Walking The Beat

REALLY DEBATING THIS

Blogging is fun sometimes. And then there is the long pause due to busyness and other reasons. I have come to admire those in the news print business who meet deadlines with articles and those bloggers who blog on very frequent basis. Give all of them a big "Attaboy". If you just must be pc, then "attaperson". Somehow it loses something.

I am finding that I really enjoy Facebook. I connect with friends, find out what they are doing, and sometimes even post a sentence or two and even a question that gets some comment. The comments are brief and interesting.

That format is better for me at this time. So, my blogging will not stop, but it likely won't be long or more frequent than weekly (which in itself would be improvement).

Why? I spend a lot of time and thought to most posts. Most of the readers are personal friends who are on Facebook. And, I do not generate a lot of comments. My desire was to use this as a ministry avenue, but perhaps that was just a good idea and not reality. I am not one to lay out my life for the eternity of the internet and I refuse to call names and get into that. I've no desire to get into the denominational blogging. Perhaps I am old, archaic, boring, or all of the above. Consumer demand dictates a lot. Just ask Chrysler and GM (now Government Motors, so one friend says). So, no chapter 11, but somewhat of a different tactic until I can get my thoughts and other half of my life more together.

If you are not on Facebook, find me there. And, I will be back here from time to time. If you are reading this, I sincerely thank you.

DOES YOUR 'INSIDE CULTURE' COMMUNICATE LOVE?

It has been some time since my last post, so I suppose it is time. I have and am active on both Facebook and Twitter, and those are good connections with friends. But the blog has a different purpose, so I am back.

And I want to follow up on the issues discussed. I have been asked to help a congregation develop a small group ministry. This is a very good congregation with a long and admired history. They have recently relocated to a different community. The issue at hand is that they are getting many visitors to the Sunday worship service but these are not being assimilated into the Sunday School or other areas in the life of the church. I am working with two staff members and met with a total of 15 people interested in small groups.

Some want to drive small group with curriculum. Huge mistake. No doubt nothing should be taught outside the parameters of the Apostles' teaching (Acts 2:42), but small group is a method of developing Community, and Community is about relationships

Which brings me to the point. Why the Church? Why the "called out ones"? Often in discussions such as this some want to push every word to extremes. For example, if I asked "Do you go to "church" or are you the church? Some would take one extreme or another and shape the conversation to be about whether or not one should attend public worship. That is missing the point.

The point is about identity as a follower of Jesus. We are called out, transformed, and sent with the gospel message. And that new community of which we are a part is a relational community.

Within the biblical parameter, there is mutual accountability and accountability can only be positive in an environment of loving relationships. In the context of evangelism, no one is won to Christ by someone they do not like. In the context of the church, no one will submit to accountability or discipline unless they believe the church or the other person genuinely loves them.

Love does not gloss over sin or bad behavior. Confrontation is sometimes necessary and almost always painful. The Bible uses a phrase that we sometimes over-use and by doing so we can negate its impact: "But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head - Christ" (Eph. 4:15).

I confess my own guilt in using this verse as an excuse for sometimes blurting out words that are indeed truth, but not said in a way or with the intent of helping the hearer 'grow in every way into Him'.

Many churches have what I call an "inside culture". These are wonderful people who are very out of touch with the desires of the culture around them. In order to be part of that church, one must first learn the "inside culture" and adapt their life to it. That will happen less and less.

Does not love teach us to take proactive steps to develop biblical community in such a way as to break down the walls in order for us to develop healthy relationships and become catalysts for the transformation of soul that only Christ can bring?

Do you see an "inside culture" that is prohibitive in reaching people? How do you deal with it in your context?

GRACE RECEIVED, GRACE GIVEN

At what point do you make significant changes in your life? And why?

The past few years have been years of learning lessons I would have preferred to learn in other ways. Actually, I would love to have a read a book on it or attended a seminar. But, alas, it came another way. And it has all been God's grace.

Cheryl and I have had to do some things we would not have chosen. In so doing, we have learned that God's provision is not always the elimination of struggle nor is it always to provide after something happens. Sometimes his provision is in advance. It has been so with us. In the process I learned in my heart what I knew in my head. God is sovereign (there's a lot more to that term than election) and everything I possess is from him and belongs to him. I have added to my prayer life a prayer for wisdom to know how to steward the resources God gives.

The nature of the ministry God has given me requires travel. I have been in many, many congregations in my ministry. I have noticed an obvious difference in the lives and attitudes of people in those congregations. You can see it in the hallway and hear it in the conversations.

Let's take this beyond salvation. We as people who follow Christ understand that our salvation is by the grace of God. No true Christian believes their salvation is earned. But let's take it to receiving God's grace after some type of failure.

Failure can be in many arenas. The most obvious is when one fails in sin. There is forgiveness and restoration. Another arena is when one fails in an effort. This is not sin. It is simply a failure. But very often God's grace brings solace, lessons learned, and another opportunity.

Here is the observable difference. The experience of grace becomes the talking points of the recipient. Somewhere in the conversation is a heartfelt and obvious gratitude for the grace of God. Sometimes that is in another chance, sometimes in forgiveness. But the person is settled, at peace, and Christ-focused.

Those who know about grace but have not really internalized that they need grace will mention it and give the obligatory tip of the hat. Then they are off to other things.

The friendliest people in church are those who live in God's grace. The most hateful and arrogant are those who live in their own works.

Some years ago I read that all the religions of the world can be summarized in two words: "Do" and "Done". This is indeed a simple understanding, but nonetheless accurate. We trust a risen Christ whose work of redemption on our behalf is finished and we enter that salvation and life by trusting him.

Those of us who have received God's grace should live and extend that grace. Freely we have received. May we freely give.

 

I LIVE WITH A PROPHETESS!! SHE CALLED IT! :)

This morning as Cheryl and I were watching the news, I asked, "Did you ever think we would live to see our nation elect an African-American as President?" She said, "Yes, four years ago." And I remembered. We typically watch both political party's major speeches during their conventions. When she heard Barack Obama's speech, she said, "That man will be President one day." And he is to be inaugurated as such January 20, 2009.

That this is a historical moment is perhaps an understatement. Although I am more conservative than Mr. Obama in both politics and theology, I am very grateful to see enough of our nation overcome racial divides sufficient to elect a non-Anglo to the highest office in the land. I remember when my southern high school integrated. Our school was able to do so without any violence. I cherish that heritage and also this historical moment.

Being the independent thinker that I am (I don't claim to be one of genius intelligence; I just reserve the right to do my own thinking rather than let others do it for me) often gets me in trouble, especially among those who live their lives in fear or who are in a contest to be the fourth person of the Trinity. But for others, they accept me as the human follower of Jesus that I am and we can have great dialog.

As a Christian it is my privilege and responsibility to pray for whoever occupies the civil leadership of our nation. We in the United States have the right of appeal as free citizens. We Christians should be able to give a reason for our beliefs. Therefore the exercise of good citizenship is expected. However, we must be people of truth and reject lies and disparaging innuendo against those who do not share our beliefs or opinions. We are to be Christian in every sense of the word. That means we pray for all and protest only with truth. Mr. Obama gives testimony of being a follower of Jesus. He is a brother and only Jesus can judge otherwise. So don't fall into the trap of those with agendas who would use Christians as fodder for their own agenda. Read, think, pray. "The king's heart is in the hands of the Lord"(Prov. 21:1, NIV).

But back to the "prophetess". How do you function in your marriage? We are committed to the sufficiency and truth of the Scriptures. I do use the word "inerrant" (Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy) to describe the nature of Holy Scripture. This is a double-edged sword for those who believe the Bible. One is that where Scripture speaks, it is authoritative and if we are serious, we should seek to obey. The other side of that is where Scripture does not speak, we should not attempt to make our cultural and religious opinions authoritative. Here there is freedom. Deuteronomy 29:29, (ESV) is helpful: "The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law."

A good marriage is always a work in progress. Two people, usually different personalities and often different backgrounds fall in love. They are typically young and the body has yet to "backslide". Their dreams are ahead of them. They can make love all night, not realizing that what they can do all night will one day take all night! But there are some things they haven't done.

They likely have not considered the biological family of their intended spouse and asked the question: "Will he or she be like that when they are that age?" They have not looked at the behavioral patterns, sin patterns, the strengths and weaknesses, or the disease and dysfunctions that are patterns in the biological family of their intended. They honestly believe they will be "different". They have their own dreams, so they begin.

But life often comes from our blind sides. Ahhh, those tests. Those unexpected "worse" parts of our wedding vows. The biology kicks in and despite our best efforts we begin to exhibit some undesirable traits of our heritage and genes. Do you remember the first time you heard yourself saying something to your children or spouse that your parents used to say and you swore an oath that you would never say that? Or the first time you looked in the mirror and then looked away?  :)

One has some options at these points. Although not at all God's desire, it is too easy in this country to simply walk away for less than biblical reasons. I am referring to choosing the path of least resistance when the challenges come. This is sometimes encouraged by culture, friends and family. It is often a regrettable decision and carries it's own baggage. But some do choose this option.

Another option is to buy into the "role" legalism. We speak a lot in marriage about role. But it isn't a biblical word. It is one of those "opinion" rules. In fact, it is not even used in the NIV, KJV, or ESV. It is used twice in the NLT and neither refer to the family. Role can be a helpful word. It can be a reminder of certain responsibilities each of us have. But if used as a scorecard, it is not helpful in a marriage relationship and is often the parent of resentment. Almost every scorecard keeps a record of errors, and I Corinthians 13:6 reminds us that love "keeps no record of being wronged" (NLT).

I believe a better way is to use the word relationship. We are not in a perfect world and it is likely a good thing that when young and in love we do not analyze everything in one another's biological family. Who would survive such critique?

The word "relationship" is a biblical word and is used in various translations in both the Old and New Testaments. It is used in some passages in the context of family. I believe the translators have been wise at this point. Marriage is a relationship. Relationships have the possibility for growth as well as for failure. Relationship has responsibilities and requires sacrifice. Relationships cannot exist in a vacuum. One must give of himself or herself in order to achieve a successful relationship.

The years have given Cheryl and I some great joys and we anticipate more. We have had some pretty tough knocks as well. We have learned from them. And I have grown from the "Role" emphasis of marriage to the "relationship" emphasis. In that relationship we see all of the components of a biblical marriage. And it is good and growing. And although I am the outspoken one, I have found in her soft words wisdom. Is this not a part of being in the image of God and "one flesh"?

My encouragement to you going through difficulty is this. Don't give up to any except God. Today is NOT tomorrow and God will carry your through. Respect one another enough to fail with them. Some of the greatest of our history experienced many failures prior to achieving their life's success. Abraham Lincoln is just one example. Moses is another. John Mark another. So was Simon Peter. I affectionately refer to him as "Peter the Cable Guy". He was somewhat of a Galilean "redneck".

God will honor you and bring you through. I do like the old spiritual, "I'm goin' through, yes I'm goin' through. I've started in Jesus, and I'm going through." May all of us go through together!!

WELCOME 2009!!

2009 is here, but in case you missed the festivities, you may celebrate the Chinese New Year which begins January 26, 2009. In the Chinese accounting, 2008 was the year of the Rat and 2009 is the year of the Ox. In the Chinese mythology, people born in the year of the rat "are noted for their charm and attraction for the opposite sex. They work hard to achieve their goals, acquire possessions, and are likely to be perfectionists. They are basically thrifty with money. Rat people are easily angered and love to gossip. Their ambitions are big, and they are usually very successful."

For some, 2008 was indeed a "ratty" year (as in how most view rodents) and many of the same folk are hoping there is something in the Ox that is akin to a Bull market for 2009. 2008 revealed many "rats" that did significant damage to other people. But the little rodent Despereaux in the year end movie "The Tale of Despereaux" reminded us that bitterness and revenge continues the path of destruction, but forgiveness brings peace and wholeness.

A layman's overview of the Chinese Zodiac can be found here.

However, while these are interesting cultural tidbits, we who follow Christ do not place our confidence in the signs of the Zodiac or mythology. We who follow Christ believe the Holy Scriptures to be inspired of God and sufficient to guide us into all truth.

Jesus said the Spirit (Holy Spirit) would guide us into all truth (John 16:12-15). This is not contradiction. The Spirit surely speaks today but also uses the written word to lead us and to prepare us for the future (John 16:13; 1 Peter 1:22-2:12; 2 Peter 1:16-21). One of the great values of the written word of God is to give us truth without any mixture of error as a plumb-line to test our impressions, voices, or whatever we might think we heard from the Lord. This is crucial. Always, always test the words and character of those who say "the Lord told me" with what we know the Lord has revealed in his word. Psalm 119:160 says, "The entirety of your word is truth" (NKJV).

So, Welcome 2009!!

What are your plans for this year? One good thing would be to read through the Scriptures in 2009. There are various reading plans on the Internet as well as through most churches. I seriously doubt one is better than the other. There are devotional Bibles designed to help us read through the Bible in one year. They are inexpensive and helpful.

Some have found that being observant and attempting to help people along the way makes their year better. I don't know anyone who has ever helped someone from a motive of grace and regretted the attempt. Sometimes those whom we attempt to help do not make the best choices, but the fact that one made the attempt is in itself fulfilling. Could that be because God made us to care for our neighbor (Matthew 22:34-40; 25:14-46; Luke 10:25-37)?

Others reach out by sharing as much of the Gospel story with others as is possible. At times we are privileged to sit with someone and share in depth what God has done in Christ and how they may become a follower of Christ. At other times, we are only able to share a sentence or so. One friend of mine once said, "If you can't pick the fruit, don't bruise the fruit." In other words, don't be so aggressive as to offend. Remember, it is not about us. If you need help in sharing the gospel, you can find resources here, here, here, and here.

Whatever your personal plans for 2009, let's seek to include doing something in the Kingdom of God that is outside ourselves and helpful to others. And may God guide you and give you favor in your personal plans.