Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Posting on My Wall


I have this big blank wall I sit in front of in my office. It is a sandy color and as I am looking around writing this I think it is time to give it a new look. Do you have any color suggestions?

Now that I decided that let me get back to what I was about to say. I have this blank wall in front of me I look at almost everyday. I just started to change the face of the wall a couple weeks ago. I decided that instead of putting up a picture or a work board I was going to write scripture on my wall. Not any scripture but scripture that means something to me at the moment.

I know, when we were kids we were told to never write on the wall. I have told my kids the same thing. My kids even aksed me when they first saw it, "Did you write on your wall? Are you suppose to do that?" I had to tell them I could always paint over it. They are old enough now to know how easy that really can be. And if they write on the wall now they are also old enough to paint.

I would like to share the first scripture (and only scripture at this point) I wrote on my wall. I pulled out a sharpie and I wrote:

Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
See I am doing a new thing!
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the waste land.
Isaiah 43:18-19

Then in pencil I wrote the date I posted it.

Sometimes life and ministry is hard. And the enemy has a way of making us look at the past and dwell on things we can never change or fix. Sometimes we feel like we are walking through a desert or a waste land.

God says stop dwelling on the past and look to the future. Look to Him. It does not matter what your past looks like, God is a forgiving God and does not dwell on our past. All he asks from us is to trust Him.

"See I am doing a new thing!" There is a freshness that comes in this promise from God. We need to focus on what God is doing--not dwell on the past.

Since this has been posted on my wall, and I don't mean facebook, I have often prayed asking God to show me the new thing he is doing and wants to do in my life and in the life of Northwest. The next step is to trust Him.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

God in the Marketplace

Can worship happen outside of a church building in unexpected places? Of course! When we read the Bible God shows up in some of the most unlikely places. On the side of a mountain, on the sea, in a jail, in a fiery furnace--you get the picture. Our problem is we limit God to a building on Sunday morning.

I don't know what you think about U2, but in 2009 when they did their 360 Tour I believe for a moment worship took place. In "Launching Missional Communities" Alex Absalom describes going to the concert like this, "The presence of God was so tangible. Even if people didn't yet know the name of the God who was there, they were being drawn into his presence and having their hearts softened by the Holy Spirit."

The recognition of the presence of God is worship. We need more of it in the marketplace. Honestly, we need more of it on Sunday mornings in the building we call church.

Pause for a moment. Look around you and recognize his presence. There you will find peace.

Sing along as you watch U2 lead people in the chorus of Amazing Grace recognizing the presence of God.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Us/Them

I have been doing a series called "US/THEM." It was developed out of seeing books being written about "Them." The church has a problem connecting with the world and part of the reason is the Us/Them mentality which exists both in the world and in the church.

Both Us and Them are looking for safety. For Us safety is found in the church. As long as we are hanging out with people who are like us and validate our opinions we feel safe. For Them, safety comes in wealth, addictions, jobs and etc. One thing I have noticed though is some of the same things They find safety in, We find safety in as well.

Both Us and Them are right. At least We think We are right and They are wrong or They think They are right and We are wrong. Our rightness comes from what the Bible teaches. Their rightness comes from experience or how they feel. As long as they are happy it must be right, right? I have also noticed that We live by the same rightness but ours comes in the name of God. There are so many times Our rightness has nothing to do with what the Bible teaches, but with our own personal preferences.

Both Us and Them are self-absorbed. Our being self-absorbed is justified--it is done in the name of religion. Their self-absorbed attitude has to do with Them. Ours has a greater purpose theirs is self-centered. Really? I have found in myself and other followers the tendency to be self-absorbed to the point that everything is about "Them." Not what Jesus wants, but what We want.

Truly there is no Us/Them. There is just Us. Mankind. People we pass by everyday whether on foot or in our car. Us. God's creation. While we separate ourselves between Us and Them God looks at just Us. On judgment day there will be a separation. That is for God to determine. For now we are just Us. And as we can see We are not very different.

The only difference is one knows God and His grace and the other lives without God and knowledge of His grace.

First question: Where do you fall? Are you trying to walk with God or walk apart from God?

Second question: If there is just Us how does that change the way you live?

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Blah Blah Blah

The political seasons is starting. As I watch all of these politicians all I hear is talk. The only thing we hear any more are speeches. As far as I am concerned it is all talk. It is to the point where I feel like I am watching a Charlie Brown episode listening to his teahcer speak: "Whah whah whah whah . . . whah whah."

I am more concerned with the church though. We continue to hear people talk about their faith. But the world does not need more talk about God, they need to see God. They need to see the people of God reflecting His character in their life. No more talk.

It boils down to authenticity. Ask yourself this question, "Do people see God's character in the way I live my life?" A honest look at this one question could change someone's perception about God.