Last night my wife and I went into Boston to see the show "Once." It's a love story about two people who fall in love through the guy's music. It was a great show full of great modern Irish music. As I'm sitting in the Boston Opera House, I could not help but be overwhelmed by the beauty of this place. The architecture and the details were amazing. I am always enamored by very detailed craftsmanship, especially craftsmanship that has been around for a while. As I'm gazing around at the fine work of art that the opera house is, I thanked God for the beauty of His creation. I know that He did not create the opera house himself, but he created the people who did. Then as I'm watching the show progress, I was amazed by the amount of talent that was on that stage. There were so many musicians who were so talented and it stirred my soul again towards the beauty of God's handiwork.
For so long, Christians have been the ones to define what true beauty is and where it is found. We have said that true beauty only lies within the walls of the church. The outside world is full of filth and corruption and there is no way beauty can exist out there. Granted, we have appreciated the work of creation, but when it comes to finding beauty within our cultures and societies, we have turned a blind eye while culture and society continues to move past us, leaving us in the dust of irrelevance. As the Church, we have to start seeing the beauty that is around us. We have to start celebrating the beauty of God's creation and not just things like the universe and the Grand Canyon. There are so many things in this world that are beautiful and there are so many things that give glory to God that we miss on a daily basis.
When I was younger, I had a huge cd case full of cds that I would listen to constantly. My favorite band at the time was Smashing Pumpkins. I loved their sound and their lyrics made you think about what they were trying to say through their songs. But, as I got serious about following Jesus, there was pressure to get rid of anything that was "secular." That meant my cds had to go, especially if I was going into ministry. So, I got rid of all my CDs. I still miss them sometimes when I look back on it. I miss listening to some of that music because it was good music. It took me a long time to buy a "secular" song or album again because I had been indoctrinated into the idea that "secular" was bad and "sacred" was good and could only be found inside the walls of the church.
Now, don't get me wrong, there are some things that should not be listened to or watched. There are some things that as Christians we should not involve ourselves in. But, we should not go overboard. I am definitely not a Lady Gaga fan, but I do like music that is not "Christian." And, honestly, there is some Christian music that is plain bad.
In order to be Jesus to the world around us and to keep up with a culture that is constantly changing, we need to open our eyes to the beauty that can be found in the secular. We need to stop always drawing the line between sacred and secular. We need to encourage young Christians to allow God to speak to them and not discourage them from following their dreams. We need to encourage people to do what God has designed them to do and be a light for him there. If a young person in a church wants to go into theater, we should encourage them to follow their dreams and teach them to see that as their mission field.
Jesus died for us so that we could lead others to him. If we don't know how to speak the language (without being influenced by the language), then we are going to sit behind our four walls, sing our songs to Jesus, and fade away into irrelevance without being an influence on the world around us.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Why is everyone not happy, happy, happy?
I'm going to come right out and say it, I love Duck Dynasty! Finally, we have a reality show that is wholesome and does not involve crazy women (or men) trying to find love, teenagers pregnant, or Honey Boo Boo. We finally have a show about a family that is not dysfunctional. They are not seeking fame and fortune. They are allowing America to take a peek into their lives and have a good laugh while doing it.
The most important aspect of Duck Dynasty that I love so much is that they are not ashamed of their faith nor their values. As we all know Phil Robertson, a.k.a. the Duck Commander, is coming under a lot of heat for comments he made in an interview with GQ magazine. You can read the Fox News story about it here:http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/12/18/phil-robertson-suspended-after-comments-about-homosexuality/
Twitter and Facebook started blowing up last night over this controversy. Representatives from both sides have chimed in and I felt like it was my turn to give my perspective on the whole situation.
1. I respect Phil Robertson for saying what he said and the way he lives for Christ unashamed. It may not be politically correct what he said, but aren't we all getting a little tired of having to be politically correct all the time? It's like we have to walk on egg shells every time we have a conversation with anyone. And, the comments he made were about his faith and his opinion on things. Everyone has a right to their opinion. Just because you don't agree with it, does not mean that you have to hate the person. Phil was speaking the truth that he knows from the Scriptures.
2. As Christians, we have to be wise in how we handle this whole situation, especially through social media outlets. We can get very upset and make a big stink about this or we can take a different approach. We have to remember that the One we follow was silenced for what he believed was right. He spoke the truth with love and conviction and he was crucified for it. The leaders of his day did not agree with him and wanted him silenced. Therefore, they went to the utmost extreme to make sure that it happened. They even got the national government involved. The Phil Robertson situation should come as no surprise to us. Jesus said that the world would hate his followers. If we are accepted by the world, then we should reevaluate how we are living. If we want to follow Christ, then the world is not going to accept us because the world did not accept him. So, we can be a squeaky wheel and play the martyr or we can look to Christ for strength to endure and wisdom to know how to continue spreading the Gospel.
3. The church in America needs to change. This may sound contrary to what I have said above, but it's not. We have spent too long trying to attract people to church. That is the model that we live by. Because of that, we have fallen into the trap of compromise. We like when our churches are full because it makes us think that we are a successful church. But, when something controversial comes up, we are tempted to compromise because we don't want anyone to leave. Phil Robertson does not care about the show. He has said so himself in interviews. He does care about the platform the show gives him to preach the Gospel. The church in America should start caring less about the show and more about the Gospel. We are going to upset people if we preach the Gospel that Jesus preached. But, it's not our message or our ideas; it's Jesus' message. He told us to go into the world and preach the Gospel. The apostles died for this message. They didn't care about the show. They cared about Jesus and his Gospel.
Jesus did not die for us so that we could be comfortable. He died for us so that we could live. Life is not easy nor is it comfortable. Life with Christ will never be easy nor will it be comfortable. Thank you Phil Robertson for reminding me of this. I hope and pray that it will remind all us as well.
The most important aspect of Duck Dynasty that I love so much is that they are not ashamed of their faith nor their values. As we all know Phil Robertson, a.k.a. the Duck Commander, is coming under a lot of heat for comments he made in an interview with GQ magazine. You can read the Fox News story about it here:http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/12/18/phil-robertson-suspended-after-comments-about-homosexuality/
Twitter and Facebook started blowing up last night over this controversy. Representatives from both sides have chimed in and I felt like it was my turn to give my perspective on the whole situation.
1. I respect Phil Robertson for saying what he said and the way he lives for Christ unashamed. It may not be politically correct what he said, but aren't we all getting a little tired of having to be politically correct all the time? It's like we have to walk on egg shells every time we have a conversation with anyone. And, the comments he made were about his faith and his opinion on things. Everyone has a right to their opinion. Just because you don't agree with it, does not mean that you have to hate the person. Phil was speaking the truth that he knows from the Scriptures.
2. As Christians, we have to be wise in how we handle this whole situation, especially through social media outlets. We can get very upset and make a big stink about this or we can take a different approach. We have to remember that the One we follow was silenced for what he believed was right. He spoke the truth with love and conviction and he was crucified for it. The leaders of his day did not agree with him and wanted him silenced. Therefore, they went to the utmost extreme to make sure that it happened. They even got the national government involved. The Phil Robertson situation should come as no surprise to us. Jesus said that the world would hate his followers. If we are accepted by the world, then we should reevaluate how we are living. If we want to follow Christ, then the world is not going to accept us because the world did not accept him. So, we can be a squeaky wheel and play the martyr or we can look to Christ for strength to endure and wisdom to know how to continue spreading the Gospel.
3. The church in America needs to change. This may sound contrary to what I have said above, but it's not. We have spent too long trying to attract people to church. That is the model that we live by. Because of that, we have fallen into the trap of compromise. We like when our churches are full because it makes us think that we are a successful church. But, when something controversial comes up, we are tempted to compromise because we don't want anyone to leave. Phil Robertson does not care about the show. He has said so himself in interviews. He does care about the platform the show gives him to preach the Gospel. The church in America should start caring less about the show and more about the Gospel. We are going to upset people if we preach the Gospel that Jesus preached. But, it's not our message or our ideas; it's Jesus' message. He told us to go into the world and preach the Gospel. The apostles died for this message. They didn't care about the show. They cared about Jesus and his Gospel.
Jesus did not die for us so that we could be comfortable. He died for us so that we could live. Life is not easy nor is it comfortable. Life with Christ will never be easy nor will it be comfortable. Thank you Phil Robertson for reminding me of this. I hope and pray that it will remind all us as well.
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Is it time for the sinner's prayer to go?
I grew up in Arkansas in a conservative Southern Baptist Church. We had an altar call every Sunday. We would sing "Just As I Am" the whole time people were responding to an altar call (yes, sometimes that would mean all seven verses and then start over at the top!). I did not quite understand what was going on when I was young, but I began to figure it out when I got older. I saw that as people coming to Jesus. They would go to the altar and be led in a prayer called the sinner's prayer. It was a prayer where you confessed that you were a sinner and needed Jesus to come into your life. You would ask Jesus to come into your heart to be your personal Lord and Savior. I would see this done at youth camps that I would attend when I got into college. I even led some people in this prayer or at least was involved in it.
As I have grown older, I began to discover something that went against everything I thought I knew about coming to Jesus: the sinner's prayer is not found in Scripture. I know, shocking right. I remember a student of mine at a Christian school I taught at asked me where it can be found in the Bible and I had to break the bad news to him. So, if this prayer is not found in Scripture, then why are we still using it? Also, if Jesus never told someone to ask him into their hearts, then why are we still doing that?
By stressing the sinner's prayer and asking Jesus into our hearts, we have created a false sense of security. We have made the Gospel and following Jesus easy when they are anything but easy. We teach people that you can say a prayer and be saved. That's it. But, is that what the apostles died for? Is that what people are still dying for today?
I remember going to youth retreats where the speaker would end his message by having everyone bow their heads and close their eyes. Then he would give the invitation and have everyone who wanted to respond to raise their hand. He would also keep stressing that everyone's heads should be bowed and eyes closed. At the time I thought these were amazing God moments, but now I get uncomfortable with them. The reason being is if coming to Jesus is so awesome, then why are we making it private? Why do are we creating an atmosphere where people can hide when they come to Jesus? Jesus said in Luke 12:8-9, "I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God." Now, I know that responding to an altar call with no one looking is not quite the same as denying Christ; however, it does start a person's relationship with Christ under an umbrella of secrecy and perhaps even embarrassment that could carry over into that person's living for Christ.
When we push people to answer an altar call, lead them in a prayer and tell them to accept Jesus into their hearts, we are giving them a false sense of security that they are saved no matter what they do. We have turned the Gospel into fire insurance. We have taught people that the Gospel will get you out of hell and that's it. That is not the Gospel.
Jesus told people throughout his ministry to follow him. He did not lead them in a prayer nor did he tell them to accept him into their hearts. He told them to pick up a device of shame and torture and follow him. Luke 9:23 says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." This is what it takes to follow Jesus. This is an everyday decision to do this. We must be willing to identify with shame and suffering in order to follow Jesus. This is the only way we are going to experience the abundant life that is found only in Jesus.
If we want to see people save and changed by Jesus, we need to stop using the sinner's prayer as our only tool. We have to be willing to show these people how to follow Jesus. We have to be willing to build relationships with them so that they can grow in their faith. We have to make them disciples not converts. Converts will fall away, but disciples will endure. To know Jesus is not about just saying a prayer and asking him into our hearts; it's about giving up ourselves to know him. Paul said in Philippians 1:21, "For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain." Paul didn't just ask Jesus into his heart; he embraced Jesus as his life! Let's lead people to the life giver. Let's take away the umbrella of secrecy and embarrassment and let's lead them to the One who rejoices over His children. Zephaniah 3:17 says, "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." Is this the God we want to lead people to? If so, then we have to preach the real Gospel. We have to preach the Gospel that says identify with the suffering of Christ so that you can have the best life ever. Let's stop cheating people out of the real Gospel.
As I have grown older, I began to discover something that went against everything I thought I knew about coming to Jesus: the sinner's prayer is not found in Scripture. I know, shocking right. I remember a student of mine at a Christian school I taught at asked me where it can be found in the Bible and I had to break the bad news to him. So, if this prayer is not found in Scripture, then why are we still using it? Also, if Jesus never told someone to ask him into their hearts, then why are we still doing that?
By stressing the sinner's prayer and asking Jesus into our hearts, we have created a false sense of security. We have made the Gospel and following Jesus easy when they are anything but easy. We teach people that you can say a prayer and be saved. That's it. But, is that what the apostles died for? Is that what people are still dying for today?
I remember going to youth retreats where the speaker would end his message by having everyone bow their heads and close their eyes. Then he would give the invitation and have everyone who wanted to respond to raise their hand. He would also keep stressing that everyone's heads should be bowed and eyes closed. At the time I thought these were amazing God moments, but now I get uncomfortable with them. The reason being is if coming to Jesus is so awesome, then why are we making it private? Why do are we creating an atmosphere where people can hide when they come to Jesus? Jesus said in Luke 12:8-9, "I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God." Now, I know that responding to an altar call with no one looking is not quite the same as denying Christ; however, it does start a person's relationship with Christ under an umbrella of secrecy and perhaps even embarrassment that could carry over into that person's living for Christ.
When we push people to answer an altar call, lead them in a prayer and tell them to accept Jesus into their hearts, we are giving them a false sense of security that they are saved no matter what they do. We have turned the Gospel into fire insurance. We have taught people that the Gospel will get you out of hell and that's it. That is not the Gospel.
Jesus told people throughout his ministry to follow him. He did not lead them in a prayer nor did he tell them to accept him into their hearts. He told them to pick up a device of shame and torture and follow him. Luke 9:23 says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." This is what it takes to follow Jesus. This is an everyday decision to do this. We must be willing to identify with shame and suffering in order to follow Jesus. This is the only way we are going to experience the abundant life that is found only in Jesus.
If we want to see people save and changed by Jesus, we need to stop using the sinner's prayer as our only tool. We have to be willing to show these people how to follow Jesus. We have to be willing to build relationships with them so that they can grow in their faith. We have to make them disciples not converts. Converts will fall away, but disciples will endure. To know Jesus is not about just saying a prayer and asking him into our hearts; it's about giving up ourselves to know him. Paul said in Philippians 1:21, "For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain." Paul didn't just ask Jesus into his heart; he embraced Jesus as his life! Let's lead people to the life giver. Let's take away the umbrella of secrecy and embarrassment and let's lead them to the One who rejoices over His children. Zephaniah 3:17 says, "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." Is this the God we want to lead people to? If so, then we have to preach the real Gospel. We have to preach the Gospel that says identify with the suffering of Christ so that you can have the best life ever. Let's stop cheating people out of the real Gospel.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Fatherly humility
I had a rough day last week. I completely lost my cool with my family. I said things out of anger that I did not mean. It eventually got to point where I had to walk away from the situation. I walked out the door to cool off. I was going to drive away, but I knew that was not going to be a good decision. So, I decided to sit outside in the dark to collect my thoughts. I eventually came back inside, defeated and humiliated. How can I be a husband, a father, and a pastor if I struggle with this?
Eventually it was bed time for our boys. Whenever I put my oldest son, Caedmon, to bed we spend a little time in prayer before we read books. I wanted him to pray that night because I was still not in the mood to do it (I know it must be shocking that a pastor was not in the mood to pray!). So, Caedmon prayed and he did the most amazing thing: he led me in prayer. And, not just any prayer, but the Lord's prayer. He is six years old and he knew it by heart! Talk about a very humbling experience.
That night, like many nights and days as a father, God taught me a valuable lesson of fatherhood, humility. A father who is not humble enough to learn from his kids is not cut out to be the best father he can be. The pressure is to have all the answers for our kids. After all, they look to us as the superheroes and the braniacs who can do anything and know everything. So, woe be to us if we ever make a mistake. And if we do make a mistake, then we are the worst failures ever. I mean every other parent never makes a mistake right?
Proverbs 16:18 says, "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." I don't want to be a father who is puffed up on pride. I don't want to fall and be destroyed because then I would really be useless to my family. I would rather humble myself before them and allow God to use them to teach me a thing or two about following him.
My six year old Caedmon is a boy after God's own heart. He is loving and forgiving. He is gracious and merciful. He is the kind of person I want to be. He is my hero at times because he teaches me so many things about the heart of God. He shows me how to live a godly life. If that makes me weak in the eyes of the world, then may I be the weakest weakling ever. I would rather find my strength in my King and the way I am going to do that is through humility.
So, fathers be humble enough to admit your mistakes. Be humble enough to learn from your kids because we do not know everything. And, be humble enough to look up to your kids at times.
Eventually it was bed time for our boys. Whenever I put my oldest son, Caedmon, to bed we spend a little time in prayer before we read books. I wanted him to pray that night because I was still not in the mood to do it (I know it must be shocking that a pastor was not in the mood to pray!). So, Caedmon prayed and he did the most amazing thing: he led me in prayer. And, not just any prayer, but the Lord's prayer. He is six years old and he knew it by heart! Talk about a very humbling experience.
That night, like many nights and days as a father, God taught me a valuable lesson of fatherhood, humility. A father who is not humble enough to learn from his kids is not cut out to be the best father he can be. The pressure is to have all the answers for our kids. After all, they look to us as the superheroes and the braniacs who can do anything and know everything. So, woe be to us if we ever make a mistake. And if we do make a mistake, then we are the worst failures ever. I mean every other parent never makes a mistake right?
Proverbs 16:18 says, "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." I don't want to be a father who is puffed up on pride. I don't want to fall and be destroyed because then I would really be useless to my family. I would rather humble myself before them and allow God to use them to teach me a thing or two about following him.
My six year old Caedmon is a boy after God's own heart. He is loving and forgiving. He is gracious and merciful. He is the kind of person I want to be. He is my hero at times because he teaches me so many things about the heart of God. He shows me how to live a godly life. If that makes me weak in the eyes of the world, then may I be the weakest weakling ever. I would rather find my strength in my King and the way I am going to do that is through humility.
So, fathers be humble enough to admit your mistakes. Be humble enough to learn from your kids because we do not know everything. And, be humble enough to look up to your kids at times.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
All Hallow's Eve
It's that time of year again. Time for all of the spooks to come out. It's time for parents to get their kids dressed in costumes that probably won't last the night in order to go around their neighborhood to collect candy that the kids really don't need. It's also that time of year where Christians wage their battle against Satan and all of his demonic forces. It's Halloween time!
My wife and I grew up celebrating Halloween. I remember wearing the masks that you could not breathe out of and walking around my neighborhood to get candy. I would also go with my cousin around my aunt's neighborhood to get candy as well. It was double Halloween for me! So, since we both grew up celebrating Halloween, we wanted to keep the tradition alive with our kids. We have taken our kids out Trick or Treating for the last seven years. My wife does an awesome job making costumes for them every year. They always look great!
The reason I bring this up is that there are some Christians who will look at Halloween as a pagan holiday that invites the forces of Satan to wreak havoc on the world. Now, I will agree that there is some crazy stuff that goes on every Halloween, but is it any worse than what goes on any given day in our crazy, fallen world? Probably not.
We live in a society that is increasingly viewing the Church and Christianity as ancient and outdated. They are looking at Jesus as a cool guy, but someone irrelevant to their lives. Christians are seen more for what they are against than who they are for. We spend more time being the moral police or shutting people out than we do making disciples. We refuse to acknowledge that Halloween exists, yet we will put on harvest parties where we allow the kids to dress up in their costumes as long as the costumes are not scary. I'm not saying those parties are bad. Our church used to do one every year and it was awesome! What I'm saying is that it is time to stop taking such hard line stands against something that is not inherently evil.
We view Halloween as a pagan holiday, but it's origins are not pagan. All Hallowed's Eve first appeared in the fourth century when the Church would remember those who had died for the faith. They would commemorate these saints, so that others could see what it took to follow Christ. Over the centuries people began to add other elements to this and it turned into the holiday we know today. Many of the things that we are familiar with like pumpkins, costumes, and trick or treating are fairly modern ideas (appearing within the last half century).
Since we live in a post-Christian society, we have to stop acting like we live in a Christian one. We have to stop preaching that America was founded on Christian principles. We need to live in the culture we are surrounded by. We are still called to be holy. We cannot let the culture force us to compromise the Gospel, which some churches have done. But, we can use cultural norms as bridges or tools to communicate the Gospel. For example, the last two years my church has done a Trunk or Treat in our parking lot. People from our church dress up and decorate the trunks of their cars to give out candy to neighborhood kids. It's been a great success the last two years and we have a lot of fun doing it. The purpose of it is to give kids a safe place to go trick or treating and to show families the love of Christ.
If you are anti-Halloween, you obviously have your reasons and convictions and I totally respect that. The purpose of this blog post is to challenge all of us to rethink the way we do things as Christians. We need to take a hard look in the mirror and figure out if our actions are leading others to Christ or pushing them further away. I'm not saying that dressing up in costumes and giving out candy is going to lead someone closer to Christ. But, if we are going to reach a post-Christian society, then we have to rethink the way we do things. We need to start using any avenue or tool to bring people to Christ rather than pushing people away from Him.
Halloween is not the devil's holiday. He is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (I Peter 5:8) EVERY DAY not just on certain holidays. Therefore, let us use Halloween as an opportunity to preach our King rather than our enemy. Let us preach Christ more on Halloween than we do Satan. Satan doesn't need that much attention, but our King deserves it all because of what he did for us and the world.
My wife and I grew up celebrating Halloween. I remember wearing the masks that you could not breathe out of and walking around my neighborhood to get candy. I would also go with my cousin around my aunt's neighborhood to get candy as well. It was double Halloween for me! So, since we both grew up celebrating Halloween, we wanted to keep the tradition alive with our kids. We have taken our kids out Trick or Treating for the last seven years. My wife does an awesome job making costumes for them every year. They always look great!
The reason I bring this up is that there are some Christians who will look at Halloween as a pagan holiday that invites the forces of Satan to wreak havoc on the world. Now, I will agree that there is some crazy stuff that goes on every Halloween, but is it any worse than what goes on any given day in our crazy, fallen world? Probably not.
We live in a society that is increasingly viewing the Church and Christianity as ancient and outdated. They are looking at Jesus as a cool guy, but someone irrelevant to their lives. Christians are seen more for what they are against than who they are for. We spend more time being the moral police or shutting people out than we do making disciples. We refuse to acknowledge that Halloween exists, yet we will put on harvest parties where we allow the kids to dress up in their costumes as long as the costumes are not scary. I'm not saying those parties are bad. Our church used to do one every year and it was awesome! What I'm saying is that it is time to stop taking such hard line stands against something that is not inherently evil.
We view Halloween as a pagan holiday, but it's origins are not pagan. All Hallowed's Eve first appeared in the fourth century when the Church would remember those who had died for the faith. They would commemorate these saints, so that others could see what it took to follow Christ. Over the centuries people began to add other elements to this and it turned into the holiday we know today. Many of the things that we are familiar with like pumpkins, costumes, and trick or treating are fairly modern ideas (appearing within the last half century).
Since we live in a post-Christian society, we have to stop acting like we live in a Christian one. We have to stop preaching that America was founded on Christian principles. We need to live in the culture we are surrounded by. We are still called to be holy. We cannot let the culture force us to compromise the Gospel, which some churches have done. But, we can use cultural norms as bridges or tools to communicate the Gospel. For example, the last two years my church has done a Trunk or Treat in our parking lot. People from our church dress up and decorate the trunks of their cars to give out candy to neighborhood kids. It's been a great success the last two years and we have a lot of fun doing it. The purpose of it is to give kids a safe place to go trick or treating and to show families the love of Christ.
If you are anti-Halloween, you obviously have your reasons and convictions and I totally respect that. The purpose of this blog post is to challenge all of us to rethink the way we do things as Christians. We need to take a hard look in the mirror and figure out if our actions are leading others to Christ or pushing them further away. I'm not saying that dressing up in costumes and giving out candy is going to lead someone closer to Christ. But, if we are going to reach a post-Christian society, then we have to rethink the way we do things. We need to start using any avenue or tool to bring people to Christ rather than pushing people away from Him.
Halloween is not the devil's holiday. He is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (I Peter 5:8) EVERY DAY not just on certain holidays. Therefore, let us use Halloween as an opportunity to preach our King rather than our enemy. Let us preach Christ more on Halloween than we do Satan. Satan doesn't need that much attention, but our King deserves it all because of what he did for us and the world.
Thursday, September 26, 2013
A challenge from an American pastor in Iran
One year ago, a man named Saeed Abedini was taken off of a bus in Iran and put under arrest for spreading the Gospel. He had travelled to his homeland to open an orphanage for the children of his people. What started as a diplomatic mission went downhill quickly. He was put on trial, found guilty and sentenced to eight years in the infamous Elvin prison, a prison known for its brutal treatment of prisoners. He has been separated from his family for one year. He has a wife and two young children in Idaho because he is an American citizen.
Today, people gathered all over this country and held prayer vigils for this pastor. The people of God joined together to plead on Pastor Saeed's behalf. I could not make one of the vigils, but I prayed here at my home. I pray for him everyday that God would free him, but while he is there that he would be light for the kingdom. My oldest son, Caedmon, prays for him as well. He can't believe that he has been in prison for that long.
The reason I tell this is because his story has challenged me. I sit and write this at my iMac computer with iTunes playing my music in my comfortable home in Massachusetts. I have everything I need. I have my family, clothes to wear, food to eat and so many extras that we are having a garage sale this Saturday to get rid of stuff. I am blessed by God and am thankful for what He has given me. However, what am I doing for the kingdom on a daily basis?
Pastor Saeed is hurting physically, emotionally, and perhaps spiritually at times. But, if you read the letters he has sent, his faith has not wavered. He still continues to live for Christ despite the conditions he is in. He still wants to be a light for Christ and spread His Gospel no matter what. He wants his wife and kids to continue to be a light for Christ.
I get so caught up in my own business that I forget to be that light for Christ. I think about my to-do list everyday. I think about what I need to get done because of the other commitments I may still have later that day or that week. I go to church and preach that we need to spread the Gospel, but what am I doing to spread the Gospel. Now, I know I'm a little hard on myself. I know that there are things I do on a weekly basis that further the kingdom of God. However, Pastor Saeed's story has inspired me to do even more.
How important is the Gospel to us? We live in a consumer driven society. We want the latest and greatest all the time. Old means outdate and obsolete. Therefore, ideas like being born again, redemption, repentance, etc. are concepts that may seem old fashioned. Even the Gospel becomes old because we want "relevant" messages that teach us to be a better person. We want messages that help us financially so that we can add more stuff to our already cluttered lives.
As I'm writing this, I am listening to the song "How He Loves" by David Crowder. A line in the song says, "If grace were an ocean, we're all sinking." The Gospel should never be boring to us. It should never be seen as outdate or obsolete because it is so deep and rich. It is beautiful. It's exciting. It brings hope, mercy, love, forgiveness, restoration, redemption, etc.
Pastor Saeed sits in a prison cell in Iran because he loves Jesus. He loves the Gospel so much that he was willing to go anywhere and do anything in order that people would hear it. I'm tired of wasting my days checking off to-do lists. I'm ready to be passionate about Jesus and the Gospel again. I don't want another self-help message. I want the Gospel because I don't get it yet; it's too deep. I want more and I want to do more for my King who did everything for me.
Today, people gathered all over this country and held prayer vigils for this pastor. The people of God joined together to plead on Pastor Saeed's behalf. I could not make one of the vigils, but I prayed here at my home. I pray for him everyday that God would free him, but while he is there that he would be light for the kingdom. My oldest son, Caedmon, prays for him as well. He can't believe that he has been in prison for that long.
The reason I tell this is because his story has challenged me. I sit and write this at my iMac computer with iTunes playing my music in my comfortable home in Massachusetts. I have everything I need. I have my family, clothes to wear, food to eat and so many extras that we are having a garage sale this Saturday to get rid of stuff. I am blessed by God and am thankful for what He has given me. However, what am I doing for the kingdom on a daily basis?
Pastor Saeed is hurting physically, emotionally, and perhaps spiritually at times. But, if you read the letters he has sent, his faith has not wavered. He still continues to live for Christ despite the conditions he is in. He still wants to be a light for Christ and spread His Gospel no matter what. He wants his wife and kids to continue to be a light for Christ.
I get so caught up in my own business that I forget to be that light for Christ. I think about my to-do list everyday. I think about what I need to get done because of the other commitments I may still have later that day or that week. I go to church and preach that we need to spread the Gospel, but what am I doing to spread the Gospel. Now, I know I'm a little hard on myself. I know that there are things I do on a weekly basis that further the kingdom of God. However, Pastor Saeed's story has inspired me to do even more.
How important is the Gospel to us? We live in a consumer driven society. We want the latest and greatest all the time. Old means outdate and obsolete. Therefore, ideas like being born again, redemption, repentance, etc. are concepts that may seem old fashioned. Even the Gospel becomes old because we want "relevant" messages that teach us to be a better person. We want messages that help us financially so that we can add more stuff to our already cluttered lives.
As I'm writing this, I am listening to the song "How He Loves" by David Crowder. A line in the song says, "If grace were an ocean, we're all sinking." The Gospel should never be boring to us. It should never be seen as outdate or obsolete because it is so deep and rich. It is beautiful. It's exciting. It brings hope, mercy, love, forgiveness, restoration, redemption, etc.
Pastor Saeed sits in a prison cell in Iran because he loves Jesus. He loves the Gospel so much that he was willing to go anywhere and do anything in order that people would hear it. I'm tired of wasting my days checking off to-do lists. I'm ready to be passionate about Jesus and the Gospel again. I don't want another self-help message. I want the Gospel because I don't get it yet; it's too deep. I want more and I want to do more for my King who did everything for me.
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Lessons from the Baptizer
My oldest son graduated from kindergarten tonight. I was so proud watching him walk in his cap and gown. I couldn't help but picture him 13 years from now when he will be wearing a cap and gown graduating from high school. As I watched him go through the ceremony, he blew me away in a moment that many would not have noticed, unless of course you are his dad.
The time came for the end of the year awards. My wife is the administrative assistant to the school and I already knew that he would not receive an award. He missed highest academic achievement by a fraction of a point. I also knew how he took losing. He is like his daddy, we don't like to lose. So, I was wondering how he was going to take not receiving an award. This is the moment that completely blew me away. Two of his friends won the highest awards, highest academic achievement and Christian Spirit. When each of their names were announced, I watched my highly competitive five year old son throw his hands in the air and rejoice along with his friends! I was completely blown away because this was not like him. He cried once when he didn't when a raffle after all. So, instead of bawling tears of utter disappointment, he poured all his energy into rejoicing with his friends.
It's interesting that this happened tonight because it reminded me of John the Baptist when he said in John 3:30, "He must become greater; I must become less." John the Baptist has come up a few times this past week. I take that as a sign that God wants me to pay attention. As human beings, we are naturally going to struggle with jealousy. We want to be the ones in the spotlight. We want to be the ones who succeed. But, is this how we are to be as Christians? We are to strive to become less so that Jesus is more in us. This is the example I want to give to my son, but he tonight, he gave me the example to follow and I need to be humble enough to learn from him.
We live in a world where more and more people feel entitled to something. They feel as though the world owes them something. When parents act this way, children will follow in their footsteps. Even as Christians, we act like this. We feel entitled to respect from the world. But, Jesus said the world would hate us because it hated him first. Parents we need to model Christ to our kids. We need to model the one who took off his outer robe and washed his disciples dirty feet. We need to follow in the footsteps of John the Baptist who desired to fade away into history rather than make a name for himself.
My prayer for the next generations is that they will desire obscurity over celebrity. I pray that they will be thankful for what comes their way rather than desire what they feel they are entitled to. Father's day is a few weeks away. It is a time to celebrate dads and all we do. My prayer for dads is that we will be like the Baptizer who desired humility. May we rejoice over the success of others, rather than desire our own.
Thank you John for living out the Gospel. Thank you Caedmon for teaching your dad a lesson from the Baptizer.
The time came for the end of the year awards. My wife is the administrative assistant to the school and I already knew that he would not receive an award. He missed highest academic achievement by a fraction of a point. I also knew how he took losing. He is like his daddy, we don't like to lose. So, I was wondering how he was going to take not receiving an award. This is the moment that completely blew me away. Two of his friends won the highest awards, highest academic achievement and Christian Spirit. When each of their names were announced, I watched my highly competitive five year old son throw his hands in the air and rejoice along with his friends! I was completely blown away because this was not like him. He cried once when he didn't when a raffle after all. So, instead of bawling tears of utter disappointment, he poured all his energy into rejoicing with his friends.
It's interesting that this happened tonight because it reminded me of John the Baptist when he said in John 3:30, "He must become greater; I must become less." John the Baptist has come up a few times this past week. I take that as a sign that God wants me to pay attention. As human beings, we are naturally going to struggle with jealousy. We want to be the ones in the spotlight. We want to be the ones who succeed. But, is this how we are to be as Christians? We are to strive to become less so that Jesus is more in us. This is the example I want to give to my son, but he tonight, he gave me the example to follow and I need to be humble enough to learn from him.
We live in a world where more and more people feel entitled to something. They feel as though the world owes them something. When parents act this way, children will follow in their footsteps. Even as Christians, we act like this. We feel entitled to respect from the world. But, Jesus said the world would hate us because it hated him first. Parents we need to model Christ to our kids. We need to model the one who took off his outer robe and washed his disciples dirty feet. We need to follow in the footsteps of John the Baptist who desired to fade away into history rather than make a name for himself.
My prayer for the next generations is that they will desire obscurity over celebrity. I pray that they will be thankful for what comes their way rather than desire what they feel they are entitled to. Father's day is a few weeks away. It is a time to celebrate dads and all we do. My prayer for dads is that we will be like the Baptizer who desired humility. May we rejoice over the success of others, rather than desire our own.
Thank you John for living out the Gospel. Thank you Caedmon for teaching your dad a lesson from the Baptizer.
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