Church Leaders Are First Good Followers

Everything rises and falls on leadership.

This is Super Bowl week and leadership is a great point of discussion. Most people see the quarterback, the most visible player on the team, and automatically assume that they are the leader of the team.  The majority of the time that is true. Other players will take their cue from the quarterback, in their work ethic, their confidence, their approach to the game and their performance on game day. Yet, when the quarterback is having an off day or gets injured or is just not performing well, if the team is going to win, others have to pick up their game.  Ultimately it is a team game. Quarterbacks don’t win games, teams win games.  Peyton Manning and Drew Brees are great quarterbacks, but they are only involved with one-third of the game. They play offense, not defense or special teams.

A church is similar, in some ways, to a football team.

As a Christian, I happen to believe that everything rises and falls on God, humbling ourselves to the realization that it is He who ultimately has the power to make the world go ’round.  But God chooses to work through leaders, people that He chooses for certain roles at certain times.  Now don’t stop reading because you don’t think you are a leader. Every Christian, no matter what station in life, is used by God to be a leader at some point.  We will get into that a little more here in a minute.

Leadership in the church is a fine balance between authority and humility. Those who can walk that tightrope reflect the understanding that no person is truly a leader unto themselves, but is a follower placed in a position of leading others. That may not make sense to some, but when we think though this in light of the Kingdom of God, it makes perfect sense.

First, it is the Kingdom of God. God is the King, everyone else is, well, not the King.

Second, since we are not the King, then we all are servants of the King, taking our cue, our direction from Him.

Third, the King is the one who passes out the rewards for His people who follow His direction.

 Let’s think through our sports analogy here. For the teams playing in the Super Bowl, there is only one goal, win. Defeat the other team, send them home losers, hoist up the trophy and be champions. For one team, they will do that this week. They will take home the Lombardi Trophy and be proclaimed as NFL champions.  The team leaders are those who help them get there- the ones who make the key plays, the crucial catches, the right play calls, the big hit. Those are the players that will make the highlight reel.

The church is not much different. Our leaders are those that help the church achieve the goal- expand the Kingdom, make disciples of all nations, love God and love our neighbor. No matter what position you play, you can be on the highlight reel. We play as team and our goal is not to win a game but please the King.

Listen to Jesus, our leader, as He talked about how important it was to Him to please the Father…

John 8
²⁸ Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. ²⁹ And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.”

Jesus was the unquestioned leader of His disciples, yet He tells them, I do what I do to please the Father… always. He exercised authority, He led people, but yet was forthright that He was submitting Himself to the Father. The dynamic, powerful leader was a follower. That is the tightrope for any Christian leader, we have to lead, but at the same time, be aware that more than a leader we are to be a follower. Every Christian is called, as Jesus called His disciples to ‘Follow Me’, to be a person who submits themselves to the leadership of God. God then places you in a position of ministry somewhere in someway within the Kingdom, not necessarily where you choose or what you want to do, but where God desires to use the gifting and skills that He has placed within you.

The church has struggled with the issue from the beginning. Men wanting to insert their own leadership, as if they were actually in charge. The early church struggled with those who wanted to change the way people were saved, “they must be circumcised”. What did the church do?  They sought the leadership of the Holy Spirit. James concludes the matter by saying…

Acts 15
²⁸ For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things

Good to the Holy Spirit… and to us. God first, His leadership determining the theology for the church.

Paul was a powerful and strong leader of the early church. He set out on missionary journeys, faced death, confronted demons, healed the sick… and yet he was submissive to and sensitive to the direction God was giving him…

Acts 16
⁶ Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. ⁷ After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them. ⁸ So passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. ⁹ And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” ¹⁰ Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Notice that Paul tried to do what he wanted to do.  He wanted to go Bithynia, but God said “no”.  Could Paul have just gone anyway, I’m sure he could have. Would he have had the full power and blessing of God that he had enjoyed to this point, no. 

Church leaders come in many shapes and emerge at different times. The pastor, the deacon, the teacher, the committee chairperson are all recognized leaders with positions.  Yet, the Christian who does not hold a position within the church, but has a spiritual influence on their co-workers or neighbors or family members, is still a spiritual leader to the people they influence. The Christian who no one may know by name, is quiet in their mannerisms, yet has held a running conversation with the little lady at the pharmacy counter about Christ… they are a spiritual leader to that person.

Look at some examples…

* God uses Ananias to lead Paul- he prays for him, and Paul receives his sight again. Who was Ananias?  Who knows? But I am sure that Paul remembers his influence fondly. (Acts 9) That is spiritual leadership.

* God uses a young woman to teach his disciples about love- she pours an expensive bottle of perfume and Jesus says that what she did will be remembered forever. By example she leads the disciples, the “leaders” of the early church, to understand devotion and love. That is spiritual leadership.

* God used a prostitute to help Israel achieve military victory- Rahab gives aid to the spies of Israel and ultimately is remembered as a person of great faith. (Joshua 2, Hebrews 11)  That is spiritual leadership.

The idea that only the positional leaders within the church are leaders, the corporate model of looking at the church, has weakened the church as a whole. When only a handful of people are capable, gifted and responsible, then the body as a whole suffers.  Going back to our football analogy, what would happen if the rest of the team stopped playing to watch the quarterback play?  First, the defense, the “enemy” would eat him up. Secondly, who would he have to help him?  Who would block for him? Who would catch his beautiful spirals?  Result=defeat.

The same is true for the church. If we do not each take personal responsibility for being the leader God has designed us to be, then the whole church suffers. Your spiritual leadership, whether it is within the church or at your workplace, is crucial for the body of Christ to be effective. I have come to believe that it is one of the key reasons our churches have become less effective at reaching our communities and our world. 

We are fast to allow others to be responsible for doing all things to lead the church. The pastor is charged with equipping the body for ministry and shepherding the flock, but he is not the only spiritual leader. If the church sits back and says “let the pastor do it”, the body suffers, because we, as a group, have stopped following Christ and lean on one person to do the job of many. On the flip side, if the pastor stops equipping the body and tries to do all the leadership, then he stops leading people to follow Christ and calls them to follow him, and the body as a whole suffers.

If we are going to reverse many of the negative trends the church is facing, it will not come simply because we put together another program. The church has to use all of its’ people, and each Christian has to realize that they are a leader, feel the calling God has given them to be a leader in some place, in some way.

Everything does rise and fall on leadership, but it is not us looking to someone else to lead so we can sit back. It is each of us rising to the role of leadership that God has called us to so that the effectiveness of the Kingdom does not fall. Each person is important to the work of the Kingdom, and God intends to use each person to accomplish His work by following His leadership.

So what place of leadership, what role of leadership, what position of influence has God called you to… to be the Kingdom leader He desires you to be?

Are we presenting church or Christ to the world?

I was driving this past Sunday to speak at a church when I came across a church sign. In big bold letters underneath the church name was the message…

Expository Preaching

I would guess if you polled a large number of church members, probably less than half could give you an accurate definition of expository preaching.  Even if they could define it, could they really tell anyone the benefit of it? I wondered even if the people in that church, who boldly advertised expository preaching, could tell you what it is… and if they talked to their friends by telling them that their pastor preaches expository sermons, did they expect their lost friends to understand what it meant?

That whole thing just got me to thinking about the message the church is trying to speak to the world.  Before I became a follower of Jesus, the church was something that I really didn’t pay a lot of attention to. It’s not that I didn’t like the church or the people who went to church, it just really was not that important. Why?  Because the only thing that seemed to be important to the people I knew that went to church were things that were not important to me. There was more talk of theology or what kind of church they went to. It all just seemed very disconnected from what was going on in my world.

I would not have understood expository preaching…nor would I have cared. I would not have understood what a KJV only church was… nor would I have cared.   I would not have understood what contemporary worship was…nor would I have cared.  And let’s just be brutally honest, why would a lost person care how church people do church?  They have nothing invested in it and they have no preferences.

Say you were into opera, and came to me and asked, ”Do you prefer Opéra buffe, Opera buffa or Opéra comique?”  First you would get a blank stare from me because I could not tell you (without looking this up on the internet like I just did) what these all mean or what the difference is between them.  While you may be a passionate fan of Opera buffa, I would probably just smile politely and nod a lot as you told me how it was better than the other kinds of opera. Now imagine how the world reacts when it sees the signs, billboards, and gets the postcards that proudly proclaim that we sing contemporary worship music or that we “sing old hymns” or that we teach the “whole counsel of the Bible” or that we are a “traditional church family” (all of which I have seen lately).  Take a moment and think like a person who did not go to church growing up (like the majority of people today) and don’t have a church vocabulary, what would these things mean?

The only people who really understand most of our vocabulary is us. While these things may be important to us, and they may be important theologically or culturally to us as a church, who are we trying to reach with these messages?  The only people that we could reach would be other church members that already have an understanding of church and our unique environment. So that then begs a question, is the church only trying to reach the already churched?  Are we seeking to swap sheep, bringing in wayward or disgruntled church members from a sister congregation?  Since we are broadcasting these messages to the world at large, and people already knowledgeable about church are the only one who understand or have preferences…

Are we presenting Christianity to the world or our methodology of doing church?

Let’s shift gears for a second and look at the way that two of the great apostles presented Christianity to the world around them.

First let’s take a look at Peter. In Acts 2 Peter is preaching to a group of Jews, people familiar with the law and the prophets. In his message, he takes the time to quote the Old Testament and uses their base of knowledge to lead them to Christ. Look at how Peter’s message ends…

Acts 2:32-36 (NKJV)

^{32 This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. 34 “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, 35 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’ 36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”}

Secondly, look at Paul in Acts 17 talking to the men of Athens in the Areopagus. Look at the language he uses and the references that he makes. Where does he start? God is the creator of the world. Genesis 1:1. Why?  Because they did not have a foundation, a base knowledge  of who God really is and what it is that He requires of us. Paul’s message comes to a close this way…

Acts 17:30-34 (NKJV)

^{30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, 31 because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” 32 And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” 33 So Paul departed from among them. 34 However, some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.}

The people had not heard of resurrection nor did they fully understand what it meant, but that did not prevent Paul from preaching the resurrection and Lordship of Christ. His message is different than Peter’s, comes from a completely different perspective, but it ends in the same manner- Jesus was raised from the dead and is the Father’s appointed ruler of the earth.  Both Peter and Paul however ended up with new followers of Jesus.

I believe the point we are boiling down to is simple and straightforward. The church needs to stop spending its’ time, effort and energy advertising the way we do church to a lost world who neither understands or cares how we do church, and focus on communicating the only message that matters- Jesus came for us, died for our sins and was raised again on the third day to now be both Lord and Savior to all.

The lost and backslidden world does not have need of church methodology, how we do church is really our business, they need the offer of grace and forgiveness. How we package the message should be unique to each group of believers, but we need to understand the world we are communicating to. I just want to make one more point here that I find interesting. We often believe that our style of worship is either attractive or repulsive to the people that visit our churches.  In fact, I just talked to a gentleman this past weekend who thought maybe his church should do contemporary music to attract the young people.  As I looked around the church, there were less than a handful of people below 60.  I shook my head and asked him a question, “could you genuinely, and passionately, worship God to contemporary music?”  “No, not really.” “Then you would not attract young people with contemporary music” “Why not?” “Because people are not attracted by music, but they do recognize people that are genuinely, authentically, and joyfully worshipping God.”

Our methodologies don’t impress as many people as we think they do. Our genuine love for God, which causes us to worship with passion, care for one another sacrificially, help the hurting unconditionally, and live in harmony with one another continually…. well that stands out from any brand or style that we may stamp on our church.  Take a quick look at Jesus’ ministry, and while he was purposeful in what He did, He encountered people where they were and loved them with an unusual and amazing love. He taught more powerfully than the scribes. He loved more deeply than the religious leaders of the day. He cared for people more tenderly than the people of the day. He loved beggars that other people passed by. He touched lepers that others avoided. He cured people that the world had given up on. That was how he “packaged” the message, by genuinely living out the love of God.

It is the same reason that I am not a big fan of canned approaches to evangelism in which you have to memorize a script. I am not selling a product. If I know Jesus, then my task is to talk about the one I love and who loves me. I don’t have to memorize a script to tell people about my wife or my kids or even my favorite football team. The words come from a heart in love, a heart passionate about those I care about. The world is not really interested in our pre-packaged, follow the script, this is just the way we do it, kind of Christianity.

A pastor friend of mine is having a special event this weekend for children called Kidz Rock.  There are a lot of people signed up to come. Why? Because they have put this together to love on children, to try to reach children with the gospel. He has purposefully and intentionally invited other churches, and not just those of his own denomination. The doors have been thrown open wide for people to come, be loved on and to hear the gospel, individually and as a group.  The promotion is not just of his church, but of the love of God for children. His vision is to take this event to other churches, in other areas of town, in order to reach children there as well. That is kingdom growth thinking.

God’s business is to make disciples of the nations. It seems as if we are more concerned about our packaging than our product. Churches of all kinds, shapes and sizes are growing today and reaching people. We have heard the stories of the liturgical churches who are reaching young adults, the large traditional churches that are baptizing many, the medium sized contemporary worship church that has an exploding children’s ministry, or the home based church start that is reaching a community. That is how we do it. That is a method. But these churches grow because they actively share the love and grace of God, not necessarily their methodology. The lost world does not need a method, and frankly methods won’t really attract them. The Bible tells us that Jesus will build His church, that no one comes to Christ unless the Father draws him, that if Christ is lifted up He will draw men to Him… God is doing the work, the church is the receiver of those God brings.   If we are growing a business, then our packaging is important, if we are seeking to expand God’s kingdom, then Jesus becomes most important.

Now once we reach people, will they all find their place in our church or will they all serve in our church? Probably not. Maybe we reach them, but they go to the contemporary church down the street. Would that be alright with you? But again, is it our greatest concern to present God with a large church roll, or is it our aim to bring people into His Kingdom and allow Him to place people into the Body of Christ as He pleases.

People may like more modern music or the feel of being led in a liturgy, but ultimately what makes a disciple of them is not methodology, it is the gospel.  The Southern Baptist Convention has been talking for over a year about a Great Commission Resurgence among its’ churches. This is a noble goal and a needed emphasis, but if it turns into another program to add to our methodology, it will just be another case of smoke without fire. The church, all Christians, need to think about the real message we are communicating to the world. Are we trying to sell our church to the world or are we truly sharing Christ.

If we can get to the point that we are emphasizing the love of God toward the world that Jesus emphasized, we will not be as concerned about what kind of church we are in, or how we do church.  As I have had the freedom to travel to different churches and areas over this past year, this question keeps coming back to me…

Are we so focused on methodologies in order to shield us from the fact that we are just not that in love with Jesus and not that in love with the world we live in?

What I Love About Christmas

I have little kids in my house, and big kids as well, particularly when it comes to Christmas. I love Christmas day.  Now, I can’t say that I love the Christmas season too much, but I do love Christmas day. I think it is simply the joy and smiles that seem to make the day great.

I was listening to a few people talk the other night at our church about this topic. They were exchanging the things that they loved about Christmas. There was some of the usual talk- “I love the decorations”, “I love the festivities and family gatherings”.   So it got me to thinking about it, what is it that I love about Christmas?

As a kid, I was the one that wanted to be up at 4am to start opening gifts. My dad reminded me about that the other day, and that is not a habit I want to pass on to my children. Why 4am? ….because that is about as long as my mind would let me sleep in anticipation of opening gifts.  4am now is just the time that I am starting to sleep good and get woke up by my wife poking me in the ribs telling me that I am snoring.

I wanted badly to see if what I had put on my list was under the tree. And you know, usually the best gifts were the ones that my parents had thought of that never occurred to me- a real surprise.  Christmas was always better than my list anyways. It wasn’t just what I got, which was always great, but seeing what everyone else got and seeing the surprise and joy on their faces. Our best times are usually like that, more than just what happens to us, but bringing joy to others.

When we think about our world today, Christmas could not come at a better time. We have had a year full of bad news- economy is bad, jobs are scarce, foreclosures are high, people are hungry, war is raging, H1N1 is killing people… and in the middle of it all pops up Christmas, a time of joy and hope… and that is what I love about Christmas.

It is a fixed event that, no matter if the world is going crazy, once a year brings us back to some simple and beautiful thoughts (unless you are one of those people who completely stress out and freak out at Christmas time, then… then I am not sure when you “plan” on being happy if the happy season makes you unhappy).  Simple thoughts of family, opening gifts, sharing in the celebration of the birth of Jesus. I find great comfort in our family routine at Christmas: coffee, Christmas story, cinnamon rolls…presents…more coffee…presents…more coffee.  There is no long manual with fine print needed to experience joy in opening gifts and watching kids rip into presents. There are no laws that limit the happiness of a child who opens “that” gift. Giggles and smiles flow without hinderance.  It may be, without over exaggerating, one of the most pure times in life. We have fun and are meant to have fun, without apology.

This Christmas will be a little lean for us, but no one will really care. We will be together. We will enjoy one another. We will have family time to share, talk, laugh, take pictures… and drink coffee.  Joy and hope. For even a brief moment, what matters most in life, the people that you love and care about, they will be happy together. That is what I love about Christmas.

There is great power in the simple message of hope, the coming of someone to change the world… and our world needs changing. Not with politics or laws or court cases or social agendas, our world needs real hope. It needs something to look forward to that brings a smile to their face. Just like even the mention of Christmas can bring joy to a childs face, so our world needs the hope of abundant life and eternal life in Jesus Christ. That is a message that permeates even the most dire and difficult of times.

 The world tries to make life work for them through force, through bullying, through manipulation to change the world to suit their needs, to make them happy. But God has often used the simple and beautiful things to convey His message. Take the birth of Jesus. Nothing is more simple and beautiful than a baby. But this baby was the Messiah, the Savior, the one who would usher in God’s hope to the world and through Him many will experience eternal joy in Heaven.

It reminds me of an event that took place in 1914.  I am a little bit of a history buff and love the story of the Christmas truce in WWI between the British and the Germans (you can read more about this at http://www.christmastruce.co.uk ). They had been fighting fierce trench warfare for what seemed like forever.  Men getting killed by the hundreds, awful conditions in the trenches…. and then Christmas.  Here they are putting themselves in harm’s way, and suddenly the whole war comes to a grinding halt on one battlefront, because it is Christmas. Listen to some excerpts from letters that British soldiers wrote home about that day…

We have had quite an unusual experience with the Germans. They were shouting over to us from their trenches all Christmas Eve. Of course we answered back. Then they started to sing, and when they finished our fellows started singing back to them, but the climax was reached on the afternoon of Christmas Day. We invited each other to come over unarmed. So a party of us got out of the trench and went over to meet a party of them at the barbed wire in the centre of the field. They all shook hands with us and no one could have greeted better than they did. They gave us presents of cigarettes and cigars and we all exchanged souvenirs. … When we parted they all shook hands and gave us a cheer. Of course we cheered in return. …It hardly seems possible for such a thing to happen – deadly enemies to go forth and meet each other with all goodwill …

the rest of the day passed quietly in this part of the line, but in others a deal of fraternizing went on. So there you are; all this talk of hate, all this firing at each other that has raged since the beginning of the war quelled and stayed by the magic of Christmas. Indeed one German said “But you are of the same religion as us and today is the day of peace! It is really a great triumph for the church. It is a great hope for future peace when two great nations hating each other as foes have seldom hated, one side vowing eternal hate and vengeance and setting their venom to music, should on Christmas day and for all that the word implies, lay down their arms, exchange smokes and wish each other happiness.

Valentine’s Day could have never accomplished that.  Labor Day doesn’t move people like that. But remembering the birth of our Savior, the Prince of Peace, halted a world war, even if just for a moment. Those soldiers laid down their arms, then opened their arms to each other, and that is amazing, even if it did not immediately end the war. What incredible power the birth of a baby had upon men. Not only did they, in the midst of war, get to enjoy a peaceful Christmas, but it brought hope to their heart that war could end and peace could be had. That is what I love about Christmas.

 We need more of that kind of thing in our world today. It just seems as if we have shed the idea of innocence, pure happiness and joy. We have, in many ways, become a cynical society, almost to the point of mocking anything that seems to have that kind of purity… as if it just can’t be in a world seemingly overrun by sin, corruption, hate, lust, anger and impatience. But that is exactly the kind of world Jesus came into and exactly the reason that Jesus came. To celebrate His birth is to celebrate the reason for His arrival- to deliver us from the power of evil, and triumph with good… so that we can have joy….experience peace… and live in hope.  And that is what I love about Christmas.

John 16     33  These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.

 

Living in the Moment And For the Moment

I have just spent a few wonderful days visiting with some of my best friends in this world. I am always encouraged and blessed by these friendships and I always leave wanting to stay a little longer and have just one more conversation over just one more cup of coffee.

Good things are like that, we savor them and we want more. There is a desire within all of us to try to hold onto that which we feel is good for us and good to us. We don’t always appreciate it the way we should, but we want for more of these moments.

I have frequently imagined what it must have been like to be with Jesus, walking the earth with the one who stilled the sea, fed the masses with a little boys lunch and called the dead back to life out of their coffins and tombs. The amazement of those moments, I would have loved to experience the simple awe and wonder of seeing the most amazing things take place right before you. This wasn’t imaginative story telling where you are captivated by the turn of the plot or a twist of a phrase, this was real life and real live action. Moments in life to relish.

With Christmas approaching, I can’t wait to see my kids on that morning, filled with anticipation, wanting so badly to rip into those presents under the tree… but they will have to wait for just a few moments while we read the Christmas story and get together a cup of coffee for mom and dad. But it is their moment, their time to experience the joy of getting a gift. Personally, I love giving the gifts as much if not more than getting a gift. Seeing the wondering looks on their faces searching their minds to see if they might know what is in the box.

God has really been working in my heart these last few months about the idea of the moment. As Christians we talk a lot about vision, numbers, statistics, programs and goals for the church. As people we talk about hopes and dreams for the future. As parents we wonder about the future of our kids and making sure that they are adequately prepared for what will come. But are we missing too much of God’s work in our life because we are too focused on somewhere other than now? As Christians are we failing to love people as they are, because we are wanting them to be something else? As parents, are we not enjoying our children in the moment, because we are too focused on preparing them for not being children? As people, are we discounting the blessings of today because we are looking down the road to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

It would be like sitting with one of my friends this past week and being so consumed by the fact that I would have to leave, that I failed to enjoy their company. I would miss a great moment. I would miss the precious time I had with them. Instead, I lived in the moment, soaking in the good that I was experiencing.

When we are experiencing good times, we can think about the fact that it will come to an end. When we are experiencing bad times, we can’t wait for it to end. When we are in dull and boring times, we think it will never end.  But what about the moment you are in?  What about this moment that you have?

Maybe your life isn’t everything you want it to be right now. All of us could probably pinpoint a few things that we wish would be different or that we know are not going to last or are worried about. But let’s not miss the God factor in our life. Think of a few Biblical examples…

* When the children of Israel were up against the Red Sea and Pharoah’s army was approaching. What do you think many of them were thinking about?  They were imagining getting slaughtered, run over, injured, captured and taken back into slavery. (Exodus 14)

* When King Jehoshaphat was told that he was surrounded by a large army, he was afraid and admitted that he had no idea what to do. He was facing the end of his rule and the defeat of his army.  (II Chronicles 20)

* Simeon had been waiting in the temple for the Messiah to come. God had promised that he would see the child, not when the child would come, just that he would see the child. He had not seen it yet, so had he missed it?  Did he really hear God say that? (Luke 2:25-35)

* When Lazarus died, Mary and Martha wondered why Jesus had not come to his aid quickly.  “If only you had been here” were their words. They grieved at the loss of their brother. (John 11:1-44)

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, their moment arrived…

* God opened the Red Sea through Moses

* God spoke through a prophet and gave Jehoshaphat direction on how to defeat his enemy by sending the musicians and singers in front of the army

* God brought the Christ child to Simeon to bless

* Jesus arrived at the tomb of Lazarus and told them to open it

Each of them then lived in the moment…

* The people crossed over on dry land, and saw Pharoah’s army swallowed by the sea

* Jehoshaphat did as God commanded and watched as his enemies turned on one another and killed one another giving him peace

* Simeon recognized God’s messiah and blessed the child, getting to see God fulfill His prophecy

* Mary and Martha watched as Jesus returned their brother to them by calling him out of the tomb

But what if….

* not believing God, some of the Israelites had believed their fate was sealed and marched back toward Pharoah’s army just hoping they would survive?

* Jehoshaphat thought the plan God spoke was ridiculous and sent his army out to fight against overwhelming numbers?

* Simeon had grown tired of waiting and in his frustration had taken to sitting in the back room, allowing others to receive the children as they came into the temple?

* Mary and Martha had walked away from Jesus, believing that He had betrayed them by not coming sooner?

…they would be like many of us, living in our own world, our own disappointments, frustrations, and they would have completely missed the moment with God.

Imagine this. Your child wakes up on Christmas morning and won’t get out of bed because they believe that you did not buy them that new bike they wanted. “Come and open your gifts” you tell them, it will be fun. “No”, I just know you haven’t bought me my new bike.”  All the while, waiting in the living room is their brand new bike, with a bell, streamers and all. You have looked forward to sharing this moment with them. They have had to wait, but you knew this moment was coming.  Now what?

I sometimes wonder if God does not feel that way with us. He is ready to move, ready to work in us, bless us, renew us, ready for us to experience a moment with Him. Yet it seems often our mind and heart is too consumed with either what has been or what might be or what has not happened… and we allow our fears, our hurt, our disappointments, our fatigue, even our sins to control our hearts … and we miss Him. I don’t want that in my life, I want my faith to be stretched, to imagine greater things.

Just imagine what it must have been like to walk on the dry land through the Red Sea and look up and know the hand of God was holding the waters at bay. Wow!

Just imagine what Jehoshaphat must have felt as he looked out on the battlefield and saw God use a bunch of singers and musicians to destroy his enemy before his eyes. Unbelievable!

Just imagine Simeon placing Jesus back into the arms of Mary, knowing that God has just fulfilled His promise by sending a Messiah, in the form of a little baby. He  must have danced and smiled his way back home. Yes!

Just imagine Mary and Martha standing in awe and shock as Jesus simply spoke three words, “Lazarus come forth”, and their brother rose from the dead and walked out of the tomb! Awesome!

I want more of that in my Christian walk. No more same old, nothing ever happens, told you it would never work, go through the motions, we’ve never done it that way, I’m tired of dealing with it, kind of Christianity that no longer looks to God to do something awe-inspiring. I want the moment. I want to live in the moments with God. No, I am not seeking a sign, I am seeking anticipation… expectation…faith in every moment to believe… for the supernatural, all-powerful, amazing God to do, well, what He can do. To rise up out of bed and believe that the bike is really there… then jump on it, ring the bell and watch the streamers flap in the wind as I ride down the road.

I have had lots of moments with God- my salvation, watching God provide for us financially, watching Him provide jobs for us, heal family members and friends, save people we have ministered to, transform people who have been away from Him…. and I have relished every moment. Henry Blackaby in his Experiencing God material calls these things spiritual markers. Moments in life we know God has worked and we have planted a stake in the ground to mark the occasion. I look forward to planting that next stake. All of God’s work, all of my spiritual markers have brought me to this point… and I anticipate that, no matter my current situation, that  a stake-planting moment is just ahead… and I don’t want to miss it.

Lord, we believe in your work, in your power and in your might. We believe that in your love for us, you will work in us and around us. God we don’t want to miss a moment with you. Help our eyes and our heart not to lose focus on you. Help us not to give in to our frustrations and doubts so that we turn our head from watching for your hand.

Today Lord, right now… I have my stake in my hand…ready for you and I to experience a moment together…so I can plant that stake in the ground and forever remember this as a day, a time, where together we lived in the moment and for the moment.

Can I Be Thankful in Hard Times?

This week is the week that we have set aside a day to be thankful for the blessings we have received.  I have to keep reminding my children that this is not “Turkey day”, but Thanksgiving. We are not celebrating the turkey, just the blessing of having the turkey (all 17 lbs worth in my house).

These past few years have been difficult on many- we have war, recession, unemployment, H1N1, foreclosures and many other things that impact our lives.  For some people, they might find it a struggle to smile, and give heartfelt thanks this year. Now you might say, “but aren’t we supposed to give thanks in all things”?  Well yes we are, but in the real world, with real hurt and real struggle, being truly thankful at times is not just a matter of obeying a command.  To be truly thankful we often have to move past hurt feelings, grief, disappointment, unfulfilled dreams, a drained bank account, wayward children, lost jobs, ….  and discover in the middle of this pile the nuggets of God’s work to focus our attention on. That is not always easy.

This year has been a tremendous mixed bag for me. God has been so faithful to us, but He has been faithful in the middle of very difficult year. I could easily take the rest of this blog to tell you of all my struggles and pain- the passing of my mom being the hardest things I have ever endured- but that is life. Life has bumps, hills, potholes, sinkholes, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods- just stuff and lots of it.

I like the lyrics to a song by Darryl Worley “Sounds Like Life to Me“.  

Got a call last night from an old friend’s wife
Said I hate to bother you
Johnny Ray fell off the wagon
He’s been gone all afternoon
I know my buddy so I drove to Skully’s
And found him at the bar
I say hey man, what’s going on
He said I don’t know where to start

Sarah’s old car’s about to fall apart
And the washer quit last week
We had to put momma in the nursing home
And the baby’s cutting teeth
I didn’t get much work this week
And I got bills to pay
I said I know this ain’t what you wanna hear
But it’s what I’m gonna say

Sounds like life to me it ain’t no fantasy
It’s just a common case of everyday reality
Man I know it’s tough but you gotta suck it up
To hear you talk you’re caught up in some tragedy
It sounds like life to me

Well his face turned red and he shook his head
He said you don’t understand
Three kids and a wife depend on me
And I’m just one man
To top it off I just found out
That Sarah’s 2 months late
I said hey bartender set us up a round
We need to celebrate

Sounds like life to me plain old destiny
Yeah the only thing for certain is uncertainty
You gotta hold on tight just enjoy the ride
Get used to all this unpredictability
Sounds like life

I particularly like the last part- the only thing for certain is uncertainty, you have to hold on tight just enjoy the ride, get used to all this unpredictability, sounds like life to me.  Life is uncertain. Life is full of situations that we wish never would have happened. Life is full of times we wish we could go back and change. Life is also full of beautiful times, beautiful things and beautiful people. Life happens, but in the midst of life we have to find the beautiful things to feed our faith. This is not sappy optimism or stick your fingers in your ears and pretend like nothing is happening, this is a deliberate choice to choose to focus my attention upon God and His goodness rather than the evils and pains of this world. It’s not as if we are not acknowledging our pain, I just choose not to stay there.

When my mom passed away this past April, I was devastated. It has taken me a whole lot longer to move forward than I could have imagined. The hurt was deep. My mom has always been a source of strength for me and knew how to encourage me at just the right time in just the right way. She showed me how to live life, even in difficult times, with grace and resilience.  I not only lost my mom, but a great part of my support. I had the wonderful privilege of speaking at her service. As we closed the service in prayer these words flowed across my lips that I had no idea would come, but I will never forget. “Lord, I wished this day would never come. I would have wanted another day, another week, another year, another lifetime with my mom… but Lord I am so thankful today for every day that you gave me with her. My life is so much richer because you blessed me with her…”.  That is the one thought that has really helped me- “my life is so much richer because you blessed me with her”. 

No one promised us on this side of heaven that good things last forever, in fact the Bible tells us that this world, and all that is in it, including us, is passing away. But drawing from that well of pain emerged a beautiful thought, I have been blessed. I did not earn it, deserve it, work for it, God placed this beautiful and strong woman as my mother, and I am thankful. Now I could choose to focus on what I don’t have anymore, her presence with me, but death is unfortunately a part of life. I can fuss at the unfairness of it all. I could wallow in misery saying no one understands me. But my experience is not uncommon to the normal course of life. Death comes. It is a part of living in this world. If I would let it, the bad things of this life could drive me into depression, anger, sadness, helplessness… but that would not be living a life of faith. Faith focuses on God’s work, even when life seems dark and oppressive.

I suppose we could spend our short time here in misery and frustrated, like much of the world does, because it does not have enough, it can keep what is has and it can’t figure out how to maintain perfect happiness… or we can see that the world is an imperfect place, face our troubles, thumb our nose at the devil and give God thanks for what we have in this world and beyond.

Here is what I mean… my wife is not perfect, but I am eternally grateful that God has blessed me with her and her many ways of blessing me and encouraging me;  my kids aren’t perfect, but I am thankful for them and grateful God has given me the opportunity, and privilege, to parent them and see them grow into young men and women; my finances are far from perfect, but I am grateful for what i do have- we have not gone hungry a single day, the roof is over our head and the heat is on;  my health is not perfect, the pill bottles in the bathroom tell me so, but I am grateful I have the health to experience this life God has given me and serve Him; I am not where I wanted to be at my age, certainly not where I envisioned myself being, but I am grateful for what I look around and do see in my life; and mostly… I am not perfect, but God still chooses to love me, forgive me, have patience with me, comfort me…. yea, I could choose to be miserable because this world is an imperfect place (and by the way, one reason the world is imperfect is because you and I are in it), but I would rather look up and be thankful for all that I do have.

Can I maintain perfect happiness in this world- no, and Jesus even told me so…

John 16:33 (NLT)

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.  But take heart, because I have overcome the world

Notice the surety with which Jesus speaks- you will have trials and sorrows, not may have, could have, or it’s a possibility… you will have. This life is going to put it on all of us, so how we respond is an individual choice. In our hard times we can choose to throw our pity party, we can wallow in our PLOM syndrome (Poor Lil’ Ol’ Me), we can throw a temper tantrum and roll on the ground… or we can choose to rise above. Make the choice that Jesus made.  So where do we see Jesus giving thanks in His difficult times? Look at this verse…

Luke 22:19

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me”

As Jesus faced the cross and was, in His last moments, teaching His disciples about the meaning of His death, He gave thanks. Thanks for what? Thanks for the fulfillment of God’s plan. Thanks for the relationship that was going to be born through this pain. Thanks for the faith that many would show in Him. Thanks for the eternal difference that He was about to make… But that also meant that He was going to endure suffering, and He thanked the Father anyway.

Now you and I will probably never face a cross, but the example has been set for us. Even in the difficulties, find the places and pieces to be thankful for.  Our common human experience tells us that we all are going to experience difficulty, some maybe more than others, but as Christians we also share a common truth- God is good.  Take some time this week to journal or think about just how good God has been- not how difficult life is- and you will have a happier Thanksgiving. 

I pray that this holiday will be filled with blessings for you and your family and that as you reflect on the goodness of God in the midst of your life, that your faith will be lifted and your joy more full.