Blog Archives

Sunday Meditation

6/30/2013

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust".

Imagine yourself traveling across a desert in the heat of the afternoon sun. You are desperate for a place to rest. You need shelter from the heat. You search the horizon for a tree or a large rock that could provide the comfort of shade.

During the process of recovery we become aware of our need for a sheltered place in which to rest. The journey can be exhausting and disorienting. But we don't know how to rest. It doesn't come naturally to us. We don't know where to find a safe shelter.

Now imagine yourself resting in God's shadow. You are sheltered, safe, at rest. The heat of the desert will not consume you because of God's protection. You can sit and rest in God's loving presence. God is a shade, a shelter, a fortress. You can draw strength and comfort from God's presence.

Rest has the potential of teaching us two essential truths. First, we are not God. God is God. We are creatures. We are limited, finite, dependent. It is a good thing to be a creature with needs. Second, when we rest we may learn in new ways that we are loved. Because we are God's children, God loves us. Not because of what we do, but simply because of who we are, we are loved.

I turn to you, Lord
from the heat of the sun
and the pressures of the journey of life.
I turn to you
for shelter
and refuge.
I want to rest in you today.
Be my shelter
O Most High.

Amen.

Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
National Association for Christian Recovery

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Top 16 worship music typos

6/29/2013

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Recently I did a post about noticing typos in the worship music. The comments on that post were funnier than the post. Here are the best, completely real, typos people have noticed at church:

1. “Lord, You are more precious than silver… Lord, You are more costly than golf.”

2. Easter. The line was supposed to read “We were naked and poor” but instead it read “We were naked and poop.” Quite possibly the best typo of all time. I could not stop laughing for the rest of the song. It was epic.

3. ‘Defender of the week’ like Jesus is getting an award for being great at sports.

4. When we lived in Latin America: the line in the song was supposed to be “levantando manos santas” (lifting holy hands) but they wrote “monos” (monkeys) instead of “manos” and put that on the screen. Lifting holy monkeys. Um hmm. People standing around us thought the shekinah glory had come over us.

5. “Our God is greeter, our God is stronger.” I like that image. God greeting us as we walk into church. He’s like the little old lady who shakes our hands, only…He is God and God gives high fives! I assumed they left out the “a” and forgot to embrace the contraction, so I sing: “Our God’s a greeter.”

6. I made the power points for our colleges ministry and had a slide that, instead of saying Jesus my closest friend, said Jesus my closet friend. Don’t know how many people’s experience I ruined.

7. When I saw “Oh Lord Your Beautiful”, I wanted to stab my eyes. But I chose to say nothing. It was years ago. The fact that I still remember it means something.

8. I’ve noticed that, when we are singing “How He Loves,” the phrase “sloppy wet” gets misspelled to “unforeseen.” Not even close! C’mon, media team!

9. Lion of God turned into “Loin of God.” Fail. My bad.

10. I create the lyric sheets for our small fellowship, and one Sunday the “strumpets” were calling during Days of Elijah. Oops.

11. The slide said “four our sins He died.” Someone behind me asked if we’re on our own for the fifth sin.

12. The best one I have seen was: Amazon love, how can it be?

13. I’m personally a fan of “Angles We Have Heard on High” at Christmastime. I always assume they are right angles.

14. I once attended a performance of Handel’s “Messiah” where the phrase “surely He has borne our griefs” was printed as “surely He has borne our briefs” in the programs given to the audience. I laughed for a while.

15. My favorite? It was in the song “The Great I Am.” “Holy, Holy, Guacamole…”

16. My favorite is not a song lyric–it’s a typo in the Lord’s Prayer: “forgive us our debits as we forgive our debitors…” Not exactly the same meaning.

This post was written by Jon Acuff. For the original post with comments, go to: http://www.jonacuff.com/stuffchristianslike/2013/06/top-16-worship-music-typos/

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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The portable church is permanent

6/28/2013

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Chances are, the biggest and most memorable events you’ve been to in your life have happened in a set up/tear down venue:

Concerts
Conferences
Weddings
Parties
Graduations

The majority of these events now happen in rented facilities…stadiums, arenas, tents, convention centers or a beach, park or field in the case of many weddings today.

Virtually no artist owns their own concert facility and makes fans fly to their venue to watch them play.

Imagine having to fly to the “Coldplay facility” in England to watch them play.

No, the bands you love most come to you, rent a facility, set up the show and then move to the next town.

It’s also quite amazing to see what can be done in a portable environment.

One of the biggest shows in history was the last U2 tour – the 360˚tour was an unbelievably elaborate set that is hard to believe could be done on the road. The blog photo above is a shot I took a few years ago at the Toronto stop of their 360˚ Tour. (For more: here’s a 3:00 time lapse video of the 9 day set up/tear down of the set. To see another view including concert footage, click here.)

On a more personal scale, chances are you will attend a college graduation in a tent or a wedding of someone you love deeply on a beach, in a garden or field, in a restaurant or on a farm.

So here’s the question:

If the biggest and most meaningful gatherings on the planet are portable, why doesn’t the church make portable church a permanent part of the future?

Almost every church starts portable. But few want to stay there.

Why?

Because there’s a stigma attached to being portable.

People think you’re not a ‘real church’.

Set up and tear down is hard work.

It feels temporary, not permanent.

Can we rethink that?

It’s not that people think you’re not a real church; some Christians think you’re not a real church.

Set up and tear down is hard work when you’re not organized or don’t have bought-in-volunteers; when you do, it’s sustainable.

Maybe it only feels temporary because the idea is fairly new to church world.

At Connexus, we’ve been doing set up and tear down for over 5 years and have discovered to our surprise that it’s a great way to do church for unchurched people.

In fact, last year, we decided that portable church would be a permanent part of our future.

While we are looking to find a larger facility that would function as a hub to which we have 24/7 access, weekend venues that are portable make sense for us for numerous reasons.

Here are 7 reasons portable church might make sense as a permanent part of the future:

1. The stigma doesn’t exist with unchurched people. I never expected that to be true, but we’ve heard that story many times. Christians who stay away from portable church will always have another building they can go to for church. 60% of our growth at Connexus is from self-identified unchurched people. Many of them tell us they love our venue because it’s not a ‘church’. I’ve never had an unchurched person say “I will come when you have a real building”.

2. Larger churches are finding portable church works. Read through some of the stories Portable Church Industries outlines and you’ll see portable church isn’t just for small start-ups. Churches of 1000+ are fully portable.

3. Building costs are disproportionately high. Where I live, 30,000 square feet of new construction permanent space will cost you over 8 million dollars. Even with our $1.3 million dollar budget and a $1.25 million dollar capital campaign last year, building a full scale facility from scratch would be a financially oppressive move.

4. It allows you to pour more money into ministry. As a 5 year old church, we are debt free with money in the bank and margin for the future. Last weekend we were able to spontaneously give a $5000 donation to aid flood relief in Calgary. That would not have happened if we had a $6 million dollar mortgage.

5. New buildings don’t grow your church. I know more than a few church leaders who have poured millions into new venues only to discover they didn’t grow once they opened. Effective ministry will grow a church. A building won’t (for more on that, read this post on three things that won’t grow your church).

6. Portable is flexible. Flexible, agile churches will make a big impact in the future. You can upsize or downsize your venues based on current momentum. Once you’re in a building, you’re committed to or constrained by the size of footprint you created until money is available to change that. Portable is more more flexible.

7. Buildings eventually become mausoleums. Almost every church leader has heard of Charles Spurgeon. But who can name his church? It still exists, but almost died for lack of attenders in the 1970s. The point is this: God uses people to lead ministries, not buildings. Facilities are a means to an end.

I’m not saying churches shouldn’t have buildings. There are times where churches need them and ought to have them.

But there are lots of dying churches sitting on real estate. And lots of growing churches with none. (I also think dying churches should flip the keys to growing churches…but that’s another post).

Has the time come for us to push past the point where we believe that every growing church should have a building?

The time has come for us to give portable church a permanent place in the future of the church.

And get on with building a movement.

This post was written by Carey Nieuwhof. For the original post, go to: http://careynieuwhof.com/2013/06/why-portable-church-should-be-a-permanent-part-of-the-future/#sthash.i4EChlmf.dpuf

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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Can people really change?

6/27/2013

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"Dear Lord, in case you didn't know, he's right upstairs! You need to do something about him! My daughter says she loves him. Can't she see how mean and abusive he is? He does drugs and is going to take her with him! God, you've gotta do something!" The pastor sharing this part of his life in his sermon was being transparent. I really, really, like it when pastors share real stories. This pastor was talking about being in his basement while his daughter and her boyfriend were upstairs watching TV. He was fuming! His daughter didn't see the dangers of dating such a man. He was praying that God would take care of this man.

Another pastor was sharing his personal story. He has a brother who was hopelessly lost, doing drugs, living on the streets, homeless, dejected and rejected. He told about how much he was praying for his brother and was wanting to help him without enabling his choices.

Another pastor told about his son and how his son had become hopelessly lost. He had showed promise as a child, going to church, accepting Jesus as his Savior but like the other two, drugs, sinfulness, hopelessness had set in. This pastor endured 30+ years of his son's lascivious and selfish living.

In the first situation, the pastor was praying that his daughter would wake up and leave the young man. He was praying that God would have this boy leave his daughter alone. You know what happened? God DID do something to this boy. God changed him. He ended up marrying this pastor's daughter and became an upright man, being a terrific father, husband and son-in-law.

In the third situation, after 30+ years of praying, the result of the pastor's prayers became a reality. His son returned to God, cleaned up his act and became a preacher. He is now a pastor of three years and sharing with people in his congregation whom the church had previously ignored, given up on or discarded. His ministry is seeing fruit among the dregs of society.

So, for the second pastor, we don't know where his brother is going. Prayers are going up for this man, desires that he will open up and let God bring him to Him. Please pray for this pastor and his brother. It is agonizing to have someone you love destroy himself.

The point of today's post is "do you REALLY believe that people can change?"

When you pray for people, do you pray that God will remove them, kill them, get rid of them.... or do you pray that God will CHANGE them? It's easy to say, "Oh, I pray that God will change them." But I ask you, look deep inside yourself when you are praying for these individuals, "Do you really want them to change and become part of God's Kingdom or do you just don't want to hear about them anymore, to not be troubled by them anymore?"

Lord, help us to see people and love people the way you do.

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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12 things your church needs to know about addicts

6/26/2013

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1. My clean time and my conversion date are not the same thing. I’ve been clean for 8 years, and a Christian for 13. I was a saved-by-grace, Bible believing Christian who was using drugs. If I relapse tomorrow I will still be a Christian, redeemed and forgiven.

2. I am alive because Christians showed me grace. Sure, I can pull off the soccer mom act now, if I want to. But there was a time when I was literally stumbling into church on Sunday mornings, looking to find God again after a particularly rough week or month or year. There were Christians who told me to smarten up and Christians who asked me to leave. But there were also Christians who welcomed me, bought me a cup of coffee after church, listened to me, mentored me, prayed for me, and bared their own souls and struggles when I felt alone.

3. When people tell me that they would love to hear my story, sometimes I feel more like a two-headed alien than a friend. Please don’t pry for the gory details of some of my most tragic moments. Someday I might tell you about the dark places I’ve been, but only when I know I can trust you — and that I can trust myself to tell the story for God’s glory and not my own wistful, dangerous reminiscence.

4. Please don’t tell me that you know what I’ve been through. I am thrilled to hear that you have found freedom over your own life controlling issues, but please don’t tell me that you know exactly what I’ve gone through. Let’s show one another more respect for our unique situations than to presume we know what each other has been through.

5. Addiction doesn’t always look like it does in tragic made-for-tv movies. Yes, I had a time in my life when I was the homeless punk kid passed out on the sidewalk. I also achieved a 4-point-0 at bible college while smoking crack. People rarely fit into their stereotypes.

6. Addiction is both a sin issue and a disease. Please Please Please hear what I’m saying on this one. Any treatment plan or advice that only tackles one side of the equation is more hurtful than helpful. Encourage addicts to get treatment for their disease; even if it is not faith based treatment. You wouldn’t tell someone with cancer not to visit a secular oncologist, or someone with diabetes to just try harder and read their bible more. In my experience, Christians who are struggling with addiction are well aware of their sin. They need hope, help and support, not condemnation.

7. Please stop using the word addiction to mean “affinity for”. You aren’t “addicted” to reality tv or strawberry frappucinos. Please don’t trivialize the pain that people struggle with every single day by referring to your hobbies and preferences as addictions.

8. I’m still an addict. 8 years clean and I still have to be very careful where I go, what I watch, and where I let my mind wander to. If I breathe in too slow sometimes I can almost for a moment taste and feel the drugs. Sometimes when that happens I pray that sin would not have dominion over me; other times I take another slow breath to try sadly and desperately to feel it again. The temptation doesn’t disappear just because I’ve been clean for years, which brings me to the next point…

9. Sometimes I just really want to get high. And for the most part I can’t tell people this because they think it means I’m about to relapse. If I do tell you I’m struggling, please don’t freak out.

10. And I am so much more than an addict. I am passionate and creative and opinionated. God is daily showing me bigger, better glimpses of who I am in Him.

11. Sometimes, deliverance is white knuckled work. I used to ask why God wasn’t setting me free from this in the powerful, miraculous ways he sometimes does. What I’ve come to see is that freedom is not the lack of temptation, it is the ability to stand against it. Everyday my weakness is made strong in Him.

12. My old life was full of lies. It was how I protected my addiction. So sometimes now I say things that are uncomfortably and painfully true. I have to. The whole “I’m okay, your okay” game we like so much to play in the church can mean certain death for an addict. Ultimately, it isn’t really good for anyone. I’m not okay, you’re not okay, we all have issues we are working through.

This post was written by Kelly. You can find the original post at: http://redandhoney.com/2013/06/12-things-an-addict-wants-the-church-to-know/

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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Drugs and suicide: A unique perspective

6/25/2013

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Early in the week I was busy at work screwing someone’s skull back on. There is nothing new here, just about everyone that comes from the medical examiner I have to put together. But as I stood there, putting this young girl back together I couldn’t help but think “What a waste”. I’ll see anywhere from about 2-6 deaths a month that are due to suicide or drugs.

I, of course, never have an actual conversation with the deceased but everyone tells a story. Thankfully most tell a common story. I bring them into the prep room and begin my work. I carefully remove the blanket their family wrapped them in. Often they are holding a cross, or a photo of a memory. The wrinkles of age appear on their body and you can tell they were old and have had their time on this earth, hopefully most of it happy.

Unfortunately on those occasions where a body comes from the medical examiner the story is often different. Sometimes there are bruises, or needle marks. Other times the neck will be destroyed because of a hanging, or there will be a bullet wound to the head. Cuts on inner thighs can often indicate self-mutilation.

After I’m done you won’t see the needle marks, nor will you see where the noose was hung around their necks. I’ll spend my hours sewing up their bodies and hiding their wounds. However, despite this I feel like I would not be doing my duty to society to not share some of these stories. Suicide and drugs are needless deaths.

At some point, everybody has thoughts about their own death. I know I have. There are times when ending one’s life seems better than living. For those that do choose suicide, you don’t get to see the physical aftermath. Nor do you see the complicated grief, pain and devastation aftermath that you leave behind. You don’t see the family that I have to meet with.

And, It turns out all those people you thought didn’t care about you really did. Your mother or father or siblings will ask me why you killed yourself, what they should have done, and how to go on with life without you. These are questions I can’t answer. I’ll be with them as they try their hardest to pick out a casket or an urn, still not fully realizing you’re gone. I’ll also be there at the funeral service when all your friends and family will talk about the hole that you have left in their lives.

If you are thinking about ending your life — coming from a person who listens to the stories after you’re gone – let me tell you, YOU ARE A BIG PART OF THE PEOPLES LIVES AROUND YOU. It’s a deed that cannot be undone, and the people around you are the ones that have to live with it.

I’d also like to talk about drugs.

A family came in to meet with me about their daughter. She was a senior in high school and about to graduate. Her family had no idea why she died. She was brought up in a Christian household, with a family who loved her. She was always happy and wasn’t one to run with the wrong crowd. She was found dead one day face down in her bedroom; there was no needles present, no gun, no signs of trauma.

Because of this, the time I spent with the family was very difficult. First they had to bury their young daughter, but it was made even harder since they did not know what killed her, nor would they for months to come (as the medical examiner often takes months to confirm findings). We spent hours as they told me stories about their little girl.

It was painstakingly hard to select a casket, flowers, folders etc. … you could tell with every decision the realization that their daughter was gone was becoming more clear. At the end they handed me her senior photo so I would know what she looked like. Looking at the photo I couldn’t help but wonder myself what killed this girl. Normally it is fairly obvious, especially when I am piecing them back together.

I would not find out until much later that the cause was an overdose on cough syrup. Her and a friend were trying “Tusin tripping” (Robitussin). She had never used any sort of drugs before. When I called the family months after the service to deliver the news, you can imagine their reaction. They had a happy family, and strong faith.

They will likely spend the rest of their lives wondering what they could have done to prevent this.

This is not an uncommon story in my line of work. If you’re using drugs STOP. Especially over the counter drugs. I’ve seen people die from trying heroin once. Or from abusing pain killers. You may not think that trying something once will kill you, and you’re probably right it most likely won’t. But why take the chance? You will be literally torturing those you leave behind as they spend their days wondering what THEY did wrong.

When I meet with families, it is too late. I need the help of others to try to reduce needless deaths. Neither you nor I can save everyone from drugs or suicide. But maybe we can help one person, and by saving them, save all those they would be leaving behind.

This post was written by Bryan Stucky. For the original post, go to: http://www.calebwilde.com/2013/06/a-funeral-directors-thoughts-on-drugs-and-suicide/

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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Love the sinner, hate the sin - I ain't doing it no more!

6/24/2013

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I’m not going to use this phrase anymore: Love the sinner and hate the sin. In our current mission context, it has lost whatever insight and help it might once have offered. In fact, to use the phrase and try to guide ministry with it in mind may actually subvert the mission.

I don’t quarrel with either loving sinners or hating sin. God does both and so should all who love God. But trying to love the sinner, while keeping in mind a concern to make sure “we hate the sin,” whatever we understand that to mean, leads to failure in my judgment. There are reasons why I say this. Most of us find it hard to focus on more than one thing primarily. Actually, by definition it is not even possible. Whatever you focus on primarily requires you to focus less on everything else. Thus in this case we feel obliged to choose—either we focus on loving (the sinner) or hating (the sin). When you put it that way it seems fairly obvious that we ought to choose loving over hating. That is, we want to be like Jesus, which means that people would know us primarily because they catch us and feel us loving, not hating. This doesn’t mean we never hate anything; it just means we’re not primarily found hating.

But often we do or try to do exactly that which by definition is not really possible—to focus primarily on both loving (the sinner) and hating (the sin). And because it cannot be done, we do not succeed. We end up doing only one thing primarily. Sadly, for most of us and the people Jesus wants us to reach, we end up hating (the sin) primarily. We wouldn’t want anyone to think that we are soft on sin, or that in loving others we’re simply indulging them or their sin. So, as it seems, in the interest of assuring that we’re really getting love right and correct—often we call it “tough love”—it appears right to focus more or primarily or first on hating (the sin).

Yet, in fact, this is not right, or not as right as we think when we do this. And, it could be that in focusing primarily on hating (the sin) we not only fail actually to love (the sinner) but also miss the mark in properly hating (the sin). Let me say more.

I am convinced that we should simply follow Jesus and focus on loving period, loving all that Jesus loves in the way that Jesus loves. To illustrate, recall the famous case-study of the “woman taken/caught in adultery” (John 7:53-8:11). It serves as perhaps one of the most celebrated examples of the pure and radical love of Jesus for the sinner. Ironically (or maybe not), it is also cited by those who want to make sure that in loving the sinner we do not inadvertently go soft on sin, because Jesus commands the woman: “Go and sin no more!”

In this episode, Jesus is teaching in the Temple when he is interrupted by a squad of Scribes and Pharisees who thrust a woman into the midst of Teacher and students. They explain by saying that the woman had been caught in the very act of adultery. Now, will Jesus prove soft on sin and disobey the “clear teaching” of the scriptures? They fake an interest in knowing, though in fact they already know all they need to know. They know that Jesus is“soft” on sin. It is because they know this that they stage the dramatic “test” of Jesus’ holiness. In effect, “This is what God says Jesus—stone her! Now, what do you say?”

We like to jump to the end of the story quickly to note that Jesus tells the woman to go and sin no more, as evidence that Jesus did love (the sinner) and hate (the sin). Thus, we conclude: Jesus did both and so should we.

I am not disputing that Jesus did both. But I am insisting that still Jesus primarily loved (the sinners). His focus was first and foremost on love. Jesus was not soft on sin. He knew all about the sin in the crowd that day. Jesus knew about the set-up involved in apparently catching only the woman in the very act and not the man. Jesus knew about the hypocrisy and deceit in the crowd since no one among them that day “obeyed” this Mosaic command. Jesus knew about their motives in calling attention to this sin in order to justify other sins and eventually the ultimate sin of murdering God’s son. Jesus knew about all the wrong in all the lives of all the people there. Jesus always came “armed” with such intel on everyone around him, for he knew what was in the human heart (and what was not). And, in this episode, Jesus was utterly confident that there was no one there among the accusers without sin. He knew that if he consented to obey the Mosaic command on condition that the first stone came from the sinless one the woman would not end her life condemned but loved all the way to a new life. Jesus knew that by loving her—and also every Scribe and Pharisee friend there—new life could come. Jesus loved the sinners and that, in turn, turned them away from their sin, if anything could, at least for a season.

Most of us who have endeavored to love (sinners) while hating (their sins) have cited Jesus’ admonition to the woman to go and stop sinning. But we fail to observe when Jesus says this, a failure with potentially devastating consequences. Jesus does not begin the conversation with such a statement, not with this woman and not with anyone else we know about. No, Jesus primarily loves her and does what love does in relation to her. As love will do, he refuses to condemn her, certainly at first and even later. He refuses to participate in public humiliation and shame. He protects her from abuse and the manipulation of others. He defends her against the crowd that only wants to destroy her for the sake of their cause. Jesus loves her in all these ways before he says anything about her sins. In fact, it is only after the woman has been spared from condemnation—only after she has been “saved”—that Jesus says, “Go and sin no more.”

Jesus primarily loved the sinners and, by pursuing love, sin came into the light and more than met its match. We would be wise to follow Jesus. That’s what I want to do more than ever.

Afterward: some of us will not be persuaded by what I am suggesting. Some will insist that it is important to take a stand against sin and will insist there must be a way to do so while genuinely loving sinners. I will not say they or you are wrong.

But here is the counsel I would give. Let’s start by hating our own sin first. If the sinners we would love are murderers, let’s start by hating the anger and rage that may lurk in our hearts. If the sinners are wonton pleasure seekers, let’s start by hating any self-preoccupations that may drive our lives. If the sinners are sexual transgressors, let’s start by hating the lust in our own hearts and any little lapses of integrity there may be in relation to others. If the sinners are enslaved to drugs or sex, let’s start by hating all of the compulsions and unhealthy pressures pushing us away from the best God shows us in the way of Jesus. In other words, let’s love other sinners and ourselves enough to invite any who are drawn to us to join us in “going and sinning no more.” I think that is really what Jesus did, except unlike us he had no sin to stop.

This post was written by David Kendall, Bishop of The Free Methodist Church of North America. For the original post go to:
http://fmcusa.org/davidkendall/2013/06/18/love-the-sinner-hate-the-sin/

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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Sunday Meditation

6/23/2013

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Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.

There are days when we feel God's presence. We sense God's love. We see God's power. But we do not always feel or sense or see. There are times of silence, distance and uncertainty. There
are the difficult times of waiting for God to appear. In times like
this we may find ourselves both longing for God and fearing that God will come.

The longing comes because in our heart of hearts we know that there is no recovery without God's gracious presence. If God does not appear, we are stuck, bound, hopelessly entangled in dysfunction. If God does appear, it will be like the sun rising - we will be able to see the way. It will be like gentle rains which nurture us so that we can grow and thrive.

The fear comes because often we do not see God as one who comes as 'sun' and 'rain' to give life. We are afraid that when God does appear, it will be to punish us, to demand restitution from us, to shame us. Because we have served vengeful and vindictive gods, we fear that it will be the god-of-impossible-expectations who will finally appear.

We do well to follow the urging of this text to 'acknowledge God'. We need daily to examine whom we serve. When we acknowledge the god-of -impossible-expectations, then we will surely fear his appearing. But if we acknowledge the God of the Bible whose coming is to nurture and give life, then we will await God's coming like the dawn of a new day.

I acknowledge you, Lord.
You are not the god of impossible-expectations.
You are not the god-who-is-eager-to-punish.
I know what it is like when these other gods come.
They bring shame, blame and fear.
I do not acknowledge them, Lord.
I acknowledge you.

Come as the dawn of a new day, Lord.
Bring light into my dark days.
Come as gentle rain, Lord,
Cleanse, renew and nurture.
Come, Lord, as the dawn.
Come as the rains.
Water the parched earth of my soul.

Amen.

Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
National Association for Christian Recovery

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Pastor as Spiritual Dictator

6/22/2013

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“Pastor, I just got off the phone with Jim and he said that he wasn’t going to come to church on Sunday because he is going to a party on Saturday night. You need to preach about commitment and the importance of church.” As a pastor, this is actually a conversation I have had…well some small details were changed to protect the innocent, and to keep the guilty from getting mad.

This short conversation brings up a great set of questions. Should the pastor choose sermon topics based on what he/ she finds irritating? Admittedly, it does irritate pastors when the subject they give their lives for is given a very low priority to other people. This is true in all other “industries” as well though. I may not be a fan of animals, but there are people in this world who dedicate their lives to fighting animal cruelty and pet adoption. Also, should pastors be the spiritual police of their congregations?

Many people have the view that pastors preach based on the counseling sessions or conflicts they have had with members earlier that week…or it could be a passive-aggressive way of calling someone out on their behavior (that’s what blogs are for). The art of proclamation of the gospel is far too valuable for actions such as this.

Pastors do not (should not) use the pulpit as a time of corporate police action or venting about irritation. A pastor should not be looked at as the “King/ Queen of the church” and preaching, their decrees. Pastors, who are called by God to proclaim the Gospel, are to teach Christ crucified, and every known variation of that subject and its implications. The pastor can never run out of material with this as their guide.

Now, pastors are called to address cultural issues and lead people in the direction of abundant life…but we are not the gatekeepers of salvation.

Far too many pastors are looked at as spiritual dictators. We live for Christ…because He died for us. We don’t toe the line so that we stay in the pastor’s good graces.

This post was written by Rev DeCrastos. For the original post with comments, go to: http://other-words.net/2013/06/18/pastor-as-spiritual-dictator/

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It's time for a party!! (a short story about Grace)

6/21/2013

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It was a beautiful house. The most welcoming of houses. A stunning house. A house like no other. The house where Grace lived.

A home like this was destined to be shared, so as she often did, Grace prepared a meal. No, no, no, it wasn’t just a meal – this was a FEAST! The kind of cuisine reserved for castles, princesses, and fairytales. No expense was spared. She decked out her oversized, antique table with the finest china and the most elaborately embroidered tablecloths. The smell of exotic, culinary delicacies hung thickly in the air. It was time for a party.

Right about then, a man came struggling along the path in front of the house. He was obviously agitated. Jumpy. He talked out loud to the air with a phobic paranoia. And to make matters even stranger, behind him he dragged a large metal cage full of the ugliest black birds you have ever seen. It was attached to his waist with a massive steel chain, and he dragged it through the dirt with a strained shuffling gait. Whenever he stumbled or wobbled, the cage would shake and the birds would let out the most horrifying chorus of shrieks. The man would instinctively crumble in terror, balling himself into a fetal position, clawing at the air, as he begged in agony for them to stop.

Grace could see this awful unfolding scene from her dining room window and rushed outside to his aid.

“My friend,” she said in the most soothing of tones, “please relax, you’re not alone. I’m here to help, I have the answer. Let me cut these heavy chains and remove this hideous cage. You don’t have to drag these fears around with you anymore. Come inside, I’ve made the most splendid of meals and I want you to be my guest. I can do things for you that you could never possibly do for yourself.”

But the man shrieked all the louder. “Get away! Get away! These fears may be hideous, but they’re all I know. I’ve dragged them for more miles than you can imagine. I got them from trusting, trusting people like you! So leave me alone and let me get on with it. If there is freedom from these fears it will have to be of my own doing. And amidst the ever growing sounds of terror, he trudged into the darkness and disappeared from the warm glow of the house. The house where Grace lived.

Not more than a few moments later a new figure appeared on the path. Unlike the first, this man didn’t seem to be struggling much at all. In fact, cloaked in a massive oversized white fur coat, he actually looked to be…strutting. He paused every few steps to gaze at his reflection in the adjacent pond until he was frozen dead in his tracks by the almost mirror-like qualities of Grace’s massive dining room window. Absolutely gorgeous!

Even though the man’s ego was nearly as ugly as his coat, Grace rushed to the front door and warmly greeted this new opportunity with her usual warmth and charm. ”Hello friend! I’ve prepared a feast, will you come join me? I’ve planned a great party and I’m expecting many guests. I would love to add you to the celebration!”

“Eat with such plebes?” he replied with a smirk. “I’m sure they’re far beneath the class of a specimen like me. But I am hungry after this long walk.” And so he brashly sauntered up the stairs, brushing Grace to the side and heading straight for the front door.

“Oh, there’s just one thing,” Grace interrupted as she politely stopped his progress. “Your coat. It stays out here. In my house, all the warmth and covering you’ll ever need has already been provided for you. The only way we dine together is if we see the real you. No coats. No pretense. All that stays out here.”

“But this coat is my pride!” the man violently hissed. “If it stays outside then so do I!” And he stormed back down the front steps (with much less of a swagger this time), onto the path, and back into the woods (only pausing at a few leftover rain puddles for a quick peek at his reflection). His choice was made, and his egocentric silhouette quickly faded into the forrest near the house. The house where Grace lived.

As Grace reached for the doorknob to return to her preparations, she caught a glimpse of yet a third weary traveler struggling up the path. The woman appeared to be carrying a large sack, easily twice as big as she was, and was painfully doubled over under its incredible weight. Grace ran quickly down the front steps and up the walk to offer the poor woman her assistance.

“Dear friend, you can hardly walk! Here, give me your sack, we’ll leave it here. Come in and rest. Let me tend to you. I’m preparing a huge feast and expecting many guests. Join us! The food and drink is overflowing!”

The woman never looked up. Her voice was so soft and shaken she could barely be understood. “This bag is my shame, full of unspeakable sorrow and regret. Skeletons and memories I’ve carried so long they’ve become a permanent part of me.”

Sure enough, the sack had been on her back for so long it had quite literally attached itself to her skin!

“My dear,” Grace replied in her comforting tones, “please come inside and let me help you. I have just the tools to set you free, you only need to trust me. I’ve already done all the work to ensure you don’t have to carry a bag of shame like this anymore.”

“Thank you kind lady,” came the woman’s trembling reply. “But many have tried to help me do just that on the course of this painful journey, and to no avail. Freedom is an illusion I’m afraid. This sack of shame is who I am. If you cut it off I’ll most certainly die. Now let me on my way. I can manage this burden on my own. I’ve been doing it for quite some time now.” And so she slowly set out, following the same lonely path that fear and pride had forged just a few short moments earlier, and leaving the warm glow of the house as nothing more than a distant memory. The house where Grace lived.

The party was a smash! The house was filled with every kind of person you could possibly imagine. Princes and paupers. Businessmen and beggars. Aristocrats and commoners. They came from near and far for this feast of the ages!

No one left unchanged. Grace made sure of it. Cages and coats and large empty sacks littered the front walkway like a graveyard of self-salvation projects. And yet even as she relished in the joy of her miraculous work, Grace couldn’t help but wonder why three exhausted travelers chose to miss the celebration and continue alone. It was so unnecessary. The work had already been completed. All they had to do was come inside.

But the Good News for all weary wanderers is that the warm, inviting, transformational doors of this house always remain open. The house where Grace still lives.

This post was written by Erik Cooper. You can find the original post here: http://beyondtherisk.com/2013/06/11/the-house-where-grace-lived/

BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.

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