Best not because of the messages or event after the services.
"One" of the best because of the action step of CONNECTION. The breakfast at our 9:00 AM serving hundreds of people was off the hook. So many people have been able to just simply connect. And aren't the shorter services a good thing?
The dunk tank raised over $400.00 for Staci. She is the lady who was attacked on the Max train (who goes to Living Hope) just days ago. She is a single mom of 3 and people are calling her a hero. Stepping in to be beat up? I say that qualifies.
I love the heart of friendship. I love the sacrifice of friendship. I love the messy acceptance of friendship. I love that friendship takes time and I love that we can give the gift of encouragement. It is always too soon to quit.
I love that hundreds signed up to be part of our LIFE CLUBS or LIFE GROUPS. Affinity and Community. I hope you decide to hook up.
Health in a local church is less about attendance and MORE about attachment. Friendship coupled with faith becomes a dangerous thing.
When everyone else walks out, your true friends walk in.
Been thinking alot about friends in my life. About those few people who are willing to do the Hebrews 10 thing. To "spur" on to love and good deeds. OR better translated to irritate, to agitate or provoke.....TO love and good deeds.
I love that. That is what we all have to be doing in those precious and priceless friendships.
Loved Katie and her friend Tori's song.
Loved the dunk tank. Mostly because I wasn't scheduled.
Good weekend. Good stuff.
Find ways to encourage your friends.
LOVE THE LIFE CLUBS. Did you see the video? You all did good. I am still smiling.
I love the Bible. I love the stories of real people who made ripples because of their faith. In fact their stories have marked us. Their examples have inspired us and their mistakes have helped us.
What makes the difference? I think the choices we make are hypercritical in becoming who God has intended us to be. Our lives are marked by the choices we make. Think about it. We have the freedom to make a choice, then the choice over time makes us.
I think the choices we make in some ways are directly connected to our faith in God. In other words, we shrink back from making the right choice because we can't see the future. I think our faith in God grows or shrinks partly because of the friendships we have in our lives.
So often we will either trust our plan or God's hand.
I was reading in Hebrews today, thinking about that group of real people, who lived in the first century and who had stories, and experiences and choices...
Chapter 10 is about persevering in your faith. In the case of the early church, many of them were tempted to go back to Judaism. The early Christians whom Hebrews was written to were basically trying to go back to the "old ways or systems" because of persecution and difficult circumstances. They drifted. They lost heart. They lost confidence. They stopped seeing what God was doing.
Seems sometimes when I can't "see" I will go back to something I know. Peter failed and went back to fishing (for instance).
As I make choices, I am learning the value of those few trusted friends who have my back, who I allow to have my ear and who eventually get to my heart. Friends directly affect the direction and quality of our lives because they help us make the choices we make.
Verse 24 of chapter 10 says, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds."
The "and" connects us to the previous verses which tell us to draw close to God. To walk by faith. To trust God. To believe the story is real.
Faith changes us, and really changes those around us. So often I think I "need" friends, but lately I am realizing how much friends need me.
Faith is about making ripples. Ripples are about making history.
Faith is today's hope of tomorrow's reality. Friends help us see what we can't see.
I wrote this in my Bible about faith, "Go as far as you know to go, then take one more step".
Friends help me take the step I can't take. They help me see what I can't see. They help my faith, which makes a ripple, which changes history.
The Bible. 66 books, 40 authors, 3 languages, written over 1600 years. Yet one unfolding plan of God. A plan to fix what was screwed up by...choices.
A plan to redeem what has been broken and restore what has been messed up. A plan to save us from our....choices.
It is simple. Will the choice I am about to make be about "my plan" or resting in "God's hand?"
I am so excited to hear that we have launched our second campus in the Philippines. It is called "Living Hope Metro Church."
Pastor Ildefonso Alfarara (Ilde) is our regional director for the church plants in the Cebu area. Pastor Becipe Olojan is working with Ilde to establish a network of Living Hope churches throughout the country. Pray for them, as they secure and plant the third church in the next few months.
Pastor Ilde has been to Living Hope USA (our Brush Prairie campus) last summer and is very excited to partner with Living Hope and evangelize the Philippines. There have been many plans during the last 12 months, and to see God bringing fruit is pretty cool.
Religion has stifled much of the church in the Philippines, so to see a new generation of people finding freedom in Christ and grace that prevails is awesome.
Pastor Ilde sent me an e-mail in March of this year, giving a report of all that God was doing. One of the things he said was that, "In our church planting movement, the phrase, 'Living Hope,' is now the favorite church planting title." He goes on in the e-mail to share about a Living Hope Church plant on a remote island that serves a mostly Muslim population.
I pray God restores a sense of first century mission and purpose. I love that we can be one church in different locations. Even different countries. A church unified in purpose although separated culturally and geographically. A church that is focused on winning the world for Christ.
Please continue to pray for our friends and fellow pastors in the Philippines as they are still in the middle of severe flooding from the recent typhoon.
LIVING HOPE CHURCH, PHILIPPINES (1ST CAMPUS LAUNCHED MAY THIS YEAR)
LIVING HOPE METRO CHURCH, PHILIPPINES (SECOND CAMPUS LAUNCHED JUNE 22ND 2008)
Below are pictures of the newest campus in the Philippines. THIS WAS THE FIRST OF SEVERAL SOFT LAUNCH WEEKENDS. The campus is located downtown Cebu.
They expected 40 people on the opening weekend, prayed that God would bring 80 people and 100 people showed up. I would say ONLY GOD, wouldn't you?
This weekend was one of those off the hook weekends. LOVED IT.
I am calling this THE SUMMER OF CONNECTIONS. ALL summer we will focus on connecting with each other in meaningful, life-giving relationships.
To start it off, we began a new 4 week series called R WE FRENDZ ?
For three of the four weeks I am going to spend time looking at the most famous (and perhaps the best) friendship in all of history.
Jonathan and David. What made their friendship work so amazingly? Why was David never the same again after Jonathan died? I think because Jonathan's loyalty and love simply and profoundly changed David.
We will unpack what the Bible says about friendship and connection. This week the message was called "A Dangerous Friendship".
Great friendships always cost us something. I believe not having great friends costs us far more.
I want to thank all the campuses and volunteers. We purposely programmed a 30 minute SHORTER service in order for everyone to risk meeting someone. I think we had a few thousand hot dogs and hamburgers, chips and lemonade. All of our campuses did a connection BBQ. It was one of the funnest weekends I can remember in a long time.
I spent the better part of an hour after each of our weekend services meeting people. It was so so so encouraging. People that have been going to Living Hope for (in some cases) years who I haven't been able to meet or "connect" with.
The summer will be awesome at Living Hope. We handed out a calendar that includes numerous opportunities for connection.
The first thing about friendship in looking at Jonathan and David is that their friendship was INTENTIONAL and UNCONVENTIONAL at the same time.
So often in allowing God to bring people into our lives, we fail to take a step of being intentional. Mostly because when we are intentional there is a risk of rejection attached to our choice.
Almost everyone this weekend took a risk to "meet" someone. It was pretty cool. We even did our first NAME TAG weekend in like 9 years.
Jonathan's commitment to David wasn't a two way street, at least at first. It cost him everything, and eventually even his life. Jonathan had everything and gave it all up for David. Jonathan saw in David what God was doing. Jonathan sacrificed who he was, who he would become and everything he had for David. He made a covenant. He went first. He risked. In Hebrew language a covenant meant "their hearts were chained together".
Jonathan was the heir to the throne of Israel. He would have been the second King in the nation of Israel. He gave it up because in essence God had made a choice. Jonathan decided to be about what God was up to, more than holding on to his "plans".
I love that. How unconventional is that? How God-honoring was his life?
SO OFTEN we fail to see what God is doing and we try to make things be what we want them to be or think they should be.
This week we made a step toward being a church that will INTENTIONALLY connect with each other. I am excited about this series. We are going to connect all summer and will have BBQs at all of our local campuses during this series for the next three weeks.
If you can, be here for the series. I believe that God will do what only He can do when we do the next thing that is right.
INTENTIONAL CONNECTION is the first step toward a friendship that will change your life.
My thought is this: IF you know someone is loyal to you (in other words they love you and have your back), you will eventually let them have your ear. In other words you will listen to people who accept you and love you. WHEN they get your ear, by default they will eventually get your heart. WHO gets your heart, changes your life.
A FRIEND STEPS IN WHEN EVERYONE ELSE STEPS OUT. Proverbs 17:17 says, "A friend is always loyal...."
A friend is someone who (because they have your ear) will strategically and sometimes surgically speak into your life. In our lives, there is NEVER change without challenge. It comes down to who we listen to. For students, I hope to address the problem with negative influence. I was talking to Hannah today. We are free to make choices in life, but then over time those same choices make us.
A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you today just the way you are.
It is a kind of messy acceptance that begins and sustains a friendship!
When that kind of relationship happens, it is simply a gift from God. When that happens, lock in and allow God to work. When that happens, you probably ought to pause and tell those friends THANK YOU.
I am a blessed guy to have a few people in my life that have been like Jonathan to me. I have been pretty humbled this week thinking about a few people who because of their love have changed my life. Friends do that. They not only change the direction of your life, but also change the quality of your life.
I can't wait for this weekend. Then next weekend our campus pastors are going to share their friendship stories and I will wrap up the series in a couple weeks with a talk called "Blood Brothers".
God is so good to us. BBQ this weekend. Every campus, every service. Still not sure about BBQ after the 9:00 AM service???? Who knows, maybe we can be creative. If not, bring Pepcid AC.
Excited as we seek to become a church that is both FULLY DEVOTED TO CHRIST and FULLY CONNECTED TO EACH OTHER.
Cheers!
JOHN
PS
1. My grandpa is finally home. He is on oxygen and doing better. THANK YOU for your prayers. You have no idea how much it means to our family.
2. The Bucket Offering that came in to revamp and revision KidsWorld was good. The KidsWorld team is excited and I want to say thanks for giving above and beyond.
3. This weekend we are going to launch a new thing at Living Hope called "LIFE CLUBS". E-mail your three top things you love, like hobbies or interests.
Amazing week. My daughter Katie graduated from High School this week. I was scheduled to "speak" at the graduation but quickly realized that once I heard her 3 minute speech, I had nothing to say, except how incredibly proud I am of her, and who she has become in Christ.
Thanks to everyone who has invested in Katie. Teachers, friends, aunts and uncles, grandparents and everyone in between.
Listen to her talk. You will be blessed. Her generation will do amazing things in our lifetime and I hope to be part of it.
Sitting at my desk this morning I was reflecting and praying for different people I know who aren't doing all that well.
I think so often how it is hard to pause during pain to tell God how we feel. It is hard in difficult times to wait on God.
I can't believe how many waiting rooms I have been in. Waiting to hear if someone made it, waiting to hear from the doctor a good report. Waiting is one of the most difficult things we can ever or will ever do. Because really in waiting you are doing nothing. If you are truly waiting on God, you are doing everything.
If you are in a season of waiting, let me encourage you. God knows. God is in control. God will walk with you through whatever it is you are going through. He is for you, and has good plans for your life.
Two things that I have learned to do and two things I see in the life of David, who is the only one the Bible says is a "man after God's own heart."
FIRST. I have learned to tell God really how I feel. Not some over-Christianized attempt at trying to pray myself into being OK, but telling God. Really really how much I hurt, or why I am mad at him, or how I don't like the situation. To be in pain and to pray inauthentically is a tragic mistake. It isn't real and it won't help. God knows. He wants you to tell him.
So many of the Psalms are Psalms of Lament. To lament is to complain. To tell someone. It is only in waiting I know how much God is in control. For me, the times I DON'T tell God how I feel (as if He doesn't know?), then I carry the weight of the problem on my life.
True relief comes not through the problem being resolved but in placing my hope in God alone.
SECOND. I have learned that God can be trusted. He and He alone will be the One that will walk us through stuff we are going through. When I had cancer, it was ONLY GOD that healed my body. Those times are critical hinge points of everything else about your life. The times you wait and He alone shows up. The times you cry out and He answers. The times you are hurt and He brings healing to your body. The more times you have this God-showing-up moment, the more your faith will intersect with His faithfulness. Make sense?
I was reading Psalm 62. You see in this and many of the Psalms a level of honest confidence. In other words, you see both telling God and trusting God.
During the writing of Psalm 61 and 62 you see honest confidence. It was a time in David's life (2 Samuel 15-18), when his own son, Absalom, was rebelling against him and tried to kill him.
Notice David's honest confidence. Notice the deep trust? That comes from trusting God over and over and over. It is a relational thing, not a religious thing:
"I wait quietly before God, for my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken." Psalm 62:1-2
Now, if you read Psalm 61, David is in the same situation and he TELLS GOD how he feels.
Listen to what he says in verses 1 and 2. "O God, listen to my cry! Hear my prayer! From the ends of earth, I will cry to you for help, for my heart is overwhelmed..." Psalm 61:1-2a
I love that. A man after God's own heart isn't a man who charges in but one who waits on God. A student who pauses to listen, to trust, but is close enough to God he or she can tell God how they feel.
If you are in a season of waiting, I am sorry. I can tell you this. Tell God how you feel, and trust God to lead you to what is next. Choose to wait on God.
Wait in the Hebrew means "to await with confidence and patience". It carries the idea that we are to live in constant expectation.
In seasons of confusion, the tendency is in all of us to run into the operating room and deal with things ourselves. And sometimes in waiting, we quit. That is our tendency because we are human. That is our tendency because we cannot see what ONLY GOD can see. That is our tendency because of the culture we all live in.
It is in doing the one next right thing (sometimes it is only to breathe) and trust God. He will show up. Will you wait on Him is the only (real) question?
The two things I learned. I learned from what David said and what I learned to do. I am not there yet (by a long shot), but David is teaching me and God is with me.
Will you tell Him and can you trust Him?
Listen to David's words again in Psalm 62:
"I wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me." Psalm 62:5-7
Waiting works. Doesn't make sense but neither does faith.
THIS WEEKEND we are pausing to celebrate the graduates, kick off summer and learn the value of friendship at ALL THE CAMPUSES.
You won't want to miss the largest BBQ in the history of Living Hope Church. Donations of hamburgers, hot dogs, buns and all the stuff will be appreciated. Call the church office, buy frozen burgers or dogs and bring them as soon as you are able. This will be the Barbeque of all barbeques. The connection event of the year. The place to be. We are kicking off summer, a new series and thanking God for each other. Bring the graduates, bring the neighbors, bring the dogs (hot dogs...), and lawn chairs, and frisbees (and baseball stuff) and we will have a summer kick off that will be the event to remember for the rest of our lives.
EVERY CAMPUS, EVERY PERSON, EVERY REASON.
See you there. Services will be good and short-er to accommodate our connection event.
Also, if you are a BBQ guy or gal, show up and help us! Call the office, call your friends, and call it a good time.
Seriously, I think as we begin summer we ought to pause to connect. Not sure of all the details. Sounds good, but without you we cannot connect. Without connecting we aren't being the church. Without being the church we ought to just e-bay stuff and go home.
This past weekend (Father's Day) we spent some time wrapping up the last installment of "ROCK STAR."
The message was about the importance of our legacy and specifically how to lead a legacy, and to now begin changing the future.
Legacy is a process, not an event. It is about a life, not something that happens overnight. Legacy is both personal and generational.
In Paul's first letter to his young pastor friend, Timothy, he lays out some specific things that build, create and lead a legacy.
I posted this verse earlier and want to share about these five things that Paul talks about.
He says, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity." 1 Timothy 4:12
Interestingly the word for example is translated "pattern" and I would say a pattern is clearly a legacy. Paul tells Timothy to set an example. In other words, be proactive and initiate now different patterns in our families, our lives and our workplaces. Lead a legacy. Begin today. We do not have to become absorbed with the past to the point we forget about today and the future.
I have been thinking alot about those five things. Words, life, love, purity and faith.
The first thing Paul talked about was words. In the Greek he isn't talking about how to speak (like teaching or preaching). Some people believe that about this verse, but in the context and looking at the original word you quickly find out he is talking about how we talk to each other. I said yesterday that really what comes out of our mouth is from our heart. Jesus said "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." Matthew 12:34 If you want to know what is true about your heart, do the word trail thing. Seriously. If, for instance, there is anger always coming from you, then you can know in your heart it is because you are hurt, frustrated or have fear. Anger is a secondary emotion, and trailed back you can get to the root of what is real. WHEN you get to that, you can deal with what is real so much better. It is amazing to me that Paul puts words first. I don't think by accident. I think words are so critical in our lives. Words leave legacies. Think about your life. Read Ephesians 4:29, a power passage about not allowing anything unwholesome to come out of our mouths. Begin today and lead a legacy of words that build up and encourage those around you.
Paul says secondly to set an example....in how you live. Our life is our personal value system. Who you are gets passed on to who is around you. I talked about my grandpa yesterday. I guess my message was a bit of a tribute to a man whose values have been imparted to me. His life is about people. Simply and honestly. Growing up I remember people at our house, and I remember my grandpa sharing everything he had with whoever was around. I remember his total kindness, and real acceptance. I shared about a time in my life when I experienced acceptance. Long story, involved a car, but how he responded to my mistake truly changed my life. That is what leading a legacy is all about. What really matters? What is worth fighting for? Are you only about being right or are you about people? If you are about people you can't influence them without accepting them. We are in the image of God, and Jesus accepts us most and knows us most.
The third thing is to set an example....in your love. Talking about the image of God, He loves but is also the essence of love. To love isn't the "feel good" emotional thing. Love is the most important thing (or ought to be) about our lives, and yet we use the word love to talk about both people and food. To love is to give up your needs for someone else's needs. Jesus said it best, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13 Loving means sacrificing. To love is to die to self. What I love most about Jesus is He didn't just say it. He did it. That is leading a legacy. He told us, but more than that really did die for us. He loves us more than we will ever in our lives love someone else. He knows you best and He loves you most. I got to watch my grandpa love his wife, sacrifice for her and give to her for most of my life.
The fourth thing is to set an example....in faith. Faith here is different than the word believe. The primary audience or first context is this is a letter written to a pastor. Paul was talking here about staying the course. He was teaching his young friend that when trials come (and they will), to maintain his faith. In other words, in order to lead a legacy, we have to learn not to quit. In my life as a pastor, I have watched people in tough, even painful circumstances just quit too soon. Because we are limited by space and time, we can't see what God can see. Because we can't see what God sees, we miss what He is trying to do in our lives. We talk about this alot. If your faith is not tested it is a faith that can't be trusted. God wants your faith to grow. It is in our weakness that He is made strong. I am seeing in my grandpa even faith to face death. He is 86 years old and has only been a Christian for 12 years. I am so proud that even in his young faith he is trusting God for what ONLY GOD knows and sees.
Corrie Ten Boom said "Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for only a future He can see." I love that.
The last thing in Paul's list to Timothy is to set an example....in purity. The word he uses here is the Greek word, Hagneia (purity), which refers primarily to purity in the area of sexuality, both in actions and the intentions of the heart. Nothing so ravages a ministry or a life as sexual impurity. So many relationships get strained and even destroyed because of this one thing. Leading a legacy is beginning to live different. Purity matters....ALOT. I am blessed to have seen relational purity in my grandpa. He set an example, I hope I can do the same for my kids.
Thanks Pop. You have done well and are doing well. I love you more than words can ever begin to explain.
To everyone else. Everything about you matters. Your words, your life, your love, your faith and your purity. We all have one shot.
"the formal completion of an instructional program."
I wanted to pause and thank God for all of the different students who are graduating this month. Can't you remember graduation like it was yesterday? For some of you, maybe it was last year, or twenty years ago, or...?
So many people see graduation as an end, but I guess being the eternal optimist I see it as the beginning. End twelve (long) years of education to move into a career, a college dorm room, the mission field, or for some a season of resting and catching your breath.
Whatever it is for you, I am proud of you for finishing.
I was thinking....
It is never too late to finish. While there is breath in our bodies we can fight. We can stay faithful. We can finish. We ought to trust God to finish what He started in our lives. As a pastor, the one thing I have seen over and over and over, is because of circumstances, people always quit too soon.
We quit in our marriages, we quit going to churches, we quit in our friendships, we quit at our jobs, we even quit at school. In fact, we quit on God as well.
We quit because we can't see what God sees. If we could see what is true, how much we are loved, how much He is there, and how much He is for us, I think the quit ratio would be a little less.
Philippians 1:6 says, "And I am sure that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back agan."
Paul was certain that ONLY GOD would finish in his life what ONLY GOD began...in his life...
Paul wrote a personal letter to a young man who helped to pastor a church in the city of Ephesus. He mentored Timothy, loved him like a son.
Students. Learn from finishing how critical it will be in every area of your life. Our world is riddled with people who quit. Be the generation, like the one my grandpa is from, who learned to stick it out. A generation who lived (and lives) self-less. A generation who trusts God.
Paul told Timothy words that I want to share with you as you finish, and as God isn't finished with you.
"Be an example to all believers in what you teach, in the way you live, in your love, your faith and your purity." 1 Timothy 4:12
You be the example to ALL BELIEVERS..... In fact, be an example to the world. Be salt and light. Be Jesus to the world.
Students, risk boldly, serve humbly, love wrecklessly....
In your life, in your love, in your faith and purity.
Live for the audience of One.
Take your stage students. It is your turn. Do all that you do to the glory of ONLY GOD.
I am proud of you.
John
PS
Here is a picture of my daughter Katie and I dancing at her prom. I wasn't invited, but that has never really stopped me.....
I love when I see something that is the way God meant it to be.
A few cool things happened today.
First, I got to spend the majority of the day with just Michelle. So needed, so appreciated and so good.
Second, I got to spend quality time with my grandpa. Michelle and I went to see him together. Thanks for your prayers. He is pretty tired, but in this rehabilitation facility they are making him work. He had to empty a dishwasher and make coffee. He said he wanted to go home, I told him he was exactly where he needed to be. He smiled at me and said "ok" .
He is a crack up. We were at lunch in their little cafeteria. So my grandpa breaks out singing a song. Promise. Everyone is quiet, eating, and doing what you normally do in rest homes, resting.... There were probably 20 or 25 people eating and he (in between eating his chicken and rice) breaks out singing a song ("All of Me", I think). Then he stops, sort of abruptly, and just starts eating again. A bit of an awkward moment, unless you know how limited your precious time is. I love him so much. He is simply one of the coolest people I have ever met. NO EXPECTATIONS. ALWAYS ENCOURAGING. LOVED BY EVERYONE. SIMPLE.
Just so you know, this has been normal my whole life (the singing thing). He has been the person that has always put the smile on people's faces. He played the saxophone all of the years I grew up. Performed in bands, sang, etc. That is cool, but the breaking out with a song unexpectedly? A couple years ago, I would have been frustrated or maybe even embarrassed. I mean, he has busted out singing in the middle of airports and IN public bathrooms. Isn't there appropriate spontaneous singing, and then other times when you think or even say "what are you doing"? I used to make a distinction. Used to would be the operative thought.
I don't categorize anymore. Sing Pop. Sing wherever, sing whenever and sing to whomever. You go. Sing, dance and make people smile. Maybe that is the way it was supposed to be?
As I was sitting there, I noticed a man and woman sitting by themselves in the corner. The more I sat and watched, the more I was intrigued. Here was this man (who I later found out was named Bill), feeding his almost unresponsive wife. He was so gentle, so attentive, so loving and so careful. I got tears in my eyes because I remembered my grandpa who was married for 65 years to the love of his life. I was intrigued because I believe that is the way it ought to be. I sat there and wondered about their life.
I watched as he gently wiped her mouth, gave her drinks of juice, fed her and eventually began to leave. In fact when she was completely done, he ate the last few bites that she obviously couldn't eat.
I sort of had to know how long they were married. I found out her name was Helen. His name was Bill and they celebrated their 60th anniversary last week.
I got a lump in my throat as I talked to him. I told him thanks. He said "for what exactly?" I said for modeling the way it ought to be. The way God made things to work. I told him thanks for inspiring a "young" guy like me to continue to love and serve my wife. He just simply looked at me and smiled. No words were exchanged and none were needed. He just began to walk away, pushing his bride back to her room.
So, as I left I talked to a couple different people from the nursing staff. I asked about this couple. Both times, the nurses became almost emotional and said things like "Isn't it amazing?" Or, "Aren't they so precious?" One nurse said, "They have been married 60 years, can you believe it?" Another person told me "Bill loves his wife more than I have seen or can explain."
I found out that he is there every single day. I found out she has been there for close to two years. Bill's love for his wife had very obviously made an impact upon the staff that serve her in these last years of her life. Bill's devotion spoke to me in just the few moments I saw the way he focused on her, loved on her, fed her, sat with her and how "it seemed" she was his world, from a relational and human standpoint.
I saw with my own eyes really some stuff that matters and some stuff that doesn't. I felt in my heart the way things ought to be. The selfless love spoke so much to me. His commitment wasn't about "being watched", it was simply about her. He loved his wife. He sacrificed for his wife. He gave up much of his existence for her.
Paul said to the men at the church in Ephesus, "And you husbands must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church. He gave up his life for her." Ephesians 5:25
Thanks Pop. You have done well. Thanks Bill, you still are.
All we have is today. For me, today was a good day.
Cheers to a generation we are losing, who gets so much what matters and what we sometimes miss.....people.
Sing the song, who cares who is listening! Serve your wife, choose to go first. Love her the way Jesus loved the church.
This weekend we are talking about humility and living an others-focused life. As people we have a strong tendency to be selfish - concerned about where we are going, or what we are doing. In light of this, I recently saw a video on youtube.com that was shocking to say the least. It's of a 78 year old man named Angel Torres. The video is from a traffic camera of a hit and run where Angel was left lying on the street for over a minute while people drove by, walked by and just watched without helping. The police chief of Hartford shared how he felt the city had lost it's "moral compass" (click here to read news release). Below you can watch the incident. Notice how people even turn their cars around away from him.
He is in critical condition at Hartford Hospital, and they say he is paralyzed. What I want to do as a church, is flood his life with encouragement. I want to send him cards, banners, flowers, balloons, whatever. Just to let him know we care. The address is below.
Angel Arce Torres is in
Hartford Hospital
80 Seymour Street
Hartford, CT
06102
Influence. This is part two of who knows how many posts about influence.
When I think of Influence, I appreciate different people who have been instrumental in my life. Pastors and leaders like H.B. London or Luis Palau, who have spent time with me, developing my leadership gifIs and have encouraged me. It is so true that acceptance is the key to influence. I will listen so much more to people who I think really accept me where I am, in order to influence to where I "can go."
Twelve years ago I met Bill Hybels (willowcreek.org) at the first church conference I had ever been to in my life. To this day I remember his prayer, that Living Hope would be a church that would prevail. He took the time to pray with Michelle and I. To this day it was a moment that as a leader has changed my life.
One of the verses I remember to this day that has been so important to me is Romans 12:8, "Lead with all diligence."
Influence is that way. For all of us. Haven't we been affected by teachers, pastors, coaches and friends?
Right moments that create right momentum.
Leaders need leaders who have "been there." Leaders who "are there", and leaders who are "going there." In fact, we all need people in our lives to help us. People who influence us. People who help us.
I think our best investment is in others.
For me, not having denominational connections has necessitated relational connections. Pastors like Phil Baker, who has spoken at Living Hope a couple times is a friend who has believed in me, invested in me, encouraged me and helped me. Good relational connection always results in great missional direction.
I really thank God for divine interactions in my life. People who have had influence. I met Ed Young four years ago, at a conference in Dallas called TOTAL ACCESS at Fellowship Church in Dallas. It was a 3 day "behind the scenes" conference that was less "conference" and more personal investment. By far it was the best thing we had ever connected with. Behind the scenes in meetings, the ability to ask questions, the chance to connect with other leaders.
Check out Ed's blog. He is a great leader and Michelle and I really appreciate our friendship with he and Lisa. His out of the box creativity, communication ability and encouragement are instrumental to thousands of pastors.
Recently, we happened to meet up while in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Ed spoke at the church there and later that week we were able to spend some time with Ed and Lisa. He is someone whose influence has changed my life. So many people that I think about, who have spoken words, made time, and changed the direction of my life as a leader, father, pastor, husband or friend.
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." Proverbs 27:17
This is so true for everyone. Everyone needs a positive, encouraging influence in their life. If you don't have one, seek one out. We were not meant to do life alone.
I want to leave you with a video Ed Young took while in Cabo. Part of it is when we first ran into each other at a local church. Pretty cool. Maybe tell him thanks for all he does. Even guys like Ed need to be encouraged.
I was thinking about how much "what" we do can become "who" we are.
Work is a good thing, until it becomes our identity. When work becomes our worth, we are on a path of eventual exhaustion and potential devastation, and possibly burn-out.
I am learning this. In fact I think so often I have been so busy doing work for God that I fail to see the work of God in me.
God set into motion a model or cadence about life in Genesis 2. Between working and resting. Between doing normal stuff and pausing to remember the God who provides for us.
Of course in Genesis, God didn't need to rest. God didn't get exhausted. God didn't have to rest, in fact didn't have to have a day of rest. He could have finished creating and simply said it is finished. He modeled for all of mankind something that would help us in our journey toward freedom, health and perspective.
The fourth commandment. Not the fourth suggestion. AND, interestingly, God has more to say about the Sabbath in Exodus 20 than either murder, stealing or adultery. There is more commentary to this commandment than any of them. I used to not think much about it, but I am convinced it is the cure for burn-out in a person's life. What we keep trying to understand, God already set in motion a rhythm that brings balance and rest to our exhausted lives.
It is important to develop this cadence in our lives. Learning to take a Sabbath becomes a way of living, not just one day a week, but every day of the week.
God knew that our tendency would be to get our worth and valiue from what we "do" more than who we are.
This post is my way of remembering some stuff God did in my heart through the weekend and beyond.
Taking a day a week means I am done with work, even if I am not really done.
It means that I will be fully available to the people in my home. I mean free from electronic "work".
Sabbath is a day to pause and remember that the work we do is good. God saw all that He did and said it was good.
Sabbath is a day to stop work and not miss worship. Not miss gathering with other people to corporately worship God.
A day of the week I get to remember that I will depend on God every day. It is a day to thank God for providing "daily bread".
Sabbath has to become a day where we produce nothing and choose to NOT feel guilty about it later.
Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made to benefit people and not people to benefit the Sabbath." Mark 2:27
Jesus wants to restore our souls with his peace. He knows how tired we are and how vulnerable that makes us.
The one thought that I shared this weekend only at one service is that you will rest one way or the other. God will "make us lie down in green pastures". He will restore our soul.
I just know how much God loves us and rest will happen, but my question to all of us is why not allow Him to restore our souls? I mean, it is what He wants to do and will do. Because He loves us so much, He will make us lie down. Rest for all of us isn't an option. That is how much God loves us.
Why not be proactive? Why not choose to rest and be offensive? It isn't what we will miss, but who we will miss if we never stop the insane pace we are on.
I met so many people this weekend who have been defined by the brick. People, like the Israelites in Exodus 5, who have been so caught up in doing, they have never put the rhytmn in their lives to just be. I met people who had been working 2 or 3 jobs, who were changing. I met dads who had little kids, who I encouraged to change now while they have time. I met people who had so much guilt of what they had become. It was a good weekend. A God-honoring weekend. I hope it becomes a weekly thing in all of our lives.
Stop being defined by the brick.
Sabbath. It is a noun that means "don't work only rest".
It means for us a few things:
TO REST PHYSICALLY. Taking a day to rest physically is so important. I am reading alot about this right now. There are so many statistics that will prove our bodies have to have physical rest. Have to have the proper amount of sleep each day. Psalm 127:2 says, "...God wants his loved ones to get their proper rest."
TO REFOCUS EMOTIONALLY. I think we can get so focused about work, that the emotions our kids need from us have been drained out of us and we come home and have nothing to give. Resting gives us perspective, then our families don't get leftovers. In American history, Sunday has been about primarily two things: Church and Family. Spend time with your husband or wife. Make waffles for your kids.
TO RENEW MENTALLY. Romans 12:2 says, ...be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you will know God's will for your life..." In our series, this has been such a key verse. Renewing our lives begins with renewing our minds. We will all either be pushed by culture or led by Jesus. Your mind is where behaviors begin.
TO RESTORE SPIRITUALLY. This involves the remembering who we are and who God is. He is the God that provides. My work is a gift to me from Him.
I can't help but think. Why wouldn't we love a God who wants us to have rest?
We are not brick machines. We are not defined by what we do. Our activity is not our identity.
I love the words of Jesus, "Come to me all who are weary.....I will give you rest." Matthew 11
God's promise can become our reality. I think that so often we think that our work is the goal and rest is the result. I think the goal ought to be rest. I think it is in those moments I can see so much better because I have eternity planted in my soul, and so do you. When we pause to rest, we end up seeing everything so much better.
The image of God. He rested. When we rest we honor Him and reflect Him and are better because of it.
Yesterday I had a good day to rest and remember. I spent time asking my grandpa questions, I hung out with my kids and I didn't blog, or write sermons or have meetings. I am determined to get this. I can't lead what I don't do.
Also, I am super burdened for pastors. Maybe because I am one? Maybe because I understand the stress and pressure? Maybe because we can't afford for one pastor to leave ministry?
