Of Life and Leadership

Sometimes in the church the problem isn't that people are being taught they can do whatever they want, it is that people are being restricted in areas the Bible doesn't restrict them! This is what was going on in the church Timothy was leading. They were fighting over what to eat and what to wear, and it was causing problems. The Jewish dietary law was no longer over them, but some people were wanting to cling to that and it was causing problems within the church. Paul encourages Timothy to hold fast to the teaching Paul had passed on to him. He basically said, 'concentrate on that, and you'll be fine.'

He told Timothy to make sure he was continually training himself spiritually. Physical training has its value, but it doesn't matter nearly as much as spiritual training. That's because 100 years from now, the only thing that will matter is your relationship with Jesus. So Paul tells him to focus on what counts, and God will handle the rest.

This is important because Timothy was getting resistance from some people because of his age. Timothy was a young guy and he was leading the church. There were some who didn't think he should be doing what he was doing until he was older. Again, not much has changed! Age doesn't determine your ability to lead. You can be a great leader at any age. You can also be a terrible leader at any age! Again, it comes back to your relationship with Jesus. Paul tells him to set an example for everyone (young and old) of how a Christian should live. He says to set an example in speech, in life, in faith, in love, and in purity. The only thing you can do is live for Jesus. When you're in leadership, the will always be people who don't want to follow you for one reason or another. Your concern should be to please God by the way you live and lead. If you will follow Jesus with everything you've got (that includes loving people!) you'll be just fine.

Enjoy the Journey

Be Careful Who You Follow

Be careful who you follow. I find it interesting that Paul doesn't give a job description for leaders in the church, just a list of characteristics that they should have. I think that's because what needs to be done varies from church to church, what matters is the heart of a leader. You can train people to do tasks, but good hearts are hard to come by. Just because someone has been going to a church for long time doesn't mean that they should be a leader. It isn't like the senior captain of a team who is captain because he has been on the team for 4 years.

Let's be honest, this is much more important. Eternity is at stake here. Be careful who you follow.

Think long and hard before you decide you want to get into leadership too. Leaders are held to a higher standard. Take a look at the list in 1 Timothy 3 and pray about it. Don't take it lightly. If you can't or won't be those things than find something else to do! Maybe you're leading right now and need to step away for a while.

I pray that God gives me the strength to be a leader who makes Him proud. It's hard. Be careful who you follow.

Enjoy the Journey

What Should I Focus On?

The 2 letters to Timothy written by Paul are letters to a friend and fellow worker in the Kingdom. Timothy was trained by Paul so they kind of have a father to son feel to them. Timothy is leading a church now without Paul so Paul wants to encourage him. He knows that Timothy will make mistakes, but he is very confident that Timothy will do a good job.

One of the first things that Paul says to him is that he needs to keep the people focused on things that matter. It is amazing how the only thing that really changes is the date. People don't really change that much. We still focus on things that don't matter, check out what Paul says:

"Tell them to turn away from fables and endless genealogies. These activities just cause more arguments and confusion which end up stalling God's work. Instead, they should concern themselves with welcoming in and bringing about the reign of God, which is all about faith. Our teaching about this journey is intended to bring us to a single destination-a place where self giving love reigns from a pure heart, a clean conscience, and a genuine faith."

Ok so maybe you haven't overheard (or been a part of) and argument at church about genealogies lately, but you get the point. We get worked up over the craziest things! Music, carpet, paint, you name it, we've got an opinion on it. It's stupid really. 100 years from now the only thing that will matter is your relationship with Jesus. I don't think He really cares what color the carpet is, so why should you? When you start focusing on the Kingdom, it's a lot easier to let the little things go. At the end of the day, there is only 1 Big Thing: making disciples who make disciples. How do you do that? Relationships. It's hard to have a relationship with someone when you're busy arguing with them about whether or not we should do some touch up paint.

I was listening to Francis Chan speak at the Exponential Conference earlier today and he said, "A lot of what we call church isn't really church. A lot of what we call Christianity isn't really Christianity." Wow. What is my focus? I think that is what Paul was saying to Timothy too, and I think that is what God is asking me.

Enjoy the Journey

The Most Important Question

The people in Thessalonica weren't that different from us today. Their problem was that people were starting to come in and get them off track with teachings that weren't true. The big one was that the day of The Lord had already happened. Some of them were worried that they had missed it! They were too wrapped up in worrying about the end times. Sound familiar? How many books and sermons and discussions do we have about the end times today? I'm not saying we shouldn't discuss it at all, but I think we give it way to much of a place in our minds. Here is what we need to know about the end of time: It is going to happen, you won't be able to miss it, Jesus is coming back, He will defeat evil for all time, and the Christians will live with Him in heaven forever.

That's what we need to know. I think we waste way too much of our time trying to figure out what the signs will be, who the antichrist is going to be, and when Jesus is coming back. I mean seriously, Jesus Himself said that He doesn't know when that is going to happen! Do we reply think we are going to figure it out? Sounds pretty arrogant to me. Paul tells the Thessalonians something that I think we would do well to remember as well:

So, brothers and sisters, all you need to do now is stand firm and hold tight to the line of teachings we have passed on to you, whether in person or in a letter.

We need to follow the teachings of Jesus, and the other stuff will take care of itself. When you stop and think about it, it really isn't that complicated. We are asked to follow Jesus. That is what wake should devote our lives to, that is what we should be talking about. The question isn't: 'When is Jesus coming back?' The question is: 'How do I follow Him until He does come back?'

Enjoy the Journey

What do I pray for?

Paul opens his 2nd letter to the Thessalonians talking about their suffering. Apparently things were going from bad to worse for the believers there. But in spite of that, most of them were staying true to the gospel. Paul is so proud of them. He writes to encourage them that this suffering won't last forever, and that God will handle it. Suffering has a tendency to shape us in ways that nothing else can. I have had my fair share of suffering, and it has made me who I am today. Unlike the people Paul is writing to, most of the suffering I've gone through has been from people within the church. But God is faithful, and He is accomplishing things in me and through me nonetheless. I love what Paul writes to them in verse 11:

All this is why we are constantly praying for you, so God will make you worthy of the great calling you have received from Him and will give you the power to accomplish every good intention and work of faith.

That is my prayer too! I pray that God will make me worthy of the calling He has given me. I know that I can't accomplish anything in my own, so I pray for His strength and power to make it possible. If there is one thing I've learned, it is that being faithful always brings suffering. But suffering leads to growth if you let it. God will never leave me or forsake me, so what do I have to fear? He is doing great things in me, through me, and around me everyday, I just have to be willing to open up my eyes and see them!

Enjoy the Journey

Why Do I Do Ministry?

Paul is so proud of them. Why? Because they have truly taken the message of Jesus to heart. They aren't going to let anything or anyone get them off track. They are even willing to suffer for Jesus. There will always be people who are opposed to the message of Jesus. Many times, those people are in the church already. I know it sounds weird, but most attacks on Christians don't come from outside the church, but from the inside...from people who claim Jesus as Lord. But when you start preaching the truth and start saying the same things Jesus said they way that He said them, it causes controversy. Why? Because Jesus was a polarizing figure. He wants everything and won't take anything less.

So here people who are willing to suffer for the message of Jesus and Paul couldn't be more proud of them. He has some harsh words for those who are causing the trouble, he says that their sins are piling up and they will face God's wrath! In other words, don't cause divisions in the church, follow Jesus at all costs! It matters, it has eternal consequences. Enough about them. Paul praises the people and is sad that he hasn't been able to make it back to visit them. But he closes the chapter by encouraging them to keep focused on what is important. He says as much as he would love to come visit them, his glory, his reward will be to stand with them before Jesus and get to go to heaven together!

That is why I am in ministry. It isn't to make everyone happy (although if I'm honest I want people to like me!). It is to help those who want to find Jesus find Him. So many times that leads to trouble, because people don't like it when you call them to change. But such is the task God has given me. I pray for boldness to speak the truth no matter the cost. I pray for the strength to please God above everyone else. I pray for people to surround me who have the same goal, to stand before Jesus together one day and hear Him say, 'Well done.'

Enjoy the Journey

What is it Going to Take?

Paul opens his letter to the Thessalonians with praise for their faith. They have been truly changed by Jesus. Paul says that they haven't just accepted the message that he preached to them, but they let it sink into their hearts and change everything about them. Even though he isn't there anymore, he knows that it is true because people all over the area are talking about them. Check out what he says in verse 9:

"You see, they go on and on telling us the story of how you welcomed us when we were introduced to you; how you turned toward God and realigned your life to serve the one true living God—leaving your idols to crumble in the dust."

Wouldn't it be awesome if the people in Clearwater talked that way about us? The question I have to ask myself is what needs to change in my life to make that happen? What do I need to allow God to do? What idols do I need to leave behind? Self? Pride?

I know that I serve the same God that Paul did, therefore I know the same great things are possible today. I am praying that God will break down the barriers that are standing in the way of Him doing great things, even if the barrier is me.

Enjoy the Journey

In the Moment

Paul wraps up his letter to the Colossians by asking them to pray. He has already instructed them on how to live in their families. He calls for an atmosphere of love and respect for everybody. He wants that to be what our families look like and he wants our families to be reflected in the church. Then he asks them to pray that he would speak the word clearly and fearlessly. We could all use people praying that prayer right? I like to think that fear isn't holding me back from spreading the gospel, but I think if I'm honest it can at times.

He also tells them to make the most of every opportunity and every moment that they have with those outside the faith. That is a sentiment that our culture can get on board with! Live life to the fullest, don't waste a moment! That is pretty intense though isn't it? How would my life change if I took advantage of every moment I had with people who don't know Jesus? Admittedly I have major work to do if this is going to be true in my life. I'm a work in progress, and I'm better now than I was a few months ago, but this is something that has to be intentional every day.

But it really comes down to these questions: Do I believe people who don't know Jesus will go to hell when they die? Do I care enough to help them?

If I believe that (and that is what the Bible says) and if I care about them, I have to say something don't I? It may be a little awkward, but most conversations worth having are a little awkward. I pray that Gd will give me boldness to take advantage of each moment.

Enjoy the Journey

Ohana Means Family

If we claim Jesus as Lord, then that means our old way of life has to go! After all, that is what repentance is, turning away from the wrong things we've done. But is it enough to just stop doing wrong things? I heard once that you can do nothing wrong, and still do nothing right. Jesus tells a story of a man who was demon possessed and the demon was cast out. The man was free! But he didn't fill his life with anything else, and the demon went and got more demons and came right back Ina, the man was worse off at the end than when he started! What's the point of that? Your life will always be filled with something. You can't just empty out all the bad stuff and not replace it. If you don't intentionally replace it with good things, it will slowly fill up with the old things, because that is kind of our default setting.

Paul knew this, and he told the Colossians to fill their lives with certain things. Check out what he has to say in Colossians 3, starting in verse 12:

Since you are all set apart by God, made holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a holy way of life: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Put up with one another. Stay together—no matter what! Forgive. Pardon any offenses against one another, as the Lord has pardoned you, because you should act in kind. But above all these, put on love! Love is the perfect tie to bind these together. Let your hearts fall under the rule of the Liberator’s peace (the peace you were called to as one body), and be thankful.

How would my life look different if those were the things that defined me? How can I be more compassionate today than I was yesterday? I love the 'stay together no matter what' part! A Christians, we let ourselves be too easily divided. I think many times we should take a cue from Lilo and Stitch! Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind! Families stay together and families love each other through all the craziness that is family.

I pray that God will fill me with these things and surround me with the family of Christ that He wants me to be a part of!

Enjoy the Journey