Unpacking

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:18-30 (MSG)

Jesus calls and invites us….”Come. Get away with me. I want to show you something new.”
Me: “OK.” And I show up with a large trunk, a big and small suitcase, a backpack and multiple pouches of things stuck in my pockets and hanging around my neck.
Me: “I need to bring all this. I don’t go anywhere without my stuff.”
Jesus: “Are you sure you want to carry all that?”
Me: “Yes, I’ve got this. I’ve been carrying it for years.”
Jesus: “OK. Let’s walk together.”

We start our journey. As we walk together, I see glimpses of Him that I’ve never seen before. He loves people and touches them in ways that are new to me. I see Him send others that love Him to help folks. I watch literal miracles happen before my very eyes. After some time, I realize that my big trunk has become a nuisance because I am trying to keep up and it’s slowing me down.

Jesus: “You sure you need that big trunk?”
Me: “Well, let me look.” I open it up and inside I see a bunch of old hurts. I see things that happened that made me feel small or insignificant. I realized that lately I haven’t felt those things so I take them out and throw them away. I throw away some of the old hurts too but I keep some. I move them to a smaller bag. Not sure I am willing to let go of those yet.
Jesus: “Let’s walk.”

As we continue our journey, I began to help Jesus with some of the things he is doing. I put down my bags and reach out to others. On one of these side stops, when we started walking again, I accidentally left the small suitcase. After a moment of panic, I realized I didn’t really need it. We kept walking.

One of the things I noticed was that on our journey, I started picking up other things. Things like a peace I couldn’t explain and this inner happiness that seemed to be around a lot. I didn’t have anywhere to put them so I started taking stuff out of my big suitcase so I could take them along. Jesus said I didn’t need to pack them. They were always going to be part of who I was and would travel with me. I realized that I had taken quite a bit out of my large suitcase. Insecurities, anxieties, fear were laying there on the ground. I put them back in the suitcase and took it to the trash. I left it there.

Jesus: “You ready to keep walking?”
Me: “Yes.” By this time, I had a backpack and some pouches of things that I couldn’t seem to let go of. Some of them were possessions I thought I couldn’t live without. In one of the pouches I kept money. I couldn’t go anywhere without knowing I was fully prepared and had my money. In one pouch was the need to be successful….you know, the way the world defines success. These things defined who I was. I couldn’t leave them.

 As we continued our journey, we hit a bad storm. Really bad. My backpack and some of my pouches were ripped from me. I was panicked. I wasn’t sure what I would do without those things to identify who I was.

 Jesus: “Don’t worry. Just keep in step with me. Look to me for your identity.  And your money? Not needed here. I will provide all you need.”

 This part of the journey was the hardest. I was reluctant to believe that he would do what he said. And how in the world do you identify with Jesus? I wasn’t even sure of how to get my arms around that one. But as we continued to walk, I realized he was right. He provided for all my needs and in this process of letting go of my “stuff”, I found myself. I knew who I really was.

I look back and marvel at the way Jesus let me come, just as I was. He didn’t have any expectations that I was going to show up without my bags and be perfect. He knew I couldn’t. He let me walk the journey with Him, let me experience the unforced rhythms of grace. I still have some pouches stuck here and there. It seems sometimes I empty one and an old one fills back up. It’s OK. I know Jesus is walking this journey with me and will never leave me to figure it out on my own.

Let Me Introduce You.....

We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too. 1 Thessalonians 2:8 (NLT)

What do you think would happen if I walked into the room, walked up to two complete strangers and said “Let me introduce you”? They didn’t know me, I didn’t know them and they had no clue why they would want to know each other. I think they would be polite (maybe), walk away, think I was crazy and never speak to each other (or me) again.

We’ve been processing what it looks like to plant a disciple making church. The thing is, it looks really different than how most churches get planted. I won’t go into all that here but the big thing is you have to be a disciple yourself. You can’t introduce someone you don’t know to someone you don’t know and expect anything to come of it.

So what are the first steps? You need to know Jesus. Personally, intimately and currently. Let me share another analogy. Say I have a ton of head knowledge about Abraham Lincoln. I am an expert in the facts about his life. I’ve read tons of books, given speeches and written about him. I walk into a room and his wife is there. Who would know him better? His wife, of course! She knew all about him because she lived with him. She knew who he really was inside and out. And who better to tell stories about him and share him? It’s the same with Jesus.

In order to share Jesus, not just the Jesus you read about, but the Jesus who IS, you have to spend time with him, know his heart, what he thinks, what motivates him. You’ll have stories about him because you’ve lived life together and shared experiences. You’ve seen him for yourself (Job 42:5)

The second thing we do on a regular basis, is try to share Jesus with complete strangers. Yes, sometimes God calls us to do this but most of the time, he wants us to be living life with people. He wants us to be present, sharing in the ups and downs and loving each other. He wants us to be invested and to really care about the people we are discipling. He wants them to see Jesus in our lives, not just hear about him from our words.

Even if you know Jesus and you know your friend, introducing Jesus to someone needs to be bathed in lots and lots of prayer. We, especially in the Western world, want to do things quickly and efficiently. We want to check the box. Discipleship isn’t like that. Building relationships is never a quick process. It is intentional and it takes time.

Why am I sharing this? Because my prayer for us post COVID is that we assess what our lives are all about. Let’s not get back to business as usual. Let’s lean into the plan Jesus laid out when he was here. Live life with people; sharing, caring and growing all throughout the ups and downs with those God has placed in our lives. When we do that, Jesus, in all his glory, will shine through. Not because we awkwardly introduced him but because he is a part of who we are.

I Can't but God Can

For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. Colossians 2:12 (NLT)

I found out a week or so ago that a dear friend of mine has been really sick. He’s been struggling with the results of two strokes for a year and a half. I knew he had the strokes but I didn’t realize he was still having such difficulty. My heart hurt for him.

I called, we talked on the phone and afterward I decided to really lean into praying for him. I am more and more convinced that prayer is the key to so many things. And I recently have become more convinced that while praying for things and plans and troubles are fine, praying for people is what God really wants us to do.

So I started. Every time I thought about him I prayed. I spent time in prayer for him each morning and also in the evening. One night, I woke up in the middle of the night and I thought about him. I started praying. And I heard “Fast.” And that is where I hit a road block.

You see, I have never been able to fast from food. I have fasted from lots of other stuff like TV and social media. I’ve eliminated types of food, like sugar, but I’ve never been able to do a complete food fast. I’ve tried. When I try I get horrible migraines and become very .sick. It shuts me down.

When I heard God say “Fast” I said, “We can talk about it in the morning. You know my body can’t do that.” I went back to sleep thinking tomorrow he’d realize I can’t do this. (So funny how we try to put God in a box.)

The next morning, I asked God about it. He said “Try.” Now I want to make something clear. I knew this was God. How? Because I would never, ever on my own think that I should fast at 3 a.m. out of the blue. Heck, it doesn’t matter what time of day it is. I would never think I should fast. My experiences have been super negative.

So I said “OK. I will try tomorrow. Tomorrow would be Saturday. It was going to be a busy day.

The next morning I woke up and as I headed downstairs I could smell the coffee. It was super inviting. I went into the kitchen looking forward to getting a cup and then I remembered. I was fasting today. I stood there and debated in my heart whether I was going to listen to what I knew God said or not. I didn’t want to. I knew I was going to end up really sick. Maybe I could fast tomorrow? Then I remembered my friend and God’s invitation. I decided to try.

What happened next I believe was a miracle. I fasted for 24 hours without food. I did drink water, black coffee and herbal tea (unsweetened). No food. No migraine. No nausea. A couple times I got a tiny headache which I prayed through. I spent a lot of time praying for my friend.

I don’t know if God is going to heal my friend. I am still praying he will. But here is what I do know. Something changed in me. First, I saw his power at work. He spoke to me, encouraged me and delivered on what he said. And He controlled my body. The awe I felt and the marvel at how Great God is, I can’t adequately express.

Why am I sharing this story? Because I want to encourage you to step out in faith and do what God is asking you to do. We need to “try” it when he tells us to do things we think we can’t do. We need to trust him. I believe God speaks to each and every one of us. We don’t hear him because we think he doesn’t and when we do hear him we doubt ourselves (and him). It’s that putting him in a box thing.

God does not fit in any box. What if seeing miracles requires us to step out of our comfort zone? How many of us will miss them? Following God’s leading is a life changing experience. I want to spend my life in awe. Don’t you? How is God asking you to step out in faith today? What are you going to do about it?

Living in the "It is Finished"

He said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19:30 (NLT)

I’ve been sick. One day I realized that I was dizzy. You know, room spinning type of dizzy that makes you nauseous. It started about 2 weeks ago and has made life a little difficult. I waited a couple of days and went to the doctor. They diagnosed it as vertigo and gave me some medicine. It didn’t help. I waited a few more days and got worse. I went back. This time, they realized I had a sinus infection and prescribed medicine.

During this time, it was really hard for me to spend what I call quality time with God. Praying was hard. I tend to pray either journaling or kneeling. Both of those things set off the vertigo. I had a hard time reading. Honestly, some days I had a hard time thinking. What I could do was just pray short prayers talking to God about everything going on here and there as I tried to make it through my day. That’s it. That’s what I did.

This morning, I was reflecting on the last two weeks. I’ve felt God’s presence strongly. He’s answered my prayers and spoke to me about different things. I’ve had peace. As I pondered this, I was grateful. I was grateful that it doesn’t matter if I follow my routine. It doesn’t matter if I spend 5 minutes in prayer on and off throughout the day or if I spend an hour in concentrated prayer. It doesn’t matter if I read my Bible here and there or if I spend an hour in it. God sees. He sees me.

He isn’t up there checking some list. He isn’t saying “You are not doing this right.” He is drawing near to his child (all of his kids) inviting, encouraging and responding.

It reminds me of why we celebrate Good Friday. When Jesus died he said “It is finished.” All my striving to earn God’s favor was finished. All the activity I think I have to do to get there (where ever that is), done. Jesus took all that away. He sacrificed his life so I would know that no matter what was happening, I was loved.

I want to live my life in the “It is finished.” I want to remember that while I am called to be in relationship with Jesus, while because I love him I want to live my life for him, nothing I do earns his love or guarantees my place in the Kingdom. That was already done so many Fridays ago.

Living in the “It is finished” is living free. Don’t you want to live in the “It is finished” too? There is a peace in that place. Living in that peace is how we were meant to live.

Wild Good Chase

“The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” John 3:8 (NLT)

My friend Jen and I went off for some church training. We attend Cohorts on church multiplication and planting. We go because we feel that God gives us next steps in the plan he has for our churches and for us as leaders.

We attended one of the Cohorts last week in Kansas. We debated not going (because of Covid) but God showed up in so many ways as we registered for these courses and prayed about this trip, we felt He was giving permission. As we were flying to Kansas, Jen looked at me and said “When I was packing, I felt the distinct impression that I should pack for another day.” My eyes widened. I’ve had these God impressions before and they are no joke. She went on to explain that she discounted the idea because we were flying home on Thursday but she had the impression again so she threw some extra clothes into her suitcase. I asked her jokingly why she didn’t call me so I could pack extra too! Then I said, “I hope we don’t get stuck in Kansas.”

Thursday morning as we were packing, I remembered what Jen said. I filled up my contact case and put it in my purse. I don’t normally do that but I figured...you know. We might get stuck somewhere.

We boarded the plane, pushed back from the gate and proceeded to sit on the tarmac for 2 hours waiting to take off. High winds in Chicago (our connection) were grounding all air traffic. You guessed it, we missed our connecting flight. As the people around us grumbled and complained, we were at peace. We knew that God had gone before us and no matter what happened, He was in it. We decided in that moment to be on the look-out for whatever it was that God was doing. This peace stayed with us even as we landed in extremely high winds with the plane leaning too far to the right and too far to the left.

We checked into our hotel with no bags, no clothes not even the extra clothes Jen packed, and no toiletries. We did have the food we packed for supper because our layover would be too short to eat and my contact case. We found out that the airline was routing us to Ogdensburg, NY first and then home. Who the heck ever flies into Ogdensburg, NY? We prayed that God would lead and if we could be of service to Him in some way that He would show us.

In the middle of the night I woke up and thought “This is a wild goose chase.” I chuckled because in one of Mark Batterson’s books he tells that in some language (I think it’s Gaelic but I can’t remember for sure) that they refer to the Holy Spirit as the “Wild Goose.” If you think about it, that is so appropriate. If you are chasing a Wild Goose, you zig this way and zag that way trying to catch him. You put all your effort into it but it’s really the Goose that is in control. I think following the Holy Spirit is like that. As Jesus said, we don’t know where He comes from, we don’t know where He’s going, we just know He was there and because of that, we follow.

The rest of our flight was uneventful....except we spent more time talking to God and looking for where He was at work. We don’t know why God did what He did with our flight. We don’t know why He told us in advance that He was going to allow it. We just know He did.

We got to see the Wild Goose for a brief moment and it totally changed the trajectory of our trip. We knew we were right where God wanted us and that with Him in it, no matter what happened, it was all good.

I want to go on more Wild Goose Chases. I want to experience the Holy Spirit over and over again in my life. Even when I end up scratching my head wondering why God did that, there is nothing better. Ever.

Disqualified but Qualified

It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. 2 Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 They were calling out to each other,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!
    The whole earth is filled with his glory!”

4 Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.

5 Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7 He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.” Isaiah 6:1-6 (NLT)

Can you imagine being Isaiah and standing before God in the throne room? Imagine the power and glory that radiated in that spot? Angels flying all over singing, praising and worshipping the Lord of Hosts? What an overwhelming site to behold.

It’s no wonder that Isaiah stood there and said “Woe is me.” (KJV) I can’t imagine taking in the glory of God and saying anything else. In the midst of this moment, somewhere in the recesses of his mind the thought occurred that here he was, a completely sinful human, standing before God – the Holy One. As he stood there and realized he was in the presence of Holiness, what else could he say? The contrast between his utter failure to God’s perfection....well, I would say “Woe is me” too.

And I do. We don’t see everything God is doing all around us. He is always at work and we miss most of it. But we do get to catch glimpses of Him every now and again. When I do, I, like Isaiah, verbalize a form of “Woe is me.” It comes out more like “I can’t do this. I am not qualified. This is too big for me. I don’t have the training.” I realize as I see Him move in His absolutely mind-blowing ways, that my insignificance, my sin, my attitudes are all disqualifiers.

But then I remember that there wasn’t one human being ever that was qualified to represent God. Not one.

As Isaiah processed his “unclean lips”, a seraphim flew over to the Alter, picked up a hot coal with a tong and placed it on his lips. He said “Your guilt is removed.” (NLT) God gave Isaiah a gift of forgiveness and healing.

We’ve been given that gift too. As Jesus hung on the cross He uttered the words “It is finished.” You are forgiven. Your sins have been removed. Same gift that was offered to Isaiah.

And like Isaiah, each of us is called. We all have a job to do in God’s Kingdom. He has something for every one of his kids to accomplish. When I am tempted to think “I can’t because...” I need to remember that because of Jesus, I can. I have been qualified. So have you.

And I will lean into my calling. Because I love Him. I will face my fears and inadequacies knowing that Jesus lives in me and because of His sacrifice, His power enables me. When life is over and I bow before His throne, I won’t be afraid any more. When I hear Him say “Well done”, I will know the journey was worth it.

A Minute In It - Believing

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

8 One day Zechariah was serving God in the Temple, for his order was on duty that week. 9 As was the custom of the priests, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. 10 While the incense was being burned, a great crowd stood outside, praying.

11 While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. 12 Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. 13 But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. 14 You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.[a] 16 And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. 17 He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children,[b] and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”

18 Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.”

19 Then the angel said, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! 20 But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.” Luke 1:8-20 (NLT)

 What had Zechariah and Elizabeth been praying for?
How long do you think they’d been praying for this?
What was Zechariah’s reaction when he saw the angel of the Lord?
How specific was the angel when he described the baby?
What was Zechariah’s reaction?
When the angel appeared, do you think Zechariah knew it was an angel?
If Zechariah had been praying for a child and an angel appeared and specifically described the answer to the prayer, why did Zechariah doubt?
When I pray for something and God says he’s going to answer or he starts to line up the answer, do I doubt?
Why?
What is the Holy Spirit saying to you in this story?
What are you going to do about it?

Be A Servant

And Jesus concluded, “So those who are last will be first, and those who are first will be last.” Matthew 20:16 (GNT)

I had back to back meetings scheduled. It was one of those days where the list of things to do was longer than the hours available. So my mind went into “get ‘er done” mode. You know, super focused on the task at hand.

Right now, all my meetings are via Zoom or Teams. I joined the meeting scheduled with Andy. And I waited. And waited. Where was he? I checked the meeting invite and he accepted. So, I waited some more all the while thinking about how I had too much to do to sit here and wait.

After 10 minutes I disconnected. I sent Andy an email and said “Something must have come up since you didn’t join. Let me know when you want to reschedule.” I was polite because this was business but inside I was annoyed. This was not professional. A simple text if you get hung up will suffice or an email or something.

Two minutes after I disconnected Andy reached out and said “I got caught up on another meeting. Can you join now?” My first inclination was to say “No. My time is important. You don’t get to stand me up. You couldn’t text? You couldn’t connect? No! I’m busy.” BUT, I’ve been trying to practice abiding in Jesus and not my own thoughts so I asked God “Do you want me to join this meeting?” He said “Be a servant.”

Great. I didn’t feel much like being a servant but that was pretty specific so I told Andy I could.

As we talked he explained that he was in a meeting with someone who didn’t allow phones so he couldn’t text. The person was pretty high up in the food chain too so if the meeting goes long, you aren’t going to tell them you have to go. Then, he asked me about the project I was leading and offered to help in any way he could to make it easier for me. He also affirmed the work I was doing.

After I hung up, I reflected on the meeting and how positive it ended up being even when my attitude wasn’t. And then I realized something else. God didn’t say “Join the meeting because Andy has a good reason.” He didn’t say “Join the meeting because he’s going to affirm and help you.” He said “Be a servant.”

It reminded me that God isn’t as interested in my to do list as he is my heart. He is more interested in how I treat people even when I am feeling overwhelmed with too much to do. He is interested in who I am becoming on the inside. He wants me to become last in a world of people trying to be first.

I am sure I have a lot to learn on this abiding journey. I am sure I will become too task focused again in the future (that is how I’m wired) but I know He will keep teaching me and growing me.  PRAISE!