Ray of Hope Wrestling

This weekend we are finishing up a teaching series entitled “A Ray of Hope.” For the past four weeks, we have been focusing on Isaiah 58 and looking at how God rebukes His people for seeking Him. Now how can that be? Aren’t we supposed to seek God? Absolutely, but the problem was, while they were seeking Him, they were also neglecting the needy around them—the oppressed, the impoverished, the wanderer.

I gotta admit, God has been kicking my butt in this series. (Can I say that?) It started about 4 weeks ago when I read the book, “The Hole in the Gospel” by Richard Stearns. What a great read. It was not what I expected. I guess I expected a bunch of stats to make me feel guilty. What I found was a brutally honest description of a successful CEO trying to wrestle with God’s call upon his life. In it, I saw more clearly the need around the world and was challenged to wrestle with the question, “How does God want me to leverage my resources for the needy?”

Our family has been wrestling with this question in a very specific way. Here are some of the ideas we are seriously considering. One is to spend half as much on gifts for our children and to take the other half and use it intentionally. But instead of having Raylene and I do that, we think it would be cool to let our kids do it. So, our plan is to give them in cash the 50% we aren’t spending on them, and to let them choose from the Project Beyond Gift Catalog specific gifts for the needy. Then on Christmas morning, after opening half as many gifts, we can each share what we purchased for needy families. What do you think? It sounds pretty cool to us. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Another idea relates to some extra income I have recently received for a couple speaking opportunities I’ve had. Instead of simply tithing on that amount, I am praying about setting aside 50% of it and using that in specific ways to help the oppressed and impoverished. I know all the logical objections (because I’m hearing them in my mind!) but I can’t get beyond a couple things: My sense of gratitude to God for the blessings I have and my heartfelt obligation to help people (including children) who are experiencing oppression and poverty beyond what I could even imagine.

My prayer for this series is that it is not just a 4 week awareness raising experience but that it actually changes the way we view the needy around us and around the world. I pray that we are continually asking, what does it look like to give ourselves on behalf of the oppressed, the impoverished, the orphan, the immigrant?

One of the specific responses provided in this series is not just the Project Beyond Gift Catalog but also what we are calling “A Bag of Hope”. We distributed bags 2 weeks ago and asked everyone in our church to bring it back to church with food in it—even if it’s just one can—as a way to share our food with the hungry. Our plan is to distribute this in a variety of ways next weekend. Check out these photographs of the response.

Isn’t that cool? Hundreds of bags have been brought to Zoe’s and 15th Street campuses. It’s not too late! Bring your bags this weekend or next and let’s be a part of sharing our food with the hungry in our community.

The Harvest Show Rebroadcast

Well, I thought that the Harvest Show was going to be rebroadcast last night at 8:00pm since it is normally the case. However, I found out at 7:59pm last night that they broadcast a health special instead. So, for those of you who tried to watch it last night and weren’t able to, you can actually see it at the Harvest Show web site under the “Show info” tab. Here’s the link:

Harvest show

The Harvest Show

I’m writing this from Midway airport in Chicago. On Monday and Tuesday of this week, I had the privilege of speaking at a conference for pastors in Wisconsin on the themes from my book–the good news we all need to hear of God’s grace in our weakness.

When that was over yesterday, I got in the car and drove to South Bend Indiana where I had the opportunity to be a guest on The Harvest Show, which is a Christian television show broadcast nationally and internationally. We actually get the show in Greeley on Comcast channel 17. (I think it’s on Direct and Dish as well but I’m not certain about the channels). It was live this morning but then will be rebroadcast tonight at 8:00pm, I believe. I thought the interview went well, although as I was driving to the studio, my stomach was in knots. I was SO nervous. I think live TV is probably terrifying for most people, including me.

However I did have one of those cool “Bible moments” as I was sitting in the “pre-show” waiting room. I had probably 25 minutes before the producer was supposed to come in a chat with me, so I grabbed my Bible and literally just opened to whatever page to pass the time. That “whatever” page happened to be Isaiah 40 and it started with these words: “Comfort, comfort my people.” That sounded nice!

I kept reading and came across these words would seemed to jump off the page: You who bring good tidings (ie good news for those trying harder!) to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout. Lift it up, do not be afraid. Say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!”

Now I know these words were originally written to the prophet Isaiah and were to be spoken to the nation of Judah, but I believe the Spirit of God spoke directly to my heart from this passage. I was not to be afraid but was to boldly proclaim the good news that Jesus is a big Savior for big sinners. Behold your God!

By the time the show started, I had an overwhelming sense of peace. I was no longer short of breath and feeling sick to my stomach. I was at peace and ready to talk about God’s grace. Whew!

I am so grateful for God’s Spirit, for God’s Word and for so many of God’s people, who were praying for me back home. It was a cool experience.

Retreating

I’m writing this from the YMCA camp in Winter Park where I am speaking at a men’s retreat for a church in Boulder. What a great group of guys. It’s been fun to see how engaged they have been in the subject matter–that of living the gospel. As I see them processing this information in various ways, I’m reminded of how all of our lives will be a constant process of more deeply understanding the wonder of the gospel. I don’t think we will ever completely “get it”. We need the constant reminders. Martin Luther was probably fairly accurate, but perhaps a bit too crass, in his assessment that we have to continually beat it into our heads. It is good news but for some reason we tend to want to believe that we can do something to make God like us more.

Tomorrow morning the retreat end with one final session in which we will talk about how to drink deeply of Jesus, then I’m headed home, thankful for the privilege of being able to share the gospel with these dear brothers in Christ.

A Homecoming Wish

My daughter is at her school’s homecoming tonight. It’s been fun seeing her so excited about getting a dress, heels, boutoniere, etc. Last night was the highlight for me, the dad. Erin had asked me to teach her how to do a slow dance, so we got out the record player (Just kidding). We got out the ipod and played 2 songs: So Close, from the movie “Enchanted”, and “Cinderalla” by Steven Curtis Chapman. It was one of those moments–you know, the kind you wish you could freeze for a really long time.

Near the end of our ‘dance’, I felt in my heart a desire to tell my daughter how special she is to me and what a neat girl I think she is. So I did…which brings me to my homecoming wish. As I was leaving church tonight, I noticed that a nearby high school was also having their homecoming dance. While walking to my car in their parking lot, I saw some girls coming in and out of the building, dressed to the nines–some with dates, many with girlfriends. And in my heart, I had this thought: I hope their dads looked them in the eyes sometime today and told them how beautiful and special they are.

I’m not sure why it takes special moments like these for us dads to be intentional about this. Our daughters need to hear this from us. They need to know they indeed are princesses–perhaps not in the selective way the world judges, but in the way that matters the most…in the eyes of their dad. Talk about a simple way to breathe life into the souls of our daughters. Our words matter. If they don’t feel love from us, they will try and find it somehow, even if it means doing some unhealthy things.

So dads, let’s not wait for homecoming dances to let our daughters know how special and precious they really are.

Four Indicators of Marital Demise

Given the current relationship reaching series we are in, I thought I’d re-post a blog I did a year ago. Let me mention one thing that has changed between now and when this was initially posted. We now have a marriage ministry that is up and running and eager to help marriages in a variety of different situations–those in crisis as well as those needing a tune up. For more information, please check out this link to our web site: http://www.cccgreeley.org/266302.ihtml

Here’s the blog post:
This weekend, I mentioned in my message some fascinating research done by Dr. John Gottman on the subject of marriage. In his years of studying hundreds of marriages, he has gained some really helpful insights. Gottman states that he can observe a married couple interacting for a few minutes and determine with 91% accuracy whether that marriage will last.

How can he be so accurate? In his research, he discovered four particular types of negative interaction between husband and wife that consistently surfaced. These are so lethal that he refers to them as the “Four Horseman of the Apocalypse”.

What are these four indicators? The first is Criticism. Gottman points out that criticism is different than complaining. A complaint specifically addresses a particular behavior. A criticism on the other hand is more global and carries with it the message, “What’s wrong with you, you idiot?”

Having criticism in our marriage doesn’t signal inevitable divorce but it does open the door for the second indicator: Contempt. Contempt is fueled by long-simmering negative thoughts about your spouse. Common symptoms of include sarcasm, cynicism, eye-rolling, name calling, mockery and hostile humor. Gottman points out that contempt is poisonous to a marriage because it conveys disgust. There is little hope for reconciliation when one spouse feels disgust toward or from the other.

The third indicator is Defensiveness. When receiving criticism and contempt, it is natural to feel defensive. But, as Gottman points out, that defensiveness rarely has the desired effect because it is simply a way of putting blame on your spouse, which only escalates the conflict.

The fourth indicator is Stonewalling. No eye contact, no engagement in the conversation. The person just shuts down. It is a defense mechanism that ends all dialog. Conflicts end up being driven deep and remain unresolved. All four of these “horsemen” play off each other to create a marriage that, over time, can become impervious to genuine reconciliation.

So what are we to do with this information? For one thing, we obviously need to diligently guard our relationships from any of these creeping in to wreak havoc. Secondly, if we realize that some of these things are recurring patterns, we need to get help. There are several marriage resources at Christ Community that might be a helpful next step for you in your marriage. Call Deanne Helmboldt at church if you think a next step like this is needed.

One of things I’ve noticed over the years is the tendency to not get help until things are almost beyond repair. If we wait too long to fix a leaking roof, the damage will increase. If we wait too long to repair a cracked tooth, the pain only intensifies. The same thing is true in our marriages. If help is needed, sooner is better. Don’t be embarrassed. We all need some help in our marriages at various times in our lives.

Finishing Well

This morning we had a Men’s Breakfast event at church. Our speaker was Jim Downing, who is 96 years old and still ministering to groups through his teaching. What an amazing man. He was a captain of a ship during the Korean War and a survivor of Pearl Harbor.

He spoke to us about how to finish well. One of the things he mentioned was that, when he was in his 40s (about 50 years ago!), he went through a mid life reevaluation. He asked three friends of his to honestly assess what they felt were his (Jim’s) strengths and weaknesses. What he discovered was that all of them unanimously affirmed the very things he felt were weaknesses, and what he thought were strengths, they saw as weakness. So he decided to begin maximizing the areas his friends felt were strengths–including communicating via writing and speaking. Here he is, five decades later, still using those gifts. His advice was powerful: the best way to finish well is to discover, develop and deploy whatever gifts God has given you. That way, you never “retire” in the formal sense, but instead you keep using your gifts until your last breath.

His talk reminded me of an experience I had a few months ago when I was visiting a church I used to attend in Wichita. I had stopped in on a weekday afternoon to see a pastor friend at the church. As he was giving me a tour of their new wing, which included an awesome middle school area, we saw a number of kids there playing video games and hanging out. I looked at one of the adult sponsors who was there watching the students and realized that I knew him. He had gone through a Memorize the Word study with me years ago when I was in middle school. For years he had worked in the public school system as a middle school teacher and had retired a few years back. So here he is, hearing aid and all, still investing his life in young people.

I was so moved by this. Here’s a guy who continues to see his life as a gift to be used to serve others. Even though he doesn’t have the stamina he once did, he is still loving middle schoolers and doing what he can to be a part of their lives. I guess there really is no such thing as retirement when you are using the gifts God has given.

So thanks to these two men, and to so many others, who continue to maximize their strengths and invest in the kingdom ministry around them.

Radio Memories

I’m sort of in a reflective, nostalgic mood today. One reason is because it’s my birthday tomorrow. Birthdays and New Year’s Days always seem to give me pause to think about my life up to this point and to express gratitude to God for his many blessings.

But there’s more to this mood than that. This morning I had a radio interview about my book. I’ve done several of these interviews but this one was special, to me at least. It was with a radio program called “Songtime”. The host’s name is John Debrine. What makes Songtime so special to me is that, when I was about 11-12 years old, I would get up every school morning and make my instant breakfast (you know, the vanilla powder you add to milk—I used to drink that stuff!). Then I’d sit on the floor by the heating vent in our kitchen, turn on the radio and listen to none other than, John Debrine on Songtime.

That kitchen spot was my “quiet place” with God each morning. Over the years, the location has changed multiple times, but I still find that I need a quiet place that’s just for me and God. I no longer do the instant breakfast thing and haven’t listened to songtime in years, but I cherish those moments with my Savior.

After the interview, I asked Mr Debrine how old he was now. He told me he was in his 80’s but didn’t believe in retiring to Bermuda to play golf. He just wanted to keep doing what God had gifted him to do. I guess that’s my heart as well. If John Debrine is any indicator, I might have at least 40 more years of ministry in me….Lord willing!

Check out Kiva

At the Leadership Summit I attended a few weeks ago, I was absolutely blown away by an interview with Jessica Jackley, one of the co-founders of Kiva. I had never heard of Kiva until that moment.

Kiva is a an on-line experience that enables you to lend to a specific entrepreneur, empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty. Rather than simply throwing money at a large organization and hoping your resources will end up helping someone get food in Africa for instance, Kiva enables you to connect with a specific person in Africa, a person who is needing money to start a business that will enable them to feed their family and get out of poverty. You can lend them as little as $25 dollars and help them in a tangible way. It’s the old, “Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you’ll feed him for a lifetime” principle.

I love the personal connection. I love how your money can help someone actually get out of poverty. It really is an amazing organization. You can lend to people in various nations of the world.

One of my sons is getting ready to do his first loan through Kiva. He is going on line to decide who he is going to lend money to. I talked to another family who, after hearing about Kiva, is now getting ready to do their first loan. They were so excited about how this money they set aside to lend could then be used again, once the first loan is paid back. Imagine the impact over several years as that 50 dollars gets sown in multiple contexts helping multiple people. How cool is that!

Jackley said that the payment rate on these loans is something like 97% and usually occurs within months.

I encourage you to go to their website at www.kiva.org and check it out for yourself.

Can a Christian Be Demon-Possessed?

This past weekend’s message was focused on John 8:42ff where Jesus talks very frankly about the devil and his work. If you’d like to listen to the whole message, you can download it at www.cccgreeley.org. (Title of the message was “Exposing The Enemy”.) At one point in the passage, the subject of “demon-possession” is mentioned. Those listening to His words accuse Jesus of being demon-possessed. He quickly dismisses their claim as it relates to Him, but it does raise a question often asked: Can Christians be possessed by a demon?
I didn’t have much time to discuss this in the message itself, so I thought I’d post a blog with some thoughts on this question.

Part of the confusion on this issue is due to the way a particular word is translated in some versions. The Greek word in question is “Daimonizomai”. The NIV and other version often translate this “demon-possessed” which I believe is an unfortunate translation, simply because it implies more than the word actually means. To say something is possessed by something else refers to ownership. It is a black and white, either/or statement. Thus a person described as being demon-possessed is someone under the complete control of a demon. But is that what the word truly means? In John 8:49, when Jesus says “I am not possessed by a demon,” the original Greek more literally reads, “I do not have a demon.” It is not talking about being possessed by a demon as much as it is the idea of having a demon at work within. This changes the whole discussion.

If we are talking about the question of whether or not a Christian can be possessed by a demon (ie under the complete ownership of a demon), the answer is categorically No. When a person becomes a Christian, the Holy Spirit comes to Iive in that person forever. A demon can’t force the Holy Spirit out…ever. However, the New Testament is clear that Satan and his cohorts can gain increasing amounts of influence in our lives if we choose to believe his lies. In Ephesians 4:27, Paul warns us to not let the sun go down on our anger “and do not give the devil a foothold.” Apparently, we can ‘give’ the enemy a foothold, a beachhead in our lives, from which he can launch further attacks.

A more helpful way to think about demonic oppression is on a continuum rather than an either/or framework. I have prayed over Christians who have been significantly oppressed by demons within, even to the point of the person being able to hear them speak or, in rare occasions, the demon actually begins speaking through this person. Does this mean that the person is demon-possessed? Absolutely not! It does mean that through some open doors to the lies of the enemy, demonic forces actually gained a foothold of sorts within this Christian. Depending on the severity of the foothold, different prayer approaches can be used. But the bottom line is that demons leave when they are confronted with truth proclaimed and embraced in the authority of Jesus’ name. It is not an issue of the person ever being possessed by a demon but rather that they were oppressed in a significant way.

Now some will argue that there is no way a demon and the Holy Spirit can reside in the same person. Perhaps we are trying too hard to fit the human spirit into spatial realities when the spirit world doesn’t easily fall into those categories. Tim Warner, in his book “Spiritual Warfare” explains: “This thinking is based on the law that two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time. The fallacy with the argument is that spirits do not occupy space, nor is being Spirit-filled a matter of space. It is a matter of the degree to which all of my life is lived under the guidance which comes from God through the ministry of ‘the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.’(Ephesians 1:17). Furthermore, if God and an evil spirit cannot be at the same place at the same time, then given the omnipresence of God, demons cannot be anywhere. The point to be made is that logic based on physical analogies fails us when we are dealing with the spirit world.”

I think his words are helpful to keep in mind when reflecting upon these issues. There is no question that a believer in Christ has the Holy Spirit living in them permanently. Nothing can remove us from that relationship. However, it is also true that the more we believe the lies of the enemy, the more of a foothold he can have. This is why we are encouraged to regularly put on the full armor of God so that we can stand in the evil day. If we are concerned that perhaps we have given ground to the enemy, we can confess our sin specifically to God, renouncing the lies we believed and then embracing the truth of His Word. Often it is helpful to have others with us when we do battle in this way.