Exhortations sounds like something a horse would make. But it is a great word. It means to urge to act.
And that is the purpose of the joy that we have if we are followers of Christ. As I said on Sunday, it doesn't seem like Christmas to talk about axes, sacrificing, fire and fruit. In fact the whole story of Jesus doesn't seem like something that would bring joy. Or hope. Or love. It rather seems like a tragedy. Not the festive light filled fun that we call Christmas.
We were watching Merry Larry, a Veggie Tales movie, last night with the kids at small group. It was talking about this exact topic. Christmas is about our joy found in Jesus turning into joyful acts that show Jesus. The inward transfers to the outward. The church becomes mobile and ready to impact those around it.
I hope your week has been full of offering joy to others. I hope God has laid an opportunity in your path this week that he wanted to change you through. I hope you listened and followed through.
I hope it encouraged you and grew your faith.
In fact, if you followed through, I know it did. If not, why not? Did you miss it? Do you wish you had listened and followed through on what God was trying to do through you?
Your heart does.
God wants us (exhorts us!) to show others acts of joy because of the joy we have in us. God doesn't ask the impossible from us. He gives us everything we need to succeed in the plan that he has for us.
I exhort you to go into your Friday, Saturday and into Sunday filled with God's joy and his purpose.
Don't miss it. Seek him tomorrow morning before you go to work or school. Listen and receive his presence, his love, his hope and his joy for you. Treasure it and then show that joy to others.
May God richly bless you this week.
Amen.
Thursday, December 18, 2014
Thursday, November 20, 2014
The East Gate
Sunday we talked about the next to last gate in our journey to go around the gates of Jerusalem. It is the East Gate and it faces, well, you guess it, east. Directly east of Jerusalem is the Mount of Olives. It is referred in the Bible that when Jesus returns it will be on this mountain. This explains the large number of people (Jews) that want to be buried right in front of the East Gate.
My question is: What are you looking forward to? What is it that you want to happen so bad that you think about and dream about it and "yearn" for it? Followers of Christ yearn for his return!! More than anything else! I read a pastor that wrote, "If you don’t long for the King to get the honor He deserves, then maybe you haven’t really recognized Him as your king."
Wow. That is challenging! If we aren't looking forward to the end of evil and all that Jesus brings with him when he comes back then maybe we don't really see him as king of our lives.
The point? Christ's return brings judgment and joy.
There will be both when he returns. There will be the end of death and the end of evil's days. Those that are followers of Christ will recieve a Crown of Righteousness (1 Timothy 4:8). We will be judged worthy for that crown or unworthy for that crown. Judgment. Joy.
So, if you looked out your peephole tomorrow morning, and Jesus was on the other side, what would you feel? Joy? Or fear? Joy and judgment are coming whether we want them to or not. Knock. Knock.
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Troubled Waters Reboot (Rebubble?)
On Sunday we talked about the Water Gate from Nehemiah's time. How Hezekiah ordered a tunnel dug so that Jerusalem would have water during times of siege.
This tunnel and the water that flowed through it lasted for centuries and continues to bring water into the city. Ever heard of the Pool of Siloam? It was fed by this spring. The Spring of Gihon.
People relied on this water and still do! This is a symbol of how we are to depend on God's Word to give us nourishment! It is there to fill us and prepare us for presentation to God.
This was the purpose of the Pool of Siloam. To cleanse those that were going to hear the Word of God. People would be cleansed in the water so that they could be cleansed by the Word of God! It was a time of preparation for presentation!!
We find in Ephesians 5:
"Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish."
The "word" referred to here is the Good News. The Gos Pel of Christ. Through the word of the Word Incarnate (That's Jesus!), we are made clean. We are made pure. We are made ready to be presented to the Holy God of Israel!
Wow. That's amazing stuff. Did you know the Word does all that? That is why the Psalmist writes in 119:105:
"Your word is a light unto my feet and a light unto my path."
God's word gives us direction, cleansing and encouragement.
And that is a promise from God.
This tunnel and the water that flowed through it lasted for centuries and continues to bring water into the city. Ever heard of the Pool of Siloam? It was fed by this spring. The Spring of Gihon.
People relied on this water and still do! This is a symbol of how we are to depend on God's Word to give us nourishment! It is there to fill us and prepare us for presentation to God.
This was the purpose of the Pool of Siloam. To cleanse those that were going to hear the Word of God. People would be cleansed in the water so that they could be cleansed by the Word of God! It was a time of preparation for presentation!!
We find in Ephesians 5:
"Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish."
The "word" referred to here is the Good News. The Gos Pel of Christ. Through the word of the Word Incarnate (That's Jesus!), we are made clean. We are made pure. We are made ready to be presented to the Holy God of Israel!
Wow. That's amazing stuff. Did you know the Word does all that? That is why the Psalmist writes in 119:105:
"Your word is a light unto my feet and a light unto my path."
God's word gives us direction, cleansing and encouragement.
And that is a promise from God.
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Where is God when things fall apart?
In the movie, God's Not Dead, that we watched last Friday night, one of the questions that was discussed was the question of how a loving God can allow innocent people to be hurt so badly.
As I shared on Sunday, C.S. Lewis' quote - "Evil is atheism's most potent weapon against the Christian faith," illustrates this burning question that seems to turn many away from believing in God.
If you were not here on Sunday, it might be good to go and listen to the my message before perusing the rest of this information. However, if you were there, then you know that I intended on posting the information below as supplemental to the message because there is SO VERY MUCH to discuss on this topic. One Sunday really doesn't do it justice! (no pun intended)
Besides the point I shared on Sunday [that God knows all and sees and it is our perspective that needs to change about God - not the other way around], no matter what the point is that is supposed to substantiate that feeling of forsakenness when bad things happen there is no head knowledge that is going to help out us feel better. It is only through the heart that God will show us that He is there and does in fact care about what is happening to us.
That being said, here is the additional background information (not heart/not feeling) that I offered on Sunday to be posted here. (Note: This post is LONG! Read the whole thing!)
The Seven Pillars
1. God’s character is loving, good, and righteous.
“Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right (Genesis 18:25)?”
As we see in the movie, “God is good…all the time.”
2. He has given us freedom to choose to love Him, or reject Him.
True love must be a choice, or it is robotic.
3. This freedom resulted in a fallen world with evil, sin, and real dangers.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned (Romans 5:12).”
Everything is broken and the world is not how it was intended to be originally.
4. He intensely desires restored fellowship with us.
“Come now, and let us reason together," says the LORD, "though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool (Isaiah 1:18).”
God longs to be gracious to us, and to be reunited in fellowship.
5. His love is so great that He gave up His only Son to restore that relationship.
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).”
He didn’t just say He loved us; He showed it by giving up His very best.
6. But sin remains in our fleshly body and the physical world temporarily.
“For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please (Galatians 5:17).”
The effects of the curse remain, but it has now lost its power and permanence.
7. We can trust His finished work because He defeated death (sin) by resurrection.
“By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10).”
The empty tomb proves His triumph over sin and death, and our own empty graves.
As you can see, each of these could be their own sermon topic!
I did like this analogy that was in the supplement:
Imagine it like this, the baby that you and your spouse created has diaper rash, and not only a rash, but a horrible, painful rash that is so bad that it is cracked, swollen, and red beyond even being able to touch it without a scream from your beloved baby.
Do you ignore it, wrap on a new diaper, and call it good?
Not if you love your baby.
You go to the doctor, who causes more pain with an examination, prescribing baths and ointments that require more touching with towels and lotions.
In the midst of this painful ordeal to heal the rash, your baby turns to you and says, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME? HOW CAN YOU SAY YOU LOVE ME WHEN YOU ALLOW ALL THIS TORTUROUS RUBBING?! YOUR ACTIONS MAKE NO SENSE! STOP HURTING ME!”
As I shared on Sunday, C.S. Lewis' quote - "Evil is atheism's most potent weapon against the Christian faith," illustrates this burning question that seems to turn many away from believing in God.
If you were not here on Sunday, it might be good to go and listen to the my message before perusing the rest of this information. However, if you were there, then you know that I intended on posting the information below as supplemental to the message because there is SO VERY MUCH to discuss on this topic. One Sunday really doesn't do it justice! (no pun intended)
Besides the point I shared on Sunday [that God knows all and sees and it is our perspective that needs to change about God - not the other way around], no matter what the point is that is supposed to substantiate that feeling of forsakenness when bad things happen there is no head knowledge that is going to help out us feel better. It is only through the heart that God will show us that He is there and does in fact care about what is happening to us.
That being said, here is the additional background information (not heart/not feeling) that I offered on Sunday to be posted here. (Note: This post is LONG! Read the whole thing!)
The Seven Pillars
1. God’s character is loving, good, and righteous.
“Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right (Genesis 18:25)?”
As we see in the movie, “God is good…all the time.”
2. He has given us freedom to choose to love Him, or reject Him.
True love must be a choice, or it is robotic.
3. This freedom resulted in a fallen world with evil, sin, and real dangers.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned (Romans 5:12).”
Everything is broken and the world is not how it was intended to be originally.
4. He intensely desires restored fellowship with us.
“Come now, and let us reason together," says the LORD, "though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool (Isaiah 1:18).”
God longs to be gracious to us, and to be reunited in fellowship.
5. His love is so great that He gave up His only Son to restore that relationship.
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).”
He didn’t just say He loved us; He showed it by giving up His very best.
6. But sin remains in our fleshly body and the physical world temporarily.
“For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please (Galatians 5:17).”
The effects of the curse remain, but it has now lost its power and permanence.
7. We can trust His finished work because He defeated death (sin) by resurrection.
“By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10).”
The empty tomb proves His triumph over sin and death, and our own empty graves.
As you can see, each of these could be their own sermon topic!
I did like this analogy that was in the supplement:
Imagine it like this, the baby that you and your spouse created has diaper rash, and not only a rash, but a horrible, painful rash that is so bad that it is cracked, swollen, and red beyond even being able to touch it without a scream from your beloved baby.
Do you ignore it, wrap on a new diaper, and call it good?
Not if you love your baby.
You go to the doctor, who causes more pain with an examination, prescribing baths and ointments that require more touching with towels and lotions.
In the midst of this painful ordeal to heal the rash, your baby turns to you and says, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME? HOW CAN YOU SAY YOU LOVE ME WHEN YOU ALLOW ALL THIS TORTUROUS RUBBING?! YOUR ACTIONS MAKE NO SENSE! STOP HURTING ME!”
Further than the 7 Pillars, there are 7 suppositions as well. Here they are:
The Seven Suppositions
Supposition 1: Evil is real and people are blinded by their sin
“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1).”
This shouldn’t require much corroboration if you’ve ever driven in rush hour. People are selfish, mean, and spiritually dead. Doubt it?
Then why do we all have locks on our cars and homes? Policeman carry guns, metal detectors are everywhere, and we see murders every day on the news. Or whom do you look for first in your family photo? You!
Evil is real, sin is real, and mankind is infected with a self-centered nature.
If you have any doubt about evil, just check out some of the comments on the God’s Not Dead trailer on YouTube.
Supposition 2: His ways are higher than our ways
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways
and My thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9).”
As ironic as it seems, our indignation, confusion, and questioning of God’s intent, motives, and ultimate purpose for our lives demonstrates our own rebellious nature. We question His goodness and so prove our unworthy state of brokenness in doubting His goodness.
He has a purpose and a plan as Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, `plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”
We cannot explain the why of God’s ways, but A. W. Tozer comes close:
“All God's acts are done in perfect wisdom, first for His own glory, and then for the highest good of the greatest number for the longest time. And all His acts are as pure as they are wise, and as good as they are wise and pure. Not only could His acts not be better done: a better way to do them could not be imagined. An infinitely wise God must work in a manner not to be improved upon by finite creatures.”
Supposition 3: There is no innocence; we are all guilty
“
“Nobody’s perfect” is an old adage that sums up our fallen condition nicely.
At its very heart, this is a faulty question to ask God why He allows “innocent” people to suffer. We are all guilty before a holy God. None of us are innocent. Everyone has broken God’s law, and as James says, “
This is not to say that He takes any delight in our suffering or is not sympathetic, but He would be just to do whatever he deems right to do with His rebellious creation. We have broken His holy laws, ruined His paradise, thumbed our nose at Him, and when tragedy strikes we ask why He allowed it to happen.
He asks the same thing of us…“how could you let this happen when I have done so much for you? I gave you my Word to show you how to live and My only Son to redeem you.” Anything we receive in this life is pure grace because we are criminals before a holy and righteous God Who has every right to punish our sin.
Supposition 4: Suffering can lead to repentance
2 Corinthians 7:10 says, “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.”
“Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance (Romans 2:4)?”
Sometimes breaking our hearts, breaking our self-dependence, helps us to see our need for God. This is the biggest point of all…suffering can result in salvation which is His ultimate goal for us.
Suffering alerts us to our need for help, a cure for our illness when it becomes so acute that it motivates us to go to the doctor. Pain drives us into His arms for solace, answers, and help.
Being flat on our back, our last resort can result in finally looking up to Him. In the film, we see an apparent tragedy in time and space is really an act of God’s mercy for eternity.
Supposition 5: Suffering can lead to a deeper dependence on God
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18).”
If you are a Christian, times of trouble can bring you closer to God. It can also be a training ground in character or faith to trust Him more (James 1:2) to be more holy by being pruned and transformed to be more Christ-like (John 15:1), or as a way to comfort others who are now going through a problem you faced already (2 Co 1:4).
God even uses our suffering for His glory and eventual good (Romans 8:28).
Supposition 6: Let’s blame the right guy
“
An elderly man had to endure his wife’s dementia, stroke, and eventually her death. When his son asked him if he blamed God, he said, “God? Why would I blame Him? It’s not His fault we get old and die.”
In short, we ignore that there is a real being who is evil who should take the blame for this messed up world, not God. But how quick others are to blame God for evil, and its resulted death sentences.
God allowed for our free choice to love Him voluntarily and part of that free will choice means some will choose to rebel, as Satan did. It must be so to have true love.
The Bible, however, puts the blame correctly on a rebel named Lucifer, a real spiritual villain who deceived Eve (remember Adam sinned knowingly) by questioning God’s word in order to wreck God’s Paradise, or so Lucifer thought. And so, this world is a broken creation, as are we…spiritually dead…but it was never God’s fault.
Supposition 7: Consider God’s past dealings
“For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope (Romans 15:4).”
In the Bible there are several tragedies that the people of that time must have wondered our same question, Where is God when life falls apart?
Think about Noah and the flood, the Egyptian enslavement of Israel, the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC, Joseph being sold into slavery, the murder of babies by Herod, and even the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. These were horrendous events that God turned around and used for the ultimate good of mankind.
When we consider past tragedies in the Bible, and how God used our bad choices, we get a glimpse of how His purposes can result for our good. We get a peek behind the curtain, so to speak, and see the Wizard at work.
- - - - - - - -
So after posting all of this information, I think it helps us understand why but it doesn't help our hearts feel better about the junk in the world.
What helped me the most was what I found and shared on Sunday. That we only see dimly, foggy and fuzzy what God's purposes are in this world and that I have to trust God to be who He is when junk happens. He has always been faithful to me. He has always been there when many have emotionally or spiritually fled from me. God was there. Is there. So the answer, at least for me, to the question of "Where is God when things fall apart?" is that God was right there with me all the time. All the time God held me during the junk of life. All the time He carried me, walked beside me, comforted me and cried with me. Just as He did when His Son died on the cross. God is good. All the time.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
UnFair Prayer
This week is the first in our series about injustice in the world. The UnFair Series. Here is the prayer you were challenged to pray this week. Also, re-read Psalm 73 and see how Asaph handles this question of unfairness in the world.
Dear Lord, help me not to be a whiner. Help me, when I am tempted to complain and grumble about how life is not fair, to remember that to “follow you” means life will not be fair. It was not with you. May I respond to my difficulties and trials in life with your grace, knowing that you will sustain me just like you did your Son. I thank you that when all I have left is you, you are enough. Amen.
Dear Lord, help me not to be a whiner. Help me, when I am tempted to complain and grumble about how life is not fair, to remember that to “follow you” means life will not be fair. It was not with you. May I respond to my difficulties and trials in life with your grace, knowing that you will sustain me just like you did your Son. I thank you that when all I have left is you, you are enough. Amen.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Serve
We have been talking about our vision process for a while now. Two week ago we talked about Know.
This is the idea that we need to know God (informationally and experientially) more and more.
Then last week, we talked about Grow. After coming to know God more we will also want to seek to grow in our relationship to other followers of Christ. There is also the idea that as we do that, we will also grow closer to God as well.
Sunday, we talked about Serve. The text was from 1 Peter 4:7-11. In fact, you can listen to it here if you would like. : ]
The point I wanted all of us to remember is this:
Greatness fits like a glove when we serve God and others in love.
Catchy, right?
If you like that, then get this! Living the liturgy of life from a follower of Christ perspective is encompassed in a word: leitourgia. Sound familiar? It should. It is actually where we get the word liturgy. Originally, liturgy was considered a service or ministry to others in a community. Pretty cool, huh?
The idea of liturgy is that of serving others! Or at least, that is what it started out as being.
Back to greatness . . .
There are lots of things that we think of that might make us great. More money? More prestige? More authority? More _____???? Did you think of a few things? I thought of a statue. It just seems that we tend to make statues for people that were great. Hmmmm, wonder where Alexander's statue is?
Anyway, the Bible says that we are truly great when we are not great. It says that we can only be great when we serve others. When we leitourgia. That is counter cultural. So it would seem that we have to give up some things to actually be great in a Christ perspective. I guess we can't sit on the right hand of Jesus after all. (Mark 10:42-45)
So we are actually great when we lead others to greatness. So that means . . .
As followers and disciples of Christ we are most like Him when we serve and love others. If that is true, and I believe it is, when we share Jesus with them by telling them of this sacrifice for them, his love for them, his service to them, then we are serving them and loving them in the most powerful way! Sharing is an act of serving!
Telling others about Jesus is sharing his sacrifice with them. It is truly serving them because we are looking out for them from the most loving perspective we can. We love them so much that we care about their spirituality. And more specifically, which kingdom they will spend eternity.
For me personally, my "statue" will be getting to spend eternity praising God with as many people as I can share Jesus' sacrifice with.
This is the idea that we need to know God (informationally and experientially) more and more.
Then last week, we talked about Grow. After coming to know God more we will also want to seek to grow in our relationship to other followers of Christ. There is also the idea that as we do that, we will also grow closer to God as well.
Sunday, we talked about Serve. The text was from 1 Peter 4:7-11. In fact, you can listen to it here if you would like. : ]
The point I wanted all of us to remember is this:
Greatness fits like a glove when we serve God and others in love.
Catchy, right?
If you like that, then get this! Living the liturgy of life from a follower of Christ perspective is encompassed in a word: leitourgia. Sound familiar? It should. It is actually where we get the word liturgy. Originally, liturgy was considered a service or ministry to others in a community. Pretty cool, huh?
The idea of liturgy is that of serving others! Or at least, that is what it started out as being.
Back to greatness . . .
There are lots of things that we think of that might make us great. More money? More prestige? More authority? More _____???? Did you think of a few things? I thought of a statue. It just seems that we tend to make statues for people that were great. Hmmmm, wonder where Alexander's statue is?
Anyway, the Bible says that we are truly great when we are not great. It says that we can only be great when we serve others. When we leitourgia. That is counter cultural. So it would seem that we have to give up some things to actually be great in a Christ perspective. I guess we can't sit on the right hand of Jesus after all. (Mark 10:42-45)
So we are actually great when we lead others to greatness. So that means . . .
As followers and disciples of Christ we are most like Him when we serve and love others. If that is true, and I believe it is, when we share Jesus with them by telling them of this sacrifice for them, his love for them, his service to them, then we are serving them and loving them in the most powerful way! Sharing is an act of serving!
Telling others about Jesus is sharing his sacrifice with them. It is truly serving them because we are looking out for them from the most loving perspective we can. We love them so much that we care about their spirituality. And more specifically, which kingdom they will spend eternity.
For me personally, my "statue" will be getting to spend eternity praising God with as many people as I can share Jesus' sacrifice with.
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Verses about Faith
Today the weather was great! I had asked God to make a time so that I could go hiking again today. I worked on the vision this morning and after lunch I was ready to go hike. I looked outside and the sky was clearing and the temperature was 63 degrees! Thank you God!
So I decided to head over to Frontenac State Park and go up the bluff. It was going to be a longer hike. With my boot rubbing a little on my heel I decided to push it anyway.
I ended up hiking 6.3 miles! It was wonderful. I talked to God and listened and praised him. I saw a squirrel and birds and then I saw two sets of deer.
Here are the links to see my walk yesterday and today also:
Yesterday: http://s3.amazonaws.com/accuterra/1334806372.kmz
Today: http://s3.amazonaws.com/accuterra/1334781767.kmz
Here are my stats, which was kind of fun to know:
Trip 1:
Adventure Statistics:
Time:
Start: 1:34:44 PMStop: 3:19:22 PMDuration: 1 hr 44 min 38 sec
Distance: 4.2 milesSpeed:
Average Speed: 2.4 miles/hrAverage Pace: 24:38 mm:ss/mile
Elevation:
Minimum: +662 feetMaximum: +823 feet
Trip 2:
Adventure Statistics:
Time:
Start: 1:17:45 PMStop: 3:45:23 PMDuration: 2 hr 27 min 38 sec
Distance: 6.3 milesSpeed:
Average Speed: 2.6 miles/hrAverage Pace: 23:26 mm:ss/mile
Elevation:
Minimum: +715 feetMaximum: +1131 feet
Panoramic from Bluff
I did end up getting a blister on the back of my heel. I'll live. : ]
Great day with God today. Tomorrow I head back in the afternoon. Although I video chatted with my family both nights, it wasn't the same and will be glad to get back to see them.
Have a great night all!
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Vision Meetings
We have been holding vision meetings every month. Well, almost every month, we took December off and then January had a small snow storm that night. Minnesota, who knew?
The purpose of the vision meetings is to cast a vision for this church and to begin to apply that vision to what we are doing for God's kingdom on this earth. The vision meeting is a hatching ground for a comprehensive vision to then give to the church board for complete gestation and implementation.
We started with dreaming what the church could be and talked about what we are now. We continued as we talked about goals for the next year and then goals for five years from now. We knew that we already agreed on Beliefs and Values. Mainly because we are a part of a denomination that has stated beliefs and values.
So, our next journey was to talk about Purpose. Purpose is answering the question of Why are we here? Why do we exist as a church? Some would mock and say that this is simple. However, things are seldom short nor are they seldom simple. In fact, I would argue that creating something simple takes more work than creating something complex. Because creating something simple doesn't mean that it actually simple, but rather that so much thought has gone into it that is simple to those experiencing it and is simple in application or praxis.
We did after a few meetings arrive at a Purpose. Our purpose is also our process. They are the same. We are using these words to communicate this: Know, Grow, Serve. Allow me to exegete a bit.
Know means to worship God. Our journey above all has to start with worshipping God. It is in the worshipping that we become aware of His great love for us.
Grow means to be a disciple of Jesus. This is twofold. First, we are to be discipled to grow in our application of Jesus' life to ours. Second, as we do this, we will become aware of the imperative to disciple others to do the same.
Serve means to think outside of ourselves. It means that we are to love others through acts of service. It might mean that we help those less fortunate than us with blankets and/or food. It might mean that we volunteer to minister to kids. It might mean that sponsor those activities in places that we cannot go.
After this, we have now moved to Core Values. Andy Stanley said that core values are "an organization's essential and enduring tenets - a small set of general guiding principles."
According to Audrey Malpuhars, 10 reasons Core Values are important are:
The purpose of the vision meetings is to cast a vision for this church and to begin to apply that vision to what we are doing for God's kingdom on this earth. The vision meeting is a hatching ground for a comprehensive vision to then give to the church board for complete gestation and implementation.
We started with dreaming what the church could be and talked about what we are now. We continued as we talked about goals for the next year and then goals for five years from now. We knew that we already agreed on Beliefs and Values. Mainly because we are a part of a denomination that has stated beliefs and values.
So, our next journey was to talk about Purpose. Purpose is answering the question of Why are we here? Why do we exist as a church? Some would mock and say that this is simple. However, things are seldom short nor are they seldom simple. In fact, I would argue that creating something simple takes more work than creating something complex. Because creating something simple doesn't mean that it actually simple, but rather that so much thought has gone into it that is simple to those experiencing it and is simple in application or praxis.
We did after a few meetings arrive at a Purpose. Our purpose is also our process. They are the same. We are using these words to communicate this: Know, Grow, Serve. Allow me to exegete a bit.
Know means to worship God. Our journey above all has to start with worshipping God. It is in the worshipping that we become aware of His great love for us.
Grow means to be a disciple of Jesus. This is twofold. First, we are to be discipled to grow in our application of Jesus' life to ours. Second, as we do this, we will become aware of the imperative to disciple others to do the same.
Serve means to think outside of ourselves. It means that we are to love others through acts of service. It might mean that we help those less fortunate than us with blankets and/or food. It might mean that we volunteer to minister to kids. It might mean that sponsor those activities in places that we cannot go.
After this, we have now moved to Core Values. Andy Stanley said that core values are "an organization's essential and enduring tenets - a small set of general guiding principles."
According to Audrey Malpuhars, 10 reasons Core Values are important are:
- Determine Ministry Distinctives
- Dictate Personal Involvement
- Communicate What is Important
- Embrace Positive Change
- Influence Overal Behavior
- Inspire People to Action
- Enhance Credible Leadership
- Shape Ministry Character
- Contribute to Ministry Success
- Determine the Ministry Vision
Core Values then feed into what strategies we use to accomplish our vision.
All of this to say these two thoughts I had this morning.
First, and this is a difficult one, what would the community be missing if we closed the doors of the church?
And second, what is our purpose?
My thoughts teem more with the second question first. Some would say that we are here to disciple others. Our goal centers around this. However, it goes to some sort of egg versus chicken attitude, doesn't it? I mean, if we are to center on discipleship then our definition of discipleship must indeed be broader. Most of us, I believe, think that discipleship is about edifying those of us that are already Christians (and I use this term knowing the cultural dubiousness of it). This cannot be so.
Making disciples must center around the initial act of having a disciple to disciple. Without a disciple to disciple our discipleship plan falls on ears that already "know" way more than enough to be a follower of Christ. I heard recently that the average Christian knows enough about God after the first year of discipleship to go and disciple others. Our purpose then has to be to larger and more grand than this. It has to include, but not limited to, actually going and making disciples! Making implies a level of creation. Not a level of maintenance. I think, perhaps, that we get bogged down in discipling and forget that the biblical text includes the word "make."
Ouch. Did I say that out loud? My own paltry experience over the years causes in my own level of following Christ.
We are to make disciples in all the nations. This carries with it a heavy charge to make disciples by leading people to the throne of Jesus but also to disciple them to maturity. Are we as a church doing that?
This is not my vision for this church. This is God's vision for all churches. My hope and prayer is that my vision is God's vision for our church. And by acknowledging that we aren't sharing the Gos Pel, the Good News of Jesus, then it is an acknowledgment that we are failing at our Commission.
These thoughts then lead me to the former of these two questions. If our ultimate purpose is not to make disciples and then disciple them, or rephrased, not pursuing our ultimate purpose, then this question answers itself.
If we are not loving people in the community (through service, through worship, through discipling), then I wonder if people would miss those things that we aren't doing?
Don't get me wrong. We are in the visioning process in order to center ourselves in God's purpose for this church. So we are on the road. We are moving forward. And it is better to spend time planning and storm the castle effectively and with intensity than it is to storm the castle and not know which castle. The vision casting process is critical!!
No. What I am hoping to communicate is that when the Bible says GO and MAKE disciples, it means that the activities of going and making are the purpose of the church and that we cannot lose sight of it. We cannot forget it. We cannot ignore it. We must pursue it!
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Person of Interest
On Sunday we talked about and asked the question, Who is the person of interest in our lives? This question is essential when we think about our spiritual condition!
We are called to disciple others. We are called to be discipled by others. These two things are essential to our spiritual life having growth in it. So to ask who is the spiritual person of interest in our lives has to be done.
We can't sit back and not be interested in others and allow others to be interested, spiritually, in us. It is a mandate.
One of the questions that was asked is who are we discipling?
And I wonder. Have you answered that question yet? It is Thursday night and most of the week is gone. Have you thought about it some more?
Who is around you that you could disciple? What does that look like for you? My belief is that by the time we have been discipled intentionally for about a year, we know most of what we need to know to disciple someone else.
That means that most of us could have discipled about 20 people by now if we had only discipled one person a year!!
And think. Jesus had 12!
Have you considered this question then? Have you really thought it through? What is keeping you from discipling someone right now?
In small groups, the question is how do we define discipleship?
Here are some verses to help you out:
John 21:15-17
1 Peter 5:2-4
2 Timothy 2:1-2
John 6:45
1 Peter 1:15-16
John 13:15
Ephesians 4:20-5:1
Great Commandment - Mark 12:29-31
Great Commision - Matthew 28:19-20
See what you find in the Bible that defines discipleship.
See you Sunday!!
We are called to disciple others. We are called to be discipled by others. These two things are essential to our spiritual life having growth in it. So to ask who is the spiritual person of interest in our lives has to be done.
We can't sit back and not be interested in others and allow others to be interested, spiritually, in us. It is a mandate.
One of the questions that was asked is who are we discipling?
And I wonder. Have you answered that question yet? It is Thursday night and most of the week is gone. Have you thought about it some more?
Who is around you that you could disciple? What does that look like for you? My belief is that by the time we have been discipled intentionally for about a year, we know most of what we need to know to disciple someone else.
That means that most of us could have discipled about 20 people by now if we had only discipled one person a year!!
And think. Jesus had 12!
Have you considered this question then? Have you really thought it through? What is keeping you from discipling someone right now?
In small groups, the question is how do we define discipleship?
Here are some verses to help you out:
John 21:15-17
1 Peter 5:2-4
2 Timothy 2:1-2
John 6:45
1 Peter 1:15-16
John 13:15
Ephesians 4:20-5:1
Great Commandment - Mark 12:29-31
Great Commision - Matthew 28:19-20
And these are just to get you started!! The Bible has a LOT to say about discipleship!!
See what you find in the Bible that defines discipleship.
See you Sunday!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)