Don’t Trust Your Eyes…Grab a Tape

by | Jun 19, 2018 | discipleship, pastor, Pastor's Reflections

It is funny to me how the simplest things in life are often the way the Lord chooses to remind me of profound truths. Moving into a new home means several things…including fatigue, lots of boxes shuffled from here to there, plenty of time unwrapping “stuff” and the hanging of the pictures.
One thing about hanging pictures…you learn quickly that your eyes are not calibrated like, for instance, a tape measure and a level. What “looks right” to me may be slightly or dramatically off…depending on my perspective.
For instance, the closer you are to the picture you’re hanging, the worse your perspective of the room is. You can’t really tell how the picture fits in the overall presentation of the room when you are holding it. Further, what looks like it is centered on a wall be way off when you step back a little…or better…when you measure it against the tape.
Just as our vision and perspective can be skewed when we are too close to a matter, our assessment of truth, morality, holiness, and righteous conduct can be skewed. We often look at ourselves with what researchers call a “halo effect.” In other words, we think more highly of ourselves than we ought (See Romans 12:2-3).  We cannot see our sin as clearly because we are in the midst of it. Others, however, may see it as they observe us because they are not so close to the sin to miss it. Still, this is not the best measure since every person’s perspective is a little tainted by our sin nature. The best measure…the Word of God and the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Before you declare your own righteousness, grab the tape (I mean the Bible). How so your love? Joy? Peace? Gentleness? (see Galatians 5). Who was the last person you shared the gospel with? ( See Mark 16:15). Who are you personally investing in as a disciple of Jesus? (Matthew 28:19-20). How is your soul condition? (See Jeremiah 17:9).
One thing I have experienced time and again when I trusted the Lord to pull a tape and measure my life: He is always faithful to give a true measure, to direct me which way I needed to move to come to center and to never be frustrated with me when I needed to start again.
Have a great day…and grab a tape!

Why I Ask You to Stand…

by | Jun 13, 2018 | church, Leadership, pastor, Pastor's Reflections

This week, I was privileged to preach at my new church. I had done so once before as part of the search process, but this week my pastor was away and the responsibility of the morning message fell to me. As has become a customary practice of mine, I invited the congregation to stand with me “in honor of the reading of the Word of God and in a tangible acknowledgment of its authority in our lives.”
I have not always had this practice. Along the way, I became stirred to begin the practice after studying texts like this PASSAGE from the Book of Nehemiah.
“And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they [a]asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had [b]given to Israel…5 Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.6 Then Ezra blessed the Lord the great God. And all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. (Nehemiah 8:1,5-6, NASB). 
3 Reasons:
  • It REMINDS ME of Authority. By standing, I am acknowledging that something or Someone more important than me is speaking.
  • It is a sign of honor. When judges enter a courtroom, “All Rise” is heard from the bailiff and everyone is expected to stand. When the President of the United States enters a room, the people stand.
  • The change of posture prepares me. When I pray, I bow my head and close my eyes. This is not required but my posture reminds me that I am submissive in that moment. I am responding to or seeking something from One who is greater…not lesser (like my servant) or an equal (a high school buddy). By standing for the public reading of Scripture, I am preparing to hear something significant.
In the age we live in, where everyone has a blog or social media following, and the role of personal opinions is often elevated to a supreme place of authority…let me offer a couple of caveats.
  • Standing for Scripture reading when I preach is a personal practice…not a biblical demand. If I am in a service where this is not the customary practice, I’ll likely not make an issue of it to stand while everyone else is sitting. Doing so may inadvertently turn the attention toward me and away from the Word…precisely the opposite of my heart’s desire.
  • My convictions should not necessarily be every other preacher’s convictions. Each man stands before his Master and gives an account for what his Master has required of him…not what the Master requires of another.
  • Finally, I recognize that the practice could become a point of challenge for people with different religious backgrounds. I remember a conversation once with Dave. He has been part of the Catholic church at a point in his life and had a bad experience. He really struggled with any practice (like the liturgical call to stand, kneel, or participate in responsive reading) that reminded him of that experience. Like the Apostle Paul, I would never want to create an unnecessary stumbling block to the faith. If eating meat causes a brother to stumble, I’d choose to be a vegetarian for the cause of Christ. Anything else is unloving. (See Romans 14:1-15:7).
So that is the why of one of my “odd” practices. Be well! I’d love to hear your thoughts if you have some for or against my practice or logic…

Hold onto your WHY…

by | May 22, 2018 | church, discipleship, evangelism, Pastor's Reflections

Eighteen years ago, a pastor friend, Herb Flavell, gave me a “pro tip” for ministry. He as a dear brother to me…being one of the first pastors to entrust his pulpit to me and the first to allow me to baptize in his baptistry. Herb told me to write down the names in my Bible of each person God allowed me to win to Christ. “Whether through personal evangelism or through my preaching,” he said, “write down everyone. When the devil starts giving you a fit one day…telling you that God can’t use you, just read the names back to him and watch him run.”

I did that for years. Then it was videos of baptism testimonies. Whatever the form…everyone needs to remember why they get out of bed in the morning and “do the work.” Now I know that man doesn’t save anyone…but God chooses through the preaching of the gospel to save those who believe (1 Cor 1:21, 15:1-2).

Resistance and spiritual warfare are non-negotiable. Victory over them is. If you don’t know your WHY, you’ll likely give up on the WHAT of your life and resign to some mere existence while you wait to die.

Victor Frankl, author of the renowned book, Man’s Search for Meaning, was a Jewish Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry. Frankl was imprisoned in Nazi concentration camps during WW II. He made the observation during the terrible atrocities of the camps…that man can endure nearly any “how” of life, as long as he has a “why.”

Perhaps we would do well to stop talking about WHAT we are doing, or HOW we are doing it and focus on explaining WHY we do what we do.

What is your WHY? Why do you work? Why do you go to church? Why do you serve, or give, or go?

Through the years, Pastor Herb’s “pro tip” has been used by the Lord to carry me through some dark periods. Why? Because the WHY is worth holding onto…

Pivotal Moments

by | May 16, 2018 | discipleship, evangelism, Leadership, missional, pastor

It is graduation season. It is an anxious time for many as seasons of life change. It is also a critical time for those who minister.

I have told several people the past few weeks that, statistically speaking, our church’s most effective outreach (if you measure success by connecting people into a long-term discipleship relationship IN THE CHURCH) has traditionally been our hosting of baccalaureate services for two local high schools. Every year (for the last nine years or so) we have several hundred people come to the church for a one-hour program as I share a message of encouragement to students making the transition away from high school. Invariably, over the next 1-3 years, one or two of those families will connect with the church. When I ask them how they came to visit our church, they tell me that they came to a baccalaureate service and enjoyed it.

Why is this service to the community so valuable? I think it is because of Pivotal Moments.

In John 4, Jesus spoke to a woman of Samaria who was the “talk of the town.” She had been married five times and now was living with another man. The gossip circles were so busy about her…that she didn’t even come to the well until the most brutal part of the day…long after all the other women had come and gone. She’d rather face the heat than their judgmental looks and deafening whispers. One day, she came and met Jesus who was waiting. He connected the story of God’s love and man’s purpose to her circumstances at a pivotal moment. She was ready. She wasn’t expecting a sermon or even to converse with anyone…much less someone claiming to have access to living water and who knew her reputation but talked with her anyway. Pivotal Moments.

Or there was the time when Pastor Timothy was frustrated and wrestling with his faith. Ministry had seemed to take its toll and his spiritual mentor…the Apostle Paul…spoke into his circumstance (2 Timothy 1) by way of a letter, encouraging him to remember who he was, where he had come from, and how God had called him. Pivotal Moments.

These two examples (along with dozens more if time permitted) remind us that God prepares hearts through pivotal moments to receive truth. Wise disciples are on the lookout for these moments because they are solid gold.

LAST STORY: Yesterday, I was running on a tight schedule between meetings and stopped by a shop to drop off a couple items. I didn’t have time to be there but was very intentional to fit the drop by in. While inside, a woman asked me to follow her to the back of the shop. When I did, she shared with me that her mom (a Christian) died six months ago and that she was vexed in her heart on how the resurrection worked. She didn’t want to talk out front because her co-workers were not believers. Pivotal Moments. So, we spent 10 minutes talking about what the Scriptures teach about death, the Resurrection, and why we can have hope of reunion if we follow Christ. [I had never met this woman before…but I recognized a pivotal moment had presented itself].

Friend, if you are a follower of Christ, He created you for such moments as these. This woman assumed that I must be spiritual since I was wearing a shirt with the church name. (I’m not sure I ever told her I was the pastor). Parents and students at baccalaureate services are tender for God’s wisdom at this transition in seasons. That woman whose husband has distanced himself, the man who is struggling to put food on the table, and the young lady in the hospital are all tender…and God placed you there to speak truth at a Pivotal Moment. Don’t miss it. Make the most of the opportunity. Pray for the opportunity. Serve during the opportunity. Represent Him.

Grace and Peace.

Courage required!

by | May 2, 2018 | Devotions, discipleship, Faith, Leadership

A man goes to the doctor and is accompanied by his wife. They are escorted to the exam room and await the doctor’s arrival. When she comes in, the doctor promptly asks, “What would you like me to say to you today? What diagnosis do you want me to declare and prescribe a remedy for?” The man and his wife are dumbfounded…because what they wanted was an examination and for the doctor to tell them what was actually wrong and simply to treat that condition.

Honestly, the story is fictional and outlandishly so…because who would ever go to a doctor demanding that the doctor simply parrot the patient’s self-diagnosis? Only a fool.

In my time with the Lord today, I re-read the story of Ahab’s demise (1 Kings 22). This verse stood out:

“But Jehoshaphat said, ‘Is there not yet a prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of him?’ [Ahab] The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat. ‘There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil…’ ” 1 Kings 22:7-8.

Of course, the verse pointed me forward to the counsel of Paul to pastor Timothy:

1I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:

2preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.

3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,

4and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

5But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

2 Timothy 4:1–5 (NASB95)

The fact is…the man of God is commanded and charged to speak for God and for God alone. If you read all of 1Kings 22, you see that Micaiah’s prophesy was indeed one of defeat for Ahab. It was also contrary to the 400 other assembled prophet’s statements. God graciously revealed through Micaiah to Ahab how this could be so…but the desire was for a pleasant word that uplifted the king…not necessarily the truth and particularly not if that truth was not in the king’s favor! Micaiah was imprisoned on bread and water for his services. The king committed him there as a way of manipulating him to change his tone:

“…Thus says the king, ‘Put this man in prison and feed him sparingly with bread and water until I return safely.’ “ 1 Kings 22:27.

Micaiah the prophet was not persuaded and responded in this manner:

“Micaiah said, ‘If you indeed return safely the Lord has not spoken through me.’ “ 1 Kings 22:28.

People make decisions about the church they will attend and the pastor they will listen to. They make decisions for various reasons. Some, like Ahab, want only to hear good spoken toward them. These are like the fools seeking a doctor to prescribe according to the patient’s instructions. Others, desire truth. They want it straight, even (and especially) if it hurts and prompts them to change. Regardless of the people’s desires…the man of God has but one command: “preach the word,” (2 Tim 4:2) and be willing to cling to it even in prison.

Today, even amidst cultural pressures to be silent or be approving when it comes to sin and faithless conduct…PREACH THE WORD! Be faithful to the One who has faithfully placed the truth within you and love others enough to simply speak truth.