New Years Resolutions?
So, it’s almost New Years Eve, and then, believe it or not, it will be New Years Day. What does that mean? Well, it means that it will not longer be 2012; it will then be 2013. It will no longer be December; it will then be January. It will no longer be Monday; it will then be Tuesday. But, isn’t there something special about taking one calendar off the wall and putting up another new calendar? Not really, unless you are a calendar maker. So, what does this “new year” have in store for me? Well, maybe this post from a couple of years ago can explain my perspective. The post was originally called “Resolved.”
(By the way, if there’s something important that you think you should start in 2013, why not start it now?)
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Resolved
I don’t normally make New Years resolutions, and I’ve resolved not to make resolutions this year. Now, if you want to make New Years resolutions, that’s great! I simply choose not to do so.
But, it is good to reflect on your life. As a follower of Jesus, it’s good to compare your life to what we read about in Scripture and to ask yourself in which direction God is leading you. New Years (and every day really) is a good time to do this.
So, where am I? And, where is God leading me?
Currently, I’m in a pretty good place. My family is doing well. God has surrounded me with wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ who are taking their responsibility to one another (including me) seriously. I have a couple of really good jobs – although, I would prefer to have a different job, but I’m learning to be content in that as well.
I have a big decision coming up within the next two months. I’ve been invited (along with three of my brothers from Messiah Baptist Church) to spend two weeks in Ethiopia in July. We would be helping several churches in a region of that country. So, by February, I have to decide if I’m going or not. (I’ll write more about this later.)
So, what is my resolution this year? The same as it has been every year, and every day: attempt to live my life in a way that brings glory to God by loving and serving other people. That could happen in North Carolina, or in Ethiopia, or anywhere else God leads me.
What will that look like in the next year? I have no idea.
Replay: Jesus is the Reason… to live in unity
I originally published a post called “Jesus is the Reason” five years ago. Some of my friends celebrate Christmas as a very important day for a follower of Jesus Christ. Other friends do not celebrate Christmas. And, still others, seem to fight against Christmas and any who celebrate. With such diverse and contradictory views, will these groups ever see eye-to-eye or find unity and fellowship with one another? Only if they’re all looking at Jesus…
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Jesus is the Reason
So, it’s Christmas Day.
If you believe that this is the most holy day of the year, then I have a request of you. Please remember that Jesus is the reason for you to live every day – he’s not simply a slogan to tack on to your life on Christmas Day. Celebrate this day as unto the Lord. Also, remember your brothers and sisters who choose to view all days as equally holy. They also celebrate all days as unto the Lord.
If you believe that Christmas Day should not be celebrated as the most holy day of the year, then I have a request of you. Please remember that Jesus is the reason for you to live every day – including today. You do not have an excuse to be unkind or ungenerous simply because you do not choose to celebrate Christmas Day. Celebrate this day, as all days, unto the Lord. Also, remember your brothers and sisters who choose to view this day as special. They also celebrate this day as unto the Lord.
Even the hearts and minds of unbelievers are turned toward God and spiritual things during this time. Look for opportunities to speak of God’s grace and truth to those who need to hear.
Live today for the glory of God. Love him and love those around you. Serve the people that God brings across your path. Serve them before they can serve you. Accept those who are different. Be patient with those who are less mature. Follow those who are more mature. Walk in Spirit. When you come together with your brothers and sisters in Christ, seek to build them up, to stir up love and good works within them, and to mature them in Christ Jesus.
Have a Merry Christmas!
Replay: Christmas ’93 and Eternity
Nineteen years ago today, my wife Margaret gave birth to our first child, a son who we named Jeremy. Six years ago, in honor of his 13th birthday, I wrote a post called “Christmas ’93 and eternity.” It has become a tradition to “replay” this post on December 22 each year. And, you know how strict I am about keeping traditions. So… here it is again. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy remembering that day (although, I don’t think that’s possible).
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Christmas ’93 and eternity
A few days ago, we celebrated my son’s 13th birthday by taking him to see the movie Eragon. He and his friends enjoyed it, though the story was a bit predictable for me.
Anyway, celebrating his birthday and preparing for Christmas reminded me of the Christmas of 1993. Our son was born on the 22nd of December that year. We brought him home on Christmas eve, stuffed in a red stocking. The next morning, we gave him his first Christmas gifts: clothes, a stuffed animal, and a full-size football (autographed by Bo Jackson, which is only important to half the population of the state of Alabama).
My wife was surprised that I would get my newborn son a football. But, he quickly outgrew both the clothes and the stuffed animal, but he can still play with the football! So, the football turned out to be a better gift than she thought at first. True, a three day old baby can do nothing with a football but drool on it. But, eventually, he grew to love football.
As I was thinking about his first Christmas and his first Christmas gifts, I wondered how often I focus on things that will truly last. I don’t even mean things that will last a few years or even a lifetime. But, how often do I focus on things that will last eternally? As I understand it, the only things on earth that are eternal are people. Do I give gifts that will make an eternal difference? Do I give things that will eventually fade? Or, do I give of myself to people who will last for eternity?
One day, I will join with multitudes around the throne of God. I hope that even this year I am giving eternal gifts.
p.s. Last year, we gave our (then) 12 year old son a special gift. We asked several men who had impacted his life to write him a letter. We asked them to tell him something that they wished someone had told them when they turned 12. We then took all of the letters and bound them in an album. It turned out to be a very special gift!
God enjoys a good light display
Last year, I wrote a post called “An inspirational light display.” We strung lights on our house to celebrate Christmas because, well, that’s what you do around here. But, when I was looking at the lights, I realized that God loves a good light display. Of course, I wasn’t thinking about the string of twinkling icicle lights on our house. That’s not the kind of light that pleases God…
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An inspirational light display
God cares about light displays. But, I’ll get back to that in another 200 words.
Last weekend, our friend Jared helped us string white icicle lights along our roof line. Many of our neighbors have decorated their houses, porches, trees, and yard ornaments with lights: white or multi-colored; twinkling, blinking, or steady.
Of course, there’s nothing in our neighborhood to compare to Mr. Grizwald’s light display. There are a few families in our town or the towns around us who seem to be attempting to give Clark a run for his money. And, then, there was the TV show about the houses around the country that have been decorated with hundreds of thounsands – even one million – lights.
So, are you thinking about a light display this Christmas? You should. Seriously.
Why? Because God enjoys a good light display. Jesus talked about this in the Sermon on the Mount:
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others… (Matthew 5:14-16 ESV)
Apparently, according to Jesus, God enjoys light displays that light up an entire hillside… and entire city. He wants a light display that cannot be hidden. Of course, this passage is not only about Christmas light displays, but certainly Christmas lights fall into this category.
I’m thinking that the early church’s emphasis on light displays (especially at Christmas-time) was one of the reasons (perhaps the main reason) that Paul told followers of Jesus let their lights shine in the world. Their light displays were so spectacular that their pagan neighbors could not help but notice.
So, we can see that light displays – including Christmas light displays – were important to Jesus, and they were important to Paul and the early church. If light displays were that important, then certainly they should be important to us as well. We’re not told whether we should choose white or multi-colored lights, or whether the lights should blink, twinkle, or remain on steadily. Perhaps that doesn’t matter as long as there is an awesome and inspirational light display.
Hold on one second… Are you sure? You really don’t think Matthew 5 is about Christmas lights? You think I should read further? Let me see…
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16 ESV)
Ah. I see. But, what about Paul telling Christians to shine their lights? That’s about light displays, including Christmas lights, right? No? We’ll see about that…
Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Philippians 2:14-16 ESV)
hmm…. hmph.
Well, readers, I apologize. Apparently, someone – who shall remain nameless, but his initials are HS – wants to ruin a perfectly good inspirational Christmas message by demanding that I consider what Jesus and Paul were actually saying. Someone thinks these passages are about living our lives in a way that demonstrates our trust in God and that they have nothing to do with Christmas lights.
But, I’ll leave that up to you – my loyal readers – to decide for yourselves. If you think Jesus and Paul are talking about Christmas light displays, then I hope your house is the brightest on the block.
But, if you think they’re talking about living your life in a way that others notice and in a way that points others toward God through Jesus Christ, well, I guess that’s fine, too.
Just don’t expect to win the best decorations or tackiest lights awards this year!
Watching the church change from barren to fruitful
Roger at “SimpleChurch Journey” has shared a very interesting list in his post “Choudhrie’s Challenges Re-Visited.” The post is a summary of an essay written by Victor Choudhrie titled “Mega Church to Meta (Beyond) Church” and subtitled “21 Steps to transit from being a barren church to a millionaire of souls.”
Here are some of the interesting “steps” (interesting to me):
3. Phase out programmed Sunday ‘services’ while implementing informal, small
gatherings. The Bride of Christ must have intimacy with her Lord every day, not only for a
couple of hours a week, lest she become unfaithful.4. Replace Mosaic tithing with Christian sharing, thereby harnessing the enormous,
financial resources, hospitality and goodwill available in Christian homes.5. Dispense with wafer-and-sip Holy Communion and promote breaking of bread with
simple Agape meals (love feasts) from house to house, that believers take with glad
hearts, ‘and the Lord added to His numbers daily’.7. Shift from being a spectator-oriented church to a ‘metastasizing’, interactive,
participatory, prophetic church. Empower men, women and youth, to get the dragon off the driver’s seat.10. Know your identity in Christ: You are a royal-priest, made so by the blood of the Lamb.
Dismantle the ‘Reverend’ culture that divides clergy from layman.14. Empower every Sunday school, bible school, prayer cell, women’s fellowship, and
cottage meeting, by calling them full-fledged, authentic churches.18. Reorient your personal paradigm. Your business, workplace or home, wherever you
spend most of your time, is your ‘primary nuclear church’. It matters little whether you
are the CEO, or the janitor or the kitchen queen; you are a full-time minister there and
accountable.
Obviously, there are other “steps” in Choudhrie’s essay besides the ones listed above (14 other steps, to be exact).
I love that the focus of these “steps” is to empower, equip, and send all believers as priests in God’s kingdom, wherever they live, work, etc. These steps recognize that the Spirit indwells all of God’s children, and, therefore, he can and does work through all of them. He does not only work through a few of them.
Given the many exhortations in Scripture toward mutual service, mutual discipleship, mutual edification, mutual teaching, etc., I agree with Choudhrie that taking these steps would help the church grow toward maturity and fruitfulness.
What do you think?
Replay: A Christmas Story from a Random Convenience Store
Three years ago, we spent Christmas in Alabama spending time with family. We don’t get to do that very often, so we were very excited to be back in our “hometown” – although, it’s hard to not view North Carolina as “home” after being here for over 10 years now.
On that Christmas Eve, while running an errand to a nearby convenience store, I overheard a conversation that was an encouragement and challenge for me. I wrote about that event in a post called “A Random Convenience Store.” I hope you enjoy this story, and I hope it challenges you to serve other… just as it challenged me.
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A Random Convenience Store
Yesterday, Christmas Eve, we spent the day with my family. We had lunch with my Mom and Dad, and with my brother and his family. We needed some ice, so Margaret and I went down the road to a local convenience store to buy a bag. This was a normal convenience store combined with a chain gas station. (I honestly don’t remember which gas station.)
There were two employees in the store, both of them men. The oldest of the two men was wearing a “Santa” hat, and was helping an elderly lady pick out a bottle of wine at a wine display. When the lady had picked out her bottle of wine – the bottle that was recommended by the employee – they walked up to the counter together. She asked how much the wine cost, and also handed the man two bottles of coke (in glass bottles!).
The man, “We talked about this already. This is our Christmas gift to you. There’s no charge for the wine or for the cokes.”
The lady protested slightly, as you must do in the South, and then began proclaiming, “I love y’all! I just love y’all so much!”
Meanwhile, I was standing in line at the cash register where the other employee was working. The lady in front of me wanted to by a car wash. She said that she had not bought gas because she had a full tank, but she was traveling through town and wanted to get a car wash. The man rang up the lower price for her (as if she had bought gas), and then he reached beneath the counter to get her car wash code.
“Oh, no!” he said, “It says the car wash needs maintenance.”
The other employee said, “I guess I need to fill up the soap.”
The employee at the cash register asked the lady if she could come back in a few minutes. She said she needed to buy a few things, so she would go to a local store and come back for the car wash. He handed her the car wash code and said, “I’m not going to charge you for this. That way, if he doesn’t get the soap filled before you come back, then you’re not out anything, and if he does get it filled, then you can just consider it a Christmas gift.”
I bought the bag of ice, thinking about the great example these two employees demonstrated. I don’t know if these two men are Christians are not, but they showed that they cared more about people than about their business. They were more concerned with being good neighbors than making a buck. We need to see – and be – more examples like this.
As I walked out of the store, the elderly lady was still saying, “I just love y’all so much!”
Answering all questions about discipleship
A few days ago, Guy from “The M Blog” wrote a new post called “Discipleship questions worth pondering.” I decided that I would give Guy some definitive answers to his questions and to all questions ever asked about discipleship. Ok. Not really. But, I did ponder his questions and thought I would offer a few “ponderings” in print.
For those of us who are following Jesus Christ, I think discipling is (or should be) very important. If Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are correct, the some of the last words spoken by Jesus after his resurrection and before his ascension related to discipling others in some form or fashion.
A couple of Guy’s questions seem to be related to me:
1. Can a person be a disciple and not yet a believer in Jesus, a “Christian.”
2. Can you disciple an unbeliever?
Of course, answering these questions depends on defining the word “disciple.” The Greek term translated “disciple” has a range of meanings (as does almost every word in every language). The word translated “disciple” could simply mean “pupil” or “learner.” In that sense, anyone learning anything about Jesus becomes a “disciple” of Jesus. John occasionally uses this meaning of the word “disciple” in his Gospel. (For example, see John 6:66, in which John says, “After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.”) This use of the term “disciple” could include an unbeliever.
However, there are other meanings of the term translated “disciple.” Primarily in the New Testament I think the term translated “disciple” refers to someone who is more than a pupil or learner and is instead someone who follows the life and teachings of a leader. In this case, the “leader” would be Jesus. So, only a believer could be a disciple. In fact, faith in Christ (salvation, if you prefer) is the first step in “following Jesus” or the first step as a disciple.
Here’s another good question that Guy asked:
3. When someone becomes a believer or Christian, can we consider them as a “disciple made?”
In one sense, a “disciple” is made at the point the person trusts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. However, as I said earlier, a disciple is someone who actually follows the life and teaching of Jesus. So, a disciple is never completely made until the person’s life is complete. Thus, the life of a disciple in following Jesus includes always learning more about what it means to follow Jesus.
I’m going to skip a few questions:
9. Are we to obey the teaching component of the Great Commission, or are we to step out of the way and let Jesus (or the Spirit) teach others directly?
Yes. Teaching others to obey everything that Jesus commanded, includes just that – teaching. So, yes, that is part of both being a disciple of Jesus and helping others in their lives as disciples of Jesus. Of course, we know that the ultimate and final teacher is Jesus (through the Holy Spirit). So, while we teach others (and learn from others), we also help them (and learn to) listen to Jesus on our own. The two are not distinct, but complimentary forms of teaching.
And, the last questions that I’m going to “ponder” in this post:
11. If the making of disciples, or discipleship requires that we teach others to observe/obey ALL that Jesus commanded, then wouldn’t that take a considerable amount of time? Are we relieved of our responsibility to teach when we have taught all of those commandments?
Even if we DID teaching all of Jesus’ commands, we would not have done what Jesus said in Matthew 28:19-20 (the great commission). Why? Because, as Guy said in the question, Jesus said to teach people to observe/obey. That cannot be completed by teaching a list of commands. It takes time. How much time? Well, as much time as necessary… but more than we usually assume. I think it’s easier to assume that it takes a lifetime.
So, there you go. All you need to know about discipleship.
Actually, I’d love to hear your thoughts on these questions (or any of the other questions that Guy asked in his post).
Love is patient… especially when it comes to change among the church
Kathleen at “Church in a Circle” has finished her 12 post series called “Tomorrow’s Church.” The last post in the series is called “Tomorrow’s church – Part 12: It’s time to shift your mindset.” (There are links to all 12 posts in Kathleen’s series at the bottom of that last post.)
Kathleen’s last post in the series is all about change. Change. I don’t know if you’ve heard this before, but change is not easy… it’s not comfortable… it’s not always pleasant. And, that’s just change in the life of one person. What happens when you multiply change over many people?
This is what Kathleen says about change among the church:
Change is happening in the church as we speak. You may or may not be aware of the simple church movement, the organic church movement, the missional movement. In the past month, I’ve attended two meetings in my city where entire denominations are exploring new, discipleship-centred models of church. There is a steady movement among God’s people worldwide towards a fresh expression of church, towards participation, engagement, involvement and empowerment. There is a rumbling discontent amongst pastors and churches, and a Godly longing to make disciples instead of filling pews. The majority of God’s people in every denomination are uncomfortably aware that the system is no longer working.
I agree with Kathleen. Change is happening. People recognize that there are problem, and many are addressing the problems. Certainly different people are addressing different problems, and they are addressing them in different ways. But, the thing is, change is happening.
Her post made be think about what happens when different churches (i.e., different groups of brothers/sisters in Christ) began to change. I’ve been part of a group that has been changing (continues to change) for several years. I’ve also observed others churches who have been changing also… and many of them (most?) have been changing differently than us.
So, what happens when a group of brothers and sisters in Christ are changing, but they are not changing in the way or in the speed that we think they should change? Or what happens when someone thinks that you should change in a different way or at a different speed than you are changing? (And, you are changing, right?)
Is that the time for strong proclamations, denouncements, taking sides, separating, shouts of heresy… Well, if you read some blogs or books or articles, you might think that’s the right response.
But, I think that’s the wrong response… completely wrong.
Instead, change… and change is always occurring, right?… change is a time for patience.
So, I definitely agree with Kathleen that churches are changing. As we see that change (whether it’s happening like we think it should or not), we must have patience… patience with God… patience with others… and patience with ourselves.
Five Secrets (and more) Pastors MUST Tell
Last week, Adrian Warnock linked to a post from last June written by Thom Rainer called “Five Secrets Pastors Refuse to Tell.” The point of the original post is that pastors are often told secrets by other people and must keep those secrets in confidence. Similarly, pastors have secrets of their own – related to themselves and their families – that they do not tell others. As Rainer states, “These spiritual leaders refuse to share their thoughts or pains for fear that their own ministries will be damaged.”
What kinds of things are on Rainer’s lists of secrets kept by many (most?) pastors?
- “My marriage is struggling.”
- “I fear my kids will grow up hating the church.”
- “I let a handful of critics control me.”
- “I often have anger toward the supportive church members who don’t defend me to my critics.”
- “I’ve thought about quitting several times.”
I have a huge concern with this list and with similar lists. Now, I understand that there is a context to this list. When Rainer (and others) use the term “pastor” in contexts like this, they are referring to the leader(s) of a religious organization. This person may or may not be spiritually gifted at pastoring. This person may or may not be actually pastoring anyone. The title refers to a position within the organization.
When Rainer states, “These spiritual leaders refuse to share their thoughts or pains for fear that their own ministries will be damaged,” he’s referring to their position within the organization being damaged. And, keeping the kinds of secrets that Rainer lists (and other similar secrets) is a good way for someone to protect themselves and their positions within these organizations.
But, the problem is that when it comes to actually pastoring – actually shepherding other people in order to help them follow Jesus Christ and grow in maturity – keeping these kinds of secrets is antithetical to the desired goal.
You cannot help people learn to interact with their spouses in the Lord while at the same time keeping your own struggles a secret. You cannot teach people who to live with, love, and be at peace with those who oppose them or disagree with them by keeping secrets about those who oppose or disagree with you. You cannot show people what it means to follow Jesus Christ if you see your own role as something that can be “quit.”
How do we move away from the kind of life that believes it’s necessary to keep these kinds of secrets from brothers and sisters in Christ? I think it’s fairly simply… because I’ve been through it. It requires moving away from positional ministry among the church. It requires moving away from using and understanding terms like “pastor,” “evangelist,” etc. as positions and instead see and live them as ways to serve others. It requires refusing to see the “church” as an organization and instead to live with the people themselves as the church.
Are we willing to move away from these positional ways of thinking and more toward relational ways of thinking and living? If not, then it will be necessary to continue to keep these kinds of secrets from others in order to maintain our positions in the organization.
But, if we’re truly interested in pastoring – not in title, but in service in the Lord – then we will seek to open up our lives to others – warts and all – in order to help them follow Jesus Christ – even if it means we lose our positions among the organizations.
Replay: Did she just say, “Happy Holidays”?
Last year, just before Christmas, I published a post called, “Did she just say Happy Holidays?” Around this time of year, the wars of words starts between those who say “Merry Christmas” and those who say “Happy Holidays” with apparently very little middle ground. So many Christians get offended when someone says, “Happy Holidays.” I wonder if there’s not a better way to respond…
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Did she just say Happy Holidays?
Merry Christmas! Feliz Navidad! Fröhliche Weihnachten! Joyeux Noël! Buon Natale! Feliz Natal! Mele Kalikimaka!
What!?!? Did she just say, “Happy Holidays”? That just won’t do…
Ok… so, just to be clear, I tell people, “Merry Christmas.” But, I’m not upset or offended when someone says, “Happy Holidays.” In fact, I do not assume that someone is a nonChristian if that person says, “Happy Holidays.”
What would happen if Christians actually talked with (and listened to) people talk about how THEY celebrated the “holidays” instead of responding in more negative ways?
I could imagine a conversation kinda like this…
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“Happy Holidays,” she said as she handed me the receipt.
“Thank you,” I said with a smile. The story was almost empty, and there was no one in line behind me, so I continued, “Which holiday or holidays are you celebrating?”
She seemed a little surprised, but I stopped and made sure she could tell that I was truly interested in what she would say.
“ummm… What do you mean?” she answered with a question, obviously a little unsure of my intent.
“Well, different people celebrate this time of year for different reasons: Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Christmas, New Years. Some people just enjoy this time of year by taking a break from work or school and spending time with family. Others recognize the change of seasons or the winter solstice. What are you celebrating during the holidays?”
She stopped for a moment, and looked at me funny again. “You know, no one has ever asked me that before. My family got together for Thanksgiving, and we have several different Christmas traditions…” She told me about some of her family’s plans including travel and parties.
For some reason, I’m always surprised, but I know that people love to talk about things that they care about, especially to someone who is really listening. So, I listened, and made a couple of comments about corresponding traditions or places that I’d been before.
As she stopped talking about herself and her family, I thanked her for telling me about her holiday plans, and started to turn away out of the store.
“What about you?” she asked. “What are you doing for the holidays?”
I turned back toward her and smile. I don’t know if she was as interested in hearing my reasons to celebrate or not, but she had asked. So…
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The way I see it, this kind of encounter – any time of year – must be preceded by the following:
1) An earnest concern for the other person and a desire to hear what the other person has to say. (In other words, don’t ask the other person about her beliefs ONLY so that you can share your own.)
2) A willingness to walk away without sharing your own beliefs/plans/whatever if the person does not ask.
So, what about you? Have you ever had an interesting conversation with someone because you reacted in a way that showed you genuinely cared about them (especially when your response was different than what they may have expected from Christians)?