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You Are With Me....

We've all heard it said of God's leadership in our lives as: HIS WAYS ARE HIGHER THEN OUR WAYS. In other words, we don't always get what He's doing, but we know He's up to something. 

That's certainly been the case in my life over the last year. I am starting to see the Leadership of God much clearer in my life lately, but not just what He's doing now, but what He's done over the last several months. I am starting to see that, even though the last few months were some of the most painful of my life, the reality is...He has been faithful to me the whole time!

The truth is, sometimes the leadership of God looks differently then we would lead if we were in charge. I mean, if it were up to me, I am not sure I would have written the last few chapters of my life the way they were. But, just because it was harder, darker or not the story line I would have chosen, doesn't mean God hasn't brought me TO and THROUGH those days.

I take a lot of comfort from Ps. 23. I love the verse that says "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for your are with me..."

What a great thing to say: YOU ARE WITH ME!

Here we are, painted as sheep in a dark valley, and where is God...WITH ME! In fact, many times...He is the one who brought us TO this valley. Remember the beginning of the verse "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me..."

The truth is, for this sheep, the Shepherd didn't stop leading just because he finds himself in the dark valley. The Shepherd LEAD him there. But...not so he could be afraid, but so he could truly know: YOU ARE WITH ME. 

I'm finding a great comfort in these beginning days of this new chapter. I think I am logging onto the fact that I am not alone, that I didn't go the wrong way, but that those days of breaking that were not so long ago, weren't meant to hurt me, but lead me back to Him. 

And it turns out, He's been with me all along.

Receiving Grace...

You and I, we NEED other people. 

I know we don't like that a lot. As Americans especially, this rugged desire for individualism runs deep in our inner core. We like to think we are tough, strong, invincible. That we don't NEED anyone. We like to believe we don't NEED others for anything. We can do it on our own. People are nice, but optional. 

But, the problem is this rugged individualism often banishes us to the cold winter land of living without grace. 

Here's what I mean:

Recently I was talking with a mentor. To be honest, I was talking to them about the sense of condemnation I have to deal with sometimes. While I haven't done anything major like murder or becoming a Florida Gators fan (sorry about that!), I am flawed and broken. And the older I get, the more I see my humanity glaring me in the face. And, it hurts. I feel sometimes so much guilt over not being a better person, husband, Christian, father, etc.  

As I talked with them, I told them how I often feel I've let God down. I kept saying: "I SHOULD be doing this...and I SHOULD be doing that."

Then he asked me about GRACE. Where was GRACE in my life?

I told him I knew about GRACE! I've given GRACE! I've preached on GRACE!

But...and these words were hard to say...I often can't seem to find that GRACE for myself.

He broke the long silence with simple words that spoken in love.

He started, ever so gently, to correct my thinking about how God sees me. To challenge my perception of how God perceives me. He made me look at myself through a new lens. He spoke about the "WALL OF SHOULDS" I was living under and how it wasn't God's best for my life.

And as he talked, my heart started to feel something I hadn't in a while...GRACE.

As he talked about God's grace and it's faithfulness to receive and forgive me, it was like he was taking my wall down, brick by brick. 

And here's the beauty of it all...through the small hole he made in that wall over that one conversation, and warm ray of grace came streaming in to the rather cold world I had been living in. And, as it touched my soul I was reminded what it might be like to live again in those late summer golden rays of grace!

And this reminded me of a powerful truth for us all:

WE NEED OTHERS! SOMETIMES IN LIFE, WE NEED OTHERS TO GIVE US WHAT GOD WANTS US TO HAVE! TO EXTEND GRACE TO US, WHEN WE CAN'T FIND IT ON OUR OWN. BECAUSE, WHEN WE TRY TO GIVE IT TO OURSELVES, IT FEELS LIKE WE ARE TRYING TO GET OFF THE HOOK, BUT WHEN WE LET OTHERS MINISTER IT TO US, IT FEELS LIKE THE HAND OF GOD.

One of the most beautiful things in this world is when another person washes your life with grace. I NEED you and you NEED me, not so much to combat loneliness, but to be God's hand of love and grace, leading us to places we can't find on our own.

Genesis 39:1-2

"1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. "

I have taken great comfort from Joseph over the last few years. I am fascinated by a man whose life was being lived in a different way then he assumed, but in the end was revealed to be God's plan for him.

I was stuck by this verse last week "The Lord was with Joseph..." This reveals how different the heart of God is from ours. Here is joseph, being sold as a slave, and the bible says that God was right there with him. A couple of truths stand out to me here:

1. The CONDITION of your life doesn't prove or disprove God's nearness.

This is a powerful lens to have on life. Often, we judge someone's closeness to God by their outward success. But here is Joseph, with God near him, outwardly doing horrible. The truth is, neither apparent blessing or apparent failure means much. The plans of God are to have you were you are now. Our first job is to have faith that God is with us.

2. God is FAITHFUL beyond our understanding.

This is true: GOD IS FAITHFUL! I love this! It means that no matter where I am or what circumstance I am in, God is with me. All through the bible we see God's faithfulness - from the 4 boys thrown in the fiery furnace, to Daniel in the lions den, to Elijah's provision in the wilderness, to the miracles of the NT. God is faithful...EVEN WHEN WE DON'T FEEL LIKE HE IS!

3. Sometimes God isn't with us to DELIVER us but to DISCIPLE us.

In my mind, I always want God to deliver me. I want my victory to be instantaneously. When I first read this verse, honestly, I was a little irked. If God was WITH Joseph, why not SET HIM FREE? Why not send a rich Christian to buy His freedom? Why not slay Potiphar and set him Free? Or why not TRANSLATE him like Phillip out of that bondage. The bible doesn't say God did any of those things.

TRUTH: God was with him...and didn't deliver him. Why? Because the greater need for Joseph was to LEARN in the prison, more them to be FREE in the moment.

The LEADERSHIP of God is based more then what feels good in the moment but what is move beneficial to God's glory, His Kingdom, and our place in bringing about the plan of God.

These lessons are so important to our lives. They shape how we see and feel in these moments when we feel like Joseph, a man with a vision in the school of the desert.

Impartation, not just Innovation...

I'm a guy that loves the church. I can relate to Paul the Apostle on only one level, his passion for the church. I love the statement where he talks about "my deep concern for all the churches" (2 Cor. 11:28) 

Because of my passion for the local church, I am always studying and praying about this subject. I am always pursuing how to make the church more reflective of the radical, world-shaking army that it started out as. Because I believe, as it has been so often said, that the church is the hope of the world. 

While I am thankful and grateful for where the para-church ministries have stepped up and filled the gap left by a sometimes anemic church, I am convinced, more then ever, that what God is going to do, He is going to do through the church.

This passion for God's church has kept me scanning the horizon of the landscape of the church, mainly in America, to see where the church is headed. To see the trends and behaviors of our leaders and to pray that it is taking us in the right direction. 

And I have seen both the beautiful and the disturbing.

Currently though, I am a little scared about where the church is heading. Overall, so much of the church seems off course when it comes to reflecting the passions of the early church.

And the thing that scares me most right now is our breathless pursuit of "innovation". 

Everyone wants to be an "innvovator" now. To come up with the newest, latest and greatest thing. It seems the newest little innovative fad so easily catches fire among pastors today. Many of whom seem to have a lust in their heart for anything claiming to be "innovative".

And most of it is seemingly harmless. From the faddish use of Twitter in services, to McChurches with their multi-site campuses, to the re-occurring inflated budgetary line item for smoke and lights. The truth is, for those hungry for "innovation", there is plenty of to keep those addicted, high for life. 

But here's the rub for me...many of these churches are innovatingly BORING!

Yes, they may have as much smoke and lights as the latest U2 concert, and the worship leader may have more hair products in their hair then the latest Toni and Guy model, and yes, you can send a TWEET about how good the last point in the sermon was...but...and lets ask this objectively...

HAS ALL THIS INNOVATION BROUGHT US CLOSER TO GOD?

Is there more of God's power and presence in our churches, marking us as HIS, because of our "Innovative" steps?

I've been visiting a lot of churches lately, as my family and I look for a home church here in Atlanta. And while we have been to a few good ones, and seem to have found our new home church, I am shocked at the lack of substance in most churches. 

I feel like the lady in the old commercial: WHERE'S THE BEEF?

And these aren't OLD SCHOOL churches. These churches have great communicators, the latest IKEA furniture, starbucks coffee and all the ammenities of an "innovative" church...

BUT THEY SEEM TO BE SORELY LACKING THE PRESENCE OF GOD!

Let me ask you a question...for all of our pursuing "innovation"...where has it gotten us?

I believe, in our pursuit of INNOVATION, we've missed the greater pursuit of IMPARTATION! 

Of our call to be FILLED WITH GOD! 

Of our call to be a "dwelling place for God". 

Here's some great questions to ask:

Where is God's presence in our midst?

Where is the power of God on display?

Where are the tears of the repentant as they come into an encounter with the living Christ?

Now, many churches are experiencing a genuine move of God in their midst, seeing lives changed by Jesus. And where thats happening, I am totally stoked!

But, for a vast majority of our churches, it seems we've lost sight of the point of gathering!

As we leaders count the visitors so diligently each week, do we ever ask "Did Jesus visit us today?" After all, didn't He say "Where two or more are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them." Isn't the presence of the living God what sets us apart? 

Now, before you castigate me as just another charismatic looking for an "everybody fall down service", that's not what I am talking about at all. In fact, that's the LAST THING I think we need. I am so tired of people falling down and getting up the same! I almost shutter when I see such a service now.

What I am talking about is this:

Where is the unbeliever who comes into our churches and says: "surely God is among you"?

Instead, I think they often get CREATIVITY, or they get a SCRIPTED MINUTE-BY-MINUTE service, or they get an opportunity to GIVE and SERVE, or they get the permission to TEXT in service...but...WHAT HAS THAT GOTTEN US?

Where is the encounter of the fear of the Lord as the backslider, the luke warm and the hypocrite come into His presence? 

I don't think we can INNOVATE what needs to be IMPARTED!

And this INNOVATION without IMPARTATION has born such weak fruit!

Recently, I've meet a few so-called Christians who use curse words as they talk! With no regret or apology, they just use words the bible says we shouldn't. They confess Christ and curse with the same mouth! 

ISN'T THAT THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS A CHRISTIAN SHOULD BE LIKE?

And don't get me started on the new wave of Christian beer drinkers! (Yeah, that will be the line that gets this blog the backlash! Don't mess with a Christians drinking habits!)

My point is, as we scan the pages of the latest Fast Company or INC magazine or the latest blogs in search of the newest "innovation" for our services, in the name of reaching more people for Jesus...

I think we need to make sure we haven't missed the CRITICAL trying to have the CREATIVE! 

I believe that what those outside the family of God are most in need of is a church filled with God's presence! 

A church with an impartation of the Spirit of God! 

A church ALIVE with the LIVING CHRIST!

And I am just trying to take my cues from Jesus!

Notice what Jesus tells the church in Acts 1 that they need...IMPARTATION!

He says that, even though He already told them to GO into all the world, the success of that mission depended on them having something they didn't have yet...an IMPARTATION!

Acts 1:8 "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me..."

Before they could GO, they needed to be FILLED!

They needed an impartation!

It was so critical, that they couldn't GO, until the power CAME!

I am challenged, as a man who loves the local church, and whose heart is broken for my generation to meet Jesus... to pursue more then just INNOVATION, but to pursue that which Jesus said we needed most:

IMPARTATION!

A Great Weekend Get-A-Way with My Wife...

There are times that you will remember for the rest of your life.

For me, this weekend was one of those times.

My wife and I got to have a weekend get a away up in a cabin in the North Georgia Mountains this weekend. It was the first time in almost 8 years that we had a chance to do that. We didn't DO a whole lot. But we talked a lot, in front of the fire, about the life God has given us and how blessed we are do live this life with each other. It was so plain to see that God has done a work of unity in our hearts that bears his thumbprint on it. 

It was a time I will never forget.

Here are some pictures, it's the weekend as we saw it:

  

    

    

  

My Run Today...

Ok, so my total for the last 7 days is 17 miles so far! I feel good. I ran slow tonight, but with the hills and the rain, 12:17 min miles was fine.

I lost almost ZERO weight this week though, so that stinks! I am going for a physical to see if something is up with my Thyroid.

My Run Today...

So, I broke the 4 mile mark. It was raining, and the hills are kicking my butt. But, at 11:14 mins per mile, I feel good.

Happily Ever After...

I love being married. Really, I do. After being married 11 years (so far), I am finding that marriage gets better and better. I love my wife more today then the day I married her...and my gut says she'd say the same thing. We've had our ups and down, mind you, but consistently over the years, by God's grace, the trials have pulled us together instead of tearing us apart. 

What is the key to a good marriage?

Notice I said a GOOD MARRIAGE! Some marriages hear "till death do us part", and some where along the line hope it's coming quickly!

But what is the key to a GOOD MARRIAGE? The kind that keeps the fire in our hearts for each other? The kind that we want our kids to have? The kind that goes the distance...that you never want to end?

I saw this video today on YouTube and it reminded me of one of the keys to my marriage: FUN!

Here is an older couple, in their 90's, still having FUN...TOGETHER! I so want to be that couple when I am that age. I love that when they trade places, he gives her a little pat on the butt! You can tell, they have had some fun in life! And here they are, at whatever golden age, still smiling together!

I think for many couples, this is a missing ingredient. They don't laugh together! They don't play around, have fun, or joke and laugh! They occupy the same how and manage the same children, but don't experience life with each other. Some where along the way, they've lost their smile together. 

As for me and my house, we shall LAUGH! 

Lisa and I laugh a lot! We joke, we have fun, we do life together. Yes, we have tough days. But, for the most part, I think we live together with a smile on our face. And that has been something my marriage couldn't live without.

Question: 

When was the last time you and your spouse had a good laugh together? 

What could you do this week/weekend to bring a smile to your faces? 

AS FOR ME AND MY MARRIAGE, WE SHALL LAUGH!

My Run Today...

I got up early this morning to get my run in before church. It was kind of cold out, which always makes my runs better. I prefer to run in the cold. I really hit it hard today, and did my 3.1 miles w/ 11:08 min. miles! So, for a chubby dude first thing in the morning, I felt good about that.

PS: It was cloudy, so I couldn't keep a distance track on my Run Keeper b/c the gps lost signal. 

PSS: Saturday was an off day with no running and bad eating. But, that's what off days are for right? :-)

My Run Today...

Tonight's run felt harder then yesterday's. It was hotter, even though it was at night. So, I sweated my butt off. But, I did it! So, my goal of running 9-12 miles over 7 days is going good. 

Also, I ate REALLY good today. I'm feeling good.

Here's my stats for today's run: