faithrunner

Four Reasons to Withdraw and Pray

2012-02-14T07:46:00.000-08:00

Jesus modeled for us how to live an abundant life with God and others. Everything he did and said becomes a template for our lives if we desire to follow him. You and I can learn this abundant life even in short passages recorded in the Gospels.

Luke, who tells us more about Jesus' prayer life than any other Gospel writer, noted that...

...Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16; TNIV)

If Jesus withdrew from crowds and ministry regularly, surely there are advantages for us to follow his lead.

Here are four reasons to withdraw in order to pray

Solitude. The busyness and noise of our lives keep us from hearing the voice of God. God speaks to us every day, but we miss it because we fill our lives with busyness* and noise in an effort to fill the voids that only God can fill. Richard Foster's group, Renovare, reminds us, Solitude is "An open relational space for being found by God and freed from competing loyalties." When was the last time you created space to be found by God and to hear His voice?
Survival. You cannot survive spiritually (or otherwise) without time away from the fray. @johnortberg tweeted last week a saying of Vance Havner, "if u don't come apart for a while, u'll come apart after a while." You can't run your car without stopping for gas. Why do you think you can do that with your soul?
Spiritual protection. We are in a spiritual battle for hearts and minds. We have an enemy who is hellbent on our destruction. Withdrawing to "suit up" (Eph. 6:10-17) is essential to know the enemy and discover how to combat his "schemes." When was the last time to retreated to get supplies and observe the strategies of the Evil One?
Stay on mission with the One who sent you. Imagine a military unit sent to accomplish a mission and never radioing into their CO as to where they were, what they encountered, or the need for additional support and troops! Why do we think we can be the sent ones without ever checking in with the one who sent us?!? When did you last withdraw to see if you were really doing what God sent you here to do as the church, at home, and in the world?

*It's always interested me that there is only one letter difference between busyness and business. Wisdom is knowing when you are in one or the other.

If you would like to hear my message on this habit of Jesus, you can hear it here. Join us at Legacy Church as we learn to pray like Jesus.

Eat This Book

2012-02-07T05:33:00.001-08:00

The prophet Ezekiel recorded these words from God: “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth." (Ezekiel. 3:3)

At the end of the Church canon in the Revelation, the voice in heaven called to John, and said, “Take [the little scroll] and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’ ” (Rev. 10:9)

It Is odd to me that eating the words instructed by God taste sweet to both servants of God but when John had digested his scroll it turned his stomach sour.

The difference?

I'm not sure but it may be that Ezekiel's scroll contained a word of encouragement from God and John was about to measure the people and find them wanting in the things of God.

The word of God is that way sometimes. It always tastes good going down but when you begin to digest it you find yourself with spiritual nausea because the word has begun to eat at the core of your being.

We have begun to read The Gospel of Luke as a church. Join us at www.legacychurch.org for daily readings via email and to join a small group to be there for you when you get a sour stomach.

Homeless in Suburbia

2012-01-31T08:29:00.000-08:00

Markus, Gabriel, Sarah, Russell and me

Last Thursday night, January 27, at the invitation of Russell Head, I joined 100+ volunteers with the Collin County Homeless Coalition to make an annual count of the homeless in our county.

We gathered at City Hall about 8:00 p.m., and after an hour plus of training and assignments our team headed out with a Plano Police officer to look for those who are categorized as homeless in our city. We carried our survey forms and "care packages" supplied by local Scout troops, non-profits, and churches.

It had rained very hard two days previously, and the places where the officer knew people stayed--along railroad tracks, under freeway overpasses, and along the "creeks" that run through town--were empty. We also did not find anyone in the cars parked in store and office parking lots between 11:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. that night.

Part of our team did talk to a hotel employee who "knew what we were asking" but did not want to give out any information about who he knew stayed there because they had to. We also stopped by the hospital in our assigned area, and the police officer on duty there said the homeless regularly came to sit in the ER or hospital chapel to get out of the cold, but no one was there that evening.

While we did not talk to anyone--see the reports below of those who did--I got a new perspective of the need in our City, called the The Pretty Much Perfect City. We walked places I drive by every week, and never see those who stay there as their "home."

Suburbia has homeless, and we who are the called-out-ones need to not only be aware of the homeless but work to serve them and partner with those who do.

The ways we do this as Legacy Church is our support of the Plano Food Pantry and Minnie's Food Pantry. We also partner with Dallas Providence Homes to provide transformational housing for abused women and their children. This is not enough, but it is something, and I am pleased we have joined others to address the needs of those who have no place to live.

Here is the report from the Plano Police Department from the evening.

Here is a news report the following day from a local CBS affiliate.

The Face of Homelessness in Collin County.

What will you do today to help?

Luke's Look at Jesus

2012-01-24T07:19:00.000-08:00

The Ox of Luke's Gospel

As part of Legacy U at Legacy Church this month, I am teaching what we call "Luke's Look at Jesus." (The other sessions are taught by members of our pastoral staff. Check them out, too.)

Without going into a lot of detail, I have observed with others that Luke had a huge heart for those to whom society and the religious folk of Jesus' day gave little value and recorded more of Jesus' interaction with them than any of the other three evangelistic biographers of Jesus.

Here are three groups that are the most obvious:

Outcasts. Jesus intentionally went to the outcasts--those whom religious and clean people refused to touch. Jesus not only touched them, but healed them, giving them new status among those who thought they alone had God's favor. (Luke 17:11-19)

Women. Jesus not only taught women, he entered their homes, (Luke 10:38-42) healed them, and was perfectly comfortable having them travel with him. (Luke 8:1-3) One of the few times we are told Jesus' "heart went out" to someone was when he saw the weeping widow leaving town to bury her only son. (Luke 7:11-17) His birth stories about John the Baptist and Jesus revolve around Elizabeth and Mary, rather than their husbands. Luke recognized Jesus' attention to those who held little status in the religious world Jesus came to restore.

Outsiders. Jesus was not easily amazed. One of the two times Luke observed him startled was when a Centurion acknowledged his authority and his use of it. Jesus declared he had not seen "such great faith even in Israel" like that of this outsider. (Luke 7:1-10) Jesus' most famous story was that of the Good Samaritan, and Luke is the only Gospel author to record it. (Luke 10:25-37)

Luke's look at Jesus highlights Jesus' ministry to the outcasts, women, and outsiders of that day more than any of the other Evangelists.

I wonder if we who call ourselves disciples or followers of Jesus find ourselves serving those whom our society and religious community consider outcasts and outsiders?

What would our churches and cities look like if we took our apprenticeship to Jesus seriously and actually followed him where he went?

Just wondering.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Pastor-Preacher

2012-01-17T07:45:00.000-08:00

One of my beefs with the coverage of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was that no one, I mean no one, that I heard or watched ever mentioned he was a pastor of a local church long before he led a national movement for civil rights.

Why is that important? He was a preacher, not a public speaker. He was a pastor, not a community organizer. He preached Sunday after Sunday from the Bible that dealt with real issues in his congregation's life, and from addressing those needs in a biblical-theological way, the message from the local church touched the community, state, nation and then the world.

Mervyn A. Warren in his book King Came Preaching wrote that King believed God and his people, not governments and community organizations would change the world.

"In the sermons of King, then, God is the sustaining power in the universe whose presence assures the ultimate triumph of good over evil. As the One who provides human beings with inner resources to meet life's problems effectively, God works not separately but in cooperation with human faith to cast out all forms of evil from human being's environment." (Warren, 126)

My point is not to take away from King's leadership of the SCLC or his Nobel Peace Prize, but to remind us all that a pastor and a local congregation can change the world.

I know in our PC world that mentioning even a pastor's faith is out of place, but to call people to fulfill King's Dream without calling them to King's core faith in God is asking them to do something he never intended nor believed they could do without God.

Yes, in his later years the movement seemed to be more about issues than faith, but even his last message to the sanitation workers in Memphis, "I've been to the mountain top," on the eve of his assassination was a sermon packed with biblical illusions, a parable of Jesus, and his own faith in God. He even identifies himself as a pastor, not a movement leader.

Media, Society, please do not overlook the real power of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Church, do not forget the power of the Gospel and the power of the followers of Jesus to overcome the evil in our world.

"Hate evil," Paul wrote. (Romans 12:14) Let me add, "Be the people of God." Change the world for good, but do it in the power of the Gospel and as the church.

Some links you may like:

Billy Graham and Martin Luther King, Jr. worked together in a crusade in New York.

Digital archive of 20,000 MLK letters, speeches, sermons, and gifts.

Ashamed of Tim?

2012-01-10T06:54:00.000-08:00

I have to jump into the Tim Tebow debate of whether or not the NFL is the place for the Denver QB's PDA (public display of adoration). You can find opinions that believe faith should stay in the church (from the Jerusalem Post) to those who think he's doing is what we all should be doing. Whatever your opinion, USA TODAY sums it up, "Denver QB inspires nation." (Check out the search hits and Twitter post numbers. Astonishing!)

I'm on the Tebow bandwagon. Part of the greatness of his witness is that it is who he is! He's Tim Tebow, an over-the-top, extravert football player who inspires teammates and is a Christ-follower. He's not trying to be someone else or build a platform for his witness. He's who he is, where he is, displaying his love for the Lord. He'll be Tim Tebow the Christian if he has a career-ending injury this Sunday against the Patriots.

I respect him and wish I had a little more of his expressive flair in my witness.

Last week we began a series as Legacy Church called, "A Dying for Christ Life." The phrase describes what we call a maturing, growing follower of Jesus. If you follow the Way to spiritual growth as described in Scripture, we believe you could come to the place you are willing to trust Jesus to the point of giving up your life for him.

We took our description from Jesus' clear but neglected teaching about what it takes to be a Christ-follower:

Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." Luke 9:23

If those first three steps on the way of discipleship are not enough to unsettle your heart, Jesus concluded his teaching with these words:

If any of you are ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Luke 9:26

I have to admit that if Jesus showed up today, I'm sure he would not be ashamed of Tim Tebow. My fear is that Jesus would be ashamed of my lack of PDA (public display of adoration). Have I risked criticism with my PDA?

One of my favorite tweets on the subject read:

Christ is more embarrassed by Christians who are embarrassed by Tim Tebow, than anything Tebow will ever do. Carlos Whittaker

Go Broncos! Go Tim Tebow! Let the PDA increase!

If you want to hear the foundational message about what Dying-for-Christ life may look like, you can hear it here.

Steve Jobs of Small Groups?

2012-01-06T09:30:00.000-08:00

There is a (very long) blog in the Dallas Morning News that asked several theologians if we need a "Steve Jobs of Religion". This question is based upon a NYT article titled "Americans Undecided about God?" by Eric Weiner who is a self proclaimed "None" (people who chose None under Religious affiliations when surveyed). Weiner writes:

"We need a Steve Jobs of religion. Someone (or ones) who can invent not a new religion but, rather, a new way of being religious. Like Mr. Jobs's creations, this new way would be straightforward and unencumbered and absolutely intuitive. Most important, it would be highly interactive. I imagine a religious space that celebrates doubt, encourages experimentation and allows one to utter the word God without embarrassment. A religious operating system for the Nones among us. And for all of us."

Cynthia Rigby, W. C. Brown Professor of Theology, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, suggests today's Christianity is more interactive and intuitive than the Nones realize. The Steve Jobs of religion would be the ones providing insight to the interactive and intuitive nature of our God.

And that is where I think the Life Group Coaches and leaders come into play. We don't need to be Steve Jobs the inventor, but maybe Steve Jobs the lover of his inventions. If you've seen videos of him talking about Apple products, his eyes are alive and he can't wait to tell you about all the features of the product, how it will change your life and how it changed his life. As soon as his video is over, you want to go out and buy it at that very moment.

If we as Leaders can relate our enthusiasm, our love of Christ to our teams in the same manner - how powerful it becomes. We reach out to our teams (and the Nones in our world) to show them the intuitive and interactive nature of our God and our church. And we are there to walk through life with them. My hope and desire is that they will respond and want to invite Christ into their hearts - right at that very moment.

Post by guest blogger, Victor Galvan, one of Legacy's LifeGroup coaches.

Baptism in a Barrowed Spa

2012-01-02T12:47:00.000-08:00

Baptism is the ancient, Christ-modeled act of associating with the person and movement of Jesus, who is the Christ. For centuries follower-apprentices of Jesus have been baptized before friends and family to witness their allegiance to Jesus as their Rescuer and Leader. From the Ethiopian eunuch to the Philippian jailer, God's people have baptized those who trusted Jesus wherever there was water and witnesses.

Over time, that practice was brought inside buildings with baptismal fonts and pools built into the architecture and leadership limited to credentialed, professional clergy. We know, however, that in oppressed countries Christ followers have found bathtubs, streams, and drinking troughs for animals suitable for the rite. I still witness this act in streams, homes, and lakes around the world today. But, here we usually stick to the indoor, ordained clergy rendition of the act.

I love Legacy Church because several years ago we released followers of Jesus to baptize their friends and family. As we moved to being a church of LifeGroups, we sanctioned baptized, faithful followers of Jesus and any body of water that fits the biblical image of baptism and church family and friends who would hold the person accountable to his or her faith as adequate for the rite of confession and inclusion in the the living body of Christ, the church. That has led to some wonderful stories of friendship and discipleship.

On Christmas Eve Eve this past year, we baptized some long-time friends in our LifeGroup. They had both trusted Christ previously but wanted to be part of Legacy and affirm their trust in Christ together. They also wanted relatives who are missionaries in South Africa to join in their public confession of trust. (Thus the timing of the event.)

The adventure of this story is that the morning of the event, the spa of the LifeGroup member who had said they would host the baptism would not start! In the end, we walked across the street to a neighbor, who was not home but on vacation and who does not attend a church, and used their spa to witness our friend's baptism. (I can't wait to meet them and invite them to our LifeGroup when it meets at our friend's house!)

A living parable of the universal Church in suburbia USA? It is the church (Christ-followers) in the neighborhood celebrating baptism in the borrowed spa of a neighbor.

Yes, we still baptize in our building. The celebration is usually on fifth Sundays as part of our intergenerational worship times. Would you like to be part of the next one? Let us know if you want to be included. We could even find a spa if we needed to.

You can see more pictures here, and you can hear the complete song here: Arms Open Wide.

Walk or Run? Physical and Spiritual Lessons

2011-12-23T08:35:00.001-08:00

I had dinner a couple of months ago with some friends to compare notes on our Mt Rainier climbs. In the middle of our conversation the most experienced climber said, "I just like to walk." I'm not sure why, but that remark sank deep into my psyche.

On the way home I thought, "I like to walk too" so why do I only walk/hike/run when I go somewhere? Why do I change into special clothes to do what I like to do? I walk when I am in China, Lao, Vietnam, and when I travel. What's different at home? Walking was what I thought I'd do when I could no longer run.

I left that dinner committed to walk when I could. That was in October. Since then I have made the 7-mile round trip to my office half a dozen times, the 2-mile round trip to one of my weekly small groups 3 times, and several shorter walks from the office and home to meetings at nearby Starbucks. I'm learning to walk again, which is a challenge at times in a culture that demands speed and a suburb that was built for cars.

The results?

Physically, I have actually found I am stronger on my runs, and I am as healthy as before. Walking at least once a week stretches my legs with little impact. The treks burn calories and build muscle, and when added to my Younger-Next-Year routine, I found I have not lost a thing physically.

Spiritually, I have learned again the art of slowing down. In my weekly run to Sunday I have found my walks give me time to pray, listen to other teachers, or to Pandora worship tunes. That's time I did not have/take advantage of before. When I walk to the office, I have two hours a day of prayer and meditation. I come to the office and home calmer and have thought through my day and issues facing the church.

Yes, there are the challenges of scheduling, weather, and unexpected needs for transportation, but the whole world deals with those issues every day to get where they need to be.

I have new insight into the promise of God to those who take time for the Lord to be of help, "They will fly on wings of eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not faint." (Isa. 40:31)

Sometimes walking is best for your heart both physically and spiritually.

Where can you walk today?

Jesus and Hanukkah

2011-12-20T05:54:00.000-08:00

Hanukkah Menorah

Jesus was a Jew, and he most likely observed Hanukkah. Shocked? From what we know about Jesus' parents from the stories about his birth and infancy, they were pious, practicing members of Israel. And, as their earthly son, Jesus was raised a pious Son of Israel.

Here are some examples. Eight days into his life his parents had him circumcised and named according to the Jewish Law. (Luke 2:21; Leviticus 12:3) Forty days after his birth, his mother and Joseph traveled to Jerusalem to complete God's instructions for purification and presentation of a male son to God. (Luke 2:22-24; Leviticus 12) Luke also tells us that the family made the annual trip to Jerusalem for the Festival of Passover. (Luke 2:41; Exodus 12; which we know mostly by the Seder.)

What was unique about Jesus' early life were the people's unsolicited confession as to who he was. (Read Luke 2:22-52 to read some of those.) In the middle of his parent's faithful observance of God's Law God revealed who this special child was and was to become.

So, what about Hanukkah? We are not told in the New Testament that Jesus or his family actually practiced Hanukkah, but the festival was in place in his day and given his family's loyalty to the traditions of Israel, we can suppose Jesus practiced the observance in its first-century form. The Gospel of John noted that Jesus was in Jerusalem in winter at the time of Hanukkah, known as the Festival of Dedication. (John 10:22, 23)

What's my point? My point is that Jesus learned from his parents to observe the laws and traditions God gave Israel, and every indication is that he observed them into his adult life. What is different now is that Jesus did for the festivals what he did for the other traditions and laws: He fulfilled them.

When Jesus stepped out on the public stage, he declared he had not come to destroy God's law, but he had come to complete it, fulfill it, show us the motives behind the practices in order to have a right-filled relationship with God. (Matthew 5:17-20) Jesus respected and observed the laws God gave His people--but his mission was to complete them. This is why his followers don't observe those laws and traditions today. He finished them. Jesus is our worship.

Hanukkah is not one of the festivals God prescribed for Israel, but it is part of Jewish tradition that celebrates God's deliverance and God's provision. Jesus knew of and possibly observed that tradition, and he is God's final deliverance and provision of all people.

We who celebrate Jesus through the festival of the Christ Mass, which God did not prescribe either, must also remember and worship the Person of God's deliverance and Provision, not the traditions we have built up around those truths.

May this season of lights point to the true Light, Jesus. (John 8:12)

Jesus and the Heisman Trophy

2011-12-06T06:53:00.001-08:00

RG III

My wife and I are Baylor Bears. ('75) My youngest daughter, her husband, and my oldest daughter's husband are Bears. (My oldest daughter is an Aggie, of whom we are equally proud.) The buzz in Baylor world--as you know unless you have been hiking in the Himalayas the last three months--is that the Baylor quarterback, Robert Griffin III was chosen as the 77th Heisman Trophy winner.You can only imagine how excited we are as a family and alumni of BU.

A small, private Baptist school in Central Texas usually lives under the shadow of schools like the University of Texas and seldom gets any national recognition. Waco is mostly known nationally for the Branch Davidian debacle, and most sports commentators can't pronounce the school's name like we do. Oh well, they are learning now.

I am pleased RG III received the most votes for the coveted trophy, not because I want to be associated with it and him, but because he and his family clearly give God credit for his success and notoriety. I believe men like Griffin often find themselves on the nation's stage because they trust God and will use that platform to speak boldly for the One who got them there. (That's why I liked Kurt Warner winning the Super Bowl, and Tim Tebow, "God's Quarterback," defying the sport's world pundits about him as a player.)

RG III is the kind of guy we like to be our hero. He is exceptional at what he does. He is a leader among men. He brings honor to those who are connected to him. He is humble and smart. What else could you ask in someone who represents your school?

The irony of all this is that our true hero, Jesus, never got this kind of recognition while he lived on earth. When you read through Luke's account of Jesus' birth, for example, you see the contrast between Caesar, the ruler, writing edicts and living in a palace in Rome while Jesus is born in a barn to tax-paying parents who didn't have enough clout to get a room for the night. You also read his first admirers were shepherds--Texas cowboys--who happened to be on the night shift that evening and would not have known about one more Jewish boy's birth had it not been for the angels who tipped them off. I wonder if Jesus would have even lettered in football at Nazareth High School if there was such a thing.

My point? We look for saviors like R G III (though he does not in any way claim to be one, and I am so pleased a man like him represents the school), but our true Savior looks nothing like him. That's the mystery and message of Christmas. I still have not fully comprehended it, but I know that's how it happened, and that truth tells me Jesus is the Savior for all of us...no matter if our alma mater's quarterback gets the Heisman or not.

I opened my message yesterday commenting on RG III, the Heisman, and the Christmas story. If you are interested, you can hear it here.

The Scandal of Advent

2011-11-29T06:06:00.001-08:00

Advent is the season set apart to prepare our hearts for the coming of the Christ Child. We look back at his first coming (Luke 2), and we look forward to his second coming. (Revelation 19:11-18) It is to be a sacred season in which we daily spend time with the Spirit and Word and the community of faith to see the hand of God in history to bring about the birth of incarnate God and the return as the risen, triumphant King.

But who has time for all that? Our culture has swallowed up the intent of this season and has seduced us to buy stuff and go into debt to give things people don't want to people we don't like--and those we do. And, we have gladly said yes to the "little g" god, consumerism.

Check out my friend, Jim Denison's blog, "What did Jesus think of Black Friday." The numbers and stories will stagger you. (You will want to subscribe to his daily email, too. It's good stuff.) He has pointed out the absurdity of our actions to get more for less.

One of my favorite posts on facebook on Black Friday was something like, "Isn't it ironic that we fight each other to get more stuff the day after we have just given thanks for all we have?"

This scandal of Advent is one of the reasons Legacy Church has joined the Advent Conspiracy movement rather than "Occupy Wherever" to make our statement that this Christmas we will worship fully, spend less, give more (presence), and love all.

We have applied the intent of the movement (rather than giving to build wells) to serving school age parents in the Plano Independent School District. (SAPP) We have asked people to buy at least one less gift in order to give a new "baby shower" item that will go to the young parents in the program. The gifts will go to support the parents and their children at the graduation event in May. Legacy Church will host the event, and these gifts will go to the students who have earned "bucks" throughout the school year. Legacy members also host their monthly meetings and are mentors to the students.

What is Advent to you this year? Are you making room for the Christ Child in your life? If you want some ideas of how your family can join the conspiracy, go to the Advent Conspiracy site or their idea site rethinking Christmas. Post some ideas here, too, if you like.

Join the conspiracy. Make your actions tell of the Good News of God's love in Christ Jesus.

Thanksgiving Heaven Style

2011-11-22T05:04:00.001-08:00

If you have followed this blog for long, you know that Legacy Church hosts an annual Thanksgiving dinner for the students and their families connected to Legacy's English Language Program. Every year God reveals to us again a peek at heaven recorded in Revelation 7:9-10:

"After this I looked, and there in front of me was a huge crowd of people. They stood in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb. There were so many that no one could count them. They came from every nation, tribe, people and language. They were wearing white robes. In their hands they were holding palm branches. They cried out in a loud voice,
   'Salvation belongs to our God,
   who sits on the throne.
   Salvation also belongs to the Lamb.'" (NIRV; italics mine)

(I had concluded The Story that Sunday morning by teaching on The End! You can hear that message here. It was wonderful to get a glimpse of what we had seen in Scripture that morning the same evening.)

Here are some things I saw this year as the Church served "the world in our backyard."

A purpose of the church is to demonstrate to a fallen world what heaven on earth could look like. Granted, we do not know the spiritual relationship of all who attended, and the biblical vision is that of the saints in white robes worshiping the Lamb. However, we build relationships with those who attend, and over the years we have seen many become followers of Jesus. But, as you know, the church is notorious for being the most segregated organization in our country, and an event like this demonstrates the biblical value "all people matter to God."

We are foolish to think our way of life and ethnic origins are superior to others. Sitting with people from at least 25 other countries takes away the false assumption that somehow our ethnicity is better than all the others. To hear the stories of those around the tables remind us what people will sacrifice in order to provide a better way for their families and how they bring their talents and training that are far superior than ours to build a life of purpose and meaning. We see God's grace in Christ Jesus is for "all nations," not simply our own.

God's people are God's servants. I am always humbled with a lump in my throat to see the joy and energy of Legacy Church serving those who trust us to attend this event. From carving the meat to starting a conversation with people who speak another language (only!), I see the servant heart of Jesus displayed in the actions, smiles, and voices of those who follow Him and serve in His name. Thanks to Lue Kraltchev, our Director of Literacy Missions, who led the team of ELP faculty, volunteers who served and to those who prepared food for those they did not know. I am blown away by the servant hearts of those who are Legacy. If we would serve more like Jesus, more people would trust Jesus.

My life verse is Hebrews 12:1-3. I envision the "great cloud of witnesses" to look something like the multitude of faces from many nations I saw Sunday evening. This missional movement we belong to is not about us. The "race marked out" for us has a global expanse. We are "sent servants" who demonstrate the love of Christ to those who are near and afar. Join the movement. Reach the world. You will be surprised how close it is to you.

For more pictures of the dinner and other Legacy ELP happenings view them here.

Finishing Well

2011-11-15T07:49:00.001-08:00

After last week's revelations about the goings on at Pen State and Coach Joe Paterno, I have realized again how hard it is to finish well. The older I get, I am more and more grateful for men like Billy Graham, whose recent birthday at 93 and his book, Nearing Home, let me know it IS possible to finish well. But, what about the rest of us?

I spoke on this topic this past Sunday at Legacy Church. (If you want to hear that message, you can hear it here.) I highlighted Paul's words to his protege, Timothy, that are recorded in 2 Timothy 4:6-8. I hope to state with confidence the words he confessed in his last season of life as I finish my race.

I have a mentor, Ray Rust, who is 86 now, and with whom I have shared my story and life for over a decade. He moved to the area after retiring as the leader of the South Carolina Baptist Convention. We met at 7th grade B-team basketball game when his grandaughter and my daughter were playing each other. We have been friends since.

Last week, I went to visit Ray and his wife of 65 years, Joy, as I often do. We caught up, and as we finished our slices of pumpkin pie and cups of tea, I asked him, "How would you tell someone to finish well?" He smiled and in humility hesitated to offer me anything. (His hesitation was one more piece of evidence that he is the kind of man I want guiding me.)

Here are some excerpts from our time together that may help you finish well.

"If you compare your life to when you were 45 [He's 86], you will be disappointed. What we have now is a new normal. If you will accept that new normal, you will have a better shot at being happy and being productive."

How do you finish well spiritually? He shared this verse: "As thy days, so shall thy strength be." (Deut. 33:25; KJV) God promises strength for the season. Whatever that may be, God will provide the strength for those demands. "It's not my strength that is in question, but my trust in him."

How would you tell a couple to stay married for 65 years? "Hang around a long time. [He laughed.] It's been a partnership. I don't know of any other way to survive as a couple. Joy has been a partner in ministry wherever we have been. We traveled, and I arranged to go by car as much as possible so she could come with me. We shared ministry together wherever we went, but she had her hobbies, too."

One day his new assistant asked him what AWJ meant on his calendar. He told her, "Away with Joy. And, we don't cancel those. We may cancel that, but you consider that an obligation or appointment. We don't take anything on that day."

You have served Joy almost ten years since her stroke. How have you done that? "The preacher said something about in sickness and health, and he looked pretty serious! And, I think back on that every now and then. I have not been sick one day in the last 91/2 years since her stroke. That is nothing less than a miracle. By God's grace and provision we have made it."

In closing, he commented, "My parents taught my brothers and me to respect our elders. I'm having a hard time finding my elders. There are fewer and fewer elders."

Ray Rust is finishing well. I am blessed to be influenced by such a man. My prayer is that you will have such a person leading you to finish well.

Check out Bob Buford's Finishing Well book, too. The stories are great and the advice helpful.

a missionary with a corporate sponsor

2011-11-08T04:57:00.000-08:00

Work as Worship

This past Sunday at Legacy Church, I told the story of a running partner who told me how she had sent an email to her office inviting the women in it to a small group she led at her church. Her plan backfired when one of her peers scolded her for using company resources for religious use. She admitted that was a mistake, but invited her to the group anyway. She went on to tell me how the girl had come to the group, grown in her curiosity about God, and that she attended regularly now.

As we continued to run she told me more stories about how she leveraged her consulting and traveling as a platform for sharing her faith. (She no longer used company email for invitations to her faith activities.) I complemented her for seeing all of her life as a mission field and her network of relationships as her responsibility in serving others in the name of Jesus.

She smiled and said, "I guess I'm a missionary with a corporate sponsor."

I agreed, and that phrase has stuck in my head since. It describes for me a perspective every working follower of Jesus should have about work.

Too many Christians separate their sacred Sundays from their secular Monday-Fridays, and by doing so offer to their co-workers a skewed view of faith. To live that way is to say, "My faith is my hobby on the weekend. What's yours?"

Last week some of our staff attended the Right Now conference in Dallas. J R Vassar of The Apostles Church in NYC, emphasized the conference's core value, "Work is Worship."At Legacy Church we describe a similar core value, "Worship is a lifestyle." Vassar called us to see ourselves as missionaries to our "neighborhoods, networks, and to the nations."

The world is in need of the message and the hands and feet of Jesus lived out in his followers. What if you saw your work as worship, or, yourself as "a missionary with a corporate sponsor?" If you did, I bet the world you touch would know the difference.

faithrunner schedule this week:

faith: Join Legacy Church, many others, and me for One Meal One Day this Wednesday. Skip a meal to feed a child through Compassion International.

runner: NTTR's annual club-sponsored run, the Rockledge Rumble, is this Saturday at Lake Grapevine. I am honored to serve as the race chaplain. The run is sold out, but if you happen to be on the North Shore Trail at Lake Grapevine cheer the trailrunners as they run in honor of our US Veterans. Veterans Day is this Friday. Thank those who have served so we are free to practice our faith.

Adopted into the Family

2011-11-01T04:47:00.000-07:00

Team Bowen

One of the biblical metaphors for how God brings us into right relationship with him is adoption. The picture is the intentional efforts of a loving parent who chooses to pay the price and meet the legal obligations to make a child part of the family.

When Paul wrote to the Romans, he used this adoption language to remind them that in Christ they were children of God, which made them not only heirs but co-heirs with Christ! (Romans 8:14-17) God intentionally chose those who trust him to be his adopted children. God paid the price (Jesus' death) and met the legal obligations (The Law) in order for this to happen. Today, those who trust His Son are God's adopted children through Jesus Christ.

Adoption of orphans today magnifies this beautiful picture of God's love for us.

Brent and Anne-Marie Bowen are in the adoption process currently, and this past weekend I ran with "Team Bowen" at the Chosen Marathon and Half Marathon in New Braunsfel, TX.

Here is Anne-Marie's race report. Read their other blogs that tell of their adoption journey and pray the process continues to go well for them.

Do you know an adopted child? Are you an adopted child of God? Share your story if you like.

Character Matters

2011-10-25T04:52:00.000-07:00

I am finishing up a manuscript that I am writing with my friend, Dr. Norman Blackaby. We have facilitated a PhD seminar for three different cohorts at Dallas Baptist University called Biblical Servant Leadership. As part of the work in the seminar we ask the candidates to write case studies on biblical servant leaders in order to discover that leader's strengths and weaknesses as he or she led. We also look for principles and practices we can apply to current leadership theory and practice.

As we guided the seminar we observed the importance of character as a person called by God led and how character squarely centered on his or her relationship with God. Outward appearance, skills, and personality were not enough to lead effectively under God's guidance. Character matters. We also observed that not much had been written about character in leadership studies. So, we decided we would address the need and write something of our own.

As we began to talk to the publisher about the direction we would write, we came to the conclusion that character is an issue that applies to people in all walks of life. Yes, character directly affects one as a leader--you don't have to look far to read or hear about a leader who had failed because of character issues--but character plays a major role in our effectiveness as a Christ-follower, no matter where God has placed us.

So, we widened our scope of readers and write how God develops character and about the difference godly character makes in a person's life and others whether the person is a leader or not. We use biblical case studies, which lets the reader interact with the biblical material. We apply what we observe in the case studies to everyday situations and offer the reader ways to allow God to develop his or her character.

We share our own case studies of people like Hannah, Boaz and Ruth, Jonah, Mary and Martha, Barnabas, and Stephen. We write about Moses, Joseph, Peter and Paul, and Jesus, who models for us how to develop character in others and the difference a relationship with him makes in our character as we serve others in his name.

I'm excited about the project, and I pray Legacy Church and Christians everywhere will benefit from our work. Pray for us as we finish things up and go through the editing and publishing process.

What have you read on character that may help us? Would love to hear from you, and we'll let you know when the book is available to purchase.

Crawling out of a Hole

2011-10-21T14:41:00.000-07:00

Colonel Qaddafi's Final Hiding Place

It strikes me as odd that the two most feared and possibly most powerful dictators of the past twenty years ended their lives being pulled out of a hole in the ground.

Makes you wonder if all the power and wealth that they pursued was worth it?

Jesus asked the pointed question, "What good will it be for you to gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul? Or what can you give in exchange for your soul?" (Matthew 16:26) Being drug out of a hole by those who wanted them dead signals to me these two had lost their souls to gain the world.

What did these two dictators really gain by all their efforts if the end of their life's work emerged from a hole in the ground while hiding from those they used to gain what they had?

					We will all go into a hole in the ground when we die. My prayer is that it will be after a celebration and eulogy of our lives, not to hide from those who pursue us because we have sold our soul to gain the world.
Saddam Hussein's Hole When Captured

barefoot running update

2011-10-17T16:34:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is an installment for the "runner" part of "faithrunner," so bear with me if you are more interested in the faith side of things. I'll come back to that next week. This week, I want to update where I am in running barefoot or in minimalist shoes. The evolution of footwear in my running continues...(at 58, I don't know how many more renditions there will be :-)

I bought my first pair of Vibram five fingers KSOs two years ago this month after hearing Christopher McDougall pitch his book, Born to Run, at the Dallas Cooper Clinic. (You can read of some of my journey in previous posts in this blog.) I bought into the philosophy and technology of barefoot running and took off running in them--never to wear conventional shoes again. (And, I haven't.)

What happened, however, was that the concrete of my suburb and the rocky terrain of North Texas only allowed me to go so far in this running footwear. I could only run about a maximum of six miles in the five fingers on concrete until the balls of my feet hurt, and the cumulative effect of the pounding almost ended my running in them altogether. Trails in this area were impossible in this footwear, even in the five finger treksport. (A costly investment with no return on my investment.)

I my frustration, I went to Luke's Locker in Plano, and a salesperson introduced me to the new Altra Zero Drop (Instinct). It kept the foot-on-the-ground theory I had come to like (require) and it gave me a slight cushion for the concrete roads I have to run upon around here.They said more and more five finger runners were returning to find some cushion for running on roads.

I ran 10+ miles this morning on the concrete trails of the Chisholm Trail in Plano to train for a half-marathon in a couple of weeks, and I ran at my normal pace with no residual issues I had experienced in the past. I'm sold on these shoes. The larger toe box allows my foot to fall on the ground as they were created to do and gave me the foot-strike and feel as the five fingers. AND, the cushion kept the ball of my foot from aching on the longer runs.

My trail running has returned with the Merrell Barefoot True Glove. (Thanks again to Luke's Locker folks.) This shoe is built upon the foot-on-the-ground principle while providing a "rock plate" in the front of the shoe to deal with the rocks of North Texas trails. It, too, is built more to the natural shape of the foot and makes room for my wider foot in the toe box. (I'll keep my Montrail Hard Rocks for extreme terrain.)

I continue to be sold on minimalist theory and technology, and I will not return to the traditional heal-strike shoe. What I wear are the natural alternative to shoes that force our feet to fall on the ground other than the way they were designed to strike it. But, the terrain and needs of runners in my part of the world require more cushion and protection than what barefoot wear provides.

I will continue to experiment, I'm sure. I am grateful, however, shoe makers listen and adjust to the needs of the runners as this trend continues to unfold.

How has your footwear needs changed as you have run?

running in reverse

2011-10-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

I'm training for my next half-marathon as part of the Chosen: Marathon for Adoption at the end of this month. I'm running with Team Bowen, who are raising money to adopt a child from Russia. (You can read their story here and contribute to their adoption if you like.)

I do my training for runs mostly on the Chisholm Trail in Plano. I can connect with the trail about a mile from my house, and it provides up to 13 miles of continuous running/riding trails. (I typically run in the grass alongside the concrete path.)

This morning I went out for a 6-mile run (64F, 97% humidity), and as I got close to the trail I decided to run my usual course in reverse. In doing so, I ran faster, fresher, and all the bridges, houses, crossings, and scenery looked different. Uphills became downhills and vice versa. Even the ducks along the banks looked different. That choice changed how I saw what I had seen hundreds of times before. I recommend you try running familiar training routes in reverse to get a fresh look on things.

Running in reverse provided a fresh perspective to a very familiar path.

We are reading through the New Testament this fall as Legacy Church. (If you want to jump in with us, you can find the reading plan here, or sign up for the daily emails here.) When I got home from my run and sat down to read my daily reading, I remembered my decision to run my usual course in reverse, and I read Mark 15 (NIRV) that way. No, I didn't read word-for-word in reverse. I read the paragraphs from end to beginning.

The chapter has editorial titles: Jesus Brought to Pilate, The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus, Jesus in Nailed to a Cross, and Jesus Dies. I started with the last incident and read them in sequence backwards. This familiar story read in reverse, which is critically important to our faith, revealed fresh insights to the injustice, cruelty, and suffering Jesus faced on the cross for you and me.

Reading in reverse let me read with with the end of the story as the starting point. Jesus' death became the reference point for his trial, mockery, and suffering. It didn't change the message. Reading that way gave me a fresh look at an old story.

When you know the end of the story, it may take away some of the expectation and anxiety while in the story, but it will also give you hope in the middle of it. Knowing Jesus rose from the dead and that he will return triumphant gives a fresh perspective to the suffering and heartache he faced and we face each day.

What I Learned from the Church in Asia

2011-10-03T19:20:00.000-07:00

I recently made a trip to a country in southeast Asia where the church is required to register with the government. I went at the invitation of a registered denomination and under the auspices of the government. I had been to two other countries with similar situations in order to serve in those places, so I was comfortable accepting the call and fulfilling what I was asked to do.

Here are some things I observed about the church this outing.

The Church does not need the support of the government to survive.
Whether or not the government sanctions or persecutes the Church, it thrives. This country allows the church to exist under its mandates and management. No free church movement legally exists. When the government was directly hostile to the Church in the country, Christ followers still gathered, served, and risked persecution as they lived out their allegiance to Jesus. But the church is not a governmental agency. It is a viral movement of relationships borne on the Spirit, blowing where it will. No human agency can contain it.

Christians respect the laws imposed upon them.
I asked a brother in Christ how he felt about all the governmental rules that regulated the church's work and membership. He looked at me like a big brother telling me something I should already know and said, "The Bible tells us to honor the government, so, we do what they ask of us." "Oh," was my wise response. With no argument or litany of how hard things were, he simply reminded me of the instructions Paul gave the church while it was ruled by the Roman Empire. (Romans 13:1-7)

Christians accept the consequences of their actions under the government's laws.
Every day at lunch my nephew and I ate with some of local pastors. They were joyful and loved to banter about home, family, theology and their churches. One afternoon, someone mentioned that one of them had served two years in prison for his faith, and his brother who was at the table with us had been in prison too. You would have never known it by their joyful attitude and energetic expressions of faith. The consequences of following Jesus was just part of being the church.

The church works best in houses nestled in neighborhoods rather than in buildings set apart solely for the purpose of gathering the church.

"House Church" took on a whole new meaning for me this trip. I had seen small groups of six to eight gather in a living room and ten to twenty in an apartment dedicated to gathering the church, but here pastors literally gave up a floor of their homes for the church to come together; or, in one case, built a new home with bedrooms off the meeting room. The pastor who was our host had four generations of over a dozen people living in six small rooms. There was a second floor to his house, but that was where we went on Sunday morning for worship, fellowship, and the hearing the Word. This house was also in the heart of a neighborhood which knew exactly what went on in the house. A seed of hope planted in the field of human relationships...

Leaders who serve the needs of those they lead are the best leaders.
Leadership in these churches is not a lucrative occupation. Actually, to be a pastor means you will give up a better paying job to live off the equivalent of $6-$20 USD/month. Yes, those numbers are correct. You serve because God has called you to be a servant of the people, not because you can make a career of it. I am humbled each time I serve with those who truly make sacrificial love their motive for ministry.

Jesus promised his followers that "the Gates of Hades will not prevail against" the movement he started. This viral movement, embodied in the Church, can not be stopped until Jesus returns to set up his rule permanently on the planet.

I am convinced after observing the Church in five oppressive countries that Jesus' promise is true, and we who have joined the Movement need not fear no matter the changing cultural and political climate that surrounds us. The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ will be triumphant.

Serving the Poor

2011-09-25T20:25:00.001-07:00

My trip to Bolaven Farms and the Bolaven Farms Cafe in Pakse, Lao, opened my eyes again to the plight of the poor and the church's too-often inadequate response to them. Our history has been short-term adventures for the curious follower of Jesus or conscientious global citizen who wants to help somone-either in their name or the name of Jesus. These short blasts of energy and supplies help for a season but do not change the life-condition of those helped.

What I like about the Bolaven Farms model is that the end game of all the work and investments is a sustainable way of life for the farmers. The vision is that in four years a farming family will own, work, and harvest their own coffee in order to support their family. This takes time, patience, and will not come easily. I appreciate Sam Say more each time I am with him because no matter his faults as a business owner or those who manage the farm he loves the farmers and truly wants them to have a new way of life both physically and spiritually.

As you drive to the actual farm you see the huge processing plants and coffee groves of the mega companies, but when you learn of how they treat the farmers you soon discover they are all expendable. Profit is king--don't get onto them too hard. We have the same issues in our country. This reality makes it difficult for a model where the worker benefits as much as the owner to compete with the mega companies. It is an unfair system that requires the best Christian people have to offer.

This also means that those who support the farm must be in it for the long haul. A new coffee tree will not bear usable beans for three years. No one-time mercy trip will make the model work. It will take years of patient partnerships to change the life of the poorest of the poor. I am happy Legacy Church bought in early to support Bolaven Farms. We use their coffee exclusively on our campus and encourage our people to subscribe to the coffee personally and to encourage neighbors and businesses to use it also byes, it's a bit more expensive than those brands produced on the corporate farms, but this is about the farmer.

Jesus called his followers to care for "the least of these," and this does not mean one-time exposure to their lives. It means investing in their lives in a model that can change their lives. Join me as we live incarnationally and intentionally as the people of God.

To order coffee for your business or church, go to the Bolaven Farm website.

(I'm writing this in transit from the farm will in the Siem Reap airport in Cambodia. Please excuse the misspellings.)

When the Grid Goes Down-Reflections on 9/11 and Faith

2011-09-06T07:46:00.000-07:00

If I have learned anything from the events of 9/11, I have learned of my dependence on what I call "the grid;" that nebulous interface of all things electronic and wireless that are the foundation of how I live life and get information.

I remember watching the planes fly into the World Trade Center towers while standing in my living room waiting to drive my youngest daughter to school. My oldest was a freshman in college, and it was not long before we were on the phone seeing if the other was okay and asking, "What now?" "What do we do now that what we have known is no more?"

As the events of the next several days, months, and years have unfolded, I have jokingly--and not so jokingly--asked, "What would happen if the grid went down?" What would life be like without the electricity and wireless connections we take for granted? What if something more catastrophic than the events of 9/11/2001 took place in our country?

More importantly, I have asked "What would your faith look like if the grid goes down?"

You may ask, "What does the grid have to do with my faith?" I'll tell you.

In an increasingly technologically-driven world, how we get and process information has changed dramatically for those of us who have access to that technology. If we get our information--even reading the Scriptures on our smart phones--from electronic, wireless sources, what will we have if we find ourselves unplugged from all that information and data? We don't memorize or familiarize ourselves with anything now because we can instantly "look it up" as long as we are connected.

If the grid went down, what would our worship look like? (Ask those who were Legacy Church on June 26. They have an idea.) How much of the Scriptures would we know? Who would we trust to tell us the truth? How would we tell others about the Good News?

Here is one reality I can stand upon.

When Jesus came, he came as "the Word," according to John. His was an in-flesh Word, not some data wirelessly beamed across the universe. The Word "became flesh and made his dwelling among us," John witnessed.

Word embodied in a person is God's way.
The Word living in relationship among others is God's way.

The Word of God spoken in human relationship is God's way. This is why the Gospel still thrives in societies that are disconnected from or have no idea what is "the grid." Anything other than Word in relationship is only a cheap imitation of God's intentions.

Will I give up my iPhone? No. Will I stop blogging? No.

But I will ensure that as much of the grid-related things I do, I will spend as much time knowing and sharing the Word in relationship because when--not if--the grid goes down, I will hopefully still be an effective servant for the One who called me to join Him on this rescue mission.

What about you?

What I Learned While Climbing on Mt. Rainier

2011-08-30T06:13:00.000-07:00

Here are some things I learned from my attempt to summit Mt. Rainier on August, 25, 2011.

First, Creation is still larger than its creatures. I live in a manufactured suburb where we sometimes live by the false assumption that we are in control of our environment and that we are bigger than the land upon which we live. Get out at the base of Mt. Rainier--after driving through the beautiful Mt. Rainier National Park--and you will soon realize how small you are. Get ON the mountain, and you are humbled by how small you really are and how big are the things of God. I am glad the Psalmists lived in Creation rather than in the urban sprawls we have made for ourselves.

Second, you are at your best in the footsteps of a guide. I know that some treasure the pioneering spirit of those who head out on uncharted paths, but most of us need a guide. The guides of RMI, Billy, Zeb, and Cody, trained, encouraged, and led us. They also made the trip safe and fun. Don't try something like this without the experience of someone who has gone before you.

Your spiritual journey follows the same rule. If you think you can face the wilderness of your spiritual trek alone, you will fall in the first crevasse you encounter. Get a mentor. Find a guide. Don't go it alone, or you will die.

Trail across Cowlitz Glacier

Another climber's view from D. Cleaver

Third, we all have our "freak out" points. I turned back after completing the climb on Disappointment Cleaver. We left Camp Muir about 1:00 a.m. (10,500), and it took us a little over two hours to make the top of D. Cleaver. (12,500)

The rock face of D. Cleaver

I was in shape to make the climb and summit, but climbing on loose rocks in crampons in the dark at a pretty good pace set my psyche on edge. Check out some of the pictures, and you'll get an idea of what I am talking about. I was the only one of 18 climbers to turn back at that point, so it is doable, and hundreds make it every year. I'm a flat-lander, and my first shot at mountaineering took me to the edge of my comfort zone.

One of my best friends posted on my facebook page, that I must have learned the old Indian proverb, "Wise is good...dead is bad." I was never in danger physically, but you have to have the mental edge to stay safe, and I had lost that edge. I prefer wisdom over death right now.

Fourth, sunrises are brightest when you are where you know you should be. I went on this climb to be with a friend and experience something I never had before. I had surely done that! So, when the sun rose behind Little Tahoma Peak that morning on my way down I basked in God's glorious beginnings of a new day and thanked God for the beauty and majesty of His Creation. I had gone as far as my mind let me, and I was headed down to all else God had called me to do. (Thanks to Cody Doolan, who got me down to Camp Muir safely.)

Finally, whether you finish the climb or not, rejoice with those who do. My friend and the one whose idea it was to make this climb, Jim Craig, made the summit. Here he is hoisting the colors of Legacy Cyclists, our cycling group launched out of Legacy Church. This climb was on his bucket list, and he climbed to the summit (14,410) without faltering. We trained together, traveled together, and climbed together. I am honored to have been part of his accomplishment.

From what I understand of Scripture, that is the stance we are to take with all those who climb the mountain of life. Life is not so much about what we do as it is what we share in what others do.

I'll try mountaineering again, but probably not on Mt. Rainier. I'm glad I gave it a try. I'm happier to be back home doing what God called me to do.

Why I am climbing Mt. Rainier

2011-08-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

Mt. Rainier, WA

Next week about this time I plan to be climbing on the way to Camp Muir on Mt. Rainier. Some of you know of my addiction to adrenalin and adventure so you will not be surprised.

Others of you may be asking, "Why would you want to do such a thing when you have a perfectly good life with good health and, if the Lord wills, a potentially wonderful future?" Good question, and here are some of my reasons.

I'm doing this with a friend. Jim Craig invited me when he announced climbing Mt. Rainier was on his "bucket list" and wondered who wanted to go along? He grew up in Seattle, and the mountain loomed daily on his horizon, and he finally decided he would climb it. Jim and I cycle with Legacy Cyclists, share life together in our LifeGroup, and call Legacy Church our spiritual family. Friendships often determine the paths you end up taking. (Don't ask me, "Well, if your friend asked you to jump of that mountain, would you do that?" Depends...)

Camp Muir

I'm doing this with a trusted company and guides. We have never done anything like this before so we hired guides with RMI, Rainier Mountaineering, Inc. They guide climbs daily, and will take time to train us to use equipment I have only worn in my living room.

I am doing this because God has put within me a longing to be connected to His Creation. We are God's creatures meant to live and dwell in creation. Part of getting outside on a mountain is a chance to breathe and stretch beyond the synthetic environments we have created for ourselves. Don't get me wrong, I love insulated walls and AC in the 100+ degree weather of North Texas, but even here I find ways to get on dirt and among trees to run where God created us to run: in His playground of creation.

Finally, it's simple: I love adventure! Why do you think I'm a pastor? Seriously. Can you think of a more adventurous journey than living among and leading a group of people to look something like Jesus where they live, work, and play? You can't avoid the hard stuff, and you can't take short cuts on the ascent. The weakest one determines the speed of the group, and the strong ones learn humility and to serve the weak. People quit when it gets to hard, and danger is around every corner. And no two day's are alike! It's more like a 1,000-foot ascent at 14,000 feet than a picnic in the park. Adventure motivates me as a pastor. I will attempt to summit Mt. Rainier for the same reason.

My parents sent me part of this Psalm as their prayer for me. I will claim it as my prayer for the climb:

If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,”
   and you make the Most High your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
   no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.(Psalm 91:9-12)

For daily web cams and weather information, you can go here.

I'll post from my phone to facebook along the way and retell the story here when I get back. Prayers appreciated!

Servant Leadership in Times of Crisis

2011-08-09T07:40:00.000-07:00

Daily News

What is a leader to do when the bottom falls out? How is he or she to respond when people panic and look to their leader as the one who should know how to get them out of the mess or crisis.

I'm no expert on leading in a crisis, but I do have some personal experience as a pastor and what I observe from the life of Jesus, the ideal servant leader.

First, a servant leader reminds everyone that no matter the changing circumstances, the mission remains the same. For my family and those I serve as Legacy Church, our mission to help people trust Jesus as the church, at home, and in the world does not change no matter what goes on elsewhere. This stance allows the leader to be what Edwin Friedman called the "non-anxious presence." Knowing and sticking to the mission is the rudder and course in the storms of life.

Good leaders call those they lead back to the reason for the group in the first place. Jesus continually reminded his closest followers that although the religious leaders had turned up the heat on his kingdom movement, he was still headed to Jerusalem to complete what he had come to do: be the Suffering Servant Messiah. (See Mark 10:32-34)

Second, a servant leader acknowledges the reality and owns what is his or her part of the crisis. Leadership is not promising Disney World when you are standing in Haiti. People know when a leader is painting a picture of reality or not. Those who follow want to know that the leader is aware enough to see what they see and that he or she has the character to admit his or her mistakes.

Jesus painted pictures of his future kingdom in a land overrun with dictators and an occupying army, but they were nothing like the Greek's Elysium Fields. They were painted in the real scenes of growing crops, kings in battle, daily business, and selfish endeavors. Jesus even admitted that he came not to bring "peace, but a sword." (Matthew 10:34) He saw the reality of the people's plight ("tired and carrying a heavy load") and let them know the path to freedom would not be an easy one. He was honest about their situation and his plans to help them.

Third, a servant leader steps into the crisis and works with others to find a solution. Leaders who refuse to stand in the mess, roll up his or her sleeves, and enter the chaos of the situation lose all credibility to lead. And, the leader who offers solutions from an ivory tower will never have the strength of the organization to weather the storm. "The wise listen to advice..." (Prov. 12:15)

Jesus stepped into the crisis of a fallen creation and sinful people and gave his life up as the ultimate solution to that crisis. Jesus is the ideal servant leader because he gave his life on the cross to defeat human enemy #1, death and eternal separation from their Creator.

Few leaders today stay long enough to give their lives so those they lead may have life. They'd rather take the golden parachute and float safely to the next opportunity.

Crisis defines a leader.

Crisis is the crucible of what a leader is made of, what his or her values are, and whether or not he or she should remain the leader after the crisis.

Performance in clear waters does not tell the crew what kind of pilot the captain is. Storms require skill and experience, not pleasure cruises in calm winds and seas.

We all need a servant leader like Jesus in the global crises we face these days.

Wonder if you are that kind of servant leader wherever you lead today?

The Deal With Daniel

2011-08-02T06:29:00.000-07:00

We have returned to reading through the Bible this month at Legacy Church. We began this week by reading the story of Daniel, the exiled Israelite whom God used during his Babylonian captivity to reveal many things about the future. Daniel's prophecy has captured more attention in these uncertain days, but I have always been intrigued with his character.

Daniel was chosen from among his peers to serve in the king's court. We all like to be chosen, and in those days this was a big deal. Enemies of the state were to be groomed to be servants to the king. No one in his or her right mind would refuse the opportunity.

Daniel accepted the offer, but refused to be like everyone else. (Daniel 1) This is where the story gets good for me.

Daniel resisted the all-you-can-eat-and-drink buffet of the king and stuck to the diet he had known from childhood--a diet that honored his God and the traditions of his family's faith. That would be like telling the President of the United States you appreciate the food the White House chef prepared, but you'd stick with the food your mother cooked back home. Not the way to fit in, in my opinion.

I'm one who likes to fit in. In church world, it has been called being "relevant." We have been told that relevancy to the culture in our presentation, building, message, and programs will give us a hearing with those in the culture. I've tried all that, and the culture doesn't listen any more today than fifteen years ago.

When I think of Daniel's choice and the invitation to relevance, I recall Henri Nouwen's prophetic voice that one of the temptations of a Christian leader is to be relevant. The problem, he writes, is that relevance is driven by one's need for self-esteem and success. He wrote,

“The leader of the future will be the one who dares to claim his irrelevance in the contemporary world as a divine vocation that allows him or her to enter into a deep solidarity with the anguish underlying all the glitter of success and to bring the light of Jesus there.” (In the Name of Jesus, 22)

"Solidarity with the anguish," not relevance in the culture, is the calling of Christian leaders. We enter this anguish in order to "bring the light of Jesus" into the pain success brings to our lives.

How do we do this? Nouwen offers a lifestyle of contemplative prayer to know Jesus as the way we escape the lure of relevance.

“If there is any focus that the Christian leader of the future will need, it is the discipline of dwelling in the presence of the One who keeps asking us, ‘Do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me?’” (28)

The deal with Daniel was that being a "son of Israel" was more important than being a servant of the king.

I wonder what our lives would look like and where our leadership would lead us if being "children of God" (Rom. 8:15-17) was more important than being relevant in the world we live? Take some time to consider this today as you find yourself invited to be relevant where you work and live.

Four Keys to Climbing a Fourteener

2011-07-26T06:32:00.000-07:00

I climbed my first 14,000-foot mountain peak this past weekend, San Luis Peak just outside Creede, CO (a "Class 1" walk up in difficulty talk) but the perfect first for me. It was a marvelous experience in every way, and upon reflection I see at least four things I know made it what it was.

Preparation: You don't wake up on a Monday and decide on Saturday you will climb a 14er, or, any ultra-endurance experience. The group I made the climb with had been planning the trip for almost a year. My personal preparation is ongoing, but about three months out, I ramped up my stair-stepping, weight lifting, and running/riding to get both my lungs and legs ready. I was prepared when I made the ascent. That did not lessen the difficulty, but all that sweat and pain before the hike made it enjoyable, not just survivable. Not everyone in the group was as prepared. All but one made the ascent, but it was not fun for everyone. I'll let them tell their stories.

Persistence: Anything good in life requires persistence. From marriage to marathons, success means putting one foot in front of the other until you are at the finish line. It's not glamorous or giddy-fun all the time, (that's what movies and marketing tell you) but steady persistence gets you where you want to go. The photo to the left shows the last few hundred yards to the summit. It was tedious, painful, and came down to one step at a time, looking only at the rocks in front of you. But look what we will see when we finish! Life is like that...

Partners: I am not a solo hiker. I don't think anyone should be. Partners not only encourage you, they protect you. The group I made the trip with are part of a group of men I have met with for over six years on Thursday mornings at a nearby Starbucks. These guys are more than weekend warriors. We share the tough, hard, seedy parts of our lives along with the joys and victories. This adventure to the mountains was a side trip on the journey of life we share together every week.

Faith: Faith is the foundation for anything significant in life. On a purely physical level, you have to trust people you have never met. Map makers, bloggers, trainers, and people who have made similar trips are your only source of information--until you have walked every step yourself. You have to trust those who have been there in order to make your trip. You have to trust friends you know will not leave you and who will find you if you get lost. Trusting yourself alone will end in disaster.

On a spiritual level, I trusted God for my safety--if I didn't do anything stupid--and that my choice to attempt this would somehow honor Him and allow me to know Him in deeper ways. God did all that and more. I made it safely up and back. I saw the panoramic beauty of His majesty (Psalm 8, 19, and 23 mean more now); and, I had hours of prayer and conversation in Creation to know His heart, those of my brothers in Christ, and my own. Like my friendships with these guys, my relationship with God deepened after spending time on His turf, not the artificial world I live in every day.

What's next? 1) See these guys on Thursday, and 2) summit Mt. Rainier in less that thirty days!

You can see more picture from some of the guys facebook pages, Jack Boychuck, Jim Craig, and Mark Smith.

How to Affair-Proof Your Marriage

2011-07-12T10:30:00.000-07:00

A staff member informed me the other day that a couple of ministers we knew had extra-marital affairs and were no longer serving in their churches. He wanted to know what I was doing to safeguard my marriage and my role as a spiritual leader. That conversation led me to reflect on what I have done to stay faithful to my best friend for over thirty-six years. (Most of what I wrote in my previous blog applies to this topic, too.)

In my book, An Angel in the Flame: A Tale of Two Saviors, the story of Samson with an eye to Jesus, our true Savior, I write:

You can tell a man's character by two things: how he prays and how he manages his sex drive. How a man prays exposes his heart and to whom he bends his knee. How he manages his sexual urges exposes the depth of discipline in his life. Hypocrisy can mask both aspects of his life, and he can act out a persona many will accept as real. However, crisis and leisure are crucibles that reveal a person's true character. No Oscar-winning performance can hide a man's true identity in the heat of crisis or the calm of leisure. (87)

Samson, one of Israel's biblical "judges," prayed mostly about things he wanted for himself, and he managed his sex drive much like that of a rock star on tour. He failed to be the leader and man God chose him to be because he failed in these two areas of his life. His prayers in crisis were cries for God to give him stuff and to revenge his losses. His sexual activity in times of leisure were unharnessed pursuits of passion for foreign women. You know the story of Delilah, who betrayed him to his enemies through his lack of discipline and lust for her. (Judges 16)

Samson's failures teach me some things about how to keep my focus on my two most important relationships: God and Kim.

Prayer and similar spiritual disciplines like fasting, Scripture study, solitude, and community keep my heart connected to the One who called me to my relationship with Him and Kim. My prayers to God and with Kim expose my heart's intentions and focus of its attention.

I have found discipline of the heart produces discipline in every area of my life. Since my heart is "the well-spring of life" (Proverbs 4:23) and since from it comes all manner of evil in its fallen state, (Mark 7:20-23) my attention should be on my heart first, then my habits.

Let me say a quick word about living in community with other guys. My friend, Robert Sullivan, constantly reminds me that the way Satan picks guys off is by isolating them from the herd much like lions hunting in the Serengeti. Get separated from the herd of men living together as Christ followers, and you will get picked off. Nate Larkin, in his book Samson and the Pirate Monks, confessed his inability to remain faithful to his wife on his own:

"...but the climate of shame and secrecy in my religious environment forced me to battle the beast alone. On those terms the battle was unwinnable." (8)

The battle for your heart to remain true to your God and spouse is not a solo sport. Live openly and honestly with guys who care enough about you to invade your space with questions and truth to keep you the man God desires you to be.

There's more to this, as you know, but I'll stop now and see what you are thinking. My prayer is that you and I will remain in love with the God who sacrificed His Son for us and our spouses who trust us day in and day out to be true to the vows we made to them on our wedding day.

How To Stay Married 36 Years

2011-06-28T07:51:00.000-07:00

Thirty-six years ago today I married my best friend. It has been a wonderland adventure I could never have dreamed up on my on.

We are serving together in Pachuca, Mexico, today with friends from Legacy Church, and I can't think of a better anniversary celebration because it represents so much of our lives together.

Here are some things I've learned over these years that may help you out, too.

1. Marry your best friend. This seems like a trite phrase, but Kim was my friend before she was my wife. This friendship was deepened by marriage vows and is a foundation upon which we build our lives. When your spouse is your best friend, shared interests, laughter, and a desire to be together grows deeper each year. Romance follows the fun. You don't have to manufacture romance if you are doing life together. Also, accountability is easy with a friend. It's simply letting someone you care for to have the confidence you go where you say you are going and you are with whom you say you will be. If you didn't marry your best friend, start acting like friends. You enjoyed being together when you got married.

2. Worship and serve together. Kim and I had committed our lives to following Jesus before we committed ourselves to each other. Jesus is her Leader and Rescuer, and He is mine. Together our devotion to God through worship and service to his call on our lives individually and as a couple knits our hearts and lives together. My ministry in the local church is her ministry, and her "ministry" in the public school is mine. Shared worship also gives us the courage to face whatever life may bring because you learn to trust God in the middle of it all.

3. Allow your spouse to be a person. One of my first attractions to Kim was that she was her own person. She had opinions, interests, talents, friends, and a purpose in life. When we married, she kept those things, and she allowed me to have mine. The key to a lasting marriage is two people who are interdependent; neither independent of the other nor dependent on the other. God created a wonderfully, unique person in Kim. Her uniqueness is a mirror that exposes my sin but shows my strengths. God has used her to make me more godly that I would be on my own, and she has motivated me to do more than I would do on my own. Gary Thomas in Sacred Marriage may be on to something.

4. Allow your spouse to have friends and interests outside your marriage. Kim and I have couples who are our friends, but many of those came from our pursuit of interests or from our ministries outside our marriage. I cycle and run, Kim does not; but, many of those I have met through those pursuits are our shared friends now. Kim is immersed in her calling as a teacher. Her involvement in the lives of her students by attending sporting events, plays, and concerts outside the classroom have led to friendships we now share together. We both also have friends who the other does not spend that much time with. We know all about them, but we don't spend the same amount of time with them. I learn much about Kim by the friends she has other than me.

5. Laugh, Pray, Love. Life is brutal. A sense of humor, which comes from knowing the ultimate punch line of life (God reigns.), is a necessity to make it through the gauntlet. Laughing about our mistakes and faults is the best jokes we can tell! Praying together knits your hearts together and gives you God's perspective on everything. And, love as modeled by Jesus and described in the Bible (1 Cor. 13:4-8, in particular) is how we are to serve one another and others.

6. Family is built on your marriage. Children happen in most marriages. They can become the glue that holds a marriage together, or, they can become the new devotion of one or both spouses. God blessed us with the two most wonderful daughters on the planet (and now the two most wonderful grandchildren), but I always told them--especially when there was conflict between them and their mother--"I loved your mother first, and after you grow up and have your family, I will still be with her." That confession said that our family was built upon and remain because of our marriage, not because children came along. My girls know they are loved partly because they know I love my wife.

I could write more, (especially about my wonderful daughters) but these are my thoughts this morning. I am the most blessed man by God because he led me to my best friend who became my wife. I pray that can be your confession today, too.

Serve Sunday 2011

2011-06-14T06:36:00.000-07:00

Sunday, June 12, Legacy Church abandoned its usual routine of gathering to worship in music and word to live out our core value, "We are most like Jesus when we serve." (Mark 10:45) We gathered for instructions, prayer, and a song, then headed out to serve. Some groups started earlier that morning.

We spread out to serve two homes that were part of Plano's Love Where You Live program, two elementary schools through their PTAs, and the campus of Legacy Church. A group also serve the neighborhood around our campus by prayer walking through the streets and praying for the families there.

It's a risk any time you do this during "regularly scheduled services" on a Sunday morning. You risk guests showing up to check you out (but what better way to demonstrate who you really are), forgetful members who show up not ready to work (they could run home and change and maybe read their weekly eletter and worship guide each week), and people sent by God seeking a spiritual boost in their lives. (I trust our people would engage them, and they may actually have more time to spend speaking to them than if the service went on as usual.) Then there's the offering! (That's what egiving and faithful giving is about.)

This is also a great way for families to worship together! If "worship is a lifestyle," then what better way to teach your children what being the church through service in the community looks like?

One team leader wrote:

Our homeowner, ________, felt so blessed at every step along this process. She got all manner of repairs completed on her house (that she has owned since 1971 when she bought it new!) including several that were not on the list. In addition, she got her house insulated for FREE (thanks ______ for mentioning this to her) and even found replacement light fixtures available on clearance. She frequently praised God as she worked side-by-side with everyone throughout the day.

To bless someone through serving in the name of Jesus is what the church scattered looks like!

This was the second year we have experienced this, and I believe we will do it again. Give it a try. It will test what you truly believe about who and what the church is.

You can see more pictures from the day on the Legacy Church facebook page.

tuKola and the church in Cuba

2011-06-07T07:45:00.000-07:00

I recently traveled to Cuba with B H Carroll Theological Institute to teach students who are part of Carroll's masters program there. I traveled with three others from Carroll on religious visas to serve in Camaguey. This was my third trip to Cuba, and I was as impressed with the people and the church on this trip as I was the first time I went there.

We held classes in the buildings and among the people who are Primera Iglesia Bautista in Camaguey. The building was built in 1904 and sits in the heart of the historic city. But it is not the quaint nature of the structures that draws your heart to the church; it is the people.

The Cuban Christians are warm, hospitable, and truly love the Lord. They accept what they have been given, and they live joyful, hope-filled lives in Christ. They take trains, walk, ride their bikes, or "BC Taxis," to gather as God's people to worship in song, to learn God's Word, and to pray. And, oh, how they pray! We gathered on Tuesday evening after a day of teaching to join them in their weekly prayer service, which went for over two hours. They believe with all their hearts God answers prayers, so they humbly seek God through "by prayer, and petition, with thanksgiving." (Phil. 4:6) We made petitions and heard stories of answered prayers--and while I did not understand fully the man's prayer in Spanish for my wife and me, I knew God's heart was moved by my brother's prayer of the heart!

I also noticed and appreciated that their music was their own and reflected their culture and heritage. (No imported pipe organs and robed choir.) I recognized one or two praise songs from the Americas, but they mostly sang in their heart language to tunes that were theirs. I also did not sense any imported, stock theology from outside. They translate the Bible into their lives as the basis for what they believe. This was their faith, not an imported substitute. The ekklesia is alive and well in Cuba.

The Coke-Cola of Cuba is tuKola, "your cola." We drank it at lunch and supper every day, and it came to symbolize for me the hospitality and sweetness of the people. We lingered after meals to hear stories and share our own. We drank liters of the stuff! Each night I sat on the roof top of our hotel, the Gran Hotel, and drank a can as I read. When I see the image of the can of cola, I remember the shared meals, faith, and culture of those who are the church in Cuba and know they are thriving there.

I look forward to my next trip and hope some of you can go with me.

Missional Has a Message

2011-05-17T08:01:00.000-07:00

No one needs to be a soothsayer to divine that the missional movement has gained momentum over the last five to ten years. It's been around a lot longer, but missional is now the catchword for young, cutting-edge, in-the-streets followers of Jesus.

Personally, I am pleased with what's happening. The movement grew out of a realization that the church is not making an impact on the culture in post-Christian, Western countries and something needed to change. From Lesslie Newbigin and David Bosch's early calls to mission to Alan Hirsch and Alan Roxburgh's stylized methods of how to go about it, the momentum to be "on mission" with Christ in the world rather than maintain the institutional church and its programs is now "it."

I have two observations about the movement, of which I consider myself and Legacy Church late adapters.

First, to be truly missional requires adaptive change, not tweaks that make you look missional. You can't add a food drive or a Habitat for Humanity house build to your church calendar to become missional. It requires deep changes to your values and practices. Too many church staff members seek to reflect the latest trends in ministry by adding a new mission project and miss the reality that missional is not an add-on. It's the DNA of who you are and what you do.

Those of you seeking to be missional by adding a project or two to what you are already doing, STOP. Either leave like Matthew or Peter what you are doing and follow Jesus' leadership into the mission field, or get back to what you were doing before you went to the last conference.

Second, missional has a message. My main concern about the missional call to plant yourself in a neighborhood or meet a community or global need is that more is said about the methods than the message. We want to know how rather than get to know the Who of our calling.

The end game of all the deconstruction of church as we know it and the creation of communities of faith in a neighborhood is a changed life that comes through an authentic relationship with Jesus, the Christ; and, that life-change comes through the message of Jesus in a real-life relationship with someone.

We can dig wells, build community centers, and host art festivals, but if there is no message of the Good News of Jesus then our efforts are as empty as the programs we advertise to get people to come onto our campus each weekend.

I love how God is reviving and reforming the church in America again. I don't want us to miss it. But, we cannot leave the message of Christ behind as we chase the enticing new forms of being the people of God in this world.

The Killing on Divine Mercy Sunday

2011-05-10T09:04:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning, May 1, we woke to the international coverage of the Vatican's beatification of John Paul II. What interested me about the event and how it added to the significance of the day was that the Vatican chose to beatify John Paul on Divine Mercy Sunday, a day which he extended to the entire Church in 2000 when he was Pope.

On this day, the Pope desired, "Whoever approaches the Fountain of Life on this day will be granted complete forgiveness of sins and punishment." (Diary 300)

"On that day all the divine floodgates through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity." (Diary 699)

The world watched as the faithful celebrated The Blessed John Paul II's beatification on the Sunday after Easter, which was set aside to extend God's mercy to all who would come to Christ through Confession and Holy Communion.

It was a slow news day that morning.

The night of the same day, we all remember what happened. US Navy Seals "killed" our nation's Public Enemy Number One, Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

The irony that struck me (I'm different, I admit.) was that the "killing" happened on Divine Mercy Sunday. [Please note: I am not criticizing the military's actions against an enemy of the state in a time of war, nor, am I suggesting mercy be shown to our government's enemies when confronted in wartime. So, don't comment about that.]

I simply want to note that on the day one billion Roman Catholic Christians were called to celebrate the mercy of God and the millions of Christians who gathered for worship to proclaim and call people to put their trust in Jesus, the Christ, who was a sacrifice so all could experience "the complete forgiveness of sins and punishment," most of the celebration was about the killing.

We haven't heard about Blessed John Paul II since.

We live each day with the ironic reality that God's divine mercy is extended to all through Jesus, the Christ, while people--good and evil--are killed by other people. Makes you cry Maranatha (Come Lord!) with more sincerity than ever, doesn't it?

Osama bin Laden and the Kingdom of God

2011-05-03T06:58:00.000-07:00

Time Magazine's Cover

I talk sometimes about my dual citizenship: I am a natural-born citizen of the United States of America, and I am an adopted child of God through Jesus, the Christ, and, therefore, a citizen of the Kingdom of God. Sometimes my loyalties to those kingdoms clash.

This was the case Sunday night when the world heard about the "killing" of Osama bin Laden. As a citizen of the United States I cheered for the "justice" that was served our nation's Public Enemy Number One. I wanted to be in Times Square, Ground Zero, or outside the White House to cheer with my fellow citizens for the demise of one who brought so much suffering and death to our country.

I was proud of our leaders who never gave up on tracking him down and for the Navy Seal who served the kind of retribution the rest of the world would understand with a "double tap" to the head and chest of the leader of Al Qaeda .

As I watched the nation rejoice and the images of the raid flash into my living room, the Spirit of the Lord, my Leader, whispered in my ear, "He's one of mine, you know." I pushed pause on the remote.

In a millisecond, the Spirit reminded me of my King's orders to "love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you." (Matt. 5:44)

The Spirit led my heart to empathize with those who had lost love ones on both sides of the war on terror and how military machinery-improvised or manufactured-tear families and flesh apart.

The Spirit reminded me that hatred and retribution lead to more hate and retribution.

The Spirit reminded me evil is real and people are capable of the most evil acts.

The Spirit reminded me that the weapon of choice for Christ's Kingdom people is forgiveness.

While my curiosity of the raid and espionage that led to bin Laden's death still simmered, my citizenship in Heaven and the call of my Leader sent me to bed saddened I get excited about such things and with the prayer of my King on my heart,

"May your kingdom come, may your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven."

Exponential, The Conference

2011-04-27T13:48:00.000-07:00

I've been at the Exponential Conference in Orlando for over 24 hours now, and I have been impressed with the shared message of those who are leading it. Every clan has its tribal leaders, and Dave Ferguson and Alan Hirsch seem to be the chiefs who set the agenda, but many others add their take on all things "missional" here.

I heard Dave Ferguson and Jon Ferguson and their team first. Ferguson and Ferguson are the authors of Exponential, and starters of Community Christian Church in the Chicago area. Their "Leadership Path," while not new (what is?) is practical advice to help us develop leaders. The best quotes, "Don't skip a step" while training leaders and "Everything I learned about church planting, I learned in small groups."

Neil Cole woke me up this morning as he bounced through his original work, Organic Church. I had read (and read reviews of) his Organic Leadership with the Ph.D. cohorts at DBU, and had sensed he was really angry with the church--many of the reviewers felt the same way. But, in person he does come across that way at all. He has a deep love for Jesus, then His disciples, and then the church; so, he spends most of his time calling church people back to being disciples before they are church professionals and consumers. I appreciated his sometimes-slanted exegesis of the parables of the kingdom (but who doesn't do that?), and his DNA for church: Divine Truth, Nurturing Relationships, and Apostolic Mission ring true. It's all in Organic Church, and I recommend you read it and wrestle with what he is saying.

My first live encounter with Alan Hirsch was much like my first meeting with John Eldredge of Wild At Heart fame. I wondered, "Is this guy the giant behind this movement?!?" Alan is a small man who you would not pick out of a crowd as the leader. But, he is a man with a huge mind and open heart for the things of God. He doesn't win you over with charisma or stature, but he pours into your head and heart insights from God dug out of the mines of boots-on-the-ground kingdom practices in a country not far ahead of America's post-Christian culture. On The Verge will be another step in the path of discovery for those wanting to be the church rather than manage one.

Francis Chan continued to process his personal, spiritual journey in real time through his cathartic confessions during the opening session. He so wants to get it right. I did appreciate his stories while in India and China and his persistent call to take the Bible seriously about who we are in Christ and who we are as the church.

Good News: Legacy Church continues to make its way along the path Jesus intended it to become in its rapidly changing mission field. What I hear here is not foreign language to our people, but we are still learning how to live as missionaries in our mission fields.

Most Interesting: All this missional talk is going on in the buildings of First Baptist Church, Orlando, which are lined with vendors, located beside its Christian Academy, and sitting on a well-manicured, multi-acre campus. As Matt Stone, who suggested I join him on this expedition, said, "There are so many layers of irony here." If you ache for the missional revival of the church, you know what he is talking about.

A Guide for Prayer and Fasting to Prepare for Easter

2011-04-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

Below is a simple plan of reading and meditation to prepare you for the Celebration of the Resurrection in the morning.

Morning: Read Exodus 12:1-13

This is the institution of the Passover meal that commemorates God’s deliverance of Israel from bondage in Egypt. The Jewish people observe this meal in the form of the Seder meal once a year according to the instructions in Scripture. As you read this passage notice the purpose of the lamb, its shed blood, and the importance of the unleavened bread.

Noon: Read Matthew 26:17-30

Jesus gathered his twelve closest disciples to observe the Passover meal which was part of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:17-20) Jesus identified the unleavened bread, which represented the absence of sin, with his body. He also identified himself with a cup of blessing as the blood sacrifice of the Passover lamb. As you read the Bible, find your place in the story as you recline with the disciples at the table.

Afternoon: Read Matthew 27:11-66

Read the story of Jesus death and burial. Enter the story by prayerfully listening to the sounds, feeling the pain of Jesus’ suffering, and seeing the grief of those followers of Jesus who stood at the foot of the cross. Recall God’s instructions for the Passover lamb and Jesus’ picture of himself in the Passover meal the night before his death.

Evening: Read Hebrews 9:11-28

The writer to the Hebrews, or, Jewish people, explained how Jesus’ death on the cross was the “once for all” sacrifice God required to forgive sins. The blood of the lamb in the first Passover rescued them from the Angel of Death. The blood of the animals in the Old Covenant sacrifices provided forgiveness of sins each time they were offered. The blood of Jesus on the cross did “away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.” (v. 26)

As you end your day of prayer and fasting, reflect on the Story of God’s forgiveness and deliverance through Jesus, the Christ. Thank God for his endless provision through Jesus’ death and burial to ransom you from his judgment. Anticipate the joy of Easter in the morning as Jesus rose from the grave to defeat death and certify his life and death brought forgiveness and freedom to all who trust him.

The Palm Sunday Project

2011-04-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

When Jesus entered Jerusalem on what we have dubbed Palm Sunday, he continued his mission call for people to "change how you live, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand [in me]." Jesus' presence that day confirmed God's promise to make Abraham's spiritual descendants more numerous than the stars in the heavens was still the Storyline for all time. The events that followed in Jerusalem that week established Jesus as the Promised One and the Rescuer for all peoples.

Vision, for me, is what the mission looks like when it is complete; (Jesus On Leadership) and, the Scriptures provide a picture of Jesus' completed mission in The Revelation of John, Chapter 7 (verses 9 and 10):

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”

Jesus lived, died, and was raised from the dead in order to realize the mission God initiated in the Garden of Eden: to rescue all people and creation from its fallen condition and potential everlasting separation from the Creator. And, yes, no matter how bad things seems today, God is still sending a people to be the rescue mission of Jesus to all nations, tribes, and tongues. That people is the Church.

This past Palm Sunday as Legacy Church, June Zheng, our Director of Literacy Missions, led us to show the story of Jesus in nine different languages to over 250 internationals. As I walked from room to room and heard the story of Jesus in languages that I did not know, I watched how those whose heart language came from the speakers viewed the life of Jesus with interest. I prayed the Holy Spirit would translate the eternal, timeless, trans-cultural person of Jesus into their hearts.

As I drove home that afternoon, I knew I had heard and seen a glimpse of God's Revelation 7 vision. May this week be your Palm Sunday Project by demonstrating Jesus to all you encounter. Maybe you, too, will see a glimpse of the vision God has for all who trust His Son.

A Legacy of Love

2011-04-12T06:28:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday members from Legacy Church joined members from St. Elizabeth Seton Catholic Community, Collin Creek Community Church, West Plano Presbyterian Church, and over 900 others for the Seton Soles 5K run/walk. 250 volunteers provided support and encouragement to all who participated.

The purpose of the run/walk was to raise funds for the Monsignor Henry V. Petter Endowment Fund, which exists to support "work in outreach and justice" in Plano and Collin County.

Henry Petter has served as a priest at St. Elizabeth Seton for almost twenty years, and he is a runner. He will retire in the near future, and he wanted his legacy to be something that dealt with the systemic issues that oppress and exclude people from the necessities of life. The church knew this and created the endowment in his name and the run to raise the funds.

Two things about the event please and challenge me. The first was, as Blair Richie of CCCC said Saturday morning, getting Catholics, Wesleyans, Presbyterians, and mostly Baptists to cooperate on anything may be a miracle that rivals Jesus turning water into wine. But denominational barriers can come down when Christ followers agree to meet a greater need in the name of Jesus. We have many differences in our theologies and practices, but we can come together to live out as Jesus' disciples what Max Lucado calls, "The Nazareth Manifesto."

The second thing that pleases and challenges me is Henry Petter's legacy. How great is it to join your calling (priest), hobby (running), and passion (fighting injustice) to leave a legacy from which others can benefit. I pray as I move closer to my retirement that all of those things can come together to form a legacy that serves others in life-changing ways.

This past Sunday I taught about King David's legacy in his lineage through which came the Promised One, Jesus. (Matthew 1:1) David wanted to build a "house" for the ark of the covenant. God wanted to build an everlasting "house" through David's descendants. While that particular legacy is reserved for David, I ask you, "What kind of house are you building?" Will it outlive you? Will it serve others?

Oh yeah, it was a 5K. Run On! did the timing. Here are the results.

My Mother Jumped Out of a Plane!

2011-04-05T06:35:00.000-07:00

My mother's birthday was Saturday, April 2. On that day she turned 80. Yes, count 'em, you Pine Covers, 80; and, to celebrate this milestone of maturity she decided to skydive!

When asked, "Why would you do such a thing?" she said, "I always wanted to do it." However, when she announced she planned to jump out of a plane on her birthday this past Christmas, that was the first I had heard about it. Her daredevil desire to plunge to the earth at 120 miles-per-hour from 2.5 miles in the air for a minute and then hang from a nylon parachute harnessed to a man half her age had somehow come alive late in life.

My mother is not a risk taker. She's a great-grandmother who teaches Sunday School each week and hosts a book club once a month. Her big adventure each week is driving to Palestine from her farm in Grapeland for groceries. She helped my Dad with the cows and projects on the farm up until about two years ago and they traveled in an RV around the USA for a while, but that was about it. She never showed signs of this kind of behavior.

But when jump day came, she acted like a kid going to the circus for the first time, and when she landed she jumped up and down and giggled like my girls when they got off the Mad Tea Party ride at Disney World for the first time. She was giddy like I had never seen her. My mother had jumped out of an airplane and landed safely. Check one off her bucket list.

She told me there was a deep faith component to her jump, too. She said she had to make sure it was okay with her husband of over 50 years. Check. Then, she said, she had to make sure God was in agreement with this adventure. She told me she prayed and listened like she had for few other things. And, when the day came, she was so free from worry she described the experience as, "...the most fun I have ever had!"

That's a lesson we all can learn: if you think you want to do something, and you make sure you have the support of loved ones and God has given you a peace about your decision at the time to act on it, then maybe all we need to do is jump and trust like my mother did on Saturday. Freedom from worry alone would make your choice a grand adventure.

P.S. She has a pacemaker, too. So, if you want to do something--check with your doctor, family, and God--then do it! No excuses. An 80-year-old lady jumped out of a plane and loved it. Now, get on with what you want to do.

If you want to email her and congratulate her, you can email her here.

I have posted my video of her landing on my facebook page.

You can see her official video by clicking on her name, Jean Wilkes, on the Skydive Dallas website.

The Tangible Kingdom

2011-03-29T06:29:00.000-07:00

I knew the conference would be different. When we drove into the parking lot of the "For the City Center," hand written signs on paper sheets guided us to the entrance. No buses or vans emptied their cargo into the parking lot; normal people carpooling like Austin residents would want us to, climbed out of their cars and made their way to the building.

Inside, Austin Stone Community Church has done an awesome job to provide a contemporary and durable space for their intentions there. We registered and made our way into a gym-like room and sat around round tables--about 20 of them. M&M's and peanuts in plastic plates were our center piece and bowls turned over with a hand written number on it told us we were at table 6.

When we started Hugh Halter stood on our level between two white boards and before a screen with one-color, PowerPoint slides projected on it. Senior member Bob L sat on a stool to the side like a father watching his son bat at a Little League game.

I was home.

If you have been to all the conferences I have attended, led, and will attend, you know you don't get this kind of vibe from the environment or leaders from the others. You usually get the latest and greatest technology, light show, and best-selling authors, who have come to inspire the masses.

At the missio intensive, Hugh, Matt, and Bob offer, you not only hear their story and information, but you have time to share with your team and those with you at your tables. It's a nice change from sitting in an arena listening and watching a projected image of someone data dump on you. (I'm still registered for some of those this year with my team--Just sharing my preference of style.)

What is this about? I my words it's about gathering and scattering the church as "God's missionary hands" to people who long for something tangible of God to hold on to in this crazy life. Less show and program. More equipping and sending. I used the phrase for a long time that church is a "mission outpost where every member is a missionary in his or her own mission field." The missional movement and Missio calls for the same Church-as-missionaries posture. My heart, as we used to say, resonates with them.

I like the voice The Tangible Kingdom folks bring to the conversation. I am pleased Legacy Church gets some of this and we can join the movement to get the church back into its mission field rather than only gathering to feed the sheep.

Steve Pate and I have written about this stance in our book, Evangelism Where you Live. Check it out.

The Magnificent Shift

2011-03-22T06:58:00.000-07:00

As we continue to read through the Old Testament as part of our year-long reading of The Story, the blood, gore, and annihilation we read about disturbs many of us. Isn't this sort of thing the very reason we are bombing Libya as I type and why we invaded Iraq and why troops remain in Afghanistan? The killing of innocent people cannot be tolerated in a civilized, free society.

If this is so, then, how do we resolve God's actions under the old covenant with the God we know through Jesus in the new covenant?

Let me refer you back to an earlier post where I tried to explain "the anger of God" in the OT. I equated God's anger toward Israel to a parent's loving anger as he or she parented a rebellious teenager. We can get that.

But what about the slaughter of indigenous people under Joshua and the Judges' leadership, for example? That's a bit harder to get your head and heart around than a frustrated God with his defiant people. Here's a starting point: When God chose a tribe of people and a piece of land to represent him and his holiness and those people and that land to be how the rest of the world would know him, only the choosing God, Adonai, the LORD, can exist among the people and on the land. All else must go. People and property who represent Holy God must not tolerate anything in their relationships or on their land that do not portray the holiness of their God.

If we stopped there--where many have--then the defense of land and purity of lineage is a necessity. Bring on the wars and genocide. However, there was a magnificent shift in who was the revelation and location of God when Jesus came onto the scene.

I agree with N. T. Wright, The Challenge of Jesus, that two primary reasons for Jesus' death was his perceived attack on the Torah and the Temple. Jesus, not the Law, was now the revelation of God; and, Jesus, not the Temple, was now the indwelling presence of God. The Kingdom of God no longer resided in the tribes of Israel but in the Son of God, and that kingdom was no longer limited to the acreage by the Mediterranean Sea symbolized by the Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus could not be tolerated because he did not defend what had been defended since the days of Abraham and Moses.

When Jesus died on the cross he took on all the evil both earthly and heavenly powers could muster, and he rode them down to their defeat. He then defeated death through the resurrection and walked among us to demonstrate what he taught and did was real and of God. The resurrected Lord is the revelation of God and the indwelling presence of God. The Kingdom is now the church, and all nations know God through their Jesus-like acts of love and forgiveness.

So, until Jesus came and became the presence and revelation of God and until he commissioned the new covenant people, the church, God demonstrated his justice (and mercy) through a chosen people on a piece of land.

That's why things look so differently in the Old Testament and the New and why we no longer fight wars to gain property for the dwelling presence of God or claim our tribe is the revelation of God. Jesus is all that.

As a friend said during one of our LifeGroup meetings, "I'm so thankful for Jesus." Me, too.

DNF, did not finish

2011-03-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

The three worst letters in the alphabet for a runner are: DNF, which mean, "did not finish." There are a variety of reasons why runners don't finish races but, if you train to finish and enter to finish, DNF is not what you want to read on the final result list. You also don't want these three letters on your spiritual epitaph, but I'll get to that in a moment.

This past Saturday, I entered the 20-mile length of what Tim Neckar calls, The Toughest n' Texas trail run. I completed the first two 50K runs Tim hosted on this course, and I thought I'd take on a shorter distance in the sixth running of the event.

I love the run because it winds through Cameron Park in Waco. I believe these trails are the best kept secret in Texas. Multiple elevations, terrain, and different stands of trees (and bamboo) make it a trail runners delight. It is, however, a butt-kicking combination of rocks, roots, climbs, and washes.

The course begins at Redwood Pavilion, runs along the Brazos River for a short time, and then turns up into the matrix of trails that make up the first 10+ mile loop. Runners stay mostly on the perimeter trails like Highlander and Powder Monkey and end on the rugged California 56, which empties out onto the pavement that leads to the bottom of the historic Jacob's Ladder, not what you want to see after the climbing and descending you have already done. You loop back to the Pavilion through Anniversary Park and begin all over again.

I was not prepared for the distance I entered. I was nursing a strained calf muscle going in, and had trained mostly on machines prior to my run. No machine can duplicate the pull and grind of true terrain. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Machine training, cycling, and shorter distances did not prepare me for the double-loop beating of the trails. My experience told me this, but rather than dropping down to the shorter distance, I stayed with my original plans. I finished the first loop with negative splits the last three or four miles, but when I started up the first ascent on the second loop, I knew I did not have it. DNF

Finishing the race is a spiritual metaphor of faithfulness. Ask Paul, the Apostle. He rested in the fact that he had finished "the race" at the end of his life's run. I agree with Neil Cole who writes that Jesus values "finishing well" as crucial to the success of his followers. (See book below) John's revelation to the church in Smyrna included a call to be faithful even to the point of death, and this would win them a victor's crown. DNF is not in the vocabulary of the faithful. No matter life's terrain or injuries, which may slow you down and even incapacitate you for a season, you remain faithful to God's call on your life in Christ Jesus. You finish the race marked out for you.

Finishing well, not a big, fat DNF, is my life goal. Staying spiritually fit, choosing the distance to match my abilities, and faithfulness to God's call are the keys to reaching that goal. It may not be pretty, but it will be complete. How about you?

Cooperating for the Greater Good

2011-03-08T05:50:00.000-08:00

While some are mourning the demise of denominations, I continue to be excited about the possibilities of no longer needing to keep our sheep within strict doctrinal and liturgical fences. Finally, being the big "C" church is about the sheep and not about the shepherds.

Another aspect of the crumbling walls of sectarianism and the reviving and re-forming of the church in America is a renewed focus on serving the communities in which we live and work. Being the church is no longer about gathering members but about empowering missionaries to serve where they live and work and go to school.

Cooperation in the larger Body of Christ and attention to the needs of people in our mission field have combined to bring new life to dying fellowships and stagnate churches.

Last year, Markus Lloyd, Children's Pastor and Creative Architect at Legacy Church, led us to partner with three other churches in our community to raise money for an endowment to address the needs in our city. Our church with a Baptist heritage joined a Roman Catholic, Wesleyan, and non-denominational church to raise money through a 5K run called Seton Soles. We will sponsor that event again this year.

Markus has written an article for the Frisco STYLE Magazine, March 2011, edition. He's told his story of how he came to be part of this event and how you can be also.

Read the article here and join us on the run by clicking here.

Of course, this raises the larger question of how far can you cooperate given the diverse theologies and practices that formed the denominations in the first place. But, that's another post.

The Angry God of the Old Testament

2011-03-01T07:22:00.000-08:00

We are reading through The Story at Legacy, and we are well into Exodus. By this time in His-story God has shown his anger several times, and these tantrums by God have begged the question from some of our readers, "Why is God so mean?" Others have commented, "I'm not so sure I like that God," or, "I'm glad Jesus came along and calmed his Father down!"

Anyone who is a serious follower of Jesus and who stakes his or her life on the God revealed in Scripture has wondered, "What's up with all the 'anger of God' stuff in the Old Testament?"

Here's my finite, fallible take on the topic: When Holy God reveals himself to a fallen people in a fallen creation in order to establish his presence among them for all to see and know, the clash of God's holiness with the fallen will cause conflict and anger on both sides of the relationship.

The world was and is a fallen mess. Insert Holy God who wants to love and guide a fallen people in a fallen world, and sparks will fly. Here's an analogy:

Try choosing to love a 16-yr-old, rebellious street kid who had scratched and clawed to survive her whole life and of whom many people had taken advantage. She is "owned" by a man who pimps her for his profit. Upon her rescue, you would have to fight those who thought they still owned her--taking some very, un-Christian actions against them. After she is in your care, you would have bouts of anger with her as she tried to survive the ways she learned on the streets while learning to trust you--who she had only known in name until you showed up and bought her out of the brothel where she lived/worked. If you have ever tried to rescue a child and to protect him or her from those who had enslaved them and to regain his or her trust, you may a glimpse of God's anger motivated by love toward those who refused to worship the God who had rescued them from Egypt.

Another take that sheds some light on God's "anger" for me is the fact that when the holy, eternal God seeks to enter His creation in order to rescue it, one ignites the other. Holy God does not thrive in fallen creation. It's against his nature and being. However, in an effort to enter Israel's world so He could lead them, God gave Israel the tabernacle, for example, with all its ornaments and altars along with priests set apart to serve Him so people would see both His separateness and approachability, but that is like introducing electricity to a swimming pool. (Thus, the rules about not touching stuff and standing at a distance and killing an animal as a sacrifice.) What was once a safe place to lounge for vacationers, (or, for people to live and work ) is now a danger zone in which those who formerly swam there would die if they dove in unaware. God's literal presence electrified creation, and those who did not respect what He had ignited paid with their lives.

There is much more to be said about this--especially by those more astute in theology than me, but these two concepts help me at least understand a bit about how a loving God could appear so mean to the street kids He has come to rescue.

Present Perfect, A Review

2011-02-15T10:21:00.000-08:00

A friend gave me a copy of Greg Boyd's Present Perfect a while ago when I did not read nor return the one he lent me. I get a lot of book suggestions, and I seldom feel compelled to read another one beyond what I need to read for my teaching at Legacy and beyond.

What started as a gesture of friendship turned into a new level of intimacy with God and an awareness of God's presence in my life and others. Boyd builds his case for living with God in the now on the writings of Frank Laubach, Brother Lawrence, and J.-P. de Caussde.

Boyd claims based on these authors,

...that remaining awake to God's presence in the present moment is the single most important task of the Christian life and that no spiritual discipline is more foundational or transforming than this one. (18)

That's quite a claim, but Boyd supports it with his own insights that makes it viable for all who claim to know and follow God.

We live too much in either the past or future, according to Boyd, and by doing so we miss that "God is now." (26) Our "flesh-mind-set" keeps us from seeing God in the moment. We spend all of our time rehearsing past hurts or fearing what is in the future. He handles Scripture adroitly to support his premise that God is present, God acts in the present, and that we can experience God if we submit ourselves to God's presence.

He dislodged my own past-future view of things when he reminded the reader (in concert with his chosen authors),

...the challenge of living in the Kingdom is not about figuring it out. There's really nothing to figure out! The challenge, rather, is in submitting to it. The only information we need to know is that the love of God that was revealed on Calvary surrounds us at every moment and the supreme goal of our life is to surrender to it. The question then is, Will we do this? It's a question that can only be answered with a choice. And this choice can only be made in the present moment. (100)

Boyd moves beyond personal, spiritual exercises-which are at the end of each chapter and a strength of the book-to the implications of following the God-of-now's promptings toward others as we live in God's presence. I appreciated his take on revival chasers that look for what God is doing in other places and justice gatherings that drum up enthusiasm to create social activism. He writes that the realities of the present-future Kingdom of God can be experienced "by God's people staying awake and responding to him in each moment." (138) If the "body of Christ" would be just that, all people would know the love of God.

Get the book. Read it with a friend. Do the exercises. You will discover a fresh relationship with God and soon find yourself living in the glorious reality of now where God dwells and works.

Jesus On Leadership

2011-02-10T09:52:00.000-08:00

I don't post much on this blog about the servant leadership of Jesus. (I need to start a separate blog, I suppose.) I spend more time teaching the principles and model of Jesus' leadership in the courses I teach for B H Carroll Theological Institute and Dallas Baptist University as a Teaching Fellow and Adjunct Professor (MACE and Ph.D.) respectively. That doesn't mean I don't keep up with the dialogue around my life's message that if we are followers of Jesus we who are called to lead will lead like Jesus.

The dialogue around servant leadership and Jesus, which I am pleased to monitor and enter into regularly, has become a mainstay of leadership discussions in Christian schools and seminaries, . Bethel Seminary has with a D.Min. in Servant Leadership and Gonzaga University recognizes itself among "servant leadership schools," who train leaders to be servant leaders. I appreciate serving DBU's mission to "produce servant leaders" through the biblical servant leadership courses I teach.

Books and articles and seminars continue to be written and presented on the subject, and I believe that volume will only increase with the emerging forms of church here and around the world. (I have approached Tyndale to update my 1998 edition of Jesus on Leadership since so much has been written on the topic since then, but all I got was a new cover.)

Here are some site entries that continue the discussion. Check them out and enter the dialogue.

Dan Ebener in Sojourners Magazine

Joel Zehring on Leadership vs. Jesus

Nancy Russell Catan on Steward Leadership

I am convinced the leadership models that permeated the church culture for the last 30 years are no longer effective and actually offensive to the next generation of church leaders. I am also convinced that the servant leadership taught and modeled by Jesus will be the predominate model for leaders as the church moves outside its institutional walls into the communities from which they have walled themselves for so long.

What are some of your favorite resources around this lifestyle of leadership?

Random thoughts on an Icy Day

2011-02-01T08:56:00.000-08:00

Dallas-Fort Worth is snowed in today so thousands of us get a free day at home. I'm happy to get these once or twice a year, but wouldn't want to live where it is like this three or four months of the year!

This past Friday it was 75 degrees and spring-like. I returned from Marshall, TX, that day after speaking at the Christian Association of Student Leaders annual meeting hosted by East Texas Baptist University. You can read about it here. The future of Jesus' movement on those campuses is in good hands.

On the way back I stopped at Tyler State Park and ran Loops A and B trails in my fivefingers treksport. It was a perfect day on ideal trails for minimalist running. I discovered I don't train enough on trails in my fivefingers to run the trails with ease. I'll have to go back to trail shoes for occasional runs. Rats. The hard-packed trails were great. Only gumballs, pine cones, and some loose rocks caused any blunt force pain. (Oh, and that root I stumped my big toe upon.) I ran 1.5 hours, showered (great facilities), and continued my trek home on I-20.

The next morning, I joined the guys of Legacy Church to eat an artery-clogging breakfast and hear Chad Hennings, the former Dallas Cowboy great, talk about his life. Chad is the real deal. He is honest and humble about his accomplishments and challenges guys at the heart of how they live their lives. Check out his website and his ministry to men. Buy his books. Get him to your place to speak when you can. He's right: "Attitude" and "hard work" are NOT the end all to a successful life. They'll get you many accolades, but not the most important kind of success.

I can't help but see and be concerned about the uprising in Egypt whenever I check out the news channels on television. My prayer is that Mr. Mubarak will listen to the will of the people and transition to new leadership. That region is seeking its own path now, and we who trust Jesus should be on our knees for those who are salt and light servants of our Leader there. They can be true "peacemakers" in a world of turmoil. Read what my friend, Jim Denison, has to say about this situation on his site. I like his perspective.

I hope you have a free day from the routine, and that you will make the most of it by caring for your soul and things eternal. (Eph. 5:16-17)

Walk Through the Bible-Old School That Still Works

2011-01-25T07:28:00.000-08:00

When Matt and Lisa first suggested we host a Walk Through the Bible event as we begin The Story at Legacy Church, I admit I was a bit skeptical. "That's 'old school' stuff," I thought, and we are all up on the latest methods of doing church at Legacy. We had hosted that same event back in the 90's, and I wondered how it could be relevant to our folks a decade later.

Well, I was wrong. WTB was just what we needed to refresh our knowledge of the "mega-narrative" of the Old Testament and introduce The Story to those who had no clue about what it was about. Bruce Wilkinson's DTS Master's project still works!

The combination of key words, signs, repetition, and group participation in an atmosphere of fun work together to give those who participate a way to remember the entire story of the Old Testament. Yes, the sometimes tedious, obscure stories from creation to the return of the Jewish people from exile come to life through the child-like experience of the event.

Why should I be surprised? The culture--including church culture--is biblically illiterate, and people don't know what's in the Bible. WTB provides that. We humans learn in multiple ways, and the WTB way includes them all. We are group learners, and we love a good time. All of those things combine to create and experience that leads to learning. And, when the children join the adults and do exactly what you have learned, you suddenly realize you have a tool for your family to talk about the Bible at home and a plan to stay connected to the Bible throughout the year.

I recommend this "old school" event no matter if you call yourself missional or traditional. The bottom line is to remember the Story of God revealed in the Bible that can change the lives of those who read it, enter it, and find their place in it.

Remembering Dr. King

2011-01-17T06:28:00.000-08:00

This past October while at a conference in Atlanta, a friend and I took a side trip downtown to see the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site and the surrounding buildings. I had been before, but the older I get the more I realize the significance of this man's life.

I have confessed before that the Civil Rights Movement went on outside my personal, suburban experience. I knew something was going on by the news I watched occasionally at night after we ate, but I never encountered the movement firsthand. Like many white Americans, I was sympathetic to the situation of Afro-Americans in my country but let the work and death of others right the wrong.

Two quotes from Dr. King caught my attention on this trip. I have not looked up their source, but they are on postcards I bought in the museum gift shop. The first is:

"The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige, and even his life for the welfare of others. In dangerous valleys and hazardous pathways, he will life some bruised and beaten brother to a higher and more noble life."

That statement is a call to authentic Christianity. Jesus, the foundation for Dr. King's non-violent message and actions (He was a Baptist preacher.), spoke of the same kind of actions in his story of the Good Samaritan.

The second still rings true today. Especially, in too many evangelical churches and in a world of sound bites and 3-minute video clips.

"Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think."

We don't think anymore. We give opinions based on emotion. That kind of rhetoric keeps many apart still today.

Dr. King began a revolution of justice that has not ended. Much remains to be done to bring dignity and respect to all people. My prayer is that God's people, like those first marchers, will stand up again and be the voice and strength for those who have neither.

The Evidence of Things Not Seen

2011-01-10T04:47:00.000-08:00

The first verse of the eleventh chapter of the Letters to the Hebrews essentially says, "To trust God is what gives you the confidence to move toward what God has given you to hope for and the evidence of things God told you he would do but you can not yet see." (Hebrews 11:1; my interpretation.) When God gives you a picture of a future He has designed, faith (trust) is what gives you the confidence and certainty to start acting to make that happen.

I have been fortunate to experience that kind of trust in God in my own life with Legacy Church and in the lives of a few others who have brought into reality what God gave them the vision to do. I recently participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony of This Side Up! Family Fun Center in Plano, TX. This was one of those "trust God and work like it's real 'til you see it" sort of places. The Mayor, Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors, and family and friends of the center were present.

God put on the heart of Richie and Sarah Morris the picture of a place where families could gather and move from "surviving to thriving." The place of hope was a dream for years, but through faith and action that dream became a tangible reality a few weeks ago. I have been honored to walk alongside and watch (an army of volunteers did all the work) how they have trusted God as they worked toward this reality.

I love the fact that this place and its programs to support families is in the marketplace. We have great support for families in our church buildings, but how many times have we put that support out where those who may not trust the church but desperately need help can get it?

As a Pastor, I am privileged to participate in many events that give evidence that God's ways and word change lives and make a difference. What Richie and Sarah have done in faith is one of those special events. Check them out. Take your family to the fun center. Trust God to do what He says He will do...then act like what He said would become a reality.

The Next Christians. Really?

2011-01-03T09:58:00.000-08:00

Over the Christmas and New Year break, I read Gabe Lyon's next book, The Next Christians (DoubleDay, 2010). I heard Gabe at the Catalyst Conference back in October and was impressed with his impassioned presentation of his observations about "the good news about the end of Christian America." (I was mostly impressed with his own family's response to their son, Cade's, Down Syndrome as an example of what he was describing.)

I'm a bit of an existentialist when it comes to verifying the premise of others, so, what I had observed in larger venues like Catalyst and Right Now, I also saw in the younger generation of Christ followers at Legacy. Lyons seems to be on target: these "next Christians" want little to do with maintaining the institution of the church and following its programs, but they deeply desire to engage the bigger needs of humanity in the name of Jesus.

Lyons begins his assessment of Christians response to change in similar fashion to H. Richard Niebuhr's classic work, Christ and Culture. He couches his views in fresh language with stories to demonstrate his points.

His message of engagement in the "seven channels of cultural influence" (Media, Education, Arts & Entertainment, Business, Government, Social Sector and Church) is refreshing and reveals the potential the church has to impact culture through the involvement of Christians. He rightly heralds, "The church...[is] the most uniquely positioned channel of cultural influence...No other institution regularly convenes people who work within the other six channels on a weekly basis." (Kindle edition, locations 1661-67)

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

Lyons builds his message around six descriptors of the next Christians. The categories are valid, but as with any broad categories of a nebulous movement in its infancy, they lack little more than anecdotal evidence for their existence. However, they are excellent ways to characterize these next Christians.

Lyon's six categories are:

provoked, not offended
creators, not critics
called, not employed
grounded, not distracted
in community, not alone
counter cultural, not relevant

These describe those he names "restorers" for these next follower of Jesus. This role of Christian as restorer of creation in light of Christ's inaugural work on earth is reminiscent of N.T. Wright or C. H. Dodd's realized eschatology that is so popular today.

I appreciated Lyon's call to spiritual disciplines that ground restorers on mission. I especially liked his section titled, "Immersed in Scripture (Instead of Entertainment)"--although he echoes the prevalent mantra of Scripture as "a grand narrative that tells a story of a God who loves..." which sometimes tends to bias the reader against the gory details of the smaller stories within His-story.

I applaud his call to community, too. I believe this to be crucial to the thrivival (I made that word up) of the church in the decades ahead. "Community provides the critical support base the next Christians need to be on mission for God." (Kindle location, 2099-2103) This is a welcome shift in the purpose of small groups during the last three decades that was more about the individual than the mission of God. (See also, Scott Boren's Missional Small Groups.)

Lyons was hypercritical in his excursus on relevance, which was a mainstay of the church growth movement. I agree with him that counter cultural (as he defines it) has always been the position of the church in culture by its very nature as God's alternate reality to this fallen creation. Relevance was never the modus operandus of the ekklesia we read about in Scripture. We got off track when we moved relevance to our priority lists.

The Next Christians will play its role in the search for what's next for the church in America and will be a seminal work in the discussions around the topic, but like Lyon's first book it will have a relatively short shelf life that will be replaced by the next observer of Christian America. Given the rapidity of change in that arena, it could be very short-lived. Read it while its relevant. Wink.

Brothers in Christ

2010-12-21T07:24:00.000-08:00

About two years ago I met Pastor Smith and his wife at a church garage sale. He had just begun as the pastor of a new work, and they were there to gather as many items as possible to begin the work. We talked and shared our stories and promised to stay in touch.

About a year later, I finally got down to see his ministry through the Peace of God Missionary Baptist Church in the Joppa Community, southeast of Dallas. The community was founded in the mid-1800's and has been a home for thousands since then.

The church gathers in a rectangular building that was built in 1940. Pastor Smith and his family had repaired and updated the building, which had not been used for some time, by investing their own money, time, and talents. I was honored to share his vision for his work and the potential the Gospel had in the community. (There literally is a church on almost every corner. Something I can relate to in my community, but with a few more potential participants where I serve.)

Later I brought a couple of guys down from our Friday morning men's group to see the building. They discovered there was absolutely NO insulation in the ceiling--nor had there been. Pastor Smith confirmed it was hot in the summer and cold in the winter and people were uncomfortable. He did not want people to have an excuse for attending the worship services there but did not have the resources to address the need.

As a result of that conversation, five men from Legacy met three men from Peace of God, and on a cold December night last week, we blew insulation into the attic of that building. It was fun, hard work, and lasted over three hours, but the picture of brothers in Christ serving together to provide a place of worship for that community was what it was all about.

We will go back and join Pastor Smith and some of his members to work on more of the building and partner with them however they see we can help to reach that community. I hope to have Pastor Smith join us here and bless him as he has blessed me as a brother in Christ.

The church is best when it is serving together to meet the needs of others.

Five Fingers With Socks

2010-12-18T14:43:00.000-08:00

It's getting cooler (30 degrees F this morning), and I want to stay in my fivefingers. The other day I went to our local Luke's Locker and bought a pair of injinji toe socks to see if they would fit my fivefingers. They did, and this afternoon I tested them out. (It was 52F at the start of my run.)

I admit that this arrangement pushes me even farther away from true barefoot running, but I'm not quite ready to head out on a December afternoon truly barefoot.

The run went well. My feet were actually a bit too warm, but I know they'll be fine in cooler weather now. After the 4.5 mile jog, I did feel my socks and fivefingers became tight. When I removed them, I felt the difference, and that is not usually the case without socks. (My feet swell when I run, so that was the issue.)

While my feet were warm, I did loose some of the on-the-ground sensation I have when running without the socks. This will only be an arrangement while the weather is cold.

So, to answer the not-so-age-old question, "Can you wear injinji socks with your fivefingers and still have a good run?" the answer for now is yes.

Anyone else doing this?

Everything Else is Gravy

2010-12-14T06:08:00.000-08:00

My grandson, Grayer, was born to my oldest daughter, Storey, this past Sunday afternoon. We made it to the hospital literally ten minutes before he was born. He is a big boy, weighing in at 8 lbs. 10 oz. This is our second grandchild (and my parents' ninth great-grandchild!), but the experience was as deep and meaningful as the first.

I told Kim after our first grandchild, Cambell, was born, "Everything else is gravy." Yes, I want to be around for my second daughter's first child, my next book, what God will do next through Legacy, and what Kim and I will experience in old age; but, once your child has had a child and you see they are doing well, there's a sense you have made your contribution, and you can go Home now. Everything after your grandchild is like gravy on a serving of home-made turkey dressing at Thanksgiving. It's all good without it, but with it, it doesn't get better.

I know you are supposed to aspire to produce great and enduring things until you cross the finish line, but having a grandchild somehow cements the fact you were here, you have a legacy, and somehow no matter how your life turns out, you have another chance for your influence to make an everlasting difference in the lives of others.

Having grandchildren helps me appreciate all those long lists of names in the Bible. It mattered who had whom and what people did after those before them exited the planet. Yes, there's the Story of God and God's purposes in all of the names, but there is also the sense, "See, I was part of this thing, too." Gandpa Obed, had to be as proud as his son, Jesse, when Samuel anointed his grandson, David, the next king of Israel. We know nothing more than that Obed was David's grandfather. And, from Gandpa Obed's point of view, that's all you need to know.

Right now, I'm happy to be Grayer and Cambell's grandfather. All the other things are significant, but what Kim and I have experienced as parents and grandparents is enough to go Home complete.

Good Without God?

2010-12-07T07:13:00.000-08:00

Ft. Worth Bus

You may have heard or read the media hype about the ad campaign on some of Fort Worth, TX, buses placed there by the Coalition of Reason. The banner on the side of the bus reads:

Millions of Americans are Good without god.

Some Christians are outraged and plan to boycott the buses. Others have mounted their own campaign that follows the atheist-sponsored messages in an ad-bearing truck that reads, "I still love you." [signed] God.

The ads actually are true! Millions ARE "good" without believing in a deity. According to acceptable norms of behavior in our society, people can be called "good" without believing in a god.

The problem is not their belief or disbelief in a god. I am not a philosopher or ethicist, but my question would be "Where do you get your definition of good?" In our culture, that source is the Judeo-Christian tradition. We define "good" from the historical truths of Scripture, and our entire system of morality is founded upon that.

I agree, you can be "good without god," but, I would argue, you wouldn't know you were "good" if God had not revealed what good is for us and we had not adopted that definition as the way we define the category. (I know philosophical ethics has other ways of getting there, but that's not my arena of engagement.)

This is not a new issue for Christians. Paul acknowledged there is a futile way of thinking that leads to a denial of God (Romans 1:21), and Peter wrote a second letter to ensure Christians were thinking clearly. (2 Peter 3:1-3)

I wouldn't get too riled up about the ads. I would invite you to engage a friend in the conversation about how do they come up with what is "good" in his or her life, and to share the source of your values.

[A Late Addition]

I have been reminded that the first argument C S Lewis espoused for the possibility of God was his first chapter title, "Right and Wrong as a Clue to the Meaning of the Universe," in Mere Christianity.

Lewis concluded,

"First, that human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and cannot really get rid of it. Secondly, that they do not in fact behave in that way. They know the Law of Nature; they break it. These two facts are the foundation of all clear thinking about ourselves and the universe we live it." (1952, 21)

I wonder if the Coalition of Reason has thought through that?

We have begun our Advent Conspiracy at Legacy Church. Check it out and join us in the revolution.

A Taste of Heaven

2010-11-23T07:39:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday, our English Language Program, hosted our annual Thanksgiving Dinner. About 400 Internationals accepted our invitation and joined us for a traditional American Thanksgiving Meal. But, this event was more than sharing food with new friends.

Not only did we meet the students and their families as we ate and talked about where we were from and how to pronounce Pumpkin Pie. We were given the opportunity to serve--a hallmark of Legacy Church. Legacy cooked and brought all the food, served it along with drinks and deserts, and served as table hosts for our guests. Yes, they even set up, decorated and stuck around to clean up and carry out the trash. The Church was the Church Sunday night. I heard one person say, "This is what church is about. Nothing brings me closer to God than when I serve others." I agreed.

The highlight for me each year is hearing the students reading Psalm 100 in their heart languages. We heard the Song of Thanksgiving in twelve different languages, including Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, Farsi, Vietnamese, Russian, Bulgarian, Korean and others. I got a lump in my throat every time a student began to read the Scripture in his or her heart language.

Whether or not those who read or heard believed David's Song of Thanksgiving, the Good News of God's love that endures forever was shared with everyone.

Thank you, June Zheng, and the ELP teachers and assistants who serve the students each week. Thank you Legacy Church for being a "light for the nations" and giving us all a taste of Heaven by your service to the International community around us.

If you want to see more pictures from the event, go here.

If you have been keeping up with our series on spiritual practices, you can hear my final message on the practice of celebration here.

The Grace of Giving

2010-11-16T07:42:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday, I tackled another spiritual discipline, giving, as part of our Shift! series.

Cheers went up throughout the auditorium when I announced the topic, while others texted their friends to hurry and get to the building to hear what the Pastor had to say about giving. Then I woke from my daydream.

I get why so many look at the organized church in America askance. We give them many reasons to wonder what we do with the money. Our buildings and programs make the outsider guess why we don't use that money to solve problems like poverty and housing. We tend to hide what is on our books, and we do a lousy job of showing people how we help the community and people around the world.

But, giving is at the heart of the church's message. Why? God is a giving God, (John 3:16) and we who have been captured by God's suffering, sacrificial love given to us through His Son, Jesus, cannot help but share that love with others in tangible ways.

Grace motivates us to give. God granted us forgiveness through grace, and we are to do the same with all we are and have. Laws about giving are for the spiritually weak who need to know the minimum of what they should do so they can get on with their lives, but we forget that giving IS our life! (See Paul's encouragement to his friends in Corinth. 2 Cor. 8:7-9)

To be a follower of Jesus is to live like Jesus. He came "not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45) How can I claim Jesus is my Leader if I never appear to be serving or giving my life away like him?

Someone will watch you today to see what God is like. Will they see God who loves to give or a stingy God? It's your call.

If you would like to hear the entire message from Sunday, you can hear it here or subscribe to it here.

Sabbath Rest

2010-11-09T07:17:00.000-08:00

Sundays are designed to be a day of rest in the Christian tradition. The idea was to transfer the biblical concept of Sabbath to the first day of the week, when the church traditionally gathers to celebrate the resurrection of our Leader. (See Exodus 20:8-11, for example.)

But like so many other good intentions in Christendom, this day of rest and worship has become a free day from work to fill with activities and busyness that rival any work day. If "going to church" is still part of your family tradition, you attend before or after a big meal and/or some form of entertainment. (I still believe more people go through movie theaters on the weekend than all the church attenders combined. In my community, fitness centers are a close second.)

Yes, we professional religious people are as much to blame as the religious leaders of Jesus' day who turned God's intention for Sabbath rest on its ear with rules that, if not followed, condemned you to some sort of religious impunity. We schedule meetings and programs that are supposed to aid you in your spiritual growth, but end up taking you away from family, friends, and time with God. Our intent is to strengthen your relationship with God, but we too often end up distracting you from it.

This past Sunday, Matt Stone, taught on this spiritual practice as part of Legacy Church's series, Shift! I recommend you take a listen if you are wondering how to restore the sacred practice of rest to your resurrection celebration. You can hear the message here.

Monday morning during our staff prayer time, one of the staff reminded us of God's promise to his people if they would just keep the Sabbath as he designed it. Here it is. See if it does not ring true for you today:

"If you watch your step on the Sabbath
   and don't use my holy day for personal advantage,
If you treat the Sabbath as a day of joy,
   God's holy day as a celebration,
If you honor it by refusing 'business as usual,'
   making money, running here and there—
Then you'll be free to enjoy God!
   Oh, I'll make you ride high and soar above it all.
I'll make you feast on the inheritance of your ancestor Jacob."
   Yes! God says so! (The MSG; Isaiah 58:13-14)

Simplicity

2010-11-02T05:32:00.000-07:00

I traveled with some friends to Laos earlier this year to visit a coffee farm we support as Legacy Church. We were not only impressed with the beauty of the country and the work ethic of the farmers, but we noticed a simplicity of life we do not have here.

Yes, poverty, lack of education, and government control hindered their ability to accumulate things, but we saw in the farmers a simple lifestyle for which we at times longed for. No, none of us elected to stay and live that way, but the stark contrast of our lifestyles challenged the volume of stuff we have and our mindless pursuit to get more.

Jesus taught his followers three secrets about how we were created that directly relates to our obsession with things.

Our hearts follow what we value. (Matthew 6:19-21)

Write out a list of those things that you value most and you will find your heart tagging along behind them. You would think it works the other way, but it doesn't. If I value the accumulation of stuff, my heart runs to it like a Labrador Retriever running after a thrown disc. Change what you treasure and you change your heart's pursuit.

We are incapable of serving God and stuff. (Matthew 6:24)

That's right. Jesus said you and I do not have the capacity to give ourselves completely to two life-engaging priorities. We convince ourselves we can, but we end up placing one above the other. Check out your life's priorities and see if he was telling the truth.

If we make the things of God and that way of life our first thing, then all the stuff we worried about before will come to us in its proper order. (Matthew 6:25-33)

Jesus promised that if we will not loose sleep over what we will eat, drink, or wear, and turn our hearts to his way of life, then we will discover we have all we need to live a God-centered life. We become stewards of things rather than things ruling us.

If you would like to hear my full message on this topic, you can go here.

Live with Jesus' promises today. Listen for prompts from the Holy Spirit on what you can do to simplify your life and guide your heart to God. Let me know how it goes.

Check out this resource for some more help.

Riding to Cure Cancer

2010-10-26T05:48:00.001-07:00

This past Sunday, instead of serving with the Legacy Church family, I joined 3,100+ riders in the LiveStrong Austin ride. The combined total of the fundraising for the weekend was over $3.1 million dollars. You can read a news article here.

I rode with some Legacy Cyclists but also as a member of Team Family First, members and friends of Jim and Sarah Craig's family, some who came all the way from Seattle to ride.

We rode 45, 65, and the 90 routes in memory of and in honor of those who have battled cancer. While the ride was hard (add hills, humidity, and wind to a ride around Plano), I finished with prayers in my heart for those who have suffered much more than me after 90 miles on the bike in their battle against this wicked disease.

I will continue to ride and run as a witness to my core belief that no matter what we face in our human condition, Jesus Christ exhausted evil on the cross, defeated death as our "final enemy," and joins us as a fellow-suffer and supreme victor over whatever we face through the Holy Spirit.

Kim and her friend, Roslyn, volunteered this year! It was wonderful to see Kim at the finish line and hear her cheering voice. This is our first shared event, and I hope we can do more together.

I wish I could say my finish was Kim and Roslyn's highlight of the event, but I believe their chance to meet Patrick Dempsey was really the highlight! (Compare the twinkle in their eyes in the photos with me and Dempsey.) He is an avid cyclist, and likes riding near Tyler, Texas, where he owns a ranch.

It was a rewarding and challenging event with friends who share the same passion of cycling and care for those who suffer and battle cancer.

Join me in the fight, if you can. (Carl is my first name.) Pray for those you know who are wrestling with this disease.

Fasting for Spiritual Growth

2010-10-19T04:36:00.000-07:00

Fasting is the ancient practice of not eating in order to discipline your body so you can make room in your soul to commune with God. It must be, as Richard Foster writes, "God-initiated and God-ordained."

The spiritual practice of fasting is NOT designed for weight loss or health reasons, although there are physical benefits for doing it. But the primary purpose of fasting is to deny our physical appetite(s) in order to feed our spiritual hunger and thirst for God with the Spirit and Word.

During a time of fasting we mourn our spiritual condition or the condition of others, confess our sins, and seek God in prayer (See Nehemiah 1:4-11). This is why the practice is "God-initiated." In our relationship with God, we see our lives and the lives of others from his perspective, and he calls us to confession and prayer.

Jesus expected that his followers would fast. In his kingdom-inaugurating message we know as the Sermon on the Mount, he addressed the subject by saying, "When you fast..." (Matthew 6:16-18) We are not to fast to get spiritual high marks or to gain righteousness, that is what religious people do. We are to go about our daily habits with a pang in our stomach reminded that God is listening and responding to the prayers of our hearts.

If God leads you to fast this week, here is one way to make the time without food count:

This Wednesday, October 20, we will join our students at Legacy Church in One Meal One Day by skipping a meal and giving the money to help feed the poor through Compassion International. If you want to contribute with Legacy, go here.

Additional resource with all the information you need for fasting is found here.

five fingers sport/trek report

2010-10-13T16:23:00.000-07:00

If you have been following some of my exploits in five fingers, you have read my disappointment with the KSO for trail running. I continue to run in them on streets and grass without any issues.

Well, five fingers has created the right amount of protection to still have a minimalist feel to running on rough terrain.

The five finger sport/trek provides enough protection for open field, packed trails, and rocky paths. I broke mine in at my parent's farm in East Texas in their open fields and wooded paths.

I found them light and flexible like the KSOs, but with enough protection not to slow down on rocky paths and hard-packed trails. I had no deep bruises in my insole or heel like I did with the lighter KSOs. The only draw back was the occasional long-stem weed between my toes, but that's part of the five finger experience.

I like the added traction on both the sole and toe of the shoes. The added plastic covering on the top of the toe seems like it will come in handy on wetter surfaces. Like my KSOs, it will take a couple of more outings to have them stretch to my actual foot size and shape. I will take them out on the trails of Arbor Hills here in Plano soon to test them on more rugged terrain, and I plan to run a 30k trail run in them later in the year.

I got my sport/treks online at ZB Sports.com. They were retail, but you get to choose a charity for part of the sale to go to when you buy the shoe. ZB handled my request quickly, and I was running in them within three days of my purchase. I recommend them!

Let me know how you are using your sport/treks. I'll keep you updated on mine.

Solitude and Silence

2010-10-12T05:32:00.000-07:00

Solitude and silence are to your soul what clean air and water are to your body.

Without them it is as if your soul breathes in air at the airport smoking room, and you drink from standing water in the street. No wonder we are a people of shallow lives and aimless days. Until we stop, find a place to be alone, and listen we can only react to life like cats swiping at a pesky mosquito.

One of the reasons we don't seek solitude and silence is we are afraid of what we may hear from our hearts and from God.

If we slow down we may hear the cries of our heart that call us to change the harmful habits we have created to protect them from the healing relationships of others. Or, we may hear the whisper of God's voice that calls us to a new life in Him that will challenge the mindless, self-absorbing things we do to fill the space between sunrise and sunset.

But we MUST find the quiet and alone places if Jesus is our Leader. He modeled a life submitted to the Father and was laser-beam focused on what he knew he was sent to do. The key to that kind of life, I believe, was his consistent time with "the One who sent" him. In that relationship he found the Father's love for him and the suffering, sacrificial love for those he came to give his life for.

Follow Luke's Story of Jesus, and you will see how often the doctor recorded the fact that Jesus regularly left the crowds and noise to be with his Father in order to complete what he was sent to do.

Luke 5:16; 9:18; 9:28; 11:1; 22:39-44 There are other references, but you get the gist of Jesus' regular habit of solitude and prayer.

I'm at my parents' home in deep East Texas today, and as you can see from the picture, finding solitude and silence here is easier than in my suburban home of Plano. I will cherish the morning quiet after the evening rain and listen to my heart and my God. Please do the same.

The time with the Shepherd will "restore your soul." Psalm 23:1-3

Reflect

2010-10-05T07:39:00.001-07:00

We continued our investigation of the spiritual practices last Sunday by actually reflecting on a passage of Scripture during our worship time. If you want to hear how we did that, you can listen here.

I used the common rubric of asking these three questions:

What?
So What?
Now What?

(Google those questions and you can see other applications of the questions.)

The passage we reflected upon was John 14:22-27. Why don't you give it a try?

Read the passage, then ask, What? about what you read. Who's speaking? What's going on around the conversation? Where are they? This involves the spiritual discipline of study.

Read the passage again, and then ask, So What? This is the spiritual discipline of meditation. This is listening to the Word of God through the Holy Spirit as God speaks to you about God, the world around you, and you.

Again, read the passage, and ask, Now What? This is the spiritual practice of simple obedience. What did you hear God say for you to do in the passage? Will you have the courage to do that, or, will you live today as you have every other day?

Reflecting on Scripture is the next step after reading Scripture. It is living and listening to the Word, not just skimming the information from the Word. Try living this way for a season and see what God has to say to you.

Read the Bible. Period.

2010-09-28T03:49:00.000-07:00

Why would I tell you to "read the Bible" in such a complex, information-saturated, diverse world? That sounds like a step backwards or too narrow a call for someone who is educated and sensitive to the convictions of others.

However, of all the things I can encourage you to do in the chaotic world in which we live that will feed your soul and introduce you to the God of the Universe, I can tell you with all confidence: Read the Bible.

Why the Bible? Whether you embrace it or not, the Bible makes some unique claims about itself that intrigue me enough to want to read it. (Not to mention a life-time of life-changing encounters with God in its pages.)

Here are some claims the Bible makes about itself:

It is a light and a lamp for living. (Psalm 119:105-106)

It is living and active and can cut to your soul. It's more than ancient literature. (Hebrews 4:12)

It is "God-breathed." Not many books make that claim. (2 Timothy 3:16)

The prophets of old and the apostles who followed all point to Jesus, the Christ. (2 Peter 3:2)

These claims at the very least should motivate you to at least test what the Bible says about itself. So, why not give reading the Bible a try? If you are a follower of Jesus, it's a must. If you are curious about God, it is as imperative that you check it out.

Here's a simple plan we are following this week at Legacy Church as part of our series on spiritual practices. (If you want to hear my message about reading the Bible, you can go here.)

Read a Psalm and a chapter in Proverb that corresponds to the date. For example, if the date was 28 September, you would read Psalm 28 and Proverbs 28.

Another place to start is the stories of Jesus, called the Gospels. The Story of Jesus According to Mark is the shortest. Start here.

Let me know what you discover. Share what you find with a friend. I know it will make a difference.

A Locker Room and Church

2010-09-20T14:15:00.000-07:00

My son-in-law is an account executive for the newly forming, Frisco-based, Texas Legends, an NBA D-League team. Last Saturday, he invited us to a walk-through of the Dallas Mavericks practice facilities and locker room.

I'm not a huge NBA fan, but I have been to enough games to definitely jump at the chance when Ryan invited Graham and me to join him.

We were greeted by Donnie Nelson, the owner of the Legends, in the Mavs practice court under the AAC arena. I soon found myself intrigued with the special nature of what I was getting to do. This was where the sweat and coaching of a championship team took place before and between games.

We were then led into the locker room where the players "live" during the season. Our host kept saying that everything is within 10 feet of the players' lockers so they could train and be cared for without excuses of distance or inconvenience.

That's Graham and me at Dirk Nowitski's locker wearing his practice jerseys. I only thought how big he was. (We didn't get to keep them.) That's Jason Terry's locker. See his long socks hanging on the side of his locker?

We saw the weight room, cardio equipment, taping room, and wet area where the players workout, recover, and are cared for before and after practices and games.

As I left, I got to thinking, "What if we built our church facilities conceptually like they did the Mavericks' locker room?" What I mean is, everything is built and done to train, practice, and keep players in the game.

What if we saw the church as a training center designed to keep our people in the missional game where they work, live, play, and go to school? All we built and did--whether they were healthy or injured--served to keep them in the game?

I can't get the idea of church being player-focused for the purpose of helping those on the team play their best game every game out of my mind. How about you?

Spiritual Practices Take Practice

2010-09-14T06:37:00.000-07:00

If you have read this blog any, you know I enjoy exercise and participating in group activities. Since my heart incident in 1993, I have changed my lifestyle and diet to prevent an early demise from the things I have control over. My days are numbered, but I don't want to be the one responsible for going home early.

I have found a full-body workout at my local YMCA that has really challenged me physically and has given me some core and upper body strength I did not have when I was just running or cycling. It's commonly known as "boot camp." It's an hour of a variety of moves, stretches, and anaerobic exercises that puts my 57-year-old body into hyper-drive. Added to my weekly rides and runs, this workout has given me stamina I have not had before. I recommend it if you are able. (Yes, I wear my five fingers the entire time.)

So, what does my exercise update have anything to do with my spiritual life? Just as physical strength to do well in a competition takes practice before you enter the race, so spiritual strength to survive temptation and trials takes practice every day before you experience those things. You can't run a marathon the weekend after you decide to run one. You can't bear up under the weight of life the Monday after you decide you will change on Sunday.

Our 0bsession with our bodies should shift some to a healthy attention to our souls. I have to make certain I spend as much time exercising my "heart, head, hands, and habits" a la Ken Blanchard as I do my body each week. Otherwise, I'll run a good race, but I'll fail at eternal things.

We begin a new series of messages this Sunday at Legacy Church called Shift! We will observe ten ancient-future spiritual practices that will exercise our souls and deepen our relationship with God.

Join us at Legacy Church or online for the series. I'll blog each week here on the practices, and we'll exercise together virtually. See you in the gym!