Archive - September, 2008

Under Construction

September 30, 2008 in Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Life with 6 Comments


constructionYesterday, I heard Tom Long speak for several hours at Truett Seminary (Baylor University).  He spoke on "Preaching the Gospel of Mark."  I have heard him speak on several different occasions and always come away with such an appreciation for his passion and his storytelling.  Yesterday, as I was listening to Long speak, I thought about how God uses Scripture to shape a church and to shape our lives individually.

 

God, through the dynamic of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, is working to form and shape us into a certain kind of people.  Like the ever-present construction on some highways, God is forever shaping and forming us to become like Christ.  

 

  • Are you married?  God desires to shape and form you into a Christlike person.
  • Are you a parent?  God wishes to use your work as a parent to shape you into a Christlike man or woman.
  • Are you single?  God wants to use your singleness as an avenue to Christlikeness.
  • Are you having financial struggles?  God desires to form you into the image of Christ through such a struggle.
  • Are you having health problems?  Living with chronic pain?  God desires to see you mature in Christ through such pain.

God’s construction is never-ending.  Yet, you are not a do-it-yourself project.  God is present and active through his Holy Spirit, the living dynamic for such construction.

 

Now this is very encouraging to me.  What a geat adventure!  Who knows how God will shape and form me this day or this week.  Who knows how God will shape me through the various situations of my life.

Question: How Does Startling Economic News Impact Your Spiritual Life?

September 26, 2008 in Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Life with 22 Comments

dollarYou’ve seen the news.  Apparently, this economy is in a real crisis.  No doubt, you are watching, along with the rest of us, as those in Washington seek to formulate a plan to help this economy.  The proposal by Treasury Secretary Paulson will cost $700 billion dollars.  This week, Washington is trying to come to some kind of agreement on what exactly will be the government’s response to what is apparently a very urgent situation.

 

I mention all of this not because I want to start a discussion about the economy.  Nor do I wish to start a discussion about the political implications of this.  Rather, this is a place to talk about the spiritual implications of this for those of us who are Christ-followers.

 

The question I want to raise, however, is an important one for anyone who is serious about being shaped and formed into the image of Jesus:

 

How does startling economic news impact your spiritual life?

 

Do I respond to this by living in a state of anxiety?  Do I just close my eyes, shrug my shoulders and say, "Oh well."  Or, do I spend time in solitude, bringing this concern before the Lord?  What do I pray about?  What feelings begin to surface in me as I hear so much talk about economic uncertainty?  How can God use such feelings to more fully shape me into a God-dependent person?  In other words, do I see this as an opportunity for me to learn to depend less on myself and more on God?

Getting Back to the Center (3)

September 23, 2008 in Leadership, Ministry with 6 Comments

Yesterday, I spend a great day at the "Summit" in Abilene.  (Formerly known as the "ACU Bible Lectures")  I will be in Abilene through much of the day and will return to Waco later this afternoon.  Yesterday I went to several very good classes (including one taught by long time friend and blogger Bobby Valentine) and visited with a number of people throughout the day.  It is a great time of for reconnecting with a lot of people.

 

I recently read a great book by Ruth Haley Barton entitled Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership.  (Parts one and two.)  Early on in the book,  Barton speaks of the value of silence and solitude for one who would lead.  One value of solitude, according to Barton, is "…that solitude is the place of our own conversion."

"…In solitude we stop believing our own press.  We discover that we are not as good as we thought but we are also more than we thought.  As we slowly come in contact with our own dysfunctions, we unveil our need for security and all the ways we try to use God and others to get it.  We are alarmed to discover that when the shepherd is starving, he or she may start devouring the sheep!"  (p. 51)

What is it that may be revealed in solitude?

 

  • Our fears.  Fears of loneliness and abandonment.  Fears of really loving and allowing our self to be loved by others.  I have known some people who were fearful of people who seemed more gifted, more talented, and more visible.
  • Our competitiveness.  Have you known people like this?  They seem to forever be in competition with their peers and so never quite allow themselves to experience real friendship.
  • Our jealousies.  Have you known others who seethe with jealousy when good things are happening to others?   
  • Our rage.  Have you known very, very angry church leaders?  Have you known people who experience no joy in their lives or ministries? 
  • Our manipulations.  This person has a way of relating to people that is manipulative.  For example, this is the person who fears confrontation so he or she stirs up a few people so that they will confront while he waits in the background watching it all unfold. 

 

Do you relate to any of these?  Have you observed them in others?  Have you experienced in solitude an awareness of what was really going on in your life?

Four Critical Keys to Being a Parent (or Minister)

September 19, 2008 in Family/Marriage, Ministry, My Family, Relationships with 8 Comments

keyThere are times when I know that my daughters are reading this blog.  There are other times that they probably aren’t.  (Do they really want to hear their dad talk more?)  Regardless, I have to admit that I often write these words thinking about their reaction.  Sometimes having them in mind seems to help me be more clear and to the point.

 

I want to tell you what I have been trying to give our children.  Rearing children has been a great experience but it has been a discipline.  To rear children has brought smiles, laughter, tears, and lots of other emotion.

 

Like so many of you who are parents, I have tried to be intentional about being a father to our two daughters.  I have also tried to be intentional about my life and role as a minister.  I find that some of the very qualities that are important to me as a father are also important to me as I serve a church.

 

1.  I want to be a dad who does not serve with an inflated ego.  I have never wanted our family to revolve around my wants, my preferences, my emotions, etc.  I do not want my children to think that their concerns are trivial compared to mine.

 

Likewise, I want to be a minister who does not serve with an inflated ego and a heightened sense of self-importance.  Nothing is sadder than a minister who communicates to the church that his ego must be constantly massaged and stroked.

 

2.  I want to be a dad who is becoming Christ-like.  I sincerely want to be engaged in the process of becoming more and more like Jesus.  I want my children to know that my heart’s desire is to be maturing in Jesus.  As a human being, I will fumble and be inconsistent.  Yet, I want my daily intent to be that of growing as a Christ-like man.

 

As a minister, I want to be Christ-like.  This is at the heart of Christian ministry as we live out of the over-flow of our relationship with him.  A minister may be weak in some skills.  This person may need to improve in this or that.  The absolute non-negotiable for Christian ministry, however, is that this must be a person who is serious about being a Christ-follower.

 

3.  I want to be a dad who is willing to address "what lies beneath" in my own life. 

  • Do my children experience my constant anger?
  • Do my children have a father who will not recognize his own insecurities?
  • Do they have a dad who just doesn’t admit it when he is wrong?
  • Do they experience distance and disconnection that is a spin-off of his own hurts and wounds from his past?

As a minister, I need to be asking some of these same questions.  What are people experiencing with me?  What is happening with me emotionally and how is that impacting others?

 

4.  I want to be a dad who is first a healthy, godly human being.  Being a dad is not about buying my children everything imaginable.  Being a good dad is not about seeing to it that they experience what I never got to experience.  Being a great dad is about first being a good man who has a healthy, godly way of "being."

 

I want to be a minister who is first a healthy, godly human being.  Too many ministers are focused on being managers, caretakers, church builders, etc.  (Yes, the work may require some of these.)  The focus, however, is not on what I need to do but who I am and how I am relating to and loving the church and community.  The following questions might be worth some reflection:

  • Do I handle my emotions in a way that reflect my own maturity or my immaturity?
  • Do I have healthy relationships with my family and church through the ups and downs of life?  Or, do I seek emotional shortcuts through pornography, or emotional/physical affairs?
  • Do I love people enough to give people room to think, love, and relate to others?  Or, do I seek to manipulate others out of my own neediness?

 

What are other critical keys to being a parent (or minister) besides the ones I’ve mentioned?

Getting Back to the Center (Part 2)

September 18, 2008 in Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Life with 1 Comment

icebergThis is now day six since I have moved from Windows to Mac (MacBook Pro).  It has been a fairly smooth transition so far.  Occasionally, I will come across some little thing that is just different than what might happen with Windows.  (Such as attempting to "right click" on the Mac the way I would on Windows.)  However, no regrets.  I like this computer!

 

The other day, I began posting what will probably be a short series on "Getting Back to the Center."  These are some reflections from Ruth Haley Barton’s book, Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership.  The book was helpful and insightful.  A few minutes ago, I read again all that I highlighted in a chapter entitled, "What Lies Beneath."  She speaks of the importance of being aware of what lies just below the surface in our lives that may be influencing our behavior and relationships.  She recommends the practice of solitude or spending time in the presence of God to become aware of feelings that may lie just beneath the surface.  So very often, we are not even aware of what may be there.

A quote from Parker Palmer in "Leading From Within."  "A leader is a person who must take special responsibility for what’s going on inside him–or herself, inside his or her consciousness, lest the act of leadership create more harm than good." (p. 38)

 

"…what lies beneath the surface–of the ocean or our lives–really matters.  Whether I know something is there or not is in some ways irrelevant.  My awareness of it or lack of awareness doesn’t make it any less real.  It doesn’t much matter whether I have ever heard of what is lurking beneath the surface, and it would be that others are seeing those things though I am not…." (p. 39)

What does lie beneath the surface?  For some of us, personal insecurities are so strong, they have a way of driving and shaping what we do.  Others may have very strong feelings of personal inadequacy and that may result in regular attempts to manipulate and control others.  Still others have an anger which seems to always be present.

 

Barton says that practicing solitude with God is to recognize that we need to spend time with God understanding that "…what needs to be done in the deep interior places of our life is the most important work to be done right now.  In fact, to try to press on without paying attention to whatever it is that is bubbling up from way down deep is the most dangerous thing we could do."  (p. 40)

 

What about you?  Are you aware of the feelings and issues that lie just beneath the surfact of your life?  Have you noticed what happens (perhaps in yourself or others) when these are not addressed?

For Those Who are Willing to Read Slowly

September 16, 2008 in Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation with 2 Comments

Grilled_Steak.jpgAfter all, some truths are meant to be savored.  They are more like a good steak in which you desire to savor every bite.  Far too many people come across important statements and treat them like a hot dog at the ball game.  Scarf it down quickly and get on with eating something else.

 

One of the best books that I read this summer was by James Wilhoit and is entitled, Spiritual Formation as if the Church Mattered.  Some of the best lines in the book come from the forward which was written by Dallas Willard:

…the central problem facing the contemporary church in the Western world and worldwide, the problem of how to routinely lead its members through a path of spiritual, moral, and personal transformation that brings them into authentic Christlikeness in every aspect of their lives…

 

In the period we have recently come through, there has simply been no serious intention of fostering in our church activities such a process of individual transformation of members of the group.  Becoming the kind of person who routinely and easily does what Jesus told us to do has generally been considered out of reach and therefore not really necessary for what we, as Christians, are about.

 

…the local congreations, the places where Christians gather on a regular basis, must resume the practice of making the spiritual formation of their members into Christlikeness their primary goal, the aim which every one of its activities serves.

 

That was just the forward!  The rest of the book did not disappoint. 

After the Hurricane

September 16, 2008 in Ministry with 0 Comments

ikeWhat a weekend!  Many across the nation were keeping an eye on the weather and Hurricane Ike which slammed into the Texas coast on Saturday.  Prior to the Hurricane’s arrival, many, many people had been evacuated from Galveston, Houston, and other communities in that region.  Some people stayed with family and friends in other parts of the state.  There were also many other people who stayed in shelters located in communities located throughout the state.

 

In our area, our church served as one of these emergency shelters.  By Saturday morning, 87 people had arrived at our community center (located next door to our main church building).  Of course, they were concerned about their homes, their neighborhoods, and their businesses.  They stayed several days and by today most had returned. 

 

Sunday morning, a number of these people joined our church family as as we gathered for worship and encouragement.  One lady named "Rose" asked the people who had come together to pray for her and for all those whose homes had been destroyed by the hurricane.

 

A few things which encouraged me this weekend:

 

1.  The number of men and women from our church who worked in our community center, some through the night, in order to serve these displaced people.

 

2.  Generous restaurants that provided meals for these people.  These include: Olive Garden, Chili’s, Rudy’s Barbecue, Fazoli’s, Jason’s Deli, and others.  These restaurants graciously fed those who were staying in our community center plus the workers.

 

3.  Our local police department who provided a constant presence giving these people a sense of safety and security.

 

4.  Some of our teens and children who spent their Saturday playing with some of these visiting children.

 

5.  That our building was being used day and night by some people who really needed shelter.  It makes more sense to use these church buildings for the people of our community instead of locked up, preserved for the Christians one day a week.

Getting Back to the Center (Part 1)

September 12, 2008 in Leadership, Ministry, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Life with 2 Comments

barton.jpgThis week, I have posted very little as I am transitioning from a PC to a Mac.  For about three days this week, I have not had access to either my new or the old computer.  Anyway, the transition phase of this is almost over.  Thanks for your patience.

 
In the meantime, several people in the comments  to a recent post (Ricky and Kristin), asked me to post further regarding living out of the center.  (These are comments in regard to the post "Question: What are the Warning Signs?")

 
At the same time, I have been reading a very fine book this week, Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership by Ruth Haley Barton.  This is a very fine book which addresses this issue.  While the book specifically addresses Christian leaders and the importance of living out of the center, its message is applicable to all Christ-followers.  So I think I will respond to these comments by referring to Barton’s book.  Perhaps this will be helpful.   

I will post more on this next week.  For now, I want to begin with a few quotes from Barton’s opening chapter, "When Leaders Lost Their Souls" (or anyone else for that matter):
 

…What would it look like for me to lead more consistently from my soul–the place of my own encounter with God–rather than leading primarily from my head, my unbridled activism, or my performance-oriented drivenness?  What would it be like to find God in the context of my leadership rather than miss God in the context of my leadership? (p. 25)

 
…The only way to begin facing these challenges is to keeping seeking tenaciously after God through spiritual disciplines that keep us grounded in the presence of God in the center of our being.  Solitude and silence in particular enable us to experience a place of authenticity within and to invite God to meet us there.  In solitude we are rescued from human striving to solve the challenges of ministry through intellectual achievements and hard work, so that we can experience the life of the Spirit guiding toward that true way that lies between one polarity and another.  In silence we give up control and allow God to be God in our life rather than being a thought i our head or an illustration in a sermon…. (pp. 28-29)

 
…those who are looking to us for spiritual sustenance need us first and foremost to be spiritual seekers ourselves.  (p. 29) 

 
…the most important thing I can do as a leader today is to keep seeking God in depths of my own soul–no matter what it costs.  (p. 30) 

Living out of the center is critical, not only for Christian leaders but for all of us who attempt to follow Christ as we live as a husband or wife or father or mother.  If we live out of the center, where the presence of God is, we will approach our work or academic pursuits very differently.  We will live as a people who understand that we have a calling instead of living as a people who are desperately trying to fill the emptiness of our lives.

 
Perhaps the place to begin, as Barton suggests, is continuing to seek God in the depths of my soul–no matter what it costs.

 
Why is it that some Christian leaders seem to completely ignore the condition of their own souls?   Have you experienced this either yourself or in others whom you have observed?

Question: What Are Some Warning Signs?

September 9, 2008 in Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Life with 12 Comments

empty.jpgYesterday, I spent much of the day with a small group of very fine ministers and church leaders.  In the course of conversation, we talked about the importance of raising good questions regarding the various dimensions of our lives and then addressing those questions.  This has to begin by first addressing the center.

 

Ideally, I am living out a center that is rooted and grounded in my own relationship with Christ.  I like these words by Ruth Haley Barton:

 

Reflecting back on those early experiences reminds me every day that the most important thing that I can do as a leader today is to keep seeking God in the depths of my own soul–no matter what it costs.  (Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership, P. 30)

 

It is out of that center that we are to live.  Hopefully, as one friend suggested in this gathering, we are living out of the overflow.

 

If there is no overflow, there may come "…moments when our leadership feels like something we "put on" like a piece of closing pulled out of the closet for a particular occasion rather than something that flows from a deep inner well fed by a pure source.  (Barton, p. 22)

 

Question: What are some of the warning signs which you have observed in your own life or in others that you are really not living out of the center?  Or, that you are attempting to live out of the center but there just isn’t any overflow?

 

(For a number of years, I just did not have a real appreciation for this.  Then, I hit a wall in my ministry.  My work (and quite frankly, my life in general) got to be completely overwhelming.  I found very little joy either in my ministry or in my life as a Christ-follower.  At the time, we were living in Alabama and I was finishing my Doctor of Ministry work at Harding Graduate School of Religion.  While in that program, I met a professor who spent some time with me.  I recall a few lunches, telephone calls, and some time in his office.  He talked with me about what it means to live out of the center and introduced me to resources that would help.  I’ve always been grateful to him.)  

Five Ways Blogging Has Changed My Life

September 8, 2008 in Spiritual Life with 10 Comments

L.L. Barkat tagged me with an interesting "meme" that she created.  The task is to write "Five Ways Blogging Has Changed My Life."

 

1.  Blogging has become a discipline that has helped me sharpen my thoughts and clarify my thinking.  This blog exists to provide encouragement to its readers from the perspective of a Christ-follower.  These posts must necessarily be brief which forces me to really think through what I choose to post.

 

2.  Blogging has given me the opportunity to learn from some very good bloggers.  I have been blessed immensely by reading Scot McKnight’s blog.  His tone, manner, and approach to various issues has greatly impacted me.  There are other very fine bloggers who I am also encouraged by. 

 

3.  Blogging has allowed me the opportunity to interact with numerous people who I otherwise would have no contact with.  I thought about listing some of these people but I am afraid that I might leave someone out.  Many of these people are bloggers themselves.  Others are good people who have reading this blog for several years.

 

4.  Blogging has allowed me the opportunity to hear numerous stories.  Since the beginning of this blog, I have received numerous e-mails from a variety of people asking questions, sharing their story, and communicating in some way the status of their lives.  I feel honored that people would entrust me with concerns that are so important and in some cases, so deeply personal.

 

5.  Blogging has been a discipline which helped me pay attention to what God has done in history (as recorded in Scripture) and what he has done and is doing in my life.  The discipline of blogging has helped to sharpen my awareness of the work of God that is right in front of me in ordinary life.

 

At the end of this post, I will tag a few people to hopefully participate.

 

Here are the rules (L.L. Barkat)

1. Write about 5 specific ways blogging has affected you, either positively or negatively.
2. link back to the person who tagged you
3. link back to this parent post (I’m
not so much interested in generating links, but rather in tracking the
meme so I can perhaps do a summary post later on that looks at patterns
and interesting discoveries.)
4. tag a few friends or five, or none at all
5. post these rules— or just have fun breaking them

 

Perhaps the following people may want to consider being a part of this:

 

Matt Dabbs

Tony Miles

Arlene Kasselman

Brother Maynard

John Dobbs

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