Pray for Boston: Will You Pray for All of Boston?

April 20, 2013 By 6 Comments

Late last night, local, state, and federal authorities apprehended the last known suspect, injured 19-year old, and enemy of every red-blooded American, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. A man also known as “Suspect #2.” Yesterday was a day away from the office for me, so I was glued to the TV for most of the day watching the coverage, and I decided to stayed up and watch the end of this weeklong story. It made sense to pray for Boston. And then I started thinking. And then I started typing…

I posted this status on Facebook and Twitter:

The response was interesting. Some people said what so many others were thinking, I’m sure. Others took this from a Christian perspective and said, “It’s what we are supposed to do.” I knew that it was going to ruffle some feathers.  However, that’s not why I posted it.

See, I’m an American and I have a pulse. I’m an American and I grieve with the families who lost loved ones. I was (keyword is was) an athlete and hate the reality that some of those runners, some of those fans, might never run again. I despise the cowardice in terrorism. But, I am a follower of Jesus. And he said something, to me, that messes with me.

Love Your Enemies

Wait. You mean, I have to pray someone that has caused so much pain? So much loss? I have to pray for a person that committed such an egregious act against a group of people? What could Jesus be thinking here?!

The answer is: No. You don’t. You don’t have to pray for Suspect #2. Not one thing is telling you that you have to do anything for the guy except pull the lever that will end his life. I mean, he did end other peoples’ lives. So, no. You don’t have to pray for Suspect #2.

But, you do, if you’re also a follower of Christ, have to pray that God would be made famous. You do have to pray that God, in every single part of this, would be glorified. And if you recognize that you should pray for that, then you will pray for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Why? Because that would be a miracle; you praying for him to be redeemed AND him being redeemed.

It goes without saying to pray for all of the people that are affected by this. Throw in the people affected by the tragedy in Texas, and the 5600 Chinese that have been affected in some way by the earthquake (that we aren’t hearing about, and most likely won’t given the political climate in the region) and you have yourself a good list of people to pray for.

But don’t forget to pray for God to be glorified in Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Jesus prayed for you while you were an enemy to him. Jesus died for you while you were an enemy to him. All he’s asking you to do is pray for those who are PRESENTLY enemies to you. The question is: Will you?

Filed Under: Faith

Stop Accepting Satan

July 24, 2012 By 2 Comments

I’ve been learning, lately, about the power that we consistently give Satan. More and more, I am having conversations with people who, when it comes right down to it, are believing lies about themselves or the situations they find themselves in. And I get it because I do it to. But I also get it because Jesus talked about this kind of thing in the Bible. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Life Updates, Ministry

What’s in a Burden?

April 30, 2012 By Leave a Comment

There are many conversations that I have with people where they are relating the things that are stirring in them; the ways that God is working inside of them to affect some sort of change in them or through them. What still fascinates me is the way that people describe the things that God is impressing upon them.

“I just feel burdened for ____________.” Sometimes it sounds like, “I just feel this burden to do something about __________.”

My guess is that these people feel some sort of weight about the topic that they have been exposed to or have gained awareness of at some level. There is no doubt in my mind that when that happens, we find ourselves wrestling with reality and what we desire to see reality be. But, I’m not convinced that the presence of a burden automatically equates to immediate and direct response to that given burden.

So often, I see people who hear about something that is truly horrific going on in the world and they are deeply moved by their recognition of such an atrocity and almost immediately are ready to go and completely change the situation. This after, maybe, a night or a week of praying and seeking the wisdom of God for the answers to these emotionally-charged thoughts and burdens. The problem with this is, our emotions are not sustainable, but a specific burden from God is.

So does a burden look like? I look at people in the Bible who were burdened over something that was going on and they did more than just get emotional about it and it became a part of their life for only a short season. They did a lot more than that. They got their hands dirty; they got on their knees and then committed to doing whatever God sent their way. The first one off of my head is Nehemiah. Second one is Abraham. But I’ll just stick with Nehemiah.

Nehemiah. A man who heard about something that troubled his heart, found himself quite emotional about it and recognized his need to enter into God’s presence to seek clarity on it. But he doesn’t speak to God right away. He seems to suggest that he waited to actually say anything to God until he had collected himself. And then he speaks to God. But this is not your everyday, “God, just do this,” or “God, would you just come and do that.” Nehemiah asks, with great specificity, exactly what he needs/wants from God.The rest of the Book of Nehemiah is the story of how Nehemiah acted upon the next steps that God had provided for him.

Look, I’m not saying that God doesn’t call people instantly and in the immediate. But, then again, I’m not questioning the revelation of God. It’s pretty clear that when God truly places a burden on a person, He provides them with a next step. Whether or not that individual believes that they can accomplish that next step or it makes sense or not, does not negate the reality that God gives a clear next step when he gives His people a vision.

So, what has God given you a burden for? Do you know your next step? If you do, what are you praying for? Do you know what you are asking God to pave the way for you to do?  Add your thought below.

Today, let’s pray specifically expectant prayers. Specific to our needs and expectant because we are confident that we were made to do something that He has to pave the way for.

Filed Under: Life Updates

Lessons from Holy Week: Palm Sunday

April 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

You know that moment when you think of something and then realize that it is too good to let slide away? Yeah, that just happened. I was sitting in my office, working on some stuff for this week, and it just hit me like a ton of bricks: This is Holy Week.

I mean, in the life of a Christian, this is one of the most important week’s ever recorded in the Bible. It is so important because without it panning out exactly as it was prophesied to, Jesus is not who He said He was, God was not who He said He was, and this whole thing is a sham. This is a very significant week in the life of a believer. So, I decided to take some time and really focus my thoughts and processing into this week and the lessons I pull from Scripture. I encourage you to journey along with me in the comment section!

At the beginning of this week, we receive Palm Sunday. I still remember having the palm branches in my hand as a kid and loving that I got to swing this thing around. Heck, I just loved having someone focus their attention on me every time that I swung that branch around like a maniac. I didn’t really know much about what it meant, partly because I lack the memory to be able to remember all of that and because I really didn’t care, I wanted a palm branch.

I was reading through the account of Palm Sunday with our Preteens and Junior Highers on Sunday and loved the lessons that even I was learning out of this passage in Matthew 21. There is so much to be pulled from these passages of Scripture. Some of the things that I notice are:

  • Jesus entered Jerusalem unlike every other king that would have entered that stage. While others would have entered on a valiant steed, Jesus came in on a donkey. He came in on a donkey to signify the peace that he embodies and came to the people with.
  • The people that were praising Jesus through their mindset and their worldview of thinking that He was going to come in and tear down the things that were already in place.
  • The lesson of how Jesus instructed them (the Disciples) where they would find the donkey (next to a colt, also indicative) representing the provision of God to do even the things that aren’t comfortable or easy.
  • The theme and pervasive undertone of humility throughout the entire story is deafening in our world of pride, greed, and comfort through our own effort. His greatness was made obvious through His embrace of His nature.

It is Palm Sunday. He rides in, humbly, on a donkey, only to go out, humbly on a cross. I mean come on. This speaks so incredibly much to the nature of His leadership and the way that He desires His followers to follow. It’s Palm Sunday and He knows that Friday is coming. But He isn’t complaining. He isn’t fussing. He isn’t trying to make this a big deal about himself. How about that for your last week on the job? Makes you think twice about the way that we want to be treated when we are going out or when we are making a very clear and significant sacrifice.

But today it’s Monday. The city is still enamored with Him. They are still amazed by Him.

Look, today, the lesson for me and maybe it is for you is simple.

When we let our emotions and desires be determined by our current situation, we lose the opportunity to see our situation through God’s perspective. 

I don’t know about you, but Jesus rode in on a donkey and out on a cross. I think a lot of times, we want to ride in like a hero in an epic movie on a white steed so people look to us to save things; to be to them who Jesus is supposed to be. And when we get done with whatever we are set to do, we want people to praise us and desire us and want to have us be the center of their attention; to be to them who Jesus is supposed to be.

I know I need to be more like Jesus. This might be one way.

Filed Under: Leadership, Life Updates

Time for Selah

April 1, 2012 By 1 Comment

This past Wednesday, we took some time to practice an Old Testament tradition of selah. Basically, it means to “stop and listen.” To stop listening to the noise of the world and just listen. Another way to interpret it is to “stop and think about that.” It shows up often in the Psalms after certain passages in the book.

Interestingly, it is a bit of a normal happening in the Psalms and is a lost idea in today by most of us. I’m convinced that if we were to employ this practice more often, we might find ourselves hearing God’s voice more clearly and more consistently. All it takes is shutting off some things and becoming more and more comfortable with silence and the opportunity to hear His still, small voice.

So, this week, most students in my area are on Spring Break. What if we take some time and just shut everything off. Stop and simply listen for His voice. Don’t talk. Don’t ask for anything. Just listen. I wonder what happens.

Filed Under: Life Updates
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