I was going to post something about small groups today, but let’s hold that until tomorrow. Today June and I are celebrating our 51st, count ’em, 51!, anniversary. We are blessed.

⁹  Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰  If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
¹¹  Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
¹²  Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. (Ecclesiastes 4.9 – 12, NIV)

Relish life with the spouse you love…Each day is God’s gift…Make the most of each one! (Ecclesiastes 9.9, MSG)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

I wrote yesterday that a new contact in Cameroon, a young pastor, has observed that churches don’t seem to want to transform members into disciples.

Maybe churches want to make disciples, but they don’t know how. 

The problem is that most churches put most of their efforts into the weekly worship service. And whether the emphasis is Bible teaching, music, or the Eucharist, it’s hard to train people in a large group environment. About as hard as it is to produce musicians only by having them attend concerts. 

Navigator Ron Bennett, in his excellent book Intentional Disciplemaking, uses a golf analogy. Ron says that it takes a variety of clubs to get the ball in the hole. The driver (compare the Sunday morning large gathering) is only one. Then we have the long irons (mid-sized groups such as Sunday School classes), short irons (small groups), and the putter (one-to-one). 

It helps if we are clear about what we want each type of group to do. For example, I believe the best use of Sunday School, especially when the adult classes are composed of, say, 20 – 70 people, is community. Sure, instruction can occur–I taught Sunday School for years. But an important role of the Sunday School in a large church is to provide a smaller environment where people can practice the “one-anothers” of scripture.

The right kind of small groups plays a key role in “transforming members into disciples,” and I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow.

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. (John 13.34, NIV)

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10.24, 25, NIV, often used to promote church attendance, but it’s hard to “spur one another on…” and “encourage one another” during the morning service! That has to be done at another time.)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

I’ve connected with a young pastor in Cameroon via LinkedIn. I don’t know much about him yet except he actually wants to make disciples! He wrote:

I am about to start a discipleship ministry “back to the word of God ministry” only to equipped Christians but specially leaders. Please I want to see how we can work together for the glory of God. The church don’t [sic] want to transform members to disciples. [emphasis mine, actual words are his in the best English that he, as a native French speaker, can muster]

Churches don’t want to transform members into disciples.

It’s a chilling observation. Why does he see things this way? Here’s one possibility: churches spend most of their time and energy on one tool: the Sunday morning service. And they measure effectiveness by how many come. I read a report recently where a pastor in India is quoted as saying, “We’re running 2,000 right now, and I think we can be to 3,000 by the end of the year!” 

I don’t know if those are the words the Indian pastor used or that’s how the American telling the story heard it. Either way, someone appears to be interested only in how many come. This is unfortunate. As one wise pastor told me years ago, “We’re good at measuring how many come. I wish we could count how many go!” 

But we can’t…or don’t count how many go, and it appears, as the young pastor from Cameroon concluded, “Churches don’t want to transform members into disciples.”

I think he’s wrong. Churches really want to make disciples…they just don’t know how. More on that tomorrow.

Go and make disciples of all nations. (Matthew 28.19)

You became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere,…  (1 Thessalonians 1.7, 8, ESV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3.16, 17, NIV)

A pastor friend, commenting on this passage, observed that the Father was “well pleased” with the Son, at the beginning of his ministry, before Jesus had done anything. His takeaway was that God loves Jesus (and by extension, us) for who he was, not based on performance. There’s truth in that, and that’s a good application.

But I just heard (on Labor Day Sunday!) another pastor make a different application. The Father was well-pleased with Jesus before his ministry started, but not before he had done anything. He had been a carpenter:

Isn’t this the carpenter? (Mark 6.3, NIV)

So we might conclude that the Father was pleased with Jesus’ work, his labor, and that would certainly be true of us.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3.23, 24, NIV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

Maybe I’ll learn someday…

We had new neighbors move in on August 1, and as of August 26, I hadn’t even seen them, much less met them. I kept watching for them, trying to catch them outside, but nothing.

Finally(!) I prayed something like, “Lord, I’m tired of never seeing these people, please arrange a meeting.” That very evening, I was walking the dog (a great way to see neighbors if they’re out), and sure enough, here came the neighbor taking his garbage to the street.

After introducing myself and politely reminding him it wasn’t good to have your garbage on the street the night before–bears are tanking up this time of year–we had a nice first visit.

Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. (John 16.24, NIV)

You do not have because you do not ask. (James 4.2, NKJV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

I’m glad we honor laborers in this country…all laborers. As I’ve written before, work is a good thing. People showing up every day, carrying out their duties, is a real service to all of us. I love what Dr. Louis Profeta wrote a couple years ago in which he was trying to make a case to fellow medical professionals that all work is important and all workers are important:

We are just one profession out of countless others that keep our world moving. We are no more heroes than the social worker visiting homes in the projects, the farmer up at 4 to feed the cattle, the ironworker strapped to a beam on the 50th floor. We are no more a hero than the single mom working overnight as a custodian, trying to feed her kids. We are no more heroic than countless others who work in jobs they perhaps hate in order to care for and support the people they love. (You can read the entire article here.)

Martin Luther King, Jr., had the same sentiment:

If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, “Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”

We “commissioned” people at church yesterday: commissioned them to do their jobs–all kinds of jobs–and to remember as I’ve written before, that they serve by their work, they serve at their work, and they advance the Kingdom from their work.

I was privileged to take part, and I pointed out a few important Bible characters who had “regular” jobs. As our pastor says from time to time, “These stories didn’t happen in church! They happened out in the real world.”

• Noah: shipbuilder!
• Abraham, Isaac, Jacob: herdsmen (in Colorado: ranchers!)
• Joseph and Daniel: prime ministers of foreign countries
• Joshua: military general
• Deborah: federal judge (Judges 4.4)
• Boaz, great-grandfather of King David: a farmer (read Ruth)
• David: military man, king, poet, musician
• Amos: a tree surgeon! (Amos 7.14)
• Joseph and Jesus: carpenters (Matthew 13.55, Mark 6.3)
• First worshippers of Jesus: wise men (astronomers?) (Matthew 2)
• First documented Gentile convert: a Roman centurion (Acts 10)
• First convert in Greece: Lydia: a merchant (Acts 16)
• Priscilla and Aquilla: made portable housing (Acts 18)

The shepherds in Luke 2 were working when the angels appeared to them, and they returned to work after visiting the manger.

The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. (Genesis 2.15, NIV)

Six days you shall labor and do all your work. (Exodus 20.9, NIV)

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3.23, 24, NIV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

I wrote yesterday about God having to send Saul of Tarsus into the mix because the original 11 apostles didn’t seem to be moving toward “all the world.” They were stuck in their Jewishness.

God had to speak to Peter through a vision and emissaries from a Roman Centurion to get his attention, as recorded in Acts 10. And, when you think about it, Peter’s reluctance both to interact with Gentiles and to eat “unclean food” is hard to understand.

And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” (Acts 10.13 – 15, ESV)

Much earlier, Jesus, in Peter’s presence, was clear:

And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) (Mark 7.18, 19, ESV)

Mark’s commentary, “Thus he declared all foods clean,” was apparently lost on Peter the first time he heard it.

I’ve written at least twice before on how easy it is to miss things. There may be things I just don’t know about or I may be sucked into the error of my culture. In this case, Jesus articulated the teaching directly to Peter, and he still missed it (in Mark 7).

For example, which part of “Love your neighbor as yourself” do I not understand?

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13.34, 35, NIV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

Jesus clearly told his disciples that their mission was world-wide, for all people.

Make disciples of all nations. (Matthew 28.19)

…You shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1.8, NKJV)

So why, 10 years after the resurrection, are they still in Jerusalem, and Peter is reluctant to enter the home of a Gentile?

Then he said to them, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. (Acts 10.28, NKJV)

God has to kick-start the missionary movement, and he does it through one man in two ways!

Saul of Tarsus, one of the chief instigators of killing Stephen, is responsible for scattering the believers, breaking up the Jerusalem mega-church. The result is believers out on mission!

And Saul approved of [Stephen’s] execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles, …But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. (Acts 8.1, 3, 4, ESV, emphasis mine)

Then, Jesus chooses Saul to be on his side, and Saul is spear-heading the missionary movement from within!

But the Lord said to [Ananias], “Go, for [Saul] is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. (Acts 9.15, ESV)

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 – 3, ESV)

I’m still contemplating the ramifications of that!

This is the plan determined for the whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all nations. For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back? (Isaiah 14.26, 27, NIV) (For judgment in Isaiah but for salvation in Acts!)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

It’s that time of year again, and the dog and I suited up to watch Clemson’s first game.

Clemson, as expected, beat Georgia Tech, 52 – 14, but despite what the score might indicate, Clemson looked ragged in spots. Coach Dabo Swinney said, “There were plenty of errors on all sides of the ball that will have to get fixed.” Speaking of the players, Dabo said,

We can give them some truth. They have to receive the truth, and we’ve got to get better.

That’ll preach, won’t it? It’s not enough to be told the truth and to listen to the truth. We have to receive the truth and then act on the truth. I wrote a few days ago that Herod enjoyed listening to John the Baptist, but there was no life-change.

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8.31, 32, NIV)

If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? (John 8.46, NIV)

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (James 1.22, NIV)

[To follow The Ewellogy, please click on Leave a Comment above, fill in your name and email, and check the box: Notify me of new posts by email. If your comment is, “Notify me,” it won’t post publicly. If you don’t start to receive the blog by email right away, please write to me at bob@ewell.com, and I will see that you get on the list.]

We spent a few days last week at one of our favorite places: the YMCA of the Rockies near Estes Park, Colorado. If you haven’t been there, “YMCA” doesn’t quite capture what it is. It’s a very large property with lodges and cabins: if all the beds were filled, they could sleep 9,000 people! We were in a 2-bedroom cabin, and one of the pluses is we can take our dog.

Mountain views are extraordinary in every direction, but they’re always there. What’s unpredictable is the wildlife. We were told that the bears were unusually active, but we didn’t see any. Here’s what we did see, every morning, every evening, a gigantic bull elk who liked to eat the grass near the recently built Boone Mountain Center.

Bull elks weigh about 700 pounds and are 5 feet tall at the shoulder (with massive head and antlers, we’re talking about 9 feet tall. “Normally” they leave you alone, which is a good thing since it’s walking within a few yards of children in a playground. Note the little girl perched on top of a rock-like structure, presumably for safety. There’s an anxious mom in the background. I’m standing just a few yards away myself outside our cabin.

It’s not uncommon to see a small herd of them in downtown Estes Park! Last November, as we checked in at the Y there were about 30 of them near the Administration Building. When I approached for a picture, this cow was apparently offended and acted as if she could come after me any second. Fortunately, our car was close. This proves that elk ignore you until they don’t!

We like life to be safe and predictable. Often it’s not. Whether it’s wild animals, traffic(!), or weather, we’re as safe as God wants us to be. Last Saturday, six people were injured in Atlanta when lightning struck at the Tour Championship Golf Tournament.

About 15 years ago, our daughter and son-in-law were teaching near Tel-Aviv, Israel, at a time when there were frequent suicide bombers. When tensions heightened, there was an evacuation, and they flew home to Arkansas. Interestingly, the day they arrived, there was an ice storm in Arkansas, and more people died there than in Israel! There are no guarantees.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. (Psalm 23.4, ESV)

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. (Isaiah 43.1, 2, NLT)

Will the wild ox consent to being tamed? Will it spend the night in your stall? Can you hitch a wild ox to a plow? Will it plow a field for you? Given its strength, can you trust it? Can you leave and trust the ox to do your work? Can you rely on it to bring home your grain and deliver it to your threshing floor? (Job 39.9 – 12, NLT–God could have just as easily talked about the elk!)

The voice of the LORD strikes with bolts of lightning. The voice of the LORD makes the barren wilderness quake; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the LORD twists mighty oaks and strips the forests bare. In his Temple everyone shouts, “Glory!” The LORD rules over the floodwaters. The LORD reigns as king forever. The LORD gives his people strength. The LORD blesses them with peace. (Psalm 29.7 – 11, NLT)