I’ve been dreaming lately…

• I wonder what it looks like to be in authentic community.
• I wonder what it looks like to bridge generations.
• I wonder what it looks like to have a next generation that wants to change the world.
• I wonder what Acts 2 could look like on the colleges, universities, and in young adult communities.
• I wonder what it looks like to be connected by worship, fellowship, service, and love.
• I wonder what it looks like to know His voice so clearly, a body of believers wouldn’t have to question much in the direction they were going.
• I wonder what a new Fort Wayne looks like.
• I wonder what a unified Fort Wayne looks like.

these are typically questions. but for some reason, they come to me in the form of statements. I think it’s time to start praying for some new harvesters.

Lessons from Holy Week #4: Jesus Prepped Himself & His Team

The reality of this week in history is that Jesus knew exactly what was coming on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. He knew that He would die, how He would die, and how He would rise. So, there weren’t any surprises coming Jesus’ way this week. But that didn’t stop Him from preparing for the events that were about to take place.

It’s fascinating to watch Jesus prepare His team. He even so bluntly tells the Twelve what is going to happen, all the way down to betrayal and the emotions that they were going to feel in that time. The Last Supper is the ultimate in describing servant leadership. I am so amazed at how Jesus treated and personified His character in how He cared and led the Twelve. But He’s not done yet.

Jesus then takes the time to prepare Himself in the Garden. He isn’t just sitting there, listing off all the ways that He doesn’t want to suffer so that God can take that into account. He isn’t praying to God to make the suffering that He is about to go through be easy and not very painful. He’s praying for His Church. He’s praying for himself. He’s reminding the people why He’s doing what He’s doing, and it is powerful.

The lesson for me today is this:

You can’t imagine sending troops or going into battle without prepping with the most obviously effective exercise available to Christians.

Listen, I need to be about prayer. I need to prepare myself, every single time I go to battle, I need to start in prayer. Why would I not come into the presence of the Almighty and prepare myself to give Him glory? So, I’m learning and I’m trying to apply.

What about you? What battles are coming up that you need to prep well for?

Holy Week: Lessons for the Learner

So many times we read Scripture in a certain context or in a certain light. We read it as a love story, an instructional manual, a history book, etc. But in this time, Jesus does some significant teaching to his disciples, but also to the people. Everytime I read this passage, I can’t get over the lesson Jesus teaches by cursing the Fig Tree and then entering the Temple.

There is something significant about the connection between these two passages, especially in the context that I read it. I want to see the Church be the Church and do what God has called it to do. That drive comes from seeing dysfunction and thinking that it isn’t going great. So, you can start to see why this lesson would be significant.

Every other time that I read something about the Church not being who it is supposed to be and not stepping up to fulfill the purposes that Christ has for the Church, there is bad things that happen. People fall over dead, tables get tossed, people usually suffer greatly. in this case, the tree gets the punishment and shows us how intent Jesus is for us to bear fruit when we are supposed to bear fruit.

So, as we approach Easter, it is my prayer that when Christ looks on His Church that he doesn’t desire to curse it, that He sees it moving in the right direction. That when Christ sees the Church doing what the Church is supposed to do, that He can move the Church in the direction that He wants to move; that we can truly be His hands and feet. Because when we are the way we are supposed to be, I think we are under His control and that there is nothing that can change that movement.

Guess Who Moved?

I was leaving my friends house the other night and saw a church sign that read like this one:

See, I struggle with this one. Obviously, the sign is trying to insinuate that we are the one that moved, right? But, that gets real tricky for me for multiple reasons:

1. Who Knows Who Moved? Do you mean to tell me that the person that put this sign up knows that I moved away from God when I feel far from Him? It cannot be inviting for someone to look at that sign and think, “Gee, I bet that place is full of Grace and Mercy. I bet I’ll be accepted there.” Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for activating the Church to be who it is supposed to be AND continue to pursue God. However, this sign doesn’t speak love, grace, and the invitation of the gospel. It speaks judgement; it speaks typical American cynicism. I mean let’s be honest and agree that sometimes, God moves and the only reason we recognize that He moved is because we feel far from Him. When we feel far from Him, we pursue Him. Sure, He holds us up. But, He leads us as well. Sometimes, we need to feel the desperation of losing our parents in Walmart in order to be persistent in sticking with them.
2. On a Church Sign, Really? I cannot stand it when a Body of Believers wants to represent itself by trying to cause waves with a stinking sign. If you want to simply create waves, LIVE LIKE JESUS CALLS YOU TO LIVE! Sometimes, I think that things like this are only in place to try and rustle some feathers so people will come check out the place. I tell you this: I never want to be a part of a Church that uses insinuating interjections and theologically threatening slogans to get people to check out what we are about. The Church Sign is about opportunity and information. The Church is about interrupting people’s lives with the testimony of Jesus Christ in the gospel lived out through His Body.

So, I was a bit frustrated and wrote a blog post in my head. But, God sometimes feels distant to me. However, it only causes me to figure out where He is going next.

And to answer their question, I think God is the one moving. So maybe I should shut up and start following.