Transitions

It's been a while since the last time I updated this blog, and with the changes in our life, I figured now is good a time as ever.

For the past couple months, God has been placing signs and directions in our lives. Its been quite unnerving throughout the whole situation. I went from being a pastor in a flourishing youth group in which God was clearly working in young people's lives, to being hired by another church in the same town. I know there's this whole negative stigma when it comes to switching churches (especially as a pastor) in the same town, but we felt doors opening regardless of the fears and doubts we (and others) had. There's no doubt in our minds that throughout the past two years, we've developed a passion for the area where we live. We've come to develop base relationships, started knowing people throughout the community, and the discipleship process at church was progressing efficiently. This whole change thing seemed chaotic and even irrational. My wife and I are still asked to logically explain the whole scenario to people, and not to be short with anyone, but trust us; you don't have enough time.

Why did we feel arrows were pointing us elsewhere? We wondered and even questioned God through this whole ordeal. Yet in the end, all roads were leading us to this new ministry opportunity. In the end, I'd rather follow the Lord through the hard times and risky situations rather than sit securely on the hill of comfort and pride.

On top of our ministry transition, my wife went back to school, we're having to move, our dog of 18 years died, and we're maintaining family time with a seven month old baby. When it rains it pours right?

We're soaked with transition!

It has taken us out of our comfort zone and placed us off balance in this weird awkward position. Its sort of like the game of Twister. We had our hands and feet in a comfortable position, and now God is asking us to get all curled up and distorted out of shape. Yet there's something extremely exciting with what God is doing. He's continuing to work among the people of the area in which we live, and to be part of His Kingdom is joyous.

The important thing isn't that we have moved. It isn't about the church I used to work at; it isn't about the church that I'm now working at. Whats important is that the Kingdom of God is being taught to the young people of the area. Its important that disciples are continually being made of Jesus. Its important that through all this, God continues to get the glory. We are part of God's restoration project of humanity. Let us continue to center our lives on the Christ.

What about them?

Tonight was a great night. I was able to be involved in a community Thanksgiving service. It was held at the local First United Methodist Church and put on by the local BACMA (Bad Axe Christian Ministerial Association). I thought it would be appropriate to invite some of the young people from our youth group. It was great to see our church's youth group in attendance. But, I have to be honest with you, soon into the service, I quickly regretted the decision. Only a small handful of our kids showed up, but I still regretted the decision. A small part of my started wondering how this service ministered to the young people, who need to be ministered to the most.

Let me clear the air, we can't take away from a person's sincerity. The Thanksgiving service was full of the greatest, most sincere pastor's you could ever imagine. We were singing hymns, reading scripture, and sharing thankful prayers of how God blesses people. The sincerity of this service was absolutely stunning. It was completely evident that the Lord moved among the people. The way the songs were sung touched my heart. The way the service flowed was real, intimate, and heartfelt.

Throughout this service, I felt this interesting conflict. My heart felt for those who sincerely and passionately worshiped God. Yet on the flip side, my heart hurt for some of the young people in attendance. For those young people, I had to wonder: what did this do for them? Did they know and understand the sincerity of the one's putting on the service? Could they understand the depths of people's hearts? Yet I found myself asking different kinds of questions. What do they think of the music? Do the young people wonder why they're the only ones in attendance? What do the young people think of this rigid formality?

What kind of services do we put on for people? Do our church services minister only to the lifelong Christians? If a person off the street came to a service, what sorts of thoughts and impressions would they have? I absolutely love the sincerity of people. I love seeing how people worship. The words of some of the old hymns truly speak to me. But I wonder, what about the new people who didn't grow up on those same old hymns? What is it doing for them? Tonight was an amazing night focused on the upcoming holiday of Thanksgiving. We praised, worshipped, and learned from the scriptures. For some of us that have been brought up in the church our whole lives, this was the typical sort of service we're used to. A service what would prepare our hearts for Thanksgiving. Some of us have been in and out of these sorts of churches our whole lives. It can sometimes blend together and become all the same because we've been exposed to it so much. But what about those that have never been in a church before? Are we mindful of what they perceive when they enter the building?

Tonight was amazing for me, but what about them? It's my belief that we must start paying attention to the chemistry of our church services. I believe if we want new people to worship the Lord in our buildings, we must set up services that relate to them; not just us.

I was amazed tonight because the sincerity was overwhelming. The service was great for me, but what about them?

Do we think about them?

An Earth-Shattering Treasure

What is the kingdom of heaven?

Is it the place Christians go when they die?

What have we assumed this kingdom actually is?

Are our ideas of this kingdom true?

Do yourself a favor, go to this website:

www.biblegateway.com/

Next, under the title “Quick search,” type in “kingdom.” Once you’ve typed this into the quick search, press the “Search the Bible” button.

I’d like you to first notice how many times the bible talks about the concept of a “kingdom.” After you’ve seen there are 347 times this word it mentioned, go to the 193rd reference. This is the beginning of Matthew where Jesus starts to preach and teach on the kingdom of heaven. As you look over all the way Jesus talks, defines, and explains this kingdom; compare His idea description of the kingdom of heaven to yours. Are they the same? Different? Hmmm

I’m completely fascinated with this idea of the kingdom of heaven. What does Jesus mean when He says the “kingdom of heaven is near”? What about when He says, “the kingdom of heaven is inside of you”? Scholars and theologians continue to say that this message of the kingdom is the main point being expressed in all Jesus’ teachings.

So what is this kingdom? I encourage you to read through and look at how Jesus illustrates the kingdom of heaven.

Fascinating!

What was Jesus saying?

I’ve come across something recently that I’ve heard before. Through focus, study, and prayer, it has become new and fresh.

In this parable, Jesus tells his disciples what the kingdom of heaven is like:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went out and sold all he had and bought that field.”

Read this a few times..........

Think about it.... Close your eyes and imagine this happening.....

Imagine the value this man found in the hidden treasure. He finds something of great worth! What does he do? He goes and sells everything he has to purchase this field where he hid this new found treasure. We must come to the conclusion that the value of this hidden treasure is beyond the value of anything else he acquires. He gives up everything he has to take ahold this new discovery.

Did he sell things he had saved his whole life?

Did he give up a business?

What about a house, or a property?

Point is: This new finding now became the focus/priority of his life. All his investments were shifted and directed to this valuable treasure. He sold everything he had to purchase that field! Thats bold.

Some of us have found this treasure and perceive it’s value. Some recognize that a treasure exists, but they don’t experience it’s worth. Some are ignorant to the treasure and it’s worth.

The man in the parable found something that radically changed the course of his life.

This new finding changed everything!!!!!!!! What a powerful image.

Drastic

Robust

Vivid

Dramatic

Graphic

Intense

Radiant

Lucid

Evocative

He reordered his life. Everything was revamped. He didn’t simply tweak a few minor issues, his life entered into a metamorphosis. The significance of this treasure spurred radical redirection.

This is one of the ways Jesus spells out the kingdom of heaven.

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I want to be part of a people who continually see the value of God’s kingdom; part of a people who have discovered the treasure. Part of a generation mindful of God’s: boundless, unlimited, never-ending, interminable, fathomless, extensive, vast, immense, incalculable, and infinite love for us.

I have found a hidden treasure! Thank God for eyes to see.

May we see the treasure! When we find it, may we remember and remind ourselves of it's infinite value!

Appetite

The book of John portrays a story in which Jesus took five small loaves of bread and two small fish, and he miraculously multiplied the food to feed an mass of five thousand people by a lake.

A while later, Jesus and His disciples found these same people following them to the other side of the lake. Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” Jesus realized at that moment, that these people weren’t following him because they truly wanted to follow as disciples, they were following Him because they wanted more food. They wanted to fill their appetites. They were following Him for all the wrong reasons.

Do we do this? Do we follow Jesus because of what we can get out of the deal? Do we follow Him because we think He can provide safety? Do we follow Him in hopes of getting our wants and desires met? Do we follow Him so he will fill our appetite (whatever that appetite may be)? Maybe some of us want Him to give us our fill.

We know our appetites will come and go. One moment our stomachs will be full, the next moment they’re empty. We strive to fill our stomachs, yet we can’t seem to fill them enough. This repetitive behavior continues as we constantly look for our fill. Whether its consumerism, food, entertainment, addiction, or anything else; these will never make us truly content.

Jesus goes on to say, “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.” Jesus invites us to halt this ongoing repetitive behavior, this behavior that only addresses our present wants and desires, these appetites that are only momentarily fulfilling. Jesus offers us the way, the truth, and the life. He offers us something so much more.

We are given an offer: we can choose to resist the appetites that are only temporary, and we can pursue a way of life which God intended for us to live. Jesus invites us to follow and partner with Him in a life of truly loving others. He invites us to learn His way of life, and live His way of life. Jesus is waiting to show us a way of life that is truly life. Will we follow? Will we continue to follow?

Will you follow Him?

Random Honest Thoughts

Sometimes I wonder if I should be a youth pastor. I mean, you're right, the kids don't need another negative cultural influence. Kids need to know the power of Christ, and that He is everything. I've spend so much time praying about this because in brute honesty, kids need to be taught that the sacrifice of following Christ calls us to be "set apart (which is the definition of Holy)". Young people do need to be taught the things that are beneficial and the things that aren't beneficial. Sometimes I wonder if anything I do helps young people love God in a deep and intimate way. I'd rather get a huge group of kids together and go and love on people who need help, poor people, sick people, people that are ignored by society. Those are the sorts of thing Jesus would do with a youth group. I wonder what challenging things Jesus would tell me as a pastor.

In Jesus' time, the people with a high religious position were concerned with outward holiness. This was referred to as the politics of holiness. When Jesus challenged them, he did not tell them to appear even more holy, he challenged them because their holiness displaced them from the people the Father truly cared about. In studying through the gospels, Jesus taught not the politics of holiness, but He taught the politics of compassion. He told the religious people they were dead without even knowing it because they made certain that their appearance clean, spotless, and pure. Yet Jesus said they were dead and that they taught people to become twice the sons of hell that they were. Jesus was concerned not with outward holiness as he was with the transforming power of God on the inside of a person. This is a huge struggle for me. Its a struggle because I know kids need to learn the difference between good and evil...but then you have to think....thats the same temptation that got Adam and Even in trouble in the first place. Reading the message of Christ, he was more passionate about people being transformed and following Him. He wanted people to see the world as He saw it, to care for the people He cared about, and to love as He loved. Its evident that He didn't care as much about our outward appearances of holiness as He did about our hearts desire for God.

Its sometimes disappointing being a pastor. I have parents telling me that I should teach their kids to get better grades, what movies not to watch, what words not to say, how they should date, what music not to listen to, how to act, what things not to do, and over and over this pressure overwhelms me. Its overbearing because I know God did not place me as a pastor to teach these things. God has called me to be a pastor to lead people to Christ. As the Father calls people unto himself, they will be transformed. This internal redirection will be the Spirit leading them to a renewing of the mind. I don't want to be just another youth group that gives kids a list of dos and don'ts. I want to be a youth group that challenges kids to seek the face of God. I want to be a place where kids are inspired to enter love affair with their Creator.

Church is not a moral compass. Our goal is not to teach kids to live by the fruit of the Spirit. Sometimes that would be easier. Wouldn't it be nice to have a handbook to give to every kid telling them all the things to avoid? But our mission is not to place a yoke on the kids and take away all their fun. Our goal is to lead people to Christ in hope that they will be transformed by His power. As they are transformed and grow in their maturity, they will bear fruit (the fruit of the Spirit). Christ is everything to us. Without Him, we are but animals driven by our sinful nature. But with Him, He gives us the power to resist every form and appeal of the sinful nature through the power of His Spirit.

Sometimes I sit back and think I should listen to every parent. It seems to me, that parents expect me to do the parenting for them. Many in the church would like to see a bunch of good little Christian kids with their shirts tucked in and their hair groomed clean. But isn't this sort of idea the very thing Jesus challenged the Pharisees on? This is why I struggle. The pressure of cultural anti-Christian expectations within the church can sometimes be unbearable. The scriptures say that the world will not understand...and sometimes I think the world influences the church more than we ever realize.

My hope as a youth pastor is that young people will have an internal transformation at some point. I know I'm planting seeds, and some of the seeds I'll never be able to see grow. I think a study on this was done by Willow Creek at one time. When the study was released, it said that the average Christian has to hear the message of Christ some seventeen times before they actually come to know Christ personally. I hope as I work in our Church, that I will plant one or two seeds, and that the Father will use those seeds to grow disciples of Christ.

It can be very discouraging as a youth pastor to give and give and give and rarely see results. This discouragement can be a tool the enemy uses to wear us out. Yet I know that God is working in this area. I know He deeply loves His people, and that He is crying out for them. I know that if I let discouragement take me hostage, then the enemy wins.

I could vent to you about the burden of ministry over and over, but because this message has become quite long, I'll stop for now. Dana, I just want you to know my heart for these kids. I want you to know that we are all babies in Christ, but we grow together.

I appreciate your concerns more than you realize! Iron sharpens iron and that is what you do for me. Whether you realize it or not, the Lord has given me extreme joy in our friendship. I'm beyond excited to do life with you and i hope you know that!

Everything is for God's glory! He is the most beautiful, amazing, indescribable God. I want Him to be reflected in everything I do. May we all follow Jesus together! :)

American Christians are in an interesting position. Here, in what many like to think of as the epicenter of western culture, we are American Christians who "believe" in Jesus. This position is one of paradox.

I know Christians who are Republicans. I also know Christians who are Democrats. Usually, some sort of religion has something to do with a person's political stance.

I know Christians who are pro-choice. I also know Christians who are pro-life.

For the war. Against the war.

I know Christians who say that if we have enough faith, God will grant us the blessing of healthiness, success, and victory. Some of these same Christians say God will bring wealth to those who love Him. This is referred to as the "health and wealth gospel."

I also know Christians who say that God has already blessed us and because of this, we have a duty as followers of Christ, to bless others. Some call this a social justice gospel.

These are examples of how our individual truths are unique depending on who we are and what we believe. Western culture has an effect on our faith.

The position we as Christians are in, is one of asking ourselves the question: “Is the Jesus we believe in, accurate to the person He really was?”

I know people who have a rough time with this.

Do we fit Jesus into the mold of our culture?

Maybe instead of God making man in His own image, man has turned and made God in his own image.

Doesn't this seem consistent with our culture?

We can choose our own truths, as long as it doesn’t infringe on others. So we pick our gas stations, we pick our grocery stores, we pick what brand of clothes to buy, and we pick our Jesus.

We each like our own brand of Jesus.

But is the interpretation of Jesus we subscribe to accurate? Is Jesus being fit into our mold or are we fitting into Jesus’ mold?

American Christians are in an interesting position. What culture will influence them next?

Drive-Thru

I love Taco Bell, especially in my college days. Any restaurant serving drive-thru tacos at 2am to hungry college students gets an A in my book. Recently Kelly and I went in a drive thru at Taco Bell.

Imagine a picture of three loaded tacos full of the works, with cilantro and lime to top it all off. Adding to the picture was a name which made my mouth water even more: “Cantina Tacos!”

I couldn’t resist. I ordered the Cantinas in hopes that they would be perfect goodness.

I opened up the foil around my tacos as fast as I could in hopes of biting into a delicious treat.

There laying inside the foil was the smallest, most unsatisfying tacos I have ever gotten from Taco Bell. These three tacos could hardly cover my taste not to mention my hungry, grumbling stomach.

Has our idea of church become like this?

We drive in, expect to be given something great and to be fed, only to drive away wondering why our appetites weren’t filled like we expected. We often wish church would feed us, when really it was never meant to function as a fast food restaurant. We expect programs to offer us something, and when the programs don’t meet our expectations, we wonder what’s wrong with the church.

Are we Christian consumers?

Does our mentality of church fit that of a drive-thru restaurant?

In the book of Acts, a scene is described in which the Spirit of God moved upon a group of people. These people were concerned with two main things, the love of God and love of each other. The two went hand in hand. They weren’t interested in what they could receive from the community, they were interested in what they could contribute to the community as God contributed His Spirit to them.

Many people who attend church possess this consumeristic mentality.

This bothers some of us. Some of us feel a pull to bring back church in its original context. Some of us are sick of being church critics; we're ready to be solutions.

"Imperfection" IS perfection

I've been trying to see through new windows lately and this is one of the things I've been working on for the past few months. I'll soon write about this when I get my thoughts organized.

Saturated by Ruach Elohim (Spirit of God)

Recently, I finished a book about the Holy Spirit that, quite honestly, messed me up. In this book, it talked about how we as Christians tend to ignore and suppress the Holy Spirit’s active leading in our lives.

Our relationship with God can often become quite one sided. We ask Him to bless us with this thing or that issue. We pray that He would bless our situations, our families, and our nation. We place Jesus fish on our cars to let people know we are Christians. We remain conscious not to swear because, well thats just not a Christian thing to do. Our focus, priorities, and goals continue to be “of this world,” the only difference is we sprinkle a little Jesus on top which makes us feel like a good Christian. My question through all these nice little Christian scenarios is: Are we keeping in step with the Spirit of God? Maybe some of us are in step with the Spirit, maybe some of us front the Spirit’s leading. However our relationship with God works, if we are ignorant of the Spirit of God and His leading, then any relationship with God we have is quite one sided.

The scriptures tell us the effects of remaining in step with the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5). Other phrases such as: “abundant life,” “eternal life,” and “life that is truly life,” tell us of the life God meant for us to live by embracing His Spirit.

The book I read messed me up because it challenged me to seek God in more deep and intimate ways. Instead of being a “outside of the cup” kind of Christian, I want to embrace the fullness of the Spirit in the deepest corner of my soul. I want God to saturate me with His Spirit, transforming me to look more and more like Jesus everyday. This is how God created us. He created us to be temples of the Holy Spirit. If the temple doesn’t embrace what is was made for, then it’s just a shell; useless.

May we all embrace the Spirit of God’s leading. May we all join together in one purpose, one song, opening ourselves to let God work in and through us for his purpose, His Kingdom.

Ideology of Perfection

Jesus once said, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

A day or two ago I was eating an apple. By the second or third bite, I noticed something: this apple was perfect. It was perfectly round, had no bug bites, was picked at the right time, and had a wonderful flavor. That same day I was driving my car into town and I passed a yard with landscaping that probably cost more than my car. While in town, I washed and waxed my car to get rid of the dirt and give it a glistening shine. Whether this is a cultural thing or not; we as a people seem to be obsessed with perfection. Our fruit, our houses, our cars, and our lives often portray this value.

We tend to point out, identify, and correct flaws; some of the flaws we’re most aware of are the flaws in ourselves. We rarely tell people these flaws, and if we do they usually are the closest friends in our lives. Some of us even pretend that these blemishes don’t exist. Many of us like to see ourselves as the apple: flawless. Some of us even pay money to correct our defects. Surgeries, cosmetics, tanning beds, clothing, and plenty of other coping mechanisms are used to divert attention away from our flaws and on to another object.

You have to start to wonder something: If we really learned from Jesus, would we see things differently? Maybe Jesus is telling us that perfection comes not through focusing on ourselves, but focusing on others and following Him. Maybe we need to stop trying to perfect all the flaws in our lives, but embrace them. Maybe by embracing these flaws and looking outward beyond ourselves; we will see a worldview where things become more about “us” than they do about “I.”

Jesus is talking about an awareness more concerned with the needs of others, an awareness larger than the “me.”

The Spirit of God will give us the ability to see beyond the apple to the tree.

So you have to wonder:

What if Jesus really meant what he said?

Creative Life

What kind of creativity did it take to make this flower?

As i try my hand at close-up photography, I see fresh details I’ve never seen before. Like, the God who created us has this unlimited, infinite imagination. Sometimes, by looking at the small, we get an inside view of Big. Creative!

Its interesting.

Genesis tells us God created man in His likeness. It goes on to say He created man in his own image.

Genesis 2:7 says, “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

Look around.

Cars. Road Systems. Science. Architecture. Technology. Medicine. Farming. Literature. Art. Music. Language.

Incredible creativity and imagination!

You can’t tell me people aren’t creative. God gave “man” the ability to be imaginative and creative.

But lately I’ve been struggling. I find an alarming decline in imagination and creativity when it comes to being a follower of Jesus. We don’t smoke, drink, or do drugs; we come to church every Sunday. Are these few virtues what it means to follow Jesus?

Where did our imagination and creativity go?

Is this what Jesus had in mind when he said, “Follow me?”

Jesus’ teachings are full of unlimited creativity we sometimes miss because of our familiarity. Look at His parables and see the imagination.

I’m convinced that the same Breath, the same Spirit that the LORD breathes into us will give us an outflow of creativity as we love God and people.

Romans 8:6 reads, “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit (breath of God) is life and peace.

Life and peace.

An eternal, infinite, creative LIFE!

How creative are you?