Christ Following, Core Values, prayer
Pleasure. Even the word is rather… pleasurable. We love pleasure. We enjoy that delight, that state of gratification we find ourselves in when something really pleases us. We are, after all, pleasure seeking creatures and we’ll go to great lengths to experience it.
From sex to sunsets, chocolate to sea cruises, we spend most of our lives (and a great deal of money) on sensual satisfaction. Even when our lives are over, our coffins are made to be soft, comfy, and cozy so that our corpses have a nice pleasant little box to decay in. I know that’s rather morbid, but we really do live and die for pleasure.
My pleasure? I have a penchant for sweets. Anyone who knows me well can tell you I know the Nestle’s Toll House cookie recipe by heart. I love to snack on the dough while I’m making those delicious chocolate chip cookies and often use the excuse “They’re only fresh once!” to eat two or three extra while trying to make my glass of milk last. And don’t even get me started on warm, gooey brownies (no nuts please)!
Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” I love the picture this paints. We can take pleasure in knowing Jesus. I’ve found from experience that this is true. As I spend time with Him, I find it really enjoyable. I experience peace in the middle of stressful circumstances, focus when I’m distracted, and joy when I’m mentally and emotionally maxed out.
One interesting thing about pleasure is that it can be learned. For example, I detested my first cup of coffee. It tasted way too much like, well, coffee. After a while, though, I learned to like it and, eventually, really enjoy it. I like the aroma it gives, the richness of flavor, and the pick me up I get from the caffeine. I can hardly pass Caribou without wanting to grab a tall drink!
The other interesting thing about pleasure is that it can be unlearned as well. If I go for a few weeks without sweets, I actually stop craving them. If I starve that part of my brain that craves chocolate, hot fudge, or Swedish Fish, I can easily pass them up without feeling the need to indulge. I can even reach a point where I know longer receive pleasure from the things I love.
Which brings us back to Psalm 34:8. Over the years, I’ve had the extreme displeasure of seeing some very good friends walk away from Jesus. It’s massively heartbreaking to see them fall away. I wonder how someone could possibly choose temporal pleasures over eternity with Jesus.
About a year ago, a dear friend walked away from Christ, his wife, and children because he found pleasure in the arms of a younger woman. He explained to me how this younger woman made him feel so good and that he just wanted to be happy. I used to challenge this man to spend time in prayer, to “taste and see” every day how wonderful Jesus is. He could never bring himself to cultivate a devotional life because he took so much pleasure in reading the morning paper while watching the sun rise from his back porch. He had starved that part of himself that longs for Christ until it became too easy pass Him by without a glance.
I think that’s why many people walk away from Jesus. They’ve neglected “tasting and seeing” until their appetite for Him has simply withered away. They’ve found pleasure in so many other things until there’s no more room at the table for Him.
I think we all need to do a little more “tasting”. We all need to feed our craving for Christ. It’s easy for days to turn into weeks, and weeks into months without prayer. We need to starve off some pleasures to make room for the Ultimate Pleasure because nothing else compares!
“You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” ~Psalm 16:11
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Core Values, Leadership, ministry
“Have you ever read this book?” I asked with way too much enthusiasm. He just looked at me with an expression that said, “Yeah, right.” He was a youth pastor that already knew all the answers. His youth ministry was slightly above average in size and he was very comfortable in his position. Normally something like that wouldn’t phase me but, at the time, I’d always been around leaders who loved to read. It was unthinkable to me that someone in church leadership would frown on books (other than the Bible). He was fired a few months later. His pastor’s threshold for arrogant leadership found its limit.
In sharp contrast, I had a conversation once that went like this: “Can you recommend any good books?” I began to list some of my favorites on leadership and ministry. “Where can I get those?” I listed a couple of my favorite places to get books cheap. I had the pleasure of watching this guy take his ministry to great places.
I know, you’re thinking, “Thanks for the cheesy replay of your mentoring conversation Lee.” But it really is that simple. The one common thread I’ve found among leaders that make a sustainable difference, who know how to lead and inspire, who can stick it out for the long haul is a continued commitment to keep learning. They never stop reading, studying, or growing. They don’t rest on what they learned back in the day or what worked for them 10 years ago. In fact, they don’t rest on what they learned only 3 years ago.
This tends to be an even greater problem for someone who has been in the ministry for many years. They believe that tenure equals wisdom, but just because you’ve been doing a mediocre job for the last 20 years doesn’t mean you know a whole lot. In my opinion experience is highly overrated unless you’re learning from it and should never be a substitute for continuing your education as a leader.
So that’s the common thread I find among great leaders. They keep learning. Like an old friend of mine used to say, “Leaders are readers and readers lead.”
What are some other threads you find in good leadership?
Core Values, culture
I’ve debated for a while about sharing my opinion on this subject. The reason is that there seems to be two very established camps on it. One says, “Never touch alcohol! It’s devil pee!” (I exaggerate.) The other says, “Hey, Jesus drank wine. It’s OK as long as you don’t get drunk.” as they stagger to the fridge to finish off that six-pack. (Again, exaggerating.)
I’m not writing this to say that believers who drink are sinning, or Christians who don’t drink should loosen up. My issue is with relevance.
There seems to be a misunderstanding about what it means to be relevant. Webster’s dictionary describes relevance as relating to the matter at hand, practical and social applicability, and the ability to retrieve material that satisfies the needs of the user. Somehow the meaning has changed in church culture. We’ve turned relevance into a subcultural fashion. It’s become about what we wear, what kind of music we listen to, and a “whatever” attitude about “old fashioned” values. If I listen to bands you’ve never heard of, read authors who only bash the church, get fresh ink every quarter, and drink socially then I must be relevant. There’s nothing wrong with that, but those things don’t make you relevant. (And yes, I know what an old codger I sound like.)
That brings me back to drinking. There’s a popular belief (even by people I highly respect) that refusing an alcoholic beverage from a seeker is a huge turn-off. That having a beer together communicates how accepting we are and may even open a door for us to lead them to Christ. That by not having a drink, we’re irrelevant. I strongly disagree with that.
For one thing, not all unbelievers are drinkers. When they refuse a beer, I’m sure their friends aren’t thinking, “What a jerk! He thinks he’s better than us.”
Many people just don’t drink and there’s no religious reason behind it (myself included). There are plenty of reasons why I don’t drink. Here are a few…
1. I don’t like the taste. Seriously, like furniture polish.
2. It’s too dang expensive. $9.49 for a six-pack of Samuel Adams? What the heck? $24.99 for a bottle of Bailey’s? I can think of hundreds of things I’d rather spend my money on.
3. I find it difficult to associate with a product that can be so destructive. I’ve seen it destroy homes, wreck healthy bodies, and take lives. (I know, food can do that too, but no one has ever been killed by a full driver.)
Secondly, I’ve heard many great stories of how people came to Christ and not once was it mentioned how meaningful it was when believers shared a drink with them. In fact, I’ve had the great honor of leading many people to Jesus without ever sharing a beer with them.
What I want to say is this: If you don’t drink, it’s OK! You’re not irrelevant. You’re not turning people off (and if you are, maybe you should evaluate your overall attitude). It’s alright if abstinence is a value to you. There’s nothing wrong with you. You’re not “old fashioned”, legalistic, or a pharisee.
Be free NOT to drink!
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