something greater

jesus walked up to men and said, follow me, and i will make you… they dropped what they were doing and immediately followed him.   jesus met a woman at a well and said, follow me, and you will never thirst again… she tossed her bucket down and ran to get her friends.

we were all wired with a hunger for something way bigger than ourselves.  i want to be the kind of leader that offers something bigger to anyone that is willing/called to follow.  i recently realized that God has brought together an incredibly gifted bunch of leaders to the summit.  a month ago we met at our advance and God supernaturally united us and brought incredible encouragement to all of us.  i believe the reason God united us was for a purpose - to do something that will outlast us - to make a difference for eternity. 

proverbs 29:18 says, “if people can’t see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; but when they attend to what he reveals, they are most blessed.”  i think the biggest issue at the summit is that we fail to see what God is doing with us and don’t comprehend the overall significance of our individual contributions.  my prayer is that we would remember that what we do will have eternal results.  this past sunday, 5 people gave their lives to Christ.  this was a direct result of all of our individual contributions that helped to create the atmosphere where the Holy Spirit could change lives.  

Jesus often conveyed to his followers the significance of what they were doing.  he spoke time and time again about purpose, calling, talents, hard work and the long-lasting benefits of them giving their lives for something greater than themselves.  i think he had to constantly remind them, because they forgot.  

for me it is crystal clear - God desires to use the summit to decrease the lostness at UCI, in irvine, and in orange county.  his will is that every man, woman and child would have repeated opportunities to hear the good news in a relevant and meaningful way.  i pray that God gives every person at the summit a vision of something greater than themselves.  i pray you fully understand how important your individual contribution is to your local church and to God’s kingdom.  live for something way bigger than you!

oneness

God is one (Father, Son, Spirit) - he is fully united and exists in perfect harmony.  there is not any division or strife or friction in the trinity.  Jesus said in mark 12:29, “listen, the Lord your God is one…”  his will has always been that we would experience life as he does - to live as one together.  Jesus prayed hours before the cross that God would make us one (see john 17).  His prayer still echoes and in my opinion has only partially been answered.  when will we fully unite with each other and experience the oneness that Jesus prayed for?  why does the enemy fight non-stop against us uniting and becoming one?  

remember the tower of babel?  genesis 11:5-6, “but the Lord came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building.  look!  he said.  the people are united, and they all speak the same language. after this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!”  we know that God came down to confuse the languages and mercifully dealt with prideful men that had set themselves up against Him.  but the point i want to make is this - when people unite and all have the same vision and start speaking the same words of faith - nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!  seriously think about this.  God said that when we unite, become one and all start believing, working and building together that we can do the impossible.  the enemy knows this! no wonder his mission is to divide us and attempt to fill our relationships and churches with contention and disagreement.

this is why unity is so incredibly important and why we need for “oneness”.  two years ago, when mary and i launched the summit, we agreed that we would stay current with each other and with others.  what i mean by this… is that… we would not allow anything to just get swept under the rug and we would deal with issues, disappointments, challenges and problems right away.   

after last weeks summit leaders advance - i sense that God is making our leadership team and our church one (and i wholeheartedly believe that nothing is impossible for us.  i’m so excited about the future and can’t wait to see what happens next.  i’m convinced that God will (at least) double the summit by the end of the year.  we are called to reach outsiders and help others get closer to God.  together we can accomplish this… but remember… it’s all starts with oneness.  so lets continue to unite, fully become one, and attempt the impossible!  may God use you to answer Jesus’ prayer - may God use you to bring a spirit of unity to those you are called to do life and ministry with.

i expect God to unite everyone at the summit so we fully experience acts 2:42-47:

they committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! and all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. they sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met and they followed a daily discipline of worship in the temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. people in general liked what they saw. every day their number grew as God added those who were saved.

09′ leaders advance

this past weekend we had our first summit leaders advance in dana point, ca - and it was incredible!  we had six other couples join us and the plan was to build relationships, strategize together, cast vision and pray.  i had all these big plans to inspire the team, challenge them to step it up and do their part to help our church go to the next level.  but God had other plans!

mary and i thought it would be a good idea to take the first 30 minutes and go around the room and have everyone share what they appreciate about everyone else (the basic “circle of love” team building exercise). so we picked the first person and began.  what happened next was unlike anything i have ever personally been a part of.  the Holy Spirit orchestrated 3 hours of uniting our hearts and we all experienced an uncommon outpouring of encouragement.  as a direct result of this diving encounter I have fresh strength, renewed joy and a greater expectation that God is going to use us to reach people and touch lives like never before.  

“Christ makes us one body… connected to each other.”  Romans 12:5 (GWT)  only God can unite a leadership team and make them one.  our job is to focus on what we have in common, not our differences. we need to choose to encourage one other and purpose to never criticize.  we have to stay current with each other and practice God’s methods for conflict resolution.  God uses us to encourage one another and give each other strength.

i feel so connected to each of our leaders now.  i’m so thankful that God showed up this weekend and messed up my agenda.  i can’t wait for the next summit leaders advance.  i pray God unites you in a supernatural way to the people he has called you to do life and leadership with.  start today by speaking words of encouragement (in person, e-mail or a note) to someone in your sphere.

3 themes

in luke chapter 15, Jesus delivers back-to-back-to-back parables.  the parables are triggered by the accusations and negativity by a few religious leaders that hated Jesus.  at the end of the chapter, Jesus masterfully identifies all of them as the “older brother” and deals with their hardness of heart and pride.

what amazes me about this chapter is that Jesus gives us three themes that reveal the unfailing love of God towards outsiders.  the themes are incredibly easy to identify as you read through the short stories Jesus shares.  in parable number one there is a shepherd that leaves his flock to go after one stray that had drifted off and had been lost.  in parable two, Jesus shares about a woman who frantically searches for a very valuable coin she had lost.  in parable three, Jesus shares about a father that paces on his porch waiting for his youngest son to come home from a distant country where he had made a series of extremely bad decisions and had failed miserably. 

the stories are about three different things:  a lost sheep, a misplaced coin and a runaway son.  but the stories all deal with the exact same themes:  1.  something of value was missing   2.  it warranted an all out search  3.  when it was found, there was a huge party thrown to celebrate finding it. in v10, Jesus says that the angels of heaven all rejoice when one lost person is found.  

in luke 19:10 Jesus said, “I have come to seek and save the lost.”  after Jesus finished his mission on earth, he told his followers that it was now up to them to search and rescue the lost.  no doubt this is a daunting task, it’s overwhelming and terrifying!  

eternity is on the line - it’s up to you and me to find the valuable things that have been lost.  who have you found lately?  are you even searching?  i pray these three themes are forever stamped on our hearts.   

fresh start

one of the things i love about God is that everyday He provides a fresh start to anyone that needs one or wants one.  truth be told, i have to take God up on his offer several times a week.  every 24 hours God makes it clear that we can tap into His mercy and be released from any mistakes we have made.

“Once God has forgiven you, he doesn’t keep track of your sins. What great news! Your slate is clean. You are greeted daily with God’s mercies.”  Lamentations 3:23 (MSG)

i recently talked to a friend that had to declare bankruptcy.  he shared with me that he was bummed to find out that this will stay on his credit for at least seven years.  it made me think… thank God that he does not keep a record of wrongs against us - he doesn’t hold our mistakes, failures and sins against us.  

“I know their pain and will make them good as new. They’ll get a fresh start, as if nothing had ever happened. And why? Because I am their very own God, I’ll do what needs to be done for them.”  Zechariah 10:6 (MSG)  When God extends a fresh start to us, it is with no strings attached.  God forgives us instantly, he forgives us completely, and he forgives us permanently.  

You might be thinking… if God offers me a redo every 24 hours, then i can just do whatever i want. remember paul warned us not to purposely blow it - just because we know God’s grace is available. a fresh start is not a license to take God for granted.   take the fresh start you need, but be extremely thankful and appreciate the price that was paid for God to make us this most generous offer.

“God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before him. When I got my act together, he gave me a fresh start. Now I’m alert to God’s ways; I don’t take God for granted. Every day I review the ways he works; I try not to miss a trick. I feel put back together, and I’m watching my step. God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.”  Psalm 18:20-24 (MSG)

i pray you experience the mercy of God as he grants you a fresh start today!  Tap into his mercy and be grateful that he gives us what we need, not what we deserve.

grieve

i came across something today that was shocking.  a verse that i had read hundreds of times (i know that makes me sound really spiritual), but never really understood the full meaning of it.  the verse is ephesians 4:30 (NLT) - “Do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live.”  the message translation says, “don’t grieve God, don’t break his heart.  his Holy Spirit moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself.  don’t take such a gift for granted.”  ok, here is why i was shocked…  i looked up the greek word for “grieve” and found that it was ‘lupete’ (loo-petee). It means pain a husband or a wife feels who’s just discovered that the love of their life has been unfaithful to them. That’s got to be a very serious kind of pain (a pain that i pray i never have to feel in my marriage).  the hurt experienced when your heart is shattered by someone you trusted and loved with all your heart.  

think back on a situation where someone you love betrayed you or was unfaithful to you.  this verse is a harsh reminder that every time we rebel and sin against God - it grieves him.  when we pull a “lupete” - God is deeply wounded.  paul was not sharing this as a suggestion.  paul was commanding Christians to stop sinning, to quit living for themselves and to purpose not to hurt God with their dark thoughts, wrong attitudes and sinful behavior.

the best thing that we could do this year is to focus our energy on pleasing God, obeying him and living the way we know he wants us to live.  paul encourages us in hebrews 12:1 (cev), “we must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially the sin that just won’t let go.  and we must be determined to run the race that is ahead of us.”  

i pray right now wherever you are - you would take a minute to let go of anything that you know has grieved God.  maybe you feel like God is distant or that he is not paying attention to you.  i’ve found in my life that it is usually because of sin that is hindering my relationship with him (aka grieving the Holy Spirit).  isaiah 59:2 (cev) says, “your sins are the roadblock between you and your God.  that’s why he doesn’t answer your prayers or let you see his face.”

jesus said, “if you love me, then you will obey me”.  prove your love to God by living obediently and free from stubborn sins.  in 2009, determine to bring pleasure, not pain, to God.  

regrets

2008 was a horrific year.  it seems like everybody i’ve talked to lately has regrets.  they play the “if only” game - if only i had not done that, if only i would have not bought that new car, if only i had not bailed on that relationship.  regrets are the bad feelings we have about the mistakes we made, the disappointments we suffered, and the sins we committed.  we usually try to bury our regrets, blame others for regrets or (if you are like me) we beat ourselves up and inflict self punishment.  “i am ashamed of my past… will i ever break free?”  jeremiah 31:19

have you ever heard someone tell you “you have to bury the past”?  it is impossible - you can’t bury your past regrets.  just like in a horror movie, everything you bury seems to resurrect and come after you.  if we can’t bury them, we blame others (”you are always ready to accuse others and find fault with them.”  psalm 50:20).  usually we find the 10% wrong someone else has done and focus on that.  but the reality is that we are 90% at fault and as we accuse others we excuse ourselves.   most of us simply beat ourselves up with the mistakes and mess-ups of our past.  after david sinned, he wrote “i am drowning in the flood of my sins, they are a burden too heavy to bear.  because i have been foolish, i’m utterly worn out and crushed, my heart is heavy.”  psalm 38:4-8

there is only one antidote to past mistakes and regrets - to confess it and move on.  psalm 32:5 says, “then i let it all out; i said, i’ll make a full confession to God.  Suddenly the pressure was gone - my guilt dissolved my sin disappeared.”  as we confess our faults, mistakes and regrets to God we suddenly get forgiveness, relief and peace.  God forgives us instantly, completely and permanently (”…i will remember your sins no more…”  jeremiah 31:34).  “No matter how deep the stain of your sins, i can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow.”  isaiah 1:8  

i want to encourage you to give all your regrets to God by accepting his forgiveness, forgiving yourself and focusing on the future.  ”the Lord says, do not cling to the events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago.  watch for the new thing i am going to do.”  isaiah 43:18-19.  “no one who hopes in me ever regrets it.”  isaiah 49:23

as 2008 fades away and 2009 unfolds - i pray you look up, let go and have the greatest year of your life!  

dark days

the winter solstice marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year - this just happened 24 hours ago.  the sun appears at its lowest point in the sky, and its noontime elevation appears to be the same for several days before and after the solstice.  the bottom line is that we are in the darkest days of the year right now (in our physical world).  everyone has dark days (in the spiritual world) - days when it feels like we are surrounded by darkness, forgotten by God, hurting, alone and oppressed.  

Jesus said, “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in Me will no longer wander in darkness.”  John 12:46  

Jesus is the antidote to our dark days.  on days when we are feeling discouraged, full of doubt, distressed or just down - remember what david said in I samuel 22:29, “You Lord are my light, you dispel my darkness.”  

Jesus (the light) encourages us when we are down, guides us when we are doubtful, comforts us when we are stressed, lifts us up when we are down.  How do we find this encouragement, comfort and strength - easy - in God’s word.  “Your words are a flashlight to light the path ahead of me and keep me from stumbling.”  psalm 119:105.  when you are having a dark day - grab God’s word and and as you open it up it will illuminate you and flood your soul with light.

my prayer is that the darkness in your life will dissipate as the light of our savior shines on you.  i pray the light brings warmth, healing, joy, strength, passion, wisdom, and life to you.  

“…The darkness in our lives disappears and the new light of life in Christ shines in.”  I john 2:8.  

e/i

emmanuel is usually only a word we hear and use around christmastime. it’s only used once in the new testament in matthew 1:23 - “behold, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel–which, when translated, means, God with us.”  it’s only used a couple of times in the old testament. isaiah 7:14 says, (777 for you numerology geeks) - “the Lord himself will give you a miraculous sign. the virgin is going to have a baby. she will give birth to a son. and he will be called Immanuel.

emmanuel/immanuel reveals the simple truth that God sent Himself to this dark, broken, chaotic planet to rescue us from ourselves, sin and the evil one.  e/i says it all - God surrounds us with himself… God is ever-present… God never leaves us or forgets us… God chooses to be near, to be personal and present… God is with us!  e/i brings us such security, joy, strength, peace, hope - when we get ahold of the depth of this - everything changes.  how can we fear if God is near?  why would we complain if the almighty is within earshot?  how can we get discouraged when we realize e/i is (literally) right next to us?  when would it be appropriate for us to doubt when the creator is in the room?  

when you understand e/i you understand everything you need to know.  e/i is a way of life.  e/i is an eternal promise to grab ahold of.  e/i is everything.  may we be more aware of e/i.  no matter what the world, the enemy or anyone else throws at you, remember e/i.

“i’ve called you by name.  you are mine.  you will pass through deep waters. but I will be with you. you will pass through the rivers. but their waters will not sweep over you. you will walk through fire. but you will not be burned. the flames will not harm you.  because i am God, your personal God, the holy one of israel, your savior.  i paid a guge price for you.  that’s how much you mean to me!  that’s how much i love you!  i’d sell off the whole world… trade the creation just for you.”  isaiah 43

God is personal & present

“God is a bedrock under my feet, the castle in which I live.”  psalm 18:2 (msg)  it is crystal clear that david believed in God, thought about God, imagined God, talked to God, sang to God and listened to God.  david was totally immersed in God.  in acts it reveals that david was a man after God’s own heart.  david sang songs and wrote poems to God often.  phrases like - God i love you, i live in you, i can’t live without you, i thirst for you, i run for dear life to you are a few expressions of david’s heart.  david had a relationship with God that was authentic.  david made his share of mistakes, but always sought God for mercy and help.  david had plenty of enemies (some in his own house), but trusted God to defend him.  david had many victories, but always directed the praise and glory upward.  david purposed to obey God and live according to God’s law.

am i immersed in God?  do i sing songs and write poems to God.  do i seek and search and talk and listen to God often?  am i a man after God’s own heart?  God, help me have a deep, intimate relationship with you.  be the bedrock under my feet, be the castle in which i live.  be my personal and present God.  i ask you to forgive me for trying to accomplish things on my own (pride) and for not seeking you with my whole heart (apathy).  God i want to be immersed in you - i pledge to talk to you, listen to you, sing to you, cry out to you, seek and search for you, dance and look foolish for you, love others for you and inspire many for your glory. 

my prayer:  ”God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don’t throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! …and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. Unbutton my lips, dear God; I’ll let loose with your praise.”  pslam 51 (msg)