Better Men than me

Consecration is the act whereby we regard a common thing as sacred because we see God’s purpose in the design. – Ronnie Stevens

As I was listening to Ronnie preaching on Sunday I got a bit stuck at the beginning of his sermon. Not like the video he was trying to use, but hung up on his first point, well, really a sub-point. “Suffering was consecrated as God’s instrument.” Two people came to my mind immediately: Gabe DeGarmeaux and Jordan Williams.

Gabe is helping start Scarlet City Church in Columbus. His almost three year old son, Deacon died last week in a car accident. I can’t imagine the pain. All I’ve heard from Gabe has embodied Ronnie’s point.

Jordan is a Wheaton College student I met through my son, Tim. Jordan was recently diagnosed with AML, a form of Leukemia. As I’ve followed Jordan’s path through the hospital stays and chemotherapy I’ve been impressed with how he has (without explicitly stating it) pointed me to this same idea.

Both of these men have seen the hand of God in their life in ways that are painful, pain that I can only imagine, and I believe that they have ‘consecrated the suffering.’ 

Here are some of my notes from what Ronnie was preaching:

The suffering in my life:

-highlights my dependence on God

-enhances my credibility with others

-deepens my fellowship with Christ

-makes me become more like Jesus

-gives me opportunity to thank God

Here was my application for my life:

Take every ‘common thing’ (every common event, like getting up in the morning, like seeing, or eating)  in my life and consecrate it, set it apart to God’s purpose even if I can’t see the immediate reason.

I’m guessing I won’t do this well, but that’s the direction I want to head.

Gravity

I never really think about it. Some days I fight it, like when I’m doing push-ups. I guess I appreciate it, since it keeps me here, but I’ll probably never understand it.

This past week a few conversations have sparked this idea of the ‘gravity’ in my spiritual life. What draws me in? What do I need to push away?

Last night we had a discussion about ‘growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.’ What does that mean? My friend, David, pointed out that it’s growing in our relationship with Jesus, growing in love and in our ‘knowing’ Jesus. I like that. When I was putting it into my own words it came out more like, ‘growing in orienting ever aspect of my life around Jesus, focusing everything about me on Him.’ Regardless of how you frame it, there is a fight involved. Just like I’m doing push-ups and sit-ups to stay in shape physically, I need to do some spiritual ‘exercises’ to continually refocus and reorient my life on Him. It’s a fight against the gravity of…well, everything that’s not Him.

My most deadly enemy in 2011

“…God blesses us so that His glory might be made known in all nations. But an all-important question remains. How do we make God’s glory known in all nations?” – David Platt in Radical

The house is quiet as I sit here on New Year’s Day. Football hasn’t started in the US and no one is up yet after the parting last night. So I’m thinking about the new year. In 2011, how do I do my part to make God’s glory know in all nations? What is it that I believe He is calling me to this year? Heavy stuff, but I’m most of the way through my pot of coffee and I think this is the kind of moment for these thoughts.

God has us in a unique position. He has shaped me in a specific way, given me experiences that most others haven’t had. You can say the same thing. You and I are instruments in our Father’s hand, formed by Him to fulfill a specific role in making His glory known in all nations. Heavy. Scary.

Most days, I love everything about what He has called me to. But there are days where I look at this place He has me and I want to step back into safer areas, areas where I don’t have to trust Him so completely. Comfort is probably one of my most deadly enemies. Humility and courage have to me two of my greatest allies.

I think I see the answer to the ‘how’ question for my life. The next is', “In His power, will I do it?” I’m praying for you and me, that this year we will.

Exercising

I'm getting healthy.

Today's exercise:

210 pushups (Hundred Push-up Program)

Ran 2 miles

30 sit-ups

15 minutes stretching

Breakfast:

Spinach egg-white omelet

1 men's vitamin

two glucosamine pills

Weigh-in: 233lbs

What am I doing? Yeah, I’m trying to lose weight, stay fit and be in better health, but what’s the point? Sometimes I’m not sure. Am I trying to turn back the hands of time, trying to stay young? Is this about personal discipline or health? Often, I think I’m just battling middle age, not coming to terms with who I am now. Do I have regrets about some of the choices I’ve made? Sure. I should have gone to the doctor about my shoulder when Matt Brandt dislocated it for me my junior year of high school. Maybe things would be different now. But that’s really not the point.

The point is: What do I love?

He loves Thee too little who loves anything together with Thee, which he loves not for Thy sake.

Augustine in his Confessions

I had better be doing all this health stuff because I love God. It's not an attempt to try to gain His approval or earn any favor from Him, but because: I want to be a healthy, effective tool in His hands; I want to be an example to the people around me (my kids especially) of a healthy life devoted to God; and because it’s an exercise of giving myself over to Him. Measuring every motive against my love of God.

Ouch. I did my stretching today, but that one hit a tender spot. Can I live my whole life like it’s an exercise of giving myself over to Him?

119 Thoughts

I won’t list them all, but I did want to share a couple thoughts I wrote in my journal as I read through Ps 119. Most of these come from the second half of the psalm.

v. 126 It is time for you to act, O Lord, Your law is being broken.       -Father, You need to act in Europe.

v. 130 The unfolding of Your Word gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.       -Help me to skillfully explain/apply Your word in my preaching and conversation.

v. 133 Direct my footsteps according to Your Word; let no sin rule over me.    -Let my devotion be radical.

v. 143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but Your commands are my delight.   -I want to find more delight in my Father than in my sin.

v. 162 I rejoice in Your promise like one who finds great spoil.   -I want to feel like I just found an extra $1000 when I open Your Word.

Nothing special, but I thought you might benefit in some way. =)

Normal People

Think about the biggest names in the Church today. Who are the most influential Christian leaders you read about and listen to? Some guy from California? A pastor from Minnesota? Chicago? Anyone from West Liberty, Ohio? (Just checking to see where your 'fame threshold' is!)

When I think about the people who are well-known or influential in the Church today, I come up with a list of names of people that I don't know. I have no idea who they are personally, so I assign them a character of perfection. My thinking goes like this: 'They must not have any flaws, because it seems like God is working through them to build His Church.' The next thought is, 'I can't be used like that, because I have flaws.' Strangely, when I was younger, I thought, 'God can use me because I'm just as good as they are.' Both of those conclusions are wrong. The reality is that God does some crazy stuff with normal, flawed people.

Recently, I was reading through the book of Judges, on my trek to read through the whole Bible and feel better about myself as a 'real' Christian who reads the whole Bible. As I rambled through this chronicle of the days following the death of Joshua, I found some interesting people.

• Ehud, a favorite among junior high boys, known for his stabbing technique as he delivered a message from God.
• Deborah, a favorite among junior high girls for her strength and independent nature.
• Gideon, the mighty warrior hiding to do his farm work.
  Jephthah, a guy of questionable pedigree (he didn't come from a Free church or go to Trinity), but God used him mightily.
• Sampson, the imperfect hero.

When I got done reading, I had this thought ringing in my head: God does some crazy stuff with normal, flawed people.

The reason I became a missionary was not to do email (it barely existed then, so it was difficult to hate it yet) or go to meetings or raise support (raising support isn't evil like rooting for the Oakland Raiders, only my attitude towards it). My problem is that those things become 'what I do.' My vision for what God is calling me to becomes too small. I can lose heart, and then, even if I had a tent peg or a donkey's jaw in my hand, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

Ephesians 2:10 says, "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."

Reality Check 101: I am a normal, flawed person, but one who has been redeemed by Jesus. What God wants and plans to do with me is up to Him.

This reality check is for you, too. He has done some amazing things to bring you to the place you are right now. Those experiences weren't for nothing. Fight the battle of believing Him, believing the things He says about you (we are His masterpiece!) and to you. Shake off the things which so easily entangle you and do the things--the crazy things--He is calling you to in this place He has brought you.

Happy Easter

This morning I got up early. When it got light enough to see outside, it still looked pretty dark. Not a nice morning, clouds.

I went to the building where the church meets. We shared the Lord's Table (I got to help serve). We shared breakfast together (I got to help serve there, too). Then we spent more time in worship as we heard from John 11 where Lazarus was brought back to life (not like what Jesus did when He was raised to new life). Finally, we heard a pretty cool production (video, song, narration) looking at the crucifixion and resurrection. A good morning.

This afternoon I looked out and saw the sun. It was bright and clean.

Something Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Colosse came to mind: '...you trusted in the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.' In the letter he wrote to the church in Ephesus, he said that same power is at work in us who believe Him.

The sun's shining in my life.

Battling in a Neutral Country

I was talking with my son, Matt, about stuff and he mentioned that I've let blogging get away from me. Updates, information, but no stories. Got me. I've been using Twitter more/better, but I haven't had the energy to write too many stories with all the traveling I've been doing lately. Since I've got a couple weeks before my next little jaunt I'm going to try to get a bit caught up. The discipline of reflecting on the past month+ and sharing some of those stories.
The easiest to share is from my last trip to Switzerland. The building over my shoulder was used in the James Bond flick "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." We were staying in Mürren, a town farther down the mountain, but it seemed like everyone still took a couple hundred stunning pictures of mountains.
In the middle of all this beauty pointing us to our Creator, we were there to discuss issues of the heart (Proverbs 4:23). For me, the focused on the battle I'm in to keep my heart engaged with God, my wife, and the people around me. It is a battle. The battle requires energy. More energy than I have. It drives me back to the undeserved working of my God on my behalf: grace. It pushes me to rely on my brothers as we stand together to be the men our Father is calling us to be. I'm thanking my Father that He gives me what I need to battle well for the sake of His Name.