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On the final Sunday of 2008 I shared with the congregation what our church would look like if God gave me the desires of my heart (Psalm 37), noting that God is much smarter than I am and that His desires are much greater than mine (Ephesians 3:20-21).

1. That 21 people would join me and journey through the book “Ablaze for God” by Wesley Duewel…so far we have 20 people signed up with six more still considering it.  The first group meets tonight and I am soooo pumped!

2. That God would raise up a team of 3-5 people to minister to the senior teens….so far a team of three is organizing to do an arts ministry with teens.  Praise God!

3. That God would give me six hunger men to pour myself into…so far one man has come forward.  Praise God!

4. That the Shepherd’s Loft ministry would be able to move out of the church building and into a storefront in the community.  BSCC is a church without walls and we need our compassion out of the church building and into the our community….so far we have been blessed with a donation of quality shelving that we will allow us to stock a storefront.  Praise God!

5. That we would be able to expand our RAP Club ministry to multiple sites and multiple nights…doors are wide open in a local school district and a second RAP club with begin soon- Praise God!

6. That three parties (persons or group of persons) would come to me desiring to begin a ministry to our community…so far one couple has contacted me and is considering starting a Bible study in an assisted living center and visiting residents of a nursing home on Sunday afternoons.  Praise God!

7. That we would reach 52 people who would give their whole hearts to Jesus Christ in 2009…so far no one has given their heart to Jesus Christ, but someone has purchased a case of Bibles in anticpation of these decisions.  Praise God!  

It is Christmas and I have a prayer for what God will give you this Christmas.

First, I pray that God would grant you a hunger to seek Him more this year than any other year in your life.  I pray that your lips would testify that you have never desired to know Christ more than you do in 2009.  I pray that you long for a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ in 2009 than ever before.  I pray that you would be hungry.

Second, I pray that God would grant you the heart of a servant, that you would never be happier or more joyful than when you were serving as a foot-washer in the kingdom of Christ.  I pray that you would be sensitve to spiritually lost and hurting people, to broken people, and want nothing more than to reach out a helping hand.

Finally, I pray that God would give you a burden that you can’t ignore for lost people,  some group of people (single moms, jocks, junior high kids, nursing home residents) that you are uniquely wired to reach, and you must do something to demonstrate the love of Christ to them.

Those are the gifts that I pray God gives you-and me- this Christmas. 

Saturday afternoon I was working here at the church when a dear friend came to mind.  When my friend used to work here in the city we would get together on Thursdays over the lunch hour and pray at the altar.  What wonderful times of fellowship before the Lord they were!

His situation has changed recently so we are no longer able to get together for prayer and we both miss it.  Anyway, back to Saturday, we were visiting on the phone and all of a sudden I find myself getting all excited and gushy about what I long for God to do in my heart this year (2009).

I long to have a greater appetite for prayer, so that I can lift up the people of this congregation and the lost and broken people of the community.  Prayer makes a difference in my heart and in the lives of those I pray for.  I wish that people could know some of things that I pray for them for.

I long to have a greater burden for lost people in our community.  I long to be able to perceive their hurt and have a greater willingness to address it.   I long to be sensitive to the divine appointments that God has for me and not miss a single one because I’m not paying attention. 

Somehow my brother-in-Christ brings out the best desires for myself…I sure wish life would allow to be close enough to pray together again.  But since we don’t, it allows me to be thankful for cell phones.

This morning I observed a most fascinating thing.  I watched Satan at work.  A lady was scheduled to visit our Shepherd’s Loft to get some much needed clothes for her young child and I watched as Satan tried to distract, agitate, and disarm the volunteer who was to demonstrate Christ’s love to her.  And worse yet, Satan attempted to use the body of Christ for this nefarious purpose.

When God gives a job to do for Him (a divine appointment) we must let nothing keep us from our appointed rounds (just like a good mailman).  Satan will use anything at his disposal to keep us from being Christ-with-skin-on to a spiritually lost and/or broken person.  He will use well meaning people to distract us, he will use our weak spots to agitate us, and He will use the demand of the urgent to disarm us.  But we must always remember what is most important, what has eternal value,  which is to do what God asks us to (in this case, to love someone in His name).

May we all ask God for His discernment throughout our day so that we don’t miss our divine appointments.

At first the title may seem confusing, it is not an error, hurt people really do hurt people.

It’s part of wisdom that was shared with me recently.  My friend said “loved people love people and hurt people hurt people.”  I have been watching very closely ever since and am growing in agreement with that statement.  People who are loved and have the security of God’s love and the love of someone else (family, friends) respond toward other people with love.  The natural inclination of loved people is to love.

The converse is also true.  People who are hurt, who have been wounded by rejection, naturally hurt other people.  This has been brought to me first hand recently.  A women was deeply hurt by the rejection of someone else in our church.  Since the incident, she has repeatedly lashed out at me, and, yes, some of the things she has said and done have hurt.  She was hurt and now is responding by hurting people who had nothing to do with her initial pain.  Hurt people really do hurt people.

The key to all of this is forgivenness.  It is the only thing that will stop the cycle of hurt.  True forgiveness is releasing someone from the consequences of their transgression.  The person I mentioned earlier is hurting people and damaging relationships with people who care about her because she is unwilling to forgive the person who initially hurt her.  A lack of forgiveness always destroys the person who holds onto it.

About twelve years I was taking a golf lesson from a local pro.  As I was swinging, he was philosophying.  He looked at me and said, “Milt, my whole life is about getting people to stop coming over the top.”

 For those who are not familiar with the golf swing, let me try to explain in one paragraph.  To have an effective golf swing, you must stay on plane and the club must approach the ball from the inside to center (think of a soccer-style kicker in football), if the swing gets off plane and the club cuts across the ball outside to in- you are over the top- and the result is weak pop-up or the dreaded slice shot.

Thus as a golf pro, Greg’s world was about training people who wanted to golf well to swing on plane.  I have thought alot about two things since Greg said that to; one was whether or not my golf swing was on plane, and the other was what one sentence could sum up my world as a pastor.  And I think I have it.  My world is calling people to give their heart to Jesus Christ.

Everything I believe…everything I long for…is centered around calling people to give their complete, entire, every inch of, every corner of their heart to Jesus Christ and live under His Lordship.

I challenge you to meditate upon this until you can say with certainty what your life in Christ’s kingdom is all about…in one simple sentence. 

Each week it is my task to plan the worship experience at Baker Street Community Church.  Lately I have been wondering what type of service I would plan if there were no traditions to respect, no feelings to worry about offending, or expectations to meet.  What if I were free from all of those things.

I would start by removing all the chairs in the sanctaury and having a few chairs along the outside walls.  Then throughout the week, the people of the church would gather to pray.  They would pray for the lost and hurting, they would pray for the worship services, they would pray for lots of things, but most of all they would pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done” and really mean it.  But the community, congregation, and kingdom would be bathed in hours and hours of prayer every week.

Come Sunday the people would begin to gather and everyone would feel welcome.  The new people to the congregation and those who had been there for many, many years- everyone would feel loved and accepted.  There would be hugs, handshakes, smiles and much, much joy because the body was gathering to worship her Lord.  It would be a place where everyone looked at others with the eyes of Christ, so that they saw beauty, grace, and potential in Christ- not the surface differences that so often separate us. 

The gathering would be multi-racial; Asians, African-Americans, Hmong, Native Americans, Hispanics, Anglos…people of all nations, tribes, and tongues- just like Heaven will be.   And we would enter His sanctuary…

First we would worship with music for 40-50 minutes.  Some new, loud music.  Some old, slow music.  But it would take our spirits into the presence of Jesus Christ.  There we would be all standing as a body before Christ.  Shoulder to shoulder…shoulder to shoulder…all common in Christ.  Some would raise their hands, other would not.  Some would move to the beat of the music, others would not.  Some would wave banners, others would not.  The children would dance with joy.  No one would watch anyone else or worry about what someone else was or wasn’t doing.  Everyone would be focused on Christ.  And the presence of God would be felt by everyone.

After the music (no one would look at their watch), we would sit as families, friends, and neighbors.  Some would need chairs, some would sit down on the floor to hear God’s word shared by the pastor.  It would be informal, like family movie night in the living room of an average home.  Everyone would bring their Bible and follow in God’s Word.  The message might be 15 minutes or it might be 40 minutes…the people would trust that the pastor was sharing what God had lied on his heart to share…the people would know that the pastor’s devotional walk with Christ was trustworthy. 

After the sharing from God’s word, the pastor would ask if anyone wanted to praise the Lord and testimonies would ring through the sanctuary for a good long time (and no one would look at their watch).  Then everyone would lay on their face before God in prayer and praise Him for His excellent goodness.  Next people would share their needs and challenges.  The people of the congregation would gather around the hurting to lay hands on them, the sick would be anointed, the lost would repent and come to Christ…the Spirit of God would have its way.

After the time of prayer (no one would look at their watch) we would share in Holy Communion together.  Everyone would receive the grace of Christ’s broken body and shed blood…a tender, tender spirit of peace and hope would fall upon the congregation.

No one would want to leave, so we would sing and praise Jesus for another 30 minutes or so until we went to the fellowship hall and share a potluck dinner together.  And the people would share each other’s company in the joy of the Holy Spirit…And no one would want to leave, or look at their watch, or worry about the score of the football game; because it was the Lord’s Day and they were in His house, with His people, touched by His Spirit.

Now wouldn’t that be great.

   

“Love” is perhaps the most misused and misapplied word in the English language.  We use the word “love” too often, too casually, and, more often than not, out of context.  Please allow me to present a different perspective and perhaps even give you something to mull over.

First, most of us give “love” a very personal definition but the Bible says the God is love (I John 4:7-8).  So if God is the origin of love and the very meaning of love, then He and only He has the privilege of defining what love “is.”  And His definition is quite different from how I observe most people using the word “love.”

God’s most complete discussion and definition of love is contained in I Corinthians 13:4-8.  Most people hear this passage at weddings, where it is a popular scripture reading, but when viewed in context it has virtually nothing to do with the romantic love most associated with a couple getting married because they “love” each other.  Most people would say that love is an emotion or feeling, but it is not.  I Corinthians 13:4-8 and other supporting texts make it clear that love is an action or decision of the will to act in a certain way.

God says in I Corinthians 13:4-8 that love is not a feeling or emotion but rather it is the act of being patient.  I Corinthians 13:4-8 says that love is not a feeling or emotion but rather the act of being kind.  I Corinthians 13:4-8 says that love is not a feeling or emotion but rather the act of humility (”does not envy, boast, is not proud, is not rude, is not self-seeking).

Please read Philippians 2:1 and Ephesians 4:2 (the things that attracted us to Christ in the first place) and we realize that the “love” Christ demonstrated toward us was not an emotion or feeling but the actions of kindness, gentleness, humility, and patience.  It was those actions toward us that made us feel loved and valued by Christ and when other people treat us with kindness, gentleness, humility, and patience, we feel loved and valued.

Thus we can say that we love someone (because of a feeling or emotion that we have), but if we fail to treat them with kindness/gentleness, humility, and patience then we don’t really love them because love is not an emotion or feeling but rather is an action prompted by a decision of the will.

Please ponder 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, Ephesians 4:2, and Philippians 2:1 (to see how a relationship with Christ produces tenderness and compassion towards others) and ask God to make their meaning clear to you.  You might find yourself using the word “love” a lot differently.  And best of all, you might find yourself treating others alot differently too.

I looked at the date of my last blog and couldn’t believe that it had been five months since I had shared with you in this way.  It is my hope to return to regular blogging (at least twice a month).

Since I last blogged there is something new in my life- cuddle time with Katie.  Katie is our six-year old Golden Retriever and every morning after breakfast, she and I walk up to the landing at the top of the steps to the upstairs and cuddle.  I rub her chin and ears and after a couple of minutes she rolls over wants her tummy rubbed too.  Cuddle time for Katie is good for her because it makes her feel loved and it is good for me because studies have shown that petting an animal lower our blood pressure and heart rate.

There are two times everyday that Katie looks forward to and needs; cuddle time after breakfast and our daily walk through the neighborhood in late afternoon or early evening.  Katie builds her day around these special times (and meal time )

Some of you may have guessed where a pastor is going with this story.  Katie needs her petting and her walk to have a healthy relationship with me and there are certain things that we need to have a healthy relationship with Jesus Christ.

1) We can not have a healthy relationship with Jesus Christ unless we are in His word regularly.  Most people would not be able to survive if they ate food with the frequency they read the scriptures, yet our minds need the word of God as much as our stomachs need food throughout the day.  The less you read your Bible the more vulnerable your relationship with Christ is.  The quality of your relationship with Christ is directly related to the your commitment to His word.

Just as I have cuddle time with Katie each day, we each need to spend some quality, quiet time with God in devotional reading and prayer.

2) We all need to exercise our faith.  Katie and I take a walk everyday.  The exercise is good for our bodies and it builds our relationship with each other.  The same is true when we exercise our faith in Christ by attending worship services, prayer meetings, Bible studies, and service projects. 

Please understand that I say the next statement as a strong introvert.  I have had the personality tests and I am a very strong introvert, but God designed the Christian life to be lived in community.   Satan loves it when we are isolated and trying to make it alone.

It takes everyday care to maintain a healthy relationship with another person or even a pet.  It takes all of that to have a healthy and vital relationship with Jesus Christ also.  We need cuddle time with Christ.  Time when we are in quiet place and having  spiritual intimacy with the One our heart hungers for.  We also need exercise time when we practice our faith in community.

My practices with Katie need to be practices with Christ. 

  

At BSCC we are blessed with a beautiful sanctuary where we can gather and worship God.  On the front wall, facing the congregation, is large cross that is nearly thirty feet high and about 12 feet wide.  The cross is cherry wood overlaid on a silver frame. 

This week it is so heavy on my heart that the church is hoarding the cross inside our buildings, when we should be taking the cross off of the sanctuary wall and taking it into our communities as people of grace. 

The cross helps people who have asked Jesus Christ into their heart and mind to remember the grace of Christ that saved them, but even more so, it calls the lost home to Christ.  So it becomes imperative that BSCC and every other church that claims to belong to Christ, take the cross off the sanctuary wall and carry it into our communities.

To be that church we must:

1) Go to the lost…we must connect with lost people in the community and demonstrate grace to them long before they will enter the church and become part of our worshipping body.  Christ said “go” in His great commission.

2) Establish a presence in the community…the church must be in the community.  To live within the four walls of the church building is to horde the cross for the saved.   If we are to turn the world upside for Christ (as those in Acts 17:6 were accused of doing) it will only happen out there in the community, not inside the church walls.

3) We must fight for the lost in prayer…if we are unwilling to fight for the lost in prayer then we can not be agents of grace to them.  Our desire to reach the lost is measured by our willingness to fight for them in prayer.  Please read Ezekiel 22:30.  May we not be found wanting.

4) We must carry grace into our community…grace is loving the unlovable, loving when others don’t love you back, giving mercy where none is deserved, forgiving freely, and giving blessings where none are deserved.  Please read Ephesians 2:10.  God has made appointments for us to be agents of grace, will we keep those appointments?

Now please Read Psalm 126:5-6….a harvest awaits the church that will take the cross off of the church wall and carry it into the community with grace….

“Oh dear Jesus…let BSCC be a church without walls….one that doesn’t horde the cross inside the church building…but rather one that takes the cross off of the wall and carries it into the community with grace…show us how to be that people…strengthen us to be that people…inspire us by Your Spirit to that lofty goal….help us Lord to be the church that You died for….Amen.”