Most everyone who knows me knows that I am an Indianapolis Colts fan. These days, there are many people wearing #18 blue jerseys that say "Manning" on the back. The Colts have been winning consistantly for a decade so it's easy to jump on the band wagon and love a winner. But I've been a Colts fan since 1957 when they were in Baltimore and beat the New York Giants in the 1957 World Championship (the Super Bowl didn't exist at that time). I was five years old when I saw Johnny Unitas lead the Colts to that World Championship victory.
Since then, I've watched them go through good years and seen them suffer through terrible years. But I've remained loyal and kept the horseshoe on my helmet. I love the Colts. This season, they have had a wonderful season under first year head coach Jim Caldwell. They were 14-0 going into game number 15 yesterday against the Jets when Coach Caldwell decided to rest the first team in order to get them ready for the playoffs. Peyton Manning, the All-Pro quaterback along with the other Colt stars stood on the sideline.
I am such a Colts fan that I hated seeing my team go on the field at 50% strength. Worse yet, they suffered their first defeat of the season and snapped their NFL record 22 game winning streak. Darn. I am ticked.
But I was glad to see Peyton Manning's comment after the game. Peyton Manning is going to go down as not one of the greatest put most likely, THE greatest NFL quarterback of all time. Here's what Manning had to say after the Colts first defeat of the 2009 season while fans booed lustily at coach Coldwell's game plan.
"Until any player in here is the head coach, you follow orders and you follow them with all of your heart," Peyton Manning said. "That's what we've done as players. We follow orders....."
My thought, not as a Colts fan but now as a Christian, what if believers in Jesus lived out that same philosophy. Jesus said it, He made the decision, He gave the orders and now we follow them with all our heart without question.
Wow, what a world this would be.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
Christmas is a Love Story
I read a book years ago that so stirred my heart. It was entitled, The Ragamuffin Gospel written by Brennan Manning. Brennan Manning was a Catholic Priest who left the priesthood but made a deep and lasting impression in the Christian community with his writing and speaking. He was a powerful teacher concerning the grace and mercy of God. If you've never read any of his books, you need to order one today. Y0u will be blessed, I promise.
I didn't know this about Brennan Manning until recently. Brennan Manning was born Richard Manning. At the age of 18, Richard enlisted in the army and was trained as a paratrooper. He and his company parachuted behind enemy lines during the Korean war and began to establish forward positions to drive back the advancing North Korean army.
One day, after establishing a new forward position, Richard Manning was resting with a friend Ray Brennan. They were lying with their heads down, sharing a chocolate candy bar. Suddenly, a North Korean hand grenade flew into their fox hole. Ray Brennan casually threw down the candy wrapper and fell on the hand grenade which immediately detonated. Ray Brennan's stomach completely smothered the explosion and Richard Manning was unharmed. Ray looked up at Richard, winked and then laid his head down and died.
When Richard Manning was discharged from the military, he went straight to the courthouse and had his named changed. He took the last name of his friend Ray and made it his first name. He was no longer Richard Manning. Brennan Manning did this in order to never forget the sacrifice his friend made and that his life was bought with a price. Brennan Manning purposed to live a life worthy of that sacrifice.
And this is what we do as believers in Jesus. We take on a name the moment we believe. CHRISTians. We do this in order to never forget the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. And we purpose to live a life that reflects the love that was demonstrated the day that Jesus was born into the world to atone for our sin.
Greater love has no man, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
I didn't know this about Brennan Manning until recently. Brennan Manning was born Richard Manning. At the age of 18, Richard enlisted in the army and was trained as a paratrooper. He and his company parachuted behind enemy lines during the Korean war and began to establish forward positions to drive back the advancing North Korean army.
One day, after establishing a new forward position, Richard Manning was resting with a friend Ray Brennan. They were lying with their heads down, sharing a chocolate candy bar. Suddenly, a North Korean hand grenade flew into their fox hole. Ray Brennan casually threw down the candy wrapper and fell on the hand grenade which immediately detonated. Ray Brennan's stomach completely smothered the explosion and Richard Manning was unharmed. Ray looked up at Richard, winked and then laid his head down and died.
When Richard Manning was discharged from the military, he went straight to the courthouse and had his named changed. He took the last name of his friend Ray and made it his first name. He was no longer Richard Manning. Brennan Manning did this in order to never forget the sacrifice his friend made and that his life was bought with a price. Brennan Manning purposed to live a life worthy of that sacrifice.
And this is what we do as believers in Jesus. We take on a name the moment we believe. CHRISTians. We do this in order to never forget the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. And we purpose to live a life that reflects the love that was demonstrated the day that Jesus was born into the world to atone for our sin.
Greater love has no man, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
Thursday, December 17, 2009
For the Sake of Others
I love our nation. We are so extraordinarily blessed. The opportunities afforded us in the United States are astonishing. And the freedoms we have to enjoy those opportunities are amazing. I am so thankful to be an American.
Unfortunately, in brokenness, these overwelming opportunities have formed life governing attitudes. The more there is to have, the more man wants. And the driving question becomes, What's in it for me? What do I get out of it? These questions are like glasses we wear and through these lenses, we interpret life. Consumerism has become so deeply etched into the paradigms of our culture we can't even fathom that there is another way to think.
As a Christian, a member of God's church and a citizen of a nation the Apostle Peter calls "a holy nation", Jesus, our leader, calls us to look at life through a different set of lenses. He asks us to put down the question, "What's in it for me?" and take up the question, "What can I do for them?"
Deeply etched in our King's thinking was the consideration of others. His life was given for the sake of others. The glory of His Father and the welfare of others was the driving force behind his every thought and action. He said, "I did not come to be served but to serve and to give my life as a ransom for others." This is the nature of the Kingdom of God. As Christians (that word means little Christs) these are the lenses we are now called to see all of life through. This is the new motivation the Holy Spirit invites us to adopt. This is the path that leads to abundance of life. We are, in reality, not called to live for ourselves any longer but to follow Jesus for the sake of others.
Think about this with me. If we were to consistantly live life this way, would anything change? Schedules? Spending habits? Communcation with people? Prayers? Worship and church attendance? Work? Marriage? Parenting?
If we saw every moment of every day through the lens of following Jesus for the sake of others, what would be the affect? Thanks for letting me think with you. I'll visit with you in more detail later. I pray for you today that you would purpose to follow Jesus for the sake of others.
Unfortunately, in brokenness, these overwelming opportunities have formed life governing attitudes. The more there is to have, the more man wants. And the driving question becomes, What's in it for me? What do I get out of it? These questions are like glasses we wear and through these lenses, we interpret life. Consumerism has become so deeply etched into the paradigms of our culture we can't even fathom that there is another way to think.
As a Christian, a member of God's church and a citizen of a nation the Apostle Peter calls "a holy nation", Jesus, our leader, calls us to look at life through a different set of lenses. He asks us to put down the question, "What's in it for me?" and take up the question, "What can I do for them?"
Deeply etched in our King's thinking was the consideration of others. His life was given for the sake of others. The glory of His Father and the welfare of others was the driving force behind his every thought and action. He said, "I did not come to be served but to serve and to give my life as a ransom for others." This is the nature of the Kingdom of God. As Christians (that word means little Christs) these are the lenses we are now called to see all of life through. This is the new motivation the Holy Spirit invites us to adopt. This is the path that leads to abundance of life. We are, in reality, not called to live for ourselves any longer but to follow Jesus for the sake of others.
Think about this with me. If we were to consistantly live life this way, would anything change? Schedules? Spending habits? Communcation with people? Prayers? Worship and church attendance? Work? Marriage? Parenting?
If we saw every moment of every day through the lens of following Jesus for the sake of others, what would be the affect? Thanks for letting me think with you. I'll visit with you in more detail later. I pray for you today that you would purpose to follow Jesus for the sake of others.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Teaching for teaching sake
Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and they are giving you information you really don’t care about. There is nothing being said that is relevant to your life?
I have a friend who is a major league computer geek. He will talk about gigs and mega-gigs, bytes and megabytes, hardware and RAM and bla bla bla. He’ll use words I’ve never even heard. I'm technologically illiterate and that's a big part of the problem. I don’t want to seem rude and I sure don’t want to seem stupid so I just nod my head and I pretend I’m tracking with him. Silently I'm thinking, will someone talk to me about the NFL standings and how the Colts got to 12-0. I want to talk to people about how they are raising their kids or what they have discovered while having a consistent prayer life. In this Age of Information, I want the information I receive and give to make a difference. As a pastor / teacher, I want my teaching to be for relevance sake, not for teaching sake.
Is teaching relevant?
As I have been praying about how to best equip our church to be people who desire to follow Jesus for the sake of others, I keep asking myself the same question. Is my teaching relevant? Spiritual leaders have important things to say. They have the opportunity to bring teaching that will impact eternal destiny. The privilege I have to stand in front of large groups of people on a weekend is amazing to me. People have come to be comforted, encouraged but more importantly, challenged. So I take my role as pastor/teacher seriously. I’m always asking myself the question; “Is what I am teaching addressing the deep felt spiritual needs of my church?” Or am I just putting out "bla-bla-bla" that has no apparent relevance. A trap we pastors can get in is we spend a lot of time answering questions that those we are talking to aren’t even asking. I wish my computer-geek friend would take a breath and ask me the question, “Is any of this computer language making sense to you? Is what I am saying helpful?
As a parents, my wife and I found that when our children were asking questions, these were valuable moments. I still remember our son Josh at age 4 asking us where babies came from. It was obvious that he desired some understanding. We could have blown him off or loaded him up with so much information he would have walked away confused. Rather, we did our best to give him enough to begin to shape his understanding of this whole thing of human sexuality. Today, he’s a dad with two sons. Apparently he figured it out and I hope we were of some help to him.
When I was a high school football coach, a junior high football player asked me how he could improve his game. He said to me, “Coach, what am I doing wrong? When I get the ball, I don't seem to gain any yards” I saw a teaching moment. He was asking a question. I replied, “You are running too much side to side and not enough up the field.” He listened, took what I said, put it to use and over time, became an All-State running back. He was a learner. As a teacher/coach, I had to answer relevant questions and when I did, it made a difference.
People want to learn so their lives can be changed!
People don’t want to learn for learning sake. People want to learn so their lives can be changed for the better. Christians want to become more like Christ. I love to teach and preach and I see great value in it. My view of what I do in our weekend services as a teacher is one of having a profound influence in developing followers of Jesus. It’s just that there is such a limitation on any preacher’s ability to address the issues that pertain to each person’s life. That’s why I’m sold on Small Groups. Get in a Small Group and interact with a hand full of fellow followers of Jesus. You can actually ask a question and get an answer. In Small Group there is a dynamic exchange of thought, ideas and experiences. Small Group is a place where Christians are talking to other Christians about things that are really on their minds and matter to them. It is a place to ask questions and pursue answers together.
My point in all of this!
Here's my point in all this. I want to ask you to interact with me a bit. I want to ask you a question and I’d like you to think about it for a few moments and then respond.
What do you believe is a question or questions that people are asking in regard to being a more devoted follower of Jesus Christ? Put personally, what is a question you have about being a follower of Jesus Christ? Would you take a minute and interact with me. In the future, this BLOG is going to give me an opportunity to discuss issues that I need to download to those I love. I hope you'll take time occasionally and check in to see what we're discussing.
But for now, go to the comment box and drop me a note. Please try to keep your comment brief. I am praying that this might stir rich and relevant discussion among us.
Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and they are giving you information you really don’t care about. There is nothing being said that is relevant to your life?
I have a friend who is a major league computer geek. He will talk about gigs and mega-gigs, bytes and megabytes, hardware and RAM and bla bla bla. He’ll use words I’ve never even heard. I'm technologically illiterate and that's a big part of the problem. I don’t want to seem rude and I sure don’t want to seem stupid so I just nod my head and I pretend I’m tracking with him. Silently I'm thinking, will someone talk to me about the NFL standings and how the Colts got to 12-0. I want to talk to people about how they are raising their kids or what they have discovered while having a consistent prayer life. In this Age of Information, I want the information I receive and give to make a difference. As a pastor / teacher, I want my teaching to be for relevance sake, not for teaching sake.
Is teaching relevant?
As I have been praying about how to best equip our church to be people who desire to follow Jesus for the sake of others, I keep asking myself the same question. Is my teaching relevant? Spiritual leaders have important things to say. They have the opportunity to bring teaching that will impact eternal destiny. The privilege I have to stand in front of large groups of people on a weekend is amazing to me. People have come to be comforted, encouraged but more importantly, challenged. So I take my role as pastor/teacher seriously. I’m always asking myself the question; “Is what I am teaching addressing the deep felt spiritual needs of my church?” Or am I just putting out "bla-bla-bla" that has no apparent relevance. A trap we pastors can get in is we spend a lot of time answering questions that those we are talking to aren’t even asking. I wish my computer-geek friend would take a breath and ask me the question, “Is any of this computer language making sense to you? Is what I am saying helpful?
As a parents, my wife and I found that when our children were asking questions, these were valuable moments. I still remember our son Josh at age 4 asking us where babies came from. It was obvious that he desired some understanding. We could have blown him off or loaded him up with so much information he would have walked away confused. Rather, we did our best to give him enough to begin to shape his understanding of this whole thing of human sexuality. Today, he’s a dad with two sons. Apparently he figured it out and I hope we were of some help to him.
When I was a high school football coach, a junior high football player asked me how he could improve his game. He said to me, “Coach, what am I doing wrong? When I get the ball, I don't seem to gain any yards” I saw a teaching moment. He was asking a question. I replied, “You are running too much side to side and not enough up the field.” He listened, took what I said, put it to use and over time, became an All-State running back. He was a learner. As a teacher/coach, I had to answer relevant questions and when I did, it made a difference.
People want to learn so their lives can be changed!
People don’t want to learn for learning sake. People want to learn so their lives can be changed for the better. Christians want to become more like Christ. I love to teach and preach and I see great value in it. My view of what I do in our weekend services as a teacher is one of having a profound influence in developing followers of Jesus. It’s just that there is such a limitation on any preacher’s ability to address the issues that pertain to each person’s life. That’s why I’m sold on Small Groups. Get in a Small Group and interact with a hand full of fellow followers of Jesus. You can actually ask a question and get an answer. In Small Group there is a dynamic exchange of thought, ideas and experiences. Small Group is a place where Christians are talking to other Christians about things that are really on their minds and matter to them. It is a place to ask questions and pursue answers together.
My point in all of this!
Here's my point in all this. I want to ask you to interact with me a bit. I want to ask you a question and I’d like you to think about it for a few moments and then respond.
What do you believe is a question or questions that people are asking in regard to being a more devoted follower of Jesus Christ? Put personally, what is a question you have about being a follower of Jesus Christ? Would you take a minute and interact with me. In the future, this BLOG is going to give me an opportunity to discuss issues that I need to download to those I love. I hope you'll take time occasionally and check in to see what we're discussing.
But for now, go to the comment box and drop me a note. Please try to keep your comment brief. I am praying that this might stir rich and relevant discussion among us.
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