The Joy of Quiet. The God of Fire.

I love reading biographies, the stories of men like Oswald Chambers, C.S. Lewis, John Knox, Jonathan Edwards, Augustine, Paul, and Jeremiah.
As I read about their lives, I get the impression that our modern ideas
about masculine maturity are a far cry from what godly men of
earlier generations understood and practiced.

We talk a lot today about things like vulnerability and the courage to feel our pain.
They seemed more interested in worship and witnessing.
We speak of honest communication and living up to our potential.
They fell to their knees in brokenness and got up to serve.  

I wonder if the virtues we try to develop came naturally
to those men from years ago whose toughest battles
were fought against whatever kept them from knowing Christ. ...

Religious men of today too often have found a convenient God,
an immediately useful God promoted by leaders
who are filled more by the thrill of adoring crowds than
 by their opportunity for quiet communion with God....

Men from earlier generations slugged it out in intensely personal battles that lasted for years,
battles that lessened only when they abandoned themselves more fully to Christ,
not merely when they felt a new passion sweep through them at a big rally
 or when they discovered some new insight about themselves in therapy.
The joy of finding Christ was released through brokenness over sin,
brokenness that led to worshipful abandonment to God.
Knowing Christ intimately developed through a deep work of God's Spirit
that took place sometimes in big crowds
but more often during long seasons of agonizing prayer in solitude.

Larry Crabb, The Silence of Adam, 30-31.

I just spent a week traveling.  It was good to spent time with the Back to God International board meeting.  It was also great to see my mother and my sister.  I am thankful for the time and the people.

I am also so very thankful for the quiet.  My life is so full of talking.  I talk for a living.  I have so many children, and I find that all of them love to talk to daddy.  I enjoy talking to my wife.

When I travel, I get a chance to turn off the noise, close my mouth, and just enter into quiet with my Lord and God.  For a time, I get to listen instead of just talking.  As the ancient devotional writers put it,

When the mouth is open, the fire goes out.  

When the mouth is shut, the dying embers come back to life.

I wholeheartedly agree with Larry Crabb's thoughts above.  I needed the quiet.  I feel the fire returning.  May it burn hot for Jesus, and may many come to find comfort from its heat.

The Importance of our Faith

One must keep on pointing out that Christianity is a statement which, 

if false, is of no importance, 

and if true, of infinite importance.  

The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.

C.S. Lewis, God in the Dock, 101.  

In essay called "Christian Apologetics"

I am currently back east for a board meeting of the Back to God International Ministry and a visit with my mother.  It has been good.  Yesterday I had the privilege of attending worship at Grove City Church of the Nazarene.  When I graduated from High School, this church was around 100 people.  It was marked by a spirit of judgmental fundamentalism.  Now, 25 years later, it is the largest Nazarene church in the United States.  I always find the folks to be welcoming and the worship to be inspiring.

Yesterday, I heard the above quotation from the pastor who was preaching on the topic of apathy.  I have to confess, I could not agree more with Lewis on this point.

Our faith is true; and as a result, 

it is the most vitally important topic in the entire world.  

Christianity should be talked about and understood by all people.  It is the story behind the story of each of our lives.  It is the foundation of all truth, all morality, all grace, and all love found in the world.  Christianity is vitally important.

Why don't more people think this way?

Because far too many Christians think and live like Christianity is merely moderately important.  It is an opinion.  It is personal.  It might give offense to some, so out of fear of rejection we don't want to be too outgoing about our faith.

As someone called by God's grace to faith at age 18, I have such a hard time understanding why so many who claim allegiance to Jesus play the religion game.  What do I mean?  The religion game is keeping your faith compartmentalized.  It is something you pull out on Sundays, at funerals, or at other times when it is deemed proper.

Personally, I find nothing more boring and foolish than the religion game.  It would be far better to sleep in or play golf on Sundays than go to church to play the religion game.

If our faith is true, then it changes everything.  

It means going to worship is not optional, but something we can't wait to do because it is such a blessing and privilege to worship Jesus with others who believe He is the most important person ever.  It means that Christianity shapes every element of our lives.  It becomes the focal point of everything.

Why?  Because Jesus is still alive.  His Spirit is still at work.  He grace still transforms lives, families, and communities.  Jesus is the light in the darkness.

I end with a two simple questions.  Do you believe and live like Christianity is the most important truth in the entire world?  If not, why not?

Failure to be Relevant- Sin #3 of Dying Churches

"Relevance is a buzzword among churches today.  We believe that it is a good one.  And there is nothing more relevant to a lost world than the saving grace of Jesus Christ.  The unchanging truths of Scripture will always contain the answer for those searching to fill the void of their lives.  The church, however, must find ways to relay this gospel message to the culture around them.  The church in a farming community in Indiana should relate differently from the church in a suburb of Vancouver, which should relate differently from the church in the heart of New York City.  Churches that do not find ways to become relevant in their respective communities will eventually falter.  Churches that keep their internal culture unchanged for fifty years while the world around them goes through continual periods of metamorphosis typically die with that old culture.  Churches that ask the question, "How can we best relate the unchanging gospel to the shifting culture around us?" are one step closer to relevancy and reaching a new generation."

Thom and Sam Rainer, The Essential Church? 18-19.

Even as I mention this "sin of a dying church" I know people won't like it.  I can hear their cynical voices stating that the problem in the church today is its quest for relevancy.  

I can even agree with this objection in some ways.  I have ran into far too many pastors and individuals who believe we must change the message of the gospel to attract new people.  These folks ignore various parts of the Bible that they believe don't fit modern culture and sensibilities.  

I believe folks that want to change the gospel always do more harm that good.

We can't change the message of the gospel.  The gospel critiques all cultures and every individual.  It calls us to repentance and faith in something outside ourselves.  Both of these run counter to the impulses of our flesh.  The gospel also critiques our world system.  The world system is the collection of our fleshly tendencies.  It always runs counter to the gospel by running toward self-deception and self-sufficiency.

The gospel is the answer.  It can't be changed or we lose our entire purpose.

The question is how do we communicate this answer to those who need it?  I am aware that how we communicate can change our message.  So, without compromising our message, how can we communicate so people hear the reality of their need to trust Jesus?

To allow this question to critique and then shape our ministry is the very heart of having a relevant ministry.  To go a step further, to not allow this question to critique and then shape our ministry is actually sin.

God graciously allows such sinful churches to die out.

He also raises up new churches to reach the lost.

Growing in Godliness by Grace

"The remedy for our sin, whether scandalous or acceptable, is the gospel in its widest scope.  The gospel is actually a message: here I am using the word gospel as a shorthand expression for the entire work of Christ in His historic life, death, and resurrection for us, and His present work in us through the Holy Spirit.  When I say the gospel in its widest scope, I am referring to the fact that Christ, in His work for us and in us, saves us not only from the penalty of sin, but also from its dominion or reigning power in our lives.  This twofold aspect of Christ's great work is beautifully captured in Augustus Toplady's great hymn "Rock of Ages," with the words,

Let the water and the blood,

From thy riven side which flowed,

Be of sin the double cure,

Cleanse me from its guilt and power."

Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins, 33.

What a wonderful summary of the Gospel's content and action.  

Bridges has been writing on this theme for almost thirty years.  In Respectable Sins, he is dealing with those sins that we as Christians often live with as acceptable and normal.

What sins might these be?

He argues that today's "acceptable sins" are anxiety and frustration, discontent, unthankfulness, impatience and irritability, judgmentalism, and a lack of self-control.  I have not finished the book, but it has been good so far.

What strikes me today is how the gospel is completely 

Christ-centered and Christ-focused.  

The gospel is secure and powerful because Christ's work was finished and perfected with His resurrection.  There is absolutely nothing we can do to add to His finished work. 

Yet, boy do we try.  We are so often guilty of living like somehow we add to Christ's finished work.  So many of us live as if His finished work is not enough.  Instead of resting in Christ's finished work, we are too often marked by incessant labor to fix ourselves and to change our circumstances.

Somehow we have not learned how to appropriate 

Jesus' finished work into our life.

I know some will argue that our labor to fix ourselves and our circumstances flows from "His present work in us through the Holy Spirit."  If we are walking in active repentance and faith, I would agree.  If we constantly remind ourselves of Christ's finished work and claim it as our own, I completely agree.  I just wonder how many of us really live in such dependence?  Why is it so hard to find someone whose life is so marked by such a lifestyle and its resulting grace?

I know all too often my life is marked more by worry and anxiety than repentance, rest, quietness and trust (Isaiah 30:15).  How can I tell?  My inner dialogue runs through my concerns, questions, fears, and doubts more than it turns to constant reflection upon the beauty and grace of Christ.  The irony is that people often tell me that I am marked less with worry and anxiety than most.

Am I just good at hiding it or is anxiety an epidemic among modern folks?

I think many of us have forgotten the gospel of repentance and rest.  I write today to warn and encourage us that when we forget the gospel, we do so to our peril.  To engage in the battle means to be grounded in the finished and perfect work of Christ.  It also means our life will be marked by the struggle of taking what we believe and applying it to our flesh and our worldly thought patterns.

Lord Jesus, have mercy on me a sinner.  Have mercy on us a people who are often marked more by unbelief than by repentance and rest.

For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,

"In repentance and rest you shall be saved;

in quietness and in trust shall be your strength."

Isaiah 30:15

Sins of a Dying Church #2

Sin 2.  Loss of Evangelistic Passion

Dying churches have little evangelistic passion.  They putter around in sharing their faith.  When Peter and John faced the tribunal in Acts 4, the accusers were amazed at the boldness of their faith.  When the tribunal demanded silence and ordered them not to preach or teach the name of Jesus or else face losing their lives, Peter and John responded, "We are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard" (v.20).  Dying churches stop speaking about Christ to the world.  Evangelistic fervor becomes apathetic disinterest in a lost world.

As we will see later in the book, much responsibility rests upon the leadership of the church.  It is the responsibility of the pastor and other key leaders to exhibit this evangelistic passion.  In many thriving churches the driving force behind obedience to the Great Commission is the passion that the senior pastor maintains for the lost.  This passion will flow from the top down.  As the congregation sees his zeal, they catch the same fire.

Thom Rainer and Sam Rainer III, Essential Church, 17.

Most local churches should be appalled how much of our resources and energy goes toward our buildings and maintaining our programs that service the needs of our current members.

But we are not.  It is how things are done.  This is how our church functions.  Rarely do we ask if church status quo is correct.  

How long would Jesus last as the pastor of most local congregations?  

How about Paul?  

Both would be fired from most churches for not maintaining 

the current church ministries in a way that honors the past. 

How did we get here?

Maybe our model for doing church is wrong.

The local church exists for those outside its walls.

Seven Sins of Dying Churches #1

Why are so many people leaving the church?

As a pastor and church planter, I have a heart to reach the "dones".  This group of 35 million people grew up in the church or came into the church at some point in their life, but now they have nothing to do with the church.  Many still profess faith in Christ, they just think the church is not essential for their life and their spirituality.

I truly love these folks.  At this stage of my life, I can also identify with them.  While I know in my head and I have seen glimpses with my eyes that the church is the radiant bride of Christ, so often the church is concerned about things that appear to run counter to the gospel.  Even worse, though people recognize this fact, nothing appears to be done about it in 95% of the churches.

Yuck.

I get it.  I have lived and seen the ugly underbelly of fallen churches.  I have seen the hurt to individuals and families by the ungodly and uncaring attitudes of church people.  I have experienced churches and entire denominations that aren't really concerned with reaching a new generation with the gospel.

Yet, I love the Church.  I love Jesus, and He loves the Church.  I am compelled to try to make the local church reflective of the beauty of the universal Church.  When the church functions well, it is the most beautiful redemptive force in the universe.  Through the Church, the Holy Spirit flows and works.

So why do we see the beauty of the church so rarely?

Because the church is a fallen entity composed of fallen people.  If we are not constantly renewed by the Holy Spirit and the True Truth of the gospel, we fall into predictable patterns of sin.  What are these patterns?

Today I want to share a perspective written by Thom and Sam Rainer in their book Essential Church: reclaiming a generation of dropouts (2008).  As someone who has worked to help the church reclaim what is essential, I find myself in almost complete agreement with the conclusions of this book.  I share their observations for comment and consideration.

The following seven posts will include what the Rainers categorized as some of the more common transgressions that dying church commit.  I know I have seen them.

Sin 1.  Doctrine Dilution

Certain absolutes found within Scripture are so crucial that a Christian should be willing to sacrifice his or her life for them.  Cardinal truths such as the exclusivity of Christ must be followed if the American church is to survive this evangelistic crisis.  Watering down Scripture is not the answer to reaching a younger generation for Christ.  They do not want to be mollycoddled with tough doctrinal truths.  Teaching anything less than the absolute truths of Scripture will make the younger generation feel betrayed when they learn that a large gap exists between what the Bible really says and what they were taught in church.  Diluting the truth to cater to eighteen- to twenty-two-year-olds may work for a time, but low-dose Christianity stings the church much worse in the long run.

Essential Church, 16-17.

Final Justice

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, 

so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.  

Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts 

and flog you in their synagogues. ...

A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.  

It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, 

and the servant like his master.  

If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, 

how much more will they malign those of his household.

So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed,  

or hidden that will not be known. 

Jesus, Matthew 10:16-17; 24-26

We live in a fallen world.  A place where injustice and evil often appear to rule.  I thank God today that what appears to be true is not.

God is a God of justice.  He will bring about final and complete justice for all wrongs.

Friends, we can take hope in this truth.  Whatever wrong you have experienced, whatever injustice you have endured, whatever slight you have experienced, God knows.  

Furthermore, if we have experienced any of these in the name and service of Jesus, we should not be surprised.  Jesus suffered the same treatment.  Take heart, even the secret sins of those who malign you and Jesus will be made known.  

Because God is a God of justice, eventually, we reap what we sow.

Where is grace in all this?

It is ever-present.  Grace reveals truth.  It faces it full on.  Grace grants pardon for those in Christ, but it does not diminish truth and justice.  

So, in the midst of injustice, I encourage you to take heart.  Trust in the God who will brings justice.  Pray it comes swiftly, but know it will come.  Thank God that He can even use injustice to bring about His Kingdom work.  This is true on a broad scale, but also in your life.  

I know it does not feel like it.  Injustice and wrong against us feels so wrong.  Why?  Because it is!  Yet, as we learn to lean into God, as we trust He will bring justice, we grow deeper.

How?

As James put it, "We should count it all joy when you meet trials of various kinds, 

for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.  

And let steadfastness have its full effect, 

that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." 

James 1: 2-3

Justice is coming!  

Rest and Joy found in the Sabbath

Rest.  Joy.  Trust.  Faith.

Beautiful words that should mark the life of each of us as believers in Jesus.  Unfortunately, most of us are still working on these character traits.  Notice I said working!

Yesterday we looked at why we need to take a Sabbath rest each week as presented in Exodus 20.  In this passage, God declared that He created everything in six days and then rested.  Thus, we should labor six days and rest on the seventh.

I think this concept is hard for all people, in all time periods, to understand and believe.  Thankfully, God gave us another rationale when the Ten Commandments were restated in Deuteronomy.  As God's Word states,

Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you.
Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.
On it you shall not do any work, ...
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt,
and the Lord your God brought you out from there
with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.
Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

Deuteronomy 5: 12-15

Why would a different rationale be given here?  I think it is the same point, but it comes from a different perspective.  It could be argued that God can create in six days, but I am not God.  I need to labor to complete all my work constantly because I am so weak and human.

I have heard this perspective many times.  I would say from the context of the bible, such talk is false humility.  It reveals our lack of faith in God to provide and complete our work.

Why?

In Deuteronomy, Moses gives us the rationale of God's incredible provision for Israel in rescuing them from slavery.  These people had nothing.  They were slaves who were forced to work everyday.  They had no military and no power.  They were under the thumb of the greatest military power in the world.  In other words, they could not bring rescue, they could not provide for themselves, and they could not finish their tasks.

So what happened?

God miraculously rescued them, provided for them, and finished the call of bringing them back to the promised land.  Against all odds, God worked and brought His people rest, freedom, joy, and the blessings of the promised land.

If He can do that with such helpless people, could He provide for you?  Could He take care of the details?  Could He provide abundantly beyond all you could ask or imagine?  By the power of His Holy Spirit, He can do all of this and more.

Again, I encourage each of us to give this a try.  This week, take a full day to seek the living God and to repent of your fears, doubts, and control.  Repent of your hard-heartedness which denies that God can and will work without you.  Learn to enjoy Him and rest in His strength.

He will honor such faith with the gift of His presence

and the power of His Holy Spirit to bless your labors.

Finding Rest in Our Busy Lives

Why is it so hard to find rest in today's world?

I'm not talking about getting a good night's sleep.  I'm talking about finding soul-restoring, God-ordained rest from our worries and concerns.  I find that almost everyone I know confesses to not being able to "turn off" the busyness of their life.

Is this the way we are supposed to live?  Is this just a fact of modern life?

I don't think so.  One of the greatest blessings of a faith relationship with Jesus is the ability to rest in His love and care.  This is a counter-cultural truth of our faith.

Unfortunately, such rest is not the mark of most of us believers.  We seem to struggle with all of the anxiety that marks the rest of our world.

Still, doesn't it sound good?  Rest.  Trust.  Faith.  Joy.  Let's take a moment to look at one major hindrance to finding rest for our weary souls.  

Perhaps the best place to start is Exodus 20: 8-11.

"For in six days you shall labor and do all your work, 

but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God; ... 

for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, 

the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; 

therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."  

As is found in several of the commandments, God gives the command and then gives the rationale for the commandment.  Here, God declares He made everything good and then rested.

What does this mean?  

Our God is the creator and sustainer of everything.  
We can trust that He will complete His holy work.

In other words, we believe in a miracle-working God who is all powerful.  We can trust in this awesome God.  He is empowering our labors.  We can and should follow His example of laboring six days and then resting on the seventh day.

Why is it so hard for pastors and all workaholics to believe this?  

Here is the root of our sin.  We truly believe that God could not do without us.  Thus, we have to labor continuously because without us, the Kingdom would fall, the business will fail, the projects will fail.

It never crosses our mind to pray, ask God for help, and then trust that our six days of labor is enough.  Why?  We are living as practical atheists.  We love the "control" we exert.

What does this mean?

A life of balance and rest is built into the created order.  

We need a rest weekly.  We rest not necessarily because we are "tired" but because we are sinners  who need to be reminded of the all-powerful God we serve.  We need to set aside our control issues and instead take time and space to pray for God's hand to work.

I encourage each of us to give this a try.  This week, take a full day to seek the living God and to repent of your fears, doubts, and control.  Repent of your hard-heartedness which denies that God can and will work without you.  Learn to enjoy Him and rest in His strength.

He will honor such faith with the gift of His presence

and the power of His Holy Spirit to bless your labors.

Don't Give Up

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.  He said:

In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men.  And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, "Grant me justice against my adversary."

For some time he refused.  But finally he said to himself, "Even though I don't fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming."

Luke 18: 1-5

I love that Jesus tells this story.  It is the type of story that help affirm the authenticity of the New Testament.  I know this much, if I were going to wash the NT of strange sayings, I would probably start by getting rid of this parable.  

Why?

I think this parable is very confusing for many well-intentioned people.  So many people think every parable is an easy morality lesson about how the Kingdom works.  Thus, they assume the judge must be God.  If we keep asking, he will eventually relent.  In the view of many, God is a being who is above the fray of human life.  God is rather indifferent, but he can be persuaded if we ask enough or in the right way.

This view of God is totally false!

Jesus tells this parable to explain how this world system works.  In his time, judges often did not care about justice.  They loved bribes.  They could rule as they wished.  They were government appointees with absolute power.  The amazing part is that such a person could be won over by persistence.  In other words, even in an unjust system,

sheer persistence got justice.

Jesus compares this evil judge with God.  God loves us.  He cares.  Unlike the judge, His very character declares what is just.  He will hear our cries for justice and He will bring it about.  God is the opposite in character of this evil, arbitrary judge.

Friends, I know it might not feel that way for you.  You might be praying about the same unjust situation for years.  To folks like you and I, Jesus says, "God will see that we get justice, and quickly."  

I know this much, I often wish justice and God's direct intervention would be quicker.  

I guess I have learned that God's purpose is often different than my desire.  I want to be done and over with unjust or even uncomfortable situations.  I want to be done with these situations ASAP.

God wants me to grow in dependence upon Him.  He wants me to grow so I trust Him.  He wants me to wait with complete confidence and calm.  In the midst of the struggle, walking in dependence means knowing everything will be O.K.  

The only way I can walk in dependence is to reject the false understandings of God's character.  He is not an unjust judge.  God loves and cares for us.  He loves and cares for you.  He will set all things right.  He will declare justice and truth.

While we wait, Jesus encourages us to not give up.  

Keep asking God for justice and for His intervention.  Then, praise Him when He answers your prayer.

Prayer, Mission, and our Struggles with Both

While Jesus left no recorded instruction to the apostles to prepare themselves for mission by prayer, Luke reports that during the interim until Pentecost "all these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer" (Acts 1:14).  When the mission of the new church was threatened by an edict commanding them to cease their witness, the apostles turned to prayer again, and their mission was confirmed by a new spiritual empowering (Acts 4: 1-31).  The first missionary journey from Antioch emerged from a prayer meeting (Acts 13: 1-3).  Thus there is an indissoluble reinforcing connection between mission and dependent prayer.  Those who realistically face the demanding task of local mission are immediately driven to prayer by the magnitude of the work confronting them.  Those who are praying about the needs surrounding them in the world are awakened to the greatness of those needs and the opportunity for the church to meet them.

Richard Lovelace, Dynamics of Spiritual Life, 152.

Prayer should be as natural as breathing.  Yet for most of us, concentrated prayer is difficult.

Why is this the case?

I think so many of us feel downright guilty about our lack of focused prayer.  We know the good we ought to do, we can tell you what you ought to do, but we lack the evidence in our lives that we really do what we know we ought to do.  In time, we build up an immunity to calls for further and deeper prayer by placing walls around our souls.  Who wants to feel guilty all the time?!

My goal is not to make us feel guilty.  It is also not to hold my life or anyone else's life up as "the standard."  My true goal is to encourage us to grow.  To do so, we need to recognize and repent of several things.

First, our biggest hindrance to prayer is our indwelling flesh.  

Even if you have been a believer for years, your flesh is still with you.  The supernatural gift of faith was lost in the fall.  Faith is what propels prayer, particularly a life-style of prayer.  Thus, walking in dependent prayer does not come naturally to us.  Instead, it runs opposite of our natural, fleshly, tendencies.  

In other words, we do not naturally pray and walk in faith with God.  It is something that has to be nourished and grown.  It will not naturally happen just because you have been a believer for many years.

When it comes to dependent, missional prayer, almost all of us are beginners.  

In fact, new Christians can often lead us older believers in dependent prayer.  I would go so far to say that if you have known Jesus for years, but have not nourished and grown your ability to pray in faith, you probably have more "fleshly" walls built up against dependent prayer.  Why?  You have a reputation to keep.  You know should not be so "immature."

The first step to overcoming our lack of prayer is confess that rumors of our great maturity need to be rejected as a complete lie.  All of us need to repent and believe.  Claim the truth of your justification and adoption by God.  Start anew.  Begin small- with 5 minutes of prayer in the morning.  Learn to pray throughout the day.  Get past the guilt by claiming the truth of your identity in Christ.

Our second greatest hindrance to prayer is our huge tendency to walk 

in our self effort and personal strength.  

There is so much that all of us can do without "divine" help.  I know that sounds horrible, but it is true.  You can perform your job without direct aid from God.  You can do so many work tasks without even a thought of needing God's help.  I can almost assure you there are others in your workplace that do your type of work who do not believe.  They still "get it done."

Even in ministry, there is so much that can be done through our fleshly efforts.  If you are a good musician, you can play and lead worship without divine help.  You can follow the script and the plans made from past years so as to pull off a great VBS or some other church program.  You can go about your "Christian Life" without much need for moment by moment dependence on God.  You can even parent or make it through your normal day without much if any divine help.

Doesn't what I just wrote sound heretical?  Yet, I think it is really true.  I know I lived that way, and I still live that way sometimes.  I even prepared sermons and talks without much dependent prayer.  I am a good public speaker and I have a vast trove of theological knowledge at my disposal.  With the orderly mind that God has given me, I can pull of speaking or teaching without prayer.  I know many pastors who are experienced will affirm the same thing.

How about you?  

Take a moment to really think about it.  I think many of us vastly overestimate the amount of dependence we have on Jesus.  If this true, repent, confess, and believe afresh and anew.

Do you want to grow in dependence?  I offer this piece of advice.  Get out of your rut by starting or participating in a new ministry.  Push yourself outside of your comfort zone.  Try something that will fail without God's direct help.  See if that helps promote dependency.

Such stretching in ministry is exactly what the early church experienced in the book of Acts.  God's call prompted dependent prayer.  There is something nice and peaceful about maintaining the status quo in ministry.  Yet, it can also be deadly to our spirituality.  

Growing in dependency upon Jesus leads to unshakeable joy, power, growth in holiness, maturity, and depth.  

Why not take some time today to ask the Lord to fight against your fleshly tendencies and grow you in dependency?  He loves you so much that He will lovely guide you deeper in.

God's Gifting and Call

"For the Kingdom of God does not consist in talk, but in power."

1 Corinthians 4:20

Why doesn't God allow all of us to have the same gifts and abilities?  It is not fair that some folks have such greater gifts than I do.

Even as I write these two sentences, I must confess I find them ludicrous.  Why does God gift each of us in different ways?   I have no idea.  I do know that He calls us all to be the body of Christ.  A body without different parts will not work right.  Instead, health means that all the parts of the body are present and working to help the rest of the body.

What does this mean for the ministry?

Having walked with believers and ministry workers for many years, I believe that most of us secretly wish we had different gifts.  We wish we could be like someone we look up to in ministry.  We are painfully aware of our shortcomings.

Deep within we believe that life and ministry would be different if we were just different.

In answer to this natural, fallen human tendency, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12 that we should not wish we had other gifts than the ones we do (gift envy), and he instructs us not to look down on those with different gifts (gift projection).

As I grow older, I am more and more convinced that there is a place for every type of person in the Kingdom of God.

In fact, I believe there is a place and ministry for every type of person.  

The key to success is matching our gifts, calling, experience, and talents with the ministry to which we are called.  To put this positively, when God gives the call to a specific ministry, He also gifts us for the task.

What does this mean for us?

When we are looking at a ministry opportunity, we must know who we are in Christ, and we need to understand what the ministry needs to succeed.  This requires wisdom and a bit of knowledge.  Today I want to offer some of Paul's wisdom regarding how God gives to His church spiritually gifted people just like you.

How do we know which God-given ministry we are called to?  

I sure wish the process was easy and quick.  Instead, I find that answering this question requires wisdom and grace.  It helps to have some guides along the way so we don't get discouraged.  Let me share a brief story to illustrate.  

I had a good friend in seminary who came to school from North Carolina with his wife who was studying to be a psychologist.  He had loved his pastor in college and he wanted to be like him.  He wanted so much to be a pastor who could impact people's lives like he had witnessed.

He began in the M.Div. program, which is a degree to train for ordained ministry.  After a year, he was miserable.  His grades were very good, because he was bright.  Yet, he had no peace and joy in the work.  Before coming to seminary, he was an accountant.  After months of forcing himself to study theology, Greek, and such, he found himself nightly in the library studying tax law.  He found it fascinating (I cannot even imagine).  Finally, he called his old firm and asked if they had a position in Boston.  He shared that he needed to get back to work in something he loved.  That was a Thursday afternoon.  On Friday he had an interview.  On Monday, he began to work at the Boston office of his accounting firm for $80,000 a year (remember this was the mid 1990s).

What can we learn from this?  

First, it pays to be an accountant.  Second, he was trying to force his way into a life and ministry to which he was not called and gifted.  The result was misery and a lack of success.  When he finally came to his senses, the Lord opened other doors and blessed his work.  In fact, he later applied for law school, did extremely well, passed the bar, and became a tax lawyer.  Last I heard, he was also working toward a political career.

If you are not good at understanding yourself (and most of us aren't good at such self-knowledge), I encourage you to find a trusted friend, pastor, or counselor to help you gain some self-understanding.  I also recommend that you take some personality tests and that you take some tests to help you discover your spiritual gifts.  While these tools are not fool-proof, they can be helpful tools in the hands of a wise counselor to help us gain self-knowledge.

Most importantly, get out in a variety of ministries and environments to see what brings you life, joy, and success.  Try everything.  If you fail at something, do not get down, but learn from it.  Ask some questions and ask a friend or counselor to help you answer these questions.

Why did you fail?  What happened?  If you find that you are good at something, but still not empowered and full of joy while doing it, ask why?  Perhaps the gifting is present, but the direction of this ministry was not quite correct.

Most importantly, try a variety of ministries and areas of labor.

At all times remember that God is one who has given you a desire to serve Him.  He will never forsake you and He loves you dearly.  If you are in a tough spot now, this does not change God's love for you.  If you have failed miserably in a certain ministry, this does not change God's love for you.  He even uses our failure.  In fact, He seems particularly good at using our failures to give us wisdom and direction if we have the heart and faith to ask for wisdom with what happened.

Rest in the reality that God is the one who prepares us for life and ministry.  His Spirit leads us to fruitful fields of labor.  We should strive to discover where and how God is leading us while at the same time be encouraging and acknowledging that others are called to different tasks.  

May the Lord lead us and guide us to use our gifts and personality to pursue His calling for us.

Healthy Churches and Groups

Last week I shared the marks of a toxic church or group.  Today, I wish to share the opposite.  What are the marks of a healthy church?  Gordon MacDonald calls them generative groups.

"The first mark of a generative group is so obvious that some of you will want to stop writing.  It's a strong sense of mutual purpose.  Rich Warren wrote about this in his famous book, The Purpose Driven Life.  Purpose is where it all begins.

Now getting a bunch of people to agree on a compelling purpose is no small matter.  Think back to the first night we got together and how many different ideas we all had about why we were meeting or why we would keep on meeting.  But little by little we have been building a group with a purpose that keeps us showing up each week. ....

A generative group is synergistic.  The word means that everyone's effort counts, and this combined effort accomplishes things bigger than any individual could have.

There are no benchwarmers in a generative group.  

Everyone has a piece of the action.  ...

A third mark.  In a generative group, each person grows in one way or another.  Some like the word mature better.  Whatever word you like- mature, grow, develop- it's usually happening to members of a generative group.  People grow spiritually stronger rather than becoming depleted.  They grow in their love for God.  They grow in their understanding of God's purposes.  And they often grow in awareness of giftedness. ...

A generative group is never afraid of conflict.  That doesn't mean they love it, but they know that conflict is a part of real life.  In a generative group there is a caution sign out whenever there's a conflict, but people go out of their way to make it a positive, creative situation.  We all become better and closer through our conflicts if we're a generative group. ...

The last characteristic is simply that a generative group inspires other people who are looking on.  Folks see a generative group in motion and they would like to become part of it or figure out how to make one of their own."  Gordon MacDonald, Who Stole my Church, 198-199.

Do you know of any churches or groups marked by these traits?  

Toxic Churches

Our discipleship group at Christ Community just finished working through the book, Who Stole My Church, by Gordon MacDonald.  It is a great discussion book because it deals with many of the issues in church planting and revitalization in a novel format.  That makes it much easier to read.  I know we enjoyed the discussion this book promoted.

Today I share one long quote from MacDonald.  He is describing a "generative" group and its opposite, a toxic group.  I am sharing his observation on a toxic group.  Unfortunately, too many of these toxic groups are found within churches.  In fact, an entire church can become toxic if it does not deal well with those toxic elements when they first appear.  Without further explanation I ask you to consider, 

do you know any churches or 

groups within churches 

that are marked by these toxic tendencies?

"A toxic group is filled with people who don't know how to bend in the process of conflict and usually operate from a me-first spirit.  They measure every initiative on the basis of 'What's in it for me?'

Second their group is marked by low morale.  There is almost no sense of a bright future or vision.  And they are territorial- they hold on to things from the past.

Third, their general method of problem solving is to blame others.  Blame other group members; blame the larger organization; blame something going on in the world.  Almost all the energy goes into conversations about who's at fault.  For some that's easier than going to work to resolve the issue.

Toxic groups, fourthly, tend to drag down the larger organization around them.  Lots of energy is spent trying to resolve their problems and do damage control.  For that reason, toxic groups are a danger to younger people and to new Christians.  They send the wrong message about Christ and the gospel.

And there's one more mark you need to write down.  Toxic groups destroy people, one after the other.  People get cynical, burned out, slanderous, bitter ... and finally they determine that they'll never again be part of something like this.  More than a few of them simply drop out of their church or go somewhere else."

God's Training for Life

"Blessed by the Lord, my rock, 

who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;

he is my steadfast love and my fortress,

my stronghold and my deliverer,

my shield and he in whom I take refuge,

who subdues people under me."

Ps 144: 1-2

In many places in the world today, many Christians have been sold a worthless bill of goods when it comes to understanding life.  We are often told that Jesus will make it all better.  We are taught that the gospel is merely our second chance to get things right.  We are encouraged that the entire Christian life comes down to doing our best and then Jesus will take care of the rest.

What if the Christian life was more about struggle than victory?  What if our experience was meant to be marked more by warfare than by peace and security?

Why do we struggle so much?

We live a life a struggle because our world system is turned against God.  The world system's goal is to make the things of God look foolish and to make that which is foolish look normal and great.  The more complete the world's system is against God, the more difficult it is to identify the worldly pull away from truth and righteousness.  We must fight against the world.

We live a life of struggle because of our fallen nature and because of the fallen nature of others.  Our flesh or sinful nature never leaves us.  Even in the most godly person alive there is a constant struggle against our inward pull away from God.  When the world also matches perfectly with our flesh, as it does in the affluent parts of the world today, the pull of the flesh looks and feels so natural and good.  We must fight against the flesh.

We live a life of struggle because there really is a devil and there really are demonic spirits that seek to harm us and to attack the advancing Kingdom of God. In other words, there is personal evil in this world that seeks to destroy the work of God.  It is personified in the fallen angel named Satan, but he also has a host of demonic associates who work behind the scenes.  These forces empower the world system.  They tempt the flesh.  Then the accuse the believer for being such a hypocrite.  We must fight against the devil and his schemes.  

How do we fight?

First we must realize we are in a struggle.  We have enemies who are shooting at us and the Church (sometimes even from the church!).  They are seeking to eliminate truth and righteousness from every area of life.  If we do not "seek His Kingdom and His righteousness" we will be made ineffective in our struggle.  

This means that we should not be surprised at the trials and difficulties we face.  It is part of life.  In our fallen world, we live in a state of constant struggle.  Relationships are so easily broken.  Security is shaky at best.  Trouble is a constantly unwelcome companion.  Somehow, if we walk in faith, God uses them to "train our hands for war, and our fingers for battle."

We must realize that the troubles in life are part of God's training program.

All of our trials, all of our struggles, all of our conflicts should point us to the only true "fortress, stronghold, and shield in which we find steadfast love, a deliverer, and a refuge."  Even the process of aging and approaching death can be used to prepare us for everlasting life with our creator.  Thankfully, there is more to life than just this life and our experience of our life.

We are created to know and experience God's love and mercy.  It is found in the gospel.  It is lived by repenting of our sin and self-sufficiency while we look to Christ and His righteousness as our bread of life.  Remember, "Lord have mercy upon me" is a prayer God never despises.  He will send His mercy and grace to us, even in the midst of trials, when we ask Him for help.

Today, we will enter the battle.  May we witness, affirm, and engage in God's training program.  He is the Lord and He loves us.  There is no other god.  Come to Jesus and ask for His grace to believe in His love and watch care as enough.

"Life is an unsafe, bumpy logging road and I am riding it all night long."

My family loves the movie Cars.  It is good wholesome family fun when we watch Lightning McQueen, Mater, and all our favorite characters learn about friendship, the importance of slowing down to enjoy life, and all the fun that can happen in a small town.  Each of these points are important, and I am glad the movie reminds us of them.

The title song of this movie was written and performed by Rascal Flatts.  It proclaims, "Life is a highway.  I wanna ride it all night long."  This is a fun "summer-driving" song.  It is one of those songs to crank up on the stereo while driving along a peaceful country road with the windows down.  I sure wish my life always matched this feeling.

Instead of a drive down a peaceful country road, 

I find that my life is more of an off-road driving experience.

I often feel like my path resembles a drive down a seldom used logging trail.  One of those with huge washouts, washboard bumps, and strangely placed obstacles like large rocks and fallen trees.  My going is painfully slow.  I guess I am envious of those folks whose life is always a smooth highway.  (As if they really exist)

It seems to me that the only time my ride is really smooth is when I am sitting still.  I love these times of refreshment and relaxing.  Yet, they are often brief because the Spirit speaks in the midst of them to provoke me onward.  Generally, I then start to move forward on a clearly marked section of the logging road.  Soon there is a bend in the road. As I take the corner, I see that the road immediately ahead angles into a swamp, is rock strewn, and looks to be blocked by recently fallen trees.

How do we not only survive but also thrive on this often bumpy road of life?

This is the million dollar question.  Unfortunately, it is also a question that many well-meaning folks don't answer well.  We try one thing then another.  It looks like none of them work too well.  Finally, we give up trying to answer.  We just hold on or we stop moving forward.

Thankfully, I think there is an answer to this question beyond our cultural attempts to answer.  It is an old wisdom that our culture firmly rejects.  I suggest we do so as a culture and as individuals to our own peril.  I offer several tips to aid in a successful navigation through the logging roads of life.

We must move forward with reference to a solid starting point.

None of our paths are through uncharted territory.  The road of life, the pilgrimage each of us travels, the path we each must choose is charted, marked, and navigated.

By whom?

Our North Star is the One True and Living God who calls us to true life.  Doesn't that sound good?  True life.  True life begins with a trust relationship with the One True and Living God.  This True God is calling to each us.  He beckons us to move forward.  He calls us to something better and more full.  He calls us to learn to walk with Him by faith.  Part of that trust is knowing that He knows the way, and He promises to go with us through even the most difficult places on the trail.

We need wisdom, encouragement, and advice as we travel.

We live in a culture that doesn't value history.  We truly believe it it is old, it is not as good as what we have today.  So, we look to others stuck in the same swamp for wisdom, encouragement, and advice.  We get advice to move right or left, but so often these folks have not traveled through the swamp.  They might be well-meaning, but they lack proper perspective to know how to make it through.

I want to encourage you that there are many people throughout history who can help navigate the difficult sections of our road.  These folks are excellent map-makers.  They may not have had iPhones and the internet, but they had all the temptations and difficulties known to us all.  They have experienced broken relationships.  They have lived through tragedy.  They have been stung by sin's bite.  They have lived through and escaped the swamps and pitfalls along the road.

They can also tell you about the coming smooth road.  These map-makers have experienced the joys of life that each of us long for.  They have fallen in love, had children, enjoyed their friend's company, thought through questions and issues, and enjoyed the small moments in life.  They have experienced great success.  They can show you the way.

Most importantly, these map-makers 

can and will point you to the One who knows your path.  

They will encourage you in the difficult times and the great times.  Why would we want to walk through life as if we are alone?  Why trust in the advice of those stuck in the same place you find yourself?

I strongly encourage you to join with the community of faith throughout all time.  Look, with the community of fellow pilgrims, toward that One True Guide who calls you to something better.  You really aren't alone.  There really are answers and pathways through the difficult times.

Asking the Right Questions

I often think that we ask the wrong questions about 95% of the time.  We look at a problem, we see our life, we draw our conclusions, but we never ask "Am I asking the right questions?"  At least I know all to well that I often ask the wrong questions!

"There is a way that seems right to a person,
but in the end it leads to death"

Proverbs 14:12 

This morning I was thinking about the process of church renewal.  

Virtually all churches, in all places, think that the next leader will be able to "make a difference" and bring back the "glory days."  Unfortunately, the definition of making a difference and glory days is not concrete or settled for anyone.  This leads to conflict, struggle, and ultimately a lack of fruitfulness.

The above paragraph is easy to understand and affirm.  A lack of clarity in vision causes conflict.  O.K.  But I am thinking today about why we have a lack of clarity in vision.  We know we need to grow and experience renewal, so why do we struggle so much to pull it off?  Why does the process of renewal often cause conflict and pain?

We ask the wrong question or questions.

So often and so easily, we blame the previous pastor or the leadership team.  We blame the people who left.  We blame the conflict and personalities that led to the conflict.  We blame our culture and how it no longer values the gospel and Church.  We blame ... (you fill in the blank).

Rarely do individuals and almost never do churches confess,

"We must be doing something wrong."  

I guess it is human nature and the nature of organizations composed of fallen humans.  We want someone to fix it, but we don't think we broke it.  We blame someone else.

The real problem with most churches is that they are doing something or most often many things wrong. We like the way things are and we want our new pastor, our new members, and our changing culture which we are trying to reach to see how right we are and join us.  Then we are surprised when it does not happen.

As churches (and individuals) we should ask often "What are we doing wrong that turns off new people to the gospel before they even hear it?"  "Why are we in conflict over the same issues time and time again?"  "What are we doing wrong?"

While it goes totally against our nature, 

we need to stop the blame game toward others 

and start with the blame game toward ourselves.  

As Jesus put it, 

"Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?  ... You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye." 

Matt. 7: 3, 5

When God's Word Comes Alive

Why is it so hard to convince folks to read the bible so they can get to know God?  I am aware that changing habits is difficult, but I am constantly surprised when I talk with "mature" believers who do not read the word of God and pray daily.  If that is you, don't despair but let's make a plan to get you growing into the Word of God.

First let me offer some words of confession.  

I know that the bible can be a confusing and huge book for those not familiar with its contents.  When people talk of reading the bible, they often approach it like a novel.  They pick up the book and they start reading in Genesis.  Yet, the bible does not read like a novel.  It is only natural to ask, who are these people?  It is natural to observe that their traditions are strange.  In fact, it is logical to ask what does this mean?

Here is what I have seen often.  By the time many observant folks get to the middle of Exodus (if they make it that far), they are bored, confused, and ready to give up the whole book.  They might not tell others their difficulty, but they do have their minds made up.  In many ways, I do not blame them.  While I love Genesis, these OT stories without their redemptive content make little sense.

What can be done?

I suggest that a new believer, a not quite-yet-believer, or a believer who struggles to get into the bible should start somewhere other than Genesis when they begin to learn about the bible.  All of the scriptures are useful, but some of them require some background knowledge before their true message can be understood.  Do not let this discourage you.  Start by getting some of that background knowledge

First and foremost, start reading in the gospels- 

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John at the beginning of the NT.  

In these books, an honest reader will encounter the person of Jesus.  Read a chapter.  Take your time and ask the Lord to give you wisdom as to what the message means.  The bible is not a novel to be finished, but a message from God to be listen to and transformed by.  Read and think of your life. Ask God for wisdom.

After reading in the gospels, I encourage folks to take some time to pray.  

I remember the first time I engaged in this pattern.  I closed by eyes and began to tell God all about my concerns.  I prayed for everyone and everything I could think of.  When I finished, I had prayed for only 5 minutes!  I have heard stories of folks praying for hours.  How is this possible?

I have since learned that prayer is not just me telling God about my concerns, but also learning how to listen.

This is the point where the scriptures come alive.

As I read the gospels, I ask God for wisdom.  When thoughts come to mind, I pray about them.  I ask for wisdom with people and situations.  I also find that ideas and thoughts come to mind from the scripture that help me get perspective.  Often this perspective concerns my heart and attitude.  I find the bible to be a great mirror.  As I encounter Jesus, He often uses the Word of God to drive me to repentance.  I see my failings.  I repent of these failings, and I look to Him for mercy.  Praise be to God, He gives it!  This love poured out to me, which is the gospel promise, then allows me to see others differently.  It gives me new perspective.  It gives me love to give to others.

I also find that God will use the scriptures to encourage me as I have made good choices.  He uses His word to give me an insight before I encounter something unexpected in a day.  In other words, God's word is active in the life of those who seek Him and His wisdom.  Please seek Him and His wisdom.

I will conclude by stating that God's word is life-changing.   Please don't neglect it. 

I implore you to pick it up and read it reflectively.  It will change your life as you read it asking the Lord for wisdom.  As the writer of Hebrews states, 

"For the word of God is living and active,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,
and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
(Heb 4:12)