This coming week we are heading into Thanksgiving Day and then the home stretch toward Christmas. No other time in the year probably speaks more to my topic Sunday than this time. Sunday my message will be “Chasing Contentment”, a forgotten entity in our day and age. Instead of gratitude we are often found grumbling about what we don’t have and wish we did. Credit card debt is at an all-time high. I am going to take a backdoor approach this week by looking at 5 enemies of contentment:
Can you guess what those 5 enemies might be? I will fill you on Sunday as to what they are.
Okay, so I have just given you a line from a song from the ’60s that most probably all of you have never heard. So, take a few minutes to listen to it before reading on.
Okay now that you have a good chuckle let’s get serious. I am with Ryan (techgeek) attending Catalyst OneDay at Granger Community Church today. Guest speakers are Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel. I know he would be embarrassed with me saying this but I consider Craig the leader I would most like to know and have mentor me. I reckon he is doing that by long-distance with his books (Chawzon, Confessions of a Pastor and IT)and his blog. I look forward to meeting him today. I recently finished reading IT and was just wasted by the last chapter. He says there are 3 prayers he prays every day (and now you will see why the title and the song).
Stretch Me~When you become comfortable in your relationship with God, you’ll lose IT. By comfortable, he means complacent, lazy, and distracted. When I first moved to Spencer, I was a flatlander. I had cycled for almost 18 years in flat lands and I was moving to “hill country.” My first rides here were pitiful (with a capital “P”). I literally wanted to thought I was dying. But as time has gone on I have become a stronger rider and more adept at climbing. I had to stretch myself to become better. In the same way, God wants to stretch me/you. He wants me/you to live by faith far more than I did and currently do.
Ruin Me~ Craig tells the story of D.L. Moody’s experience the evening of the great Chicago Fire. Smelling smoke he dismissed the crowd without offering a possibility to accept Christ. Many of them would later die in the fire. Moody said never again would he ever close a message without giving people a chance to come to Christ. He had been ruined. His heart had been abandoned to Christ. Craig says that is one way to tell if someone has IT. Being ruined means that we fully desire to please God, obey Him, talk about Him, ache for people without Him, and are consumed with sharing His love with others. See Isaiah 6 for an example of someone who was ruined by God.
Heal Me~ God stretches us. God ruins us. But we also need to be healed by Him. Remember that example I told you about my cycling? I had to learn a different way to cycle and when I was done I was a hurting guy. My legs burned like they never had before. My muscles needed healed. I had to eat post-ride correctly. I needed to rest adequately. I have seen this when lifting weights. Muscle building comes when the fibers are “torn” and then heal, only to be “torn” again. But the healing Craig is talking about is much more than that. We also need healed from our addictions (there are many). I must admit that I am addicted to the “high” that comes from cycling. I crave it and these colder days are tough on me. I wanted to take my bike to theSticks conference just in case I would have a little bit of time (I didn’t. It got light too late and dark too early). I made a tough decision before I even left the house. I had my bike loaded and locked on my Outlander but decided to leave it at home. I need healed.
I am looking forward to meeting Craig (can you tell?). But more than that I am looking forward to what God is going to do in my life with these three prayers on my lips. I would encourage you, if you haven’t already done so, to order and read IT. Tell me your thoughts on this subject. I will be home late tonight but will post your comments and reply when I can (probably Friday morning). And quit laughing at me for using that video.
Here is a feel good story that we all can learn from! I am a proud “backer” of Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch (wish I had tons of money to send them). Troy and Kim Meeder do an awesome job with the horses and with those who go to the ranch to heal. May their tribe increase. Okay now…sit back and read the story and marvel at what a miracle-of-the-horse-kind looks like. Read the story here.
Are you a horse lover? Do you have any in your family? Then hook up with CPYR and tell them Bill (cycleguy) sent you. They won’t know me as that so you can use my whole name (see bloglink in your server).
How many time have you heard the phrase “God told me to _______________ (fill in the blank)? I am going to be brutally honest here: I have always and still do have trouble with that statement. Not that I don’t believe God can work in a person’s life and lead him/her in a specific direction. There have been times that I have prepared a sermon for a given Sunday only to have God say, “I don’t want you to preach that sermon this morning.” “Oh No God! You have got to be kidding!” That happened for example on the Sunday following 9/11. I went to the office that morning to study and practice my sermon some more but the more I studied the more uncomfortable I felt. I soon felt God was saying, “Not today Bill. Not that one. Something else.” Now, I didn’t hear an audible voice (I will leave that to the..well you know) . I didn’t have a burning in my bosom (I will leave that to the Mormons). I didn’t have any writing on the wall (I will leave that to Daniel). About the only way I can express it is that there was this disquieting in my soul. Does that make sense?
As a pastor, as a leader, there is another kind of voice I can hear at times. It is the voice of the enemy. It is the voice of comparison. It is the voice of fear. It is the voice of competition. It is the voice of one-upmanship. So, even though I am a Christ-follower and even though I am a pastor, I have this battle waging within me-the battle of God’s voice vs. the enemy’s voice. (By the way: I very seldom use the name Satan or devil any more. I use enemy to remind myself exactly what he is. I never want to underestimate him or his desire. Call it a quirk but hey, everyone has one. That is one of mine). This battle can be seen in the desire to be alone with God versus “I have this and this to do”. This battle can be seen in God’s desire to be my everything versus me stuffing my life with innocuous junk. This battle can be seen and here is the big one in whether I will put God first and seek Him with my heart, soul, mind and strength versus dividing my loyalty by fence-sitting. Pastor Charles Hill (the host pastor) talked about the subtle shift that can make a substantial change in a leader’s soul. Using the familiar interlocking picture of the Trinity, he said the common area was the “red spot.” How we negotiate the red spot will determine whether we learn from failing or fall on our sword (reference to the end of King Saul’s life).
I am going to admit that there have been so many times I have fallen on my sword. After listening to Pastor Charles I finally figured out why and it was a Bible verse that I have read more times than I care to admit (since it buzzed right on by me). I Samuel 15:24: “Saul said to Samuel, ‘I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.‘” (ESV) One of my biggest fears, and one that has probably done as much to thwart my efforts as a leader, has been fear of the people. But I can see what Pastor Charles was saying. A mandate from God-hearing from God-requires obedience whether the people will go along or not! Whether the people will rise up and bless me or just rise up! Every pastor, every leader, must face this. Karl Barth said, “Courage is fear that said its prayers.”
So, beware of the subtle shift. The pleasure of God or the fear of men. What do you think? Do you struggle with this or are you an “iron” person, not caring what others think? Please feel free to take issue with anything I wrote or to share your thoughts.
In keeping with my compassion theme for today I thought I would post this Blast from the Past. Other than country music what is the favorite topic of most songs? I would venture to say it could possibly be loneliness. Then again, I reckon you could include loneliness in country music also. It just comes out in drinking beer & the lonely hearts club. The Beatles’ song Eleanor Rigby was about loneliness. America’s Lonely People was another one. The list could go on and on. I am convinced if the church is going to make any kind of difference in the lives of people today the lonely are definitely not a group to be forgotten. Loneliness is no respecter of persons-rich, poor, white, black, male, female, Christ-follower or one far from God-no one is immune. This song was done in 1969 by a group that was an anomaly in the world of psychedelic music. Rich voices & tight harmony characterized their music. Enjoy the song
Get a load of those pants!! On a more serious note: even though there were three, loneliness still abounded. Chuck Negron, the lead singer in this song, wasted his life and voice on drugs until several years ago when he finally got the help he needed. His story is told in a fascinating but increasingly sober book called Three Dog Nightmare. It is my understanding that he is now a Christ-follower. The other two, Danny Wells and Cory Hutton, still tour as 3 Dog Night. I saw them about 5 years ago and they were in great voice and put on a great show.
Jesus never forgot anyone. He included all sorts of people in His arms, except the religious who didn’t think they needed Him. My prayer is that neither you nor those you know and love find yourself alone and without hope. Tell me what you think. Any songs come to mind? How do you react to lonely people? Does your heart break?
One of the hallmarks, I believe, of a Christ-follower is compassion. Follow Jesus’ life in the Gospels and you will be hard-pressed to go a chapter without at least one incident where compassion oozed out of Him. Some people are like that…they ooze compassion. But some really struggle with it. Some have the idea of “they made their bed let them lie in it.” Some have the idea of “I feel sorry for that person but not enough to do anything about it.” Some are just frozen when it comes to showing compassion. No way; no how. Am I missing something here when a person who calls himself a Christ-follower has no compassion for a fellow human being? One of the things I appreciate about this current generation of younger Christ-followers is their concern for those who are needy-physically and spiritually. But especially physically. Unless I miss my guess that is the church in action. That is exactly what Jesus was talking about when He said, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, i was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me” (Mt.25:35-36) Practical, living-in-the-now compassion is what Jesus is describing.
But how far does compassion go? Better yet…how much compassion do you have? I was visiting another blog (James McDonald’s) and his son, Luke, posted the following article. Luke’s words were “If you don’t feel compassion for this guy, please leave my life forever.” Curious, I looked. I see what he means. I invite you to click here to read the article and then ask yourself: how much compassion do I have? Tell me what you think. Oh I better warn you. It is not for the faint of heart.
As a pastor, I try to encourage Thanksgiving Thanksliving as a year ’round lifestyle. I know I struggle with that in my own life, of remembering daily what God has done for me. With that thought in mind I read something this morning that really struck a chord with me. It is from the pen of Pastor David Jeremiah and his Turning Points devotional magazine. Hope you benefit from it.
Make it Happen
I will walk in Your truth; I will praise You, O Lord my God…And I will glorify Your name forevermore. Psalm 86:11-12
A commercial for the Royal Bank of Scotland Group depicts four business people eating lunch when suddenly one of them starts to choke on his bite of food. His colleagues begin discussing the situation, noting that he is in fact choking and that they know exactly what to do the Heimlich maneuver. They then go into detail about how to properly do the maneuver but never once get up to help their co-worker in any way. During their conversation, a man from another table comes over and saves the choking man’s life by performing the Heimlich and then quietly walks away. The tagline at the end of the commercial is “Make it happen.”
It is easy to utter words of gratitude to the Lord during prayer and worship, but it is quite another to make those words come alive day in and day out. While expressing our thankfulness through worship is important, our aim should be productive gratitude; actively living in praise and thanksgiving. Today, when you stop to consider the many blessings God has given, don’t let your gratitude end with words; rather, “make it happen” with a grateful heart and joyful spirit.
As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. John F. Kennedy
It is the beginning of a new week and now that my life has returned to some (emphasis on some) normalcy, I want to continue sharing some thoughts from theSticks conference I attended last week. One of the speakers on Tuesday was Barry Worcester, pastor of H2O church based in Oklahoma. H2O is a growing multi-campus church which is part of the lifechurch.tv network. His message was practical and he encouraged us to take risks. He began by asking a question: why is it important to do something out of a box? His answer: we live in such a unique time in history. There are over 60 million people who live in towns of 2500 or less!! WOW! I certainly didn’t know that. I reckon that makes Spencer (3000 population) a sprawling metropolis. What Barry confronted us with though was no laughing matter. Here is what he said: There are 2 fences people sit on. They are either:
Moses people (Ex.6:120 (Num.14:22-23) or they are Joshua people. We can either play it safe (like the Moses people) or we can be willing to take a risk (like the Joshua people). Isaiah 42:13 says, “The Lord goes out like a mighty man, like a man of war he stirs up his zeal; he cries out, he shouts aloud, he shows himself mighty against his foes.” (ESV) Here is what I took away from this: a church that takes risks must not be afraid to fail. Failure will be a part of what we do. No question! The Moses people failed to try. The Joshua people were not afraid to try and maybe face failure. Man, I could go on and on about this. I can also hang my head in shame at my failure to try things because I was afraid of failure and the resulting questions: will I lose my job? Will they stop liking me (a very dangerous trap to get into)? Will they not trust me again? Will they never try something new again if we fail? On and on the questions roll. I believe it is Teddy Roosevelt who is credited with saying, “It is better to have tried and failed than to never have tried at all”? The church I pastor is faced with some interesting challenges/opportunities in the possible near future. First, I have to take the lead in going outside the box. And I have to not be afraid of failure if it doesn’t work! Second, I have to lead us into thinking things through and realize if something isn’t working, then stop doing it! Some tough calls may have to be made but that will determine if Moses or Joshua is in the house.
One funny thought Barry mentioned: how did 40 years of fertilizing the desert not produce fruit? Chew awhile on that one.
What do you think? Care to put your .02 worth in? I am willing to listen and hear what you have to say.
I am speaking this morning in my series on Pursuit concerning Chasing Attitudes. My focus will be in Phil.2:1-11 and 4:6-8. But my purpose in this post is not to rehash what I will be speaking on. It is to relate a story that some of you may have already heard or read. Please bear with me if you have.
Dr. Viktor Frankl was a bold, courageous Jew who became a prisoner during the Holocaust (you know…the thing they say never happened…yeah right). Dr. Frankly endured years of indignation and humiliation at the hands of the Nazis before he was finally liberated. He was marched into a gestapo courtroom but before he ever reached that point his captors had taken away his home and family, his freedom, his possessions, even his watch and wedding ring. They had shaved his head and stripped the clothing off his body. He stood before the German high command under glaring lights, being interrogated in a kangaroo court and falsely accused of treason. He was destitute, a pawn in the hands of brutal, sadistic men. He had nothing. But then Frankl realized he had something that the Nazis could not take away…the power to choose his own attitude.
No matter what anyone would ever to do him, regardless of what the future held, the attitude choice was his own. He could be bitter or he could forgive. He could choose to give up or to go on. He could choose to hate or hope. He could determine to endure or give in to self-pity. Anyone who heard Frankl speak after his rescue, would know which one he chose.
As Christ-followers you and I have that same choice. In Phil.4:8 we are given qualities (attitudes) that every one of us should pursue. I know I need to do a better job of doing so. Take a moment and read that verse again, taking each one of them and doing a self-inspection of your own attitude. Then say a prayer asking God to give you the right attitude, not just for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday but for each new day. Let me know how your self-inspection went. Maybe we can be in the same oh-oh club.
I suspect all most of us could look back into our past and find a pastor whom we would run from. It may have been one of our own. It may have been one that a friend or relative had. Heck, it may have been “us.” (Trust me when I say that would have been times I would have run from me). We see media reports, seemingly every day, of some pastor somewhere falling morally or starting a church cult with some “whacked out” teaching. The following post by David Foster is well worth your time to read. You may comment on his post or come back here and comment.
