Are you kidding me?!?!?! These guys are absolutely crazy. Some days it feels like following Jesus is like this - a thrill ride that could get you killed at any second. Pretty sweet.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Walked out on Prayer
Have you ever walked out on a prayer? I've been places where someone in front has been speaking or teaching on a particular subject that was controversial, and witnessed people get up and leave in a sort of protest. What was being said was offensive to them so they left. I get that I guess, though I've never done it. I've always felt that we need to hear people through completely before we make assumptions about them. That reminds me of a time I was in chapel at Biola University when a speaker did his whole message as though he were Muslim. He argued for the Koran, and did the whole thing. Well, one student sitting near me was clearly getting agitated. He happened to be Asian - English was not his first language, and he clearly wasn't getting the fact that this guy was pretending to be Muslim in order to teach about what Muslim's believe. Well this poor guy stood up and yelled about how bad this guy was, and that he should worship Jesus instead of Allah, and stormed out of the gymnasium. It was all rather strange really. But I digress...
I was involved recently in a time of prayer with some people and it was the first time in my life that I considered getting up and leaving. And it was during prayer for crying out loud! What is the appropriate response to a prayer you disagree with? Do you pray back in sort of a prayer battle? Or do you refuse to say "Amen"? Anyone ever experience something like this? It was a really strange place to be in to be honest, and I have no idea how I should have handled that situation. Rather than leaving, I simply remained silent, prayed silently, and when it was over I got up and left. What would you have done?
I was involved recently in a time of prayer with some people and it was the first time in my life that I considered getting up and leaving. And it was during prayer for crying out loud! What is the appropriate response to a prayer you disagree with? Do you pray back in sort of a prayer battle? Or do you refuse to say "Amen"? Anyone ever experience something like this? It was a really strange place to be in to be honest, and I have no idea how I should have handled that situation. Rather than leaving, I simply remained silent, prayed silently, and when it was over I got up and left. What would you have done?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Durham is cool
I've lived in Durham for about 7 months now. It's kind of hard to believe. But I came from Southern California, the place on the cutting edge, the place where everything is always happening. And yet, I've found that in a few short months here in Durham, NC that maybe SoCal isn't quite as cutting edge as it wants to be. I guess what I mean by that is that there is a lot going on here, way more than I expected there to be. Let me give some examples. In these seven months I have had the opportunity to see Donald Miller (author, Blue Like Jazz), Shane Claiborne (author, Irresistible Revolution and Jesus for President), Mark Driscoll (church planter, author - Vintage Jesus), and this week Ed Stetzer (church planting guru, author Planting Missional Churches). And all of this has been within 15-20 minutes of my house. I guess it comes with living in a University saturated area. But it's awesome.
As a church planter, it's pretty cool that this area is booming with those on the cutting edge of planting churches. There's a monthly forum about 10 minutes from my house led by Summit Church called SendRDU. This is where this week I got to hear Ed Stetzer talk about the pitfalls of church planting. Oh yeah, and every one of these things I've been able to do so far have been free. Can't beat that.
In June there will be a national conference for church planters and those interested in moving the church forward. Where is it? Oh, it's in Durham. So while hundreds of people will fly in from all over the country, I'll sleep in my bed, get up late, and drive to the conference.
All this to say - SoCal is still cool. And while it can boast of Disneyland and the beach and In-N-Out, at least I have trees and seasons and Shane Claiborne. It's a pretty good trade.
As a church planter, it's pretty cool that this area is booming with those on the cutting edge of planting churches. There's a monthly forum about 10 minutes from my house led by Summit Church called SendRDU. This is where this week I got to hear Ed Stetzer talk about the pitfalls of church planting. Oh yeah, and every one of these things I've been able to do so far have been free. Can't beat that.
In June there will be a national conference for church planters and those interested in moving the church forward. Where is it? Oh, it's in Durham. So while hundreds of people will fly in from all over the country, I'll sleep in my bed, get up late, and drive to the conference.
All this to say - SoCal is still cool. And while it can boast of Disneyland and the beach and In-N-Out, at least I have trees and seasons and Shane Claiborne. It's a pretty good trade.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Faith
I was reading from Mark 6 this morning. Jesus is in his hometown and people are questioning his credentials and his abilities. He's the guy they've all known their whole lives. He grew up with many of them, they had hired him to do carpentry. And now suddenly he's the Messiah? I guess I can't say I blame them for their comments and their questions. It would be a little tough to wrap your mind around. But aside from that, there's a really interesting thing that Mark tells us at the end of these few verses. This is what he tells us:
"He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith."
A couple of things stand out to me about this. First of all, there is a direct link between the amount of faith people have, and God's ability (is that the right word?) to do miraculous things. Mark tells us "He could not do any miracles there...." And apparently it was their lack of faith that made it impossible for these things to happen. That all tells me that if I want God to do amazing things in and through me, I need more faith. My faith is weak. And I need to grow in that regard.
Secondly though, look at what Jesus did do. It says that he couldn't do any miracles there, "except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them." So "all" he could do was heal people? I don't know about you, but I think that healing people would be pretty unbelievable! And yet, for Jesus, he's disappointed because he clearly wanted to do more than that. Do you ever get the feeling that maybe we think and dream too small with God? I mean, sometimes I pray for God to do things like heal someone from a sickness. But how often to I pray that God will cure blindness, take away cancer, make the lame walk? What if what we ask for, and what our "faith" hopes for is absolutely nothing compared to what God really wants to do? It's a crazy thought isn't it? If God were going to decide what to do today based on your faith, what would we see happen? I know that my answer to that question is embarrassing. Pray with me that God will increase our faith.
"He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith."
A couple of things stand out to me about this. First of all, there is a direct link between the amount of faith people have, and God's ability (is that the right word?) to do miraculous things. Mark tells us "He could not do any miracles there...." And apparently it was their lack of faith that made it impossible for these things to happen. That all tells me that if I want God to do amazing things in and through me, I need more faith. My faith is weak. And I need to grow in that regard.
Secondly though, look at what Jesus did do. It says that he couldn't do any miracles there, "except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them." So "all" he could do was heal people? I don't know about you, but I think that healing people would be pretty unbelievable! And yet, for Jesus, he's disappointed because he clearly wanted to do more than that. Do you ever get the feeling that maybe we think and dream too small with God? I mean, sometimes I pray for God to do things like heal someone from a sickness. But how often to I pray that God will cure blindness, take away cancer, make the lame walk? What if what we ask for, and what our "faith" hopes for is absolutely nothing compared to what God really wants to do? It's a crazy thought isn't it? If God were going to decide what to do today based on your faith, what would we see happen? I know that my answer to that question is embarrassing. Pray with me that God will increase our faith.
Friday, March 6, 2009
A revealing question
What won't happen if we don't do what God has called us to do? I've been listening lately to a leadership podcast from Andy Stanley. In a recent episode, he asked this question. From a leadership standpoint, it's important he says to get people thinking about a problem that needs to be solved, and that this question helps do that. I've been thinking a lot about it in terms of my own life, and in the life of Story Church. A couple years ago Don Miller gave a talk at Mars Hill (Grand Rapids, MI), in which he talked about story. That message is the basis of where our name came from. Anyway, he said that the way you tell whether or not a story is good is to ask the question, "What would happen if this story wasn't resolved?" He asks how would the story resolve if the hero got hit by a bus. He gave the example of his friend Jenna, who heads up Blood:Water Mission. What would happen if Jenna's story wasn't resolved? People would die. She provides clean water wells for millions in Africa, and if she couldn't continue - thousands if not millions would die. That's a good story!
I have friends who are living great stories. One friend gave up a huge career opportunity to go spend a few months working in a health clinic in Africa. Another friend is rescuing a whole generation of kids in one of the poorest communities in Guatemala. Another friend goes every week to hang out with his friends who are homeless in downtown Raleigh, for whom he buys boots in order to take care of them in the cold. Still another friend planted a church for 20 somethings who were burned out on a church that was disconnected with the world around them. Now they are providing food for families that are HIV+ and have adopted them as part of their mission. What would happen if these people didn't do what God called them to do? What if instead they pursued something else? Like the American dream, success, fame, money, etc. It's so tempting isn't it? To spend our lives trying to better ourselves, to have more, to achieve more.
What won't happen in your life if you don't do what God has called you to do? Who won't be mentored? Who will go hungry? Who will suffer from an absent father or mother? Who will be sick? Who won't be loved? Who won't experience grace and forgiveness?
For me, I wonder what won't happen in Durham if Story Church doesn't do what God has called us to do. What marriage won't be rescued? What family won't be redeemed? What person will give in to hopelessness? What addictions won't be broken? For many churches in America, we fail to ask this question, and the church suffers. We grow inward, we fail to connect with a hurting world, and we basically become irrelevant. It's not the way God intended His church to be. God invites us to be part of something so much bigger than ourselves. He invites us to be part of a bigger Story, one of redemption and hope. I pray that you and I and the church in America begin to realize this truth and to live for something more.
I have friends who are living great stories. One friend gave up a huge career opportunity to go spend a few months working in a health clinic in Africa. Another friend is rescuing a whole generation of kids in one of the poorest communities in Guatemala. Another friend goes every week to hang out with his friends who are homeless in downtown Raleigh, for whom he buys boots in order to take care of them in the cold. Still another friend planted a church for 20 somethings who were burned out on a church that was disconnected with the world around them. Now they are providing food for families that are HIV+ and have adopted them as part of their mission. What would happen if these people didn't do what God called them to do? What if instead they pursued something else? Like the American dream, success, fame, money, etc. It's so tempting isn't it? To spend our lives trying to better ourselves, to have more, to achieve more.
What won't happen in your life if you don't do what God has called you to do? Who won't be mentored? Who will go hungry? Who will suffer from an absent father or mother? Who will be sick? Who won't be loved? Who won't experience grace and forgiveness?
For me, I wonder what won't happen in Durham if Story Church doesn't do what God has called us to do. What marriage won't be rescued? What family won't be redeemed? What person will give in to hopelessness? What addictions won't be broken? For many churches in America, we fail to ask this question, and the church suffers. We grow inward, we fail to connect with a hurting world, and we basically become irrelevant. It's not the way God intended His church to be. God invites us to be part of something so much bigger than ourselves. He invites us to be part of a bigger Story, one of redemption and hope. I pray that you and I and the church in America begin to realize this truth and to live for something more.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Big Decision
I'm really wrestling lately with a decision that I have to make regarding Story Church. At some point, we have to pick a location - a spot that we will sort of set up shop and seek to impact the area around us. I'm torn though. I love the downtown area, and the proximity to Duke and the opportunity that gives us for ministry to students. And yet, it feels like the area that we live is ripe for a church plant. There are several newer housing developments, very few churches, and no one who is really doing anything new. I know that no matter where we end up, God will use us. My heart and my vision has been to have an influence on the city, and on the campus. But I'm beginning to wonder if that's a bigger vision than where we are at right now. And I wonder if that is my vision, or if it's God's. So I'm going to be seeking quite a bit of wisdom in the coming weeks. Please pray for me and for Story Church as we seek God's direction for us. And help me out with something - how do you make big decisions? How does God speak to you? Do you do anything differently when you are intentionally seeking His voice for something specific?
