There are times when you are looking for a certain radio station because they played a cool tune by Chris Spheeris and you have to listen to it again...but you can't find it. Most of the people you and I know are looking for a station that will bring some kind of joy or point to life but they look every day and can't find it.
Yesterday I was asked a question that should not have caught me off guard but maybe the way it was asked caused me to reply with a limited answer....WHAT DO YOU DO? It was of course asked at a coffee shop. I gave a 30 second reply that I traded stocks and that I worked with college students. When I got home I realized I gave a very incomplete answer to that question. So I determined that the next time I see this person I will give them the rest of the answer and really the MOST IMPORTANT answer.
In Proverbs 2:15 in the Message translation is a statement that describes most of the people we know. They are "...traveling paths that go nowhere, wandering in a maze of detours and dead ends." They can't find the right station.
And Jesus said one day in Matthew 9:10-13 that he was here "to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders." We are surrounded by people who are outside of knowing how to figure out what life is really about. They spin the radio dial but can never find the right song. As a follower of Jesus, I know where to find the song. I can program it on my car radio so I get to the right station in a heartbeat.
The next time I see the person who asked me this question and others who are going to ask, my reply will be: People today are trying to figure out life and they usually have no clue. They try everything but it ends up disappointing, confusing or frustrating. There is another way of doing life but we must be connected to God to understand it. Most people have no idea what this means and I want to help them begin to figure this out.
The first answer was my "vocational" answer. The second answer describes the relationship Jesus wants me to have with people in my neighborhood, at the coffee shop, or in Windsor.
FOCUS THOUGHT Life after death is not on many people's minds today but life now is.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
You have to drive the Mini
A Mini Cooper is a delight to look at and wonder what it would be like to take it to Estes Park, Colorado as you negotiate the turns through the canyon getting there. But they were not made to just look at. You need to test drive it and feel the car as you make a turn at 50 mph.
A believer and a follower are not the same thing. Jesus was always shutting down those who knew the right words and said they believed but who had no interest in tracking with him beyond their self developed boundaries.
Matthew 4:19 is one of those statements that once Jesus speaks it to you, you can never go back from it to where you were before he spoke it. And how do you know you are following Jesus and not just thinking he said some cool things? In this case, your perspective and lifestyle change as you begin to focus on people who do not know Jesus rather than just thinking about which restaurant you are going to for dinner.
What we believe is huge in importance but knowing how to avoid the traps in our culture and make life work as God intended is crucial. Jesus' words are not clever comments that make us curious or tickle our thinking but are intended to enable us to engage life successfully.
Following Jesus is simple, hard, dangerous and exciting. We do not have to make it complex. What we see him do, we must do, what we see him initiate, we should initiate, his perspective and thinking must be ours, how he responded to those who disagreed with him is how we should respond. We must dive into the gospels consistently in order to think like he did, love what he loved, hate what he hated and relate as he did to those not following Jesus. It is simple but hard.
John 6:51-63...These impacting words were not difficult to understand but they were difficult because the people did understand. They were simple but hard. Following Jesus changed after hearing this. He defined it now in a way that separated belief from following. Jesus was a revolutionary and was not interested in people just showing up but was committed to completely changing our whole view and way of life. Nothing short of this was acceptable.
Mind Games...This could change everything
What do you think about the difference between believing and following Jesus? In what way have you believed without really following Jesus?
Connections...I want to discuss this with...
In what ways have you seen Christian groups or churches make following Jesus too complex or easy? What impact does Jesus being a revolutionary make in the world you live in?
First Steps...Making it real
What is one adjustment you will make this week or month in order to more completely follow Jesus? In your opinion, what is a difficult statement Jesus made that causes you difficulty?
A believer and a follower are not the same thing. Jesus was always shutting down those who knew the right words and said they believed but who had no interest in tracking with him beyond their self developed boundaries.
Matthew 4:19 is one of those statements that once Jesus speaks it to you, you can never go back from it to where you were before he spoke it. And how do you know you are following Jesus and not just thinking he said some cool things? In this case, your perspective and lifestyle change as you begin to focus on people who do not know Jesus rather than just thinking about which restaurant you are going to for dinner.
What we believe is huge in importance but knowing how to avoid the traps in our culture and make life work as God intended is crucial. Jesus' words are not clever comments that make us curious or tickle our thinking but are intended to enable us to engage life successfully.
Following Jesus is simple, hard, dangerous and exciting. We do not have to make it complex. What we see him do, we must do, what we see him initiate, we should initiate, his perspective and thinking must be ours, how he responded to those who disagreed with him is how we should respond. We must dive into the gospels consistently in order to think like he did, love what he loved, hate what he hated and relate as he did to those not following Jesus. It is simple but hard.
John 6:51-63...These impacting words were not difficult to understand but they were difficult because the people did understand. They were simple but hard. Following Jesus changed after hearing this. He defined it now in a way that separated belief from following. Jesus was a revolutionary and was not interested in people just showing up but was committed to completely changing our whole view and way of life. Nothing short of this was acceptable.
Mind Games...This could change everything
What do you think about the difference between believing and following Jesus? In what way have you believed without really following Jesus?
Connections...I want to discuss this with...
In what ways have you seen Christian groups or churches make following Jesus too complex or easy? What impact does Jesus being a revolutionary make in the world you live in?
First Steps...Making it real
What is one adjustment you will make this week or month in order to more completely follow Jesus? In your opinion, what is a difficult statement Jesus made that causes you difficulty?
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wake me Tomorrow
Proverbs 1:1-6
These words are packed with real meaning for us. They relate to everything we do and think about. We have them so we can make sense out of life. God did not leave us in the dark without a flashlight but gives us clear understanding of how to deal with Mondays or perplexing situations that come up all the time. To live right is to live with certainty. We do not have to look back at any day or week and wonder what it was all about...but we don't have to have all the answers either.
Many people have opinions and give advise. (Proverbs 18:2) Some is helpful but not all is worth our time thinking about. When God speaks however, it is like a cramp that grabs us and we know it is real.
We can understand what life means. We can have a grasp of what is real. TV reality shows pale in comparison to what God has given us when it comes to understanding what the point is about our life. God is honest with us but sometimes we don't want to read the instructions. We think we can put the stove together without the manual...or live life as it is suppose to be lived without looking at anything written in an old book.
What does it mean to "understand"? I believe it partly means we can make sense of life, or connect with God's purpose, or to really get it or see it. Isaiah 55:8,9 mentions that God thinks and works in ways that we will not figure out. We have to get comfortable with that and realize that when he wants us to "get it" we will.
God wants us to understand "where life is going." But, for most of us, life is confusing and not clear much of the time. Because God does not change, his purposes do not change for us. We do not have to know all of the curves on the road but we can be certain of the destination. God is intentional in his commitment to us. There are no random acts of anything where God is concerned...he has thought it through. The Bible gives us that certainty.
God cares enough about us that he has made it clear in the Bible "how to live life." There are many skills we can learn in the Bible such as: How to make decisions, how to recognize dangers, how to resolve conflict, how to not live with a critical spirit, how to forgive people, and many others.
If you and I have an issue we need information on, we can be sure God has thought about it long before we have and he has answers we need.
FOCUS THOUGHT God loves us so much that he has given us insight into how to handle the unending issues life throws at us. A lot of it is written down for us or is given in an ongoing relationship with Jesus. He is a friend...we can talk with him about it.
These words are packed with real meaning for us. They relate to everything we do and think about. We have them so we can make sense out of life. God did not leave us in the dark without a flashlight but gives us clear understanding of how to deal with Mondays or perplexing situations that come up all the time. To live right is to live with certainty. We do not have to look back at any day or week and wonder what it was all about...but we don't have to have all the answers either.
Many people have opinions and give advise. (Proverbs 18:2) Some is helpful but not all is worth our time thinking about. When God speaks however, it is like a cramp that grabs us and we know it is real.
We can understand what life means. We can have a grasp of what is real. TV reality shows pale in comparison to what God has given us when it comes to understanding what the point is about our life. God is honest with us but sometimes we don't want to read the instructions. We think we can put the stove together without the manual...or live life as it is suppose to be lived without looking at anything written in an old book.
What does it mean to "understand"? I believe it partly means we can make sense of life, or connect with God's purpose, or to really get it or see it. Isaiah 55:8,9 mentions that God thinks and works in ways that we will not figure out. We have to get comfortable with that and realize that when he wants us to "get it" we will.
God wants us to understand "where life is going." But, for most of us, life is confusing and not clear much of the time. Because God does not change, his purposes do not change for us. We do not have to know all of the curves on the road but we can be certain of the destination. God is intentional in his commitment to us. There are no random acts of anything where God is concerned...he has thought it through. The Bible gives us that certainty.
God cares enough about us that he has made it clear in the Bible "how to live life." There are many skills we can learn in the Bible such as: How to make decisions, how to recognize dangers, how to resolve conflict, how to not live with a critical spirit, how to forgive people, and many others.
If you and I have an issue we need information on, we can be sure God has thought about it long before we have and he has answers we need.
FOCUS THOUGHT God loves us so much that he has given us insight into how to handle the unending issues life throws at us. A lot of it is written down for us or is given in an ongoing relationship with Jesus. He is a friend...we can talk with him about it.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
How long do I have to run these sprints? Part 2
So, maybe you know someone who is serious about following Jesus. Maybe you are serious about it. What kind of training do they or you need to really do this in our culture? If you are the one wanting some help in running the race, who do you know who can help you? We all need someone in our life who cares about us enough to ask the hard questions and will show us how to run and not give up.
Some things we need to run this race include:
1. How to develop meaningful friendships with co-workers or neighbors.
2. How to talk about who Jesus is and how a person can know him.
3. How to begin a spiritual conversation with a person without turning them off.
4. Knowing what is true, never changes and what it means to be committed to it.
5. How to help a follower of Jesus grow as a follower and not just a believer.
6. How to help a follower of Jesus know how to get into the Bible and make applications to real life.
There are other things we need along the way and we definitely need a community of like hearted people who can help us in the race.
If you are helping someone now, remember that the focus should be on learning not teaching. Learning rarely happens outside of real life, so, much of your training should be in the market place. Indoor classrooms are comfortable but do not have enough real life oxygen to help us on the track. Videos, I Pods and speeches on" how to run" are a poor substitute for learning how to run the sprints on Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons.
Without training that makes sense, we may show up at the athletic field where life is lived but eventually we will just hang with others who are not showing up anymore to run sprints.
Focus Thought: We need like hearted people in our life to help us begin and keep on following Jesus.
Jeremiah 12:5
Some things we need to run this race include:
1. How to develop meaningful friendships with co-workers or neighbors.
2. How to talk about who Jesus is and how a person can know him.
3. How to begin a spiritual conversation with a person without turning them off.
4. Knowing what is true, never changes and what it means to be committed to it.
5. How to help a follower of Jesus grow as a follower and not just a believer.
6. How to help a follower of Jesus know how to get into the Bible and make applications to real life.
There are other things we need along the way and we definitely need a community of like hearted people who can help us in the race.
If you are helping someone now, remember that the focus should be on learning not teaching. Learning rarely happens outside of real life, so, much of your training should be in the market place. Indoor classrooms are comfortable but do not have enough real life oxygen to help us on the track. Videos, I Pods and speeches on" how to run" are a poor substitute for learning how to run the sprints on Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons.
Without training that makes sense, we may show up at the athletic field where life is lived but eventually we will just hang with others who are not showing up anymore to run sprints.
Focus Thought: We need like hearted people in our life to help us begin and keep on following Jesus.
Jeremiah 12:5
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