Category Archives: Ministry

The Case for Relational Christianity

24 Jun

I sit and ponder many topics to write about, but, for various reasons (mostly just laziness) I haven’t been taking the time to write about what I am thinking. I do read and sometimes I come across an article that makes me say – “I wish I would have written that!” Today I read such an article.

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

Vote or Don’t Complain

3 Nov

VoteTomorrow is Election Day so make sure you go out and VOTE! I don’t care who you vote for – just go and VOTE. You’ve heard it before but if you don’t vote – you don’t have a right to complain. So VOTE!

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.

    9. 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.”

    Elephant in the ChurchAnother 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!

Perspective

8 Oct

As our own financial world crumbles around us, it could be worse. I just read the following…

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.

New Man’s Open Letter to Tony Campolo

5 Oct

I just read an Open Letter to Tony Campolo by Drew Dyck of New Man Magazine. In it, he questions a couple of positions that Campolo seems to hold – 1) Muslims obtaining salvation apart from belief in Christ and 2) homosexuals shouldn’t have to change who they are to be saved.

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.

The Case For The Real JesusI 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.

Simple Obedience Unlocks God’s Future!

18 Sep

Jeff Leake, pastor at Allison Park Church in PA, wrote this blog entry recently,

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.”

What is your Holy Discontent?

13 Sep

Not very long ago, I wrote a piece on wanting to discover a passion for something. I’m certain that every person who is alive and breathing has a desire to make an impact on their little part of this world. I know I do. In that post, I asked a simple question, “What keeps you up at night?”

Bill Hybels - Holy DiscontentI 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.

Why Should I Belong

5 Sep

About a year ago, I wrote a post entitled, The Ultimate Doctrinal Question. It was a fun look at how cerebral some churches can get. At Flatland (formerly Grace) we want to be a church who welcomes everyone. We’re beginning a new teaching series called Why Should I Belong?, where we look at reasons why someone who questions the need for organized religion might want to be part of a church, and specifically, if you are in the Omaha area, why you might want to be part of Flatland Church. You are welcome to attend our services, Sundays at 9:45am and 11:00am, to find out what is happening.

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.

God’s Grace – 101

3 Sep

The other day, I was reading a book that discussed objections that some people have for not believing in God. One of the reasons was that they couldn’t (wouldn’t) believe in a God that would send good people to hell. It’s hard to think about good people possibly ending up in hell. We all know people who, while they don’t especially believe in Jesus, they are good people. They do good things. This objection also comes up in discussions about “alternate” ways to heaven. Lately, a lot of people have been espousing ideas that although we have chosen Jesus as our way to God, they believe that there are other ways to come to God. The argument goes, who are we to know the mind of God? Could a Buddhist, or Muslim who is devout still go to hell?

Stacks 1On 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

The Paradoxical Commandments

8 Aug

These are purportedly hanging on the wall at Mother Theresa’s orphanage in India. Something to ponder….

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.