Desire & How To Begin The New Year

“We sin, not because our desires are too strong, but because they are too weak.”

-CS Lewis

I have found myself, as I often do during the holidays, revisiting some old books that have brought me great joy over the years. As some folks can take pleasure in watching a movie or a sit-com more than once – I find that I am that way with good books. Over the past few days I have re-read the Space Trilogy of C.S. Lewis for the eighth or ninth time and have once more been carried away by the depth and texture of good words and ideas finely crafted.

The unifying theme of much of Lewis’ writings can be summed up as: “rightful desires, rightly understood, & rightly sought.” In speaking and writing so much of desire, Lewis places himself within the tradition of Augustine and his famous line about our souls being forever without rest until they find their rest in God. In other words – the restlessness, that sense of incompleteness that we experience as human-beings – is a sign that directs us to desire. If there is a hole within our inner being, then that means there must be a remedy for that inner lostness. The desire itself suggests a remedy.

Lewis fought hard against the trendy and popular use of the term “desire” being placed in the hands of Freudian psychologists and other sciences. Mere sexuality – one expression of desire – does not fulfill. In fact, wrongly practiced, it only increases the void and the sense of alienation within our inner world. One only need note the difference between the raunchy, predatory sex of Hollywood compared with the presentation of desire crafted for us in the Song of Solomon. One debases sex to a bodily function – cut-off from any pre or post-history between the participants – a sexual sneeze. The Song of Solomon describes a mountain ascending path of soul-mates.

What is my point? It is very simple. The word “desire” in the hands of modern man is somehow associated with “naughty” or forbidden. This tendency annoyed and angered Lewis to no end because he firmly believed that “desire” was a tool of heaven to win us over. He referred to desire as “patches of Godlight.” Lewis said that we sin - not because our desires are too strong - but because our desires are too weak.

Think of it this way – when was the last time you were “pierced by beauty?” Was it recently when you found yourself gazing out of your house and witnessing a world of freshly fallen snow and pausing just a moment to take it in? (That is, before your adult mind set in and thought of the cold, the frosted car and the slick roads). Or, was it when you held a newborn baby and the baby smiled, cooed and wiggled in your arms? (That is, before your adult mind set in and worried if the baby was going to “urp” up on your sweater, or some other “knowledgeable” adult mentioned in passing, that babies only smile because they have gas). Perhaps you were fortunate enough, as I once was, to witness a bald eagle diving with great acceleration into a mountain lake, lifting an explosion of water, and ascending just a moment later with a fine trout in his talons. The brilliant flash of awe I felt at that moment – while difficult to describe and impossible to recapture – whispered of a place where such beauties exist continuously in worlds without end.

The moment of each of these events usually is just a flash, a longing, a piercing of the heart, an overload of our emotions – and a desire that things would stay like this - if not forever, then at least for a few moments. These are all significant events. Notice the first four letters in the word “significant”, i.e., “sign.” A significant event is a sign event. Signs are not meant to stop us – they are meant to direct us to a destination. When you think about it, a “Stop” sign is really a controlled “Go” sign. If one took the sign literally, one would never move.

And so, I would like us to think about the New Year ahead of us from the standpoint of desire. To proceed, we must understand the word itself. When we break down the word “desire” in the English language, we find that it comes from the Latin root: “de” – meaning “from” and “sediris” meaning “star.” To put it roughly, a desire is something placed within us from above. That is “sign”ificant.

Many of us have ignored the good desires sent from above for a couple of reasons. One, which I have already mentioned, is the corruption associated with the word itself by modern depth psychology. Freud’s influence, associating every motive and action with some deep, latent sexual desire – has caused us to shy away from this good and noble word. The other reason, equally as common, is the sense that thinking too much about desire is somehow, not very responsible. It is okay for young people, without bills to pay, and so forth to dream a bit – but at some point we need to get on with the real business of living: mowing lawns, changing the oil in the car, showing up for jobs we hate, getting the dishes done, digesting the news of the day...

Yet...if these desires are really from above – from God Himself – is it not a little obvious that they might be worthy of pursuit? Can you not, for at least a moment, imagine that the desire – which is a sign from heaven – is pointing you to that place of abundance and fruitfulness for which you were created? Are we destined for mere existence or are we destined for abundance. Jesus promised the latter.

The parable of the minas – where the Master gave to three servants a measure of wealth to steward in his absence - is a great illustration of what I am trying to convey. Two of the servants took that which was deposited within them and did something with it. The third servant never acted – he merely existed, he just “got by” – and in the end he lost everything. A life lived without consideration of the true desires within us is a life that rejects that gift from above. This is serious stuff. Allow me to share a few verses of Scripture that speak to this issue of desire:

“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

“What the wicked dreads will overtake him. What the righteous desires will be granted.”
Proverbs 10:24

“You have granted him the desires of his heart and have not withheld the requests of his lips.” Psalm 21:2

“All of my desire lies open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from You.”
Psalm 38:9

“Whom have I in heaven but You? And earth has nothing I desire besides You.”
Psalm 73:25

“You open Your hands and satisfy the desires of every living thing....He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him.” Psalm 145:16, 19a

“The desire of the righteous ends only in good...” Proverbs 11:23

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life...A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul.” Proverbs 13:12, 19a

“What a man desires is unfailing love...” Proverbs 19:22

“...Your name and renown are the desires of our heart.” Isaiah 26:8b

“And desire spiritual gifts...” I Cor. 14:1

CONCLUSIONS – ALMOST!
So, let’s come to some conclusions. First of all, we can see in these few verses an obvious connection between loving God – desiring God – and having our God given desires met. The two are inseparable. We cannot really know ourselves and the desires that God has placed within us until we know and love Him. The desires within – which lead to great joy, fulfillment and prosperity of soul and body – are all tied up with Him. If we do not desire God we will not have – or probably even know - our own desires. We will be left to muddle along with a survivor mentality without realizing that in our pockets we carry the keys to the Kingdom.

A GREAT STORY OF DESIRE
But having said that – let me share a brief story. There is a famous artist by the name of Deborah Crone who lives in Vacaville, CA. A few short years ago no one had heard of her. The only paintbrush that Deb had picked up was the kind that painted hallways and bedrooms. One Christmas, her husband Dave – a Pastor - invited his whole family to a retreat prior to the beginning of the New Year. Pastor Dave had prayed that God would reveal to everyone in the family the dreams and the desires that were heaven-sent for each one of them. It took awhile to get people talking – especially Deborah. She was used to helping others and suppressing her own dreams and desires because – as she put it – she was a responsible person. Finally, she told her family that she had a desire to be an artist and that her paintings would hang in the finest galleries in the world. Her family not only began to pray for those desires to be fulfilled, they went out and purchased mom some canvas and paint supplies. Within a year – Deb’s paintings were not only hanging in famous galleries around the world, she had become one of the highest paid and most sought after artists in California and Hawaii. (You can see her work at this link: http://www.sargentsfineart.com/artist/crone.php). I was privileged to be able to meet with Dave & Deb on a recent trip to California and what struck me the most was how normal and down to earth this couple was. They both are living a joyful, fruitful, purposeful life because they were courageous enough to speak from their heart those dreams and desires that God had placed within them. With the money that Deb makes, she and her husband support orphanages and countless missionaries around the world. That too had been a desire of their heart – to be generous to the poor. One desire has helped fulfill the other desire.

THE REAL CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I suggest the following:
1. Seek the Father and talk to Him about your desires – those heaven-sent treasures that He has placed within you.
2. Get together with your family or some good Christian friends and spend some time praying and speaking forth your desires.
3. Receive...let others speak into your life, sow into your life, prophesy into your life what God tells them in regard to your desires.
4. Act – sooner rather than later. If you pray for rain, start carrying an umbrella. If you desire to paint, buy some paint supplies. If you desire to make music, visit the music store. Your desires will begin to drive your values and the stewardship of your resources of time, treasure and talent.
5. And – go with God. Your Father wants to delight you by giving you the desires of your heart. His purposes work well through happy contented children. The world does not “desire” grumpy followers of God. The world is drawn to the fulfilled.

Much Love,
CJ Alderton
Patrick Crossing

Meditations On The Word, Faith, Part 5

Somewhere in the dusty recesses of my mind is some unknown preacher, with a spare chin or two, shaking his head and speaking with a deep tremolo voice about some friend of his who was a: “Great man of faith.” I cannot remember who the preacher was or who his friend was. I just remember the Billy goat flair he inserted in his voice when he said that line: “Greeaaaat maaaannnn of faaaaiiiith” and the undulating waddle beneath his original chin as he moved his head from side to side. I had many such views from the pew as a child.

Having read the Bible now for many years I have become more and more enamored with the profound truth that Jesus spoke when He said: “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed – then that is enough to cause a mountain to be uprooted and flung into the sea.” To take this passage literally would rob it of its real usefulness and purpose. I have a lot of mountains within view of the desk from which I write. I have never tried to uproot them because I sort of like them where they are. But, the real intent of this image that Jesus painted was to simply contrast something very small with something very large and ostensibly impossible to budge. The power inherent in a tiny seed could in fact dislocate and disburse large, impossible barriers. And, He seemed to me to be saying that the “Great man of faith” wasn’t really the issue. The issue was the small faith pointed in the right direction and placed in the right power and the right resource. This “big God” could dispatch efficiently and effectively a miraculous answer to any situation were we predisposed to simply take the faith we had been given and place it in Him.

But, what if you question whether or not you even own a seedling of faith? How depressing to think that one might be lacking even that speck of which Jesus spoke. And, if that is the case – how then can we grow our faith to the point that we begin to see things happen that are explained only in terms of the supernatural hand of God at work? I believe the answer is very simple – at least in terms of an explanation. Let’s give it a go…

One of the more misunderstood and therefore “underpreached” passages of Scripture is found in the Book of James. James, an apostolic father of the Jerusalem church, makes a simple statement that has caused spirited theological debates and church splits ever since he penned these words: “Faith, if it has no works, is dead.” What on earth did James mean by this statement? I would like to suggest that he meant this: Faith, if it has no works, is dead. “How helpful,” you say. Well, it really is, especially if you desire to have and experience the type of faith that actually gets things done – that moves mountains.

Before I move on and explain this verse, let me tell you why it has caused so much commotion over the years. You see, those of us who are the heirs of the Protestant tradition are steeped in the rich heritage of the rediscovery of the revelation that we are saved by grace through faith – not by works. They feel that this verse undermines that great doctrine if taken literally.

Now, I agree wholeheartedly with the doctrine of ‘saved by grace through faith’. There is no good work that we can do that will “earn” for us a spot on the team. Grace does it all. But, the point that James is making is that grace does do something. A God encounter through grace is by its very definition, a transformative moment. Grace doesn’t just change things – it changes everything. Grace points us in a new direction with a new heart and with a new purpose. If what you refer to as your faith moment, your conversion, has left you as sullen, sinful, nasty, and purposeless as before, then there is a good chance – an almost certain chance - that your “faith” was not faith at all.

True faith always comes with a positive and negative call which grows and widens as one matures in the faith journey. God really does begin to speak at conversion – even at pre-conversion - of some things in us which must be ejected and left behind. That is a negative. And, the list of negative things that He will require of us to be removed will continue throughout this life. At first, the list of negatives will be obvious not only to you, but to those around you. If you were a self-centered, self-absorbed, foul-mouthed, inebriated jerk – well, it is pretty obvious that that will have to go. But, as we move on, His demands on our inner purity become more nuanced. He starts whittling away at the very core of our being, our motives, and our secret thoughts. His purpose is to make us good on the inside so that our thoughts mirror perfectly His thoughts.

He also calls us to new and greater goods. That is a positive. These goods quite often go hand in hand with giving up something. For me, it often has to do with my preferences and my conveniences and my comforts. God calls me to love my enemies, to forgive my enemies, to give water to the thirsty, to feed the poor, clothe the naked, and to visit the prisoner. Each of these good things He calls me to do requires a payment of some kind that is deducted from my pride, my rights, and my resources. All of these can put a real crunch on my daily campaigns and the relentless pursuit of my own “space”, comfort, and plans.

The point that I am making is that faith is something like a muscle that needs to be exercised or it will quickly atrophy. One cannot have faith to move a mountain if one does not exercise the faith to obey. The two are inseparable. People who wonder why their prayers remain unanswered oftentimes need only look to the operation and exercise of their faith on a moment by moment basis. Are you defeating the wicked thoughts that bombard your mind each moment? Or, are you allowing those thoughts a dark place to reproduce like a mold in your spirit? Are you learning to let go of this world and to grow in radical generosity because you are becoming more and more rooted in the true soil of a different kingdom? Or, are you becoming more and more attached to things of this world – which will pass away - and declaring with greater frequency the word “mine” over a growing hoard of objects, widgets, and self-centered pursuits?

You see - faith is not a static thing. It grows or it dies. A testimony that is 30 years old is fine and dandy so long as there is 30 years of fresh testimony that follow. But, if you place your “faith in your faith” – in an event of 30, 20, 10, 5, or 1 year ago without any fresh report of God’s activity in your life – then there is nothing with which God can work. There is an obedience today – this very moment – which requires faith and which faith requires. To not move with and toward the inner nudge indicates a lack of faith - something less than the seed.

(Okay – here I must stop simply because of length. But, there is much left to say to complete these thoughts, so – stay tuned and be blessed. –CJ)

A Simple Prayer

"Lord, love me just as I am.
Lord, love me beyond being 'just as I am.'
Lord, love me to bear the image of the great I AM."
-CJ

Meditations On The Word, Faith...Part 4 - Deals With The Devil

(If you haven’t already, please take a moment to read through the previous posts. This one is the fourth in a series on the word: “Faith.”)

Many years ago, my father instilled in me a love of history. In fact, the infection went so deep that history became my chosen major in college. There is not a lot one can do with a history major. Very few “Help Wanted” signs are posted for someone looking for a candidate with a B.A. in History. But, for this journey that I am on as a minister of the Word, it has proven helpful time and again with granting me the gift of perspective.

One important truth that I learned in regard to history was this little dictum: “Appeasers never learn lessons from the history of tyrants. Tyrants always learn from the history of appeasers. “ To put that truth into context, one need only remember the now infamous picture of Lord Neville Chamberlain descending the steps of his airplane, waving a document signed by Adolph Hitler and proudly announcing, “Peace in our time.” Hitler understood that with an appeaser you can offer the false hope of peace while continuing to press the advantage of a heartless and well-armed war machine. Had Chamberlain read history he would have known that the appetite of a tyrant is never quenched by the promises scratched out on a piece of paper. Tyrants will continue to be a tyrants and will use the ruse of peace agreements to buy more time to push for their domination.

Now, I have spoken with a lot of Christians over the years in regard to the issue of faith. Many times people will relate to me a story about how they began to diligently pursue the things of the Lord and were beginning to make progress and experience real growth, when all of a sudden – their world came apart. The stories I heard varied in degree and in severity. Some had lost friends or family members to death. Others had lost income and jobs or relationships. Regardless of the relative severity of each story, the impact on each was remarkably the same. The good intentions of spiritual advance had been stalled, or frightened into submission. There was, in their minds, a clear connection between spiritual advance and attacks from the dark, nefarious world of the enemy, i.e. satan. (I refuse to capitalize his name.) Impressed with the devil’s history of success, they began to cower and negotiate their way out of a life of spiritual vitality hoping for a better outcome. In a phrase, they thought that they could “make a deal with the devil.”

Such thinking is understandable but terribly unwise and naive. As Lord Chamberlain found out, a tyrant will offer a false peace as part of a strategy to gain ultimate victory. And, satan’s history of tyranny is much more pronounced and impressive than even the millions that Hitler managed to slaughter in his egoistic quest. The strategy of the enemy is, in Jesus’ words: “To kill, steal, and destroy”. And, no amount of negotiations and concessions will change that. In fact, I have found that such fear will actually attract even more hellish attention.

So, what is the remedy for all of this fear and appeasement? The very thing that we have been talking about in the last few posts, the little word: “Faith.” Listen carefully to this: Fear is actually a perverted form of faith. To fear something - the future, the past, a dog, or whatever – is to actually place one’s faith in that object and its ability to bring harm. Fear, as a misguided form of faith, actually brings bondage and makes us freeze up and become even more vulnerable to the very thing of which we are afraid. Perhaps the worse thing that we can do with fear is to try to overcome or to talk ourselves out of it. It simply cannot be done. The barking dog can and may yet bite. The past or the future cannot be accessed. All of the fears – the devil included – exist as real threats. No amount of reason can make them go away. But, there is a better way…

The better way is as simple as changing the object of our attention to something that is worthy of our faith – namely, the Lord Jesus Himself. An intentional gaze upon the Lord Jesus and even the faintest glimpse of His kingdom simply inoculates our spirits against the screams of hell. Everything, according to the Apostle Paul, has been placed under the feet of Jesus. Allow me to quote from the Book of Ephesians: “Now, He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else – not only in this world but in the world to come. “ Ephesians 1:21. And, to drive the point home further, Paul says this in Ephesians 2:6: “He raised us up with Christ and seated us up with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.”

As children of God we begin to understand that we live with a shared and imparted authority. A glimpse of our heavenly position has a wonderful way of neutralizing our fears. One who walks in a revelation of this authority has no desire to compromise, negotiate, or to cower before an already defeated enemy. There are no terms of peace. Total surrender to the Name of Jesus becomes the only sane option.

Now, I have waxed a bit poetic. Let me bring it down to real terms that we can all understand. When we think about the kingdom of God, can our imaginations grasp a place where there is no poverty, no war, no sickness, no division, no lies, no murder – nothing of which makes the evening news each night? And, if we can imagine such a kingdom and wed that vision to the declaration of Jesus that we are to pray: “His kingdom come, His will be done on earth as it is being done in heaven,” then, we can begin to move into our rightful positions as brokers of this good news. Why tolerate a tyrant when the advance of a better kingdom – an everlasting kingdom – is in our hands?

On the successful completion of D-Day, the war was over. It didn’t mean that there were not many battles still to be fought – and bloody ones at that. But, once the beaches at Normandy were secured the inevitable victory was assured.

So it is with our faith journey. On that surprising day when Jesus rose from His place of death and entombment – a day foretold and telegraphed many times by Jesus prior to His death – the war was won. Many battles would follow. Each of us – in his or her own way – is in the middle of one of these battles right now. But, with ultimate victory less than a lifetime away, who of us would choose to bow a knee to the rants of a soon to be deposed tyrant?

Meditations On The Word, Faith...Part 3

To sum up what we have talked about so far, we have discovered this about the word “faith”. Faith is rooted in the very character of God. God does what He does – loves us while we are still sinners, saves us to everlasting life, and blesses our lives with abundance – because of who He is. We cry out to God on the basis of His expressed character toward us. To put it another way – those in the world who see God primarily through the eyes of justice and judgment cry out to Him each day based upon that limited view. The world is on fire in a bad way because of such views of God. We believe, however, God’s own witness of His nature when He says that He is full of loving-kindness and doesn’t desire that any person should perish.

Second, we discovered that faith works through love. It makes sense. Love is the delivery system for the expectant prayers that faith makes toward a loving God. If our hearts are filled with bitterness and envy and hate and revenge – our faith is clogged up – it cannot operate because our character is not matched up and in sync with God’s character. To receive gifts from a loving God, we must willingly position our hearts to be transformed into loving hearts – toward God and people, and even ourselves - and hence, free of bitterness, unforgiveness, fear, etc.

So, what else can we say about faith? Well, here is something you may not have thought about before but I’ll just come out with it: The operation of faith is not dependent upon our perfection, our knowledge, or our experiences. The awareness of each of these three areas in our lives can at times play a hindering role in our belief that God can use our prayers to enact the miraculous.

Let’s talk first about perfection. A lot of people forget all about grace when it comes to praying, so they just give up and sort of wander aimlessly through life like the proverbial steel ball in a pinball game. Their life is not proactive but rather reactive. They believe that a life of faith is one that learns to roll with the punches, to make the best of a bad situation and so on. Why? Because they do not feel good enough about their spiritual life to offer up a prayer. Having a backstage view of themselves, they cannot enter into the presence of God because of a nagging sense of inadequacy. “Better call the Pastor on this one…” is their modus operandi because they believe that the Pastor is somehow closer to God than they themselves. This type of thinking betrays a misguided loyalty to some sort of merit system in heaven where God says: “Well, here comes a prayer from a pastor – be sure and answer that call.” And, “Oh, here comes a call from average Joe – let the answering machine pick that one up.” The problem with this type of thinking is that it is not Biblical. Even on your worse day – spiritually speaking – when you come to God, the blood of Jesus Christ continues to make you clean and perfect before Him. (I John 1:7) All you have to do is ask. And, the very place that God can do a work within you is in His presence. You see, some of us have enough faith to believe that God will get us to heaven, but not enough faith that He will supply us on the way to heaven.

Perfectionism is remedied by two simple truths. First of all, God uses deeply flawed people to accomplish His purposes. He has to. Who else is there? Read chapter 11 of the book of Hebrews, considered the Hall of Fame, the who’s who, in regard to faith and then trace their stories back to the Old Testament. You will find people who wouldn’t even qualify to be members of most churches. There are prostitutes, liars, adulterers, wimps, people who lived in caves and one man who committed suicide. Why do these people make it to the hall of fame in regard to faith? Because God knows that we are intimately acquainted with someone just like them – namely, that mug that stares back at us each morning as we brush our teeth. God is showing us that it is not a matter of our righteousness that moves heaven – it is a matter of our availability – just as we are – that releases His purposes. If you have Jesus – you are made righteous before God. That is a settled fact. The second truth is this: One of the enemy’s greatest tactics in hindering our faith is to get us distracted and discouraged by our many faults. Revelation teaches that Satan stands before God day and night making accusation against the saints. He is the eternal tattle-tale. If a Christian blows it – Satan busts him or her like the National Enquirer. What is declared as accusation against us in the spiritual realm, we feel as guilt and shame and unworthiness in the natural realm – a tightening of the chest, a downcast eye and such – you know the drill. The remedy? The verse in Revelation goes on to say this: “They overcame him by blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.” Picture this scene in heaven: Satan comes along with a laundry list of accusations against us and Jesus says simply: “The person you are looking for is dead. I own all of those accusations you are talking about. They belong to me. You have to deal with me.” Believe it. Rejoice in it. And…step out in faith in the strong assurance of your acceptance to the Father through Jesus Christ.

Second, many people do not experience an active release of faith because they do not feel they are knowledgeable enough. Unfortunately, the Christian world has all too readily reinforced this notion through its breathless and shameless promotion of a knowledge-based Christianity. Before I proceed, let me just say how much I appreciate good, clear, and concise and humble scholarship. It has blessed me greatly over the years to read the “greats” and I revel in a turn of phrase and the penetrating insights some have. But you know what? I am weary over the sense of insecurity so many believers feel about God not being able to do anything in their lives because they do not know everything there is to know about philosophy, evolution, ancient languages, sociology, etc., from a “Christian” point of view. How many believers have we lost in the battle because of the insinuation that being equipped meant somehow knowing everything? Actually, do you not find know-it-alls more than a little disagreeable? And, what connection is there between knowing a lot of stuff and simple acts of obedience that thrill Jesus’ heart, such as serving a cup of cold water or visiting a prisoner? There is very little. Jesus’ commands are not hard to understand – a child can master them. However, Jesus’ commands are sometimes hard to do. It is the doing that creates interest in heaven. “Unlearned and ignorant men” was the insult directed at the life of Peter and John. It wasn’t Peter’s and John’s scholarship that set the world on fire and caused such unrest among the academic elite of that day. What rocked their world were the simple acts of power, done in obedience to the one Name – Jesus. Jesus said this, “When the Spirit of truth comes – He will teach you all things.” The early church believed that and acted upon it. And, they did it without the internet, Christian book stores – and for that matter, even Bibles. Imagine that? So, are you smart enough to live a life of active faith? Absolutely. Why? - Because the God who created all things, who knows all things - lives in you.

Third, many Christians feel poverty in the area of experiences and thus live a life of sub-par faith. They don’t have years of successful stories to relate in regard to how God used them and thus have felt sidelined by their meager spiritual biography. The response to this one is so obvious that it hurts. The only way to get experience is to take the first job that comes your way and do it. If you were seeking a job that you really wanted, and the help wanted ad said, “Experience required”, what would be the most obvious thing to do? To go out and get some experience. The only way to experience the release of faith in your life is to become comfortable with the word “risk.” Risk might just be another word for faith. Risk means that you are stepping out and trying something you have never tried before in absolute dependence upon God. If you choose not to step out – you will never know what God could have done. And, you will never have the experience – the testimony - upon which to build.

As an aside, I have noticed over the years that God often begins our faith training by teaching us about generosity. What that means in real life is that God teaches me to pry my hands off anything that I declare is “mine.” People who are stingy or materialistic never advance in the kingdom – NEVER. Never, never, never. You got that? Never. People who are rich in faith experiences are always generous people – with their time, treasure, and talents - ALWAYS. Always, always, always. You got that? Always.

It is the seed of faith principle spoken of so often in Scripture. Give away that which you want to get in return. When heaven sees you giving something away – whether time, treasure, or talent – it plants seeds for your harvest in those areas. And, as you begin to harvest the fruit of those seeds – you will become rich in experience.

So – in this post we have dealt with three areas of hindrance to our faith: Perfectionism, knowledge, and experience. In the next post, we will explore something that is not often spoken about and which I have come to new revelation on rather recently – I call it: “Deals with the devil.” You have made them and so have I. In the next post we will hopefully move beyond a cowering, “leave me alone” victim to a wild-eyed warrior in the kingdom. Can’t wait to write the next one!

Be blessed,

Pastor C.J.

Meditations On The Word, Faith...Part 2

I have been fiddling around a lot with my lawn mower this past summer. Roughly once a week I have to stare down a little over an acre of mowing. Between the frequent rains we experienced and the irrigating that I have done, the yard has been pretty much out of control. If it grew evenly, I wouldn’t care so much; but, having dogs who are not terribly concerned with spreading their fertilizing efforts around in a more uniform fashion – the yard takes on the look of a bad haircut after a few days with little clumps of green mohawks appearing hither and yon.

Thus, it was very stressful when a couple of months ago, my big 18 HP Sears Garden Tractor pooped out. (No connection with the aforementioned dog stuff). When I pulled out my fuel filter, a line of black goop burped onto my hand. I replaced it and the mower ran for about 10 minutes then again, sputtered to a stop. This same unfortunate occurrence took place, fuel filter after fuel filter. I finally had to replace all of the fuel lines before the problem was remedied. It seems that my trusty lawn mower simply couldn’t run with black sludge standing guard between the gas tank and the carburetor.

As we consider the issue of faith, I believe the plugged up fuel line stands as a great illustration of the operation, or lack thereof, of our faith. Have you ever felt as though you didn’t have enough faith? Have you ever struggled with wondering why other people seem to score answer after answer to their prayers of faith while your life is littered with stacks of unanswered prayers? Both grow exponentially. Oftentimes, answered prayer becomes the new high water mark of our spiritual journey and emboldens us to ask for greater and greater things. Conversely, our discouragement – our unfaith – can grow with each unanswered prayer. The question that we need to answer is how to get our faith “operational.” How do we get the faith through the fuel line – so to speak – where it produces the results that we are after? What could possibly be blocking the flow of faith in our lives?

Let me dispatch immediately with where you think this is probably going. As a voracious reader, I am always trying to guess where the article or novel is going next. If I were reading this blog, I would assume that I was about to hear a sermonette on personal holiness – that sin was like sludge and so forth. Okay, sure – that works. But let me just grant to you the assumption that you are all cleaned up, you have confessed all of your sins, and that you are parked safely under a fresh washing of the grace and mercy of Jesus. You are clean but your prayers of faith still seem hindered – what then?

There is a verse in Galatians 5 that ends with this phrase: “What is important is faith expressing itself through love.” How many of us have ever taken the time to connect the operation of our faith with love? I have been in ministry for many years and cannot recall a single sermon on the subject. In fact, to be honest, I do not remember that particular portion of that particular verse ever jumping out at me until fairly recently. Now, I am not certain that I have meditated enough on this verse to extract all of its meaning, but let me share an insight or two which I believe to be helpful.

First of all, when we look at the love passage in I Corinthians 13 and take into account what Paul is saying in Galatians 5, some things begin to slide into place. He begins I Corinthians 13 by talking about tongues, prophecy and faith. He says that if I could yammer in any tongue – angelic or ethnic – and had not love, it would be mere noise. If I could prophesy and tell every one of God’s secrets and didn’t have love, I would be a nothing. And then he says, if I had faith to move mountains (echoes of Jesus by the way – namely, if you had the faith of a mustard seed, you could move mountains), and didn’t have love, I would be a zero. He then launches into the “verbal” nature of love. Love is a verb. It is a “doing” or action word. It is known by what it does and by what it refrains from doing. And, all of these actions or inactions of love are “faith expressing itself through love.” Let me re-set I Corinthians 13 in this way:

Faith expressing itself through love is patient and kind (vs. 4)
Faith expressing itself through love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. (vs. 4)
Faith expressing itself through love does not demand its own way, it is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. (vs. 5)
Faith expressing itself through love does not rejoice about injustice, but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. (vs.6)
Faith expressing itself through love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures in every circumstance. (vs.7)
Faith expressing itself through love will last forever (vs. 8)

When we speak of people “living their faith”, isn’t this what we are really talking about – living their love? I kind of think that the reason that Jesus said we only need a mustard seed’s worth of faith to cause mountains to move is that He didn’t see faith as the central issue in moving God’s hand. Staring at our own faith is a zero sum game and ultimately self-centered. Faith grows when we choose not to look at it but to look to another. Staring in love at our Creator grows Him past the size of our current circumstance and crisis. Praying in love for others, with the qualifiers set forth in I Corinthians 13, releases the faith that attracts the responsiveness of heaven.

So, are you ready to unclog your fuel line and see the hand of God miraculously at work in your life? It is as simple and elemental as this: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength – and love your neighbor as yourself.” Mark 12:29-31

We cannot love without faith. We cannot express faith that moves heaven without love. It is a marriage. Join me in this simple prayer. “Father, I now see that the answer to my frustration with having enough faith, comes back to the simple application of your greatest commands – to love You and to love others. I ask for the empowerment of Your Holy Spirit to not only renew my mind to this simple truth – moment by moment – but to walk out this truth in my prayers and in my actions each day. In Jesus name and nature I pray, Amen.”

Some Things I Am Feeling & Thinking In Regard to Patrick Crossing

(I am taking a short break from the faith series in order to bring you a "fresh heart" update. If you do not enjoy honesty, please stop here; otherwise, proceed with the boldness of a Braveheart)!

We are quickly approaching the one year anniversary of my last day of institutional church ministry and the beginning of Patrick Crossing. It has been a wild ride this past year as Jan and I have laid down the security of what once was and have embarked on an almost daily dependence upon God for our needs to be met. We have learned many lessons about simplicity and "needs verses wants" in this journey while at the same time reforming ideas about what it means to be the church on a daily basis. I have no regrets.

Now, moving on…When something begins to work at my insides, I figure that it is the Lord speaking to me in regard to something I need to share. I fear that some of the following thoughts might appear random and a bit out of my area of expertise, but nevertheless, I will give it a go.

There has been growing within me a sense of unease in regard to our country as a whole and the place the church, viz. a viz., Patrick Crossing, has in response to that unease. Without going into a great deal of boring chit-chat about economics, suffice it to say that our country is poised for a perfect storm in regard to its economy. We have moved from being a nation that produces goods that we can export to a nation of consumers. Our entire economy has changed dramatically in the past 20 or so years. And, our consumer habit has been driven by debt. That borrowing has been fueled by the willingness of other countries to support our borrowing by the purchase of T-Bills and by our government’s willingness to increase the money supply by printing more money. Historically – 100% of the time – nations that have gone from being producing nations to debtor nations have crumbled from within. The oft talked about 3 trillion dollar deficit is a smokescreen. I recently heard that the actual number our number nation owes itself and the world is closer to 59.1 trillion dollars. (Wikipedia) How do you measure a trillion? Try this on for size: (Enjoy)!

A million, a billion, a trillion – what’s the difference? It’s only money. Imagine a $1.00 bill, the one with George Washington’s picture on it.

Actual size, it is approximately 6 and 1/8 inches long, 2 and ¾ inches wide and a stack 1-inch high would hold 250 dollar bills.

Given those dimensions: A stack of $1.00 bills 1 inch high would be $250 worth. A stack of $1.00 bills 4 inches high would be $1,000 worth. A stack of $1.00 bills 4,000 inches high (333.3 feet) would be $1 million dollars worth.

A stack of $1.00 bills 4 million inches (330,000 feet or 63 miles) high would be $1 billion dollars worth. If you broke this stack into smaller ones, you could have 11 stacks as high as Mount Everest! A stack of $1.00 bills 4 billion inches (63,131 miles) high would be $1 trillion dollars worth. If you broke this stack into smaller ones, you could have 11,480 stacks as high as Mount Everest!

If you earned $100,000 a year (tax free), it would take you 10 years to earn $1 million dollars. If you earned $100,000 a year (tax free), it would take you 10,000 years to earn $1 billion dollars. If you earned $100,000 a year (tax free), it would take you 10,000,000 years to earn $1 trillion dollars!

Would you like to spend a trillion dollars? You’d have to spend a million dollars per day - for a million days. That’s a million dollars spent every day for 2,737 years!

What’s my point? Our borrowing, our consuming, and our breaking of the 10th commandment (“Thou shalt not covet,” just to refresh your memories) – Christians and non-Christians alike – have bankrupted our future. Bombarded as we are each day with almost countless messages that suggest that our happiness resides just after our next purchase places us within a mindset and lifestyle that the Bible calls bondage. “The borrower is servant to the lender.” Proverbs 22:7

That’s the bad news. Now, let me share what I believe to be the strategic positioning the Lord would have for His people in the challenging days ahead that I believe will be soon in coming.

EMBRACE COMMUNITY - The American Dream promises that we can have everything we want independent of other people. The nuclear family (a wife, husband & 2.3 kids) works hard to produce this typical American Dream. I grew up near an Amish community in Illinois. While some of their theology is a bit sketchy, one thing they understood well was the concept of Biblical community. If someone needed a barn built, the whole lot of them showed up. In one day, the Amish, without electrical power and power tools, could erect a barn for their neighbor. They gladly lent their time and muscle to another because they themselves had benefited from such community efforts, or hoped to in the future. Also, when we lived in the Dominican Republic, we saw family enterprises. A father or mother provided for the kids and grandkids by involving them in the family business and by simply adding on to their house as their family grew. Over a couple of generations, these humble dwellings became estates and the businesses a chain of prosperity. I believe that one of the things that can set Patrick Crossing apart is to begin to think and pray together how New Testament community practices could begin to benefit all of us.

EMBRACE BIBLICAL STEWARDSHIP – In the book of Malachi, chapter 3, verse 6 and following, God is having a conversation with the nation of Israel. Things had not been going well. Their economy was a wreck and they were a people in bondage. God says to them these simple words: “Return to me and I will return to you.” The response from the people is quite telling and honest: “We would love to, God, but how?” God asks a follow-up question: “Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me.” The people are aghast: “What do you mean, God? We have never cheated you. What in the world are you talking about?” God’s response is clear and direct: “You have cheated me in tithes and offerings due me.” Do you get that? Israel was under judgment because they had taken what was holy – the tithe (10% of income) – and spent it on their own pleasures and debts. The tithe belongs to the Lord – it goes for His work and His kingdom advancement. It doesn’t belong to us. Statistics tell us that the average American Christian only gives about 3% of their income to the Lord. In Korea, it is around 20%. The vibrancy of the Korean Church compared to the anemia of the American Church might have something to do with us being a band of robbers. While in the institutional church, Jan and I always gave around 11-12% of our income back to His work. In our new venue, and with a lot less income, we give closer to 20% in tithes and offerings. And, we have been blessed in so doing. These things never make sense on paper – never. But the question I like to ask is this: “Can God do more with 90% of your income than you can with 100% of your income?” Only the arrogant or uninformed would answer, “No!” to that question. The tithe helps us break our addiction toward self-centered spending because we realize this truth from Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” There is no such thing as the word “Mine!” in the kingdom. There is only the word: “His.” We are stewards over His stuff. The more faithful we are with a little, the more stewardship we have entrusted to us.

In addition to the tithe, God would have us begin to live more simple and uncomplicated lifestyles. As Jesus said, a man or a life is not measured by the treasures and things he piles up on this earth.

EMBRACE THE ELEMENTAL - Dr. Rich Frazer, one of our board members, said this to me when he visited Patrick Crossing: “You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you cannot count the number of trees in a seed.” Rich was echoing a biblical point made by Jesus and Paul. Paul said it this way: “Remember this, a farmer who only plants a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must decide in your own heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. ‘For God loves a hilarious giver.’ And God will generously provide all you need, then you will always have everything you need and have plenty left over to share with others…For God is the One who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, He will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.” II Corinthians 9:6-10… (Keep reading. It is all good)!

The point that Paul is making is in regard to the power of the seed, the elemental. Botanists tell us that a single grain of wheat, if left to grow unhindered, could feed the world within eight years. That is mind-blowing. To become seed people, whether with money or with time, or with our gifts and talents places us directly within that place where God can give increase. And, we never use the same scorecards as the world. The world wants big and it wants it now. As kingdom people, we become fascinated with the potential of the seed.

Let me say this very clearly – any area of your life where you are experiencing deficit, sow seed into it. If you are lonely, invest in making someone else NOT lonely. If you are struggling financially, sow faith seeds into that area. If you are depressed, sows seeds of thankfulness and praise. Learn to move in the opposite spirit of your circumstance – to race towards the counter-intuitive. That is where your faith not only gets stretched but your faith gets recognized by heaven. It pleases the Father to scatter seeds in faith that we might otherwise & unwisely consume in the moment.

The End Of The Beginning…

This letter, this epistle if you will, is meant to provoke further thought and discussion. I have done my part by initiating that which the Father has put on my heart. The “rest of the story” (to borrow a catch-phrase from a very old man!), is in your hands. It is the beginning of our journey, not the end. It is simply the end of the beginning. Please weigh in your responses to the seeds that I have cast and let’s see together what is in the Father’s heart for Patrick Crossing, the 4-Corners and the world.

Be Blessed,

CJ

Meditation On The Word, "Faith" - Part I....

Romans 4: 7 As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.

There are a few things I have been learning recently about the word “faith” that have added a spark of motivation to my prayer life. To communicate what I am only beginning to understand and experience is a bit of a literary challenge because, as is often the case with spiritual things, knowledge and revelation sometimes – oftentimes – precede experience. Experience is the edifice that rests upon the foundation of truth. Experience is the goal of faith, the finished structure of faith. But, even absent of a lot of experiences, I risk relaying to you some of the foundational truths relative to the word “faith” that I believe are the substructure to future great experiences and adventures with God.

Let’s begin with the word itself – faith. In the Greek, the word generally translated as faith is: pistis. Literally translated it means: firm persuasion, a conviction based upon hearing. Paul almost spelled this literal definition out in Romans 10:17a “Consequently, faith comes from hearing…”

There is a subtle point that needs to be made after reading the above verse and I do so by way of a question: “Faith in what?” It is a good question. The point of faith as it is described in Scripture is to always bring together two things about Jesus/God; namely, His ability and His nature. Simply put, faith brings us to a person. Abraham’s faith (See: Romans 4:7 above) did not rest so much in God’s promise, it rested in God. The promises that flowed from God were a given, a done deal, if Abraham trusted the God from whom the promises flowed.

Think about it this way. If I were to tell my one of my children that I would like to send him or her a check for a billion dollars - which would speak to the natural generosity of my nature as a father - the process would be thwarted because of my lack of ability to cover that check. That is nature without ability. One of the most obvious names that I can come up with who could cover a check of that magnitude would be Bill Gates. At last count he could do that at least 38 times. But, while Bill might have the ability, it is not in his nature to send out a random check for a billion dollars to a child who isn’t his own. That is ability without nature.

You see, a faith in God that doesn’t take into account His nature (i.e. personality, character, etc.) is mere agnosticism - which basically admits that God can do things – but that He is not all that interested. On the other hand, faith that doesn’t take into account His ability is mere religion - what Scripture refers to as a form of Godliness that denies His power. Neither is good. Both are inadequate.

True faith is the wonderful discovery that in the person of Jesus Christ, we find the perfect balance of both ability and nature. It is because of who He is that He does what He does. That is why intimate relationship with Him is the foundation of all that follows as a believer. As we fall in love with Him and make personal discoveries of His nature we cannot help but come into contact with truth about His unlimited abilities.

There is one stumbling block that can obscure our faith at this point and it is a very common one which receives the full support of hell. The stumbling block is this: To turn our attention from His nature and His ability to our nature and our ability. When we gaze at our nature we see a spotty record of a few successes and a laundry list of many, many failures. And, when we consider our abilities, we see some pretty well-defined limits in regard to our energies, our money, our patience, our love – you name it. Discouragement is the fruit of self-faith.

You can always tell which faith a person is operating from based not just on their response to big events, but more telling, how they operate in the mundane affairs of everyday life – the burnt toast, the bills, the interruptions, the rock chip on the new windshield, being slighted, the surly waitress, and the various temptations that slide in and out view. A person living from a place of abundance in Him is immunized against a reactionary lifestyle to the common. Conversely, a person who has himself or herself as the primary object of faith will grow increasingly jaded, cynical, offended, grouchy, self-absorbed and alienated – from both God and people.

So, to know Him – to really get to know Him – to keep Jesus as the object of our affections is the way home. It is the way of the spontaneously supernatural, and it is the way of prosperity of body, soul and spirit. More to come…

Bible Bingo & Other Stuff...Part V (Finis)

“Chronological snobbery is self-defeating, for the more up-to-date the look is, the sooner it will be dated. If you take your stand on the prevalent view, how long do you suppose it will prevail? All you can really say about my taste is that it is old fashioned; yours will soon be the same.” -C.S. Lewis, "An Experiment In Criticism "

We come today to the final installment of this series of essays entitled: Bible Bingo & Other Stuff. If you have not had a chance to read this series from the beginning, go back a bit on this blog site. There is a certain, non-linear logic to all of what we have been discussing. But, if you’re too engaged to do so – allow me a moment to summarize.

I began with the simple contention that we all seek the miraculous in our lives. I have affirmed that this is a good thing because the early church prayed for God to extend His hand to perform signs and wonders. It follows then that any prayer lifted up to God carries within it the hope of Divine intervention, which is, by definition, a miracle. Who would waste time praying that God would just stay put? (Actually, now that I think about it, some actually do pray along those lines. That stripe of theology prays for strength to endure the ravages and attacks of Satan and his destroying and corrupting ways. I suppose we all need that – but I think it is more biblical and more kingdom advancing to cry out to God that He show up and change and fix and heal those things – that His kingdom and His will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. John described Jesus' ministry like this: “The Son of man came to destroy the works of the devil.” It would seem to follow then that our lives are to pick up where Jesus left off – stirring up a holy anger and contending against the destruction of the destroyer – not merely enduring as passive victims subject to the whims of the enemy of our soul – and other's souls.)

I would like to round off the discussion with a few more thoughts as it relates to the American Church and her fascination, allegiance, and dependence on forms and methodologies rather than the supernatural power of God. Let me relate a simple story that illustrates this point.

This past weekend I found myself in a local hardware store. I bumped into a dear brother in Christ who had been preaching in view of a call as Pastor to a certain, small, fundamentalist type of church. I thought it odd when he told me of his invitation to go there and speak, inasmuch that he is of the charismatic persuasion. In other words, he believes in all of the gifts of the spirit. This little church was started by a bigger church as a “mission”. The bigger church does not believe at all in the gifts of the Spirit. That is their form. It is called dispensationalism. After three successful weeks of preaching and a great response from the congregation, the larger church caught wind of it and said that unless he gave up his beliefs in the gifts of the Spirit and only preached from the King James Version of the Bible, he was not a good candidate to become Pastor of the mission.

I share that story to underscore a point. The fundamentalist church had a certain philosophy, a certain methodology; a certain form that they thought was exactly the right one delivered from heaven to get the job done. Every denomination and every individual church – even this ministry – carries the same blindness to one extent or another. That is why I am somewhat suspicious of too eager a commitment and excitement for a “new” way of doing things. A lot of movements become engrossed in tinkering with form. And, as history has shown time and time again, the fascination with form can actually crowd God right out of the organization - whose original stated purpose was, in fact, to bring Him glory.

In the ponderous Russian novel, The Brothers Karamazov, there is a telling discussion that takes place between two of the Karamazov brothers – one (Ivan) is a product of the age of enlightenment who is, at best, an agnostic. The other brother (Alyosha) is a Christian. Ivan tells Alyosha that he desires to share with him a short story that he has written, entitled “The Grand Inquisitor.” The story is set in Seville, Spain during the time of the Spanish Inquisition. The Grand Inquisitor is the man in charge of rooting out heretics and burning them. Into this story, Jesus appears on the streets of Seville and begins to re-enact his miraculous ministry on earth. The Grand Inquisitor has Jesus arrested, thrown in jail, and lets him know – in no uncertain terms – that tomorrow he will have Jesus burned at the stake. His reasoning for this egregious act is that the church has finally figured things out. The Grand Inquisitor tells Jesus that the church no longer needs him and that once they kill him, they do not want him to return. Jesus sits silently throughout this story.

The point that Dostoevsky makes by including this short story in the middle of his novel is to point a rightful finger of accusation at the church. The church has become accustomed to the trendy, to the newest model of ministry, to the latest, most relevant and most "effective" form. One church growth publication even published a newsletter with this unfortunate title: “What’s Hot & What’s Not!” The publication was simply ga-ga over cushioned chairs and hostile toward church pews. This "revelation" was supposed to help the church reach the lost! Paul, having been raised and educated in a system and form that was devoid of power said it this way: “…having a form of godliness, but denying its power.” (II Tim 3:5) We could easily stop at the word “form” in this passage and leap right over to the phrase: “but denying its power.” A reliance on form, rather than the miraculous, supernatural power of God’s Spirit, drains the church of her greatest weapon in this supernatural battle in which we find ourselves.

And so, I wrap things up with this passage: “So now the Lord says, ‘Stop right where you are! Look for the ancient and godly paths, and walk in them.” Jeremiah 6:16. The ancient paths for the church where we must return are those elemental acts and stories found in the gospels and in the Book of Acts. Simple people – some of whom were disparaged as unlearned and ignorant men – matched the words of their witness with the power of God. This is what they cried out for and God answered. No method, no form, no system that we can come up with can equal the persuasive power of God working through humble and obedient hearts. It wins hearts and minds whenever and wherever it is tried. We cannot improve upon God’s method, God’s form, or God’s system. People in this post-modern culture are not so much asking “if” there is a God; they are asking whether or not our God is the real deal. We owe them the real time revelation of a loving God who has commissioned us to announce and bring forth His kingdom on this earth in all of its glory, grace, love and power.

Bible Bingo & Other Stuff...Part IV

(To benefit the most from this post, please go to the first of this mini-series: Monday, June 11,’07– CJ. Be blessed).

We live in amazing times. A trip through the “devotional” book section at Wal-Mart unearths best-sellers that range from Southern Baptists, to Pentecostals, to Catholics, to a Church of Christ Pastor. For a church body that has, in previous generations, spent a good deal of its energy attacking one another’s doctrine and purity – this variety is probably a good thing. The body of Christ is bigger and more glorious and more variegated than any particular sectarian view. Burning the heretics (for most of us!) has lost its allure. I am not saying that theological debate and bromides are not still in vogue – I can point you to a million websites devoted to “doctrinal purity” - but these seem anachronistic and a little quaint – even the orneriest ones. You have a sense that the only people who visit these websites are the already converted. Shouting amen at a flashing icon on a computer screen accomplishes little.

But, just because we have toned down the theological rhetoric attached to orthodoxy doesn’t at all mean we have lost interest in fighting. We have simply changed the battlefield from orthodoxy (right belief) to orthopraxy (right practice). I was reading a book from an author of one of the newer versions of “right practice” recently. In it the author suggested that his generation (anyone under thirty) was the chosen generation and that there was absolutely no hope for the world apart from his post-modernistic, emergent, contextualized, culturally relevant methodology. There was something in his methodology about candles, good coffee, micro-brews, using swear-words to teach (just like Paul!), caring about global-warming, tolerance, tobacco, acoustical music, a wholesale ripping of institutional Christianity, and walking around with a concerned & troubled countenance. This was the method, the style, the feel – that this generation would use to win the world for Christ. (Never mind that this is remarkably similar to the “style” of Jean-Paul Sartre the French existentialist, thus, not all that original). For one who began his Christian life in the late 70’s, I might be bold to note that I have heard this same suggestion a couple of times each decade. People in their twenties turn thirty and they revise their “chosen generation” numbers. People in their thirties turn forty and then they revise and extend and so forth. I suppose when the thirty-something guy turns seventy we will have another paradigm shift or perhaps even a “classics” revision.

The thing about changing our forms and methodologies that is so tempting is that a particular method or style really has worked somewhere for somebody. And, that somebody has gone on to write a book and hold a conference and the sheep have duly gathered to purchase a conference notebook and run back home to be relevant – albeit with someone else’s God-given vision.

Several years ago I remember being sent by my church to go and observe a large successful “model” that happened to be located in the suburbs of Chicago. (Any guesses anyone)? Besides being overwhelmed at the palatial facilities, I couldn’t quite figure out how I was going to duplicate a model that had a full stage, full band, with adjoining gymnasiums on either side of the stage. Our new church was at that time meeting in a storefront. All I could think about was what I didn’t have. How could I be a successful youth pastor without all this stuff? I was breaking the 10th commandment. I was coveting. I knew that I could never BE what I was witnessing. It wasn’t me. It wasn’t my church.

It is funny how simple the Bible makes things if we can put to rest the temptation to be relevant. At the risk of oversimplifying the whole methodological debate – let me just ask one simple question: Is Jesus always relevant? If your answer to that is: “No” (i.e. Jesus needs my cultural props to be relevant) then we have very little else to talk about. Go enjoy your micro-brews, your organic cigarettes and work hard on that pained, caring expression. But, if your answer is "yes" – that, when you really think about it, Jesus is always relevant and doesn’t need a bunch of methodological props to make a difference in a person’s life – then be sure and read carefully the next post. Your life is about to become very simple and…charged with the supernatural.

Bible Bingo & Other Stuff...Part III

(To benefit the most from this post, please see the past two…)

So, as we have seen, there is within us an incurable, and I believe, God-seeded desire within each of us to experience the miraculous. Are not all prayer requests a simple demonstration of that desire? My simple definition of the miraculous is: an experience of the unexpected but hoped for help at just the right moment that cannot be explained in terms of our own strength, effort or wisdom. Who wouldn’t want that? Again, all supplicant type of prayers have this end in view.

Now, while we have witnessed in previous posts the fact that the early church was not only comfortable with the miraculous but actually prayed for it – there are a couple of passages of Scripture which act as a sort of corrective to an unhealthy fascination and misuse of the miraculous. Let’s look at those real quick. The first is found in Matthew 12:38, 39. “One day some teachers of religious law and Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.” But Jesus said, “Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign…” Jesus point? Miracles are not given on demand to a sort of Olympic committee of judges. The miracles that Jesus performed were always for the purpose of declaring the good news that the Kingdom of God had arrived and that the works of the devil (to steal, kill and destroy) were now themselves being assaulted by a loving God. The miracles helped real people in real situations. To prove that point, a couple of chapters later, Matthew records an incredible wholesale healing event with these words: “When the people recognized Jesus, the news of His arrival spread quickly throughout the whole area, and soon, people were bringing all their sick to be healed. They begged Him to let the sick touch at least the fringe of His robe, and all who touched Him were healed.” Matthew 14:34-36 Since the word “all” in the Greek means the same thing as “all” in English – we can conclude that ALL who came with disease experienced a miraculous healing from God. None of those from the religious elite who demanded a miracle were given one because they didn’t need one and because their motives were sinister. They were unbelievers on a fact-finding mission, not on a God-encountering mission. And, Scripture records that even those miracles they did have a chance to observe were, more than once, credited to the devil. But, for those who realized their own despair and neediness and in humility cried out for a touch from God, these were given one. My point? To pray for the miraculous move of God in our daily lives is a good thing when the emphasis is on the power of God bringing healing, help and hope to a real person in a difficult circumstance.

Now follow close, because the other passage of Scripture which concerns us drives the point home even further. Jesus said, “On judgment day many will say to me, Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name. But I will reply, ‘I never knew you.’ Get away from me you who break God’s law.” Matthew 7:22, 23 If any passage would scare us away from seeking the miraculous, this one would certainly top the list. But think about how weak that thinking really is. Are we to say to Jesus, “Because I didn’t prophesy, cast out demons, or heal the sick – then I get to go to heaven?” Is there virtue in doing nothing? Is Jesus summarily identifying the miraculous with evil and unbelief? I think not. I believe this passage carries within it the same seeds of warning as the previous. The miracle workers noted in this passage have somehow bent the glory of their apparent good works back upon themselves. Not one of them said – “Jesus, through me you did such and such.” They are saying, “Jesus, I did this. Look at me!” These folks would have gladly performed a trick for the religious leaders and Pharisees because their ultimate goal was recognition, acceptance and man’s honor.

So, let’s take the warnings for what they are. Simply put, we are not to seek the miraculous either to prove ourselves and gain legitimacy; or, to use it to judge the spirituality of another. These are evil, just as Jesus said. (More to come...)

Bible Bingo & Other Stuff...Part II

So, we began with a dirty little secret in the last post – the dirty little secret that many of us use, from time to time, a wind and finger approach to Bible reading. I call it Bible Bingo. I have heard from many folks in regard to that particular post and their humble admissions that they too have occasionally grunted out a prayer, threw their Bible open and a verse has leapt out at them which seemed to fit the circumstances. But, they have also admitted that sometimes the verse seemed nonsensical and unrelated to their circumstance and they were left pondering some obscure passage about so and so’s lineage, a talking animal, a fierce judgment, how to cure mold, and such. The truly brave admitted to sometimes going for the best of three!

Now, many systematic theologians would be horrified at the prospect of wind and finger methods. They would say that it strikes of magic or gambling with God’s Holy Word. I suppose that if one wanted to be all self-righteous and stuff, those would indeed be some arguments that one could make. But, I take a different approach. I feel that hard-wired within each believer (and perhaps every unbeliever) is a deep desire to experience the miraculous & supernatural power of God at work in the midst of our not so miraculous and supernatural lives. Not only do I believe that this is a healthy desire, I believe that the Lord has made us for nothing less than to be both recipients and conduits of His great power.

The early church prayed to God – with intentionality – this prayer: “Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of Your Holy servant Jesus.” (Acts 4:30) And God did just that. So evidently, the desire to see God’s hand at work is not a bad thing. It is a prayer prompted by the Holy Spirit. Bible Bingo is perhaps a very low expression of this desire – being so random and all – but it speaks to a higher virtue, a higher prayer that the Lord God Himself has placed within us.

Simply put, if you had a choice between a life infused with the supernatural and spontaneous acts of God and a life devoid of such, which would you choose? The question is absurd. Were I to ask this in a roomful of people, I believe I would get both hands and even feet in the air for choice number one. I can think of only a very few, dry, crusty theologians who would actually want the latter. Bless them, but let not their narrow view of Scripture or their anemic view of faith determine the flow or frequency of God intervening in your circumstances. For way too long our own low level of faith has determined both our theology and our view of Scripture. It is time to leave that behind.

Why? Because the average person knocking about in the post-modern world isn’t so much concerned with the question of whether or not there is a God, or a higher power. There are really very few true atheists. No, the question on their lips is akin to that asked of Elijah the prophet in his showdown with the prophets of Baal: namely; is YOUR God the real one. We can try to answer to that question with knowledge and with well-thought through apologetic arguments. But to be honest, more information given in this age of information seems to have little effect. Information overload is a real syndrome. But know this, one supernatural, custom-made touch from God has the innate ability to obliterate all false systems of thought. One cannot seriously read the gospels without appreciating this as a modus operandi of Jesus’ ministry. The Apostle John defined the ministry of Jesus in this way: “The reason the Son of Man appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (I John 3:8b). (The word “destroy”, LOO-OH, in the Greek - literally means to dissolve or demolish. I like the word dissolve. It reminds me of the wicked witch of the west melting away in the Wizard of Oz. “I’m melting! I’m melllllttttinnngggg!”). How did Jesus go about “dissolving” the works of the devil? Let’s hear from Jesus: “But I have a greater witness than John – my teachings and my miracles. The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that He sent me.” (John 5:36).

So, you have the devil’s work – which Jesus was sent to dissolve through supernatural works (miracles) that the Father sent Him to do. And here’s the deal – this methodology did not end with Jesus. Please hear this: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10) To be continued…

Bible Bingo and Other Stuff, Part One

When I am being spiritually lazy, I sometimes practice the wind & finger method of Scripture Study, i.e., say a quick prayer and see where the Bible opens and take what I read as a sign from God. There is an old joke about the dangers inherent in such a hapless approach to Scripture reading. One day, this guy opens his Bible and places his finger on the text: “Judas went out and hung himself.” A bit troubled, he tries again. The next passage reads: “Go therefore and do likewise.” Stubborn to the core, the man tries once again and comes upon this passage: “What ye do, do quickly!”

Har! Har! This joke is probably all the more poignant to each one of us because we have all tried, at one time or another, the wind and finger method. You see, it only takes me hearing that John Wesley – one of my spiritual heroes – practiced this method rather frequently, to lure me into this sort of Scripture lottery/divination/Christian horoscope/Bible Bingo. Yes, if it was good enough for the father of Wesleyanism, it is good enough for me. “Gimmee that old time religion!”

Just for fun, even as I type this out, I’ll give it a go and tell you the verse my finger lands on. Here we go…(Little prayer, flip, flip, flip, right index finger swirling high in the air and now…..DOWN). And what do we have? It looks like I Corinthians 16:24 “My love to all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen.” Hmmm. Not bad. Yes, that works for me. It is harmless AND encouraging. It is exactly how I feel. Amazing. G00000 God! My love to all who read these rants…..Amen.

So, why do we do things like this? Is it a demonstration of faith or of presumption? My guess is that it has something to do with the desire of us humans to experience the supernatural attendance of God to our daily hum-drum life. We seek encouragement, a special word from God for the particular circumstance in which we find ourselves. If we get lucky, we sometimes hit upon a verse that strikes right at the heart of our need and our circumstance. One can read miles and miles of Scripture and never experience the rush of landing on a Philippians 4: 19 “And my God will supply all of your needs according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus.”, especially if in the midst of a financial difficulty.

The desire to experience the supernatural presence and attendance of God is not a bad thing. In fact, it is a very good thing. Who would want a merely factual Christianity? (Wait a minute…Even though that was a rhetorical question, it just struck me that a “facts only” Christianity is exactly what some people want. In “fact”, there are whole denominations, Bible colleges, churches, preachers and seminaries that pride themselves on giving the supernatural the heave-ho. But, I digress…). Who wouldn’t want to experience God in their midst doing mighty works? The early church prayed a prayer along those lines: “Stretch out Your hand to heal and to perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of Your Holy Servant, Jesus.” So, unless the early church was a bunch of raging, needy heretics, the desire for a touch from God wasn’t and isn’t a bad thing. And, I believe that wind and finger Scripture reading - as suspect as it might be – is, at its essence, a humble attempt on our parts to see if God is going to pick up the phone when we call. In hoping against hope that something good will leap out at us speaks of our neediness and a type of faith; although admittedly, one that could be a bit stronger with a more intentional and systematic approach.

I plan to “weave about a bit” in the few posts on this blog. We’ll be talking about the miraculous, the Bible and judgment day. Believe it or not, it will all come together nicely…Stay tuned.

Wait, one more try before I go…(Little prayer, flip, flip, flip, right index finger swirling high in the air and now…..DOWN) And…”The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh – an oracle: This man declared to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ucal…” Proverbs 30:1 Hmm….deep. Must have been for someone else because the next verse reads, “I am too stupid to be human…” (NLT)

(P.S. Just in case you were curious, these verses that I did the “wind & finger” with in this post were the real deal).

Moving The Mouse…(Part Four) De-dichotomizing The Church

Let’s begin with a definition shall we…

di·chot·o·my Pronunciation: dI-'kä-tuh-mE

Function: noun, inflected Form(s): plural –mies
Etymology: Greek dichotomia, from dichotomos

1 : a division into two especially mutually exclusive or contradictory groups or entities ; also : the process or practice of making such a division

I remember how much I had the joy of life upon me when I was a wee lad. My family was very close. We did everything together from water-skiing, to baseball, to picnics, to shared meals, to watching the three channels we got on our black and white TV. We were a tight-knit, loving, mid-america, middle-class family.
The only slight sadness that I recall from my early days was our typical Sunday morning routine. For some reason, sometime after I had applied my little dab of butch-wax to the time I arrived at the breakfast table, I would begin to sob. For a little “tough guy” this was extremely embarrassing and I couldn’t really explain to anybody why Sunday mornings made me so distraught – at least at that time. All I can tell you is that each Sunday morning, as the family gathered around one of my mom’s incredible breakfast feasts, and everyone sat silently reading their Sunday School quarterly in preparation for Sunday School followed by church – I was deeply depressed.
I also remember this – that right after church we would usually head to the local IGA where my dad would purchase his weekly cigar and a copy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. It was somewhere between church and the IGA that the feeling of sadness would lift off of me and I would get happy again. I was entering back into the “real” world. The “real” world being – not at church.
Some might suggest that I, as a little flat-topped boy, was experiencing some form of spiritual warfare – that Satan was making me unhappy with church. I suppose that could be true. But, I don’t think it was quite that dramatic. As I have pondered these strange emotional swings in my formative years, I have come to another conclusion; and, the conclusion is very simple: The real world felt comfortable, expansive, and full of God while the whole Sunday morning church experience felt staged and stifled. I remember having a God-consciousness at a very early age and chatting away with God every night as I passed seamlessly into sleep. The one place where God didn’t seem particularly friendly and expansive was sitting in church. Sitting on the floor and watching football next to my dad’s big burgundy recliner, while he puffed merrily away on his Swisher Sweet, seemed more real, more natural, more like the God I talked to before I fell asleep each night.
Imagine for a moment how strange a church service might be through the eyes of a small child or a person who has had no church orientation. You enter a service where people greet you like a long-lost friend at the door and then disappear to go huddle up with their friends. The service begins. You are told to stand up and sing– so you stand up and try to follow along the best you can. You are told to sit down – so you sit down. Following the standing up and the sitting down time, you notice a group of men passing around neatly carved little wooden bowls into which people start dumping money. After that, a group of gents walk to the front and grab some pretty silver trays and start handing out microscopic cups of purple drink – not even equal to a shot of whiskey – along with the tiniest of square crackers – hardly bigger than a button. Next, a guy gets up and reads a bunch of announcements that you already have a copy of in your hand. “Perhaps there are a lot of illiterate people here,” you innocently think to yourself. Finally, a man in a suit gets up to give a talk. You notice that all of his points begin with the same letter. There are three points: “Sin, Saved, and Sanctified.” You can’t help but think of that commercial you heard for the product that fixes clogged drains: “Liquid Plumber: It drains, deodorizes and disinfects!” You look over and notice that one of the people who greeted you and passed the little wooden bowls around is snoozing away during the talk. You have a question about what the speaker is saying but you do not know if it is okay to raise your hand. Being a visitor, you’re afraid to draw attention to yourself. The talk ends – or so you thought. Actually, a new talk begins which is accompanied by music and more singing. This talk is a little shorter but way more animated. A few people get up and wander down to the front. The man who gave the talk says a few words to these people. Then he smiles. The service ends with the speaker telling everyone about the important decisions that have been made and nearly everyone grunts out an “Amen”. The speaker says a prayer and the program is over. The whole experience has been a bit odd, a little other worldly. On the way out, you see little groups of people huddled together having a smoke and talking about the same things you talk about with your friends during the week– football, politics, telling a good joke and such. A few minutes before, these guys seemed all tensed up and serious. Out here they seem almost normal – even approachable. But no one says another word to you and you make it out to your car and go home. As you drive, you say to yourself, “Well, I guess that’s not my thing.”
Remember our beginning word – the word dichotomy? Let’s revisit the definition: a division into two especially mutually exclusive or contradictory groups or entities. When I read the life of Jesus I am met with a person who seemed to go out of his way to combine the great teachings about the Kingdom of God with ordinary people in ordinary, everyday circumstances. In other words, there was no dichotomy- no division - between the spiritual and the natural. Jesus de-dichotomized the spiritual and the natural. Jesus taught in open fields. Jesus spoke with a guy sitting in a tree. The bow of a small fishing boat served as a makeshift platform. Jesus found his way into living rooms of notorious boozers, swindlers, hustlers and prostitutes. There seemed to be very little disconnect between His message and the real world into which He was born and ministered. There was no “putting on”, no staging of events, no getting gussied up for a meeting. Jesus' ministry took place in the midst of the sweat, grime, insanity, disease, cursing, sinning, gambling, backstabbing, gossiping, lusting, partying, and hypocrisy that is the sad lot of all mankind. He was in the “real” world. He didn’t create alternative safe-havens, holy ghettos of sinless people to whom to minister. His ministry was spontaneous, immediate – in the moment.
This is the God who found me in my little bedroom as a child. We had lovely chats. Somehow, without any sophisticated reflective abilities, I “felt” His absence on my treks to church. Nothing seemed real. Nothing seemed normal. I preferred the smell of my dad’s sweat to the smell of his English Leather. I was comfortable seeing my mom zipping around the yard in her shorts & floppy gardening hat rather than a dress, pumps and beehive. It was many years later that I sensed that I had permission to think this way. It was many more years after that before I felt free to speak of it.
The great purpose in our time is to bring God to the streets once more. I hesitate to use the word “relevant.” God is always that. Many are trying to make God relevant by pepping up the music, offering high-tech shows, and creating a plethora of goods and services in order to attract people to a geographical location. For the perceptive seeker, these sorts of “updates” are a mere change of clothes to a newer style. The same old gelatinous person is still in residence underneath the new outfit. But, here’s the deal – unless God actually “works” in the marketplace, or on the campus, or in the neighborhood – what good is He? He is still a contained God. And God, ferociously, has said through His Son Jesus Christ: “No more of that.” Jesus left heaven, a place of Divine confinement, in order to dwell (the words means: to pitch His tent) among us. The metaphors of the church compel us to move out and do life among the walking dead in the real world. We are ambassadors. We are salt. We are light. We are apostles (the word means: sent ones, or deliverymen). We are not the huddled!
So we end where we began – moving the mouse. That slight shuffle of the wrist which feigns busyness and productivity is something that we at Patrick Crossing are intentionally leaving behind. Rollo May once said: "It is an old ironic habit of human beings to run faster when we have lost our way." Life is too short to invest time and resources and energy – to run faster - in creating more things to show up for at church - even when those “things” are compelled by the greatest of intentions. We cannot continue to mistake activity for achievement. As we re-order our lives around a simpler approach – I encourage you to ask God to show you your entry point into the “real” world. He will have a place custom made just for you.