21 Daily Questions

Let’s say you and I were sitting down at a coffee shop today and I asked you two questions: “How is it with your soul?” and “How is your walk with Jesus Christ?” Do you think you would have an answer?

How many of us would have an answer we would be comfortable sharing? If we were to talk about the state of our soul, we may have an easier time talking about it in terms of our emotional state at the time. However, if we begin talking about our walk (our relationship) with Jesus Christ, we would most likely begin talking about all the stuff we do for Christ. In a way, we still have a works based idea of salvation and relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, was an Anglican priest and was very systematic and methodical about his faith and how he ordered his day. He was constantly on a spiritual journey, as I pray we all are. Part of what he laid out in the small groups he helped to establish, were accountability questions that he encouraged the people to ask each day. The result, if answered honestly showed the people called Methodist was a deeply committed relationship top Jesus Christ, sharing their faith, and growing the church.

This past Sunday, I encouraged our congregation to begin asking these questions (at least 3 each day) so we all can grow more in our personal discipleship as well as help guide those we are discipline.

These questions, at first glance, may seem like a lot; but they are some great accountability questions for us so our faith does not get stagnant and we rely more on the Holy Spirit’s guidance throughout our lives.

The final question, “Is Christ real to me” is definitely one we should ask and I would add, “why is he real to me?” and “how is he real to me?”

Hopefully going through this daily journey does not make us more prideful in our faith, but more humble; especially as we share our faith more through our actions and our words.

Here is the list of 21 questions. You are encouraged to begin asking these questions daily. I would love to hear how these questions and your answers are aiding you in your walk with Jesus Christ and your personal and social faith development.
JOHN WESLEY’S 21 QUESTIONS

1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?

2. Am I honest in all my acts & words, or do I exaggerate?

3. Do I confidentially pass onto another what was told me in confidence?

4. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits?

5. Am I self‐conscious, self‐pitying, or self‐justifying?

6. Did the Bible live in me today?

7. Do I give it time to speak to me everyday?

8. Am I enjoying prayer?

9. When did I last speak to someone about my faith?

10. Do I pray about the money I spend?

11. Do I get to bed on time & get up on time?

12. Do I disobey God in anything?

13. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?

14. Am I defeated in any part of my life?

15. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy, or distrustful?

16. How do I spend my spare time?

17. Am I proud?

18. Do I thank God that I am not as other people, especially as the Pharisee who despised the publican? (Look at the example in Luke 18:9-14)

19. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward, or disregard? If so, what am I going to do about it?

20. Do I grumble & complain constantly?

21. Is Christ real to me?

Irons in the Fire

We are all busy people, and seem to be getting busier. At the time this blog post gets published, we will be one week away from Thanksgiving. Does that scare anyone? Think of all that needs to be done. Then throw on all the preparations for Christmas and parties and other events, and our lives get overwhelmed really quick.

Why do we have to be so busy? If we take a look at the stuff that fills our day, my guess would be we mainly have tasks that keep us busy and do not have any meaning to the real stuff that has to get done. I hear people say all the time, and I say it too, “I have to do ______.” Or “_______ needs to get done right now.” Do these questions sound familiar?

Our culture tells us we have to constantly be working and have things to do. Boredom is not an option. So, we add more and more to our already full schedule so no space is left blank and we can “feel” like we are accomplishing something. Do we really have to do everything that comes to mind, or be part of planning everything we want to be a participant?

Scheduling

Something we hear all the time is to make a to-do list and prioritize the most important tasks. Honestly, this is something I struggle to do every day. It scares me sometimes how much I try to cram in one day, so it gets difficult to write down because I start feeling like I’m going to forget something. But, I have begun to divide tasks out so I do not have to focus on everything every day.

Making a priority to-do list helps keep us on the right track and it shows what has to get done right away. It is important to complete the most important tasks first so the stress of them not getting done does not happen.

Empowering Others

It is so easy to get into the mindset that “I have to be the one to show how to do ______.” This is simply not the case. Often times, we can (and should) give people an idea of what needs to be done and talk about how it will get implemented and accomplished. We cannot do everything ourselves and it becomes more and more important to empower others to use their gifts and talents.

Each person has different gifts and talents. Scripture even teaches this. 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4 are some great examples. We can also see an example of this in the Old Testament book of Exodus 31:6, “Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers to make everything I have commanded you:”

God has given us the gift of relationships through community so that we do not have to try to do everything be ourselves.

Asking “Why”

The reason, I think, we are too busy really comes down to one thing: our pride / our ego. This may seem harsh, but the reality is that it is easier to think “if I don’t do it, it won’t get done right.”

We are people of a culture, in America, that says “I have to prove myself worthy.” This scares people when full credit may not be given straight to them. Why do we have to have the credit for accomplishing something? I think it’s because we need to feel important. It also goes along with making sure other people know how smart we are or that we can actually accomplish the task or event at hand.

Asking ourselves the question, “WHY does it really have to be me to do _______?” can be the most important question we can ask ourselves. Putting this at the top of our priority list daily should help keep things into perspective so we remember we are not in this alone.

So, how many things can you let go of doing personally and empower others to take care of them? I invite you to pray, talk with close friends, and seek the Holy Spirit’s direction to see who He has empowered with the gifts to accomplish the task(s) at hand.

Gotta run and see what I can pass off to people who have the gifts and talents to take stuff off my plate so I don’t get stressed.

Peace.

I Believe This Involves Me

Ancient Creed, Living Faith Blog Series Part 5

I invite you to take time to read the scriptures today.

Romans 12:5

In the same way, though there are many of us, we are one body in Christ, and individually we belong to each other.

 

 

This is the final post in our series on the Apostle’s Creed. We have explored how this ancient creed still has great meaning to our lives even today. The topics we have covered include: believing in God, the Messiah, the victory of God, God’s presence in our lives, and today we look at believing all of this involves me and you.

Read the final sentence of this incredible creed:

I believe…the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen

Since our faith has been built upon the people before us, we have the opportunity and privilege of joining Jesus Christ, along with the saints of the past to live in the presence of God here and now AND in life everlasting. We are part of something much bigger than anything we can see or imagine right now.

We belong to a catholic (universal) church that is the body of Christ on this earth. If we take time to think about this, the body is in constant motion. We get to be part of making disciples, being on mission whether at work, in your community, or somewhere else in the world. This is not something we do on our own. It’s a good thing Christianity is not an individual faith because we could and do easily slip up or even become so disappointed we can’t fix everything. By the grace of God, we are all connected. We learn from each other, grow in our faith together, reach out into our communities, work, country, world together because we all have a part to play.

We are part of the saints. Saints in this sense are not the people cannonized to pray to; but rather people of the faith. The Apostle Paul writes his letters to the “saints” of the churches. These people were still alive on earth when he wrote. Every Christian is part of the sainthood. Jesus Christ comes into our lives and changes the core of who we are. No longer are we defined as a worthless sinner; but we are now saints, saved by the grace of God through Jesus Christ.

Living our lives in a manner we should involves accepting the forgiveness Jesus has offered to all people on the cross. Because Jesus Christ has defeated death and rose from the dead, we too will be able to experience resurrection and life beyond this life and live in life everlasting with him. This is a great hope we have because of our faith.

What a wonderful hope for us, to be part of the redemption story of God through Jesus Christ to bring healing and wholeness, reconciliation and redemption to a hurting and broken world that will one day be restored to God’s perfection. Heaven on earth will not just be a hope; but a physical reality. The Kingdom of God is here and now; but there will be a time when everyone will see it and believe it without question.

You are invited to print this out, place this creed in a spot you’ll see every day and recite daily.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;*
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic** church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

 *Adapted from a sermon series idea “Ancient Creed, Living Faith” on www.seedbed.com

I Believe in the Presence of God

Ancient Creed, Living Faith Blog Series Part 4

I invite you to take time to read the scriptures today.

John 14:6

Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Luke 24:49

Look, I’m sending to you what my Father promised, but you are to stay in the city until you have been furnished with heavenly power.”

 

 

We have been on this journey of looking at the Apostle’s Creed to see what meaning it still has for our lives. I believe we get into the habit of simply reciting this, or any other creed, scripture, or even saying “I love you” to our spouse and can forget or not even think about what it is we are saying.

I believe in the Holy Spirit.

When you read these words, what do you think about. For many of us, the Holy Spirit has become the “Cousin It” of the Trinity simply because we don’t know what to make of this person of the Trinity.

I think the book, The Shack, gives an interesting viewpoint and picture of the Holy Spirit for us: a blurry, fast moving, colorful person.

One of my favorite questions to ask is “where have you experienced God this past week (today)?” God’s presence is all around us and is with us everywhere we go and in everything we are doing. When we ask this kind of question, we invite the Holy Spirit within us to show us were and how God is part of our life and giving us new life each day.

The attribute most commonly connected with the Holy Spirit is comforter. We get to experience God’s peaceful presence and his comfort especially in times of grief, tragedy, or even the in most devastating situations and circumstances of our lives. But this is not all the Holy Spirit gives or does. This person of the Trinity also convicts us when we have strayed from God and have sinned against him and other people, draws us back to God to once again experience grace and forgiveness, convinces us in the reality of God through Jesus Christ and his resurrection from the dead, converts and gives us the gift of faith, consecrates us and sets us apart as God’s children, and even calls us to a higher purpose in life (giving glory to God in everything and calls people into vocational ministry).

Think of the life you are living. It is the Holy Spirit whom Jesus Christ has sent that empowers us to live our life, to be on mission, to be in ministry. I believe the one of greatest callings everyone has on their lives is to tell of God’s presence and activity in and through our lives. The Holy Spirit reminds us and even helps to give us words when we need to speak.

There is so much about God’s presence in our lives and the work of the Holy Spirit than we can fit in this post. I pray you get to experience or continue to experience the reality of God’s presence in our lives through the gift of the Holy Spirit that is given to us.

Where or how have you experienced the presence of God through Jesus Christ this past week?

You are invited to print this out, place this creed in a spot you’ll see every day and recite daily.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;*
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic** church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

 *Adapted from a sermon series idea “Ancient Creed, Living Faith” on www.seedbed.com

I Believe in the Victory of God

Ancient Creed, Living Faith Blog Series Part 3

I invite you to take time to read the scriptures today.

1 Corinthians 15:1-28

Brothers and sisters, I want to call your attention to the good news that I preached to you, which you also received and in which you stand. You are being saved through it if you hold on to the message I preached to you, unless somehow you believed it for nothing. I passed on to you as most important what I also received: Christ died for our sins in line with the scriptures, he was buried, and he rose on the third day in line with the scriptures. He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve, 6 and then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at once—most of them are still alive to this day, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me, as if I were born at the wrong time.  I’m the least important of the apostles. I don’t deserve to be called an apostle, because I harassed God’s church. I am what I am by God’s grace, and God’s grace hasn’t been for nothing. In fact, I have worked harder than all the others—that is, it wasn’t me but the grace of God that is with me. So then, whether you heard the message from me or them, this is what we preach and this is what you have believed.

So if the message that is preached says that Christ has been raised from the dead, then how can some of you say, “There’s no resurrection of the dead”? If there’s no resurrection of the dead, then Christ hasn’t been raised either. If Christ hasn’t been raised, then our preaching is useless and your faith is useless. We are found to be false witnesses about God, because we testified against God that he raised Christ, when he didn’t raise him if it’s the case that the dead aren’t raised. If the dead aren’t raised, then Christ hasn’t been raised either. If Christ hasn’t been raised, then your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins, and what’s more, those who have died in Christ are gone forever. If we have a hope in Christ only in this life, then we deserve to be pitied more than anyone else.

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead. He’s the first crop of the harvest of those who have died. Since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead came through one too. In the same way that everyone dies in Adam, so also everyone will be given life in Christ. Each event will happen in the right order: Christ, the first crop of the harvest, then those who belong to Christ at his coming, and then the end, when Christ hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he brings every form of rule, every authority and power to an end.  It is necessary for him to rule until he puts all enemies under his feet. Death is the last enemy to be brought to an end, since he has brought everything under control under his feet. When it says that everything has been brought under his control, this clearly means everything except for the one who placed everything under his control. But when all things have been brought under his control, then the Son himself will also be under the control of the one who gave him control over everything so that God may be all in all.

 Psalm 110:1

What the Lord says to my master: “Sit right beside me until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet!”

Suppose I ask you to describe your life with one of these words, which would you choose? Victorious, Defeated, So-so.

So many of us are living lives that simply do not reflect the victory of Jesus Christ. Look at this part of the Apostle’s Creed:

“the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.”

What do you experience when you read these words? I invite you to read them again, and then read the Scriptures above and see what God may be telling you.

If we look at the words from the Apostle’s Creed, we can see at least three things:

  1. “I have a risen Lord because Jesus rose from the dead.”
  2. “I have a reigning King because Jesus ascended into heaven.”
  3. “I have a righteous Judge because Jesus is coming again to judge.”

If nothing else, when we look at this, we can see how much we have even when we hear the lies our life isn’t worth anything. We have a risen Lord who has defeated our ultimate enemy, death, so we can live life everlasting here and now and in the life to come. We have a reigning King who sits in heaven who makes sure we can have everything we need. We have a righteous Judge who is able to discern and see the truth and bring true justice and reconciliation in the world.

We have so much because of the power and person of Jesus Christ that we should be the most joyful, confident, hopeful people who don’t let the circumstance of our life bring us down. Who don’t become envious of others because they have more or their life seems smoother. We have everything we need and we can live victoriously through the power of Jesus Christ.

The verse we all know, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength” should really be thought of in this way, “I can endure all these things through the POWER of the ONE who gives me STRENGTH.” See the difference?

How can you live your life in such a way that people know you have the victorious power of Jesus Christ shining through everything you do? We get to live as people of the resurrection; and as such, show the awesomeness of Jesus Christ daily.

 

You are invited to print this out, place this creed in a spot you’ll see every day and recite daily.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;*
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic** church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

 *Adapted from a sermon series idea “Ancient Creed, Living Faith” on www.seedbed.com

I Believe in the Messiah

Ancient Creed, Living Faith Blog Series Part 2

I invite you to take time to read the scriptures today.

Psalm 2

Why do the nations rant? Why do the peoples rave uselessly?
The earth’s rulers take their stand; the leaders scheme together
against the Lord and against his anointed one.
“Come!” they say. “We will tear off their ropes and throw off their chains!”
The one who rules in heaven laughs; my Lord makes fun of them.
But then God speaks to them angrily; then he terrifies them with his fury:
“I hereby appoint my king on Zion, my holy mountain!”

I will announce the Lord’s decision: He said to me, “You are my son,
today I have become your father. Just ask me,
and I will make the nations your possession;
the far corners of the earth will be your property.
You will smash them with an iron rod; you will shatter them like a pottery jar.”

So kings, wise up! Be warned, you rulers of the earth!
Serve the Lord reverently—trembling, kiss his feet  or else he will become angry,
and your way will be destroyed because his anger ignites in an instant.

But all who take refuge in the Lord are truly happy!

Galatians 4:4-5

But when the fulfillment of the time came, God sent his Son, born through a woman, and born under the Law. This was so he could redeem those under the Law so that we could be adopted.

 

We believe in God, the Father Almighty. This is a relatively easy phrase to speak. If we simply stop at this particular phrase we can stay in a place of thought as God is a being who is all powerful, yet distant. It makes me think of the movie Aladdin when the genie describes his life as having “phenomenal cosmic powers…itty bitty living space.”

But then, we get to the next part of the creed:

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;

We get to state our belief in Jesus Christ, God made flesh! This is the part of the creed that shows how much God loves us. In the Nicene Creed, Jesus is described as “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father.”

Jesus Christ came into the world to show God among us. He came to “seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). This means he lives into what seems like his last name: Christ. “Christ” messiah which means he came to save. What did he come to save us from?

We often think Jesus came to save us from going to hell. If this is all he came for, we miss out on so much. He came so we could experience eternal life and have life abundantly. This means that we get to live in the presence of God right here, right now.

Jesus Christ came to show us the heart of God. When we say we believe in him, we have the opportunity to say we believe that God came down in human flesh and lived among us. This is huge!

Take some time to re-read Psalm 2 and Galatians 4:4-5 again and see what these passages say to you about Jesus Christ.

 

You are invited to print this out, place this creed in a spot you’ll see every day and recite daily.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;*
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic** church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

*Adapted from a sermon series idea “Ancient Creed, Living Faith” on www.seedbed.com

I Believe in the Relator God

Ancient Creed, Living Faith Blog Series Part 1

I invite you to take time to read the scriptures today.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)

The Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15:11-32)

Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

“The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

“‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

We are beginning a new series on the Apostles’ Creed. How many of us recite this creed week after week and haven’t thought about the meaning of the words in awhile? It is too easy to say the same thing week after week and not pay attention. But this creed has significant meaning still which should impact us on a daily basis. Over the next five weeks, I’ll invite all of us to recite this creed daily (found at the bottom of this post).

Today, we look at the first part: “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth;”

What does this mean to you? Think about the words “I believe.” This is what we usually use as a form of an opinion (i.e. I believe you will get a good grade. I believe this will happen. I believe (insert sports team) will win the game.). But, these words mean so much more than I think. Belief is actually placing the whole weight of who we are on the statement. Would you be willing to put the whole weight of your entire being on someone getting a good grade? Or even your favorite team winning?

Everything starts with God, the creator who created you and I out of love. God desires to love, so you and I exist. By creating the word, God revealed his all powerful nature. For us to see a larger scope of who God is, we get to look at the person of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Holy Trinity.

Jesus told this incredible parable (earthly story with a heavenly meaning) of the “Prodigal Son.” He told this story to the tax collectors and sinners that had gathered to hear him speak. This is an incredible story about the overwhelming love that God has for his creations, especially you and I. He gives all he can just so we can see how valued we are to him. Yes, we go off and do our own thing; but he is giving a chance to return to him. As we work on our confession and our sincere apology, God is coming toward us, giving us more than we ever dreamed of. More than we ever deserve.

The opening statement of the Apostles’ Creed is one that we cannot just pass over. God, the creator of the universe, created and has a special purpose and love for you and I that he cannot let go of. We are able to love because he desired and chose to love us first. I don’t know about you; but that is an incredible statement and truth.

The same God who set the universe into place, created the world and everything in it, took time to make you and I. When we take time to think about and embrace how much we are loved by the God, our worldview can and should shift to seeing God’s presence and handiwork all around us, especially his Holy Spirit within us.

 

You are invited to print this out, place this creed in a spot you’ll see every day and recite daily.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord;
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;*
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

*Adapted from a sermon series idea “Ancient Creed, Living Faith” on www.seedbed.com

Unheard Voices 

I am not one to engage in political or any form of attack or criticism via social media because I see too much negativity and very little building up of those who did incredibly horrible, insensitive, and just plain wrong things. It hurts when people get hurt, especially people I know because of what it is done.

I am part of the group that appears to be silent on social media, and is criticized for not “speaking out” and blasting people all over Facebook, Twitter, etc. There is truthfully many people who are getting the point across over what is happening in our communities, our cities, our nation, and the world.

One of the things that is difficult for me to witnesses is the method that others are using to try to bring about change. Changing legislation, rioting, protesting (more specifically non-peaceful), calling people hurtful things and dumping people into a large group and stereotyping. The laws can change to make people more aware of what’s going on; but this is not the way people really change. Change does not happen instantly. Some people, unfortunately never experience the change in society, in our culture, in their lifetime. It is a very noble and important task to bring attention at a national and world level for the injustices that happen each and everyday. People are shot for no reason. Racism still comes out. Blind eyes and non-helping hands are all around us. If we really look at what is wrong, we see this is really a problem of people’s hearts. This is what needs to change first and foremost.

Too often we result to name calling and threatening when a person acts a certain way. Too often we put blame in objects or the situation. Too often we try to change people by making it illegal to act a certain way. Change does not happen in this way. It is pretty much impossible to change someone by demonstrating anger toward them. If anything, I have seen people become numb, angry, stubborn and resistant to change when another person comes back and attacks.

People are murdered, theft happens, kidnappings happen because we as a people do not value human life as much as we say we do. Look at our thought process. We go from thinking that a person said or did something wrong; but then we keep focusing on that and vent to others, becoming so angry that we begin thinking that person IS evil and IS wrong. This is just a step away from hating the person / group which makes it easy to say they do not deserve to live and therefore it makes it easy for a person to come out and kill. All because human life is not valued.

We see this kind of thinking and behavior everyday. Many based their hatred on snap decisions and feelings rather than trying to look a what is going on, what is at the heart of the matter. Again, the actions and the objects get blamed and punished and we forget to see what is going on: that human life is not valued like we think it is. Our media, and social media makes this possible. Because of the 5-30 second sound bites, it makes it easy for our opinions to be sueded, mostly in a negative way. Then we can and do share the short clips and memes that do more harm.

I find it interesting, and disturbing, that the same kind of mindset we are told not to act upon in 6th grade is the same thing we do today. We get hurt, and we try to hurt other people. Hurting others does not really teach why something is wrong, rather it is retaliating for vengeance, for revenge. Revenge has never gotten complete justice; instead it seeks after retribution.

The way that I see people change is one-on-one or in small groups. I have found that most people, though there are ones who won’t and that’s something they have to work through, will listen is they feel listened to. I am not on a national stage so I don’t have a platform many others do. It seems we need to go back and follow Jesus’ example of how He worked to change the world. There were times large groups were around; but he really did it by starting one-on-one and with his small group. He challenged their hearts to experience the Kingdom of Heaven that is already here, if we open our eyes and our hearts to it. People are not changed from trying to change what is going on around them. people are changed from the inside out. Like Jesus does, we have to work with him to change a person starting with the heart. Every life matters. All people have value.

Do I do everything I can to work with Jesus to bring change in my community, which I pray spreads out to the world? I try. I am nowhere near perfect, and I know I still have biases of my own; but I praise God for the transformation he is doing in me and for the transformative work I see happening in this community. When we can build people up, instead of insulting and tearing down, God’s love and grace is able to come in. People are valued. People realize they are loved and need love. People see how they have been gifted to make a change in this world.

I know there are people who would read this and say this is not good enough. I know I could be criticized for this post in some form or fashion. My prayer is that God keeps working here, and in my heart, so we all can experience the Kingdom of Heaven here and now. God’s presence is already here. I believe God is waiting for us to stop thinking only of what is wrong and is waiting for us to join him in the true work which is the heart of the matter: the human heart. Changing this makes all the difference. Real, lasting change happens from the inside of a person first then is shown through their outward words and actions. The task is to allow Jesus Christ to work in and through us for the transformation, not fixing, of the world.

Sabbath Retreat

I came back from a week in the mountains with some great friends as well as some new men I haven’t met before. This was an incredible week to take time away and rest in the Lord, intentionally.

Sabbath rest is extremely important and it is a discipline that is overlooked. One of the books I was reading during this week was “Emotionally Healthy Leader.” This is an awesome book which forces you to look inside yourself and see how, through the grace of God, we can be better and more healthy leaders. This is a book that I would recommend.

In the chapter on “Practice Sabbath Delight,” Peter Scazzaro writes about a time when he visited a trusted friend. He was frustrated when the Christian leaders he taught all over the country preach about Sabbath rest and even say it is a great “idea,” would not actually practice a true Sabbath. Bob, his clinical psychologist friend told Peter, ““They can’t stop. If they stop, they’ll die. They’re terrified. They’re frightened to death of what they’ll see inside themselves if they slow down. And you want them to immerse themselves in things like solitude, Sabbath, and silent reflection?” He chuckled again. “Do you have any idea how foreign this is for any leader —Christian or not? Something so much deeper is driving them; they just have no idea what it is.” It was the penetrating truth of this statement that stunned me: If they stop, they’ll die. They’re terrified.”

Does this describe you? If I was honest earlier in my life and ministry career, I would have to say that that statement actually pinned me to a “T.” After all, why would I want to purposefully look into the depths of my character, passed mistakes, and anything else that God wants me to work on. My thought was “I can do this. I’ll spend time with God and make Sabbath as part of my daily life. But there was a problem with that mindset; I wasn’t discipline to take at least an hour away from “my day” when I “had to be productive and get things done.”

As I have learned and realized the importance, I try (not always though) to take a complete 24 rest from the work I have to do the other 6 days of the week and spend time to delight in God. This means I will rest from work (paid and unpaid) and only do the things that give me complete joy. Some of this includes spending time with family, more time for reading, prayer, reflection, play.

For the last few years, I have been going on week long men’s retreats to the mountains. During this time away (not off like we think of being off), I have learned how to structure my days so I can come back refreshed, joyful, and ready to get back into the work of life.

Each day I will take a minimum of 2 hours, and a maximum of 5 hours for reading, meditation on Scripture, prayer, taking a walk, etc. This is usually done by myself. The rest of the day I would spend time with the group and go hiking, go into town to walk or hangout. Basically, the second half of my day is play and spending time with friends.

I am not sure of your station in life, or what you are going through. But I would encourage you to take time every 7 days for a true Sabbath rest (not necessarily stopping work; but having no deadlines to focus on). If taking 24 hours to do this each week seems challenging, I would encourage you to take time to build up to it. Purposely plan what you will and will not do on your Sabbath time and just see how God refreshes your soul for the next 6 days of building relationships and your work.

After Hours

OFFICE HOURS Ministry in the Marketplace Part 6

What are your plans after you reach retirement age? Are we only working now so we can play and relax after we retire? I have come to the understanding that we have misguided ourselves when it comes to retirement.

Retirement is not simply quitting work and spending the rest of our life relaxing and doing nothing. This time is actually a gift. This is not the time to think we have “served our part,” or “I’ve done _______ for awhile, it’s time for someone else to do it.”

Growing older is a grand adventure. As we age, hopefully we are learning from our experiences and allowing God’s wisdom to sink into our hearts. I imagine it is easy to say it is time for “new blood” or “someone younger is better.” But this is the opposite of what we need to happen. The scripture focus for this week shows us, we should continue to respect and honor those older than us.

Take some time to read these words:

“Don’t correct an older man, but encourage him like he’s your father; treat younger men like your brothers, treat older women like your mother, and treat younger women like your sisters with appropriate respect. Take care of widows who are truly needy. But if a particular widow has children or grandchildren, they should first learn to respect their own family and repay their parents, because this pleases God. A widow who is truly needy and all alone puts her hope in God and keeps on going with requests and prayers, night and day. But a widow who tries to live a life of luxury is dead even while she is alive. Teach these things so that the families will be without fault. But if someone doesn’t provide for their own family, and especially for a member of their household, they have denied the faith. They are worse than those who have no faith. Put a widow on the list who is older than 60 years old and who was faithful to her husband. She should have a reputation for doing good: raising children, providing hospitality to strangers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in distress, and dedicating herself to every kind of good thing.” ~ 1 Timothy 5:1-10 CEB

Notice the first part, “encourage.” So, to complete this series, I would like to encourage two groups of people: those who have retired, and those who have not.

First, to those who have had the opportunity to retire: Thank you for all you have done to pave the way for new generations to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ now and in the future. Your commitment to following him in and outside of your workplace has been an example to us all and we value you. We do not view you as someone who is obsolete. Instead, we value your input, your wisdom, because God has done incredible works in and through you. God is still working and moving in and through you. Embrace this truth and continue to be beacons of light for us all. 

Second, for those working people. You have been given an incredible gift also. You and I have the opportunity to share the good news of Jesus Christ at work, at home, in the community, in worship. Take head of this special time. We do not work just so we can retire. We work to make an impact for the Kingdom of God here on earth right here, right now. We are able to do this because of the grace that God has bestowed. Look to the older people. Be sure to encourage and include everyone because you never know who God is using to connect with another person. Value the time you have at work and continue to foster growth in your relationships.

I pray God continues to be known all through your life. At home, in the community, in worship, and even at work.

Praise God for the incredible gift of work!

Amen.

*Note: The concept for this series we first published on http://www.seedbed.com “Sermon Series – Office Hours: Ministry in the Marketplace”