The Workers and The Watchers

This past week I was faced with an interesting dilema - I really want to honor the people who serve on our music ministry teams by giving them some time off over the summer, BUT I don't have anyone to cover for them while they are away! So I thought to myself, 'What do I do?'.

Now I realize that it is a very "deep well" that has many issues related to it, but I believe the primary reason for my dilema is the unfortunate truth that in most churches 10% of the people handle 90% of the workload. (I would say our community is blessed in this area, and that we have a much higher percentage rate). These are what I will call the 'workers' and the 'watchers'

These are my thoughts about Workers:

I believe Workers do because they recognize the value of something (ie: leading a small group, or sunday school class) and are willing to 'sacrifice' themselves to ensure that this valued thing doesn't fall by the wayside. They are the ones who ensure the boat stays afloat even if it means they're the only one with a bucket in their hand. I believe most church leaders function in this reality (even if they don't believe it).

Here's the problem - by always making sure the perverbial gap gets filled, the Worker models to the Watcher that it's OK to simply sit back and do nothing! Effectively solidifying the Watchers position as a watcher and the Workers position as a worker. Why would a Watcher suddenly be compelled to become a Worker if all of the work is taken care of by the Workers?

The results are simple, the Workers begin to burn out (and resent the Watchers) while the Watchers end up confused as to why the Workers keep dropping like flies!

I'd like to think that I am comfortable with having a boat or two sink (occasionally) if it means my Workers can receive a well deserved rest. After all, if there's nobody to row your boat there's no point in having one that floats! However, not all Workers buy into that mindset. Sure they promote the idea of giving people a break, but when push comes to shove and the ship starts going down us Lead Workers are often the first people to go to "work". (Once again solidifying themselves as a Worker while others sit around and Watch). I know I've done it on many occasions, and if you've spent more than a week in Church ministry you've don it too!

So how do Lead Wokers help Watchers become Workers? I think it's quite simple:

1) STOP DOING EVERYTHING!

It's OK to give your Workers a rest, (it's called Sabbath) and if things don't get done rest assured in the truth that The Church will survive! It might not be your church, small c, but Christ's Church will carry on (and that's the one that counts).

The bottom line is this - if you are doing all the work then you haven't understood that we are a Body that requires every part to do it's part by becoming a Worker. It is the only way we can be spiritually healthy (and pleasing to God).

If you need some encouragement in this area I would invite you to study the book of Ephesians and check out Andy Stanley's book "Choosing to Cheat".


2) Introduce "Systematic Controlled Pursecution" (SCP)

Have you ever considered the growth taking place around the persecuted church and concluded that perhaps persecution can be a good thing? Well it is! God designed it to be that way. God designed us to rise up under the hand of oppression and strain. We are by nature overcomers, just as Christ is the ultimate overcomer.

Every good parent understands that consequence is a great motivator! We hate to loose out on something because we dropped the ball. It is one of the primary fruits of maturity, taking responsibility for our actions. People who aren't forced to learn this skill are considered coddled or babies. In North America we have an entire industry built around how to deal with middle aged children who still allow their mothers to do everything for them - and many of these mothers don't see anything harmful in what their doing!

But what happens when you allow a child to suffer for their consequences? They begin to learn. They begin to grow up! Suffering is a form of persecution, and suffering produces perserverence, perserverence that leads to hope!

If we truly want to help our Watchers become Workers we need to understand that introducing Systematic Controlled Persecution (SCP) will help them grow up. (Before you go searching "SCP" on Google I have to tell you that it's not yet a recognized treatment for lethargy or complacency, but I'm working on it!)

So what exactly is SCP? It is the decision, by a Lead Worker, to allow something of value to experience a season of struggle/loss for the purpose of testing it's value to the Watcher.

When a Wathcer experiences a 'loss of service' it produces one of two reations.

1) They won't care that it's gone because it really didn't mean that much to them to begin with. (If this is the case, you have a much deeper heart issue to content with then simple complacency.)

OR

2) They will come to a place of discomfort (or panic) and be compelled to alleviate their discomfort by moving. (Now it should be noted that 'moving' can either mean being moved to action, or simply repositioning themselves in a place where the absent 'service' continues to exist).

In the end it is probably safe to say that burning ourselves out as Workers is by far an easier choice to make then venturing into the land of SCP, but in the end we must choose those things that are going to result in the growth of the Body. And sometimes persecution is the best way to do that.

Now before you go and cancel all of your programs, keep in mind that the heart of SCP is not frustration or revenge, but of genuine love and the well-being of Christ's beloved. It is rooted and grounded in the love of Christ - a love that cares not only for it's own interests but also the interests of others. And that like Christ, we must only do what the Father asks us to do. Obedience is truly better then sacrifice!

Our responsibility as Workers lies in the place of prayer - so that we may know that which we are called to carry for the Lord, and that which we are called to surrender to the Lord.

Happy persecuting!

Can You Find Your Owner's Manual?

The other day a friend called me in a panic. He had lost his remote and was unable to change the channel on his TV. He needed the code for his universal remote but couldn't find his owners manual. He knew that I had the same satellite provider so he was hoping that I could dig mine out and find the code he needed. Well I didn't my owners manual so I fired up the internet and began searching. I looked through pages and pages of information and finally found something that I thought might work. My friend was so happy he was punching in the code while I was still on the phone!. The day had been saved!

That night, as I was recalling the event, I couldn't help but ask myself "Who reads their owners manual anyways?" Not me! I usually put them away as soon as they come out of the box, never to be seen again.

The amazing thing about the owners manual is that it becomes your saving grace the moment you actually need the information contained in it. It could be a warranty agreement, serial number (or in the case of my friend a code that has the power to unleash, or completely nullify, the power of technology) but no matter what you are looking for, our desperation suddenly makes that seemingly useless piece of literature into our best friend in the world! We will read it cover to cover and back again if we have to!

So as I thought about owner's manuals I couldn't help but parallel it to how I read my Bible.

My Bible is very much like an owner's manual! It contains lots of great instructions for achieving 'maximum performance', but unless I read it with an intention of doing what it says it is pretty much useless to me. However, when I come to God's word looking for (and surrendered to) what I will find, it becomes the greatest book ever written! It gets transformed from being a boring technical manual into something full of life and value.

What I began to realize is this - there is this amazing correlation between our desire to find wisdom and our willingness to live wisely.

When we pursue righteousness with a heart set upon obedience, we are able to access the wisdom of heaven. God's spirit enables us to understand the mysteries of heaven, as well as tap into His power for holy living. God reveals these things to us because He knows our desire is to obey. He sees that our heart is one of love for Him, because obedience is love, and so He shows us how we can be pleasing to Him.

But here's the thing - God's word says that we must live up to the revelation we have received. We are accountable for what we know. So if we read the Word and receive revelation, but don't obey, we experience a breakdown. We begin living as enemies of God. (The apostle James talks about this in his letter). But God does not want us to be disobedient, and so, I believe God with-holds revelation from those who are stubborn so that they will not have further judgment added upon them. God sees our hearts and so, in His incredible mercy, closes up the eyes of our understanding to protect us from having further judgment added upon us.

It is not that God does not want to reveal himself to the hard of heart, He is simply guarding us from our own immaturity. He does not want to us to incur more of His wrath.

Conversely, God delights in the hungry obedient heart because He knows that the revelation He gives will lead to a life that is pleasing and honoring to Him. God wants us to win. God wants us to be faithful not only for our own sake, but for His names sake! God wants to call us 'good and faithful servants', and prove that He is mighty to save, and so He reveals himself to those whom He trusts.

Are we trustworthy? Are we hungry with a heart set upon obedience?

Like my friend, who was desperate for information (and very eager to do whatever the manual said!) we must come to God's owners manual, the Bible, with an eager and willing heart. When we do, we will find a wealth of wisdom and power in the Words of God.

If we don't, the owners manual might as well be written in Mandarin!

Raising The White Flag

In war, one only surrenders when it is apparent that the battle can not be won. It is the realization that you have only two options: 1) Lose and Die OR 2)Lose and Live!

When we surrender, we choose to live with our loss, instead of dying because of it. We are powerless to overcome sin and so are destined to lose when up against God's righteousness. And so, surrender is the decision of the powerless to live another day.

"Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:39

Jesus is Sitting Down

Have you ever read the phrase "and he (Jesus) sat down at the right hand of God" and wondered what's so significant about Jesus sitting at the Father's right hand? For years I simply assumed that being on the right had side was the side of honor, but today I came across something that almost made me jump out of my chair.

If you've ever read the book of Leviticus or Numbers you know that the priests in Israel had a lot of sacrifices to make for the peoples sins! To put it simply, these guys were kept busy. But once a year they would have to go into the Holy of Holies to offer a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins people had unknowingly committed. Only the High Priest could go in, and only after some serious cleansing/preparation. If you want to talk about the fear of death - these guys would have had it big time! One wrong move and they were dead. Say the wrong thing, bring the wrong sacrifice, forget to do step 5 and WHAM! Not cool!!

But this is what it says in Hebrews 10:11-12

"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. But when this priest (Jesus) had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God."

If you're thinking "yeah?.....and?....what's the big deal?" let me re-write it with highlights.

"Day after day every priest STANDS...but when this priest had offered...one sacrifice...he SAT DOWN."

Jesus is seated at the right hand of God not only as a place of honor, but because he's got nothing left to do (but reign over the universe!). That's why he said on the cross "It is finished!". There are no more sacrifices left to make, so he can sit down and rest for the rest of eternity!! No priest would have dared sit down in the Holy of Holies, but that's right where Jesus is sitting. He is seated in the presence of God (the Holy of Holies) and that is why the curtain in the temple ripped in two! There was no more limited access to God, no more need for blood to be shed, no more reason to be scared to and of death! JESUS IS SITTING DOWN!

After God created the world he took the next day off. He rested. Jesus is doing exactly what He saw the Father doing, He is resting on the completed work of the cross. Just like you and I do when we have finished a long day at the office or working on the yard, Jesus is resting because ALL of the work is done!

So now, we can boldly approach the throne and simply worship IN God's presence. We don't have to worry about missing step 5 (whatever that may have been?!) and run to God. How unfortunate that many of us choose to remain outside in the surrounding courts of praise, not understanding the magnitude of what happened when that curtain was torn down the middle over 2000 years ago. God is accessible! And if we understand that Jesus is seated beside Him we will understand that to be WITH Jesus, we must enter into that place, the Holiest Place.

It is the throne room of God, were the Father and the Son are seated. The same throne room that John saw in Revelation and Isaiah describes in Isaiah 6. It is a place where we bow down in gratitude for what Jesus was able to complete. That is why they say "Worthy is the Lamb" and that is why they throw down their crowns!

But we must continue to remember that Jesus is sitting down! If we begin to wipe away the cob webs, placing our penance and "good deeds" on this obsolete altar of atonement we commit treason against the One seated on the throne. He has sat down, never to rise to that altar again to perform a sacrifice. So what in heaven's name are we trying to accomplish there?

It is finished! It is over! We are free from the fear of death! We are free from the need to "make up" for our sins. We are free to meet God! Free to love, and be loved, by God. Why? Because Jesus is sitting down!!!

I hope that gives you cause to celebrate! I hope it causes you to run into that Most Holy Place and thank Jesus for His completed work! And perhaps it will allow you to sit down with Him in the presence of our Abba Father and enjoy His never ending rest.

Spiritual Potty Training

How long would you allow your child to use diapers without learning how to use the toilet before you stepped in and said "this has gone on long enough!"?

2 years? 5 YEARS? 25 YEARS!!!!?

Why is it that we expect every physical infant to mature, but don't assume that spiritual children should as well?

There are countless books outlining early childhood development - what we should expect by a certain age, when they get teeth, crawl, start talking and just about every other behavior known to humanity! So why do we not expect the same kind of consistent growth from our spiritual children? Are God's designs for growth not universal?

If a student doesn't learn to read, and we simply pass them on to the next grade because we don't want to challenge their lack of growth we are not acting in the best interest of that student (or society).

If a child has not learned how to feed, cloth or bathe themselves by the time they are 25 we should consider that a parenting failure.

And yet, year after year we sit idly by while thousands of spiritual children are allowed to enter into their teens and twenties without any considerable growth in their spiritual maturity. (Many still require pastors and teachers to feed, bathe and cloth them).

I believe we have wrongfully concluded that adults who experience a spiritual rebirth live up to their level of physical maturity. That somehow, a 5 year old and a 45 year old person who both experience rebirth on the same day should have dramatically differing levels of spiritual maturity. We have assumed that the 45 year old will inherently know more about spiritual things then the 5 year old. She will be more disciplined, more able to overcome sin and naturally have mature spiritual practices. (After all, they are mature in every other area of their life!)

The truth is that they have no more experience or knowledge then anyone else - we all must undergo an intense time of learning. Learning to eat spiritual food, clean our lives of spiritual 'germs' and cloth ourselves with things like humility, love, patience and kindness. They must also receive diligent nurture and care from mature spiritual adults who can train them up in the way in which they should go.

In the end we must recognize that our physical maturity has little or no baring on our formative years of spiritual maturity, and if we are to become the people that God created us to be we must take seriously our role of being spiritual parents to newborn followers of Jesus. Followers who will require a lot of love in the form of patience, understanding, training and discipline.

Power Dynamics

The Kingdom of God is a kingdom of power! It is ruled by a God of all power and administrated by a Spirit of power who is alive in all those who believe in Jesus and his powerful work done on the cross! Therefore it is essential that we understand the power dynamics of this kingdom if we are to effectively live within it.


1) Power is acquired in the secret place

If we are to begin moving out in power we must understand that the primary place for us to receive power is in rest, prayer, fasting and meditation. We must look no further than how Jesus started and ended his ministry time on earth - Jesus began his ministry by engaging in a 40 day fast in complete solitude, and then, prior to his ascension into heaven charges his disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait until they receive power from on high.

To put it another way: The battles we fight should be fought in the place of prayer and fasting.

It is in this place that we take hold of the truth God has for us. The place we receive revelation about God's plans. But more importantly, it is the place we prove our worth as a servant - because praying in secret, away from the applause of others, hour-after-hour without tests our hearts to ensure that they are pure and surrendered.

Why is that important? It is important because God will not call just anyone into acts of power.

God is looking for those he can trust. Those who's hearts will not take the glory upon themselves. Those who have proven they desire the kingdom above everything else. Those who have contended for a revelation of the living God and through that revelation have been gripped with a fear of the Lord.

It is this fear and revelation that will ultimately compell us to act upon that which God has asked us to do. It is much like the encounter of Isaiah who upon seeing the throne room falls down in repentance and then declares his willingness to go.

And so, if we are to move out in the power that Christ said would mark His Church, we must foster a life of devotion in the secret place.


2) Power is executed in public acts of faith

In the same way that battles are fought in the secret place, it is true that they are won through public acts of faith. For it is not enough for us to know the will of God, we must act upon His call, and in doing so manifest kingdom power on the earth.

But why are they done in the public arena? Can't we simply pray the victory into existence? Experience power within an intimate group of believers? No! Because God has His heart set upon revealing His glory to all of creation. His acts of power are for the purpose of drawing people to himself so that they may worship Him! So if the battle is won in secret, who is going to be drawn into worship of the God of all Power? (The few who have contended in prayer? They already worship him in fear and trembling!!)

If we try and excercise power in the secret place, away from the eye of the unbeliever, we edify (build up) only those who have already been ravaged by His glory. When we excercise faith in the public arena it tests our resolve and commitment to doing the will of the Father no matter what the cost or outcome. Setting the stage for a cosmic showdown between the "fear of the Lord" and the "fear of man" to see who reigns in our hearts. (The secret place is powerless to do this because there is little or no risk, fear of failure or potential of community ridicule.)

Through public displays of God's power the unbeliever will be called upon to worship Him because she has now had a revelation of who He is, while the believer will be called to offer thanksgiving to God for being faithful to the word spoken in the place of prayer. Both parties experiencing power for one purpose - the glory of God!


3) You will not experience great power until you have great experience

You would never ask a school boy to manage your retirement savings! In the same way, God does not entrust the wealth and power of His kingdom to those he who are not known and trusted.

If we are to become known and trusted by God we must become faithful to the quite promptings of His spirit, pursuing them as though our very life depended on it! After all, why should we expect God to call us a messager to Presidents and Kings if we don't answer the call to be a messenger to our friends and neighbors?

Matthew 25 tells us that those who are faithful with what they have been given will be given more! So, if we are to pursue a life of Kingdom power we must recognize that we will need to prove our worth in the little things prior to being given the keys to the kingdom.

I believe this should be a marker for us in determining those whose hearts are set on the will of the Father and those who are merely seeking power for themselves. Those who understand the power dynamics of the kingdom will surrender themselves to the journey required. (Again, this is why the first dynamic is so important - being driven into the secret place tests the content of our heart and character.)

But we must be careful in rating our level of experience. Experience is not based on age, education or duration of time in the ministry. Experience is not merely quantitative, it is qualitative! It is measured by how diligently we respond to the invitations put before us, and how those encounters have been allowed to shape our hearts. It is not enough that we merely obey what he asks of us, we must also receive what he gives to us in that process.

It is like a young boy who does his math homework on a calculator - he can effectively do everything asked of him with incredible results, but he has not learned how to do mathematics. He has simply learned how to achieve the right answer. In the same way, I can faithfully do everything the Teacher asks, but unless I submit myself to the truths being taught I have not achieved God's desired outcome.

God is looking for men and woman who are willing to submit themselves to His wisdom, power and authority! If we are faithful with small things I am sure that He will call us into greater things, but if we turn a deaf ear towards doing small things we can be sure that we will never manifest great power. I believe it is why Jesus said:

"The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Matt 23:11-12

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So in conclusion I would like to leave you with this prayer to the Ephesians:

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom is whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strenghten you with power through his spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

Intellectual Welfare

This is a challenge to all of you wonderfully inquisitive readers out there who diligently scour the internet looking for the latest greatest thoughts, trends and truths spewing out of the mouths of the self-proclaimed enlightened:

Your thoughts (however timid and unrefined) are needed if we are to have a balanced and holistic understanding of how the body of Christ thinks and functions! After all, the book of Ephesians says that we are now 'equals', but each must do it's part.

I urge you to speak up and use the spirit of wisdom God has placed in you. Start sharing your own thoughts. I assure you, it is a skill that will be of the utmost importance if you wish to fulfill Christ's mandate of being a witness to your friends and neighbors (not to mention all nations of the earth!)

Find your voice! Start a blog! Leave a comment!! But for all of our benefits, avoid the world of intellectual assistance and become a contributor! The world needs to hear the truth and the truth is in YOU to speak.

I'm Listening!

A Simple Test

Let me start by saying that I am blogging with the Care Bears blasting behind me, so if this is incoherent I apologize!
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I had a great conversation with a friend of mine yesterday about the dynamics of the "invisible" realm and how we should engage it as followers of Jesus. And so this morning when I awoke thinking about 1 John and the testing of the spirits I was not surprised. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I gained some new insight into identifying those 'invisible' personalities.

I have long been aware of the truth found in 1 John 4, when it says that "This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.". I knew that if faced with a demon possessed person or engaged in spiritual warfare I could draw on this simple test to determine if the spirit I was encountering was friend or foe. But today I gained a new perspective on that timeless truth - it should be useful for disarming every kind of argument and quarrel as well!

Have you ever had a heated conversation with another follower of Jesus and felt like you were on completely different pages? Well I believe that by asking one simple question we should effectively be able to determine the spirits at play. What is the question? ..."Is Jesus Lord?"

(Now for the sake of communication I am going to speak as though the other parties motives/heart is in question, but I am in no way saying that the person asking the question is not in the wrong.)

When I ask the question "Is Jesus Lord?" to a person who is opposing what I believe to be truth, or the Way or the will of God it effectively plays the trump card of Lordship. If we are seeking to do the will of the Father, doing only what we see Him doing (just as Jesus did) then that Spirit, the Holy Spirit which Christ sent to us to guide us into all wisdom, will whole heartedly agree with the fact that Jesus is Lord! It will testify that our hearts are indeed surrendered to Jesus (or at least attempting to do so as best as we can). However, every other spirit, the spirits that wage war for our souls, vi for our thoughts and attentions, and lead us astray (though it be ever so subtly) will be arrested by such a question. I am quite certain that they will be marked by justification, defensive words and charges against the questioner about their own motives and self-righteous behavior.

I know that whenever I am pursuing something with selfish ambition the question of "Is Jesus Lord?" is sure to cause me to hesitate for a moment. I am not saying that it has the power to correct my selfishness, or immediately draw me to repentance, but you can be sure that it will quiet the roars of my pride a few decibels!

Ultimately it is my choice as to which spirit I will manifest through my flesh, but I believe that any person who earnestly seeks to do the will of the One True God will welcome that question. I am equally confident that anyone who's heart is not set on pleasing God will be ripe with objections to this probing suggestion.

So I would encourage you to enter today with spiritual eyes to 'see' the invisible realm being manifested in and around you. I think you'll be amazed at what you see!

Going "Too Far" As The Bride of Christ

I had an idea this morning but thought it was not worth blogging about, at least until my friend Yvonne dared me to post something that she couldn't agree with!

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There is an increased pursuit in the Church towards intimacy with Jesus. Drawing it's language and passionate expression largely from the Song of Songs, it paints a picture of us being the Bride of Christ. That Jesus is the lover of our soul and that we are created to have both intimacy and ecstacy in our relationship with him.

I am a true believer in this pursuit and have been engaged in it for many years. However, this morning I had a question raised in my mind...

If as Christians we believe that sexual intimacy is to be experienced solely within the covenant of marriage, and that pre-maritial sex is not God's 'best' for us, how far should we pursue intimacy with the Bride Groom prior to our eternal wedding?

Can we in fact go 'too far' in our relationship too early? Are people like Mike Bickle leading us into a spiritual Vegas where anything is permissible? (and yet not beneficial!)

The Difference Between Is and As

Have you ever heard people talk about "Life as Worship" - the understanding that everything we do is an act of worship towards God? I was thinking about that statement today and wanted to make a very simple, yet critical, observation.

There is a HUGE difference between "Life AS Worship" and "Life IS Worship".

Unfortunately many of us have mistaken IS for AS and are living our lives under the false impression that everything we do IS worship - simply because we are Christians! Now it is true that everything we do CAN be worship, but that doesn't mean that everything we do IS worship!

Let me explain.

Just because...
...I'm in a room with Christians doesn't mean we're worshiping
...there is a song in my heart doesn't mean I am worshiping
...I'm on a hike doesn't mean I've worshiped the God of Creation
...I feel warm fuzzies from a song doesn't mean I'm worshiping
...I went to church this week...

You get the point! In order for our lives to BE worship, we must DO worship.

We must do more than simply engage in activity, we must be engaged in the very activity that God calls us to, in the way that he calls to do it and then do it out of a heart that credits Him with the glory! Worship is our response to who God is, and we can not respond to Him without having an interaction WITH Him. (Just like being around my wife doesn't communicate to her how much I love and appreciate her! If it did, I wouldn't have a need to write her notes, buy her thougthful gifts, hug her, kiss her and shower affection on her!)

I don't say this to strike fear in our hearts, I simply want to raise this question:

Are we assuming our life IS worship, or are we engaging our lives AS worship?

I'd love your thoughts!

Overcoming the Easy Button

Have you ever been at the end of your rope and cried out to God for relief? I did last night as I desperately tried to get my daughter to stop crying and finally go to bed (hours after both of our bed times!). Now this is isn't the first time I have prayed that God would bring peace to my crying child, or that I have begged Him to grant me sleep, but this time was different.

As I began to formulate my prayer in my mind I felt God's gentle nudge, a nudge that I hope will change my life. So what was so profound that I hope it changes my life? It was the revelation that as a person who has the Holy Spirit living inside of me my nature has been changed from an under-achiever into an over comer!

The nature of an under-achiever is one who consistently asks for the bar to be lowered in order to accommodate their shortcomings, or unwillingness to do anything. But as a Christian, my nature has been changed to an over comer - one who rises above the situation through the power of the Holy Spirit living inside of me. The Christian life is not about using the power of God as a cosmic 'Easy Button', it is about displaying God's mighty power to save, in spite of our weakness, by surrendering ourselves to the work of His Spirit.

So instead of always asking for God to remove my problems (crying baby!) I was challenged to ask that God would fill me with peace, patience, long-suffering, perseverance, love and compassion for my child - all of which are fruits of the spirit! All of which are things that enable us to overcome otherwise difficult situations. It is that same power that allows us to rejoice in our sufferings and bless those who persecute us.

I wonder how many more of my prayers will be answered now?

So here's to being the over comer's that God has empowered us to be... It's really that easy!

Life is A Gift - Part 2

A few weeks ago I blogged a quote that read - "Life is a gift, not an accumulation of coincidences." This is a continuation of that idea.

Last night a friend of mine shared how God was revealing to him the truth that each day is a gift. That it was prepared for him by God and that he need not worry about tomorrow. As he shared I was brought back to my thought about life being a gift and not simply an accumulation of coincidences. As we began to talk, I did a bit of scientific thinking. What would it take for an event to be completely a coincidence? Something that God would have had no part in orchestrating.

My conclusion was that in order for something to be a pure coincidence, it would have to be a part of a chain of events that could be traced back to the beginning of humanity without having had any contact with a God ordained moment, person or event. That the situation would have had no external influence other than complete random events.

Not one person who had prayed.
Not one person who was a believer in Christ.
Not one interaction with the Bible
The Church, Christianity, Judaism, Easter, Christmas, Creation....Creation?!

That's impossible! The simple fact that God created the heavens and the earth means that at some point he has had an impact on the situation that I am presently involved in! If he set things in motion then he has touched them, affected them!

I believe that God has done way more then simply 'affected' my situation, I believe that He has prepared it. Designed it! But the next time you think that your day is simply an accumulation of random events, I invite you to put my theory to the test.

Today is the day of our salvation!

Your Way, Right Away

I while back there was a fast food chain that had the slogan "Your Way, Right Away". The premise being that you don't have to eat your burger the way some guy in the corporate kitchen designed it, you could have it exactly the way you want it - and you could have it your way at a moments notice!

We have a North American mind-set that caters to the individual - this beautiful pursuit of our independence. It is founded on the truth that each of us is unique. We each have our own way of seeing the world, our own likes and dislikes, as well as our individual talents, passions and experiences. In fact, we now have schools, jobs and a service industry that take personal learning, working and consumption styles into consideration. It is all customizable to suit your personal needs. (Even our blogs!). We have become a "Your Way, Right Away" nation.

So what happens when this nation enters into a conversation with the God of the Universe? When people who can have what they want, how they want it, when they want it begin relating to a God who says: "I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go." - Isaiah 48:17? I believe we enter into a question of who knows best!

Most of us would probably object and say that God really does have the last word when it comes to how we live our lives. But let me ask this question. How many times have I used my personal uniqueness as a reason for why God is pleased with me even if I do it my way? Or to put it another way - God sees my heart, so what I'm doing isn't as important as why I'm doing it.

Before moving, our previous church had an annual 30-day corporate fast. It was a great time of joining together as a community to seek God's face as we entered into a new calendar year. For the most part I loved the idea but there were two problems for me.

The first was the fact that I was born with a crazy digestive system. A digestive system that resulted in bowel surgery my first year of high school, forcing me to watch my diet over the past 20 years.

The second problem was that I hated fasting! And so, when fast time would come around each year I would be faced with the question - "Am I going to do it?".

Each year I concluded that it wasn't healthy for me to abstain from food for a whole month (irregardless of how powerful I believed God was) - so I would choose an alternative type of fast, and every year I would decide that a media fast was a good choice. Why a media fast? Probably because it was nearing the end of NFL football season and I had spent every Sunday for the past 17 weeks glued to my TV set. But it was also because there really isn't anything worth watching on TV other than football! I thought it was mostly trash and that was exactly what I thought I could do without if I was going to spend an entire month searching out the will of God.

So what happened? Each year I would feel great coming out of the fast. My mind felt clearer, my heart felt purer, and for the most part I felt better about myself. Here's the stupid thing - I don't think I once entered into a significant time of prayer during any of the fasts that I 'participated' in. I just simply kept doing whatever I felt like doing it, when I felt like doing it (except for watching TV).

So today as I was reflecting on some of the pseudo fasting I have done I was reminded of something a man who loves prayer said - When you fast you need to abstain from food. Don't do a media fast, it's not the kind of fast God prescribes for us. If we are going to enter into God's work we have to do it God's way.

I believe it is the way that many of us approach our service towards God. We think that as long as we have the right heart it doesn't matter what we do. We can worship the way we want, with the expressions that suit our likes and dislikes and we effectively sideline any activity that might cause us some pain or discomfort by saying something to the effect of "God's a God of grace - He'll understand".

I don't need to
actually bow before him
actually touch the poor
actually abstain from food
actually confess with my mouth

In the end we are left wondering why our worship doesn't draw us closer, why our hearts don't become softer, why our prayers remain unanswered and why we just can't seem to overcome our sinful desires. I believe it is because we have tried to do God's work our way - hiding behind a lie that says as long as I have the right heart I don't need to do it the way God asked me to.

Isaiah 48:17-18 says:

"I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you what is best for you,
who directs you in the way you should go.

If only you had paid attention to my commands,
your peace would have been like a river,
your righteousness like the waves of the sea."

If we are going to become the kind of people that God is looking for I believe with all of my heart that we must learn to take God at his word - trusting Him when He says I know 'what's best for you." We must stand up against the spirit of this age that says we can have God's will, Our way.

Faster Turn-Around Times Lead To Unparalleled Growth

Have you ever hurt someone, causing a rift in your relationship, and then found yourself thinking that a few days without contact would be good before mending the relationship? Most of the time we do it emotionally/relationally (limiting conversation) but occasionally we feel the need for physical separation in order to 'maintain the peace'. I think we've all done it, in fact, I believe it is one of the most common responses of the human race. The belief that time heals all wounds, separation defuses hostility and it's duration is somehow a measure of how 'deep' we are experiencing the pain/consequences of what we've done.

In some circles they would call this penance, but for most of us it has simply become a way to deal with our own brokenness and shortcomings.

So last week I put myself in one of these situations, disappointing myself, my wife and putting an obstacle in the way of my intimacy with God. In the past I would have typically waited an 'appropriate' amount of time before dealing with my brokenness, asking for forgiveness and pursuing deep relationship with God again. However, I've been in a season of renewed intimacy with God in which I've encountered intense times of worship, prayer and an insatiable hunger for the Bible - a hunger so strong that this time I couldn't wait. I wanted to get back to that place, and it needed to be a lot sooner then later!

So, in uncommon fashion, I took immediate steps to confess my sin, ask for forgiveness and had the opportunity to immediately engaged in an extended time of prayer and worship in the form of my weekly intercession group. The result was amazing! My relationship with my wife hardly skipped a beat, my loathing and self-abuse for being so stupid was rendered powerless and God showed His true colors by embracing me (as always) in full-faced grace during our intercession time! There was no waiting period, no 'being put on hold', no extended recovery time. God's forgiveness and embrace was immediate.

Then I had a conversation with a friend of mine who had experienced a similar brokenness that same week. He too comes to our weekly prayer/worship gathering, but contrary to my experience, had felt disconnected and unable to engage in anything other than an internal conversation along the lines of "I'm so sorry. Why do I keep doing this?". He went on to tell me that the entire week he had been down about his foolish compromise, but didn't feel like he could restore that God relationship just yet. He had entered into a time of self-imposed penance. Choosing to believe, as we all seem to do, that unless we 'feel' the immensity of our sin we can't truly be repentant. What I would call the 'sack-cloth and ashes' phase of our forgiveness.

As we continued to talk and share our stories I began having a revelation about my response to my sinful behavior. This was my thought - If I impose upon myself a time of separation, a mourning period for my sin, then I am essentially believing in a forgiveness based on works. That I MUST do something to show that I am sorry. I will PROVE that I have grasped the magnitude of my actions and by entering into the penance of separation.

So now, instead of having a sin (common to us all) that needs confession/restoration, I have taken upon myself the work of saving my own soul! I am functioning as though I believe I can achieve/merit God's grace through work! The result is that instead of "stumbling" in my walk towards holiness, I have successfully dug, and fallen into, a big hole that I must be rescued out of. It is a pit marked "Salvation Through Works Apart From Christ". (Along with a big WARNING sign beside it!)

Now some might be thinking, but isn't it good for us to understand how our sin hurts God (and others), and that the separation process for the sake of grappling with the depth of our sin is a worthwhile endeavor. (After all, we want our confession to be sincere) Well this is what I have experienced - the best way for me to understand the depth of my sin, to have true repentance, is to place myself in the presence of a pure and holy God. Suddenly my sin, and the impact it has on my relationships and my character, comes into full view - producing in me a deep longing for purity and confession - the source of true repentance. And so it isn't in running from God that I find myself, it is in running to Him that I find out who I am and how I am to live! (Ephesians 1:11)(MSG)

It caused me to come to a few conclusions:

1) Self-Imposed separation from God is not an act of righteousness but of self-righteousness - When I separate myself I am placing a requirement on my restoration. A requirement that puts me under judgment, requiring the penalty to be paid. A penalty that has already been paid by Christ! I have stepped outside of Justification By Faith (by grace, through faith in Christ alone) and taken a hold of Righteousness By Works.

I have denied the power of the Cross of Christ and once again taken it upon myself to earn my salvation.

2) Darkness is void of enlightenment - But Light exposes truth, and the Truth sets us free! - When I wallow in the shadow of my sin, I am allowing it to put down roots into my soul and character. It is allowed to define me, restricting me from encountering the life giving presence of Jesus. I become spiritually imprisoned, acting as one who has not been set free from sin, death and punishment. (I am not actually re-imprisoned by sin, but I'm living as though I am a captive. Choosing to ignore my pardon and the truth that the door to freedom is wide open!). I will not discover repentance in this place, only condemnation and guilt. (And since there is no condemnation for those in Christ this is obviously not a good place to function out of.)

But in the light of God's love, mercy and compassion I get to see my sin for what it really is, while enjoying full forgiveness through Christ which leads to thanksgiving and praise. It transforms me from being a down-trodden sinner into a joyful worshiper whose heart is full of gratitude (and free from guilt and shame).

I believe that this mindset is prevalent in all of us. That it is a major contributor to spiritual mediocrity and immaturity - effectively robbing us of deep joy and gratitude for the gift of Christ's cross.

I also believe that if we became quick to confess our sin that God would do just as he says, that he would be faithful to forgive us, heal us and transform us into a praising and glorious people. That we would reclaim days, months and for some even years worth of time lost by an un-required, self-imposed type of separation from God. Time that He would love to have spent with us in His glorious presence and favour. Time needed for our maturation and growth as followers of Jesus.


So here's to faster turn-around times that lead to paralleled growth!

The Saving Power of Addiction

"Better an appetite for destruction then to hunger for nothing!"

I find it interesting that we have such a negative view of people with addictions. We often look at them as being 'broken' or 'incomplete' - and why? Because they have directed their hunger towards something that has taken control of their body, mind and will? Are they 'broken' because they allowed themselves to listen to the hunger deep within their spirits? The part of their soul that graves a deeper more fulfilled life! I think we may have it backwards. I think that people with addictions are far more alive then many of us are. They have an advantage on us! Sure, maybe not in the fact that their lives look like a big mess, their struggling to make ends meet and on the verge of losing their health, but they have something that many of us do not - they recognize that they want more! They are searching for a deeper more meaningful existence and they will do anything to experience it!!

Last year we did a series at our Church called "Pure Sex". One of my favourite messages was entitled "Directile Misfunction". It focused us on the reality that many of the sexual addictions we have in our culture today stem from our deep need to experience love, affection and intimacy. All things that God longs to share with us! However, we often misdirect that hunger towards things that we think will satisfy our cravings but they leave us feeling used and empty.

A quote used during the series was from G.K. Chesteton - "Every man who knocks on the door of a brothel is looking for God." It was a great image of the truth behind many of our longings - our longing to experience the transcendent life. The abundant life of Christ!

Now as a young man growing up in the church, I was surrounded by a way of thinking that said I should 'put those things to death'. Pray that God would remove your desire for carnal things! I was surrounded by well meaning religious people who communicated that we should RUN from our unbridled passion. And what happened? Most of us ended up suffocating the soul inside of us. The very thing that was intended to lead us into life was put to death! The result (at least in my experience) has been a generation of people who are passionless, lifeless and have lost their hunger for just about everything!

But a funny, and redemptive, thing has been happening in my life over the past number of years. God is continually bringing me into relationship with people who have addictive tendencies. People with deep cravings/passions that have taken over a good portion of their life. They are being led by their hunger. Some of them crave affection and physical intimacy, others crave acceptance and still others crave the comfort brought on by food. Each of us has recognized that we have a longing deep within us that not only wants to be met, but NEEDS to be met.

But here's the best part! We are learning together that our appetites are not only good at destroying our lives, they are great for driving us into the presence of God! The very hunger that burns out of control in us, the hunger that runs after gross unhealthy manifestations is being turned towards God. It is fueling our worship, our prayer and passionate living for Christ. And we are having our diets changed. Our pallets changed! As we eat of the good things that God has for us we are losing our appetite for destruction and developing a new appetite for everything good and true. We are learning in a very practical way that our appetite does not have to be reduced, or governed - it simply needs to be redirected into life!

It is causing me to lament the passionless generation that I see all around me. People who have been challenged to put their very life to death for fear of being enslaved by sin and compromise. People who's fear of uncontrolled lust has rid them of their ability to experience God as the lover of their souls.

Today my heart goes out to the passionless Bride of Christ who has lost her hunger and wastes away in a life of spiritual anorexia. God would you awaken our hunger! Would you satisfy our souls!

Passionate Anonymity

Have you ever had an idea or revelation that you thought would change the world? A conviction that gripped you deeply? And have you ever dismissed that conviction because of your seemingly limited influence or position to propagate that conviction?

If you're like me then I'm sure you are greatly influenced by outcomes. If something isn't going to have an impact then I am not very inclined to do it. If nobody is listening why bother speaking? As a blogger I often rate my posts by how many people have viewed these pages in a week, or by the number of comments posted. (And usually that isn't very many!) But today I got to thinking - if something is truly worth doing why should it matter how many people share in my so-called enlightenment?

If nobody gives me a promotion. If I never receive recognition for my 'work'. If the only thing that changes in the process is me, will it be enough? If something is truly worth doing, shouldn't it be worth doing in complete anonymity? Is it's value found in the size of the audience? In how much it is 'consumed'? (North American culture would probably tell us that public consumption is the best marker we have). I would say that a truly 'good' thing will be good irregardless of who's listening or watching or following!

And still I am greatly influenced by how my thoughts and actions are embraced by those around me. It calls my motives into question, my reasons for living out my convictions. In the past my motives have often been incredibly selfish - doing things for the improvement of others, for a change in a system or organization that I have no control over (or any right to demand change from) and in the end, the result is that I have grown jaded by the lack of movement. That doesn't mean I don't sincerely long for good things for those around me, but is that my major reason for doing it?

I must ask myself - "What is the point of 'going it alone'"? Can I choose to live out my convictions simply for the goodness of my own life? Without need for recognition? Without a need for anyone else to join my revolution? If I can, then I believe I will encounter some wonderful things.

1) A full live guided by a sense of deep conviction and passion.
2) A freedom from the expectations of others.

I will be able to live passionately free, and for no other reason than I believe in the life I am called to live! It will be the life that God has called me into! (That is not to say that God doesn't want others to encounter the exact same freedom or revelation - but that I must simply live out of the revelation I have received and allow others to live out of their own.)

So here's to having deep convictions and learning how to live in passionate anonymity!

When Life Gets Full

I've been thinking about rest lately and how I often seek it by getting away from my everyday life - taking days off from work, going golfing, getting away to a cabin/hotel for a night and occasionally a trip to a tropical destination. So many times that I have done this my body and mind experience a reprieve from the constant stresses of life - and it is good! But as with most of us, when I return to my regular life I am quickly consumed by old situations and the rest that I have accumulated is quickly spent.

A few weeks ago things began to shift for me. I was coming out of an extended period of 'rest'. I had taken 2 months off from itinerant ministry to be at home with my wife and 3 kids. (Our twins had just turned 7 months old and we were all exhausted!) I had begun to catch up on much needed sleep and my mind was beginning to function normally again. Deep down I began to reconnect with a longing I had for places of intimate worship and community. Places that I had not been to in a few years due to the craziness of our lives (kids, moving, new jobs etc). But as I unplugged from the chaos of my life this hunger for God's presence began to re-emerge. What happened next was truly a blessing.

My wife Rhonda and I received a CD containing a message entitled "Encountering the Affections of God". We popped it into our player and got nailed right in the center of our souls! It was exactly what we had been craving for months!! God had provided us with a precious gift, the gift of His spirit alive in us again! Over the course of the next 3 weeks I began listening to this CD over and over. Every chance I got I was reconnecting with God and it was beginning to stir things in me that I hadn't felt in a number of years.

During that time I regained my hunger for God's word, for worship and for prayer. I would be drawn to worship CD's that I would play over and over again while I watched my kids play. I couldn't, and still can not get enough of God's presence!

Then I had a very interesting experience yesterday. Our church staff went on a two day retreat to focus and plan our upcoming teaching series. Normally I look forward to unplugging from my life and getting some peace and quiet, but this time was different. I had no desire to unplug! I wanted to stay plugged in to my life. Sure I enjoyed spending an hour at a local spa, going for dinner and playing some Settlers of Catan, but something was missing. Unplugging didn't bring with it the same feelings of relief that I once longed for. And then I realized something that I hope will stay with me for the rest of my life. I didn't want to unplug from my life because my everyday ordinary life was filling me with an abundance of Life!

I didn't need to get away to reconnect with God, or get physical or mental rest. I was experiencing a daily renewal of my mind, body and spirit by staying in God's presence on a daily basis...and here's the kicker...in the midst of my real life!

It reminded me of something the apostle Paul wrote to the Romans many years ago...

"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him." Romans 12: 1-2 (MSG)

And so I began to put a few God truths together for myself

1) My life is a gift from God and everything I have comes from Him (James)
2) God has a plan for me and it is a great one! (Jeremiah)
3) God's desire is that I encounter the fullness of His love for me (Ephesians)
4) Embracing what God does for me is the best thing I can do for Him (Romans)

So....if God gave me my seemingly chaotic life, with the wife, job and three kids....AND He desires for me to encounter the fullness of His love....AND He asks me to give him my everyday life...then I must conclude that I don't need to get away from my life to encounter fulfillment, I need to encounter God in the midst of it!

I can't live my life disconnected from reality, the reality that God created and designed for me. I have to live the life He gave me. After all, if He has designed it for me and longs for me to encounter the fullness of His love through my life, then I must conclude that I can and will experience Him right in the middle of my wife, job and three kids on a daily basis! And guess what? I have!!!!!

If we keep trying to get away from our God given lives in order to find Him, I think we are missing the point. He wants us to encounter him IN it and THROUGH it! We must learn to plug IN to what God has for us today and stop trying to get away from it. If I run away from my life, the life God gifted to me (a good and perfect gift) then I will never enter into abundant living. I will have settled for a weekend getaway with Jesus when he has asked me to come and make my home in him. To live with him. Living with him daily!

I have begun to experience a deeper joy for my family, for my surroundings, the relationships God has given me and most of all a greater hunger for God. It is the truth of abiding in Him. That all things truly flow out from His presence. And I believe that if the church got a hold of this reality we would stop trying to check out of our lives and start living through them.

So the next time you feel like checking out, I invite you to plug in to the day that God has gifted you with. I think you'll love what you find!

A Tongue Twister of Faith

Hanging around with people who follow Jesus presents me with many opportunities to talk about the mysteries of God. Those things about God that we just don't understand (or should I say 'totally' don't understand?) but we desperately try to wrap our brains around them. Things like - why did he make the duck-billed platapus? Why are men and woman so different? And the more mystical questions about prophecy and tongues. It's not often we come up with new or different perspective on these age old questions but yesterday I had a new thought (at least new to me). What if tongues was meant to be a practical gift? Let me explain.

We have a new refugee family that just moved into our community. Unlucky for them they arrived in the middle of a cold spell in central Canada. As we were discussing their arrival one person commented that they don't speak a word of English. My mind suddenly made a quantum leap, I was pulled out of southern Manitoba and reminded of a very familiar passage of scripture - the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentacost (Acts 2).


"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the spirit enabled them.

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" Acts 2:1-11

I was also reminded of something I have heard many times "Remember the foreigner". Over forty times in the Old Testament we are commanded to care for the foreigner in our land!

"The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love his as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the Lord your God." Lev 19:34

"He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves
the alien, giving him food and clothing." Deut 10:18

As these two passages were brought together in my mind I couldn't help but wonder how amazing it would be to walk into this refugee families home and share the good news of Jesus with them in their mother tongue! Wasn't that in fact what happened for the disciples? They were able to preach to good news to all present in their own language - and the people were not only amazed, they were converted! It wasn't about some cosmic freak show at Pentacost, it was a loving God displaying just how much he cared about each person present. He cared enough to speak to them in their own language! To me that is amazing!! To think that God had such personal interest in each person there. He knew them, the language that they spoke and provided a way for them to encouter the truth of who he is.

So I began thinking about the gift of tongues and it's role in our lives today.

Now you must know that I grew up in a very conservative community/church and the gift of tongues was tabboo to say the least. Nobody had the gift, and even fewer people wanted to talk about it. But as I ventured out of that bubble I encountered many mysteries of God that began to reshape my thinking as well as my God experience. Tongues was one of those encounters. But no matter were I have gone the gift of tongues is a big mystery to people - even the people who speak in tongues. We often think of it as being very impractical (and most would say requires interpretation in order to be of any use). But here was my new perspective....

What if God wanted to share the gospel of Jesus with our new refugees? He knows they are here, and he knows that they don't speak English (and we all do). Do I believe that God is waiting for them to learn English before he will reveal himself to them? Or is it possible that He wants to display His glory through one of his spirit filled followers? What if my tongue is the very language that these refugees speak? That would be amazing. That would be the kind of thing that my God of love would do! Maybe I need to pray about that! Maybe someone else is being asked to ask for the gift of tongues for that very reason but is unsure as to its purpose!?

And what about our missionaries who spend years learning the language of the culture they are about to serve in. What if God wanted to share the gospel with them today? What about the tribes of South America who nobody has found yet? Does anyone speak their language? God does! I could spend 10 years trying to figure out this tribes dialect before I could communicate with them the gospel. With the gift of tongues, God's spirit could do that TODAY! So I had to ask myself another question. Do I have more faith that I could discern and learn a tribes language over the course of a decade, or do I have more faith that God could gift me with their tongue through the power of his spirit? After all, he created them. He knows them. He gave them their language.

So now I am contemplating the idea that my time could be better spent praying for the gift of tongues then relying on my own wisdom or ability to learn. And besides, which one will give God more glory? My hard work or his divine provision?

The result has been that I am rethinking the gift of tongues and starting to conclude that it may be one of the most practical gifts of them all. I'll keep you posted.

You Can Quote Me On This

A bridge over dry ground is Christ's cross to the proud,
But confession brings a mighty river.


Today is a gift, not the accumulation of coincidence.

Tell Better Stories

I love this commercial I saw a while back. An SUV full of people is travelling to all kinds of out of the way places and discovering wonderful new things. In the end they show the company logo and the tag line..."Tell better stories".

How many of us have a friend or relative that is a great story teller? The kind of person that you could listen to for hours as they recount tales of discovery and misadventure. We are captivated by them, and all the while we think to ourselves "This is unbelievable! Who has these kinds of experiences? I've never done anything like that." But great stories fuel our imagination and create a hunger inside of us. A hunger to discover more, to take the next ride, to experience the next height. It's why we buy so many books, rent so many movies and the Biography channel is in extistence. We love great stories. But more importantly I believe we all long to experience the extra-ordinary! For most of us our lives our somewhat boring and uneventful, and so we live vicariously through fantasy or the fantastical, and stories provide that for us.

So why don't we have great stories? Is it because we've lived our lives in fear and therefore do nothing worth talking about? Is it because we are never presented with the opportunity to be involved in the sublime? Or are we afraid that our stories won't measure up to those around us, or even worse, the ones we see on TV?

I believe we all have great stories. We all have moments when things impact us, tranform our way of thinking and cause permanent changes in the way we view the world. I believe the thing we lack is not the content to tell compelling stories, but rather the courage to share ourselves with the world around us.

Instead of sharing our lives, our stories, our experiences - we reduce our existence to theories and intellectual ideas. But here lies the problem. Ideas have never changed the world! Theories only point us to what might be, they speak of the possible. But until we take an idea to task, and enter into it's experience, it is simply something with great potential and nothing more. On the other hand, stories (at least true ones) provide us with proof of the possible, that something is more than an idea. It is real. How do we know that? Because we know somebody who has experienced it first hand. And so stories build in us the faith to believe in greater things - greater things that capture our minds, hearts and imaginations. So instead of trying to sell an idea, we have engaged peoples souls! That is the power of story.

A few days ago I experienced the power of story first hand. I had two friends who were preparing to teach about the promises of God.

One friend was preparing to teach on the promise that Jesus loves us! That we can stake our life on his unfailling love for us. The teach was full of truth, but it just seemed like good ideas or wishful thinking. So I asked my friend why she felt she could depend on Jesus? Give me some evidence that he is trustworthy! Outside of pulling scripture together to back up your belief, what can you share with me that will compell me to embrace this truth? Or do you simply have an idea, a theory (or perhaps theology)? We had a lengthy converstion, and I have to admit I was not very compelled by what I was hearing.

Contrast that with another friend who was doing a chapel for high school students that same day. He was also faced with the task of engaging his audience, and he was somewhat afraid that he might not captivate them. After all, he is just beginning to serve as a preacher/teacher and is short on experience. How could he expound the scriptures to these young minds? Was he equipped? Would he be engaging? How could he share this profound truth that when we confess our sins that God is faithful to heal us?

His response to those questions was this - he chose to communicate the most compelling part of his knowledge - his story! It is a story that tells of a remarkable journey of healing. Healing from emotional wounds, physical problems and spiritual bondage. But most importantly, it gave evidence to the truth that when we confess our sins and pray for one another, we will experience healing. The audience was captivated by his sharing, so much so that at the end he told them another story of how he experienced healing. In the end he had captured his audience and I would hazard a guess that he sparked some faith within their hearts. They hadn't heard empty religious rhetoric, they had encountered the evidence of faith.

Now before you think that one friend failed and one triumphed I must tell you this...after some encouragement, my first friend started to tell her story. At first it was difficult for her, but soon the outer shell cracked and everyone present began to understand why she felt so strongly about this truth. In sharing her story I became captivated by it. It drew me in and I now have a longing to hear more of her story, more about her experience. I want to hear the evidence of her faith! How Jesus has become real for her.

Stories captivate us by giving us the evidence our hearts crave.

In a court of law, the council is given the task of proving their case. Most of the time lawyers present theories, ideas and possibilities - hoping to convince the judge and jury of their position. But most often, the thing that proves to be of most value is the testimony of witnesses. It is their words, their experience, that compells us to believe them. After all, they have first hand knowledge of the situation. I believe the world is looking for this kind of evidence. Evidence of a real God who cares about our lives. Evidence of new life. Evidence of transformation. It is not evidence that we can manufacture, it is received when we step out in faith. It is invaluable, but only if we have the courage to tell our story. If we don't take the stand and testify, our evidence is worthless and justice will not be served.

But a word of caution, there are many people who would prefer to tell the stories of others. (Much like J. Peterman from Seinfeld who ran out of good stories so he bought better ones from Kramer.) But they are of little value compared to your own stories. Because your stories are deeply rooted in your soul, they burn with emotion and sincerity. Your story will change the world.

So here's to captivating the world by our stories and providing evidence of God's unfailing love for us. I know that through it you can change the world - Jesus did!