Who Are You Hurting?

Sin is a topic we don't like to talk much about. We prefer to either ignore the things that we are doing, rationalize our behavior or belittle it to assuage our guilt and/or shame. Part of the problem is our understanding of who we are actually affecting with our sinful choices. We tend to think that unless it is a deliberate choice to hurt someone else that it can't be that bad. Looking at porn doesn't impact those around us therefore it isn't a big deal. Being prideful is really about our mindset so it won't truly cause anyone else grief. Cheating on our taxes or on a test doesn't really affect the big picture so it isn't a big deal. A small lie to make ourselves look better won't bother anyone because it's not a fallacy about them.

We have missed the point. Our sin isn't actually against the people around us or even ourselves-although the consequences of our choices can be damaging to both. We have sinned against God and it is our rebellion against Him that causes us the most grief. Even though we know it isn't right to cheat on our spouses, to get drunk every weekend, to gossip about others, to lie, to be divisive in church and to steal, it isn't until we realize that these are transgressions against God and not each other that we stand a chance of true repentance and finding forgiveness and cleansing from Him.

Psalm 51:3-4 "For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what was evil in Your sight"

40 Reasons

Today is my 40th birthday. I'm not one for celebrating my own birthday much-not out of fear of age, but that I don't think it's a big deal. In honor of that day however, I decided to list 40 different reasons that I am thankful:

1.   A God who looks at my failings & shortcomings and loves me through them
2.   A wife that is more than I could ever deserve
3.   Lindsay-my oldest daughter and the leadership and compassion that I see in her each day
4.   Bailey-my middle daughter and her love for life and intense concentration in everything she does
5.   Olivia-my youngest and her love of her family and passionate intensity
6.   My mom-strong and loving and always gave me the freedom to try
7.   A family of in-laws that never made me feel like an "in-law" but always like family
8.   Family that means more to me than they know-even if we don't connect as much as I would like to
9.   High school friends that have reconnected over Facebook
10. Childhood friends that have never lost contact-even over miles and years
11. Seeing the results of investing in people as they discover Christ and commit to Him
12. People I am friends with now that were once students
13. Memories of good old Mainland High School-Buc Pride Never Dies!
14. Two cars that are fully paid for
15. A chance to start over financially
16. A friend and mentor for a boss that was patient and prayerful as we healed
17. For friendships of the past that are no more-I am grateful for the time that we shared
18. To know that I am missed
19. For brand new friends that lovingly accept our whole family
20. A chance to serve alongside brothers & sisters from Arizona, Michigan & CIY
21. The chance to preach-the message burns in my bones and must be shared whether I want to or not
22. The spiritual growth and depth that my wife and I have shared in the last few years
23. Comforts of life-food, shelter, clothing, water-things that I take for granted more than I should
24. That God has promised to never leave me or forsake me-no matter what
25. Mercies that are brand new every morning
26. A good meal around the table with my girls
27. Daddy-daughter birthday breakfasts
28. The influence of my grandparents-not a day goes by that I don't miss them
29. A beautiful home on a lake
30. Our health
31. My wife-my best friend, lover, spiritual companion and life partner. I love growing older with her
32. The opportunity to use the gifts that God has given me on a regular basis
33. Northridge Christian Church and all of God's people that I get to minister to regularly
34. Time on the back porch with my wife
35. Our time at Tomoka-it shaped me in so many ways and put me on this path that God had ordained for us
36. Music-it resonates in my soul in so many different ways
37. An audience with the King of Kings every moment of every day
38. Morning coffee time with my Bible
39. God's calling on my life-even if I don't know the exact direction & timing, I know this is where I am meant to be
40. Another year to celebrate the life I have been blessed with.

What's the Problem?

It doesn't take long to jump right back into the flow of things once you return from a trip. I hit the ground running as soon as I got back to Northridge from CIY Move on Saturday and it hasn't really slowed down. The intensity of things is already peaking and the schedule is full. In the midst of this I am still processing the experiences of last week and the things that God is sharing with me in the aftermath of His work.

The emphasis on our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters at Move is still affecting my spirit. Seeing the reality of what they must deal with just to be able to worship certainly has an impact on how I perceive our "struggles" here. To see fellow warriors for Christ take bold stands in the face of physical and sexual assault, destruction of property, loss of limbs and even death reminds me of how weak my own faith is. The passion that they exhibit for following their King is remarkable and inspires me to be consistently prayerful for them.

Comparing the enthusiastic passion of the persecuted church with the American church isn't necessarily fair. Our circumstances are obviously incredibly different for many reasons. It is discouraging however to see so much of our focus shift to complaining about the temperature in the room, the selection of songs that are sung, whether someone said hi to us, how clean the church is, or what shirt or shoes someone is wearing. I seriously doubt these are ongoing debates in the underground church.

We have lost focus on the biggest problem-a world that desperately needs to hear of the grace, forgiveness and restoration offered by Jesus Christ and our responsibility to do whatever it takes to make that message heard. What would happen if our respective churches would throw their energies behind solving that problem first?

The Kingdom

It has been a powerful week at CIY Move for me, but in a completely different way than ever before.

Now that I am no longer working directly in youth ministry, I came to the Move conference without leading any youth. I was here as the campus pastor for the week with the responsibility of ministering to the adult leaders. My entire thought process and spiritual emphasis wasn't based on the group of teens that I was with. It was about finding opportunities to engage adults in conversation, to bring them encouragement, to share resources and let them know how valued they are.

I had many thoughts coming into the week, but can say that it surpassed all that I had imagined. My soul felt alive as I was able to be thoroughly consumed with the ministry of serving other Kingdom workers. I could feel the Holy Spirit guiding conversations and providing a level of trust that should not have been accomplished in such a short span of time. I was able to talk with several leaders through shared experiences of woundedness and hopefully help to bring some healing. The entire week felt as if I was serving and ministering right in the middle of my spiritual gifting and it was an incredible blessing.

I am grateful for a wife and children that supportively understand my calling and are willing to endure such time away. I am also grateful for a church leadership that values the investment we are making in God's Kingdom-even if we don't ever see any direct earthly benefit.

I am eagerly anticipating the blessing God is going to bring to His Church as we all continue to invest in the Kingdom.

Love Costs Everything

God-given and empowered love costs everything. It costs us:

our faith

our time

our prejudices

our future

our vision

our finances

our present

our agenda

our preferences

our bitterness

our unforgiveness

our sin

our pride

our past

our ambition

our reputation

our family

our heart, mind, soul and strength.

When you're committed to the King, it's worth it.

What Have They Heard?

I've always been fascinated with the story of Rahab from the Bible. She was a prostitute and was redeemed from that to become part of the human lineage of Jesus. An incredible story of grace, second chances and what can happen when you put your trust in God.

As she helped the spies from Israel avoid capture and certain death, she begged them to spare her family. She told the two spies that she had protected them because she had heard of the power of God. There is no evidence that she had experienced it herself-just that she had heard of who God was and how He worked in His people. That alone inspired her to want to follow Him.

What do people in our own communities know about our God? Not those that are sitting in a church every Sunday, but the people that are disengaged, discouraged, de-churched or apathetic. What do they hear and know about who our God is? We tend to blame people for misinformation and incorrect presuppositions about our King, but perhaps the fault lies in us not clearly communicating who He is to the world around us.

Let's make it a priority to have our God spoken well of in our cities. That's only going to happen when His people live in peace with each other and are passionate about meeting needs and reaching the lost.

Assume the Position

When I worked in athletic training there was a phrase that we would hope we wouldn't have to use when dealing with injuries. It was something that we only said when it was a serious incident and one in which we suspected that damage had been done to the cervical spine of the athlete. It was simply, "assume the position." When given as a directive, it instructed the other athletic trainer to stabilize the head and neck so that no other potential damage could occur. It instantly put you on alert and had you waiting further instructions as the current situation was handled. It was not something that was used lightly, you took your responsibility very seriously and were ready to follow through on the best plan of action.

The "assume the position" phrase came to mind tonight in a slightly different light as we talked about the Biblical account of Samuel hearing from God. The idea was that we need to strategically position ourselves to be available to hear from Him. It requires humbling ourselves to his directives, being on alert for what He might have to say and taking this privilege and honor very seriously. It means eliminating distractions and other competing noises so that we can effectively hear from God and then do something with it.

It's not easy to do with the multiple layers of influence on us and with the noisy distractions we surround ourselves with. If we desire to eagerly and obediently fulfill our calling in Christ however, it's essential.