Does God Really Care About Christmas?

     I went to the mall this week to buy a last minute gift for my wife and I saw this incredibly long line weaving through the mall.  I began to wonder what they where waiting in line to see.  As I finally got to the front of the line I saw an overweight man with with white hair and a white beard dressed in red and white sitting on what appeared to be a throne of some sort.  I watched as child after child approached this stranger with great fear and trepidation.  The parents of these children encouraged them to sit on the strangers lap for a picture.  After great struggle by the parents and insanity by the camera lady to get the children to smile against their will, the picture was taken and the parents were happy.
     Had I been an alien from another planet I would have thought this ritual was quite strange!  Who is this odd man and why are parents making their kids sit on his lap?  Why do they go to great lengths to try to maintain this myth in their children's minds?  Why do they spent so much money on presents then tell their children that they are from this imaginary man?  
     Before you accuse me of being one of those crazy Christians that thinks that Santa is equal to Satan, I want to bring a different perspective.  I don't think that Santa is the major source of the Christmas confusion.  Neither do I think that people saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" is a battle worth fighting either.  In the past well-intentioned Christians have boycotted stores because of their refusal to say "Merry Christmas."  Well this year many of the stores caved to the pressure and started saying "Merry Christmas" instead.
     My question is, how many people's eternal destiny was changed from heaven to hell because Wal-Mart cashiers are now saying "Merry Christmas?"  Don't get me wrong I still say "Merry Christmas."  I am just wondering if God really cares about what we call Christmas at all.
     Lets face it, we as Christians celebrate basically the same way non-Christians do.  We fill our time with shopping, holiday parties, wrapping gifts, decorating our homes, over-eating, and spending time with family.  None of which is wrong of course, but it all tends to be quite self-centered.  But do we really stop to think about how God would want us to celebrate the birth of his son?
     To me the way we celebrate Christmas is the like the way we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday.  We give kids a day off from school to celebrate his memory.  Looking at all of what he stood for is that the way he would want to be remembered?
     Look at the first Christmas.  No one who was invited to the first nativity was their for self-centered reasons.  Joseph took Mary as his wife even though she became pregnant before their marriage.  Mary agreed to what the Angel told her even though she knew the social stigma that would be attached to her.  The Shepherds came to worship Jesus and the Wise men travelled for months to bring their gifts to a newborn baby.  That scene was about any of them, it was all about Jesus.
     Now over 2,000 years later we still celebrate Jesus' birth but it seems to be all about us and very little about him.  I don't claim to have all the answers or solutions to this problem.  Neither do I claim to celebrate Christmas exactly the way God would like.
     I also realize that you may think of several ways that you celebrate Christmas that may honor Christ, but if we were to weigh that against our expressions of self-centeredness which would win?
     I know this doesn't feel like a real cheery blog, but after all it is Christ's birthday in the first place maybe we should take the time to ask these sobering questions: "How would Christ want me to honor him on his birthday?"  "Is the way I celebrate Christmas really all about me or about others?"          

I Wish You Would Go To Hell!

    Are you ever appalled by your own selfishness?  I often am.  I recently pulled up to the street corner where Alex begs for money.  (If you would like the back story on Alex please read "I really am a horrible person")  I have reached out to Alex multiple times, initially with a great response but since then it has been hit and miss.  I was in a hurry to get to an appointment and didn't want to bother with him.  So I pulled over in the far lane and hoped he wouldn't recognize me.  Well that didn't work.  He came running across the lanes of traffic to say "Hi" to me. The light turned green and I pulled away.  I immediately felt horrible.
     I realized I had been sucked back into my own selfishness again.  I was trying to ignore the obvious need right in front of me because of its potential inconvenience.  So I decided to make it right.  Alex had mentioned that he was sick.  So I went and bought him some hot soup and coffee and went back to give it to him.  I was reminded again through that experience that compassion or selfishness are moment by moment decisions.  Each day I can live for myself or I can choose to live for something greater.
     Today, I would like to look at the final chapter in the book of Jonah.  Jonah is an example of someone who knows so much about God but who in this story chooses to act so little like him.  God's word says that Jonah is ticked off at God's mercy.  Listen to what he tells God, "Didn't I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord?  That is why I ran away to Tarshish!  I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.  You are eager to turn back from destroying people.  Just kill me now, Lord!  I'd rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen."
     How appalling!  Jonah has every preacher's wildest dream come true: To preach to a city of 120,000 people and see the entire city repent and turn to God!  Jonah should be dancing in the street, but instead he is sitting on a hill pouting and complaining to God about his mercy.  He is so intense about this that he says he would rather die than see these people not get what they deserve.  He is essentially saying "I wish they would all go to hell!"
     I ask the question again: "How can someone who knows so much about God act so little like him?"  But then I realize that I am guilty of the same thing.  In those moments when my schedule, my priorities and desires are more important to me than sharing God's grace and truth with another person, I am essentially doing the same thing.
     I think all Christians can get sucked into the trap of knowing a lot about God, but not acting like him.  I think that is one of the primary reasons why Non-Christians aren't impressed by Christianity: "They know too many Christians."
     But all they way back in Genesis God declares his purpose for humanity "Then God said, 'Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.'" I refuse to be someone who knows a lot about God but doesn't act like him.  That is why moment by moment, decision by decision, and choice by choice I determine to follow Christ and become more like him.              

Sheep Wearing A Sackcloth Suit!

     Ever come across something that is so out of the ordinary that it demands your attention?  What if you came across a sheep wearing a suit of sackcloth?  Well, you might think that you are watching a cartoon episode to see an animal wearing clothes.  What if everywhere you look every beast was wearing burlap?  Sounds like a strange dream doesn't it?
     Well, where we pick up the story of Jonah describes this exact scene.  After spending 3 days in the belly of a great fish and being vomited back upon dry ground, Jonah decides to obey God.  He goes to the great city of Nineveh and begins to shout, "Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed."
     My first question is "Could Jonah possible have preached a more pathetic message then this."  He doesn't even try to preach to them.  The Bible doesn't record that he even tried to tell them about God.  Obviously his heart is not in this mission at all.  He sounds like a crazy man on the side of the road holding a sign saying: "The end of the world is near."
     Using this approach, you expect the people to totally ignore him but instead the Bible says "The people of Nineveh believed God's message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow."  Even the king joins the people by dressing in burlap and sitting on a heap of ashes.  But that isn't the most extraordinary part of this story.
     The king makes this proclamation: "No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks may eat or drink anything at all.  People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God.  They must turn from their evil ways . . ."  Now that is the kind of leadership that we need today!
     I am amazed at the level of repentance you see in this passage.  Not only does the entire city repent of their sins, but they declare an extended fast from both food and water.  They also dress in burlap and sit in ashes, but they are so serious about this that they make their animals fast and dress in burlap as well.
     How difficult would it be for a shepherd to dress his flock in sackcloth?  How much work would it be to a farmer to clothe his entire herd of cattle in burlap?  It sounds absurd doesn't it, but that is how serious these people were about repentance and following God's words.
     The principle that I find in this Scripture, is that many times people who do not know God are better at doing what he says than those of us who claim to follow him.  I have seen over many years of ministry that the most effective people at bringing others to church with them are not church people, but non-Christians or new Christians.
     I love being around new Christians, because they are so serious about learning God's word and doing what it says.  It is refreshing and challenging to me.  I want to be that serious about learning and doing God's word.  Even if it means looking ridiculous to other people.  Let's be honest, you know the Ninevehites had to been ridiculed by other people for this ridiculous spectacle of all their beasts dressed in burlap.  What if we as Christians were this passionate about learning and doing God's word?  How different would our world look?
    Unlike Jonah, I refuse to become so accustomed to hearing God's word that I completely miss the point.  (We will talk about this more in my next blog.)        

What a Pathetic Prayer!

     I am a father of three children ages 9, 7 and 6.  So needless to say I have heard my share of crying over the years.  It starts with the most beautiful cry you have ever heard: "A babies first cry!"  Then you start to be able to distinguish between different cries.  You have the: "I am wet" cry, "I am tired" cry and "I am mad" cry.  As they get older the cries become different.  Now you have the: "my sister is picking on me" cry, "I don't want to clean my room" cry and "This is so not fair" cry.  I have become quit good at ignoring these cries, but the cry that always gets an immediate response from me is the "I am really hurt" cry.  I come running to the rescue of my children when I know they are in trouble or danger.
     Today we pick up the story of Jonah as he is crying out to God from the belly of a great fish!  I can only imagine how terrifying that place would be.  Jonah describes his life slipping away, and how God rescued him from the jaws of death!  In fact some scholars believe that Jonah drowned in the fish's stomach and that God brought him back to life when he was spat back upon dry ground.  Regardless, Jonah prays this prayer in chapter 2 out of complete desperation.
     As I read this story, I can't help but think about how pathetic Jonah's prayer sounds.  I get mad at Jonah, "It is your own fault, you are there.  You rebelled against God.  He is actually saving your life by having a great fish swallow you."  But then I think about all the times I have cried out to God in my own horrible situations created by my own bad decisions.
     Jonah says, "I cried out to the Lord in my great trouble, and he answered me."  God is a loving heavenly father and he hears and answers the cries of his kids when they are in trouble.  He may not always answer those prayers exactly the way we would like but he always answers.
     We can be tempted to think that our prayers have to be elegant, theologically accurate and in King James English.  But I think God wants to hear our pathetic prayers.  The word "pathetic" means "having the capacity to move one to a compassionate pity."  God hears our pathetic prayers.  So if you are in trouble today don't stop praying pathetic prayers.  

How can you sleep at night?

     Have you ever asked anyone this question?  Usually the question comes after we have heard about someone else's unwise, unsafe, or immoral behavior.  We ask this question because we think about how our conscience would drive us crazy if we were living the way the other person was.
     But even though we hear God speaking to us by his Spirit (which we call our conscience), we can easily choose to ignore it.  When we consistently choose to ignore God's voice, it can become as if we don't even hear it at all.  God's word gives us the picture of our conscience being "seared with a hot iron."
     We see an interesting picture of this in the story of Jonah.  Jonah was a prophet.  Which means his calling was to hear from God and deliver his messages to others.  Normally, the Israelite prophets delivered messages to God's people: the Israelites.  One day God gives Jonah a different assignment: deliver a message of repentance to the pagan people of Nineveh.
     Jonah hates the idea of pagan people getting the chance to repent.  He thinks they deserve punishment.  So instead of going to Nineveh, Jonah gets in a boat and goes the opposite direction.  He says he was trying to run away from God.  When I read this story, I think to myself, "Silly Jonah, everyone knows you can't run away from God."  But then I realize how often I am guilty of the same faulty thinking.  "God won't see this."  "God won't know about this."  "God won't care about this."
     While they are on the boat a violent storm hits them and they are all fearful that they are going to die.  Everyone except Jonah, that is.  He is down in the boat sleeping!  Jonah is clearing disobeying God, his life is being threatened, and he is sleeping peacefully.
     Jonah: the great prophet has so hardened his heart against God that he seems completely comfortable in his rebellion and defiance!
     Unfortunately, it can be so easy for us to see this in other people's lives but at the same time totally miss it in our own lives.  We can be living in direct rebellion to God's word and yet be so seemingly comfortable in our lifestyle.  The reason we seem so comfortable is that we have ignore God's voice for so long that it is almost as if we don't hear it any more.  This is such a dangerous place to be!  I know because I have been there!
     The only way you and I get of that dangerous place is an unpopular word called "Repentance."  Repentance means that we have such a change of heart that we turn 180 degrees from our sin and head in the opposite direction.  Repentance is not a one time thing.  It is the lifestyle of a follower of Christ.  I have to daily turn from my sin to follow Christ.
     The reason why I am so challenged by this story is that I don't want to have to be swallowed by a fish like Jonah in order for God to get my attention. (I will speak more about this in tomorrow's blog.)
     Today, I repent.  Today, I turn away from my sin.  Today, I refuse to ignore God's voice.            

Are You Naked?

     Have you ever had one of those disturbing dreams where you show up to school or work and you realize your naked?  My thought in my dream is always, "How in the world could I leave the house and forget to put clothes on?"
     Here is a interesting thought: God created us to be naked!  Look at Adam and Eve, it was only after their sin that they felt shame for their nakedness.  Now, before you think that I am trying to have some weird creepy argument for us all to join a nudist colony, here me out.  I am just saying that our life-long obsession to cover up who we really are was never God's plan.
     I think we can try to cover up who we are in many ways: physically, emotionally, financially, relationally, and spiritually.  It doesn't matter if you are a Christian or not, the same temptation is there.
     John addresses a church in the Revelation 3 that is dealing with the same issue, "You say, 'I am rich.  I have everything I want.  I don't need a thing!'  And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked."
     For the first 10 years of our marriage, Dianne and were so blessed, but it always felt like money was tight.  Recently, God has blessed us again and it feels like we are more comfortable financially.  Dianne and I have always strived to be generous with God and others concerning our finances, but I must admit it seems like the more I have, the more I want to hold on to it and spend it on myself.
     The words we just read from Revelation are a loud warning to us.  I don't know about you, but I refuse to become rich financially, but become poor in what really matters.  I refuse to become so obsessed with "clothing" that I don't realize how naked I am without God's grace.
     John gives the solution to this dilemma of becoming so blessed that we forget God.  He says in 3:19 "So be diligent and turn from your indifference."  Indifference is so sinister.  It is that "I don't care" attitude that can creep into our lives.
     If you have been reading my recent blogs, you will be familiar with my stories of God challenging me to reach out to a homeless man named Alex.  This morning I drove past Alex's corner and a different homeless man was standing there with a sign.  Upon seeing him, I immediately found myself drowning in a sea of my own indifference again.  I thought of all the reasons why I shouldn't help.
     In that moment, I was "poor and blind and naked."  What I keep learning is that just because you win a battle with indifference one day, doesn't mean you win the war.  That is why John challenges us to be diligent in turning from our indifference.  We must continue to turn from indifference or as John says we become "wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked."  This is not at all what I want my life to look like.  So I ask you again, "Are You Naked?"           

I ain't going to hell wit ya!

     I was recently listening to some a random Christian hip-hop song I had on my ipod while I was fixing supper.  The message of the song seemed pretty good.  It was a song about standing up to the crowd for God and righteous living.  But the tag line in the chorus shocked me.  It said "I ain't going to hell wit ya!"  

     That seems to me to be a common Christian attitude.  I got my ticket to heaven and I am not too concerned if you get your ticket.  I just hope your wickedness doesn't rub off on me.  

     After recently watching the movie "The Nativity Story" my wife and I were talking about the Christmas story and she asked a great question, "Why did God draw shepherds and wise men to see Jesus?"  "What was the symbolism in drawing these diverse groups of people?"  She then had a theory.  "I think it was to show that Christ had come for all people both rich and poor.  

     I then began to ponder what my wife had said.  God did come to the rich and the poor, but he came as a poor man not a rich man.  That is the wonder that we celebrate at Christmas: EMANUEL "God with us."  God lowered himself to become a man and he challenges us to do the same in Philippians 2 with statements such as these: "Don't be selfish."  "Be humble." "Don't look out for only your own interests."  "You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position as a slave and was born as a human being."

     I recently wrote about my interaction with a homeless man named Alex in my post "I really am a horrible person!"  Yesterday, I saw Alex again and stopped to give him some food and a winter coat.  I talked with him for a couple of minutes and as I was leaving I saw him crying.  I was reminded of how powerful it is to humble yourself to minister to some one else.  Lest you think I am patting myself on the back, let me remind you I only lower myself for a few minutes when I minister to homeless person, Jesus lowered himself for a lifetime to minister to us.  

     Jesus didn't have the "I ain't going to hell wit ya" attitude.  He had a "I will go through hell so you won't have to" attitude.  How far are we willing to go as Christians so others can know Christ?  What are we willing to sacrifice for them?  Christ was willing to sacrifice everything?     

God wants you to be poor!

     A very prominent message in modern American Christianity is that God wants you to be Healthy, Wealthy and Happy.  The reason this message is popular is obvious.  Who doesn't want to be healthy, wealthy and happy?  Those three things sure are at the top of my list.
     Where we have to be careful is that we don't approach the truth of God's word looking to pull out the things that we want to hear and ignoring the things that we would rather not.  Just last night my family was reading James chapter 1 and I came across this verse "Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them.  And believers who are rich should boast that God has humbled them."
     Wait, I thought that if I followed the 10 commandments, the Golden Rule, attended church, gave in the offering, and read the Bible, I would have a perfect life!  I mean isn't that the reason why we follow all the rules and try so hard to be good is so that God will make us happy?  Isn't that why we give to the church so that God will give us more?
     This phenomenon of only hearing the parts of the Bible that appeal to us is nothing new.  Thinking that God wanted us to be healthy, wealthy and happy was very popular in Jesus' day.  That is why Jesus had to confront that thinking with shocking statements such as "I tell you the truth, it is hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven."  The people thought that someone was rich because God was blessing them.
     Now before you get depressed and go back to Facebook or playing Angry Birds listen up!  I don't necessarily think that God wants believers to be Sick, Poor, and Depressed, but I do think that our own pursuit of health, wealth and happiness can be huge road blocks to what God really does want.
     As I read the Bible, what I constantly see is that God wants us to be Humble, Loving, Compassionate, and ultimately more like him.  The reason why God said it was difficult for rich people to enter the kingdom of heaven is that the more stuff we have the harder it is for us to be humble, loving and compassionate.
     I think what God desires for us is succinctly summed up in Jesus saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit."  The poor in spirit realize life isn't about getting more stuff, but about how God can use my life to touch other people's lives.
     I am reminded of this so powerfully when ever I leave the country.  I realize that all of our wealth can be a huge distraction to what God desires to do in our lives.  God help us to be poor in spirit!  

Is speaking in tongues demonic?

     I recently had a student send me a link to a youtube video of John MacArthur preaching on speaking in tongues.  I watched the videos and found them quite troubling.  John MacArthur seems to be a very educated and convincing speaker on this topic.  His premise is basically that speaking in tongues is a satanic counterfeit.  His argument is that speaking to god in an ecstatic, gibberish speech is an ancient pagan practice that crept into the early church.  Here are his exact words: "The Church has married a system of pagan religion again, and we have developed a sensual, feeling, experiential, erotic approach to religion and called it 'the work of the Holy Spirit' when in fact it is the counterfeit of Satan."
     MacArthur's teaching gives us the sense that experiencing God with our senses or feelings isn't biblical.  If that is the case why would God tell us to love him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength? (Mark 12:30)  Why would God create us with emotions if they have no place in our experience with him?
     MacArthur's primary argument against speaking in tongues is from 1 Corinthians 14.  He says that speaking in tongues is "useless to edify." (or build up)  Even though verse 4 explicitly says that he who speaks in tongues edifies himself.  Later in his message he addresses this verse and says that Paul was being sarcastic in this statement.  That anyone who speaks in tongues is building themselves up in a prideful manner.
     MacArthur addresses verse 2 which says "For he who speaks in tongues, does not speak to men but to God."  MacArthur says that this verse is more accurately translated "He who speaks in tongues...speaks to a god."  He says that speaking in tongues is a pagan practice of "speaking to the gods."  He says that Paul is condemning a private prayer language.  MacArthur says that the gift of speaking in tongues was always directed to other people and that only the pagan version was directed to "a god."  If this is the case why does Paul say in verse 28 "But if no one is present who can interpret, they must be silent in your church meeting and speak in tongues to God privately?"  So Paul is saying it is ok to pray to your false pagan god in tongues as long as you do it privately!  I don't think so.
     Finally MacArthur says "These people who think that they have some great thing going with their private prayer language with God, that doesn't do them any good because there is no knowledge of what they are saying.  Consequently, there is no learning in the mind.  Consequently, it is sensual ecstasy.  It is a feeling and Christianity has never been predicated upon a feeling."  Paul addresses this directly in verse 14 "For if I pray in tongues, my spirit prays but my understanding is unfruitful.  What is the conclusion then?  I will pray with the spirit and I will also pray with the understanding."
     If you haven't seen this video or heard teaching like this you may wonder why I am blogging about this.  I am writing for several reasons.  1. To address this false notion that is quite popular "The Bible says that every time someone speaks in tongues it must be interpreted."  God's word very clearly teaches that their is a public gift of speaking in tongues in the church that must be interpreted, but their is also the gift of praying in tongues that does not need to be interpreted.  2. To demonstrate that just because someone sounds like they are intelligent and know the Bible and spout a lot of Greek words that what they are saying must be true.  It is so important that we as believers study God's word for ourselves and never blindly accept anything that a preacher says.
     In closing God does want you to pursue and experience him with your mind, but he also wants you to pursue and experience him with your emotions as well.   I firmly believe that praying in tongues is a biblical experience and that the enemy of our soul knows how powerful this can be in our lives so he tries to bring dissension, division and confusion regarding this topic.      

Is it a Sin to Question God?

     Being a youth pastor I have the privilege of constantly mentoring young people.  One of the joys of mentoring students is fielding their questions.  One young lady in particular asks very challenging yet amazing questions.  I love raw and real questions.  I also love being around people who are willing to ask tough questions.  Why do I love this so much?  Because, I refuse to give pat, churchy, rehearsed answers.  I make myself look to God's word for the source of my answers.  I must admit I don't always find neat and clean answers to every question, but I am willing to rest in that tension of searching but not always finding what I was looking for.
     Growing up in the church my entire life, one of the phrases I heard a lot was "Never Question God!"  It sounded to me like it was a sin to question God.  I always wondered why.  Because as I read the Bible it looked to me like great men and women of faith were constantly questioning God.  
     Because it is the Christmas season, I was recently studying Luke chapter 1 which begins the story of the birth of Christ.  Two characters in this true story are Zechariah and Mary and they have very similar experiences.  They both have angels appear to them and tell them that the impossible is going to happen: they are both going to have a baby.  Zechariah questions this because both he and his wife are very old and this seems impossible.  Mary questions this because she is a virgin and obviously having a baby as a virgin seems impossible to her!  
     But where their stories diverge is Zechariah is punished for his lack of faith by not being able to speak for 9 months until his wife gives birth.  After the angel answers Mary's question of how she will give birth as a virgin Mary's response is beautiful: "I am the Lord's servant.  May everything you have said about me come true."
     Mary still has a lot of questions.  How in the world do you explain to your family and fiancé that God made you pregnant.  Also not only was this an extremely awkward situation but dangerous as well.  In Mary's village women who became pregnant outside of marriage were killed.  Trust me.  Mary still had tons of questions as to how this would work, but she still responds to God with faith.
     In our lives, I don't think God is threatened or offended by our questions, but what he is waiting for is whether or not we will choose to have faith in him despite our questions.  So my encouragement to you is to continue to be willing to ask hard questions, but be courageous enough to have faith in the midst of those questions.  

I wish I could take that out of the Bible!

     Have you ever been reading the Bible and stumble across a part that you wish you could take out?  I do all the time.  Here are a couple examples: Genesis 6:4 which seems to say that Angels procreated with humans to make a race of Giants.  Weird! I have no idea how to explain that one!  Or the extremely disturbing story in Judges 19-21 of a Benjamite's concubine who gets raped and dies so he cuts up her body into 12 parts and sends them with messengers to the 12 tribes of Israel which then causes a civil war where thousands die.  Yes, that story is actually in the Bible!  
     I guess the other parts of the Bible that I really wish I could edit out are the parts that hit too close to home.  Like for instance I was reading this morning in James 1 "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy."  What?  How backwards is that?  When trouble comes my way, it is an opportunity for joy.  No, not just joy but great joy?  How is that possible?
     Listen to what he goes onto say: "For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow."  I guess this part makes sense.  Our faith is like a muscle and it only grows when it is challenged or tested.  He says that when our faith is tested our endurance has a chance to grow.  Once again, that doesn't sound like fun at all.
     I don't know about you, but I absolutely hate running (which is probably one of the greatest tests of endurance.)  In fact, I seriously doubt anyone who says they love running.  Think about it.  Have you ever in your life seen a runner with a smile on their face?  The only time they smile is when they finish the race and stop running! 
     Actually, I have a lot of respect for runners.  They have amazing endurance.  Endurance is extremely simple yet unbelievably challenging.  It is simply telling your body to keep going when it is screaming at you to quit.
     James is telling us that Faith is just like running.  Our circumstances and troubles are screaming at us to give up, to throw in the towel, but when we decide to continue to trust God in spite of our troubles our faith gets stronger.  I wish their was an easier way for my faith to grow, but this seems to be the way it works. 
     So like any good coach, I am challenging you today to refuse to give up, to keep on believing regardless of the opposition you may face.  Listen to what else James has to say: "So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." 

Is there laser tag in heaven?

     Recently around the breakfast table my wife asked the question, "Didn't someone predict that Jesus was coming back in October?"  Our middle daughter asked a great question, "What is he coming back for?"  I said that he was coming back to take Christians to heaven.  She then had this very sad troubled look on her face.  I tried to tell her about how amazing heaven really is.  I told her it was even better than "Incredible Pizza" (An amazing pizza place, with games, laser tag and such)  My youngest daughter excitedly joined the conversation with this question, "Will there be laser tag in heaven?" 
     All our attempts to convince our daughter of how great heaven is, were not working.  She then asked, "Will all my friends be there?"  I said if they were Christians they would be.  She then with great frustration said, "I don't want to go to heaven, I really like earth!"
     This humorous moment with my daughters revealed their attitude about this world, but I think it is indicative often times of our attitude as well.  We can be tempted to think that this world is really all there is to life.  When we get sucked into this way of thinking, we can get greedy and try to grab all we can grab for ourselves.
     My wife and I just recently returned from a missions trip to El Salvador.  Every time I travel to another country I am always struck by the poverty I see.  The average income of a pastor in El Salvador is $10 a month!  The interesting thing is that when I realize how wealthy I am in comparison to my Christian brothers and sisters around the world, it doesn't make me want to hold onto my wealth tighter but to give it away.
     In these situations I am always reminded of what I read this morning in Hebrews 13:14 "For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come."  Understanding how temporary this world is, will change the way I live.  It will change the way I treat others.  It will change the way I spend my time and money.  It is crucial that we grasp this concept.   

I really am a horrible person!

     Almost everyday I pass a man sitting on the side of the road with a sign which says "Homeless and Hungry,  Anything Will Help, God Bless.  Everyday I feel justified in not doing anything about his situation because I say to myself, "He is just a con-man looking for a hand out.  He will just use my money to buy drugs or alcohol."
     This morning my wife walks into my office and says "I want to go pray for the homeless man and I need you to come with me."  I must admit that my typical reaction when my wife asks me to join her in something like this, is that I drag my feet.  For whatever reason, today I was a willing accomplice.  We drove over to where he was, got out of our car and walked over to him.  He didn't see us coming, so when we spoke to him it about scarred him out of his skin.  I had to keep reassuring him that we were not going to hurt him.  I told him we were there to help him and not to hurt him.
     I asked him how he became homeless.  He went into a 5 minute explanation of how he ended up where he was.  In my spirit I really believed what he had to say.  I told him that we were Christians and wanted to help him.  I told him that we would go buy him a blanket and return.  My wife recognized that our work with this man wasn't complete.  She began to share the Gospel with him and asked him if he wanted to surrender his life to Jesus.  He emphatically said "Yes I do, but I don't know how to do that."  We led him in a prayer of confession and surrender to Jesus.
     After we prayed his face changed dramatically and he said "Am I . . . what do you call what I am now?"  My wife said "Your Saved."  He began to get really excited and "Yeah that's it.  I am saved."  We told him about our church and offered to pick him up on Sunday.  He was thrilled at the opportunity.
     We then went back to our car.  I told Dianne, "I repent of every time I have ever looked at a homeless person with harden heart and said, 'They are just a con-artist looking for a hand out.'"  We then went and bought him a blanket and hot coffee.
     When we went back and handed him the blanket and the coffee, I said "God Bless You."  I immediately thought of James 2:15-17 - Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, "God bless you and have a good day; stay warm and eat well" -- but then you don't give that person any food or clothing.  What good does that do?  So you see, faith by itself isn't enough.  Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
     Listen to how the Message words that last statement:  "Isn't it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?"  For too long I have had the "God-talk" part down but have been lacking in the "God-acts" department.  This whole experience reminded me of how truly alive I feel when I am doing God-acts.  We don't do God-acts out of quilt or obligation but because of the thrill of being a part of God's mission and His story.
     I challenge you to keep your eyes, ears and heart open to those God-acts he may prompt you to do today.    

Are You Listening?

     When I was a kid I had this horrible habit of running in and out of the house and leaving the door open.  A habit which drove my parents crazy.  My parents told me that if I left the house again and left the door open, I would get a spanking.  Sometime later, I was caught by my dad leaving the house with the door open again.  Well he spanked me and I remember it being an especially effective one.  After laying on the floor for some time crying, I got up and left the house WITH THE DOOR OPEN!
     I was guilty of doing something that children do quite often: HEARING WITHOUT LISTENING!  In that moment, I didn't disobey my parents imperative because I was being rebellious, but because I was being careless.
     Listen to what Hebrews 2:1 says: "So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it."  I find this verse very intriguing. It says to listen very carefully to the truth we have heard. How do you listen to something you have already heard?
     Listening and hearing are obviously two completely different actions.  Our ears hear things all the time but we are not really listening.  There are millions of people in our world who have heard the truth of God's word again and again but have never really listened to it.
     Listening means more than just your ears picking up sounds.  Listening means you have processed what you have heard and are willing to take action upon what you have heard.  The writer of Hebrews is speaking to people who have obviously heard the truth of God's word but he is instructing them to listen very carefully.
     I believe God wants to speak to us continuously, but are we willing to take the time and energy to listen very carefully?  It is crucial that we listen.  The writer of Hebrews says that if we don't listen very carefully to the truth we have heard we may drift away from it.
     Just like my childhood disobedience, people don't drift away from the truth out of rebellion but out of carelessness.  People in rebellion against God run away, people who are careless drift away.  Which I believe is even more dangerous than rebellion because we may not ever be aware that it is happening.
     So I challenge you today, to listen very carefully to the truth.  Maybe you don't remember the last time you read the Bible.  I dare you to open it and allow God to speak to you.  Maybe God will speak to you through another person, through difficult circumstances or through your day to day activities.
     Whatever it is just please listen very carefully!

It's the end of the world as we know it!

     Outside my office is a cute little candy dispenser that my assistant fills with gourmet jelly beans.  Every single time I walk into my office I swear I hear it call my name.  My response is always the same, "Ah its just a handful of jelly beans, why not."  Well doing that once a day isn't a big deal, but ten times a day is a constant reminder of my lack of self-control.
     I was reading in Titus this morning: "Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely.  They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience."
     Imagine what our world would look like if we simply lived out those two sentences.  Ok, not even the entire two sentences, just two words: self-control.  In one sense it would be almost apocalyptical.  Imagine the industries and businesses that would have to close their doors because people were no longer buying things that they didn't need.  Imagine all of the police officers that would be out of work because no one was committing any crimes.  Imagine all of the politicians, without a job, because the government would no longer be needed.  Actually, I really like the sound of that last one.
     Think about it, every negative thing in our society comes back to a lack of personal self-control.  Unfortunately, we don't promote the value of self-control in our culture.  In fact, we revel in self-indulgence.  That is what nearly every movie, magazine, or commercial is about.  We teach our kids to "say no to drugs" but basically we communicate, "say yes to everything else."
     Even in Christianity, we don't promote self-control.  We write books about how YOU can have your best life now, and how every day can be a Friday.  We say give, stretch your faith, and dream about what God can bless YOU with.  We don't talk much about Christ's command "Deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me."  Of course we don't.  You will never get on TBN or the New York Times best seller list with that kind of a message.
     But let's face it, that is exactly the kind of people we want to be around.  We want our boss to have self-control.  We want our kids to have self-control.  We definitely want our spouse to have self-control!
     I leave you with the words of the great 21st century philosopher Michael Jackson: "I'm starting with the man in the mirror."   I am striving by the power of God's spirit that lives in me to model self-control to all of those around me.  I know that I have a long way to go, but the journey of a 1,000 miles is taken one step at a time.  Listen to what else Paul had to say to Titus "And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind.  Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching."        

Don't step in the Poop!

     My dad tells a hilarious story of when he was a kid walking in the woods with his father (my grandpa.)  Dad was intently following in my grandpa's fresh footprints when they came along a fresh pile of Cow manure!  Grandpa quickly sidestepped it, but neglected to alert my dad to the impending danger.  Dad then hit the pile of Cow manure and slid into it up to his elbows!  Needless to say my dad was infuriated at my grandpa's neglect in pointing out the potential disaster.
     As I think about this story, I think about how much trouble a quick statement such as "Watch out!  Don't step in the poop!" would have saved my father.  I was recently hanging out with a young man and having a conversation about his family.  He told me about his brother becoming a father outside of marriage and the intense emotional problems he was facing.  He also told me that his sister was going to move in with her boyfriend.  These are kids who were raised in church and was a family that I care deeply about, so I was troubled to hear what they were going through.  I began questioning the young man about what he was learning from his older sibling's example.  His final comment in our conversation troubled me.  "I have a lot of examples of what not to do, but not too many of what I should do."
     I was reading in Titus this morning "I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives."  First of all, I long to be like Paul to this young man and "teach him to know the truth that shows him how to live a godly life."  Secondly, I know this young man's parents desire for their son to live a godly life.  But I get so frustrated at the crap the enemy throws in the path of families.  And unfortunately it can be difficult to see at times.
    I so badly wanted to say to this young man, "Don't step in the poop!"  The answer is so simple.  The lesson you can learn from your brother and sister is clear: "Follow God's plan, save sex for marriage."
    So my simple challenge to you today is "Who is following in your footsteps?"  Who is following your example, and is it an example worth following?  Do you have someone in your life that you are teaching to know the truth and showing them how to live a godly life?  I am following Christ today not because I went to church and heard enough sermon's and Sunday school lessons.  I am following Christ because of my parents and many other role models who lived out their faith in front of me.  I followed their example and many times they had to have the guts to say, "Watch out!  Don't step in the poop!"      

Why do we hurt the ones we love?

     My wife and I are blessed to have three of the most beautiful children in the world!  (Yes, I am fully aware of how biased that statement is.)  Our kids our great students at school and rarely have discipline issues at church.  But I am amazed at how these beautiful angels can morph into something that I can't even recognize when they come home!
     Take our five year old Lydia for example.  She has such a sweet spirit and smile that melts my heart every time, but if you ever take something that is hers: Watch Out!  Yesterday, her brother made her mad, and my precious little angel walks across the room and punches him as hard as she can in the face!
     This kind of behavior always makes me livid, and I feel completely justified in my anger.  I think I would be just as angry if a random child came up and punched my son in the face.  I ask my daughter, "Do you act like that at school if someone makes you mad?"  Her response is always, "No, Daddy."  "Then why do you treat your brother like that?"  I respond.  For whatever reason, she can never answer that question.
     But if I were to be uncomfortably honest, I am guilty of the same behavior.  No, it isn't physical violence, so don't call DHS on me.  Many times I have found myself talking to my wife and children in a way that I would never speak to total strangers.  Why is that?  Why do we hurt the ones we love?
     Unfortunately, I think it is because we think we can get away with it.  We think our family is obligated to love us regardless of how we act.  I know the home should be a safe place to be ourselves, warts and all, but there has to be boundaries to our behavior.
     Listen to what Paul told Timothy "But those who won't care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith.  Such people are worse than unbelievers."  Could he have said it any more forcefully than this?  Obviously how we treat our family is a big deal to God.
     I want to emphasize that again.  God's word says that people who claim to be Christians but don't care for their family are worse than an unbelievers.
     Here is how the Message translation puts it "family members. . .let them learn that religion begins at their own doorstep. . . This pleases God immensely."
     So why should I give people I work with more grace than my family?  Why do I show more restraint with strangers that I interact with than with the people I love the most?  Sounds to me like I have things backwards.  I am trying my best to reverse this ugly fact of life in my family.
     Scripture tells us that if we will embrace the fact that "religion begins at our own doorstep" it pleases God immensely.  I am striving to be a person who is guilty of pleasing God immensely.

A Pastor hires a Prostitute!

     Unfortunately, the big news in my town is that a local pastor was arrested for trying to solicit a prostitute.  You may be expecting me at this point to go off in an angry rant against this man, but my reaction is just the opposite.  My heart is broken for him.  This man was deceived!  He was deceived in so many ways.  He was deceived to think that he would get away with it.  He was deceived in thinking that seeing a prostitute would somehow cure whatever desire he was trying to fulfill.
     Even though I have never met the man, I am trying to understand his motivation.  What would drive a pastor of a church who has a wife and three children, to risk all of that for a temporary physical pleasure?  Obviously, you don't just wake up one morning and say, "I think I will see if I can hire a prostitute today."  There were a thousand small steps the man took in this direction before getting to this point.
     Maybe he was hurt repeatedly by people in the church.  Maybe he was overworked and burned out on the ministry.  Maybe he had allowed his marriage to begin falling apart.  Maybe he hadn't prayed or read  God's word for himself in months.  I don't know what emptiness he was trying to fill up, but something drove him to this point.
     I was reading this morning Paul's encouragement to the young pastor Timothy, "Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching.  Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you."  This instruction is so simple to understand but much more difficult to live out.
     Paul understood how the enemy works.  The enemy knows that the best way to get us into some "big" sin is to get us to agree to a lot of "little" sins that will lead us in that direction.  Paul is saying that the "little" sins are just as damning as the "big" sins.  He instructs us to keep a close watch out for those "small" compromises, because each one leads us to a bigger one.
     Paul also tells us how high the stakes are for us.  He says not only is our salvation at stake but also the salvation of those who we have influence over.
     My challenge to you is that you will never be able to avoid sin either "big" or "small" on your own.  It will only happen as we rely on the power of God's spirit.  If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, His Spirit lives inside of you and is the only hope we have to stay on the right path.

Additional Resources: Exit Ramps
Click on the above link to read an excellent blog on this topic by Pastor Steven Furtick. 
             

The myth of a balanced life!

     It seems like the word "balance" is the new buzz word of our day.  We are supposed to eat a balanced diet.  We are supposed to have a balanced schedule.  Politicians are supposed to have a balanced approach to their campaign.  I guess it makes sense.  Whenever we lose our balance it isn't a pretty sight.  Physically, when we lose our balance we normally end up on our behinds with other people laughing at us.  When we lose our balance emotionally it doesn't normally turn out to good either.  Our government has long since given up on the concept of a balanced budget and look at the mess it has gotten us into.
     What I find disturbing is that I have noticed this concept creeping into Christianity. It seems like we have some how made "living a balanced life" a Biblical mandate.  While I see the merits to balance in a lot of instances, I believe that there can be an unhealthy toxic view of balance as well.
     This toxic view of balance can be used to convince us to live a totally vanilla, mediocre life.  Because we want to avoid "extremes," we are some how convinced that we are to give small parts of life to a million different things.  It is like we have all these different baskets, friends, dating, career, hobbies, school, marriage, kids, and o yeah God.  You don't want to put "all your eggs in one basket" so obviously to achieve balance you must give a little bit of yourself to everything.
     The problem is "balance" seems so unachievable.  Your boss probably isn't going to come to you and say,  "I noticed you have been working too much lately.  You need to go home and be with your family."  Your spouse and children are never going to come to you and say, "Honey, you have been spending too much time with us as a family.  We think you need to spend more time at work."     
     Where do we find this concept in the Bible?  Do you see Jesus preaching about how you need "balance" in your life.  No, you find him saying crazy things like "If you love your father or mother, wife or children more than you love me, your not worthy to be my disciple."  All throughout the New Testament we consistently hear about making Jesus "Lord" or "Master" of our life.  Does that sound like a "balanced life?"
     What we do see throughout the Bible is that God wants us to give all of ourselves to him first and foremost and then he wants us to give all of ourselves to those around us.  Jesus summed this up when he said that the greatest commandments were as follows: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength, and Love your neighbor as yourself."  That doesn't sound like "balance" at all.  Give 100% of myself to God then give 100% of myself to those around me.  That doesn't even sound mathematically possible.
     God teaches us that a fool gives part of himself to a lot of important things.  But a wise man gives all of himself to a few crucial things.

Why I am losing my hair!

     Over the last few years I have experienced every man's nightmare!  Every time I looked in the mirror I noticed that I had fewer and fewer hairs on top of my head.  My wife has several theories as to why this is happening: weightlifting, body building supplements, blah, blah, blah.  But I am convinced it could only be one thing: Family Pictures!
     When you have three young children family pictures are like trying to rake leaves in a tornado.  That is why we have taken very few family pictures in the last few years.  It seems simple enough for the kids.  Dianne and I make the appointment with the photographer.  We give them a bath.  We pick cute matching outfits.  We get them dressed.  We put them in the car and take them to the studio.  We get their hair looking perfect.  With the help of the photographer we get them posed perfect.  Here comes the children's part: All they have to do is STAND THERE AND SMILE!  Seems simple enough.  Well that is why I am losing my hair, because I pulled it out trying to convince them to stand their and smile.  Somehow they manage to do everything but that.
     What I find interesting is that I think Christians are often like my kids. Listen to Colossians 1 "through Christ God reconciled everything to himself.  He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross.  As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault."
     God did everything that needs to be done.  He reconciled us!  He made peace with us!  He brought us into his presence!  He made us holy and blameless!  Here is our part from Colossians 1 "But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it."  
      We don't have to work hard to earn God's approval.  We don't have to twist God's arm to get him to listen to us.  We don't have to chase God down or run after him.  Christ did all of the heavy lifting for us.  All we have to do is BELIEVE!  Our part is so simple.  All we have to do is STAND THERE AND SMILE!
     I want to make sure you heard that last part correctly.  I said our part is so simple.  I didn't say it was easy.  All we have to do is trust God.  All we have to do is stand firm in our belief.  When I was fired from my first pastor position, standing firm in my belief was the hardest thing I have ever had to do.  I have been tempted to quite my job a thousand times, and it has been extremely difficult at times to just STAND THERE AND SMILE!  When Dianne and I have went through tough financial times, it has been very challenging to "stand firm in our belief."
     But through every single challenge over the past thirty years of following Christ, he has always proved himself to be trustworthy.  He has never once failed me!  That is why I continue to "stand firm in my belief"  because I know God can be trusted.
     I challenge you today to stop running, stop striving, and just STAND THERE AND SMILE!

My faith is a mess!

     I grew up in Sunday School and was taught that every question had a neat and clean answer.  The answers normally including the following: God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, Pray, Read Your Bible, and Witness.  I then went away to Bible College and was taught the same principle on even deeper issues.  We were given erudite tomes to answer all of our questions.  (Your probably wondering what in the world an erudite tome is, aren't you?  Well, if you would have went to college you would know!  Hah! Just playing.)
     The underlying assumption was that if you studied long enough, got the degrees and the letters after your name, then all the deep theological questions could be answered and placed into nice neat little compartments.  We were given the illustration of an egg to teach the Trinity.  We were given neat and clean answers to questions such as: "Why do bad things happen to good people?" , "Is homosexuality a sin?" and "What will happen in the end times?"
     The problem is that I memorized all of their answers, got straight A's, made the Dean's List, even graduated Summa Cum Laude (whatever that means), but as I got out into the real world things didn't seem to be so neat and clean.  Life was down right messy!
     When you are trying to help a young man whose marriage is falling apart, the neat and clean answer to "Why do bad things happen to good people?" seems to fall flat.  When you are sitting across the table from a good friend who confesses his struggle with homosexuality, the old line of "God created Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve." just feels insanely foolish. What I have learned the hard way is that:

 Issues change when you put a face to them.

     I believe that "Abortion is Murder" but everything changes when you are trying to counsel a young girl who is wrestling with what she should do.  Please don't misunderstand me.  I am in no way suggesting that we should get wishy-washy about the truth.  Philippians 1:9 says "I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding."  I believe that the only possible way to reach someone with love is to be standing on the foundation of truth.
     What I am suggesting is that Christians should stop pretending that everything has a nice, neat, clean and brightly packaged answer.  Let's stop offering band-aids to people who are bleeding to death.  Let's not be afraid to get down in the muck and mire of someone's pain.  What if we were OK with saying "I don't know" and "I don't understand" instead of thinking that we had to have all of the answers.
     I leave you with a quote from my profoundly wise wife.  "Faith is rarely a neatly organized cupboard, but more often a journey through a wilderness."  I will be the first to admit that my faith is not neat and organized, but it is a mess.  I challenge my fellow Christians to give yourself and those around you the freedom to make the same discovery.  

Maybe God IS mad at you!

     Yesterday my daughter came in from outside and informed me that her and my son had been playing with a Frisbee and it had landed in the middle of the street.  I walked out the front door and saw my son standing at the edge of the street waiting to run out and get the Frisbee.  I yelled at him to stop and ran out to the edge of the street with him.  You see we live on an extremely busy street on top of a hill.  As I stood there, even I was a little intimidated to run out into the street to pick up the Frisbee.  My son kept jumping forward like he was about to run out into the street to get it as he yelled, "I can get Dad!  I can get it Dad!"  I keep telling him "No, I will get it."  After several exchanges, I yelled at him, "Stop talking back to me and get into the house."
     Anyone driving by at that specific moment may have thought that I was a terribly angry and abusive father.  What they wouldn't have understood was the cause of my anger.  I kept visualizing my son running out into the street and getting killed by a car.  What made me so angry was the thought of the pain that my son would suffer because of his foolish defiance of my commands.
     "God isn't mad at you!" is something I have heard as sermon titles and book titles.  It seems to be popular these days to paint God as this cosmic hippie singing "all we need is love."  All we talk about is God's love, grace and forgiveness.  Those things are truly amazing and should be celebrated, but the issue is that you cannot talk about love without talking about hate.  I don't truly love my children, if I don't hate the things that will harm them.
     Ephesians 5 says "Don't be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him."  God being angry at people who disobey him isn't something we like to think about much or talk about much in our messages.  It isn't the type of message that will become a best selling book at Wal-Mart.
     It is so important that we understand this aspect of God's word.  God does get angry at us.  Whether we are Christians are not, whether we go to church or not, whether we read are Bible or not, God gets angry when we disobey him.  Why?  Is it because he is a cosmic kill joy that only cares about people following the rules?  NO!  It is because he is a loving heavenly father.  He gets angry when you sin, because sin causes death.  He wants you to experience life!
     It is so important that we have an accurate view of what God thinks about sin.  He doesn't have a "who cares, it's no big deal" attitude.  His word tells us that we are fools if we try to convince ourselves or anyone else that sin really isn't a big deal.
     As a follower of Christ I strive to love the things God loves and hate the things God hates.  God hates sin.  It makes him very angry, because of the physical, emotional and relational death it brings to his kids who he loves so much.  If you are trapped in sin, God is angry.  It isn't because he hates you.  Quite the contrary, it is because he loves you so much.
     Maybe it is time to stop trying to run off and do our own thing but to truly trust the voice of our heavenly father.        

I am sick of pretending to be a Christian!

     I feel like for the past several years I have been guilty of pretending to be a Christian.  The interesting thing is that this revelation came to me through a box of "Milk Duds!"  Yes, a box of Milk Duds.  Today, I was at Wal-Mart picking up some pet food with my daughter, when all of a sudden I saw one of those giant tubs of $1 theatre size boxes of candy in the center isle.  The Milk Duds were calling my name.  So I thought "Hey its only a buck, why not."  As I was walking out of the store with my pet food and box of candy, I began to feel quite proud of myself that the Milk Duds were the only thing that I bought that I would consider to be "wasteful."  I mean who can go into Wal-Mart and not come out with something that you don't really need anyway?
     I then had the craziest thought hit me.  "What if before I ever spent a dollar on anything I asked myself the question, "Is this how Christ would want me to spend my money?"  I thought, "Wow, that would really take a lot of discipline."  I then thought, "What if before I did anything I asked myself the question, 'Is this how Christ would want me to spend my time.'"  Once again my response was, "Wow, that would really take a lot of discipline."  
     My struggle with these questions is why I feel like I have been pretending to be a Christian.  The term "Christian" literally means "little Christ."  Obviously, I fall short of being like Christ in so many ways, but today what I am specifically feeling a heavy heart about is Christ's submission to the Father.
     Listen to how he describes his submission to the Father in John 5:19-20 "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself.  He does only what he sees the Father doing.  Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing."
     There is no way I could honestly describe my life as "I only do what Christ tells me to do."  I live a good life.  I live a Godly life.  When Christ tells me to do something, I try my best to follow his instructions.  But the reality is, for the most part I typically do whatever I want.  Obviously, not in a way that God's word says is sinful, but I am still in the driver's seat.
     When I was five I "asked Jesus into my heart."  I lived a good Godly life, but when I was a teenager I feel like I really submitted to the "Lordship" of Jesus Christ.  Or in other words, I made Jesus the Boss or Master over my life.  I became his slave.  I consistently prayed "God whatever you want me to do, I will do it.  Wherever you want me to go, I will go."
     If I am really honest with myself, I don't want to pray that prayer any more because it seems too dangerous.  What if he tells me to do something that I don't want to, or something I deem as to risky or costly.  I would much rather pray, "God bless me today as I live my life in a way that I hope your OK with."
      But there is a part of me that is tired of this safe predictable way of living.  Also I feel like a hypocrite for preaching to others that to come to Christ you have to make him the master of your life, when I am not really doing that myself.
     There is this old school bumper sticker that says "God is my co-pilot."  That bumper sticker always made me mad, but I realize that I am guilty of that same way of thinking.  I don't want God to be the pilot, I want him to be the co-pilot, giving me suggestions here and there to keep me from crashing.  Making God the pilot means I lose control.
     I am convinced that to really be a "Christian" means to become a slave of Christ.  I haven't always been willing to be Christ's slave, but I choose again to make him my master.  Yes, this may seem "radical"  but that is the gospel.  I refuse to live some watered down version of pretending to be a Christian.  That means I take the time to ask the hard questions such as: Is this how Christ want's me to spend my time?  Is this how Christ wants me to spend my money?    
     I conclude with asking you the craziest question you may have ever heard: "Would you consider becoming a slave with me?"  
       

Round #3 - The Knock-out Punch!

     The knock-out punch is another one of those gruesome. gory and yet glorious moments to watch.  Those reading who lack the testosterone pumping through their veins of their male counterparts may be missing the glorious part of the equation.  It is glorious because it is the ultimate sign of victory.  Their is no doubt who is the winner when a knock-out punch is thrown.  The winner throws up his hands in victory and walks away knowing the fight is over.
     So many times in my journey with Christ, I have looked for that "knock-out punch"  when it comes to certain sins that I find myself consistently struggling with.  I think that there must be a certain fervent prayer that I can pray, a book I can read, a class I can attend, or a magic scripture verse that I can quote over my life that will forever settle the struggle.  The problem is that those things seemed to be effective punches but not the "end the fight, knock-out punch" I was looking for.  Because after each punch, my sinful nature continues to fight me and dog me at every step.
     GREAT NEWS!!! I found the secret knock-out punch in Galatians 5:24 "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them their."  For those of you reading who are followers of Jesus Christ, the moment you placed your faith in Jesus and gave him control of your life the knock-out punch was thrown.  Your sinful nature was nailed to Christ's cross.  The problem with our sinful nature is that it is extremely stubborn and will try to get back up off the mat if you let it.
     When you commit your life to Christ he gives you a new identity and a new spirit.  The struggle comes in the fact that we still have the same old desires, old mind, and old habits.  Those are changed over time.  This is where are faith is totally different than a cage fight.  The only way you will win this fight is to give up, surrender, or "tap out."  The only way God can change your old desires, habits, and ways of thinking is continual surrender to his will, his ways, and his word.
     This is why prayer, reading the word, hearing the word, and quoting the word are so important in our lives, but ultimately they are not the knock-out punch.  They are just reminding ourselves of the knock-out punch that Jesus threw when he died on the cross in our place.  Our sinful natures died with him.  But here is the rest of the good news, Jesus didn't just die for us.  Anyone could have done that.  No, he was raised back to life, symbolic of how we can be brought back to life through the power of his Spirit.
     So I challenge you today, whenever your sinful nature tries to get back off the mat, remind it "you were nailed to Christ's cross and crucified with him there."  Maybe you have never surrendered control of your life to Jesus.  If not I challenge you today to "tap out."  You will never win without Jesus.  It is only through the power of the Spirit that anyone of us can become the Champion God created us to become.             

Round #2 - Becoming a cage fighter!

     One of the things about being in a cage fight is that there are obvious signs as to whether you are winning or losing.  Are you landing more punches than the other fighter? YES! . . . DUH!  WINNING!  Is the other fighter laying on the mat and you are still standing?  YES! . . . DUH!  WINNING!  (sorry for the charlie sheen reference, just couldn't resist)  

     You don't get points in a fight for how hard you trained before hand.  You don't win the fight based on how stylish your kicks look.  And you definitely don't win a fight over how well you look in red shorts.  The only way you lose a fight is whether you get knocked out or if you "tap out."  It isn't any more complicated than that.

     Do you ever get frustrated with wondering if you are really getting anywhere in your faith?  Sometimes, I wonder if I am really growing, maturing, or taking steps forward in my relationship with Jesus.  The big question is: Are we winning or losing this fight?

     Yesterday I shared how cage fighting is much like our spiritual struggle with our old sinful nature.  This is where the comparison continues.  Just like cage fighting, Paul tells us in Galatians 5 that there are obvious signs as to whether or not you are winning the fight with your sinful nature.  "When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these.  Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the kingdom of God."

     I know this is quite a list, but lets not skim over it.  It is tempting for me to pick out things out of this list that I don't struggle with and focus on them.  For example, sorcery. Well I know I haven't cast any spells lately.  So I must be good there.  But, I would really like to ignore the whole "outbursts of anger" thing.  That one hits too close to home.  God says when I lose my temper and yell at my kids, it is an obvious sign that my sinful nature is winning.  I don't like that.  I would much rather chalk it up to a bad day or I am in a bad mood, etc.. 

     Look at what Paul says are the signs of us winning against the sinful nature.  "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."  When I respond to a frustrating situation with patience, I know the Spirit is working in my life. Because, that is not my natural response.

     Finally, notice what is absent from Paul's list of "signs of victory over our sinful nature."  He doesn't list church attendance, bible knowledge, or whether or not you pay your tithes.  Obviously, we should do those things but we cannot be deceived into thinking those define victory.  Winning this fight is much more messy than showing up to church once a week and dropping some money into the offering plate.  

     I challenge you to join me tomorrow for Round #3.  I will be talking about what God describes as the "knock out" blow in this cage match against our sinful nature.   

I am going to become a cage fighter!

     Watching a cage fighting match is like watching a car crash.  It is graphic, brutal, and sometimes gory but yet you can't seem to look away.  I have been asked before if I am a cage fighter.  That question always makes me laugh.  Mainly, because I am wimp when it comes to real pain.  But then again maybe I should become a cage fighter.  Could their be a more masculine to prove your manhood than getting locked in a cage with another man who literally wants to kill you.  You only come out of the cage for 3 reasons: You win, You lose, or You give up.  

     I was reading Paul's description in Galatians 5 (the Message) about a different yet similar struggle that many of us find ourselves in.  "So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives.  Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.  The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants.  And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite of what the sinful nature desires.  These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry our your good intentions." 

     Just like a cage fight the stakes of this spiritual fight are high.  We are talking about your eternal soul.  We may be tempted to think that the more mature we become in our faith the less conflict we will face in life.  As I read the Bible it seems to reveal to me quite the opposite.  Many times the closer we follow Jesus the more intense the conflicts become.  I can't find in the Bible any examples of great men or women of God who achieved "spiritual retirement" and set around doing nothing "because they deserved it."  I see men like Abraham, Moses, Joshua and Caleb fighting the enemy till the day they died.  

     Just like a cage fight the only way you leave this spiritual fight is to Win, Lose, or Quit.  The last 2 options don't sound acceptable to me.  I refuse to lose my fight with the sinful nature.  I have fought to many battles to lose now.  I refuse to "tap out" because the fight is brutal.  The stakes are too high!  We are talking about my eternal soul, but also the legacy I have the potential of leaving in my friends, family and anyone else God has given me influence over.

     So I challenge you to refuse to lose or give up in your battle against "what your sinful nature craves."  You know what those things are for you: Greed, Lust, Selfishness, Rage, Depression, etc.  Never ever ever give up.  I close with the words of the great philosopher Red Green: "Remember, we are all in this thing together."            

What I learned while cleaning out my fridge!

     I know it sounds like a crazy place to have an AHA moment, but it truly was a revealing experience for me.  As if it isn't repulsive enough to dump out container after container of moldy food, I found myself being repulsed on an even deeper level.    
     This lesson God is trying to teach me goes back to a conversation I was having the night before with some people at a party.  We were talking about the things we see in our children that we don't like: such as their laziness, selfishness, and spoiled attitudes.  My personal take away from that conversation was simply this: my children our a reflection of me.  If they are lazy, selfish, or spoiled it is because I haven't trained it out of them yet.  Even more repulsive is to think that they have learned those character traits from me.
     What I hated most about cleaning out my fridge is to see how wasteful I am.  There are thousands of people around the world literally starving to death and I have a fridge overflowing with rotting food.  This problem I have actually comes from a blessing.  I have more than enough!
     I can afford to be wasteful with my food because I have more than enough.  I wish my wasteful ways stopped there but they don't.  I am wasteful with my time, because I have more than enough.  I am wasteful with my money, because I have more than enough.  Obviously I don't want to become poor in those things, so that out of necessity I would better use my resources.  No, I am very thankful to have more than enough.
     I want to live a grateful, generous, resourceful life.  I want to train my children to live likewise, but I find it so challenging in our American culture.  Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7 (the Message) "Deal as sparingly as possible with the things the world thrusts on you.  This world as you see is on its way out."
     Everywhere you turn this world is trying to thrust wasteful ways upon us.  We tend to buy into the lie that having more stuff will make us happy.  Solomon is such a great example of the faultiness of this way of thinking.  He had everything a man could ever wish for but was still empty.
     In about 6 weeks I get to go to El Salvador on a missions trip.  I am so excited, because leaving America is such a stark reminder of the mountain of blessings that I live on.  It is such a wake call to me of how numb I have become to being surrounded by "more than enough."
     This lesson I am learning is challenging me to do several things: (which I would challenge you to consider)
        To constantly tell God and others how grateful I am for my blessed life
        To ask myself before I buy anything, "Do I really need this?"
        To consistently look for ways to take the extra I have to bless someone else
        To look for practical ways to live out Paul's challenge to "live as free of complications as possible."          

For Christ's sake!

     Last night I saw this beautiful sight: about 100 students came forward to give up their lives for Christ's sake.  The best part for me was that I felt like I didn't pull any punches when I preached the Message.  I started off by telling the students that they were evil!  Not a great to way to win friends, trust me.  I then told them that they deserved to die for how evil they were.  Not politically correct I know.  Finally, I said that Jesus Christ was the only way that they could be forgiven for their sin.  
     The reason why I share this with you is because sometimes I wonder if I have been guilty of sugar-coating the Message of Jesus Christ!  I have talked a lot about how Jesus came to give you meaning and purpose in life, which is true.  I have talked a lot about his forgiveness, which is amazing!  I have emphasized praying a prayer so you can know your going to heaven.  I have talked a lot about having faith in Jesus, which is crucial.  
     At times I am afraid that I have not taken the time to explain the cost.  Romans 10:9-10 says "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."  Paul states the surrender before the belief.  Why is this so important?  Because belief is easy compared to surrender.  Gallup tells us that 90% of Americans believe in God.  Does America look like a nation where 90% of our lives are surrendered to God?
     I had a young man come into my office two nights ago who was desperately searching for truth.  I spoke with him for over an hour.  There was a time in my life when I would have tried to convince him to believe and would have felt like my job was accomplished.  Well this time I talked all about surrendering his life for Christ's sake.  I gave him a Bible, my cell number, prayed with him and offered to talk with him again whenever he wanted to.  When we walked out of the church he said, "Something you said really stuck with me.  You said up to this point in my life I have been in control, and now that I am out of control I don't know what to do.  You said that now was the time to give control to God.  I am going to think about that."
     I am no different than anyone else.  I wish it was all about my belief.  I believe all the right things down to my core, but God's word says that if that belief doesn't result in my surrender to him, it is empty.  That is what was so refreshing about seeing the bleachers of students empty as they came forward last night, students are tired of empty belief.  They want something that is worth giving their life to.  My daily struggle is to stop living my life for my own sake but to surrender it for Christ's sake!        

I am not as strong as I look!

     Yes, I like to flip 1,000 tires, pull fire trucks, pick up 300 lb rocks and press 200 lb logs over my head, but it is true I am not as strong as I look.  I hate to admit it, but it is sometimes strange to be me.  When you meet someone for the first time and all they have to say is "dude you are huge, are you a cage fighter or something?"  My reply is always the same, "Hah, are you kidding me.  My muscles are just for looks.  I wouldn't last a second in a cage match.  I would be tapping out as soon as the bell rang."  Yes, I am not as strong as I look and I am not afraid to admit it.  
     Have you ever been around someone who talked a big game but you couldn't help but be disappointed when their life didn't back up their talk?  People who over promise and under deliver drive me crazy.  People who readily admit their weaknesses are my kind of people.  
     I absolutely love what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 12:6 "I don't want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message."  Paul was the kind of guy who would under promise and over deliver.  He was the exact opposite of what we see in most Christians.  Most Christians are constantly posturing, trying to spin their lives to look more spiritual and Godly than they really are.
     I had a young Christian recently say to me that he finds himself "jealous" as he hears other Christians describe their walk with God.  He wondered if I ever felt that way.  I told him that I could definitely relate to his feelings, but most the way most Christians describe their spiritual lives and the way they live their lives rarely add up.
     I strive to be like Paul.  Don't give me more credit than I deserve.   If you don't see Godly character coming out of my life, don't assume I have it.  I want to under promise and over deliver. Listen to what else Paul says, "So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ can work through me."  When we try to present ourselves as stronger than we really are we limit the power of Christ in our lives.    
     Talk about being counter-cultural.  Who readily admits their weaknesses.  We are taught to hide our weaknesses and display our strengths.  Have you ever been asked that silly job interview question, "What would you say are your greatest weaknesses?"  How do we respond?  "Well I tend to be a perfectionist and some people say that I work too hard."  WHAT?  We actually try to make our weaknesses sound like strengths.  
     Paul says "I take pleasure in my weaknesses,... For when I am weak, then I am strong."  That one is tough to swallow.  Who wants to be weak?  But Paul says that if we are willing to admit that we are not as strong as we pretend to be that we can have access to true strength that is only found in Christ.

Am I wasting my life?

     Most mornings as I am laying in my bed trying to motivate myself to get up, I say a prayer that sounds something like this: "God I will never get the opportunity to live this day over again, please don't let me waste it!" This prayer reminds me of Paul's encouragement in 2 Corinthians 6 (the Message) "we beg you, please don't squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us."
     I used to think that the answer to that prayer was me becoming more productive.  I needed to work harder and smarter.  It was all about how much I accomplished each day.  How much on my To-do-list did I get accomplished?  The problems with that approach were: 1. I usually had more "To-do-list" than I had time in the day and 2. I always had this nagging suspicion that I didn't have the right things on my list.
     I heard a minister ask a "profound yet troubling" question in a message once.  "At the end of the day the question isn't "What did I accomplish today, but who did I disciple today?"  I had a big problem with that one, because discipling people wasn't on my list.  His words reminded me of 1 Corinthians 10 (the Message) "We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well."
     I have had some amazing opportunities in the past couple of days to be used by God "to help others live well" and I promise you those experiences have made me feel better than my most "productive" days in the office.  God help me not to focus on the urgent at the expense of the critically important.  Help me to strive for "significant" days not just "successful."
     I challenge you to start your day off with a prayer to God to help you focus each day on what truly matters.  Life is short.  Let's not "squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us."