Yes, I did indeed eat 18 of them.

Year’s ago, Denise and I went to Red Lobster in San Diego for our anniversary. It was a grand evening for two broke bible college students to splurge and ‘live it up’ for a night. Just so you know, I have a thing for Red Lobster. I always get the Admiral’s Feast and I load up on those amazing, little garlic butter biscuits that they serve with the meal. And when I say ‘load up’, I really do mean it.

On this particular evening I was pretty feisty and jokingly bonding well with our server. I asked her to keep those hot little rolls coming because I am ‘quite fond of them.’ Well, she did. She kept them coming, and I kept eating them. And eating them. And eating them. I also ate my entire Admiral’s Feast (the sin of gluttony, I know, I know).

To make matters worse (or better so I thought), when the meal was over and we were getting ready to go, I asked our server if she could sneak us a baggie of those little biscuits to go! She did. Bonus!

On the way back to our beach cottage, I ate some more of the buttery goodness. A few more were consumed while settling in for our romantic evening together. While my beautiful bride was snuggling up with her Admiral (that’s me), I was beginning to feel something swirling in my stomach, and it was not good. I officially had a big gut-ache. Upon further review we determined that I had single-handedly eaten…wait for it…wait for it…18 Red Lobster biscuits. Yes, I did indeed eat 18 of them!!!

In John 6, shortly after Jesus and the disciples feed over 5000 people with bread and fish, they gathered again on the other side of the lake and Jesus said some important words to his team:

“You are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you” (John 6:26,27).

I believe Jesus is challenging his disciples (which includes us) to work for that which lasts – the stuff of eternal life. So often we look to Jesus to only get our fill rather than partnering with to see the miraculous happen in the lives of others. The disciples had just had the opportunity to join him in feeding over 5000 people with a very little amount of food, which is nothing short of a miracle. And now, one day later, they are coming to Jesus looking for more food for their belly’s. Jesus called them and continues to call us to something greater.

There has got to be more to life than eating 18 Red Lobster biscuits.

Imagine how many people don’t have any bread while I was gorging on mine. Worse yet, imagine how often we gorge on the presence of God while there are so many that have yet to experience it for themselves. Perhaps all they need is for those of us that enjoy Jesus greatly to simply share with it with them!

Jesus is the Bread of Life and he wants to be freely shared with others.

Maybe the old saying by Martin Luther is true: “We are one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread.”

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Orchard Heights Road kinda bugs me. I know I’ve been living in Salem for about 6 months now but I still can’t seem to figure out which way is which on that particular road. I’m constantly having to pull out onto Orchard Heights from the smaller side streets and every time I do I sit there for a moment and wonder: “Which way do I go?” If I go one way it leads me back to the church or to our home but if I go the other way it leads to…who knows where! Actually it leads to Wallace Road and I only go there if I must (because it’s always packed with cars)!

If my wife is with me she instantly knows which direction to go. She’s a keeper.

But me, well…thank God for my Garmin GPS. You see, I am directionally challenged. I am a man that gets lost. But the crazy thing is that I rarely know that I’m lost WHILE I’m getting lost – it occurs to me only after I am officially lost. I wish I would realize it WHILE! It would be great to have that moment of clarity 100 or so yards after going past the point of not-lostness…then I could back the car up and get back on track. But no…the revelation of lostness occurs to me much later and takes me much farther!

When you want to get to a particular destination you better know what direction you are going. Direction determines destination.

Not intention. Intentions are not enough.

Intention says: “I want to go to Canada.” If that is my destination then I would be foolish to hop onto the I-5 Freeway heading SOUTH. That happens to be the direction to…um…Mexico. To get to Canada I must go NORTH. Direction determines destination, not just simple intentions (as pure as they may be).

In any organization, including that of a church, we must know what our destination is then take active steps to go that direction. Good intention is not enough. The same is true for our personal lives. I can’t tell you how many folks I encounter that want be in a specific place spiritually or relationally and yet fail to purposely go that direction. It is what I call The Great Disconnect. The destination does not match the direction. The beliefs are disconnected from the behavior.

God, through his Scripture, has given us a map for charting our direction. I want to continue digging into the Bible to discover where we are going!

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I just finished reading a book called Why We Make Mistakes by Joseph T. Hallinan. With a great deal of research and case studies he concludes that the average person make mistakes because:

• We look but don’t always see
• We connect the dots
• We wear rose-colored glasses
• We can walk and chew gum-but not much else
• We skim
• We shoot first
• We all think we’re above average
• We would rather wing it
• We don’t constrain ourselves

Each of the observations brought about an “a-ha” moment for me to realize that there is distinct reasoning behind the gaffe’s and errors I make on a regular basis. What I found most helpful though was the concise conclusion of how to make fewer mistakes:

1. Think small. Little things mean a lot.

2. Think negatively. Ask yourself: what could go wrong?

3. Let multiple people proofread. What a colleague may miss, a spouse may catch. What a spouse may miss, your kids may catch. Etc. Etc.

4. Remember that multitasking is a mirage. There are limits to the number of things we can do at one time, and the more we do, the greater the chance for error.

5. Beware of the anecdote. When making decisions get accurate information and averages not testimonials. Diet companies make their money off of testimonials but look at the fine print: “Amount of weight loss is NOT typical.”

6. Get some sleep. Even moderate sleep deprivation can cause brain impairment equivalent to driving drunk.

7. Be happy. Happy people tend to be more creative and less prone to errors induced by habit.

And finally, Hallinan, says that one thing that DOES NOT seem to eliminate mistakes is money. Financial incentives do not affect average performance. People will work harder on a problem, though they will not necessarily work any smarter.

Why We Make Mistakes
by Joseph T. Hallinah
Broadway Books // 2009

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I’m sitting in my truck waiting for the DMV to open so I can take my cycle endorsement test. I got here way too early and now I’m bored. But in my boredom I noticed something hanging from my turn-signal…a yellow pine tree vanilla air freshner.

I wonder how long it’s been there? And I wonder if it is still effectively doing it’s job?

It makes me ask the question of my own life: how effective am I at giving off the aroma of Christ? Am I just hanging around having long lost my freshness for evangelism and passionate worship?

Or, worse yet, have I gone the other way in absorbing the world’s fragrance and didn’t even notice it until now?

Questions.

How effective are you at bringing the aroma of Jesus to your world? What are you doing to stay fresh in the Lord?

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King David’s Song of Praise in 2 Samuel 22 is huge. Following the deliverance from the hands of all his enemies he pens an amazing worship tune.  He declares a number of key attributes of the Lord that I always want to be in my heart and mind.  From verses 2 and 3 alone I discover 8 massive traits of God.

The Lord is…

1.  My Rock

2.  My Fortress

3.  My Deliverer

4.  My Shield

5.  My Strength

6.  My Stronghold

7.  My Refuge

8. My Savior

These 8 aspects of the fortitude of the Lord are bedrock to who I am and where I go when I’m hurting or in need. God is all that and so much more for me.  Thank you Lord.

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“…to boldy go where no one has gone before…”

Those are the words I heard last night around midnight at the Lancaster Cinemas during the premiere of the new Star Trek flick. 

Am I a “Trekkie?” Nah. Do I have pointy ears? Hope not. But I have grown up with James T. Kirk, Scottie, Spock and Bones and have come to love an entertaining episode or movie from the Starfleet of the USSEnterprise. Now, I’m talking about ‘ol school Star Trek…not that Next Generation junk. 

When I heard those famed words last night I was a bit moved. Not because they came from the mouth of the aging Leonard Nimoy, but because those words have always inspired me for ministry in the Kingdom of God. The final frontier is not some newly discovered galaxy or space-time continuum for me. The final frontier represents all the people that have yet to say YES to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. There are many that have still not had their eternity secured. There are those that have no understanding of what Jesus did for them. There are many on our planet that still haven’t heard the truth of the Gospel. That’s why I keep doing what I’m doing. That’s why I want to plant churches and satellite campuses. That’s why I’m willing and ready to add more services to my already busy weekends. That’s why I want to disciple fully functioning God-followers that are a blessing within their sphere of influence. That’s why I keep going and going and going…boldy reaching and touching with the life and love of Jesus.

I want to always move forward with courage and conviction, always changing and always growing. There are new frontiers to be discovered and more to reach for the Lord. I can never be satisfied with where I have been. Grateful? Yes. Satisfied? Nope. Like the Apostle Paul, I want to “strain towards what is ahead, pressing on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14). 

Are you boldly going? Are you looking for new frontiers of Kingdom ministry? I encourage you nurture a heart and vision for what opportunities are all around you – there is much to do for the Kingdom of God. Whether the stories of your voyages are ever told or not, be faithful to go where no one has gone before…in Jesus’ name!

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God’s will is such a mystery. Who can ever fully understand it? Who can truly wrap their arms (or minds) around the greatness of His will or see completely everything that is contained within His heart? In our humanness, we certainly can not. God is sovereign and we are not. God is all-knowing and we are not. God has perspective that is limitless whereas we have boundaries and limited scope.

Ephesians 1:10 in the Bible confirms this: “With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment – to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under Christ.”

Wait a moment…this passage seems to indicate that even though God’s will is a mystery it is something we can know. God’s will is defined by His character and nothing that happens will erode the character of God nor contradict His heart. God’s will is directly attached to his heart and His heart is most clearly seen in His Son Jesus. 

If you are trying to discover the will of God for your life, business, marriage or relationships then seek Jesus. Ask Him. Talk to Jesus today. He wants to reveal the heart and will of His Father to those He loves – and that is YOU.

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My cup looks a little bit like Egyptian hieroglyphics, with a splash of 3 year old crayon drawings, with a touch of ancient Sanskrit from 4th century BC.

Actually it is the marker-writing on my Iced Grande Triple Espresso with 2 Pumps Sugar-Free Vanilla. But if I didn’t know better, it could just as well be launch codes for a Soviet missile.

To the average person, the scratches on my espresso drink cup is pure chaos, but to me…they are the words of life. The combination of letters, symbols and numbers forms what I call “liquid love”. To the average on-looker however it is nothing more than mumbo-jumbo.

I wonder if this is how the Bible looks to those that come to our churches. Understandably, the Bible was written a very long time ago in languages that most folks living today simple do not understand. This can be a major hurdle for many in terms of comprehension. What should we do? Do we dumb it down? No. Should we insist that everyone translate it from the original Greek and Hebrew? No. What’s the balance? How does the ancient Word of God remain “living and active” in our current culture? These are important questions. Let’s look at the final part of How I Approach Church to discover some potential answers.
Continued from Part 3

How I Approach Church

Over the last few weeks we have looked at Colossians 2:2,3:
“My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

In this passage I see that our church services must be:

1. Uplifting: “encouraged in heart”

2. Unifying: “united in love”

And now, I want to add the final element:

Each service must bring Understanding – “complete understanding”

This final service component is described in Paul’s letter to Colosse, “so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

This is no small task. Each service needs to bring about a level of understanding into this incredible mystery. To many, it is still hidden and needs to be unearthed by a “workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Tim 2:15).

Our heads are the key to understandable services. Our minds need to be engaged on some level so that we are challenged in our thinking and forced to wrestle with the issues presented in the Word of God. The goal of understanding is change. We want to be “transformed by the renewing of our mind.”

I have discovered that nothing brings about understanding like teaching. It is the third and final primary priority for the church service that I have come to focus on. The first two were worship and fellowship.

A healthy environment of teaching and preaching is key to helping people understand the Word of God. This should be a primary focus in the life of any local church. Of course, I’ve been in a few churches that when I leave I am more confused than when I came in. This is unfortunate and can be changed. It’s so important to clearly communicate the living and active Word of God in such a way that brings about clarity without compromising it’s mystery.

I love the Word of God. I love the Church. But, guess what, Jesus loves the Church even more. It’s His Church – we are His Body. I want to apprehend His heart and approach each and every Church service as He would!

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http://www.foursquare.org/articles/765,1.html

Atlanta-based Third Day is back with a live offering from their popular Revelation album. This CD, which was recorded throughout several of their tour stops, captures live tracks from their most recent album Revelations as well as favorites from years past. The album even  includes a remake of “When Love Comes to Town” by U2, which includes special performances by Robert Randolph, Jars of Clay and Switchfoot.

Southern-rock outfit Third Day is known in worship circles for Offerings and Offerings II, which have ushered in corporate worship staples “Show Me Your Glory,” “My Hope is You” and “Your Love Oh Lord.” However, other than their current worship hit, “Call My Name,” this live recording brings them back to their alt-rock roots. This 9-song CD won’t provide pastors much new material for church worship services, but listeners will still enjoy the soulful sounds of lead singer Mac Powell and company. It’s the perfect album for a Monday drive with the windows down and the volume up. In addition, pastors and leaders will resonate and be encouraged by the 75-minute accompanying documentary on DVD that shows a real-life glimpse into the balance of touring, ministry and family.

by John Fehlen, Senior Pastor, West Salem Foursquare Church in Salem, Ore.

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How I Think About and Approach Our Church Services

Continued from Part 2

The key text for my thoughts regarding church comes from Colossians 2:2,3 -  “My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”

Last time I mentioned that each service must be UPLIFTING – this is drawn from the Apostle Paul’s purpose that the church be “encouraged in heart”.  Now, we read on in the text to discover our next value:

Second Value:  Each service must become UNIFYING – “united in love”

It is always a mystery to me as to how hundreds of people can gather under one roof for 90 or so minutes and experience such a deep level of community on a weekly basis.  This is not always the case and often one must get plugged into a small group to experience deep unifying fellowship with other. Regardless, one of my goals for each church service is to develop unity through the Spirit.

Unity is a word that has been overused and misunderstood.  It has been reduced to the ‘warm fuzzies” and at times abused in the pursuit of eradication of distinctives. It is possible, I believe, for many individuals with many different compositions to move in unity by the Spirit without losing their uniqueness.

Our hands are the key to unity.  We must be willing to loosen our grasp and open our hands to “drop” our sometimes exclusive preferences.  This is important so that we are able to “embrace” the potential of the collective resource of others.  This can be facilitated by intentionally asking folks to take the hand of the people to the right and left of them in prayerful response or to turn into groups of 3 or 4 for the purpose of prayerful ministry. These are practical displays of the inward work of unity.  Of course, true biblical unity will take time and focused commitment, but that ought not discourage us from aiding this reality in various ways throughout any given service.

I have discovered that nothing encourages unity like Fellowship.   Fellowship is one of the priorities that becomes a focus as I approach each church service.  This can be released in simple ways such as an intentional greeting time, a gathering place for visitors, the provision of refreshments and prayer circles.

Each of these tools must be communicated with purpose. Fellowship ought not be a 6-minute buffer for latecomers. Nor should it be relegated to the last moments of the service for those that are willing to stay around a bit longer.  Fellowship needs to be integrated into the fiber of the entire service, and certainly have a predominant role in small groups, bible studies, gatherings and miscellaneous events.

Part 4 continues next week

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