A Few Observations

• It’s not about sin-management or being a good person or doing good things
• God is making us Whole and Holy - the person, the life He created us to be - restored and renewed - a new creation
• He is the only One who can do that and what we need is to be available to and seek Him
• To begin we need to STOP and be STILL
• We must stop living in the small story of our lives and learn to live in THE STORY, HIS STORY
• We are opposed and we live in a world at war - yes, it’s true, we have an adversary
• We each have an important role to play
• God longs for true relationship with each of us, as personal and real and more intimate than the one you have with you’re wife or husband - He will speak, and we will hear, if we will truly listen
• True love for others only flows through us to the degree His love flows into us, fills us and then overflows into the world
• We are each fearfully and wonderfully made - no matter what you may “think”

And …

• Helping others to seek and live in the above is the greatest gift we can give. (John 10:10b - “I came that they may have life and have it to the full.)

Awesome Song For Easter

It was interesting this morning as I was driving to an early meeting in Tysons, I decided to play “You Were There” (I actually hadn’t heard it for over 6 months).  Anyway, as I heard it I was powerfully struck again by the message of a consistent, powerful, loving God and I wept.  A powerful song for the upcoming weekend.

He is especially fond of you!

I recently finished the book by William P. Young called The Shack.  A dear friend recommended it to me after his son recommended it to him.  Now, I will tell you up front that you will be changed.  How is between you and God.  But I feel certain that you will not be the same person you were before you read the book.  It may be a small change, it may be life changing; but either way you will be different.

I also encourage you to read it without googling it.  The cleanest read is the one done “raw”.   This work is by no means theologically comprehensive.  It is narrow in scope but powerful in execution.

Beyond that, I will say no more.  I would love to hear your comments, thoughts, insights, impressions, etc. 

Context For Our Lives

Epic

That is what we live in.  Contrary to what we think and feel most of the time, Life is NOT the small story of our lives.  Our context is much bigger, much more … well, Epic. 

We live in a real story, an adventure in which we were created with a glory and a noble purpose.  An adventure where there is danger and we are mightily opposed.  An adventure where we are hunted and preyed upon.  An adventrue where we have a crucial role to play and where our choices and actions matter - REALLY matter for good or for ill.  An adventure where there is a true King.  A King whose singular purpose is our restoration and renewal.  A King who loves us more than we can imagine. 

This is our context.  The context for every breath we take.  If we fail to walk in the Epic we will quickly loose sight of who we are and what we were created to be.  My prayer is that we all will live and walk and battle with the King; in the largest story that has ever been written.  The one written on the human heart.

If you’d like to go deeper - Click Here and Godspeed!

Football Season Swan Song

I think I have to agree Ryan on all counts. With regard to Game 2 - If Farve is on his game GB will be unbeatable … However, if not, then I think the Giants have a good shot.

Ultimately, I think the only team with a chance to beat NE this year is really GB and then only if Farve is on and the whole team plays with the intensity they played with on Saturday. Failing that, I think NE is too though to beat.

If it does turn out to be GB v NE, we have the potential of seeing two amazing quarterbacks duke it out in what could be one of the best Super Bowls in years! We can only hope

Scrooge is alive and well … in Dallas

You never know when your actions will crush innocence, break relationship, or simply disappoint. 

A case in point is a friend of mine who was in Amarillo, TX visiting his parents for Christmas.  Last weekend he and his wife were in Dallas to do some shopping and see the Dallas home game against the Eagles.  Now my friend is a BIG Dallas fan and has just finished a 5 year run living in  and “endurring” Redskin territory AND his childhood hero is Troy Aikman.  Well, as you might expect, Mr. Aikman was broadcasting the game for Fox Sports that day and … well, I will let you read about the encounter yourself … http://thinkspot.wordpress.com/2007/12/18/my-brush-with-stardom-part-1/.

I will give Mr. Aikman the fact that having someone throw something up into the broadcast booth is probably NOT something you want to get started in a crowd of a few thousand of your “closest friends”.  However, what Mr. Aikman should have taken into account was 1) the guts it took to do what my friend did and 2) the approximate age of my friend (would have been a youth/teenager when Mr. Aikman actually played for Dallas).

You see Mr. Aikman had options.  My friend had none.  Mr. Aikman could have sent a “production assistant” down to get the shirt, sign it during a commercial and had it back to my friend with the most minimal of effort on his part.  My friend, on the other hand, had no option other than to take a chance on someone he had greatly admired since childhood.

Now it is true that we are not responsible for other people’s views and expectations of us.  However, we do have opportunities.  Opportunities to be the best we can be (which is all about including others in our lives especially if they are unknown to us - Luke 6:31-33) and to live in every moment intentionally as if our lives depended upon it.

In the “grand scheme of things” my friend’s encounter with Troy Aikman will be blip on the radar, but make no mistake - my friend WAS wounded.  Childhood heroes go down hard.  Never again will he think of or feel about Mr. Aikman in the same way.  Though he will most likely still remain a fan of Mr. Aikman, Mr. Aikman’s image has now been tarnished by embarrassment, pain and disappointment.  We all hope our heroes are the men and women we believe them to be and we are wounded when we find out they are not.

Are you a hero to someone?  Maybe not like Troy Aikman but in your own way, in your own place in the world?  If you are, remember my friend’s encounter with Mr. Aikman.  Reach out and be the best you can be every moment of every day.  You just never know whose life, for good or for ill,  may be affected by your actions.

And remember, especially at this time of the year, that there is really only One who will never fail us.  Merry Christmas! 

Why We Celebrate …

Last night I watched The Passion Of The Christ.  It was the first time I’d seen it since I saw it in the theater when it was originally released.  As we draw near to Christmas I wanted a reminder as to why it is we celebrate the coming of our Lord.  Boy, did I get it. 

Thank you my God for sending your son that I might hear the good news, that my broken heart might be mended, that I may be freed from my captivity, that I may be released from my dark prison, that I may receive a crown of beauty, that I may be anointed with the oil of gladness, that I might wear a garment of praise and “called an oak of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.” Amen. (Isaiah 61)

The following video expresses why we celebrate.  The gift we’ve been given.  The sacrifice made. The reason for life. God’s restoration of our hearts and the recreation of our lives in Him.

For God so Loved … that He gave … His only … that whoever believes … might have LIFE!

_________________________________

The song is by a Christian metal band called UnderOath and the song is entitled Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape.  The song has been put to scenes from The Passion of the Christ. I have included the lyrics below.

If you’ve seen The Passion you will remember that some of the scenes are brutal - some of that is included in the clip below - watch with discression.

 

Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape
   ——Underoath

I heard a voice through the discord
A deluge of passersby
I saw one gaze frozen in time
Watching me passing by

And I swear I’ll know your face in the crowd
And I’ll hear your voice so loud
When you’re whispering

Hey unfaithful I will teach you
To be stronger, to be stronger
Hey ungraceful I will teach you
To forgive one another.

Here’s my kiss to betray (Kiss to betray)
Desperate to brush the lips of grace (Brush the lips of grace)
Do you feel hollow when you think of how I lied?

Oh sweet angel of mercy
With your grace like the morning
Wrap your loving arms around me
Oh sweet angel of mercy
With your grace like the morning
Wrap your loving arms around me

Hey unfaithful I will teach you
To be stronger, to be stronger
Hey ungraceful I will teach you
To forgive one another

Hey unfaithful I will teach you
To be stronger, to be stronger
Hey unloving
I will love you
I will love you
I will love you

And Jesus I’m ready to come home
Jesus, I’m ready to come home(home)
home (home)
I’m ready to come (home)
Hey Unfaithful
Hey Ungraceful
Hey Unloving
I will love you
Hey Unloving (Hey Unloving)
I will love you

 

Timidity

Last Sunday in service our pastor asked that if anyone needed prayer that they would raise their hand and then people would gather around them and we would pray over them as a congregation.  Now my following comments are not intended to criticize anyone but quite frankly it was a lesson in timidity. 

Like sin, we think of the necessity or worthiness of prayer in degrees. Just as we have a tendency to “rate” sin on a sliding scale, so too, we rate our need and thus what is worthy of prayer on a sliding scale.  If I am not really “suffering” in some way, if I am not REALLY desperate or at the “end of my rope” for God and have nowhere else to turn then we either say to ourselves (or Satan whispers in our ear and we assent to it) “There are others with bigger problems than you have and they deserve prayer, not you.” OR “This isn’t that big of a deal. You can handle this yourself.” Or “My need seems so small compared to Bob’s sister dying of cancer. I will seem foolish if I ask for prayer because my heart is heavy and I’m just not really connecting with God.” Or “I am really struggling with x, y or z (pick a sin pattern) but it’s so embarrassing that I really don’t want anyone to know that I am struggling because they might actually ask what’s going on and then I either have to dance around it or lie and I am not supposed to lie so …. it’s just easier to avoid it all.” 

There are probably other excuses but these probably capture the most common categories; however, if everyone in the service on Sunday was honest with themselves, most, if not all, could have or should have raised their hand when asked. If we are honest with ourselves and with God, we all have need of him every moment of every day.   

Maybe next time our pastor could ask us to think of someone in the congregation that we know needs prayer (big deal or small on the imaginary sliding scale) and ask us to raise our hands when we’re thinking of them and as we think of them and their need we can corporately lift these prayers to God with our hands raised.  OR - If we were really bold, we would have people go and lay hands on whoever they were thinking of and pray for them … but that would probably freak a few people out and, if community is really working, it might be a bit chaotic … but I think God would LOVE it!

More on “it will be yours”

We had a good night at Home Fellowship on Friday but I was struck between the eyes by the timidness of our prayers.  Now I am NOT in any way, shape or form criticizing anyone.  I love everyone in our Home Fellowship and we lift each other up before the throne of God in love.  But probably because God has been working me through this, I took a chance and brought what I was felling  to the group.  Good discussion but no answers.

Then BANG!  I am sitting in the service on Sunday and God whacks me between the eyes with a simple truth.  It’s not about what we get. 

Now as a Christian I believe it is better to give than to receive …  to be a servant than to be served.  So why is it so hard for me to be thankful and grateful for all of His answers to prayer … even when they are different or not what I expect them to be?  Why am I disappointed when the answer to prayer is different than what I prayed for?  Is it my lack of faith.  My lack of contentment.  My failure to accept, rejoice in and rest in all He has given even when it is inconsistent with my expectations. 

Why am I timid in prayer?  If I am honest with myself it’s because I want to protect  my image of God or probably more likely that I want to protect my own heart from the disappointment and pain of not getting what I “want” … and so I begin prayer with something to the effect of “If it be your will, I ask  …” 

I begin with an expectation of things not turning out the way I want them to.  In that fear, that lack of confidence in God to come through, I become timid (I essentially say to God, “I really don’t know what you’re going to do here and I am not really quite sure you are going to come through in this powerful way so …”).  But doesn’t God always come through?  Doesn’t He Love perfectly?  Of course He does!  I can intellectually ascent to it but have I really let the truth come to rest in my heart?    

I have been trying to find anyone in the Bible that starts a prayer with “If it be your will, …”.  So far the closest is Christ in Gethsemane but it’s not the same … yes, he does say “But not my will but yours”, but look at that closely.  He prays with power for what he wants then acknowledges that God the Father is ultimately sovereign over all and may have a different plan, a plan that is not His, a plan that is beyond what He can see at that moment locked in the physical world of man.

Was Christ’s relationship with the Father tarnished in any way since He didn’t get what he wanted?  No.  In fact the example He gives us is to “lean in” to the Father.  To trust Him MORE. 

What does it mean to “lean in” to Him even when we don’t get what we pray for?  FREEDOM!  Freedom to be bold in prayer.  Freedom to fall and get up.  Freedom to live and love with abandon.

Why?  I’m not sure I fully understand the answer … I am still processing; but I believe that it’s because, as God spoke so clearly to me on Sunday morning , it’s not about what you get or don’t get and it’s not about if or when you get it. 

It is ALL about you God and not about me.

MySpace Dangers, et. al.

I think this article speaks for itself.  No othere words are necessary … and I have none.

http://www.halflifesource.com/news/2007/11/14/article10088.htm