NFTW #021--A "Kingdom of God" perspective on the election; Are you a Christian atheist?

The election is over! How do Christians put everything into the right perspective?


Also, are you a Christian atheist?


Listen here:



Or download this episode by right-clicking here.

Here’s a link to Wyman Richardson’s very thoughtful blog post.

Read 1 Peter 1:17-21.

NFTW #017--What are we spending our money ?; What is God keeping for us?

We need to pray for believers in India.

A new survey causes me to ask: What should we be spending our money on?

Also, What does God keep for us?

Listen here:




Right-click here to download this podcast!

Here is the story on the trouble in India.

This is the story of the survey on what churches are raising money for.

Knowing is not enough...

I think I've mentioned before on this blog that I've struggled to really believe God loves me. I think a lot of it stems from not having a father growing up. I never had any father-son interaction, so I never got to see first-hand what a father was supposed to be. When you combine that with growing up in a church that stressed works over relationship, you get me: a guy who has trouble in any close relationships, especially with God.

I was listening today to a podcast, and one of the speakers read a Bible verse that brings out the reason I struggle. It's 1 John 4:16:

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

My trouble? The part about relying on God's love.

I know all about God's love. I've taught it. I've preached on it. I've counseled people about it. I really do believe that God loves His children. But do I rely on it? That's a very different question.

I grew up in a church where knowledge was prized, and experience was looked down on. We were one of those Pentecostal churches, where they were acting crazy, speaking in tongues and hanging from the chandeliers. We were the "people of the book," and we valued knowing Scripture above all else.

There is nothing wrong with knowing Scripture. Every Christian needs to know and love the Bible. We should all have some understanding of basic Bible teachings. But knowledge can never take the place of relationship. At some point, we all have to go from a place of knowing about God's love to relying on His love.

How does that happen? I'm not sure I know. I don't think it's a process that lends itself to 5 steps, or 7 keys. It's probably different for everybody. I'm sure God uses the tools He usually does: prayer, Scripture, friends, circumstances. But we don't look to those tools to do anything for us.

More than anything, maybe learning to rely on God's love is a change of outlook. God wants to shower His love on us. In fact, He does shower His love on us. But we miss it, because we're looking somewhere else.

I know I've come a long way toward experiencing His love as a reality of life. But I've still got a long way to go...

Oh, the podcast I was listening to? It was Joel and Mike at Growing in Grace. If you don't already listen, try it. It is 15 minutes a week of grace-filled awesomeness!

Why is it dangerous for Christians to seek after anointed leaders?

In an earlier post, I talked about the fact that according to the Bible, all believers are anointed by God. Anointing isn't just something for a few, special leaders. It's God's gift to each of His children. That post talked about why the idea that we "regular" Christians need to gain some special anointing from some chosen "leader" is unbiblical. In this post I want to touch on why it's dangerous.

I feel so sorry for Todd Bentley, his wife, and especially their children. I know first-hand what it's like to grow up in a home that's been torn up by divorce, and it's not good. I hope Bentleys can get their act together so the kids don't have to grow up in a broken home.

But there's another group that I feel almost as sorry for. It's the thousands of well-meaning believers who flocked to Lakeland. They were hoping to find healing or hope or some kind of touch from God. Now, it seems like what they got was a show, put on by an out-of-control minister. I'm sure that some of those people will be so shaken that they will walk away from the faith, too hurt to risk opening their hearts to God or His people.

And that's where the danger is. Anytime we look to leaders to impart something of God to us, we are looking for trouble. Even if a leader is called an "apostle" or they are commended by someone claiming apostolic authority (like Bentley was), they are only human. That means they are susceptible to sin and failings.

The danger seems clear to me, especially when you see Bentley's commissioning service from this past June. This service features a whole stage full of people who many consider "apostles." Each one seems determined to give a more elaborate vision of what Bentley was about to for the Lord. This was less than 2 months before his secret life became public. Obviously, these leaders who are so connected to the Lord didn't see the reality of Bentley's life.

If these "apostolic leaders" were so wrong about Bentley, can you trust them to give a prophetic word in your life? I'm not so sure.

Maybe what we need to learn from this whole thing is that God really does give us all we need to live out His life in us. Rather than spending our time chasing down this leader or that manifestation, let's ask Him to show us where He is at work in us, and the people around us.

But do we really trust that He's good enough, powerful enough, and loving enough to give us His best? Or is it safer to put our faith in a leader who here's directly from God? I think it really comes down to how we see God, and I'll have to pick up that thought later...

Quick thoughts on the Lakeland Revival and Todd Bentley...

I've been pretty quiet on the whole thing that's been going on in Lakeland, Florida. Mostly that's because listening to both the pro- and anti- Lakeland Revival camps have made me think more deeply about how we treat believers we have disagreements with.

But it seems now that Todd Bentley, the evangelist who has been at the center of these events, is having some marital difficulties. (Scroll about halfway the linked page to see the letter from the board of directors.)

There is a larger issue about the whole Lakeland Revival thing that I won't address now. But it is pretty safe to say that Bentley is a polarizing figure in the body of Christ. Some people have claimed that he has a powerful annointing from God. Others think he's literally doing the work of the devil, deceiving the people of God.

Here's my quick thought for now: whatever your view of Bentley and the Lakeland events, it's clear that he and his family are going through a horrible time. I believe he and his wife have kids, and all of them will be hurt by divorce. Can we please, for once, come together in love and pray for and support a brother and sister who are hurting? Is there any chance we can use this as an opportunity to heal hurting believers, instead of using it as an excuse to blast Bentley?

I mean, I thought Jesus said the world would know we were believers by our love for each other, not by our ability to kick another believer when he's down...

God in my image?

“You can safely assume that you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.”

--Anne Lamott

Quote that got me thinking...

"Abba is one of the first human cries. Christ took it from the cradle of babes, and made it an offering of tenderness and confidence to God, a source of consolation and reassurance to man, a light among the obscurities of life."

Charles Wagner, By the Fireside

I think this is what I look like to God...

I took these pics of Toddler Houdini. She's standing in front of the Grizzly River Run at Disney's California Adventure. There's a huge grizzly bear in front of the ride, probably 50 feet tall. TH is tiny, so the contrast between her and the bear is striking. (On her right is the bear's canoe paddle.)






As I looked at the pics last night, it struck me: this is what I look like when I'm mad at God, when I don't see the point of what He's doing. Maybe instead of complaining, I need to spend more time with God doing what TH is doing with the bear in the pic: look up and be amazed at how big He is...

Angry prayers...

Sorry for the lack of recent posting. I know many of you spend your day by the computer, waiting, hoping for a new post from the Final Frontier. Unfortunately, sometimes I need to take care of less important things, like taking care of family and making money. But soon all your prayers will be answered and your dreams will all come true.

Until then, here's a web site that you might want to explore. It's called the Angry Prayers Project. The object seems to be to get people to look at the prayers of people in the Bible who were angry with God. The point being, I think, that it's OK to be angry with God, and even to express that anger.

I think the site is just starting, so I'm sure there will be more added to it. But it looks like a great idea. I think sometimes Christians are afraid to express, or even feel, those "negative" emotions toward God. But the psalms are full of anger and disappointment.

And I've had a few disagreements with God myself. But I'll have more on this later...

How revolutions become institutions...

For those of you who don't know, Lark News is one of the best things in the Christian universe. It is a satirical newsletter that pokes fun at the craziness of American Christianity.

I'm not sure how I missed this article before, but it's great. It underscores something that I see more and more in the church: we want to jump on a new move of God, and break off the shackles of "traditional" Christianity. Then we create an institution around what we believe is God is doing. If you want examples, look at all the "new" ways people are doing church: purpose-driven, seeker-sensitive, emergent, house church. Each group is convinced they've got a corner on God, and the other groups are missing the boat. And each group is busy building a kingdom for God.

Lord, have mercy on us all!

Thoughts on Easter...

Easter is a busy holiday for us. It's the holiday when Jen's family and our friends come to our house to celebrate. And, this year it's really busy, because this is our month to host our little group that fellowships together on Sunday. So we've got fellowshippers here in the morning, and family here in the afternoon. (Yes, they're coming in shifts!)

In all the preparation it's easy for me to lose sight of what Easter is all about. This year one theme has really dominated my thoughts about Easter. It's the realization that God is present, even in the worst circumstances of my life.

I've always struggled with the idea that the Father abandoned Jesus while on the cross. Jesus quotes from Psalm 22, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" Growing up, I always heard that at that time, the Father, who can't tolerate sin, turned away from His son, who had become sin for us.

What kind of father abandons his boy at the lowest point in his son's life? What does that say to us about how we view the Father? If He'll turn away from His own Son, will He do the same to us?

I'm not sure that's the right way to look at this passage. First, we know that 2 Corinthians 5 says that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself. That indicates that the Father was there the whole time. We also know that Jesus felt everything we feel, and was tempted in every way we are. It's clear in Psalm 22 that God hasn't abandoned the writer of the psalm. He's there, present and working, the whole time. But the psalmist FEELS abandoned sometimes.

Have you ever felt abandoned by God? I have. But I realize now that even in those times, God was there. Just like He was during the crucifixion. And not just observing, but working on my behalf, even the worst things that have happened in my life. I think that's what Jesus was saying. My friend Cap was right: Jesus quotes from Psalm 22 to point the hearers, and us, to that Scripture. So that we could see from God's perspective what was happening.

So that's what I'm learning this Easter. That God is always here, He's always loving His kids, and He's powerful enough to turn enough horrible events into something that glorifies Him and benefits us...

Thoughts on spiritual gifts...

I don't know what you think about spiritual gifts. I know I grew up believing that the "sign gifts" like tongues, healing, prophecy, and the like stopped being given to the church after the first century. So I was always suspicious of people who practiced these gifts. I think at one time I would have considered Christians who practiced sign gifts to be wrong, probably just overtaken with emotion. But I really didn't see God still working that way any more.

As I got older, I saw some of my friends get involved in Pentecostal churches. Some of them started speaking in tongues, some started talking about a "second blessing" of the Holy Spirit. That usually meant that someone who was a believer had to speak in tongues in order to be complete. I saw that then as being a very divisive belief in the body of Christ. It groups God's people into 2 camps--the tongue-speakers and the non-tongue-speakers.

My own position has changed quite a bit. I don't see anywhere in the Bible where you can legitimately infer that any gifts stopped after the Scriptures were written. (Please forgive me, Mr. Dike!) I also don't see any particular gift as being necessary for a Christian to be complete in Christ. I think Scripture is pretty clear that we are complete in Christ from the moment of salvation.

The gifts are just that--gifts. God gives them out as He wishes, to enable us to do His work. There aren't 2 classes of Christians, or 5, or 100. If you are in Christ, you are a child of God.

Two things really make me sad about the whole debate over gifts. One, it's divided Christians unnecessarily. (It's one more proof that the devil often uses good things to mess up the Church.) There isn't much difference theologically between most people who attended Baptist (or Brethren) churches and groups like the Assembly of God or other Pentecostal) denomination. But both sides are dug in, thinking the other is strange, or off-base, or out of step with God.

The second thing that makes me sad is that when we focus on gifts, we lose sight of the Giver. Really gifts aren't important at all. I'm not enabled to do God's work because of my gifts. I can do God's work because it's Jesus who is in me, to do what He wants. Gifts are tools He uses through His people.

Why am I thinking about this? This afternoon I heard 2 guys in the radio, each talking about their experience speaking in tongues. For both, they were believers who were seeking some reassurance that their faith was real. God gave them the sign they were looking for, namely, tongues. Both of them described how their lives had changed. They were secure in their knowledge that God was in them and with them. They were more in love with Jesus. They trusted God more than they ever did before.

Before, I probably would have dismissed them as self-deluded, convincing themselves that they had received something that wasn't really God at all. It was just their own minds, playing a trick on them.

Now, I believe those experiences, which are very different from mine, really do come from God. I mean, He meets me where I am, in all my weakness and strengths and pre-conceived notions. Why shouldn't He do that with His other children? Further, I think we probably need to give each other some room to maneuver when it comes to things of the Spirit. The one standard? It doesn't violate what we already know about God, revealed in the Bible. Otherwise, if God wants some of His people to speak in tongues or prophesy, let 'em do it. If He wants others to use "quieter" gifts, like hospitality or mercy, that's great too.

I think it's when you make your experience with God the norm, the experience that judges all the others, that you get into trouble.I hope we can some day get to the point where we can celebrate God's work in each of us without trying to stuff each other into boxes...

My gifts? Napping, and general mischief...

Great truth in an old song...

I've been thinking lately about how I need to hear the story of God's outlandish love for me over and over, because I forget so easily. It reminded me of the old hymn, " I Love to Tell the Story," especially this verse:

I love to tell the story, for those who know it best
Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.
And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song,
’Twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long.

I think it was Luther who said that the gospel comes to us as an outsider, where the law is written in our hearts. We have to be continually reminded of the reality of the gospel, because it's foreign to us. I know I forget far too often. And really, there's no message more important...

Here's a great version of the old hymn, done by Emmylou Harris and Robert Duvall:

Sometimes I think God wants to get my attention...

I can usually tell when God wants me to learn something, or pay attention to something. He knows that I'm kind of dense, so He has to tell me important things several times. Otherwise, I don't get it.

(When the Mighty Mrs. J reads that first paragraph, I know she'll let out an "Amen!" that can be heard for miles.)

Anyway, God has been repeating something for the last few days, and I guess I should pay attention. It started when I got my weekly edition of the Door newsletter. (warning: the Door is extremely satirical, and offensive. It's not for everybody.) One of the satirical pieces was about how God worship was being replaced by Bible worship in some seminaries. The point was that there's a group of Christians who verge on bibliolatry in their doctrines and practices. In other words their trust is in their own interpretation of Scripture, not in Jesus Himself.

Then our fellowship Sunday looked over John 5. In one verse, Jesus nails the Jewish leaders with this:

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

Sounds like those people were trusting their interpretation of Scripture, and missing the life that Jesus offered them. I'm sensing a theme here.

Then Monday, I read this post by Joel Brueseke on his great blog.In it, he talks about how following biblical principles almost ruined his marriage. What? What he means by that is that he got so caught up in doing his husband "duties" that he forgot to just love his wife.

The application is clear: we do the same thing with Jesus. At this point, I'm pretty sure God is trying to remind me of something important.

We look for the 7 laws of spiritual success, or the 5 steps to a life God blesses. We look for any set of rules or principles that will get us farther down the Christian road. But really, those aren't the things we should be looking for in the Bible. We go to Scripture to find Him.

I need to be reminded of this all the time. It's easier to follow pre-packaged steps than to have a love relationship with Jesus. I'm just glad God thinks it's worth the effort to remind me...

Thoughts on where God wants us...

If you look at the left side of the blog, you'll see links to the web sites of several musicians. They all helped my former church by donating songs for us to use on an outreach CD we gave away to people. One of the best of the bunch is Matt Nightingale, who has a great voice. I still have his CD as one of my "regular listens." (Go buy a CD for yourself here!)(And no, I don't get a cut from CD sales.)

Anyway, Matt is leaving his position as worship leader at a church in northern California. I'm sure his people there will miss him. When I emailed him to wish him well, he said that he had never done anything so crazy as leave a position like this. But he felt God was calling him away.

It made me think about my life in the last year or so, since we left the pastorate of the church we started. It's been a rough year in so many ways. Pastoring, like a lot of jobs, really defines the people who hold that title. It becomes a part of their identity. So I did lose a piece of who I was when I left that job. And I wasn't interested in going to another church, so that part of me really died when I walked away.

A lot of my life is different now. We started a new business. We've been finding new ways to fellowship with other believers. We're finding new ways to relate to people outside the faith too.

My reasons for leaving our church are different, I'm sure, from the reasons Matt and his family are leaving. I became convinced that the way I was using my gifts in the body of Christ were not consistent with what I saw in the New Testament church. And I didn't like the tension within myself that resulted from doing something I didn't really believe in. So I left.

I do want to ask every believer who reads this blog to pray for Matt, his wife, and his kids (4 of them, I believe). It's gutsy to leave the security of the known. Pray that God will lead the Nightingales to the place where He wants them to land.

Matt, I've got no advice for you, except this: I've learned a couple of things over the last year. One, following God is the craziest, most dangerous thing you'll ever do. But it's totally worth it. Two, I don't think God is that concerned about where you go, or what you do when you get there. (Not that He won't lead you where He wants.) But what He really wants isn't your service, or your talents, or your fervent efforts for Him. He just wants you. He doesn't love you for what you can do; He loves you because you are His child, His little boy. And as long as you are with Him, it doesn't matter where you guys end up...

Thoughts on God's second chances...

On her always-thoughtful blog, Emily had a great post about her ambivalent feelings toward getting involved with kids in a local orphanage. (She's in the Ukraine, for folks who don't know.) She seemed afraid that she would use these kids, take their love and affection, and use them to heal her own emotional wounds.

Her post reminded me of feelings that I've fought with most of my life. (By the way, the rest of this post isn't about Emily's post. It's about my reaction to her post. She speaks very well for herself.) I've spent way too much time and energy keeping people at arm's length. My defense against people getting too close? Humor (or the attempting of humor, at least). And avoidance. Especially in my twenties, when I found it really hard to be around people, except for a close circle of friends. During that time in my life, I would have full-blown panic attacks whenever I was in social situations.

It took me forever to get my bachelor's degree. The panic attacks were one reason why it took so long. I would register for classes, then not be able to walk into class. I mean, I wouldn't be physically able to move my body into the classroom. It's bizarre. I understand that. But it's how I lived for a long time.

I know now that the panic attacks were part of my twisted brain's desire to protect me from getting hurt. And so were all the other ways that I kept people from getting too close. But the results were not at all what I wanted--missed opportunities for jobs and relationships, wrong beliefs about myself and the people around me. And I think I did use some people for my advantage.

The good news? Those awful panic attacks are mostly gone. And I don't fear letting people see me for who I am. God has brought me a long way. (I still have a long way to go!) And my life is better than ever. Even more important, I see how great life is, and I can appreciate it. Soon, I'll post a little about what and who God used to put me in a different place...

Something I'm thinking about...

This post is mostly to remind me, but feel free to join in.

"I have as much ability to teach myself how to love God as Toddler Houdini has the capacity to teach herself how to love me. God has to teach me what it means to love and be loved by Him, just like it's my job to teach Toddler Houdini."

I'm doin' some readin'!

I know it will come as a surprise to many of you, but I am not only able to read, I actually enjoy it. Now usually my reading is at this level, but I do occasionally get to read something a little deeper. Right now, I'm reading this book by Dr. J.P. Moreland. So far it's a great look at how Christians have lost contact with culture, and how we might regain the kind of impact the church had in its early years. I'm not through with it yet, so I can't give you a full review yet. But here's a quote I thought was powerful:

"...the life of self-denial is, indeed, the 'easy yoke.' In contrast to the path of self-absorption, the path of self-denial for Jesus corresponds to the way we were made to function and to reality itself as God created it. The really hard life is the one lived in opposition to Jesus' path. All you need to do is to look at how hard life is for folks who cannot forgive others, who desperately need to be the focus of attention, who have to be in control of everything, who are driven to succeed to prove they are significant. This is the life of self-denial, not the life of self-denial. As one gets good at self-denial for the Kingdom, life gets progressively easier."

Isn't that true? It's the life that's lived outside the call of God that's hard. Maybe that's the reason the Psalms tell us not to envy evil people. Whatever the reason, a quote like this makes me realize that the life God calls me to live is the life He created me to live. And that life isn't terrible. God wouldn't do that to me. He loves me too much...

The hits just keep on comin'!

This must be our time for medical weirdness. Now everyone is over their colds. I'm over the various ailments that have laid me low for a couple of weeks. Then, this week, more medical fun for the family: first, the World's Sweetest Toddler choked on a piece of toast, and we had to call paramedics. Then, today (Sunday) Little MacGyver got some sort of bizarre infection that required a trip to the emergency room. Thank God we have good insurance! (BTW, everyone is fine. Little MacGyver is taking meds to clear up his mystery illness. The WST acts like nothing ever happened.)

This week, our goal is to stay as doctor-free as possible. It would be nice to have a somewhat normal week for a change. I do understand that trials are God's way of building patience and all that. But, frankly, I think I've got enough patience for now.

First-hand faith in a second-hand world...

One thing I am committed to is helping my children have a living, vibrant spiritual life. A life that's centered around their relationship to Jesus as their forgiver and leader. And by vibrant, I mean not just a casual relationship where they hear a nice sermon and some good music on Sunday. I mean a life where they see God at work in their lives, and the lives of those around them. I think that's the life that God intended for people to have. But so many of us, even those of us who call ourselves Christians, settle for a second-hand faith. You know, hearing about the great God that worked in a big way for someone else, but not so much for me.

Toward that end, my wife, the Mighty Mrs. J, and I left a somewhat traditional church ministry that I started a few years ago. We felt like we were spinning our wheels, doing what we were expected to do. But we want more than that! So we've started looking for other like-minded people who are searching for a real, first-hand faith experience. What do I mean by first-hand? A few things:

• I am responsible for my relationship with God. Just like I'm responsible for how the Mighty Mrs. J and I relate. It's not up to a minister, a worship leader, an author, or any self-proclaimed guru to make sure I'm growing more like Jesus.
• I believe that God is working in my life, and the lives of the people around me. There was a popular book several years ago that invited Christians to find out where God is working, and join Him in His work. I want to find out where God is working around me.
• The goal of the Christian life is to develop such a close relationship with God that I become more and more like Jesus. The goal isn't increased knowledge, or a theological degree, or a place of honor in a church group.
  
• The best way to study God's word is to read it myself. I don't need someone else to read it to me and tell me what it means.
• The best way to apply God's word to my life is as part of a group of people who are serious about digging into the Bible as a group. People who personally interact with the Bible are more likely to make Bible truths part of their lives.
• The way the traditional church is structured leads to a passive, second-hand faith. It's my personal opinion traditional church is often a hindrance to people who seek an authentic faith. Look at a typical church service: a worship leader chooses what you will sing, a preacher reads the Bible for you and tells you what it means. Everything is done for you.
  

There's a lot more on my mind, but I'll stop here. This is a long post, but this is something really important for me. Most kids follow to some degree the faith of their parents. I want my kids to see as close to a true representation of the Christian life as possible.