MiniBlog 3 - The Result

Our assignment for this week in the Year of the Disciple was a follow up of the week before -- Read 1 Kings 17, 18, and 19.

If you haven't read it yet, then take some time right now and get to it.

When you do read it, you'll see the problem -- Ahab was leading the nation of Israel away from God. You'll also see one man, a prophet named Elijah, listen to God and act in response to God's anger over what Ahab was doing.

This ties in closely with what we're hoping to accomplish in our commitment to Listen + Act focus. God had a problem. His word went out. One man listened and he acted.

What did God do to bring people to him through Elijah's actions? What was the fruit of Elijah's commitment to listen and then act?

That's the power of acting on what God's saying! It starts with listening. It continues through action. It ends with God moving powerfully! Read the whole story of Elijah, 1 Kings 17-19 and see what God does to bring people to him.

MiniBlog 2 - Elijah went...

As we talk about LISTEN + ACT there's some real significance to the second verse of 1 Kings 18.

After a long time, in the third year, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” 2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.*

The key word is went. Elijah went. The word of the Lord came to Elijah. He was listening. God was speaking. And what happened next? Elijah acted on what he heard.

Statements like this show up all throughout scripture. They're significant only because it's a model for the way a disciple of Jesus should live. What's Jesus saying to you? What do you going to do about it?

I know that God is speaking. I know that he wants me to act. I hope that later in my life I can look back on it and say, "so I went..." What about you?


The Holy Bible: New International Version. 1996 (electronic ed.) (1 Ki 18:1–2). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Year of the Disciple - MiniBlogs

Mini blogs. That's my way of saying that I'm going to be writing short, to the point paragraphs on what we're learning this year through the Year of the Disciple.

Consider our assignment this week at Cape Naz: Read 1 Kings 18 and Romans 12. As I work through these myself, I'll be miniblogging about my experience in the text.

Remember our question: What is God teaching you and what are you going to do about it? Engage the word and find out!

1 Kings 18:1
1 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: "Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land."

This verse kicks off an amazing series of events. It starts with two important facts: God was speaking. Elijah was listening. It led to action. Action led to miracle. Miracle led to life-change.

That's the power of our question. Listening + acting = discipleship.

God + Moses... BFF's

There's something about my personality -- maybe my "Ideation" orientation (Gallup Strengthfinders) -- that pushes me to approach every situation with an out-of-the-box solution. We're starting an Easter series this week at Cape Naz. What's Easter about? Jesus, right? His death and resurrection? Sure it is. You really can't preach anything else on Easter.

That's why I've spent all week studying the relationship between Moses and God.

Even I find it a bit odd. I'm a few days away from needing to preach what should be a Triumphal Entry/Palm Sunday message, and I can't get out of Exodus. I just find the relationship that developed between Moses and God to be absolutely fascinating.

Moses built something called the Tent of Meeting. It was literally a tent that was separated away form the rest of the people of Israel. Moses and his young apprentice, Joshua, would go to the Tent and meet with God personally. They would talk. For long periods of time.

We really don't have any idea what all they talked about. Sure, we've got pages of instructions and laws that God rattles off to Moses to govern the people of Isreal. But, that list certainly didn't take multiple sessions of 40 days and 40 nights to recite. We've got the rest of the Pentateuch -- supposedly written by Moses -- that God might have told Moses about while they were together.

No, I believe that Moses and God talked about a lot more than just rules and creation history. And there's a couple subtle statements hidden in the text that captured my imagination and lead me to this belief. Moses is pleading with God to come with him and the Israelites as they go up to the Promised Land. Moses says to God, "if you don't go with us personally, don't let us move a step from this place."

God replies, "I will indeed do what you have asked, for you have found favor with me, and you are my friend."

That's a pretty amazing statement that God makes. Moses was his friend! They hung out together -- God and man -- in the Tent of Meeting. Moses' face shown with the radiant glory of being in God's presence -- being with his friend. God revealed all of his goodness and mercy to Moses, his friend, as he walked directly in front of him.

What does this have to do with Easter? What does this have to do with Jesus? So much.

Jesus tore down the veil. He ripped the Tent of Meeting apart, metaphorically. No other Isrealites were allowed to come near the Tent of Meeting. None were allowed up on Mount Sinai while Moses and God were talking. Jesus changed all that.

No longer was God's friendship reserved for a select view. No longer was his presence available to only one man. That veil was torn; the tent was torn down. God's glory became universally accessible. On the cross, Jesus made it possible for all of us to experience God the same way that Moses did.

We can ask God for his will -- "don't send me where you want me to go unless you come with me!" And Christ will respond, as God did with Moses, "because of the cross, I will come with you for you have found favor with me and you are my friend!"

Profound stuff. Easter isn't just a story of Jesus' death and resurrection. It's the story of God's love for humanity and desire for an intimate friend-like relationship with all of us! How awesome is that. You + God... BFF's. It's possible, folks. Seek it.

Thirteen.31.prayer: Adoration

Thirteen.31.prayer week 1: Adoration

This is the first week of daily devotionals for Cape Naz’s thirteen.31.prayer series. We’re starting a month of prayer on March 13^th. It lasts until April 13^th. That’s 31 consecutive days of prayer. Thirteen.31.prayer. I wish I could say there is some deep spiritual meaning behind this series name, but there isn’t. It’s just prayer. It’s a month long.

We’re following the popular prayer model ACTS – Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. I can’t say with any definitiveness who invented this acronym (or is it an acrostic?), but I’m basing my look at in on Bill Hybel’s excellent book Too Busy Not Too Pray.

Each week we are going to take a look at different element of the ACTS model. This week it’s adoration.

Very simply, we defined adoration last Sunday as turning your mind and self toward God by telling God about himself – who he is and what he’s done. This is modeled for us in Jesus’ model prayer during the Sermon on the Mount. That prayer, commonly called “The Lord’s prayer”, is probably more aptly called “the Disciple’s Prayer” as it is Christ’s model for how his disciples (this includes you and I) should pray to God.

Jesus’ model prayer starts with adoration: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

Your name, God, is holy! It is sacred. It is to be revered. It is above all names. It is the first name among all creation. It is the last name. It is a name of love. It is a name of authority. It is a name of grace. It is a name of compassion and mercy and sanctuary and sanctification.

That’s adoration. God’s name is to be hallowed! Why? Tell God! What else about God is worthy of your adoration, your respect, your honor, and your reverence? Tell God!

The Bible is full of scriptures that adore and revere God. This week we’re looking at five of them. I would strongly encourage you to take one each day for this week and make it your prayer. See what the writer has to say about God’s character, what he does, who he is, and why he’s worthy of such adoration. Then turn it into your own prayer. How would you describe God in this way? What has God done in your life that’s comparable to what he did in the writer’s life? Tell God about it!

Here are the scriptures. Will you join us in 31 straight days of prayer? Will you start with adoration? I’m praying that you will!

Day 1: Exodus 34:1-10

Day 2: Psalm 46

Day 3: Psalm 8

Day 4: Philippians 2:1-11

Day 5: 1 Chronicles 29:10-13

Day 6: Psalm 63

Day 7: Psalm 145

Going the 2nd Mile

"Go with him 2 miles," Matthew 5:41.

Let me start with a statement of faith. I believe that God has given us the land around Cape Nazarene Church (2601 Independence, Cape Girardeau, MO) as our Promised Land. We're placed here for a purpose. We're planted on a hill overlooking the city as a beacon of God's light in a town full of darkness.

Cape Girardeau hides it's needs well. It's a small, clean town. Driving around, you would have a hard time seeing the darkness. You won't be able to point out the people with addictions. You can't see the violence. You have to step through the white-picket fences to find the depression, grief, loneliness, hurt, hunger, oppression, poverty, racism, and more that are prevalent here.

Neighbors grow accustomed to looking the other way. Parents put up a facade in public. School kids hide it from their friends and teachers. The needs, though, of the people of Cape Girardeau are very real. As is the need for God.

Who is going to take God to them? Who is going to serve those needs? Who's going to pray for those people?

That's what going the 2nd mile means. Cape Naz Church is committed to pray for (1st mile) and serve (2nd mile) our community. We're going to get our hands dirty. We're going to get our knees dirty. We're going to win back the people that God has given us from the enemies that have taken them hostage. We're going to help God redeem Cape Girardeau!

We're starting small. This week, we're forming a partnership with the SEMO Safe House for Women. It's a shelter that takes in victims of domestic abuse and their kids. Chatting with the director of the Safe House last week, she told me that she doesn't get many pastors or churches willing to help them. I wasn't terribly surprised.

Most pastors and churches are unwilling to look beyond the facades that their town constructs and see the real needs hidden all around them. For those pastors and their people, "going" is really "targeting" the people that look like them -- the already saved, clean, collected families with nice SUV's and big bank accounts.

Sorry if that you're a pastor or a church member and that offends you. But, if you are offended by it, you should ask yourself why. There's nothing wrong at all with reaching out to the people in your sphere of influence (the people that largely look and act like you) -- that's our primary strategy for relational evangelism. It's important. It's fundamental.

But so is compassionate ministry to the lost, the hurting, the fatherless, the widow, the orphan, the addict, the grieving, the depressed, the oppressed, the underprivileged, the abused, the victims living among you.

Will you go the 2nd mile to reach them? Will you pray for them. Will you serve them? As I told the director of the SEMO Safe House, "Cape Naz will!"

Prayer and Outreach

Sorry I've been away from blogging for awhile. I've been blogging out of my status updates on Facebook. It's not quite the same, I know. I apologize.

Today, I'm exploring the connection between prayer and outreach (or "going" as I prefer to call it and will call it in this post).

First, let me give you some very simple definitions. What is prayer? Basically, it's communing with God. What is outreach, i.e. "going"? It is serving people. Those are drastic oversimplifications, but sufficient for our purposes today. (If you're the kind of person who can't stand simplicity like that, then feel free to expand on those definitions in the comments section below!)

Let me ask two other questions that get to the point of this post. Can you have prayer without "going"? Can you "go" without prayer? The answer to both questions are yes, respectively. Both prayer and outreach are good by themselves. But, by themselves, neither is best.

The idea of prayer without "going" immediately reminded me of the question that God asked Isaiah. "Whom should I send?" he asked the wannabe prophet. That was God's idea of a rhetorical question. The answer God desired was obvious. Isaiah was standing right there, available, and invested in the situation already. He was God's man for the job. Isaiah didn't just intercede on behalf of his people. He was sent to (i.e. "go") to God's people.

Consider what happens when we pray for others. God, help this man who is sick! God, provide for this person and their need! God send your angels to clear the way for this person to find help!
During our prayers, I can easily imagine God in heaven asking, rehtorically, "Whom should I send?" Like with Isaiah, I think the answer is fairly obvious. Me. You. Us. We took the time to pray, to stand in the gap for others. We're invested in the situation already. Here I am, Lord, send me!

On to the second question. What is "going" or outreach without prayer? What are we really doing when we go help someone, serve someone, feed someone, or teach someone, but we leave God out of it? There's value in that activity. But it's not Great Commission "going". It's volunteerism. It's charity, maybe. It's philanthropy. It's probably not ministry.

I'm a pastor. Imagine me going to the hospital to visit someone who was about to have a critical and dangerous surgery. I say hi. I shake their hand. I tell a joke. I excuse myself without praying for them. Would I be blessing that person in that situation? Maybe a little, but I'm certainly not giving them what they need at that moment -- the power of God!

Going without praying reminds me of something Paul told his young protege Timothy: they have a form of godliness but deny its power. This passage doesn't speak directly to outreach ministry, but the warning Paul gives Timothy is applicable anyway. Godliness without God? Its oxymoronic. It's not real. It doesn't work. Service without the Spirit? It's not real. It doesn't work. It's positive, but it's not powerful.

The power of God comes when we choose to both pray and go. Prayer and outreach. Touching heaven while we touch the earth. It's a simple formula and one followed by most every Biblical example I can think of. It seems, though, that it's lost on many of us in the ministry. I know too many churches that pray but don't go. I know others that go but don't pray. I've been part of both and witnessed firsthand the lack of power in both siutations. Cape Naz won't be one of those churches.

You want a good example of this in action? Valparaiso Nazarene is a church that prays and a church that goes. And they've had a powerful impact on their community. Watch the video called Cecilia from the recent M11 conference in Louisville, KY. Just follow this link and click on the video called "Resurrection - Cecilia": http://www.graceandpeacemagazine.org/en/resurrection-stories

We'll be talking a great deal more about this topic on Sunday at Cape Naz. See you then!

Day 2: In Quito, Ecuador

We landed in Quito, Ecuador last night! Currently, I'm in the dining hall of the Nazarene compound.

So far, things are going great! It was a long day of flying. Started at 6:15 am Nov. 1. We drove up to St. Louis to catch our flight out. Made it to Atlanta in mid-afternoon. A breif layover and then the 5 hour flight across the caribbean and down into South America.

Today we're heading up the mountains to Riobamba, where we will be staying, and then it's on to the worksight.

Everyone is healthy, happy, and ready to get going! Continue to pray for our health and saftey. Pray that the work goes well and we stay ahead of schedule.

I'll have more thoughts on the country of Ecuador after we travel through more of it. I have some snap judgements about it after our breif drive through Quito, but not enough to get a more complete picture of what the country and culture are like. Needless to say, it's a lot different than the states. They certainly need as much prayer and support from us as we can give!

Blessings to my readers from Ecuador. Please continue to pray!

Ecuador Work and Witness

For the next 14 days I'm going to be coming to you from Riobamba, Ecuador as part of a Missouri Nazerene District Work and Witness trip! We're leaving today, Monday morning, and should arrive in Quito tonight around 10 pm.

I'll be updating my blog as much as I'm able to, hopefully every 2-3 days. Please pray for our trip, for the safety of the team, for safe travels, for productive work, and for us to reach the people of Ecuador with Christ!

The next time you hear from me, it will be from the field!

SpongeBob SocietyPants?

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? I know you know the rest. I've done my research and there are three groups of people that regularly watch SpongeBob.

1) Kids. Obviously this is the target audience. For over a decade now, kids age 2 to, oh, 18 regularly agree that nautical nonsense is, in fact, something they wish.

2) Parents of kids. Most of us in this life stage have invested in a nice TV, a nice place to sit and watch that TV, and even a nice cable/satellite package in order to have the best programming on said TV. In the end, though, we all know that our kid's are in charge of our TV's. Deny it if you wish, but I know that you know that "absorbent and yellow and porous is he".

3) Grandparents. Yes, Nana and Papa, you might talk big about "the good ol' days". You might also wrongly believe that the canceling of Howdy Doody marked the end of society as it should be. You too, though, have had your grand kids over and at their request, you've enthusiastically agreed to "drop on the deck and flop like a fish".

That's right. We've all been subjected to "spongebob squarepants, spongebob squarepants, spongebob squarepants, spongebbbboooooobbbbb squarepaaaaannnnttttts!"

Did you know that Spongebob is Nickelodeon's highest rated show? That might not surprise you, but it's also MTV Network's most distributed property. In other words, it's one of the most popular cartoons ever.

SpongeBob really doesn't have any redeeming educational or moral qualities. It does, though, have some very interesting things to say about society and the value of community. In many (disturbing) ways Bikini Bottom and the Krusty Krab remind me all too much of our neighborhoods, school groups, and, dare I suggest, churches.

After all, if an amiable sponge, a pretentious squid, a dim-witted starfish, a tight-wadded crab, and an under-water squirrel can discover true community through krabby patties, secret formulas, and bad clarinet'ing, then why can't we?

Community, a new sermon series, starts this Sunday at Cape Naz. We'll be looking at the earliest church -- itself formed from a comedy of errors cast -- and how they managed to come together in a model community (through a common unity).

So, catch up on your SpongeBob this week in preparation for this Sunday. Consider it research to get a head start on the message. That's what I'm claiming!

Samsung (or why I've come to despise Pavlov)

One of the many classes that I coasted through in High School was AP Psychology. I can neither confirm nor deny that we had a textbook for that class. I certainly can't tell you anything about any major psychologist. Well, except one guy. Pavlov. You know Pavlov, don't you? The guy with the bell and the dog that slobbered?

(First, a fair warning. If you've stumbled upon this blog entry looking for an in-depth analysis of Pavlovian theory, then you might as well quickly stumble yourself somewhere else. Because I have no idea what I'm talking about. I didn't pay attention in AP Psychology, remember?)

Pavlov had a bell, a bowl of dog food, and a dog -- as all great psychological experiments should begin! He studied something that I'm going to call conditioned behavior (that might or might not be its real name.) Every time he fed his dog, he rang the bell. Through repetition, he conditioned the dog to associate the noise -- the ding-ding-ding of a bell -- with the pleasure of getting fed.

Eventually, Pavlov learned that all he had to do to make his dog slobber uncontrollably (like he was being fed) was to ring the bell! One ding-ding-ding and his puppy would start slobbering like a Great Dane in a butcher's shop. I'm sure that trick was a big hit at parties.

I've unknowingly been conducting my own Pavlovian experiment.

We have a Samsung plasma TV. It's a great TV. We love it. Our Samsung isn't so much a source of entertainment as it is the most vocal member of our family. It captivates us when we are in the room; on or off, it's always found in its honored place in the center of our living room. It talks to us when it's on -- TV shows. It even talks to us when it's off -- it goes to sleep with an impressive glow of blue light and a pleasant melodious beep "good night". Good night, mouse. Good night, house. Good night, Samsung TV with your melodious beep.

We usually take our giant beagle Lucy outside to go potty one final time before hitting the hay -- usually right after we say goodnight to our TV.... Hmm... The TV. The dog. The melodious beep. The potty. Darn you, Pavlov.

When she hears that melodious beep "good night", Lucy will immediately jump up from her spot on the love seat and sprint (not walk) across the living room, down the stairs, and to the backdoor so she can visit the potty.

It's a conditioned behavior, locked into our dog's brain. It doesn't really matter how recently she has been to the potty or even what time of day it is when we turn off the TV. When she hears the beep, she's gotta go and she's gotta go now!

Look, I'm a pastor so I feel like there needs to be a spiritual point to this. Everything is spiritual, someone (Rob Bell) smarter than me once said. What have we become conditioned to? What has Pavlov done to us? What signals -- no matter how melodious -- trigger unconscious behavior in us?

I think that when we get into certain familiar situations, we have conditioned ourselves to act a certain way. We act like this around some people, like that around others; this way when we're here, that way when we're there. We're allowing an external influence to dictate who we are and what we do. That's not always healthy, especially when the influences push us away from God's will for our lives or in the direction of sin.

Don't Be a Fool

Wisdom says: As it is, I’ve called, but you’ve turned a deaf ear; I’ve reached out to you, but you’ve ignored me.

This past weekend at Cape Naz Church we discussed among other things wisdom vs. knowledge. I briefly made the point that the opposite of wisdom is foolishness. A few definitions that will mark this brief discussion, and then to the point:

What is wisdom? Knowledge that you successfully put into action.

What is foolishness? Knowing the truth and how it should affect your life, and then ignoring it.

I don't think that anyone wants to be called a fool. It's a harsh term. Though it's not necessarily an active word in our modern vernacular, -- you don't hear the teenagers calling each other fools -- we would still be hurt if the term was used against us. I'm not going to call you a fool. Instead, I'm going to ask you to evaluate whether you are one or not.

The critical aspect of wisdom is the "successfully put into action" part of the definition. I've mentioned before that Christianity isn't a "do" religion. It's a "be" relationship. Be more like Christ. Be lovingly obedient to God. Be a follower of Jesus.

Our actions should flow out of our relationship with Christ. We've chosen to become like Christ and that affects our "do" -- our behavior. A behavior change without the relationship with Christ doesn't matter for beans. We aren't saved by good works. We're saved by grace through faith (a "be" concept).

That's where wisdom comes in. Do you consider yourself a Christian? Answer the question to yourself right now.

OK. If you answered yes, then you've committed to "be" like Christ.

Let me say that again. If you're a Christian, then you've committed to "be" like Christ. That's the implication of salvation. We've tried to dress it down over the years as little more than a prayer, but it's more than that. You are accepting Christ... that he is God, that he is truth, that his way will be your way, that without him you are sinful and separated.

A wise Christian daily grows in his/her knowledge of God and then puts that knowledge into practical application in their lives. They are "be-ing" Jesus.

What would a fool do? Ah... You can see where I am going.

A foolish person would know the truth about God and then deliberately ignore it.

I personally feel pretty foolish sometimes when I know I've done something that goes against God's word (his wisdom). There are many times when I just want to curl up in a box and hide because I've ignored a truth about God and the life he wants us to live. It hurts. It's painful. It's a bruise to my ego.

Becoming a person of spiritual wisdom takes time, practice and failure. If you start with that one commitment -- to be more like Christ -- then actively seek God to let him change who you are and what you do. That's the Christian life. It's going to have ups and downs, trials and tribulations, but God will constantly be speaking to you, building you up, pushing you farther in faith, and revealing his wisdom to you.

Become a person of wisdom. Don't be a fool.

Can You Mess Up God's Plan?

I had a friend today send out an email that really got me thinking. Here's the question that I drew from his conversation:

Can you mess up God's plan?

This topic couldn't have come up at a better time as we (Cape Naz Church) are in the heart of our series on iDentity.

I think that the answer to that question lies not in what we do (the plan) but in who we are. Our society in many ways has become very "do" oriented. We identify ourselves by our jobs. Who we work for and what we do -- that becomes our defining characteristic.

If you don't believe me then think about the last time that you met someone new in a casual, social setting. I'm willing to bet good money that one of the first questions you asked (or they asked of you) was "where do you work" or maybe "what do you do?"

So, we become nurses or engineers or doctors or pastors or whatevers.

I would sincerely hope that for all of us the answer to the question "what do you do" is not the summation of all that we are.

So, back to the questoin of the day: can we mess up God's plan?

That entirely depends on you. Do you think God's plan is simply a "do" or do you think God's plan is more of a "be"?

After all, if God is who he says he is and continues being who he says he will be then we don't have much to worry about.

Do you think your flaws and failings are bigger than God? Why do we so often believe that the God who created the universe, flung the stars into the sky, and gave us breath would be at all surprised or flustered (in other words: rendered ineffectual) by our decision to "do" this or that?

No, God's plan for us is a "be" plan not a "do" plan. Be like Christ. Your "do" is a reflection of who you "are". We show our faith by our works. Our works themselves are not faith.

Can you mess you God's plan?

If you sincerely devote yourself to God and becoming the person He wants you to become, then you can be absolutely 100% completely and utterly assured that God's best will "be" in your life!
You might (scratch that... you will) mess up, but what matters is not yesterday's sins but today's decision to "be" like God and tomorrow's decision to be that way again.

I'm back!

Hey! It's August! I promised that I would be back in August, and here I am. I'm not really making a post today. Instead, I'm just reminding you that I'm here. I'm ready to write. I hope you're ready to read.

Here's hoping that you enjoyed your summer! Here's hoping that you, like me, took some time away from blogs and businesses and schools and whatnot to catch up with your family.

In the coming weeks expect me to dig deeper into the concept of iDentity, which is our current series at Cape Naz. Who are you in Christ? We'll be talking about that all August and into September.

I'll probably also look ahead to our next two series: Community (yes, like the TV show) and Life (yes, like the board game). Lots of blogging will be heading your direction, so keep your clicker pointed in "The Stomp Box's" direction.

Where have you been and when will you be back?

I know that I've been short in posting lately. Summer and all that comes with it are hitting harder than I expected. It's been a great summer so far, filled with lots of swimming, a trip to the lake, long drives, camp, and more of the same to come!

It's fun having a kid who gets a summer break. Jacob has finished his first year of school (kindergarten, of course) and we're trying to make the most of his time off.

Anyway, as much as I would love to be writing and blogging during the summer, something has to give. Unfortunately, the blog is the thing that's going to have to take a summer break of its own.

So, don't expect anything at The Stomp Box until August, when I'll be back full force with more of the content that you're used to, plus some new elements. Check our website, capenaz.org for details on when the blog will return.

Enjoy your summer!
- Jason

"The Reason Why There's No Post This Week" Post

I don't have a spiritual point to make today. I apologize for that. I offer this post as a "reason why there's no post this week" post instead. Enjoy.


Two weeks ago I hurt my back. I didn't really do anything to cause it to go out, it's just one of those things that happens when you're my age, I guess. Usually when my back goes out, I fall into a precise pattern of behavior. It hurts, so I rest it. It starts to feel a little better after a day or two, so I assume it's all fine and return to my usual activities. I push it too far too fast and, wham, it ends up going out again and we start the process over.

After a couple rounds of that through the last few weeks, I really thought i was over the hump. It had not hurt for several days. I believed I had full range of motion back. I decide it's time to test it out on the golf course.

The Missouri district pastors had an "Advance" this week out at Pinecrest campground. One of the activities was a scramble -- you're divided up into a four man team and play "best ball" to shoot the lowest score possible for your team. My round started out awful. No matter what I tried, I couldn't keep from topping the golf ball and hitting a little dribbler down the fairway. While I'm not a golf pro, I'm usually much better than that. It was almost like my back wasn't allowing me to take a normal swing.

That, in the middle of intense pastoral competition, was completely unacceptable.

On the 7th hole, I decide that enough was enough. I concentrate on staying in my slot and forcing my body through the normal torque and rotation. I go back and swing down hard, keeping my form, locking my body into its often-practiced motion, and following through completely. The result was a gorgeous 240 yard 3-wood that sailed up into the air, fading ever so slightly, and dropping in the middle of the fairway.

While celebrating my mental victory over the limitations of my physical self, I felt my left arm get all tingly. A creeping yet vicious pain shot from the center of my spine, filling the left side of my back with the fire of a thousand suns. Breathing became a real issue. My eyes watered. Oh the pain! Oh the agony! Oh the joy of hitting a great shot!

A normal man -- even a smart man -- would stop right there and call it a round. No sir. Not me. This is competition, remember. It's war. It's not some friendly round with a bunch of pastor buddies. I. Must. Play. On.

Whatever God-given obstacle that kept my back from making a normal golf swing (and me feeling relatively pain-free) was ripped asunder. On my next shot, I pleasantly discovered that I had full range of motion back! Sure, every practice swing felt like someone was billy clubing my left ribs, but if I sucked up the pain, I could move without limitation. I see victory within our reach. I go after it!

I absolutely let it rip. I started hitting greens. I was peppering the fairway. I was chipping and putting well. I was awing my teammates (who were convinced I had hustled them for the first 6 holes). I was downing Tylenol like they were Smarties. At one point I think I passed out for a few holes. It was fantastic!

We added up the scores at the end of the round and my team won, with a not-very-impressive 3-under par -- all of which came after my back, as one team man put it, "loosened up".

It was worth the effort, the pain, and the undiagnosed overdose on pain medications. We were the champions of the Pastor's Advance men's golf scramble! My performance will go down in history as one of the guttiest performances ever performed by a pastor trying to impress his pastor friends in order to win a meaningless competition with no prize except pride.

Sure, my back still hurts like you wouldn't believe. My neck is most comfortable when it's cocked at a 45 degree angle toward my left shoulder. My extremities still randomly twitch and spasm uncontrollably. But I'm not to complain about it. No sir! Not me! I know that what I suffer now, I suffer intentionally, having chosen several days of physical anguish over the agony of defeat at the hands of fellow pastors on the golf course.

So, that's why there's no post this week, and why, instead, you get a post about why there's no post. If you're looking for a spiritual or inspirational lesson... well, you'll have to find one in there yourself!

"Serve" vs. "Serve"

Let me preface this by saying very clearly and bluntly: I am not a Greek scholar. I never had much more than a casual introduction to Greek. I spent all of my language credits in undergrad and grad school on French and Hebrew... Neither of which will help me with this current post. That's why this is a blog and not something more official. If this piques your interest and you want to go deeper, then feel free to contact my friends Dr. Grizzle or Dr. Mansfield or future Dr's. Foster and Lunsford and they'll fill your brain with greek-iness all day long.

Now that that's cleared up, let's butcher the language of the New Testament!

The passage that I chose for the next two sermons is Romans 12:1-13. There are two references to the word "serve" in this passage, and both have unique contexts. The first is in verse 7.

"We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve".

The second reference is several verses later:

"11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord."

If you've ever looked up a word in the English dictionary you know that sometimes words have multiple meanings. You depend on the context of the word to tell you what kind of meaning is intended. Here the NIV translators have chosen to use the same English word to represent two entirely different Greek words. In verse 7. the Greek word used for serve is "diakonia". In verse 11, it's "douleuo".

Douleuo -- to serve or to be a slave.

Diakonia -- to minister to.

Now, look back at the context. Diakonia is used in the context of the Church (people). Paul is taking about the Body of Christ -- the collection of individuals all with unique talents who serve each other in Christian love. Diakonia is your ministry, your service to the people around you. It's gifts oriented. It's how you attend to someone; how you minister to people; how you bless your Christian brothers and sisters. We'll talk more about this next week.

Douleuo is used in the context of your relationship with God. It's the answer to the three topics Paul introduces at the head of this chapter. What does it mean to be a living sacrifice (vs.1)? What does it mean to conform yourself no longer to this world (vs. 2)? How can you know and do God's will (vs. 3)?

Paul provides a radical answer. Douleuo. Become a slave to God.

Slavery is always a touchy subject. I'm watching "America: The Story of Us" right now on the History Channel and they're talking about the events leading up to the Civil War. Slavery was a driving force behind a war that killed more people than any of the other U.S. wars combined. It's something we've spilled blood to eradicate. It's completely contrary to the American ideal of freedom, that hard work and determination will lead you to success. All men are created equal and have unalienable rights! You can acheive your dreams and find success if you try your best! It's the American way!

God is suggesting, rather, that your success is dependent not just on how you use your freedoms but on how many of your freedoms you're willing to sacrifice for him.

There's a statement that I'm going to make in my message this weekend that I feel comfortable revealing now, hoping maybe it will sink in a little before you hear it again on Sunday morning: "What is common practice among common people is not the same as the extraordinary will of our extraordinary God."

What's the best thing that you can do with your life? Live free? Work hard? Be your own man? Make your own way? Nope.

The best thing you can do with your life is slavishly devote yourself to God and his will. Lay down your desires. Pick up His will. Set aside your old way of thinking. Unite your thoughts with God. Become a living sacrifice to him (a slave to his will), conforming your will to His, renewing your thoughts with His thoughts instead of the worlds, and then doing His will -- His good, perfect, and pleasing will.

More to come on Sunday. For now, think about that. Are you willing to be a slave for God?

It's That Simple

It can be this simple...

There's a rookie on the St. Louis Cardinals. Jaime Garcia is his name, and he's been a dynamic young starter for the Cards so far this season. I've followed Jaime (pronounced HI-MA) since he was drafted. I followed his box scores when he was in low A ball. I watched him in AA while in Tulsa. I never expected him to perform the way he has so far.

I haven't had a chance to watch him extensively this season. I've had other things to do during each of his starts so far. Tonight I hoped to change that. I fully planned to sit on the couch with my glass of cherry coke and watch all 9 innings of what I hoped would be another dominant performance by the young lefty hurler and a Cardinals win.

Through three innings everything was going as planned. Dinner was cooked, served, and cleaned up. Kids were entertained. Jessica was settled in. Baseball game was on. Garcia was dealing. All was well with the world.

In between innings I replaced my cherry coke a time or two and started noticing that a lot of my neighbors were outside tonight (it was a beautiful evening). The internal debate began. Should I stick to my guns and watch Garcia? That was the plan. Or, should I break from it and go outside to do some yard work and maybe have an opportunity to connect with some of my neighbors (all of which are on my 5 for 5 list)?

I've learned over the past 2 years that when you get one of those "thoughts" you should probably act on it. It might just be God stirring something up in you. Begrudgingly, I give in.

I leave Garcia and my cherry coke behind, grab my rake and hoe, and head out to the front yard to pick up rocks. See, our new house in Cape was built on an old silica mine. Well, that's what one of my neighbors told us at least; I don't know if it's true or not. I do know that there are an amazing amount of rocks in our young yard and they need to be cleared for the grass to come in better.

Now, I know what you're expecting. You've heard the stories before. I'm going to tell you that God brought one of my neighbors over to my yard, I said one word, and they immediately fell to their knees to give their lives to Christ. Maybe that happens for other pastors, but not for me. No, my story is much simpler. I raked some rocks. I chatted briefly with one of the neighbors on my list who was also out in his yard doing some dirt work. I had a good laugh with another couple who were out for a walk and empathized with the enormity of my rock picking requirements.

That's it. That's all that happened. It was nothing earth shattering. I just made myself available to make connections with my neighbors. I was putting myself in position for God to start something.

I'll keep praying. I'll keep fasting. I'll keep picking up rocks in my yard -- a project that will probably take the full 5 weeks of the 5 for 5 campaign. I'll keep connecting with the people on my list. We'll see what God does! That's up to Him. It really can be that simple...

5 for 5

Let me briefly explain what this is again and then I want to get into some details about it.

1. Name 5 unchurched connections that you have.
2. Pray for them 5 minutes a day.
3. Fast one meal a week.
4. Connect with the people on list once a week
5. Continue that for 5 weeks.

We're starting it this week. Have you prayed about your 5 connections? I hope so.

There's a lot of good things that will come out of this. Prayer and fasting, connecting with the unchurched, committing to do it for an extended period of time... those are all healthy, great things for a church committed to Christ to do.

The key, though, is not in our actions (as important as they are). The key is that GOD WANTS THIS MORE THAN WE DO! Remember, God so loved the world that he gave his son so that any who believes in him will have eternal life. You know that verse. You've seen it in Sunday School since you were a kid. You see it on billboards on the interstate. You see it written on Tim Tebow's eye black.

God wants to reach people more than we do. What we're doing is getting ourselves in position so that he can do that through us! We're showing our faith. We're showing our willingness to sacrifice. We're showing our concern for the lost.

We're getting God good and excited.

The one promise I can make through this campaign is that God himself will show us what he can do! He'll show us how he can create divine encounters. He'll show us how he can move to change people's hearts and minds. He'll show us that he can show up and still do the miraculous!

A friend at Cape Naz told me that the church had never done anything like this before. Oh boy! Look out then! God's ready to go; he's ready to bring his love to Cape Girardeau. Are you ready to go with Him? I hope so!

Connection Church: Who Are We Trying to Reach?

We're starting a new series this week entitled "Connection Church". It's one I've been looking forward to since I first put it together back in October. We're going to answer critical questions like, what is the church? What is our future at Cape Naz? What role can I play in that future?

This discussion will be somewhat two-sided. We're going to make it highly personal. It will be up to you to respond to the discussion as you see fit. At the same time, it's intensely communal -- those collective "responses" will form the identity of our church going foward.

It should be a lot of fun! I'm hoping to see a lot of buzz, a lot of excitement, and most importantly, a vision develop for the type of people and the type of church that we're going to become.

To start the discussion, I want to point you to an article that came out today from our freinds at Barna, a Christian research organization. They do studies on Christianity in culture and help inform the church about current trends -- so we can reach the lost (or the unchurched) more effectively than ever before!

Take a few moments to read this article. It's short. It's to the point. It SHOULD change the way that you think about the unchurched in America. It certainly changed my view...

Follow this link:
http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/12-faithspirituality/362-millions-of-unchurched-adults-are-christians-hurt-by-churches-but-can-be-healed-of-the-pain

Article Header:
Millions of Unchurched Adults Are Christians Hurt by Churches But Can Be Healed of the Pain

Your church may be among the many who actively seek to grow by attracting unchurched people. However, our latest study shows that most unchurched adults are Christians, a significant share of whom have been hurt by the local church in the past and have not discovered ways of effectively addressing their pain and being restored to a healthy relationship with a local church. Find out more about what our research and resources have discovered regarding this critical subject.