A Gentle Reminder

I have spent the previous five days fighting a migraine. It came on at full force at approximately 2 pm on Christmas day. I managed to spend Christmas morning with the family, doing our normal Christmas routine (stockings first thing, breakfast, and then the presents) ... We even played some games together, listened to some new CDs, and enjoyed the morning.

But then, inexplicably, I was hit with the beginnings of a terrible migraine. Immediately, I went to the medicine cabinet and downed a few pills. It was my hope the early medication would minimize the event, making it possible to enjoy Christmas dinner with the family.

But by 2:30 I was flat on my back in bed with a wet cloth covering my eyes. I lay there until Saturday morning, eating Christmas dinner in bed.

Saturday, the pain continued and because the details of the individual days are not important, I'll fast-forward to day five; the pain was still there on Tuesday morning. I had missed work on Sunday, I had been in bed with a wet cloth on my head far too long, I had watched far too many videos (finding the diversion helped me focus beyond the pain). Most importantly, I had filled my body with pills (something I've walked away from in recent years) because of the pain.

It wasn't until late Tuesday morning, after reading an email from a life group member, that healing began. In that email, Eric asked me had I taken my migraine to God? Yes I was taking medication, yes I was making plans to visit my chiropractor, yes I was dulling the pain with videos; but had I invited God's healing for my pain?

This hit me with great conviction. Why do we (and by we, I mean me) so quickly reach for modern medicine, push drugs and other 'healing' substances in our bodies, and yet forsake the Great Physician, the Great Creator, our Father when we are sick or hurting, or in need?

So with prompting from my friend, and a humbled heart at my own personal arrogance, I went to my Heavenly Father asking for His healing. Within a very short time, I felt less pain, was able to focus for the first time in days, and didn't feel that hopelessness that had overwhelmed me the previous five days.

So it is my prayer this gentle reminder helps you. I'm not sure what you are facing right now. I'm not sure what 'earthly' solutions you are using to mitigate your suffering. But if you have not sought God to be with you in this, stop and ask. He is waiting for your invitation.

I can't promise that you will see immediate healing as I did. I can promise that God wants to be with you, wants to comfort you, and wants community with you; all of which are good.

The Shepherds

Our church has been in a series called "How to Steal Christmas." It is about the ways our actions steal the true meaning of Christmas. Week one was "Give in to Greed." Through a 'greed based' outlook at Christmas (I want, I want, I want or worse I need, I need, I need), we miss the truth of this marvelous season. Week two was "Unwrap Unbelief" which focused on our tendency, especially in America, to simply not seek actual truth, but to settle for what society calls truth, or worse simply do nothing to pursue what our heart so desperately seeks.

Today we learned so many "Waste the Wonder." The pastor asked, "Have we allowed this story to become so familiar, we waste the wonder?" Or have we become so focused on our 'to do list' that we simply don't have time to revel in the wonder that God became man simply to save us.

Enter the shepherds. As you read the story in Luke 2, you learn a heavenly host came to the shepherds and told them of the birth of Christ in neighboring Bethlehem. And what was the shepherds response? They LEFT THEIR SHEEP to go find this baby.

Now I wonder how often you've been like me and read the story and never marveled at this simple act. Shepherds would defend their sheep, even to death if necessary. They certainly would not leave them in the fields. This announcement had to be something that was so important to them, their primary focus would shift.

Which is exactly what happened. Because even after going to meet the messiah, the shepherds did not immediately return to their herds, they continued to neglect their charges in order to spread the word of Jesus' birth. Please don't miss the importance of these acts we so frequently gloss over as we 'sterilize' the birth of our Lord. This one event some two thousand years ago has literally changed the world. It split history in two.

And it took shepherds from their flocks. Please don't waste the wonder this year. Please find some new truth in the story of the Incarnation. Please follow the lead of the shepherds and forsake everything you hold dear to meet this Christ and then tell everyone you meet about the encounter!

You will not regret the decision and it might just split the history of your life in two as well!

Musings on my Life Group

I have joined a new church and a new life group since my last post. On October 1, 2009 I joined the staff of Hope Springs Community Church. Today (December 13, 2009), I became a member of the church. It is kind of funny to me that I've been on staff for 10 weeks but was not a member of the church. I guess that is common, there are some churches who encourage certain staff to attend a separate church so they can experience worship without having to feel like they are 'working' ...

However, joining the new church also brought me and my lovely bride to a new Life Group. Our old church called them small groups, you church might have a completely different name, but here at Hope Springs, we call them Life Groups.

And that brings me to my musings from our time together today. Our group has studied the book of Philippians since our inception in October, wandering from home to home, taking a verse, section, or chapter at a time. Because we meet every other week, we didn't finish this four chapter book until today ... and quite honestly, I don't feel we are actually finished.

But during the conversation on contentment (Paul states he has learned to be content in any circumstance in Philippians 4:11) ... the talk turned to the more communal living style of the first century Christians. We wondered if part of the contentment was from truly "doing life together" as opposed to what you find in most modern church life groups.

Unfortunately, we were not able to come to any answers, leaving only questions. Our group isn't ready to sell everything (like the first century church in Acts) and move into a community of faith house ... but some good questions were asked that I'd like to challenge anyone who reads this blog (which is very few, I imagine):

1. We have a member who was unemployed for over a year. The question I'd like to challenge you with today is who do you know that is unemployed? Who do you know that you can connect that person with in hopes of getting them a job? Have you asked your friend if they are able to make their mortgage payment this month, and are you willing to help or find those who can if the answer is "no, I'm short on money"? What if that unemployed friend needs food? Will you help?

Unfortunately, these questions were never asked of our life group member ... fortunately, shortly after the group coming together, he found employment. I'd like to think that had his situation continued, our group would have done the right thing. I certainly hope we will should a similar situation arise in the future.

2. We are a young group, but almost immediately, we began to support each other in daily prayer. Are you connected to a community that prays for you daily? Do you have a list of people for whom you pray daily? If the answer is no, why not?

I know this is far from what the early church experienced. I know that deep in my soul I long for deeper community. But I believe this group is going in the right direction. We will never sell everything and become communal, but I do hope that as a group living lives in separate houses we will be as close to the Acts model as is humanly possible.

That is my prayer ... I'm starting to believe it is also the prayer of many of my life group partners.

Be blessed!

Ramblings on Acts 19 ... an assignment for Church

I was asked today to post a blog for our church's newest series. We are studying the book of Acts and several people from the congregation have been assigned a chapter and have been asked to blog about what they've read. My assignment was Acts 19, which is really not a great chapter to write about. While it is a good historical account of the life of Paul and the persecution he encountered spreading the gospel of Christ, it isn't a great chapter like Acts 2 (the pouring out of the Holy Spirit), Acts 9 (the conversion of Saul, who later became Paul) or Acts 16 (the Philippian jailer - "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved").

So I was to read my assigned chapter, choose a key verse, blog a few paragraphs about what I encountered reading the passage, and then leave the readers with a few questions to ponder as they study the passage themselves.

Here is my first pass. I'm not sure if I'll send this version on for publication, but I wanted to make sure my initial thoughts did at least find its way to my own personal blog.

Key Verse – Acts 19:20 “In this powerful way the word of the Lord was spreading and gaining strength.”

In the early days of the church, God used several key people and numerous miracles to demonstrate his power. First Peter at Pentecost, then later Paul as he traveled throughout the Asian provinces, performed miracles in the name of Jesus. As a result, many turned to follow Jesus, leaving their past lives behind.

And when these new converts began to fully devote themselves to “The Way,” some local merchants felt the pinch. In Acts 19 we learn that because of Paul’s teachings, local silversmiths endured an economic downturn because they were selling fewer idols. Because former idol worshipers learned there is only one true God, they stopped frequenting the silversmith shops. I believe following Jesus should result in our lifestyles changing. Material things that were once important to us should now seem insignificant when compared to the furtherance of God’s kingdom.

The transformation in the lives of the followers of Christ in Ephesus was so great, people who live and work around them noticed. Men who had once profited off the sale of idols became so worried about their future, they incited a riot. While the culture has changed, and while we enjoy many freedoms in America, a life devoted to following Christ should look different than the lives of those around us. I don’t imagine our choices in the 21st century will lead to anyone inciting riots; however I do believe our daily choices, especially on things where we choose to spend our time and money, demonstrate where our hearts are truly focused.

When the world around us notices the changes in our lives, they will want to know more about what has caused us to change. As you tell them what has motivated your lifestyle metamorphosis, Acts 19:20 will continue to ring true in our communities: “In this powerful way the word of the Lord was spreading and gaining strength.”

As you read through Acts 19 today, ask yourself these questions:

1. Do I live my life each day in a manner that permits the word of the Lord to continue to spread to all I encounter?

2. Are there any areas in my finances that I have yet to turn over to God and if so, am I willing to surrender them to Him today?

3. What can I do today to show the love of God to someone, causing them to desire to know more about my Savior?

Church - The Way it Should Be

It has been a long time since I've been able to post. In part, because I've been finishing the transformation of a warehouse in Lexington, Kentucky into a hip, innovative worship space for Hope Springs Church (www.hopespringschurch.com).

This is a great church; church the way it should be. This church understands God's design for His people is to help those around us who are in need. They have a laundry ministry for homeless people, a place for them to get clean clothes, conversation, and biblical instruction. They have a bible study at a local McDonald's where homeless people are able to get two dollar menu items along with community and Biblical teaching. They have a Friday night Celebrate Recovery service where 100+ people meet to continue their journey to recovery through worship, small groups, and fellowship over a meal. They send vans out each Sunday morning to pick up homeless people, people living in local shelters, and people living in half-way houses and rehab facilities to bring them to church. They also have a Sunday morning coffee ministry at Rupp Arena (home of the Kentucky Basketball Wildcats) to the homeless. The pastor is often heard saying, "God send us the people other churches don't want."

And as if this wasn't enough, this church that "gets it" also has a Hispanic congregation (Fuente de Avivamiento) that meets on Sunday and Wednesday nights for worship and teaching, and several days throughout the week for prayer. This isn't a separate congregation that "uses" the Hope Springs buildings, this is a congregation of a different language, yes, but the leaders at Hope Springs (David Calhoun for the Anglo congregation and Iosmar Alvarez for the Hispanic congregation) make every effort to ensure this is one church.

And it showed as we started in late May to transform a second warehouse off Versailles Road and Angliana in Lexington, Kentucky into a great new worship space. To see details of the transformation, where they were to where they are now, check out the post by my partner in this journey, Matt E. Cooper of Bargeheights. His post (http://bargeheights.com/?p=577) shows what the space was and what the new space looked like opening Sunday. Over the two plus months, members from both congregations worked side-by-side, often 10 to 12 hours a day, to make this dream a reality. As we sat together around midnight on the Saturday before the opening, I told the team that in the morning, this won't simply be a building, it will be your church. All your hard work will pay off as you stand up for the first time in this space to worship the King for whom we have all given so many hours this summer.

Sure, there is a lot left; we have the old space to transform into a new kids / youth space along with a college-age coffee house in one section. We have an additional 1,000 square feet that will become the new office wing. But I know one thing: this team of volunteers that loves Jesus enough to "get their hands dirty" with laundry ministries, homeless bible studies at McDonald's, coffee ministries at the place so many associate with basketball greatness but have no idea of the great needs that are right under their noses as they walk into the game, and understand that we serve one God regardless of skin color, language, or past sins will be able to accomplish this task. They have already won, they took an old warehouse and they turned it into a wonderful new worship center in just a few short months.

On the Books

It's been over a month since I last published anything here ... in part because I'm working two projects in Lexington, Kentucky ... one at Southern Acres Christian Church (www.southernacres.org) and one at Hope Springs Community Church (www.hopespringschurch.com) ... and in part because I really haven't had much to say in the past month. Maybe the two things go together. Maybe my being tired from working so much causes my creativity to diminish.

As I thought about it more, I came to believe the reality is that spending so much time on the jobsite, even church jobsites, causes me to lose my connection to God. Sure I continue to pray, I continue to "think on these things" as Paul encourages us to do in Philippians 4:8, but I truly don't believe I allow God to truly penetrate my life like I do when I'm not so overly busy.

But something hit me the other morning at breakfast. I noticed the back of my cereal box had the phrase "On the Books" in bold letters. Around the phrase were nine pictures with a short description ... all laws from various states in America that were or are currently "on the books."

Let me list them for you:

1. Blue Earth, MN: Law declared that no child under the age of twelve may talk on the phone unless accompanied by a parent.

2. Alaska: It is forbidden to push a moose out of a plane in motion.

3. California: It is illegal to set a mousetrap without a hunting license.

4. Utah: It is against the law to fish from horseback.

5. Nevada: It is illegal to drive a camel on the highway.

6. Washington: Goldfish can ride the city buses in bowls only if they keep still.

7. Vermont: Whistling underwater is illegal.

8. Baltimore, MD: It is illegal to take a lion to the movies.

9. Kentucky: Transport of an ice cream cone in your pocket is prohibited.*

Now some of these laws were just ridiculous. Did they really have a problem with people taking lions to the movies in Maryland? Are swimming goldfish really a distraction on a bus in Washington? Do people often drive camels on the highway in Nevada?

However, some did make a little sense. For instance, if too many children were dialing 911, making it difficult for actual emergency calls to come in to the switchboard, making a phone usage law for children in Minnesota would be prudent. A cash-strapped state like California could easily raise additional funds by collecting hunting license fees for each mousetrap sale, helping reduce the state's deficit. Or was I over thinking this?

In the end, no matter how much I considered what would compel a local or state jurisdiction to complete the process to turn any of these ideas into law, I could find no good solution for any of them. These laws had no business being discussed in a public forum, and certainly should have never passed a vote by elected officials or a local community.

Yet that is how it often becomes between us and God. He is always there for us, always wanting to be in community with us, yet we try to make crazy rules we need to come before His throne. Why do I feel so far from God, even when I'm working on improving two of His churches? It's not because God has moved away from me. He is still there, waiting for me to get over myself and simply lean into Him. Instead, I create some insane barrier of some type ... some nonsense law if you will, that widens the gulf originally created by sin.

My desire to do it on my own ... that age old struggle all humans battle ... gets in the way. As I recognize it, I am able to simply turn around and find my God waiting right where He was when I left. And the more I do this, turn to face God and forget myself, hopefully fewer "on the books" types of distractions will be allowed to penetrate my life, keeping me focused where I need to be; on God.

*Taken from the back of a Kroger Apple Cinnamon Toasted Oats Cereal box

Feel Close to God?

I've been wondering something lately, how do I continue to move closer to God. Kelly and I have been in a conversation with someone in our life who has moved away from God during the years we've known this person, so much so they are now a self-proclaimed atheist. In a recent email exchange, Kelly mentioned that while this person has moved away from God, she has been drawing closer to God. It got me thinking, what does moving closer to God look like?

It wasn't until I spent some time on YouTube this morning (imagine that, finding God on YouTube), that I found an answer.

"When I read the lives of the great saints, they didn't necessarily feel close to God. When I read the Psalms, I get the feeling that David and the other Psalmists felt quite far away from God for most of the time. Closeness to God is not about feelings. Closeness to God is about obedience. ... I don't know how you feel close to God. And no one I know that seems to be close to God knows anything about those feelings either. I know if we obey, occasionally the feeling follows. Not always, but occasionally. I know if we disobey, we don't have a shot at it. Jesus said, 'Whatever you do to the least of these, my brothers, you've done it to me.' and this is what I've come to think; that if I want to identify fully with Jesus Christ, who I claim to be my Savior and Lord, the best way that I can do that is to identify with the poor. ... Christianity is not about building an absolutely secure little niche in the world where you can live with your perfect little wife and your perfect little children in a beautiful little house where you have no gays or minority groups anywhere near you. Christianity is about learning to love like Jesus loved, and Jesus loved the poor and Jesus loved the broken."

(Rich Mullins live in concert in Lufkin, Texas)

Are you struggling with the same question? Do you desire to be closer to God in your life? Then take a look around you. Are you living like Jesus did? Are you surrounded by the poor, hurting, broken-hearted misfits of this world?

I am currently working with a church here in Lexington that finds itself in the midst of the crowd I imagine Jesus would attract were he to walk the earth in the 21st century. This church is based on recovery programs, attracting recovering alcoholics and drug addicts, ex-convicts, gang members, homeless people, and everyone else the modern church has neglected. In a recent project meeting, the pastor actually said, in his opening prayer, "Lord send us the people the other churches don't want."

Do you want to find closeness to God? It will cost you everything you have: family, friends, home, and savings (Matthew 10:37-39, Mark 10:29, Luke 9:58); so be sure you truly want to draw closer to God before you take the first step. But if you do, God will meet you there.

Have I drawn closer to God in recent years? Only enough to know that taking any additional steps will cost me everything, and I simply don't have enough faith to continue. Maybe God will show me where that faith comes from in the next chapter of my life. Right now, I more resonate with another bit of wisdom from Rich Mullins; here are the words from his song "Hard to Get:"

"You who live in heaven, hear the prayers of those of us who live on earth. Who are afraid of being left by those we love, and who get hardened by the hurt.

Do you remember when You lived down here where we all scrape to find the faith to ask for daily bread? Did You forget about us after You had flown away? Well I memorized every word You said still I'm so scared, I'm holding my breath while You're up there just playing hard to get.

You who live in radiance, hear the prayers of those of us who live in skin. We have a love that's not as patient as Yours was still we do love now and then.

Did You ever know loneliness? Did You ever know need?Do You remember just how long a night can get?

When You were barely holding on and Your friends fall asleep and don't see the blood that's running in Your sweat.

Will those who mourn be left uncomforted while You're up there just playing hard to get?

And I know you bore our sorrows, and I know you feel our pain, and I know it would not hurt any less even if it could be explained.

And I know that I am only lashing out at the One who loves me most, and after I figured this, somehow all I really need to know

Is if You who live in eternity hear the prayers of those of us who live in time? We can't see what's ahead and we can not get free of what we've left behind. I'm reeling from these voices that keep screaming in my ears all the words of shame and doubt, blame and regret.

I can't see how You're leading me unless You've led me here where I'm lost enough to let myself be led. And so You've been here all along I guess, it's just Your ways and You are just plain hard to get."