Pastor's Blog

Do you sense a political storm brewing? The state of the economy, the frustration of people over differing philosophies of governance, and the like or dislike of various political figures is a recipe for a polarized country. When professing Christians decide to endorse a particular ideology with the signature of Jesus, it is forgery. The storm can become a hurricane and long-term damage can be done to the cause of Christ in our nation. A reader of The Pastor’s Blog posted a comment a couple of weeks ago that included a quote from A. W. Tozer. I rewrite it here: “…we must not identify the Gospel with any political system, nor make Christianity to be synonymous with any form of government, however noble (that government is). Christ stands alone, above and outside every ideology devised by man. He does not join any of our parties nor takes sides with any of our great men except as they may come over on His side and try to follow Him in righteousness and true holiness. Then He is for them, but only as individuals, never as leaders of some political faction. The true Christian will be loyal to his country and obedient to those in authority, but he will never fall into the error of confusing his own national culture with Christianity. Christianity is bigger than any country, loftier than any civilization, broader than any human ideology.” Let us be people who love God and love our neighbors. Let us express ourselves in this country that is still free. But let us be extra cautious in this political climate not to suggest that God is on the side of a particular party or ideology. Do you have an opinion about this? Post your thoughts here . . . (Sorry about not having any paragraph breaks. We are having an issue with the word processor in recent times.)

A pastor was once quoted as saying, “I love the ministry. It’s people I don’t like.” I would not go as far as to let anyone quote me on such a thought, but I will confess that going into this summer I was a bit “peopled out.” How could I say that? My calling is to shepherd people. But I just wanted to be alone for a while. I looked forward to the month of August and the chance to study for large blocks of time all alone. One should be careful what he wishes for. He might actually get it. That was the case for me during this month. I managed to sequester myself for days at a time just for the purpose of study and prayer. While these times were greatly beneficial, I found myself starting to get lonely. I missed my family. I missed the awesome staff team at the church. Believe it or not, I missed my phone ringing. Now tonight on the eve of sending my second daughter off to college, I already miss her. But then . . . I got a phone message tonight from Carrie Resch who said that she had just sent her son to school and thought we might be feeling similar to the way she felt. How kind. I started getting ready for bed and the phone rang again. It was my good friend and neighbor Mike just wanting to say that he and Kathy were thinking about us as we plan to send Victoria to school. “God, You are so good to give us relationships. You bless us with people who love and care and desire to be like Jesus. Thank You God for all the lessons of this month of August.” As we head into fall, are you setting priorities to surround yourself with close relationships? You and I both need them.

One of my favorite things about going to a restaurant is the freedom to choose from whatever is on the menu. If I don’t feel like having pasta, I can order beef. If I don’t care for salad, I can order soup. Each year the Elders of the church give me a few weeks for what we call a “Study Break.” It’s a time when I concentrate on creating a “Preaching Menu” for the coming year. What themes would God have us deal with in the coming year? What should be on His menu for us as we move toward 2011? The difference between a “Restaurant Menu” and a “Preaching Menu” comes down to choice. The church family does not really have a choice in what it hears on a given Sunday. Yet, that is the best part of a menu; choice. I have a list of themes I am considering for this year’s Preaching Menu, but I would like to give you an opportunity to express what you believe you (and the church as a whole) need to hear from God’s Word. Your willingness to speak into this process may be a way that God uses to create the menu for this coming year. Please feel free to respond specifically or just generally as to what you believe the church needs in preaching. Thank you in advance for your participation.

“Don’t just do something. Sit there.” Being a productive person, I can hardly imagine a more counter intuitive statement. Everything in me wants to make progress and I am used to just “making it happen.” But God will not be rushed. I find that when I have set aside three hours for study in a morning, frequently it is at 2:45 when I finally feel that God is opening my eyes to see Him more clearly. I find that when I set aside a couple of hours on a Saturday night to prepare my heart for the next morning, it is often 90 minutes into it that I finally sense His presence. The word “linger” is a word I am coming to love. For me, “linger” means to stay a little longer. “Linger” means that God is going to make Himself known to me in the next minutes. He has come in the past if I was willing to “linger” there. Right when I feel that I cannot handle any more distracting thoughts, I am rewarded for “lingering” there in the middle of them. In the stillness there is a quiet sense that we are connecting. There is an unusual clarity about my own heart and His love for me. There is a joy that goes so much deeper than the kind of happiness that runs from one fickle thought to another. I challenge you to “linger” a little longer as you invite Him to make Himself known to you.

John wrote to fellow Christians in I John 1:9 – “IF we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Someone might respond with, “What do you mean ‘IF?’ I prayed the prayer. I thought I was ‘good to go’ no matter what. Is John placing a condition on my salvation?” The New Testament speaks repeatedly about being “in Christ.” When God the Father looks at His children He sees that they are “in Christ.” He sees that they are trusting Christ and walking with Christ in daily life. On the promise of His Word, they are truly His children. But even so, His children still fail. John seems to be saying that IF God’s children confess their known rebellion and sin then they experience God’s forgiveness. What about those who profess their faith in Christ but walk in sin anyway? My response is that I fear for them. Obviously God will make the call. Jesus said to His disciples in John 15:5 – “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit. Apart from Me you can do nothing.” Jesus says, “IF a man remains in Me and I in him…” The seeming implication is that we CAN choose not to remain in Him. If we make that choice, we reveal what is really in our heart. We have chosen not to trust in Him and not to walk with Him in daily life. Jesus also said there would come a day when “professing” believers would stand before God and say, “Lord, Lord.” He will then say, “Depart from Me, for I know you not.” As a shepherd of the sheep, I am called to “correct, rebuke, and encourage.” Be encouraged today that IF you confess your sin as an expression of your trust in Christ, then you are truly “in Christ.” It’s the very best place to be. I deeply caution anyone (myself included) who thinks they can sin and still be “good to go.” You are playing with fire.

I have sort of grown up knowing the command to "keep the Sabbath." I've known intellectually that I should take a day a week and designate it for rest. But it has always seemed a bit on the legalistic side of things. This is another thing I need to do or check off of my "To Do" list. I have learned, however, that as long as the things of the Christian life are on a "To Do" list, they will not be entered into with the proper motive. We are not trying to gain God's favor by doing the right things. We already have God's favor. So why should we do the things He says to do? We must do them because we are convinced that if we don't we will not have close fellowship with Him. True life is the life that is close to Him. Several years ago when I first started practicing a regular time of solitude, it happened out of a sense of desperation. I was not checking something off of my list. I knew that I simply had to connect with Christ. I desperately wanted to. Out of that desperation came some of the richest times in my relationship with God. Desperation was the key. If you want to begin connecting with Christ in solitude, do not enter into it out of a sense of duty. It is a dangerous and extremely healthy prayer. Ask God to make you desperate for Him . . . and then in solitude discover how wonderful it is just to "be" with Him.

Jesus said, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit. Apart from Me, you can do nothing." Vine Fresh relationship with Jesus requires connection. We cannot connect with Christ on the run or on the way to doing other things. True connection with Christ requires a single focus (Christ) and cannot be done while we also try to complete a parallel agenda. There are some challenges to this kind of connection however. One challenge is that we are used to doing the talking when it comes to Christ. We ask for this and we ask for that, but connection with Christ requires that we listen for what He wants to say or reveal to us. The most common experience of everyone who tries to be quiet before the Lord is the up-hill climb of controlling wandering thoughts and distractions. As soon as I stop my activity and reduce the noise, my mind wanders away from the Lord. I have been living at such a frantic pace for so long that solitude is a little bit like being in a kayak in class 5 rapids and trying to take still shots with my camera. It seems absolutely impossible. If you face this challenge, you might consider using something to center your attention on Christ. Set a picture of Jesus before you. Use a Scripture verse or even a phrase of Scripture to help you focus. I recently read of someone who lit a candle and the flame alone helped them to realize the presence of Christ "the Light" in that time. Place something before you that you can see to help distract you from the distractions. Remember that the vital practice of solitude is so very different from the rest of our lives that discovering the fruit of it comes down to a fight. It is a fight to stay in the place where Christ will meet you if you stay long enough. Do not give up too soon. Often God has met me in a meaningful way right toward the end of my time alone with Him. Please post your experiences, comments, and even questions. Let's develop a thread that helps us support one another on this important practice.

For the past several weeks the Elders have been reading a book together titled, The Principle of the Path, by Andy Stanley. In it Andy describes the paths that often lead us to where we did not intend to go. In a compelling and humorous way he unveils a principle of life we have all experienced. Here it is: Direction - Not Intention - Determines Your Destination. It's the direction you are heading that determines where you will end up. If you stay on I90 going east you WILL end up in Butte whether you meant to or not. It was the path you took that determined where you went. This principle applies in almost every area of your life. You can have the best "intentions" of being financially secure, but it is your spending and your philosophy of debt that will ultimately determine where you end up financially. You may agree that it is not a good idea to stop exercising, but what path are you currently on? You may intend to go see a counselor for your relational problem, but not until you pick up your cell phone and make the call are you actually on that path. Direction - Not Intention - Determines Your Destination. How many people in life are utterly shocked when they look around them and all of the voices in their life are a bad influence? How many people are surprised that alcohol has a grip on their life and is affecting their decisions? The Principle of the Path says, "There should be no surprise. This was the path you were on all along. It took you where it goes." What path are you on in the area of your life that comes to mind? It won't be good intentions that makes the difference. It will be intentionality.

OK, so I'm looking out the front window of my house and my neighbor Mike is up on his roof installing solar panels. He spent the winter building them in his basement. He claims that they are going to reduce his power bill. In fact, he is going to hook them directly to his power meter and the idea is that the solar panel intake will actually run his power meter backwards to a lower power bill. Mike is my all-time hero. He carries more ideas out in real life than the number of ideas that have ever entered my head. Mike's solar panels raise a question for me that maybe you have an opinion on. Seeing the posts on this pastor's blog, I KNOW you have an opinion and don't mind sharing it. I love that. But here's my question: How green should Christians be? I know it is quite popular to be "green" right now in our culture, but what impact should our faith in Christ have on the decisions we make in this area of conservation? If we are being good stewards of God's gifts to us, should we all be constructing solar panels in the winter time? Should we all be working harder to recycle? Should we all be changing out our windows for more efficient ones? Should we all be buying more energy efficient appliances? How green should Christians be?

So you want to be a disciple of Jesus. You always do what you believe. You always and only do what you believe. Anger management is important for the disciple of Jesus. What do I need to believe in order to be successful in this area of anger? By way of review, let me comment on 5 beliefs that will help you manage your anger. 1. I NEED TO BELIEVE I AM ALWAYS WORKING WITH SINNERS. If I subconsciously think I am working with people who are saints (or who should know better than to do something wrong) I will live in a continual state of frustration (and maybe even anger) when they do not do what they OUGHT to do. When I believe that I am working with sinners, I subconsciously acknowledge that what is most important for their future is grace and forgiveness. 2. I NEED TO BELIEVE I AM JUST AS GUILTY AS THE ONE WITH WHOM I AM ANGRY. Jesus said that when you see a speck in someone else's eye, first remove the plank from your own eye. Jesus was not speaking hypothetically here. He is not saying that before you seek to remove a speck from someone else's eye, you should first stop and consider that you "might" have a plank in your own eye. No. Fact: When you see a speck in your brother's eye, you DO have a plank in your eye. This is most obvious to us when we stop to realize that we generally break the second most important commandment whenever we are angry. "Love your neighbor as yourself." I have to admit there is a plank in my own eye when I stop loving the one I am angry with. 3. I NEED TO BELIEVE I AM NOT GOD. Generally I express that I think I am God when I seek to control. If I in my anger attempt to control you, then I am playing the role of God. I need to believe that God is God and I am not God. This helps me believe He will take care of things in His own timing. 4. I NEED TO BELIEVE GOD DOES NOT NEED MY HELP. One of the most important lessons I have learned in life is that "God does not need me." God is not relying on me. He may use me, but He does not depend on me. This has been a freeing thing for me when my inclination would be to get angry if progress is not happening the way I want it to. 5. I NEED TO BELIEVE GOD CAN BE TRUSTED. From the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation God proves that He can be trusted. He has never broken a promise. He has never failed to accomplish His purposes. I may experience some hard and stretching challenges, but God knows what He is doing and He is doing it. These (and perhaps many more) are what I need to believe in order to succeed in this area of anger.