Filed under: Life
This week my wife was struck with a virus which incapacitated her for several days. That meant that in addition to my normal duties I also became care-taker, mom, chief cook (didn’t do a great job at this one!), cleaner, and watcher of Jared (our 3 year old all boy tornado). Needless to say, I ended the week tired and hungry with a messy house.
In a conversation with my wife I realized that we had known each other just at 20 years. In a couple months I will have been married to her for 14 years. In that time I have become dependent (in a good way) on her for survival.
So I am writing this so the world knows that I am thankful to God for giving me the gift of Melissa. She blesses me daily in many ways that I am sure she is not aware and I know that I have taken for granted. And I thank God that He even uses things like tiny, nasty little viruses to show us His hand and remind us of His blessings.
Note to Husbands: I would encourage you guys to express your thankfulness for God’s gift to you before you have to be reminded like I was. And don’t forget to express that gratitude to God AND to your wife!
Filed under: Uncategorized
I am under no illusion that I am “the sharpest knife in the drawer”. In fact I am thankful to God that I live in an age where resources are plentiful and easily accessible. While we must never put any teacher, preacher, or person in the place of God or scripture God has given us teachers as gifts from Him for us to see Him and His Words more clearly (Eph 4:7-12). Praise Him!
In that light here are a few links that I have been reading and have been influential in my life and preaching recently. Hopefully they will provide some opportunity for you to not adore the teachers but glorify God.
Dr. John Piper writes on safety and Christian risk.
Dr Tim Keller writes on two thieves of the gospel religion or irreligion
Josh Harris is interviewed on outreach in his life and the life of Covenant Life Church
Enjoy! Learn! Grow!
Filed under: Mission
Some of you might have seen the recent addition to our property, a Porta-pottie. This week that outhouse has been a source of praise and prayers each time that I see it. Let me tell you why.
One goal of our church is to be “reaching out” to our community through actions and words. So over a year ago an idea was thrown out to use the one thing that we have plenty of to touch our community, space. After seeing an article in the paper and visiting websites we saw that local soccer leagues were in need of fields. So we begin efforts to try to help. After months of trying we seemed to be getting nowhere. And eventually, we figured that for some reason this was not going to work.
Then God showed up! A little over a month ago I was approached by someone and ask, “Would you guys ever be interested in opening up your fields for soccer teams?” I almost fell over. “YES, where do I sign” was my response. This man had been put in charge of finding more fields for the growing soccer groups in Madison County. And after just a couple conversations it was done. God had weaved together what our human efforts could not. So in the last few weeks the supplies have arrived, including nets and a porta-pottie, and practices have begun.
What’s more is that these new partners are willing to help us be a greater part of this community. When the set up crew for the nets and porta-pottie were told that they would likely be used by neighborhood kids and people visiting the playground, they responded with, “Great!” We ask, “but what if they break the goals or nets?” again “No Problem! We have more.” Amazing how God weaves His mission into even those not a part of this church!
So will you join me in praying for a porta-pottie?
Thank God that He is working to help us touch the community. Thank God that He has given us this property to be used for His Glory. Ask Him that through these simple bridges that He would be clearly seen. Ask that through this people would foster relationships where Jesus would be heard and seen. And ask that through these relationship that people would come to know Him as their King!
Filed under: Mission
We are obsessed with being safe. Just admit it. From seat belts (even for pets), to allergy warnings, to bike helmets, to toy recalls, to bridge designs our culture is obsessed with being safe. In fact some have even posited that our concern for safety has not only affected our daily lives but the way that we do things that are inherently dangerous like, fighting wars and going into space. And by doing so has made us ineffective at doing them.
Things are safer today. And for that I am grateful. I am sure many lives (including my own) have been saved by things like seat belts. (You probably don’t want to know how many car crashes I have been involved in!) But, I wonder sometimes if we have taken this concern for safety to far. And I am even more concerned that our obsession for safety has bled into our pursuit of Christ. Let me give you just a few examples.
- Our heightened concern for safety influences our prayer life. When I pray and I hear others pray often there are prayers for safety. There are prayers for safe travel, prayers for children’s safety in school, and there are prayers for safety from this group or that influence. These prayers seem to readily come from our lips. However, as I have thought through the prayers I find in scripture, especially those in the New Testament, I can’t find one prayer that specifically mentions safety. Instead I hear prayers for things like endurance, not escape, for those in danger (1 Thes 1:6), a growing understanding of God’s will (Phil 1:10, Col 1:20), a continued growth in Christ (2 Thes 2:11, Col 1:10), and advances for the gospel (Phil 1:5). I do admit you can find Psalms where David is pleading with God to save him from someone who is about to kill him, literally. But those times are rare in the Psalms and in our lives. I believe that often are prayers for safety are prayers for personal sustained comfort in disguise.
- Our heightened concern for safety influences our mission in this world. Before going on missions trips to various countries around the world, inevitably someone has cautioned me or expressed concern to me about my safety. It makes me wonder if we are more concerned for safety then for mission. The advance of the gospel is a dangerous business. Read Acts and you see that people were tortured, beaten, and killed because of it. Open a publication like Voice of the Martyrs and you find out that today is not that different from then. But should that mean that we don’t go? If that is the case we are demonstrating what we believe about the value gospel as well as putting on display the idols in our own hearts. We are saying that the gospel is less important then our own personal safety. We are more valuable then the gospel. Fortunately, people “on mission” throughout history have not taken this position. Missionaries like William Carey pushed beyond concerns over safety to reach the nation of China. The gospel is and must remain more important then “my world” staying safe.
And it is not just when we cross oceans on missions trips, I wonder sometimes if we are more concerned that we “stay safe” from “those people” across the street then reach them with the gospel. When safety is valued that highly, we have made an idol out of it in our hearts. And it is time to repent and pursue the heart of Christ. It’s time for us to be ”gospel dangerous”. God, please forgive me for valuing safety above you and your gospel.
I am reminded of a conversation about Aslan, the lion-Christ figure, in the Chronicles of Narina.
“Is – is he a man?” asked Lucy.“Aslan a man!” said Mr. Beaver sternly. “Certainly not. I tell you he is the King of the wood and the son of the great Emperor-Beyond-the-Sea. Don’t you know who is the King of Beasts? Aslan is a lion – the Lion, the great Lion.”“Ooh!” said Susan, “I’d thought he was a man. Is he – quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.” “That you will, dearie, and no mistake,” said Mrs. Beaver, “if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.”“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy.“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver. “Don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
We serve the dangerous lion of Judah. May we pursue His mission even if it isn’t safe.
Filed under: Life
Everytime that I have the occasion to travel outside of the great USA it is an opportunity for me to get another view of life. As someone has said it is often hard for us to get perspective on our culture because like fish it is something that we live in, breath in, and move in. But when you are yanked out of the water and your flop around for bit trying to get your bearings you have the opportunity to see things differently. Below are a few random reflections after being out of the country for a week recently. I encourage you to think, mull, comment, disagree, agree, or just soak in these random cross-culture thoughts.
1. We think of children and church differently then other places. Often I hear people talk about how distracting it is to have kids in services or small groups. And I admit I have often felt this way. But in other places and cultures there is not the luxury and not the thought that they are distracting. I am not sure if this says more about our view of kids or how easily distracted we are.
2. The fingers of American culture are far reaching and pervasive. From ipods to t-shirts to television, American culture can be found in the most remote places of this planet. Even with those that have little or no money. In many places that I have traveled they may cook over a fire, have a house made out of a few bricks and tin, but they have a television. And while there is usually unique twists on American culture in each place it has more similarities then differences. It scares me to think what we are exporting. And I wonder how others view us from what they see, hear, read, and watch.
3. Our world is connected and linked as one world more then ever before. The most poignant example of this to me is the internet. Recently, I was in Nicaragua where very few have their own computer, however there is an abundance of internet cafes which provide high speed service. And when I would visit them they were not filled with Americans but nationals surfing, checking e-mail, and transacting business. These links can provide some great bridges for us to connect and communicate the gospel.
4. Americans (and I think especially American christians) have made an idol out of being “safe”. I will save a rant about this for a future post!
5. The Gospel is transculture. There is a lot of discussion today about how to reach “this” or “that” group. There is discussion of how to “become this or that” for the sake of the gospel. While it is vitally important for us to examine the unique challenges and blessings of the places, times, and cultures to which we minister we must never forget that the Gospel is empowered by our God that has created every tribe, color, race, people, and nation. and HE is actively at work to save individuals from each of those through the power of a transculture gospel. Amazing!
