How could you forgive them?

Yesterday I had the privilege of attending a class where Steve Saint was speaking. With a warm personality and a great sense of humor, he passed on several great stories and thoughts. But here’s one that I haven’t been able to get out of my mind.

The question came up of how he was able to forgive the men who killed his father Nate, along with Jim, Roger, Ed, and Pete. His response went something like this:

How could I forgive them? I haven’t. To forgive someone, you have to feel like you were really wronged. I never saw my mom or aunts [the other widows] express hard feelings about their deaths. It wasn’t until later that I realized I was “supposed” to hate them for killing my father. By the time that happened, I already loved them.

That response blew me away. How easily we get offended if someone treats us the wrong way! We are quick to anger, quick to bitterness, quick to hold a grudge. Steve’s answer shows us that there was something different in the lives of those families that we must learn, lest our own witness cause damage to Christ instead of testifying to His power, goodness, and love.

These women knew their purpose and were committed to it whole-heartedly. They went to the jungles in Ecuador to share the love of Jesus Christ, and their husbands’ deaths couldn’t get in the way. THAT’S why they stayed.

Does He call us to anything less?

Parable of the Prodigal Son (pt 2)

“I realize how sad He must be when we fail to see Him.” (Shane Barnard)

The Israelites had begun to develop a sense of entitlement. They were God’s chosen people, and that led them to feel superior to other nations. More righteous. More holy. Yet in the book of Deuteronomy, Moses addresses the nation one last time before they enter into the Promised Land. He says, in essence, “Look, you’re not entering this land because you’re so righteous that God decided to give it to you. In fact, you’ve done nothing but rebel against Him ever since He rescued us from the Egyptians.” (See Deuteronomy 9:6-12.) The Promised Land was a gift to them, something that God promised to their fathers, something God wanted to give them.

But I can’t help but wonder… Was the Promised Land the ultimate thing God wanted them to have? Or did God simply use that journey to invite them into His presence? After all, He led them through a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud. He fed them bread from heaven and gave them water from a rock. He directed them in battle against their enemies. Still, the Israelites had to wander in the wilderness for 40 years because they did not trust God.

Though they had experienced Him numerous ways every single day, they missed Him! What is blocking your view of God?

• Though the Israelites were often in God’s presence, they missed Him. Just like the older brother in our story. When is it easy for you to overlook His presence?
• Read Numbers 14:13-14. What had the other nations heard about Israel? Why was this so incredible?
• Read Romans 3:23-26 and 5:15-17. What gifts does God give us? How do they lead to a closer relationship with Him?
• Read Luke 19:10. Ask God to show you your own “lostness.” Pray that He would help you learn to see Him.

Parable of the Prodigal Son (pt 1)

Our church is currently doing a series on the Parable of the Prodigal Son, in Luke 15. It’s a familiar tale… but do we really understand what Jesus is saying?

“It’s not about the project,” our team leader told us. He was right. Our trip to Mississippi was not about the work we were doing to help clean up after Hurricane Katrina. It was about getting us in a place where we could hear from God. I found this all too true in my own life. While I had given God some room to work in my heart, there were still some things He wanted to change, and I had to be broken before that could happen.

You see, any type of wall I put up – whether of pride, independence, or bitterness – limits the way I allow God to work in my life. In Mississippi, God lovingly destroyed those walls and began challenging me with some questions:

- What needs to change in my heart before I can declare, “There is nothing on earth I desire but you” (Psalm 73:25)?
- What will it take to get to a place where I can genuinely say, “Don’t let me go anywhere unless you are there with me” (Exodus 33:15)?
- Am I like the man who was willing to sell everything in order to have God as my treasure (Matthew 13:44)?
- And, as Kelly Byrd asked, “Why, when I can have so much of God, do I settle for little?”

Perhaps I’m more like the older brother than I realize… wanting the “things” of God and yet missing Him in the midst of it all.

• What walls do you have up that limit the way you allow God to work in your life?
• Read Psalm 63:1-8. Look at the heading. When did David write this psalm? How do his words challenge you?
• Read Psalm 84. Why is the psalmist so eager to spend time in the “courts of the Lord”?
• Pray through Psalm 84. If you find that you cannot genuinely say those words, talk to God about it. What is getting in the way?

You can not banish me from my Lord

Read one of Spurgeon’s sermons this morning, and wanted to pass along these words to my family, and any others who are going through tough times. God is with us!

Such is the Providence of God; wherever you are, the eye of God will be upon you — as much upon you as if there were not another person in the whole world. If there were only one, you might think how much God would look upon that one; but he looks on each one of us as if there were no other created being, and nothing else in the whole world. His eye is fixed upon us at every hour, and at every moment.

You can not banish me from my Lord. Send me to the snows of Siberia or Lapland, I shall have the eyes of God there; send me to Australia, and let me toil at the gold diggings, there will he visit me. If you send me to the utmost verge of the round globe, I shall still have the eye of God upon me. Put me in the desert where there is not one single blade of grass growing, and his presence shall cheer me. Or let me go to sea, amid the howlings of the tempest and the shrieking wind, where the mad waves lift up their hands to the skies as if they would pluck the stars from their cloudy thrones, and I shall have the eye of God there. Let me sink, and let my gurgling voice be heard among the waves – let my body lie down in the caverns of the sea, and the eye of God shall be on every bone….

Wherever you may be, whatever may be your case, God will be with you. Whatever period of your life you may now be in, God is with you. His eye is at the bridal and at the funeral; at the cradle and at the grave…. In all seasons, at all times, in all dangers, and in all climates, there is the hand of God.

— Charles Spurgeon, God’s Providence

Just Keep Coming

It has been tough being back in Warsaw. Tough to just “pick up where I left off” when so much has changed. I certainly don’t have it all figured out, but I emailed the team tonight and shared what God has been teaching me. I was going to blog about it anyway, so I hope you’ll allow me to share from that…

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I sense Him saying, “Keep coming to Me… There’s more I want to show you. There’s more I want to teach you. Just keep coming…” We’ve gotten a taste of God. Are we hungry for more? Do we thirst for Him? Or are we satisfied with that tiny little glimpse we got? He has SO MUCH MORE that He wants to show us. It blows me away to know that God uses His Word and His Spirit to tell us what is on His heart. Who are we to know His thoughts? His plans for us? Who are we to hear His soft-spoken encouragement during tough times? Or His hearty cheer as we celebrate and praise? We are nothing, and yet He invites us to draw near to Him. He wants to share His heart with us… Are we willing to sit at His feet and listen to what He has to say?

That in itself has been a challenge to me. I also feel like I’ve been trying to duplicate that experience we had at Victory Temple. I remember His undeniable presence that night, and think that “if I just do this” or “if I just do that,” He will show up again. But God doesn’t work that way. He can’t be reduced to a formula. We can’t recreate that environment here. And even if we were to go back to Victory Temple and attend another service, it would be different. God wants to reveal Himself to us HERE… in a way that is different, but JUST AS POWERFUL.

Take “Beyond the Wall” for example (this event took place last Friday – 12 hours of prayer for our community, nation, and world). There were times we were praying together as a group that someone would just start singing a song, and everyone else would join in. And the Spirit was THERE. He was there that night as we worshipped together. He was being lifted up and glorified. He was also there on Saturday as we served together in the community. We may not have “felt” Him the same way, but He was THERE.

Whether I feel His presence or not, I know that He is always with me. That’s why we need both His Spirit and His Word. The Word shows us the Truth, even if it doesn’t “line up with” our experience. It shows us what is REAL. The Spirit guides us, comforts us, strengthens us… My prayer is that we wouldn’t believe the lies the enemy is whispering into our ears as we seek to serve God here in Warsaw, but that we would draw near to God and allow HIM to speak into our hearts and lives.

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If you’ve been on a similar trip before and have some words of wisdom or encouragement for our team as we try to transition back into life in Warsaw, please email me. :) We’d love to hear from you.

And if you haven’t had a chance to look at our team blog yet, please do. You’ll get to see the projects we worked on, the people we met, and have some idea of what happened while we were there. We’ll be putting up a slide show this week and wrapping things up.

He Who Has Ears… (pt 2)

Have you ever heard something so many times that you just “missed it”? Perhaps parents or teachers repeated a saying so often that you knew what they were going to say before it even came out of their mouth. I find it interesting that Jesus’ statement, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear,” was followed by a series of parables. These stories were designed to express truth in a fresh way, to help those who were listening to truly grasp the meaning of the story and wrestle with it (Matthew 13:10-13).  

The truth is, there are times when we come to Scripture and think we already know what God wants to teach us. We’re familiar with the stories, we’ve memorized the verses. But how many times do we miss what He’s trying to tell us? Instead of simply reading Scripture, interact with it. Imagine what it would have been like to be Moses, Rebekah, or whoever you’re reading about. Follow big ideas (like grace and love) throughout the Bible. And as you sit down to spend time in His Word, pray this prayer: “Give me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand.” He wants to teach you something… Are you ready to listen?

• Go ahead – say the prayer: “God, give me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand.”
• Read Psalm 119:129-131. How does the writer feel about Scripture? Do you “pant” for His Words?
• Read Luke 15:11-32. What parts of this story are familiar to you? How has it typically been explained?
• As we “sit” in the Parable of the Prodigal Son for the next several weeks, ask God to speak to you. What does He want you to know?

He Who Has Ears… (pt 1)

“Pick up your cross and follow me.” Jesus spoke to the crowd around Him, offering an invitation that would literally turn their world upside down. And then He made a simple statement: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Luke 14:35). Following Jesus is more than acting like Him; it is giving Him access to the deepest part of our being and allowing Him to change our beliefs, our attitudes, and our hearts. While the Pharisees “heard” His statement and ridiculed Him for it, the tax collectors and sinners heard it and drew closer to Him. They knew something was missing in their lives, and they didn’t want to miss a word of what He said.

What about us? God gave us His Word to teach us, correct us, and mold us into His image. He gives us relationships within the Church so that we can grow together, encourage one another, and hold each other accountable. Are you ready to sit at His feet and allow Him to speak into your heart? Are you willing to let Scripture and close friends ask you the tough questions? Or will you, like the Pharisees, mock Him and turn away? “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

• How open are you to receiving instruction and feedback from others?
• How do you feel about God’s Word? What do you believe about it? What role do you think it plays in our lives?
• Read 2 Timothy 3:16-17. What does it mean when it says that Scripture is “breathed out” by God? In what ways is it useful for us?
• Do you tend to be more like the Pharisees, or like the tax collectors and sinners? Wherever you fall on that spectrum, ask God to give you a heart that hungers and thirsts for His Word (Psalm 42:1-2).

Heading South!

I and a team of 9 others are on our way to Biloxi, Mississippi to help with Katrina Relief. Yes, the hurricane happened several years ago, but there is still SO MUCH to be done to clean up the area and rebuild the homes and lives of those who live in the area.

You can follow along with us at our team blog. Please keep us in your prayers, and know that we would love to hear from you while we are there. You can leave a comment on that blog, or send us an email through a link on the left side.

“If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.”

(Isaiah 58.10)

Be a Crucible (pt 3)

As leaders, we can play a vital role in creating a safe environment that allows others to process the transformation they are experiencing. To stick with the metaphor, we can be a “crucible.”

But what does it take to be a crucible?

1. Ability to balance aloneness with community. Leaders need to spend time not only getting to know others, but getting to know themselves, as well. This allows them to be confident in their own identity as God’s child while they seek to build relationships. In other words, while they seek out deep friendships with others, their entire identity doesn’t rest on those. They know who they are and they depend on God to ultimately meet their needs.
2. Ability to balance thinking with feeling. Most of us tend to fall toward one extreme or the other, especially when we are making decisions. But “crucibles” know how to acknowledge the feelings they are experiencing and yet act in accordance with the truth. Even if it’s hard for them to perceive.
3. Ability to “tolerate the anxiety that is necessary for personal and corporate growth.” These leaders can feel the ”growing pains” of change and respond in a healthy way. They don’t freak out, nor they don’t become completely dependent on others. Instead, they embrace the tension, knowing that we grow the most when we are out of our comfort zone. Thus, they become models for others under their leadership who are struggling with changes.

As we seek to be “crucibles,” it’s important that we continue to hold healthy boundaries in our relationships with others and commit to our own growth in relationships and spiritual development. We submit to others who are farther along than we are, spiritually speaking. We seek out wisdom and direction. We invest into the lives of those who are under our care, and seek deeper intimacy in our own friendships. We never stop growing. We never stop learning.

Be a Crucible (pt 2)

What does being a “crucible” look like? These leaders…

• Create strong relationships. Show the other person that you care, that you’re not going to just “up and leave” them, and that you’re there to help them through this process (without actually trying to “rescue” them from the process itself… otherwise, they wouldn’t grow, now would they?).
• Establish trust. Not all individuals will immediately pour their hearts out to you. Especially if they’ve been hurt by such relationships before. But leaders can, through their patience and commitment to the relationship, begin to build that trust that is so essential for life change. Don’t force them to talk. Just show by your actions that you are there whenever they are ready.
• Provide support. As people go through transformation and deal with the questions and tension it raises, they need to have strong support systems that help them process everything. Listen to them. Ask honest questions. Help them work through the anxiety that comes with growth.

Questions to think about:

How was Jesus a “crucible” for the disciples? What did He do to help them grow in their faith? What did He say? What did they see Him do? How did He send them out to minister? What did their “group discussions” revolve around?

Who have been your “crucibles”? Who has provided that safe environment for you to ask questions, vent, or process information? What did that support look like? How did that relationship affect your growth/transformation?

Who has God placed in your life that you can be a “crucible” for? Are you doing anything that is damaging your relationship with them instead of building it? What steps can you take to create a safe environment for them to grow? Be specific!

What does it take to be a crucible? Come back for Part 3…