I was having a conversation with a member of my life group last night. We were talking about something unrelated to this post, but in the course of that conversation I realized something. The Christian faith has been transferred from one generation to the next by the personal witness of those who have been changed by the power of the Gospel. Continue reading “Will Hunting and the Experiences that Shape us”
Category: Christian Life
A Letter to My Former Youth
To my former youth,
If you were a member of a youth ministry that I served, this is for you.
I offer my thoughts to you as an act of love. In light of recent events I want to offer one more lesson. Take it our leave it. That’s up to you. I just feel like I should say something. While there will be ongoing commentary as to what happened, how it happened, should it have happened, and what will have to be done by those on both sides, I feel compelled to offer some words to you, my former youth, who will and are living in a world very different from the one I grew up in. Continue reading “A Letter to My Former Youth”
The Anchor of Truth amidst the Storms of Tragedy
As I was perusing my Facebook feed one of the ministers I know asked, what I believe, is an important question. He was wondering if any of his pastor friends would be saying/addressing the tragedy in Charleston in some way, if at all this coming up Sunday. This is an ongoing conversation so, there is not consensus yet, but it is worth noting that there is no right answer here. At least in my mind.
Each pastor and, by extension, each person who hears about and considers the events at the Emanuel AME Church will respond according to how the news affected them. The range of human emotions is as varied as the faces upon each persons head. The reality is that how we respond is the cumulative product of our experiences and our beliefs. If there is anything I have learned in life is how true this is.
The key to navigating the waters of life is having a means of charting your course. For sailors it was the stars. They learned to identify the formations above them and then correct their direction. The same is also true for us. When we are adrift and in search of our bearings we have to look up and set our minds on things above. We have to take our eyes off what is front of us and around us to catch our breath and regain our composure.
Tragedy has a way of throwing our lives off-kilter. The only way to regain our balance is to put our hands on something solid, something sure. For me that is the Word of God. The word of God is the anchor of truth I rely on when the storms begin to rage. Turning to the truth of who God is and what he has done in and through Jesus is what provides the ballast and stability required to weather the storm.
Tragedy has a way of bringing issues and problems into greater relief. We all have an opportunity to grow wiser, become more loving, and extend greater grace when we turn to God rather than our own wisdom. My prayer is that I do not miss the chance to increase my sensitivity to what God is saying about himself and his word. The promise we have is that every storm will pass. The question is this: Will we learn from the present one to better prepare and handle the next?
Six Strings and a Pick: How Playing Guitar Helped Me See The Risk of Plateau
Over the last year I have been playing regularly with the worship team of my church. This has been less out of some burning desire and more because of a need for a guitarist on the team. Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy playing, however, I am not a big fan of playing (or singing for that matter) in front of people.
I have always wanted to play the guitar. My grandfather used to make guitars until he became ill and was unable to do so any longer. There were a couple of samples of guitars that he made in his home and I remember admiring them every time we went to Puerto Rico to visit. There is something about the sound a guitar makes that I just love.
Over the years I have played with moderate measures of satisfaction. I would pick it up for a few months and then quit. Then the urge would hit me again and I would work on developing those calluses again. That is always the toughest part, getting your fingers used to the strings. But, after about a week the focus shifts to playing rather than surviving each practice session.
This last go round I have been playing consistently three to four days a week for about an hour or two each time. That is a lot of playing. The reason I share this brief history is due to a conversation I had with the worship pastor of our church. We were talking, and as most good conversations go, we touched on a variety of subjects. As we talked we were discussing the reasons why people do things in life and the catalysts for growth in our individual journeys.
Then, it hit me. The reason I was getting better was not because I was playing more. This does contribute, but that was not a sufficient explanation. I realized that the longer we do something the easier it gets to do. However, to limit any improvement to time served, as it were, would be somewhat shorted sighted. There were two fundamental reasons I was getting better. First, I had to. Second, I wanted to.
Why did I have to? The needs of the worship team required a better guitarist. In order for that to happen, I had to play more and practice more. I had to learn Solfège, songs in two languages and work with two different worship teams because I was it. I had to get better otherwise the worship experience would have been more distracting than uplifting. This is as well and good.
The second reason that I was getting better was because I wanted to. This was the realization I had not considered or recognized until that conversation the other night. Now, this may sound silly, but I hope you understand why this was surprising to me, and should be to you as well. The better we get at something, the greater the desire to be challenged. I did not realize how valuable it was to be confronted with my own growth and realize that there is more to do, more areas where I can experience growth, more opportunities waiting to be explored. I am not going to be a recording artist or impress anyone. I am just trying to push myself a little further. I did not realize that the greatest motivation comes from within us, when we see that there is still untapped potential to be discovered.
What I have realized is that the better I get at anything I practice, the more I am confronted with the risk of plateau. We have to decide if we are satisfied with where we are. We may not even be satisfied with it, but we may be more afraid of changing what we have for something we do not fully know.
The bottom line is this, if you are satisfied with where you are, then stay there. No one is going to get you to move if you don’t want to. No one was pushing me to get better, they were just glad I was doing something. That just wasn’t enough for me anymore. If was fine at the beginning. But the more I played and the more things made sense, the more I began to understand. The more I wanted to improve. I wanted to become a better steward of my time and more effective in my practice. The more I played the more I wanted the play. And the more I wanted to play the better I wanted to be.
There are two question we all have to ask ourselves. They are these: 1.) How long is it going to take for me to realize there is more to learn? And 2.) How intently will I strive to learn it when I do?
God does not work at Burger King
As I was driving home from a revival service last night a thought crossed my mind. It was connected to this verse found in 1 Corinthians 10:13.
13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
I have often heard people pray and ask God to make a way for them. “Lord, make a way.” As I thought about this I realized that many times we are not asking God to provide for us HIS way. We are asking God to provide a way to suites OUR desires. The gulf between these two points of view is staggering.
As I was driving home I was astonished at how easily we are seduced into thinking that God’s favor and love and grace gives us permission to ask anything we want from God. We come to him as spoiled children, rather than grateful debtors. Our adoption into the family does not mean we now become prideful regarding our new position. We should remain humbled and appreciative of God’s kindness toward us.
When we ask God to make a way we need to be ready to take the way HE provides. When we ask God to make a way we must understand that we are surrendering our “right” to complain about the path to freedom. God will provide a way that leads to him. He is not interested in leading you to any other destination. My relationship with God is more important to him than my bank account, my health, my status, my titles, my accomplishments. The way of escape will always lead to Him.
Asking God for a way of escape is a dangerous request. If we are unwilling to take the avenue provided, then we are praying in vain. If we are unwilling to accept the road to God’s deliverance, then we are not really interested in getting out of where we are. If what we want is have it our way, then go to Burger King because God does not and will do anything to accommodate our whims and worldly aspirations.
The Journey of Faith
Over the last several months God has been teaching me about my journey of faith. There are many things to consider when we talk about faith. We have to define it. We have to understand what it is and how we use it. To often I have found that when the church people talk about faith we do not really know how to make sense of it for ourselves. What ends up happening is we recycle the phrases and ideas that have been taught to us. In the end, we have not really made any advancement in our own journey. We can end up feeling stuck.
I totally understand this. When we think about faith what exactly are we thinking about? Is it something that can even be understood? Can it be quantified? Too often I feel that we talk about faith in esoteric language because (1) we do not know what we really want to say, but (2) we are afraid if someone gives an answer that is more concrete than we are comfortable with we will have to change the way we live our lives. Now, I may be the only who thinks like this, but I can’t help and think that others have had similar thoughts.
I am not trying to question anyone’s motives, I am just reflecting on my own experience on this journey with God. The clearer we get on what it means to walk by faith the hard it is to live any other way. Any and every time we are confronted with truth and we know it is truth we become accountable to what we now know.
How would you describe your journey of faith to someone else?
God’s Love Through Paul’s Eyes
First Corinthians 13 has been called the chapter of love. It contains beautiful and poetic language regarding the nature of love. As I have read it this week, I found myself struck by the opening verses of that passage. There is something in the way that Paul instructs the Corinthian church that deeds without proper motive are vacuous and utterly worthless efforts.
At first it is difficult to understand why Paul takes such a hard stance on our need to love in all we do. Sure, it makes sense that we should be kind and generous to others. We should not see to do harm to those who have wronged us. But, there is something else at work in Paul’s examples. He reminds us that we must take care not to get lost in our own spiritual endeavors that we forget our companions on the way.
Paul highlights that the possession and exercise of spiritual gifts does not give us license to do as we wish. The examples Paul uses are spectacular. These are not small or insignificant gifts. She are big, visible, in-your-face gifts, but if it’s about the individual then it is nothing more than a charade. It seems that the temptation to take advantage of spiritual gifts was something that had become common place in that church. The struggle to remain humble had given way to personal gain and influence.
Paul ends the chapter by telling us that of all the gifts that will abide faith, hope, and love will remain forever. These three are given prominence among all of God’s gifts to the saints because they are different from the all the others. All the spiritual gifts discussed in chapter 12 are to be used by the believer for the benefit of those in the church. Faith, hope, and love are not like this. These three are given to the believer as a means of confirming the presence of God within us. The fact that faith, hope, and love will abide forever, is an indication that what God has done was intended to produce these three things from the start.
The question that rolls around in my mind is why love is the greatest. What is it about the nature of love that make it rise above the other two? I think it is greatest because it is a reflection of God’s own character. Love, while it resides within us, must be expressed sacrificially. I can speak in tongues, move mountains, and give everything away and it not really be a burden or a struggle to do so. It makes us feel good to do those thing most of the time. But, when the task required is costly; when it calls for a deeper level of commitment; when there is no inherent benefit to me, love must be present for me to act.
Love is sacrificial. When we love the way God does, it forces us to not consider the ramifications to ourselves. We see the one in need and we are compelled to act. Love is more than just an emotion. A true act of love engages us to the very core of our being.
I think Paul understood this better than most. After all he had done, God loved him and taught him how to love others. As I read this famous chapter, I read it as an acknowledgement by Paul of what he experienced when God loved him and saved him. This is Paul’s description of God’s love toward him, the chief of sinners. A magnificent one at that.
You Can Never Tame The Lion
Hebrews 11:38
“…the world was not worthy of them.
They wandered in deserts and mountains,
living in caves and in holes in the ground.”
Hebrews 11 has been called the “Hall of Fame” of the faithful. It is an interesting collection of names and stories. For some only a name is given. For others various facts and events are related. Then at the end of passage we find the writer essentially give up on trying to record all those who had given so much. The writer of Hebrews reveals it would be impossible to capture or highlight the lives of so many. Rather, there is an attempt to help us, the readers, understand what has taken place.
Verse thirty-eight serves as the epilogue for the string of lives that are woven together to help future believers. The tapestry of faith is both majestic and common. And yet, we are told that these saints of the past were of a different sort. They were not cut from the same cloth as we might want to believe. It is interesting how they are described, isn’t it?
“…the world was not worthy of them.”
The question that this raises in my mind is this: Am I living a life that would be described not worthy of this world? Maybe this should be the driving motivation of our lives. We should strive to live counter-culturally, living out those realities that others would consider odd, strange or even crazy.
Would we even want it to be said of us that the world is not worthy of our labors? Do our lives reflect such piety of life, humility of heart and sincerity of service as to be deemed “too good for earth” (in a good way).
The persecution of the faithful has been a part of the life of the church from the beginning. Christians rounded up and thrown into the pit with lions for the sport of it was so common as to be expected. The church in the West has grown accustomed to being accommodated and it believes the lion has been tamed. The lions of culture, society and the world can not be tamed. We might be able to train them and give ourselves a sense of comfort. The truth of the matter is that given the opportunity a lion will only do what lions do.
We should not allow ourselves to believe that “we have things under control.” The second we do we have failed to stay alert and vigilant. We will have been mauled before we know it.
The Lion of Judah Forgives Sinners
The Wrong Person in the Right Place
In Luke 7 Jesus is sitting and having dinner when an uninvited guest shows up and causes a stir. A woman of ill-repute shows up and begins to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears and anoint them with an expensive perfume. It is one of those moments in Jesus’ life where I wish I was a fly on the wall. There is no way of knowing the murmurings that took place as she made her way to Jesus. The looks of shock, disgust and disdain from the host were plain to see. But, Jesus had a different look.
In this moment we get a glimpse of what it was like for a sinner to have the king of kings extend forgiveness.
One of my favorite descriptions of Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah. There is something ominous in that superlative. The vision of this ferocious beast, capable of destroying anything or anyone that gets in its way is awe inspiring. Movies like The Lion King and Aslan, from the Chronicles of Narnia serve as examples of the power of this animal. At the same time both of these examples demonstrate the tenderness of the king of beasts. There is a majestic quality to lions.
This is the irony of this moment. The Lion of Judah does not lash out at the sinner. Rather, Jesus allows her to do what she had set her mind and heart to do. He does not interfere, but rather illustrates to his host the reality of what is taking place. Worship and forgiveness; salvation and redemption; grace and justice; reconciliation and healing are all happening at the same time.
Only the chief of sinners can experience the King of kings. I think that is why the apostle Paul saw such powerful demonstrations of the Spirit in his ministry. He recognized that he was like this woman. He was like the great hymn describes, a wretch.
Jesus own words reveal what he saw.
44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” (Luke 7:47 ESV)
How much do you need to be forgiven for?
That is an interesting question. Have you ever considered that the connection between your love of and for Jesus is directly tied to how much you feel you need to be forgiven? The more we can feel the depth of our sin, the greater our love for the one who forgives. We are not supposed to wallow in our sin or beat ourselves up for our sin. What Jesus is reminding us of here is that the reality and weight of our sin should bring to our minds the reality and wonder of our salvation in Jesus.
The Sin of False Piety
The danger that was demonstrated by Simon, Jesus’ host, is that he actually thought that he was in the right by condemning this woman AND Jesus. Simon even questions Jesus genuineness by asking himself if Jesus is a prophet at all (Luke 7:39).
This is one of the more obvious examples of someone assuming that they understand God’s plan. This is a dangerous place to be. We are in no position to question God’s abilities or intentions. Simon should have known better. But, that would assume that he saw himself as this woman did. To know God is to humble yourself before him. To grow in grace and experience life altering forgiveness is to accept what we really are–sinners deserving of hell. Only then, when we have come face to face with ourselves, will we be able to accept who God wants to make us.
Jesus did not die to adopt spoiled children into the family of God. Jesus died to save children without a home, a family, or a name. We are sons and daughters of God because God brought us in, not because we deserved it. We do not deserve to be a part of the family of God. We never have. But, thanks be to God who is rich in mercy and abounding in grace toward us. I am so thankful that the Lion of Judah forgives because there is another lion, not as powerful, but just as dangerous who is seeking as well (1 Peter 5:8). And his intentions are not as noble.
Integrity on the Cheap
This morning I was making a deposit at the bank. It was a personal trip. I had written out the deposit slip and was patiently waiting for my receipt. I don’t know if other people do this, but I try to always check the deposit to make sure it’s right. It’s not that I don’t trust the folks at the bank. I just know that mistakes can be made. Well, this morning a mistake was made, but it was made in my favor.
I was about to pull off and I noticed that there was too much money on my receipt. I had a decision to make (well, not really. I knew what I needed to do). I pressed the “call” button and asked the cashier to double-check the checks I had given. She looked slightly confused. Continue reading “Integrity on the Cheap”