Thursday, December 31, 2009

Who Are Your Enemies?

Eternal One, my adversaries are many, too many to count.

Now they have taken a stand against me!

Right to my face they say,

“God will not save you!”

Psalm 3:1-2 (The Voice)

This psalm was written by a man who was fleeing for his life. It’s the story of David and Absalom. Absalom was seeking to take the kingdom by force, and David had to flee his home in Jerusalem to save his life. You can read the story beginning in the fourteenth chapter of second Samuel.

Never have I had to flee for my life. While I have had adversaries, I don’t know what it’s like to be hunted and pursued by people who want me dead. Most of the battles I fight are not as clear cut as fighting for my life or control of a kingdom. Most of the enemies I confront are not so easily named.

As I reflected on this passage today, I wondered if I could name my enemies. One enemy jumped out at me right away and a second one followed close behind. Two of my primary enemies are Distraction and Deception.

It has always been easy for human beings to be distracted from what is true and of eternal significance. However, I am convinced that this has never been more true than it is today. The explosion of information and communication technology and its usage that has occurred in the last fifty years is staggering. We live in an age where devices are used by organizations and people with sophisticated marketing strategies designed to capture our attention and create loyalty to their ideologies or products. While these are useful tools, the point is that we have never had so much information, so many people vying for our attention. It takes effort to be centered on God and our relationship with him. Once distracted, we can easily be deceived.

Any of us, given enough distraction, can eventually become so deceived we might hear and believe, “God will not save you!” However, initially the deceptions are not so grand. In the beginning most deceptions start as an innocent question. “ I wonder what would happen if…?” Because we are distracted, because we are not fixed on the one in whom our soul finds its worth, we entertain all sorts of scenarios. Sometimes we imagine the worst. Sometimes we imagine things that on their own are not necessarily bad or good, but they might not be consistent with God’s intention for our lives.

Even if we do not embrace and act upon these scenarios, we have wasted precious mental and emotional energy that has robbed us of the peace and confidence that is ours in Christ. Obviously, this lack of peace and confidence has a detrimental impact on all our relationships and endeavors. We make the wrong decisions about what to do and not to do. We become defensive and perhaps hostile in the face of the most innocent comment or well-intended suggestion.

If we are deceived because we are distracted, then we must figure out how to remove or minimize the power of distraction. We must establish practices, habits in our lives that will anchor us; keeping us from drifting awash in a sea of information that seeks to distract us from our love life with the Holy One. For me, sacred spaces must be marked out in my life where I am minimizing distraction and building on attraction. While diligent study and reading are an important part of that process, I would also include things like sitting in my recliner and pondering over a short devotional I just read or taking walks where the purpose is not physical exercise but prayerful thought. These are the things that work best for me.

What about you? What name would you give your enemies, and what is your strategy for fighting? Make no mistake. You have enemies that seek to deprive you of the joyful, fulfilling life that God wants you to live. You need to know who they are and have a strategy to make sure they do not succeed.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving

The American Civil War is by far the bloodiest military conflict in US history. The loss of life due to combat death and war-related disease numbers somewhere between five and seven hundred thousand, around 3% of our national population at the time. (Today, a three percent loss would equate to roughly nine million deaths, about the population of New York City or the state of North Carolina.) Still, during this unspeakable tragedy, Abraham Lincoln issued the proclamation that set the precedent for a national day of Thanksgiving.

I don’t know the circumstances of your life on this Thanksgiving Day, but I do know that giving thanks to God is important in times of great joy and in times of great sorrow and concern. In good times it reminds us that our circumstances are not always of our own making. In times of sorrow we are reminded that there is hope. Perhaps the words of the proclamation will be good food for thought.

Washington, D.C.
October 3, 1863

By the President of the United States of America.

A Proclamation.

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People.

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

Woodstock

I’m watching a Woodstock documentary. I am filled with sadness. I’ve been trying to put into words why, but I can’t find them. It has something to do with how deeply people hurt and desperately long for something better, yet they look to behaviors and philosophies that ultimately enslave them instead of free them.  With that in mind, it also has something to do with my failure and the church’s failure, by and large, to authentically live in and accurately portray the life and love of Jesus.  When I look at some of the things that have been done in the name of Christ, things he himself would not do or approve of, I am not surprised that the people who experienced or witnessed those things reject him rather than embrace him.  Even so, God continues to woo people to himself, and people continue to embrace the life he offers them.  This is only possible because, among other things, God is merciful, kind, loving, forgiving and patient.

The temptation is to say we need to do better.  We need to find better ways to communicate who Jesus really is to our culture.  We need to live better lives.  We need to try harder.  While I would agree the quality of what we do and how we do needs to  improve, to focus on improving it is to fall into a performance trap. 

I think the answer is to draw nearer.  The only way our lives will ever authentically reflect the beauty and majesty of Jesus, is for us to nurture his life within us.  Our behavior will never be perfect, for we are infected with a tendency to reject God and his ways.  Still, when we nurture the life of Christ in us, that life will show up in the way we live.

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Image Is Everything

Our image of God determines everything. Think about it. What we believe to be true about anyone determines how we relate to them. It is no less true for what we believe about God. In fact, people who study different cultures tell us a culture is defined by the people’s understanding, or rejection, of God. This is one of the reasons why worship is so important. Worship helps us grow in our understanding and appreciation of who God is.

Years ago, actually decades ago, I saw a short movie by a Christian comedian sketching out different views of God. He portrayed God as a mean traffic cop that lived for the opportunity to catch people violating the rules; as a sleepy old man in a rocking chair on a huge porch that only woke up to take his medicine and wasn’t really aware of what was going on in his creation; as a plump cherub who just wanted everyone to luuuuvvvv everyone else. When our view of God is limited to any one of these three understandings, or even some combination of all three or some other dwarfed understanding of who God is, we will have difficulty in our relationship with God. We will not experience or reflect the majestic, transformational power of his love.

So what is God really like? There is not room to answer that question in this article, even if I felt I could. When we read the Bible, it is obvious God wants to be known by us. It is also obvious there are aspects about God that are mysterious to us. We don’t fully comprehend him. Why would we? He is eternal. We are not. He is all powerful. We are not. He is perfect in every way. We are not. He knows everything. We do not. He is creator. We are created. The list could go on about the differences between God and us that would explain why we cannot fully understand nor appreciate the full wonder of who he is. Yet, he makes himself known to us in ways we can understand! Even that tells us something about who he is. The one who does not need us and is so far above us we cannot possibly comprehend him desires to be known and loved by us.

This is why we worship God. There are so many reasons to value him above all other things. At the same time, when we worship God it grounds us in what is truly real and important. In one sense we know as much about God as we need to know. In another sense, our understanding of who he is and what that means will be the pursuit of our lives, a pursuit we cannot engage without taking time to passionately worship him.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Does God Have Me?

The title of this post was not the title of last Sunday’s message at Ranch Community Fellowship, but it was the question we were asking. Does God have me? Have I truly surrendered myself to him and trust him with my life? We’re looking at our use of money to answer those questions.

What does our giving say about our relationship with God? People give many reasons for why they do not give to God and others generously. At the root of almost every reason one can imagine there are two issues that cannot be ignored.

First, some of us don’t believe God is capable of providing for us with what is left after we give to Him. Admittedly, many of us have either mismanaged our money. We have used credit way too freely to get what we can’t really afford. Some of us have had a staggering, unexpected crisis of some sort that has shaken our financial footing. Still others of us have been struggling with our financial stability for so long that we don’t know what it’s like not to always be worried about there being more month than money. Of course, it takes more faith to give in the face of these situations, but it always takes faith to give to God. With God’s multiple promises to take care of us couple with his directives to give, what does it say about us when we don’t give. Does it say we don’t trust God to do what he says he will do; that we don’t trust him to provide for us when we give to him?”

The second reason can sometimes, but not always, be related to why we find ourselves in these situations. As a result of the sin infection we all carry, most of us tend to view life as if we were the center of the universe. We’re what matters, and as long as our desires, wants, and needs (real and imagined) are met, that’s what’s important. While it may sound harsh and we might not want to admit it, we’ve clearly determined that what God wants is not as important to us as what we want. Does this mean we have not surrendered our lives to God?

A popular passage on tithing, Malachi 3, is often quoted simply to encourage people to tithe, that is, give ten percent of their income to God. However, that is not the main point of the passage. While I have no doubt God wants us to give ten percent and more (tithes and offerings) to him and that he will pour out blessings so great we cannot contain them, this is not the most important thing here. In Malachi, God is bothered the people are not fully embracing and following him. He points to their lack of giving, among other things, as evidence that they neither fully trust him nor are they fully surrendered to him.

“I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’ “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ “In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." (Malachi 3:6-10, NIV)

Generous giving indicates our trust in God and the full surrender of our lives to him. As harsh and as crass as it sounds, when God does not have our money he does not have us. There is no such thing as mature Christ-follower who is not a generous giver.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Proving God Exists, Part 1, Introduction

Recently a friend asked me, “How do we KNOW, other than something we feel in our heart, that there is a God?” So far the only answer she had been given by anyone was, “When you know God, and he is in your heart, there is no doubt.”

I was bothered that my friend had not been given a better answer. Essentially my friend was told, “If you want to be sure God exists, you just need to know God.” That’s a bit circular.

Is It Possible to Prove the Existence of God?

How does one definitively answer that question? Is it even possible to “prove” the existence of a supernatural being? My well-worn copy of Webster’s dictionary defines the supernatural as “an order of existence beyond the visible, observable universe.” The same dictionary also states the supernatural departs “from what is usual or normal, especially so as to appear to transcend the laws of nature.” If something is not visible or observable and is not confined by the “laws” that customarily govern our understanding of the world, how can we “prove” that which is beyond our ability to observe or to fully understand?

The Subjective Nature of Proof

Another challenge we face is the subjective nature of proof. Consider a criminal trial by jury. In our system of justice, twelve people are asked to judge the proof presented by an attorney to judge whether or not a person is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. My extensive legal education, obtained from watching way too many reruns of Law and Order, has taught me there are trials that end in hung juries, where the jurors have an irreconcilable difference of opinion as to guilt or innocence. In other words, the evidence that was presented was enough for some to KNOW the defendant is guilty, but not enough for others to KNOW the same thing.

Why We Call It Faith

With these challenges in mind, perhaps this is why we refer to any system of thought that acknowledges a belief in the supernatural as a “faith” system. That same Webster’s dictionary to which I referred earlier offers the following as one definition of faith, “firm belief in something for which there is no proof.”

Does Proof Matter?

I guess these are just a couple of the problems we encounter as we try to answer this question. Perhaps that is why my friend got the answer she was given. Perhaps it is impossible to “prove” that God exists according to the laws of evidence in a courtroom, by scientific method, or by mathematical equation. However, I’m not sure how much that matters.

While there are many who are honestly seeking proof of the truth, for most, I suspect proof is irrelevant. Most of the discussion I am finding on this topic is put forth by those on one side or the other seeking to bolster what they already believe. No matter what proof is offered, they will cling to their predetermined belief. After all, even today there are people who believe, in spite of all scientific data to the contrary, the world is flat. (See International Flat Earth Society.)

In some ways I fall into that camp. I clearly believe in the existence of God. More specifically, I believe in God as revealed to us through the Christian Bible, and because I find so much benefit through what I believe, I want others to believe as well.  Even though I personally feel no need to bolster my belief with an effort to construct data and philosophy that would support it, I understand how such efforts might be helpful to others.  Therefore, I am willing to make the effort.  

If I am unable to prove the existence of God in a way that would satisfy standards accepted in a court of law or in a scientific laboratory, it does not mean God does not exist. It only means I was incapable of proving it by standards generally accepted in our culture.  However, I hope to add enough “evidence” that it will help move some closer to accepting this vital truth.

Walking in the Shoes of Others

That being said, I hope to set myself apart from those who do not make an honest attempt to put themselves in the shoes of those who struggle with believing in the existence of God; those who may even want to believe in God’s existence. I hope my views are sensitive to their concerns and not condescending. Too often honest seekers with questions have been dismissed because their questions were hard to answer. Sometimes they were even ridiculed. Such responses were, and are, harmful rather than helpful.

Join Me in the Journey

Over the next few weeks, as I think and research this topic, I hope you will be patient with me. This is not easy writing for me to do, since I have not given much thought to proving the existence of God. Having always accepted the idea that God is real, I’ve never felt the need to “prove” it.

I am looking forward to this process, and I invite you to join me with your thoughts, even if they run counter to mine. Our honest opinions and responses will help us to sharpen each other’s thinking, and I am sure you will think of things I have not considered.  Your questions are also welcome.  I cannot promise I will always be able to provide an answer, but you will get an honest, genuine response.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Fulfilling the Heart of God: Acknowledging the Gifts of People

1 Corinthians 12

As I was reading the passage designated in our personal journals for the week, I didn’t get much further than Verses 4 through 6 when things I had not noticed before began to jump out at me. It actually set the tone for the rest of the passage, as I concluded this passage is about unity without uniformity. Let’s take a closer look at those three verses and their relationship to the rest of the chapter.

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6, NIV)

The people of God have always held as a central thought that God is one God. We see God operate through three different persons: the personhood of the Father Creator, the personhood of Jesus Redeemer, and the personhood of Holy Spirit Empowerer. In these three verses we see all three aspects of God in the words “Spirit,” “Lord,” and “God.”

The words “gifts,” “service,” and “working” also caught my eye. There are at least two things to learn from the use of these words. First we learn that there are more than one kind of each of these. There are multiple gifts; there are multiple services; there are multiple “kinds of working.” The second thing we can learn is seen in the words themselves. “Gifts” is about the different expressions of God’s grace that is shown in the different abilities bestowed upon people. “Service” has to do with the different ways these varied abilities contribute to and provide for the church – the people who follow Christ. And “kinds of working” has to do with the varied impact or results of the gifts expressing themselves in service.

As interesting as that might be to some, I think there is actually a larger point in these three verses that carries through the rest of this chapter, into chapter thirteen, and perhaps farther. In these three verses we see a contrast repeated in every verse between “different” and “same.” The emphasis seems to be on how diversity functions for the benefit of unity. We can see this theme in the rest of the chapter.

  • v. 7 varied expressions of God’s grace are given for the common good.
  • v. 11 after a listing of various expressions of God’s grace, the passage emphasizes that they all spring from one Spirit.
  • v. 12 -27 the emphasis is on the fact that we are one body with different parts and every part needs each of the other parts.
  • v. 28 to the end of the chapter is how God has “appointed” different people to fulfill different functions, but in the text it’s clear these different gifts are for the benefit of the one body given by the one God.
  • Even though Chapter 13 was part of our reading assignment for today, a case can be made that the discussion on love is about how we are to be bound to each other in love.

Often we mistake unity for uniformity. Uniformity has to do with everyone doing everything in the same way. Unity is more about purpose and motive. Unity allows for variety and diversity, as long as the expressions of that diversity enhance, rather than divert, the unity of the group.

As you pray about this week’s question, seeking to understand how the gifts God has given you can be used to further and enhance the Kingdom of God, you might also want to consider how your gifts contribute to the diversity and creativity of God’s people without threatening the unity that is ours in Christ.

Thursday, October 08, 2009

Fulfilling the Heart of God: Growing Through Relationships

Ranch Community Church is in the second week of a series of messages, small group discussions, and personal reflection on what each of us need to do तो be in alignment with God’s vision for our church – thus fulfilling the heart of God. Below are my reflections, not my finished thoughts, on this week’s passage and questions.

As I read through Romans 16, this week’s passage in our “Fulfilling the Heart of God” journal, three things caught my attention.

Personal Relationships

First, I noted the large number of people to whom Paul was personally connected or knew about. In this one chapter I counted twenty-nine individuals or groups to whom Paul sent greetings or in some way praised. (That does not include the eight people mentioned as having been with Paul when he dictated this letter.) This is astonishing since, as far as I know, Paul had not previously visited Rome. In fact, it was only one of two churches in Paul’s letters that were not “planted” by him. I’ve never thought of Paul as a “people-person,” but it seems clear he was.

Hard Work

Second, more than once I saw phrases that involved the words “worked hard.” I also saw the words “tested and approved,” in his references to individuals. I am not exactly sure how these people worked hard or how they were tested, but it is interesting to note that hard work was a part of church life even in that first generation of Christ-followers. We sometimes choose not to do things as a church, because we feel it is asking too much of people. It’s almost as if we are trying to orient ourselves around all the other stuff that goes on in our lives rather than orienting our lives around what’s truly important, a life with God. We would never want to become insensitive to what’s going on in people’s lives, but there does seem to be some truth in the idea that we squeeze our life with God’s people in around everything else, effectively giving it a much lower priority than we should. I’m not sure we should ever apologize for expecting people to work hard for the benefit of the rest of the church.

Unity of Thought

Third, I noticed an emphasis on unity. Beginning in verse 17 Paul warns them to be on the lookout for people who “cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned.” Obviously the warnings about division are about protecting the unity of the Christ-followers. However, the encouragement to not stray from what they had learned about the Gospel could also be seen as protecting the unity of the group. Obviously, knowing what we believe and bringing our lives into compliance with those beliefs is important for what it brings to us in terms of eternal and full life. However, striving to maintain the integrity of the truth they have learned was also important in maintaining their relationships – their unity. If they began to differ in what they believed, it would certainly have an impacted in their relationships with each other.

Their Connectedness

The theme I see, if I am not working too hard to “force” several paragraphs into one theme, is about the connectedness of these early Christ-followers to each other. They had strong personal ties, they worked hard for the benefit of the church which is the same as saying the worked hard for each other’s benefit, and they had integrity as a group as they sought to remain true to what they had learned – letting no one disrupt their unity.

Answering the Questions

None of this is possible without a relationship with Christ. Only in Christ can we put to death our selfish, prideful desires that would cause us to be only about our selves than to be about each other. Only in Christ can I become the kind of person who seeks to benefit others rather than to simply be benefitted by them. I suppose that would be my answer to the question posed for the week and the one I added last Sunday. How do we benefit from our relationship with God, and how do others benefit from their relationship with us. At the very least, it’s a start to answering the questions.

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

The Role of Praise

Today, as I was reading in Jeremiah, I came across these words.

Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. (Jeremiah 17:14, NIV)

For as long as I can remember, I’ve struggled internally when someone says to me, “Praise the Lord!” I can distinctly remember the emotional reaction I felt when a life-long family friend looked at me and said, “Praise the Lord, Eddie!” I cringed on the inside – not wanting to “praise the Lord.” Nearly three decades later I still “feel” resistance within me when I hear that phrase, and it bothers me.

We do a great disservice to those who are already Christ-followers, and to those who are not, when we focus only on behavior that is displeasing to God. The real issue, the real wound between us and God, is an attitude of not wanting to let God be God. We don’t want to surrender control. We want to think what we want to think and do what we want to do. We are too full of ourselves and convinced of our own self-importance to acknowledge a relationship of dependency upon God. That’s why my internal reaction when someone encourages me to “praise the Lord” bothers me. What is it telling me about how I am dealing with that attitude of self-sufficiency that is at the root of every sinful thought and act?

Genuine praise of God, or the lack of authentic praise, is an indication of what place God holds in our lives. To praise God is to give him credit; to lift him up. To praise God is to acknowledge who he is and, therefore, who we are. He is God; we are not. So when I sense hesitancy or reluctance within myself to give God praise, then I have to take a moment to wonder what’s going on in me that I would not want to acknowledge God as God! 

I hope my resistance to someone telling me to “praise the lord” has more to do with how those words might have been abused in my past rather than with me not wanting to give God his rightful place in my life. I don’t seem to have the same resistance when I acknowledge God’s greatness in other ways. Still, since I am human, infected with the same tendencies as every other mortal on the planet, I know resistance to letting God be God is always lurking somewhere within me; preventing me from being in a right relationship with him and experiencing the good gifts that come through that relationship; gifts like healing and salvation.

Fortunately, that very attitude is why Jesus died.  He died, not only for our forgiveness of it, but to render its negative influence in our lives powerless.  It is precisely because we struggle with a willingness to let God be God that he died.

With this in mind, is it possible that our praise of God is not just an emotional or mental response to God?  Could it also be that scripture repeatedly encourages, even commands, us to praise God for the benefit we derive from it?  After all, does God really need our praise?

God does not need our praise, and he loves us unconditionally.  Therefore, God’s instructions to us in scripture always contain benefit for us.  When we praise God, whether we feel like it or not, it functionally helps us to let God be God of our lives.  It deals with the root attitude, from which all sinful thoughts and activities in our lives flow, and reminds us who God is and who we are to be. Perhaps the praising of God is not just intellectual or emotional response.  Perhaps it is also a spiritual discipline; a gift God has given to us to practice so that he can enter more fully into our lives.  If that’s the case, then there is only one thing to say or do.  Let’s PRAISE THE LORD!

 

Thursday, October 01, 2009

Focusing on the Future

This morning I took time to do exactly what I am asking every friend and member of Ranch Community Fellowship to do. I skipped a meal and spent time with God praying, reading His Word and reflecting on the question in our “Fulfilling the Heart of God” journal. Even though I am your pastor and responsible to serve you by leading us in our journey, I also see myself as your friend and fellow traveler; someone who walks with you and not in front of, nor behind you. With that in mind, I want to share with you the thoughts that came to mind as I read this week’s journal selection.

The question I found myself asking was not exactly the one our journal proposed. The journal question for this week is, “What would our church look like in ten years if our vision for ministry was successfully accomplished?” I’m really more interested in what our church should look like, regardless of the time frame; today, ten, twenty, or more years in the future! In one form or another, that is the question that is always before me.

The suggested scripture readings for this week, 2 Timothy, Chapters 2 and 4, were loaded with images: soldier, athlete, farmer, workman, instrument/utensil, drink offering, fighter, and runner. These passages are also full of instructions, too many to list here. However, the words that seemed to jump off the page at me did fall into some themes.

A Life Fully Surrendered

Paul seems to repeatedly share with Timothy, a young pastor whom Paul deeply loves and mentors, images that talk about being completely sold out to the Gospel. He speaks of the soldier that does not get entangled in civilian affairs, the athlete who does not wander outside the boundaries of the course, the workman who obviously works hard at his task, an instrument/utensil that is useful to its master, a drink that is upended and poured out as an offering, a fighter that has fought well, a runner that has finished his race, a person who has not abandoned their faith. All of these images speak to me of a single-minded devotion to God in private and in public, or in difficult times as well as good times.

A Mind Fully Informed

Perhaps it should be so evident it goes without saying; unfortunately it is not.  God’s word and the instruction of it are central to our ministry and what we are supposed to be about.  Paul talks about being chained, but God’s word is not.  He encourages Timothy to correctly handle the word of truth.  We are to instruct in the hope that others repent. We are to preach. We are to correct, rebuke, encourage, and do the work of an evangelist.  Knowledge of God’s word is necessary for any Christ-follower to live the life God has for them.

A Heart Full of Love

Throughout these two chapters are scattered encouragements to be gentle, kind, patient, and not resentful.  Paul encourages Timothy to persevere, to endure, and be ready to take advantage of every opportunity for the Gospel.  It’s important not only to do the right things, but to do the right things in the right way.  It’s possible to not only be right, but to be DEAD right!  (I can’t help but think of 1 Corinthians 13 where we are taught that when we do things without doing them in love, we are nothing!)

Our Mission

RCF passionately loves God, each other, and the world and influences others to do the same.  That statement of our mission requires we be completely surrendered and sold out to God, have a solid understanding of what he teaches us through His word, and are not only doing the right things but doing them in the right way. 

Questions

Are we there yet?  We’re definitely on the right track, but I think we have a ways to go before we can say we are that group of people.  Fortunately for us, it seems traveling in the right direction is more important than arriving.  In some sense we can never fully arrive in this life.  While we are forgiven and set free, the sin infection is always lurking in each of us trying to influence our thoughts and actions.  I

I think the question for us is, “How do we move in that direction?”  We continue to pray, to worship, to learn what God teaches us, and to invest in each other, and to serve the world in an attitude of grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness.  Repeatedly giving ourselves to the right things with the right attitude is what we must do to be and to become the people God has created us to be.

The Future

As I look toward the future for our church, I see a group of people who are head-over-heels in love with God.  We are completely surrendered and sold out to him and nothing is more important to us than He is.  We are a people who love His word and are living by it.  Because His love and His word lives us, love will be the word that characterizes our every motive and action.

Make no mistake, you and I will be different.  RCF, Cypress and Northwest Harris County will be a better place because we are, and people will have been rescued from the destructive clutches of evil.  We will be known as a place of refuge for the desperate and a place of rest for the weary.  And it will all be because we have chosen to passionately love God, each other, and the world.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Marked By His Presence

The Holy Spirit is not primarily about power, signs and wonders, speaking in tongues, healing, words of wisdom, fruit, or any of the other things that immediately spring to mind. First and foremost, the Holy Spirit is about God’s presence with us. It is the presence of God, the presence of His Holy Spirit, that makes all these other benefits possible. The presence of God with and in us is what distinguishes the people of God from all other people.

Consider the book of Exodus. Israel comes to the holy mountain, the place of God’s “dwelling.” Moses is the only one allowed to engage the presence of God. Moses receives the Book of Covenant and then receives precise directions for the construction of a tabernacle. The plan is for God’s presence to move off the mountain and dwell among the people, going with them on their journey. This plan is threatened when the people, in favor of a golden calf, reject God. An angel informs Moses that God’s presence will not be going with them. (Exodus 33) Moses, recognizing the inadequacy of God not being with them, pleads with God.

Exodus 33:15-16 (NIV) 15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

What marked God’s people as His people was His presence! God grants Moses’ request. They build the tabernacle, and God’s glory (presence) “filled the tabernacle.” Once Solomon’s Temple is constructed, the same presence fills the temple. (Compare Exodus 40 to 1 Kings 8:11.)

Later on this same language, temple language, is picked up in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 and 6:19. This is where Paul speaks of our lives being a temple wherein the Holy Spirit dwells! This is the gift referred to in Acts 2:38, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Jesus living in us! In our typical WIIFM approach (What’s in it for me?), we have focused too much on the by-products and not enough of the gift. Somehow this infection of sin is always diverting our attention away from the true gift, the true gift being that God is with us!

I believe with all my heart God wants us to enjoy the benefits of His presence. He wants to bless us to bless others. However, when we lose sight of the true gift of His presence in us, that is when abuses and misuses of His gift occurs. That is when churches are torn apart and people become disillusioned. That is when worship celebrations become shows and pastors become ringmasters instead of servants. That is when this wonderful gift of God’s presence within, a gift that should empower us for life and ministry, becomes a distraction and an instrument for division.

Some of the inferences are mine, but the main idea of God’s presence being what marks us as His people came from page 7ff of Gordon D. Fee’s book “God’s Empowering Presence.” Tonight was about the third time I read this section of his book. Each time I have read this section, I have become more convinced this is foundational teaching about the Holy Spirit that we gloss over.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

The Mature Disciple

I caught a tweet identifying the need for a definition or description of what a mature disciple of Christ looks like. (Yes, I am twittering now.  Even if you don’t twitter, you can follow me here.)  This has been something my mind has been mulling over for several months, years even, without a satisfactory conclusion.  So I wanted to post my thoughts here, in the hope that you can help me and I can help you sharpen your thinking in this area. 

Like the person in the tweet intimated, as a pastor I feel a need to identify the characteristics and qualities of a mature disciple.  After all, my call to ministry is to make disciples.  To do that, it is helpful to know what one looks like, so, in as much is possible, I can orchestrate events and experiences that provide opportunity for me and others to mature.  That’s where I start, but even as I write there is something inside me that screams “Noooooo!”

That approach seems a bit pharisaical in nature to me.  Once we identify what the marks are and are not of a mature disciple, does that not lend itself to an approach where people are identified, based on exterior appearances, as to whether or not they are “truly” following Christ?  Even if I don’t use it that way and only use it in reference to myself, does it not provide for sinful pride in what I have “achieved?” I think so.

Still, there is the need to understand what a disciple is in order for one to be one and for one to make one.

Lately I’ve been opting for a process based model of discipleship, but it has its flaws as well.  By process I mean to focus on what I believe every follower of Christ needs to do in order to mature – namely that which is found in Acts 2:42.

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

I see four things here in which the early community of believers engaged that formed them into God’s community of people.  After coming to faith in Christ, then engaged in understanding what they believed, developing friendships with other believers, worshipping and communicating with God.  I think these activities, engaged with frequency and regularity, form the character of God within us so the outer expressions of maturity manifest as we inwardly grow close to God, but there are two problems with this approach.

This assumes that discipleship is about a growing intimacy with Jesus Christ.  I don’t see that as problematic. I see that as truth.  The problem is that we sometimes see the things we do to get close to God as an end in themselves. (i.e. Bible study, Prayer, Worship, Small Groups, and any other spiritual discipline you wish to name) This opens the door for another pharisaic trap that is very similar to one cited above.  That is to judge our maturity based on whether or not we engage the spiritual disciplines with fervor.  Unfortunately, we all know people who do these things faithfully but whose character is no more like the character of Christ’s than a toad is like a butterfly. (Another assumption I make about the being a mature follower of Christ is that such a person’s character exemplifies the character of Jesus.)

The second problem is the New Testament does show evidence of early instruction that is focused on behavior.  One need look no further than Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthians to “expel the immoral brother!”  So we cannot discount behavior all together. 

Several years ago I attended a church conference at Ginghamsburg Church.  I picked up a illustration which I believe was entitled, “The Anatomy of a Disciple.”  I’ve misplaced the original illustration, and this illustration I have I edited a bit.  I’m a bit embarrassed by the quality, or should I say lack of quality, of the clip art below. Still, it helps make a point.

Anatomy of a Disciple

The graphic above is a mixture of characteristics that may be desirable in a mature believer.  Some of these characteristics are observable while others speak to motive. It’s not really meant as an attempt to bring two divergent thought streams together, but I guess it could be viewed that way.

A couple of book resources might be helpful here.

“The Lost Art of Disciple Making” published by NavPress.  In its appendix it has a list of objectives to be achieved in the disciple making process. 

A second book would be “The Master Plan of Evangelism” by Robert Coleman and published by Revell. Don’t let the title fool you.  This not merely about introducing people to Christ but about how Jesus himself discipled others through relationship.

If you are still reading, you are a brave soul.  I recognize the above is neither well-written nor does it come to an adequate conclusion.  It’s just to get my thoughts out there to invite others into a process where we might help each other in our thinking. Having said that, I treasure your comments.

Friday, April 03, 2009

When God is Silent

Any disciple of Christ who has followed Jesus for some time will confess times in their journey when they felt God was nowhere to be found. For whatever reason, there was no sense of God’s presence in any of their endeavors to draw near to Him. Philip Yancey, in Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference, offers the following “survival strategies” for those times when God is silent, those times when our prayers seem not to connect. (pp. 202ff)

First, Yancey runs through a checklist of what might be blocking the communication.
  1. Is there deliberate sin or callous inattention to God? If so, the channel must be cleared through confession.
  2. He examines his motives. Am I seeking particular feelings? Am I pursuing God on my own terms rather than His? Perhaps I am seeking new revelation, when, instead, I should be focusing on the revelation that God has already given.
  3. Have I been pursing results from my prayer, rather than companionship with God?

Second, if he finds no reason for God’s silence from his checklist, he begins to treat the silence in prayer the same way he treats suffering. Saying it does little good to ponder the “Why?” questions of suffering, he points out that the Bible moves the emphasis from the past to the future. The Bible, particularly the New Testament, talks of the future benefit of present suffering: character, hope, perseverance, etc. In like fashion, Yancey asks God to use this time of spiritual dryness for future growth.

A final survival strategy he uses is to rely on the faith of others. Pointing out that the Bible gives strong emphasis to the practice of praying with others, he talks about the help he has gained by praying with others who are currently not experiencing the dryness he is experiencing. “At times, when I have no words and my faith falters, I find solace in listening to the prayers of others and realizing that not everyone is sharing my sense of desolation.” The most meaningful prayer in many churches is prayer like this, prayer that happens in the context of a small group when someone takes the vulnerable step of confessing to the group a recurring failure and asking for help. Everything else is pushed to the side while the group lovingly lifts up “a friend” to the One who cares most.

When God is silent, we often assume there is fault on our end, rather than realizing there may be purpose or something else on God’s end. Yancey speaks of a pair of red foxes on the hill behind his mountain home that raises a litter of kits each spring. They have become accustomed to his roaming the hill and occasionally stopping in front of their den. Sometimes the young ones poke their faces out at him. Sometimes he can hear them scurrying around in the den. Sometimes there is only silence.

In taking a friend to see them, he reminds the friend that there is no guarantee they will see anything. “They are wild animals, you know. We’re not in charge. It’s up to them whether they make an appearance or not.” (p. 207) Weeks later his friend wrote him about that moment and how it helped him understand God. His friend had just gone through a long season of depression. Sometimes God felt very close, and at other times he had no sense of His presence at all. His friend wrote of God, “He is wild, you know. We’re not in charge.”

Personally, I believe we often want to tame God. We would never say it this way, but we act as if God were a service animal trained to perform on command. After all, it is in our sinful nature to subjugate God and raise ourselves to the position of “master of all.” When I take time to pray and intentionally enter into God’s presence, how dare He not show up in ways I expect and can understand. Yancey says, “When I am tempted to complain about God’s lack of presence, I remind myself that God has much more reason to complain about my lack of presence.” (p. 208) That sentence is self-explanatory; but in case you missed it, God never neglects us, but we often neglect Him.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

The Life of Every Believer

Whether you are new to the faith or have been following Jesus for some time, it's important to focus on the most foundational aspects of our faith. Sometimes we convince ourselves that we have grown past a need to return to the basics; but I assure you, none of us can afford to think like that. Consider John Wooden.

Even if you are not a basketball fan or don’t like sports in general, you would have to agree, John Wooden is impressive. He was a three-time, all-state player in high school, winning a state championship. He was a three-time, all-American player in college, winning a national championship and named collegiate player of the year. As a coach, his UCLA Bruins won ten national championships, including seven in a row; and they still hold the record for consecutive games won (88). He is enshrined not once, but twice, in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, once as a player and later as a coach.

How did Wooden achieve such greatness? He focused on the basics, the fundamentals of the game, including passing, dribbling, shooting, running, and teamwork. So fanatical was his devotion to the basics, it is even rumored he taught his players, on the first day of practice, how to tie their shoes. Wooden’s teams never got too big for the basics, and we should never think that way about our faith.

Earlier today I was reading an author (Dallas Willard) who claimed most of the dissatisfaction people experience in their faith and most of the problems Christian congregations experience can be traced back to a failure to properly understand and apply the most foundational truths of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. As a pastor with close to twenty years of experience helping people grow and leading ministries, I would have to agree.

Let’s make sure we are not numbered among those who are missing the fulfilling life God offers because of our inattention to foundational truth. Let’s not gloss over the basics in favor of some supposedly deeper truth or more advanced ministry design. Let’s give ourselves to mastering the fundamentals so that we can live out our faith with integrity, grace, and power. Let's remember the basics.

A life surrendered to Jesus Christ.
A life empowered by the Spirit of Christ.
A life directed by God’s Word.
A life committed to Christian community.
A life engaged in worship.
A life communing with God in prayer.
A life reflecting the character of Christ.
A life inviting others into God’s love.

When we get these things right, they provide the tools we need, to grow deep and strong in our faith, so we can experience the very fullness of life that comes through Jesus.

Monday, January 26, 2009

When You Feel Abandoned by God

Preface: I'm teaching at Chuck's small group tonight while Chuck is in Los Angeles teaching Doctor of Ministry candidates. I wanted to share some of the things I am learning as I study the passage he assigned me, Isaiah 40:9-31. (By the way, for those who might not know, our rock guitar loving Worship Pastor, Chuck, is an Old Testament scholar, complete with a Ph.D., and is on the faculty of Houston Graduate School of Theology. I'm glad he left me with some of his notes!)

As we grow in our relationship with God, there is a crisis we face at least once. We find ourselves in a situation where we are desperate for a certain thing to happen. We pray and pray, yet nothing happens. Worse yet, the wrong thing happens. In that moment we wonder if God has forgotten us, of if he even cares about things important to us. In Isaiah, God puts it like this:
Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? (Isaiah 40:27, NIV)
What do we do when we feel like that, forgotten, even ignored by God?

First, let's not be too hard on ourselves. We are not the first people in history to feel this way. The words of verse 27 are used by God to identify what the people were feeling, so this is nothing new. It seems to be in our fallen nature to think God has abandoned us or just does not care when things don't go like we think they should.

Second, we must remind ourselves there is a reason why God is God and we are not. In the verses immediately previous to verse 27 God has been reminding us of his greatness, his supremacy when compared to us. In the face of such greatness, who are we to question what he allows and disallows, when he intervenes and does not intervene? Remembering the greatness of God helps us believe He knows what's best for us.

Third, we must trust him. Following verse 27 we are reminded again of God's greatness, specifically with regard to his endurance and wisdom in comparison to ours. The good news is that he imparts his strength to us. In some of the best known words of Isaiah we read,
"He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Isaiah 40:29-31, NIV)
"Those who hope in the Lord..." Some translations say wait, but perhaps the best word is "trust." Certainly trust would be required to wait or hope, for we need to trust in God's ability to deliver if we are going to "wait" or "hope." In order to do either, we need to remember God's supremacy in all things, just as we have been reminded in the preceding verses.

There are many things that test us in life. Among the most difficult are the ones we don't understand. It is in those moments, those moments when we feel pushed beyond our ability to understand or endure, that we have our greatest opportunity to put our trust in God.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Skinned Alive

A somewhat well-known passage of scripture is found in Matthew 9:37 where Jesus informs his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” He goes on to instruct them to pray for more laborers in order to achieve a greater harvest, but what did Jesus see that caused him to take that moment to say those things?


Verse 36 answers the question, and an expanded translation of the Greek gives us a better understanding of what he was actually viewing. Verse 36 says, "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36, ESV)


The word harassed comes from the Greek word skullo that translates as harass, trouble, or weary. However, the word also means to skin, flay or lacerate. The word helpless comes from the Greek word rhipto. It means to throw, cast, hurl, scatter, or disperse and is also used in regard to sick people who are laid on the ground. In addition to these words, Jesus goes on to describe people as “sheep without a shepherd.”


Having lived in West Texas sheep and goat country for a short time, I learned a few things about sheep from the local ranchers.

  1. Sheep follow other sheep blindly, and seldom does the lead sheep actually know where he is going.
  2. Sheep are timid animals, and they startle easily. Once they startle, panic sets in to the point that the sheep can become far more destructive to themselves than whatever it is that startled them.
  3. Sheep have no ability to defend themselves. They must be defended.

So what did Jesus see when he observed people? He saw people who were in deep anguish, so deep that words carrying connotations of their skin actually being peeled off or words that were used to describe those who were so sick they laid helplessly on the ground. He saw people who were directionless, easily startled, and unable to defend themselves against those things or forces that sought to destroy them. While the text is not explicit, since Jesus’ focus was on the spiritual and eternal, I am sure he had in mind not just our earthly existence or enemies. He was mindful of the eternal implications and the ways Satan seeks to take advantage of our helplessness. Satan wants to skin us alive.


While the point of the passage, in my opinion, is about the need being so great more workers are needed to bring people into relationship with Jesus, it also reminds us of some important truth. When we don’t know which way to go, we have a shepherd that provides us with direction. When we are anxious and fearful, we have one who calms us. When we feel vulnerable and defenseless, we have one who protects us.

Thursday, January 08, 2009

The Benefits of Intimacy with Jesus

I thought you might be encouraged by the following short paragraph. I so want these words to be more than words on a page. It is my prayer, and sure hope, that this is what we each experience together at Ranch Community Fellowship and in other communities that honor Jesus Christ.

"When once we get intimate with Jesus we are never lonely, we never need sympathy, we can pour out all the time without being pathetic. The saint who is intimate with Jesus will never leave impressions of himself, but only the impression that Jesus is having unhindered way, because the last abyss of his nature has been satisfied by Him. The only impression left by such a life is that of the strong calm sanity that Our Lord gives to those who are intimate with Him."

Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (January 7). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.