Management Rewired

Recently I picked up and read Management Rewired by Charles Jacobs. While I confess I don’t know much about business or what’s trendy in business management, I did find this book interesting and helpful, primarily due to the fact it is different than some of the other books I’ve read on the topic. Using some of the latest research on brain science and neurology, Jacobs offers some insights as to why leaders and organizations do what they do and how they can do them better. I thought I’d share a few of the notes I took from the book that I found to be insightful.

· Leadership is primarily concerned with ideas. Good leaders get the big ideas right. When they do, a lot of other things will fall into place. Jacobs elaborates by saying that the power of an organization is in its ability to generate ideas.
· Jacobs argues that leaders cannot change organizations, but they can change people who change the culture of the organization.
· This transformation is accomplished through the power of storytelling.
· Much of our thinking is organized in stories. Stories and metaphors help us to organize our experience of the world. The more we tell the story, the more the story shapes us.
· If you want to know what’s going on in your organization, you have to figure out what story the people are telling themselves.
· You change your environment by changing your story. It is important to craft the story with a predictable outcome that promotes the change you want to see.
· Rather than emphasizing organization, leaders should work on shaping the culture that shapes thinking. Culture is a convenient way of thinking about patterns in behavior in a organization that isn’t hardwired by policies, procedures, or structure.
· The right hemisphere of the brain sees “wholes” and is responsible for our emotions. The left hemisphere of the brain is the center of logic. It delays immediate gratification. The power of story is that story unites the two hemispheres.
· One of the reasons organizations make poor decisions is their unwillingness to delay immediate gratification.
· Leadership isn’t about forcing people to do one’s bidding. It’s about telling a story so that people can do what they need and want to do.

In the final pages of this monograph, Jacobs' lists five characteristics that mark Transformational Leadership. They are summarized as follows.

1. In order to shift the paradigm, leaders have to change the way people think within the organization.
2. Any successful paradigm shift must be a participative process. For example, Plato influenced thinking by asking questions.
3. Leaders can influence paradigm transformation by conveying an aspirational but credible view of the future.
4. This view of the future is communicated through story. Leaders have to tell a better story than the story the people are currently telling themselves.
5. Finally, transformational leaders use the story to create focus and urgency on what’s critical for success.

Jacobs' book is an excellent read. While I only touched on some of the great stuff I found, there's plenty more that's helpful, even for pastors like me who continuously communicate the greatest story ever told.

Waukee Jazz 1 at Disney

Here's the video from Lauren's Jazz Band playing at Downtown Disney on December 29, 2009! Awesome job by an awesome group of kids!

A Final Word to the Thief on the Cross

The first word Jesus spoke from the cross concerned forgiveness. The second word concerned eternal life. Jesus said to the thief, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43, NLT).

Think about the promise of eternal life that Jesus offered to him in those dying moments.
Salvation is immediate: “Today.” Salvation is personal: “YOU will be with ME.” Salvation is eternal: “in paradise" (literally, the garden).

The gospel of Jesus Christ is not just about what happens to us when we die. It is life with God here on earth. Jesus extends the same hope and promise to you today.

A Word to those Who Fear they are Forgotten (part 2)

Sometimes we may wonder if God has forgotten us. Take a moment to consider some of these powerful promises from Scripture:

God knows us by name.
God knows the number of hairs on our head.
God knows the number of our days we will live on earth.
God hears the words we speak.
God knows our thoughts.
God sees our tears and records them.
God listens to our prayers.
There are many more affirmations from the Bible that affirm God’s constant awareness and attentiveness over our lives.

Why then, does God remember us? He remembers us because he loves us. He not only loves us, he has made it possible for us to have life with him always. You never forget those who are always with you. Through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, God closes the proximity and empowers us to become children of God.

The gospel is not just the message proclaimed that brings salvation. The good news of the gospel is that we can have life with God. 1 Peter 3:18 states, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God (NIV).” That’s the gospel message, life with God!

News

There are a couple of helpful websites that I routinely check that are proving to be helpful time savers. When I want to catch up on Christian news, I find www.baptiststoday.org. This site scans online newspapers from coast to coast and posts the links to the top religious news stories each day. While the web address may lead you to believe that the site is only concerned with Baptist news, it crosses into interdenominational and interfaith territory. As a bonus, the site includes stories from the legal system that might be of interest to Christian readers.

The second site scans the Christian blogosphere. Though its a relatively new site, www.zoecity.com scans the top Christian blogs and provides links on a daily basis. Let me encourage you to check these sites out. I hope they prove to save you some time.

A Word to Those Who Fear they are Forgotten

Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:42-43, NLT)

When we lived in Arkansas, Lisa and I were invited to a dinner party to honor the 40th birthday of a friend. His wife did an immaculate job of decorating and preparing for the group that gathered. The table was set, complete with name cards that assigned seats to each dinner guest. Except me. It was a funny oversight, but at the same time, a bit awkward. Have you ever been forgotten? Have you ever felt that God has forgotten you?

Sometimes we feel forgotten by God, especially when our fail proof systems hit a glitch. Any number of life’s challenges…bills, kids, marriage, employment, health…can cause us to wonder if God’s really paying attention to us. If you’ve ever felt that way, then the second saying Jesus spoke from the cross is for you.

Jesus’ words are spoken to one who is simply called a “thief.” To refer to him as a thief is a bit understated. He was more than one who stole stuff. He was a professional criminal and an insurrectionist, an enemy of the Roman Empire. Many would have labeled him as a “bad person.” He was deserving of death even by his own admission.

It’s fascinating that the thief appealed to Jesus’ memory. “Remember me…” I must confess that it’s a bold request, given that Jesus probably had a lot on his mind already. Jesus responds, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” Or, “I will not forget you.”

In our pain and adversity, we echo that same request… “Remember me…” and he does.

The Shadow of the Cross

There is a famous painting by Holman Hunt, leader of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, titled The Shadow of Death. The picture depicts Jesus standing inside the carpenter’s shop in Nazareth. He is standing by a wooden trestle on which he has laid down his saw. He stands with his eyes fixed toward heaven and arms stretched outward. As he pauses from his work in this posture, the sunlight casts a shadow in the form of a cross on the wall behind him.

Hunt did the painting from a rooftop in Jerusalem in the early 1870’s. While it is historically fictitious, it is theologically true. Jesus was born for this purpose: to give his life on the cross for our sin. His life was not taken from him for he gave it willingly. Jesus’ mission was the cross. Ours is the same. As we begin to turn our attention toward Easter, may our hearts be filled with praise and worship of the “lamb who was slain.” May we commit ourselves in a new, fresh way and continue the mission Jesus began.

A Prayer for Ash Wednesday

As millions of Christians around the world observe Ash Wednesday today, I thought I'd post this prayer for Ash Wednesday by Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann. It is part of a collection of prayers for the people of God titled Prayers for a Privileged People.

Marked by Ashes
By Walter Brueggemann

Ruler of the Night, Guarantor of the Day…
This day—a gift from you.
This day—like none other you have ever given,
or we have ever received.
This Wednesday dazzles us with gift and newness and possibility.
This Wednesday burdens us with the tasks of the day,
for we are already halfway home
halfway back to committees and memos,
halfway back to calls and appointments,
halfway on to next Sunday,
halfway back, half frazzled, half expectant,
half turned toward you, half rather not.

This Wednesday is a long way from Ash Wednesday,
but all our Wednesdays are marked by ashes—
we begin this day with that taste of ash in our mouth:
of failed hope and broken promises,
of forgotten children and frightened women,
of more war casualties, more violence, more cynicism;
We ourselves are ashes to ashes,
dust to dust;
We can taste our mortality as we roll the ash around
on our tongues.

We are able to ponder our ashness with
some confidence, only because our every Wednesday of ashes
anticipates your Easter victory over that dry, flaky taste of death.

On this Wednesday, we submit our ashen way to you—
your Easter parade of newness.
Before the sun sets, take our Wednesday and Easter us,
Easter us to joy and energy and courage and freedom;
Easter us that we may be fearless for your truth.
Come here and Easter our Wednesday with
mercy and justice and peace and generosity.

We pray as we wait for the Risen One who comes soon.

Diary of a Demented Snow Shoveler

I got this last winter and thought it was really funny. Now that our local news is reporting that we've set an all time record for snow fall this winter (57"), I thought I'd share it. Enjoy!

December 8

It started to snow. The first snow of the season and
the wife and I took our cocktails and sat for hours by
the window watching the huge soft flakes drift down
from heaven. It looked like a Grandma Moses print. So
romantic we felt like newlyweds again. I love snow!

December 9

We woke to a beautiful blanket of crystal white snow
covering every inch of the landscape. What a fantastic
sight! Can there be a more lovely place in
the whole world? Moving here was the best idea I've
ever had!

Shoveled for the first time in years and felt like a
boy again. I did both our driveway and the sidewalks.
This afternoon the snowplow came along and covered
up the sidewalks and closed in the driveway, so I got
to shovel again. What a perfect life!

December 12

The sun has melted all our lovely snow. Such a
disappointment! My neighbor tells me not to worry-
we'll definitely have a white Christmas. No snow on
Christmas would be awful! Bob says we'll have so much
snow by the end of winter, that I'll never want to see
snow again. I don't think that's possible. Bob is such
a nice man, I'm glad he's our neighbor.

December 14

Snow, lovely snow! 8 inches last night. The
temperature dropped to -20. The cold makes everything
sparkle so. The wind took my breath away, but I warmed
up by shoveling the driveway and sidewalks. This is
the life! The snowplow came back this afternoon and
buried everything again. I didn't
realize I would have to do quite this much shoveling,
but I'll certainly get back in shape this way. I wish
I wouldn't huff and puff so.

December 15

20 inches forecast. Sold my van and bought a 4x4
Blazer. Bought snow tires for the wife's car and 2
extra shovels. Stocked the freezer. The wife wants
a wood stove in case the electricity goes out. I think
that's silly. We aren't in Alaska, after all.

December 16

Ice storm this morning. Fell on my butt on the ice in
the driveway putting down salt. Hurt like crazy. The
wife laughed for an hour, which I think was very
cruel.

December 17

Still way below freezing. Roads are too icy to go
anywhere. Electricity was off for 5 hours. I had to
pile the blankets on to stay warm. Nothing to do but
stare at the wife and try not to irritate her. Guess I
should've bought a wood stove, but won't admit it to
her. I hate it when she's right. I can't believe
I'm freezing to death in my own living room.

December 20

Electricity is back on, but had another 14 inches of
the stuff last night. More shoveling! Took all
day. The stupid snowplow came by twice.
Tried to find a neighbor kid to shovel, but they said
they're too busy playing hockey. I think they're
lying. Called the only hardware store around to see about
buying a snow blower and they're out. Might have
another shipment in March. I think they're lying. Bob
says I have to shovel or the city will have it done
and bill me. I think he's lying.

December 22

Bob was right about a white Christmas because 13 more
inches fell today, and it's so cold,
it probably won't melt till August. Took me 45 minutes
to get all dressed up to go out to shovel and then I
had to pee. By the time I got undressed, peed and
dressed again. I was too tired to shovel. Tried to
hire Bob who has a plow on his truck for the rest of
the winter, but he says he's too busy. I think he's lying!

December 23

Only 2 inches of snow today. And it warmed up to 0.
The wife wanted me to decorate the front of the house
this morning. What is she, nuts?!!
Why didn't she tell me to do that a month ago? She
says she did but I think she's lying.

December 24

6 inches - Snow packed so hard by snowplow, I broke
the shovel. Thought I was having a heart attack. If I
ever catch the guy who drives that snow
plow, I'll drag him through the snow and
beat him to death with my broken shovel. I know he
hides around the corner and waits for me to finish
shoveling and then he comes down the street at a 100
miles an hour and throws snow all over where I've just
been! Tonight the wife wanted me to sing Christmas
carols with her and open our presents, but I was too
busy watching for the snowplow!

December 25

Merry Christmas! 20 more inches of the
slop tonight - Snowed in!
The idea of shoveling makes my blood boil. I hate
the snow!
Then the snowplow driver came by asking for a donation
and I hit him over the head with my shovel. The wife
says I have a bad attitude. I think she's an
idiot. If I have to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" one
more time, I'm going to stuff her into the microwave!

December 26

Still snowed in. Why did I ever move here? It
was all HER idea.
She's really getting on my nerves.

December 27

Temperature dropped to -30 and the pipes froze;
plumber came after 14 hours of waiting for him, he
only charged me $1,400 to replace all my pipes.

December 28

Warmed up to above -20. Still snowed in. The wife is
driving me crazy!!!

December 29

10 more inches. Bob says I have to shovel the roof or
it could cave in. That's the silliest thing I ever
heard. How dumb does he think I am?

December 30

Roof caved in. I beat up the snow plow driver, and now
he is suing me for a million dollars, not only for the
beating I gave him, but also for trying to bury him in the snow.
The wife went home to her mother.
Nine more inches predicted.

December 31

I set fire to what's left of the house. No more
shoveling.

January 8

Feel so good. I just love those little white pills
they keep giving me. Why am I tied to the bed?

Do You Know What You Are Doing?

In Luke 23:34, Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing (NLT).” Who is Jesus praying for? Who is it that doesn’t know what they are doing? Jesus words were spoken in the particular context of the crucifixion, so we begin with the scene and those who must have heard his cry.

Like the Jewish religious leaders, for example. The religious leaders were protectors of orthodox religion and demanded observance of the law, even in the face of Jesus’ offer of grace. They were petty and power hungry. Even Pontius Pilate observed that their envy of Jesus was the root behind their demand for crucifixion. Jesus was crucified during Passover, an observance that historians tell us was so big in the early first century that it spanned two days (Thursday and Friday). As many as 120,000 lambs were sacrificed in the Temple during Passover—so many that the blood ran down the streets.

Yet a mere half mile away from the Temple, with all of its adornments and activity, Jesus hung on the cross, the “lamb of God, slain before the foundation of the world.” Paul Hewson defines religion this way. He writes, “Religion is what happens when God leaves the room. We create our own rules to fill up the empty space.” The religious leaders did not know what they were doing.

Neither did the Roman soldiers. With clenched fists, the muscle of the Roman government proceeded to take Jesus’ life by force. Little did they realize that he was giving his life willingly. Some of the soldiers threw dice on the ground beneath the cross, gambling for Jesus’ tunic. Ironically, they were fighting for the one material possession of Christ as he fought for the one eternal possession they had—their very souls. The Roman soldiers did not know what they were doing.

We should include those who were casually passing by that day, casting private judgment on the activity they witnessed. Lest we forget, Jesus was crucified publicly because the Roman Empire believed that public capitol punishment served as a deterrent to crime. In our imagination, we can see them with their arms crossed, shaking their heads in disgust. They did not know what they were doing.

But what if we go ahead and insert ourselves into the scene? Do we know what we’re doing? Are we aware of our need for forgiveness? Are we aware of the cost of forgiveness? After all, why is forgiveness associated with death? What is the correlation between death and forgiveness? Do we know what we’re doing? Do we know how often we take the gifts of God for granted? Do we know how flippant we are about our sin? Do we realize how helpless we are to help ourselves? Do we admit we are not in control? We are not masters of our own fate? We cannot save ourselves? We have no answer to the problem of death? We don’t know what we’re doing. But thankfully God does know what he’s doing. Jesus did not die on the cross in order to fix you. He did not die to make bad people good. He came to give dead people life. He came to save you from sin and yourself. The humble admission: “I don’t know what I’ve done…I don’t know what I’m doing” is the act of humility that brings forgiveness into your life.

Forgiveness

How many words do you speak on a daily basis?

Dr. Louann Brizendine, clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, has done some research into the number of words we speak each day. In her book, The Female Brain (Morgan Road, 2006), Brizendine reports that a woman uses about 20,000 words per day while a man uses about 7,000 words per day. That’s a bunch of words.

The Bible says that “life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Words mean things. They have the power to help and the power to hurt. They have the power to bless and the power to destroy. Left unchecked our words can become flippant or careless. Jesus warned us about this, saying that someday we will give an account for every careless and throw away word we speak (Matthew 12:36).

Last words spoken by a dying person are important. We become attentive to these words for several reasons. First, they are often prophetic. They speak truth to those who are able to receive them. They are also usually profound. They have meaning and significance. They are weighty. We also give attention because final words are often painful. Dying people use great economy of words. There is nothing superfluous or extra. Because final words are painful words, they are birthed as much as they are spoken.

If you’ve ever stood by the bed side of a dying person and had the experience of watching them pass from this life into the next, perhaps you realize that you were standing on holy ground. 2,000 the Scripture reports how a road side landfill outside of Jerusalem became holy ground for six hours one Friday. During those six hours Jesus spoke final words. 54 of them, to be precise, arranged into seven phrases. From what we know about Roman crucifixion, each word spoken would have involved tremendous physical pain. Jesus spoke as he suffered. Those words were not just words. They were and are words to live by.

The first word Jesus spoke from the cross is a word to those in need of forgiveness. Luke 23:32-34 says, Two others, both criminals, were led out to be executed with him (Jesus). When they came to a place called The Skull, they nailed him to the cross. And the criminals were also crucified—one on his right and one on his left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice. (NLT)

To whom are these words of forgiveness addressed? Who is it that does not know what they are doing? Tomorrow I'll post some thoughts about those around the cross that day who heard the words first hand.

Words to Live By from a Dying Man

Here's the new sermon series which launches this weekend at Ashworth Road. This series will offer words of hope uttered from our dying Savior on the cross. The first sermon is titled, A Word for Those Who Need Forgiveness and is taken from Luke 23:34. I hope you'll join us for one of our services. For more information about service times or our location, visit http://www.ashworthroad.com/.

The Super Bowl Ad

For the past week my Outlook inbox and Facebook homepage have been loaded with comments and statements regarding what was described as “the pro-life Tim Tebow Super Bowl ad.” Pressure was being applied to CBS to not air the ad that was produced by Focus on the Family. Support was being garnered the best way people knew how to stand on behalf of this ominous ad with its “strong” pro-life message. So I waited for the ad to air on what would become the all time highest rated television event in history. The ad appeared early in the broadcast, and I must confess my first response was “that’s it!?”



I found the ad to be nothing compared to my expectation. For one, Tim Tebow has never been bashful about displaying his faith, right down to the Bible verses on his game day eye black. Coupling that with the plain spoken, fastball firing Focus on the Family I really thought the message would be direct and blunt. But it wasn’t. The ad was subtle and could even be described as sweet. The ad was designed to gain the viewer’s attention and direct those interested to the Focus on the Family website. Contrary to the accusations, I thought the ad was tasteful, tame, and well done. If you didn’t know the back story of the Tebow family or were not familiar with Focus on the Family, you wouldn’t have had a clue as to what the ad was even about. (The "rest of the story" is available at http://www.focusonthefamily.com/.)

Then the LA Times published an article on Monday, citing the comments from the National Organization for Women President Terry O’Neill. O’Neill accused the ad of glorifying violence against women. She said, “I am blown away at the celebration of the violence against women in it. That’s what comes across to me even more strongly that the anti-abortion message. I myself am a survivor of domestic violence, and I don’t find it charming. I think CBS should be ashamed of itself.”

Seriously?

I wonder what O’Neill and NOW thought about some of the other ads that were televised during the Super Bowl? I wonder what their position was concerning the portrayal of women in the Career Builder.com ad that displayed people walking around in their underwear on casual day? And more than that, where is the outrage against the sexual objectification of women in the Go Daddy.com ads?

Kudows to the Tebow’s for their boldness, and to Focus on the Family for being willing to mix in a change up.

Characteristics of Resolute People

Surveying Abram’s life, one can observe some definite shifts. He was an “average Joe,” in many ways no different than you or I. Those transitions evidence a shift from his good intentions (resolutions) to becoming a person with convictions (resolve) about how life should be lived.
Here are some of the transitions that I’ve identified in his life:

1. From pursuing success to pursuing significance.
2. From creating heirs to leaving a legacy.
3. From trying to trusting.
4. From focus on material things to focusing on spiritual things.
5. From living for time to living for eternity.

As you survey Abram’s life, you’ll see these transitions develop and become internalized. May we take many steps to make those same shifts in 2010!

On Bible Reading

This weekend I finished my five week series titled Living with Resolve with a discussion of how to identify the promises of God that are available to us today. As a part of that message, I spent several minutes describe how best to read the Bible.

While the Bible possesses a lot of great information, it’s best not to read the Bible with the goal of gaining information. I am genuinely thankful for those who know their Bibles “inside and out,” who can share a plethora of facts, dates, and statistics. Bible knowledge is good, but the problem is that knowledge creates pride (1 Corinthians 8:1). Knowledge for the sake of knowledge creates arrogance. And, more times than not, emptiness.

I also have come to the position that it’s best not to read the Bible with the goad of gaining inspiration. On the day of my ordination in 1985, the Chairman of Deacons of the ordaining congregation was charged with the duty of presenting me a Bible. As he held up the black, leather bound, King James Version Scofield Reference Bible, he said, “This is God’s inspiring Word…” I think he meant to say “inspired,” but “inspiring” was an apropos misfire. Is the Bible inspiring? Sure. The Bible is inspiring, but if the only time you read it is for a nugget that will get you through your present crisis, you really have become nothing more than a moral version of an alcoholic or drug addict, looking for a fix to get you through your day.

The purpose of the Bible is to reveal God to us. When you read the Bible, look for God. Of course you’ll gain some wonderful information, and you’ll certainly be inspired on occasion. But neither one of those outcomes should be the goal of your reading. Read the Bible to know God.

Knowing Christ Today by Dallas Willard

Since the days of Jesus, Christians have wrestled with the problem of how to answer questions of faith on the basis on knowledge. Many Christians over the past two millennia have been content to think in two distinct hemispheres: faith and knowledge. With passive resignation believers have left matters of faith to faith and matters of knowledge to science, as though they are completely incompatible and unrelated.

Dallas Willard has written to challenge that assumption.

Right from the start let me confess that Willard is my favorite author. A professor at the University of Southern California’s School of Philosophy, Willard has written powerfully on the subjects of Spiritual Disciplines and the Kingdom of God. My well worn copy of The Divine Conspiracy is my all time favorite, being one of the very few books that I’ve read more than once.

Willard is concerned that people of faith become people of knowledge, and has written Knowing Christ Today: Why We Can Trust Spiritual Knowledge to help believers understand how faith and knowledge relate in a compatible way. The book is not written for those who are looking for quick reads. It’s written with the stated purpose of challenging the Christian reader to become a thinking reader…to use the mind to bolster faith. His premise is that faith is derived from knowledge and in the pages of the book he explains how the two are intertwined. In the introduction, for example, he writes, “Belief cannot reliably govern life and action except in its proper connection with knowledge and with the truth and evidence knowledge involves.” So, instead of reckoning faith and knowledge as opposing forces, Willard demonstrates that knowledge and faith are friends, and that “knowledge is essential to faith and our relationship with God in the spiritual life.”

I think this is possibly the most important book written in the 21st century. Rather than argue that point, let me simply encourage you to read it. Twice.

Proverbs: Wisdom for Life

One of the most practical books in the Bible is the Book of Proverbs. Compiled by King Solomon, Proverbs is a collection of sayings that help the reader apply the truth of God to everyday situations.

For years I’ve read one chapter of Proverbs each day. During my devotional time I read the chapter that corresponds with the day’s date. For example, on February 1, I read Proverbs chapter one. On February 2, I read Proverbs chapter two, and so forth. While I’ve always benefited from my frequent reading of Proverbs, it’s been a difficult book to study. One of the reasons for that is the way the book is structured. In any given chapter of Proverbs the reader will discover several independent truths on a wide variety of themes.

Our Saturday night congregation will do a small group study this spring that I have designed to study the Book of Proverbs thematically. I’ve selected nine reoccurring themes from the book and written a small group curriculum study guide. During the nine sessions we'll discuss topics such as Wisdom, Speech, Anger, Stress, Money, Marriage and Parenting. I’m very excited about the finished product and pray that God will use it to connect us with Him and with one another.

Living with Resolve: The Promises of God (part 3)

The third obstacle that Abram had to overcome was his lack of patience. God gave the promise of a land and a people to Abram when he was 75. God delivered on the promise (Genesis 21:1-5) when Abram was 100. Do the math.

It’s daunting for us to think about Abram waiting 25 years for God to fulfill his promise when we can’t stand in line 10 minutes for a double cheeseburger. God is never early. We must recognize that when God fulfills his promise he always delivers in accordance to his timetable. He’s never late. He’s always on time.

The final obstacle that Abram had to overcome was an incorrect perspective. It’s easy for us to sit back some 6,000 years later and pick Abram’s life to pieces. He did mess some stuff up, for sure. But for all that Abram got wrong, he got this one right. In Genesis 22:1-2, God spoke to Abram and asked him to give the promise back. In reading the story, I’m amazed that Abram responded so readily and willingly.

As I think about Abram’s offering of Issac on the altar atop Mt. Moriah, I am reminded that the promises of God are not given for the gratification of our flesh. This is where I take issue with the health, wealth, and prosperity movement in the western hemisphere. Those purveyor’s of riches boldly announce that God has promises for us that will make us richer, prettier, more successful, happier, thinner, and healthier. They are about the gratification of the flesh. But as I read the Bible I simply don’t see it. The promises of God are about the eternal purposes of God that he wants to accomplish in the world. The promise giver is always greater than the promise itself. In the words of Rick Warren, “it’s not about you.” Somehow, Abram had grown in his relationship with God to the extent that he was able to trust him with the promise itself.

I believe that God still makes promises to his people today. That’s the subject of this weekend’s message. But for now let me say that those promises involve our participation in the accomplishment of God’s eternal purposes in the world. God is about God’s work. We’re invited to join him.

The Vision of His Glory

Tonight my wife Lisa and I will begin team-teaching the Anne Graham Lotz study The Vision of His Glory. This 14 week series focuses on the Book of Revelation.

One of the reasons I'm excited about this video series is the Bible Study method that Graham-Lotz shares with her students. Here's the five steps of Bible study that she teaches in the study guide (pp. 9-11):

Step One: Look into God's Word

Simply read the designated passage of Scripture.

Step Two: What does the passage say?

When you have finished reading the passage, make a verse-by-verse list of the outstanding facts. Don't get caught up in the details, just pinpoint the most obvious facts. Ask yourself, "Who is speaking? What is the subject? Where is it taking place? When did it happen?" As you make your list, do not paraphrase, but use actual words from the passage itself.

Step Three: What does the passage mean?

After reading the passage and listing the facts, look for a lesson to learn from each fact. Ask yourself, "What are the people doing that I should be doing? Is there a command I should obey? Is there a warning to heed? Is there a promise to claim? An example I should follow?" Focus on spiritual lessons.

Step Four: What does the passage mean to me?

The most meaningful step is step 4, but you can't do step 4 until you complete the first three steps. Take the lessons you identified in step 3 and put them in the form of a question you could ask yourself, your spouse, your child, your friend, your neighbor, or your coworker. As you write your questions, listen for God to communicate to you personally through his word.

Step Five: Live in Response.

Pinpoint what God is saying to you from this passage. How will you respond? Write what you will do now about what God has said to you. You might like to date it as a means not only of keeping a spiritual journal, but also of holding yourself accountable to following through in obedience.

This is an excellent strategy. I hope that you can find it useful to you in your daily Bible study.

Book Review: The Missional Renaissance

For some time I’ve appreciated the work of author and speaker Reggie McNeal. He offers clean perspectives on some of the more important themes of congregational health in America. For some time, McNeal has worked for Leadership Network as a consultant. Lead Net has developed a reliable brand, and so its no surprise that I was pleased with McNeal’s book Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church.

It appears that the church growth movement has now given way to the Missional Church. Ever since Darrell Guder’s seminal work, Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America, hit the shelves in 1998, the Missional Church movement has taken the lion’s share of pastor’s attention. McNeal goes so far to call the Missional Church movement the most significant transition in the history of the church since the Reformation.

McNeal’s book does not spend much time defining or explaining the Missional Church. The value of this book is that it answers a very important question. If Missional Church is about the transition of attractional models (i.e. “come to my church,”) to sending models (i.e., "you have been sent out of the church"), what metrics are available to help the church know if it is being faithful? Attractional models have utilized some basic measurements to quantify and verify success. These measurements include membership, average attendance, budgets, and square footage/acreage of the ministry campus. Missional church, though, is wired to send its people into the community. It’s not wired to gather people from the community. How do you keep score on that?!

I found McNeal’s approach toward measuring success refreshing albeit not without some threats to my comfort zone. Part of his challenge is to abandon the former metrics, partly because the former metrics do nothing more than foster the attractional model. McNeal caused me to wonder what would happen if we no longer took attendance. I thought along with him as I read about what it would mean to allocate a minimum of 51% of our weekly receipts to needs that are off property. What if we had to do everything without maintaining a facility? He even dared to suggest that future models of vocational ministry would become “bi-vocational!”

McNeal’s book is important, if for no other reason, because he takes the time to depart from the theory and philosophy about what could be and focuses the reader’s attention on what must be if the church is going to truly be missional. I think there are a lot of people, perhaps myself included, who are interested in the Missional Church but haven’t really put down on paper what that kind of ministry would look like or be. There are radical shifts in ministry style that going Missional will call upon the Church to make. And until we’re willing to make some key departures, we’ll be doing nothing more than putting new labels on the same old stuff. And the Missional Church movement will become nothing more than another fad that will fade into the past.

If you haven’t read it, read it! McNeal does what others haven’t. He rearranges the price tags on the church’s value system.

Living with Resolve: The Promises of God (part 2)

God’s promise to Abram was that He would give him a land and then a people. Abram embraced the promise quickly, but standing on that promise would not come without challenges. He would have to utilize a deep faith in God to overcome several obstacles. Today I’ll post two of them and tomorrow catch the following two.

The first obstacle Abram had to overcome was his personal limitations. One of the first things we learn about Abram and his wife Sarai was that she was “barren” and unable to conceive children (Genesis 11:30). God’s promise to provide Abram more descendents than could be counted was located at the very epicenter of Abram’s impossibility. God’s promises do not come to us at our point of strength. God’s promises come to us at our point of weakness, vulnerability and impossibility.

Why?

So there would be no explanation for his life apart from the intervention of God. When people look at your life what do they see? Do they see your skills? Your knowledge? Your talent? Your sophistication? Your charisma? Or do they see a life that is unexplainable? God’s promises are God-sized. When He intervenes in the lives of his children he leaves clear fingerprints.

The second obstacle Abram had to overcome was his private resources and resourcefulness. As we continue to survey the life of Abram, we read that 10 years pass following the promise. As time passes, Abram begins to grow impatient and devises a plan that would allow him to do God’s will his way and in accordance to his own timetable. In Genesis 15:1-3, Abram suggests to God that he could adopt his slave, Elieazar, and allow him to be the heir of promise. God said “no,” and restated his promise to Abram again. In Genesis 16:1-5, Abram and Sarai concoct another plan. This time Abram would use Hagar to become the surrogate mother of an heir to fulfill the promise. Even though Abram slept with Hagar and conceived Ishmael, God again rejected this substitution, and again reaffirmed his promise.

Sometimes we can grow impatient with God and in our impatience begin looking for substitutes. Every time we do, we settle for something less than God’s best.

My favorite C.S. Lewis quote reminds me that “our problem is not that we are too weak…our problem is that we are too strong.”

What is your weakness? That’s where God is most likely to begin his greatest work. What substitutes for God’s best are you offering to Him?

The promises of God will create a crisis of belief that will have to be overcome by faith. That’s true of Abram. That’s true of you, too.

Living with Resolve: The Promises of God

Have you ever had a person break a promise? Hurts, doesn’t it? I think the thing that hurts the most is the disappointment that comes…not because an obligation went unfulfilled…but because of the violation of trust. When promises are broken, relationships change.

A promise, after all, is only as good as the one who makes it. We trust others to keep their promises. When promises are kept, trust gradually increases. But when promises are broken, trust plummets!

The good news is that God is not fickle. He’s not on and off. He’s always true to complete whatever he begins. He always keeps his promises. He never denies his word. His character and actions are always consistent. He can be completely trusted. Even when his promises run contrary to our experience and understanding.

In Genesis 13:14-18, God gave Abram a promise.

After Lot had gone, the Lord said to Abram, “Look as far as you can see in every direction—north and south, east and west. I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession. And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted! Go and walk through the land in every direction, for I am giving it to you.” So Abram moved his camp to Hebron and settled near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. There he built another altar to the Lord. (Genesis 13:14-18, NLT)

In those verses God promised Abram that he was going to give him a land and then a people. When God makes a promise to his children, like Abram we find that our faith is immediately challenged. In tomorrow’s post I’ll share four obstacles that Abram had to overcome as we continue to look over his shoulder into his life.