Verses

I was reading some verses today and these really stood out to me

• She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. Proverbs 31:25
• God, help me be able to laugh at the days to come instead of worry.
• A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit. Proverbs 15:13
  
• May this be the only reason I smile, the overflow of my happy heart.
• If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:18
• What a free life that would be. I want to live at peace with everyone.

God, thank you for your word. It really is a light to my path.

Bibles Banned at 2008 Olympics

Crazy. Bibles will be banned from the 2008 Olympics. What's next? Will prayer be banned, too?

Last month, Ye Xiaowen acknowledged that he expected large numbers of religious faithful among the athletes, coaches and tourists to be swarming into the officially atheist nation during the Olympics.

They're also banning "any kind of religious symbol" -- not just in the games themselves, but also in the athletic facilities, where the athletes will stay.

I wonder how many Christians will boycott the 2008 Olypics? Or better yet, wouldn't it be great if so many Christian athletes and attendees came to the event wearing their most cliché t-shirts and giant gold cross necklaces and, China-forbid, Bibles, that the whole world took notice and laughed at China?

OK, all kidding aside, I'm not sure what the Christian response to this should be.

Who Should Submit

This is an excerpt from Proverbs 31 Ministries Daily Devotions by Renee Swope, by Wendy Pope.

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Ephesians 5:21 (NIV)

I was driving out of the neighborhood the other day and saw something that broke my heart. A sheriff deputy’s car was parked outside the home of one of my neighbors. Beside the deputy's squad car sat a moving truck. Coming out the front door was the woman of house with an armful of stuff. It didn't take long to figure out what was going on. This was the sight of a broken home.

With this image still heavy on my heart, I later learned that two couples who had been friends with my husband and me early in our marriage had divorced. My mind wondered and my heart cried out, "Lord, what happened? Why does this keep happening?" In the case of my neighbors, I am sad to say that I don't know if they were believers. Our friends were believers and at one time had been very active in the church. Through heartache and prayers I again asked the Lord another question, "How can I keep this from happening in my marriage? What can I do?"

He quickened my spirit to the Book of Ephesians, specifically, chapter five. I had a mental conversation with Him. "Lord, submission? It can't be just up to me." Quickly I felt peace in my spirit as I realized He was talking about verse 21. I have to say I felt relieved once I understood what He was saying. The submission must be to Him. Both the husband and the wife must submit. I daydreamed of what my marriage would be like if both my husband and I fervently submitted to the Lord in every area of our lives. Wow, it gives me tingles just thinking of it.

The purpose of today's devotion is not to debate the pros and cons of submission. Nor is it to discuss the context of chapter 5 in Ephesians. The purpose of the devotion is to make us think. Whether you are married or single this verse applies to you. Submitting to God is not an option. It is God’s prescription for a world of peace. In a world where everyone submitted, God would be heard by all His children and they would willingly and delightfully obey. In such a world families would stay together, murders would cease, and kindness would abound. Wouldn't you like to live in a world like that? It would be heaven on earth!

Dear Lord, Let Your kingdom come. Help me to submit to You as the Lord of my life so that I might reflect the beauty and kindness of who You are. I want to pray for others to do the same, and then this world would be like heaven on earth. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Verses:
Job 22:21, "Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you." (NIV)

Psalm 34:8, "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." (NIV)

Psalm 112:1, "Praise the LORD. Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in his commands." (NIV)

Talk is Cheap

I came across this scripture, and then I realized that the phrase "talk is cheap" came from the bible:

"All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty." Proverbs 14:23

It Came From Within, Chapter 18

How can I teach Mackenzie how to process what life sends her way? How to guard her heart against the inevitable firestorms of life?

So what do we do? Other than do all we can to get our own hearts in shape, what can we do to infuse health into the hearts of our children? For starters we can teach them the importance of confession, forgiveness, and generosity. We can teach them to celebrate the successes of others. We can pray. We can model good habits. We can make sure they are in church. We can look for teachable moments. (pg 203-204)

Also, The questions you ask your children communicate to them what is important to you. The questions you repeatedly ask communicate what is most important to you in life. (pg 205)

Our questions have the power to do two things. First, they can communicate the value we place on the condition of their hearts. But more importantly, our questions can actually help our children know what they sould be watching for. In time, our questions will become the gauge by which our children measure their hearts. (pg 206)

Recommended questions for the weekly bedtime routine with each child. (From pg 207)

• Is everything okay in your heart?
• Are you mad at anybody?
• Did anybody hurt your feelings today?
• Did anybody break a promise to you today?
• Is there anything you need to tell me?
• Are you worried about anything?
• Whose failure would you secretly celebrate?

We should wake up every day of our lives with an eye on the gauges of our hearts. But better yet, imagine a generation of children who grow up attuned not only to what's happening around them but inside of them as well. Imagine your children growing up with an extraordinary sensitivity to the rhythms of their hearts. I don't have to tell you the difference that would make in their lives. You know the difference it would have made for you... As adults, we have been instructed to guard our hearts with all diligence. As parents, we have been given the responsibility to teach our kids to guard theirs. If the heart of your child is important to you, ask your child about what's going on in there. Teach your child to confess, forgive, give generously, and celebrate the successes of others. These are the habits that keep a heart free from painful clutter. There are the habits that will enable your child to develop a healthy adult relationship with you in the future. These are the habits that will change everything. (pg 210)

New Reality Number 5

"The shift from planning to preparation." (pg. 92) We think that we can predict and plan for the future. But our predictions and plans are based on an incremental, steady growth approach. What if our growth isn't incremental?

"God wants his people to pray and to prepare for his intervention." (pg. 93) So how do I prepare? "Spiritual preparation has the goal of getting God's people in partnership with him in his redemptive mission in the world." (pg. 95) The 5 elements of spiritual preparation architecture:

Vision

• informs your decision making
• engenders commitment: "it generates energy, fires up the imagination,a nd inspires excellence." (pg. 97)
• creates meaning
• it is discovered, not invented: "listen to the heart hopes of the people you lead. Ask them what they would like to see God do in their lives and in the lives of the church and in the community. Listen to the leaders. Listen tot he inner core. But also listen to the "fringe", the people who come infrequently (there could be a good reason for their non participation)." (pg. 99)
• look at where you are
• talk with your leaders

Values

• it's more than what people say, it's what they do: "values are demonstrated by behavior." (pg. 102)
• "practice kingdom values may mean adjusting the church calendar to give people more time to participate in community or work place ministries." (pg. 104)

Results

• create a ministry score card, and keep score
• play to win
• celebrate results: reward the right behaviors so you can get the results you are looking for

Strengths

• awareness of individual strengths
• building of the individual strengths
• "get better at what you're already good at." (pg. 111)
• "celebrate their unique strengths and contributions." (pg. 113)

Learnings

• "church leaders must go to "school" all the time." (pg. 117)
• go where life is happening
• get outside the box
• create a learning community of 3 or 4 leaders
• develop a chief learning officer
• secure a learning coach for me. Meet with them at least twice a year. They need to understand my life mission, learning style, and leadership challenges.

"Our mission is to introduce the kingdom into this world, with its preferred future for humanity. The future is the best place to start." (pg. 119)

Psalm 92:4 (NASB)

For You, O LORD, have made me glad by what You have done, I will sing for joy at the works of Your hands.

Psalm 1:1-3

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.

Isaiah 53:5 (NIV)

He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.

Psalm 59:9 (NLT)

You, O God, are my place of safety...

Mark 10:45 (NIV)

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

How do we turn members into missionaries?

Do I really see myself as a missionary? This is what I learned in chapter three of The Present Future:

"North America is the largest English-speaking mission field in the world. It is the fifth or sixth largest mission field on any stripe. If we are not focusing on missiology, we are being disobedient to the the Great Commission." (pg. 51)

Missiology, or mission science, is to distinguish between practices that are essential to Christianity and therefore must be practiced by Christians in all cultures, and other strictly cultural expressions of Christianity that can be changed and adapted to a different culture. (wikipedia)

"Don't plan on taking a vote on whether your church will release members to become missionaries. What you must do is two things: create a culture informed by missiology and create venues where people can practice being missionaries. Creating an informed missiological culture can be done in a number of ways. Here are a few suggestions."(pg. 61)

+ Discuss generational cultures: values, heart language, work preferences.
+ Discuss the emerging culture: have a non-church person come in and explain what people outside the church bubble need and what people think.
+ Explore community needs: demographics, improving your community
+ Expose yourself to a missionary church: pick up ideas, share them, and create venues for missionary service.
+ Build for the community: buy land, or build, for the community.
+ Adopt a school: tutor at the school.
+ Pay it back: help people with job placement, car repairs, furniture distribution, food, financial help, and financial planning.
+ Get out there: local mission projects and community projects, not church activities.
+ Go first: others will follow.

"A missionary church culture will need to begin keeping score on things different from what we measure now. These may include how many ministry initiatives we are establishing in the streets, how many conversations we are having with pre-Christians, how many volunteers we are releasing into local and global mission projects aimed at community transformation, how many congregations are starting to reach different populations, how many congregations use our facilities, how many languages (ethnic and generational) we worship in, how many activities target people who aren't here yet, how many church activities target people who aren't here yet, how many hours per week members spend in ministry where they work, go to school, and get mail.

Until we start making heroes of people who decide to be and act like missionaries, we will fail to turn club members into missionaries. Until we bless people who "go out" from us to reach people who may not come to us, we will continue to have a kingdom vision that is shrink-wrapped to church programs and church real estate. Until we start adopting schools and hosting community food banks and teaching parenting seminars and holding financial planning seminars for the people who come to us for food, we will keep fostering club member mentality...

Who is this for? may be a good way for you to begin your own journey from member to missionary. Think about your life, your money, your time, your talent, and your commitments. Who is this for? Is the answer club members or people who do not yet know Jesus?

God help you to be a missionary. God help you to release missionaries into the world with the gospel." (pg. 67-68)

The Present Future

I am currently reading The Present Future by Reggie McNeal. The book came recommended by Craig Casey and borrowed from Anthony & Amber Sherrell. Wow! What a book! It is very challenging and encouraging. May God give me the Grace I need to really live like a Christian instead of just a Church member.

The first chapter was about Churchianity vs. Christianity... "That's the church's mission: to join God in his redemptive efforts to save the world. People all around us are in darkness. They are going to die unless someone finds a way to save them. Trouble is, the church is sleeping on the job. Too many of us have forgotten why we showed up for work. Even worse, many of us never have known." [pg. 19]

I just finished the second chapter about shifting from Church growth to Kingdom growth. "Bottom line: we've got to take the gospel to the streets. This is the only appropriate missional response to the collapse of the church culture... I am speaking of an intentional 24/7 church presence in the community, not tied to church real estate: office buildings, malls, school campuses, sports complexes, storefronts, homes, apartment buildings, and community centers... We need to go where people are already hanging out and be prepared to have conversations with them about the great love of our lives. They are not coming to us. We've got to go to them." [pg. 42]

I need to truly be and act live a servant. And when people ask why my answer shouldn't be: "oh, I just want to help." My answer should be: "I am a disciple of Jesus. I am serving him by serving you, because that's what he came to do." [pg. 38]

Peter

Since Mac is sick, I've had a lot of time to play around on my laptop. I've spent time cleaning up my email, updating the church website, updating my facebook account, cleaning up my computer desktop, and a little bit of study also. Today I read about Peter. He was a really cool guy in the Bible.

Job

persecuted, an Arabian patriarch who resided in the land of Uz (q.v.). While living in the midst of great prosperity, he was suddenly overwhelmed by a series of sore trials that fell upon him. Amid all his sufferings he maintained his integrity. Once more God visited him with the rich tokens of his goodness and even greater prosperity than he had enjoyed before. He survived the period of trial for one hundred and forty years, and died in a good old age, an example to succeeding generations of integrity (Ezek. 14:14, 20) and of submissive patience under the sorest calamities (James 5:11). His history, so far as it is known, is recorded in his book.

-Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary