From my current devotional reading, A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie:

O Omnipresent One, beneath whose all-seeing eye our mortal lives are passed, grant that in all my deeds and purposes today I may behave with true courtesy and honor.  Let me be just and true in all my dealings.  Let no [...]]]>

From my current devotional reading, A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie:

O Omnipresent One, beneath whose all-seeing eye our mortal lives are passed, grant that in all my deeds and purposes today I may behave with true courtesy and honor.  Let me be just and true in all my dealings.  Let no mean or low thought have a moment’s place in my mind.  Let my motives be transparent to all.  Let my word be my bod.  Let me take no unchivalrous advantage of anybody.  Let me be generous in my judgement of others.  Let me be disinterested in my opinions.  Let me be loyal to my friends and magnanimous to my opponents.  Let me face adversity with courage.  Let me not ask or expect too much for myself.

Yet, O Lord God, let me not rest content with such an ideal of manhood as men have known apart from Christ.  Rather let such a mind be in me as was in Him.  Let me not rest till I come to the stature of HIs own fullness.  Let me listen to Christ’s question: What do you more than others?  And so may the threefold Christian graces of faith, hope, and love be more and more formed within me, until all my walk and conversation be such as becometh the gospel of Christ.

O Thou whose love to man was proven in the passion and death of Jesus Christ our Lord, let the power of His Cross be with me today.  Let me love as He loved.  Let my obedience be unto death.  In leaning upon His Cross, let me not refuse my own; yet in bearing mine, let me bear it by the strength of His.

O Thou who hast set the solitary in families, I crave Thy heavenly blessing also for all the members of this household, all my neighbors, and all my fellow citizens.  Let Christ rule in every heart and His law be honored in every home.  Let every knee be bent before Him and every tongue confess that He is Lord.  Amen.

This had to be one of my all time favorite midwinters.  Great ministry happened, lots of [...]]]> It’s Thursday evening and I’m flying over the Rockies on my way home to the family.  Taking a break from message prep (big Sunday – new location, and first ever Sunday am service) to record a couple of thoughts.

This had to be one of my all time favorite midwinters.  Great ministry happened, lots of holy moments, lots of laughter.  The laughter – those had to be my favorite parts.  I spent rich time with friends eating, talking, praying, a tear here and there, laughing, much of it over some great local microbrew.  (Total meals eaten: 9.  Total that were free to me: 7.  Perhaps my best midwinter food score ever.)

There is something special that happens when pastors are together.  You never have to explain either the pains or the joys, just state them.  Heads nod and eyes convey understanding – they just automatically get it.  There are a lot of studies out there that talk about how lonely pastors often are (their wives too).  Usually this isn’t from an absence of friends so much as an absence of understanding.  When you are with other pastors, you’re automatically understood – you very quickly feel known.  What a grace, what fellowship.

Three more hours until home, my wife, and little girls who can’t wait to hug me.  This too is spiritual.

Not to brag, but my scorecard so far is looking [...]]]> I think the real goal of all church planters at Midwinter is to see how much free food they can consume.  And they should, and normally do, pursue this with not the least bit of shame but as the sacred quest that it truly is.

Not to brag, but my scorecard so far is looking pretty good:

Monday dinner: opening banquet

Tuesday breakfast: eggs and potatoes at a coaches’ meeting

Tuesday lunch: Giordano’s amazing stuffed pizza with Pacific Southwest church planting crew

Tuesday dinner: alas, I had to buy my own meal

Tuesday late night snack: church planter reception

And I’m just getting warmed up . . .

But it was a great day of ministry and fellowship.  Led a great meeting this morning for our coaches – it’s great to know you’ve got the right people in the room, and we do.  Praise God for the gifted men and women stepping into this role.  Then this afternoon I taught a workshop based on my book to a nice full room of pastors and leaders.  Great interaction, great people.  Finished the day with some exceptional pasta and wine with good friends, and a late night party with way more church planters than fire codes would legally allow in a hotel suite.  Like a family reunion.  Grace.

The weather is unseasonably warm this year.  I showed up ready to [...]]]> I’ve arrived in Chicago, bright eyed and ready for our denomination’s annual Midwinter Conference.  I love this event.  Between sessions with great speakers and worship I get to hang out with some great pastoral types – some of my best friends in fact.

The weather is unseasonably warm this year.  I showed up ready to test the limits of my new winter coat, only to find that the lowest the temp will get is in the 30’s.  I shouldn’t complain.  Last year we had the worst blizzard since 1967 and by the end of day one I’d lost two toes.

The event will start tonight with dinner and a worship service.  As veterans of many wedding receptions, we’re all more than equipped to play “guess the chicken” before dinner is served.  Some are swinging wildly, predicting teriyaki, cordon bleu, or some (imagine) even think it will be beef.  No way any of those are right.  I’m going with chicken in a nice mushroom sauce with sautéed vegetables and a rice pilaf.  This isn’t my first rodeo.

O God, who hast proven Thy love for mankind by sending us Jesus Christ our Lord, and has illumined our human life by the radiance of His presence, I give Thee thanks for this Thy greatest gift.

For my Lord’s days upon [...]]]> From my current devotional reading, A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie:

O God, who hast proven Thy love for mankind
by sending us Jesus Christ our Lord,
and has illumined our human life by the radiance of His presence,
I give Thee thanks for this Thy greatest gift.

For my Lord’s days upon the earth:
For the record of His deeds of love:
For the words He spoke for my guidance and help:
For His obedience unto death:
For His triumph over death:
For the presence of His Spirit with me now:
I thank Thee, O God.

Grant that the remembrance of the blessed Life
that once was lived out on this common earth
under these ordinary skies may remain with me
in all the tasks and duties of this day.

Let me remember:

His eagerness , not to be ministered unto, but to minister:
His sympathy with suffering of every kind:
His bravery in face of His own suffering:
His meekness of bearing, so that, when reviled, He reviled not again:
His steadiness of purpose in keeping to His appointed task:
His simplicity:
His self-discipline:
His serenity of spirit:
His complete reliance upon Thee, His Father in Heaven.
And in each of these ways give me grace to follow in His footsteps.

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
I commit all my ways unto Thee.
I make over my soul to Thy keeping.
I pledge my life to Thy service.
May this day be for me a day of obedience and of charity,
a day of happiness and of peace.
May all my walk and conversation be such
that becometh the gospel of Christ. Amen.

The output of our work should be a function of our priorities as “workers” in God’s Kingdom. Let’s remind ourselves of [...]]]> My friend Steve is leading a particularly rich men’s group in our church around the topic of God and our work.  Below is his latest communiqué – valuable for pastors and laity alike.

The output of our work should be a function of our priorities as “workers” in God’s Kingdom. Let’s remind ourselves of the priorities Scripture gives us:

Read Matt. 22:35-38 and Col. 3:17

Glorify or worship God through your work – this must come before we “love our neighbors as ourselves.” Why?

[Dorothy] Sayers suggests that if we work to serve “our neighbor” as first priority it moves us off the sense that the work in and of itself is given us to do to please God as an expression of our unique being and purpose. She cites several consequences of this (talk about examples of these you’ve seen at work):

1. Poor Quality – “You cannot do good work if you take your mind off the work to see how the community is taking it – any more than you can make a good drive from the tee if you take your eye off the ball. ‘Blessed are the single hearted’: (for that is the real meaning of the word we translate ‘the pure in heart’). If your heart is not wholly in the work, the work will not be good – and work that is not good serves neither God nor the community; it only serves mammon.”

2. Entitlement – “The second reason is that the moment you think of serving other people, you begin to have a notion that other people owe you something for your pains; you begin to think that you have a claim on the community. You will begin to bargain for reward, to angle for applause, and to harbor a grievance if you are not appreciated. But if your mind is set upon serving the work, then you know you have nothing to look for; the only reward the work can give you is the satisfaction of beholding its perfection. The work takes all and gives nothing but itself; and to serve the work is a labor of pure love.”

3. People Pleasing – “Nine-tenths of the bad plays put on in theaters owe their badness to the fact that the playwright has aimed at pleasing the audience, instead of at producing a good and satisfactory play. Instead of doing the work as its own integrity demands that it should be done, he has falsified the play by putting in this or that which he thinks will appeal to the groundlings (who by that time have probably come to want something else), and the play fails by its insincerity. The work has been falsified to please the public, and in the end even the public is not pleased. As it is with works of art, so it is with all work.”

Think about God’s pronouncement at the end of each day’s work during the work week we pattern all work weeks after – the week of creation. If we focused our work with the goal of finishing each day with our own pronouncement of “it is good,” how might that change our way of approaching our work?

Pray for each other that God will give you focus this week as you seek to worship Him through your work.

Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of You, let my first impulse be to worship You, let my first speech be Your name, let my first action be to kneel before You in prayer.

For Your perfect [...]]]> From my current devotional reading, A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie:

Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of You, let my first impulse be to worship You, let my first speech be Your name, let my first action be to kneel before You in prayer.

For Your perfect wisdom and perfect goodness:

For the love with which You love mankind:

For the love with which You love me:

For the great and mysterious opportunity of my life:

For the indwelling of your Spirit in my heart:

For the sevenfold gifts of your Spirit:

I praise and worship You, O Lord.

Yet let me not, when this morning prayer is said, think my worship ended and spend the day in forgetfulness of You.  Rather from these moments of quietness let light go forth, and joy, and power, that will remain with me through all the hours of the day;

Keeping me chaste in thought:

Keeping me temperate and truthful in speech:

Keeping me faithful and diligent in my work:

Keeping me humble in my estimation of myself:

Keeping me honorable and generous in my dealings with others:

Keeping me loyal to every hallowed memory of the past:

Keeping me mindful of my eternal destiny as a child of Yours.

Through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and [...]]]> This morning I was praying through a challenge we are currently navigating, and the Lord brought this passage to mind:

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.  (2 Tim 2:22–26)

Everyone who leads will face opposition.  We can wish it were otherwise, but this is part of our reality this side of heaven.  The fleas come with the dog, so to speak. 

When facing opposition it is all too easy to become angry and mistreat those who oppose you.  To seek to overpower those who would oppose you through political maneuvering, belittling or speaking ill of them, to simply marginalize or replace those who prove difficult to lead – leaders need to recognize these as real temptations and run away. 

The saints who have come before us presciently warned that the three biggest challenges to the spiritual life are sex, money, and power.  The temptations of sex and money – lust, covetousness, greed, materialism – are typically pretty easy for us to see.  But sins that deal with power are another story.  The leader who dominates others, is prone to outbursts of anger, or who quietly but deliberately plants seeds of doubt about his opponents is rarely corrected, and in fact is sometimes praised as a strong leader!

I once heard Dallas Willard say, “Jesus is looking for men and women he can trust with power.”  This is a pretty good description of spiritual leadership, isn’t it?  We as leaders wield tremendous power, and we need to seek God to shape us into those who will use it wisely. 

That’s how I read Paul’s words to Timothy:

Pursue growth in Jesus – “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace . . .”  Are we seeking him first?  Are we growing?  Are we men and women of the Word, of prayer, worshipers, servants?  This is the primary task of every leader.

Choose your battles – “Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.”  Make good choices.  Quarrelsomeness is opposed to servanthood.  Don’t go down paths that will lead to battles not worth fighting.

Keep your heart clean – “the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”  Forgive quickly.  Don’t allow yourself the luxury of holding a grudge.  Give no quarter to bitterness.  (How difficult is this?  I know of no better way to do cultivate a graceful heart than the daily praying of the Lord’s Prayer and praying for those with whom we are angry.)

Teach gently – “Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth . . .”  Don’t lash out, build a coalition against the person, try to overpower or outmaneuver.  Be patient and deliberate.  Gently instruct.  Truth communicated in love, not power, is what is needed.

Know your true enemy – “ . . . and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.”  Your good hearted opponent is not the enemy, Satan is (caveat: I say good hearted on the assumption that the majority of our opposition is.  Those who are truly divisive are a different story – see Titus 3:10-11).  And the Enemy is at work sowing seeds of discord, stirring up strife, trying to splinter a church’s unity.  Do we fix this by making a power move?  Yes and no.  We make the biggest power move of all – we pray.  We love.  We gently instruct.  And we trust that as we keep ourselves right, the God who love his Church will be responsible to keep others right as well.

May the Lord of the church, who loves us as and gave himself for us, who is gracious with us in our failings, give us grace for those good saints with whom we find ourselves in opposition.

1.) Lift up the Importance of Education

Too many young people have no sense of the lives sacrificed for integrated schools and access to higher education.

2.) Lift up the Importance of Participation in Democracy

Lives were also sacrificed for the right [...]]]> 10 Ways to Honor Dr Martin Luther King, from my friend Efrem Smith:

1.) Lift up the Importance of Education

Too many young people have no sense of the lives sacrificed for integrated schools and access to higher education.

2.) Lift up the Importance of Participation in Democracy

Lives were also sacrificed for the right to vote for all citizens

3.) Lift up the Beloved Community

This was Dr. King bringing the vision and values of the Kingdom of God into the mainstream of the nation. It’s also a wake-up call to the church to connect evangelism and justice.

4.) Plant and Develop Multi-ethnic and Missional Churches

11:00am on Sunday morning still remains a segregated hour in too many churches

5.) Study Matthew 25:31-40

Develop an understanding that the first drum major for justice was Jesus

6.) Teach little children the stories of Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges in church Sunday School classes.

(Especially in non African-American churches)

7.) Go to Washington D.C. with your family and see the monument in his honor.

Hold me accountable to this one.

8.) Develop a serious and fruitful friendship with someone of another ethnicity/race.

9.) Explore deeply and confess your own racism, prejudice, sexism, and neglect of the poor.

10.) Thank God for how far we’ve come.

We’re not where we should be, but don’t act like God hasn’t brought us a mighty long way. Balance your lament with praise.

I’ll add a bonus #11 – last night when I got home from worship I watched The Help.  Amazing film, cried like a baby, made me appreciate all the more the injustice and dehumanization that has been (and too often still is) part of the black experience in America.