Lead Us

Hey everyone. We started a new series this past Wednesday called "Legacy". A legacy is something handed down by a predecessor. Something passed down. Left behind. Something a person is known for. I feel like God is reminding all of us that we will all leave a legacy in this world. It will either honor Him or the world. What legacy are you leaving right now in our world? What are you leaving behind at your school? What are you known for at your job? What will you be known for in life? This is the underlying premiss of this whole series.

The first legacy I want us to look at together is the legacy of leadership. Leadership is vital. It can be over glorified at times yet without it nothing happens in our world. Leaders are people who create change. They take people from one place to another. Leaders are simply people who influence the world around them. A lot of people think they are leaders. People with titles and positions but that never means they are true leaders. The test of a true leader is simply this: Leaders have followers. If you think you are a leader look behind you. Is there anyone following you? Anyone imitating you? If not, then you aren't leading anyone. We need to be people who are leading our world in every aspect of life. From faith to science, to entertainment and politics. Followers of Christ should be the most influential people in the world. Are you leaving this legacy behind you? Are you LIVING this legacy out right now?

If you read the story of Joshua you will see that this legacy is evident all around him. Joshua was Moses' aid. His number two guy. He was with him all the time. Moses dies and God picks Joshua to take his place. Really, really, really big shoes to fill. (I think that is why in the first chapter of Joshua God constantly tells Joshua to "be strong and courageous". You think he was a little nervous? Ha!) So in Joshua chapter 1 God tells Joshua, "you will lead these people...". Why Joshua? What did he have that would make God choose him? What made him a great leader?

First, he didn't wait for things to happen, he made them happen. It is called Initiative. The ability to take action. To start something. To engage in the world around you. To see something that needs to be done and do something about it. Followers wait for others to step up and take action. Leaders do it. Joshua did. He immediately gets the people ready and pushes forward to take the land (Joshua 1:10-11) Are you waiting for something to change or are you taking action to make the change? This is what pioneers do. They blaze the trials. They lead the way. Now, notice in this first chapter that Joshua only moves out when God tells him. It is a very important thing to notice. A true leader will listen to God's voice and take action when it is time. Are you sitting on your hands waiting or are you on your feet moving?

The second thing to notice about Joshua was he saw what others did not. It is called Vision. Flashback to Numbers 13-14. Moses and the people are about to take the land. Moses sends out twelve spies to scout it out first. Ten of the twelve come back with a negative report. They saw giants. They saw huge fortress like cities. People who would crush them. They saw themselves as grasshoppers. This report spread throughout the camp bringing fear to all the people. Now the other two spies saw something different. There names? Joshua and Caleb. (I love these dudes!) They saw the fruit of the land. The cattle. The lush vegetation. The potential that it had. They could see themselves there. They also saw the giant people and big cities. They saw all the same stuff the others saw but they knew that God would help them take the land. They saw what "should" have been. That is vision. The ability to see what could be and turning it into something that should be. Leaders must be able to see what others cannot. Joshua saw the big picture (and Caleb). Can you see our world changing? Can you see your friends finding Christ? Can you see good prevailing? Justice and love wining? Vision inspires others to act. It is contagious. Without it we wander around. The people in this story didn't listen to Joshua and so they had to wander in the desert for 40 years until they died off and a new generation grew up. A generation who unfortunately had to pay for their parents lack of vision. We cannot lead our world if we cannot see past it.

Another thing to see in Joshua is that he paid the price. It is called Sacrifice. As I just mentioned he had to wander in the desert too for something he didn't believe or do. Talk about unfair. He also was a servant to Moses. He gave up his time and life to serve the man of God. He sacrificed a lot. Joshua did what it took to advance those around him. Leaders do this. They pay the price to become a leader BUT they also pay a price to stay one. Leaders must live by higher standards than those around them. They might have to give up things. As a leader, and Christian, you will live your whole life under a microscope. Meaning, people are going to look at every aspect of your life. Every detail will be magnified. Looking for some flaws. Inconsistencies. Anything. The Bible tells us that leaders in churches must live "above reproach" meaning you live in such a way that you give people nothing to question your life with. Leaders pay the price. They earn the right to lead and and they earn the right to stay. Are you willing to pay the price? Before you answer one way or the other remember that anything worth having or being a part of will and should cost you something.

A forth thing to notice about Joshua and all leaders in general is they are always striving to grow. It is called Teachability. Moses taught Joshua many things. Notice also what God says in Joshua 1. He tells Joshua to basically never stop reading the Law. To meditate on it day and night. To constantly engage himself with God's Word. Flash back forty plus years. Moses is in the Tent of Meeting, a place where he would talk with God. Joshua would go wherever Moses went so he was there too. Moses finishes and leaves but Joshua stays. He stays in the tent a little longer (Exodus 33:11). He was only the "intern" at this stage in his life. Joshua stayed a little longer in the presences of God. He pushed himself to get closer. Leaders always push themselves to be better. They don't want to settle for mediocre living. Leaders are never satisfied with the status quo. Average is enemy. It is not what God has designed us to be. We are human, a special creation made in the likeness of God. No other created thing can boast of that. We are created to live life to the fullest. And we must prepare ourselves to do that. Are you teachable? Are you pushing yourself to grow in Him? In wisdom? Leaders never stop learning.

Finally, Joshua was a product of someone investing in his life. It is called Mentoring. Leaders invest into the lives of others. Moses invested his life into Joshua and I'm willing to bet anything that Joshua did the same to someone else. Paul invested into Timothy and Titus. Jesus invested into the twelve. Leaders understand that in order for the vision to continue it must be caught and practiced by the next generation. Are you duplicating yourself? Here is a very raw and sometimes disturbing question regarding this point: WHO IS GOING TO TAKE YOUR PLACE WHEN YOU LEAVE? Not just when you die but when you move on in life. There is value in pouring your life into others. Remember you are a product of someone pouring into you. I am a product of someone mentoring me. Leaders invest into other potential leaders. We cannot afford to neglect the next generation.

So leadership is valuable. It is needed. We are leaders. We are catalysts for change in our society. Are you leading or following? Are you walking in your God given role or are you compromising it for a safer, more easier path? Leave a legacy of leadership and we will see this world change...

I was thinking today and these last months that, and I know this is totally obvious, I got one shot at this life God has given me. I'm 27 about to be 28. I dread, absolutely fear, living an average life. It is something that, even as I type that word, I get nervous in my stomach. I simply detest the thought of doing nothing of significance. Staying in a box, in between the lines, in my comfort and safety. To be completely honest I have wrestled with the tension between my life's work and my dreams. The last year of my life has revealed a burn, an itch, an overwhelming desire to do keep moving into the unknown. To pursue a dream. To try something different. To resist the system. I want to push the envelope more. I feel like there is so much inside of me and it is about to just explode if I don't release it but I don't know how to right now. I don't know where to put certain energies. I don't know which ones to focus on and which ones to neglect. I thrive on creativity. I can't stand being in a place that goes backwards. It is not my nature. I hate standing still. Never advancing. Merely wondering but never envisioning. Simply talking but never doing. Never trying. Just sitting. Waiting. Dying. I can't do that. We weren't made to. I know I wasn't. The entire world is waiting on us.

I Got Saved

Today I sat across the table from one of my students. A young man who had drifted away from the youth group and made some bad choices and found himself in a very dark place. We talked for two hours. God. Girls. Drugs. Life. Choices. Friends. Music. Talents. Future. Etc... It ended with this young man literally giving me his drugs and rededicating his life to Christ.

Now this situation came at a very interesting time in my life. A time, to be very vulnerable and honest, where I really felt like I wasn't making any difference here. The fruit just hasn't been showing. All the time. All the sowing. All the junk. I had just had a conversation with my wife about what I was doing here. Had I made a difference? What is wrong with this place? Am I just wasting time, talent, and energy? And then out of nowhere this young guy steps back into my world.

He said that I was the only person he knew he could turn too. I was the only one who hadn't quit on him. Wow.

During the whole conversation I felt like God was ministering to me. Reminding me of why He brought me here. Reminding me that people do change. Reminding me that people really do still need Him. Reminding me that we do reap what we sow.

I don't share this to toot my own horn. Honestly, I felt kind of guilty afterwards. Guilty because I have been so focused on myself and my situation that I almost forgot why I was here. All I could see was the disappointments and obstacles. All the things that weren't going my way. Focusing on the uphill part of the journey and not the journey itself. I almost forgot about the mission.

I thank God for today. Not only for God saving this young man but in essence God, through this young man, saving me.

Sabotaged!

"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life." Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)

I have currently been engaging our students in a discussion about creating a dramatic change in our culture. An overthrow. A mutiny. A revolution. I know the word has been overused since the postmodern and post post modern movement but that doesn't negate the importance of it. I challenge you to read II Timothy 3:1-5. I think it looks a lot like our culture. And it is the catalyst for this call to change.

As believers in Christ we all have a revolutionary spirit within us. We all have the ability by the Grace of God. He enables us to create change in our world. The Great Commission is a call to do just that. Go and make disciples. We are the ones doing this now or at least we should be.

This leads me to the point of this little note. Why do people fade out? Why do they quit? Why do they give up and walk away from "the life that is truly life"? Solomon implores us to guard our hearts because that is where life starts. Who we are, where we go, what we do all starts within us. We must relentlessly protect it. If we don't, we leave it open to sabotage. Sabotage simply means to deliberately destroy, damage or obstruct something. If we are not careful we can allow some things to penetrate our hearts and destroy our revolutionary spirit.

I'm sure there are many ways to do this but I just want to focus on a few, the last being the main focus. I think one thing that will cause a downfall in our lives is blending in. Ezra 9:1-2 is an example of God's people blending in instead of being separate. Ephesians 5:1 tells us to "be imitators of God...". We, as followers of Christ, have been asked to be light and salt, two very distinct things that always stand out. You know when your food is lacking salt or not. You know when light is in a room or not. We are to be separate. We aren't supposed to imitate all the celebrities and athletes. We aren't supposed to mimic all the trends. If anything we should be the ones setting them. Who are you imitating? The world or Jesus?

I think another thing that ruins us from the inside is selfishness. Jesus calls us to deny ourselves (Luke 9:23). We are to put our selves last. But we live in such an image driven society that dying to self is the last thing on anyone's mind. I wonder if the image of the church as become more important than the mission of the Church? I wonder if it has made its way into the depths of our hearts? Why is selfishness so bad? It causes us to not take action. We will never step out because it might cost us something. It might be inconvenient to help someone. We might get uncomfortable. It causes us to ignore those in need. We will never help someone else if all we see is ourselves and our desires. It causes us to become prideful. We won't do anything because we are above those things. Our concern for our image must come to an end.

Finally, I think the greatest act of sabotage in our lives is apathy. When I looked up the proper definition of apathy I got this: a lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern. We know that it basically means you just don't care. What could be more deadly in the Body of Christ? There is no revolution where there is no concern. How do we become apathetic? How can someone go from zeal to apathy? Here are some of my observations:

Apathy can occur when we let disappointment linger in our lives. We didn't get the job. We didn't make the team. We didn't get the girl/guy. We didn't get our way. We lost something. The relationship ended. There are many ways to be disappointed and we are never promised that we won't be disappointed. But if we let all the things that let us down in life linger they will soon sour and become bitter. When we become bitter we eventually want nothing to do with anything and we no longer care about the things we used to care about. Bitterness always drains enthusiasm. You can see the bitter people in church and life. Smiling is like a foreign language. The eyes never lie either. So, if you want to ensure a life that lacks interest, enthusiasm, and concern, hold on to those things that let you down in life.

Apathy can also occur when we listen to the enemy. When we listen to all the lies that are whispered in our ears we set ourselves up for apathy. You aren't good enough. You aren't pretty enough. They only like you because you are rich. They only like you for what you can do. You aren't successful. They don't love you. And on and on they go. What happens is we give ear to these lies and eventually believe them. Then our whole life becomes about those lies. We don't care about the mission anymore. We are to wrapped up in deceit.

It also occurs when we lose focus. We spend way to much time looking backwards and not enough time looking straight ahead. We are distracted by all the stuff going on around us and all the stuff that happened yesterday that we get off course because our focus is blurred. We eventually get so wrapped up in all the stuff that we don't care about the mission anymore.

Finally, I think the greatest cause to apathy in a follower of Christ is when knowing Him better is no longer the greatest thing in our life. It may seem obvious but is it? There is NOTHING in this entire world that should be more important. Our jobs. Our dreams. Our ministries. Our ideas. Our stuff. Our hopes. Our fears. Even our families. Nothing should be more important to us than Jesus. We must be constantly striving to know Him better. No one has arrived to perfection yet. And yes, it is an uphill journey. Sometimes it is hard. It gets tough and slow but that is no reason to stop. Things may not go your way. That is no reason to give up on knowing Jesus better. We have placed to much importance on other things than this one simple element. Let us be reminded again: without Jesus we have nothing. Enough with programs, ministries, philosophies, new movements, politics, and so on. It is about your relationship with Christ and striving, toiling, running, pursuing, crawling, to know Him better. Without this you can't care. You can't be enthusiastic. You can't be interested. It is Jesus or nothing and I think we should be reminded again.

Are you apathetic in this stage of the journey? How do you know? Are you cold? Cold towards people? Cold towards the things of God? Are you numb? Do you just not feel anything anymore? Do the things that used to move you no longer move you? Have you become hardened inside? Can nothing get through? A yes to some of these might be a good indicator.

We can come up with plenty of excuses to justify our present condition but those excuses don't nullify the truth. We must guard our hearts from sabotage. We must protect the source of life. I know what is like to experience all this. Thanks to God's never ending Grace, I am still kicking. Let us be reminded in this day and age to guard our hearts. We are the agents of change in the world. We can't afford to give up. we can't afford to quit. We can't afford to self-destruct. We must guard what has been given to us. One day we will see the fruit of our labor...

Dear Mr. Anxiety, Could You Please Leave Me Alone?

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanks giving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." I Peter 5:7

I truly had to be reminded of this today. Sometimes we do everything but this. We complain, we justify, we blame, we ignore, or we hide. We may throw a quick "Hey God, could you help me out here" but do we really take the time to be still and bring God ALL the things we care about? Or maybe we have so many times but there is still no answer. We want answers. We want the riddles solved. We want the dilemma fixed. We want something to make us feel better. "Get me out of here! Just give me something, anything!" But we must be reminded that in our very transparent moments with God and the unbarring of our souls to Him, He doesn't always give us the instant satisfaction or the instant answer that we have been so accustomed to getting nowadays. Paul reminds us that He gives us a "peace" that "transcends all understanding". It "guards our hearts and minds".

What exactly could that mean? As I read that now I wonder what it would guard me from. In the context of this passage what is being protected by peace? Could it guard us from a bitterness that may seep into our spoiled hearts for not getting the answers we want? Could it guard us from confusion that the enemy whispers in our ears? Could it guard us from an anger that creeps in because we are not getting our way? Could it guard us from apathy that develops from us being tired of waiting? Could it guard us from complacency and laziness that try to steal our place and purpose? Could it guard us from the ever so subtle numbness that happens as time goes on? I think the answer to all these is yes.

These passages never speak of getting all those anxieties fixed and those cares being removed. It simply says to bring them to God. To trust Him with all of it. We can't forget that God, though He very well could and many times does fix things immediately, has a timing that we usually do not understand. He is at work in realms we cannot see or understand. He is moving pieces into play. God is a chess master not a checker player. One day we will look back and see how it all played out. In the meantime we must rely on His peace to keep us going. It is a trust issue on our part. These times and situations always reveal our level of faith in God. We may not like what we see when this is revealed. Thank God for His Grace and Mercy. We wouldn't last two seconds without it.

So rest in the Peace of Christ. Bring all your "stuff" to Him. Let Him assure you that He knows and is at work to move you through it all. Receive His peace and let it guard you from bitterness, confusion, anger, complacency, apathy, and numbness. Know that He is at work and He loves you more than you know. He wants you to live life to the fullest more than you want to live it. Trust Him. That is all He wants.

Things Nintendo Taught Me

I grew up playing video games. I loved Mega Man 2 and the Mario Bros. Contra was awesome. Up Up, Down Down, Left Right Left Right, A, B, Select Start. (For all those who knew the cheat code! Isn't it amazing that I still have that code memorized? Ha) I am careful to say that life is a lot like a video game because in most respects it is not. You don't get 99 lives for typing in a special code. You don't get to go back and redo things you messed up. There is no high score. There is no freedom from pain and responsibility. The "game" is never over. You have one shot, one life but many chances. The end is just the beginning.

But one thing that is similar is the way we advance. (please be patient with my "childish" analogy) You see, there are different stages in life. Different levels. Different obstacles. Some levels are difficult. Some are hard. Some are bonus levels. Some are fun. Others confusion and frustrating. But one thing is true in both the digital world and the physical world: you can never advance to the next level until you have passed the one you are currently in. You can't go to level two until you beat level one. You can't advance to stage 7 until you have completed stage 6. You may have heard in terms such as, "you have to crawl before you can walk". The writer of Hebrews challenged some people that they can't move on to "solid food" because they were still drinking "milk". They were still on level one. They could not advance to the deeper truths of Christ because they were still stuck on the elementary things. It is like this in all aspects of life. So many people are trying to "beat level 10" but they never conquered level 6 and the things that you learn in level 6 help you in level 10.

There are levels, stages, and seasons that we all must pass through. I write all that because I feel as though I am entering a new stage. I just recently got married to a gorgeous, feisty, Italian girl. I married up for sure. My life will and has changed a lot. But what is interesting is the change within me that has come with this. I feel as though I have stepped out of one level and into another. Elementary things have been left behind for deeper things. I'm growing up. Not that I was immature before all this but there is definitely a maturing that has happened and will continue to happen. I am stepping into a new level of life right now. And just like video games the new level is full of unknown obstacles and prizes. I feel as though I "beat" this last level in my life, this last season I have been in. If I haven't beat it I feel like conquest is right around the corner. I embrace this new season of life, with all its mystery and challenges. I have learned a lot from the last level. And I know it will increase my ability in the next...

The Consistency of Inconsistency

There is one thing I have noticed that is becoming more and more prevalent in our society: inconsistency. The definition of that word is:
-not staying the same throughout; having self-contradictory elements
-acting at variance with one's own principles or former conduct :
-( inconsistent with) not compatible or in keeping with
- erratic in behavior or action

I have watched it grow and become more tolerable as time has gone on. We have become terribly efficient at being inconsistent. It is the one thing we are actually consistent at. Inconsistency is easy. It is painless. It produces shallow human beings. Consistency implies perseverance. It implies being constant in an environment of friction. If there is one underlying theme in the lives of the people in the Scriptures it is consistency. They didn't give up. They didn't stop what they were doing. They didn't walk in and out of people's lives. Paul was a man of consistency. David was a man of consistency. Jesus was a man of consistency. John the Baptist-constant. Joshua-constant. I could go on but I think the point is made.

We have taught a new generation that running from problems, hardships, and challenges is the best way to deal with them and in doing so we have a society of people who have no depth or resolve. We have a society of people that are wickedly critical and opinionated. (It is easy to criticize from a distance.) We have a society that chooses the path of least resistance. This consistency of inconsistency is everywhere and we nurture it with our excuses. We take the pills. We divorce the spouse. We leave the church. We runaway. We quit the job. We burn the bridges. We do everything we can to avoid the pain and stress of consistency and in doing so we develop weak individuals who cannot think for themselves. They breed confusion. They cannot stand strong. They cannot produce deep, strong, world impacting people. They make no lasting contribution worth having. The only thing they do is duplicate their inconsistency. Consistency does not equal perfection. If anything it is a journey to perfection. Strain produces strength. Perseverance purifies and deepens us. There is much value and honor in consistency. It is very counterculture right now. It is very outcast-like. It is very needed.