Two Reasons Why Church is Amazing

PHOTO: CHRISTIANITY TODAY

"If one person is praying for you, buckle up. Things can happen."― Anne Lamott

There are weeks, even moments within any given day, when nothing else matters except needing to pray and yet feeling like there are no words: Lock-jawed, but a volcano bubbling inside. Like one of those dreams when you want to say something but nothing comes out. You don't need any "wow" factors to get you loving on and leaning hard into God. When the flame is turned up, you're thinking of only one thing even if you are at a momentary loss of words:

Just give me Jesus, in all His manifested power and presence. (Maybe the way it's supposed to be anyway?)

And people.

Wait, people? Yes. Not one without the other, but Jesus and people: Determined-to-follow-come-what-may friends and acquaintances, not just talk about it and nod, but live it out as best we know how people. It all flies in the face of doing this Journey as a solo act (or, at least, "me and Jesus"), even if that can seem very appealing, less complicated, and far less messy.

Maybe...but minus the power. The power of Jesus and, well yes get over it, working in and through ordinary people. It's an incredibly wonderful mystery, this idea of Church that God came up with...

Of doing Life together with great friends and total strangers, with people in your demographic sweet spot and with folks not even remotely close. Of not being confined to steepled or un-steepled buildings on just one day a week. Of agreeing and disagreeing but then agreeing again on Who really matters after all. Of being hurt unintentionally and healed through human hands supernaturally. Of good friends coming, staying for awhile and growing in Christ together, and then some suddenly going out the door for a whole host of reasons―the bittersweet of being family. Of endless desperate needs everywhere, and ready and willing hands quietly answering many of those needs behind the scenes. Of pastors and leaders teaching and loving and leading well, and also quietly carrying other people's burdens and their own, just like the rest of us―but perhaps a degree or two more intense than we can ever imagine.

Through it all, through every single scenario, it is Jesus at the center of it all, but helping people who will choose to follow and obey to do what no team, social club, or military band of brothers could ever do: Bring the Light of that which will never pass away to all the places in our lives that really need some.

It is not the way we would design it, but we mess with it at our own peril. And maybe that's why there are nearly 100 or so "one another" commands and encouragements throughout the New Testament.

The power of Jesus and people. The Church in action beyond a Sunday morning gathering. Things like:
Love one another (mentioned a gazillion times)
Serve one another in love
Carry one another's burdens
Encourage each other
Build each other up
Pray for each other...

About that last beautiful one another/each other...In a moment of sudden fear, worry, and anxiety this week, when it would have been easy to believe the lie that I am all alone in this struggle, I pulled out the "one another" card. So did other loved ones around me. Pray for each other...Pray for this situation... Pray for all of us...Pray for me, even...Pray. Please. Just pray. All you one anothers, even if I don't really know you.

And the Church said yes, and then did so. And all of a sudden, though the prayers were being lifted many miles away, the weight of heaviness mysteriously disappeared and peace rolled in like a progressive high tide. What was that? How does that happen? All I know is that I was reminded once more that when Jesus works through people of every different kind and personality to "pray for each other," unspeakably good things can and do happen. Darkness flees, hope rises, bodies heal, comfort floods sorrow, peace reigns over questions still waiting for answers, and so much more. Just the way He designed it.

It all gives new meaning to the social media posts from Christ-one friends today that will exclaim "Church was amazing!" In a way, no matter how great the gathering, they're/we're only half-right. Because the power of Jesus and people, beyond any given Sunday morning gathering, will make you want to forever change "was" to "is." 

"To You, Lord, I give my whole heart, a heart filled with praise, for I am grateful;

Before the gods, my heart sings praises to You and You alone.

I bow before You, looking to Your holy temple,

And praise Your name, for Your unfailing love and Your truth;

For You have placed Your name and Your word over all things and all times.

On the day I needed You, I called, and You responded and infused my soul with strength."

(Psalm 138:1-3, The Voice)

At a Loss for Words...Except One

PHOTO: MARCIN KESEK

"Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God." (Psalm 90:2)

Lord, who can even begin to fathom that? 

But if that wasn't enough, the first words of the Old Testament and the first words in one of the New Testament Gospels, say this about You:

"In the beginning, GOD...

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was GOD."

“Beginning.” Clearly, that suggests that there must have been a starting point for all of this, and for You to be You.

Inquiring minds, confined by time and space, want to know. 

Instead, in the words of AW Tozer, there has never been a starting point of who You are, nor an ending point of who You will always be, rather:

“From the beginningless past to the endless future, Thou art God.”

Lord, seriously, who can fathom this?

There are no words.

Wait. There is one….

With Your help, it's time to reclaim one in particular that has always been meant to uniquely describe You, Your nature, Your works and deeds—past, present, and future.
Your Love. 
Your faithfulness, patience, and amazingly amazing grace.

But it’s a word that's been stolen, tarnished, and dumbed down.

It’s been wickedly hijacked into everyday texts, tweets, and hallway greetings.

Including mine. 

The generic description for anything "wow!", ranging from a warm, breezy, sunny day to another "are-you-kidding-me?" Tom Brady touchdown pass must be returned to its rightful place.

At least in my own vocabulary.

Setting “awesome” free is not going to be easy, especially for a New Englander.

But it must be done. 

Especially in light of this:

“I AM the Eternal One. I AM is My name. My beauty is unique, a weighty splendor all My own. And nothing else—no idols could possibly gain my praise.”—Isaiah 42:8, The Voice

"Living becomes an awesome business when you realize that you spend every moment of your life in the sight and company of an omniscient, omnipresent Creator."—J.I. Packer

[ADAPTED FROM 6-28-15]

A Country Church Revelation

"Perseverance is the great test of genuineness in the Christian life."—John Piper

On a cool late spring evening in 2004, I was with a group that had gathered at a small, white-steepled church to hear a couple speak on their sense of God's move in New England. I was very curious, because these folks, as we say around here, were from "away," yet humbly felt they were supposed to come here to stir some Kingdom-first embers among people who were tired but endlessly hungry for the satisfaction that can only be found in God, a remnant that had perhaps wanted to give up but who remained ever-hopeful, who had taken Jesus' opening words from Luke 18 to heart but were still waiting, waiting, waiting....

"One day Jesus told his disciples a story to illustrate their need for constant prayer and to show them that they must keep praying until the answer comes."

To this day, I still remember some unusual things about that night: where I was standing, the way the evening light was coming through the large, drafty windows, the palpable eagerness in the room. No one was leading worship. Instead, a CD played quietly in the background as people prayed or worshiped as the Lord led them. Then in the middle of it all, something a bit startling but beautiful: a woman stood and sang a prophetic song in an unknown tongue. I remember it being simple, gorgeous, and resounding in the old sanctuary. Unfortunately, there was no one who had an interpretation (or, if there was one, no one spoke up, so I'm not about to say the song was "out of order").

But something just seemed....right.

There's no Biblical precedent that I know of for this, but what follows is what came to pen and paper the next morning when I asked the Lord, after the fact, "So, what was that lady saying that You are saying? I want to know!"  Maybe the words that flowed are what can happen when a man or woman takes God at His word: "You will seek me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13). And maybe that's nuts. Maybe...but perhaps only if what is downloaded doesn't align with something God has already said at least once between Genesis 1 and Revelation 22. And the download was this:

"Behold, I make all things new. I stand at the door and knock, but who will long for My appearing in this hour? For I am coming soon. Do not faint or grow weary, for I will uphold you with My righteous right hand if you will seek Me with all of your heart. My ways are just and true, and I am faithful to you and My Word. Faint not. Hold on. Forsake all others and seek Me. The time has come for new things, but I will not force My way in. I knock. I long for you. Will you listen? Will you open the door of your heart for Me? What truly matters? This is the day. This is the time. Hold on to what is True, because I long for you." 

As I read it over again this week, nearly 13 years later, it seemed to be just as fresh and relevant as the night it was sung—an insistent clarion call to listen up and pay attention. Especially, in light of reading theses verses a few days after running a 5K last week:

"...you have limited strength, yet you have obeyed My Word and not denied My Name...you have obeyed My instructions to endure and be patient...one who conquers through faithfulness...I will plant that person as a pillar in the temple of My God, and that person will never have to leave the presence of God." (Revelation 3:8-12, selected, The Voice)

And then, just like 13 years ago, putting to pen and paper what seemed to be an interpretation...

"When the going gets tough, globally or in the backyard of your own little world, hold on to these key words that Jesus modeled and passes along even now: Obey, love, keep going, stay faithful. Remember that 5K and refusing to walk or quit but enduring to the finish line because other people were doing the same and others were cheering you on. Remember the 'runner's high' of crossing the finishing line well. You wanted to stay in that moment but you had to get out of the way. And besides, it was over. Not so with the Race that truly matters. What an incredible finish line it will be in the Kingdom race of perseverance. You have no idea. In fact, it's not a finish at all but the beginning of eternity forever in My incomparable presence."

For all who come by here today and are weary, thinking of quitting this race or perhaps exploring a different route...selah.

"I may be weak, but Your Spirit's strong in me. My flesh may fail, but my God, You never will."(from "Give Me Faith," Elevation Worship)

Reading the Goodness Everywhere

"Then God surveyed everything He had made, savoring its beauty and appreciating its goodness."—Genesis 1:31, Voice

Living in a small town means you get some privileges you don't get by living elsewhere. Like being able to stand in the middle of Main Street hill on a Saturday morning to take a photo and not get run over...because there were no cars in sight to do the dirty deed. Decades of walks down that hill (on the safer sidewalk) inevitably trigger flashbacks to numerous mostly-wonderful moments, most of them from being a kid in a great public school further up the hill. So much of that goodness happened after the last bell, when several hundred like-minded caged animals were let loose at once into the great outdoors.

Some of us walked home down that hill. Some of us walked with friends to go play in their yard until dark. In later years, a lot of us walked down Main Street for Friday night dances at the Town House following a home basketball game. And in both grade and high school, a lot of us wound up at the library at the bottom of the hill, to study, to bone up on the skill of whispering, and to participate in "story hour."

Through that experience, many of us grew to like or at least appreciate books, and great stories, and exciting adventures told in carefully crafted print. The library experience was even a trigger to make the most of a scary experience, like hiding under the covers with a flashlight during a wicked thunderstorm at night, and reading a book that was a bit sunnier in its content. In time, those walks to the library also proved pivotal for a journalism career, where wise men and women kept saying, "if you want to be a good writer, read good writers." 

But the library never tried to make me become a recluse book worm. And even if it had tried, it would have failed. Because along with many of my friends, whether we were in fourth grade or high school sophomores, we'd much rather be outside, away from the confinement of classrooms and hallways and lunchrooms...and later, the office. Or, as it says in one of our small town stores: "Better to be lost in the woods than in a maze of cubicles. Let's get outside."

It is good to know that you can find God, or more accurately, a rich reflection of Him, in both settings. A twist of a phrase, or just a sentence or two from a book of hundreds of pages can help magnify some aspect of God's awesomeness that you've been unable to express. You write it down, and carry it with you on the inside for days to come. It stirs your faith and encourages your next step in the Journey. But then there is also this, penned by St. Augustine some 300 years after the birth of Christ but resounding with clarity even now...

"Some people, in order to discover God, read books. But there is a great book: the very appearance of created things. Look above you! Look below you! Note it. Read it. God, whom you want to discover, never wrote that book with ink. Instead He set before your eyes the things that He had made. Can you ask for a louder voice than that? Why, heaven and earth shout to you: 'God made me!'"

Those childhood memories have proven prophetic. When you get outdoors, you get the best of both worlds: you get to "read," in all that you see around you, some greater glimpse of the goodness of God. Let the list begin and never end: God, You are....

Beautiful

Huge

Magnificent

Always active with every breeze

My rest and stillness seen in every starlit night

One who is supremely attentive to every detail of every created thing

Provider of all I need

The true Promise of hope and resurrection seen in each spring

The One source of new and abundant life seen in each summer

Lover of each unique thing (and person) You have made, seen in the endless colors of fall

Present and good, 24/7, even through every winter season of my life

And perhaps especially this reassurance amidst the battles...

"Why, heaven and earth shout to you:

'God made you beautiful, too, and announced the day you were born, 'It is good...I have loved you with an everlasting love.'"

"So I will sing of all You've done

I'll remember how far You've carried me

From beginning until the end

You are faithful, faithful to the end."

(from "Faithful to the End," Bethel Music)

When a Flannelgraph Comes To Life

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him. It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him.”—Daniel 2:20, 22, The Voice

Long before I saw that Light, there was something about the life of Daniel that grabbed my attention. Maybe it was the mesmerizing Sunday School flannelgraph story (when many others seemed boring) of a young man who somehow managed to go untouched after being thrown in a lion’s den. “Woah, who does that?!” Maybe it was all-state chorus in high school, when two out of a dozen or so songs pertaining to Daniel stuck to my ribs—both of them spirituals, including one about his closest companions made famous by Louis Armstrong: “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.” In fact, Daniel’s legendary bravery and awesomeness were inspirations for naming our son after him. 

Somehow, many years after that day I saw the Light, Daniel remained pretty much stuck on a flannelgraph—a childhood hero of coolness. The pages of his Old Testament story were white and crisp. Until one day, someone suggested we start the year off by embarking on what is known as a “Daniel Fast,” which if you like to eat meat and pizza and ice cream is not the definition of coolness at all. The purpose was simply to follow Daniel’s example and detox of unhealthy things in body, mind, and heart, and use the time to draw closer to God rather than your dinner plate or any other rival affection.

From “Woah, who does that?!” was added “Who is this guy?” Inquiring minds needed to know, and to my joy and surprise, those clean, crisp Old Testament pages of Daniel’s story soon became a practical roadmap for this Walk more than 2,500 years later.  No longer just a flannelgraph hero, Daniel began to offer up all sorts of power bar nuggets for living (and you will, no doubt, find more than these) that can be carried along every step of the Journey...

“For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.” (Romans 15:4, Amplified)

1. Stay the good course of the narrow road. Above all else in his life story, Daniel was uncompromising in His love for God. He refused to pursue (ingest, if you will) the things the world says really matter. Instead, because you're His kid now, kingdom priorities matter, and here is one who has triumphantly gone before you as proof.
2. Live out loud beyond Sunday. Daniel didn’t only fast on veggies and fruit as a sign of his uncompromising devotion to God, but his whole lifestyle was fasted: his attitude, his integrity, his devotion and spiritual disciplines in the routine and stresses of each day were cultivated to be set apart for God. Sunday morning worship is great, but remember to use it as a relaunching pad for the next six.
3. Be relational, not religious. Daniel had an attractive regular rhythm of prayer and worship that seemed to be more like breathing in and breathing out rather than some type of churchy exercise. It was fire to his bones, especially when the going got tough. So, wherever you are, keep the Divine conversation flowing.
4. Be wise about who you run with. Daniel ran with likeminded uncompromising companions: the aforementioned Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And his lifestyle was noted by friend and foe alike as one marked by trustworthiness, honesty, and reliability. These are the kind of words you want etched on your headstone.
5. Keep pointing Up, and building up others. Daniel walked out life in humility—he was a team player and not a glory-seeker. He lived in, and led others with, integrity. And he gave God alone—not his own wits or abilities—all the glory, all the time. If there were more of this, our culture wouldn't be in such a mess. But it always begins with one.
6. Cultivate leaving it all, big and small, in God’s hands. A no-brainer that needs frequent revisiting, and when the temptation to whine is strong, it’s good to be able to look at Daniel’s example of trusting God no matter what and no matter how bleak the circumstance. He was obedient to God regardless of cultural pressures, and what was really outrageous is that he practiced interceding for others—including those who were not very God-like at all, so that God would be glorified in and through them regardless.

“Woah, who does that?” and “Who is this guy?”

The answer can be found by looking in the mirror. Because like us, Daniel was far from perfect, but his story cheers us on by example that we, too, can not only see the Light and say we love God, but we can actually and regularly live out what we say we believe:

“And you, beloved, are the light of the world. A city built on a hilltop cannot be hidden. Similarly it would be silly to light a lamp and then hide it under a bowl. When someone lights a lamp, she puts it on a table or a desk or a chair, and the light illumines the entire house.You are like that illuminating light. Let your light shine everywhere you go, that you may illumine creation, so men and women everywhere may see your good actions, may see creation at its fullest, may see your devotion to Me, and may turn and praise your Father in heaven because of it.” (Matthew 5:14-16, The Voice)

“There is a difference between what we believe and what we think we believe. You can determine what you actually believe and what you think you believe by observing what you do.”—Tyler Johnson

I Will....Will I?

"I will look up for there is none above You; I will bow down to tell You that I need You...I will look back and see that You are faithful; I look ahead believing You are able..."—Elevation Worship

“I will” is perhaps the highest, most radical form of praise because its foundation is nothing more than faith in knowing what and Who you've come to believe is true. It is a head-on collision with all the negative events, conversations, and situations that work overtime to scream doubt and fear in your ear. 

“I will” praise doesn’t merely mouth words of a song and call it a day—it chooses to grab on to the fact that just as God has proven Himself faithful and loving time and time again, He is just as active and faithful right now, even in the midst of a day, a week, a season in which you really want to “press delete and restart.”

It's good to know that even though the spring pollen has showered a blanket of sleepiness, "I will" praise is still effective when quietly internalized. But it is most potent, and only God knows why, when verbalized—whether with a bunch of other people this morning in church, or alone at the kitchen table waiting for the java to kick in, or cruising down the road with all windows down. Something mysteriously freeing, faith-building, healing, and even contagious happens when we choose to look up, trust, and praise the One whose love for us knows no bounds—or "bad" days.

For all who come this way today, let the praises ring...

"My heart is committed, O God: I will sing

I will sing praises with great affection

And pledge my whole soul to the singing.

Wake up the harp and lyre, and strum the strings;

I will stir the sleepy dawn from slumber!

I will stand and offer You my thanks, Eternal One,

in the presence of others;

I will sing of Your greatness among the nations,

no matter where I am

For Your amazing love soars overhead far into the heavens;

Your truth rises up to the clouds where passing light bends.

O God, that You would be lifted up above the heavens in the hearts of Your people

Until the whole world knows Your glory."

—Psalm 108:1-5, The Voice

[ADAPTED FROM  3-2-14]

A Royal Piece of Work

[photo: izismile.com]

"See what an incredible quality of love the Father has shown to us, that we would be permitted to be named and called and counted the children of God! And so we are!"
(1 John 3:1, Amplified)

Sometimes, quite often really, you have to remind yourself that the moment you said "I believe!" and stepped into that beautiful, never-ending Kingdom, you became Royal family; and because of that, you will always have a place at the greatest banqueting table of them all.

Always. No matter what kind of day, week, or past 30 minutes it's been, now that you are His and He is yours, God won't love you and me any more or any less according to our performance to try to earn that seat at His table. Or His lap. Or His grip. Because just as we were saved by God's grace alone, and not by anything we could ever do, or think of, or scheme to earn it, so it is with our mind-blowing identity as an adopted son or daughter of the King of the universe. 

God set this truth in place before anyone thought it was a good idea: Family love can't be earned. It just is. 

Most sunny days, we get that. But a rainy Sunday morning in New England during what has been a rather gray first month of spring is a reminder that it doesn't take much to cloud moods and dampen perspective on all sorts of things, including that Divine brain pretzel of being adopted into Royalty. Performance, after all, is a persistent bugger. It tries really hard to win at playing king of the hill. Its voice is loud because we are born into a culture that celebrates working hard to earn something, to perform in some way to get the approval of bosses, peers, friends, and family. It can begin with the subtlety of the message of a childhood prayer: "...God bless mommy and daddy, and help me to be a good boy. Amen." Even at a wee age, the reinforcing idea is do the right things, and mom and dad—and God—will approve of you...and if you don't, all bets are off.

For such a good, commendable, desired habit and character trait that works perfectly well in just about every single area of life, it's little wonder that many who have been adopted into Royalty continually wrestle with the thought that when it comes to the Father's love, none of that performance stuff works. It's not a maturity weakness as much as it is the reality of that brain pretzel causing frequent Truth disconnects en route to the heart.

Perhaps not coincidentally, the most frequently sung worship song around the world today is this:

"You're a good, good Father; it's who You are... 

And I'm loved by You, it's who I am...

Love so undeniable I can hardly speak;

Peace so unexplainable, I can hardly think; 

As You call me deeper still into Love..."

These are soul-stirring lyrics that resonate across cultures and generations because they are birthed in and reinforce the reality of some pretty amazing words from long ago. The performance battle, it seems, is timeless:

"For it is by grace [God’s remarkable compassion and favor drawing you to Christ] that you have been saved [actually delivered from judgment and given eternal life] through faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [not through your own effort], but it is the [undeserved, gracious] gift of God; not as a result of [your] works [nor your attempts to keep the Law], so that no one will [be able to] boast or take credit in any way [for his salvation]. For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us]."

—Ephesians 2:8-10, Amplified

Rainy Sunday or sunny Wednesday, none of us can read, hear, and swallow that truth enough, or be reminded enough that the only definition of "performance" that matters is learning to follow in my Father's footsteps. It's even a cool thing to say, 'I am a piece of work'—not just to bless me and my own little world either, but....as heaven's poetry etched on lives created in Jesus, to accomplish the good works God arranged long ago.

For all who come this way, so be it, Lord.

"The great thing is to be found at one's post as a child of God, living each day as though it were our last, but planning as though the world might last a hundred years." (C.S. Lewis)