Persecuted

Last week I had the privilege of being at the Right Now conference in Dallas Texas.  In a question and answer session with Francis Chan, Francis was speaking about his recent experience in India.  When asked what the Church of India thought about the American Church he simply replied, they don't understand it.

He said, they couldn't understand why people would leave their church.  Why would a believer leave their church because they did not like they way their pastor preached?  Why would a follower of Jesus leave their church because they did not like the music?  Why would one leave their church because the children's ministry was not exactly to their liking?  You see for those that follow Jesus in a place like India, they put their very lives at risk to follow Him.  Faith is not something they claim with their lips but rather something they risk their lives for.

This Sunday is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.  This Sunday as we head off to church with not a care in the world many thousands around the world are putting their lives in danger doing the same thing.

May this video produced by K.P. Yohannan, the founder and international director for Gospel for Asia move you like it did me.  May it remind us to not only pray for the 40,000 people that are put to death for surrendering their lives to Jesus, but also help us consider our own journey with Jesus.  May it cause us to fully surrender to the One that did likewise for us.

Just Do It

Nike got it right. Don't just talk about. Don't just dream about it. Just do it!

Jesus also has it right. "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Matthew 16:24.

James certainly nailed it. "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." James 1:22

Why do we get it so goofed up? Why do we tend to dismiss the words of Christ, by merely discussing them, debating them, and even memorizing them? Instead let's just do them!

I appreciate Francis Chan's admonition.



Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:6

HT to Adam McLane for the video.

Like Jesus

I have been thinking a lot lately about what it really means, and what it really looks like, to be a follower of Jesus. Is it going to church? Is it having a quiet time every day? Is it praying a certain amount of time each day? Is it tithing to your church? Is it living in America? What is it?

I hear a lot about how America is a Christian nation, or at least used to be. I have to ask ... Really? What makes us such? Is it because our money says, "In God we trust?" I tire of the forwards I receive in my inbox bemoaning the fact/rumor that our government wants to remove that phrase from our money. Does it really matter? Is it that important that our money contains that phrase, or are we merely paying lip service to God with it, because we really don't fully trust Him and live as Him?

1 John 2:16 gives us that answer. "Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." May we as the Church not just admire Jesus from afar, or like Him for who He was, or pay lip service to Him, but may we truly walk as Jesus did.

Francis Chan said it well. Check this out ...



May we not just like Jesus but rather may we walk like Jesus.

Safety First?

How safe do you play it? Do you live life to the fullest or do you play it safe? Conventional wisdom says to play it safe. It tells us to get a good job, save lots of money, and retire comfortably. Is that really the life God invites us into?

These are questions I have wrestled with over the years. Which is more responsible, to store away so that I can eventually enjoy a comfortable retirement and hopefully leave something behind for my kids, or to live a life of faith and trust? A life that gives more than it saves. A life that is more concerned about the life to come than this present one.

In my current pursuit of what God has next for my family and me, I wrestle with these thoughts. Do I hold out for the "perfect job" that promises to provide all the things on our list of desires, or do I walk through the doors God is opening before us to serve Him right here, right now? The "perfect job" may or may not come. The one thing I am certain of, is the one who is perfect, promises to meet us where we are, and to provide for our every need. What He desires of us is faithfulness (Matthew 6:25-33).

God does not call us into a life of safety. He calls us into a radical lifestyle of trust and faith. It's not always a safe life, but it's an exciting life, and one that culminates in hearing the words, "Well done good and faithful servant." (Matthew 25:21). It is those very words that I hope to hear someday.

I hope this Francis Chan video challenges you as it does me.

Satisfied with Christ

How satisfied with Christ are you? We live in a culture that tells us the end goal in life is the accumulation of stuff. We live in a relentless pursuit of more; more money, more things, more friends, more pleasure, and the list goes on.

I was challenged recently with a John Piper quote I came across while reading Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love. In asking, how in love with Christ are we, he shared the following quote.

The critical question for our generation - and for every generation - is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?

When we are in love, everything in life changes. It changes the way we view our stuff, our relationships, and our priorities.

May we love Christ in a way that causes everything else in life to pale in comparison to knowing and loving Him.

The Love of God

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 is arguably the most well known verse of scripture. One would be hard pressed to find someone unfamiliar with it. In all our familiarity with it, I wonder, how often do we just sit and marvel at it's truth.

Take a moment and watch this video of Francis Chan sharing "The Awe Factor of God."



To be loved by such an awesome, big, and powerful God is simply incredible to me! May we remain in awe of His awesome love for us. May we love Him in return, in a manner that He deserves

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:17-19.

Crazy About You

Just came across this amazing video done by Francis Chan for his Just Stop and Think site.

If you can spare 15 minutes please watch this beautifully shot video. It will make you thankful for life. It will make you thankful for the God that loves you and gave you this life to enjoy.

"The God of the universe is crazy about you and screaming out for your attention!"

Beg God

I have been reminded so many times recently of the fact that it is God and God alone that causes a person to fall in love with Him. As a pastor to students I often find myself in frustration because I can't make my students love God. As much as I teach, disciple, and lead, toward that end, it is God, and not I, who calls them, and moves in their hearts to pursue Him.

At the National Youth Workers Convention this last October Francis Chan called us to beg God for the hearts of our students. He reminded us that we can not change their hearts, only God can.

I recently came across this poem on Michael Ferber's blog. It says it well.

No, it is not yours to open buds into blossom.
Shake the bud, strike, it is beyond your power to make it blossom.
Your touch soils it.
You tear its petals to pieces and strew them in the dust,
But no colors appear and no perfume.
Oh, it is not for you to open the bud into blossom.
He who can open the bud does it so simply.
He gives it a glance and the life sap stirs through its veins.
At his breath the flower spreads its wings and flutters in the wind.
Colors flash out like heart longing, the perfume betrays a sweet secret.
He who can open the bud does it so sweetly

NYWC Day 2

This morning in the first General Session Francis Chan spoke about modeling our lives and ministry after Jesus. He asked some great questions. What would the church look like if we took what Jesus said literally? What would our church look like if we said the things Jesus said? The conclusion...much different.

He made a comment that I can't stop thinking about. I'd love your thoughts on it.

He said, "If Jesus had a church in my town, I bet mine would be bigger." I agree. Do you? Jesus said some very radical things. Jesus calls us into a very radical life; a life that the American Church struggles to live.

What are your thoughts?