Newsflash!

I taught Converge last night and spoke about the Bible. I started with what it was not but is often called...

1. A road map for life. NOPE. David the Psalmist said the the words of the Bible are a lamp. A lamp only shines the next step. In order to participate fully in life (and life abundantly) and in God's will I think we take steps that God illuminates each day not ever knowing where they are leading but trusting the guidance of one who loves us.

2. An owners manual. NOPE. I only read my car owners manual when my car is broken. Not an example of how I want our youth to approach scripture.

3. A magic book. NOPE. You can pray and open the Bible looking for what God is saying and land on a verse about goats. Then what is God saying to you? Buy a goat? Get real people..this ain't no magic 8-ball!

4. A love letter to you. NOPE. I thought that until I read about God killing everyone in that well-known children's story...Noah's Ark! I have had one or two love letters written to me in my life, but none with death threats! Well... there was this one girl...(just kidding). Is God's love in there? Of course, and so is His justice.

So how do we approach scripture? We start by acknowledging this one helpful fact...You do not have to understand the whole Bible to be a good Christian. There, I said it. You don't.

The Bible is here despite incredible odds against it and in an incredibly trustworthy condition so that we could READ it. And in that reading we would allow it to shape us and mold our lives from self seeking to God-pleasing ones.

So I challenge my readers (all three of you) to read the scriptures...not whole chapters or books at a time, but a verse a day. Marinate it that verse and ask God how he wants to shape you through that reading.

Enjoy the Bible. It is a gift to you, not something else to feel guilty about not doing or not doing right!

Word.

Are you living a great story?

Read a few pages...you will understand what I am talking about.

A Million Miles In A Thousand Years by Donald Miller

Designer Shoes

I overheard an interesting conversation recently while eating at Chik-fil-A. My youngest daughter Hannah Grace and I were dining near a group of young men. They were dressed casually and one in particular had on a really cool pair of tennis shoes. An older female employee was sweeping near the small group and the woman began a conversation with the young man asking him about his shoes. He commented that he had purchased the shoes online through the NIKE website. He explained to her that she could not get the shoes that he was wearing unless she designed them on the website. She just stared at him a while as it dawned on her what he was saying. She then said, “You designed those shoes?” The young man responded, “Yes.” She continued, “And you picked out the colors and told them what to make?” He again responded, “Yes”. She just whistled and said out loud more to herself than anyone else, “I wish I could make me a man like that…a good looking man and one with a job!”

I stifled a laugh and almost choked on my waffle fry as she wandered to another part of the dining area.

After she left I turned my attention to my chicken wrap and began to ponder the ways we approach our life of faith. I wondered if we log on to God (through prayer) and order TOO specifically some time. I wondered if God sometimes only gives us what we ask for when so much more is available. These are deep thoughts for someone to have with a 4-year old who just spilled her drink, but that is how I am.

I thought of you too…of parents and youth.

I want you to know that I am praying for you this year as we begin a new cycle of ministry. I am asking God to surprise us this year. I am actually praying for God not to answer our prayers the way we want this year but to instead surprise us with His presence, grace, unconditional love and favor.

No designer prayers here…

I believe it is going to be an adventure…I can feel it.

I am so glad we are on this journey together!


Tony

Garden Lesson

I couldn't take it any longer. My backyard garden has been growing since late May without be maintained. Each day I would try to relax and eat at our table while it stood there outside our dining room window mocking me. To me it represented a growing monument of failure; something else needing maintenance that I had no time or inclination to complete. Last week I finally decided it was time to "call" it much like a doctor working on a patient who has coded. Something had to be done so I pulled all the tomato cages off, picked the last good fruit from tomato and pepper plants and commenced to driving through the 4 foot high mess with my riding mower. Because the weeds were so high I had to lift the mower to the highest setting. An interesting things happened. Under all that mess apparently there was a small watermelon. I was startled when all that red blew out from the mower...thought for a moment I had actually run over one of my kids hiding in that jungle. My neighbor was outside working on her landscaping while I "maintained" my garden. She was smiling from ear to ear. She keeps an immaculate yard and perhaps my garden had become a source of irritation to her. I don't think I have ever seen her that happy.

Summer was too busy to care about or even maintain a garden.

The garden reminded me again that every good idea does not have to be implemented in family life or in ministry. As I age I am more impressed by what is sustainable. What is sustainable is real, everything else is just a good idea that someone else can try.

Disturbing

In the words of Sir Francis Drake from 1577:

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we have dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
With the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas
Where storms will show your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.
We ask You to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push into the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

Mentoring or Teaching?

When I was a kid we had about a two acre yard. Dad had purchased an International Cub cadet riding mower and it took him about three hours to mow the entire yard. While he mowed I watched. As I watched I longed for the day when he would turn the mowing duties over to me. As I grew Dad would put me on his lap while he mowed. We didn't talk...couldn't really hear anything anyway. I watched and rode. I learned things...to start the mower...Pull the choke, take gas off of "turtle" icon and and onto the "rabbit" icon. Depress the clutch/brake. Put it in 1st and let off the clutch slowly. To engage the mower move the lever on the right forward. As you mow keep the line of un-mowed grass on the inner side of the left front tire. Blow the grass into the center of the yard so it can be mulched. Dad didn't teach me this stuff...I just wanted to learn so I watched.

Soon Dad allowed me to steer while I sat on his lap. Then one day Dad mowed the outside strip of grass around the yard. When he completed a full loop he hopped off the mower and put me on it...no "warning", no "getting ready". He put me on it and let me go. I mowed the yard that day...and every week after. I was mentored for this job and never even knew it. It was actually pretty slick. Once I understood what Dad had done it was too late to quit mowing the yard. It was my job.

When I got a riding mower I tried to do the same thing to our kids. They rode on my lap, they steered some, but quickly tired of it and wanted off...other things to do I guess. So, I let them. I like mowing the yard, so it was fine with me. Tonight however, Maddi wanted to mow the yard. She tried riding on my lap...too big. I tried to teach her on the fly but it didn't work. She was frustrated, I was frustrated. No one had much fun. Needless to say the baton was not passed.

I was reminded of the difference between mentoring and teaching tonight. Mentoring is intentional investment in someone else for the purpose of training. Teaching is telling people what they need to know or do and hoping that they will apply the knowledge. Mentoring moves forward with little steps in a direction and allows for shortfalls. Teaching often asks for uncomfortable leaps and regularly punishes mistakes.

It is easy to teach. It is tedious to mentor.

Which would you rather do?

I know as a father I often settle on teaching when I need to be mentoring. The same goes for ministry.

I think as a spiritual discipline that we need to order our lives to allow more time for mentoring.

The gospel/the church/compassion/encouragement

You make your own conclusion as to what this illustrates...