Come To The Party

I taught through the story we commonly call "The Parable of the Prodigal Son" from Luke 15 a few weeks ago.  It's one of the most popular stories in the Bible.  Many of us identify with the younger son who just needed to repent and receive the embrace of his father.  Some of us identify with the father, desperately looking for and hoping our wayward kids will come "home".  I'm convinced that more people need to identify with the older brother, who refused to celebrate, who refused to come to the table when his younger brother was "found".  After all, the primary point for Jesus telling this story was to rebuke the pharisees and scribes who grumbled about Jesus "receiving sinners and eating with them"(Luke 15:1-2).

Many of the religious folks of Jesus' day did not get the gospel, and many people that fill our churches on Sundays don't get it either.  "Receiving sinners" for the sake of the gospel is God's plan for transforming lives for eternity.  What's the alternative?  The alternative is to stay outside with the older brother, lying to yourself about your sinlessness, refusing to rejoice in another's salvation, and looking in on the party you should be going to.  That's a sad way to live.

Be Selective

I had a fine dining experience at lunch yesterday.  I went to Pancho's, the Mexican Buffet.  While most people easily resist such an establishment, I embrace it.  However, while there, I am always faced with a problem.  There are so many good options, that I'm tempted to say "yes" to all of them.  However, I know that if I do, I'd be miserable, so I say "yes" only to flautas, chile rellenos and cheese enchiladas.

I'm convinced that a lot of life works that way.  There are plenty of good options out there that we should absolutely say "no" to.  Time and energy are limited, so it's best to be selective.  Selectivity is what'll turn a good moment into a great moment.  Those moments turn into days and those days turn into years.  Eventually, those years turn into a lifetime, and at the end of life, too many people are miserable, because they weren't selective enough.

Selectivity is key to living a great life and avoiding a life that teeters on burn-out and loss of purpose.

Let others eat the chalupa.  They love them.

What Doesn't Make Sense Makes Sense

Last Sunday, I taught on Luke 14:25-35.  Verse 26 is just a tricky one:


If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.   (Luke 14:26)

Honestly, if I wrote the Bible, I wouldn't have put that verse in there.  At least I wouldn't have worded it like that.  But, that's a different topic for a different post.

We drew out the Biblical fact that "hate" in this verse is best defined as "love less than".  So, ultimately what Jesus was saying is that we need to love Him more than we do the people we are closest too in this world.  That's something that's Biblical truth, and it's a little more palatable.  But, just a little.  I mean our spouses and our kids and our siblings evoke so much emotion from us, and they are right in front of us...in the flesh.  Family relationships are good, but they shouldn't be ultimate.

However, one of the reasons why I love Scripture is because God's teachings aren't only theological and philosophical in nature, but also very practical.  When we become idolators, making good things ultimate things, life starts to go off the rails a bit.  If I put my wife in God's place, then I'd be asking of her what she couldn't give.  If I put my kids in God's place, then my own identity would start to be molded by their successes and failures.  TOO MUCH PRESSURE!  I love them too much to love them too much.

Just a Little Further Down The Road

Back when I was a little bit younger, I had a lot of traction with Jr. High an Sr. High students, and we worked out what the Bible says and how it applies to our lives.  My prayer was that one day I would have someone alongside me, as a parent, helping my kids work out the Scriptures and apply them to their lives.  You know, it's always helpful to have other voices of Truth to re-enforce the lessons we are trying to teach.

Over the past few years, I've started to get a glimpse of that prayer being answered.  Yearly, we journey to Columbus, TX for Pine Cove Family Camp, and over the past couple of years we've invited C3 to come to our church for our summer Children's Camp.  Here are the links:  http://www.pinecove.com/ and http://www.winshapecamps.org/

What those camps hold in common and what makes them GREAT is the college staff that comes with them.  They are awesome young men and women who are there to pour into our kids.  Even though they only spend a week with them, they make a huge impact.  They love the Lord, and they desire for our kids to know Him better.  Plus, our kids think they are super cool, so that certainly helps.

As an adult, I've had a few older guys build into me, making me a better man.  I'm deeply indebted to them.  They are just a little further down the road than me, and they have so much wisdom to offer!  I think we are all well served to have people who have seen a little more life speak into our own.  And the greatest gift we can give them is to do the same by investing in younger generations.

Who's At Our Table

One of the best parts of being a pastor and teacher is that studying the Scripture isn't negotiable.  There's an extra motivation for me to be in the Word.  One of my favorite things I get to do these days is lead a bunch of leaders into the studying and teaching of the gospel of Luke.  Every week I'm preparing lessons to be taught at our church, and we aren't skipping any verses.  Systematically going through Scripture has so many benefits, and I love what God does through the process.  Last week, we taught out of Luke 14, and one portion of it has been continually on my mind.  Here it is:

He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
(Luke 14:12-14)

Of course we should throw dinner parties for our families and friends!  Of course we should reciprocate, returning grace for grace!  However, Jesus is always going after the heart, and in the passage above, He really challenges us to examine our motives for who we reach out to.  If we are constantly reaching out to others with our own ends in mind, then we really are nothing more than users of people.  I'm convicted to reach out to relatives and neighbors because of love, not out of expectation of repayment.    Even more in line with the reverse economy of God alluded to in the above passage, I'm convicted to reach out to those whom I know couldn't repay me anything.  Those are the people I want at the table. Those are the people who probably often eat alone.

How Much We Don't Know

I was told earlier this week that a man in my church died.  He wasn't that old, and I didn't think he was sick, so I was surprised by his death.  I only knew him through brief interactions on Sunday mornings, and those interactions caused me to really like the guy.  He always made a point to find me...just to tell some jokes and laugh with me a little.  I always appreciated the big smile and laughter he brought my way each Sunday morning.

After being informed of his death, I looked into it a little and was shocked to learn that he committed suicide.  Then, just by asking a couple more questions, I learned a lot more about the troubles and adversity he was going through.

This is a harsh reminder to me of how much we don't know about so many people we see on a regular basis.  The reality is, we tend to see others by what they do for us (or don't do) and how they make us feel (whether good or bad).  We tend to live self-centered lives.  At least I do.

It's a shame this guy didn't live to fight another day, but at a minimum, his death is going to cause me to better apply Philippians 2:4.


Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.


If we simply look past ourselves and look to the interests of others, we don't have any idea what kind of difference we can make.

Shake It Up Auditions

So, the kids wanted to submit video entries to Disney Channel for a competition called, "Shake It Up".  The girls were serious.  The boys?  Not so much.

Amazement or Faith

There is a big difference between being amazed by Jesus and having faith in Jesus.  However, it's easy for us to confuse the two.  If you click on the following link, you'll see the most recent sermon I preached at Istrouma that deals with this topic.

http://vimeo.com/24728670

Hope 04 - Holding On To Hope

The last message in the Hope series I did at Istrouma in Baton Rouge.  Having firmly grasped the concept of hope, how do we grasp and hold on to hope itself?

Here's the link:
http://vimeo.com/24126588

Hope 03 - Christian Hope and Suffering

Hard times, adversity, trouble, tribulation, pain, suffering...it hits everybody, regardless of whether you have a relationship with Christ or not.  It's difficult to sort out.  Here's my stab at it:

http://vimeo.com/23809196

Hope 02 - The Hope of His Appearing

Jesus will come again.  In His second coming is hope...hope that we can cling to regardless of the circumstances life brings our way.  We all struggle and we all suffer.  I've spent much of this week thinking about suffering we endure in this life, and we'll tackle that subject head on tomorrow in our worship gatherings.  However, before we can adequately and Biblically think through suffering, it is imperative that we consider the hope inherent in His second coming.  If you are catching these messages through this blog, watch and consider the "Hope of His Appearing" before you look at "Christian Hope and Suffering".

That message is here:  http://vimeo.com/23491863.

Hopeful,
Mike

Hope 01 - Hope of the Gospel

Over the past few months, I have had to deal with a handful of discouraging circumstances.  Life happens.  I found that some days, I was able to transcend the adversity, and other days, I fell captive to the things I couldn't control.  So, I started paying attention to what was going on inside me...started digging into Scripture...and started listening to other pastors speak on the topic of hope.  Then, the opportunity to preach a sermon series at Istrouma came up.  So, I figured I'd speak from what God was teaching me.  If "hope" is something you need more of...maybe this sermon will help you.

It's found at:  http://vimeo.com/23165949?ab

Grace and Peace,
Mike

Charlie Sammons

Tomorrow marks the 7 year anniversary that Charlie Sammons, one of my friends and mentors, died.  At least it's kind of the day.  He died on February 29th, which because of the whole leap year thing, that actual date doesn't come around every year.

As I got to know Charlie, and as he found out about my dad dying when I was in my early twenties, Charlie actually said out loud, "I'll stand in for your dad."  And, he did.  He had a great love for Jesus, an immense eternal perspective, a gentle way about him, and a lot of wisdom.  I'm thankful for how he invested in me.

He also loved all sorts of music and live concerts.  As the cancer was beginning to attack his body, he bought tickets to a bunch of concerts, and I got to go to some with him.  We shared good times and great conversation watching Neil Young, Dave Matthews, and Kenny G.  I laugh as I type that, but he had extra tickets to Kenny G!

I'm thankful for Charlie, and I miss him.

Image Management

This week presented me a higher concentration of difficult conversations, mediation and conflict resolution.  As a result, I am more keenly aware that so many issues that take place within the walls of a church are caused by the need to manage our image.  Closely tied to that is pride, lack of humility, insecurity and fear. We care way too much about how others see us.  Therefore, we fight to manage the image we want people to see, oftentimes compensating for the people we really are.  We spend so much time and energy fighting to defend our reputation and image that we are too tired to be about the bigger things in life.  It's a problem, and it's a problem we all identify with to one degree or another.

I wonder how John the Baptist felt when he was being falsely accused of horrible things while serving a prison term for standing up for the right thing?  I bet he wrestled with that.  I hope he knew that Jesus called him "the greatest man ever born of a woman."  If he did, I bet it helped...maybe even helped to the degree that he no longer even heard the voices of others.  Because of what Jesus thought of him, he didn't have to manage his image.  Why do we?