Christ Following, ministry
Over the years I’ve noticed that, if the devil can’t get you to leave the ministry, he’ll use tactics to render you completely ineffective. The evidence of this is great, just look around and you’ll see many churches stagnant, dying, and irrelevant. Or they simply implode. In the driver’s seat of the majority of these ministries there is a common thread. It’s like these leaders have been bitten by the same bug. This nasty malady can be difficult to detect and almost impossible for the infected to recognize, let alone do anything about it. They have been bitten by the double-headed snake of pride and insecurity.
I know you might be thinking, “Aren’t pride and insecurity opposites?” The answer is “Nope. They’re not.” In fact pride feeds off of insecurity and insecurity is fueled by pride. This demonic duo just keeps on going and it’s a hard cycle to break. Let me give you a few examples:
Insecurity whispers inferiority and discouragement when attendance is consistently low. Pride comes along and says, “I don’t know why we’re not growing. I’m just as good of a preacher as the guy at the mega-church.” Instead of evaluating and making course corrections, we assure ourselves that we are not the problem and nothing changes.
We really need to keep growing and reading, but pride convinces us that “all we need is the Word” and those authors don’t really know what they’re talking about anyway. Then insecurity makes us believe that we have to prove that we have nothing to learn by acting like a know-it-all idiot.
Our group starts growing and making a difference, then pride kicks in and we start drinking our own cool aid. Suddenly, our spiritual leadership doesn’t seem to know anything. Eventually things fall apart and insecurity drives us to manipulate the people we used to inspire and lead.
What ever the case, we’re all susceptible to this wicked pair. We all have to make a deliberate effort to stay humble and teachable. How? Here are a few tips:
1. Have people in your life that will shoot straight with you. Ask them to critique you as a leader and let them be brutally honest.
2. Don’t defend. When criticism comes, let Jesus be your defense attorney. Always ask God to show you what you need to learn from each criticism.
3. Pray, pray, and pray some more. A lifestyle of prayer is conducive to humility because it reminds us of our true power source.
4. Stay teachable. Keep reading a diverse selection of books. Don’t just stick to your favorite authors. Listen to those who have gone before you even if your ministry has the outward appearance of greater success.
Remember pride and insecurity may not get you out of ministry, but it will severely limit your ability to produce true, Godly fruit.
Proverbs 11:2 says, “Pride leads to disgrace,but with humility comes wisdom.“
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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Christ Following, life, ministry
“I give up. I’m done. I quit. It’s over. I surrender. I’m not doing this anymore!” These are some of the most powerful words in the Christian vocabulary. Unfortunately, they’re seldom spoken accept in reference to an assignment. The idea of a life absolutely surrendered to God is foreign to us in our culture of achievement, prosperity, and recognition. We attach so much of our self worth to “making it” that we can’t conceive that God might have a better plan for us.
Here’s what I mean. We find out that there is a God who’s crazy about us. We ask Jesus to be our savior. We then put Him in our pocket with the rest of our possessions and let Him be a part of our lives as long as He doesn’t interrupt our lifestyle or standard of living. Sure He’s important to us, even vital, but he’s still just a part of the picture. He’s not the whole thing. Instead of stuffing Him into our pocket, we should be asking Him to stuff us into His.
I’ve had the honor of knowing people who have found the freedom of a life of absolute surrender. They completely wrap their lives around God, regardless of the cost. And you know what? I’ve noticed a few things.
1. They seem to be an effortless blessing to others. It’s never a strain or a struggle to bless people. All they have already belongs to God so when He asks them to give it, there’s no debate.
2. They have nothing to prove. They don’t have to keep up with the Joneses. Status is unimportant. “Standard of living” isn’t even in their vocabulary. They’re bond servants and they’re OK with that because one day they’ll hear “well done.”
3. There is a joy and peace that seems to radiate from them. Think about it, if you’ve surrendered it all, then there’s nothing to lose. If Christ owns it all, then He can worry about it. If you’ve given your dreams to Him, then he’ll help fulfill them, or give you an even better one. That’s the kind of peace I want!
4. There’s a simplicity about them that makes you want what they have. In a world of hurry-sickness and spread-too-thin-itis, simplicity is good medicine.
In Matthew chapter 16 Jesus says, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?“
A life of absolute surrender is life abundant. It’s life the way God meant for you to live it. It requires laying down what we want from time to time. It requires giving at an (initially) uncomfortable level. It requires giving God permission to mess up your plans and change you. It’s not easy and it’s a challenging process. However, if we’re going to be used by God to make a difference in the world, we have to go there.
One thing I know for sure: people who give up what they want and surrender all they are and have to Jesus will have some incredible stories to tell. When their lives draw to an end and it’s time to reflect on it all, you’ll never hear them say, “I wish I would have…”
culture, Family, life
We decided to visit my parents for Thanksgiving this year. Something we haven’t done for years. It’s fun to have everyone pile into the folks house, raid the cupboards, lay around, and laugh about whatever. For some reason, it’s actually easy to forget about all stress and responsibility of ministry, bills, and business while I’m here.
This morning I woke up to the smell of a very large turkey in the oven and the mere smell of that bird cooking made me feel grateful. We’ve had a tradition of sharing what we’re thankful for around the table for so long that all it takes is the aroma to stir up a sense of gratitude in me. Take that Pavlov!
The thing about thankfulness is that it’s so good for you! When we’re really grateful, it’s hard to stay proud because it acknowledges that someone else has met your need. It’s hard to be bitter when we’re thanking Christ for His forgiveness. Thanksgiving really does refocus our perspective! It helps us to think positively and there are a lot of families out there that could benefit from less negativity in their homes! The more I think about it, the more I just love this holiday!
2nd Corinthians 4:15 tells us that thanksgiving brings glory to God. What more motivation do we need? My prayer for you and me is for a thankful heart EVERY DAY.
“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” – 2nd Corinthians 9:15
Christ Following, culture, life, Love, Missions, social justice, The Church
I was listening to a sermon my friend posted to his blog the other day. The preacher mentioned the firefighters and rescue workers who risked their lives running into the Twin Towers during the 9/11 attacks. I’m sure some of them knew they were going to die in there, but went willingly because a sense of duty drove them.
It was the words “sense of duty” that caught my attention. I realized that we as believers are sorely lacking a sense of duty. We seem to want to pick and choose spiritual disciplines, convictions, standards, and amounts we give and serve based on how we feel or claim to be “led”. I know some who won’t even pray at all unless they “feel led“.
I know what some of you are thinking, “Uh oh, he’s gone all legalistic on us. We should be motivated by our love for Christ, not a sense of duty!” You have a great point, however love is not, never has been, and never will be a warm fuzzy feeling that leads us to good deeds to put a smile on Jesus’ face.
I’ll give you an example. I’ve been married for seventeen years now. It comes as no surprise that we’re not always walking on cloud nine together. Sure we share some great moments and those romantic feelings are wonderful when they’re present. But when they’re not present, I still provide, protect, and care for my wife out of a sense of duty. I do what any good husband should do because I made a commitment to do it when I fell in love with her. Get it? We possess a sense of duty BECAUSE we love.
In Genesis chapter 4 God says that refusing to do what’s right (not what we’re “led” to do) is just a baby step away from sin gaining control over us. Jesus said in Mathew 25 that when we turn our backs on those in need, we turn our backs on Him. The absolute apathy of so many believers is downright frightening! To quote Keith Green, “Jesus came to your door, but you left Him out on the street.”
So my question is this: are you the type of person who would run into a burning building to save the lives of others, or would you rather enjoy the fresh air and safety while those inside burn? We’re guilty as hell if we do nothing. Think about that the next time you think sharing Jesus, helping the oppressed, and feeding the poor are for those who feel called.
It’s as if so many of us have succumbed to the Bystander Effect. The case of Kitty Genovese is the most well known example of this effect. Kitty was stabbed to death in 1964 by a serial rapist and murderer. According to newspaper accounts, the killing took place for at least a half an hour. The murderer attacked and stabbed her, but then fled the scene after attracting the attention of a neighbor. The killer then returned ten minutes later and finished the assault. Newspaper reports after Genovese’s death claimed that 38 witnesses watched the stabbings and failed to intervene. I’m sure all 38 of those people thought, “Someone will help her.” They were wrong.
Like the rescue workers of 9/11, we have got to develop a sense of duty, an URGENCY to fulfill the great commission and help the downtrodden. When I stand before God, I want to hear “well done”. I want to be the kind of person who runs toward danger to rescue the lost and oppressed. It takes commitment, it’s a sign of love (John 15:13), and it requires a sense of duty.
