Climate Change
I was at Starbucks the other day. I ordered a caramel macchiato--a tall with skim milk. I love the taste, but want to avoid the calories. As I was waiting for my brew, I walked over to the counter where they had several brochures. I picked one up that caught my eye.
It was for a contest.
You didn't win a million dollars. Or a big screen TV. Or a brand new computer. Or a cruise.
You won a trip to central America, where you would work alongside native coffee bean harvesters. A trip where you would work. A trip where you would learn. Eat native food. Discover the economic impact of the coffee industry on the country, and the hardships that are endured by countless central Americans.
I wanted to win. I wanted to win that trip more than I wanted to win a cruise--or a big screen TV--or a million dollars.
The climate of our culture is changing. Is the church reflecting this shift?
I think so.
I was sitting with my good friend John Fooshee talking with him about his new church plant in North Johnson City. One of their primary goals as a church is launch people into action; not just action for church growth; not just action to make their Sunday School class more "new!" or "dynamic!" or "relevant!" or "edgy!" They want to launch people into an action that suits them, both within their congregation (less important) and within their community (more important).
It's true that Redeemer is more relaxed. You could wear jeans there and not make one person blink. You could even wear a t-shirt (golly, gee-wilikers, there must be some Holy Spirit!). But they aren't marketing a campus quad ethos. They're pushing for something beyond the subscription to a doctrine. They're a church that wants people to be themselves, and to be the best themselves that can exist--and not for their sake, but for our community's sake, and for the kingdom of God.
Isn't this what Christ was about? He calls us in John 15 to live in Christ; to bear fruit from him so that others-- so that the community-- can taste and see that the Lord is good. In the gospels, Christ calls us to live creatively and generously with one another.
In his letters, Paul exhorts citizens to be the best citizens. He calls fathers to be the best fathers. He calls officials to be the best officials. He calls slaves to be the best slaves. He calls each to their own position, to their own bend, to their own duty... but to live it to their best.
There's a climate change in our culture that is being reflected in a reforming church. It's a change that is calling people to community-building instead of buildings-building. It's a change that pushes for people-launching, not program-launching. It's a change that will produce lawyers that take on the cause of the third-world forced slave prostitute (IJM). It's a change that will produce young businessmen and women that will give out low-interest small business loans to people that could never start their own business without it (Opporunity International). It's a change that will grow a new monasticism that helps the inner-city poor (The Simple Way). It's a change that will see Christians going into environmental science to work alongside atheists and evolutionists.
It's a change that will seek to answer this aching question: Why is it the godless people that care most about saving and caring for our planet and the poorest people in it?
I hope that the church is changing in this way.
I think it'll be a good change.
I hope you are living your strengths; not for your own good, but for your community.
Don't waste one more minute of your life not being the best bank teller, mortgage lender, lawn worker, lawyer, financial planner, housewife, pastor, bus driver, construction worker, telemarketer, insurance salesman, pavement pourer, social worker, teacher, doctor, painter, artist, electrician, car salesman, mechanic, real estate agent, *inhale* that you can be.
God has wired you a certain way. Live your bend. And live it in and for him, for his kingdom, and for your community.
It's not trendy. It's Jesus.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Monday, March 19, 2007
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Premarital Lesson #1:
Great Expectations
Assumptions and presumptions; expectations and anticipations-- these thoughts rest within the bed-rock of all relationships. During a recent interview, a senior pastor asked me to tell him what time I expected to be in the office to work every morning. Before giving my answer, I told him that I wanted to know what the general rule was for the rest of the staff, what was the underlying assumption about attendance. If hired, failing to meet those presumptions could be costly for my relationship with the senior pastor. These sorts of expectations are found everywhere: between a waiter and a restaurant guest, between a contractor and home owner, between a bank and a mortgage holder… between a husband and a wife. While expectations are natural, some expectations can be detrimental to a relationship while others can be overwhelmingly beneficial.
The difference between healthy and crippling expectations in relationships is their correspondence to God-founded, Biblical precepts. Assumptions that are rooted in selfishness, unhealthy ambition, lust, or pride are bound to cause tension in the relationship. Conversely, expectations rooted in service, others-mindedness, desire for genuine intimacy, and humility result in a flourishing relationship that honors Christ and reflects his love for us. In addition to having proper motives, a husband and wife must share an understanding of the actions that result from the expectations. Spouses that recognize and understand healthy expectations are able to accept reproof when ill motives and actions arise and will also more fully appreciate the actions that result from healthy expectations.
Even through my engagement to Allison, I can see how some of my unhealthy expectations have gotten in the way, and could lead to unhealthy expectations during marriage. To prepare for our marriage that’s coming up in less than five months (!!), I’ve been taking time now to filter out the motives of my expectations. As I do that, I’m becoming more able to decipher which situations require a change of heart and in what situations I should consider giving Allison truthful and loving reproof. Likewise, I can see Allison discerning her own motives and she is becoming more comfortable with giving me the reproof that I need. As we grow in Christ, individually and as a couple, we’re learning how to sharpen each other--how to spur one another on to becoming a better future spouse… and a better servant of God. My hope, therefore, is not to eliminate expectations in our relationship altogether, but to filter out those rooted in self and foster God-honoring, healthy, great expectations.
Great Expectations
Assumptions and presumptions; expectations and anticipations-- these thoughts rest within the bed-rock of all relationships. During a recent interview, a senior pastor asked me to tell him what time I expected to be in the office to work every morning. Before giving my answer, I told him that I wanted to know what the general rule was for the rest of the staff, what was the underlying assumption about attendance. If hired, failing to meet those presumptions could be costly for my relationship with the senior pastor. These sorts of expectations are found everywhere: between a waiter and a restaurant guest, between a contractor and home owner, between a bank and a mortgage holder… between a husband and a wife. While expectations are natural, some expectations can be detrimental to a relationship while others can be overwhelmingly beneficial.
The difference between healthy and crippling expectations in relationships is their correspondence to God-founded, Biblical precepts. Assumptions that are rooted in selfishness, unhealthy ambition, lust, or pride are bound to cause tension in the relationship. Conversely, expectations rooted in service, others-mindedness, desire for genuine intimacy, and humility result in a flourishing relationship that honors Christ and reflects his love for us. In addition to having proper motives, a husband and wife must share an understanding of the actions that result from the expectations. Spouses that recognize and understand healthy expectations are able to accept reproof when ill motives and actions arise and will also more fully appreciate the actions that result from healthy expectations.
Even through my engagement to Allison, I can see how some of my unhealthy expectations have gotten in the way, and could lead to unhealthy expectations during marriage. To prepare for our marriage that’s coming up in less than five months (!!), I’ve been taking time now to filter out the motives of my expectations. As I do that, I’m becoming more able to decipher which situations require a change of heart and in what situations I should consider giving Allison truthful and loving reproof. Likewise, I can see Allison discerning her own motives and she is becoming more comfortable with giving me the reproof that I need. As we grow in Christ, individually and as a couple, we’re learning how to sharpen each other--how to spur one another on to becoming a better future spouse… and a better servant of God. My hope, therefore, is not to eliminate expectations in our relationship altogether, but to filter out those rooted in self and foster God-honoring, healthy, great expectations.
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