During college, I took a class on Christian leadership. One major section of the class was focused on the value of rest and relaxation. Little did I know how vital this was. Throughout the Bible we see evidence of this truth. God instructs the Israelites numerous times to keep the Sabbath day holy. Later, we see Jesus retreating to pray and rest for hours on end. While the theme threads throughout the Bible, I guess I really never internalized the importance...that is until now.
Lately I have been exhausted - I guess you could say burned out. We work with the youth and children at the church and it is thoroughly enjoyable yet overwhelmingly exhausting. Church does not fulfill my spiritual needs because I am focused on the youth - who is sitting by them-self - who seems to need some extra attention. While in my mind this seems easy I go home exhausted. I forget to rest.
I do not know about you, but resting does not come easily for me. I often get depressed because I feel like I am wasting my day away. If I do not fulfill the items on my to-do list, what is the point of the day? It is easy to forget how imperative rest is. How can we serve others and minister to those in need if we do not take care of ourselves? Can a doctor heal the sick if he himself is to sick to show up? We do others a great injustice when we neglect our own well being.
It sounds so easy, and for me it is far from that. We have to make rest and relaxation a priority - it is high time we begin to heed God's commandment to keep the Sabbath holy. For me, my Sabbath is not Sunday. Sundays for me are filled with hyped up kids, obligations, and stress. Definitely anything but rest. For me, I take my Saturdays as a day for me. No cleaning - or to do lists. I do what brings me relaxation - rather that be a picnic, walk, or just some much needed alone time. Not only do we deserve this time, but we are better prepared to be the parent, sibling, spouse, or friend we need to be when we are rested.
I know you and everybody else are overworked, overstressed, and busy all the time. How could we possibly take an entire day to set our to - do lists aside? I often think the same thing, but the work I do when I am burned out is not worth a cent. It is only when I am rested that I can be productive. For our own good, for the good of others, and just to simply obey God's commands we have got to keep the Sabbath holy because every once in a while we need a little break!
Monday, February 28, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Divine connection
It seems that as Christians we often separate the Old and New Testament. We look at the Bible and see the "vengeful" God of the Old Testament who seems to stand in stark contrast with the "grace" offered by God in the New Testament. The more I study the Old Testament, I discover that this could not be any farther from the truth.Throughout the Old Testament we encounter a God that yearns for relationship with humans - the Bible serves to portray the development of that very journey. For example, God establishes covenants with His people, delivers them, and provides for them. God creates laws and guidelines to keep that relationship pure - all the while establishing the beautiful relationship between God and mankind. We find an amazing example of this in Exodus.
Exodus 40:34 - 38 reads :
"Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out - until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels."
To take hold of the wealth of these scriptures I am going to deviate away from this Exodus passage to the story of the transfiguration. In Mark 9:7 we find that while Jesus, Peter, James and John, encounter Moses and Elijah on the mountain "a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: 'this is my Son , whom I love. Listen to him!'" So up until this point the primary way God led the Israelites was through a cloud by day and fire at night. Approximately thirteen hundred years later God shows that the law and prophets are fulfilled through Jesus which is shown by the presence of a cloud.
Now let's go a little farther to Acts 2 and Pentecost. Up until this point in scripture, God is an outward force leading mankind through symbols and prophets. This one chapter in Acts changes the entire relationship between God and mankind for eternity. We read in Acts 2:3-4 that "They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."
Now, God descends with fire and rather than leading people from afar, dwells inside them. The Trinity is fulfilled - God shown in the cloud, the Christ who is revealed at the Transfiguration, and the Holy Spirit who descended like fire and now dwells within us. How awesome is that! What seemed like a mere Old and New Testament fit together like a perfect puzzle and reveal this long journey of a God that simply longs for relationship and devotion.
So what does this mean for us? As humans, God desires relationship but sin severs that union. As we know, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) As with every relationship, we have to hold up our end of the bargain. For the Israelites, they had to keep an exhaustive list of rules and follow the pillar of God. For us, we still have to keep our temple holy. So I wonder, what are we doing to enhance or detract from that relationship? Are we investing in that relationship or just benefiting from it? We serve an awesome God, a Jehovah that relentlessly pursues us. We just have to give ourselves and devote ourselves to the God that now dwells within us.
Exodus 40:34 - 38 reads :
"Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out - until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels."
To take hold of the wealth of these scriptures I am going to deviate away from this Exodus passage to the story of the transfiguration. In Mark 9:7 we find that while Jesus, Peter, James and John, encounter Moses and Elijah on the mountain "a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: 'this is my Son , whom I love. Listen to him!'" So up until this point the primary way God led the Israelites was through a cloud by day and fire at night. Approximately thirteen hundred years later God shows that the law and prophets are fulfilled through Jesus which is shown by the presence of a cloud.
Now let's go a little farther to Acts 2 and Pentecost. Up until this point in scripture, God is an outward force leading mankind through symbols and prophets. This one chapter in Acts changes the entire relationship between God and mankind for eternity. We read in Acts 2:3-4 that "They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."
Now, God descends with fire and rather than leading people from afar, dwells inside them. The Trinity is fulfilled - God shown in the cloud, the Christ who is revealed at the Transfiguration, and the Holy Spirit who descended like fire and now dwells within us. How awesome is that! What seemed like a mere Old and New Testament fit together like a perfect puzzle and reveal this long journey of a God that simply longs for relationship and devotion.
So what does this mean for us? As humans, God desires relationship but sin severs that union. As we know, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) As with every relationship, we have to hold up our end of the bargain. For the Israelites, they had to keep an exhaustive list of rules and follow the pillar of God. For us, we still have to keep our temple holy. So I wonder, what are we doing to enhance or detract from that relationship? Are we investing in that relationship or just benefiting from it? We serve an awesome God, a Jehovah that relentlessly pursues us. We just have to give ourselves and devote ourselves to the God that now dwells within us.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
focus focus focus
So here is the deal - Jason finally recorded and uploaded his songs. Now in my opinion, he has an impeccable ability to write songs that are simple yet profoundly deep. I know I know - I am probably bias, but listening to them has given me an overflow of thoughts. One song in particular really speaks to my heart. The song is entitled Everything But You and focuses on the story of Peter walking on water.
We can find the story of Jesus walking on water in Matthew 14, Mark 6, and John 6, but it is imperative to note that the anecdote of Peter is only mentioned in Matthew 14. Leading up to this miraculous event, Jesus is simply trying to find a place of solitude. Being the famous Son of God, thousands followed him, culminating in the feeding of the five thousand. Still in search of rest, he sent the disciples away and withdrew himself to pray. Later that night, he returns to his disciples while walking on water. Now I do not know about you, but if I saw a figure walking on water toward me I would fervently paddle the other direction. Apparently, the disciples felt the same way because fear paralyzed them as they yelled "it's a ghost!" By this point, I might just be forced to jump ship! To their surprise, Jesus declares, don't fear, it's me! Peter, apparently still unsure asks, "Lord if it is you tell me to come to you on the water." What an opportunity! As Jesus beckons him out onto the lake, Peter takes a great leap of faith. As he took a few steps on the water, he sees the wind. As his eyes shift from Jesus to the wind, fears seizes him and he begins to sink.
This part of the story is profoundly important. For the first few steps, Peter's gaze upon Jesus kept him afloat, yet one shift of focus and he began to drown. Can you sympathize with this? I know I can. Quite often things are going strong - we feel at the top of the game - and then we take our eyes of Christ. As our eyes shift we see the waves, the trees moving in the distance, the seashore that is almost out of sight. Maybe in our lives we have our focus on Christ and then we see that not everybody supports us, we are not the best, and we do not necessarily have the strength to press on. Whatever it may be, we rapidly begin to sink. Not because Jesus left us, but rather due to the fact that we left him.
Here comes the encouraging part. Peter cries out save me save me! I can only imagine the fear pumping in his veins, arms flailing as his fears materialize - all he can do is cry out to his Savior. Now Jesus has a few options. He could teach Peter a lesson, let him flail around for awhile and teach him not to loose focus. He could save him - only to chide him for being distracted. Luckily, Jesus chose a third option. He grabbed Peter saying "you of little faith, why do you doubt?" Jesus proceeded to return Peter to the boat.
For Peter, the boat was his comfort. This man made a living from fishing - he probably could not imagine life without the boat. That was his safe place. Yet he left his comfort zone to take a leap of faith - to walk on water. After loosing sight, Jesus returned him to safety. Is this not what God does in each of our lives? He beckons us out of our comfort zones all the while knowing that when we loose focus and drown, he will pick us up and put us back in the boat.
The difficulty lies in the fact that focus is not a one time decision, it is a daily choice to set our gaze upon Christ. It is the mindset of keeping our head in the game. So what is your "wind"? What is it that causes you to take your eyes off Christ? For me it is often doubt, like Moses I cry "but God I can't." What is that in your life? What is God beckoning you toward? Whatever it is, know that although we are fallible, God is not and just because we shift our gaze does not mean that God does.
We can find the story of Jesus walking on water in Matthew 14, Mark 6, and John 6, but it is imperative to note that the anecdote of Peter is only mentioned in Matthew 14. Leading up to this miraculous event, Jesus is simply trying to find a place of solitude. Being the famous Son of God, thousands followed him, culminating in the feeding of the five thousand. Still in search of rest, he sent the disciples away and withdrew himself to pray. Later that night, he returns to his disciples while walking on water. Now I do not know about you, but if I saw a figure walking on water toward me I would fervently paddle the other direction. Apparently, the disciples felt the same way because fear paralyzed them as they yelled "it's a ghost!" By this point, I might just be forced to jump ship! To their surprise, Jesus declares, don't fear, it's me! Peter, apparently still unsure asks, "Lord if it is you tell me to come to you on the water." What an opportunity! As Jesus beckons him out onto the lake, Peter takes a great leap of faith. As he took a few steps on the water, he sees the wind. As his eyes shift from Jesus to the wind, fears seizes him and he begins to sink.
This part of the story is profoundly important. For the first few steps, Peter's gaze upon Jesus kept him afloat, yet one shift of focus and he began to drown. Can you sympathize with this? I know I can. Quite often things are going strong - we feel at the top of the game - and then we take our eyes of Christ. As our eyes shift we see the waves, the trees moving in the distance, the seashore that is almost out of sight. Maybe in our lives we have our focus on Christ and then we see that not everybody supports us, we are not the best, and we do not necessarily have the strength to press on. Whatever it may be, we rapidly begin to sink. Not because Jesus left us, but rather due to the fact that we left him.
Here comes the encouraging part. Peter cries out save me save me! I can only imagine the fear pumping in his veins, arms flailing as his fears materialize - all he can do is cry out to his Savior. Now Jesus has a few options. He could teach Peter a lesson, let him flail around for awhile and teach him not to loose focus. He could save him - only to chide him for being distracted. Luckily, Jesus chose a third option. He grabbed Peter saying "you of little faith, why do you doubt?" Jesus proceeded to return Peter to the boat.
For Peter, the boat was his comfort. This man made a living from fishing - he probably could not imagine life without the boat. That was his safe place. Yet he left his comfort zone to take a leap of faith - to walk on water. After loosing sight, Jesus returned him to safety. Is this not what God does in each of our lives? He beckons us out of our comfort zones all the while knowing that when we loose focus and drown, he will pick us up and put us back in the boat.
The difficulty lies in the fact that focus is not a one time decision, it is a daily choice to set our gaze upon Christ. It is the mindset of keeping our head in the game. So what is your "wind"? What is it that causes you to take your eyes off Christ? For me it is often doubt, like Moses I cry "but God I can't." What is that in your life? What is God beckoning you toward? Whatever it is, know that although we are fallible, God is not and just because we shift our gaze does not mean that God does.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Let's Get Salty
Some Sundays the children's sermon speaks more to me than anything else. You know what I mean - truth told in a child like manner that carries tremendous depth. Needless to say, that happens to me a lot. Since the Super Bowl is upon us, Jason chose to teach a children's sermon on commercials. We all know that is the best part of the game! His message centered upon the fact that we should be commercials for God. Like I said, simple yet convicting.
During the Sermon on the Mount Jesus declared, "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt looses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden." (Matthew 5:13-14)
This sounds great until we realize that quite often this falls far short of being easy. Sometimes, I have no desire to be the salt or the light. Some days my "commercial of God" isn't selling much of anything. Hopefully someone can concur with me on that one! This conundrum led Jason to write a song which he entitled "Don't Wanna." I find the following verses particularly poignant:
Don't wanna be the light in this darkness tonight
wanna stay in the comfort of my home
than I remember you voice saying I am calling -
you are not your own
Don't wanna be the salt in this lost world today
just wanna do things my way
then I am reminded I am bought with a price
You willingly gave Your life.
Being salt and light is a choice. A conscious decision to be Christ, even when we do not feel like it. For many people, the only Jesus they will ever see is in us. Is what they see something different? A light on the hill that they cannot ignore? Imagine the potential if we choose to be just a little bit "saltier." For some reason beyond comprehension, God uses us as a vehicle for His truth. Although we often do not feel like it, we are called to be a walking commercial for God. A stellar example was John Wesley. He once declared, "I set myself on fire and people come to watch me burn." Are you on fire?
*To listen to Jason's song simply click the previous highlighted title or visit www.myspace.com/jasonowensband
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
The "perfect" church
As I was sitting through a church service the other day a lady excused herself - as she walked by I saw her unsuccessfully attempt to cover her tears. After a few minutes I met her and prayed for her. Full of embarrassment, she returned home. My heart sank. What has become of the church? We feel compelled to put on perfect clothes - every hair in place, display perfect singers complimented by just the right lighting followed by a perfect homily with every movement perfectly placed. As we file into the building our only fear is that people might just realize we are not as perfect as we portray. In reality, we are far from it. What has happened? How many times are people dying inside, too scared to remove their masks and display their wounds.
This is such a far cry from the church in Jesus day. While they had their own list of problems, they were like a magnet for broken people. The adulterer - leper - tax collector.
Casting Crowns sings a moving song titled "Does anybody hear her" in which they say:
Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see?
Or does anybody even know she's going down today
Under the shadow of our steeple
With all the lost and lonely people
Searching for the hope that's tucked away in you and me
Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see?
I have to wonder, do we truly see the people that sit by us every Sunday? Do we attempt to listen and understand their struggles? How many are hiding their
tears - standing on the ledge ready to jump - just wondering if someone will notice.
So what do we do? Ghandi once instructed people to "be the change you wish to see in the world." But how do we do that? Honestly I do not have the answer. Part of the problem lies in human nature - it is embarrassing to display our flaws and often much easier to pretend we have it all together. There is a great risk in taking off the mask. There just has to be something we can do.What if we paid attention? Maybe if we truly listened when we asked how people are doing. What if we open our eyes to those hurting around us? Maybe, one person at a time, we can make a difference. Yet, to make this change we have to be authentic ourselves. We have to remove the mask - show that we do not have it all together. Through setting an example, we can show people the church is the one place to come as you are. Mask free - for everyone to see. Through our actions we can show that the church is a place for broken people to be loved and accepted because we have all been there and done that. Slowly, but surely, we can be that change.
This is such a far cry from the church in Jesus day. While they had their own list of problems, they were like a magnet for broken people. The adulterer - leper - tax collector.
Casting Crowns sings a moving song titled "Does anybody hear her" in which they say:
Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see?
Or does anybody even know she's going down today
Under the shadow of our steeple
With all the lost and lonely people
Searching for the hope that's tucked away in you and me
Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see?
I have to wonder, do we truly see the people that sit by us every Sunday? Do we attempt to listen and understand their struggles? How many are hiding their
tears - standing on the ledge ready to jump - just wondering if someone will notice.
So what do we do? Ghandi once instructed people to "be the change you wish to see in the world." But how do we do that? Honestly I do not have the answer. Part of the problem lies in human nature - it is embarrassing to display our flaws and often much easier to pretend we have it all together. There is a great risk in taking off the mask. There just has to be something we can do.What if we paid attention? Maybe if we truly listened when we asked how people are doing. What if we open our eyes to those hurting around us? Maybe, one person at a time, we can make a difference. Yet, to make this change we have to be authentic ourselves. We have to remove the mask - show that we do not have it all together. Through setting an example, we can show people the church is the one place to come as you are. Mask free - for everyone to see. Through our actions we can show that the church is a place for broken people to be loved and accepted because we have all been there and done that. Slowly, but surely, we can be that change.
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