they knowGod responds with a twinkle in His eye, “No, I’m watching you.” Because the Godwho sees is the One who sees, supports, loves and wants the best for us.

Let us go forth in courage andworship because we serve the God who sees.

Thoughts on Discipleship

2012-01-23T10:55:00.001-05:00

I've been thinking lately about discipleship. I suppose this is not a new phenomenon. I've been thinking about discipleship in one way or another since the day I said yes to Jesus. It started out as a clueless groping in the dark, haphazardly making my way toward the light. Ill-directed and accidental is how growth felt at that time. I knew I was supposed to grow in Christ, I even wanted to grow, I just didn't know how to go about it. I got the same advice everyone seems to get in this area, "Go to church, go to youth group, read the Bible and pray."

Fine advice as far as it goes. But I felt like I didn't know how to read the Bible or pray well. I could attend church and youth group as regularly as humanly possible but this only took me a little way in the right direction toward owning my faith. For the most part, it simply allowed me to borrow from others. So at the outset, my journey of discipleship was moving in the right direction but very sloppily and accidentally.

Now in hindsight, I realize some of the perceived "sloppiness" of those early days of discipleship was due to the nature of relationship and life. Relationships can get messy. Relationships don't neatly follow a formula. Discipleship after all is about relationship so it stands to reason that it can get a little messy. There are no neat, tidy magic formulas of discipleship. Even now, this element of discipleship remains in my life.

However, the refusal of discipleship to fit into a neat, tidy formula is not reason to neglect an intentional approach. Now as I think about discipleship both in my own life and in the life of the church, I see the deep need for intentionality in discipleship. We need to be intentional in clarifying what we mean by discipleship, in outlining what the discipleship process looks like and in encouraging one another to take the next step in the discipleship process. We need to clearly communicate the process and freely offer the support to pursue to process of discipleship.

Consistency of Scripture

2012-01-18T10:02:00.002-05:00

The Bible is a remarkable book. It is compiled of 66 books that were written by over 40 different human authors from various backgrounds (a king, a shepherd, prophets, a doctor...) over a 1500 year time span. It was originally composed in three different languages (Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek). The human writers wrote from different locations (three different continents--Asia, Africa, Europe). Through all of this, Scripture's theme and message is consistent.

These are just a few more pieces in the puzzle that when put together make a strong case for the reliability of Scripture. This, of course, brings us back to a question we've asked before. What will we do about it?

I think a strong case can be made for the reliability of Scripture (only sketched out very briefly here). The reality, however, is that the evidence could continue to mount in support of Scripture as God's word, but at it's core this is an issue of the heart. It is good to know why we believe Scripture is God's word and is true. But knowing this is not enough, it must then impact our lives. If Scripture is God's word, it begs the response of knowing it better, reading it more, listening to it consistently not as an end in itself but as the means to deeper relationship to the God who revealed Himself.

God-Breathed

2012-01-15T21:37:00.001-05:00

"All Scripture is breathed out by God..."

2 Timothy 3:16

"Breathed out by God," what an intriguing way to describe this phenomenon of divinely inspired writings. No other sacred writing makes a claim of itself quite like this one. The Koran, for example, hints at being the word of Allah (Surah 2.23; 4.82), but never like this. In fact, the Koran's statements seem to be more defensive in nature. Not here, not in the Bible. In his letter to Timothy, Paul puts it out there for all to see. No apologies, no backpedaling, it's God's word. Period.

I find it interesting that we are too easily ready to backpedal where Scripture itself does not. We try to tone down what Scripture boldly proclaims. We massage words to make them easier on the ears without realizing that in the process we've also messed with meaning.

Scripture claims to be God's word. Paul says it in 2 Timothy 3:16. Peter says it in 2 Peter 1:20-21. Jesus says it in places like Matthew 5:17-18. The Old Testament prophets said it (2 Sam. 23:2; Is. 8:11; Jer. 30:4). This much is true. The question is what will we do about it?

Whatever we do has implications which must not be taken lightly. We can dismiss Scripture's claims. This, of course is no small matter when you consider that we are talking about things that, if true, are of eternal consequence. The same is accurate to say if we accept Scripture's claims. That is, if Scripture is true and God-breathed, how we handle this Self-revelation of the God of all creation is of eternal consequence. If we accept Scripture's claims, among other things we should be drawn to worship the God of Scripture.

God's Word in Our Lives

2012-01-12T11:09:00.000-05:00

"All Scripture is breathed out by God..."

2 Timothy 3:16

How many times have we thought or said, "If only God would speak, then I would know what to do?" By this of course, we mean if only God would communicate more clearly and specifically to us about our situation, we would believe and obey. What rubbish!

I've said it, you've said it, we've all said it in one way or another. It's still rubbish.

It's rubbish because we say we want God to speak while largely ignoring His word--the Bible. We ignore it by not reading it, not studying it, not memorizing it, not meditating on it, not letting it sink into our hearts and souls. As a result, we don't obey it as we ought. In other words, our lives show we don't really mean what we say. God has spoken and we remain unchanged. God forgive us.

God forgive me for not giving Your God-breathed word the honor and respect it deserves.

Praying for Discernment

2012-01-10T08:53:00.001-05:00

Sitting here sipping a cup of coffee and enjoying the silence. It's nice to let the silence sink in along with the slowing down and listening that comes with it. First off, it's the way coffee should be enjoyed--slowly, quietly, with a good book, thought or friend. I suppose this morning it's with the thoughts.

It would be good to sit with one or two good thoughts. Sit here and hold them, inspect them, appreciate them, hold them up to the light to see what new intricacies I find. Just with one or two good thoughts.

Lately I've been pondering so many different thoughts--a revolving door of thoughts, dreams, challenges, tasks, opinions, desires, potential goals. I suppose its not even accurate to say pondering them, more like touching on them.

I've seen so many things to do, felt the tug of a myriad of good options. What these really have been doing though is crowding out the one or two best . I've wondered what my personal goals ought to be this year, what church goals ought to be this year. Many good ones, not yet the right one. I'm sitting here sipping a cup of coffee, enjoying the silence and praying for discernment.

December Reads

2012-01-01T14:00:00.000-05:00

Love Wins

by Rob Bell

I waited to read this book until I could pick it up at the library since I have no desire to buy this one. In the waiting I read a number of the countless reviews that surfaced when (even before) this book came out. With this awareness and some familiarity with Bell's stuff, I had already formulated some opinions before beginning. Opinion #1: I won't agree with Bell. This turned out to be accurate. I appreciate his emphasis on a loving God. I am grateful for his heart for the hurting and marginalized. I disagree with his theology. This is probably not saying enough but my intention here is not an exhaustive review and response to this book. Opinion #2: Bell will probably be a bit "slippery" in his writing. As far as I'm concerned, this too was accurate. There were moments I felt it may be easier to nail jello to the wall than to pin down Bell's beliefs. But I think this is how he wants it. In the end, the word that continues to come to my mind in relation to this book is dangerous.

The Abolition of Man

by C.S. Lewis

Continuing my trek through some of the works of C.S. Lewis. This is another short but substantial book. What a literary giant Lewis was!

Erasing Hell

by Francis Chan & Preston Sprinkle

This book was written at least in part to respond to Bell's Love Wins. Chan does an incredible job working through the biblical/theological content with a sensitive heart toward the subject matter. This is a recommended read especially if you've read Love Wins.

Wonder of the Incarnation

2011-12-22T13:03:00.002-05:00

"[The incarnation] is as far-reaching an issue as can well be imagined. On it hangs your view both of God and of salvation."
--J. I. Packer

As seems fitting for this time of year, I have been reading a bit and thinking on the incarnation--God putting on flesh. Truth is, I've spent hour upon hour doing this. The end result is utter amazement. I have only begun to scratch the surface of this incredible mystery. There are moments I am speechless in the midst of the truth of the incarnation. Worship too deep for words yet begging to be shared, celebrated, multiplied.

God with us. Three words holding profound truth. Simple yet too deep to plumb their depths this side of eternity. Volumes have been written, could be written and probably still should be written. Yet all the ink in creation would be wasted if we were not brought to our knees in worship. Study diligently. Gain knowledge fervently. Pore over the nature of the incarnation, the trinity and the hypostatic union. But never, ever at the expense earnest, heartfelt worship. This, after all, is the call of Christmas.

O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

Some of the articles I've been reading: 'God Plus' or Bust: Lose the Incarnation, Lose It All, The Vital Question, Sent into the World: Jesus' Mission and Ours, Father to God, Model to Us.

Trembling Before the Truth of Hell

2011-12-13T09:58:00.000-05:00

"God will severely punish those who don't bow the knee to King Jesus."
--Francis Chan, Erasing Hell

I got chills reading this sentence and not the good kind of chills. My stomach is a little upset. My eyes a bit watery. My head swimming and my heart aching. Chan's statement is true. He makes it after clearly stating significant support from Scripture. I agree with him.

And I tremble. I tremble over how I have and have not responded to this truth in the past. I've professed to know this for some time. Yet knowing intellectually and letting it impact me the way it ought are worlds apart. Far too often, I have done the former without the latter.

I tremble over how I may respond or not respond to this truth in the future. Will it rightly motivate me to share the Gospel? In word and in deed? As often as possible?

I tremble over what this means for people all around me. I tremble. I don't gloat. How could I? Delighting in a person's severe punishment? That's sick. Someone will want to make the accusation but it's just not true. I think Chan makes a good point here when he points out that the doctor telling his patient about the cancer that was found is not gloating, not delighting in the pain caused. Rather he is telling a hard truth so that the patient can respond properly.

If Scripture is right in teaching that hell is real then ignoring this truth would be akin to the doctor not telling the patient about cancer because it's easier, more pleasant in the moment. The cancer is real. There is punishment for turning away from God. But there is a cure--bowing to King Jesus.

The Promise Keeping God

2011-12-05T14:09:00.001-05:00

God keeps His promises.

Yep, this was the main point of my sermon yesterday on Matthew 1:18-25. It's a gift I have: stating what ought to be obvious. After all, promise-keeping kind of comes packaged under the whole idea of God, or at least it should. The fact that this isn't always the case says more about us than it does about God. Why is it so difficult for us to live as though it is indeed true that God keeps His promises?

We don't live it because we don't truly believe it. While difficult to admit, this just seems like a logical progression to me. If we truly believed that God keeps His promises, it would change the way we live. So a better question may be, why do we not believe that God keeps His promises?

I can think of a few reasons.

We don't really know God or His promises.
We may be aware of God, even know His attributes but at bottom do we really know God in relationship? Are we growing in relationship to Him? Discovering more of His character? Further, do we know what God's promises are? It's one thing to say and even believe God keeps His promises. It's another entirely to know what those promises are.

We misunderstand or misappropriate God's promises.
There is a possible danger when speaking of God as promise-keeper (and no, I don't mean that someone might think I'm Bill McCartney). It's the danger of adding to His promises things that were never intended. This is seen in the health and wealth gospel but it's also found all over the place in our disappointment with God. God didn't keep His promises in the way we wanted or thought He should and in the haze of disappointment we leap to the conclusion that God doesn't keep His promises. I suspect this has more to do with our misunderstanding of God's promises than about His willingness or ability to keep them.

We're afraid.
We're afraid we'll be disappointed. We're afraid God won't "show up." We're afraid that we'll step out on a limb and God will leave us hanging. We'll look foolish. People will make fun of us. It's unreasonable to believe. The list could go on but you get the point.

Hmm, seems like the obvious truth that God keeps His promises may be obvious but it's not elementary. It's got substance. Come to think of it, it could even change my life if I really believed it.

November Reads

2011-11-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Praying Backwards

by Bryan Chapell

"Prayer is more than a conversation with God. In biblical prayer, we think God's thoughts after him." I recommend this book on praying always in a way that honors Jesus Christ first and most. I especially found his two chapters on praying God's will worthwhile. This is an area we often unnecessarily complicate and misunderstand.

A Grief Observed

by C.S. Lewis

Obviously C.S. Lewis is a brilliant author. It's been years since I've read Lewis in any volume so I'm am long overdue. A Grief Observed is a great read to begin again with--short enough to manage yet worthwhile. Not only memoirs of Lewis' grief over the loss of his wife but great thoughts on the character of God and honesty in the midst of grief.

King's Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus

by Timothy Keller

I'm not sure what I expected when I picked up this book but for some reason it turned out to be not what I expected. Funny thing is, I cannot put a finger on the reason this is the case. It was a good book and probably worth another read for me since I listened to it in audio format while driving through the night. I deeply appreciated the centrality of the gospel in this work.

Psalm 116

2011-11-16T08:40:00.001-05:00

I love the LORD, because he has heard
   my voice and my pleas for mercy.
Because he inclined his ear to me,
   therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
The snares of death encompassed me;
   the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
   I suffered distress and anguish.
Then I called on the name of the LORD:
   "O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!"
Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;
   our God is merciful.
The LORD preserves the simple;
   when I was brought low, he saved me.
Return, O my soul, to your rest;
   for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
For you have delivered my soul from death,
   my eyes from tears,
   my feet from stumbling;
I will walk before the LORD
    in the land of the living.
I believed, even when I spoke,
   "I am greatly afflicted";
I said in my alarm,
   "All mankind are liars."
What shall I render to the LORD
   for all his benefits to me?
I will lift up the cup of salvation
   and call on the name of the LORD,
I will pay my vows to the LORD
   in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the sight of the LORD
   is the death of his saints.
O LORD, I am your servant;
   I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
   You have loosed my bonds.
I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
   and call on the name of the LORD.
I will pay my vows to the LORD
   in the presence of all his people,
in the courts of the house of the LORD,
   in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the LORD!

Belief

2011-11-09T09:42:00.000-05:00

You never know how much you really believeanything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death toyou.
--C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed

Lewis's quote brought to mind Paul's comment to the Philippians in Philippians 1:21, "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." I think Lewis makes a good point and Scripture paints it in such stark realities we should find them difficult to pass over. Belief is a matter of life and death. But let's be clear, it is not the level of belief that is at issue here. Rather, the issue of utter importance is the object of one's belief. Do we believe in Jesus Christ? Do we believe he is life and apart from him is only death?

This is true. But Lewis brings in the idea of one's level of belief (admitedly in the immediate context of this passage, he is not talking specifically of belief in Jesus). This is not at all unimportant. When faith and belief become synonyms for mere agreement or mental assent then the issue of level of belief is crucial. Faith that is merely mental assent is no faith at all.

October Reads

2011-11-01T10:17:00.000-04:00

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream

by David Platt

It is interesting that a key theme in both of these first two books is a call to radical life in Christ. Platt contends that this call is nothing short of biblical. Any alternative is watered down at best. I appreciated Platt's working through Scripture to support his statements. He communicated this radical call with appropriate humility and exhortation.

The Millennials

by Thom S. Rainer & Jess W. Rainer

"[Millennial Christians] have no patience for business as usual. They see the urgent need to share the gospel and to start new churches. And they will not wait on tired, established churches to get the work done." So observe Thom & Jess Rainer in their work, The Millennials. The church must sit up and take notice of this generation. Some good insight in this book. And I agree, the church in America cannot continue with "business as usual." We must radically pursue Jesus and radically share His love with the world.

Maximize: How to Develop Extravagant Givers in your Church

by Nelson Searcy

This one was given to me as a sort of welcome gift. Makes a good point throughout that stewardship is related to discipleship. After all, didn't Jesus say something about our treasure being connected to our heart (Matt. 6:21)? So the primary point is not about churches exceeding their budgets but about followers of Jesus growing more deeply.

Deepening Your Conversation with God
by Ben Patterson

As I continually try to deepen my prayer life, I find it helpful to read good books on prayer. While I must say I did not agree with all of Patterson's theology, there were many great thoughts on prayer. From a ministry perspective, I found this book encouraging and helpful.

Perspective of Prayer

2011-10-26T11:13:00.002-04:00

Isn't it funny how prayer changes your perspective.

Last night, we went on a prayer walk around our church neighborhood. Everything changed. Sidewalks became sacred pathways. Apartment buildings turned into battlegrounds for hearts and souls. Playgrounds were transformed into prayer stations.

I was moved at how my ears seemed to hear differently and my eyes seemed to see differently than they usually do. My heart was a mix of hurt for the broken and hopeful excitement at what God wanted to do in our community. It was odd to have such conflicting emotions coexist. And it as ok. It was ok because we were doing what we were supposed to be doing.

Matthew 9:26-28 notes, 'When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." (itallics mine)

We prayed. We got a taste of Jesus' compassion for people. Isn't it funny how prayer changes your perspective.

Put a Helmet on

2011-10-19T14:30:00.000-04:00

Whydo we people in churches seem like cheerful, brainless tourists on a packaged tourof the Absolute? … On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside thecatacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiestidea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does not onebelieve a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with theirchemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It ismadness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all bewearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares:they should lash us to our pews.

--Annie Dillard

Why Pray?

2011-10-13T09:58:00.002-04:00

It sounds like an elementary question--why pray? After all, doesn't every follower of Christ know the answer. Yet the secret no one talks about is that virtually every one of us has asked this question. Maybe we still do. "God didn't answer my prayer so what's the point in praying?" "God is all-powerful. He can and will do what He wants. Why should I pray?" "Prayer doesn't seem to do any good, why do it?" "There's so much good work to do. Isn't prayer kind of a waste of time when we should be out there making a difference?"

Even if we haven't asked those kinds of questions lately, it's good to be reminded of why we pray. In the book Deepening Your Conversation with God: The Life-Changing Power of Prayer, Ben Patterson offers some thoughts on why we pray.

1. We pray because our struggle is not against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12).
'The command to pray is one of the few truly central and radical things God has called us to do in this spiritual warfare. It is central because it stands at the hub, the heart of our struggle. It’s not all we are to be about, for there are many other wonderful and critical things to do in this spiritual warfare, such as preach the gospel, cast out demons, feed the hungry, care for the poor. But these great things are to prayer what the spokes of a wheel are to the hub. When the hub weakens, the rest of the wheel collapses. “You can do more than pray, after you have prayed,” wrote A. J. Gordon, “but you can never do more than pray until you have prayed.”'

2. We pray because the work is really God's, not ours.
The church is God's idea and the work/ministry of the church is God's ministry. "If God is the builder and we are his servants in the building of his church, it is presumptuous to build without prayer." It is a valid and often convicting question to ask about church ministry, "Is what [we're] doing worth doing if [we] can do it without prayer?" All too often we run our programs and ministries on auto-pilot and the sad truth is, if God didn't show up, we wouldn't even notice His absence. Prayer wages war against this trap.

3. We pray "because prayer actually gets God's work done."
If the battle is truly a spiritual one, how feeble must our programs, committees and church potlucks look! How vain, presumptuous and ignorant are we if we think these things in and of themselves make any sort of difference. God may use these things because He delights to use His people for His glory but make no mistake, it is God's work and His work gets done through prayer.

4. We pray because prayer truly is a work of ministry.
Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.
Colossians 4:12-13 (itallics mine)

5. We pray because in prayer our hearts are changed.
We may pray for many different things but in the praying a curious thing happens, our hearts are changed. In praying for another person, we often find our hearts softened and even convicted. In waiting and praying for that "unanswered prayer," our faith is strengthened and our perseverance built up. As we pray, God's work is indeed being done, and it begins in our own hearts and lives.

Weightlessness of God

2011-10-10T12:43:00.001-04:00

"It is one of thedefining marks of Our Time that God is now weightless. I do not mean by thisthat he is ethereal but rather that he has become unimportant. He rests uponthe world so inconsequentially as not to be noticeable. He has lost his saliencyfor human life. Those who assure the pollsters of their belief in God’sexistence may nonetheless consider him less interesting than television, hiscommands less authoritative than their appetites for affluence and influence,his judgment no more awe-inspiring than the evening news, and his truth lesscompelling than the advertisers’ sweet fog of flattery and lies. That isweightlessness. It is a condition we have assigned him after having nudged himout to the periphery of our secularized life. . . . Weightlessness tells usnothing about God but everything about ourselves, about our condition, aboutour psychological disposition to exclude God from our reality."

David Wells, Godin the Wasteland: The Reality of Truth in a World of Fading Dreams

Why So Quick to Fast?

2011-10-06T12:27:00.001-04:00

"As a part of our Dependent Determination series at Crystal Cove, we are doing a prayer emphasis over the next six weeks. The aim of this prayer emphasis is to spend significant time prayerfully praying that God would do a special work in ourlives, families, church, community, nation and world for His glory. We hope todo this by setting aside the next six Tuesdays as days of prayer and fasting."

We have unpacked the idea of prayerful praying a little bit, and the importance of prayer really is difficult to deny. But what about this idea of fasting? Isn't that a bit much?

Fasting--"primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time"--communicates urgency, dependence on God and submission to Him. Among other things, Old Testament fasts were for repentance (1 Sam. 7:6; Neh. 9:1) and imploring God to move on behalf of His people (Ezra 8:21-23; Esther 4:16). In short, fasting communicated a deep need for God.

The call to fast is not one of legalism by which we garner special favor with God through this act. It will not earn salvation for anyone. Instead, we are calling for a time of fasting to effectively say to God, “Youare Lord and we need You deeply!”

After all, isn't the need for the Gospel in our community and world urgent? Do we not desperately need God to move in our midst to draw people to Himself? I think the answer to these questions is "Of course it is and we do!" So I invite you again to join me in setting aside the next six Tuesdays as days of prayer and fasting.

Prayer Emphasis

2011-10-04T16:24:00.002-04:00

As a part of our Dependent Determination series at Crystal Cove, we are doing a prayer emphasis over the next six weeks. The aim of this prayer emphasis is to spend significant time prayerfully praying that God would do a special work in ourlives, families, church, community, nation and world for His glory. We hope todo this by setting aside the next six Tuesdays as days of prayer and fasting.

'Wait a minute,' you think to yourself, 'did you just use the phrase "prayerfully praying"? Isn't that redundant?' Yes I did and no, it isn't. I love this phrase describing prayer which I first heard from Joel Beeke. Among other things, it stresses the significant contrast between true prayer and rote recitation of familiar words--that is, empty praying. Prayerful prayer is what I wish to mean when talking about prayer. Prayerful prayer is what I wish to be about when praying.

Maybe it's just me, but empty praying is a habit to which it is all too easy to succumb. So I appreciate that prayerful praying wages war against empty praying. I think of it as a container labeled prayer. We carry around our prayer container and all too often simply lift it up to God empty. We offer empty prayer--it's easier, it's lighter. But prayerful prayer is a container full of passionate pursuit of God, of grasping in faith for God. Our prayer is full. It's not as if our prayers themselves draw God; it's not works-based praying. No, it's more like prayerful prayer is weighty, it's substantial. It's substantial because it means something. Prayerful prayers are full of faith, hope, need, dependence.

So yes, I did say prayerfully praying. Because the call is not to simply pray like we pray over a meal or before bedtime. The call is to prayerfully pray for God's glory in our midst, our community and to the ends of the earth.

Over the next few days, we'll discuss this prayer emphasis in greater detail with the desire that you too will join us in prayerful prayer.

September Reads

2011-10-02T16:16:00.000-04:00

The Case for Life: Equipping Christians to Engage the Culture

by Scott Klusendorf

Good book. Good pro-life apologetic. But Klusendorf refuses to allow his readers to remain comfortable in their inactivity on this issue. Very engaging, readable, thought-provoking and hopefully useful.

Outlive Your Life

by Max Lucado

I find Lucado creative, imaginative and readable. He is gracious in his exhortation to outreach encouraging his readers to see the world around them and make a difference in that world.

The Contemplative Pastor

Eugene H. Peterson

Recommended by a mentor so I picked it up. I appreciated Peterson's value of the shepherd role of pastoring. When there are so many leadership books out there, it's all too easy to lose the ministry of shepherd.

Open Invitation

2011-09-30T08:58:00.001-04:00

I typed the title of this post with the intention of going another direction but those two words captured me--open invitation. I wanted to offer an open invitation for people to join me in prayer but more on that later. There is an open invitation that is prior both in time and in importance. It issues from the lips of Jesus, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." What an awesome invitation!

In this journey of life there are, no doubt, times of weariness, loneliness and wandering. Jesus speaks into each of these situations and stories. He speaks into your journey and says, "Come to me." If you're tired, come. When you're load is heavy, come. When you're unable to take another step, come. Here you will find rest.

What's more, this is a rest that is soul-deep. It is not superficial or temporary. Oh, and by the way, when we come to Jesus we find that he not only gives rest, he gives joy and life to the full. Again, make no mistake, this joy and life is not superficial or temporary. It is not a quick fix to all of the stuff going on in your life. You'll still have stuff to work through, we all do. The difference is when you come to Jesus, you not only get the soul-deep rest, joy and life he promises, you get Jesus himself! He becomes all of those things to you--rest, joy, life--and he walks through all of the stuff of life with you. So what are you waiting for? The invitation is open, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Better Than Anything

2011-09-29T11:38:00.001-04:00

"Sports are better than anything else, always." This was the emphatic statement by Scott Van Pelt on ESPN Sports Center after highlighting the incredible ending of the American League Wild Card race. Hmmm, really? Maybe we're supposed to take this statement as hyperbole or exaggeration, I'm not sure. I freely admit that the ending of the season for the Red Sox (sorry Boston fans) and the continuing into the post-season for the Rays (Go Rays!) was nothing short of spectacular. But even in the thrill of that moment, it seems to me that sports can only at best serve as a signpost pointing to something much greater. I wonder instead if we shouldn't see these moments in sports as further awakening in us a longing for the transcendent.

Except for the Red Sox fans, we all long for a comeback. We want the down and out, defeated ones to be triumphant. We want the team that's behind nine games to come back within a month to make the playoffs (again sorry Red Sox fans, it's just not your year). This awakens something in us. It gives us hope. We want to be that team, that guy who succeeds against the odds. We not only want the thrill of the journey, we want the victory. Maybe, just maybe, this speaks to something deeper within us. Maybe we were created to glory in something far better, a "victory" of far more value.

Could it be that we love to hope but we ultimately want hope fulfilled. That is to say, we love to joy in this moment, in the comeback but we're already looking ahead to what's next. In short, we are looking for ultimate joy, joy incorruptible.

Then again, maybe it's just baseball.

Living Prayerfully

2011-09-27T10:07:00.001-04:00

I'm not sure who said it first but it has been often repeated, "When we work, we work but when we pray, God works." Herein lies one of the most direct and pointed applications of the observation that "church work" is really God's work. If we really believe this is God's work, our lives will be characterized by prayer.

I mean at least two things by this. First, I mean our perspective of prayer probably needs to change. Prayer must not simply be an afterthought. It cannot merely be something we tack on to the beginning and ending of our services and meetings. It must be a passionate pursuit of God's face and His hand. In part, we must always be in an attitude of prayer continually acknowledging God's supremacy and our need for Him.

Second, I mean to say that prayer must be a significant part of our lives. It must invade our schedules. We can no longer simply talk about how important we believe prayer is, we must pray. We can no longer be satisfied only with "as you are going" prayers--you know, those two second prayers we shoot up to God when we're desperate (we need a parking space, we're running late and need all of the lights to be green...). Don't get me wrong, God cares about all of our lives. We should continue to pray the "as you are going" prayers. My point is that we make time for what is important. If we believe prayer is truly important, we must intentionally set aside time to pray.

I have illusions that this will be easy, nothing worthwhile ever is easy. But if it is indeed true that our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against "the spiritual forces of evil" (Eph. 6:12), then prayer is crucial.

Dependent Determination

2011-09-23T09:56:00.000-04:00

It has been said that the one thing you can count on isthat things are going to change. True enough, but all too often change causesus uncertainty and fear. Nehemiah knew something of change. He also knew how toface change with confidence.

His secret? He knew that God never changes. Nehemiahlived with confident dependence on the God of the Bible who is sovereign,steadfast, holy, personal and knowable. It is for this reason that Nehemiahcould live determined to pursue God’s purpose for his life and community. Maywe too pursue God with dependent determination.

I am excited to see what God may have in store through the "Dependent Determination" series as we study Nehemiah 1-6 together at Crystal Cove Community Church.

Managing Ministry

2011-09-21T11:02:00.000-04:00

If the church is God's idea and ministry is about Him working, why do we so often assume we can manage this work? I am a big fan of organization, strategy and planning. I even think God can and does use these things in ministry. Further, I think the idea of managing is God's idea. Managing carries with it the concept of stewardship. We are to be stewards/managers of what God gives us. This being the case, why would it be a bad thing to "manage" the ministry/work of God in and through the church?

In the above sense of the word, it isn't a bad thing to manage the ministry God has given us. The temptation, however, is to smuggle into the idea of managing an element of control. So what we really mean by manage is control. Soon then, ministry becomes "our ministry" and programs become our ideas that really end up serving us rather than God. This is the kind of managing ministry that we are not supposed to do. In fact, this kind of "managing" must be detestable to God because what it ultimately does is subjugate God to our desires, agendas and programs.

The church is God's idea and ministry is His work. He uses structures, organization and even programs but only in submission to Himself and His direction. May I listen hard to God's direction in life and ministry using ministry tools (organization, strategy, structure...) where they rightly belong, in submission to Him.

New Name

2011-09-18T15:51:00.002-04:00

It inevitably creeps into the playground banter of every little boy at one time or another. When you've run out of things to brag about and your friends are still going on and on you blurt it out. "Oh really? Well my dad is bigger than your dad!" For those of us whose fathers are well under 6 feet tall and seem to disappear when they turn sideways it's probably a blessing that virtually everything appears "bigger" when you're young. Otherwise, we'd have to just listen to our friends drone on an on. But with this one statement, we end the conversation in victory. The fact is, not only do we feel we've "won" the conversation (as if a conversation is something to be won or lost), but we truly feel confidence that our dad could do almost anything.

Now that we are older and life has taught us a few lessons, we realize how childish our thinking was. Our dads really couldn't do almost everything. It's a shame that too often along with that realization comes a blow to our confidence. For Christians this is entirely unnecessary. Instead, we should be reminded that our confidence lies not in our earthly father but in our Heavenly Father.

In Ephesians 1:5 Paul says, "In love he presdestined us for adoption as sons [and daughters] through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will" We have been adopted into a new family, given a new name (Is. 62:2; 65:15; Rev. 2:17). We have a new Father. If there was any confidence in calling on our earthly father, how much more confidence do we now have in having the Most High God as our Father!

Does persecution keep telling you how difficult life is? "Hey persecution, my Dad is bigger than your dad!" Doubt or distress seem to be talking louder in your ear than anything else? "Hey, my Dad is bigger than your dad!" Make no mistake, this is not merely playground banter. It's about living in worship and submission with confidence in God. Oh, and all the "work to be done" that could be overwhelming or intimidating, my Father is big enough to take care of that too.

The Work Ahead

2011-09-16T09:27:00.000-04:00

"You know you've got a great deal of hard work ahead of you!" This has been a statement commonly directed to me lately. It is always accompanied with a smile but there is no mistaking the seriousness intended. We have a good church but there is much, much to be done. This is, in part, what people are communicating.

As I step into this new role as Senior Pastor at Crystal Cove Community Church, I find myself agreeing with the statement and thoughts above. There is much work to be done. This is a good church with a relatively brief but good history and heritage upon which to build. But it is not enough to agree with these statements. We must carefully navigate a response.

My first response is that the work to be done is not primarily mine. I do not mean to abdicate the honor and responsibility involved in the Senior Pastor role. On the contrary, I hope to embrace it. To embrace it rightly though is to be clear that the work to be done in leading the church is first and foremost God's work. Jesus Christ is the head of the church. I do not step into this new role with any illusions that any success in leading the church will come from me. In fact, the only work that will properly get done will be done in submission to Jesus' leadership of the church.

This then leads to my second response to the initial statement. We already realize there is much work to be done. Now it is important for us to ask the right questions. Our tendency will be to quickly ask, "What is the work to be done?" This, however, is the wrong first question. The correct question should be something like, "Whose work is it that needs to be done?" This question requires much more searching and listening. The tyranny of the urgent rapidly offers answers to the former question, giving us an impossibly long grocery list of things that must be done. This though, is of little help until we answer the latter question properly. It is in answering the latter question, "whose work is it?," that we find direction, motivation, confidence and joy.

The answer, of course, to our question is that it is God's work. The implications of this answer are not at all insignificant. Over the next few posts I hope to unpack some of these implications as we embrace a joyful "partnering" with God in His work.

True Goodness

2011-09-13T15:54:00.000-04:00

I say to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you."
Psalm 16:2

God is the author of goodness. He is the standard. The Psalmist claims, "I have no good apart from you." I wonder how often I try to separate goodness from God. How often do I attempt to redefine good and marginalize or exclude God from goodness. It may not even be intentional but it is real nonetheless.

Most often, it happens in the practical, everyday stuff of life. I seek what seems best for me. I pursue what I think is good. Then all too quickly, the focus becomes what is good and how it relates to me. It's a subtle shift that ends in idolatry--putting myself (what I think is good for me) above God. In other words, the pursuit of good becomes an end in itself instead of pursuing the God of goodness and finding that "I have no good apart from Him."

July Reads

2011-08-03T15:44:00.000-04:00

Justification by N.T. Wright

This is Wright's response to John Piper. Interesting read. As sometimes happens in "debates," the conversants talk past one another, using the same words while not agreeing on a definition. Of course, this is part of the nature of the discussion here but what seems obvious to Wright is not so obvious to Piper and vice versa.

Developing the Leader Within You by John Maxwell

Maxwell makes reference to the 80/20 rule in this book and claims that it is often true in books as well--20% of the book contains 80% of the worthwhile information. This rule is true of this book. The illustrations, quotes and stories can be interesting but the substance of the book takes up about 20% of the space while the illustrations take the other 80%.

Nehemiah: God's Builder by Richard H. Seume

Good, quick overview of Nehemiah. Used it to brush up on Nehemiah a bit and whet my appetite for a potential message series on Nehemiah.

Anguished Ministry

2011-07-28T12:45:00.000-04:00

I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit— that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.
Romans 9:1-3

There are many "places" of ministry. No doubt, there is the place of great joy in ministry as we rely on God, grow in relationship with Him and witness others growing in relationship with Him. There is the place of weariness in ministry. Whether good or bad, this is just a reality. There is the "plodding place" of ministry wherein you feel like you're just plodding along one step at a time. God can certainly be in this place of ministry as well.

But I see in Romans 9:1-3 another place of ministry, this is the place of anguish in ministry. More specifically, this is a place of anguish for those who are outside of Christ. For Paul, he was in anguish for his fellow Jews who did not know Christ. Anguish like this is unavoidable in ministry. The question then turns to what do we do with this anguish?

I've been thinking of this anguish (and experiencing it) lately in relation to life stories I have had the opportunity to intersect with. Over the years at least a few of these life stories have included a falling away or being outside of Christ. It breaks my heart to think of those relationships I have poured into and valued (and continue to value) being without Christ. I am tempted to get angry, frustrated, depressed, to despair and I feel genuine anguish. This is natural but I've come to realize that the danger lies in getting stuck in this place.

Instead, this anguish should lead me back to God and to prayer. It should lead me to a place of renewed crying out to God to be glorified in my life and in these lives. The anguish in some sense will still remain but the despair will not for God is loving and good and able.

The Gift

2011-07-20T13:52:00.001-04:00

The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;

you hold my lot.

Psalm 16:5

Not only does God hold my lot, He is my lot. There is a temptation in talking about our "portion" and our "lot" to focus more on the stuff (the portion and the lot) rather than the Savior, to focus on the gifts rather than the Giver. The end of this pursuit is that we want the gifts but we don't really want God. But that's upside down!

The gifts are fine (after all, God is the giver of every good and perfect gift-James 1:17) but if God is who He says He is, then our desire is far too weak if we simply desire the gifts. God is supreme, glorious, majestic, awesome, holy and so much more. He is beautiful, gracious, loving, righteous, just and good. He is knowable and personal yet too big to completely comprehend. He is the One above whom there is no other. In short, He is the best of all possible gifts. His presence, a relationship with Him, that's the gift!

Just as He Walked

2011-07-14T13:10:00.000-04:00

But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

1 John 2:5-6 (NKJV)

John sounds the death knell for false religion here. With one statement he has driven a stake through the heart of inauthentic Christianity. One cannot play games while following John’s statement here nor can one do “true religion” without realizing the depth of this call.

The standard for true Christianity is to “walk just as He walked.” Just as Jesus walked. In the same manner Jesus walked. Think about that phrase for a minute. Ponder it. Let it sink into your heart. How did Jesus walk?

In order to answer this question in any real sense, you have to know Jesus. This is no idle observation. It deserves deep consideration for it is far less obvious than it appears. John is saying something here about truly knowing Jesus. Many can claim to know about Jesus. Countless are aware of him but few of these know him. Acquaintance involves recognition and even knowledge about an individual. Relationship, on the other hand, involves dynamic interaction. Many are acquainted with Jesus. Few are in relationship with him.

What does it mean to be in dynamic interaction with Jesus? First of all, it is dynamic. It is not stale, stationary or static. Dynamic interaction with Jesus is continually growing relationship. To return to the metaphor of walking, think about what it is to walk and to learn to walk. To walk is not to take only one step and then stop. How does a baby learn to walk? A baby learns to walk one wobbly step at a time. Parents celebrate the first step but that step alone is not walking. A parent would be rightfully concerned if all her child ever did was to take one wobbly step before falling. Yes, the first step is exciting but it must progress to a second and third step for it to be walking. Eventually, the child gets it and the wobbly, unsure series of steps becomes natural, balanced walking until walking becomes second nature.

The picture holds true for following Christ. We do not take one step in the right direction and stop secure in the realization that we are now walking as Jesus walked. No, we take one wobbly step in the right direction then another and another until with every step we are getting closer to walking just as Jesus walked. We are moving. We are dynamic.

The dynamic walking here can only be attributed to the graciousness of our model-Jesus. We realize this in interaction with Jesus. This is not secondhand information. It is intimacy got through dynamic interaction. Here is where we recognize the greatness of the standard because we realize the greatness of the Savior. To walk just as Jesus walked is to follow one without sin (Hebrews 4:15). It is to hear and heed the call to holiness (1 Peter 1:15-16). It is to walk each step knowing the standard is impossibly high and instead of throwing your hands up in defeat, you throw them up in worship of the One who gives grace for the journey so your desire is not to quit but to draw ever nearer to this One who offers such amazing grace.

Let us hear in John’s call to walk “just as He walked” a standard so high we can only continually aspire to it while also hearing a grace so deep we can only be in awe of the Giver of grace and desire to love and worship Him with all we have.

Books I've Been Reading

2011-07-09T22:40:00.002-04:00

Some great reads this past month. I've not listed them in order of importance but simply alphabetically.

The Biography of Robert Murray M'Cheyne by Andrew A. Bonar
A testament to a short but well-lived life in service to the Savior. I was impressed by M'Cheyne's passion, prayerfulness and pursuit of holy living.

The Future of Justification by John Piper
Aside from an awareness of Piper's style, I didn't really know what to expect from this work. I appreciated Piper's deep respect and high value of Scripture. I'll be interested to read Wright's work in response to Piper.

An Introduction to the Old Testament by Tremper Longman III & Raymond B. Dillard
Good overall approach for OT survey text. I'm sure I could gain more if I studied this work more deeply but I appreciated the first run.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
Moving story. Some good life lessons to learn and be reminded of. A good opportunity to pause to think through the kind of legacy one leaves behind.

The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli
One thought kept going through my mind as I read--In an amoral, values-free, godless existence, this might be good advice: do whatever it takes to get ahead, the end justifies the means.

The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller
Great book. Worth owning this one. Definitely worth reading again, thinking through more deeply and
even bringing a friend or two along on the journey.

Screened In

2011-07-06T12:06:00.000-04:00

Typically, the first thing I do upon sitting down to my desk at the office is turn on my computer. This generally happens after I have already done a few other things including checking my smartphone at least a couple times and quite probably watching a bit of the morning news on tv. In other words, I have checked out three "screens" almost before the day has really begun.

This doesn't even take into account the reality that I stare at a screen for most of the day only to go home to the temptation to unwind in front of another screen. But of course, being a good family man I first go out to dinner with my family for some quality time together. Never mind that I check my smartphone a couple times while we're out and the restaurant has sports playing on various screens all around.

How did we end up so "screened in"? There are screens everywhere--tv, computer, digital billboards, smartphones, ereaders.... Don't get me wrong, this is not a blanket question against this technology prefacing a rant against said technology. It is a question of whether the tendency to become screened in carries with it the danger of missing out on life. Maybe there is a danger of trading in abundant life for virtual life. Put another way, maybe one of the dangers of being screened in is that the screen becomes a barrier to real relationship (potentially including a relationship with Jesus). We become so busy hiding behind a screen that we do not talk about anything of substance; we distance ourselves from real emotion, choosing instead to emote through the screen.

I am not saying that there are not positive things that can be accomplished through these technologies--ministries can be furthered, relationships can be deepened, knowledge can be gained, blogs can be written and read :) Screens are, however, a tool, a means, not the end. Use them as such. Let us not be overtaken by a tendency to let screens rule our schedules and lives (just a second while I check my email and update my Facebook status).

Maybe tomorrow I should start the day with a cup of coffee and a good friend. Better yet, I could start the day with the best of friends, Jesus Christ. Then I would truly be experiencing life and I would be better able to spend life and spread life with those around me. Would you join me?

2011-02-25T14:59:00.000-05:00

As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
Psalm 42:1-2

What is the end of this "panting"? I would submit that there are one of two possibilities. For the deer, the panting could result in satisfaction or death. If the deer pants for, searches and finds flowing streams, the result is beautiful, thirst-quenching satisfaction. The longing is filled.

If, on the other hand, the deer searches unsuccessfully for flowing streams of life-giving water (or neglects the search altogether), the ultimate result is death from dehydration. No water. No life.

What then of our search for God? Do we truly see the only possible ends of this search? If we search and find the true God, we find satisfaction. Our longing is ultimately quenched. However, if our search yields any other result, any other end, do we realize the severity of this end? It too is an ultimate end. It is death. Without God, we die.

Too often, we miss the urgency. We dawdle in our search. We do not pant as if our life depended on it. Our longings are too fickle. Our desires too poor. We find too much joy and contentment in false springs-water that is no water at all, not living, not thirst-quenching, not soul-satisfying.

Oh, may I be able to say with the Psalmist, "My soul thirsts for God, for the living God."

Dearth of Prayer

2011-02-18T12:37:00.000-05:00

"Oh, no, it is plain as daylight that the great majority of men either ask nothing of God or do not mean what they say when they do ask, which is just the same thing."
--J.C. Ryle

Focusing on Faithfulness

2011-01-05T21:51:00.000-05:00

I heard a comment today regarding faith. It went something like this, "My faith is very small right now." This got me to thinking about our focus in the area of faith. It seems like comments like this one most often come at times when things are difficult. It feels like we're just barely hanging on. We're not even sure our faith can take it any more.

To be sure, faith is not unimportant. But I wonder if much of the time our focus is on our faith when it should instead be on God's faithfulness. Our faith is, after all, a gift from God. And this gift from God does not come without the promise of His faithfulness. Besides, which is a better focus (especially in difficult times)--our faith or God's faithfulness?

Maybe the issue should be less about how strong my faith is and more about how big, strong and faithful my God is.

The Danger of Dabbling

2010-12-23T15:47:00.000-05:00

There comes a moment when people who have been dabbling in religion suddenly draw back. Supposing we really found him? We never meant it to come to that!

--C. S. Lewis, Miracles

There is a dangerous slide or shift that can occur for those of us who are regularly involved in ministry and the church. It is the shift toward dabbling in religion rather than delighting in real relationship with God. It is all to easy to fall into the mindset that we can manage ministry. We set the elements of the church service or we have input into leading various programs and fall prey to the myth that we are in control. We dabble in religion while not allowing the delight of God to invade our lives and hearts. Is it any wonder God doesn't "show up" very often, and when He does we're surprised and a little put off. After all, how dare He not conform to our carefully laid plans!

2010 Reading List

2010-12-22T17:15:00.005-05:00

The following is the list of the (nonfiction) books I read in 2010. The order is roughly listed by the sequence I followed in reading these works. Honestly, the list is a little longer than I originally aimed for at the beginning of the year and it's probably shorter than many other people's reading lists for the year.

The fact that my list is shorter than others initially bothered me. But then I was reminded of a thought from Adler's How to Read a Book. He noted that good reading is not measured by breadth of reading but by depth. A long reading list does not a well read individual make!

Even now, I look over my reading list and see not a few works that I wish to take up again because I didn't read them deeply enough the first time. Many in the list below are worth reading again, some are certainly not.

Calvin, by Prof. F. Bruce Gordon
Money, Greed, and God: Why Capitalism Is the Solution and Not the Problem, by Jay W. Richards
Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches, by Russell D. Moore
Who Made God? Searching for a Theory of Everything, by Edgar Andrews
The Attentive Life: Discerning God's Presence in All Things, by Leighton Ford
The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism, by Timothy Keller
The Trellis and the Vine, by Colin Marshall & Tony Payne
Church Unique: How Missional Leaders Cast Vision, Capture Culture, and Create Movement, by Will Mancini
Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling, by Andy Crouch
The Jesus Way: A Conversation on the Ways That Jesus Is the Way, by Eugene H. Peterson
Jonathan Edwards and the Ministry of the Word: A Model of Faith and Thought, by Douglas A. Sweeney
Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know-and Doesn't, by Stephen Prothero
Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, by Mark Dever
The Reason For Sports: A Christian Fanifesto, by Ted Kluck
Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church, by N. T. Wright
Beyond Opinion, Edited by Ravi Zacharias

Given that it's not quite the end of the year, I will probably add one or two more books to this list. I've also begun to put together my goals for a 2011 Reading List, the first of which is to reflect more and read more deeply. The fun of it is that there are so many good books out there that I want to get to. The challenge is to slow down and adequately enjoy every one of these books that I do read.

Happy Reading in 2011! I'd love to hear about some good reads out there.

2009-07-02T19:50:00.001-04:00

"So Christianity restores an excellent enlargement, extensiveness, and liberality to the soul..."
-Jonathan Edwards

2009-06-24T18:25:00.001-04:00

Don't you love it when you talk to a child on the phone and they think "talking" means listening and giggling randomly.

2009-06-16T18:00:00.001-04:00

"Lottery winner plans to grow better carrots"
news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090616/od_nm/us_lottery

Gotta have a dream, I guess!

2009-06-10T09:51:00.001-04:00

"Behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord God, "when I will send a famine on the land--a famine of hearing God's word."
Amos 8:11

Would we miss it?

2009-06-09T18:05:00.001-04:00

[God] is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer...
Psalm 144:2a

My Mission Journey

2008-05-02T13:30:00.002-04:00

In all we do, we strive to glorify God so that all people may know full life through Jesus Christ.

I've been thinking about mission lately. While it began as thinking of mission from a local church perspective, it has morphed into a bit of a personal journey as well. Now here I sit with a draft of a mission statement that has challenged and convicted me. Frankly at the onset of this journey, I mostly thought that a nicely worded mission statement really did not matter because it was after all only words. And words on a page do not make a mission well lived. The real meat of it, I thought, was in the living not in a nice itallicized, easily remembered statement.

As I continued the process, however, I came to the re-realization that words have power. Certainly, a mission is about living well not just sounding good. But without a mission statement what do we have? All too often, we have a less than intentional life wherein we have no criteria for discerning how to live. In other words, we have no real standard by which to live. Now as Christians, I know our standard is supposed to be the Bible. That's the right Sunday School answer after all. But if that's as far as your answer goes, how does that guide you? Does the Bible serve simply as a guide to what you won't do? Or does it serve as a guide to what you will or should do? If so, which parts are you choosing to follow? The answer, of course, is that the Bible tells me what not to do and what to do and how to live a full life and I am striving to follow all of it. This indeed is the goal. But in terms of a mission, I find this answer a bit vague and cumbersome. So I end up back at the idea of a guiding mission statement (100% informed and guided by Scripture).

For me, it has been helpful to have a mission that includes the scope of what is intended--"In all we do." As a Believer, life and mission are God-given and thus the scope of the mission must encompass all of life. The mission statement also clarifies the task--"glorify God." If the task ever strays from honoring God then it is not an appropriate mission. Finally the mission statement gives guidance to the audience and objective--"that all people may know full life through Jesus Christ." I've become convinced that if the mission is not Gospel driven, there's a good chance it's not a true Christian mission. After all, as a Christian I am called to follow and reflect Christ and His greatest call was to love God, love neighbor and make disciples. If that's not a part of my mission, I better check my heart.

A good mission informs all of life, guides us, challenges us and gives us purpose. It is not too confining nor is it too vague. It can be raised as a standard for evaluation for all of life. All too often, we compartmentalize worship and evangelism and thus don't understand how they can be part of a mission that encompasses all of life. How can worship and evangelism be a standard for evaluation in my rest and recreation time after all? Or in my diet? Or in my retirement plans? Yet I believe every area of life must be evaluation by worship and evangelism. Redemptive rest and recreation does exists, these concepts do not need to be selfish simply because they are so in many people's lives. No, I'm not there yet. But I find it helpful to have a standard of evaluation by which I can ask meaningful questions of my life. How is my recreation becoming redemptive, worshipful and evangelistic? Is my restful alone time selfish or is it a part of pursuing God's mission for my life?

A mission statement isn't a magic bullet for the successful life, but it is a tool toward intentional, Christ-life living.

Neutrality is a Myth

2008-04-22T11:09:00.002-04:00

http://www.citizenlink.org/Stoplight/A000007163.cfm

Here's an interesting video clip. The commentator has a good point about the lack of neutrality in what's going on here. In respecting someone's wishes not to pray, you're disrespecting someone else's wish to pray. Interesting.

Have You Seen His Glory?

2008-04-22T10:57:00.002-04:00

This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

John 2:11

If you know about the life of Christ, you may well know that his first recorded miracle was turning water into wine at a wedding celebration (John 2). But have you ever stopped to ponder the impact of this miraculous sign? Too often, we (myself included) gloss over those "familiar stories" and in so doing miss things. I almost did it while reading John 2 again until I stumbled upon verse 11. I've read it many times but it didn't quite sink in.

I love the phrase, "He thus revealed his glory..." John says that in the first miracle of Jesus he revealed his glory. When I think about this in relation to all of the things Jesus could have revealed, I am blown away. Jesus could have revealed his mercy and his grace. And in some sense he certainly did. But according to John the biggest impact of this first miracle was that Jesus revealed his glory.

The disciples' response is no less intriguing. You see, I think that this was a moment when the disciples were so drawn away from themselves that something significant was bound to happen. They were forced away from a self-centered focus to truly see Jesus' glory. They began to see that there is more to life than their own agenda. There is more to live for than getting a little tipsy at a party. That wine may have been good but they realized that there was something better-the glory of the true Christ. Granted, they didn't completely understand and had a long way to go on the journey, but this was the beginning for them to get dialed into the call of the Father. This was the challenge to live for the glory of God!

The Right to Believe

2008-04-15T09:49:00.003-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2DMSNUkLJo

Ok, so maybe you've seen this video since Oprah is all the rage. Usually I just don't care since nonsense is nonsense no matter from whose mouth it comes, but this is crazy. I really wanted to comment on one piece of this clip. At one point, Oprah adamantly states, "There couldn't possibly be just one way..." You'll notice that she does not allow a response to this statement, she just repeats it louder and louder. She also does not offer any reasoning for this statement (at least not sound reasoning).

My problems with her statement are a few but let me dwell on just one. In saying that there could not possibly be just one way to believe, she is asserting that everyone has the right to believe whatever it is he or she wishes to believe. Since there are so many different people and all of these people have the right to believe what they want to believe, there must be many different ways to believe. Sound logic, right? These statements presuppose that having the right to believe and that belief being right are synonymous. In other words, it is not enough that you and I have the right to believe whatever we want to believe. Oprah wants to take it one step further and claim that not only do you have that right but whatever you believe is now legitimate and correct because you believe it. On a bit of a side note, I gave it a try and it didn't work--I believed as hard as a I could that I had a million dollars in my bank account only to find out that my bank records showed I only had a few bucks (I had a right to believe it but my belief still wasn't right, hmmmm).

I'm all for the right to believe what you want to believe, but your right to believe something that is wrong or harmful does not change that it is in fact wrong or harmful. Do many people believing many things mean there are many legitimate ways? Not necessarily, it just means that many people may just be wrong. Your believing it, my believing it, or Oprah herself believing it does not in itself make it right!

Hanging on His Words

2008-04-09T13:37:00.004-04:00

Every once in awhile there is a phrase in Scripture that captures me. I'm reading along and it jumps out. Like in Luke 19:48 where it says, "all the people hung on his words." Luke gave this as reason why the chief priests, teachers and leaders among the people could not find a way to kill Jesus. If these men were trying to kill Jesus, then obviously not all the people hung on Jesus' words. The picture here is significant. Among other things, Luke creates a contrast that tells us something about the teachings of Jesus--they elicit a response. Luke shows us two groups of people, both of whom have responded to Jesus' teaching. It also seems that Luke's language communicates that he is talking about everyone. That is, everyone who has been exposed to Jesus' teaching has responded in one way or the other. Not a single person is sitting by claiming that this Jesus and his teaching really don't matter one way or the other. People are either for him or against him. In Luke's account, they either want to kill him or they are hanging on his every word. The whole scenario begs a response. How do you and I respond to Jesus and his teachings?

Encountering Jesus

2008-04-08T14:58:00.002-04:00

As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by."

Luke 18:35-36

What do you do when Jesus is passing by? What do I do when Jesus is passing by? Do we even notice? Or are we so blind that we miss it? I am so drawn in by that statement, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." It invites reflection. It calls for response.

Jesus is passing by. First of all, who is this Jesus? He is no ordinary man. His passing is seen as significant. It causes a stir. It begs us to notice. This is Jesus, the one from Nazareth. This is the Jesus of whom great stories have been told. They say he performs miracles. They say he teaches with authority. They say he notices people. They say he cares. This is no ordinary man, no ordinary teacher who merely speaks so he can attain followers, so he can stroke his own ego. This teacher cares. And not only does he care, he teaches with power!

Things happen when this man shows up. People respond. Lives are changed. And it is this one who is passing by right now! He is here! The stories are no longer just stories. They have come to life! You can hear the rustle of his garments. The hum of the crowd is electric. It is almost as if you can sense his presence unlike anyone else who has ever passed by this place. Jesus is passing by.

Now the choice is yours, the choice is mine. Will he merely pass by? Will we be so focused on our pain or our busyness or our agenda that we are blind to what is happening? Will we allow this moment to pass and fade into a mere forgetable statement-Jesus passed by. Or will we take this statement and allow it to be turned into a story, into a God story. The blind man in Luke's story was not so blind that he missed it. He called out. He was healed. He encountered Jesus of Nazareth!

What about you? What about me? Will we remain blind? Or will we call out to Jesus of Nazareth. Will the stories we have heard become a reality in our lives? The choice remains ours.

An Audience of One

2008-04-04T12:15:00.002-04:00

"The Mexican Christians were so passionate." This statement and variations of it have been thrown around fairly frequently by the Cabo team upon returning from their trip. You could switch out the word passionate with excited, loving, joyful... You get the idea. While I don't necessarily disagree or take issue with these observations, I've been thinking--What would/do people say about the American Christians? Do our neighbors, classmates, and co-workers look at us and say, "Man are they passionate!" Or "Wow, look how caring those Christians are!"

No one is really impressed with status quo and mediocrity. Passion, on the other hand, always gets a reaction. Some people admire it. Others despise it, but virtually no one witnesses passion and walks away unaffected. If passion is so powerful, why is it that we are so afraid of being passionate for Christ? Why does it so often seem over the top and out of place to be passionate for Him?

If passion is correctly placed, is it possible to be too passionate? In other words if God is who He says He is and has done what Scripture claims, can one really be too passionate for God? Is that even possible? It seems to me that our concern in this area is less about misplaced passion than it is about what people will think about us. The question is, if God is our true audience, who cares what other people think?

A Side of Jesus Please

2008-04-03T16:15:00.003-04:00

"But my sense is that in the prosperous West, the danger in the church is not that there are too many overly zealous people who care too deeply about the lost, and invest hazardously in the cause of the Gospel, and ruin their lives with excessive mercy to the poor. For every careless saint who burns himself out and breaks up his family with misdirected zeal, I venture, there are a thousand who coast with the world, treating Jesus like a helpful add-on, but not as an all-satisfying, all-authoritative King in the cause of love"

--John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

In talking with students after the mission trip, a few have made the comment that they feel "useless" now that they are back home or that they feel like they should be doing something. These statements are not all that surprising if Piper's observation is even a little bit accurate. Students spend virtually all of their time and energy in some form of service to Christ when they are on a mission trip. If they come home to a Christian culture that is only interested in having Jesus as a "helpful add-on" to life, they find a bit of an awkward tension that in many cases leaves them asking, "what do I do now?"

Students have had a real encounter with God after which they know things cannot remain the same. But the reality is that they come home to the implied expectation (or perception) that everything will just remain as it has always been. As a result, they either have to go it alone or they end of giving up, assuming that no one really understands what's going on in their heart and life. It's almost like they got a bigger than life-sized dose of Jesus on the mission trip only to be told that they have to return to life as usual with just a side of Jesus.

Now I'm not saying we do this intentionally, but even if it is simply the perception of the students, it is reality to them. Then no one talks about it because they feel like they're alone in their feelings and they end up just going back to life as usual. This should not be! Now is the time to listen-really listen, love and encourage students to pursue God. This probably means lovingly asking questions about what God is doing in students' lives and maybe even asking the harder questions about how they are going to live it out. But this is not a one time thing either. If students have truly encountered God on this trip, the results continue well beyond the experience because He is the God who "began a good work in you [and] will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6).

This mission trip (as is the case with most) has been a lot to process, and it can be a bit overwhelming but it is good to know that the One who oversees the process is in control and is faithful.

A Few More Thoughts

2008-03-29T09:54:00.003-04:00

If you didn't catch it, much of yesterday's post was tongue in cheek. On a more serious note, the trip has been very good. Everyone seems to have been impacted in some manner and I'm sure I cannot express that impact adequately here. It was neat to hear many students offer up prayers of worship and thanks to God for who He is and what He has done on this trip and in their lives. While the fun times together have been abundant, the "God talks" have been woven throughout the experience as well. God has indeed moved in lives and I pray that we allow Him to continue. My prayer is that this week has not only been about serving God in Mexico but also about seeing through God's eyes. This lesson transcends cultures and times and can truly be taken home with us!

Friday

2008-03-29T00:31:00.001-04:00

Today is the last day of health fairs and work for us. It’s a mixed bag—it will be good to head home soon but we’ve had such a good time here. After breakfast and quiet times, we went to the same park we were at yesterday and did another health fair. It went quite well again. We had around 75 kids come through—some were the same as yesterday, obviously they loved us so much they could not stay away. They had to come back again to see all of the beautiful gringa girls. I think they were kinda scared of the boys though. However, some of the girls clearly wanted Nick’s number. He was too shy to give it to them though. I think he gave them his email instead. All in all, it was a great morning (and Nick has a few more girlfriends than he had previously). Mexican chicks dig Nick! I guess God moves in mysterious ways!

After the health fair and lunch (Nick had to fight the girls off before going to lunch), we went back to the work site for the last time. We mixed about 10 ½ tons of concrete to finish off the foundation. I hauled all of it by hand while everyone else ate cookies (lazy bums). Seriously, I only hauled 90% of it. Tim hauled the other 10%. Micah & Ben were totally anal about leveling their foundation and chewed a kid out when he dropped a basketball on “their” concrete (who hauled it anyway????). We did finish the foundation and everyone did a wonderful job. It was one of the best days of work we had.

After dinner and “God sightings” led masterfully by Micah A., I wrote this blog while the peanut gallery complained about my typos. They ought to try typing for an audience! Everyone is now dutifully going to bed in great anticipation for the fun they will have tomorrow.

Last night, we had a bit of a scare when Nick found Paco’s dad laying on the floor of his trailer holding his head and moaning. It turned out the he fell during the soccer game and hit his head. He had a concussion and was convulsing. Gary & Pam had to call the doctor and take him to the hospital. He came home today and is doing fine.

Truly, our group is doing tremendously well. Everyone is looking forward to the day tomorrow.

Thursday in the Park

2008-03-27T18:51:00.000-04:00

In some ways, it’s hard to believe that it is already Thursday. The week has gone by pretty quickly but the opportunities we have had have not been missed. This morning we began our morning in typical fashion with breakfast, quiet time and some worship to start the day. Then we loaded up the vans and headed to a park to hold a health fair. A local church put together and advertised this event and asked Gary & Pam to help out in the mornings so we’ll be in the same place tomorrow morning. Since everyone had a good feel for how to do their stations at the health fair, things seemed to go along without a hitch. It seemed that we had fewer children this time. Some of the bilingual students from Pam & Gary’s church helped us out with translation again. Our students have hit it off well with them. Everyone had done such a good job this week of working hard, reaching out and volunteering to serve.

Since today is Pam’s birthday, we all went out to lunch for tacos, chimichangas, chile rellenos, or enchiladas. Lunch was incredible (but way too much food). Following lunch, we had a chance to rest a bit before going out to play futbol with some of the youth from the church where we are working as well as some of the student from Gary & Pam’s church. The rest is nice and we’re looking forward to the time with other students. For now, that’s all. Dios te bendiga (God bless you).

Wednesday: Swimming and Spaghetti

2008-03-27T18:30:00.002-04:00

Wednesday morning turned out to be quite warm-probably the warmest day since we’ve been here. After eggs for breakfast, we had quiet time to get ready for the day. Then we were off to the work site. Even though we didn’t get there too early (around 9:20), we were the first one’s on the site. This meant no one had a key to the tool shed and we could not begin work on “our” foundation right away. However, we also had paint and supplies so we began painting the tool shed. We mixed tan and grey together to make one color. It turned out a different shade of gray. We proceeded to paint the tool shed while we waited for a key to continue working on rebar and concrete for the foundation. We ended up being able to paint the shed with two coats. Meanwhile, we did gain access to the necessary tools to finish another stage in the foundation construction. We completed the rebar grid and poured concrete in the footings for the foundation. This brought us to a good stopping point for lunch.

After lunch, we got a treat. We got to go to the beach for a little over an hour. The cool breeze coming off the ocean was a welcome respite from the heat. The water was cool but the students loved “wave surfing” as they were pushed ashore by the bigger waves. What an excellent break and a great reminder of where we are and the beauty of God’s creation.

Wednesday evening was our “evangelism dinner” where we went to Rosa’s home for spaghetti and cinnamon rolls. Everything was so good. Everyone seemed to be able to make at least one connection with someone new. Our students were even invited to the movies and to a fun event on Saturday. All in all, I’d say they hit it off very well and did a great job!

After dinner, we returned to the compound for team time where we spent some time in worship and “God sightings.” We retired early and were able to spend some good time just relaxing together as a team. While the team is a little bit warm and tired, everyone is well and seems to be enjoying the entire experience.

More Tuesday

2008-03-26T16:44:00.001-04:00

After lunch, we had team time to determine who would work at which of the seven health fair booths we were putting on. Games taught kids to wash their hands regularly, drink plenty of water, pick up trash, eat properly, and stay aware from drugs and alcohol. Additionally, there was a station where they got to do a craft and hear a story. These two stations shared the Gospel message. After we got organized, we headed to the health fair. Even though we arrived quite early, there were people there waiting for us already. Almost as soon as we got things set up, the children came down to play. It was chaos. It seems difficult enough to establish order with a group of children when one knows their language. We had to attempt to establish some sense of order without knowing their language! We survived and soon the health fair began. It was a life-saver to have a group of bilingual students from Sheveland’s church come help us lead children around and serve as translators. We ended up giving out around 100 stars which means we had roughly that many children! About 40 adults turned out for the free consultations 20 of whom received eyeglasses. As important as any of that (or more important) was that people accepted Christ for the first time! All in all, I’d say it was very successful.

After the health fair, we had a late dinner and team time then headed off to bed. Micah S. did a wonderful job leading “God sightings” during team time before bed.

Tuesday: Martes in Spanish

2008-03-25T17:44:00.001-04:00

Micah S. would like to report his first “God sighting” for Tuesday is that he got a tan! This was one of the first significant moments of the day. Aside from this “major event,” the day began in a similar fashion to Monday with breakfast. We tweaked the schedule a bit today so that we could get to work a little earlier while it wasn’t so hot. Instead of doing devotions after breakfast, we sent straight to work. Today was a bit more sitting around while we waited for proper direction. Some of the group cut and put together rebar for the structure we are working on while others dug out the foundation so that it was level and in the right place. Once we finally finished digging (we dug the hole three or four times as we were directed differently each time), we framed it out and put in rebar grids. Upon completing the rebar grids, we mixed concrete to begin pouring the foundation. While we were mixing concrete, the site engineer arrived only to let us know that our rebar grids were not right. He proceeded to correct them while we sat and waited. When he was finally finished, we were able to haul the concrete into the hole to be poured. By this time, it was well past noon so we headed back to the compound for a lunch of chicken and rice.

More Monday

2008-03-25T17:13:00.000-04:00

Learning about the health fairs was interesting. CBC folks can think of our Fall Family Fun Night with health and nutrition related games and the prizes being a hygiene pack instead of candy. It sounds like the children really enjoy it and while the children are at the health fair, the adults are able to receive a free consultation, blood sugar test, and eye exam. For the eye exam, the people are asked to read John 3:16. If they can read it, they are then asked if they understand what it means and basically the Gospel message is shared right there. Pretty neat!

Later in the afternoon, we went to the neighborhood where the health fair will be tomorrow and broke into groups to go door to door and invite people. Each group had one Spanish speaker to do the talking. Everyone we met was very friendly and most of the invitations were accepted. Upon hearing the invitation, one of the boys we met grinned broadly and began jumping up and down in excitement. The poverty in the area seemed significant. Each “house” was almost on top of the next and construction of the houses and fences consisted mostly of scraps and materials that were probably considered trash by someone else. I’m pretty sure the poverty as well as the friendliness of the people had a significant impact on our group. After we were done with the invitations, we took some time to pray together that God would use this health fair to His glory.

Next was dinner and team time back at the compound. This, of course, was after an exciting drive! I have to say, my “Mexican” driving is a hit. Back at the compound, Nate did a great job of leading “God sightings” at team time. There are many of these and I cannot do justice in communicating them all. Each student will have to do their best to do this on their own.

Monday Means Work!

2008-03-24T17:56:00.001-04:00

Monday marked the start of the work week and a new schedule for us. We did not have to get up too early (7:30 am for breakfast) so that was nice. Our schedule looks like it will consist of breakfast followed by quiet time for personal devotions. After devotions, we have a team time to share what’s going on in our lives and in the day. The majority of the team then loads into the vans and heads to the work site which happens to be construction on a local Church while a couple of the team stay back at the compound to clean up and prepare lunch.

Today, I got to drive one of the vans to the work site. Talk about a salvation experience--if I was ever in doubt about my salvation, I got right with the Lord the second I got behind the steering wheel to drive in Mexico! Stop signs truly are optional here and the general rule of thumb seems to be “might makes right.” So if I’m bigger or at least drive like I’m bigger I get the right of way—maybe I could get used to this:) The team mixed concrete, hauled cinder blocks, and dug out a foundation at the work site. It was hot, hard work and they did a great job. I didn’t hear any complaints! Copious amounts of sunscreen were used and aside from being hot and tired, everyone is doing well.

Lunch was next—sandwiches and shade! This was followed by an hour of much needed rest. After which we are going to learn about how the health fairs are going to go. Speaking of which, I need to get going to that team meeting…

Thanks for all of your thoughts, prayers, and support. More pictures will be up on the website soon!

He is Risen!

2008-03-24T17:43:00.003-04:00

Easter Sunday in Cabo San Lucas-what an experience! We attended a sunrise service on the beach. It was beautiful! After the service and spending some time on the beach, we were invited to go out to breakfast with a woman with whom we will be doing some ministry later this week. We were so grateful to her for treating us to pancakes, French toast or huevos rancheros. She share a little bit of her story with us and invited us to her home for dinner and homemade cinnamon rolls on Wednesday evening. She told us she was inviting other people so we could share Jesus with them. “You think you’re getting a free dinner,” she said, “but you’re not. You’re going to work for me—to work for Jesus.”

After breakfast, we went back to the compound for a little more rest. At 5:00 pm Mexican time (around 5:30), we attended a Spanish-speaking service. At first, Gary tried to interpret for us but he really wasn’t comfortable so we ended up just listening and singing in Spanish. Micah S., Benaiah, Megan, and Savannah did a special piece for the service. Micah & Ben played guitar while Megan and Savannah sang "Madly." They did a great job and everyone appreciated having them as part of the service. After the service (which lasted about 2 hours), they had Birthday cake and pastries for Gary’s Birthday (who knew?) and we stood around and chatted for awhile. This turned out to be an incredible experience as we attempted to muddle through some Spanish conversations and the Mexican people attempted (more successfully than us) to muddle through some English. From there it was back to the compound for a late dinner and team time. It’s been fun to get together at the end of each day and hear different perspectives and “God sightings.” Everyone was still pretty tired so we turned in early again.

By the way my phone broke yesterday so for the parents reading this, I am no longer reachable via phone. In case of emergency, you can still use Gary & Pam's number that was given to you. If you don't have that number, email me and I can provide it.

Are We There Yet?

2008-03-23T13:39:00.002-04:00

On Friday, March 21, 2008, our team of twelve Senior High students and three adults gathered at CBC with our luggage in tow to load up the vehicles and head for the airport. We met at 9:00 pm and managed to get out of the parking lot and on the way to the airport by 9:30. There were no problems getting everyone checked in and eventually onto the flight from Denver to Atlanta which left on time at 12:55 am. Surprisingly, the plane was full. Most of the team caught a little sleep (very little sleep) on the flight. We arrived without incident in Atlanta at about 5:30 am where we had a layover until 9:50 am. We grabbed breakfast and a few (again, very few) more winks as we waited for our flight. Our flight from Atlanta to Cabo took a little over four hours and went by without incident. Tired but grateful, we arrived in Cabo at about 11:30 am.

Going through immigration was no problem for most of us but four of us were held up by a quite zealous immigration employee. He pulled me and our four team members aside and asked exactly where we were going and what exactly we would be doing. This was a slight problem for him when I told him that I did not know exactly. I filled him in on what was going on to the best of my knowledge but this did not seem to pacify him so he brought in another immigration official who was certainly more zealous and adamant in his inquiries. This gentleman proceeded to tell us that we were definitely not welcome to come into Mexico to share the Gospel with people. He strongly warned us that he and “others” would be watching us to make sure that we did not go door to door or share our “booklets” with people. “Mexico does not need you coming in and pushing God on us.” This was his basic message to us.

Properly chastened, I assumed we would then be on our way, but this was not the case. I was then taken with one of the men out to find Gary to prove that what I said was true. We found Gary and were taken back behind the airport building. I wondered where in the world we were going…why couldn’t we just go back in the front, the way we came??? We eventually ended up right back where we started. Both officials told Gary the same thing they told us. They then accused Gary of having another group last week who were apparently very obnoxious in their sharing and this was a problem. Gary assured them that this group was not with him. The official then added that not only could we not share Jesus or our “booklets” with people, we could not do any work. “No trabajar,” he told Gary emphatically. Then he proceeded to warn Gary that he would come check on us himself to make sure we weren’t making these kids work. Finally, we were allowed to get our team and luggage together to proceed through customs. We were finally here!

Gary and Pam took us to a restaurant for lunch where we had fish, bbq beef, scallop tacos…man, were they good! After lunch, we met with a couple ladies from Iowa (they have some travel stories of their own!) who are joining our team this week and headed to Costco for some food and supplies. Then it was on to the compound to set up our sleeping quarters, the kitchen and meeting area. After dinner and a quick team meeting, everyone was ready for bed. The girls are having fun sleeping on the roof of Gary & Pam’s house while the boys are sleeping on the roof of a storage building (there is a ledge around both so no one will fall off).

For the sake of brevity and parent’s sanity, I hesitate to mention the man we saw laying in the middle of the road after having been hit by a car. He seemed to be ok. Needless to say, the driving here is somewhat questionable (but Gary & Pam are very safe drivers!).

Honoring Christ

2008-03-05T14:09:00.002-05:00

So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

Mark 15:15

"wishing to satisfy the crowd"...This phrase captures me and makes me wonder, how often does this describe me? That is, how often do I deny Christ because I wish to satisfy the crowd? All too often, this seems to be a significant undercurrent in American Christianity. We do our best to not offend anyone and try to keep everyone happy. In essence, we attempt to satisfy the crowd. But what happens when the crowd is in the wrong? What happens when satisfying the crowd and honoring Christ are diametrically opposed to one another? Does honoring Christ take top priority in our lives?

For Pilate, the choice seems clear: satisfy the crowds by crucifying Christ or disappoint the crowds and honor Christ. We know which he chose. Our excuse is sometimes that the choice doesn't quite seem so clear for us. This may very well be true but let's be aware that the excuse does not make the offense of dishonoring Christ any less grave. It may not always be a clear-cut choice between the crowd or Christ (it seldom is) but the fuzziness does not make the decision any less significant. Let us be diligent to choose Christ.

Whose god?

2007-06-12T14:15:00.000-04:00

I guess I don’t watch enough TV because I’m a bit behind on this one. But anyway, I was clicking through channels last night and came upon a rerun (surprise, surprise) on TLC of “My Unique Family.” The family they were highlighting was one who actively practiced the Wiccan faith. Now I’m sure there were a lot of interesting things on this episode but one comment in particular caught my attention. The mother and wife (who also happens to be Pastor of the First Church of Wicca) was commenting on people’s misconceptions about Wicca. She said, “Many people believe we worship Satan but we don’t. We worship the same god everyone else does.” (Keep in mind that this is my paraphrase of what she said since I do not have the exact quote but the paraphrase is an accurate sense of what she was trying to communicate as I understand it.)

I do not find this comment interesting because of the denial about Satan-worship. Wiccans do not worship Satan in a strict sense. This does not mean, however, that they do worship the same god everyone else does. This is a common misconception not limited to the Wiccan faith. (Never mind the fact that atheists do not worship god at all so referencing “everyone” in the statement makes it false.) The misconception is that if you are religious or spiritual in virtually any manner you are all on a level playing field so to speak (you all worship the same god). How can this be? Let’s do a little comparison:

Wiccans worship the god and goddess. This is not two different deities (as I understand it) but rather the male and female side of god.

Christians worship one God in the three persons of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We believe that rather than a contradiction, this is somewhat of a mystery.

Muslims worship god who is one and disagree adamantly with the idea of the trinity.

So in just a quick glance, you can see that these three faiths alone do not hold the same view of God. If they’re different views, how can they be worshipping the same God? Some would argue that God is rather large and these are some of our limited perspectives of God. They may not all be complete but they are all right. The problem with this view arises if any part of the views of God contradict one another. If two (or more) views contradict one another they surely cannot both (or all) be right.

Enter Jesus. The Christian faith believes Jesus to be the Savior who died and rose from the dead. The Islam faith believes Jesus to be a prophet but not Savior. And the Wiccan faith would agree that Jesus was a good man and maybe even a savior but only personally and individually as fits you, not Savior for all. These views of just one tenet of faith and belief in God (because the belief is that Jesus is Savior and God or neither) do not mesh and cannot all be right. So the idea that we all worship the same God is just not logical.

Jesus in a Box

2007-05-02T10:45:00.000-04:00

So I'm looking through the bulletins sent to me on myspace and I come across this one (this is just a portion of it obviously):

If you go over 45, you're a bad influence. If you go under 10, chances are you live under a rock and have no life... even more harsh. Total the number of things in each list you've done.

No need to say which ones. If people really want to know they will message you.

1. smoked
2. consumed alcohol
3. slept in the same bed with someone of the opposite sex
4. slept in the same bed with someone of the same sex
5. kissed someone of the same sex
6. had sex
7. had someone in your room other than family
8. watched porn
9. bought porn
10. done drugs
TOTAL :

Suffice it to say that the total for just these ten was well over 5 for each person who sent me the bulletin (some of you may even be reading this?). Keep in mind that these are students who are all underage. Granted, some of the items on this list of 10 are harmless enough but others are not only harmful but illegal. I'll be honest here, I'm not surprised by the results at all but I am a bit disturbed and I find myself wondering, "How can Christ speak in this setting?"

I'm doing a lesson soon on how Jesus' teachings still apply today. The question quickly becomes, "How?" How does Christ speak into the lives of students who have done 7, 8, 9 or even 10 of the things on the list? Don't get me wrong, I know He speaks forgiveness and love here and that's a powerful thing. The real question is, "How does Christ speak in these situations where the perception is that He and His teachings don't even connect?" It may even go further to the issue of us not really even wanting Jesus and His teachings to connect to these areas of life. At least part of it goes back to the age old issue of compartmentalization: I have a compartment for spiritual stuff that is separate from the other stuff of life. But what if Jesus and His teachings really refuse to be compartmentalized? Do we communicate this properly? Do we live it?

What does it mean to be influential?

2007-04-26T12:22:00.000-04:00

Let me float a question: What does it say about our society and culture that a comedian is considered one of the most influential people of the year? After all, doesn't the idea of the "most influential" person seem to carry some responsibility. Or at the very least, shouldn't it carry with it some responsibility to use influence to do more than merely make people laugh? Don't get me wrong, making people laugh can be a good thing but I use this as an example to make a point. Look at all the celebrities from the entertainment industry who are on the list. These people basically act for a living and that qualifies them as "most influential"? Now I'm not questioning that movie stars can indeed be influential people and probably even should use their celebrity for positive influence. I am questioning whether our priorities are correct in how we classify and utilize influence.

The Most Influential People of the Year

Crime=Reward?????

2007-04-20T13:02:00.000-04:00

Take up shoplifting and you too could "earn" $10,000 (add heavy sarcasm here). I don't know the details of this case but somehow it appears the whole concept of action-appropriate consequence never really got considered. But hey, maybe rewarding criminals is a new, effective way to deter crime.

Crook Wins Damages for Injury During Theft

Christianity in Culture

2007-04-17T13:03:00.000-04:00

You've checked out Youtube.com but have you heard of Godtube.com? And I'm sure you've probably heard of Godspace.com by now as well. These two items bring up an issue I often wonder about. It's complexities are deeper and wider than I care to address here so I will simply venture a question: Does the Christian subculture we've created with things like Godtube.com correctly communicate the message of Jesus Christ?

Talk About Being a Bible Beater--Literally

2007-04-13T11:10:00.000-04:00

Nothing speaks of the love of Jesus more than a good Bible beating (note the sarcasm here). Ok, so I'm not sure this guard was really trying to share the love of Jesus but if he was there are many, many better ways to do it.

Guard in hot water for Bible belting

Marked for Jesus...Literally

2007-04-10T18:06:00.000-04:00

Check out this article about a church who did a crazy thing for their Easter Service. They marked someone for Jesus, literally. A guy got a cross tattoo on his arm during church!

Getting Inked for Easter

Disclaimer: For any parents and/or students out there, I am not necessarily promoting this idea. Just found it to be an intriguing article.

BIGGER or better

2007-04-06T18:58:00.000-04:00

Can you think of anything bigger or better than a paper clip? Of course you can, it's not that hard. The trick is going to be to be in the group who finds the biggest or best item on Thursday, April 26 at our Senior High BIGGER or better party. Don't miss it!

Good Friday Revisited

2007-04-06T18:53:00.000-04:00

Ever wonder why the day which we remember Jesus' crucifixion is called "Good Friday"? The term Good Friday came from medieval England as a reminder that even though this day commemorates the death of Jesus Christ, for Christians there is also a theme of the victorious conquest of Christ over sin and death. This day is observed by prayers, meditations on the Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross, and devotions reflecting on the path of Jesus while carrying the cross. In hindsight, we know that the resurrection is the rest of the story and it is good. What do you think the disciples thought about this day though? They didn't know the end of the story yet. I can't imagine it seemed good to them. But I also bet that the depth of their emotion and struggles made resurrection day that much better and more meaningful.

The Cross Culture is Cancelled

2007-02-01T17:39:00.000-05:00

Senior High youth group is cancelled for Thursday, February 1 due to the snowy, icy roads and blizzard-like conditions. Stay warm and safe. See you next week.

No Breakaway Tonight

2007-01-31T15:34:00.000-05:00

Breakaway (and all other family night activities) has been cancelled tonight due to the weather and bad roads. Stay home, stay safe and we'll see you next week.

The Cross Culture Cancelled

2006-12-21T11:17:00.000-05:00

The Cross Culture (Senior High youth group) has been cancelled tonight (Thursday, December 21) due to weather and road conditions. Have a great Christmas and break. We'll see you at youth group again on Thursday, January 11, 2007.

Breakaway Cancelled Tonight

2006-12-20T11:27:00.000-05:00

Due to the weather and road conditions, Breakaway (Middle School youth group) has been cancelled for tonight (Wednesday, December 20, 2006). Hope you have a wonderful Christmas holiday and a good break. We'll see you again on Wednesday, January 10, 2007.

Bad Crack

2006-12-20T11:18:00.000-05:00

Apparently you can't even find an honest drug dealer these days. What is this world coming to!? One woman is fighting back though. Instead of complaining to the Better Business Bureau, she decided she'd go right to the police. She got sold some bad crack and she needed justice!

Woman Tells Cop She Bought 'Bad Crack'

Just another of so many instances of drugs making you stupid. In case you missed it, the first paragraph is dripping with sarcasm (hate to have to point it out but sometimes we just miss the obvious). At least three idiot moves were made in this instance: 1) buying the drugs in the first place, 2) taking the drugs, 3) reporting it all to the police.

I Just Found Jesus

2006-12-20T11:10:00.000-05:00

According to news reports, he is in Chicago. Isn't it funny how people try to steal Jesus out of Christmas but he always ends up finding his way back into Christmas. That is where he belongs after all.

32 Baby Jesus Dolls Found in Illinois Yard

Apparently the lady who found all the Jesus dolls in her yard freaked out a bit. I guess when she found out that it really is true that Jesus is watching you it put her over the edge. In this case, it was 32 Jesuses who were watching her.

Jesus Sees People

2006-12-19T11:14:00.000-05:00

I can't help but be intrigued by Jesus. He always managed to see people. Jesus virtually always had a following. Whether it was people who were curious, people who wanted more miracles, or people who wanted to kill Him, Jesus always had people looking for Him. It seems like it would be crowded most of the time. But Jesus didn't see crowds, He saw people.

In John 5:2-9 there is a story of a man who had been crippled for 38 years. He was at a pool that was thought to have healing power for the first person to get in after it "stirred." He was never the first person because he was crippled and it was too difficult to get to the water quickly enough. We don't know how long this had been going on for him but apparently he was just a part of a bigger crowd of sick people who were trying to get well from the healing power of the pool. It had become a common sight for those who passed by.

But Jesus didn't see a crowd or just a common sight, He saw a man who needed healing (in more ways than one, I imagine). That's the thing with Jesus, He sees people. I mean, He really sees them with their hurts and needs and stuff.

It's quite amazing really because He still does it. He still sees people and wants to offer healing and hope. The question is the same for us as it was for the man in John 5:6, "Do you want to be healed?"

Learning a Bunch of Nothing

2006-12-15T13:40:00.000-05:00

always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth

2 Timothy 3:7

What is your destination? Whether we realize it or not, life is about learning. It takes many forms and sometimes we're more successful at it than others, but it is always there. But what is the point? I'm sure everyone has asked that of school at one point or another. What is the point of all the learning? It can seem pointless if we don't have a proper destination. If there is ultimate truth in the form of God and His plan (and there is!), then the destination of learning is truth. Getting smarter to look better or get a good job or just be the person who can randomly call up the most pointless, arcane facts may seem like a good thing to some of us. If God is ultimately truth though, all of that other stuff will pass away at some point leaving one worthwhile destination: truth.

The Nature of Salvation

2006-12-13T10:48:00.000-05:00

I fear we don't realize the nature of salvation as we ought. I believe many have lost a proper sense of history and as a result a proper sense of the holiness and majesty of God. The reason I connect history with God's holiness is not because God's attributes are time-bound nor that history is even completely necessary for a proper understanding of God's holiness (although I believe it is maybe not solely necessary but necessary nonetheless). I connect history with God's holiness because Scripture does so.

The book of Hebrews connects many of the Old Testament, Jewish, historical ideas of sacrifice, salvation and priestly function with Jesus' work of salvation. The conclusion: "[Jesus] is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). It's a great conclusion, life-changing really. But if we miss the process by which the conclusion comes, we really miss the greatness of the conclusion.

The process to which I refer is that of the majesty and holiness of God. More specifically, it is how the OT sacrificial system approached God's holiness and how fleeting and inadequate that system was. The system was fleeting and inadequate because of the greatness, holiness and eternality of God. The point being that unless we experience the greatness, holiness and frankly, unreachableness of God, we cannot truly appreciate the conclusion that Jesus saves to the uttermost. We cannot reach God on our own. We cannot approach Him except through Jesus who saves to the uttermost and continually makes intercession for us.

Pull My Finger, er, I Mean Hoof

2006-12-12T12:17:00.000-05:00

Who knew that gas of the bovine kind could be so dangerous to our environment? I guess this causes a huge dilemma for liberals. Think about it: they're opposed to the killing and inhumane treatment of animals but supportive of protecting the environment. What do we do? Kill the cows to protect the environment or kill the environment to protect the cows? I guess we could just feed the cows Bean-o and see if that helps.

Cow 'emissions' more damaging to planet than CO2 from cars

Not in Kansas Anymore

2006-12-12T12:15:00.000-05:00

Apparently this guy was never really in Kansas, he was in some drug-induced alternate world where it's ok to call the cops to report stolen illegal drugs. You've heard it said that drugs kill brain cells, what more proof do you need than this story: Man Calls 911 to Report Stolen Drugs.

Is it a Good Case?

2006-11-14T16:09:00.000-05:00

One of the few things I agree with in this Newsweek article, A Dissent: The Case Against Faith, is the following:

"Religion is the one area of our discourse in which people are systematically protected from the demand to give good evidence and valid arguments in defense of their strongly held beliefs. And yet these beliefs regularly determine what they live for, what they will die for and—all too often—what they will kill for."

All too often, I think Harris' first sentence in this quote is true. Somehow religious beliefs are off the hook in requiring any support. I'm sure I differ with Harris on what constitutes valid support for religious belief but I do think that we as Christians ought to know what we believe and why we believe it. This does not rule out faith. It supports faith.

Spectator Spirituality

2006-11-08T16:16:00.000-05:00

So I'm sitting here doing calendar planning as far as teaching schedule and event planning and I find myself thinking about spectator spirituality and fat Christianity. In essence I wonder, do I as a teacher of Biblical truth and we as a church (generally speaking, the church in America today) enable people to be fine with spectator spirituality? We allow people to come watch what happens in church on Sunday and implicitly pat them on the back for faith which is essentially only a "come and see" faith. In so doing, are we creating and encouraging an immature (maybe even unbiblical) faith? Now I realize I'm speaking in broad generalities and being somewhat skeptical as well but it feels like Christianity in America has become far too comfortable with faith that requires basically nothing of us (realize I'm not talking of salvation by works here). Personally, I'm wondering how it is I can teach for lifechange (by God's grace, of course) because everything else is just a waste of breath.

In the Media Again

2006-11-07T12:20:00.000-05:00

God vs. science is in the media again (God vs. science: Can religion stand up to the test?). I find all of the opposition interesting. It seems that for some people one of science's main objectives is to kill God. It's a rather lofty goal which I doubt truly should fit into the realm of science in the first place. In the midst of the "battle" though, I find it refreshing to occasionally hear of a different perspective:

Informed conciliators have recently become more vocal, and foremost among them is Francis Collins. Collins' devotion to genetics is, if possible, greater than Dawkins'.

Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute since 1993, he headed a multinational 2,400-scientist team that co-mapped the 3 billion biochemical letters of our genetic blueprint, a milestone that then-President Bill Clinton honored in a 2000 White House ceremony, comparing the genome chart to Meriwether Lewis' map of his fateful continental exploration. Collins continues to lead his institute in studying the genome and mining it for medical breakthroughs.

He is also a forthright Christian who converted from atheism at age 27 and now finds time to advise young evangelical scientists on how to declare their faith in science's largely agnostic upper reaches.

Surprising Jesus

2006-11-01T10:53:00.000-05:00

Sometimes an encounter with Jesus is not what we anticipated it would be. Case in point, Matthew 22:15 says "the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap [Jesus] in his words." I imagine the Pharisees were rubbing their hands together in ornery delight at how clever they were and how easily they would trick Jesus into saying something condemning.

However, we read in Matthew 22:22, "When they heard [what Jesus said], they were amazed." Not exactly what they expected. Instead of tricking Jesus and in the process condemning him, they walked away from their encounter in amazement of this man. Somehow, I think he does that more often than we realize. In other words when we encounter the true Jesus, we cannot help but be amazed.

Amazing Grace

2006-10-31T18:26:00.000-05:00

Just a quick thought: I sometimes wonder if we have lost a proper sense of grace. After all, isn't the grace we've experienced supposed to be life-changing? Not only are we to have experienced this grace (and continue to experience it), but as a result of the experience aren't we supposed to pass it along? If this is true, shouldn't Christ-followers be the most gracious, loving, attractive people on the planet? Let me make it a bit more personal, shouldn't you and I be some of the most gracious, attractive people on earth?

Oh and while you're in the reading mode, check out Matthew 18:23-35.

Comfortable Jesus Please

2006-10-27T12:56:00.000-04:00

I'll be the first to admit, I like to be comfortable. Many times, I'm a shade lazy, and I inwardly balk at things that require more effort than I am fond of putting forth. More often than I care to admit, this slips into my concept of Christianity so that I tend toward a Christianity with which I am comfortable. I suppose this is not all that uncommon. My hunch is that I am not alone in this tendency toward comfort.

However, simply because this tendency is accepted (by those around me and by myself) does not make it right. I cannot forget that the Jesus of Christianity, the Jesus I claim and desire to follow, is not a big proponent of comfort (see Matthew 16:24). I was reminded of this again while reading an article by Bryan Coley (Dangerous for the Whole Family) a portion of which is quoted below:

However, let’s not confuse “family-friendly” with “Christian.” Let me just tell you as a person who has been struggling, trying to live the Christian life for almost 30 years, there’s nothing safe about Jesus nor His Truth. In fact, be prepared to confront some pretty unattractive things about yourself as He shines a big light on the darkness in you, and then strap on your seat belt and see what happens when you try to live out His commands of loving and forgiving people. If you think Jesus is the guy in that picture with the cute lamb in His arms, then take another look at the dude who preferred the company of tax collectors and prostitutes, who dared to call out the religious people as “vipers” and “white-washed tombs” and who became violently angry at people thumbing their noses at His Father’s house. Jesus told us to take up a cross and follow Him. I don’t think His idea of “Christian” was making sure that our lives are safe from the world.

As I noted above, I don't think I am alone in my appreciation of comfort. Many times, I don't think we are all that willing to give up the comforts we have come to expect (maybe even believe we deserve). But doesn't something stir in your soul when you read about Jesus? Not the Jesus "with the cute lamb in His arms" but the Jesus of Scripture. Don't you feel it? It's a stirring deep inside to know this man called Jesus. His call was so great and His life authenticated the call. It gets me thinking, Maybe the "comfortable Jesus" isn't so great after all.

Youth Group Cancelled

2006-10-26T12:16:00.000-04:00

Senior High Youth Group on Thursday, October 26 has been cancelled due to inclement weather. Grab a mug of hot chocolate and enjoy the day. Oh and don't forget to pass this information along.