Humanity is deeply sexual.
Even beyond humanity, our world is sexual. Much of life on our cozy little asteroid is bifurcated into gender; I am not the biologist, but I know that birds, bees, flowers, trees, and so much more, are divided by the even greater chasm than that which delineates species; male and female. This division is to be found running through everything.
Genesis 1:27 explains: God created sexuality, and God created sex (don't tell anyone, but He even made it ...fun!!!!)
God created humans to be, essentialy, incomplete; we were designed to be a half-person, and our sexuality is the outworking of that design. We yearn for connection, at deep mental, physical, and spiritual levels we desire to join to another human being. This is natural; it is the nature (hence the word natural) that God gave us.
In fact, some would read the story in Genesis two, as God splitting Adam in two. The word translated as 'rib' could (according to Hebrew scholars) apparently be just as easily translated as 'curve' or 'side.' Perhaps there was a Human, and then God took one side of the human to make Adam and the other to make Eve? Are male and female literally two halves of the same creature, instead of two halves of the same species? This would then imply that it is not connection that we yearn for, but rather, re-connection...
Which brings us, interestingly enough, to the etymology of the word 'religion.' The roots of the word re - ligare mean simply 'reconnection.'
...we were designed to reconnect with each other, and we are also in need of reconnection with God. Both of these facts must be grasped if we are to move on with the topic.
What then, are we to make of the state of sex and gender in our world?
=================================
...we should start by reiterating two points:
1) Sex is good and sexuality is natural. Sexuality is a God-given aspect of human-nature.
2) Humanity has become alienated from God and is in need of reconnection with Him.
=================================
So let us explore these two points in greater detail. What does good, healthy, natural human sexuality look like? What does human sexuality look like when humanity has been reconnected to God?
The most important point that needs to be made to our present mood is this:
as important as sexuality is to the make-up of a human being, as characteristic as it is of human life (even healthy human life), sex is not the defining characteristic of a human being. Sexuality is most assuredly not the center of humanity.
The central aspect of human existence is spiritual* and so the central issue of human sexuality is ultimately not to be found in a discussion about sex, but rather in a discussion about spirit. If then, we are to discuss problems with human sexuality, we must recognize that the fundamental problem is not sexual, but spiritual.
To Be Continued
*By 'spiritual' I do not mean something distant, wispy, ephemeral, or tenuous; quite the opposite, I mean something very concrete; I mean simply those things that are 'non-physical.' We interact everyday with our spirit, and the spirits of others. Although we cannot see, smell, taste, or touch them, we constantly interact with people on the level of emotion, desire, will, intention, love.. This is the realm of the spiritual.
7.05.2007
6.27.2007
Welcome to the Church of Jesus Christ . . . Homophob?
Let's just cut to the chase. We as a church have painted a horrible picture of the sin of homosexuality. No wonder gay people don't want to set foot in a church. Someone I met once said to me that so many people have waved the Bible in their face as if it were a loaded gun. Now I don't want to enable anybody, sin is sin, but how do we convey the love of God to a group of people who are convinced, if they believe there is a god, that he hates them? I am sure that God weeps at that question. I am sure that he is broken over the state of the church when it comes to this issue. We here in Buffalo are by no means better than anybody else or any other church but how do you get around this one? How do you undo the doings that have been so ingrained in our society? Lord Jesus please show us! I am pretty worked up about this, well tonight I am and I think I will continue to be as long as their are gay people in my life, and it seems as though their will be since my one of my coworkers is gay, and I work in the gay neighborhood of town. I love gay people. I can sometimes feel the love for them that I think God feels. Okay so it's on a much smaller scale, but I can't describe how it feels. I have a gay christian friend who is struggling so much right now with God and homosexuality and doing the right thing, and I try to tell them frequently that God loves them. I want to grab them by the shoulders and shake it into them. I believe that too, I believe that God loves them. He loves everyone and desires that we would all embrace him and the life he has for us. I think that God desires the sin in our lives to be battled so fiercly that the devil himself could not force it back upon us. I don't think God looks at our sins different from person to person. I don't think that one sin is bigger than the other. I don't think that we are capable from seperating ourselves from the love of God that we have in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39).
I think the church has been afraid to tackle the issue of homosexuality. It seems that we are afraid of it, it seems as though we have lashed out in fear. And you know what, it is a scary thing. I am at a loss of how to disciple people through this. That's good because it keeps all of us here on our knees. But Jesus how would you do this? I just think of the story of the leper. He says, "Lord if you are willing you can make me clean" so then Jesus reaches out and touches the leper and says "I am willing" Jesus touched a leper. Leprosy is a deadly disease, a miserable disease, a puss, oozy, yucky, literally rotting-while-still-alive kind of disease. So if Jesus could reach out and touch the leper, then we can reach out and touch gay people? They seem to be the lepers of our day. Lord Jesus change that. Let us not be afraid. What can we do God to reach out to the gay community and to convey your love? Pass out condoms at next years gay pride parade? I know that I am complaining and even bashing at times it seems but if anyone has any thoughts or things they have seen in prayer or actually experienced, please comment and tell us about it. We want to undo the picture that has been painted about homosexuality.
God loves EVERYONE! "For God so loved the WORLD that he gave his only begotten son, that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life." You cannot be disqualified from the kingdom of God based on age, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, creed and whatever else that job applications say at the bottom of the page. If anyone has any thoughts on this subject let me know I would love to hear them. This is a tough thing to come against but we as christians need to be able to tackle anything that God brings our way.
I think the church has been afraid to tackle the issue of homosexuality. It seems that we are afraid of it, it seems as though we have lashed out in fear. And you know what, it is a scary thing. I am at a loss of how to disciple people through this. That's good because it keeps all of us here on our knees. But Jesus how would you do this? I just think of the story of the leper. He says, "Lord if you are willing you can make me clean" so then Jesus reaches out and touches the leper and says "I am willing" Jesus touched a leper. Leprosy is a deadly disease, a miserable disease, a puss, oozy, yucky, literally rotting-while-still-alive kind of disease. So if Jesus could reach out and touch the leper, then we can reach out and touch gay people? They seem to be the lepers of our day. Lord Jesus change that. Let us not be afraid. What can we do God to reach out to the gay community and to convey your love? Pass out condoms at next years gay pride parade? I know that I am complaining and even bashing at times it seems but if anyone has any thoughts or things they have seen in prayer or actually experienced, please comment and tell us about it. We want to undo the picture that has been painted about homosexuality.
God loves EVERYONE! "For God so loved the WORLD that he gave his only begotten son, that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life." You cannot be disqualified from the kingdom of God based on age, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, creed and whatever else that job applications say at the bottom of the page. If anyone has any thoughts on this subject let me know I would love to hear them. This is a tough thing to come against but we as christians need to be able to tackle anything that God brings our way.
6.22.2007
ASK ME WHY YOU ARE GOING TO HELL!
A man stood off to the side, surrounded by a group of 15 or so people crowding in on him, squeezing close, from afar there appeared to be a quiet intensity about that little huddle of people not the least of which included the large sign he carried, bordered with flames...
Across from this group were thousands of oblivious concert-goers. Not knowing, or not caring, to hear what this man had to tell them.
I stood observing him for five or ten minutes. To give him (and those around him) credit, there did not seem to be any shouting or intimidating going on, but there was plenty of tension, plenty of angry tones, plenty of hostility, toward him and his message, as well as from him.
I and a friend drew closer to listen, joining that little crowd of people (this group was gaining and losing people every moment, but there were a few faces who remained the entire time I was there) who were variously trying to argue, trying to belittle, finding something to laugh at, finding something to be angry at, being confused, and being agravated, or just listening...
A few faces stood out to me::
A young gothic teenager and his gothic girlfriend, he seem angry and frustrated; the girl told me she was a Christian when my friend asked her, she was not happy with this man's presence.
Another gothic man, perhaps my age, wearing a set of handcuffs, a red tee-shirt, and a shaved head. His face more than any other stands out in my mind's eye. The entire time I was there (20 minutes?) he never said anything, he had a very meek demeanor with folded hands, as though he didn't want to provoke, and he wore (what seemed to me) a pained expression on his face. I did not speak to him, but it seemed to me as though he wanted to listen, to understand why he was destined for hell, as though he wanted to hear what this man said, almost out of self-loathing...
...I want to speak to him.
Other faces, mocking and jeering, arguing and confronting; I am sure that my own was somewhat twisted with anguish...
======================
Earlier I had watched the movie with Denzel Washington, Man on Fire. Now, you are going to have to grant me some leeway here, which I think is warranted by Jesus own way of speaking; the Parable of the Unjust Judge is an example of Jesus speaking of God in a way that gets at a truth, even though it speaks of God in other ways that aren't necessarily true; so bear with me here.
In this movie Denzel Washington plays a broken man, a drunk haunted by evil things he has done, it is hinted at that he was involved in covert military operations. He sporadically reads the Scriptures and at one point he asks, "Can God forgive us for what we have done?" He lands a job as a body guard for an elite and wealthy family in Latin America. His primary role is to protect their young daughter from kidnapping. At first he presents the young girl with a gruff exterior, but her love for him wins him over, he comes to love her. When she is kidnapped, and then killed, he unleashes upon her killers with vengeance.
He is relentless, and goes to any lengths to rescue her, and then avenge her, without concern for the risk or cost to himself. He will not be dissuaded from his course of action, he has found the one thing in life that has made it okay for him to live, and now she has been harmed.
Perhaps it was simply the plot itself and the acting of Mr. Washington, and yet, I know that it was aided by the portrayal of the young girl by a blond-haired, blue-eyed little girl, similar to my own beautiful daughter Zoe; for whatever reason, this film touched me. I couldn't help but cry at several points in the film, and even afterward... and I felt that God was saying to me, "Steve, my heart loves like this, my heart hurts like this; tell them that I love them like this!"
===============
...and so, when I saw these people listening to this man explaining to them why God wants to torture them for eternity, I was moved... I don't know how to respond. I didn't really respond then in any way other than to listen, and be sad. It demands a response. People have to know, they need to know that God desperately loves them, He yearns to be with them.
Isn't that the point of the Parable of the Lost coin, the Lost Sheep, and the Lost Son? Isn't that what we hear whispered in the name of Jesus? Isn't that what we see when we look to the cross? At the anguish of God, desparate to recover to himself, his dear children?
Across from this group were thousands of oblivious concert-goers. Not knowing, or not caring, to hear what this man had to tell them.
I stood observing him for five or ten minutes. To give him (and those around him) credit, there did not seem to be any shouting or intimidating going on, but there was plenty of tension, plenty of angry tones, plenty of hostility, toward him and his message, as well as from him.
I and a friend drew closer to listen, joining that little crowd of people (this group was gaining and losing people every moment, but there were a few faces who remained the entire time I was there) who were variously trying to argue, trying to belittle, finding something to laugh at, finding something to be angry at, being confused, and being agravated, or just listening...
A few faces stood out to me::
A young gothic teenager and his gothic girlfriend, he seem angry and frustrated; the girl told me she was a Christian when my friend asked her, she was not happy with this man's presence.
Another gothic man, perhaps my age, wearing a set of handcuffs, a red tee-shirt, and a shaved head. His face more than any other stands out in my mind's eye. The entire time I was there (20 minutes?) he never said anything, he had a very meek demeanor with folded hands, as though he didn't want to provoke, and he wore (what seemed to me) a pained expression on his face. I did not speak to him, but it seemed to me as though he wanted to listen, to understand why he was destined for hell, as though he wanted to hear what this man said, almost out of self-loathing...
...I want to speak to him.
Other faces, mocking and jeering, arguing and confronting; I am sure that my own was somewhat twisted with anguish...
======================
Earlier I had watched the movie with Denzel Washington, Man on Fire. Now, you are going to have to grant me some leeway here, which I think is warranted by Jesus own way of speaking; the Parable of the Unjust Judge is an example of Jesus speaking of God in a way that gets at a truth, even though it speaks of God in other ways that aren't necessarily true; so bear with me here.
In this movie Denzel Washington plays a broken man, a drunk haunted by evil things he has done, it is hinted at that he was involved in covert military operations. He sporadically reads the Scriptures and at one point he asks, "Can God forgive us for what we have done?" He lands a job as a body guard for an elite and wealthy family in Latin America. His primary role is to protect their young daughter from kidnapping. At first he presents the young girl with a gruff exterior, but her love for him wins him over, he comes to love her. When she is kidnapped, and then killed, he unleashes upon her killers with vengeance.
He is relentless, and goes to any lengths to rescue her, and then avenge her, without concern for the risk or cost to himself. He will not be dissuaded from his course of action, he has found the one thing in life that has made it okay for him to live, and now she has been harmed.
Perhaps it was simply the plot itself and the acting of Mr. Washington, and yet, I know that it was aided by the portrayal of the young girl by a blond-haired, blue-eyed little girl, similar to my own beautiful daughter Zoe; for whatever reason, this film touched me. I couldn't help but cry at several points in the film, and even afterward... and I felt that God was saying to me, "Steve, my heart loves like this, my heart hurts like this; tell them that I love them like this!"
===============
...and so, when I saw these people listening to this man explaining to them why God wants to torture them for eternity, I was moved... I don't know how to respond. I didn't really respond then in any way other than to listen, and be sad. It demands a response. People have to know, they need to know that God desperately loves them, He yearns to be with them.
Isn't that the point of the Parable of the Lost coin, the Lost Sheep, and the Lost Son? Isn't that what we hear whispered in the name of Jesus? Isn't that what we see when we look to the cross? At the anguish of God, desparate to recover to himself, his dear children?
6.14.2007
Who is my Neighbor?
Luke 10:25-37 (New International Version)
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"
27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
30In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'
36"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"
37The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"
27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
30In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'
36"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"
37The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."
6.12.2007
6.11.2007
Money
Money is an intrinsic aspect of daily life. (Even in a hypothetical and romanticized agrarian, utopian barter economy there is this same reality...) This is not something we can simply ignore if we are to deal with the lives of everyday people. Jesus, does exactly that, deal with the lives of everyday people, and so, must be seen as having something to say about the way we spend, earn, use, save, and view, our money.
In fact, as we peruse the gospels with this thought in mind, we find that Jesus is constantly refering to finances, as metaphor for larger spiritual realities, in parable to to refer to the financial issues of His listeners, and even directly refering to the way specific individuals act in regards to money. It would be hard to think that Jesus was not very interested in teaching us how to live properly with money.
Here are some thoughts from our small group discussion last Wednesday on this topic:
We read and discussed the following passages:
Matthew 6:25-34
Matthew 23:23-26
Luke 10:25-37
We came to some conclusions...
1) as people who have decided to learn how to live from Jesus, our approach to money should be secondary, peripheral, indirect. Jesus essentially said, "don't worry about money, seek out what God is doing in the world, and align yourself with that; then your financial situation will take care of itself." We shouldn't spend time fretting about clothes and food, cars and houses. This is not an excuse to be lazy. This is about our attitude and our focus.
2) money is not given to people to bless them, but rather given to people so that they can use it to bless others. Jesus always had hard words for people of privilege who viewed their privilege as a sign of their superiority. This is because, throughout the entire recorded history of God's interaction with people, He has always chosen to bless people, in order that those people could be a blessing to the world around them.
(As a side note, visit this website to get a view for how much money you 'really' make!)
3) Finally we decided that we have a responsibility to those around us. We cannot ignore the suffering and need that goes on in our world and pretend that we are moral people simply because we don't hurt people. Being a 'good person' consists in more than simply not hurting others; it requires that we are actively pursuing the well-being of other people. (We learn this in the parable of the 'Good Samaritan' in the above passage.)
We concluded our talk with a few points of application:
1) Recognize that this is a heart issue. How you spend (and earn) your money, is an indicator of where your heart is at.
2) Instead of spending time with people who have more than you, spend time with people who have less. This will keep you from trying to 'keep up,' and will help you focus on 'helping out.'
3) Recognize that people need you to get involved more than they need your money. There is a middle option between saying 'no' and handing someone a $20. Find out who they are and how you can truly help them.
4) Build a discipline of giving into your life. Make it a habit to tip at least 50%, once a month give away your favorite article of
clothing, regularly give anonymous donations to people in need.
In fact, as we peruse the gospels with this thought in mind, we find that Jesus is constantly refering to finances, as metaphor for larger spiritual realities, in parable to to refer to the financial issues of His listeners, and even directly refering to the way specific individuals act in regards to money. It would be hard to think that Jesus was not very interested in teaching us how to live properly with money.
Here are some thoughts from our small group discussion last Wednesday on this topic:
We read and discussed the following passages:
Matthew 6:25-34
Matthew 23:23-26
Luke 10:25-37
We came to some conclusions...
1) as people who have decided to learn how to live from Jesus, our approach to money should be secondary, peripheral, indirect. Jesus essentially said, "don't worry about money, seek out what God is doing in the world, and align yourself with that; then your financial situation will take care of itself." We shouldn't spend time fretting about clothes and food, cars and houses. This is not an excuse to be lazy. This is about our attitude and our focus.
2) money is not given to people to bless them, but rather given to people so that they can use it to bless others. Jesus always had hard words for people of privilege who viewed their privilege as a sign of their superiority. This is because, throughout the entire recorded history of God's interaction with people, He has always chosen to bless people, in order that those people could be a blessing to the world around them.
(As a side note, visit this website to get a view for how much money you 'really' make!)
3) Finally we decided that we have a responsibility to those around us. We cannot ignore the suffering and need that goes on in our world and pretend that we are moral people simply because we don't hurt people. Being a 'good person' consists in more than simply not hurting others; it requires that we are actively pursuing the well-being of other people. (We learn this in the parable of the 'Good Samaritan' in the above passage.)
We concluded our talk with a few points of application:
1) Recognize that this is a heart issue. How you spend (and earn) your money, is an indicator of where your heart is at.
2) Instead of spending time with people who have more than you, spend time with people who have less. This will keep you from trying to 'keep up,' and will help you focus on 'helping out.'
3) Recognize that people need you to get involved more than they need your money. There is a middle option between saying 'no' and handing someone a $20. Find out who they are and how you can truly help them.
4) Build a discipline of giving into your life. Make it a habit to tip at least 50%, once a month give away your favorite article of
clothing, regularly give anonymous donations to people in need.
6.06.2007
The Party Line...
Don't make the mistake of thinking that Jesus is honored, simply because Buddha is mocked...
Honoring Jesus is more than words, it is deep work, requiring alterations in our very character...
Truly honoring God requires the Spirit of the resurrected Christ at work in us. Not simply saying 'He is great' and 'everything else is junk.'
There are no short cuts to holiness. We do not get a pass on being good, by simply spouting the party line. God is not interested in people who want the outer trappings of godliness, but lack the desire to become godly.
I must confess, it is easier for me to see myself in good standing with God simply because I do 'Christian' things... this however, does not fool God. I cannot confuse God with political spin. I may be able to fool others into thinking my lack of drinking and swearing makes me a pious person, but God sees the way my heart responds to the customers that I deal with at work. He is not fooled by my knowledge of the Bible into thinking that I actually live out the message the Bible contains.
Honoring Jesus is more than words, it is deep work, requiring alterations in our very character...
Truly honoring God requires the Spirit of the resurrected Christ at work in us. Not simply saying 'He is great' and 'everything else is junk.'
There are no short cuts to holiness. We do not get a pass on being good, by simply spouting the party line. God is not interested in people who want the outer trappings of godliness, but lack the desire to become godly.
I must confess, it is easier for me to see myself in good standing with God simply because I do 'Christian' things... this however, does not fool God. I cannot confuse God with political spin. I may be able to fool others into thinking my lack of drinking and swearing makes me a pious person, but God sees the way my heart responds to the customers that I deal with at work. He is not fooled by my knowledge of the Bible into thinking that I actually live out the message the Bible contains.
5.28.2007
Brother Harry explains Grace
Be forewarned...
...if you are even remotely 'churchy' you will be offended by this site.
...if you are even remotely 'churchy' you will be offended by this site.
The practical step...
I have been reflecting lately...
Our church has been focusing quite a bit lately on what it means to follow Jesus. We have been dialoguing about the central message of Jesus, what He desires for us from the bigger perspective of the whole person; laying down your life and picking His up, pursuing spiritual disciplines as a way of allowing God access to our hearts, recognizing that Jesus' way of life is more concerned with helping us to become a certain kind of person rather than getting us to a certain destination, recognizing that becoming that person is largely a matter of internal "spiritual" realities that manifest themselves in our daily actions (as opposed to the external 'daily actions' themselves), understanding that the central act on our parts that allows us access to God's way of being is to confidently trust that what He says is the truest possible thing to say and what He does is the best possible thing to do; all of this has served as the 'bigger picture' of what it means to follow Jesus, which, is the place that most Christians lack proper understanding the most.
I believe that we approach Jesus from a very disjointed perspective, separating His various statements from each other, treating them as self-sufficient platitudes instead of peices in the larger whole of Jesus' way of understanding, doing, and being; and separating His teaching, His actions, His relationships, His death, and His identity into completely isolated aspects of what He was trying to accomlish. This then prevents us from understanding much of what He really desires; much like a man staring at a collection of puzzle peices may tell you what the whole looks like from what He has put together, yet if he only has a small portion of the peices in place, He cannot truly know what the whole is. We in the protestant lineage have argued for too long that the whole picture is two or three of the peices that we have put together! We need to begin putting the puzzle peices back together (as many have been doing) before we make claims about what the 'point' is; to drop the metaphor, we need to understand Jesus as He understood Himself before we try to decide what His fundamental purpose for our lives might be.
...enough of the rabbit trail...
I have felt that now is the time to begin to look again at the 'nuts and bolts' of following Jesus. With our understanding of the blueprints as a whole, it is now time to start looking at where to put the building materials, and how to start building...
We are going to approach some very common aspects of human existence and ask the question, "How does our understanding of who Jesus is, and what it means to be His student, apply to this area of our lives?" In light of our belief that Jesus lived the best possible kind of life, and that He wants to share that life with us, how should we think and act in the areas of human sexuality, personal finance, conflict and confrontation, entertainment, employment, political involvment, family relationships, etc.
We need to stress constantly the larger issue of learning, in submission to Jesus, how to live; but, it is time to focus on the practicalities and actualities of 'how to _________.' I believe that this will also give us, ultimately, a deeper insight into the bigger picture of life in God's Reality; understanding in very specific terms what it means for us to 'sell everything we own,' in order to attain the 'treasure in the field.'
Our church has been focusing quite a bit lately on what it means to follow Jesus. We have been dialoguing about the central message of Jesus, what He desires for us from the bigger perspective of the whole person; laying down your life and picking His up, pursuing spiritual disciplines as a way of allowing God access to our hearts, recognizing that Jesus' way of life is more concerned with helping us to become a certain kind of person rather than getting us to a certain destination, recognizing that becoming that person is largely a matter of internal "spiritual" realities that manifest themselves in our daily actions (as opposed to the external 'daily actions' themselves), understanding that the central act on our parts that allows us access to God's way of being is to confidently trust that what He says is the truest possible thing to say and what He does is the best possible thing to do; all of this has served as the 'bigger picture' of what it means to follow Jesus, which, is the place that most Christians lack proper understanding the most.
I believe that we approach Jesus from a very disjointed perspective, separating His various statements from each other, treating them as self-sufficient platitudes instead of peices in the larger whole of Jesus' way of understanding, doing, and being; and separating His teaching, His actions, His relationships, His death, and His identity into completely isolated aspects of what He was trying to accomlish. This then prevents us from understanding much of what He really desires; much like a man staring at a collection of puzzle peices may tell you what the whole looks like from what He has put together, yet if he only has a small portion of the peices in place, He cannot truly know what the whole is. We in the protestant lineage have argued for too long that the whole picture is two or three of the peices that we have put together! We need to begin putting the puzzle peices back together (as many have been doing) before we make claims about what the 'point' is; to drop the metaphor, we need to understand Jesus as He understood Himself before we try to decide what His fundamental purpose for our lives might be.
...enough of the rabbit trail...
I have felt that now is the time to begin to look again at the 'nuts and bolts' of following Jesus. With our understanding of the blueprints as a whole, it is now time to start looking at where to put the building materials, and how to start building...
We are going to approach some very common aspects of human existence and ask the question, "How does our understanding of who Jesus is, and what it means to be His student, apply to this area of our lives?" In light of our belief that Jesus lived the best possible kind of life, and that He wants to share that life with us, how should we think and act in the areas of human sexuality, personal finance, conflict and confrontation, entertainment, employment, political involvment, family relationships, etc.
We need to stress constantly the larger issue of learning, in submission to Jesus, how to live; but, it is time to focus on the practicalities and actualities of 'how to _________.' I believe that this will also give us, ultimately, a deeper insight into the bigger picture of life in God's Reality; understanding in very specific terms what it means for us to 'sell everything we own,' in order to attain the 'treasure in the field.'
5.21.2007
"Success is..."
If you haven't read it yet, click on the title link to read a previous post, and read also the comments to it.
Much of what passes for the definition of "ministry success" (no offense to those who find value in it) stands in opposition to the methods Jesus Himself engaged in to "build" His ministry. Success is defined in terms of how many people have attended a particular event, the size of our budget, or the square footage of our building. By these terms Jesus was an utter failure. He had no operating budget, or a building; and as for body count, the man kept sending everyone away!!!!
Those who answered the previous post by pointing to obedience to Jesus, and love for God and neighbor, are certainly correct...
...however, I had better rephrase the question:
Granting that success is defined by our obedience to Jesus, and that 'obedience to Jesus' is defined by our love for God and our love for people, what is an accurate measure of that success?
What is the fruit that will show that the tree is healthy?
Matthew 7:15-20
The answer Jesus gives is that we would leave something behind us (John 15:16); if we look to Jesus we can see in His life a model for us to follow. If we would judge our lives a success by the standard Jesus set then we must first begin by stating that 'success' is to be measured by the people who follow after us...
...it has been said:
"Success is defined by our successors!"
Jesus made many baffling decisions if His ministry is to be evaluated by much of what passes for 'church growth' today. He sent people away without even a basic understanding of the gospel, He refused to let people follow Him, ran away and hid from them when they wanted to give Him a place of prominence and authority in their community, was constantly avoiding the influential people in society in favor of people who had nothing to offer, would consistently tell people things that were phrased in such a way that they either plotted to kill Him or simply left His ministry altogether; in fact, Jesus seems to have been more interested in 'Church Growth Governors' than in conventional and contemporary 'Church Growth' wisdom.
Why did Jesus do things the way He did them? Because He measured success by the lives of the disciples He left behind Him. He knew that no matter how large His Church became, there was not the possibility of 'success' if He was the only one to take responsibility for what God wants to do upon the earth. In fact, the whole goal of Jesus ministry was not to 'reach people with the gospel' (as we often think of this term) but rather to help a small group of people to learn how to live in God's presence so fully that they would be able to teach others how to do the same thing. (Which is what Jesus meant when He used the term gospel...)
God is not concerned with externals...
...He is truly concerned that each person would become the woman or man that they were intended to be (a unique reflection of the Son of God and Son of Man, Jesus), and so would rather spend three years teaching twelve men how to 'be' then lead 10,000 people in a 'sinner's prayer,' or gather 20,000 into a group, or oversee the construction of a giant community center/meeting hall, or raise 1,000,000 dollars.
Much of what passes for the definition of "ministry success" (no offense to those who find value in it) stands in opposition to the methods Jesus Himself engaged in to "build" His ministry. Success is defined in terms of how many people have attended a particular event, the size of our budget, or the square footage of our building. By these terms Jesus was an utter failure. He had no operating budget, or a building; and as for body count, the man kept sending everyone away!!!!
Those who answered the previous post by pointing to obedience to Jesus, and love for God and neighbor, are certainly correct...
...however, I had better rephrase the question:
Granting that success is defined by our obedience to Jesus, and that 'obedience to Jesus' is defined by our love for God and our love for people, what is an accurate measure of that success?
What is the fruit that will show that the tree is healthy?
Matthew 7:15-20
The answer Jesus gives is that we would leave something behind us (John 15:16); if we look to Jesus we can see in His life a model for us to follow. If we would judge our lives a success by the standard Jesus set then we must first begin by stating that 'success' is to be measured by the people who follow after us...
...it has been said:
"Success is defined by our successors!"
Jesus made many baffling decisions if His ministry is to be evaluated by much of what passes for 'church growth' today. He sent people away without even a basic understanding of the gospel, He refused to let people follow Him, ran away and hid from them when they wanted to give Him a place of prominence and authority in their community, was constantly avoiding the influential people in society in favor of people who had nothing to offer, would consistently tell people things that were phrased in such a way that they either plotted to kill Him or simply left His ministry altogether; in fact, Jesus seems to have been more interested in 'Church Growth Governors' than in conventional and contemporary 'Church Growth' wisdom.
Why did Jesus do things the way He did them? Because He measured success by the lives of the disciples He left behind Him. He knew that no matter how large His Church became, there was not the possibility of 'success' if He was the only one to take responsibility for what God wants to do upon the earth. In fact, the whole goal of Jesus ministry was not to 'reach people with the gospel' (as we often think of this term) but rather to help a small group of people to learn how to live in God's presence so fully that they would be able to teach others how to do the same thing. (Which is what Jesus meant when He used the term gospel...)
God is not concerned with externals...
...He is truly concerned that each person would become the woman or man that they were intended to be (a unique reflection of the Son of God and Son of Man, Jesus), and so would rather spend three years teaching twelve men how to 'be' then lead 10,000 people in a 'sinner's prayer,' or gather 20,000 into a group, or oversee the construction of a giant community center/meeting hall, or raise 1,000,000 dollars.
5.09.2007
The "Special" People
I have some friends in Santa Cruz, they have a real burden to reach out with the love of God to a very "special" group of people.
Scroll down for a picture of some of those people that they are working with
My "special" friends, El Jeffe, and Laben...
Scroll down for a picture of some of those people that they are working with
My "special" friends, El Jeffe, and Laben...
4.27.2007
What is going on?
The time for an update on our most recent adventures is long overdue...
God is good, and if you doubt this, open your eyes! The whole universe screams of His beauty and purpose! I cannot but look at a child (much less my own) without knowing of the purity and hope that God has bathed His world in. Truly, "in Him we live and move and have our being!" As my good friend once told me, we can stand in awe of the God who "invented the color green!" How many other beauties and mysteries are the offspring of His genius?
I continue to be an unfit (and yet grateful) recipient of God's goodness.
---
God is bringing us to a place where real depth of relationship is beginning to happen.
We just began a weekly men's meeting. I was greatly encouraged by our first meeting. There seems to be a real desire for deep and encouraging brotherhood amongst the men in our group. We decided to read a book together, "Blue Like Jazz," by Donald Miller. I am looking forward with excitement to the next Tuesday evening meeting...
Many of the people in our group have expressed the sentiments that there is something happening in our little community. I know that I see them as people that I want to grow with, as people that I could spend decades with. It is a blessing that God has gathered these people together. I truly feel honored by their presence in my home...
We are truly at a place where a community exists, and is established, beginning to take on a life of its own...
---
We are also coming up against the "church culture" thing. Our team just recently had the opportunity to chew through some issues related to the way church is expected to function versus the way God wants it to function...
...the pressure is to "produce results," we have to "get" people. This is not the picture the Bible gives us, however, of effectiveness in God's Kingdom. Our authority is in our relationship to the King. If I do not speak for Him, then my words lack His power. If I do not know Him, then I cannot speak for Him. The indwelling Spirit carries within His very "DNA" the seeds of the Church, therefore we do not have to plant a Church, but simpy live in obedience to Christ, and watch as the Church springs forth. The Church is God's plan for the redemption of the whole of creation, the Church is God's manifest presence on the earth; we don't make it happen, we allow Him to make it happen through us...
The practical side of this is that God is conveying to us simple, deep truths; He is good (1 John 1:5), He is full of love (1 John 4:7-8), He is more concerned with our relationship to Him than with our outward selves (John 15, Matthew 7:15-29), we don't have to pretend to be something we are not, and we don't need to force His hand, He will establish His Kingdom, our part is simply cooperation (Matthew 16:18).*
As disciples, our part is to seek personal knowlege of God, common life with other faithful members of God's house, service to the community around us, and to effectively train others in this same way of life. God's part is to bring these acts of faith to fruition, guiding and correcting us along the way.
---
We are transitioning into looking for a new place to live. Tamy and I are planning on buying a house, we are currently looking, and would love your prayers toward where exactly we should be. We are currently right in the middle of everything, and I love being in the middle of the action. However, there are many other neighborhoods we could see ourselves in. Pray that God would place us right where He wants us all...
*Just to reassure everyone, just in case it sounds like we have given up all our efforts at Church planting...
...quite the opposite. It is in knowing Jesus' heart, and in cooperating with Him, that our efforts are guided effectively toward the successful birthing of a new community of disciples. We have not ceased to reach out to those around us, to do so would be to disobey.
God is good, and if you doubt this, open your eyes! The whole universe screams of His beauty and purpose! I cannot but look at a child (much less my own) without knowing of the purity and hope that God has bathed His world in. Truly, "in Him we live and move and have our being!" As my good friend once told me, we can stand in awe of the God who "invented the color green!" How many other beauties and mysteries are the offspring of His genius?
I continue to be an unfit (and yet grateful) recipient of God's goodness.
---
God is bringing us to a place where real depth of relationship is beginning to happen.
We just began a weekly men's meeting. I was greatly encouraged by our first meeting. There seems to be a real desire for deep and encouraging brotherhood amongst the men in our group. We decided to read a book together, "Blue Like Jazz," by Donald Miller. I am looking forward with excitement to the next Tuesday evening meeting...
Many of the people in our group have expressed the sentiments that there is something happening in our little community. I know that I see them as people that I want to grow with, as people that I could spend decades with. It is a blessing that God has gathered these people together. I truly feel honored by their presence in my home...
We are truly at a place where a community exists, and is established, beginning to take on a life of its own...
---
We are also coming up against the "church culture" thing. Our team just recently had the opportunity to chew through some issues related to the way church is expected to function versus the way God wants it to function...
...the pressure is to "produce results," we have to "get" people. This is not the picture the Bible gives us, however, of effectiveness in God's Kingdom. Our authority is in our relationship to the King. If I do not speak for Him, then my words lack His power. If I do not know Him, then I cannot speak for Him. The indwelling Spirit carries within His very "DNA" the seeds of the Church, therefore we do not have to plant a Church, but simpy live in obedience to Christ, and watch as the Church springs forth. The Church is God's plan for the redemption of the whole of creation, the Church is God's manifest presence on the earth; we don't make it happen, we allow Him to make it happen through us...
The practical side of this is that God is conveying to us simple, deep truths; He is good (1 John 1:5), He is full of love (1 John 4:7-8), He is more concerned with our relationship to Him than with our outward selves (John 15, Matthew 7:15-29), we don't have to pretend to be something we are not, and we don't need to force His hand, He will establish His Kingdom, our part is simply cooperation (Matthew 16:18).*
As disciples, our part is to seek personal knowlege of God, common life with other faithful members of God's house, service to the community around us, and to effectively train others in this same way of life. God's part is to bring these acts of faith to fruition, guiding and correcting us along the way.
---
We are transitioning into looking for a new place to live. Tamy and I are planning on buying a house, we are currently looking, and would love your prayers toward where exactly we should be. We are currently right in the middle of everything, and I love being in the middle of the action. However, there are many other neighborhoods we could see ourselves in. Pray that God would place us right where He wants us all...
*Just to reassure everyone, just in case it sounds like we have given up all our efforts at Church planting...
...quite the opposite. It is in knowing Jesus' heart, and in cooperating with Him, that our efforts are guided effectively toward the successful birthing of a new community of disciples. We have not ceased to reach out to those around us, to do so would be to disobey.
4.26.2007
Who else?
"Because I make my living as a university professor and philosopher I am frequently asked, in so many words, "Why do you follow Jesus Christ?" My answer is always the same: "Who else did you have in mind?" I am open, I am willing, and I always seek to know more. But so far I have found no one who remotely compares to Jesus Christ as a practical guide to how things are and should be in human life. He proves to be one who is in touch with reality in depth and who guides me evermore into a life that comes to terms with evil in all of its dimensions. He brings us into the path leading to an experiential solution for the problems of evil."
-Dallas Willard
-Dallas Willard
4.22.2007
Define Success
I have been given opportunity to reflect, as of late, upon what exactly defines "success" in a church. If the answer to this question is to be in any sense of the word "Christian," then of course this definition must originate in the person and work of Jesus.
How would Jesus define "success" in a Church?
I'd love to hear your feedback...
(don't worry, I'll post the "correct" answer later)
How would Jesus define "success" in a Church?
I'd love to hear your feedback...
(don't worry, I'll post the "correct" answer later)
4.19.2007
Your Mission... should you choose to accept it.
In what ways has your religious conviction informed your writing? And would you comment on the presence (or lack ) of religious content, specifically Christian, in recent children's literature (say the last fifteen years or so)?
I think it was Lewis who said something like: "The book cannot be what the writer is not." What you are will shape your book whether you want it to or not. I am Christian, so that conviction will pervade the book even when I make no conscious effort to teach or preach. Grace and hope will inform everything I write.
You're asking me to comment on fifteen years of 5000 or so books a year. Whew! We live in a Post-Christian society. Therefore, not many of those writers will be Christians or adherents of any of the traditional faiths. Self-consciously Christian (or Jewish or Muslim) writing will be sectarian and tend to propaganda and therefore have very little to say to persons outside that particular faith community. The challenge for those of us who care about our faith and about a hurting world is to tell stories which will carry the words of grace and hope in their bones and sinews and not wear them like fancy dress.
This is a quote from the author of Bridge to Terebinthia that I found a blazingly illuminating insight into the Mission of God. She critiques much of "christian" writing as having the outward trappings of Jesus, yet missing the deeper reality of who He is, and bemoans the dearth of writing that truly captures the redemptive story of the gospel, transmitting it into our culture as many beacons of hope and life.
Jesus does not seek people to place His name on their bumper, but to live His life wherever they go (so much so that it could be said that we are acting by His Spirit). This is the essence of God's plan, that we would enter wholeheartedly into His desire to redeem the whole of creation, so that we would be His "hands and feet" throughout our various spheres of influence.
My friend Justin called us "nomad's, carrying on our backs the center of the universe with us wherever we go." It is this exact sentiment (portrayed through an eloquent voice) that is God's plan for effecting real change in this world. That those who know Him, would go into every nook and cranny of the creation, and discover Him there!
I think it was Lewis who said something like: "The book cannot be what the writer is not." What you are will shape your book whether you want it to or not. I am Christian, so that conviction will pervade the book even when I make no conscious effort to teach or preach. Grace and hope will inform everything I write.
You're asking me to comment on fifteen years of 5000 or so books a year. Whew! We live in a Post-Christian society. Therefore, not many of those writers will be Christians or adherents of any of the traditional faiths. Self-consciously Christian (or Jewish or Muslim) writing will be sectarian and tend to propaganda and therefore have very little to say to persons outside that particular faith community. The challenge for those of us who care about our faith and about a hurting world is to tell stories which will carry the words of grace and hope in their bones and sinews and not wear them like fancy dress.
This is a quote from the author of Bridge to Terebinthia that I found a blazingly illuminating insight into the Mission of God. She critiques much of "christian" writing as having the outward trappings of Jesus, yet missing the deeper reality of who He is, and bemoans the dearth of writing that truly captures the redemptive story of the gospel, transmitting it into our culture as many beacons of hope and life.
Jesus does not seek people to place His name on their bumper, but to live His life wherever they go (so much so that it could be said that we are acting by His Spirit). This is the essence of God's plan, that we would enter wholeheartedly into His desire to redeem the whole of creation, so that we would be His "hands and feet" throughout our various spheres of influence.
My friend Justin called us "nomad's, carrying on our backs the center of the universe with us wherever we go." It is this exact sentiment (portrayed through an eloquent voice) that is God's plan for effecting real change in this world. That those who know Him, would go into every nook and cranny of the creation, and discover Him there!
4.11.2007
A tribute to idealism
"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."
I would add, if you have built your castle on the ground it wasn't worth building...
Of course I am married to a woman who said, "I'm young and I'm and idealist, one day I'll be old, and then I'll be old and I'll be an idealist."
If no one has ever called you an idealist, you had better check your convictions.
"Realists" don't bring homeless people into their houses...
"Realists" don't quit their careers to manage a coffee shop for Jesus...
or sell everything they own to finance their church...
or move to a foreign land to share God's love...
or face communist prisons, roman gladiators, swords, guns, flames, and wild beasts, with confident assurance...
"Realists..."
...don't change the world...
May you never find yourself to have so settled into "the way things are" that you would trade your "castle in the air" for one of no worth. May you never be cursed with realism that is the death of a vibrant life of trusing Jesus.
I would add, if you have built your castle on the ground it wasn't worth building...
Of course I am married to a woman who said, "I'm young and I'm and idealist, one day I'll be old, and then I'll be old and I'll be an idealist."
If no one has ever called you an idealist, you had better check your convictions.
"Realists" don't bring homeless people into their houses...
"Realists" don't quit their careers to manage a coffee shop for Jesus...
or sell everything they own to finance their church...
or move to a foreign land to share God's love...
or face communist prisons, roman gladiators, swords, guns, flames, and wild beasts, with confident assurance...
"Realists..."
...don't change the world...
May you never find yourself to have so settled into "the way things are" that you would trade your "castle in the air" for one of no worth. May you never be cursed with realism that is the death of a vibrant life of trusing Jesus.
4.09.2007
Twelve Ways to Humble Yourself
Twelve Ways to Humble Yourself
1. Routinely confess your sin to God. (Luke 18:9-14) All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God. However, too few of us have a routine practice of rigorous self-honesty examination. Weekly, even daily, review of our heart and behavior, coupled with confession to God, is an essential practice of humility.
2. Acknowledge your sin to others. (James 3:2, James 5:16) Humility before God is not complete unless there is also humility before man. A true test of our willingness to humble ourselves is being willing to share with others the weaknesses we confess to God. Wisdom, however, dictates that we do so with others that we trust.
3. Take wrong patiently. (1 Peter 3:8-17) This has been a difficult one for me. When something is unjust I want to react and rectify it. However, patiently responding to the unjust accusations and actions of others demonstrates our strength of godly character and provides an opportunity to put on humility.
4. Actively submit to authority…the good and the bad! (1 Peter 2:18) Our culture does not value submission; rather it promotes individualism. How purposely and actively do you work on submission to those whom God has placed as authorities in your life? Doing so is a good way to humble yourself.
5. Receive correction and feedback from others graciously. (Proverbs 10:17, 12:1) In the Phoenix area, a local East valley pastor was noted for graciously receiving any negative feedback or correction offered. He would simply say "thank you for caring enough to share that with me, I will pray about it and get back to you." Look for the kernel of truth in what people offer you, even if it comes from a dubious source. Always pray, "Lord, what are you trying to show me through this?"
6. Accept a lowly place. (Proverbs 25:6,7) If you find yourself wanting to sit at the head table, wanting others to recognize your contribution or become offended when others are honored or chosen, then pride is present. Purpose to support others being recognized, rather than you. Accept and look for the lowly place; it is the place of humility.
7. Purposely associate with people of lower state than you. (Luke 7:36-39) Jesus was derided by the Pharisees for socializing with the poor and those of lowly state. Our culture is very status conscious and people naturally want to socialize upward. Resist the temptation of being partial to those with status or wealth.
8. Choose to serve others. (Philippians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 4:5, Matthew 23:11) When we serve others, we are serving God’s purposes in their lives. Doing so reduces our focus on ourselves and builds the Kingdom of God instead of the Kingdom of self. When serving another costs us nothing, we should question whether or not it is really servanthood.
9. Be quick to forgive. (Matthew 18: 21-35) Forgiveness is possibly one of the greatest acts of humility we can do. To forgive is to acknowledge a wrong that has been done us and also to further release our right of repayment for the wrong. Forgiveness is denial of self. Forgiveness is not insisting on our way and our justice.
10. Cultivate a grateful heart. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) The more we develop an attitude of gratitude for the gift of salvation and life He has given us, the more true our perspective of self. A grateful heart is a humble heart.
11. Purpose to speak well of others. (Ephesians 4:31-32) Saying negative things about others puts them "one down" and us "one up"…a form of pride. Speaking well of others edifies them and builds them up instead of us. Make sure, however, that what you say is not intended as flattery.
12. Treat pride as a condition that always necessitates embracing the cross. (Luke 9:23) It is our nature to be proud and it is God’s nature in us that brings humility. Committing to a lifestyle of daily dying to self and living through Him is the foundation for true humility.
Thank you (or maybe no thank you!) to the folks at Trinity Communion (I don't know them, just followed a link) for this handy, fun-filled guide to life! Check the title link...
1. Routinely confess your sin to God. (Luke 18:9-14) All of us sin and fall short of the glory of God. However, too few of us have a routine practice of rigorous self-honesty examination. Weekly, even daily, review of our heart and behavior, coupled with confession to God, is an essential practice of humility.
2. Acknowledge your sin to others. (James 3:2, James 5:16) Humility before God is not complete unless there is also humility before man. A true test of our willingness to humble ourselves is being willing to share with others the weaknesses we confess to God. Wisdom, however, dictates that we do so with others that we trust.
3. Take wrong patiently. (1 Peter 3:8-17) This has been a difficult one for me. When something is unjust I want to react and rectify it. However, patiently responding to the unjust accusations and actions of others demonstrates our strength of godly character and provides an opportunity to put on humility.
4. Actively submit to authority…the good and the bad! (1 Peter 2:18) Our culture does not value submission; rather it promotes individualism. How purposely and actively do you work on submission to those whom God has placed as authorities in your life? Doing so is a good way to humble yourself.
5. Receive correction and feedback from others graciously. (Proverbs 10:17, 12:1) In the Phoenix area, a local East valley pastor was noted for graciously receiving any negative feedback or correction offered. He would simply say "thank you for caring enough to share that with me, I will pray about it and get back to you." Look for the kernel of truth in what people offer you, even if it comes from a dubious source. Always pray, "Lord, what are you trying to show me through this?"
6. Accept a lowly place. (Proverbs 25:6,7) If you find yourself wanting to sit at the head table, wanting others to recognize your contribution or become offended when others are honored or chosen, then pride is present. Purpose to support others being recognized, rather than you. Accept and look for the lowly place; it is the place of humility.
7. Purposely associate with people of lower state than you. (Luke 7:36-39) Jesus was derided by the Pharisees for socializing with the poor and those of lowly state. Our culture is very status conscious and people naturally want to socialize upward. Resist the temptation of being partial to those with status or wealth.
8. Choose to serve others. (Philippians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 4:5, Matthew 23:11) When we serve others, we are serving God’s purposes in their lives. Doing so reduces our focus on ourselves and builds the Kingdom of God instead of the Kingdom of self. When serving another costs us nothing, we should question whether or not it is really servanthood.
9. Be quick to forgive. (Matthew 18: 21-35) Forgiveness is possibly one of the greatest acts of humility we can do. To forgive is to acknowledge a wrong that has been done us and also to further release our right of repayment for the wrong. Forgiveness is denial of self. Forgiveness is not insisting on our way and our justice.
10. Cultivate a grateful heart. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) The more we develop an attitude of gratitude for the gift of salvation and life He has given us, the more true our perspective of self. A grateful heart is a humble heart.
11. Purpose to speak well of others. (Ephesians 4:31-32) Saying negative things about others puts them "one down" and us "one up"…a form of pride. Speaking well of others edifies them and builds them up instead of us. Make sure, however, that what you say is not intended as flattery.
12. Treat pride as a condition that always necessitates embracing the cross. (Luke 9:23) It is our nature to be proud and it is God’s nature in us that brings humility. Committing to a lifestyle of daily dying to self and living through Him is the foundation for true humility.
Thank you (or maybe no thank you!) to the folks at Trinity Communion (I don't know them, just followed a link) for this handy, fun-filled guide to life! Check the title link...
4.06.2007
The Philosopher
"If you could find a better way, Jesus would be the first one to tell you to take it. And if you don't believe that about him, you don't have faith in him, because what you're really saying is that he would encourage you to believe something that is false."
Dallas Willard
Dallas Willard
4.04.2007
4.02.2007
Feast of Booths
I have been reading the book of Nehemiah lately...
...I came across this passage (check the title link)...
I began to think about what this would look like here and now...
What would it look like for you, your family, all of your neighbors, in fact, everyone in your entire city and surrounding area, to do this?
Take a week, and spend the entire week living in tents, reading the Bible, worshiping, praying, meditating; gathering with those around you...
I would love to see this happen!
...I came across this passage (check the title link)...
I began to think about what this would look like here and now...
What would it look like for you, your family, all of your neighbors, in fact, everyone in your entire city and surrounding area, to do this?
Take a week, and spend the entire week living in tents, reading the Bible, worshiping, praying, meditating; gathering with those around you...
I would love to see this happen!
3.31.2007
Pastor's Wives
I am submitting my thoughts and ideas in humility because I have not been a pastors wife very long and we have a very small little church and really I know nothing!!
But this article did stir a passion and so many thoughts inside of me!! One of my first reactions was sorrow that so many pastors wives felt that pastoring was their "husbands calling". How can it be his calling when we are joined as one flesh through marriage? I also felt such sorrow that they referred to the church as their husbands "mistress" and of the divorce rate. I was not a woman who saw myself marrying a pastor or ever becoming a pastor's wife, in fact on my wedding day I joked about how I would never be a pastors wife (God does have a sense of humor). But for my husband and I this call of God was ours, not because we both do equal amounts of "pastoring, teaching and preaching" but because we are one, joined by God and so whatever he is called to do I am as well. Although for us I believe us to be more of a ministry team due to some of our feelings about what pastoring does and doesn't look like for us. Pastoring is not my husbands profession, it is our life lived out day to day, Steve can not choose a different profession because we do what we do because Jesus asked us too not because someone hired us and we can not live our lives any differently and feel like we are fulfulling what we were placed on this earth to do. I am glad that pastors wives have found a place to help with lonliness and isolation, I have also felt very lonely at times after arriving in the city to plant a church and leaving so many friends and family at home, but this feeling drove me more into Jesus and allowed me to realize that as lonely as I can possibly be I will never exerience what some on this world will. I will always have someone in my corner. Through these feelings of lonliness and isolation I have become more aware of why Steve and I live the way we do and why we will continue to, because our neighbors, co-workers, cashiers and waitresses experience a lonliness that I no longer know, they live through the same things I do in my life only without the one hope I have. for me thus far it is an honor to be a pastors wife, God chose me to participate in peoples lives to the degree he will allow me, he chose me to be a bringer of hope, love and life. I know that these same people he has called me to will be the ones that cause me the deepest pains, but I don't love them so that they will love me, I love them because God loved me and in this I am given the ability to love them. A wise woman I know told me that as a pasors wife I can not hide from pain, or run away from the hurts you will encounter but instead charge head first into it with the banner of forgiveness over you. I am not judging this article or other pastors wives, it started my head spinning and my passions stirring and these are my thoughts on the subject. I am not a pastors wife because I married one, I am because Jesus asked me to and for him I would do anything. A book that has definatley influenced my perspective and caused me thoughts to ponder is "The Pastors Wife" by Sabina Wurmbrand. Great book and some challenging moments. I know that I am married to an incredible man who passionately loves Jesus with all his heart and I am very blessed in this, so I know that my circumstance is not the same as other women's so please hear my heart of excitment and encouragement and not a criticism or judgement. I am young and idealistic and some day I will get old and then I hope that I will be old and idealistic because I will always believe in the impossible and dream the dreams of God, he came to change the world and I have enlisted myself to him in any way shape or form he asks.
But this article did stir a passion and so many thoughts inside of me!! One of my first reactions was sorrow that so many pastors wives felt that pastoring was their "husbands calling". How can it be his calling when we are joined as one flesh through marriage? I also felt such sorrow that they referred to the church as their husbands "mistress" and of the divorce rate. I was not a woman who saw myself marrying a pastor or ever becoming a pastor's wife, in fact on my wedding day I joked about how I would never be a pastors wife (God does have a sense of humor). But for my husband and I this call of God was ours, not because we both do equal amounts of "pastoring, teaching and preaching" but because we are one, joined by God and so whatever he is called to do I am as well. Although for us I believe us to be more of a ministry team due to some of our feelings about what pastoring does and doesn't look like for us. Pastoring is not my husbands profession, it is our life lived out day to day, Steve can not choose a different profession because we do what we do because Jesus asked us too not because someone hired us and we can not live our lives any differently and feel like we are fulfulling what we were placed on this earth to do. I am glad that pastors wives have found a place to help with lonliness and isolation, I have also felt very lonely at times after arriving in the city to plant a church and leaving so many friends and family at home, but this feeling drove me more into Jesus and allowed me to realize that as lonely as I can possibly be I will never exerience what some on this world will. I will always have someone in my corner. Through these feelings of lonliness and isolation I have become more aware of why Steve and I live the way we do and why we will continue to, because our neighbors, co-workers, cashiers and waitresses experience a lonliness that I no longer know, they live through the same things I do in my life only without the one hope I have. for me thus far it is an honor to be a pastors wife, God chose me to participate in peoples lives to the degree he will allow me, he chose me to be a bringer of hope, love and life. I know that these same people he has called me to will be the ones that cause me the deepest pains, but I don't love them so that they will love me, I love them because God loved me and in this I am given the ability to love them. A wise woman I know told me that as a pasors wife I can not hide from pain, or run away from the hurts you will encounter but instead charge head first into it with the banner of forgiveness over you. I am not judging this article or other pastors wives, it started my head spinning and my passions stirring and these are my thoughts on the subject. I am not a pastors wife because I married one, I am because Jesus asked me to and for him I would do anything. A book that has definatley influenced my perspective and caused me thoughts to ponder is "The Pastors Wife" by Sabina Wurmbrand. Great book and some challenging moments. I know that I am married to an incredible man who passionately loves Jesus with all his heart and I am very blessed in this, so I know that my circumstance is not the same as other women's so please hear my heart of excitment and encouragement and not a criticism or judgement. I am young and idealistic and some day I will get old and then I hope that I will be old and idealistic because I will always believe in the impossible and dream the dreams of God, he came to change the world and I have enlisted myself to him in any way shape or form he asks.
3.27.2007
3.25.2007
3.24.2007
What if...
What if we truly believed it?
1 John 1:5
What if we simply believed the good news? What if we actually acted out our lives as if God really were good, trustworthy, faithful?
It cannot be that simple? Doesn't God have to extract some divine retribution upon us? God really just loves us?
But what if it were true...
...how would our lives change if it really was a fact that we had a spiritual Father who was absolutely overflowing with love for us! What would be different...
My pastor has said, on numerous occasions, in my hearing, that in all the years, and with all of the people that he has ever counselled, the issue driving all other issues in peoples lives; be it addictions, problems with relationships, emotional problems, etc; the root issue was simply a lack of trust in God.
If we don't really believe God is who He is, then our lives will reflect it; as well if we do believe...
1 John 1:5
What if we simply believed the good news? What if we actually acted out our lives as if God really were good, trustworthy, faithful?
It cannot be that simple? Doesn't God have to extract some divine retribution upon us? God really just loves us?
But what if it were true...
...how would our lives change if it really was a fact that we had a spiritual Father who was absolutely overflowing with love for us! What would be different...
My pastor has said, on numerous occasions, in my hearing, that in all the years, and with all of the people that he has ever counselled, the issue driving all other issues in peoples lives; be it addictions, problems with relationships, emotional problems, etc; the root issue was simply a lack of trust in God.
If we don't really believe God is who He is, then our lives will reflect it; as well if we do believe...
A response...
The following is my response to a blog from someone that I know...
...you should be able to tell from the context, but the original post was about author Brian McLaren, and why his ideas are dangerous...
-----
Thought I’d toss in a couple of pennies on this one…
…McLaren is intentionally vague, I like that. It seems in keeping with the pedagogy of our Master. Why should our preaching be held to a standard that Jesus never held himself to?? This is frightening, I admit, but also freeing. This is one of the primary things I credit McLaren with illuminating for me.
It seems to me that Jesus was not all that concerned with communicating “propositional truths” or disseminating information. This is of course, set within the context of twelve men (and all of the camp followers), spending twenty-four hours a day with Jesus. It is this transmission of life that Jesus was primarily concerned with, and it is ultimately only truly possible in a “life-on-life” setting, such as the one Jesus created for his disciples.
When I think of the things my pastor taught me, the things of influence, what tops the list are not the sermons he preached. The way he read the Bible, and the questions he brought to it (and the questions he DIDN’T bring to it), have drastically effected my understanding of God, and yet this was not a result of a sermon on “how to read your Bible” but rather a result of spending five years watching him read his, watching him interact with the text…
…I said to a friend once, and was severely reprimanded for it, that preaching is one of the least important things a pastor does. I still believe it. I don’t think of the sermon’s I’ve listened to, but rather the way someone treated me; I don’t remember illustrations used, but rather the fact that what was preached was also lived. Simply put, the job-description of a pastor-teacher has never been about information. (Ephesians 4:11-16)
I would never say that preaching and teaching are unimportant, or unecessary, only that they are simply not central. There are many things “emergent” that I find overly reactionary (throwing out proverbial babies…) yet I find the common critiques of gentlemen like Carson to have missed the point of what someone like McLaren is trying to accomplish.
It is not that the altar should be in the center and the pulpit off to the side….
…it is rather that the altar and the pulpit, BOTH, should be peripheral to a life lived. Not unimportant, simply not central. The pulpit and the altar are places of catalyst, as well as places of manifestation, of the life of Christ. But it is my heartfelt contention that it is this life present within ours that is the central aspect of the gospel (Mark 1:15 you have to check out D. Willard’s translation of this verse in Conspiracy, although you probably already have, Luke 17:21)
It is along the lines of your second point…
…are we inviting someone to perform religious exercises (pray this prayer, read this passage, listen to this sermon) or are we inviting them to a mystical experience of the life of Christ? If we are inviting them to experience the life of Jesus then they will certainly participate in religious events along the way, they will pray prayers of repentance, they will participate in the consumption of religious education, etc…
…they will live the lifestyle as a result of trusting in Jesus. (Matthew 12:33)
It is to this end that I believe McLaren is working. If he makes statements that you or I disagree with, or even that are not totally correct (as, of course, anyone who disagrees with us must consequently be), I don’t think he minds…
…in fact I think he would be happy to play the role of provocateur, prompting people to think beyond the accepted ideas that they have never truly considered, and so, never truly held.
...you should be able to tell from the context, but the original post was about author Brian McLaren, and why his ideas are dangerous...
-----
Thought I’d toss in a couple of pennies on this one…
…McLaren is intentionally vague, I like that. It seems in keeping with the pedagogy of our Master. Why should our preaching be held to a standard that Jesus never held himself to?? This is frightening, I admit, but also freeing. This is one of the primary things I credit McLaren with illuminating for me.
It seems to me that Jesus was not all that concerned with communicating “propositional truths” or disseminating information. This is of course, set within the context of twelve men (and all of the camp followers), spending twenty-four hours a day with Jesus. It is this transmission of life that Jesus was primarily concerned with, and it is ultimately only truly possible in a “life-on-life” setting, such as the one Jesus created for his disciples.
When I think of the things my pastor taught me, the things of influence, what tops the list are not the sermons he preached. The way he read the Bible, and the questions he brought to it (and the questions he DIDN’T bring to it), have drastically effected my understanding of God, and yet this was not a result of a sermon on “how to read your Bible” but rather a result of spending five years watching him read his, watching him interact with the text…
…I said to a friend once, and was severely reprimanded for it, that preaching is one of the least important things a pastor does. I still believe it. I don’t think of the sermon’s I’ve listened to, but rather the way someone treated me; I don’t remember illustrations used, but rather the fact that what was preached was also lived. Simply put, the job-description of a pastor-teacher has never been about information. (Ephesians 4:11-16)
I would never say that preaching and teaching are unimportant, or unecessary, only that they are simply not central. There are many things “emergent” that I find overly reactionary (throwing out proverbial babies…) yet I find the common critiques of gentlemen like Carson to have missed the point of what someone like McLaren is trying to accomplish.
It is not that the altar should be in the center and the pulpit off to the side….
…it is rather that the altar and the pulpit, BOTH, should be peripheral to a life lived. Not unimportant, simply not central. The pulpit and the altar are places of catalyst, as well as places of manifestation, of the life of Christ. But it is my heartfelt contention that it is this life present within ours that is the central aspect of the gospel (Mark 1:15 you have to check out D. Willard’s translation of this verse in Conspiracy, although you probably already have, Luke 17:21)
It is along the lines of your second point…
…are we inviting someone to perform religious exercises (pray this prayer, read this passage, listen to this sermon) or are we inviting them to a mystical experience of the life of Christ? If we are inviting them to experience the life of Jesus then they will certainly participate in religious events along the way, they will pray prayers of repentance, they will participate in the consumption of religious education, etc…
…they will live the lifestyle as a result of trusting in Jesus. (Matthew 12:33)
It is to this end that I believe McLaren is working. If he makes statements that you or I disagree with, or even that are not totally correct (as, of course, anyone who disagrees with us must consequently be), I don’t think he minds…
…in fact I think he would be happy to play the role of provocateur, prompting people to think beyond the accepted ideas that they have never truly considered, and so, never truly held.
3.21.2007
Quest
I am starting to enjoy Buffalo more and more. I love going to the downtown area and hanging out down there. It's so pretty. It just has this neat feel to it. I love it.
I feel like it is a new season coming up. I feel more hopeful now about life and God. It's been tough. I've felt down for so long. But a new hope has risen.
Lately I have been praying for unadulterated love (God's love of course) and unadulterated Jesus. The way I view God's love is obviously tainted and so lately I have been praying that I could know God's love apart from people. I'll explain. In my life God's love is dictated by the way people respond to my actions or deeds. If I am doing a lot of good things and getting lots of praise then I feel really loved and like God is well pleased with me. If I am srewing up or not doing things right then I feel like God is mad at me and that he is withholding his love. Hello...that's a lie if I have ever heard one. Past experience has helped this tainted view flourish. But crushing time is here. God is not conditional. This is head knowledge right now but I feel like it is a quest that I am on to obtain this in my heart. I was reading this book called "Blue Like Jazz", the author struggles with recieving love from God, people, whoever. So he was dating this girl and she would always share with him her feelings for him. She would pour out her love and there was some wall there that he couldn't recieve it or something. Well she broke up with him because of this. He could recieve her love. One day he was cleaning his bathroom and he felt like God said, "Love your neighbor as yourself" Well the guy was like alright (why would God tell me this). He went on, you would never look at your neighbor and just bloody him with all of his screw ups. You wouldn't beat him up over every thing wrong with him. No you love your neighbor, you wouldn't dream of treating him or her that way. . . . . . so why do we so often treat ourselves that way. God does not withold his love. Nobody is above the love of God. Not even me. There is not one person that God choses to hate or to love conditionally. Never in history has there been a person that God decided to withhold his love from. I am not the first person nor will there ever be a first person to be hated by God. God's love is not in anyway connected to the things that I can do for him. His love is not bound by constraints. Lavish. Unadulterated. Wild. Rich. Abounding is his love. God isn't going to love me more because I just wrote "a great blog". God isn't going to love me more because I left on a church plant. God isn't going to love me more because I do the noble things. If I was injured in a car accident and made a vegetable for the rest of my life God would not withhold his love from me because I can't do things for him anymore.
So Lord expose us to unadulterated love. Help us to seek and yearn for that. Help me to chose the things of you out of YOUR love and out of who YOU are not because I will be praised for it. Heal my tainted views. Help me to know in my heart that you are not withholding your love from me. Help me to know in my heart that you are not disappointed in me but that you love me. Help everyone who feels this way and help me to know these things in my heart that I might help others like me and Lord thank you for new hope.
Amen
I feel like it is a new season coming up. I feel more hopeful now about life and God. It's been tough. I've felt down for so long. But a new hope has risen.
Lately I have been praying for unadulterated love (God's love of course) and unadulterated Jesus. The way I view God's love is obviously tainted and so lately I have been praying that I could know God's love apart from people. I'll explain. In my life God's love is dictated by the way people respond to my actions or deeds. If I am doing a lot of good things and getting lots of praise then I feel really loved and like God is well pleased with me. If I am srewing up or not doing things right then I feel like God is mad at me and that he is withholding his love. Hello...that's a lie if I have ever heard one. Past experience has helped this tainted view flourish. But crushing time is here. God is not conditional. This is head knowledge right now but I feel like it is a quest that I am on to obtain this in my heart. I was reading this book called "Blue Like Jazz", the author struggles with recieving love from God, people, whoever. So he was dating this girl and she would always share with him her feelings for him. She would pour out her love and there was some wall there that he couldn't recieve it or something. Well she broke up with him because of this. He could recieve her love. One day he was cleaning his bathroom and he felt like God said, "Love your neighbor as yourself" Well the guy was like alright (why would God tell me this). He went on, you would never look at your neighbor and just bloody him with all of his screw ups. You wouldn't beat him up over every thing wrong with him. No you love your neighbor, you wouldn't dream of treating him or her that way. . . . . . so why do we so often treat ourselves that way. God does not withold his love. Nobody is above the love of God. Not even me. There is not one person that God choses to hate or to love conditionally. Never in history has there been a person that God decided to withhold his love from. I am not the first person nor will there ever be a first person to be hated by God. God's love is not in anyway connected to the things that I can do for him. His love is not bound by constraints. Lavish. Unadulterated. Wild. Rich. Abounding is his love. God isn't going to love me more because I just wrote "a great blog". God isn't going to love me more because I left on a church plant. God isn't going to love me more because I do the noble things. If I was injured in a car accident and made a vegetable for the rest of my life God would not withhold his love from me because I can't do things for him anymore.
So Lord expose us to unadulterated love. Help us to seek and yearn for that. Help me to chose the things of you out of YOUR love and out of who YOU are not because I will be praised for it. Heal my tainted views. Help me to know in my heart that you are not withholding your love from me. Help me to know in my heart that you are not disappointed in me but that you love me. Help everyone who feels this way and help me to know these things in my heart that I might help others like me and Lord thank you for new hope.
Amen
3.03.2007
Ramblings...
If "Theology" is knowledge of God, then the letters of Paul are not really Theology, and the parables of Jesus are...
...why then do we quote the epistles, yet ignore the words of Jesus?
Why do we answer the question, "What must I do to be saved?" with quotations from Romans, instead of with the very words Jesus used to answer that exact question?
Certainly I am not disparaging the words of Paul, only contextualizing them. They are primarily pastoral, not theological (this of course includes and implies theological content). Paul addresses issues of "Christian living," Jesus answers the question, "What is God like?"
I have before remarked on the unique situation of quoting Jesus and having a brother contradict that statement with a quotation of Paul. (Obviously we should use Jesus as the lens with which to view Paul, and not vice versa.) What is it about the words of Jesus that we Christians find so inflammatory? Is it that they challenge our religiosity? Do they imply that our religion cannot save, or that the "theologies" we have built for ourselves have nothing to do with God? Jesus cuts through our worked up definitions of "how to get to heaven" with simple parables that point out that our hearts are too black to enter that place...
Isn't it typical of God to reveal himself through make-believe stories and simple acts of compassion...
...true theology is never spoken, but rather acted.
And another train of thought...
Someone spoke the other day about the parable of the "Prodigal Son" and it dawned on me that there was yet another way in which this parable defines my relationship with God. (I have often seen myself in this story as I was raised in the Church, then lived in the world for several years, until ruin befell me; upon which I returned to God.)
The son comes to his senses and plans to return to his father, but he thinks to himself that he is no longer worthy to be a son, he will return as a servant. But this shows that the son never truly understood the depths of his father's love. The father's response to this attitude in his son is to interrupt him with love and blessing.
When I returned to my spiritual father, I did so with fear and trepidation (as is proper) but also with unconscious doubts about His goodness and wholehearted desire to bless. For several years I was afraid that God desired to bring calamity upon me. I thought that He could use me as a servant, and that my humiliation would somehow bring Him glory; but I could not believe that God would still treat me as a son, I had squandered my Father's blessing, He would not bestow another upon me...
...but I had failed to understand the goodness of my Father. God continued to speak to me, "My son, I love you and value you deeply, I will throw a costly party to celebrate your return!"
Thankfully God's patient persistence won out over my fear and unbelief!
...why then do we quote the epistles, yet ignore the words of Jesus?
Why do we answer the question, "What must I do to be saved?" with quotations from Romans, instead of with the very words Jesus used to answer that exact question?
Certainly I am not disparaging the words of Paul, only contextualizing them. They are primarily pastoral, not theological (this of course includes and implies theological content). Paul addresses issues of "Christian living," Jesus answers the question, "What is God like?"
I have before remarked on the unique situation of quoting Jesus and having a brother contradict that statement with a quotation of Paul. (Obviously we should use Jesus as the lens with which to view Paul, and not vice versa.) What is it about the words of Jesus that we Christians find so inflammatory? Is it that they challenge our religiosity? Do they imply that our religion cannot save, or that the "theologies" we have built for ourselves have nothing to do with God? Jesus cuts through our worked up definitions of "how to get to heaven" with simple parables that point out that our hearts are too black to enter that place...
Isn't it typical of God to reveal himself through make-believe stories and simple acts of compassion...
...true theology is never spoken, but rather acted.
And another train of thought...
Someone spoke the other day about the parable of the "Prodigal Son" and it dawned on me that there was yet another way in which this parable defines my relationship with God. (I have often seen myself in this story as I was raised in the Church, then lived in the world for several years, until ruin befell me; upon which I returned to God.)
The son comes to his senses and plans to return to his father, but he thinks to himself that he is no longer worthy to be a son, he will return as a servant. But this shows that the son never truly understood the depths of his father's love. The father's response to this attitude in his son is to interrupt him with love and blessing.
When I returned to my spiritual father, I did so with fear and trepidation (as is proper) but also with unconscious doubts about His goodness and wholehearted desire to bless. For several years I was afraid that God desired to bring calamity upon me. I thought that He could use me as a servant, and that my humiliation would somehow bring Him glory; but I could not believe that God would still treat me as a son, I had squandered my Father's blessing, He would not bestow another upon me...
...but I had failed to understand the goodness of my Father. God continued to speak to me, "My son, I love you and value you deeply, I will throw a costly party to celebrate your return!"
Thankfully God's patient persistence won out over my fear and unbelief!
3.02.2007
News From Buffalo
Well here we are in Buffalo and well.....it's very cold right now!! We have just found out some very exciting news, we are expecting another baby!! God has blessed us again, this last week was a tough one as I think that I caught a stomach bug along with morning sickness and well I thought I was dying but here I am alive and kicking.
Other than babies there are new and exciting things happening all the time here, God is bringing new people here and building stonger relationships in the people we already know. I have met a few friends with children and it has been a blessing. I feel like God has been giving us a love for the city but still sometimes it doesn't quite feel like home, however I know that it is.
Today I was thanking God that I am able to live in a place where I can constantly feel the brokenness and lack of hope in peoples lives, there are daily happenings in which I realize this is why God has sent us here and i often feel myself brokenhearted for the shape of some lives. People here are not all pretty, and looking like they have it together. I can definately step out of my door and run into people whose lives are falling apart, who aren't pretty or nice, whose lives are vividly in need of hope and restoration. So I am thankful for this daily reminder of why I moved across the country to this city, but also there are times when it is hard not to see the world as too empty or hopeless or broken. Or that there are too many people this way and there will never be enough time to meet them all, love them all and hopefully show them the path to hope. Some one said (I don't know who) that Jesus saw the world as a good place and I am always challenged by this. There are times when I see it as good but often I see all that is not right and long for it to be. So I think that is what may keep me an idealist, is that if Jesus saw the world as a good place then that means all that is not right has the possiblity of being made right or restored. I love the words restored and redeemed to me they paint such a picture of a transformation of something into that which nobody thought it could ever be, that is the place that hope is born. If I can believe in words like redeemed and restored and really know that they describe that which can take place in people, cities and nations.....then there in lies my hope ....Jesus does this. I have yet to see a city or a nation redeemed and restored personally but I have heard of such things, however in my own personal life I have seen him do this in people. He did it in me, even in our home that we live now he has done that. It was a crack house before we moved in, it was a brothel sometime before that and now people live in it and gather together here in it to worship God and sing praises to him. Our hope is that this house will be a beacon of love to the wolrd around it. So I will give my life to God as an offering in hopes that he will allow me the great privledge of participating in the restoration of the city of Buffalo and the world. I will dream a big dream because I love and serve a big God...
Other than babies there are new and exciting things happening all the time here, God is bringing new people here and building stonger relationships in the people we already know. I have met a few friends with children and it has been a blessing. I feel like God has been giving us a love for the city but still sometimes it doesn't quite feel like home, however I know that it is.
Today I was thanking God that I am able to live in a place where I can constantly feel the brokenness and lack of hope in peoples lives, there are daily happenings in which I realize this is why God has sent us here and i often feel myself brokenhearted for the shape of some lives. People here are not all pretty, and looking like they have it together. I can definately step out of my door and run into people whose lives are falling apart, who aren't pretty or nice, whose lives are vividly in need of hope and restoration. So I am thankful for this daily reminder of why I moved across the country to this city, but also there are times when it is hard not to see the world as too empty or hopeless or broken. Or that there are too many people this way and there will never be enough time to meet them all, love them all and hopefully show them the path to hope. Some one said (I don't know who) that Jesus saw the world as a good place and I am always challenged by this. There are times when I see it as good but often I see all that is not right and long for it to be. So I think that is what may keep me an idealist, is that if Jesus saw the world as a good place then that means all that is not right has the possiblity of being made right or restored. I love the words restored and redeemed to me they paint such a picture of a transformation of something into that which nobody thought it could ever be, that is the place that hope is born. If I can believe in words like redeemed and restored and really know that they describe that which can take place in people, cities and nations.....then there in lies my hope ....Jesus does this. I have yet to see a city or a nation redeemed and restored personally but I have heard of such things, however in my own personal life I have seen him do this in people. He did it in me, even in our home that we live now he has done that. It was a crack house before we moved in, it was a brothel sometime before that and now people live in it and gather together here in it to worship God and sing praises to him. Our hope is that this house will be a beacon of love to the wolrd around it. So I will give my life to God as an offering in hopes that he will allow me the great privledge of participating in the restoration of the city of Buffalo and the world. I will dream a big dream because I love and serve a big God...
2.22.2007
CS Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis is, on a personal level, the most influential author in my library. I have enjoyed his fiction and philosophy, and even bits of his literary critique. I have greatly enjoyed his work in elucidating the Christian faith. I can point to no single work of his, however, as having any tremendous and immediate impact upon my life. Lewis' influence upon me is best described as that of familiarity; I grew up reading his fiction and continue to read books in the many genre's of his works. I find myself at home in his mind. His peculiar blend of logical mental capacity and poetic mental outlook, his characteristic intellectual humility, and his common sense approach to ideas have greatly influenced my way of thinking and perceiving.
The Abolition of Man
The Four Loves
The Great Divorce
Mere Christianity
Miracles
The Problem of Pain
Reflections on the Psalms
The Screwtape Letters
Suprised by Joy
The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Horse and His Boy
The Last Battle
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Magician's Nephew
Prince Caspian
The Silver Chair
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Space Trilogy:
Out of the Silent Planet
Perelandra
That Hideous Strength
Collections:
The Grand Miracle
The Joyful Christian
The Seeing Eye
The Weight of Glory
The Abolition of Man
The Four Loves
The Great Divorce
Mere Christianity
Miracles
The Problem of Pain
Reflections on the Psalms
The Screwtape Letters
Suprised by Joy
The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Horse and His Boy
The Last Battle
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Magician's Nephew
Prince Caspian
The Silver Chair
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Space Trilogy:
Out of the Silent Planet
Perelandra
That Hideous Strength
Collections:
The Grand Miracle
The Joyful Christian
The Seeing Eye
The Weight of Glory
2.19.2007
Hearing God
Hearing God
A marvelous book that pointed me away from God's "voice" and to God Himself. (I don't know that Willard would have described his intended effects in this way.) I put the book down encouraged to get to know God, less worried about what He was saying then who He is. I am now convinced that regularly and clearly hearing the voice of God comes foremost out of a deeper understanding of who He is and what He is like.
The Spirit of the Disciplines
The Spirit of the Disciplines
This book also conveys ideas latent with ramifications for all areas of life and thought. Willard lays a foundation for a life of discipline (discipleship) with the understanding of man, his original purpose, and his inner workings.
The Spirit of the Disciplines
The Spirit of the Disciplines
This book also conveys ideas latent with ramifications for all areas of life and thought. Willard lays a foundation for a life of discipline (discipleship) with the understanding of man, his original purpose, and his inner workings.
Renovation of the Heart
Renovation of the Heart
If "discipleship unto Jesus" is the essence of salvation, then the "renovation of our hearts" is the goal of that discipleship. Willard describes the goals of a life of discipleship to the Master as the transfomation of every aspect of our being into the image of Christ. His last two chapters; an overview of the life of a mature disciple, and a description of a Church where discipleship unto Jesus was the main thing; are masterpeices of Christian writing.
Divine Conspiracy
The Divine Conspiracy
Willard's "Divine Conspiracy" was a lightening bolt. I have read no other book with the immediate collision of ideas upon my world as this. Certainly this is due in part to the season of life in which this book found itself in my hands, but due also in great part to the intellectual grasp of the life and message of Jesus that Dallas Willard possesses. It was a manifesto of deep and real commitment to the person of Jesus. I have continued to find in his work, a logical framework of ideas with which I can conceive and understand the life and message of Jesus to a greater degree of clarity and impact.
This book, perhaps more than any other book I have ever read, shaped my worldview over the course of days in which I read it. This book gave me the language and conceptual framework to understand and communicate what God was doing in my life at the time that I read it. I continue to be shaped by the ideas it contains. Jesus seeks disciples who will take seriously his call to a christlike life, not converts who will wear his name as a label on their own way of life.
Opening doors
The doors continue to open...
This past Sunday was quite an amazing day for me, two of the men that we have been spending alot of time with were able to connect with us, and with God on a much deeper level. Tommy has been with us since the very first day we moved into the city. Sunday we got to meet his 10 year old son, Shawn, and Shawn's mother, Michelle, for the first time. They came over for breakfast and then went with us to our Sunday morning outreach to the retirement home. They then joined us later in the evening when we went to the local City Mission to serve in the kitchen, and also joined us as we led worship in the chapel service.
D'Andre, the man who is in charge of the activities on Sunday morning at the retirement home also came with us to the chapel service at the mission. He brought his two year old son, Jeremiah, whom we also met for the first time on Sunday. God has been speaking to him lately. Our neighbor, Pastor Paul, delivered the message and our friend came forward at the end and I was able to pray with him. God is not silent!!
We also have been developing a relationship with the cook at the Mission, Theo. He is an employee, not a resident. God has been working in his life as well. When Sam and I first met him he shared his passion for music, he writes and plays guitar (he is into jazz). This last Sunday he shared that the music that he has been writing has taken on a spiritual significance for him, and it has done so seemingly on its own; he has not set out to write about spiritual things. The group of guys he plays with are not so interested in this and so he wanted to hang out with us and jam. We had to coax it out of him, but when we finally got him to play us some of his stuff, I was really impressed. The guitar is really slow, mellow, jazzy, and the lyrics are very deep and meaningful, with kind of a spoken word, rap style happening.
We had another great evening at the City Mission and I had the good fortune of leading worship with someone on the drum kit who had never played with other instruments before. I have only ever played with a kit once, and Shawn (Tommy's son) had never played the drums with a group before. Our practice session sounded pretty bad, but we prayed and encouraged one another that God was happy that we would make a joyful noise to him (emphasis on noise!). We led the men in worship that evening, and I know that they were blessed. Many of them were engaged with God in worship. I was happy that Shawn could participate; it was right that he do so...
I think I could ramble on and on about the various open doors that are being presented to us, Tamy and I got to speak at a college group a couple of weeks ago, Sam and Dre were there also; and we were all able to encourage and pray for several of the students. I continue to see God moving in my workplace. I have had more spiritual conversations with customers and co-workers, and now Sam works for the same company as I. We continue to have new people coming to our Wednesday night group, we are trying to work through the issue of kids as we have our two, another two from another family, and probably a fifth this upcoming Wednesday. What a wonderful "problem" to have! Tamy continues to meet with other women in her Mom's Meetup group.
This morning we were remarking, (I even got teary-eyed!) about how wonderfully different the people in our church are. We have street people and successful entrepreneurs, students and parents, educated and blue collar, people of different background and personality, ethnicity and economic status. I do not believe we have reached the place where we are as diverse as heaven, but we are on our way, and heaven looks on with cheers!
At some point in the future I hope to have some exciting news about new opportunities at the mission, but I do not want to post about them until they have become a reality. Please pray that God would continue to allow us to serve at the Mission, and would open doors wider at the local college campus. These are the two areas that I feel are primary (at least for the church, for us as individuals we should view our primary ministry as our jobs as they take up the bulk of our time).
This past Sunday was quite an amazing day for me, two of the men that we have been spending alot of time with were able to connect with us, and with God on a much deeper level. Tommy has been with us since the very first day we moved into the city. Sunday we got to meet his 10 year old son, Shawn, and Shawn's mother, Michelle, for the first time. They came over for breakfast and then went with us to our Sunday morning outreach to the retirement home. They then joined us later in the evening when we went to the local City Mission to serve in the kitchen, and also joined us as we led worship in the chapel service.
D'Andre, the man who is in charge of the activities on Sunday morning at the retirement home also came with us to the chapel service at the mission. He brought his two year old son, Jeremiah, whom we also met for the first time on Sunday. God has been speaking to him lately. Our neighbor, Pastor Paul, delivered the message and our friend came forward at the end and I was able to pray with him. God is not silent!!
We also have been developing a relationship with the cook at the Mission, Theo. He is an employee, not a resident. God has been working in his life as well. When Sam and I first met him he shared his passion for music, he writes and plays guitar (he is into jazz). This last Sunday he shared that the music that he has been writing has taken on a spiritual significance for him, and it has done so seemingly on its own; he has not set out to write about spiritual things. The group of guys he plays with are not so interested in this and so he wanted to hang out with us and jam. We had to coax it out of him, but when we finally got him to play us some of his stuff, I was really impressed. The guitar is really slow, mellow, jazzy, and the lyrics are very deep and meaningful, with kind of a spoken word, rap style happening.
We had another great evening at the City Mission and I had the good fortune of leading worship with someone on the drum kit who had never played with other instruments before. I have only ever played with a kit once, and Shawn (Tommy's son) had never played the drums with a group before. Our practice session sounded pretty bad, but we prayed and encouraged one another that God was happy that we would make a joyful noise to him (emphasis on noise!). We led the men in worship that evening, and I know that they were blessed. Many of them were engaged with God in worship. I was happy that Shawn could participate; it was right that he do so...
I think I could ramble on and on about the various open doors that are being presented to us, Tamy and I got to speak at a college group a couple of weeks ago, Sam and Dre were there also; and we were all able to encourage and pray for several of the students. I continue to see God moving in my workplace. I have had more spiritual conversations with customers and co-workers, and now Sam works for the same company as I. We continue to have new people coming to our Wednesday night group, we are trying to work through the issue of kids as we have our two, another two from another family, and probably a fifth this upcoming Wednesday. What a wonderful "problem" to have! Tamy continues to meet with other women in her Mom's Meetup group.
This morning we were remarking, (I even got teary-eyed!) about how wonderfully different the people in our church are. We have street people and successful entrepreneurs, students and parents, educated and blue collar, people of different background and personality, ethnicity and economic status. I do not believe we have reached the place where we are as diverse as heaven, but we are on our way, and heaven looks on with cheers!
At some point in the future I hope to have some exciting news about new opportunities at the mission, but I do not want to post about them until they have become a reality. Please pray that God would continue to allow us to serve at the Mission, and would open doors wider at the local college campus. These are the two areas that I feel are primary (at least for the church, for us as individuals we should view our primary ministry as our jobs as they take up the bulk of our time).
2.16.2007
Created for Such a Time as this?
I work at a small Cafe. In this cafe are 8 of the most unique people I know. This town is full of the most unique people I know. I have never, ever met anybody like the people I have met here in Buffalo. Life is so different here and I often feel somewhat out of place. I am starting to make friends and everything so that is great but life is not the same.
I was at work the other day and I was listening to all these stories about whoring and heroine and I was thinking I have never met people so crazy and so different from myself or the people I know and love in California; I started to question my job and what I am doing there. I am so different from these people. I am nothing like them. But now that I think about it the common thread is our need for Jesus. While I was thinking about it I was thinking that I just don't fit in. They are too "unsaved" they must "bring me down" spiritually, but in thinking that it must bring Christians down in general to hang out with only Christians. Our parallel world just doesn't cut it. We need the lost. Jesus needed the lost. I hung out with someone quite a few weeks ago and they wanted to know if they could take a couple of hits in front of me. All they had was this dried up little joint that someones mom had found and they just wanted to finish it up. I was so wary of it. I told them I didn't know how I felt about it. I said "Just do it and we'll see what happens". So they did it. I had such a fun time with that person. It wasn't even fun because they were high. In fact I couldn't even tell if that dried up joint did anything. Some one told me once that Jesus went to parties where people were having sex right there. I think that sometimes we miss the point. I think that sometimes I miss the point. This is the first time in my Christian life where the only saved friends that I have are the ones that I live with and this is the way that it should be. That was the thing that brought me back to reality about hanging out with people that are too "unsaved". What would Christianity look like today if Jesus only hung out with the righteous? What would Christianity look like if the disciples only hung out with each other? We wouldn't have even know there was a Jesus. Do I fit in at my job? Certainly not and certainly yes? Do I fit in, in this town? Certainly not and certainly yes. I belong at this crazy cafe with these crazy people because I was created for this time.
God give us the revelation of what hell is like so that we might be more fervent in our prayers for others and please let us always have more unsaved friends than friends that know you.
Amen
I was at work the other day and I was listening to all these stories about whoring and heroine and I was thinking I have never met people so crazy and so different from myself or the people I know and love in California; I started to question my job and what I am doing there. I am so different from these people. I am nothing like them. But now that I think about it the common thread is our need for Jesus. While I was thinking about it I was thinking that I just don't fit in. They are too "unsaved" they must "bring me down" spiritually, but in thinking that it must bring Christians down in general to hang out with only Christians. Our parallel world just doesn't cut it. We need the lost. Jesus needed the lost. I hung out with someone quite a few weeks ago and they wanted to know if they could take a couple of hits in front of me. All they had was this dried up little joint that someones mom had found and they just wanted to finish it up. I was so wary of it. I told them I didn't know how I felt about it. I said "Just do it and we'll see what happens". So they did it. I had such a fun time with that person. It wasn't even fun because they were high. In fact I couldn't even tell if that dried up joint did anything. Some one told me once that Jesus went to parties where people were having sex right there. I think that sometimes we miss the point. I think that sometimes I miss the point. This is the first time in my Christian life where the only saved friends that I have are the ones that I live with and this is the way that it should be. That was the thing that brought me back to reality about hanging out with people that are too "unsaved". What would Christianity look like today if Jesus only hung out with the righteous? What would Christianity look like if the disciples only hung out with each other? We wouldn't have even know there was a Jesus. Do I fit in at my job? Certainly not and certainly yes? Do I fit in, in this town? Certainly not and certainly yes. I belong at this crazy cafe with these crazy people because I was created for this time.
God give us the revelation of what hell is like so that we might be more fervent in our prayers for others and please let us always have more unsaved friends than friends that know you.
Amen
1.31.2007
Book Review
Wright, N. T.
Following Jesus
This is a collection of Wright's sermons that offer an insightful look into the person of Jesus, and the implications that Jesus has upon our lives. Wright discusses topics such as fear in "The God who Raises the Dead," and servant-hood in "The Servant-King." Ultimately, Wright paints a wonderful picture of the world-view of Jesus on topics from Heaven and Hell, to the mind, to the created world around us.
Following Jesus
This is a collection of Wright's sermons that offer an insightful look into the person of Jesus, and the implications that Jesus has upon our lives. Wright discusses topics such as fear in "The God who Raises the Dead," and servant-hood in "The Servant-King." Ultimately, Wright paints a wonderful picture of the world-view of Jesus on topics from Heaven and Hell, to the mind, to the created world around us.
1.01.2007
12.28.2006
Life
Asking the wrong questions is the surest way to get the wrong answers!
And sometimes…
…asking questions is the surest way to get answers that, right or wrong, will distract us from the path of action in front of us.
Remember, “Knowing the path, and walking the path, are not the same thing.”
Our relationship to God is not about answers to questions but about interaction with a super-personal being who fathered the whole of creation. To reduce that interaction to a series of propositional truths is to miss the whole point (not that these too, do not have their time and place as God is immediate as well as transcendent). It is akin to reducing our whole network of pains and pleasures, familiarity, love and sacrifice, that we call “family,” to a genealogical record. It is not the real thing, it is a statement about the real thing (albeit an accurate one).
Or, as someone once wrote, “Faith without works is dead.”
It is a dangerous thing to be consumed with knowledge, it can inhibit action; we can be so consumed with the minutia of theological definition that we fail at loving the individual in front of us or the God who created, MAY THIS NEVER BE!
There is a disconnect between what we know and how we act. We must be wary of this; knowing something about God does not make us close to Him, knowing much about the Bible does not equate to living a life shaped by its pages. We should seek first to live our faith, in that pursuit our faith will grow. If we seek however, to grow our knowledge as an end in itself, it will cause our very selves to whither away.
How wonderful that God is not this way. Who He is and what He does are not inconsistent; when Moses asked God who He was, He answered Moses, “I AM.”
May we also, in this same simple yet transcendent way, BE…
I have always been a great fan of C. S. Lewis. I have said that, “I am at home in his mind.” I have grown up reading his fantasies, and been influenced by his concepts, always, I am amazed at his uncanny ability to approach an issue from an odd angle. I read recently a chapter out of Miracles that spoke to me about the nature of God.
“The Pantheist’s God does nothing, demands nothing. He is there if you wish for Him, like a book on a shelf. He will not pursue you. There is no danger that at any time heaven and earth should flee away at His glance. If He were the truth, then we could really say that all the Christian images of kingship were a historical accident of which our religion ought to be cleansed. It is with a shock that we discover them to be indispensable. You have had a shock like that before, in connection with smaller matters-when the line pulls a your hand, when something breathes beside you in the darkness. So here; the shock comes at the precise moment when the thrill of life is communicated to us along the clue we have been following. It is always shocking to meet life where we thought we were alone. ‘Look out!’ we cry, ‘it’s alive’. And therefore this is the very point at which so many draw back-I would have done so myself if I could-and proceed no further with Christianity. An ‘impersonal God’-well and good. A subjective God of beauty, truth and goodness, inside our own heads-better still. A formless life-force surging through us, a vast power which we can tap-best of all. But God Himself, alive, pulling at the other end of the cord, perhaps approaching at an infinite speed, the hunter, king, husband-that is quite another matter. There comes a moment when the children who have been playing at burglars hush suddenly: was that a real footstep in the hall? There comes a moment when people who have been dabbling in religion (‘Man’s search for God!’) suddenly draw back. Supposing we really found Him? We never meant it to come to that! Worse still, supposing He had found us?
So it is a sort of Rubicon. One goes across: or not. But if one does, there is no manner of security against miracles. One may be in for anything.”
Chapter 11 - Christianity and ‘Religion’
All of us want God to be a ‘tame’ lion… (which is to cease to be a lion)
…none of us are truly comfortable with the ‘good’ lion; who’s very goodness promises us no such security or comfort, only life eternal and infinite and abundant.
“I know deep down there must be an exciting world waiting for us if we would only pull back the curtain or jump to the other side of the ravine – but we're all too afraid to make the leap. My inner being says, ‘Jump!’”
Burlap Bob
And sometimes…
…asking questions is the surest way to get answers that, right or wrong, will distract us from the path of action in front of us.
Remember, “Knowing the path, and walking the path, are not the same thing.”
Our relationship to God is not about answers to questions but about interaction with a super-personal being who fathered the whole of creation. To reduce that interaction to a series of propositional truths is to miss the whole point (not that these too, do not have their time and place as God is immediate as well as transcendent). It is akin to reducing our whole network of pains and pleasures, familiarity, love and sacrifice, that we call “family,” to a genealogical record. It is not the real thing, it is a statement about the real thing (albeit an accurate one).
Or, as someone once wrote, “Faith without works is dead.”
It is a dangerous thing to be consumed with knowledge, it can inhibit action; we can be so consumed with the minutia of theological definition that we fail at loving the individual in front of us or the God who created, MAY THIS NEVER BE!
There is a disconnect between what we know and how we act. We must be wary of this; knowing something about God does not make us close to Him, knowing much about the Bible does not equate to living a life shaped by its pages. We should seek first to live our faith, in that pursuit our faith will grow. If we seek however, to grow our knowledge as an end in itself, it will cause our very selves to whither away.
How wonderful that God is not this way. Who He is and what He does are not inconsistent; when Moses asked God who He was, He answered Moses, “I AM.”
May we also, in this same simple yet transcendent way, BE…
I have always been a great fan of C. S. Lewis. I have said that, “I am at home in his mind.” I have grown up reading his fantasies, and been influenced by his concepts, always, I am amazed at his uncanny ability to approach an issue from an odd angle. I read recently a chapter out of Miracles that spoke to me about the nature of God.
“The Pantheist’s God does nothing, demands nothing. He is there if you wish for Him, like a book on a shelf. He will not pursue you. There is no danger that at any time heaven and earth should flee away at His glance. If He were the truth, then we could really say that all the Christian images of kingship were a historical accident of which our religion ought to be cleansed. It is with a shock that we discover them to be indispensable. You have had a shock like that before, in connection with smaller matters-when the line pulls a your hand, when something breathes beside you in the darkness. So here; the shock comes at the precise moment when the thrill of life is communicated to us along the clue we have been following. It is always shocking to meet life where we thought we were alone. ‘Look out!’ we cry, ‘it’s alive’. And therefore this is the very point at which so many draw back-I would have done so myself if I could-and proceed no further with Christianity. An ‘impersonal God’-well and good. A subjective God of beauty, truth and goodness, inside our own heads-better still. A formless life-force surging through us, a vast power which we can tap-best of all. But God Himself, alive, pulling at the other end of the cord, perhaps approaching at an infinite speed, the hunter, king, husband-that is quite another matter. There comes a moment when the children who have been playing at burglars hush suddenly: was that a real footstep in the hall? There comes a moment when people who have been dabbling in religion (‘Man’s search for God!’) suddenly draw back. Supposing we really found Him? We never meant it to come to that! Worse still, supposing He had found us?
So it is a sort of Rubicon. One goes across: or not. But if one does, there is no manner of security against miracles. One may be in for anything.”
Chapter 11 - Christianity and ‘Religion’
All of us want God to be a ‘tame’ lion… (which is to cease to be a lion)
…none of us are truly comfortable with the ‘good’ lion; who’s very goodness promises us no such security or comfort, only life eternal and infinite and abundant.
“I know deep down there must be an exciting world waiting for us if we would only pull back the curtain or jump to the other side of the ravine – but we're all too afraid to make the leap. My inner being says, ‘Jump!’”
Burlap Bob
12.16.2006
What do you see?
Do you see your enemies. or do you see the armies of God?
Are you overwhelmed by the darkness of your present circumstances, or are you too busy glorifying the God of Light?
A vision:
Standing in the dark, inky, blackness; looking through grey shades of increasing light. A pile of rusted, dirty, blooded, chains and shackles lies on the ground; a door of metal bars is flung open wide, and beyond...
...a man walks, free! ...into a world of glorious color and brightness, free and alive!
The Word:
Acts 16:22-34
If we will simply do what we are called to do, God will shake the very foundations of the earth; He will bring His glory, He will reveal Himself to those around us. Are you in prison, sing mightily to the God of Hope so that others in prison might know of His Glory!
2 Kings 6:15-17
Are you overwhelmed by the darkness of your present circumstances, or are you too busy glorifying the God of Light?
A vision:
Standing in the dark, inky, blackness; looking through grey shades of increasing light. A pile of rusted, dirty, blooded, chains and shackles lies on the ground; a door of metal bars is flung open wide, and beyond...
...a man walks, free! ...into a world of glorious color and brightness, free and alive!
The Word:
Acts 16:22-34
If we will simply do what we are called to do, God will shake the very foundations of the earth; He will bring His glory, He will reveal Himself to those around us. Are you in prison, sing mightily to the God of Hope so that others in prison might know of His Glory!
2 Kings 6:15-17
12.08.2006
What would it take to make you leave?
I realize that few people will like or agree with every circumstance or problem that they find themselves in. Something is bound to strike you the wrong way or simply be misunderstood.
Often when people don't like something or someone for whatever reason, they will simply say they are quitting. I remember one case in particular after a magazine issue, "Cat Got Your Chum?" where I explained that I had to give away my cats because my wife was terrified of cats. A lady emailed to say that she was not subscribing because she couldn't respect any man who would put his wife over his cats. Perhaps she had one too many 'good cat/bad man' experiences.
Many instances are similar. I began to see the parallel with other relationships in life: Job - marriage - siblings - friends - parent and child - churches - schools - even countries.
Many will leave a relationship for the slightest reason. Marriages break up over trivial things. Lifelong friendships are destroyed in a blink. Brothers and sisters won't speak to each other nor children to parents. You'd be surprised how many prayer requests I get from grandparents asking for prayer to soften the hearts of their children to let them see their
grandchildren.
Something made them leave. Something broke the relationship. Something caused the split.
I told my wife when we married what it would take for me to leave her. She would have to leave this earth; other than that, I was committed, come cats or high water.
With every relationship that you have, that question looms. With the increased sensitivities these days, the answers on that list are often long.
When you ask yourself the question, "What would it take to make me leave?" the shorter and more traumatic the list, the more likely the relationship will endure because with all
relationships, sooner or later something is likely to happen.
So think about your relationships, and ask yourself the question:
What would it take to make me leave?
...and for the relationships that you really want to last, perhaps you should shorten the list.
Have a great weekend ahead.
(AUTHOR UNKNOWN).
Often when people don't like something or someone for whatever reason, they will simply say they are quitting. I remember one case in particular after a magazine issue, "Cat Got Your Chum?" where I explained that I had to give away my cats because my wife was terrified of cats. A lady emailed to say that she was not subscribing because she couldn't respect any man who would put his wife over his cats. Perhaps she had one too many 'good cat/bad man' experiences.
Many instances are similar. I began to see the parallel with other relationships in life: Job - marriage - siblings - friends - parent and child - churches - schools - even countries.
Many will leave a relationship for the slightest reason. Marriages break up over trivial things. Lifelong friendships are destroyed in a blink. Brothers and sisters won't speak to each other nor children to parents. You'd be surprised how many prayer requests I get from grandparents asking for prayer to soften the hearts of their children to let them see their
grandchildren.
Something made them leave. Something broke the relationship. Something caused the split.
I told my wife when we married what it would take for me to leave her. She would have to leave this earth; other than that, I was committed, come cats or high water.
With every relationship that you have, that question looms. With the increased sensitivities these days, the answers on that list are often long.
When you ask yourself the question, "What would it take to make me leave?" the shorter and more traumatic the list, the more likely the relationship will endure because with all
relationships, sooner or later something is likely to happen.
So think about your relationships, and ask yourself the question:
What would it take to make me leave?
...and for the relationships that you really want to last, perhaps you should shorten the list.
Have a great weekend ahead.
(AUTHOR UNKNOWN).
11.23.2006
11.19.2006
God of Wonders!
What an amazing God we serve!
He has been busy with us! He has spent the last few months teaching us how to live together, settling us into the routines of our new life in Buffalo, and giving us endless opportunities for relationships. We have began many relationships, and settled into a few regular routines of blessing. Our Sunday mornings have been a regular visit to a nursing home a block away; it seems to be a real blessing to the residents and staff of the facility. Our Wednesdays consist of a cell group meeting; fellowship and a meal, worship and prayer, and the Bible and discussion. We have had a handful of visitors to our cell meeting, and it seems as though some of them are connecting.
Our friend, Tommy, has been a real source of joy to me personally. He is constantly encouraging us with how blessed He is by our relationship. He continues to come with us to the retirement home and draw portraits, he was even doing portraits of staff members this past Sunday; he is becoming quite a hit! Pray for him, he struggles with demons of which most of us will never have the faintest comprehension...
Frank is a student from Taiwan at Buffalo State University whom we have adopted for the year. He has come over for lunch, and we have met for breakfast. I have had several spiritual conversations with him. He is a Daoist as is his family. Pray that God would bless his studies, and spark his heart with passion for Him.
Tamy and Dre are beginning their training to volunteer at Literacy Volunteers which is an organization that helps ESL children and adults learn the English language. There is a large Spanish-speaking population in Buffalo (Puerto Rican) as well as a surprisingly significant population of refugees from a couple of African nations. (We are excited to begin frequenting a local Somali restaurant when our budget loosens up a bit!) Pray that God sends us the nations right here in our own City!
Mary is now officially a volunteer at a local AIDS clinic. She went to her first event, she helped setup, and tear down, for a banquet in support of the organization. It was quite an experience for her (Dre also went with her), with dancing drag queens, chocolate fountains, tango lessons, wine-tasting, and prizes including an autographed photo of Ru-Paul. Exactly the type of party that the Pharisees wouldn't approve of Jesus going to... We have begun following in the footsteps of our sending church. We gave a tithe of our monthly church budget as an 'outreach offering' to the AIDS clinic, along with a letter explaining to them that we love Jesus and want to serve them as they serve a group of people that He loves. After reading the letter and receiving the money, the volunteer coordinator asked Mary some questions about our church and then opened the door for us to serve their clients.
I have finally begun to see some headway in my desire to get involved at the BSU campus. I had the leader of the InterVarsity group on campus over for lunch. (IV is a Christian student organization that is nationwide) She explained to me that at this time their only real need is for someone to 'disciple the young men!' We are moving forward (much to slowly for me!), and needless to say, I am very excited at the prospect of being involved in the lives of the men God wants to use to change the face of the city of Buffalo and the world! Pray for open doors to reach out to the students who are unconnected to student ministries already in existence.
All this to say that, God is beginning to open doors, and open other doors wider. Our relationships, and service, are starting to show the signs of fruit. However, I saved the best story for last...
We have had several opportunities to serve at the local Mission. We are still in the process of setting up a regular schedule to help out in the kitchen, but we have led worship and spoken at the chapel service a few times already. The pastor who lives across the street from me (his name is Paul, he is from Nigeria), invited us to come with him to the mission this past Sunday evening. He was going to preach, but he was hoping we could lead worship. We had fun preparing, we decided Sam would lead some, I would lead some, we would both play guitar, and Mary would play drums. Paul's worship leader, Edward, plays piano very well, and so he showed up and simply played along with us.
The night began with Carl, a young man (18) who has been coming to our small group and our Sunday outreach for the past two weeks, sharing with me that he had read the beginning of a book I gave him, The Father Heart of God, and it made him cry. Pray for Carl, he is a year into his faith journey and needs all the prayers he can get.
We met up with a couple from another Church in the area, ran through our worship set, and began to pray. We opened with the song 'God of Wonders' and when the chorus began you could hear the voices of many of the men shouting their praise to God. It was awesome... but only the beginning of the night.
The men continued to praise God with loud voices. Paul got up and preached on the many choices we make in our lives and the only choice that matters, surrender to the Lord of Life. We then got up and led the men in a spirited rendition of 'I Surrender All,' at which point Paul asked any who would want to surrender to Jesus to come and pray with us. A man named Tyrone walked up to me...
Tyrone is a large, soft-spoken, southern man. He has been in the chapel service every time I have been there so far, very engaged in what is being said and sung. I assumed he was already given to Christ. He told me, "I've never done this before, I don't know how to pray."
I prayed for him, that God would bless him; my friend Carl also prayed for him. Tyrone took out his cell phone and called his girlfriend, said hello, and then handed the phone to me, introducing me as, "one of God's people." I asked her if she were a spiritual person, she responded, "I believe in God." I asked if she were connected to a Church, she was not; I asked if she would like to be, "Yes," she said. I told her I would give Tyrone my number and we would get together. I then asked Tyrone, "Would you like to pray, is there anything on your heart that God has been doing with you tonight, anything you would want to say to him?"
Tyrone asked me how to pray. "You talk to God just the same way you are talking to me..."
"Hello, this is Tyrone, I'm just here with some of your people..." he began his first conversation with his Creator! How meek, humble, amazing, and earth-shattering!
When Tyrone finished praying I told him, "You can call God Papa, you can call Him Father, you can call Him Daddy, you can call Him whatever you like; He is your Father and He loves you dearly, you are his Son and He loves you tremendously."
This big, soft-spoken man began to weep, "I love you Daddy, I love you Father!"
He grabbed onto me, continuing to proclaim his love for our Father in between sobs; I began to cry...
We prayed together. I asked Tyrone what he was doing for Thanksgiving. He ecstatically agreed to come for dinner.
Pray that Tyrone's new-found faith is a new beginning, not merely an 'event.' Pray that he and his girlfriend take our invitation for Thanksgiving dinner.
Pray for us that God would continue to use us to love the city of Buffalo.
Never cease to praise Him for his glorious wonder!
This is a picture from the night at the mission; Paul is the man in the center, Edward is the worship leader of Paul's church, he is the man on the right. The gray-haired man and the other woman are Curt and Linda from a church outside of Buffalo.
He has been busy with us! He has spent the last few months teaching us how to live together, settling us into the routines of our new life in Buffalo, and giving us endless opportunities for relationships. We have began many relationships, and settled into a few regular routines of blessing. Our Sunday mornings have been a regular visit to a nursing home a block away; it seems to be a real blessing to the residents and staff of the facility. Our Wednesdays consist of a cell group meeting; fellowship and a meal, worship and prayer, and the Bible and discussion. We have had a handful of visitors to our cell meeting, and it seems as though some of them are connecting.
Our friend, Tommy, has been a real source of joy to me personally. He is constantly encouraging us with how blessed He is by our relationship. He continues to come with us to the retirement home and draw portraits, he was even doing portraits of staff members this past Sunday; he is becoming quite a hit! Pray for him, he struggles with demons of which most of us will never have the faintest comprehension...
Frank is a student from Taiwan at Buffalo State University whom we have adopted for the year. He has come over for lunch, and we have met for breakfast. I have had several spiritual conversations with him. He is a Daoist as is his family. Pray that God would bless his studies, and spark his heart with passion for Him.
Tamy and Dre are beginning their training to volunteer at Literacy Volunteers which is an organization that helps ESL children and adults learn the English language. There is a large Spanish-speaking population in Buffalo (Puerto Rican) as well as a surprisingly significant population of refugees from a couple of African nations. (We are excited to begin frequenting a local Somali restaurant when our budget loosens up a bit!) Pray that God sends us the nations right here in our own City!
Mary is now officially a volunteer at a local AIDS clinic. She went to her first event, she helped setup, and tear down, for a banquet in support of the organization. It was quite an experience for her (Dre also went with her), with dancing drag queens, chocolate fountains, tango lessons, wine-tasting, and prizes including an autographed photo of Ru-Paul. Exactly the type of party that the Pharisees wouldn't approve of Jesus going to... We have begun following in the footsteps of our sending church. We gave a tithe of our monthly church budget as an 'outreach offering' to the AIDS clinic, along with a letter explaining to them that we love Jesus and want to serve them as they serve a group of people that He loves. After reading the letter and receiving the money, the volunteer coordinator asked Mary some questions about our church and then opened the door for us to serve their clients.
I have finally begun to see some headway in my desire to get involved at the BSU campus. I had the leader of the InterVarsity group on campus over for lunch. (IV is a Christian student organization that is nationwide) She explained to me that at this time their only real need is for someone to 'disciple the young men!' We are moving forward (much to slowly for me!), and needless to say, I am very excited at the prospect of being involved in the lives of the men God wants to use to change the face of the city of Buffalo and the world! Pray for open doors to reach out to the students who are unconnected to student ministries already in existence.
All this to say that, God is beginning to open doors, and open other doors wider. Our relationships, and service, are starting to show the signs of fruit. However, I saved the best story for last...
We have had several opportunities to serve at the local Mission. We are still in the process of setting up a regular schedule to help out in the kitchen, but we have led worship and spoken at the chapel service a few times already. The pastor who lives across the street from me (his name is Paul, he is from Nigeria), invited us to come with him to the mission this past Sunday evening. He was going to preach, but he was hoping we could lead worship. We had fun preparing, we decided Sam would lead some, I would lead some, we would both play guitar, and Mary would play drums. Paul's worship leader, Edward, plays piano very well, and so he showed up and simply played along with us.
The night began with Carl, a young man (18) who has been coming to our small group and our Sunday outreach for the past two weeks, sharing with me that he had read the beginning of a book I gave him, The Father Heart of God, and it made him cry. Pray for Carl, he is a year into his faith journey and needs all the prayers he can get.
We met up with a couple from another Church in the area, ran through our worship set, and began to pray. We opened with the song 'God of Wonders' and when the chorus began you could hear the voices of many of the men shouting their praise to God. It was awesome... but only the beginning of the night.
The men continued to praise God with loud voices. Paul got up and preached on the many choices we make in our lives and the only choice that matters, surrender to the Lord of Life. We then got up and led the men in a spirited rendition of 'I Surrender All,' at which point Paul asked any who would want to surrender to Jesus to come and pray with us. A man named Tyrone walked up to me...
Tyrone is a large, soft-spoken, southern man. He has been in the chapel service every time I have been there so far, very engaged in what is being said and sung. I assumed he was already given to Christ. He told me, "I've never done this before, I don't know how to pray."
I prayed for him, that God would bless him; my friend Carl also prayed for him. Tyrone took out his cell phone and called his girlfriend, said hello, and then handed the phone to me, introducing me as, "one of God's people." I asked her if she were a spiritual person, she responded, "I believe in God." I asked if she were connected to a Church, she was not; I asked if she would like to be, "Yes," she said. I told her I would give Tyrone my number and we would get together. I then asked Tyrone, "Would you like to pray, is there anything on your heart that God has been doing with you tonight, anything you would want to say to him?"
Tyrone asked me how to pray. "You talk to God just the same way you are talking to me..."
"Hello, this is Tyrone, I'm just here with some of your people..." he began his first conversation with his Creator! How meek, humble, amazing, and earth-shattering!
When Tyrone finished praying I told him, "You can call God Papa, you can call Him Father, you can call Him Daddy, you can call Him whatever you like; He is your Father and He loves you dearly, you are his Son and He loves you tremendously."
This big, soft-spoken man began to weep, "I love you Daddy, I love you Father!"
He grabbed onto me, continuing to proclaim his love for our Father in between sobs; I began to cry...
We prayed together. I asked Tyrone what he was doing for Thanksgiving. He ecstatically agreed to come for dinner.
Pray that Tyrone's new-found faith is a new beginning, not merely an 'event.' Pray that he and his girlfriend take our invitation for Thanksgiving dinner.
Pray for us that God would continue to use us to love the city of Buffalo.
Never cease to praise Him for his glorious wonder!
This is a picture from the night at the mission; Paul is the man in the center, Edward is the worship leader of Paul's church, he is the man on the right. The gray-haired man and the other woman are Curt and Linda from a church outside of Buffalo.
11.16.2006
compassion and mercy, reflection of love?
This is something that I was thinking about the other day. I was talking with a friend of mine about a passage of scripture
"For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
Romans 9:15" and what we thought about that. My friend was saying how this passage made her angry because it seems like God is showing partiality to some and not to others but he tells us not to do this. The next day I was thinking about this and praying and I felt like I was being given a revalation about this subject...
These are the thoughts that I had about this topic while praying and it was so clear that I had to write it down for my friend and she told me that it spoke to her. So here were my thoughts about it:
God's mercy and compassion in not a reflection of his love. In most of us, we are usually able to show mercy and compassion to those that we love and so it is a reflection of our love for a person. However I believe that God loves everyone and that his mercy and compassion is not dished out to those that he loves more. Rather that mercy, compassion, and hard lives are the tool with which God uses to help us fulfill our destiny.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
Romans 8:28.
I was thinking that at times those of us who have had really hard lives feel slighted, like God loves those who have had an easier life more but I don't think that this is the case. I think that it really is just each of us have different things that God uses in our lives to develop us into the people that he has called us to be. We all need to know the whole love of God if we are ever to really love the world and I don't think that God would tell us to love each other as he has loved us, if his love for us was slighted or if we were loved less than others.
So my thought is that to everyone that has ever felt like they wish that the could have been God's favorite don't fret you are, If your life has been hard be encouraged that it was not because you were loved less but rather that God knows and loves you more intimately that anyone and he alone knows what will or will not make you into the man or woman he has destined you to be. So we all must grab the bull by the horns and embrace all that is good, and all that is bad knowing that you been given these opportunites because you are so loved that you will not be left to stagnate but rather always in everything given the opportunity to grow...
(please remember these are just my thoughts and ponderings while praying)
"For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
Romans 9:15" and what we thought about that. My friend was saying how this passage made her angry because it seems like God is showing partiality to some and not to others but he tells us not to do this. The next day I was thinking about this and praying and I felt like I was being given a revalation about this subject...
These are the thoughts that I had about this topic while praying and it was so clear that I had to write it down for my friend and she told me that it spoke to her. So here were my thoughts about it:
God's mercy and compassion in not a reflection of his love. In most of us, we are usually able to show mercy and compassion to those that we love and so it is a reflection of our love for a person. However I believe that God loves everyone and that his mercy and compassion is not dished out to those that he loves more. Rather that mercy, compassion, and hard lives are the tool with which God uses to help us fulfill our destiny.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
Romans 8:28.
I was thinking that at times those of us who have had really hard lives feel slighted, like God loves those who have had an easier life more but I don't think that this is the case. I think that it really is just each of us have different things that God uses in our lives to develop us into the people that he has called us to be. We all need to know the whole love of God if we are ever to really love the world and I don't think that God would tell us to love each other as he has loved us, if his love for us was slighted or if we were loved less than others.
So my thought is that to everyone that has ever felt like they wish that the could have been God's favorite don't fret you are, If your life has been hard be encouraged that it was not because you were loved less but rather that God knows and loves you more intimately that anyone and he alone knows what will or will not make you into the man or woman he has destined you to be. So we all must grab the bull by the horns and embrace all that is good, and all that is bad knowing that you been given these opportunites because you are so loved that you will not be left to stagnate but rather always in everything given the opportunity to grow...
(please remember these are just my thoughts and ponderings while praying)
11.11.2006
Cells
*These are old thoughts, I just found them, and cleaned up to make them comprehensible*
I have come to the conclusion that health consists of a unique blend of structure and no structure; clarity and ambiguity. To use a natural metaphor a plant grows best when we combine the completely spontaneous with a structure that does not prohibit the natural growth of the plant but rather aids it. A ditch for water, a watering schedule to maintain proper ammounts, soil additives, weeding, posts for growing vines, etc. Just so, when we speak of Church health, there are quite natural and spontaneous effects of the Spirit of God within a human being. Once the Spirit has been 'planted' we do not make it grow, and we can kill it by over-structure (thinking that we can make the growth happen by our administration), but we can also help its growth by optimal levels of structure properly implemented.
The pro's and con's:
First we must state that amorphism itself is a structure. In order to have 'no structure' one must have a void. A random structure is still a structure. A neglected garden in one sense does not lack structure, rather it lacks intentionality. There are still the structures provided by the natural processes themselves (fiber structures, chemical processes, various ecological niches, etc.), there is simply not the rows, schedules, etc. that allow for the plants protection, care, and harvest.
Secondly we must state that it is easier to change a plan than to create one. The one more likely to be able to creatively adapt to new situations is the one who has deeply thought out the current situation and mapped out a plan to deal with it. The individual who has neglected a proscribed course of action, will not even have a framework with which to engage the future, much less to creatively change to meet it.
Structure is beneficial in that it helps to provide direction. Just as a vine needs something to climb, so do our spiritual lives need direction. Boundaries are immensely helpful to prevent injury, or even just redundancy. Freedom is beneficial in that it allows for growth.
Too much structure will actually impede growth.
Not enough structure will fail to protect and guide growth, and ultimately hinder the harvest.
Too much structure will prohibit spontenaity...
...not enough structure will prevent purposeful direction
An adequate ammount of structure will provide needed direction and prevent useless redundancy...
...an adequate ammount of freedom will allow for creative response to new contexts, and will prevent the reduction of what is inherently organic to a formula.
For this reason, I believe Churches should structure around relationships. We have seen that structure is ubiquitous and unavoidable, even (in spite of my own proclivity to 'kill structure') necessary. Yet in structuring our Church around a program we lose the thing that is important; this would be akin to structuring your apple orchard as an assembly line. The opposite error would be to refuse to intentionally structure the Church; this would be akin to letting the apples take root wherever they fell. Neither makes sense. The central aspect of the apple orchard is the living, growing, healthy apple tree. The orchard needs to be structured in such a way as to maintain the health of the tree and produce healthy fruit. However, the purpose of the apple orchard is providing fruit to the customer at a reasonable price. The orchard needs to be structured in a way so as to make the fruit accessable for harvesting it (hence the rows). So too, in a Church we must structure the Church around the most important thing, relationships; the individual with Jesus, and the individuals with each other. This could look like a myriad of different structural possibilities, however, there would be some commonalities:
The structure would serve and encourage the individual relationship with Jesus.
The structure would serve and encourage the individual relationship with other disciples.
The structure would serve and encourage the inclusion of individuals outside the community.
The structure would serve and encourage propagation, at the individual, relational, and community levels.
We must be confident that whatever structures we implement, whether by intentional planning or unintentional neglect, should accomplish these purposes.
I have come to the conclusion that health consists of a unique blend of structure and no structure; clarity and ambiguity. To use a natural metaphor a plant grows best when we combine the completely spontaneous with a structure that does not prohibit the natural growth of the plant but rather aids it. A ditch for water, a watering schedule to maintain proper ammounts, soil additives, weeding, posts for growing vines, etc. Just so, when we speak of Church health, there are quite natural and spontaneous effects of the Spirit of God within a human being. Once the Spirit has been 'planted' we do not make it grow, and we can kill it by over-structure (thinking that we can make the growth happen by our administration), but we can also help its growth by optimal levels of structure properly implemented.
The pro's and con's:
First we must state that amorphism itself is a structure. In order to have 'no structure' one must have a void. A random structure is still a structure. A neglected garden in one sense does not lack structure, rather it lacks intentionality. There are still the structures provided by the natural processes themselves (fiber structures, chemical processes, various ecological niches, etc.), there is simply not the rows, schedules, etc. that allow for the plants protection, care, and harvest.
Secondly we must state that it is easier to change a plan than to create one. The one more likely to be able to creatively adapt to new situations is the one who has deeply thought out the current situation and mapped out a plan to deal with it. The individual who has neglected a proscribed course of action, will not even have a framework with which to engage the future, much less to creatively change to meet it.
Structure is beneficial in that it helps to provide direction. Just as a vine needs something to climb, so do our spiritual lives need direction. Boundaries are immensely helpful to prevent injury, or even just redundancy. Freedom is beneficial in that it allows for growth.
Too much structure will actually impede growth.
Not enough structure will fail to protect and guide growth, and ultimately hinder the harvest.
Too much structure will prohibit spontenaity...
...not enough structure will prevent purposeful direction
An adequate ammount of structure will provide needed direction and prevent useless redundancy...
...an adequate ammount of freedom will allow for creative response to new contexts, and will prevent the reduction of what is inherently organic to a formula.
For this reason, I believe Churches should structure around relationships. We have seen that structure is ubiquitous and unavoidable, even (in spite of my own proclivity to 'kill structure') necessary. Yet in structuring our Church around a program we lose the thing that is important; this would be akin to structuring your apple orchard as an assembly line. The opposite error would be to refuse to intentionally structure the Church; this would be akin to letting the apples take root wherever they fell. Neither makes sense. The central aspect of the apple orchard is the living, growing, healthy apple tree. The orchard needs to be structured in such a way as to maintain the health of the tree and produce healthy fruit. However, the purpose of the apple orchard is providing fruit to the customer at a reasonable price. The orchard needs to be structured in a way so as to make the fruit accessable for harvesting it (hence the rows). So too, in a Church we must structure the Church around the most important thing, relationships; the individual with Jesus, and the individuals with each other. This could look like a myriad of different structural possibilities, however, there would be some commonalities:
The structure would serve and encourage the individual relationship with Jesus.
The structure would serve and encourage the individual relationship with other disciples.
The structure would serve and encourage the inclusion of individuals outside the community.
The structure would serve and encourage propagation, at the individual, relational, and community levels.
We must be confident that whatever structures we implement, whether by intentional planning or unintentional neglect, should accomplish these purposes.
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