J. Lee Grady writes a blog entitled, Fire In My Bones in which he writes about what fires him up. He’s much more regular than I am and I think he hit the nail on the head this time. Please enjoy his article and then let me know your thoughts!

http://charismamag.com/index.php/fire-in-my-bones/22383-reality-check-the-case-for-relational-christianity

Regardless of who wins this election, on November 5th, I will still be praying for our leadership. Isn’t that what all Christians should do? Pastor Jeff Leake has a great response when he is asked, Are you going to speak on the election? You can read the complete post at his site but here is a summary of his points:

1. My hope for the future of the USA does not rest in this election.
2. My primary concern is with the Kingdom of God and not with the United States of America.
3. I believe that a believer should consider moral values, character, and vision when they make their decision to vote.
4. My responsibility is to pray for and even bless governmental leaders, even when I disagree with their policies.
5. I think at times we can over-estimate the election season.
6. My passion is to represent Jesus well in the world. Partisan attitudes often divide.
7. I want to protect the unity of the church (not just APC but believers all throughout this nation).
8. I like to consider what Jesus did regarding politics when he walked the earth.

I really like one of his last statements, “I think it is safe to say that neither Obama nor McCain is the hope of the world. That is Jesus. It is also safe to say that neither candidate will be as much a threat as Nero, Herod, or Mao. If the Kingdom can expand under their leadership, I am confident God can continue to work no matter who is elected in 2008.”

Another Pastor that I read frequently is Mark Batterson. He pastors National Community Church in Washington D.C. His church is unique in that the livelihood of a lot of his congregation is dependent on the election. His church regularly goes through a change with each election cycle. He has a sermon series called the Elephant in the Church where he discusses issues that everyone knows are there but don’t want to talk about in church. This week is the Political Elephant. I urge all of you to listen to or watch his message. It is a great perspective.

So – I will be voting. I will be voting my conscience. I will be voting based on character, values and vision. When the next president is sworn in, I will commit to pray for his leadership regardless of who wins the election. My hope is in Christ – not the president. Besides, like I have said in other posts, I’ve read the book. I know who wins!

This week while many people in the United States were fretting over the credit crisis and its effect on their 401Ks, Christians in the Indian village of Sindhipankha were mourning the death of their friend Dushashan Majhi. A bold Christian, he was shot on Oct. 3 by a band of Hindu militants who then cut his body into pieces.

The people in Sindhipankha do not have 401Ks. Many of them, in fact, no longer have homes. Across the state of Orissa, in northeast India, Hindus have ransacked and burned hundreds of Christians’ houses and churches during the last two months. Hundreds have died.

“The violence in August and September of 2008 has been the worst in our 2,000-year history in India,” says John Dayal, an Indian journalist and founder of the All India Christian Council. “Fifty thousand are homeless and 30,000 are hiding in forests, chased like animals by Hindu fanatics who are forcing them to become Hindus or die.”

The number of deaths continues to climb in India while most Americans are consumed with the stock market and the Obama-McCain contest. (You won’t hear too much about the anti-Christian attacks from the mainstream media.) I wonder: Could we call a brief timeout and pray for the persecuted church on the other side of the world? more…
from Fire In My Bones – J. Lee Grady

Reading that article grounds me. When was the last time a Christian was hacked to death in America? Are Christians in America hiding in fear for their lives? When you are facing death – a drop in our 401Ks seems pretty minor. It’s all about perspective.

These are two topics I have discussed in previous posts [Understanding the Emerging Church and Time for a discussion in the church about Gay, Lesbian and Transgendered Issues or God's Grace - 101]. These attitudes are rampant in post-modern thought. We are living in a world where compromise is the norm and taking a stand for truth is abnormal.

I have been reading Lee Strobel’s new book, The Case for the Real Jesus. Although I am still in the first few chapters of the book, one point has been sticking in my mind as I read it. Over the years, in an effort to make Christianity more appealing to non-believers, the church has watered down it’s theology. As a church, we have stopped placing an importance on the redemptive act of Jesus’ death on the cross. In an interview with Daniel B. Wallace Ph.D., Strobel was trying to understand the authenticity of the scriptures in light of recent allegations that the Bible is full of mistakes and contradictions and missing some books that teach something else. Dr. Wallace, in addressing a particular allegation said, “It’s disturbing that when it comes to the Christian faith, people don’t really want – or know how – to investigate the evidence. Christians are not being led into proper historical research by their pastors. I have been saying for some time that I don’t think the evangelical church has fifty years left of life to it until it repents.” Strobel responded, “In what way?” Wallace continued, “First, we have to quit marginalizing scripture. We can’t treat the Bible with kid gloves. We really need to wrestle with the issues, because our faith depends on it. And second, we need to quit turning Jesus into our buddy. He’s the sovereign Lord of the universe, and we need to understand and respond accordingly.”

Isn’t that the crux of the whole situation we find ourselves in right now? As a church, we don’t teach theology so when some new theory comes along, we don’t have the knowledge or tools to defend our faith. Some things might even sound good so we compromise our beliefs because we don’t have a theological foundation to stand on. Then someone else comes along with some new special knowledge and we go along with that because we are already started down the road of compromise. We have faith – but we don’t have maturity. It is my opinion that today’s church has become what Paul described when he addressed the church in Corinth.

The Corinthian believers had become aware of the need to reorient their pre-Christian attitudes and actions along Biblical lines, but at first their transformation was incomplete, and they were just “babes in Christ,” to be pitied and nurtured in their immaturity. The Greek word sarkinos implies this infant stage.

However, as the years went on, they continued in their immaturity. By this time they should have grown to Christian adulthood, themselves helping others through the infant stage, but instead they had willfully and sinfully remained in their immature state. For this Paul rebukes them.

It is imperative that we continue to grow in Christ. Everyone needs to learn to emphatically defend their faith. We need to continue to help others through the infant stage into Christian maturity so when beliefs, such as espoused by Mr. Campolo are raised in the church, they can be debated with an argument based in knowledge and not feelings.

A good place to start would be our 21st Century Christian series or any other series we have posted at Grace Learning Center. Another resource that I enjoy is the online theology course at Reclaiming The Mind.

Thoughts On God’s Will

Discovering God’s will is less about searching for it, and more about doing it!

This was the theme of this past weekend’s message. Just like a car driving in a night-fog can only see a few feet ahead, so often this is like trying to discern God’s direction. God gives us revelation for the immediate. As we do what we know, we get more light.

Simple obedience unlocks God’s future!

God’s will is so much more about who you are becoming than where you are going, who you are going with, or what you will be doing.

But at some point, a major decision will have to be reached in certain areas of life. When I am making that decision, I look for FIVE INDICATORS to align.

#1 – What Does The Bible Say? – this is the foundational question. The primary way God speaks is through His revealed Word. He will never tell us to do something against His Word. The more we learn the principles and precepts of the Bible, the easier it is to discern God’s ways.

#2 – What Does The Holy Spirit Say? – the Holy Spirit is a person and our counselor. He speaks to us through his ‘still small voice’, through inner promptings.

#3 – What Do My Spiritual Advisors Say? – parents, pastors, leaders, and spiritual friends are a great source of caution or confirmation. As we gain direction from God, we test it and improve it through their advice.

#4 – What Do My Circumstances Say? – most often God aligns his direction by and open or closed door. There are exceptions to this rule. Sometimes God says move forward in faith even though the door is closed. Sometimes an open door may be a trap from the enemy. But many times our circumstances align with the previous three indicators.

#5 – What Do I Want? – Psalm 37:4 says, ‘Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.’ This tells us two things. The more we seek to please God and enjoy His pleasure, the more God will lead us into what we want. But even beyond that, the more He will shape our desires to want the right things.

What I like most about this is the line, Discovering God’s will is less about searching for it, and more about doing it! . I think we can get so wrapped up in trying to discover God’s will for our life that we completely miss opportunities to walk in His will. I am an analyst by profession. I analyze everything (and yes – I really mean everything!). It drives my wife crazy. She often tells me that I talk myself out of something before I even try. I admit – sometimes (o.k. – most times) I have paralysis of analysis. There are times where I think I should do something, but yes, the more I analyze it, the less likely I am to follow through with my idea. This is an area that I have been trying to improve on. How many times have I missed an opportunity to serve God because I talked myself out of it? Wouldn’t it be easier to just obey God? As Jeff says, “As we do what we know, we get more light.”

I recently was given the opportunity to review Bill Hybels book, Holy Discontent. In it, he talks about the response that he calls the Popeye response where Popeye says, That’s all I can stands, and I can’t stands no more! Here’s an excerpt from the inside cover of the book.

“Holy Discontent” can overtake you in an instant. You’re going about your business, doing life as usual, when suddenly something happens that awakens your awareness and jolts your soul. A heartbreaking personal experience, a national calamity, an infuriating injustice to someone close to you… whatever it is, you can’t take it lying down. You’ve got to do something.

It’s in that defining moment when your eyes open to something bigger than yourself that you just might hear God say, “Now you know how I feel.” That firestorm of frustration isn’t just yours, it’s his as well – and he wants you to focus its energy so that together, he and you can fix some problem that badly needs fixing.

Throughout the book, he gives examples of people who experienced their own Popeye moment, including his own. He couldn’t stand the boring lifeless church he was brought up in. Eventually, he decided that he needed to do something about it. Willow Creek is the end result. A church that has touched millions of lives. Quite a few examples in the book come from his work to end AIDS in Africa.

More than anything, this book will encourage you to search out your Holy Discontent. It will encourage you to run towards the uncomfortable instead of staying in the comfortable. It will

So, what is your Holy Discontent? What makes you say, That’s all I can stands, and I can’t stands no more!

I’d love to hear from you.

If you can’t make it in person, subscribe and listen to the podcasts! If you don’t use an RSS aggregator, you can see all of the podcasts at the website.

On the first day teaching his class of 250 college freshmen, R. C. Sproul carefully explained the assignment of three term papers. Each paper was due on the last day of September, October, and November. Sproul clearly stated there would be no extensions (except for medical reasons). At the end of September, some 225 students dutifully turned in their papers, while 25 remorseful students quaked in fear. “We’re so sorry,” they said. “We didn’t make the proper adjustments from high school to college, but we promise to do better next time.” He bowed to their pleas for mercy, gave them an extension, but warned them not to be late next month.

The end of October rolled around, and about 200 students turned in their papers, while 50 students showed up empty-handed. “Oh, please,” they begged, “it was homecoming weekend, and we ran out of time.” Sproul relented once more but warned them, “This is it. No excuses next time. You will get an F.”

The end of November came, and only 100 students turned in their papers. The rest told Sproul, “We’ll get it in soon.”

“Sorry,” Sproul replied. “It’s too late now. You get an F.”

The students howled in protest, “That’s not fair!”

“Okay,” Sproul replied, “you want justice, do you? Here’s what’s just: you’ll get an F for all three papers that were late. That was the rule, right?”

“The students had quickly taken my mercy for granted,” Sproul later reflected. “They assumed it. When justice suddenly fell, they were unprepared for it. It came as a shock, and they were outraged.”

Like the teacher, God has given us the assignment ahead of time. Jesus said that He is the only way to the father. No one comes to the father except through Him. God is gracious. He demonstrated his grace by sending his son, Jesus to pay for our sins. If we ignore that grace and decide that there are other ways to God, then we decide (either consciously or unconsciously) to face His judgement.

Related posts:

Religion Can Go to Hell
Understanding The Emerging Church
Pimping Jesus

(If you can’t see the video below, you can go to this page to read all about it.

The Paradoxical Commandments
by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

Read Rich’s post and leave him a comment! I’d love to read your thoughts on the question!

Reading posts like this always stirs up a certain angst inside of me. It’s a feeling that I know something is wrong but I don’t know how to fix it. For years, our society has been slowly pushed into believing the normalcy of gay, lesbian and transgendered lifestyles. Now, if we believe differently, we are labeled as “homophobes”. I have wrestled with how to minister to people who believe this for years. I keep asking myself – how can good people, who believe they are Christians, embrace this lifestyle? Even to the point of encouraging more people to “come out of the closet”. My heart aches, as it does with anyone I see who is openly sinning against God. I want them to know that God does love them but He desires them to not act on their desires. Everyone sins – no argument there – but I believe that it is the person that is embracing his sin that is endangering his eternal outcome. Rich uses some great analogies in his post that describe the difference between someone who is tempted to sin and doesn’t act on it and those that do.

The transgendered issue is one that I haven’t thought much about. Rich lays out his personal view rather nicely and has me thinking. I would love for this discussion to continue. I encourage you read Rich’s post and also read the comments as there is likely to be a lively discussion.

Because of their distrust of tradition, my conversations with those in the “emergent movement” have led me to reevaluate why I believe what I believe. Sometimes this has softened my stance on the issues in the church that the Bible doesn’t speak clearly on (infant or adult baptism, sprinkling or submersion, pre-trib,mid-trib, post-trib etc.) and it has strengthened the foundation of my beliefs on the things that matter most (salvation, redemption, grace). I used to tell people that there is Doctrine and Dogma. Loosely, doctrine is man’s interpretation of what we believe and dogma is God’s truth that is undeniable. We can agree to disagree on doctrine as long as we both agree on the dogma.

One of the authors points, and one that I see too much in emerging churches is this attitude that you can’t take a stand for anything or you won’t be liked. They come to this because they believe that in our limited understanding, we can not fully know the truth. So, if we can’t know the truth, who is to say who’s truth is correct. My truth is true for me and your truth is true for you. We are both right, can’t we all get along? Like he says in his post, the less you stand for, the more people will like you. I was even told once by someone professing to be a Christian that although they believe that Jesus is their answer to salvation (their truth), they believe that God might have provided alternate truths and who are we to condemn a whole group of people who might have another view of God or how to attain salvation. He believes that there might be alternate paths to Heaven! Now if that isn’t compromise, what is?

Again, my words aren’t scholarly. I wasn’t just taught these beliefs and now I’m just regurgitating what I’ve heard. The formation of what I believe and why I believe it is a process. I have gone from belief to unbelief and back to belief. I have seen physical evidence of the power of the Holy Spirit. I have seen lives changed by Christ and their belief in His redemptive sacrifice. I have seen the miracle of the birth of my four daughters to my wife who we thought couldn’t conceive. I have been miraculously healed of a 20 year smoking addiction. One day, God just took the addiction away – I have no memory of what it is like to smoke. I know that God is real and I know that He wants to have a personal relationship with all of us. All we have to do is acknowledge that we aren’t perfect. We’re going to mess up – and because we can’t help ourselves, we aren’t worthy to enter into a relationship with God on our own. But God has provided us a way. Jesus said that He was the Truth and the Light. All who believe in Him will be saved. I believe that God, in His grace, sent His son, Jesus, as a perfect sacrifice for our sin. He paid for our sin with his blood and because of this selfless act, we are assured a permanent residency in Heaven with Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit where we will be able to ask Jesus Himself all of the mysteries that we can’t even hope to understand here on earth.

One last thing…to those planning on watching the Discover Channel’s program about the possibility of finding Jesus’ bones? It isn’t possible.

Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God where He will rule until He returns. I would give up my life defending that…. would you?

–Postscript–

I almost ended it here but then I thought how appropriate the Nicene Creed was. Shouldn’t we all say a creed such as this everyday to affirm (at least to ourselves) what we believe? If you wish, you may want to read this out loud. Think about what is says as you read it.

We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son].
With the Father and the Son
he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. AMEN.

I was standing before 200 people at church when I said it: “Salvation is not a walk down the aisle, a prayer, and wham bam, thank you ma’am, you’re done.” Jaws dropped; some faces turned white; some turned red. I was clueless, so I just kept teaching. It turns out that the phrase, “wham bam, thank you ma’am,” meant something different to me than it did to the rest of the world. Afterward some of my listeners enlightened me. I was embarrassed. I didn’t intend to equate one’s conversion experience to some sort of sexual encounter in the red light district.

Over the last few years, I have pondered the statement, and despite the fact that I originally meant nothing so profound, I believe the statement to be true—we are tempted to turn conversion into something of an act of prostitution. We are the consumers, and we might as well say it—we’ve turned Jesus’ invitation into a seductive, greasy, trick-turning lifestyle. Doesn’t that make your blood boil?
_{[read the rest at Out of Ur: Pimping Jesus : Consumerism and the red-light gospel]}

One of the problems I have had with many once-saved-always-saved proponents, is that to them, all you have to do is ask Jesus into your heart and you will be saved forever – nothing else to do. There are many of these who believe in the existence so-called “carnal Christians”. Someone who is “saved” but lives a life of unrepentent sin. “Sure”, they say, “they will still go to heaven but they just won’t enjoy as many rewards”. I have had long, long discussions with people who believe this. It saddens me. That theology, to me, cheapens the gospel of Christ. It cheapens the sacrifice He made for our sins.

Another theology that has saddens me is the thought that there are different ways to come to God. Someone close to me said that although he chose Jesus as his path to God, he believes that other ways (Buddah, Mohammad etc) are valid belief systems and those choices are just as valid as his choice. My big question then is why did Jesus have to die on the cross? If there are other ways to reconcile your sinful self to God, then why did Jesus have to die?

I’d like to hear your thoughts……..

One of the ideas I get in studying Daniel 1 is that culture doesn’t have to be God’s enemy. If it does not violate His commands, it can aid in accomplishing His purpose. As followers of Christ, we are free to be leaders in our culture, but we are required to pledge our allegience to God first. Daniel and his friends learned all they could about their new culture so they could do their work with excellence. But while they learned, they maintained steadfast allegience to God and God gave them skill and wisdom.

So, what’s the answer to all the people who would rather argue about their doctrinal opinions? I just listened to Neal Christopher at Sandals Church and he has come up with the ultimate doctrinal question. A question so powerful and enlightening, that if you can answer this question, all other doctrines and beliefs will fall in place. Here it is:

Did God create homosexual dinosaurs, to choose to drink alcohol or is their alcohol consumption predestined?

Don’t spend too much time thinking about this. The point is, as believers in Christ, we need to spend more time loving others like Jesus did and not worrying about things that just don’t matter.

Podcast at GraceLearningCenter.com

Music from the PMN

Overcomer by Jessica Smith-Wright

The staff and congregation at the United Pentecostal Church of Harvey, Ill., are convinced you’ll like their church–so convinced that they offered $25 to the first 75 visitors who showed up at each of their Sunday morning services….

I am amazed that a church had to resort to paying people to come to their church. Then after reading the complete article, I started thinking about it a different way. How many times have you heard from a church that they have a “dynamic children’s ministry” or a “contemporary worship” service only to go there and find that what passes for a dynamic children’s ministry is a new coat of colorful paint and contemporary worship is ancient hymns played on an electronic keyboard. Then the preacher gets up and talks about anything but Christ’s gift of salvation and our need for it!

Are most churches today guilty of False Advertising?

My Dad wrote a piece in his church’s monthly newsletter recently that asked, “Why don’t we really worship like we have been miraculously healed?” He tells the story of the crippled man miraculously healed by Peter and John. He had been lame his whole life and now all of a sudden, he could walk. He was so overcome with thankfulness and joy that he followed Peter and John into the temple, walking, leaping and praising God! (Acts 3:1-9) As sinners, we all know our punishment should be death – eternal separation from God – but because of Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection we are saved from certain death and will join Jesus in heaven for eternity! Doesn’t that warrant a little leaping? I think you would be hard pressed to find a church in suburban-America where people feel comfortable walking, leaping and praising God! Why is that?

Is your church boring?
Can you dance during worship?
Raise your hands in admiration of His wonderful gift?
Do your kids really want to go to Sunday school?
Are you looking for authenticity?

If you’re in the Omaha area, please come visit the church that I attend, Grace Community Church. You can find out more information at the church’s website and if you want to listen to a few recent sermons, check out our Grace Learning Center site where we post our weekly podcast and devotionals.

I’d like to hear your opinions. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Link to the full article: False Advertising

Found a great song by Matthew Casteel called Clean from the Podsafe Music Network.

Link to the podcast here.

How many of you know Jeremiah 29:11?

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Even today, I have that verse hanging on the wall of my office. But recently, with my latest inward look at my own faith, I have come to learn more about this verse. You see, most people only know verse 11 but they don’t pay attention to the preceding verse. Read what verse 10 says:

The truth is that you will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again.

You see, God had just told Jeremiah that the Israelites were going to be staying, in captivity, in Babylon. In essense, God was going to withdraw his glory for 70 years. They would be taken care of, but it was going to be in God’s time and not theirs. You see, God periodiocally withdraws Himself from our life (imagine a veil) so that we will draw closer to Him. God doesn’t want us to love Him because of what He can do for us. He wants us to love Him because He Is God. He is “the Name”. He’s not our buddy, pal or friend. He’s all powerful; a terrifyingly beautiful God who can’t even show us His full glory because we couldn’t stand it.

There are countless others who have experienced this “veiling” of His presence. One was another guy named David. Read Psalm 77:

I cry out to God without holding back. Oh, that God would listen to me! When I was in deep trouble, I searched for the Lord. All night long I pray, with hands lifted toward heaven, pleading. There can be no joy for me until he acts. I think of God, and I moan, overwhelmed with longing for his help. You don’t let me sleep. I am too distressed even to pray! I think of the good old days, long since ended, when my nights were filled with joyful songs. I search my soul and think about the difference now. Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again show me favor? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be kind? Has he slammed the door on his compassion?

Does this sound like someone who is hearing from God? No! If you continue reading, you see that the Psalm will show you a full range of emotion. From dispair to pleading to remembering the good times when God was there, to acknowledging the faithfulness of God. I really love reading the Psalms. They are packed full of gut-wretching emotion – something I sometimes have a hard time letting out myself.

So what’s the point of all this? It’s something I’m learning the hard way. Lately, I’ve felt that God was distant. There were days when I couldn’t even pray – I didn’t have any words. I’ve cried, yelled, lashed out at anyone and everyone. I’ve had anger and bewilderment. I still don’t know what happened. But there is one thing I do know. I’m not perfect – God is. And there is hope.

Continuing with Jeremiah 29:12-14…

12In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. 14I will be found by you,” says the LORD. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you home again to your own land.”

In God’s time, He will be there. When you have drawn closer to Him, he will listen when you pray. He says, “I will be found by you.” That’s refreshing. That’s something to look forward to. That’s hope! He continues: I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes.

In God’s time, He will make himself known to you again and will reward you for your faithfulness. Want another example? Read Job.