Archive for the ‘Christian Living’ Category
Dominican Republic Missions, 2010
July 7th, 2010 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life / Family
As many of you may already know, in about eight days, Nancy, Jeffrey, and I, along with twenty-one other people from my church and other St. Joseph area churches, will be embarking for the Dominican Republic to take the good news of Jesus Christ to people living in darkness there. The spiritual needs of the people are large, the trip itself a bit daunting, and the prayer needs great.
If you’re reading this at “Toward the Goal”, it’s probable that you share the hope and faith we have in Jesus Christ. If that’s the case, you’ll completely understand the need for fervent prayer for this trip… Satan is every bit as real as the God we serve, and he’s adamently opposed to people being used by God to reach the world with the hope of Christ. Spiritual warfare is likely, so we’ll need an army of prayer warriors standing behind us as we move to the front lines to push back darkness.
So, please… believers in Christ, pray. We do have a prayer letter to help guide your prayers, so if you’d like to receive that, by all means, contact me.
If you don’t have a faith-based relationship with Jesus, I pray you’d consider his very words:
John 3:13-21
13No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven — the Son of Man. 14Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.16“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
Jesus claimed that He was the Son of God, sent from heaven to reconcile a sinful world to God the Father. He performed miracles, signs, and wonders to prove He was who He claimed… healing people, miraculously feeding huge crowds, even raising the dead. Still, all but a few people of the time did not believe, and He was ultimately rejected and sentenced to death by crucifixion. And then something amazing happened… after suffering, dying, and being buried, He rose from the grave, conquering sin and death just as He said He would.
The question before each of us is simply this: do you believe? Will you act upon that belief by submitting your life to Jesus, repenting of sin and choosing to follow Him from that point forward?
Eternity hinges on this response.
What Matters Most…
December 14th, 2009 | 2 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Worth Reading
“Happy Holidays!”
What’s going through your mind, Christian? It’s okay… you can admit it…
“It’s CHRISTMAS you moron!”
Yep. I thought so.
Maybe you’ve been offended by the greeting. Maybe you’ve even verbalized it to the well-meaning (but misguided) person who thought they’d pleasantly wished you well this season. Maybe you’ve even decided you’re not shopping anywhere that “Christmas” is not well, um… spoken?
Yeah. We Christians can be such kill-joys during the “Holiday” season.
The point of this post? You probably know where I’m going, but you won’t find the rest here… it’s over at Todd Littleton’s place (he’s shared some good stuff).
Anyway, check out Todd’s thoughts on the never-ending war over “Christmas”: “What if Retailers Rated Christians?”
Oh, and prepare for a nice load of conviction.
Remember…
November 3rd, 2009 | 6 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, My Life / Family
Remember?
Yeah. I do. I remember a lot of things about my life experience with God.
I remember Catholic mass when I was really little (my first memory of church of any kind). I was playing under the pews. Mom must have wanted to strangle me.
I remember the Christian church that Dad went to. My sister went to VBS, but for some reason I didn’t want to.
I remember growing up going to Catholic school. The stereotype of ruler-toting nuns is only partially true.
I remember serving as an altar boy during mid-week mass during school. I hated wearing the robes, and was scared to death I’d do something wrong.
I remember confession with the Catholic priest in grade school. Such an odd feeling of dread, but somehow an odd sense of peace afterward.
I remember not really thinking a whole lot about God during any of these experiences. What I do remember was that He seemed big… distant… impersonal.
And I remember thinking that the lives of most of the people I knew who went to church contradicted everything I was hearing and learning about God in school. I remember deciding at some point that God must not really be real.
I remember how scared I was that I’d hurt my family if I ever admitted that. (And knowing my family will probably read this, I’m a bit uneasy about it now too.)
I remember how I grew pretty hostile toward the idea of God in general, and how full of crap I thought Christians were. I remember how I believed that science explained everything, and that these people who believed in God must simply be delusional.
I remember when Nancy and I got engaged, and how shortly after she told me, “If we’re going to get married, we need to go to church.” I remember the dread I felt at that moment, and how I loved her so much that I was willing to do anything for her (still do, and still would!).
I remember one of our first Sundays at First Baptist of Battlefield, and how Pastor John Elder’s sermon seemed directed right at me. I remember looking around wondering how it was possible he knew everything I thought and felt about God?
I remember attending Sunday School for the first time there, and how people seemed to love me anyway despite the fact that I was pretty clueless about God and my Catholic background was so very foreign to them.
I remember the way in which my world was rocked as God was calling to me, pleading with me to soften my heart toward Him.
I remember how I prayed for the first time in years, asking Him that, if He was real, to show me that He was, and to help me reconcile all of my struggles with what “science had shown us” with what the Bible said.
I remember praying to accept Christ late one night, and how, despite that, I continued to struggle with faith. I didn’t practice well what I professed to believe, and still had nagging doubts.
And I remember that one day, it seemed as though God did something miraculous and I all nagging doubts about what I professed to believe simply disappeared.
I remember thinking how awesome my walk with Christ was going to be because of that, and how I would be able to do great things for God.
I remember how it HAS been awesome, but how so often I’m still such a big hypocrite… how I struggle with things I believe I shouldn’t, and how inadequate I feel to call myself a follower of Christ.
So I must remember God’s grace. And His mercy. And how He has sacrificed so much for me. And how He continually demonstrates His love for me.
And I remember how Christianity has NOTHING to do with what I can offer God, but what He so freely offers to me. Forgiveness from sin. A life full of meaning, one worth living. The ability to know Him personally. The promise of heaven. The chance to let Him use me to bring a bit of heaven to earth.
All through faith and trust in Jesus.
Oh yes. I remember. I most definitely remember.
—————————————————-
Afterword:
Today I’m taking part in a “blog carnival”. Never done one before, but thought… why not?
The basics of this? There’s a word or topic, and everyone that participates writes something about that word or topic. Find out more here. Today’s word, obviously, was “remember”.
121 Thoughts…
August 29th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, My Life / Family
Yeah, I know. Sounds like a lot huh? But that’s not what I meant. You see, I attended portions of the 121 Forum this weekend at Frederick Boulevard Baptist here in St. Joe, a conference examining what it means to take the 1st century message Christians have received from Jesus and deliver it in the 21st century using methodologies available to us today.
From the portions I was able to attend, at least, it was a great conference… my friend Micah Fries and the rest of the folks behind it did a great job with everything. Great worship team… incredible speakers… just well done all around. Very thought provoking and convicting, and I’ve got to share a few of the thoughts, notes, and quotes I took down while there.
We’ll start with Bob Roberts, senior pastor of Northwood Church in Keller, Texas, and author of “Glocalization”, (more at glocal.net):
- We need to seriously rethink how we’re doing missions. According to Bob, with the state of the world today, there really is no place that’s wholly inaccessible and that is not open to missions. With today’s communications, “the whole world is listening”.
- Bob is convinced that the Great Commission will be fulfilled in the next 10 years. If Coca-Cola can be known world-wide, why can’t the gospel?
- We need to learn to communicate in a way that keeps our message from getting lost. Christians are generally the biggest barrier to the gospel.
- EVERY Christian is a missionary!
- If we want to see the message of Christ spread, we’ve got to be willing to dialog with others. We can’t preach the gospel at people and expect them to listen. We need to understand other faiths, and be able to explain ours “so the whole world gets it”.
- If the Great Commission is going to be fulfilled, it’s going to look at lot different than anything we’ve ever seen.
Perhaps the most convicting thing Bob said, though?
What if God gaves us our jobs not just to make a living but to make a difference?
This goes to the heart of missional living… our faith should be at the forefront of everything we do. If the church is serious about seeing the world come to know Jesus, we’ve got to do a better job of discipling our members. It doesn’t matter how great our missionaries and pastors are… the Great Commission is the job of every believer. As Bob said, “the church will follow the form of the disciples we’re making”.
Alvin Reid spoke this afternoon. Doc Reid teaches at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, is an accomplished author, and blogs regularly at alvinreid.com.
- “God is still moving… still changing the world.” Are we ready and willing to be part of this?
- The United States of America has the 4th largest contingent of people outside of a saving relationship with Jesus Christ on our planet. We don’t have to go anywhere to make a difference for the Kingdom of God… we’ve just got to look around, open our eyes, and believe we are called to be missionaries to where we are.
- “If the gospel came to America the way it came to Thessalonica, we would have an awakening.” (Read 1 Thessalonians 1:5).
- We’ve got to embrace missional living. We’ve got to be Biblically and doctrinally sound… we’ve got to embrace evangelism that both says and does… we’ve got to emphasize the whole life element of following Christ.
Really? Alvin built on what Bob Roberts shared in many ways regarding the missional nature of our calling. In reality, though, I think you can focus on one statement he made to get to the heart of things:
Jesus didn’t die to make bad people good… He died to make dead people live!
You see, humanity is not fighting a battle of good and evil. We’re not caught in a tug of war between God and Satan over the quality of life we’re going to live. We’re already lost… dead in our sin already. Hopeless.
Outside of a relationship with Christ, that is.
When we realize the amazing gift of life that God has given to those who believe… the sheer magnitude of His grace and mercy… perhaps then we who claim faith in Him will awake from our slumber and truly live.
We’ll live for Him first and foremost, but also for our friends, our co-workers, our families. For all of those outside of a faith-based relationship with Christ. We’ve got to live in a way that makes a difference… not just to make the world a better place now for people we care about, but to rob hell of some of the countless souls we come into contact with each day to which it currently holds title.
That’s what I’m left with as I consider 121. I profess faith in Christ. I believe that He alone saves, and that He now holds my life in His hands. I believe my eternal destination is secure.
But I don’t truly live for Him on a consistent basis. In fact, I’m not sure I can even say I live for Him on a semi-regular basis. My faith never wavers… don’t get me wrong. But my commitment does.
And that’s got to change.
Church Signs… Ugh.
July 25th, 2009 | 3 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Church Stuff...
I can’t handle it anymore. Bad church signs, that is.
I see them everywhere… witty little sayings we Christians will get and might possibly even get a little laugh about. Yet things that surely do anything but help to draw someone searching for God on church property, let alone into the building.
You’ve seen them:
“Don’t worry… Moses was a basket case too.”
“Seven days without prayer makes one weak.”
“This church is prayer conditioned.”
“Hell has no thermostat.”
Sure… intended to make a point, maybe even be humorous… but put yourself in the same soles of someone searching for God, someone who doesn’t have any of the common Biblical knowledge background that most Christians share.
Not so helpful, huh?
Well… saw yet another one tonight, maybe one of the worst ever:
“If you’re still alive, God isn’t through with you yet.”
Imagine being someone who has lived a rough live… someone who has rarely had something go their way… someone who has experienced nothing but suffering and hurt their entire life. Now imagine you’re finally starting to search for God, and show up at this church. You read the sign.
Wow. Yep, I’m still alive. And God isn’t through with me yet. All this nonsense I’ve dealt with… maybe God allowed it. And he’s not through with me? All he’s done is allow hurt and pain… forget him. No way.
Yeah. That’s one way someone could read it.
Now of course I know what this church is trying to say… God doesn’t give up on any of us. He’s loved us since the beginning of time, before our very existence, and continues to love us forever. His saving grace is available to all, no matter how big the sin, and it’s never too late to turn our lives over to Him.
But that’s not how someone COULD read this.
Churches? Enough is enough. Think about what you’re going to put on your sign. Think about it might be received by those you’re supposed to exist for… people outside a relationship with Christ. Now think about whether what you want to put on your sign helps you reach those folks.
If it doesn’t? DON’T PUT THE MESSAGE UP!
(End of rant. Sorry, had to let it out!)
Jesus Doesn’t Want Followers…
July 21st, 2009 | 2 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies
I know. Controversial title. Bear with me, I get to the conclusion of that statement in a bit.
Luke 8:4-8
4While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable 5“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked tte plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.”When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Have you heard this parable before? If you’ve been a follower of Christ for long, probably so.
The meaning is pretty straightforward, of course, in fact explained by Jesus in Luke 8:11-15… the seed is God’s word, and the soil types represent people who respond differently to the gospel.
But I have a question (leading to a larger point)… why parables? Why not, as we try so often to do so in today’s churches, simpliify the teaching and get straight to the point? Isn’t is possible Jesus lost some people because they simple didn’t get it?
And why teachings like the following?
Luke 9:57-62
57As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”58Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
59He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”60Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”
62Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Seems harsh, doesn’t it? Drop everything, follow me. Don’t worry about burying your dead father. Don’t worry about saying goodbye to your family. Just come, follow me.
Why?
Is it possible that, as Francis Chan writes in “Crazy Love”,
“… He just wasn’t interested in those who fake it.”
Put differently… Jesus doesn’t want followers that go through the motions.
He wants followers that are serious about their faith, willing to give everything to follow Him. He wants followers that take heed of His words and His teachings and put them into practice in their lives. He wants the kind of followers whom most Christians today would consider “radical” believers… the kind of followers most of us tend to believe either don’t really exist, or whome are so rare you’ll only meet a few in each lifetime.
I don’t know about you, but when I read through the Bible, I find far too many teachings I know to be true… teachings I know I should embrace… yet ones I ignore either completely, or at best, obey only occasionally.
You see, more often than not, our lives aren’t characterized in the parable of the sower as we’d like. We’re not good soil. We’re soil full of thorns… our lives are full of things that distract us from the truth of God’s word. We’re scared to walk by faith, so we structure our lives so we don’t need it. We live in comfortable little bubbles… mostly isolated from real difficulty… almost wholly insulated from the world God wants us to engage and bring His hope to. We’re terrified of living lives filled with the joy and meaning that can only come from doing that which is most uncomfortable to us… following God wholeheartedly.
Think about this statement again… Jesus doesn’t want followers that go through the motions.
Are you tired of faking it?
The Kingdom of Heaven is Like…
July 20th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies
Think about this passage today:
Matthew 13:44-45
44The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
By Him and For Him
July 14th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies
Recently, I’ve started listening to Francis Chen’s book, “Crazy Love” (courtesy of christianaudio.com, it’s free this month!), and I’ve been struck by his descriptions of creation and the glory of God. As I’ve thought about this, I find myself dwelling on Colossians 1:15-18:
15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.
Through Christ all things have been made. All things exist BECAUSE of Him, but moreso… FOR Him.
All things exist FOR Jesus. For His pleasure. For His glory. For His purposes. For His whims. For whatever reason He desires.
Yet most of us live our lives questioning God and complaining about what He allows to come our way…
- Why did you let this happen God?
- What can’t I do this?
- Why do I struggle with this sin so much?
- This isn’t fair God.
- I don’t like this circumstance you’ve placed in my life.
- If you would only do this, God…
We wouldn’t even exist without Him… yet we feel entitled to question His purposes, His judgements, His plans, His rules, His ways.
Our sin nature permeates our lives SO much. Our very perspective on existence is flawed. We seem to think God exists for US… in reality, we exist FOR HIM.
Think about that for a bit and tell me it doesn’t rock your world a bit.
Even if you have knowledge of this fact, I have to wonder… how does it affect your life?
How SHOULD it affect your life?
Tough questions, for sure. But things we definitely need to think critically about.
In Training…
May 12th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life / Family
This morning, for the first time in what seems like forever, I rolled out of bed early to get some exercise. I rode a whopping 2 miles this morning… but feel like I rode 200. Yes, I’m that out of shape.
It’s amazing how difficult getting in shape can be!
Ever notice how similar our spiritual lives can be to physical training? When we’re undisciplined and lazy about our relationship with God, doing that which we know we ought… prayer, Bible study, Christian fellowship, worship, service, evangelism… even the smallest of these seems incredibly difficult. In those times, we like to claim that God seems distant or that we’re in a spiritual rut, but in reality? It’s generally just that we’ve become spiritual couch potatoes… gluttons of sort, more interested in gorging ourselves with own fleshly needs for whatever.
So far from our calling to be top-notch spiritual athletes!
Remember what Paul says to us in 1 Corinthians 9?
24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
If you find yourself looking in your spiritual mirror this morning, not liking what you see… do something about it. Start practicing some spiritual discipline today, that you might get yourself back in shape to make yourself useful to God once again!
Jesus Wants the Rose…
April 8th, 2009 | 1 Comment | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies
I don’t generally do a lot of re-posting of things others have shared elsewhere in blogland… but this is a powerful video clip. It’s a short message that Matt Chandler gave called, “Jesus Wants the Rose”… a powerful presentation of the essence of the gospel.
Check it out:
HT: Micah Fries