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| Today was a fantastic day. A great way to end a semi- crappy weekend, that’s for sure! Today a group of us had a fun time eating taco salad, laughing, and discussing what God desires of us- the Church. Beth said something so profound and I had to get on here and blog about it before Billy did! So here it is: Sometimes we spend so much time focusing on reaching the lost as a whole, we forget to reach the lost as an individual. Pause. I know. Isn’t that great? It is so profound. So true. Yet so ugly. My prayer is that we, as CityEdge Church, don’t forget to notice the people around us as individuals- those whom God loves. If we begin to look at lost people as a whole, we begin to tackle their “lostness” as a disease. We feed them a one-size-fits-all-get-out-of-hell-free-card. But when we recognize the Lost as people with souls that need to be lovingly directed on this pathway of life to the Father, we begin to be intentional. We intentionally build relationships with them. We intentionally love them. And we intentionally share who Christ is with them. Father, make my heart like Yours. I want to love like only You can. | | |
| Man! What a year! I don’t know how many times I’ve been asked whether or not I made a New Year’s Resolution. And the typical response is, “nah… I don’t do those anymore… they never stick.” But I can’t help but go there. What if I made a resolution? What would it be? So here it is: 1. Love people through action. Like my friend said, “Be more generous…. even when it becomes inconvenient.” 2. Pray bold prayers. Think big because God wants to do great things. 3. Notice people. Smile more. So there it is. There is much behind each of those “resolutions”. God is really stretching me a lot. He’s continues to shape me and direct me on this journey of what it means to be a follower of Jesus with a tangible faith. | | |
| In church circles we talk so much about “creating community” in our church. But I can’t help but ask, “is community created? or rather… discovered?” I believe it’s discovered. You see, community always exists. We just often have to find it amongst one another.
So, the question is, how do we do that? How is community discovered? Well, I believe the heartbeat of the church is goin to be the heartbeat of the Pastor… or in our case, the Pastoral Staff. If we do not have community amongst ourselves, how can we ever expect our church to have community? If we are not discovering community within our neighborhoods than how can we expect our church to do the same? If we are not making a difference in Tucson then how can…. well… you know where I’m going with this.
I’m so thankful to be a part of a church staff that not only loves each other, but really desires to spend time with one another. It’s fantastic. I couldn’t be a part of a better community. | | |
| So I have this thought: The life of a follower of Christ is much like that of a midwife. I know what you’re thinking here, but just hear me out. You see, as a midwife you don’t really do much. I mean seriously, it’s not like you can jump up on the table and do all the work for the mother. No. But what can you do? You can coach her throughout the pregnancy and birthing process. You coach the mother to breathe properly, to push when necessary, any many more things. The life of a believer is much the same. As a Jesus follower, I cannot make anyone follow Christ. I can encourage, coach, motivate, and teach along the way. I can show you and talk to you about what it means to follow Him. But I cannot do it for you. Just like a midwife, discipling someone is sometimes messy. But it’s worth it because if you stick around for long enough you get to see some pretty amazing things happen. You get to see a birth of a new soul. And there is nothing more beautiful than that. | | |
| There are so many debates out there over which is better: mega church or small communities? Traditional worship or “contemporary” worship? Or how about on a totally different scale- iPhone or Blackberry? Mac or PC? SUV or hybrid? Democrat or Republican? War or peace? Death penalty or grace? You know, I could sit with you for hours and tell you all about what I think is wrong about this imperfect world we live in. I can tell you about why I think “those liberals” or “those warmongers” out there are wrong. But that is a waste of energy and a waste of time. And, quite frankly, it doesn’t display the pure character of Christ that lives within my soul. I know way too many people who are known for what they are against… not what they’re for. Politicians. What are they for? Who knows. But I can sure tell you what they’re against. I myself, am all too often guilty of the same crime. As my good friend, Shane Claiborne puts it in his book The Irresistable Revolution, ”Some of us have spent so much time fighting what we’re against, we forget what we are fighting for. Whether in the church or circles of social dissent, there are plenty of people who define themselves by what they are not, whose identity revolves around what they are against, rather than what they are for.” So here is what I say to you: I am for love. Peace. Scandalouse grace. Raw community. Justice. Mercy. Laughter. I am for brokeness. Restoration. Worship. Acceptance. Hope. Kindness. Transformation. But most of all- I am for Jesus. I desire for the world to know me for what I am for… not what I’m against. | | |
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