Let Me Sing

I wanna open up my eyes
And see a more beautiful world
Let the hand of God Almighty
Sweep his colors through my life
I wanna hold tight to the laughter
And ride it like a child
On the winds that billow joyful
Through the sky

I wanna open up my heart
But you know, sometimes it's hard to find
Because I've buried it beneath the selfishness
That I've hidden behind
I wanna stand my ground unshaken
But I wanna tremble when I kneel
And let my song remain unbroken
Through the tears

So let me sing for the love
Let me love for the lost
Let me lose all I have
For what I found on the cross
Let me trust you with my life
Let me live to give you praise
Lord, let me praise you
For the grace by which I'm saved
Lord, let me sing

I wanna open up Your word
And let the thirsty enter in
So they can drink deep of the water
You have given to them
I want to run the race with vigor
I want to fight the fight with strength
And let my song rise from a whisper
To a scream

I wanna open up my arms
And embrace that old rugged cross
I wanna take pride in the reason
And be humbled by the cause
And when this lisping, stamm'ring tongue
Lies silent in the grave
Then in a nobler, sweeter song,
I'll sing your praise
I'll sing your praise

So let me sing for the love
Let me love for the lost
Let me lose all I have
For what I found on the cross
Let me trust you with my life
Let me live to give you praise
Lord, let me praise you
For the grace by which I'm saved
Lord, let me sing


Song by Andrew Peterson

First Kid's Backpacking Trip

Gabe and I are experienced backpackers but our experience only goes so far. Taking kiddos on the trail is a whole new ball of wax. And this trail wasn't going to let us rest a minute. It was short, less than 2 miles in. But it was complete with missing foot bridges, bubble gum thick mud, and steep hills. Would we make it without our wives? Would the children have fun? Would Gabe and I survive? These were questions running through our minds as we set off for a two day adventure in ... Children Vs. Wild.


Big Hill Pond State Park was our home for a couple days and a night. The kids did awesome with their big-o backpacks. Gabe and I were so proud to have returned them each unharmed, fed, and relatively clean, even though we did not have our wonderful wives with us the entire time!

Why the Woods?

There is something deeply spiritual and refreshing about getting out into the woods, into nature, away from the sites and sounds of vehicles, buildings, concrete, plastic, pavement, and people. It's just you and God. Well, in this case, US and God. Still... You see where his created things are his original masterpieces, before we turned them into our own creations, into paper, 2x4's, and bug collections at the Pink Palace Museum. You hear the birds in the morning, smell the dew on the ground, and taste the cold in the air. The fog drifts across the lake surface like the Spirit of God hovering above the Earth right before everything sprang to Life. And my heart is full. It's full of the outdoors and of God's love. And I already long to return to His living room.

Who We Are In Christ

 I had a friend once challenge me to read this list below out loud everyday for 30 days. This exercise completely changed my life. That was in 1997. It still changes my life today. 

~~~~~~~~

Whenever I am asked what my personal statement of faith is I seem to have trouble narrowing the hundreds of great scriptures down to a one or two page list. There are intimate, relational passages like, "He who unites himself with the Lord is one with Him in spirit" (1 Corinthians 6:17); and "Draw near to the Lord and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). And there are verses of incredible trust like, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13); and "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." (Romans 10:11). Finally, there are scriptures of passion and dedication such as, "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17); and "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power" (1 Corinthians 4:20).

Then there is this list of scriptural affirmations, a list of passages telling us WHO we are. These are amazing to me, because they help us see ourselves the way God sees us. And if we see ourselves the way God sees us, we will see each other this way too.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST

I Am Accepted
John 1:12 -- I am God's child.
John 15:15 -- I am Christ's friend.
Romans 5:1-- I have been justified.
1 Corinthians 6:17 -- I am united with the Lord, and I am one spirit with Him.
1 Corinthians 6:19,20 -- I have been bought with a price. I belong to God.
1 Corinthians 12:2 7 -- I am a member of Christ's body.
Ephesians 1:1 -- I am a saint.
Ephesians 1:5 -- I have been adopted as God's child.
Ephesians 2:18 -- I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit.
Colossians 1:14 -- I have been redeemed and for¬given of all my sins.
Colossians 2:10 -- I am complete in Christ.
I Am Secure
Romans 8:1,2 -- I am free forever from condemnation.
Romans 8:28 -- I am assured that all things work together for good.
Romans 8:31 -- I am free from any condemning charges against me.
Romans 8:35 -- I cannot be separated from the love of God.
2 Corinthians 1:21,22 -- I have been established, anointed, and sealed by God.
Colossians 3:3 -- I am hidden with Christ in God.
Philippians 1:6 -- I am confident that the good work that God has begun in me will be perfected.
Philippians 3.20 -- I am a citizen of heaven.
2 Timothy 1:7 -- I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind.
Hebrews 4:16 -- I can find grace and mercy in time of need.
1 John 5.18 -- I am born of God, and the evil one cannot touch me.
I Am Significant
Matthew 5:13,14 -- I am the salt and light of the earth.
John 15:1,5 -- I am a branch of the true vine, a channel of His life.
John 15:16 -- I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit.
Acts 1:8 -- I am a personal witness of Christ.
1 Corinthians 3.16 -- I am God's temple.
2 Corinthians 5:17 -- I am a minister of reconciliation for God.
2 Corinthians 6:1 -- I am God's co-worker (1 Corinthians 3:9).
Ephesians 2:6 -- I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realm.
Ephesians 2:10 -- I am God's workmanship.
Ephesians 3:12 -- I may approach God with freedom and confidence.
Philippians 4.13 -- I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I never get tired of reading this list. And I can never read it enough. I am 100% convinced that every lie Satan tells us is something contrary to the above list of truths! That is why we should never stop reading and studying these scriptures. Even more important, we should never stop reading it to our children. And even MORE important than even that -- the Body of Christ, that is, every church, must read this together, replacing the "I" with "WE!"

WE are the salt and light of the earth.
WE are a branch of the true vine, a channel of His life.
WE have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit.
WE are a witnesses of Christ.
WE are God's temple.
WE are ministers of reconciliation for God.
WE are God's co-workers (1 Corinthians 3:9).
WE are seated with Christ in the heavenly realm.
WE are God's workmanship.
WE may approach God with freedom and confidence.
WE can do all things through Christ who strengthens US.

There is wonder working power when WE know who WE are!

Finally, of course, there is the "Greatest Commandment:" Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength,' and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself. "
This verse, which Christ said, "sums up the entire law," still sums everything up today. In my opinion, a statement of faith is only as good as our application of this greatest command. The reason why this is the greatest command is because it is precisely what the world is holding its breath to see. The world holds its breath to see Christians do one vital thing with this great commandment: Apply it.

" I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.." -John 14:12

Hebrews 10 sums it up...

It's a good idea to read Leviticus 16 and it's context before studying Hebrews 10. Several years ago I worked for a Christian school and had the opportunity to do a series of chapels on the different sacrifices under the Old Covenant, as well as the amazing layout and function of the Tabernacle. The traditions God started with the Hebrew people are astounding and very interesting. Read through and pause to take in the scenes and the amazing details. Understanding the roll of sacrifice and blood in the Old Testament is essential to one's comprehension of Christ's sacrifice once for all.

Christ's Sacrifice Once for All
    1 The law is only a shadow* of the good things* that are coming-not the realities themselves.* For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect* those who draw near to worship.* 2 If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins.* 3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins,* 4 because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats* to take away sins.*
    5 Therefore, when Christ came into the world,* he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me;*
    6 with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.
    7 Then I said, 'Here I am-it is written about me in the scroll* - I have come to do your will, O God.' "* *
    8 First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them"* (although the law required them to be made). 9 Then he said, "Here I am, I have come to do your will."* He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made holy* through the sacrifice of the body* of Jesus Christ once for all.*
    11 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices,* which can never take away sins.* 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins,* he sat down at the right hand of God.* 13 Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool,* 14 because by one sacrifice he has made perfect* forever those who are being made holy.*
    15 The Holy Spirit also testifies* to us about this. First he says:
    16 "This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds."* *
    17 Then he adds: "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more."* *
    18 And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.

New Life

There is something amazing about new life, even if we know the beauty of the new born baby will give way to a large, snorting, filthy, pig. But babies! What is that impulse in us, that "ahhhh" reflex? No doubt it's from God, built right into our subconscious, put there by the creator of life to make us appreciate and even long for new life every single day. You might see cute cuddly pigs. I see God's billboard. And it reads, "Come to Me; and You too will have New Life."

...the love God has for us

I like the verse of the day on my browser's homepage: “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”- 1 John 4:16  We did a little devo with the kids this morning and had them draw pictures of what they think it means that "God is Love." Really cute (and very pure, spiritual) ideas. Reminds me that the Kingdom of God belongs to the little ones. For them, there's a simplicity to it all, untainted by years of experience with people, struggles with trust, broken hearts, disappointments, and hurt feelings. There's just a young heart and an eager mind. So they draw "God is love" and it is just hearts, and crosses, and people. It's simple. Simple love.

There's not a lot of theology needed for this verse. I found myself trying to explain it to them at first, asking them, "Now how do you think it's possible to live in God and at the same time He lives in you?" There it was. A paradox for sure. If I were talking to an adult we'd likely have engaged in some deep conversation. But something insightful sprang to life as I attempted to explain it to a five year old. I mumbled it out at first. "We don't know what it means exactly but what we can be sure of is this,"  I said, and then with a little more energy continued. "There's love, there's us living in love. God is love so we're living in him. It's a great big swirl," I continued, now excited, and with my hands making big whoshes in the air. "Yeah, a great big swirl of love and God and us; and we're in love and his love's in us and we're loving, and you're loving, and we love God and he loves us, and ... well, love love love."


Thank God for times that we have to try and explain God's love to a five year old. That's when we see something new ourselves.

We "rely" on the love God has for us, not because we can understand it or explain it, but because we feel that it's true, because God has proven to us that it's true, and that only this great and powerful - and simple - love can change the world, starting with the little corner of it where we live.

The Supremacy of Christ

I just really, really like this section of scripture...it doesn't matter how many times I read it, it does something for the soul.

15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.


21Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant. - 1st chapter of Colosssians

HUGE, LONG, INCREDIBLE LIST OF FREE HOMESCHOOLING SITES

We came across a HUGE, long list of FREE curriculum, worksheets, and online education resources. 

Click here to SEE the list!

Babysitters Gain Parental Rights?

"Perhaps we get too comfortable in the thought that our freedom to homeschool our own children, and discipline them our way, will always be a given. Imagine if your state was thinking differently and wanted to take that freedom away, little by little." -david

Babysitters Gain Parental Rights?

The right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is hanging by a thread.

• A West Virginia mother was shocked when a local circuit judge and a family court judge ordered her to share custody of her four-year-old daughter with two of the girl’s babysitters. Referring to the sitters as "psychological co-parents," the justices first awarded full custody to them, only permitting the mother to visit her daughter four times a week at McDonalds. Eventually she was granted primary custody, but forced to continue to share her daughter with the sitters.
  
  When her case finally reached the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in October 2007, the beleaguered mother was relieved to finally be granted full custody of her daughter.
  
  In their October 25 opinion Supreme Court justices wrote that they were "deeply troubled by the utter disregard" for the mother's rights. One justice referred to the mother’s right as the “paramount right in the world." Chief Justice Robin Davis summed up the case in one simple question."Why does a natural parent have to prove fitness when she has never been found unfit?" he asked.³

 ^{Click here for full article}

April and the boys...

April and five boys. What can I say about this?                    Hmmmm .......... Wonderful.

"No, daddy, can we please talk in private?"

Yesterday I was unloading some things out of the truck and into our shed, a space heater I think, and some other store-ables. Just as I was forcing some room on a shelf, and concentrating on the next thing on my to-do list, Nathan and Zack come up with reports of a skirmish between them. Nathan had bumped a water bottle which was propped up at Zack's mouth and spilled the contents down the front of Zack's shirt. Nathan was apologizing. Zack was gasping. And I just mumbled something about it just being water and went on about my chores. About 15 min. later, now sitting in the living-room taking a short break, Nathan came up to me and asked to talk to me. Nathan had a look of confidence in his eyes so I agreed and said, "Sure, have a seat." To which he replied, "No, daddy, can we please talk in private?" "Well, sure."

We shuffled back to the bedroom and sat on his bunk. "So, what's on your mind?" I asked. Remember, Nathan just turned eight in February. "Well, daddy, I feel like sometimes, when I'm trying to talk to you about something which I think is important, you don't fully listen to me." He dropped his eyes. I sat stunned. I paused and thought a moment. Then I opened up wide to see what would follow. "Please, Nathan, tell me where and how. I certainly want to listen to you."  Nathan, raised his head back up and made eye contact with me. "Well, like just now. I was trying to tell you that I was saying sorry to Zack and he was not accepting it. Instead, he was just mad and running off. But it was an accident. And I wanted you to help with that."  "Oh, I see," I softly replied. "Well, I guess I do need to try and stop what I'm doing and listen better, when you guys are coming to me. I know I can get really focused on what I'm doing."  "Yes, you sure can," he said, as he nodded. "And I guess I do that quite often because I tend to stay so busy." "You sure do, daddy." We sat quiet for a moment. Then I added, "Ok, I want to change and do much better from now on. So let me know the instant I do that to you or anyone else so that I can work on changing it. Ok?" He smiled, "Ok, daddy, you got it." We both smiled. 

We hugged each other and I thanked him for being patient with me but also for taking care of me. I assured him that God was using him to help me and that I was very proud of him for becoming such a wonderful young man. As we were leaving the room I grabbed his shoulder and said, "Nathan, thanks again for taking a minute to talk to me."  To which he replied, "You're welcome. That was pretty much my first time." I just laughed as I picked him up and hugged him tightly. 

I hope it is his first time. He's amazing. But his learning to approach me with his feelings and thoughts  is not just an accident. He is learning that from this life we live, from the day to day workings within the Body of Christ, where sharing homes, and sharing lives requires us to really learn to talk to each other. Our children are the future, they say. Well, that future is only as good as our present. What we put into our kids today will determine what comes out of them tomorrow. Today I praise God for the great things being put into my children.

Age Segregation in School and Church

Two things which have been of great interest to me for as long as I can remember are "School" and "Church." In my early twenties I began to realize that there is an institutional version of each of these, promoted in the common society and upheld by most of the powerful organizations of our time. To try and escape the clutches of these institutions, into an organic version of life, is amazingly difficult for most. It's take great strength, courage, and the hand of God! There are so many areas which hold one tightly to the institution but not many more pronounced than age segregation.

I began noticing early on that it just didn't seem natural for my church to divide up family members into corresponding age groups. There were youth groups, children's ministries, young marrieds, married with young children, older adults, and seniors. We all went to separate Bible classes on Sunday, separate youth retreats in the Spring, and separate rooms in Summer Camp. As a youth I was virtually cut off from the world outside of my own age group, and, except for the devotionals of my own youth minister and his adult volunteers, had very little interaction of any spiritual depth with anyone older than myself. It wasn't until I read a book in college about parent-directed Youth Ministry, where the youth minister quit his job and left the parents in charge, that I really begin to look for an alternative to this institutional model.

I also noticed it was true in schools, which may have in fact informed the way in which 20th Century churches began to behave. Karl M. Bunday writes here http://learninfreedom.org/age_grading_bad.html : 

• Some people think it is "natural," or even beneficial, for children to be confined with other children of approximately the same age for most of each school day, but this is a recent, mistaken idea promoted by education bureaucrats.
• The fact is, however, that most American schools were ungraded until the second half of the nineteenth century, the graded school having been introduced in the United States in 1848, when the Quincy Grammar School in Boston, Massachusetts, opened its doors. A number of educators, impressed with the graded schools they had seen in Germany, had been proposing adoption of the technique in this country. The Quincy School was the first built for that purpose; it contained twelve rooms of equal size, four to a floor, in which a teacher and somefifty-five children would meet for a year at a time. The men who created the school predicted that it would set the pattern of American schooling for another fifty years. Their estimate was clearly conservative. Charles Silberman, Crisis in the Classroom: The Remaking of American Education (New York: Random House, 1970) p. 166 (emphasis added). Read the entire article here: http://learninfreedom.org/age_grading_bad.html

It just makes sense for students to be "pulled along" and "pulled up" by students older than themselves. Parents and Teachers can only be part of the equation. We should never underestimate the power of positive peer pressure. I've noticed that with each new child April and I have, and we're now on #6, the younger achieves more sooner because he is always running to catch up with older siblings. This is true in daily life, in daily school, and it is true in our spiritual lives as well. 

If we only spend time with those who are at the same spiritual age as ourselves we should not expect to gain new ground, at least not as quickly as when we sit at the table with those who have gone further with God than ourselves. The difference in Church and school, however, is that age does not mean the number of birthdays one has. Age is something entirely different in God's economy. Age is spiritual maturity. It is not natural, or even beneficial, for the children of God to be confined with other Christians just as mature as ourselves. We must seek out, on a regular basis, those who can pull us up and pull us along to a greater depth and a higher understanding of our Life in Christ. I'm sure most would agree. The real trick is finding a church where you have plenty of opportunities to mix it up with more mature Christians. 

Holy Moses! Aaron & April taste world's hottest horseradish!

You never know what might happen when you meet up with Aaron in Gatlinburg, step into the PepperPalace, and sample the world's hottest horseradish, Nasal Napalm.

Chili Pepper Magazine had this to say about the award winner:
We did drop by the judging last weekend just in time to see one taster jump to his feet. "There's something on my leg!" he exclaimed, "and it burns!" Sure enough, the product in question, Nasal Napalm by Pepper Palace, had burned through the Styrofoam cup as the judge held it over his lap. Just think of what it'll do for your sinuses... Yup, this is the stuff that burned a hole through the cup. Killer, yet truly tasty if you use some restraint.



Never a dull moment. Making memories from our pain.

Real Life and Real Fruit is the Real Miracle: Where is the Fruit?

Pastor Benny Hinn: Charlatan or Man of God?  Noah taught Wed. night about the difference between a Believer and a Disciple. (I plan to have outlines and a little audio after next week's conclusion.) At one point he mentioned Benny Hinn and it reminded me of this article in the New Paper.

Fox News published this article which has me asking one basic question: Where is the fruit?

The exposé reported that though thousands of people attending Hinn's religious gatherings said they were healed, the ministry couldn't prove they suffered from any infirmities in the first place, or that they actually had been miraculously healed.

So, Hinn says, his ministry created a department to handle verifications and follow up on the "miracles."

“It was chaotic. It was a mess,” he says. "The staff would call and people would be mad and say, 'Why are you questioning that I was lying up there?’”

“Then we would call the doctors. They wouldn’t talk to us most of the time … so it didn’t work." 

Wow! 

Jesus said "By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them." (Matthew 7)

The problem is that there IS a question. No one really knows for sure; is he real or a fraud?

But not even the Pharisees could ignore the obvious proof of the miracles of Jesus. There was no question regarding the validity of his healings. In fact, God used the proof of such supernatural events to break into the hearts and minds of humanity, cracking open the question of sin and salvation, and making way for the New Covenant. The gospel itself rode in on the very back of God's miraculous interventions. There's no question.

Could you imagine if this were included in Matthew:

The disciples couldn't prove any of the people who were "healed" suffered from any infirmities in the first place, or that they actually had been miraculously healed.

So, Jesus says, the disciples created a department to handle verifications and follow up on the "miracles."

What would that do to your faith?

Where is the fruit?

Forgiveness not the End; then saved through His Life

God showed me something really neat in Romans 5 yesterday morning.

⁹Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! ¹⁰For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

There are two things happening here, reconciliation and salvation. They are indeed different and unique experiences from one another. In the past I've always seen them as one. But now, mostly because of this life I live in the Body of Christ, I see them as distinct.

First there is the reconciliation, a returning to the God, brought on by the shed blood of Christ. Without the sacrifice of Christ I would not be justified before Him. I would still be alienated and apart from Him. But with one great and sweeping move of God's love, a door is opened for me to move to Him. But this is not salvation. It is merely reconciliation. I am not saved until I completely enter into His life. That's why it says I will be "saved through his life." Blood produces the reconciliation. But His Life brings about salvation.

It's clear here that being reconciled is not the end but only the means to the end. Christ came that we might have Life and have it abundantly! He did not come just so that I would have my sins forgiven. In fact, such a great sacrifice would be a shame if there was not more than simply a forgiveness of sins. You can wipe away my sins, and you can make me white as snow, but there still must be a replacement of that sad life I just escaped. That replacement is God's very aim. He wants us to have LIFE! He wants us to be saved through Him. "...how much more shall we be saved?"  

In my experience, sadly, many Christians have only known remission of sins, but not salvation to life. I was certainly one of them, that is until I heard the Gospel. The Gospel, I tell you, is the good news that there is Life right here on planet earth and that Life is not in going to church on Sundays, but going into the hearts of brothers and sisters who dwell in unity. I get to live everyday with close brothers and sisters who are all going after the same thing, that is, salvation through Christ's Life. It's an ongoing process in some respects. But it's a real one none-the-less. Christ has indeed inherited His people; He is risen and returned to the Earth, where His new Body is a Body of lovely and real relationships, where joy and honesty, peace and compassion, happiness and sorrow, and every other emotion known to man, is wrapped up in our daily affairs with one another. This wrapping is the Glory of God revealed in the Truth of Christ right here in our midst.

I, for the first time, am being saved through His Life, through this Life. Tomorrow I will be saved again. And so it will be the day after that. In fact, everyday I choose to live life for the love of those around me, giving all I can of it away, that's a day I will be saved through His Life once again. I thank God for the Blood of Christ, for that sacrifice of atonement and the forgiveness of my sins. But I shout from the mountaintops about something even greater... that now, having been reconciled, we can in fact be saved through His Life!

God is in Charge of the Change

In my last post I talked a little about change and how Martin Luther King, Jr. would not just sit idly by and wait for much needed change to "roll in on the wheels of inevitability." Since writing that short piece I have had many more thoughts about it, because it's just not as easy as deciding to take action. Truth is, I think God is just as interested in change as are we. Furthermore, in the Life of God and in the Body of Christ, God is also in charge of the change. Or at least he always should be. And I am in charge of letting Him change me. Or at least I should be.

This is not some civil rights movement with a figurehead. This is the very mission of God on the Earth, through His people, where Christ is the Head. We must surrender all our hopes and aspirations for that "greener grass" to the One who created the grass in the first place. No one is more interested in transformed lives than God. We must not begin to think we are somehow the most important tool at His disposal. And we must not entertain the idea that if it were not for my grand ideas our church would go nowhere. God is in charge of the change.

If we force change ahead of His schedule; or if we despair because the need, in our opinion, has been too long waiting, we are in great danger of undoing the very thing God really desires, that is, the change in us. You see, I believe God is always and forevermore just as interested in working some change into our hearts at the same time He works a change into the Body as a whole. These two changes, one outward in the whole scope of God's fellowship and the other inward, in the deep recesses of my own soul, happen simultaneously. What I mean is this. If I ever set out to change something in the Body, as a matter of conviction or opinion, without being completely open to that thing or some other thing coming right back at me I will miss it. And I will likely miss God. God is always at work in both ways, inward and outward. He may even change that thing which I desire but because I remain closed to His change in me I will not see it. No. God is in charge of the change. We must always remember this. And when He changes me, and I can see that change, I give Him credit. And when He changes that thing in the Body, after or at the same time changing me, I will see it as well, and again, I will give Him the credit.

God is in charge of the change. It's His Body. Not mine. It's His movements on the Earth. I am but a thumb or another part of the Body. In the Body of Christ there should never be a great figurehead. There should always be Christ, the Head. Martin Luther King Juniors are fine for social reform. But for reforms of the Soul and of the Bride we turn only to the King of Kings. Again and again and again.

2 Corinthians 3:18
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Martin Luther King, Jr. changed the course of my life....

I'll never forget reading the Letters from a Birmingham Jail in 1998. After working in churches for several years and experiencing all the difficulties, politics and even splits that come with the "job" I was truly questioning my future as a "professional" minister. I was part of a club of young "change" agents, so we were called by the religious establishment. We felt called to work from within the system to slowly effect progress. In fact, that's what we called ourselves: "Progressives." Most Elders called us Liberals. It was, and I assume still is, a mess. Then I read King's response to a bunch of religious leaders in his day, a powerful and amazing declaration of vision! As I read something began to rise up in me, a sort of identification with his struggles for change, and the extent to which he was willing to go in order to see his vision a reality. You see, his adversaries were encouraging him to just wait; change will come in due time, they encouraged. But King was far from content with such advice. And so he wrote:

Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. (http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html)  

At that point I knew I couldn't just sit still and wait. I have great respect and admiration for my good friends who are still working everyday for that slow change. I pray for them. And I believe they are used by God for His purposes, when they follow His Spirit and work for that change. I understand their struggles first hand and know they want to see God's Kingdom come. But I had to go a different route, one really less traveled, and one I feel is a great leap forward in the change so many of my friends in churches long to see. Actually, and honestly, I'm still trying to go that route. There is still so far to go. For me.

I thank God for the courage and convictions of Martin Luther King, Jr. His belief has changed a nation. I only wish we could have one ounce of the energy for God's desire as did he. King wanted social freedom. God wants us to be free spiritually. The question is how far are we really willing to go -- to march, to sit, to ride, to stand, to preach, and to die for this promised freedom in Christ!? How far?

Fun in the Snow!

Wow, that was a cold few days! We had some fun, even in spite of the .... danger!

N0-snow sledding:


Frozen Findings in a Frozen Pond:


Sled, Round + Hill, Icy = Danger, Serious