The deck is prepped and ready to be stained this week…
It had been raining/snowing all day Monday with the usual prediction of 1-3 inches total. I didn’t even know the forecast had changed until my son in Atlanta texted me: “Just looked at your weather…8 inches tonight?” We got 12, and we’ll get to the deck…eventually.
We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. (Proverbs 16.9, NLT)
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I’m proud of our oldest son, Mark, who, one day after racing to the top of the Empire State Building, finishing 8th among US men, sat down with Greg Fowler and did a live 45-minute interview on real estate sales and life. If you have the time, you can watch it here.
Here are a few of the highlights I took away:
Although not discussed in the interview, a large reason for his strength of character and stamina comes from his habit of daily time with God. He reads the Bible every morning as part of his daily routine. Here is one of his closing quotes:
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man. (Proverbs 24.33, 34 (NIV)
And here is my closing quote!
The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him. (Proverbs 23.24, ESV)
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My new friend Father Hanh (rhymes with “line”) told about the preacher, who, when asked the secret of his sermon preparation, replied:
Hanh applied the principles to Paul on his first missionary journey in Acts 13 and his first sermon, beginning in verse 16. It ends:
So listen, friends! Through this Jesus, the forgiveness of sins is offered to you. Everyone who believes in him is set free from sin and guilt—something the law of Moses had no power to do. So be very careful that what the prophets warned about does not happen to you: “Be amazed and in agony, you scoffers! For in your day I will do something so wonderful that when I perform mighty deeds among you, you won’t even believe that it was I who did it!” Acts 13.38 – 41 (Passion Translation)
Paul spoke boldly and confidently because he had read himself full, thought himself clear, and prayed himself hot!
When I talk about daily time with God, I talk about the 4 Rs: read, reflect, respond, record. The first three are exactly what the preacher did.
These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock. But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don’t work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards. (Matthew 7.24 – 27, MSG, emphasis mine)
Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. (Acts 13.1, 2, ESV)
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Yesterday I wrote about Moses’ call while he was tending sheep as recorded in Exodus 3 and 4. When Moses turned aside (there’s a lesson itself–Moses was paying attention!) to see the burning bush, we have God’s response:
When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” (Exodus 3.4, 5, ESV)
Why was it “holy ground”? Because of the bush? No, as Ian Thomas wrote in Saving Life of Christ, “any old bush would do.” It was holy because it was the point that Moses turned aside to pay attention to God.
I was discussing this with Father Hanh Pham, who used to work at Regis University in Denver. In making the point that any place we choose to listen to God and be available to him is holy ground he told this story:
There is a room at Regis University that no one is allowed to go into without the permission of the university president. He has the only key. When you do go in, you see it’s a simple room, fairly small, containing a table, two chairs, and two water glasses. Why is it special? Because it was in that room that US President Bill Clinton sat down and talked with Pope John Paul II in 1993 during World Youth Day. If we honor a room like that where two human beings once talked, how much more should we honor the places where a human being can talk with the God of the Universe!
In other words, our daily time with God matters! And it helps if we have a daily routine and a place set aside. I have a recliner in my office area that’s becoming holy ground. The dog likes to sit with me first thing in the morning while we have “prayer in the chair.” It’s holy ground. In my Time with God handout, my first recommendation for implementation is, “Find a time and a place.”
And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you… (Exodus 25.22, NKJV)
Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. (Proverbs 8.34, NIV)
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One summer, when I was in college, I worked as a youth pastor for a small church in Indiana. One of those weeks I served as a counselor at a church camp. I’ll never forget the pastor who preached that week. One night, he said something like this:
I drove many of you all up here on the bus, and I all heard you talk about was the movies and television programs you had seen recently. Folks in my church say, “I wonder why our young people are not hearing the voice of God anymore.” WELL, I DON’T WONDER!
And this was 1967 when about all there was to distract us was television and movies (which I wasn’t even allowed to go to!). Now it’s ubiquitous screen time with its social media. Additionally, literally thousands of engineers at YouTube are figuring out how to make us click one more movie clip to watch.
And it’s not just the kids. I’ve seen mothers at restaurants ignore their young children while they’re texting with their friends.
I’ve written about Cal Newport’s Digital Minimalism before, and I’m trying, not always successfully, to be more intentional about my use of technology. Ignatius said way back in the 1500s:
The other things…are created for the human beings to help them in the pursuit of the end for which they are created [to love God and serve people]…It is necessary to make ourselves indifferent to all created things…and choose only that which is more conducive to the end for which we are created. (From The Ignatian Adventure by Kevin O’Brien.)
I thought of all this today when I read God’s call to Moses in Exodus 3.
Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3.10, ESV)
Our kids and our neighbors are not “in slavery,” but many are enslaved. I’m wondering how God may use us to help free them so they can hear the voice of God.
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8.31, 32, ESV)
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World Magazine posted a chapter from Embodied Hope: a Theological Meditation on Pain and Suffering by Kelly Kapic. The chapter was long and sometimes technical, having to do with trying to defend God with an Enlightenment framework, but this paragraph on being a “pastor” jumped out at me:
To be pastoral does not mean earning money for working in a church. Throughout Christian history God’s people have always been thankful for those with pastoral gifts among them—whether women or men, ordained or not, young or old, rich or poor. “Pastoral” in this sense refers to the ability to give wise counsel, to know how to love well, provide necessary guidance, and in the end to help a fellow believer flourish under God’s grace and love, even as they seek to love their neighbor and serve God’s kingdom.
I love this. The concept fits in well with my (and, I think, scripture’s) frequent emphasis on “all.” Everyone in ministry. Please see We’re all ministers here and What part of all do we not understand? for example.
And when it comes to pastoring, some are better than others. I’m in the “others” category. If there’s pastoring to be done, I call on June! Here’s an example: a few years ago, I received an urgent call from a friend who used to live in Colorado Springs and had since moved across the country. He had a married daughter living in the area, and she and her husband were going through an intense crisis caused by factors beyond their control. When my friend called at 7 am, he thought they were contemplating drastic action. Would we please check on them?
I was leading a men’s bible study at the time (the men were in table discussions so I was able to take the call) and couldn’t leave immediately. I called June, and she went, praying all the way, and sensing that she could be a mother, a nurse, and a Christian friend. Nurse kicked in first: “Have you eaten anything recently?” “No.” So she made some toast and insisted that they eat it. I would have tried Biblical counsel, and I would have failed miserably! I would never have thought of offering them food first. Later June left them a copy of Streams in the Desert, which helped them over time learn to trust God to work through the problem.
The author went on to say, There is no theological replacement for knowing people, their problems, the complexities, and the stories… Pastoral wisdom and theological instincts must go together. They must serve one another.
June would not call herself a pastor, but she has pastoral gifts: love for and understanding of people and what they need physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
So don’t wait! Don’t wait for more education, more seminary courses, more credentials. Serve others with the gifts you have, and if you’re a pastor, pastor well!
So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers… (Ephesians 4.11, NIV)
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The other morning I put a mug of water into the microwave as I always do to make tea. When I took it out two minutes later, the water was cold. Oops. I forgot to turn on the microwave! It reminded me of last August when the same thing happened. Then I paid attention as I turned it on: the fan whirred, the light came on, the turntable rotated. Two minutes later, the unit beeped four times, and the display reported, “Food is ready.” Voila! Except the water was still cold.
Everything worked except the microwaves! That is, no transformation! All form, no substance. And interestingly, it didn’t even provide an error message. Famous U2 vocalist Bono defines religion as “what happens when God has left the building.”
[Samson] did not know that the Lord had left him.” (Judges 16.20, NIV)
Jesus says about the church at Sardis: “You have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead.” (Revelation 3.2, NIV)
Having a form of godliness, but denying its power. (2 Timothy 3.5, NIV)
True of churches. True of individuals. God has to do the work of transformation as we allow him access through the Word and prayer, and we respond in obedience.
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I wrote yesterday about “lasting fruit” from John 15.16, the idea that one can turn ordinary fruit or ordinary ministry (like doing a funeral) into lasting fruit by leading someone to faith in Christ in a conversation. Here’s more.
When I was on church staff about 15 years ago, I brought in my long-time Navigator friend Rich Berry for a one-day workshop. Among his teachings were how to have daily time with God (maybe you’ve heard me speak of that before!). Anyway, everyone loved him, and about a year later, he came back for an evening seminar. One of the participants told Rich: “When you were here last year, my wife really enjoyed your teaching on daily time with God. In fact, she put it into practice, and it was a great comfort to her in her last days. She was ill and has since passed away.”
A success story? Yes, of course. I’m glad the lady was able to have quality time with God in the last year of her life. But here’s the sad part. This couple was in their 60s. The husband was a licensed local pastor. Why had someone not taught them this decades ago? It goes back to what I wrote about the map and the compass: knowledge AND skills.
Here’s another example: I was talking with a pastor at a denominational conference, and he told me: “Studying and preaching the word; there’s nothing better than studying and preaching the word.” I responded, “I can think of something better: teaching someone else how to study and pass on the word.” The thought had not occurred to him, but it was the heart of Jesus’ strategy with his disciples. “He appointed twelve that they might be with him, and that he might send them out to preach.” (Mark 3.14, NIV)
Jesus did such a good job that in Acts 1, after he ascended into heaven, the apostles made plans to do exactly what he told them to do: “…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” A friend of mine calls this the Great Conclusion: we can do this!
None of us is going to be here forever. We must do everything we can to turn our ministry into lasting ministry.
Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office. (Hebrews 7.23, NIV)
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 2.2, NIV, emphasis mine)
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Yesterday I wrote about fruit-bearing quoting, among other verses, John 15.16: “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you and appointed you to go and bring forth fruit—fruit that will last.” (NIV)
What’s the difference between “fruit” and “lasting fruit”? Here’s my best recollection of a story told by my friend Reed, who at the time was a young staff pastor in a large church in Alabama
I did a funeral for a lady from here who had moved to California. It was apparent at the funeral that none of her family and friends here cared that much about her. After all, she had moved away. But her nurse, a Japanese lady, had come back for the funeral, and she did care. As she was lingering, weeping, I went over to her and said, “This is tough, isn’t it? It would be hard to get through it if not for Jesus.” She replied, “Jesus? Who’s Jesus? Is he here?” I took that oppportunity to tell her who Jesus is and lead her to faith in him.
That’s the difference between fruit and lasting fruit. Fruit is doing the funeral and consoling the mourners. Lasting fruit is looking for and capitalizing on opportunities to make a lasting difference in someone’s life. Reed’s actions were a classic example of FRONTLINE ministry as described in my book, Join the Adventure: Be there, Pay attention, Do what you can, Tell the truth.
I hope to write more about bearing lasting fruit tomorrow.
Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles. (Romans 1.13, NKJV)
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Yesterday I observed from Ephesians 1.17 that we experience deepening intimacy with Christ through the spiritual disciplines and that through this intimacy we experience the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Here’s another good reason for pursuing intimacy: fruit!
So you must remain in life-union with me, for I remain in life-union with you. For as a branch severed from the vine will not bear fruit, so your life will be fruitless unless you live your life intimately joined to mine. (John 15.4, Passion Translation)
Who wants to be fruitless? The first command was, “Be fruitful and multiply.”
[Jesus said, ] “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” (John 15.1, 2, ESV)
When your lives bear abundant fruit, you demonstrate that you are my mature disciples who glorify my Father!… You didn’t choose me, but I’ve chosen and commissioned you to go into the world to bear fruit. And your fruit will last, because whatever you ask of my Father, for my sake, he will give it to you! (John 15.8, 16, Passion Translation)