Men's Conference

I'm about to get on an airplane in beautiful Tucson, AZ after a great couple of days in southern Arizona. Eric was able to join me for this trip. The time together to process all that we've been experiencing as a result of God's Spirit was needed.

Yesterday I was able to have lunch with Dave Murrow who wrote, "Why Men Hate Going to Church." That was an interested conversation. I also was able to eat with Dave Sonderman who ministers at Elmbrook Church in their ministry to about 3,000 men. That was a great conversation.

The last couple of days have also been very restful. I'm looking forward to getting back to work tomorrow.

Oops, my plane is being boarded. I'll reflect more in a couple of days.

Rewriting the Guest List

Today I was preaching on Luke 14:1-24. The topic of Luke's text is hospitality. Jesus said some pretty radical things, both to his fellow guests and to the host of the meal he was invited to attend. The summary of his rebuke was that both the guests and the host were using others to gain social recognition, material benefit, and/or security through their relationships. Nobody was there simply to enjoy the company of the other. Their were perverse motives that permeated all aspects of the meal.

The alternative to such usery is hospitality--genuine welcome simply for the sake of loving others. Genuine experience of hospitality is free from the need to use others. It's free from fearing that others are out to use us. It's only possible because Jesus has already provided everything we're after when we use other people in our attempts to gain recognition and security.

This afternoon I've been contemplating the kind of misrepresented hospitality that some non-Christians have experienced at the hands of professing Christians. I've spoken with some who have felt like a target, not like a person. They've experienced the kindness of Christians that seemed only to be shared as bait to get them to listen or to believe. When they failed to convert their Christians "hosts" simply ceased in their "hospitality." I wish I could have the opportunity to speak to each person who's experienced that to say, "We are sorry."

When God's people really begin to live out of God's provision, out of His ultimate hospitality and welcome through Christ Jesus, we are not only freed from using others in attempts to gain recognition or security, but we are freed from simply using our kindness as bait. It doesn't mean that we don't share the gospel with others. Quite to the contrary we do, but even that sharing is because of love for them, not because we've feigned love simply to get a few words about the gospel in while they are paying attention.

A real understanding of God's love and welcome transforms the way we relate to all people. We are free to risk through generosity and welcome because we know that God is the one who gives what we give. Every invitation to receive hospitality can be received with thanks, not with an eye for gain. Every opportunity to show hospitality can be an opportunity to demonstrate and reveal God's goodness, not with an eye for gain.

I'm hopeful that as a community we can really continue to live this out with greater capacity. I'm hopeful that I can live this out with greater capacity. It's very freeing to be able to see others as image bearers and not as steps toward whatever I'm trying to attain. I've got all I need through Christ!

Thy Will be Done

It's Wednesday morning and I can't believe it. Where has the time gone this week?

Today we are officially a family of "big kids." Our youngest has accomplished a full week's course of not sucking on his thumb. Angie promised a small surprise from the store if he could do it. He did. Today in his excitement he tried to talk Angie into going to Target in her pajamas so he wouldn't have to be too delayed in getting there. She talked him down. He's patiently waiting.

A few of the young ladies at CWR are hosting an outreach bible study to teenage girls. The group continues to grow in size. Last night they saw their first converts, two or three. I'm still getting the details, but I am in awe once again of the "power of the gospel for salvation for everyone who believes." I can't wait to hear the stories that come out of that study over the next few months.

I'm reviewing a great book this week titled, Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition. This weekend I'll be preaching on a peculiar passage in Luke that has Jesus correcting both the guests and the host of dinner he attends, all the while giving great hope for the outsiders who are observing the meal. Great stuff. While I'm on the subject, Real Love for Real Life: The Art and Work of Caring is another fantastic book on the subject of Christian hospitality. I recommend both works. The latter is less academic and easier to read, just depends on what you're looking for.

Last evening our community group discussed these words of the disciple's prayer: "Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." The author of the study we're using, John Smed, broke down the implications of praying that in this way. First we are praying to accept God's will, second to approve God's will, next to enter into his will, and finally to do God's will. For the first time I was able to see how Christ-centered this is. Isaiah 41 explains that God's will is going to be ultimately carried out "on earth as it is in heaven" through Jesus Christ. With Christ as the lens through which we pray, "Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven," one could break down the above implications in this way: First we are praying to accept the person and work of Christ, second to approve of Him and trust Him, next to follow Him, and finally to imitate Him as the Holy Spirit transforms us into His image. I hadn't made this connection before.

I'm excited to discover what this day holds as Jesus' rule is further realized in my life and in His world.

Proverbs 3:5-6

It's a passage that almost every Christian has memorized at some point in their journey with Christ:

"Trust in the Lord with all you heart, and lean not on your own understanding. Acknowledge him in all your ways, and He will make straight your paths."

If that's true (and I believe it is along with everything else preserved for us in God's word, the Bible) I wonder why we struggle to apply it in our lives.

Maybe I'm alone. Probably. I'm sure that everyone else is living by this beautiful truth. But just in case you're not, I'll speak to my own situation and you can listen in and perhaps grab something helpful to chew on as you walk about through your day.

When I need to solve a problem I begin to tackle that problem as though my ability to take in the data, process the options, and work towards the best solution is all I've got. This mindset assumes that God had no idea my challenge was coming. He's as surprised as I am. But that's obviously not the case. What if the Lord knew what I was going to face? What if He is working all things for my benefit in Christ? What if He already knows the way forward?

Hmm? I'm thinking that leaning on my own understanding would not only be the least helpful thing, it would be absolutely foolish. Why do I insist on doing that, though?

I forget that He's God in heaven, Lord of all--present, past, and future. I don't have to hope that I "get it right," as I lead His people in His mission in Las Vegas because He will get it right. He will "make straight our paths."

I'm glad that Jesus is the church planter, really glad. He will succeed. His name will be made great.

My plans aren't in the trash, they've just been put off to the side while I wait for God to lead.

So close

It was early morning one day this week. The sun was barely peaking over the eastern mountains when our group teed up on the 5th hole at Durango (a local municipal golf course for the average Joe). No wind, 167 yards to the flag, and a six iron in my hands. The ball leapt off the club face and headed for the cloudless sky. "That's headed right at it," remarked a friend. "That's got a chance," followed another. One bounce in front of the flag and right into the cup...and out again only to rest 24" from the cup.

When I got on the green I noticed that the flag had not been replaced properly by the group in front of us, leaning slightly back and left. Would it have made a difference? I'll never know.

So close.

At least I had three hours outside with good friends in the beauty of the desert.

Glenn's Got a Place

Yesterday was an incredible day for me personally, and for the whole of City-Wide Redeemer. Many people know Glenn's story. We met Glenn on the street about six months ago. He was without one leg, in a wheelchair, and homeless. God provided what was needed to pay a doctor in town to build a prosthesis for his leg. Once he began walking again, Glenn began his search for work. His search continues, and he has spent most nights in a shelter downtown.


The biggest challenge with the shelter has been that Glenn never gets any rest. Sleeping in a place where thieves are always on the lookout for their next target means that the sleep Glenn has been getting for the past few years has not been refreshing.

Last night that all changed. We were informed that a friend of someone in the congregation has a condo in town that is not being used. He offered it to us to use in any way we saw fit. The decision was easy. A quick announcement during our worship yesterday morning led to nearly a dozen deliveries of consumables and perishables for Glenn's new place.

When we picked up Glenn yesterday afternoon we turned his attention to the back of Eric's van. "That's all for your new place, Glenn." He could not hold back the tears, and neither could I.

This morning Glenn called me. He sounded so refreshed. Tomorrow he will resume his job search, with clean clothes, no backpack to drag around with the sum of his possessions, and a refreshed appearance in his eyes. After we spoke for a few minutes he said something I'll never forget. He said, "This means more to me than you can imagine. I can't believe this is happening to me. God is real and I know he loves me. All the glory to God! I know you guys did this, but I just want to give him the glory!"

Me too, Glenn. Me too.

Ready the Troops

Bob Roberts, the pastor of Northwood Baptist Church in Texas, has written a trilogy of books (my description, not his) on being the missional church. I've just finished reading Transformation, in which his basic biblical premise is this: Church planting happens through discipleship as Christians experience life transformation and move out into their communities and into the world as kingdom participants. The focus is very much centered on discipleship, so he often has to remind his readers of the need for God's people to focus on being the church as opposed to going to church. True, true.

So it's easy to ready people with whom you already agree, granted, but he provides some fresh language for concepts with which I've been wrestling for some time. I highly recommend the read to anyone interested in the topic.

Perhaps my favorite part of the book came as he writes under the heading, "What Is the Church and Who Is the Pastor?" Here's part of what he says:

If the church were a base [for the spiritual operation of advancing into
global evangelization], then the pastor would look less like a chaplain or
preacher and more like a soldier mobilizing the troops for massive advances. I
didn't realize my new role until a few years after we got into that mode of
operation. If fact, when I once asked a panel of my advisers, "Do you think of
me more as a preacher or as a pastor? the response was intriguing

One of the men quickly said, "Neither." That concerned me, since we were
evaluating my role and the church. fortunately, he swiftly followed that
statement with another: "Bob, you're a soldier, and you're turning this church
into an army!"

He was right, I had evolved into a new paradigm for the role of senior
pastor. In [this] model, the role of he pastor undergoes specific shifts--from
chaplain/preacher to soldier/diplomat. From a stateside motivator to the
in-the-field model of how it's to be done.

This is the kind of discipleship model that we pursuing at City-Wide Redeemer. It seems to most parallel that pattern of Jesus. It requires a leadership that is teaching and modeling the truth in the context of going down the road, so to speak. It's life-on-life, not information-on-life. It's the player-coach model versus trying to organize and orchestrate things from the offensive coordinator's box high above the playing field. And to be honest, it's a great privilege to be on the front line getting such an up close perspective on the action as God does His work in and through His people.