Who to Vote For

The NC primary is upon us.  This Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of people will go out to vote.

I hope you do.  I hope you take seriously our responsibility as Americans and as Christ followers to choose the next president.

And I want to tell you who to vote for. 

No, seriously.

I know I can get in trouble for this.  Pastors aren’t supposed to mix religion and politics.  You can even lose your tax exemption for that.  But here’s who you should vote for:

Jesus Christ.

Vote for a human official too, but deep down realize that a human can never change our country.  And deep down realize that a party can never change our country.  And deep down realize that change never comes from the top down.  It always comes from the bottom up.

In other words, change comes as Christ transforms the lives of his people, through the local church—his vehicle, and unites them to become a compelling presence for Christ in the world.  And as churches become truly compelling, the people around them begin to change, and as the people around them begin to change, the region begins to change, the state begins to change, the country begins to change.

So on March 15^th, make a human vote, but in your hearts recognize what God can do through you. 

Real change will not come from Donald Trump.  Or Hillary Clinton.  Or any other candidate.  Change will come from the Spirit of God as he transforms our hearts, and unites us to become his agents in the world.

And that’s a vote that counts.

Becoming a Multi-ethnic Church

This past week I had the privilege of being on a pastor’s panel on the subject of multi-ethnic churches at Transformation Church.  I was there to learn, to absorb.  The servant leadership in the room was hard to capture in words.  These were leaders who loved God’s church and wanted it to reflect the diversity that will be present in heaven.  These were leaders who believed the power of the Gospel to reconcile all people groups to God.  These were leaders willing to sacrifice their own agenda to be a part of that story.

I wonder how compelling would it be if more local churches became multi-ethnic?  And I’m not talking about a veneer of diversity either.  You know, the kind you see on TV commercials.  The united colors of Benetton.  It looks good on an ad, but you know it’s all staged.  The families you see are not doing life together.  Their kids are not playing with each other on the weekends.

The church has the unique ability to go beyond the veneer of diversity and truly become God’s people of all nations.  In heaven, God’s people will be “…from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9).  How compelling would the church be if we actually looked like this on the earth? 

But it’s not going to be easy.  We are all steeped in stereotypes and prejudices.  We all have cultural baggage that we want to protect.  It will mean a radical dying of self for other people.  It will mean loving people who don’t look like us, sound like us, or even hold the same priorities.  But when Jesus died, he tore the veil in two.  This means that there is no longer divisions among God’s people based on ethnicity, class, social status, gender or any other demographic.  His death brought total reconciliation.

The question is, what are you going to do about it?

Witness

I remember being told to go witness when I first started attending church as a middle school student.  Witness was always a verb, as in: go and tell about your faith to someone.  And of course as believers, we are to tell about our faith as God leads. 

But one day I got to thinking about the verse where this concept comes from, Acts 1:8.  The verse is Jesus’ final words to his disciples before he leaves the earth.  And he says that they will be his witnesses wherever they go—to the city, the outlying areas, and even to the ends of the earth.  The interesting thing about the word witness in the Bible is that it is most often used as a noun, not a verb.

Now don’t get me wrong, witnessing, or sharing your faith, can be a great thing.  It can be a verb.  But I think that we have to be witnesses first.  That is, we have to become the ones who have seen and heard the greatness of Jesus Christ.  We become the ones whose lives have been transformed because of our encounter with him.  We become the ones who live out the Christian faith in practical and relevant ways every single day. 

We need to be his witnesses first, and only second can we witness.  It’s like a witness in a court of law.  That person has seen or heard something so important that they are called to testify about it.  First they are a witness, and only second are they called to testify.  You are not to have one without the other.

I wonder in the Christian church if we sometimes have one without the other.  We want to testify without being an actual witness.  We want to talk about our faith more than we want to live it.  But the Bible says that “the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power” (1 Cor. 4:20.)

Let’s go out and be his witnesses!

God in the Mundane

The Dutch theologian Abraham Kuyper once said, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!”

A profound, mysterious, powerful truth.

I was thinking about this statement in preparation for Sunday.  Specifically, I was thinking how there is nothing outside of my daily routine that Jesus doesn’t want ownership of.  There is nothing (excluding sin) that can’t bring Glory to God.  Mowing the lawn can bring glory to God, and so can washing the dishes.  Preaching a sermon can bring glory to God, and so can talking to your kids.  Driving a car can bring glory to God, and so can rooting for the Patriots (although I admit, this last one is debatable).

Too often we get caught up thinking that the mundane parts of our lives don’t matter, but they do.  How we do things matters as much as what we do.  Who we do them for matters most of all.  The Bible says that “…whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (I Cor. 10:31).

There is simply nothing in your life that Jesus doesn’t point at and declare, “mine.”

Feel free to join us this Sunday at New Community Church to hear more about this topic.

Circles are Better than Rows

On Sunday we talked about the concept that “circles are better than rows” when it comes to spiritual depth.  Rows of people are great for a weekly worship service, but in order fully experience church as God intended, we need to have circles.  A circle is defined as a small group that meets regularly to discuss God’s word, pray for each other, and do life together. 

There are many “one another” commands in the New Testament.  Consider:

• John 13:34 A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
• Romans 15:7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
• Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
• Colossians 3:13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another…
• 1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up…
• Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
• 1 Peter 4:9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
• James 5:16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other...
• Galatians 6:2 Carry each other's burdens...

When you consider each of these commands, you realize that most of them are impossible to fulfill in rows.  We can only do them as we relate to each other in the context of smaller groups.

Are you part of an intentional small group with the purpose of spiritual growth?  

Hello Hurricane

So apparently we have a hurricane headed our way.  Joaquin.  How lovely.  Our staff just finished a

powwow about how to handle any possible cancellations that may come as a result.  Not my favorite subject.

One of my favorite bands is Switchfoot.  I love the song “Hello Hurricane” and how they use the storms of life as a metaphor for whatever terrible may come our way.

They sing:

Hello hurricane, you're not enough

Hello hurricane, you can't silence my love

I've got doors and windows boarded up

All your dead end fury is not enough

You can't silence my love, my love

And it’s true.  In the economy of Jesus, nothing can come our way that can silence our love for Him.  Nothing is so terrifying or fretful that God can’t outshine it.  Whatever you may be worrying about is nothing compared to His great love for us.

Hello hurricane.  You are not enough to silence my great love for Jesus.  And His great love for me.

3 Reasons not to Worry

Like most people, I sometimes worry.  I may worry about finances, or a situation at church, my physical health, or that weird thing that someone said to me yesterday.  I sometimes worry about the rising cost of college tuition, or who is going to win the presidential election, or how my fantasy football did this weekend (not good by the way).  There are just so many good things to worry about!

But worrying is dumb.  I know it is.  But sometimes I can’t seem to help myself.

Here are 3 good reasons not to worry.

1. Worrying doesn’t help.  Jesus asked “who can add one hour to his life by worrying?” (Lk. 12:25).  Hint: the answer is no one.  Worrying about what already happened is pointless.  It just stresses us out.  We can’t change the past.  Worrying about what may happen is futile.  It will wear you out.  It's like a rocking chair: always in motion but never getting anywhere.  Plus, things usually work out better than what we expect anyway.
2. Worrying puts ME at the center.  The Bible says to “cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (I Peter 5:7).  When we give God our worries, we put him at the center of our lives where he belongs.  But when we worry, we stay in charge.  Release your worries to God.  Name them one by one to him in prayer.  See what happens.
3. Worrying makes God out to be a liar.  Philippians 4:19 says that “God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”  What an amazing promise.  Do you believe it?  When we worry, we are declaring that God is not enough to meet the needs in my life.  Financially, socially, physically, spiritually.  But he is enough.  He has promised to meet our needs.  He will come through for his children.

So what are you worried about?