What to Expect

Because of the way our services went on Sunday, I've had to do some reflection. Reflection on my own personal prayer life and reflection on my leadership focus. 
Several people were drawn powerfully into the Lord's presence, some for what they considered the first time. To that, I say, "Hallelujah!" We all need to seek God's face with that fervor all the time.
The direction that God's Word gives through the Apostle Paul is: "Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done."
As I ponder my life, I consider the conversation that I enjoy with Theresa. I think about what she knows about the goings on in my life and then I compare it to what I've shared with my Lord. When I compare those, I realize why I'm so shocked when I encounter the Spirit of God as I did on Sunday. There are times when it would seem as though I don't even know him. Or I treat my Savior like the person wearing the headset at Sbux, I place my order and pull around expecting it to be filled. 
These observations are pointless unless it creates a change. And it has. I am walking this winding road, to the left and a step behind Jesus. Just like they taught me in basic training. The difference: I can talk all that I want and I'm telling Him everything. I'm telling Him my joys and pains. I'm probably telling Him about you.
I don't want to be shocked when the Holy Spirit moves in such a powerful way, I want to get to a point where I expect it.
The bottom line is that my spirit longs to be with the spirit of God.

what to do?

What do you do when a church grows to the point that there aren't enough rooms for all the classes? We have rearranged classes to maximize our space time and again. People seem to be agreeable, for the most part.
I talked with a teacher this morning about relinquishing the large room he meets in and meeting in the library so a larger group could use that room. He said he'd work with whatever we had to do. I love working with the folks at CCC who share the vision! But that doesn't solve the problem, it just postpones it. A large share of my prayer time is spent on what to do when the postponing is done. And that time is not far away. 
It's an awesome blessing. I wonder if God is testing my faith in His timing. I'm probably failing that test, to some degree. I'm nervous, as a minimum.
But, God has always been faithful. I trust him. I really do. 
Mostly, being a "planner" is a good thing. But not now. I'm comfortable when I have a plan. Maybe, just maybe, God doesn't want me to be comfortable.
Bottom line is, I love to see the church grow!

Arm-chair QB Love

Why is it so easy to se other people's issues? I guess it applies to good and bad. But I think that we tend to lean to that negative side. 

This phenomenon applies to all of the layers of our lives. The average salary of a professional football QB is nearly $2 million but we see his mistakes very clearly from our armchairs. Little Johnny's teacher couldn't teach him how to tie his shoe, but he could certainly master that in an hour under our tutelage. If everyone had my driving skills, the roads would be much safer. 

Jesus saw this happening. He addressed it like this: "why worry about a speck in your friends eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, 'Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friends eye."

Some contend that Jesus was in essence saying, "Don't criticize" = "Don't judge". I don't see that. What I see is: Don't criticize an area of somebody else's life that you don't have in order in your own. Somehow, our culture has equated criticism with judgment and they try to back it up with this passage in Matthew 7. The key teaching is against hypocrisy. Jesus had a huge problem with the sin of hypocrisy.  

But...there's a way to deal with all this such that everyone wins. It involves the most outstanding quality of Jesus, love. Love for others and their well-being. 

I am encouraged by someone who has their family in order and they lovingly give advice from their experience on teen child-rearing practices. The desire to do better grows in me when a gifted speaker suggests that the number of times I use the word "ok" might be distracting to folks when I preach. 

God said it best through the apostle Paul, "...faith, hope and LOVE--and the greatest of these is love."

Discipleship

According to the Wikipedia dictionary, a disciple is a follower and student of a mentor, teacher, or other wise figure; and Jesus described what His disciples (followers) would do: Matt 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me." 
He began with unselfishness. Selfishness is perhaps the greatest enemy of following Christ. 
I'm selfish in different ways at different times. I'm selfish with my time, I'm selfish with my stuff, I'm selfish with my money. Presently, I'm seeing the selfishness that I have with time.  Not that I want to spend all my time on myself but rather my lack of patience with others. The false idea that my time is more valuable than theirs. I'm really trying to give time to the ones that God has placed in my midst. 

Jesus set the perfect example of giving, His very life. 
As I look at my life, I am finding ways to give. To give it away, not to be self-less in the eyes of those who see, but to emulate the God that I have proclaimed to serve.

A well-watered Garden

“Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast. Shout aloud! Don’t be timid. Tell my people Israel of their sins! Yet they act so pious! They come to the Temple every day and seem delighted to learn all about me. They act like a righteous nation that would never abandon the laws of its God. They ask me to take action on their behalf, pretending they want to be near me.  ‘We have fasted before you!’ they say. Why aren’t you impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and you don’t even notice it!’ “I will tell you why!” I respond. “It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves. Even while you fast, you keep oppressing your workers.  What good is fasting when you keep on fighting and quarreling? This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with me.  You humble yourselves by going through the motions of penance, bowing your heads like reeds bending in the wind. You dress in burlap and cover yourselves with ashes. Is this what you call fasting? Do you really think this will please the Lord?  “No, this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people. Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help. “Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.  Then when you call, the Lord will answer. ‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply. “Remove the heavy yoke of oppression. Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!  Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring. Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes. (Isaiah 58:1-12)

God has called His followers to be ACTIVE. Not politically active, but what I call "People Active". Our following of the Lord entails more than doing "religious" things. Specifically mentioned in this passage are: fasting, prayer, motions of penance. He had obviously looked around and seen people going through the motions without doing God's will. 

Our actions are judged by God on a rudimentary level...motive. When our motives (hearts) are right, we naturally do things that please God. Isaiah names a few People Active methods of worship: free the oppressed, be good to your employees, share with those less fortunate, help people, don't gossip...

And there's a promise, God will bless us. Like a well-watered garden, an ever-flowing spring, rebuilder of homes. 

There are a lot of homes that need rebuilt. Families in shambles. 

Church, it's our job to fix it!

Storms

I need to start out by quoting Joshua 1:9: "This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
There we have direction from the Lord. In fact, a command. There are no exceptions mentioned. Basically, we are to trust God...ALWAYS. And not just trust Him, but be strong in the process.
I think my communication process with God is the biggest contributing factor to the equation of courage. When I am constantly, intentionally in His presence, I am more apt to be courageous. When I spend time in real conversation with God.
That involves the way I approach his word. How I read it, if I gloss over words or if I read listening for God's small voice. It beckons response from me. I tell Him what hurts, I tell Him what's cool, I talk to my dad.
He loves me like none other, in storms and in good times.
It seems that I try to avoid storms. Crazy thing, when I look back at my life experiences, I know that the storms bring tremendous growth. The storms are the richest times. The trials are proving grounds for the relationships in my life. The storms reveal who the people are that understand what and who the church is; the people who desire to be Jesus.
The storms can be wet and cold and scary. The wind can blow so hard that I have difficulty hearing God's voice. I am often reminded that I need to constantly listen to God's voice so that I know it, that I recognize His voice when the winds blow. When I don't recognize His voice, it seems hopeless.
God's voice whispers hope.
Can you hear the whisper?

 

Busyness

Because of a meeting yesterday, I spent some time considering the culture in which I live. Southwest Missouri. Very rural, though some would like to think otherwise. I know urban, been there and this is NOT it. I'm glad. 

People here know about hay and cows and horses. They are football and baseball fans. They like get-togethers, cookouts, and Starbucks. They remover their hats for the National anthem and bow their heads during a prayer.

Most would say that they are Christians. Christian being defined as someone who believes in God and goes to church. 

That's what perplexes me. A biblical definition of "Christian" is to be a follower of Christ. That would mean to follow His example, obey His commands and grow in relationship to Him.

The priority structure in SW MO is all but Christian. Fishing and ball games trump church attendance. Is church attendance the end all for spiritual growth? Not necessarily, but it certainly is an indicator. 

Parents "encourage" their kids to be involved in extra-curricular activities under the assumption that it makes them better people. I beg to differ. Having worked with teens for 20+ years, I see the effects and they are not positive. They become obsessed with a sport that will mean zero in 10 years. They give up summer trips that can be life-changing.

For the adults, the schedules of the kids creates stress on marriages especially in multi-child homes. Dad is going one way while mom goes the other. Meeting back at home exhausted. 

A couple passages of scripture directly address the complexity, or lack of, in our lives: 1 Thessalonians 11-12 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.  1 Timothy 2:1-4 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

The lifestyles aforementioned are not "quiet" or "peaceful". In fact, all of that activity leads to all sorts of issues. Issues that disagree with being a Christian.
This busyness creates problems within the church. Folks don't have time to serve, they don't have time to be involved in the things that draw others to the Kingdom. When unbelievers look at the lives of "Christians" they see no difference. 
Busyness, could it be the most powerful tool in Satan's arsenal against our culture?