Seeking Dead-Jesus… (a reflection of Mary at the tomb)

I keep thinking about Mary encountering Jesus in the garden post-death.
Imagine it with me if you can:

She is going there to properly take care of his dead body.
She is going there to shed a few more tears in private.
She is going there to say goodbye.
Her heart is as heavy as a led balloon.
She just can’t wake up from this nightmare.
Rising early that morning, a night wrought with bad dreams and sleeplessness, she heads directly to the grave.
Call it a moment to convince herself that He’s really gone.
Call it a part of the mourning process.

Rounding the last turn in the overgrown garden she comes upon a sight that she cannot quite explain.
Reason fails her and she is pauses a step to take in the scene attempting to comprehend it all – His grave is open. Picking up the pace, she closes in on the tomb and enters all in one quick motion. The place where they had laid Jesus is empty, it is vacant. Had the authorities changed their minds? What happened to the body of her teacher, her rabbi?

Mary runs back and gets the disciples who, upon hearing this troubling news, run to the tomb to check it out for themselves.

Fresh tears begin to well up in her eyes as a lump forms in her throat as this all takes place.
Where is Jesus?
Why had they done this?
Could they not have left Him be, allowing this one ounce of dignity?

Stepping back out of the tomb, the early sun begins to crest the horizon and spills effortlessly out upon the garden igniting it in hues of orange and red. Mary doesn’t know what to do. She is dumb-founded. Mary peers again into the tomb to make sure she has seen it correctly, as grief can often cloud the ruffled edges of judgment and understanding. Then…something catches her eye – two angelic forms standing beside the place where dead-Jesus had been laid. They speak to her. “Woman, why are you crying?” they ask…as if the meaning of death and loss meant nothing. But Mary swallows back tears and replies “They have taken away my Lord and I don’t know where they have put Him.” Uttering this very statement is like releasing the floodgates in a dam and her resolve breaks and so does her heart.

Suddenly, a shadow passes between her and the fire branded sunrise. It is the silhouette of a man. It MUST be the gardener coming to tend to the property before the hot sun engulfs and wilts the plants. It must be someone who knows something about where Jesus has be taken. Once again, the question is asked of her, this time by the man standing silhouetted in front of her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?” Again Mary sniffles and forces out a tired, bitter response amidst her flowing tears “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

She is at the end of her strength.
She is beyond heart-sick.
At the very least this can be done – recovering Jesus’ body.

Then, something remarkable happens – the dead speaks.
The man before her says one word that brings water to a desert.
This one word means more than the content of thousands of words meticulously strewn together in a book.
He speaks this one word and the storms of mourning cease.
He speaks this one word and shattered pieces of her heart become whole again.
“MARY.”
In her weakest state she recognizes just who He is.
In her tear-blurred eyes and flood of grieving heart, she finds renewed strength in His presence.
She calls out to Him by His respected title – ““Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

Mary is overwhelmed with joy.
She is filled with relief.
The sun, now in its fuller light shines upon the son of God in all of His resurrected glory.
He is alive!
_____________________________________________________________________________________
I keep coming back to this story because often we too keep going to back to the empty tombs in our lives.
We keep coming up with the wrong conclusions.
Doubt casts its shadow upon our faith and it weighs heavily on us.
Doubt blurs our resolve and shakes our foundations of belief.
We stoop down into that tomb time and time again and we forget that we do not serve a dead-savior, but a risen one.
We need to look up and see Him.
We need to recognize our teacher.
We need to find Him once more for ourselves.
He wipes away our tears and longs for us to cry out to Him.

Will you?
Something more to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

January 29, 2015 0

“NOT WORTHLESS!!” 3 Ways to Discovering Your Self-Worth Pt.2

Yesterday we explored three basic lies that many have convinced themselves are important in order have a sense of self-worth. (See Pt. 1 Link Here)
(RECAP) These basic lies are –
#1 Self-worth is all about what you do (Employment/Career).
#2 Self-worth is all about how others see you (the People pleaser trap)
#3 Self-worth is all about being “happy” all the time.

Now onto the “good” stuff – Discovering true self-worth.
You can’t buy self-worth…at least not in the long term.
You can’t work capture self-worth by attaining your “dream job” either.
These things are temporary.

Our Lives Are Like Vapor:
“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” (James 4:13-15)

Understand how temporal this all is.
I don’t mean to sound all “doom and gloom”, but this life is brief…we can make a difference in how we live by recognizing this one. small. truth.
We. Are. Like. Vapor. So…what are we going to do with this “vapor” of ours?

#1 Our true Self-Worth is found not in who we are but Whose we are!
“And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” -2 Corinthians 6:18

Beyond anything that we can “do” in this world, the most vital argument for finding our true self-worth is tied up with Whose we really are. Places of employment and careers are great things but they shouldn’t be the primary definer of who we really are. From the very onset of creation God longed to fellowship with us. He has made a way for this to happen even when we distorted our true identities with sin. In a very real sense realizing Whose we are leads us to find our true self-worth in life. This doesn’t mean that nothing else matters now in life, it just means that we re-align our perspectives in life allowing for this primal and vital identity to take first priority in our being, thereby releasing false images of self-worth while reclaiming this ancient, yet eternal truth – We are God’s creation, and we are called sons and daughters.

In moments when we feel the sting of rejection by others around us, let us remember that despite all of these things we are His -both first, last and everything in between.

#2 Our true Self-Worth is found not in our identity but in Christ’s!
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” -Galatians 2:20

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” -2 Corinthians 5:17

I hope you get the sense that all three of these “self-worth declarations” are interconnected.
Once we can come to terms with the notion that we are children of God, we too must understand that our self-worth isn’t tied up in the old life prior to conversion. Since Christ has conquered sin and death, we too can share in this eternal redemption story! If we are Christ-followers, we too recognize that the old lives we used to live prior to our salvation story no longer dictate where our self-worth comes from. Before this we followed the ingrained patterns, we indulged in selfish gain, we strive to climb the corporate ladder because that’s where true success and self-worth came from…But now, ah now we are no longer blind to these trappings. It doesn’t mean that we have become better than others, it just means that we have begun to identify with the eternal Christ more than the temporal measures of self-worth.

Becoming crucified with Christ means that we have aligned ourselves with His love, His redemption, His purposes, His grace. We have allowed Christ to replace the lie with His truth within us. This new creation (because of Christ) provides us with a deeper, more clearer sense of self-worth because it is divine and untarnished by our old sinful selves.

Within this identity shift, recognize too that we must be gentle on ourselves. What do I mean by this? Don’t denigrate and berate yourself when you slip and fall back into some of the old patterns. These old habits are sometimes hard to break. That doesn’t mean that Christ can’t miraculously redeem you from them, but many times we must strive to overcome them through His power…sometimes inch by inch and yard by yard. Be gentle on yourself as you realign your self-worth with that of Christ’s. Sometimes we can become our own worst enemy…If Christ believes in you, you too should find some encouragement and confidence to believe in this new creation that is “You”.

#3 Our true Self-Worth is found not in being served but through service!
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you…” 1 Peter 5:6

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love…” Ephesians 4:2

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8

Jesus washed His disciple’s feet.
He did this to display how vital humility and servanthood was.
Serving others because of our new identities in Christ is an outpouring of this new self-worth and purpose!
No longer are we tied to what others think of us.
No longer are we tied to a self-indulged lifestyle.
No longer are we tied to a selfish success oriented binge of climbing the corporate ladder.

Fame and fortune (which is temporal) take a back seat to the utter gravity of the Salvation Story.
We find our self-worth in serving others because we long to be like Christ in every way!
When we follow this path of servitude, we further execute our old ideals of self-worth while taking up far more significant and eternally impacting cause!

Sometimes we assume that we have this humility thing all worked out, only to find that we still have miles to go in this journey. Be patient. This is day by day. Submitting to Christ completely ~~can be~~ will be difficult…But isn’t identifying with authentic worth…worth it?

So…
How is your own sense of self-worth today?
Has it been tied up with all the wrong things?
Mine has too.
This is a reminder for all of us.
This is a pondering of encouragement also.
Perhaps we can break these old lies of their power over us, and rediscover how God intended us to live all along.

Something more for us all to ponder today!
To God be the glory!

January 21, 2015 2

“Cleaning the inside of the Cup”

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.26“You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.” -Matthew 23:25,26

I hate doing dishes, just ask my wife…There, I’ve said it.
Sometimes I put dishes into the dishwasher and put that little soap dispenser in and just hope for the best.
Most of the time that little soap dispenser lets me down…but sometimes I get lucky.

We do this too sometimes within our spiritual journeys too.
This passage of scripture may have been originally directed at the Pharisees and “hypocrites”, but it may as well have been directed at us too.
Jesus blasts these teachers and scholars of the Torah. They know all the right things to do and all the right things to say, but their hearts are far from clean.

Sometimes we just load up our spiritual practices.
We just pile up the songs and scriptures and outfits that we wear…and we hope for the best.
Sometimes we get lucky.
Many times we do not.
A lot of the time, it makes us feel hollow and empty inside…almost as if something is missing or somehow, something has been overlooked.

Why?
Because the inside of the “cup” has not been cleaned.
We can polish away at the soft glow of a sparkling clean exterior, but if the interior is still gross and filthy – what good will that polishing do? I’m sure we can fool everybody. We can fool even ourselves into thinking we have it made spiritually…but we aren’t fooling God.

News Flash:
You. Can’t. Fool. God!

I’m not saying we don’t sing songs of praise.
I’m not saying we don’t read the scriptures.
I’m not even saying “don’t go to church”.
But if all that we do is for “appearances”…then what’s the point?
If all we do in “worship” is hope that we sound good and “man did that worship team nail that last song“…we’re misguided and we could be avoiding the “camel” for the gnat (Matthew 23:24)…me may have some serious internal issues to deal with.

How is the inside of your cup?
Does it still need work?
Does it still need some cleaning?
A lot of cleaning?

This is a personal thing.
This is deeply personal…and yet this is also a corporate “Church-family” thing too.
Each of us should be mindful first of the condition of our own hearts before we even begin to contemplate the condition of others.

Are you sick of just going through the motions in Church? –So am I!
Are you tired of comparing yourself with others of the faith because they seem to have it all together and you’re just pretending? -So am I!
Are you ready to do the hard work?
Are you prepared to allow the Holy Spirit to strip away the grime and caked on gunk in your heart? -Me too.
You see this is the constant work of the Lord.
We must not stop seeking to be like Christ in our lives today.
We must not give up because holiness seems to be so far from where we are right now.

How is your cup?
May you seek Him out.
May you diligently allow Him to reveal and remove the dirt within.
God Bless you today!

-Something more for us all to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

January 13, 2015 2

What if we are “doing” Church all wrong?

Have you ever stopped to wonder about why we do what we do in church?
Was this how Jesus did “church”?
Was this how those first disciples and apostles did “church”?
How did some of these practices come to be…and what if we’re doing “Church” all wrong?

Let’s face it – Church is more than a building.
It is more than ceremony and ritual.
It goes deeper than the color of the carpets and how comfortable the pews are.
It is more than how much this entity gives to Missions, World Services and Benevolence funds.

Here are 3 ways (trust me there are more) that could indicate whether we’re going about “Church”
all wrong:

Erroneous Concept #1:
It’s all about the music –
Believe it or not, the role of music within the early church consisted more of chants than fancy electronics, strobe lights, amplified guitars and thumping drums. Many times the usage of music was more to bring to mind the works of psalmists and other well known songs of praise from the Torah. All of these songs or chants pointed to the Almighty. His deeds. What He has done for us.

Many people, within a wide demographic, (not just the younger generations) tend to gravitate to those churches that possess a rockin’ worship team. Many times the focus becomes more about the band playing all of our favorite worship songs than about the content of any scriptural teaching.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE, LOVE music. I love worship bands and performing/leading worship music…but it shouldn’t become the focus and sole identity to any church. People should not come and go solely because they like the music or they think the music stinks (or is too loud). These reason for staying or leaving a church seems to me to be very fickle and shallow. It almost says to me “I only go to church to be fed and I have no responsibilities other than receiving what I WANT”. -Don’t even get me started on traditional or contemporary styles either…SERIOUSLY does it truly matter in the grand scheme of things? It’s a preference, it shouldn’t dictate (or become the sole reason) which church you go to.

Erroneous Concept #2
Church is about MY entertainment…it’s all about the “show”!
It is both a blessing and a bane to grow up in such a media saturated culture.
We spend hours and hours a week on social media sites, we check the weather, sports, latest news feeds via our portable devices (even during church…ahem…)…and so when we view “Church” through THIS lens, we sometimes expect to be entertained at church as if it’s some sort of show. Why else go to church? (sarcastic font) Why else pause our latest episode on some season that we’re currently watching on netflix and come to church? In our day and age we want entertainment…and so we seek out those churches that “gets it”. We want videos, and music and drama so that we feel like we could reach for a bag of popcorn while singing “Mighty to save“…don’t choke on that kernel. (sarcasm again, sorry)

Is that how we truly view God as well?
Some higher divine form, God of the universe, the “Big Cheese” sent here to “entertain” us?
I mean, beyond the smoke and mirrors, and big screen tv’s and expensive sound systems…what sort of substance is there? Don’t get me wrong, there are some very slick churches that DO get the message across this way. I even use videos in my services, but is THIS all that “church” is about? Have we, in some way, lost our way? Are we so focused on ways to entertain that we have begun to lose the main reason we gather in the first place? And what does it say about us when our attention spans are so short that, in our minds, we’re flipping channels and checking our facebook status’ in church during the “boring parts”…oh what’s it called? Oh, that’s right THE MESSAGE or the teaching, or the sermon…whatever your church calls it. Could it be that we’re in search of the wrong things in church? Could it be that we demand these things in our worship while subconsciously we’re look every which way other than in the direction of Jesus?

Erroneous Concept #3
Church is all about “OUR” Fellowship and edification!
Sometimes our entire focus in Church remains “IN”.
Now, what do I mean by that?
What I mean is that sometimes we stop looking outside of our pretty buildings and fancy sanctuaries. Sometimes we stop looking into our own communities. We usually don’t do this on purpose. It’s just safer this way. It’s easier to just “hang out” with our church friends. It can almost become an exclusive social club where outsiders aren’t welcome…and if we do get the occasional visitor, either they fit into our mold or we just pity them. What happened to becoming “all things to all people”? (1 Corinthians 9:22) Do we care about others? Do we still care about the lost? The hurting? The broken? Or do we just wall ourselves up in our churches and expect those that view as sinners and wretches to just come to us if we sing all of the right songs and act in just the right way? Has the Great Commission taken a back seat to our comfort and safety?

Sometimes we have this division between our “Church life” and our “Work” or “School” or “Social” lives. Seriously, do we behave differently from one area of our lives to the next? Do we differentiate and keep these places separated?
When we get to church it can become about not only “entertain me” but this is “My group of friends, My source of strength…not yours”. It’s easy to fall into this train of thought. It happens because we crave acceptance with a group, and we don’t really like change. When new comers come, it upsets the balance of OUR Church.

Were the disciples like this?
Was the early Church a social club? An internally focused community?
Was it one dimensional like that? -NO.

Sure there is safety in Christian fellowship, and in a way that’s good.
BUT, if this fellowship only benefits you and your group and there is not outward looking focus then we are doing “Church” all wrong!

Questions to consider:
Who is your church ministering to?
What are the reasons you go to church?
Why do you worship the way that you do?
Are there aspects of your motivation to worship that are misconstrued, improper, shallow?
How can you break these erroneous molds (when they appear) in your church, in your life?

Note: there’s nothing inherently wrong with any of the three things that I mentioned,rather if they become an idol in our worship and n our religious practices then we have issues to contend with. Be mindful of the true purpose for Church. Be aware of the trappings that surround our practices…and in so doing, perhaps we will regain the proper priorities if they have become lost.

Something more to ponder today.
To God be the glory…far above anything else!
-Amen.

Ps. Thank you for subscribing to http://www.pastorsponders.org
Thank you for your comments and your questions!

January 8, 2015 2

Dear Salvation Army, The Angel Said Whaaaaaaat???

(Luke 1:26-45)
Today’s Pondering, Dear Soldier…

It had been a quiet morning as the sun seemingly struggled to wake the slumbering cobwebs from the earth. This is how Mary always began her day. She helped her mother prepare the house then it was off to collect water and the list went on… The sun began to pour into their dwelling, rays of gold catching every glimmer and spec of dust falling in the air. Mary enjoyed these silent, ponderous moments. Abruptly, her silent moment is caught by the heel and turned upside down in the most remarkable way possible. Perhaps, years later, she will look back upon her life and identify this as the moment when everything changed.

Her neck hairs stand on end and she immediately knows that she is not alone. Something behind her catches the eye…movement. Spinning around swiftly she is caught off guard by the imagery in front of her. Imagine something not of this earth, strikingly radiant, suddenly appearing in your home. Wouldn’t you be caught off guard as well?

She notices beyond the aura of light that a being stands before her.
“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’ An unknown voice calls out. The being’s voice is deep, confident and strong. Mary is afraid. A momentary swell of fear captures her and she is glued in place, unable to move. Mary peers around for the closest door, her muscles tense as she prepares to escape this fear. But The angel, for that is what it is, calls out again and says “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Whaaaat???
Okay, perhaps Mary’s response wasn’t exactly like that, but a look of concern crosses her face. How could this be? She isn’t even married yet. She is, in fact, still a virgin. It is unnatural, unheard of, it is just too much to take in all at once. The Angel had told her not to be afraid and yet she was certainly anxious and afraid.

There in that lowly room so long ago, history was being made. It didn’t happen to a mighty queen, nor did it happen to one who was prepared for such a feat…but it happened to a teenage girl, inexperienced in the world, naive and young. How could this be? The Savior of the world is placed in the arms, or soon would be, of a young woman. Think of it! Mary experiences this theophany of sorts and the symphony of salvation is born to all the world!

I find it interesting that Mary doesn’t refuse the Angel’s announcement, or laugh as Zacharias (Elizabeth’s husband) does. She takes in this message. She absorbs the news. She is strong, much stronger than most…perhaps this is one of the reasons she is chosen to be the mother of Jesus. It still astounds us today if we contemplate it long enough. Salvation will be born of a virgin. Could it be that because of such a concept the Christ is not born into sin as we were? Could it be that all of the “messiah’s” who came before Jesus, the bloodshed, the violence was all in vain? Could it be that man’s attempts to find salvation and restoration from sin was imperfect for the lambs they were sacrificing were also imperfect and not enough? There is much to ponder here today my friends.

Immediately following the proclamation from Gabriel, Mary runs as fast as she can to the nearby village…(was it the same day? Was it immediately, as in ‘that day’? We don’t know, it just says “at that time” Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea.) Perhaps she stumbles a few times on the way in her haste to seek out solace and reassurance. Mary seeks out the comfort of family. She seeks out someone in whom to confide. No one will believe that she is still a virgin. No one will accept such a tale…but family, the trusted few will help, protect and guide.

For Us…
What do we make of this tale? What do we find reassuring from this record? Is there not something we can all glean from this? What does faith look like, dear soldier? Certainly Mary’s response to the Angel’s proclamation is a indication of courage and faith. Certainly the mother of Jesus provides us with an example of how we are to respond to the workings of the Lord. Are we so far removed from this narrative? Does this not still impact our daily lives? Mary doesn’t laugh at the Angel. She doesn’t weep and rebel and refuse to participate in this salvation story…in fact she accepts it and moves forward. It doesn’t say that her life improves immediately. I am sure she could not have hidden this pregnancy for too long. From a pure physical perspective, Mary’s life could have been in danger and at the very least susceptible to all kinds of scorn, gossip and sideways glances. “Oh look, there goes THAT Girl“.

QUESTIONS:
How do we respond to the leading of the Lord in our lives?
What is our response?
Are we fully submitted to His will or do we still struggle, moaning and groaning within this call?
Can we reflect within this holy narrative today?
Can we find comfort in a mighty God?
Have we forgotten, or taken His holy presence for granted, especially during this busy season?

Prayer:
Dear Lord,
renew us again. May we respond to you as Mary once did so long ago. We all face challenges, some large and some small, instill in us Your comfort again no matter what season we are in. We long to be your people. We long to give you praise in all things. Refine us, O Lord. Restore unto us, this joy of our salvation today! Reignite our passion to serve you and to reach out to those who are still lost. O Lord, we can do nothing without your hand upon us. Journey beside us today. This we pray. -Amen.

To God Be The Glory!

December 4, 2014 0

Dear Salvation Army: Why Quality Is Better Than Quantity

Jesus had more than 12 disciples…yet many left Him. (John 6:66)
Did Jesus call each one of these “AWOL” disciples? No.
Some joined the band later during the rise of Jesus’ popularity. But Jesus wasn’t looking for popularity. He hadn’t come to be lauded and complemented. He hadn’t come to start a Roman incursion. He came for so much more. He taught that purpose to His disciples, those with whom He confided in and hand-picked for such an important calling.

Dear Salvation Army, why is it that we feel it necessary at times to place quantity of soldiers and officers above quality? I don’t think anyone intentionally does this. I do not think we rush out and pick people off the street and throw uniforms on them just so we have “numbers” the next time the General or anyone else important in our Army comes to town. But we do see success within our Army as something of a quantitative thing don’t we?

Have we been going about this all wrong?
Could it be that instead of sheer numbers and all of these “Corps growth” initiatives we must first focus on the ones we already have in our pews who are undiscipled and unequipped for the battle? We serve many individuals who are marginalized and wounded by life. Some might be incapable of ever achieving the standards of “Christianity” that other churches expect of their parishioners. I have heard it said that the church is an emergency room for the sinner. It should be a place of triage and shelter for the broken and the imperfect. We serve many in our Army who not only need the spiritual emergency room but also long-term spiritual care! Some may never walk upright within the spiritual realms of leadership. Some may only crawl towards incremental spiritual achievements in their lives because they have been crippled by sin, shame and/or other spiritual, emotional and physical wounds in their lives. Can we accept them for who they are, where they are and mark these limited steps of growth? Are we patient enough to develop these wounded soldiers with grace, love and at times looooooooooooong-suffering? Or are we so focused on getting “others” more “capable”, desirable people into our corps buildings? We, unintentionally, stick up our noses at the uneducated, spiritually inept and broken cases already before us.

I don’t mean to make this an indictment because I too would wear a crown of guilt in this witch-hunt of pointing fingers. I too have walked the fine line of measurable growth and statistically accomplishments while unintentionally leaving the spiritually crippled of the corps in my dust. Shame on me. Forgive me.

What I’m Not Saying:
I’m not saying don’t seek out others to bring into your corps.
I am not saying don’t work to improve the spiritual conditions of your corps.
I am not saying don’t preach holiness and hold the standards high for all who come to the corps.

What I am Saying:
-Don’t forget those that God has already placed in your corps and on your ministry pathways.

-Don’t lose the emphasis on teaching and discipling your vital few who come week in and week out.

-Don’t lose heart when you look at statistical sheets and only see the same numbers associated with the same faces.

-Love your corps members even if they are incapable of loving you back (as hard as that may be).

-Be the very best representation of Christ to your corps, in your leadership and in your living examples.

-Don’t wait for more educated, better looking and polished people to come through your doors. Focus on the ones that God has placed within your ministry right now to love and to lead.

Why Quality is Better Than Quantity?
When we become satisfied and confident with loving and serving the few we take off the burden of false success driven ministry concepts. It’s not about packing your corps building to the brim every Sunday morning. It’s not about attempting another evangelistic ploy to rope the unchurched into your doors.

When we begin to love and to focus our attention upon those we already have within our corps (the “quality“, no matter how far from quality we may view our corps members) we will begin to truly love them, appreciate them, long to better disciple them, and serve them as Christ would the Church. When we focus our attention on the “few” and feed them spiritually, the love and “curb” appeal of our corps will become all the more evident in our communities.

We get it all wrong some times in our attempt to become like other churches. We look over the ministerial fences and long to be like “that” church that boasts 400 or more members on a Sunday. But the truth is we aren’t THAT church…we were never called to be THAT church. Our ministry and mission as the Army is very, very unique. Our mission will contain more elements of serving wounded soldiers day in and day out and maybe, just maybe we will see incremental or phenomenal life improvements both physically and spiritually. I am not discounting the work of the Holy Spirit here, He can and will perform miracles, and we must be diligent and faithful to His calling. Yet in other occasions we must also not give up on soldiers and corps members who never seem to move from their one position of initial conversion.

We know there is more to be had within the realms of spiritual growth and holiness for our corps members…but sometimes it may take a lifetime for that corps member to achieve this understanding as well. DON’T GIVE UP ON THEM! DON’T QUIT OR LOSE HOPE!

**Yes, fight for the weak, the hurting, the lost.
**Yes, keep up the evangelistic methods within your communities.
-But don’t forget to employ quality love, support and leadership to the few as well!

Just something more for our Army world to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

October 13, 2014 0

Encouragement For A Soldier’s Heart…

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

“Mama said there’ll be days like this
There’ll be days like this mama said” -(by Luther Dixon & Willie Denson)

Are you having one of THOSE days?

Our Troubles…
Our frustrations and troubles within this world look vastly different from the early church and that of Jesus’ disciples. Yet, this verse is for you and for me today. All too often we engage souls in these ministries that we are responsible for. All too often we hear other people’s problems and they become ours. It becomes a shared burden. We provide care, support and guidance to many within our flock. We feel the burden of these cares, and sometimes they weigh heavy on us.

Other times our troubles come by way of our calling. Sometimes the ministries we have been called to or placed in suddenly become a “dry and thirsty land” with very little by way of encouragement, support and hope. Sometimes instead of a passionate, flowing river of a numerically “successful” ministry we face a slim trickle of moderate or rare numeric success which makes us ponder the questions: “am I cut out for this?” and “what have I done wrong?“…and we face discouragement, disillusionment and even depression.

Still, on other occasions these troubles come by way of outward pressures in our communities or individualistic persecutions. Perhaps we face false teachers, or we must confront immorality within our church and when we do, we’re blasted as “judgmental” and shouted at with curses and graceless comments such as “how dare you, what gives you the right?” We question if we should have just let sleeping dogs lie but in our hearts we know it was the right thing to do and we did so with grace and love. Still…troubles from without and from within have left us wounded and discouraged.

About That Peace?…
Jesus spoke these words to His disciples after telling them of not only His pending death but also of their pending troubles in the world…but there was hope. There is always hope in the Father. There is always hope in the Son. There is always hope in the Holy Spirit who guides us on this path. Have you ever heard the phrase “keep the main thing the main thing?” It alludes to the need for keeping the principle of our mission at the forefront of our minds.

Our Principle: The message of Christ (Messiah), the message of the cross, the message of salvation, of resurrection, of hope, of reconciliation, of love, and victory over sin and death.

When we keep “the main thing the main thing”, we realign ourselves with God and turn away from the problems of this world. Not that the problems of this world aren’t important, but rather, The Author of life itself takes His proper place in our priorities. From this place of understanding we then can look around our world and truly see how things are and how they could be. This is when we begin to see the world through the eyes of Christ because we are striving to live for Him alone. This is holiness. This is surrendering ourselves at the foot of the cross and then picking up our own crosses to follow Him.

Peace? What Peace?
Carrying our crosses and following Him (Matthew 16:24) doesn’t sound “peaceful” does it? Pain still exists. Hurtful accusations, slander and suffering will still occur. How could THIS be peaceful? One might ask. Perhaps “peace” means something differently than what we initially thought it to mean. It is certainly not the absence of conflict in our lives; for there is still conflict. It is not the absence of adversity, discouragement or suffering either; for we still encounter these on our path as well. Then what is this peace that Christ provides to us if it is not the absence of conflict? It is an eternal peace. A peace that transcends this temporal, mortal existence. It is a peace that alleviates the burdens of our former self as we embrace the image of Christ. It is a peace that resides in our lives because His Holy presence brings us assurance and hope. It is a peace that still passes all understanding (Phil. 4:7) yet conveys to us that we are not alone and we will overcome because He has overcome.

Dear Soldier…
Are you in need of that peace today in your life?
Are you facing discouragement, hopelessness and pain? You aren’t alone. You do not have to carry this burden by yourself. There is One who can provide you with this peace. Perhaps there is some realignment that must be done in your heart today. Perhaps we must go before the Father again with a penitent heart. Perhaps it is a simple yet constant prayer of “Lord use me and allow me to see evidence of You in my life.”

Be encouraged today! We are not alone. We are not abandoned. We are overcomers because Christ has overcome the world. Allow this peace to evident in your life today!

Something more to ponder today. To God be the Glory!

October 6, 2014 0

Devotional Pondering – “I have to sacrifice WHAT???”

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Romans 12:1

Just the idea alone of sacrificing or giving up something in our lives, at times, seems preposterous. Why would we ever want to sacrifice anything…it’s an honest confession, and a shared sentiment with many. Sacrifice can be a hard thing to do in our lives which often include more excess and over-excess rather than “less”. I’m sure you have heard the phrase “less is more” and in the case of the Holiness this certainly fits, at least in the practical physical sense.

Question: What are we willing to sacrifice in order to have a closer relationship with God?
Perhaps the idea of giving up something physical in your life bothers you. Perhaps knowing that the Lord requires this in order to help you grow seems hard even harsh. Let me ask you this – what consumes your day? Is it your job? Is it your pursuit of more stuff? Are you living beyond your current means? I don’t mean to pry but honestly mammon or the pursuit of stuff has ~~almost~~ become our worldly false god especially in the Western world. We see a new commercial on T.V. for the biggest and nicest car and we crave it. We go to a friend’s house and they show off their new 60′ television with all the new features and we covet it. Mammon – this pursuit of stuff has a way of choking our spiritual lives to death.

I’m not saying money or things are inherently evil, not at all. Some of these things are necessary items and can be used for good…but if it becomes our obsession, then perhaps we have placed things and “stuff” above God.

Sacrifice requires something from us. Sacrifice in the spiritual sense means we are willing to think more about our relationship with God and less about our own selfish wants and desires. Sacrifice is more than just a way of life it has to become a thought process and a lifestyle.

“he (Jesus) humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” -Philippians 2:8 (NLT)

If we are to become holy in our lifestyles, attitudes and actions, then we have to emulate the very attributes of Christ who became death, took death from us, and in so doing redeemed us. Humility, in the spiritual sense, goes hand in hand with becoming a living sacrifice for God and for the people around us (regardless if they are good or bad).

Prayer: Dear Lord, show me what a living sacrifice looks like. I have, at times, filled my life with pride, arrogance and things that attempted to replace you. Forgive me of this, help me to see the threat of mammon in my life and guide me in your truths…lead me Lord. I long to be like you, help me to see how I can become humble in spirit so that I may be your witness to the world around me. Help me to see others through your eyes and guide me in your truths. -Amen.

June 30, 2014 0

Devotional Pondering – A Hard Truth: His will isn’t always our will!

“May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” -Matthew 6:10

Many times, if we’re honest, our prayers contain a very personal aspect – our will. There are certain things that we pray for that we want to happen, outcomes and accomplishments, dreams and aspirations. Often times we want God to answer our prayers in the manner that suits us. Sometimes He answers the way that “we hope” He would answer, while other times His answer isn’t what we expected.

When we submit ourselves to Him, we are making a conscious attempt of complete surrender – come what may. Jesus taught His disciples how to pray. We call it “the Lord’s prayer”, and yet we should understand that Jesus was modeling how prayer should be. Sure the words are important but so is the attitude in which we say those words. The Lord’s prayer isn’t a “magic” saying either, it is not the only way to pray, but it models for us the type of prayers that should leave our lips and hearts.

The Danger
Taking our will out of our prayers might cause us some anxiety. Our will is sometimes (in my case very, very, very) stubborn. Our will is probably the last ounce of our old selves that remains within the face of complete surrender. The will of God, however, can be dangerous to our personal dreams and aspirations because He might call us elsewhere…but...if we chose to accept His will over ours, He provides us with something far better than we could have ever hoped and dreamed of.

We serve a dangerous God.
That doesn’t mean that He sets out to cause us pain or discomfort, but God calls us and prompts us to this attitude of complete surrender. Faith is blind sometimes. When we utter the words “Your Will be done” we have released our self-chosen pathways, our wants and our often selfish wishlists in life, which we have clutched tight-fisted and unwavering in resolve. His will is not always our will, but can we face a simple truth that releases us to see this dangerous God? That truth – He knows better than we do. He can and will guide us. He wants to lead us. He is prepared to help us on this journey of Holiness, but we must utter those four, sometimes frightening, words – YOUR. WILL. BE. DONE.

Confessions:
I still struggle with those words…do you?

Sometimes I find myself fighting against His will. I think that I know better and so I pray my will into things, people and aspirations once again. I take back that which I had surrendered to Him. I take back my trust in His leading. I take back my faith and choose my will over His..do you find yourself here as well? I believe God wants us to honestly inventory our lives. I believe He desires an honest relationship with us and we must actively decide whether or not those four words are true of us. Are they true of you today?

-Prayer: Dear Lord, I confess that I have not always prayed and surrendered to Your will. Forgive me when I have taken You for granted and that of Your love. Teach me to trust you more deeply. Show me how I can live within Your will more fully. I know that You long for a deeper relationship with me, guide me, break me, melt me, mold me again. -Amen.

June 23, 2014 0

“You’re Reading It Wrong” – 2 Mistakes of Interpreting Scripture

Admit it, at one point or another you have misinterpreted what the Bible has said. Sometimes we do it by accident while other times our intentions are quite clear.

The Bible was written by many different people, but we do believe that the Bible was “God breathed”. That being said, Jesus was the only perfect human to have walked the face of the earth, therefore all other people, including those who wrote the bible, were imperfect. Each writer experienced life through their own filter and each writer faced their own imperfections. This doesn’t mean that all the writers of the Bible were bad people, but rather that each struggled with the realities of life and with their own humanity. Understanding this is important when we read the Bible. Though we know that God is the same today as He was in the past as well as the future – He is being written about through the life experiences of very human (sometimes very earthy) people.

This brings me to my point – be careful how you interpret scripture! Many cults have begun just by taking one single passage in the Bible out of context and applying it to something it was never intended for. If we are true seekers of The Way then we will want to pay extra attention to the ways we apply scripture and its meanings both then and today! There are two mistakes that I would like to highlight today for us here (I know there are more) and I hope it will help you as it has helped me.

2 Mistakes of Interpreting Scripture:

1. Context –
New Christians and even “seasoned” veterans of the Word often do not do the “homework” when reading passages in the bible. The context of what is written is vital to our interpretation of what is being said. I have known people (myself included) who at times have simply opened the Bible and pointed to a passage and thought “this verse was meant for me” without studying the initial context. Of course God can work that way but we should spurred on to really study the deeper meanings and implications of what is being said.

Questions to ask when studying a passages might include:
a. When was this written?
b. Who was this written to?
c. Why was this being written?
d. What did it mean for the people then?

Once we have asked these questions (and possibly more) we can then ask the question – “What does this mean for me today?”
Context is extremely important!

2. Culture –

Culture in the Bible was vastly different from our culture today! This doesn’t mean that the Bible is obsolete or out of date it simply means in order to interpret the Bible correctly we have to understand the culture of biblical times. For instance in Jesus’ day Women were not equal to men nor did they possess many of the rights that men possessed. Jesus was counter-cultural (even revolutionary) in His day to include disciples who were Women.

Secondly this becomes apparently clear through the writings of Paul when He says things like – “Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says.” 1 Corinthians 14:34 To understand this we need to understand the Apostle Paul a little bit more and also the context of what is being written. Paul addressed numerous issues in the early church including a few women who were causing trouble and creating dissension. The problem becomes worse when many traditional churches take these specific passages of scripture out of context to mean in our day and age Women should act the same when in fact Paul was writing to very specific situations. There is a danger in painting with large brush strokes here because then we begin to lose the detail and meaning of the words written in Scripture.

Culture played a big part in biblical times and it still does today. That doesn’t mean that culture shapes the Word but rather humanity continues to change and alter yet Biblical truths and the words of God are always consistent despite the seemingly inconsistencies of some of the biblical writers. Make sure when we interpret scripture that we attempt to understand not only context but the culture of the time that passages were written.

Wrapping it up:

Be careful not to take liberties with scripture! Don’t pick and choose passages that best suit your needs, but rather read it for what it was intended for. Some are historical narratives, others are prophetical for a specific people and time, while others are meant for instruction of an early church. One truth should always stand out above the rest: God desires a right relationship with us. Throughout the Bible God is always seeking this with those who encounter Him. There is punishment for those who disobey yet a remnant always remains because God never gives up on us. In the finality of things Christ comes into full view and we can see just how far God’s Divine love will go to reach us. The rest of scripture leads us to this place through some very imperfect writers and people – and so are we.

I could write so much more on this topic…but for now I am thankful to the many instructors and teachers that I have had along this journey…and I am still learning.

Just something else to Ponder today

June 18, 2014 2

Tag: Jesus