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Don’t Skip This Step

October 21, 2020 / / 0 Comments
person climbing concrete stairs
Photo by Clique Images on Unsplash

I’m going to admit that this post is very much directed at churches, pastors, and other leaders in church-topia. But if you’re not in one of those roles, I’d love for you to still read and hold those of us who are in these roles accountable. Because what we’re doing isn’t enough. I recently heard someone say we’re perfectly positioned to get what we’re currently getting. Or put another way we’ll keep getting what we’ve always gotten if we keep doing what we’ve always done.

So what needs to change?

As church people and church leaders we have big dreams for an Acts 2:47 kind of moment. That’s the moment when God added to their number daily those who were being saved. I mean who wouldn’t want that for the church they serve or even the church they attend!

I’ve been a pastor for over 18 years now and in every church I’ve ever served, we always wanted to reach more people so the kingdom of God would grow. We celebrated baptisms and new member classes. We would hold big welcome events when we brought in a new group of people to the church.

But when we weren’t seeing an increase in numbers we started to wonder what was wrong. What are we missing? Why isn’t God bringing them to us anymore? Why did attendance shrink? Why aren’t new people coming anymore?

This problem is only getting more vivid as we move through this post Covid reality. Churches are shrinking. Less than 75% of church members on average are returning to in person worship. Those who are staying home are saying it’s getting harder and harder to stay connected digitally because the digital time feels like the in person time just without the person connection.

And so many of our churches are pushing to go back to normal. It’s so easy to want to go back to regular in person worship. We want our coffee hour and our fellowship meals. We want to gather the way we used to between services and catch up on what’s going on in life. We want our Sundays back for crying out loud.

But we can’t have our Acts 2:47 moments without living in verse 46 first! Verse 46 is easily overlooked. We love verse 42 where we read how they devoted themselves to breaking of bread, fellowship, prayers and teaching. We expect God will add to our numbers daily in mass quantities. But what did they do with the fellowship, bread, prayers and teaching? Did they do it on Sundays? Did they keep it tucked away for an hour long expression of service and devotion one day a week? Here’s what Acts 2:47 says:

And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts.

Do you see it? Day by day! They saw something that we have forgotten. Church is not an hour on Sunday. It’s not a building we go to on the weekend. It’s who we are. It’s the people with whom we surround ourselves.

Do you day by day with Jesus and those in your community of faith? Do you day by day in the promise of the temple? Do you day by day around the breaking of bread?

It’s really not as hard as we’ve made it out to be. There are so many ways to day by day! You don’t have to spend hours a day. You don’t have to be a bible scholar. You don’t have to host a small group or be at church 24/7! Two of my favorite ways to day by day are the S.O.A.P plan and the 5x5x5 plan. I’ll explain the 5x5x5 plan more in a future post but the gist is five minutes a day in the bible, do one of five simple tasks with the verses (highlight, memorize, etc), and do it five days a week.

These are just a couple ways that we can day by day with God and one another. I’ll unpack a few more options in the weeks to come. But for now start where you are and lean into God a little more today and soon you’ll be in a day by day situation too.

Respect Goes Both Ways

October 20, 2020 / / 0 Comments

What a crazy world this has turned out to be! Nothing is as it seems. It’s for sure not how it used to be. From the pandemic to the swelling political climate and from the racial divide to the quest for normalcy we’re in a time when everyone is on high alert. And hardly anyone has the tolerance for anything other than their own opinion.

I don’t like to post things on social media. As a matter of fact I don’t do a whole lot on my social feeds at all anymore. The daily Bible verse, a few blog post pushes to my feeds, and the occasional picture of a fire in the fire pit is all you get from my social networks these days. And yes that’s intentional.

Just because we have something to say doesn’t mean it always has to be said. But what’s more is that when someone says something that’s different than your way of approaching life, it does not make them the enemy.

Respect goes both ways. Share on X

We’ve grown weary of the demands on our time throughout this unpredictable year. Introverts are handling the isolation better than extroverts, but they’re having their own set of issues. Just when we think that we’re handling one problem fairly well another one smacks us in the face out of nowhere.

The message below is an excerpt from Sunday’s service. We talked about honor and respect. We looked at what it means to value those with differences of opinion.

Take a few minutes. Put your emotions to the side. Listen to what it means to love your neighbor through a challenging time.

Start Right Here

October 19, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Today’s MusicMonday was released in the middle of our pandemic reality. And to be honest it’s probably a message that is a few years too late but oh so true for our present reality.

The point of the song is that we have to start the change needed in the world and it has to start somewhere. And that somewhere is right here and right now.

The message of the Bible isn’t one of blame or pushing responsibility off to someone else. The Bible is about claiming our struggles and admitting our part of the problem. I’ve had a long-time philosophy in my life that I won’t bring a problem if I’m not also willing to bring a solution and be part of that solution.

The divided world in which we live today makes it too easy to blame someone else. Put others down for not seeing life the way we see it. Even “unfriend” someone because they won’t bow to our way of living. Sure there are some issues that are pretty critical to who we are as followers of God, but most of the things we take a stand on really aren’t that important or critical.

Take time to realize that the change you’re looking for in the world won’t start with the person across from you at work, beside you at church or even the one who lives with you at home. That change has to start right here and right now with you.

How Do You Rest?

October 13, 2020 / / 0 Comments

This season of life has been the busiest that I think I’ve ever experienced. In conversations with many people in many different fields it seems as if everyone is busier than ever before. Our homes have become more than just a safe place to live. Now our homes are our offices, school classrooms, gyms, meeting rooms, virtual hangouts, counseling centers, movie theaters, and restaurants. So how do we disconnect when our home fills every aspect of life? How do we disconnect from reality when reality has now invaded our homes?

The bible teaches a principle that might prove helpful for us here. It’s something called the Sabbath. The idea behind the Sabbath for many people was the concept of taking a day and doing nothing. It was believed that you had to basically lay around and take a nap all day and not even lift a finger. The sabbath became more of a rule than a command to help us find blessing.

The purpose of the Sabbath command wasn’t to add a restriction to our lives or to keep us from living life. As a matter of fact, the command to rest and remember was given so that we could better enjoy and appreciate life. In our fast paced, ever moving world stopping to recenter ourselves is absolutely critical.

So this week I want to challenge you to pause from your daily routine for just a little bit. Think about what energizes you. What helps you regain focus and gain clarity? Do that. The idea behind the Sabbath is that you recenter yourself around the grace and mercy of God. If you’re not a Jesus person, you still need to find center. Ideally, I’d love if you’d find that center in Christ but I still care about your mental health so find center. Pause. Rest. I’ve heard it said somewhere that we need to not only rest from our work but work from our rest.

Loneliness and Anxiety

October 9, 2020 / / 0 Comments

If there’s anything this pandemic has taught me, it’s the value of people and healthy, strong relationships. Men and women were not created to do life alone, which makes this long and drawn out season of distancing and limited gatherings an extremely challenge time for so many people in our communities.

It’s no wonder the depression rate is on the rise and the suicide rate is skyrocketing. It should be no shock that substance abuse and addiction diagnoses are greater now than in recent history. Loneliness is driving so many to lengths they would never normally go.

Marriages are falling apart. Friendships are being broken down. We’re highlighting problems more than solutions. Compliments have turned to complaints. Love has turned to hate. All we see is the negative in other people.

The spirit of men and women is being broken. It’s being broken by our inability to be around other people. We need to be surrounded by others who can challenge us in a healthy way and encourage us in a loving way. I fear the longer this forced distance goes on the more long lasting harm is going to be done to whatever is left of our relationships.

This distancing is causing loneliness in so many people. And that loneliness is leading to anxiety the likes of which we haven’t seen in decades.

How do you deal with stress and anxiety.

  • Physical activity – Do you workout? Are you a runner?
  • Mental distraction – Do you have a hobby? Love to craft? Is coloring or video games your release?
  • Rest and relaxation – Enjoy napping? or vegging with a movie or video games?
  • Relational release – Find someone you can talk to. Find a friend to lean on emotionally. Who can you call to talk through the difficulties? Who’s already in your life as a constant source of encouragement and grounding?
  • Spiritual connection – An aspect of life we all too easily overlook is the spiritual needs we have. Take time to be in prayer. Take a walk and list the things for which you’re thankful. Spend time reading the Bible. Join with others who believe the same way and study together. Ask someone whose opinion you respect some hard faith questions. Try fasting (who hasn’t packed on a couple pounds since covid started?) Experiment with meditation.

Whatever it is, we all need to find a healthy and nondestructive way to release some tension. Take time to focus on self care. Relieve stress. Rebuild relationships. Restore the basics of your faith system.

These are a few ways you can handle the loneliness and anxiety that are infiltrating our communities and families. What have you found most helpful to help relieve stress? How do you show those around you that you value their friendship?

Lessons From The Vineyard

October 8, 2020 / / 0 Comments

There is a great deal of wisdom that can be found in the bible even for people who don’t value or even believe in the bible! Today’s lesson comes from the illustration of a vineyard and a corner stone. The idea is simple and direct.

For many of us who are believers in what the Bible teaches, we hold the bible to be the source of truth. But admittedly not everyone believes that way. While I truly believe that the bible is the sole absolute source of truth for all of mankind, not everyone sees it that way.

We all have an absolute truth. It’s either that the bible is the absolute truth for all humanity or that it is not. Those are both absolute statements. We can’t deny absolute truth at all. Just we define what it is differently.

Jesus talks about truth and what our role is when it comes to possessing truth. Check out the message and see what Jesus says about truth and how you can apply that in just about any context.

Who You Are To Me

October 5, 2020 / / 0 Comments

You don’t have to go far before you’ll hear someone say something negative to you. People have no problem pointing out your flaws and faults. The world is a messed up place to be sure. Friends are turning on one another. Family members are dividing over some pretty crazy things. It’s just not the world many of us thought we’d raise our children in or grow up in ourselves. So how do we gain any clarity in these crazy and disruptive times?

Today’s Music Monday is a bit of a grounding rod for us as followers of Jesus. Now I want to be clear. Some people call themselves Christians or church-goers but really aren’t interested in following Jesus. It’s more a slide of hand kind of game. For these truths to really speak to us we need to do more than put on a smiling face and say we attend church. The reality of the matter is as followers of Jesus, this truth is one of the most powerful things we need to remember in these chaotic and unpredictable times.

Our song is titled who you are to me. This song is a worship song that brings us to a place and time when we can see the power and majesty of who God is when life is all messed up. It’s a reminder that when the world is continuously changing, God is constant. Throughout our lives here we find that time and time again bad things jump out of nowhere and we are caught off guard. But with God there is no caught off guard. Where he is concerned he is our God and our provider and our protector. He’ll be there when life is good and hold us when life is bad.

Who is he to me? As a Jesus follower, he should be your everything.

Leadership Lessons From Jesus

October 3, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Leadership is a confusing animal to many people. Some think it comes from a title. Others think strong leadership needs a massive following. This week we had the chance to look at some critical life lessons that apply to leadership still today. We can learn a great deal about how to and how not to act by watching people who’ve been in similar situations. So let’s take a closer look at what it means to be a leader and how a leader should react when under pressure.

At our Wednesday discussion of the Bible we looked at Matthew 21. Here’s a quick synopsis. You can listen to the full message below.

The start of chapter 21 is the famous account of the triumphal entry, aka Palm Sunday. People are flocking to see Jesus. They line the streets and shout their approval. They want more and more from him. They can’t get enough of his works and famous teachings. They love the things he does and the way he speaks differently than everyone else. They are fed by him. Healed by him. Restored by him. He gives them hope. It’s no wonder the people can’t get enough of him.

When Jesus starts to gain momentum in his leadership and the people are flocking to him left and right, we shouldn’t be surprised that the established leadership gets panicked. These leaders aren’t kings or princes. They are council members in the leadership of the church. When they feel threatened by the one man who can make the most massive impact, they try to trap him. They rally their followers and try to convince the world that he’s lying and manipulating them.

On Jesus’ way through the city, he makes a straight path toward the temple where he upsets the leaders even more! He sees what’s happening. They’re cheating the people. They were changing money rates to benefit their own clan. They were inflating the dollar and charging more to some individuals in an unfair manner. They were making the system benefit themselves. They turned the temple entrance into a cheater’s house and a safe place for liars and manipulators.

Jesus can’t take it. He sees it and has to act immediately. He storms the temple area. He drives the animals out and throws the money tables over. He tells them exactly what they’re doing wrong, but it only fuels their fire. When selfish people are doing wrong things, they don’t want to hear what they’re doing wrong. They just get greedy and want more. They want to get rid of anyone who stands in the way of what they want.

After Jesus clears the temple and restores order to the system, he leaves for the countryside to stay for the night. In the morning he gives a direct message to his followers on the power that real faith can have on one’s life. Then enters the temple again.

Remember the last time he was in the temple, he disrupted their lying broken system. He cost them money and respect. So now they are angry. They’re ready for revenge. They want him gone so they’ll stop at nothing to make that happen.

We’re near the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry and things are getting increasingly heated between him and the establishment of his day. Seemingly without a word from Jesus, the chief priests and elders approached him to ask him a question intended to trap him.

By what authority do you say the things you say and do the things you do?

Jesus knows the answer to this question and to be honest so do the chief priests. However instead of giving them an answer to anger them more, he puts the ability to answer in their court by asking them another question. Their answer to this question will essentially help them know his answer. They were so hasty to get an answer that they were trapped between the right thing to do and the best thing to do.

Here we learn two critical lessons from Jesus.

  • Sometimes doing the right thing won’t gain you popularity but it’s still the right thing.
  • Just because you have something to say doesn’t mean you need to say it.

Jesus practices the greatest restraint imaginable. He doesn’t speak the answer to this question. He knows the answer. His answer is the right answer. He’s not ashamed of or scared of the repercussions of his answer. He wants his opponent to have to admit their own position and ignorance. He’s using this as a teaching moment for them and his followers.

The chief priests should know by what authority John Baptized. By not knowing, they were essentially admitting failure in their job. It was their business to know the answer to this question but they refused to answer and settled for I don’t know in an effort to save their credibility.

Jesus then uses a story to help illustrate this point. So one moral of the story here is:

When we know the right thing to do and refuse to do it, we are just as guilty as if we did the wrong thing. Share on X

Flip the Curve

October 2, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Imagine for a moment one scenario with two potential outcomes. The scenario is simple you face a challenge. You get caught off guard. You’re thrown off track. Something comes out of no where and completely derails all of your plans. All of your momentum is halted. You come to what feels like a dead stop in an instant.

Sound familiar? I think we’ve all kind of lived this very scenario in our own ways. Graduations were canceled. Spring athletes never had their chance to perform their talents for family, friends and scouts. Summer activities were canceled. Businesses were closed. Churches stopped meeting in person. Family gatherings were stifled. Nearly everything we knew ground to a painful, screeching halt.

And if we’re being honest things aren’t really all that much better. The very thing that brought this calamity upon us is still with us. Fear is being handed out like it was candy to a group of children on halloween. The situation seems so bleak. Business are closing their doors. Churches are being split over how they handle the regulations. Families and friends are divided over where they stand on the issues facing our country.

When our situation is this dire there are two natural outcomes: crash and burn or pivot and soar. The rest of this post will address the issue as it pertains to churches but is really applicable to all scenarios.

In a recent article in Outreach Magazine, it’s been estimated that nearly 1 in 5 churches will likely close their doors within 18 months of the pandemic. This is awful to even think about. But how can we prevent this from being our reality in whatever field we find ourselves in?

If we keep doing the same things we’ve always done, we’ll get the same results we’ve grown to accept or even worse.

So to change the tide we need to pivot. The idea of pivoting in basketball is to keep one foot in place while moving the rest of your body in different directions to determine which way will benefit the team most.

Right now we’re in a situation that demands a pivot. The curve is trending downward. We’ve grown accustomed to being an organization that is all about Sunday morning. Gather together is the goal. Meeting is the mission. But what happens if we pivot our thinking?

The mission of the church never was to just gather and meet. Jesus said to make disciples. The mission of the church if we’re following the command of Jesus should be to go, baptize, teach. It’s all about growing the family of God.

If we don’t pivot our thinking we’re going to ride the plane right into the ground. But if we can keep one foot firmly rooted in the promises of God in scripture, then pivot our methods to see where He might be leading us we’ll be able to soar in ways we never thought imaginable.

Over the next couple of weeks we’ll look at a few things we can do to pivot our thinking and approach our current situation not as a series of challenges but as opportunities that God has placed before us to help us soar.

As we end this post consider where you’ve been and what direction you’re headed now. Then evaluate why your church or organization really exists. That information will be helpful as we move forward next week.

Devotion or Distraction?

September 30, 2020 / / 0 Comments

I struggled with the title of this one a bit. Most people (myself included) have a pretty narrow definition of what devotion means. For many it looks something like sitting in a dimly lit room in a comfortable chair where everything is quiet and serene reading the bible or a special book called a devotional. If we’re not sitting contemplatively learning, we don’t really think it’s a true time of devotion. But what if we have it all wrong?

If your situation is like many in our world today, you’re probably working from home. That means your home is your place of entertainment, home gym, home office, child’s classroom, and so many more things!

Add to it the fact that all of our remote work is done on our computers and the distractions mount even more. Productivity maybe on the rise in some areas but distraction is through the roof as well.

You’re probably spending more time on Facebook or Instagram than ever before. If you’re like most people, you’re not disconnecting from work at a normal closing time like you did pre-covid.

The long and short of it is that distractions are all around us, so how can we possibly focus on a personal devotional life in the midst of the most distracted time in our lives?

Redefining Devotion

In an article I recently read this very topic was addressed. The idea of personal devotion time needs to be seen in a different light. We’re in different times than ever before so why can’t we see things a bit differently? The article made a distinction between the act of devotion and the one to whom you’re devoted.

He gave several examples of what devotion could look like throughout the article. We can live out our devotional life while raking leaves or throwing a ball with our child. We can live this devotional lifestyle by doing all that we do for the glory of God. Just because you’re in a stage right now where you can’t seem to focus for long periods of time without being distracted by other things doesn’t mean you can’ t have a devotional life.

Some things you may want to consider however if distraction has seemingly taken over your life include shutting down your computer when your work is done. Stop your phone from fetching emails after a set time of day. Have tech-free zones in your house. These are places where upon entry you have no technology turned on. Yep that includes that cool smart watch too! Make supper time personal by sitting down together and leaving phones in a basket on the counter.

When we leave some of our most distracting habits behind us for a set period of time, we’ll not only be more productive but we’ll also have a deeper connections with God and those around us.

There you have it. Devotion in a distracted age. Now don’t ask me how long it took to write this article because of all the things that I let distract me!

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