Finding an Oasis in the Sahara

I'm worried.

I know I'm not supposed to be. Jesus said very clearly not to worry.

Maybe a better word is concerned. I'm very concerned.

It seems like every friend I have is struggling with ministry right now. Some are ordained, some want to be ordained, and some do ministry without any thought of ordination by the church. (An aside, the last group might be the most satisfied--but that is a topic for another day).

Now I know that some of you are going to be consumed with who it is that I am talking about here. Others will be saying, "Friends? He has that many friends?" Just go ahead and get it out of your system right now. Because this is serious. Very serious.

Hear me out. Ministry can be intoxicating. Extremely intoxicating. Like preaching a sermon that people really respond to. Watching someone after years of searching finally 'get it.' Praying with someone who is desperate or despondent or both and knowing that it makes a difference. Feeling the Holy Spirit take over and touch others through you. Intoxicating.

Sometimes ministry is so intoxicating that it causes us to forget for a time how difficult ministry really is. How lonely it can be. How tough it is to say one thing only to have people hear another. How hard it is to really discern what God wants. How painful it can be to follow the path Christ has set before us.

This intoxication is dangerous. Intoxication by its very nature does not last. We can only stay on the mountain for so long. Then we have to come back down to the valley. And often our intoxication leaves us with a terrible hangover, one that makes us wish we had never answered God's call in the first place. God has not called us to be intoxicated, but to love above all. Love him and love each other. With every fiber of our being. No asterisks, no excuses, no ifs, ands, or buts. You already knew that didn't you?

Ministry is hard. Because life is hard. And people can be hard as well.

I've had many times that I just wanted to quit. To pack it all up and say to God and the church, "Take this job and shove it." But I've never been able to do it yet. Is it because I'm addicted to the intoxication of ministry? I hope not. I believe instead that I can't quit because I did not choose this path in the first place. Jesus says, "You didn't choose me, I chose you." We are chosen by God, all of us, ordained or not, by Christ. To minister to the world in his name. To teach and pray and love and seek peace and look for the lost and make disciples of each other. In Jesus' name. In Jesus' name.

Jesus was no stranger to disappointment, or frustration, or difficulty, or being misunderstood. In John 6 we see this very clearly:

66 At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.
67 Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?”

Jesus cautions the disciples over and over again that following him will be tough. I think that's why the verse that came to me with my call, the verse that this blog is named for is so important. We must keep our hands on the plow AND not look back.

Perhaps we really need to read this reminder written by Paul from 2nd Corinthians 4:
7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
8 We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. 9 We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. 10 Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.
16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. 17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

I want for my friends, for myself, and for you that our spirits might be renewed every day by spending more time with God in prayer. The good thing about tough times is that we all tend to pray more, seek God out more, and become more receptive to God's teaching and leading. Spending time in the desert is an uncomfortable though necessary part of our walk with Christ. Intense, extended prayer during this time can feel like an oasis in the midst of the Sahara.

There is certainly no need for my worry or my concern. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." I'll keep praying for and encouraging and loving my friends. Just like they do for me.

The Power of the Spirit

Our preaching series this month at church is on the Holy Spirit, which will culminate in the celebration of Pentecost Sunday. Recently we began a new, second worship service using a praise band. The first Sunday the new service went off without a hitch. Yesterday was another story entirely, as we had several logistical problems including periods of loud feedback from our brand new sound system. When I began to preach it seemed like the sermon really was going nowhere and people just weren't 'getting it.' I was despondent and frustrated as the service ended.

Last night my family talked about how the Sunday service really impacted them. My daughter Hannah talked about the powerful Spirit she felt in the service. Kim, my wife, said she thought it was one of the most meaningful services she had experienced. Later on I spoke with an old friend who had visited the service. Her take was that the sermon was one of the best she'd ever heard me preach(!) and that the Holy Spirit was very present in the room. My associate pastor had already spoken about how when we were in prayer all the people seemed to be in a physical attitude of deep prayerfulness.

Sometimes I want perfection more than anything else. Yesterday was one of those times. I want so badly for this new service to work well, for people to experience God in a mighty way, for lives to be changed and healing to occur. I should know better, but sometimes still mistakenly think that a flawless worship service is imperative to get the Spirit to show up!

Thanks be to God that all a worship service really needs is the power of the Spirit to make a difference in people's lives. Whether we get everything perfectly ordered on our end of worship doesn't really matter. When the Spirit shows up, worship truly becomes a place of amazing grace.

Graduation: The end, or the beginning?

I watched Tyler graduate from Station Camp High School last night.

It is the first high school graduation I have attended in some time. My hat is off to all educators; administrators, teachers, and staff who work hard to insure our children have the opportunity to learn.

Many things have changed since I graduated from high school 27 years ago, but one thing that remains the same is the recognition of those who have achieved the highest grades in school. In this school's ceremony the valedictorian and the salutatorian both gave speeches. As we drove home, I asked my wife Kim if she remembered who the valedictorian was when she graduated, as I could not remember either of the people who received this honor when I graduated in 1980. Kim could not remember the names of the recipients at her high school graduation either.

I wondered--which is more important, being at the top of your class or what you do with your education? Speaking as a person who is engaged in getting his third degree after the high school diploma, I can vouchsafe that it is not the degree or the grades that makes a person. We all know people who are terribly bright, very well educated, and painfully un- or under-employed. Not to mention all those who have important degrees from hallowed institutes of higher education but never do anything productive with what they learn. How sad.

"Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body" (Ecclesiastes 12:12 NIV). One might continue on getting further education seemingly forever, but until we use what we have learned, it is of no consequence.

Or as my favorite philosopher Yoda might say,"Remember what you have learned! Save you it can!"

Ultimately it matters more what you do with your education than whether or not you made it to the top of your class.

Approaching Pentecost

As we approach Pentecost Sunday and the giving of the Holy Spirit to the church, I ran across a poem in one of my sermon illustration files. I share it without knowing where it came from or who might have written it.

We are God’s people, touched by the Spirit to—
Witness more effectively,
Think more clearly,
Feel more deeply,
Listen more insightfully,
Speak more truthfully,
Love more extravagantly,
Care more soulfully,
Serve more creatively,
Give more lavishly,
Encourage more lovingly,
Live more fully,
Teach more eloquently,
Give more generously.

Obedience School

I've been thinking a lot about obedience.

Yesterday one of my children defied a direct order from me. I know, I know, my family is not the military and I am certainly no drill sergeant. But outright defiance? From my precious progeny? Shocking!

I ended up having to threaten the whippersnapper to get their cooperation in doing what they had been asked to do. Which made me very upset. After all, I have provided much for this child of late, in terms of money spent, transportation to and from extracurricular activities, special clothing needs, etc. You would think there would be some acknowledgment and appreciation for what they have received. You might even think that this child would jump right up off the comfortable couch immediately because of their love for their father. Surely obeying my request to complete a simple task that would not take much time is not too much to ask.

The task? To walk our dog, Daisy. A 5 minute chore at best. After all I've done, was it too much to ask?

Then God spoke to me. After all I've done for you, is your obedience too much to ask for?

God asks us to be obedient. Simple. Uncomplicated. Easy to understand. Yet so difficult for us to do!

Most of the time we would rather (as my child did) sit on our 'couches' and
a) ignore the request or
b) argue with God or
c) whine about our circumstances or
d) all of the above

I am astounded at the obedience of Jesus. In the garden of Gethsemane he prays for the 'cup' to be passed by, that he might not have to drink deeply the suffering that he knows is coming. But finally Jesus has the courage to say, "Not my will but yours be done." Obedience to his Father was of ultimate importance.

Jesus' greatest gift to God comes through his obedience. His greatest gift to us came through his obedience. Jesus was willing to obey God even when he knew that his obedience was going to result in the sacrifice of personal suffering.

Perhaps what we need most to learn in our spiritual lives is to obey. In John 14:15 Jesus says, "If you love me, obey my commandments," and in verse 23 follows up by saying, "All who love me will do what I say" (NLT). Obedience is the one of the greatest ways for us to show how much we love the Lord.

May we all learn from Jesus that our love for God is not really love at all unless we are willing to learn to be obedient.

Straining Gnats and Swallowing Camels

In the gospel of Matthew, chapter 22 verse 14, at the end of the parable of the great feast, Jesus says 'Many are called but few are chosen.' I have reflected on Jesus' words a lot during the past week after returning from a time set aside for evaluating those who wish to become United Methodist clergy.

I spent Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday interviewing people who were at various stages of trying to become clergy members of the Tennessee Annual Conference. The interviews were done under the guidelines and auspices of the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, a group consisting of mainly clergy but also some laity who are charged with making sure the conference receives a called and well-trained group of clergy. The candidates submit references, written work, videotaped sermons and Bible studies, are examined by a physician and a psychologist, and present evaluation forms from churches, former employers, colleges and seminaries for review.

After four years of doing these evaluations and interviews, I can truly say it is the most gut-wrenching work I have ever been involved with. It seems that each year there are a few candidates who end up being deferred, learning that instead of being commissioned or ordained they will instead have to come back before the board at a later date, with hopes of their using the additional time to strengthen weaknesses or reflect on their call. Most of those deferred are heartbroken and angry, though many come back again and are affirmed in their call after they have done the required work.

I am troubled by all the requirements placed on ministerial candidates. On one hand, I see their necessity in helping to bring qualified and professional clergy to the church for ordination. But I also see that our system is unable to appreciate those whose gifts, talents, education, and call lie beyond what are considered the 'norms.' Too often it seems we get caught up in what Jesus accused the Pharisees of doing--'straining gnats and swallowing camels.'

Perhaps we as a board and as a church need to reread the book of Numbers, chapter 11. Seventy Israelite leaders are supposed to gather under a tent to receive the spirit of God in order to be able to assist Moses. Two men, Eldad and Medad, somehow don't end up under the tent. Remarkably, the spirit of God falls on them anyway! Someone sees this and reports it to Moses. Joshua, Moses' right hand man, gets in a huff and wants Moses to stop Eldad and Medad. Moses' answer is enlightening--“Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them all!” (Numbers 11:29 NLT).

Indeed.

What Would Jesus Build?

This week I have been in class in Montgomery, Alabama. The title of this class is "Mobilizing the Laity." We heard two rousing presentations this morning from Jim Garlow, pastor of Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego, formerly pastored by leadership guru John Maxwell.

In his presentation, Garlow referred to the many obstacles the church has faced in building on the land they own. Most of the problems were caused when environmentalists sued because there was a certain rare type of bird that made its home on the property. The long and short of it is that the church has paid about $37 million dollars worth of legal fees and such trying to build.

While I admire their perseverance, I wonder--would Jesus spend $37 million dollars just for the privilege of having a church building in San Diego? While the church there has interpreted these obstacles as a call to persevere, one might consider if perhaps God was not calling the church to go in a different direction. It can be a difficult proposition indeed to determine when to persevere and when God might have something else in mind.

Pricey California real estate aside, $37 million is a lot of money for a church to spend for the mere opportunity to have their own place.