One of the great things about Christmas is the wonderful memories that it produces, many of which will last for a lifetime. This Christmas produced one of those moments for me.
Early Christmas morning, after all of the gifts had been opened, our children were sitting around exploring all of their new found gifts. One of my ten year old twin boys, Kylan, made a comment to one of his other siblings, "I hope I never grow out of loving Christmas."
I thought alot about this statement Kylan made. Had our life been a television show or a "This Is A Wonderful Life" Christmas movie, I would have answered his question like this: "Kylan, you will never grow out of Christmas. It will always be as wonderful and special as it is right now." But..is that realistic? I knew how the mind of my ten year old was working at that moment. All of his family was there. He was safe, comfortable and surrounded by all of the things that he had wanted for Christmas. No worries. No cares. What an amazing place to be in. At that moment, that's what Christmas meant to him.
In my mind, I remember moments like that. What would it be like to go back to a simpler time in your life where some of the worries that you have today weren't there. During the rush of Christmas...a home for sale, Christmas Day to prepare for, four children, two additional foster children...I found myself having that thought. A thought back to a simpler time.
So, realistically, what is the answer to Kylan's statement?
As uncomfortable as it might be, we all have to face change in our lives. Change is the one constant that we will always have with us. For Kylan, next Christmas cannot be like this one....it cannot because of change. But the challenge for us is not change, it happens whether we want it to or not. The challenge becomes how well we adapt to the changes that come.
There are three responses to change: (1) you refuse to adapt to change (2) you adapt incorrectly to change (3) you take the changes that come, both good and bad, and make the necessary adjustments.
2011 will inevitably bring change to your life. I am thinking now about some of the changes that we will be facing. Right now I don't have all the answers, and I don't know what adjustments will have to be made. But, you know what, we are going to deal with it. We are going to make life happen, even though the road may be unknown, windy or even bumpy ahead. We will figure it out.
What inevitable changes are you facing or even ignoring. They are either going to happen or have already taken place, much to your objections. Now, what must you do to adapt to it? Change without adaptation equals misery, fear and disappointment. But be encouraged. Great ships change entire courses with only the small adjustment of a rudder. Whatever adjustments you need to make, make them. Change is coming.
So, Kylan, let me answer your question. You hope you never grow out of loving Christmas. Well, son, that is all up to you.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
The Plumbing Truck
I was driving to Birmingham, Alabama, for a meeting and got behind a plumbing truck. On the back of the truck, there was an advertisement that described this particular plumbing company as Clean, Courteous, On Time, Background Checked and Drug Free.
I thought about this for a moment. These were pretty good filters if you happened to be looking for someone to come into your home and fix your plumbing. If I am going to let that person into my home, I want them to have ALL of those characteristics!
But being a church planter like I am, I took this a little bit deeper. We want our plumber to have all of these characteristics, but how about those people who are the 'guardians of our soul?' What qualifications do we expect them to have?
Church planting has forced me to look at church a little differently. What if church were like the advertisement on the back of that plumbing truck?
1. Clean.
Church is not a second rate show. It should be done excellently. I believe in being very frugal but NEVER cheap. Do things with preciseness and excellence. The things we do for God should be the best that we could ever produce.
2. Courteous
What if we treated all people like Jesus said we should treat them? What if people came into church and really felt like people in the church genuinely cared about them no matter who they were or what they looked like?
3. On Time
Yes, church should respect time, not waste it. Church should be the most focused and mission centered experience that we ever have. It is a reality in our world that the span of human attention is relatively short. Church should maximize the moment. Time is our most valuable resource and we should use it wisely.
4. Background Checked
Church should be a safe place. We must take responsibility to protect people not only from bad lifestyles, bad doctrine but also from 'bad' people.
5. Drug Free
Let me paraphrase what this means: someone who is not a crazy crook. And, yes, the church has been guilty before of being crazy and being full of crooks. Let's take this one by one:
a.) Crazy. Often the church has packaged so many of the good things that God desires us to have in confusing and spooky ways. It's very easy to blame our self-centered expressions and beliefs on the Holy Spirit. Church should be a place of balance. If you don't believe that God will hold you accountable for freaking people out then read 1 Corinthians 14:23.
b.) Crooks. One of the major problems the church has faced in the last 15 years has been the total lack of integrity among church leaders. Church should be done above reproach and leaders should live lives above reproach. People don't come to church to experience a con job. People come to church to experience Jesus. Let's build our churches and ministries on uncompromised integrity in all areas.
I love the church, and I do believe church can be different! It can be a reflection of church like it was in the book of Acts. That's what I long for.
And, believe it or not, you can learn a whole lot from a plumbing truck.
I thought about this for a moment. These were pretty good filters if you happened to be looking for someone to come into your home and fix your plumbing. If I am going to let that person into my home, I want them to have ALL of those characteristics!
But being a church planter like I am, I took this a little bit deeper. We want our plumber to have all of these characteristics, but how about those people who are the 'guardians of our soul?' What qualifications do we expect them to have?
Church planting has forced me to look at church a little differently. What if church were like the advertisement on the back of that plumbing truck?
1. Clean.
Church is not a second rate show. It should be done excellently. I believe in being very frugal but NEVER cheap. Do things with preciseness and excellence. The things we do for God should be the best that we could ever produce.
2. Courteous
What if we treated all people like Jesus said we should treat them? What if people came into church and really felt like people in the church genuinely cared about them no matter who they were or what they looked like?
3. On Time
Yes, church should respect time, not waste it. Church should be the most focused and mission centered experience that we ever have. It is a reality in our world that the span of human attention is relatively short. Church should maximize the moment. Time is our most valuable resource and we should use it wisely.
4. Background Checked
Church should be a safe place. We must take responsibility to protect people not only from bad lifestyles, bad doctrine but also from 'bad' people.
5. Drug Free
Let me paraphrase what this means: someone who is not a crazy crook. And, yes, the church has been guilty before of being crazy and being full of crooks. Let's take this one by one:
a.) Crazy. Often the church has packaged so many of the good things that God desires us to have in confusing and spooky ways. It's very easy to blame our self-centered expressions and beliefs on the Holy Spirit. Church should be a place of balance. If you don't believe that God will hold you accountable for freaking people out then read 1 Corinthians 14:23.
b.) Crooks. One of the major problems the church has faced in the last 15 years has been the total lack of integrity among church leaders. Church should be done above reproach and leaders should live lives above reproach. People don't come to church to experience a con job. People come to church to experience Jesus. Let's build our churches and ministries on uncompromised integrity in all areas.
I love the church, and I do believe church can be different! It can be a reflection of church like it was in the book of Acts. That's what I long for.
And, believe it or not, you can learn a whole lot from a plumbing truck.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Are You Hearing Or Listening?
Recently our family was watching a movie together. In addition to the movie, there was conversation during the movie, my two smaller children were playing and I was surfing the internet intermittently with my laptop. There was a huge amount of noise and activity during this "family movie night."
This situation closely resembles our world today. We are constantly bombarded by many different voices, all competing for our time and our attention. Everyone has something they want you to read, buy or hear. We literally hear thousands of voices everyday. But have you stopped to consider to which of those voices you are really listening?
Believe it or not hearing and listening are two very different things. Hearing is a function of the ears. It is with the ears that we hear all of those voices around us. Listening, however, is something very different.
Listening is a function of the will. Listening is defined as paying close attention to or hearing with intention. It is through listening that we connect with the people around us. It is entirely possible to hear people but not really listen to what they are saying. You can set yourself up for sure failure if you do not connect with important people and situations around you because you hear but do not manage to listen.
Consider these three principles about listening.
1.) Listening allows you to understand the "heart" of a matter.
"For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks" (Matthew 12:34 ESV)
Listen long enough to anyone and they will reveal their heart to you. Everyone speaks out what is really in their heart. Listening always exposes the heart.
2.) Real listening requires you to put some things on pause
It is not humanly possible to really listen to every voice you hear in today's world. What things are you hearing now that you need to pause so that you can listen to the things that are really important. When is the last time you have really listened to your spouse, children, spiritual leaders, etc. What voices need to be put on pause in your life today?
"Wait and I will listen to what the Lord will command concerning you" (Numbers 9:8 ESV)
3.) If you fail to listen, you repeat the failures of the past.
"Then Moses answered, 'But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, 'The LORD did not appear to you.'" (Exodus 4:1 ESV).
Failure to listen causes us to miss opportunities. When we miss opportunities we return to the things that are familiar, the things we have always done. Patterns, bondages, etc. in our lives are broken when we listen to the opportunities that God sends us. These opportunities cannot just be heard...they must be heard with intention (listening).
Make it a point today to listen to the right voices in your life.
This situation closely resembles our world today. We are constantly bombarded by many different voices, all competing for our time and our attention. Everyone has something they want you to read, buy or hear. We literally hear thousands of voices everyday. But have you stopped to consider to which of those voices you are really listening?
Believe it or not hearing and listening are two very different things. Hearing is a function of the ears. It is with the ears that we hear all of those voices around us. Listening, however, is something very different.
Listening is a function of the will. Listening is defined as paying close attention to or hearing with intention. It is through listening that we connect with the people around us. It is entirely possible to hear people but not really listen to what they are saying. You can set yourself up for sure failure if you do not connect with important people and situations around you because you hear but do not manage to listen.
Consider these three principles about listening.
1.) Listening allows you to understand the "heart" of a matter.
"For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks" (Matthew 12:34 ESV)
Listen long enough to anyone and they will reveal their heart to you. Everyone speaks out what is really in their heart. Listening always exposes the heart.
2.) Real listening requires you to put some things on pause
It is not humanly possible to really listen to every voice you hear in today's world. What things are you hearing now that you need to pause so that you can listen to the things that are really important. When is the last time you have really listened to your spouse, children, spiritual leaders, etc. What voices need to be put on pause in your life today?
"Wait and I will listen to what the Lord will command concerning you" (Numbers 9:8 ESV)
3.) If you fail to listen, you repeat the failures of the past.
"Then Moses answered, 'But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, 'The LORD did not appear to you.'" (Exodus 4:1 ESV).
Failure to listen causes us to miss opportunities. When we miss opportunities we return to the things that are familiar, the things we have always done. Patterns, bondages, etc. in our lives are broken when we listen to the opportunities that God sends us. These opportunities cannot just be heard...they must be heard with intention (listening).
Make it a point today to listen to the right voices in your life.
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