Lessons on Shutting Up

One of my great pet peeves is sitting next to "movie motor mouths". You know those types? I remember one time watching the movie Gladiator with a handful of college students. We were in the middle of the greatest part of the movie where we knew something big was about to happen. We were all on the edge of our seats, totally engaged in the storyline. You could have heard a pin drop until two students who arrived an hour late into the movie marched theatre and began with their verbal barrage. First, came 101 questions that somehow had nothing to do with anything important in the movie. Then our patience was severely tested by one of the student's play by play analysis of the film who had seen this movie before. This was particularly annoying. I wanted to lean over and say "Shut up!" Of course that would have been rude, so I just offered this individual my bucket of pop-corn which had a way of keeping his mouth pre-occupied for a while.

It's amazing how an intruding word at the wrong time can disrupt the most compelling drama. When our hearts and souls are engaged into a story, I mean really engaged, untimely words can not only break our connection with that story, but trivialize it as well. If this is true with a good storyline in a movie, how much more with the story of our lives.

Recently, God has been teaching me that the words I speak have as much power to break trust as they do to build intimacy. They have the ability to trivialize the soul as much as speak truth to the soul. Our culture inundates us with the idea that more is better. Better too much of something than too little, right? Better a small group where everybody "shares" and talks a lot than a group that's silent. Certainly it's better to give a word of unsolicited advice than to remain silence. Not necessarily!

If you remember Job's friends you'll recall that as Job went through the "living hell" that he experienced his friends "sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him because of how great his suffering was" (Job 2:13). Helpless and struck by their own ability to "fix" Job's dilemma, his friends suffer with him in silence. Seven days! When was the last time you sat silent for seven hours at the feet of someone whose soul was in anguish? Can you imagine seven days?
Those of us who have sat next to a loved one who's in the slow agonizing process of death can relate. There's nothing that we can say to help them. Only thing we can do is to be "present"....to "be there for them". It would do us well to remember that the sum of friendship isn't the amount of advice that he/she can muster up in a given situation. My experience has shown that often when we give unsolicited advice or offer quick fixes without truly listening to one another, we force the soul into hiding. Most of us resent it when after sharing a deep struggle we are facing we are "sized up" in ten minutes and given a piece of token advice. If a medical doctor casually glossed over a patient and offered a token diagnosis without truly listening to and examining his symptoms we'd be suing for malpractice! And yet, so often we offer fixes for the inner man without first listening and giving reverence to the mysteries and complexities of the human condition.

Practical suggestion: Work on truly listening to those whom God has placed in your life. Resist the urge to fix. When someone shares, afford yourself a time of silence and prayer where you can begin to swallow what has been said. This silence will allow the person who shared the space for the inner teacher, the Holy Spirit, to speak his own truth into that person's life. It will also provide you the space to think about how you might navigate the rest of the conversation.

I’m guessing that Jesus was one fantastic listener. I know this because he was so present…so available…so aware of the other. People who like to listen to themselves speak are never those things. If you live in the Hayward area and are interested in learning more effective ways to listen to another soul, my friends Steve and Susie Burns will be offering a small retreat on Christian listening. They have told me that it has transformed how they minister and counsel others. The dates are July 30-31 at Crosswoods Camp. The cost is $30. It is not an overnight retreat. But it is essential to attend both Friday evening and Saturday. Email me or contact the church office (634-4613) for more details!

He was naked too. . .

The two sisters stood side by side. Their bodies sickly and decimated from lack of food and sleep. They stood waiting and shivering in the morning chill. Another roll call at Ravensbruck concentration camp where Corrie and Betsy Ten Boom awaited morning medical inspection by their inhumane captors .

The Ten Booms were Dutch Christians that harbored Jews in their home during the Nazi occupation of Holland. Corrie and Betsy had reached out their hand in love to a hurting people group, the Jews. And, now the only hands reaching out to them were the brutal paws of guards pointing and ordering these two feeble bodied women with hunger-gloated stomachs to strip down naked for "inspection". Corrie and Betsy both knew there was no reason for all the clothing to be stripped. Surely it was not necessary to take every piece of cloth. They recognized this order was more about humiliation and shredding human decency than about a random medical check. The kind of men who would take subtle pleasure in seeing malnourished women with stick-figure frames naked, Betsy and Corrie would never understand. Standing there vulnerable in full view to these grinning guards was just one more dimension of humiliation exemplified in this hellish place called Ravensbruck.

Standing there in plain view of her oppressors, the thought came to Corrie. Like an epiphany, a Biblical revelation landed deep in her spirit. "They took his clothes too", she mouthed under her breath. And, then a single tear would follow. Until this moment, Corrie had never fully understood or really known the depth of humiliation that Christ endured at the cross. She reflected on the exact words of the gospel "And they stripped him of his clothes". Jesus had hung naked on the cross for the sins of the world. There was no decency or respect shown to Him. The Son of God hung naked and exposed before a stream of gawking onlookers who hurled insults at him. They took his clothes too.

In that moment Corrie, amidst the pain and horror, found hope and courage in her God. He had suffered her fate. Experienced what she experienced. Felt what she felt. And, in that Corrie found hope.

As I muse over Corrie's story from her autobiography called the "Hiding Place" (a must read), I am wondering what principles we might glean from her Ravensbruck experience. How might her story infrom our own stories in our places of suffering?

Principle #1
It seems to me that there is no possible place of suffering where we find ourselves that Christ himself has not already entered. Our God understands the degradation of being stripped bare for all the world to see. He knows suffering. He knows humiliation. He knows Ravensbruck. Yes, he knows Ravensbruck inside and out. . .and every other hellish place in the world like it. And, we can find solace in the fact that he's been where we are and understands the horror we are presently experiencing. Only in Christianity do we discover a God who has suffered our humiliation and who is able to sympathize with our weakness. Where we are, He has been. Where we are, He is. What a God!

Principle #2
Jesus has not only been where we've been, but has gone through it and come out on the other side victorious. Resurrection points us to the eventual collapse and ultimate defeat of every Ravensbruck on this planet. The resurrection of Chirst offers us hope because although Jesus was naked, he has been clothed again by the Father. Although he suffered humiliation, today He is honored. Although He died, he lives.

Ravensbruck's days are numbered. Today we might find ourselves cold, vulnerable and naked with enemies pointing fingers and defacing our character. But a day will come...and with Jesus Christ has already come...where we will be clothed by the Father. A day is coming says the Lord when justice will reign, God will appear, the worlds Ravensbrucks will disintegrate and those who have placed their hope in Him "will not be found naked" (2 Corinthians 5:3).

God of Wasteful Abundance

His comment caught me off guard. As my friend Nathan and I were enjoying a hike in the deep woods of northern Minnesota we ran into a jackpot of fresh wild berries that were perfect for feasting on. "Boy", Nathan commented as he dined on another handful of juicy blackberries, "God is a God of wasteful abundance." Wasteful Abundance? I had considered over the years how God seemingly wastes nothing. I have always considered God as the perfect steward. One who works with what he has and never spoils or wastes one thing in this world of His. And, of course this is true in many contexts. But, a God of wasteful His abundance? Now, that's a thought I'd never considered before.

As I stood there, berry juice running down the rough whiskers of my unshaven face, I smiled and thought, "Yes, wasteful abundance." I scanned all the berries in this one spot of the forest floor. There were so many ripened berries, perfect for the plucking, in my line of sight alone that I couldn't possibly eat what was visible. Then I considered the millions of acres in this raw wilderness where these berries run wild and flourish. Millions upon millions of berries that would ripen, fall to the ground and spoil without any animal or human enjoying their sweetness.

Yes, wasteful abundance. The thought made me happy for God. God is so decadent in His blessings. He is so exuberant with his goodness that most of what He has to offer is wasted simply because there's too much to take in at one time.

God is so wasteful. He is guilty of polluting this world. Polluting His created cosmos with goodness and abundance and grace and beauty. He floods this world with more abundance than we can possibly take in in one lifetime.

We see abundance in scrumptious berries that no tongue will ever touch. We see it in the billions of brilliant stars that no eye will ever gaze upon. Or, in each unique snowflake, a work of art in its own right, that will sparkle with brilliance then melt and evaporate apart from any admiring onlooker. Perhaps most poignantly, God's wasteful abundance is seen in the blood of Christ spilled for men that will never desire, want, nor embrace His love. Yes, there is much that God seemingly wastes. . .especially on us.

But, is not that the nature of our great God? His giving is wasteful. Is not love and grace the stuff of wasteful abundance? God's goodness has a way of coming in bulk. He floods His way into our lives. Even if much of what He offers us goes to waste. He gives so liberally. So generously. So lavishly.

Application? Instead of looking at a world in terms of how meager things are, turn your gaze towards God's wasteful abundance. He offers us "immeasurably more than we ask or imagine" (Ephesians 3. 20-21). Instead of clenching your fists in frustration over a wasted opportunity today, open up your hands and begin to receive the wasteful bounty that God is presently offering. Don't let his goodness spoil! Take and feast on the Father's excess today.

On the Gifts

When I first came to Hayward Wesleyan and began helping new Christians and those seeking membership to discover their spiritual gifts I began using a spiritual gifts test. It seemed simple enough. Break out a number 2 sharpie, answer 50 questions or so, and presto! After ten minutes of thought and shading in some boxes you have discovered your unique role and fit into the local Body.

But, I confess that after doing this for a while, I began feeling less settled about the whole process. It seemed stagnant. Lifeless. Too contrived and individualistic.


"Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good" (I Corinthians 12:7).

The manifest ion of the Spirit....
The Scripture teaches that it is the Holy Spirit who gives or bestows the gifts, not a test. There is a strong argument here that as we keep in step with the Spirit the Spirit Himself will bestow these gifts to us. One might find it humorous to think of Peter sailing the sea of Galilee while jotting down answers to a test in order to find out how he would "plug into" and adequately minister to the Church. No, we all recognize that the gifts of the early church fathers and mothers emerged out of listening to the pull of God's Spirit and by being in deep relationship to others with whom they worshipped with.

Is not the same true for us? We no longer live a life led by "mute idols" (1 Cor. 12:2), but live by the Spirit who speaks, who leads, who brings clarity to us. God is not concealing your spiritual gift and there is no systematic process that Scripture outlines for us to discover our gift other than keeping in step with the Spirit. The Holy Spirit wants to bestow gifts to that will build up the Body of Christ and ultimately bring glory to the Father. He is working in your life and distributing gifts to us for the common good. The question is are you listening? Are you keeping your ear to the ground and eyes to the Lord to discern the giftings that His Spirit longs to give to you?


. . .To each person for the common good.
The gifts are ultimately for the common good of the Church. This is yet another point where it seems that a spiritual gift assessment falls short. A spiritual gift test simply asks questions about YOU. Your personality, your preferences, your likes and dislikes. . .essentially what you are good at. But, the goal of the gifts is not primarily about discovering a place where you can flourish. Rather, the gifts are primarily about building up the Body of Christ and bringing glory to God in the process. Spiritual gifts are the Spirit's gift to us not for our own good, but for the common good.

As team player in sports, this makes perfect sense. I may be a great striker in soccer. But, if the team already has a couple strikers (a striker is an offensive player), and the coach places me as a defensive back, and lo and behold, I flourish in that role, then that's where I need to be because it serves the common good. It doesn't serve the team well to demand that I play striker simply because I appear to be better at this position on paper. What matters is what the team needs of me on the field.

In the same way, God wants us to minister to the Church, not based on how we appear on pen and paper, but on the playing field of life in community. When we are immersed in love for one another, connected to the common good of one another, the Spirit of God has a way of affirming us directing us within that community to the exact place and setting where we can most effectively minister.

Most of us were raised on the model of discovering our gifts first, and then putting them into practice in community. But,I might suggest a reverse model. We first discover our community. Fall deeply in love with the brothers and sisters that God has set before you. Discover the needs of the Body and give yourself over to the welfare and health of that community. And, in so doing, I believe your spiritual giftings will begin to emerge with clarity and focus all by themselves as God's Spirit guides and illuminates.

How about you? How did you discover your spiritual gifts? What played the most essential role in you being affirmed and encouraged to minister and give towards the common good? I'm interested in your feedback.

On you Marks. . .

The Race from Heath Davis on Vimeo.

My family and I are enjoying a family vacation in our favorite spot. . .Cape Hatteras, NC. When I say family vacation I'm not exaggerating. . .I think at last count there are over 40 of us down here who are kin of some sort. I cooked about sixty hot dogs last night on the grill for dinner. Like feeding a small army. After dinner we went to the beach for a devotional prepared by Grandma Gloria and Grandpa Larry.

Grandpa Larry spoke to the kids on finishing well using the metaphor of a race. "It's not about who finishes first", he shared "it's about how you run the race, and finishing well". Grandpa asked the kids how Jesus would run a race. Would he just shove others out of the way to get to the front, or would he help the hurting and help out the slow? The kids all agreed that Jesus would show concern not to win, but to help others finish strong.

Like a good teacher, Grandpa let his little students put into practice what they had learned. He asked all the grandkids to line up on a starting line he prepared. . .there were about 15 of them ranging from 12 to 4. "Remember", he said, "It's not about winning, or who comes in first. . . it's about being like Jesus." Of course, us parents stood by wondering how our kids would apply Grandpa's words of wisdom into the context of this race on the sand.

"On your marks". . .my eyes went to my 4 year old nephew Caidron who would certainly need help as he had no clear chance at winning.

"Get set". . .Jackson glances over towards Caidron, perhaps I think, he's going to sacrifice his place in the race to help his little cousin. . .And, oh, here comes Kiera! She has moved in next to Caidron. She's the oldest. Certainly she gets Grandpa's point and has jockeyed into a new position help the 4-year old underdog.

These kids are getting it, I muse. They have successfully caught a lesson about life and love. Life isn't just about winning an losing. It's about finishing well. A hopeless idealist, I'm picturing all fourteen grand kids urging little Caidron on and letting him win the race, even carrying him on their shoulders after he crosses the finish line. . .there are shouts of victory, tears in the kids eyes, and proud Grandparents viewing the entire scene with satisfaction and approval.

"Go!". . .At Grandpa's command the race is on. And, what we saw in that moment left all the adults speechless. Fourteen blood thirsty, glory hungry hoodlums kicking, scratching and shoving their way to the front. Total depravity in all its glory! Of course, standing at the starting line stunned, wiping sand from his eyes from quite literally being left in the dust, was Caidron. Well, so much for getting the point.

We all, including Grandpa, had to laugh at such a scene. We were reminded that solid interpretation doesn't necessarily lead to sincere application. How many of us have heard our share of Jesus' words, lined up to run the race with good intentions and left Him in the dust as we scratch, kick and shove our way to the front.

If Grandpa's words about Jesus are right, then I guess there were no "winners" yesterday. And, maybe that's the point. We just don't get it. . .(big kids included :) ). His way is not our way. He ran a different sort of race and found victory in a way that we would rather not. And, so often we just don't it. Maybe the point is not getting it, as much as getting Him.

I think every kid and adult walked away a little more victorious yesterday. . .precisely because there were no "winners". I'm reminded that we are all losers, who just don't get it. But, thanks be to God, who has sent a winner on our behalf, one who won the race that we failed to run.

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a great day yesterday!!

Uprooting

People are like trees. The exist to grow, flourish and point to God. Our hearts are like the roots of the tree. They are forever seeking to be firmly established in a life-giving source.

The unformed soul is like a sapling without soil. It knows intuitively that it will dry up, shrivel and die unless its roots find a home. Roots operate like desperate hands forever grasping for some life-giving source in which it can cling to.

This insatiable desire for the human heart to be rooted in something larger than ourselves is universal and explains why everyone is rooted in something. The problem is the where we have planted ourselves. As this picture depicts, a tree can be rooted almost anywhere. This small Maple tree has found its home in a 2x10 rough sawn oak bench. In it's vulnerable state and desperate quest for life a tree will lay down roots into anything that has the slightest resemblance of earth. Sadly, it has become dislocated and despite it's natural inclination to live, it will die.

In the same way, each person in the world has a heart that's been rooted. The problem is where that heart has been planted. Too often we settle for so much less than the rich soil of God's kingdom. Like the sapling, we too will die unless we uproot and are transplanted.

But, ah, herein lies the problem. Roots are attachments. Their job is to establish a firm and safe home. For the small Maple tree, being yanked out of it's established dwelling (as bizarre as a place that it's been planted) must feel like a kind of death is taking place.

The great writer A.W. Tozer puts it well. He writes, "The roots of our hearts have grown down into things, and we dare not pull up one rootlet lest we die. Things have become necessary to us, a development never originally intended. God's gifts now take the place of God, and the whole course of nature is upset by the monstrous substitution."

Following Jesus ALWAYS involves uprooting. This means there is a process of detachment, and de-establishment from our old established home. This is why Jesus says that if you truly want to live, you must first die.

While the rough-sawn oak cannot sustain life, if it's all we ever knew, and where we have established our source of life, the goodbyes can be painful. It can feel like death. The good news is that although it feels like death, we will ultimately live.

Our sapling lives can be re-established in the right source. We can be transplanted and grow as we never previously knew.

If we want to understand how people have been formed, we must look at where their roots have been established. We must never water-down or minimize this "uprooting" process in discipleship. Rather, we have to give them a wider and deeper vision of where we were meant to be established and live.

Prayer for a Pair

My friends Caleb and Ashley Yoder had twins a few weeks ago. The boys were premature and miraculously hung on to life although they each weighed less than 2 lbs. Ashley has done a great job of recording this difficult and challenging journey (click on title link above to read their journey and view pictures of the pre-me's). For many during this ordeal Caleb and Ashley have been unable to be near their two boys for fear of over-stimulating them. It's got to be so difficult to deal with this. I just thought my readers would find strength in their struggle and it would be a reminder to say a prayer for little Luke and Max. . .and for mom and dad.

Haggart Street

Haggart Street is in a rough neighborhood in the Kensington area of Philadelphia. It’s undergone all types of demographical changes over the past 50 years creating a melting pot of Irish, Italian, Puerto Rican, African American and Asian residents. Beyond the racial and ethnic divides on this street are literally dozens of diverse opinions, tastes, styles and worldviews. Almost all the residents would be defined as “working poor”, on this street with the exception of a couple “crack homes” that house the addicts and homeless. Beyond the place in which the residents dwell, these people have almost nothing else in common.
Our mission team was in Philly participating in a short-term mission project that included helping out in a homeless shelter and leading a Vacation Bible School for neighborhood kids. Our team had come with the intention of bringing this street together . . .or so we thought.

It was the 4th of July and we were located smack dab in the middle of the city of “brotherly love" (or brotherly shove depending upon rush hour traffic) where the Declaration of Independence was signed. The pride of the city resonated strong within its residents on this day.

As missionaries for the week on Haggart Street, we led, connected, played, prayed and blessed. Things you would expect of a missionary team. But, later that day, something strange happened that short-term missionaries don’t expect. We were targeted, reached-out to and given an invitation. We were invited be special guests at a Independence Day block part on Haggart Street that stretched the couple blocks between Frankfort Ave. and Emerald St. We, who had come to give, invite and bless, found ourselves a grateful recipiants to special invitation where we would be blessed in a unique way. We, came dispensing the goodwill of the gospel...and found ourselves recepients of goodwill. God works in mysterious ways.

By 9 a.m. two strategically parked cars on each end of the blocks created the necessary road block and simply shut down all through traffic for the day. By 10 a.m. residents were scurrying around like ants dragging out their barbeque grills, sweeping their front stoops and wishing neighbors a happy 4th in preparation for a day of festivity, communion and celebration.
Although there were at least four different generations represented on the block and no less than five complexions of skin shades seen in the streets. . .all gathered together as one on their street. Old and young, black and white, man and woman joined together in sharing their grilling recipes in between plays of a great and rowdy game of “street football”.

One neighbor went house to house collecting every person’s favorite music CD's and proceeded to play the entire block's “favorite hits” on his stereo throughout the day. Music ranging from Puff Daddy to Frank Sinatra to Conway Twitty served as an audible reminder that we can co-exist and yes, even celebrate our personal differences. Although the street hummed different tunes that day, they all really sang the same song. It was the song of unity and harmony. And, this song was powerful and tangibly noticed in people’s smiles, embraces and generousity. For hours that afternoon and evening, the Haggart St. gang laughed together, danced together, shared stories together.

The unity and harmony I felt that day amidst so many stranges was, well. . .almost otherwordly. This was not some contrived unity where we all get along because we are all suburban soccer moms. Nor, was it a unity emerging from corporate perfection marked by the absence of brokenness and bruises. No, these folks were none of that. What I saw happening that day was a taste of unity that arose in spite of diversity….harmony despite imperfection.

As I walked up and down the street talking with the elderly, playing hacky-sack with smiling kids and bantering with men about how the Packers would take down the Eagles next season, what I felt was a kind peace that arises out of collective brokenness. Sort of like these Philly residents were saying, “yea, we got problems, and we’re not okay. . .but it’s okay. . .cause today we are Philadelphians and we choose to celebrate what unites us.”


As I mused on this amazing evening later, I began to think of Haggart St. as a metaphor of the Church. The Church must be a people who are collectively broken before one another…and before God. Like Haggart Street, the church is about a people in a specific locale brought together by a celebrative event (Christ’s ransom on our behalf), who share what they have in common and choose to focus on those things which unify (Christ) instead of that which divides (self-interest).

What a picture of the body of Christ I had discovered in Kensington Philadelphia. This living picture of a great block-party still resonates with me today. It continually challenges me. If a handful of people without Christ can put aside differences and become one for a moment in time. . .how much more those of us in the Body of Christ!

Haggart Street beckons me to ask what a Church without walls might look like. A place of true belonging where we are part of something larger than our own individual identities. A place where each is free to admit our mutual brokenness without fear of judgment.

How much does your church community look like Haggart Street? I'm convinced that Haggart Street can exist whenever we are willing to put aside our personal preferences for the prefences of Christ. His body was torn apart to bring us together.

What are you doing to create Haggart Street experiences within those places God has called us?

The Irresistable voice of praise

One thing that I'm learning is that praise is a spontaneous eruption that emits from a heart that is full of the fullness of God. True praise is not the stuff of forced smiles and plastered grins. I've met those who strive for praise and practice the discipline of praise. And, there is a time and place for that. But, if we want to get a proper understanding of what true praise looks like, we must look to someone firmly rooted in the reality of God's goodness.

When I think of praise, I think of a roller coaster ride. Often amusement parks set aside a hidden camera on that one specific spot on the track where, after having been twisted, jolted and dropped three stories, a mug shot is taken of each rider. Usually, these mug shots can be viewed on camera, and purchased if desired, after the ride is over. I enjoy seeing what the camera captured. Typically, in every photo the expression is similar. A strange brew of "I'm gonnnnna die" mixed with "Bring it oooon". Death and delight...what an exhilarating concoction!

Now, usually when we pose for a camera we are in control and can monitor our facial expressions. We dictate the image we desire to give the world. What's so fun about these roller coaster pictures is there is an inability to control any of ones facial faculties. The force of the experience is so great, your face just erupts in delight and terror all at once. One time after riding the same roller coaster ten times, and getting ten similar facial expressions, I decided to ride one more time to purposely attempt to keep a stoic, face...an expressionless face of boredom amidst the crazy ten-story drop where my insides felt like silly puddy. And, Guess what? I couldn't do it.

The sheer power and thrill going on inside my stomach took over and controlled my outward expressions. Despite all my efforts to override it, my inner delight with this ride simply erupted in an outer manifestation of sheer delight. I was powerless to conceal my pearly whites. All smile. All delight.

Some things in life are simply too powerful to contain or conceal. Inner realities always have a way of manifesting themselves outwardly. I think true praise is this way. Real praise to God is never forced or concocted. Rather, praise in an outward expression, an outward eruption if you will, of an inner world who finds delight and fullness in God.

C.S. Lewis speaks to the irresistible nature of praise. He writes:

I had never noticed that all enjoyment spontaneously overflows into praise. .The world rings with praise – lovers praising their mistresses [Romeo praising Juliet and vice versa], readers their favourite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favourite game – praise of weather, wines, dishes, actors, motors, horses, colleges, countries, historical personages, children, flowers, mountains, rare stamps, rare beetles, even sometimes politicians or scholars. . . . Except where intolerably adverse circumstances interfere,praise almost seems to be inner health made audible. . . . I had not noticed either that just as men spontaneously praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: 'Isn't she lovely? Wasn't it glorious? Don't you think that magnificent?' The Psalmists in telling everyone to praise God are doing what all men do when they speak of what they care about.

Hmmm...Praise. Inner health made audible. Boy, that rings true to me. We do this everyday. We are content with and brag about the size of that fish we caught. We speak to ourselves as the sun beams upon our face in saying "what a lovely day." We look into the eyes of our spouse after a pleasant evening and whisper, "I love you" or "thank you". When the human heart is full it is like a shooting geyser. It erupts in praise spontaneously and powerfully. And, praise drenches, soaks and fills all within its reach. And, the world is a better place as a result.

So, the questions I've been asking myself are obvious ones:

• First, is praise an irresistible eruption that constantly gushes forth in my life? If not, what is the status of my inner world?


• Second, am I having to try real hard to praise God? is it forced today? If so, what does that reflect about the "track" (thinking of the roller coaster metaphor) I'm on with God right now?


• Lastly, if praise is "inner health made audible" then what IS audible in my life to those listening to my voice? Is my life is more audibly characterized by groans, aches, frowns, frustration, negativity or sarcasm then by praise?

Today I pray that praise would be the most audible voice of my life. That though my life might have different voices at different times, I would be remembered by those who loved me as one whose voice praised God in the good, bad and ordinary days of life.

Raising up Disciples

If there ever was a kindred spirit who put into words (better than I) what I have been trying to express and teach our congregation regarding relational discipleship. . .Dave Patty is the guy. Patty and his Josiah Venture team have been building disciples in eastern Europe since the fall of communism in 1989. Since that time, some great stuff is going on there to further the gospel. A must read article for anyone serious about the task and challenge of raising up disciples.

Enjoy.

3 Misconceptions about Transformation

Misconception #3 “Trying real hard will produce spiritual transformation."

Now at first glance this seems like a good idea. Trying is essential to success in any venture in life. So, it is a positive first step. But, trying alone won’t lead us into spiritual transformation any more than trying to bench press three-hundred pounds will lead to a transformed, chiseled physique. Often it leads to just the opposite. Failure, defeat, frustration, and exhaustion...not to mention a hernia. Why? Because we can move mountains on will-power alone. The will alone was never meant to transform the self. Trying alone was never intended as God's means of crafting a new you. Transformation is not primarily about "trying harder" It's about training smarter. Spiritual training is the key.

In fact the Bible speaks about training as a normal part of the Christian life. Paul compares the Christian life to a race and says, “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training” (I Corinthians. 9:25). He later urges Timothy, “Train yourself in godliness” (I Timothy 4:7). Jesus says that “every disciple when fully trained will become like his master” (Luke 6:40). Most of us have been taught to try real hard in the Christian life. But have we been taught to train stategically?

Let’s answer two basic questions surrounding this idea of training. First, why is training so valuable to maturing as a Christian? And second, what does training look like in everyday circumstances?

Training is important to success in every area of life. In my neck of the woods, Hayward, Wisconsin, we host the American Birkebeiner North America's largest cross-country ski race. It boasts 51 grueling kilometers of challenging ski trails. I've done it a handful of times and assure you that it's no walk in the park. Think about it, how many people would be able to ski the Birkie on race day simply on will power alone? Perhaps a few could. However, for the vast majority of people (even athletic ones!) will power alone won’t cut it. You'd poop out half way or injure a body part along the way . . .or if you're not from northen Wisconsin, you'd just freeze your spandex off. In order to cross the infamous Lake Hayward and join a cheering crowd of witnesses urging you on as you ski up Main St. towards the finish, training would be essential. The reason? Because training allows us to become what we cannot become by will-power alone.


The same is true in the Christian experience. Without training our hearts, minds and bodies to routinely orient themselves towards the ways of Jesus we’re sure to fail. We see this so clearly at Gethsemane. It’s Jesus’ final hour. If ever he needed prayer partners it was now. His three closest amigos Peter, James and John are with him to support him, keep watch and pray for him. Here this trio find themselves in the middle of another essential garden where God in Jesus is groaning in agony and mustering the strength to bear the cross for all humanity. An in this epic, climatic point in human history . . .and what are Jesus' disciples doing? Sleeping! James is drooling. John is snooring. Peter dreaming...probably about fish. Jesus approaches them in their groggy state and whispers, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”. Now I’m sure these three disciples were trying to stay awake. Their spirits were willing; however they obviously had not trained their flesh in such a way as to experience victory. Will-power alone could not make these three do what they wanted to do. They had not trained for this.


How many areas of our lives that are marked by habitual sins, bad habits or immoral choices of which we internally scream, “the spirit is willing, but my flesh is so weak!” We all want to experience victory and reach maturity in all areas of our life. However, many never reach maturity in the Christian life. And often it is not because of lack of trying. It is the absense of training. Jesus, the apostles, and the early church fathers embraced the importance of training in the Christian life. It’s not until recent times that we’ve fallen captive to the notion that quick-fixes combined with a dash of will-power can replace adequate soul training. But quick-fixes and spurts of effort cannot rebuild our lives. Our problems go too deep for that. We need something more comprehensive. Something that encompasses the depth of our brokenness and offers a way to be healed. Or, maybe better than something.... a someone. And, I'd argue that that someone is Jesus Christ. He came not only to suffer death on our behalf, but also to model life. He lived his life fully oriented, fully abandoned to the Father. And, in his life, we see that he too implemented training regimens. Like a good trainer, he modeled for us the things we should do, and the spirit by which we should do them. Our training is essentially about following our trainer. We are transformed by practicing what Jesus practiced in the manner he practiced it.

Those things Jesus practiced in his own life historically have been called spiritual disciplines. I like to call them spiritual practices. Whatever word you use, these practices basically are things that we do (in conjunction with God's Spirit) to help orient our hearts, minds and bodies towards the love of Jesus and the goodness of God.

The specific training regimen is based on our personal needs and struggles. Spiritual practices are diverse and flexible and diverse, but always intentional. It might look like prayer for integrity on the way to work . . . or, cracking open the book of Philippians to learn how to embrace joy during times of trial . . .it might consist of withdrawing from others and our "need" to be known and praised by others and taking an hour or two of solitude with God so that we are sourcing our strength and energy from Him, not people. . . Training might look like fasting from something that I normally indulge myself in for a season...could be food, sex, drink, shopping, facebook, or TV, to teach me that I don't feed off of this pleasure/experience alone, but on God. Another way of training might be serving a neighbor in need when I’d rather serve myself . . .

All of these practices (and there are 1000's of expressions of training) become ways of training my self to posture my life towards Jesus. Like physical exercise, no one spiritual exercise does the same thing. In the same way, each spiritual practice helps develop a different parts of the self in different sort of way. But all are bent on accomplishing in us the same goal. Ultimately, it about the transformation of our entire selves into a Jesus kind of person.

The good athlete trains in light of the contest that he will be facing. He recognizes that there will be a test ahead and much training will be necessary in order to experience victory. Trying really hard on game day alone will not suffice. Our lives are quite similar. There are tests ahead that will challenge our honesty, integrity, courage, self-control, patience, fidelity and faith. In life we can assume that these challenges lie before us. The question is how we are preparing for the day when we are tested. As a teacher of mine used to say, “Failing to prepare, is preparing to fail”. There’s much truth here. May our lives be characterized by preparation for the tests through a consistent process of training.
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In summary of the posts on 3 misconceptions about transformation, let me recommend to you a book written by James Bryan Smith. It is called "The Good and Beautiful God" and is a highly practical book dedicated to how transformation takes place in our everyday lives. It incorporates the role of experential learning, pain and the spiritual disciplines (the three topics I've discussed the last three days) in our transformation. I highly recommend that you pick it up.

3 Misconceptions about Transformation

Misconception #2 “Positive, ‘feel good’ experiences will transform my life and make me more like Christ.

Oh how I wish! A large American church recently did a poll that contained the following question. “Think about an era in your life when you felt like you were growing most spiritually. What factor most contributed to that growth?” In this simple survey the number one answer was overwhelmingly, “Pain!”

While we all enjoy “feel good” moments in life, the hardships and difficulties we experience are often the highest contributors to our transformation. Thus, the old adage “No pain, no gain” really is true. Because of the influence of our culture, many have bought into the fallacy that God’s primary function in this world is to produce as little discomfort in our life as possible. God is our God as long as things are going swell, yet when we hit some painful bumps along the journey we wonder why God has abandoned us. This type of thinking is simply not Biblical. The Bible teaches that while God is not the author of pain, He does allow us to experience pain. And, he uses the difficulties in life to help to chisel us into the kind of person that He desires us to become.

So, what is it specifically about the nature of pain that helps us to grow spiritually? Pain helps us to grow because it reminds us of two very important things in becoming like Christ. First, pain reminds us that we are vulnerable. Pain has a way of exposing the feeble, frail and finite side of life. Where there is little or no discomfort in life we can subtly begin thinking that we are invulnerable and in complete control in this world. I remember when my son Caleb was one and a half and learning to climb stairs. I still remember the little guy with pacifier in hand smiling and swaggering from the top step as if the forces of gravity had no control over him. Because he had no prior context of pain associated with falling, he actually thought he was invincible near the edge of those steps. The reality was that he was flirting with disaster. So, despite our constant warnings, our little blond-haired, blue-eyed Humpty Dumpty had his great fall. Fortunately for him, it was only from the third step, not the thirteenth! Of course, this painful incident reminded him that he’s only human after all. The painful bruises and bumps of life remind us that we are not ultimately in control. The pain that we experience in life helps us to grow in ways we never would without it. C.S. Lewis once penned that “God whispers in our pleasure and screams in our pain.”

Second, pain reminds us that we need outside assistance in order to become whole again. From the irritating toothache, to the crumbling marriage, painful experiences create within us a desire to seek outside help like nothing else. We've all heard the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Well, that proverb is has overly simplistic view of life. The reality is that much of life is broken, but we choose to live in denial of this reality. However, pain is like a slap in the face that wakes us up to the fact that all is not well. Pain is a reminder that we are broken and need of divine intervention to be made whole again.

As I write I think of my good friend Tim Young who suffers from chronic back problems that include constant surges of shooting pain that explode through his lower back down into his legs resulting in agonizing days and restless nights. The doctors prognosis is that little can be done to alleviate his discomfort. He recently shared with me that it is precisely his pain that has taught him to seek harder after God and to be sustained by Him on a moment by moment basis. Tim’s pain and discomfort in his life force Him to rely on God in ways he never would have dreamed before his accident. Tim reminds me of another man who was very familiar with pain: the apostle Paul. Paul talks openly about a “thorn in his flesh” that he struggled with in life (II Corinthians 12). In II Corinthians 12:10 Paul comes to the conclusion that “when I am weak, then I am strong”. In other words, through the weakness of our painful predicament we are reminded that we have the outside assistance of a God that’s promised to grant us what we need in our time of trouble and the grace to weather whatever difficulty life may throw at us.

Like it or not, pain has a big part to play in our spiritual transformation. St. Peter concurs. “Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God is not on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner” (I Peter 4:12-13 The Message). The pain you are experiencing today could very well be God's loving wake-up call for you to rouse you from your independence and wake you from your spiritual slumber, and ultimately to refine you into the person He has intended you to be.

3 Misconceptions about Transformation

I posted this on a spiritual formation blog a while back. In the next few days, we'll talk about something I believe highly relevant and highly troubling to most people. Authentic life change. How in God's name does it happen? Well, we must first realize that apart from God's name, and apart from his grace and power, it ain't never gonna happen. We desperately need His Spirit at work in us if any authentic change is to take place within the core of our being.

But, I've found that even those who do love God and desire His life to permeate our own lives. . . change is still difficult. We are creatures of habit and have settled into ways of being in the world and patterns of thinking that keep us stagnant.

Paul's names this stuff "the flesh". At whatever else the flesh does, it kills us. Our flesh wars with God's Spirit who wants to breed and reproduce new life, transformation in us.

The good news is that transformation is possible and more than a pipe-dream. But, there are a few misconceptions that I have noticed that keep people from experiencing all that God wants for their lives. And, over the next few days I'd like to address three specific misconceptions that people have about transformation in the way of Jesus.


Misconception #1 “The right knowledge and information will transform my life and make me more like Christ”.

While Bible knowledge is pertinent to us actually knowing who God is and understanding who we are, knowledge alone cannot transform. We have often confused knowing more about Jesus with becoming like Jesus. When I was working with college students, each year we’d tackle a ropes course. Now, before beginning the course each student would receive adequate knowledge about how to traverse the course and assured that course was safe and equipped with certified technicians and working equipment to ensure safety and success. Despite all of this solid information from experienced and trustworthy guides, and despite having being dunned in all the right climbing equipment. . . all this assuring information flew out the window as the students, paralyzed in fear, left the safety of hugging a tree on a sturdy platform and took that first step onto a two inch wire tight-rope swaying 50 feet in the air. You see, the knowledge and information informed their heads, could not transform their terrified hearts. The cerebral part of the self was whispering “this is safe, you'll be fine”, while the terrified heart screamed “Get me off of this thing! This is insane!”

Information has the power to inform, but is powerless to transform. The only way to achieve success on a ropes course is through the experience of actually traversing the course. In many ways experience itself is the primary teacher. You'll not learn a think about a ropes course unless you take that first step.

In the same way, there’s always an experiential element to God’s shaping us into His image. He calls us not only to know, but to trust, to risk, to routinely act upon that which we know in our heads to be true. One area that we are continually building into our lives here at Hayward Wesleyan is the experiential element. As teachers we’re no longer only asking, “what do I want people to know”? But also, we’re asking “how can we provide experiences that help people apply what they have just learned to everyday life experiences? How can we encourage people to take that risky first step?" Rick Warren probably summed it up most vividly. He says, “Information without application is abortion.”

As the life-giving seeds of God's Word is sown into our hearts and minds, we are responsibilt to God to cultivate these seeds of knowledge by putting them into practice in our everyday life. Failure to do so results in an aborted mission. Of course, life-change in Christ sounds real good as we "theorize" about it on Sunday mornings. But, when Monday arrives and we're back dangling 40 feet over our heads in fear and anxiety, it's a different story. The powerful words of Jesus that we gave mental assent to yesterday, seem far more dangerous and risky to listen to when we are being asked to step out in faith and apply them today.

Perhaps it's at these junctures in life where Jesus lovingly smiles and whispers "O ye of little faith." You see, if we do believe in Christ and we intend to become like Him, we must go where he bids us to go. And, like being on the starting platform of an insanely scary ropes course, there are really only two directions to head in. We either back down and retreat to where we once were (and most of us know that there's no future in that), or we step out in our knowledge of Him and take that first step He's calling us to take today.

Instead of making a life out of hovering on platforms and hugging trees for one another day, week, month, year or decade. . .may we remind ourselves that the only knowledge leads to transformation is knowledge that is applied in real-time and real-life. So, just do it. Quit thinking it's going to get easier or less fearful to take that first step. It never will. We must embrace the elements of fear and risk as part of the Jesus journey.

May we each, in some quiet unexpected moment, step into fear and out in faith and take that first step. And, at that moment, may we discover the joy of being one step closer to becoming our truest selves. . . .one step closer to becoming what God has intended us to become.