Running With God

Why VBS Is So Important

It's Friday afternoon, and I'm surprised how energized I still am. Tomorrow morning may be a different story. Here are a few of the things I've spent my week doing:

• I've been the storyteller for half of the Kindergarten, First, and Second graders. Along with my fantastic helper, Sarah Hands, we have delivered God's word 27 times this week with 3 to go tonight.
• I've introduced the memory verse and given away 9 T-shirts during large group worship time.
• And many say I have a striking resemblance to a superhero named Australian Superman.

I am only one member of a volunteer army. Our Children's Ministry Coordinator, Iris Andersson, has set the pace for 400 volunteers and 800 children this week.

Yes, it is true that VBS takes tons of preparation, organization, and resources. But when you consider its importance as an outreach opportunity, it is more than worth the effort. Consider some of the benefits:

1. Many children make professions of faith during this week. Missionaries and other church leaders often report they made professions of faith at VBS.
2. Relationships are built among volunteers that may not regularly work together.
3. A wider spectrum of gifts and skills are put to use than normal--artists and craftsmen create sets, those with the gift of hospitality prepare snacks, athletes lead recreation, and people who love children build relationships in classrooms.
4. Some people discover their spiritual gifts by serving at VBS and then want to serve on a regular basis.
5. Memories are created that last a lifetime. Adults often talk about experiences they had at VBS as a child.
6. Many people experience the immense pleasure of being used by God.
7. We get to see God answer prayers for weather, safety, volunteers, and salvations.
8. We come into contact with families who want to find a church family.

So what's your VBS moment? Leave me a comment that describes it.

3 Years Plus a Lifetime

Some have asked, “Are we done with Peacemaker Ministries?” The answer is yes and NO. The team of Paul, Jeff, and Kristen completed their second visit last weekend. But our journey down the road of biblical peacemaking has just begun. Transforming our church will take deliberate, long-term cultural change. And that takes 3 years plus a lifetime.

 

At the end of last week’s service, I made a declaration. I wanted it to reverberate through our church, our homes, and our community. Here it is again:

• We will be a peacemaking church (Matthew 5:9).
• We will live at peace with all people as far as it depends upon us (Romans 12:18).
• We will serve our God as a God of abundance and not scarcity (Philippians 4:13).
• We will not fear man, but we will fear God (Proverbs 1:7).

The next mile marker on this journey is the development of a local peacemaking team. If you would like to participate or recommend someone, please let me know. I hope to assemble a team in the next month so that they can begin training and modeling peacemaking principles.

 

Living as peacemakers is not just a good idea, it is a biblical essential. It is the very essence of the Gospel that must be experienced then lived out. Pray with me that God would continue among us the good work He has begun.

Remembering Boston

Memorial Day is all about remembering. It is a time to remember sacrifices made for freedom. For some of you, this reflection becomes very personal.

I'm taking the idea of remembering a different direction with this post. I'm remembering the 2008 Boston Marathon. I've been meaning to post some of these pictures, and this seemed like a great time to do it.

With my family near our hotel on Friday.

 Sunset seen from our ferry ride after a walking tour of historic Boston on Saturday.

 

Monday is race day. I'm giving high fives to my family at mile 17.

 

Less than a mile from the finish line.

 

Post-race dinner at Maggiano's where my dad has the biggest serving of lasagna we've ever seen.

The Speed of Trust

As many of you know, I like to read. No, that’s not quite accurate. I need to read. It feeds my soul. I love to read books on theology, history, spiritual formation, biography, fiction, and quality children’s books.

 

A couple months ago I was given a book that is targeted at business leaders. A line on the cover read “Red-hot relevant!” Was it over-zealous marketing or true? Given the leadership challenges and opportunities I’m facing, it’s proving to be true. Though I’m not done reading it, here is a summary of what I’ve learned so far.

 

The book is The Speed of Trust: the One Thing that Changes Everything by Stephen M. R. Covey. The premise of the book is captured in a formula:

 

↓ Trust = ↓ Speed ↑ Cost

 

↑ Trust = ↑ Speed ↓ Cost

 

The level of trust in an organization, a church, or a family affects both speed and cost. When the level of trust goes down, speed will go down and costs will go up.

 

If there is a low level of trust in church leadership, our speed of accomplishing ministry will go down even as our spending of energy and time and resources goes up. But the opposite is also true. When trust in church leadership goes up, the speed of ministry goes up even as the costs go down.

 

The early chapters of this books talk about self-trust being the place to start. A leader needs to be trustworthy. To be someone who inspires trust involves both integrity of character and capabilities that prove competence. Beginning with the right motives and delivering the right results are both important.

 

The next dimension of trust is relationship trust. The author contends that even if it has been lacking, the following behaviors will rebuild trust:

1. Talk Straight
2. Demonstrate Respect
3. Create Transparency
4. Right Wrongs
5. Show Loyalty
6. Deliver Results
7. Get Better
8. Confront Reality
9. Clarify Expectations
10. Practice Accountability
11. Listen First
12. Keep Commitments
13. Extend Trust

This book is not “Christian”, yet it contains much common sense wisdom. And with God’s help, I hope to rebuild trust in a way that sets us free to run with God.

 

 

Miraculous Gifts

Any discussion of spiritual gifts eventually gets around to what some would call the more “miraculous” gifts. In our very scientific age, we tend to marginalize these gifts. But I would encourage us not to dismiss them too quickly.

 

Here’s a list with definitions given by Bruce Bugbee in his book What You Do Best in the Body of Christ:

• Prophecy: the divine enablement to reveal truth and proclaim it in a timely and relevant manner for understanding, correction, repentance, or edification.
• Healing: the divine enablement to be God’s means for restoring people to wholeness.
• Tongues: the divine enablement to speak, worship, or pray in a language unknown to the speaker.
• Interpretation: the divine enablement to make known to the body of Christ the message of one who is speaking in tongues.
• Miracles: the divine enablement to cheerfully and practically help those who are suffering or are in need.

These definition soften these gifts a bit to make them a bit more acceptable. That may be good because the next breath you draw is a miracle. God’s keeping the universe from spinning into oblivion is also a miracle.

 

But I don’t see evidence in Scripture that these gifts have ceased to function. And there are places in the world where people are less prejudiced against supernatural explanations. Missionaries who have served in places like India have often seen what they understand to be miracles. Miracles may be more frequent where a need is great or where people are open to their possibility.

 

If you have questions about these gifts, I encourage you to do more study. Start with 1 Corinthians 12-14. Tongues was a prominent gift at Corinth. Interestingly, Paul does not tell them to stop speaking in tongues. Rather, he gives them guidelines for its orderly practice. Speaking in tongues is primarily for private benefit unless an interpretation accompanies it. Even then it may often need to be avoided in the gathered assembly because the foreign nature of it would cause confusion or distraction. Paul tells them to prioritize prophecy because the hearers will be able to understand the message and be edified.

 

Here are some additional books that I have found helpful to deeper study of this subject:

• Showing the Spirit: A Theological Exposition of 1 Corinthians 12-14 by D. A. Carson
• The Gift of Prophecy in the New Testament and Today by Wayne Grudem
• Surprised by the Power of the Spirit: Discovering How God Speaks and Heals Today by Jack Deere

Discovering and Developing My Gifts

I had a blast teaching in services yesterday. If you’re a part of South Park Church, thanks for being so interactive and eager to learn. I sense that we are starting to overcome inertia and starting to build momentum.

Have you taken your Spiritual Gifts Discovery Test yet? I have taken multiple tests over the years, and I’ve taken a few in recent weeks leading up to our campaign. According to the tool we distributed yesterday, here are my results:

1.      Teaching (16)

2.      Knowledge (15)

3.      Pastor/Shepherd (15)

These gifts rise to the top every time I take a test like this. Not far behind are Administration (14) and Leadership (13).

 

As you discover, unite with others, and use your gifts, an UNSTOPPABLE FORCE will be unleashed in our church. To help you do that, here’s what’s coming in the weeks ahead:

• May 10, Properties: 1-on-1 coaching sign-up begins
• May 17, Energy: We move beyond “what” to “where” and “how”
• May 24, Variables: We will address many of your FAQ’s
• May 31, Momentum: Come ready to tell us your top 3 gifts

 

So I want to know what you’re thinking. What questions do you have about spiritual gifts? I’ll do my best to answer you through Sunday messages or in upcoming blog posts. But beware, a good teacher often answers with another question.

Get the Log Out

I am very grateful for the 147 people who gathered on Saturday for The Peacemaker Seminar. We learned about the 4 G’s of Peacemaking:

1. Glorify God
2. Get the Log Out of Your Own Eye
3. Gently Restore
4. Go and Be Reconciled

Most of us will agree that we want God to be glorified through conflict. But the hard part is doing second “G” work. The image comes from Jesus.

And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. (Matthew 7:3-5)

 

Are you willing to take responsibility for your part of conflicts? The most challenging thing I heard during the seminar was this quote: “Remember, even if you’re responsible for just 2% of the conflict, Jesus says you’re 100% responsible for your 2%. That your ‘log.’”

 

What questions do you have about biblical peacemaking? And if you attended the seminar, what did you find the most challenging?

An Instrument of Peace

The following prayer by Francis of Assisi hangs on my office wall:

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.

These words have special significance as we begin our journey this week with Peacemaker Ministries. So I'm asking everyone at South Park Church to commit to praying the first line of that prayer daily for the next 14 days. Beginning Sunday, April 19, and running through Saturday, May 2, I'm asking you to pray the following words until they get inside of you and change you:

"Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace."

If you want to join this peace movement of prayer, send me a comment. I promise to read every comment that comes in and post some that might prove helpful to others. You can simply leave a note saying you'll be praying. Or you can share more specifically what you hope God will do through our partnership with Peacemaker Ministries.

Shalom.

Let's hear your thoughts about peace

What image comes to mind when you think of peace? Is peace found lying on a beach as the sun sets? Is peace experienced in remote woods away from traffic and airplane noise? Or is peace achieved when the kids are in bed and finally asleep?

Peace can be experienced in these ways. But peace from the Bible's perspective is more than the absence of stress and conflict. It is more than the presence of serenity. Biblical peace is the restoration of harmonious relationships with God, others, and the creation.

Peace is what God had in mind when he set in motion his plan culminating in Jesus death and resurrection. Paul says in Colossians 1:19-20:

For God in all his fullness

was pleased to live in Christ,

and through him God reconciled

everything to himself.

He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth

by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

People who are reconciled to God through Christ's blood are the recipients of peace. And that peace should progressively characterize our lives.

 

I laid it on the line in last week's message asking everyone who calls South Park Church their home to come to the Peacemaker Seminar on April 25th. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this event. What do you hope we'll gain from this training?

Benediction

The prayer I spoke at the end of Sunday’s message (3/22/09) is a Franciscan Benediction. I first heard it in a message by Craig Groeschel, pastor of Lifechurch.tv in Oklahoma City. I’ve got to give credit to our worship pastor, Ted Kim, for thinking to use it this week. 

 

It is one of those prayers you’re afraid to pray because it is almost certain to be answered. I find myself wondering, “Do I really want this?” Though I may be reluctant, the answer is yes. 

 

Here it is so that you can pray it on your own.

 

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart.

 

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

 

May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy.

 

And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in the world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

 

Amen.