I am again blown away and praise God for a church family that remains consistently and boldly open before God. Sunday, was a significant day in the spiritual journey of 170 brothers and sisters in Christ in our church family. That is the number of people who made a once and for all decision to completely submit their kingdom to God's Kingdom.
On Sunday, I promised to send a follow up letter to encourage those making this decision this week. I have decided the most appropriate way for me to do that is through this weekly blog, which I will also print for anyone who may be among those who do not have internet access. Furthermore, since this is a step that Jesus will lead everyone Follower of Christ to take, I figured it would be an encouragement to all of us no matter where we are on our faith journey.
Submitting my kingdom to God's Kingdom involves the following:
OUR CHOICE:
Central to every step in our journey with Christ is our will. God has made up his mind that he will never violate the human will. To violate the human will would be to rob humanity of love. For without the choice to reject and deny love, one does not have the freedom to truly receive and give love. Thus, every step we take with Jesus shares one common denominator and that is our choice.
This includes submitting our kingdom to His. Jesus imitates the invitation, "Anyone who would come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me." In response we have a choice: Will I deny myself--Will I put my will and wishes second to God's will? Will I take up the cross--voluntarily give myself to the work of God's Kingdom on earth?"
A choice is simple and yet challenging. It is as simple as saying yes and as difficult as really meaning it. Nonetheless, the decision 170 people made on Sunday was made by a choice of the will. Let us not underestimate the power of this God-given freedom to choose.
GOD'S GIFT:
Just as every step we take with Jesus involves a choice the choice for every step is the same: In our relationship with Jesus a new step always requires a choice to receive what God gives. Just as we do not earn our salvation, we do not earn the reign of His kingdom in our lives. The choice that was made on Sunday was a choice to receive from God what only God can do. Only he can make his Kingdom of love reign and rule over our hearts and minds. As much as full surrender is a choice, it is even more so a gift from God. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 says, "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful to do it." Read that last line again. That says it all!
THE PROMISE:
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me" Galatians 2:20. Many people, including myself at one time, are afraid to make a choice to receive God's full reign in our lives because we believe a lie. We believe to surrender everything to Christ will mean that we will lose out, miss out, not have fun, not achieve our dreams, etc. The point is, we believe that to submit our Kingdom to His, will in some way produce negative results. The opposite is true. In the verse mentioned above, Paul writes the truth about this step of faith...the truth is whenever we die, then we are free to truly come to life. Remember, Jesus promised to give us abundant life now and forever. The decision to submit to God's Kingdom merely puts one in a position to freely and increasingly discover what it means to live in this new life. Jesus says it best in Matthew 16:25, "Whoever tries to save his/her life will lose it, but he/she who looses his/her life for the sake of the Gospel will gain it."
THE PROCESS:
This step in our journey with Christ is by no means the final step. This is merely one more step in a process of steps that will continue until we see Jesus face to face. We never arrive in this life. The journey with Jesus is a continuous and daily following. Therefore, this step of full surrender is a once and for all decision but it is not at all a final decision. It is a once and for all decision with daily implications. Every day in small and big ways for the rest of my life I will be called upon by Jesus to live out my full surrender to him in what I do with my time, talent, money, suffering and so on and so forth. The decision you made on Sunday simply means that from here on out every time Jesus asks for you to deal with something or give something for him the answer has already been settled. To Jesus our answer from here on out will always be, "Not my will, but yours."
THE GOAL:
The goal of every step we take with Jesus can be summed up in one phrase, "Christ-like Love." If you want to know where Jesus is taking you take a look at his life. In Christ we see that God's love is not passive it is active. God's love is not simply for the individual, it is for the entire world. God's goal for every believer, and that is the Church, is well put in the prayer Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy Kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Jesus dares us to pray, believe and live in such a way that our lives usher in his Kingdom into our world!
I am praying for you this week! Please do not hesitate to email or call me with any questions or thoughts on this subject.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Three of the Most Hopeful Words in the Bible
"Where are you?" I think these three words offer some of the most hopeful of all the words in the Bible. The larger context of that question may help you see why I have drawn that conclusion:
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
Adam and Eve have just turned their backs on God. They have broken trust and intimacy by believing a lie over truth. In place of open companionship, they now hide in shame. The separation from one another and God is overpowering. They hear God call out to them. Instead of running to him they remain hidden.
What will the Father do? Will he rant and rave? Will he send down lightning? Will he simply walk away from them as though he never created them? Certainly, something like that is what Adam and Eve expected. Perhaps we expect the same. But God is not limited by our expectations. God, instead, asks, "Where are you?" In that question God shows that he is not only their Creator, but their Pursuer. God did not just give them life, he now offers to restore their lives. God asks that question not because he does not know where they are but so they can see for themselves where their sin has taken them. He offers this question to help them see that the distance they now feel from God is not because he has moved, but because they have. He asks this question to show them that even though they are hiding in shame, he wants them to be found.
Can we slow down the pace of this day long enough to hear that question for ourselves?
"Where are you?"
"Where are you?"
Hear the love in that question...hear the hope...hear the promise...Hear the voice of God initiating relationship with you.
Now, allow his question to do what questions are designed to do...they are asked to evoke a response. What is your response to God's question, "Where are you?" Does your answer surprise you? Does your answer convict you? Does your answer put you to shame? He asks that question not to condemn you, but to redeem you. Will you keep hiding or will you walk out into the open and let the one searching for you, find you?
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
Adam and Eve have just turned their backs on God. They have broken trust and intimacy by believing a lie over truth. In place of open companionship, they now hide in shame. The separation from one another and God is overpowering. They hear God call out to them. Instead of running to him they remain hidden.
What will the Father do? Will he rant and rave? Will he send down lightning? Will he simply walk away from them as though he never created them? Certainly, something like that is what Adam and Eve expected. Perhaps we expect the same. But God is not limited by our expectations. God, instead, asks, "Where are you?" In that question God shows that he is not only their Creator, but their Pursuer. God did not just give them life, he now offers to restore their lives. God asks that question not because he does not know where they are but so they can see for themselves where their sin has taken them. He offers this question to help them see that the distance they now feel from God is not because he has moved, but because they have. He asks this question to show them that even though they are hiding in shame, he wants them to be found.
Can we slow down the pace of this day long enough to hear that question for ourselves?
"Where are you?"
"Where are you?"
Hear the love in that question...hear the hope...hear the promise...Hear the voice of God initiating relationship with you.
Now, allow his question to do what questions are designed to do...they are asked to evoke a response. What is your response to God's question, "Where are you?" Does your answer surprise you? Does your answer convict you? Does your answer put you to shame? He asks that question not to condemn you, but to redeem you. Will you keep hiding or will you walk out into the open and let the one searching for you, find you?
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
"The Jar"
For the past several Sundays we have been praying together over a jar in our worship area full of relationships. Each week the jar has been added to and each week God has been answering our prayers. Here are a few true, jar stories:
• Two friends have been reconciled after 6 months of not speaking.
• A marriage had a major breakthrough and God is resurrecting what was all but
dead.
• A mother and daughter are finding that fresh starts can happen.
• A man has begun to identify his destructive role as an enabler in a
relationship.
• Two brothers are now beginning to act like brothers again.
• Two people have discovered a personal relationship with God through Christ.
Today, I am writing to ask you to write the “Random Thoughts” for this week. What can you add to my bullet point list above? It would mean a great deal to hear what God is doing with the “jar” relationships for which you have been praying. Let’s give God credit! Send me an email.
As you consider your response, please keep on remembering this: Jesus said, “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name there I am with them and whatever they ask will be given to them.” The context of this promise is nothing more and nothing less than relationships. The sooner we accept that the sooner life with all its joys and tragedies will begin to make sense….the point God wants us to get is all that matters in life and death are relationships…relationship with God and with one another. Nothing else matters compared to that. And until nothing else matters compared to our relationship with God and one another, then we will continue to miss out, live for less, be confused, chase after futility and perhaps reach our last breath realizing we completely missed the point. But as we continue to make this faith journey about one we are to make together rather than solo, by God’s grace, we can throw off the lies of the urgently unimportant and live and die for what is most important.
So, again, I ask, how has God been working in you and your relationships with God and/or others these past several weeks? Thank you for being a church family that remains real and receptive!
• Two friends have been reconciled after 6 months of not speaking.
• A marriage had a major breakthrough and God is resurrecting what was all but
dead.
• A mother and daughter are finding that fresh starts can happen.
• A man has begun to identify his destructive role as an enabler in a
relationship.
• Two brothers are now beginning to act like brothers again.
• Two people have discovered a personal relationship with God through Christ.
Today, I am writing to ask you to write the “Random Thoughts” for this week. What can you add to my bullet point list above? It would mean a great deal to hear what God is doing with the “jar” relationships for which you have been praying. Let’s give God credit! Send me an email.
As you consider your response, please keep on remembering this: Jesus said, “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name there I am with them and whatever they ask will be given to them.” The context of this promise is nothing more and nothing less than relationships. The sooner we accept that the sooner life with all its joys and tragedies will begin to make sense….the point God wants us to get is all that matters in life and death are relationships…relationship with God and with one another. Nothing else matters compared to that. And until nothing else matters compared to our relationship with God and one another, then we will continue to miss out, live for less, be confused, chase after futility and perhaps reach our last breath realizing we completely missed the point. But as we continue to make this faith journey about one we are to make together rather than solo, by God’s grace, we can throw off the lies of the urgently unimportant and live and die for what is most important.
So, again, I ask, how has God been working in you and your relationships with God and/or others these past several weeks? Thank you for being a church family that remains real and receptive!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
"Minutemen"
"Minutemen were members of teams of select men from the American colonial militia during the American Revolutionary War. They provided a highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that allowed the colonies to respond immediately to war threats, hence the name," states Wikepedia.
Perhaps the greatest need in the Christian Church today is for minutemen/women. The need for Christ Followers who are highly mobile and rapidly deployed is greater than ever. There are plenty of Christians with whom God must first check their schedule. There are many more Christians for whom God knows not to even bother to ask. But even in a Church full of the apathetic and unavailable, the Kingdom of God continues to be ushered into existence on earth because in every generation God still has his minutemen/women.
I just got off the phone with one of his minutemen. One of our High School Students, Michael Collins called. He explained that in a high school assembly today a women shared her story of past drug abuse and imprisonment. She will be given her freedom next week. She shared her story to encourage teenagers to choose a different path. After the assembly, Michael and his friend stopped to talk with her. They asked what she would do when she was released from prison next week. She explained her plan was to contact a local homeless shelter until she could restart her life. Michael invited her to Living Hope and shared about Celebrate Recovery. He then called me to see if she could call me for us to see if there was anything we could do as a church. I love it! Praise God! That is being a minuteman for God...You see a need and in the name of Jesus Christ you don't sit around and wait for someone else to act; you act!
I have seen minutemen/women in action every week this school year. They are folks in this church and six others in Centerville. We Had no idea how Food 2 Go would feed 100 children a week who would other wise go hungry on the weekends. But every week...did you hear me? Every week, the food has come in, sometimes just in time, but always in time. Why? One reason...minutemen/women of God are highly mobile and rapidly deployed.
I have watched minutemen/women of God step up every time we have listed the need for people to serve children in our classes on Sunday mornings. We do not have childcare at Living Hope. We have life-changing ministry for the children of Living Hope. The reason we have it is because minutemen/women of God see a need, step up and go the extra mile to ensure children are experiencing the love of Christ.
This week I received an email from the "No Restrictions" Life Group. They are now partnering with Gospel Mission to serve meals to the homeless. This group has also responded to serve those in Appalachia, Ky and to help visit the sick and shut-ins in our church family. The whole group is made up of minutemen/women of God!
In the next month we will watch as minutemen/women of God respond to the need of Ukraine orphans by committing to one of the Expeditions in 2011. The people who respond will not submit to all the reasons why they can't go; they will simply submit to the call of God and watch him make happen what they could not...they will watch him clear schedules, overcome fears and provide the resources. Minutemen/women get to see God do what few others see simply because they are highly mobile and rapidly discharged. People who have to wait for all the ducks to be in a row before they will trust God enough to go don't see God do the impossible, because they don't give him the chance.
We have an incredible number of minutemen/women who make up the church called Living Hope. I thank God for you! You are a powerful force that scares hell to death! Don't back down! Don't give up! And never let those around you, even other so-called Christians, discourage you from going after what God has for you next!
Perhaps the greatest need in the Christian Church today is for minutemen/women. The need for Christ Followers who are highly mobile and rapidly deployed is greater than ever. There are plenty of Christians with whom God must first check their schedule. There are many more Christians for whom God knows not to even bother to ask. But even in a Church full of the apathetic and unavailable, the Kingdom of God continues to be ushered into existence on earth because in every generation God still has his minutemen/women.
I just got off the phone with one of his minutemen. One of our High School Students, Michael Collins called. He explained that in a high school assembly today a women shared her story of past drug abuse and imprisonment. She will be given her freedom next week. She shared her story to encourage teenagers to choose a different path. After the assembly, Michael and his friend stopped to talk with her. They asked what she would do when she was released from prison next week. She explained her plan was to contact a local homeless shelter until she could restart her life. Michael invited her to Living Hope and shared about Celebrate Recovery. He then called me to see if she could call me for us to see if there was anything we could do as a church. I love it! Praise God! That is being a minuteman for God...You see a need and in the name of Jesus Christ you don't sit around and wait for someone else to act; you act!
I have seen minutemen/women in action every week this school year. They are folks in this church and six others in Centerville. We Had no idea how Food 2 Go would feed 100 children a week who would other wise go hungry on the weekends. But every week...did you hear me? Every week, the food has come in, sometimes just in time, but always in time. Why? One reason...minutemen/women of God are highly mobile and rapidly deployed.
I have watched minutemen/women of God step up every time we have listed the need for people to serve children in our classes on Sunday mornings. We do not have childcare at Living Hope. We have life-changing ministry for the children of Living Hope. The reason we have it is because minutemen/women of God see a need, step up and go the extra mile to ensure children are experiencing the love of Christ.
This week I received an email from the "No Restrictions" Life Group. They are now partnering with Gospel Mission to serve meals to the homeless. This group has also responded to serve those in Appalachia, Ky and to help visit the sick and shut-ins in our church family. The whole group is made up of minutemen/women of God!
In the next month we will watch as minutemen/women of God respond to the need of Ukraine orphans by committing to one of the Expeditions in 2011. The people who respond will not submit to all the reasons why they can't go; they will simply submit to the call of God and watch him make happen what they could not...they will watch him clear schedules, overcome fears and provide the resources. Minutemen/women get to see God do what few others see simply because they are highly mobile and rapidly discharged. People who have to wait for all the ducks to be in a row before they will trust God enough to go don't see God do the impossible, because they don't give him the chance.
We have an incredible number of minutemen/women who make up the church called Living Hope. I thank God for you! You are a powerful force that scares hell to death! Don't back down! Don't give up! And never let those around you, even other so-called Christians, discourage you from going after what God has for you next!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
"One Tulip"
Last year I had two nice rows of big, beautiful red and yellow tulips. This year, I have one small, but pretty yellow tulip. That's it...just one. It appears that something ate the others. Every time I look at my front yard I think, "I wish the other tulips would have bloomed." I was thinking that just the other day as I pulled out of the garage..."I wish the other tulips would have bloomed." Then, it hit me...something inside of me said, "Why can't you enjoy the one you have?" Its true. Apparently, I needed the others to enjoy the one. Why? Why couldn't I let the other tulips go, accept that they were not going to bloom and simply enjoy that single, pretty, yellow bloom?
I have been known to do that with more than tulips. How about you? Do you ever find yourself wishing life was like it used to be to the point that you miss out on what life is now? Do you ever long for more even though the reality is you have enough? Have you ever found yourself dwelling on all that is going wrong so much so that you cannot embrace the one thing that is going right? Do you ever miss the beauty of the little things in your pursuit for that which seems so important in the moment, but even a year for now, not to mention 100 years from now, will mean nothing? Do you ever get so focused on what you do not have, that you become blind to what you do have?
God, help us! Help us not to miss the tulips even when only one blooms. Help us not to trade what is most urgent for what is most important. Help us to celebrate what we are given instead grieving what we are not.
For someone like me, it takes a lot of intentionality and work to appreciate the one, but with God's help, each day that yellow tulip is looking better and better.
I think that was what Solomon was getting at when he wrote these words in Ecclesiastes 3:
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What does the worker gain from his toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. 13 That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.
I have been known to do that with more than tulips. How about you? Do you ever find yourself wishing life was like it used to be to the point that you miss out on what life is now? Do you ever long for more even though the reality is you have enough? Have you ever found yourself dwelling on all that is going wrong so much so that you cannot embrace the one thing that is going right? Do you ever miss the beauty of the little things in your pursuit for that which seems so important in the moment, but even a year for now, not to mention 100 years from now, will mean nothing? Do you ever get so focused on what you do not have, that you become blind to what you do have?
God, help us! Help us not to miss the tulips even when only one blooms. Help us not to trade what is most urgent for what is most important. Help us to celebrate what we are given instead grieving what we are not.
For someone like me, it takes a lot of intentionality and work to appreciate the one, but with God's help, each day that yellow tulip is looking better and better.
I think that was what Solomon was getting at when he wrote these words in Ecclesiastes 3:
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
9 What does the worker gain from his toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. 13 That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
"Bigger"
Recently, the four of us went hiking at Germantown Nature Reserve. It has been a long-time favorite spot of mine. I wondered how the kids would do. They did great! They loved taking this "adventure' as Anna called it. The only time Seth did not enjoy the hike was when Mommy said he was too little to walk the the rock path across the stream. He threw a fit, but Daddy rescued him and let the poor boy just be a boy (Come on, Mom, the worst that could have happened was he fall in a three inch stream and get his clothes wet and dirty). Long story short, we had a great time.
However, there was one part of the journey neither Anna nor Seth could make. They hiked down the large hill with no trouble, but what you climb down, you must climb up and therein was the problem. A big problem. It was a big incline for my long legs, but to them that hill might as well have been Mt. Everest. They could not do it. I was so proud of both of them. Instead of trying to do something they could not do, they turned to someone who could do for them what they could not do for themselves. Seth said, "Mommy, hold me." Anna said, "Daddy, can you carry me?" On our backs they went and up the hill we all went. And at the top, the kids proclaimed, "We made it!"
"We?" I was the one with sweat rushing out of every pour of my body, heart pounding and wheezing like I had emphysema...Was it "we" or "me"? My answer...it was "we." "WE" made it. Anna made it because she asked me to carry her. I made it by putting one foot in front of the other. And at the end of the day, "we" all made it.
Friends, why are you trying to climb the mountain on your own? Are you aching? Are you sweating? Are you trying and getting no where? Learn from my kids...sometimes the reason a mountain is put in front of us is not so we can struggle our way up it, but so we can learn to ask for help. "Jesus, will you carry me?" "Church family, will you hold me?" What if the mountain you cannot climb, is there not to climb, but to get you to accept what Jesus lived, died and rose again to teach us. He can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves...let HIM! Jesus said, "What is impossible with man, is possible with God."
I can see a pretty big mountain from where I am sitting right now. You know what, I am not going to take another step. I falling on my knees and asking, "Father, will carry me?"
What's that...its strength that is not my own...its hope that is beyond wishful thinking...its love that I don't deserve...yes...its, my Father carrying me where I could never go on my own.
There's plenty of room on his back for you too.
However, there was one part of the journey neither Anna nor Seth could make. They hiked down the large hill with no trouble, but what you climb down, you must climb up and therein was the problem. A big problem. It was a big incline for my long legs, but to them that hill might as well have been Mt. Everest. They could not do it. I was so proud of both of them. Instead of trying to do something they could not do, they turned to someone who could do for them what they could not do for themselves. Seth said, "Mommy, hold me." Anna said, "Daddy, can you carry me?" On our backs they went and up the hill we all went. And at the top, the kids proclaimed, "We made it!"
"We?" I was the one with sweat rushing out of every pour of my body, heart pounding and wheezing like I had emphysema...Was it "we" or "me"? My answer...it was "we." "WE" made it. Anna made it because she asked me to carry her. I made it by putting one foot in front of the other. And at the end of the day, "we" all made it.
Friends, why are you trying to climb the mountain on your own? Are you aching? Are you sweating? Are you trying and getting no where? Learn from my kids...sometimes the reason a mountain is put in front of us is not so we can struggle our way up it, but so we can learn to ask for help. "Jesus, will you carry me?" "Church family, will you hold me?" What if the mountain you cannot climb, is there not to climb, but to get you to accept what Jesus lived, died and rose again to teach us. He can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves...let HIM! Jesus said, "What is impossible with man, is possible with God."
I can see a pretty big mountain from where I am sitting right now. You know what, I am not going to take another step. I falling on my knees and asking, "Father, will carry me?"
What's that...its strength that is not my own...its hope that is beyond wishful thinking...its love that I don't deserve...yes...its, my Father carrying me where I could never go on my own.
There's plenty of room on his back for you too.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
"Potty Time Epiphany"
Several months ago Seth, on his own, began going poo-poo on the potty. (This is an interesting stage of life for me...a time when such things as poo-poo and potty training are where I see God moving--no pun intended). I kept hoping he would do the same thing when it came to pee-pee. Well, Kimberly decided it was time to move from hoping to helping. Yesterday, she began the training process. Then, today, before leaving for work, Kimberly took Seth to the potty, congratulated him on a job well done, put his "big-boy underwear" on him and reminded him of everything he was learning. Right as she was heading out the door, his little voice said, "I have pee-pee Mommy." The kid had just gone less than 5 minutes ago and now he had to go again? My gut said it was a false alarm and I just ignored him. Kimberly took him to the potty and it was no false alarm. She is so much better with the kids when it comes to things like this. Honestly, both of my kids would still be wearing diapers when they were twelve if it were left to me.
And, honestly, you and I will stay in spiritual diapers if we leave our growth in the hands of best intentions and wishful thinking. At some point I have to decide if I am satisfied with living in my crap or if I am ready to let God help me grow up. God will not force us to grow, but he is completely comfortable with letting us sit in stench and discomfort if that is what it takes to get us to start following him down the path of maturity.
Hebrews 5:12-14, puts it to me straight in these words, "Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." Whoa! I don't know about you, but that puts me in my place.
I find the last line especially interesting and challenging when it says "have trained themselves." First, this is a call to take personal responibility for our own spiritual maturity. It is not the job of the Church to feed me or you. That would be like you going to a restaurant, ordering a meal, not eating a bite, leaving and then complaining that you are still hungry. It is not the restaurants' job to feed you nor is it the Church's job to feed you what you need to grow spiritually. That job, brother and sister in Christ, is solely yours. That being said, "have trained themselves" is also in the plural. While my spiritual growth is my responsibility, it is not to say that endeavor is a solo one. Spiritual growth never happens in isolation but always in the context of community. After all, what is spiritual growth other than learning to selflessly love God and others. You cannot learn to love others by yourself. Love is only love when it is received and given and that takes relationship. Spiritual growth requires me taking responsibility for my maturity along side of others who are taking responsibility for their maturity.
I want to thank you for being church that is committed to doing that. One way in which this is demonstrated is through the small groups. For example, in March an average of 447 people attended Sunday morning worship and 321 of you were involved in some form of connecting for the purpose of spiritual growth. That is incredible! Keep pursuing maturity! Seth will one day be glad his mom took the time to help him get out of diapers and as we train ourselves in maturity we will find meat is a whole lot more filling than a bottle.
And, honestly, you and I will stay in spiritual diapers if we leave our growth in the hands of best intentions and wishful thinking. At some point I have to decide if I am satisfied with living in my crap or if I am ready to let God help me grow up. God will not force us to grow, but he is completely comfortable with letting us sit in stench and discomfort if that is what it takes to get us to start following him down the path of maturity.
Hebrews 5:12-14, puts it to me straight in these words, "Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." Whoa! I don't know about you, but that puts me in my place.
I find the last line especially interesting and challenging when it says "have trained themselves." First, this is a call to take personal responibility for our own spiritual maturity. It is not the job of the Church to feed me or you. That would be like you going to a restaurant, ordering a meal, not eating a bite, leaving and then complaining that you are still hungry. It is not the restaurants' job to feed you nor is it the Church's job to feed you what you need to grow spiritually. That job, brother and sister in Christ, is solely yours. That being said, "have trained themselves" is also in the plural. While my spiritual growth is my responsibility, it is not to say that endeavor is a solo one. Spiritual growth never happens in isolation but always in the context of community. After all, what is spiritual growth other than learning to selflessly love God and others. You cannot learn to love others by yourself. Love is only love when it is received and given and that takes relationship. Spiritual growth requires me taking responsibility for my maturity along side of others who are taking responsibility for their maturity.
I want to thank you for being church that is committed to doing that. One way in which this is demonstrated is through the small groups. For example, in March an average of 447 people attended Sunday morning worship and 321 of you were involved in some form of connecting for the purpose of spiritual growth. That is incredible! Keep pursuing maturity! Seth will one day be glad his mom took the time to help him get out of diapers and as we train ourselves in maturity we will find meat is a whole lot more filling than a bottle.
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