We’ve been meditating on selected phrases from my friend Randy Raysbrook’s Psalm of Hope:

I love this one:

I say, “Lord, I can’t always see you.”
You say, “Where have you been looking.”

Ignatius of Loyola, among many others, taught the importance of experiencing God’s presence “in all things.” The concept is summarized nicely by the Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions (speaking of experiencing God’s presence in all things!):

Ignatius of Loyola taught others to experience life attuned to God’s activity in everyday circumstances. Finding God in all things is an invitation to encounter God’s presence in each moment, to become aware of God’s beauty in everything and to notice God’s action in all the events of our lives through an ongoing process of personal discernment. 

As Randy writes, “Where have you been looking?”

⁷  Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit? to be out of your sight?
⁸  If I climb to the sky, you’re there! If I go underground, you’re there!
⁹  If I flew on morning’s wings to the far western horizon,
¹⁰  You’d find me in a minute— you’re already there waiting!
¹¹  Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark! At night I’m immersed in the light!” (Psalm 139.7 – 11, MSG)

In him we live and move and have our being. (Acts 17.28, ESV)

Yesterday, I shared my friend Randy Raysbrook’s “Psalm of Hope:”

Today, I want to meditate on these phrases:

I say, “If I am disciplined, things will get better.”

Lord, you say, “Who told you that?”

I’m all for discipline: after all, self-control is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5.22, 23), and “God has given us a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1.7) But discipline is not all there is. Love precedes it on both lists, and love often mitigates against discipline.

For example, on Monday I talked with one of my mentors about my lack of discipline in the mornings. I like to have my prayer time and exercise early, but often I piddle away the time allotted for prayer reading news, checking email, etc. I need discipline, right? So Tuesday, I shut off the WiFi on my iPad so I wouldn’t be distracted and had a good prayer time.

Then came Wednesday and Thursday. Wednesday started with a last-second, out-of-my-control change to a project I had already sent to a mailing service on the east coast, two hours ahead of me. No choice but to attack that first thing. Thursday, my son David in Atlanta had to close the pre-school he manages because of widespread weather damage and power outages. So we were on the phone with him and his boys first thing. June reminds me, “People are a good use of time.”

So in both cases, the “discipline” I had decided to do in advance had to give way to serving people in real life. Randy’s observation is correct: there are no guarantees that “If I am disciplined, things will get better.” As I’ve observed before, Jesus did not seem to operate on a disciplined schedule. He always had time for interruptions.

As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging…Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him… (Luke 18.35, 40, NIV)

When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” (Luke 19.5, NIV)

My friend and Navigator shepherd, Randy Raysbrook, wrote what he called an “informal Psalm.” It’s too good not to share. I reproduce it here with his permission and reserve the right to meditate on parts of it over the next few days.

Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46.10, NKJV

Here’s a follow-up to the story of William Carey that we started yesterday, and it falls under the heading of a definition of insanity often wrongly attributed to Einstein:   

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

But no matter who said it, we all fall prey to it. I recently failed to solve a puzzle because I kept using the same approach, the wrong one! When one approach doesn’t work, we should be open to trying something else or at least looking for something else. 

Some people who act like they have only one tool are pastors. One of our pastors used to say, “You preach yourself out of problems.” Maybe. William Carey tried that. He was desperate to involve people in missions, and he was captivated (as am I) by Isaiah 54.2, 3 (I review it every day):

Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities. (Isaiah 54.2, 3, NIV)

A biography on William Carey captures this story: 

In a sermon called the “Deathless Sermon” in 1792, Carey preached from Isaiah 54:2-3, where he sounded for a divine call to action, which formed his famous quote:

Expect great things from God! Attempt great things for God! -William Carey

He was convinced that God was saying to the Church, therefore to every individual Christian: “Rouse up from your complacency. Find larger canvas, stouter and taller tent poles, stronger tent pegs. Catch wider visions. Dare bolder programs. Rouse up and go forth to conquer for Christ even the uttermost parts and the isles of the sea.”

However, none of his congregation was moved by his sermon. They did not even pause to pray for those who did not have any access to a Bible in their own language. To them, it was just another nice sermon to listen to but not to be taken too seriously. –William Carey: Pioneer to India & Father of Modern Missions, emphasis mine

I’m reminded of God’s word to Ezekiel:

As for you, son of man, your people are talking together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, saying to each other, “Come and hear the message that has come from the LORD.” My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to hear your words, but they do not put them into practice. Their mouths speak of love, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice. (Ezekiel 33.30 – 32, NIV, emphasis mine)

The solution, it turned out, was not more preaching. Carey himself responded to his own challenge. He and a few like-hearted men founded a mission support society, and Carey became its first missionary, arriving in India within a year. He served in Asia until his death in 1834, more than 40 years later.

Here are my takeaways from today’s blog:

• Don’t get stuck with one approach.
• With respect to God’s mission, I am the solution!
• A few people fully committed are always better than a whole congregation of people who listen only.

He climbed a mountain and invited those he wanted with him… He settled on twelve and designated them apostles. The plan was that they would be with him, and he would send them out to proclaim the Word. (Mark 3.13, 14, MSG)

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” (John 20.21, ESV)

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. (2 Timothy 2.1, 2, NIV)

We are closing out our meditation on the churches’ sometimes failure to equip and release people to be “Minutemen,” a highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that enabled the colonies to respond immediately to war threats, helping believers implement Jesus’ command in Luke 12.35, 40:

Prepared for action at a moment’s notice, alert and ready at all times. (The Passion Translation)

I close with the story of William Carey, now known as the father of modern missions, pioneering mission work into India. Here is an excellent synopsis of his life which, of course, includes this infamous story:

At a minister’s meeting, Carey stood up and proposed that the local church should partner with other local churches in the region to send missionaries to Africa and India. Another man by the name of J. C. Ryland exclaimed:

“Sit down, young man, sit down and be still. When God wants to convert the heathen, He will do it without consulting either you or me.”

Actually, God does want to convert the heathen, and he does it precisely through ordinary people like you and me. Let’s just start where we are. As Lorne Sanney, the second president of The Navigators said back in 2003:

Luke 24.46, 47 says, “He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.'” Why did he say, “…beginning at Jerusalem”? Because that’s where they were! You certainly cannot reach the world starting from where you are not! -Lorne Sanney, to the quadrennial gathering of Navigator staff, via video, November 2003

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.“ (Mark 16.15, NKJV)

We are continuing to think about the church equipping people to be “Minutemen:”

A highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that enabled the colonies to respond immediately to war threats.

Such a force would be in keeping with Jesus’ command in Luke 12.35, 40:

Prepared for action at a moment’s notice, alert and ready at all times. (The Passion Translation)

Here’s a story, perhaps typical, about a church acting more like a roadblock than a highway. I was teaching this principle that churches ought to be in the business of releasing people for ministry in a church in Wisconsin a number of years ago. A lady told a story that went something like this:

We are German Lutherans, and many of our older members speak German as their first language. I thought it would be nice to read to these older members in German so I asked the church leadership for a list of our members in nursing homes. Three months later they still hadn’t decided whether or not they could give me such a list so I just went to the nursing homes and read to anyone who was interested!

The story has a good ending in that the lady was able to expand her ministry beyond the walls of the church. But it remains a mystery why church leadership likes to function as ministry stoppers rather than ministry enablers.

And it will be said: “Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.” (Isaiah 57.14, NIV)

Pass through, pass through the gates! Prepare the way for the people. Build up, build up the highway! Remove the stones. Raise a banner for the nations. (Isaiah 62.10, NIV)

We are thinking about the church equipping people to be “Minutemen:”

A highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that enabled the colonies to respond immediately to war threats.

Such a force would be in keeping with Jesus’ command in Luke 12.35, 40:

Prepared for action at a moment’s notice, alert and ready at all times. (The Passion Translation)

Unfortunately, churches and their members don’t always think like that. I was in a meeting with a lady who had discovered a Bible study that was very meaningful to her. She said something like, “I hope I can get permission from the church to lead some of my friends through this study.” I (in a very unofficial capacity) said, “Who is going to stop you? Why would you need permission to gather some friends together to do a Bible study?”

I don’t know if she ever got official permission, nor do I know if she ever shared that Bible study with anyone. But attitudes like hers mitigate against our being “a highly mobile, rapidly deployable force…prepared for action at a moment’s notice” – to combine the Minuteman description with Jesus’ call.

By contrast, I used to run a Tuesday morning, 6a, men’s program that I developed with the senior pastor. It was designed to teach the men how to do Bible study on their own by having them actually do the Bible study during the meeting. After a few years, it was not hard to notice that the attendance was declining from over 100 men in the early days to maybe 30 or 40. I couldn’t figure it out until someone told me, “Bob, remember how you introduced the study? You would say, ‘Men, one day you will figure out that you don’t need to come here on Tuesday mornings. Nothing is stopping you from running this play yourselves whenever and wherever you like.’ Bob, there are at least 13 groups meeting all over town doing what you told them they could do. That’s why there aren’t more people here on Tuesday mornings!”

I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. (Romans 15.14, NIV, emphasis mine)

I’m always on the lookout for ways to picture the church’s role in equipping disciples for their frontline. Recently, this was in my regular reading:

Be prepared for action at a moment’s notice. Be like the servants who anticipate their master’s return from a wedding celebration. They are ready to unlock and open the door for him at a moment’s notice. What great joy is ahead for the awakened ones who are waiting for the Master’s return! He himself will become their servant and wait on them at his table as he passes by. He may appear at midnight or even later, but what great joy for the awakened ones whenever he comes! Of course, if they knew ahead of time the hour of the master’s appearing, they would be alert, just as they would be ready if they knew ahead of time that a thief was coming to break into their house. So keep being alert and ready at all times. (Luke 12.35 – 40, Passion Translation, emphasis mine)

Be prepared for action at a moment’s notice…alert and ready at all times.

What would that look like? When I asked the Lord that, the Minutemen of Revolutionary War days popped into my head.

Minutemen were civilian colonists who independently organized to form militia companies self-trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies from the American colonial partisan militia during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute’s notice, hence the name. Minutemen provided a highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that enabled the colonies to respond immediately to war threats. Wikipedia

A highly mobile, rapidly deployed force – that’s what believers are supposed to be! Not “church” – it’s not mobile: the church building stands there in its place on First and Main as Reggie MacNeil likes to say. The church’s job is to train “minutemen” to be effective on their frontline outside the church.

I’d like to explore this idea over the next few days.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6.10 – 17, NIV)

Jesus taught his disciples, saying, “Listen to me. Never let anxiety enter your hearts. Never worry about any of your needs, such as food or clothing…Does worry add anything to your life? Can it add one more year, or even one day?” (Luke 12.22, 25, Passion Translation) 

Reminds me of Navigator Jim Downing who said something like, “I read somewhere that 92% of the things we worry about don’t happen, so I decided not to worry.” When he said that, he was about 102 years old and attributed at least part of his longevity to not worrying. (He passed away in February 2018 at the age of 104 1/2, having completed his last speaking trip just six weeks before.)

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. (Philippians 4.6, MSG)

The worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. (Mark 4.19, NIV)

Speaking to the people, Jesus continued, “Be alert and guard your heart from greed and always wishing for what you don’t have. For your life can never be measured by the amount of things you possess.” (Luke 12.15, Passion Translation)

I don’t know who said this first, but it’s common now…

For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? (Luke 9.24, 25, NIV)

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. – Jim Elliott