the past week has again been filled with numerous tough conversations...
i am the type of person that would just rather avoid confrontation. i feel like God has blessed me with the ability to be an incredibly positive person, but part of the problem with that is i often want to spin things in such a positive way that it leaves me skipping out on confrontation that needs to happen.
so, this past week, i have managed to not allow myself to be talked out of confrontation...and i had a couple of really tough conversations. but they were conversations where the Spirit was very obviously present...and that have brought great things in their aftermath.
i have thought much these past couple of weeks about the words of james 1:2-4 where it says...
"consider it pure joy my brothers when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
i have to confess...i am far from enjoying, liking, wanting, being comfortable with confrontation...but i am realizing more and more that there are times where it is simply the best way...and i pray that i can continue to rely on the Spirit to know when that is the case.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
A Great Night of Reflection...
last wednesday we finished up our series on the sermon on the mount...called ascend.
we spent 11 weeks in all looking at matthew 5,6 and 7. it was the longest expository teaching series that we have done in probably 2 and a half years. it was a great series...people really seemed to get into digging so deeply and entering into the story of God in the way that we did.
so, to come to the final week brought mixed emotions. half of the emotions were really about not wanting the series to be over...to continue to dig and study in new ways. but the other half of the emotions were all about the excitement of hearing what people had learned and what stuck out to people along the journey.
we took some time during the night and asked people to share about what stuck out to them the most, what their favorite moments were, and what they felt the most challenged by. and the sharing was really phenomenal!
there were probably 20 people that shared...and it was such a great picture to hear all of the different things that people remembered and that stuck out to people. many of which i barely remembered teaching! it is so good to be reminded that God works in so many more ways than we know or realize. really just awesome stuff!!
as we move into second semester, we will be moving to some slightly more topical series...but it leaves me incredibly excited to again dig into a section of scripture over a rather lengthy amount of time.
we spent 11 weeks in all looking at matthew 5,6 and 7. it was the longest expository teaching series that we have done in probably 2 and a half years. it was a great series...people really seemed to get into digging so deeply and entering into the story of God in the way that we did.
so, to come to the final week brought mixed emotions. half of the emotions were really about not wanting the series to be over...to continue to dig and study in new ways. but the other half of the emotions were all about the excitement of hearing what people had learned and what stuck out to people along the journey.
we took some time during the night and asked people to share about what stuck out to them the most, what their favorite moments were, and what they felt the most challenged by. and the sharing was really phenomenal!
there were probably 20 people that shared...and it was such a great picture to hear all of the different things that people remembered and that stuck out to people. many of which i barely remembered teaching! it is so good to be reminded that God works in so many more ways than we know or realize. really just awesome stuff!!
as we move into second semester, we will be moving to some slightly more topical series...but it leaves me incredibly excited to again dig into a section of scripture over a rather lengthy amount of time.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
The Tough Way is the Best Way...
yesterday i had some really tough conversations with some students. conversations based in highly charged topics surrounding faith and actions. topics that tend to be polarized...some standing on one side while others choosing the opposite side.
they are things that if we lived and followed Christ in an ideal world, we wouldn't have to deal with. but because that is far from the context in which we live...we do have to deal with them. and i believe that they way we chose to embrace these tough gray areas has serious implications for faith moving forward.
and yet, i have to be honest...there is a huge part of me that wishes...and maybe even dreams that we wouldn't have to have these conversations. often i want for ministry to be easy, and comfortable, and smooth, and safe, and without tough stuff. but i know in the depths of my being, that as soon as those thoughts and emotions win out...our ministry begins to fail. because that is not the way that true life change happens. easy, comfortable, smooth, safe, and without tough stuff is not going to lead people towards finding their way back to God. we have tried that in churches and faith communities for far too long...and it is simply not working.
and so...as i look back on yesterday...it had some of the toughest conversations i have had in a while...and it was one of the more roller coaster like days i have had in a while. and yet, i can say confidently, that it was one of the best days of ministry i have had in quite some time as well. i feel confident that strides were made in people finding their way back to God...and that is what i believe God has called me, and us, to hang our hats on here in this ministry in this place.
i pray that out of this, i will be able to embrace the tough stuff more and more! Lord help me, because i know there is no way i can do it on my own.
they are things that if we lived and followed Christ in an ideal world, we wouldn't have to deal with. but because that is far from the context in which we live...we do have to deal with them. and i believe that they way we chose to embrace these tough gray areas has serious implications for faith moving forward.
and yet, i have to be honest...there is a huge part of me that wishes...and maybe even dreams that we wouldn't have to have these conversations. often i want for ministry to be easy, and comfortable, and smooth, and safe, and without tough stuff. but i know in the depths of my being, that as soon as those thoughts and emotions win out...our ministry begins to fail. because that is not the way that true life change happens. easy, comfortable, smooth, safe, and without tough stuff is not going to lead people towards finding their way back to God. we have tried that in churches and faith communities for far too long...and it is simply not working.
and so...as i look back on yesterday...it had some of the toughest conversations i have had in a while...and it was one of the more roller coaster like days i have had in a while. and yet, i can say confidently, that it was one of the best days of ministry i have had in quite some time as well. i feel confident that strides were made in people finding their way back to God...and that is what i believe God has called me, and us, to hang our hats on here in this ministry in this place.
i pray that out of this, i will be able to embrace the tough stuff more and more! Lord help me, because i know there is no way i can do it on my own.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Learning About the Holy Spirit...
over the last month or two, God seems to be leading me in a journey to understand the Holy Spirit in a deeper way.
i have been reading and discussing francis chan's book Forgotten God with one of our students...it is stretching and growing me in some great ways. but in addition to that, it seems that everywhere i turn there are experiences that teaching me as well.
today was one of those days...
i met with one of our biggest campus house supporters to tell him about some incredibly exciting things that are on the horizon for our ministry...and to specifically ask him if he would help financially support a major part of the endeavor. however, it turns out there were a number of factors that i hadn't anticipated. as a result, i was not able to ask for his support.
normally, this might be something that i would just reschedule and plan to do in another day or two. but as i have been thinking more about the Spirit, it has caused me to seek to listen to the Spirit about what He may desire for me to do in this situation instead of what i had initially planned.
it is something that i by no means have all figured out, but i am learning that listening to the Spirit opens up all kinds of deeper possibilities. and while it is much less defined, it does certainly seem like the way to go.
i have been reading and discussing francis chan's book Forgotten God with one of our students...it is stretching and growing me in some great ways. but in addition to that, it seems that everywhere i turn there are experiences that teaching me as well.
today was one of those days...
i met with one of our biggest campus house supporters to tell him about some incredibly exciting things that are on the horizon for our ministry...and to specifically ask him if he would help financially support a major part of the endeavor. however, it turns out there were a number of factors that i hadn't anticipated. as a result, i was not able to ask for his support.
normally, this might be something that i would just reschedule and plan to do in another day or two. but as i have been thinking more about the Spirit, it has caused me to seek to listen to the Spirit about what He may desire for me to do in this situation instead of what i had initially planned.
it is something that i by no means have all figured out, but i am learning that listening to the Spirit opens up all kinds of deeper possibilities. and while it is much less defined, it does certainly seem like the way to go.
Monday, October 25, 2010
A New Way...
we have been studying the sermon on the mount for the last number of weeks. we have talked over and over again about the fact that these words are all about turning the world upside down...or maybe we should say...right side up.
i am not sure there are words in all of scripture that have more potential to turn the upside down world right side up again than the words of matthew 5:38-48.
just try to imagine what it would be like for every Christ follower to take seriously the command to "not resist an evil person" and instead to "love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you". it would be nothing short of revolutionary.
we used this great clip as an illustration...
i am not sure there are words in all of scripture that have more potential to turn the upside down world right side up again than the words of matthew 5:38-48.
just try to imagine what it would be like for every Christ follower to take seriously the command to "not resist an evil person" and instead to "love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you". it would be nothing short of revolutionary.
we used this great clip as an illustration...
A New Way...
we have been studying the sermon on the mount for the last number of weeks. we have talked over and over again about the fact that these words are all about turning the world upside down...or maybe we should say...right side up.
i am not sure there are words in all of scripture that have more potential to turn the upside down world right side up again than the words of matthew 5:38-48.
just try to imagine what it would be like for every Christ follower to take seriously the command to "not resist an evil person" and instead to "love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you". it would be nothing short of revolutionary.
we used this great clip as an illustration...
i am not sure there are words in all of scripture that have more potential to turn the upside down world right side up again than the words of matthew 5:38-48.
just try to imagine what it would be like for every Christ follower to take seriously the command to "not resist an evil person" and instead to "love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you". it would be nothing short of revolutionary.
we used this great clip as an illustration...
Friday, September 24, 2010
a thought about mourning...
i have been thinking recently about how i have this tendency inside of me to assume that something bad has happened. not like in a negative pessimistic way, but when a situation arises where it seems possible that someone close to me has been hurt or something like that.
i am finding that i have a tendency to almost clamp up inside in this fear that bad news is going to come. which might just sound like a bad case of being a worrier. but while I do think that i can be too much of a worrier, i don’t know that worry is the root of these feelings. it may be a part of the feelings, but i don’t think that it is the root.
at the root of these feelings, i think, is a desire to not have to feel pain and hurt and to be in mourning. i am not sure that it is really about worrying about others and their well-being, but rather i think that it is more about my own comfortability.
i taught this past wednesday on the beatitudes and in those, Jesus says, “blessed are those who mourn”. he is saying, “i am with you when you mourn”. he is not telling us that we need to seek out mourning and try to be mournful…but he is saying that when we mourn, he is with us and he will bring an ultimate comfort in those times that we wouldn’t otherwise know.
so, i am not saying that i need to figure out how to be looking forward to and being excited about bad things happening that might cause me pain or anguish. but i am saying that i need to stop letting this negative feeling win out and start trusting God to have a plan and that if and when that plan does include pain and suffering and mourning (because it will), that i will be better for it in the end and i will come to understand and know God as the ultimate comforter in ways that I wouldn’t otherwise know.
i am finding that i have a tendency to almost clamp up inside in this fear that bad news is going to come. which might just sound like a bad case of being a worrier. but while I do think that i can be too much of a worrier, i don’t know that worry is the root of these feelings. it may be a part of the feelings, but i don’t think that it is the root.
at the root of these feelings, i think, is a desire to not have to feel pain and hurt and to be in mourning. i am not sure that it is really about worrying about others and their well-being, but rather i think that it is more about my own comfortability.
i taught this past wednesday on the beatitudes and in those, Jesus says, “blessed are those who mourn”. he is saying, “i am with you when you mourn”. he is not telling us that we need to seek out mourning and try to be mournful…but he is saying that when we mourn, he is with us and he will bring an ultimate comfort in those times that we wouldn’t otherwise know.
so, i am not saying that i need to figure out how to be looking forward to and being excited about bad things happening that might cause me pain or anguish. but i am saying that i need to stop letting this negative feeling win out and start trusting God to have a plan and that if and when that plan does include pain and suffering and mourning (because it will), that i will be better for it in the end and i will come to understand and know God as the ultimate comforter in ways that I wouldn’t otherwise know.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)