we stand poised at the edge of the great precipice that divides what is past and what is yet to come. with eyes focused on what is unseen, we will finally accomplish that service the Great Redeemer has entrusted to us, the complete renown of His sovereign glory. that awesome task, that, unfortunately, has taken two millennia too long, will be accomplished by a terminal generation that will grasp only for what is unseen and will choose to not be content to retreat into the pleasures and the comforts established by generations past. Will this generation arise now? only history can tell us, only God can foreknow it, only the Spirit can guide us, and only we can desire it.
but why? why does a line have to be line drawn in the sand? why do we have to desire to step over the edge? why do we have to be the ones who have to walk off the edge of the cliff? why do we have to be watchful and mindful of every subconscious action?
let me tell you why. the answer is that our perspective is skewed. what we see one way is not how God, Himself sees it. we look at it like we’re stepping off the cliff; God sees it as we’re stepping onto the cliff from flying around, unsafely, on our own. the line must be drawn for people to take sides. “He who is not for Me is against Me,” Jesus said. if we do not stand with Jesus on His side of the line, and not because it is popular, because in a popularity contest, Jesus loses, we will be cut off. yet again, the popularity contest is skewed, because we are focused on what we can see and not what is unseen.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
30 June 2005
29 June 2005
image is everything
what i don’t get is how we can have churches on the corners of one of the most crime-ridden areas of major metropolitan cities and have such little impact. what great disservice we do to have a sunday morning service, a sunday evening service, and a wednesday night service and call it impacting the community. how is it an impact if the youth are still strung out on drugs, the girls are prostituting themselves and the boys are killing each other? yet we have a secret society at prayer so far removed from what is happening just outside the four walls. what service are we actually providing?
why do we claim the victory then ignore the battle? is there a direct relationship between the spiritual disrepair of the world and the lethargy contained within the four walls? how can the church claim victory for what is not involved in?
what price are we willing to pay? Why do we expect the cost to go down?
there is a form of spiritual inflation at work. as the church continues to withdraw into the four walls, the price at which the lost will be returned grows greater.
when will the church decide enough is enough?!?
who is willing to pay the price to reach the fourteen-year-old selling crack on the corner? who will cash in and go reach the pimp and the two prostitutes in the alley? will the next gang murder be enough? or will we shake our heads and go about our business? will the next rape be too much? how about the next drug deal?
why are we, the one’s the world claims to be intolerant, so tolerant of sin? why are we so concerned about our image? the image God wants us to reflect is His, not the world’s- not tolerance. we are supposed to reflect His image, to radiate His glory. yet we are content to hoard the gifts of God for ourselves. we prostitute the Gospel. we will be held accountable for the things we see, the things we hear, and the things we choose to ignore. And that SCARES me! we claim that ignorance can be bliss and cognitively ignore the state of the world around us. then when catastrophe strikes, we claim it is God’s judgment on a world fallen into sin.
it appears that our christian counter-culture is not merely a subculture, but an actual counter culture. we put our christianity on the counter to wait until we have to pick up again when we grab our Bibles on the way to church. practical atheism is plaguing the pulpits and the pews in the western church. it is birthed in many seminaries that are little more than theory think-tanks by those who only want the benefits of christianity with out paying any of the price. they are serving tomorrow’s pastors and church a bland, tasteless, salt-less Christianity. in truth, it is a gospel without Christ.
if the church can’t separate itself from the world, the Groom will pass over that potential bride and find a true and holy bride for Himself.
it is imperative that we realize that when we ask for God’s judgment, or when we pray for a revival of our churches, not only will he take us seriously but His judgment will begin within the four walls. it begins within the congregations and those who are only there to socialize will be weeded out. the Bible doesn’t even mention weeding, but Jesus suggests something even more drastic! they will be spit out, removed far from Him. forgive the graphic nature, but when something is spit out, it does not merely dribble down the chin as in the case of a baby, but it is removed far from the person and they walk away from it. Jesus also mentions pruning off the dead branches so that new ones can grow.
in some cases, pruning is within the branch; religious spirits and sins that are unintentional are among the first things to go. in other cases, the whole branch must be cut off so the tree can continue to grow and not die. the dead branches that have been cut off are set on fire to bring to dust. a dying branch can be saved, but a dead branch cannot live again.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
why do we claim the victory then ignore the battle? is there a direct relationship between the spiritual disrepair of the world and the lethargy contained within the four walls? how can the church claim victory for what is not involved in?
what price are we willing to pay? Why do we expect the cost to go down?
there is a form of spiritual inflation at work. as the church continues to withdraw into the four walls, the price at which the lost will be returned grows greater.
when will the church decide enough is enough?!?
who is willing to pay the price to reach the fourteen-year-old selling crack on the corner? who will cash in and go reach the pimp and the two prostitutes in the alley? will the next gang murder be enough? or will we shake our heads and go about our business? will the next rape be too much? how about the next drug deal?
why are we, the one’s the world claims to be intolerant, so tolerant of sin? why are we so concerned about our image? the image God wants us to reflect is His, not the world’s- not tolerance. we are supposed to reflect His image, to radiate His glory. yet we are content to hoard the gifts of God for ourselves. we prostitute the Gospel. we will be held accountable for the things we see, the things we hear, and the things we choose to ignore. And that SCARES me! we claim that ignorance can be bliss and cognitively ignore the state of the world around us. then when catastrophe strikes, we claim it is God’s judgment on a world fallen into sin.
it appears that our christian counter-culture is not merely a subculture, but an actual counter culture. we put our christianity on the counter to wait until we have to pick up again when we grab our Bibles on the way to church. practical atheism is plaguing the pulpits and the pews in the western church. it is birthed in many seminaries that are little more than theory think-tanks by those who only want the benefits of christianity with out paying any of the price. they are serving tomorrow’s pastors and church a bland, tasteless, salt-less Christianity. in truth, it is a gospel without Christ.
if the church can’t separate itself from the world, the Groom will pass over that potential bride and find a true and holy bride for Himself.
it is imperative that we realize that when we ask for God’s judgment, or when we pray for a revival of our churches, not only will he take us seriously but His judgment will begin within the four walls. it begins within the congregations and those who are only there to socialize will be weeded out. the Bible doesn’t even mention weeding, but Jesus suggests something even more drastic! they will be spit out, removed far from Him. forgive the graphic nature, but when something is spit out, it does not merely dribble down the chin as in the case of a baby, but it is removed far from the person and they walk away from it. Jesus also mentions pruning off the dead branches so that new ones can grow.
in some cases, pruning is within the branch; religious spirits and sins that are unintentional are among the first things to go. in other cases, the whole branch must be cut off so the tree can continue to grow and not die. the dead branches that have been cut off are set on fire to bring to dust. a dying branch can be saved, but a dead branch cannot live again.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
28 June 2005
come follow me
do you want to look for my fullness?
do you want to make history with me?
do you want to count for my Kingdom?
do you want to see miracles and stand for justice?
do want to see reconciliation and people set free?
do you want to see nations transformed by the power of prayer?
then come, follow me,
and I will show you where to go.
it’s not to the platform and the spot-lit speaker.
it’s not the conference, the meeting, or the camp.
come with me to the darkest places
come to the hurting, the howling, hollow faces
come with me to the addicted, convicted and caught
come with your light, run with your salt,
come to the sorrow; the suicide tree
come to the stable
come follow me.[i]
i came across this poem in a book that i finished reading lately. that second stanza really hit me between the eyes. And my soul screamed out, “YES!” while conferences, meetings, and camps can serve to refresh us, what are they refreshing us for? they should serve to direct us to following where God is going. but often times, we go to conferences, meetings and camps to see what God is doing in someone else’s ministry. what God is doing in their lives and that we may wish that we too could experience that touch of God’s grace or that we may witness a miracle in our lives or the life of someone we may meet at the event.
it’s not about that. if we truly want to go for God in all His glory and to count for His kingdom; if we truly want to see reconciliation, lives set free, and nations transformed, then we need to go where He is sending us. not that we will be separated from Him, but that He wants us to join Him in that place to change the atmosphere, lives, and nations.
conferences, meetings, and camps should be a short stop on the way, not a place to continuously return for something new, cutting edge or to hear someone famous. there are some truly awesome things happening in the earth today, and God’s glory is being poured out, but God doesn’t want us to simply gather in one place to hear about it, He wants us to go and experience it. think about that. we don’t have to settle for the stories of others- He wants us to experience it in the nations! He wants the nations to experience it! He wants you to take His glory to the nations. He doesn’t want to settle within the church. He can’t settle within the church. He won’t settle within the church. And if we try to force Him to, He will go elsewhere and begin again with a people who are willing and open. He’s done it in the past; He’ll do it again today.
let’s not get left behind.
[i] Written by Ian Nicholson and quoted in the book Red Moon Rising (Lake Mary, FL: [Relevant Books], 2003) 181.
do you want to make history with me?
do you want to count for my Kingdom?
do you want to see miracles and stand for justice?
do want to see reconciliation and people set free?
do you want to see nations transformed by the power of prayer?
then come, follow me,
and I will show you where to go.
it’s not to the platform and the spot-lit speaker.
it’s not the conference, the meeting, or the camp.
come with me to the darkest places
come to the hurting, the howling, hollow faces
come with me to the addicted, convicted and caught
come with your light, run with your salt,
come to the sorrow; the suicide tree
come to the stable
come follow me.[i]
i came across this poem in a book that i finished reading lately. that second stanza really hit me between the eyes. And my soul screamed out, “YES!” while conferences, meetings, and camps can serve to refresh us, what are they refreshing us for? they should serve to direct us to following where God is going. but often times, we go to conferences, meetings and camps to see what God is doing in someone else’s ministry. what God is doing in their lives and that we may wish that we too could experience that touch of God’s grace or that we may witness a miracle in our lives or the life of someone we may meet at the event.
it’s not about that. if we truly want to go for God in all His glory and to count for His kingdom; if we truly want to see reconciliation, lives set free, and nations transformed, then we need to go where He is sending us. not that we will be separated from Him, but that He wants us to join Him in that place to change the atmosphere, lives, and nations.
conferences, meetings, and camps should be a short stop on the way, not a place to continuously return for something new, cutting edge or to hear someone famous. there are some truly awesome things happening in the earth today, and God’s glory is being poured out, but God doesn’t want us to simply gather in one place to hear about it, He wants us to go and experience it. think about that. we don’t have to settle for the stories of others- He wants us to experience it in the nations! He wants the nations to experience it! He wants you to take His glory to the nations. He doesn’t want to settle within the church. He can’t settle within the church. He won’t settle within the church. And if we try to force Him to, He will go elsewhere and begin again with a people who are willing and open. He’s done it in the past; He’ll do it again today.
let’s not get left behind.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
[i] Written by Ian Nicholson and quoted in the book Red Moon Rising (Lake Mary, FL:
27 June 2005
faith or football?
i have often wondered what would happen if football coaches approached their work like most pastors are expected to. For example, i wonder what would happen if when a player was too busy to show up for practice, the understanding coach simply said, “we’ll miss you. i hope you’ll be able to make it next week sometime.” imagine the players leaving practice and hearing the smiling coach say, “thanks for coming. i hope you’ll come back tomorrow.”
if a football team operated like a typical church, we might expect concerned parents to call the coach, saying, “can you tell me what’s been going on in practice? my son says it’s boring, and he doesn’t want to come anymore. i was wondering, could you make it a little more fun for them? and by the way, you might want to talk to the coach at the school across town. he seems to have the right idea.” the coach might send out quarterly questionnaires about what the players would like to change about the team (i can just imagine the answers: “shorter practices,” “more winning”).
a coach, responding like a typical minister, might first feel guilty that the practices were not meeting the boy’s needs, and he would try to adjust his program to suit this boy (and every other boy who complained). between trying to keep everybody happy and giving every student a good experience, the coach would squeeze in a little football practice. and what kind of season would this coach have? it’s a safe bet that the coach wouldn’t be the only one who felt like a loser.
but this is the very way that most churches expect to run their ministries. to expect that anyone be committed to the church at the same level of commitment that would be expected on an athletic team would draw the charge of legalism and of religious individualism that the expectation of commitment to the church has become implausible to most christian parents. because the god of individualism pressures us to program to the lowest common denominator, we seldom raise the expectations high enough for teenagers to experience real community.
real community means real responsibility for each other. it means a commitment to be there for each other even when the schedule is tight and when motivation is low. but the typical christian in our culture knows little about commitment to community.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
if a football team operated like a typical church, we might expect concerned parents to call the coach, saying, “can you tell me what’s been going on in practice? my son says it’s boring, and he doesn’t want to come anymore. i was wondering, could you make it a little more fun for them? and by the way, you might want to talk to the coach at the school across town. he seems to have the right idea.” the coach might send out quarterly questionnaires about what the players would like to change about the team (i can just imagine the answers: “shorter practices,” “more winning”).
a coach, responding like a typical minister, might first feel guilty that the practices were not meeting the boy’s needs, and he would try to adjust his program to suit this boy (and every other boy who complained). between trying to keep everybody happy and giving every student a good experience, the coach would squeeze in a little football practice. and what kind of season would this coach have? it’s a safe bet that the coach wouldn’t be the only one who felt like a loser.
but this is the very way that most churches expect to run their ministries. to expect that anyone be committed to the church at the same level of commitment that would be expected on an athletic team would draw the charge of legalism and of religious individualism that the expectation of commitment to the church has become implausible to most christian parents. because the god of individualism pressures us to program to the lowest common denominator, we seldom raise the expectations high enough for teenagers to experience real community.
real community means real responsibility for each other. it means a commitment to be there for each other even when the schedule is tight and when motivation is low. but the typical christian in our culture knows little about commitment to community.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
26 June 2005
the pages of history
every so often one can almost hear the faint scratching of an ancient quill on parchment; the smell of fresh pigment wafts on the breeze caused by the turning of the pages of history.
personal events are recorded in our memories and catalogued along with major world events.
for instance, september 11, 2004 the world trade centers were attacked by terrorists was also my first day of work on a new job. december 26, 2004 a tsunami claimed the lives of more than 540,000 people in a matter of seconds in south east asia. it was also the day i preached an incredibly long sermon to a large crowd in mkuranga region in tanzania where nearly 30 people got saved, 12 people were healed from diseases and sicknesses, 22 people were filled with the Holy Spirit, and many christian workers came forward to rededicate their lives to Christ.
i remember where i was and what i was doing when the dc sniper attacks were happening. i was in ashland, va where the second- to-last victim was shot outside a ponderosa- i was working at calvary pentecostal campground, less than five miles away.
i can still feel the breeze from the most recent page turning and I am sure that the Divine Author of my life story is finishing off one chapter and preparing to start another one.
why am i so sure?
i am confident in this because in seven days, i am returning to america from tanzania, east africa to work for a few months before heading to FIRE school of ministry in concord, north carolina to finish my ministry degree.
not all personal events correspond with major news events.
for instance, the day i was saved, october 29, 1998, holds no major news events, yet it is literally the turning point in my life.
perhaps it is not personal events that are catalogued with major world events, but major world events that are catalogued according to personal events...
whatever it is, we can be assured that the Author of history is hard at work, writing and weaving all our stories together to bring glory and honor to His name...
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
personal events are recorded in our memories and catalogued along with major world events.
for instance, september 11, 2004 the world trade centers were attacked by terrorists was also my first day of work on a new job. december 26, 2004 a tsunami claimed the lives of more than 540,000 people in a matter of seconds in south east asia. it was also the day i preached an incredibly long sermon to a large crowd in mkuranga region in tanzania where nearly 30 people got saved, 12 people were healed from diseases and sicknesses, 22 people were filled with the Holy Spirit, and many christian workers came forward to rededicate their lives to Christ.
i remember where i was and what i was doing when the dc sniper attacks were happening. i was in ashland, va where the second- to-last victim was shot outside a ponderosa- i was working at calvary pentecostal campground, less than five miles away.
i can still feel the breeze from the most recent page turning and I am sure that the Divine Author of my life story is finishing off one chapter and preparing to start another one.
why am i so sure?
i am confident in this because in seven days, i am returning to america from tanzania, east africa to work for a few months before heading to FIRE school of ministry in concord, north carolina to finish my ministry degree.
not all personal events correspond with major news events.
for instance, the day i was saved, october 29, 1998, holds no major news events, yet it is literally the turning point in my life.
perhaps it is not personal events that are catalogued with major world events, but major world events that are catalogued according to personal events...
whatever it is, we can be assured that the Author of history is hard at work, writing and weaving all our stories together to bring glory and honor to His name...
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
25 June 2005
what makes them heroes?
we look at our heroes of the faith and laud them for their willingness to sacrifice anything and everything- including their lives to the cause of Christ, but we miss something exponentially important. paul, john, james, j. hudson taylor, david livingstone, robert moffat, c.t. studd, jim elliot and others didn't even see it as a sacrifice!
moffat wrote: "he who is in the service of the King has put down something tiny to take up something great; he puts down the penny to pick up the pound!"
samuel zwemmer, a leader in the student volunteer movement that saw thousands of college students drop out of school in favor of winning nations for Christ, wrote: "it is a shame that we consider missions a duty so long as men consider it an honor to serve an earthly king."
zwemmer went on to pen this impassioned plea in his book the unoccupied territories of africa and asia: "does it really matter how many lives are lost or how much money we spend so long as we believe that missions are warfare and the King's glory is at stake?"
livingstone wrote that he "never made a sacrifice."
jim elliot, at the age of 21, wrote in his journal, "he is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what cannot lose." he was martyred with six other missionaries in the 1950's in ecuador.
for them, it wasn't a sacrifice. it was a pleasure, a joy! they threw off the bonds of convenience to discover the freedom of working through hardship for God.
i was recently contemplating the old adage, "absence makes the heart grow fonder." while, at times, it may be true; what makes love grow stronger is not merely the absence of the beloved, but the mutual working through the presence of adversity. the litmus test for any relationship: platonic, romantic, or spiritual is the way the two parties respond to the presence of adversity.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
moffat wrote: "he who is in the service of the King has put down something tiny to take up something great; he puts down the penny to pick up the pound!"
samuel zwemmer, a leader in the student volunteer movement that saw thousands of college students drop out of school in favor of winning nations for Christ, wrote: "it is a shame that we consider missions a duty so long as men consider it an honor to serve an earthly king."
zwemmer went on to pen this impassioned plea in his book the unoccupied territories of africa and asia: "does it really matter how many lives are lost or how much money we spend so long as we believe that missions are warfare and the King's glory is at stake?"
livingstone wrote that he "never made a sacrifice."
jim elliot, at the age of 21, wrote in his journal, "he is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what cannot lose." he was martyred with six other missionaries in the 1950's in ecuador.
for them, it wasn't a sacrifice. it was a pleasure, a joy! they threw off the bonds of convenience to discover the freedom of working through hardship for God.
i was recently contemplating the old adage, "absence makes the heart grow fonder." while, at times, it may be true; what makes love grow stronger is not merely the absence of the beloved, but the mutual working through the presence of adversity. the litmus test for any relationship: platonic, romantic, or spiritual is the way the two parties respond to the presence of adversity.
for the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
24 June 2005
rough knees
i have been spending a lot of time in prayer lately. there are a few things that have been driving me to my knees lately.
i have recently resigned from my position as the east africa overseer for a growing indigenous missionary sending agency in favor of returning to america to finish off my ministry degree. and though it was hard... i began losing hair and some hair has even turned white (i'm only 24 y'all)!... i know it was the right decision. though my best friend, who became my boss, thinks i quit, i know i am following the path God has for me.
and i've been thinking...
sometimes we drop to our knees only out of need. "oh God, i need to know this from you..." or, "oh Lord, please do this for me..." what about being on our knees out of desire for more of Him? or just wanting to be with Him more?
what i want is rough knees. i'm not going to run out and skin up my knees to get them, but i pray that my knees become rough over the years due to my consistency in prayer. it's not about our posture:
a group of pastors were meeting in one of the pastors' new office discussing prayer postures. "the greatest posture is on the knees," claimed one as he began to roll off with this or that doctrine. "i believe that the greatest posture is prostrate on the floor," stated another. a third pastor threw in his two bits and said, "the greatest time i have ever spent in prayer was on my feet pacing the floor..." a telephone technician was busily scurrying about the floor attempting to connect the pastor's office to telephone and internet access. taking in all that was said, the technician softly interjected, "i know i'm not a gifted theologian, but i have found that the most powerful prayers i have ever prayed have been when i was hanging by my heels fifty feet off the ground fixing a telephone line..."
it is, however, about our heart.
For the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
i have recently resigned from my position as the east africa overseer for a growing indigenous missionary sending agency in favor of returning to america to finish off my ministry degree. and though it was hard... i began losing hair and some hair has even turned white (i'm only 24 y'all)!... i know it was the right decision. though my best friend, who became my boss, thinks i quit, i know i am following the path God has for me.
and i've been thinking...
sometimes we drop to our knees only out of need. "oh God, i need to know this from you..." or, "oh Lord, please do this for me..." what about being on our knees out of desire for more of Him? or just wanting to be with Him more?
what i want is rough knees. i'm not going to run out and skin up my knees to get them, but i pray that my knees become rough over the years due to my consistency in prayer. it's not about our posture:
a group of pastors were meeting in one of the pastors' new office discussing prayer postures. "the greatest posture is on the knees," claimed one as he began to roll off with this or that doctrine. "i believe that the greatest posture is prostrate on the floor," stated another. a third pastor threw in his two bits and said, "the greatest time i have ever spent in prayer was on my feet pacing the floor..." a telephone technician was busily scurrying about the floor attempting to connect the pastor's office to telephone and internet access. taking in all that was said, the technician softly interjected, "i know i'm not a gifted theologian, but i have found that the most powerful prayers i have ever prayed have been when i was hanging by my heels fifty feet off the ground fixing a telephone line..."
it is, however, about our heart.
For the world-wide renown of His sovereign glory...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
