Hey Guys,
Well, this past Sunday’s message sure got a response! I’m talking about the “lukewarm” one. I knew it would, which was why I took time, prayed about it, consulted others, and then went for it. As I said (actually, as God said), lukewarm is not a good state to be in. So, I’m glad for the discussions and even the discomfort if it leads to desire/movement toward God.
From talking with people who were confused or upset, I’ve realized that a lot of the confusion comes from the perception that everybody is in one of the three categories, and if you’re in “lukewarm,” BRCC may not be the place for you. A lot of the confusion is what constitutes “lukewarmness.” We ALL have parts of our lives that are less than 100%—that is a given. The question then becomes not, “Am I perfect (100% in)?” but, “What is my attitude toward being ‘hot’?” If you’re desirous of moving toward God, if you repent (Revelation 3:19), if you ARE moving toward God, YOU ARE NOT LUKEWARM! No, you’re not where God wants you to be yet, and you’re not where you want to be yet, but the determining factor is your attitude, your trajectory, your heart. It’s not where you are on the scale; it’s your movement—toward heat or toward cold.
So, those are the questions each person has to ask himself/herself. Do I want to move closer to God? What is the desire of my heart?
And your response tells you a lot about your heart. For many of you, Sunday had the desired effect—a renewed focus and motivation to get “hotter.” For some, it angered you. Why? If it’s because you heard me saying, “If you aren’t perfect, hit the road,” that’s not what I intended and I apologize for the misunderstanding. If you were confused, I hope this helps and I encourage you to talk to me or one of the leaders. If you’re mad because you’re satisfied with where you are and don’t intend to get any “hotter,” you probably heard me right. Wherever you are, God wants you “hotter” and I/we are committed to doing everything we can to help you get there.
Love ya,
Woody
Friday, October 30, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
The Power of Prayer
Hi Guys,
I’m constantly amazed at my amazement (or lack of it) when it comes to prayer. I’ve become aware of the power that is unleashed when we pray. I’m using only a fraction of what’s available and it’s still awesome. Several weeks ago, I became anxious because I wasn’t hearing stories of people coming to Christ. So I prayed about it in one of our prayer meetings (the ones at 9, 12, and 4 every weekday that you’re invited to if you can swing it).
Once again it began to happen. I’m not sure of the exact numbers but somewhere in the neighborhood of 10-12 people have come to Christ in the last couple of weeks. After the service last Sunday, Jack Dunn (who was one of the speakers) led two people to Christ (and the morning was about divorce–go figure). A few days ago, a couple of us had lunch with a guy who people have been praying for for years, and he gave his life to Christ. The next day another friend called excitedly and told me that the woman he worked with and he’d been talking to and praying for for months had just “given it up.” Yea God!
It’s been a tough go of it for me spiritually and emotionally for a while, but God’s still faithful and at work. And He graciously invites me (and you) into it. As the old shepherd said in Brennan Manning’s story, “God’s very fond of me, He is” (Zephaniah 3:17).
W
I’m constantly amazed at my amazement (or lack of it) when it comes to prayer. I’ve become aware of the power that is unleashed when we pray. I’m using only a fraction of what’s available and it’s still awesome. Several weeks ago, I became anxious because I wasn’t hearing stories of people coming to Christ. So I prayed about it in one of our prayer meetings (the ones at 9, 12, and 4 every weekday that you’re invited to if you can swing it).
Once again it began to happen. I’m not sure of the exact numbers but somewhere in the neighborhood of 10-12 people have come to Christ in the last couple of weeks. After the service last Sunday, Jack Dunn (who was one of the speakers) led two people to Christ (and the morning was about divorce–go figure). A few days ago, a couple of us had lunch with a guy who people have been praying for for years, and he gave his life to Christ. The next day another friend called excitedly and told me that the woman he worked with and he’d been talking to and praying for for months had just “given it up.” Yea God!
It’s been a tough go of it for me spiritually and emotionally for a while, but God’s still faithful and at work. And He graciously invites me (and you) into it. As the old shepherd said in Brennan Manning’s story, “God’s very fond of me, He is” (Zephaniah 3:17).
W
Labels:
divorce in the church,
the power of prayer
Monday, October 5, 2009
A New "Bandwidth"
Hey guys,
Recently, I’ve used the phrase, “God wants BRCC to move to a new bandwidth.” Several people have asked, “what’s a bandwidth?” Or, more likely, they were really asking, “What do you mean by that?” So, I asked one of our tech guys to explain “bandwidth” to me. It didn’t take me long to realize that if I tried to explain it technically, I’d get crucified by the techie people in the audience and confuse those who aren’t (like me).
I remember (and often use) a maxim I learned in a communications course, “Words don’t mean, people mean!” So, here’s what I mean when I use the term “bandwidth.”
Churches (and people) operate in a certain range of effectiveness. They start out at a low level, near the bottom of the range. They don’t know much and they aren’t that skilled with what they do know.
Over time, with intentionality, and enabled by the Holy Spirit, churches (and people) can and will become more effective—get better at what they do. They sort of hit their stride, find out what they’re good at, gravitate to that, and consequently improve.
At some point, they hit the ceiling (top of that bandwidth) and are basically about as effective as they’re going to be. You could use “bandwidth” to refer to any number of different things—technical skills, artistic expression, spiritual growth, and/or depth, populations reached, etc.
At that point, there is a lid on further growth. The only alternative is to move (or be moved) to the next level. One rough analogy would be school or technical training. At some point the student is proficient or has mastered his area and needs to go to the next level.
BRCC is effective in a number of different areas—I would say we’re a “good” church. There is spiritual life, excitement, and people are being changed by God. For all of this, we’re thankful—very thankful. But there is so much more of God and the life He offers to be experienced! It will mean functioning at a whole new level—more intensity, a greater love for God and others, more sacrifice, more intentionality, more radical. In short, the kind of church Jesus dreamed of, spoke about, and died for. A church that is different from the world, from normal religion, and even from what it was. A church that is not just “doing church” (albeit at a high level) but is “being” the church. A church that is not just one component of a person’s life, but the center around which everything else revolves. I know some will say, “I thought people were to revolve around Christ.” That is true, but Jesus expresses Himself in the world through His “body.” You can love the church without loving Christ, but you can’t love Christ without loving His church. Even at her worst—which is too often the norm—she is still His bride. As Augustine said, “The church is a whore, but she is still my mother.” And Jesus dreams of a beautiful bride, vivacious and pure.
That’s His dream, and ours! That’s where we’re going—to the next bandwidth!
Woody
Recently, I’ve used the phrase, “God wants BRCC to move to a new bandwidth.” Several people have asked, “what’s a bandwidth?” Or, more likely, they were really asking, “What do you mean by that?” So, I asked one of our tech guys to explain “bandwidth” to me. It didn’t take me long to realize that if I tried to explain it technically, I’d get crucified by the techie people in the audience and confuse those who aren’t (like me).
I remember (and often use) a maxim I learned in a communications course, “Words don’t mean, people mean!” So, here’s what I mean when I use the term “bandwidth.”
Churches (and people) operate in a certain range of effectiveness. They start out at a low level, near the bottom of the range. They don’t know much and they aren’t that skilled with what they do know.
Over time, with intentionality, and enabled by the Holy Spirit, churches (and people) can and will become more effective—get better at what they do. They sort of hit their stride, find out what they’re good at, gravitate to that, and consequently improve.
At some point, they hit the ceiling (top of that bandwidth) and are basically about as effective as they’re going to be. You could use “bandwidth” to refer to any number of different things—technical skills, artistic expression, spiritual growth, and/or depth, populations reached, etc.
At that point, there is a lid on further growth. The only alternative is to move (or be moved) to the next level. One rough analogy would be school or technical training. At some point the student is proficient or has mastered his area and needs to go to the next level.
BRCC is effective in a number of different areas—I would say we’re a “good” church. There is spiritual life, excitement, and people are being changed by God. For all of this, we’re thankful—very thankful. But there is so much more of God and the life He offers to be experienced! It will mean functioning at a whole new level—more intensity, a greater love for God and others, more sacrifice, more intentionality, more radical. In short, the kind of church Jesus dreamed of, spoke about, and died for. A church that is different from the world, from normal religion, and even from what it was. A church that is not just “doing church” (albeit at a high level) but is “being” the church. A church that is not just one component of a person’s life, but the center around which everything else revolves. I know some will say, “I thought people were to revolve around Christ.” That is true, but Jesus expresses Himself in the world through His “body.” You can love the church without loving Christ, but you can’t love Christ without loving His church. Even at her worst—which is too often the norm—she is still His bride. As Augustine said, “The church is a whore, but she is still my mother.” And Jesus dreams of a beautiful bride, vivacious and pure.
That’s His dream, and ours! That’s where we’re going—to the next bandwidth!
Woody
Monday, August 31, 2009
Redirecting Our Best Efforts
Hey guys,
One of the helpful aspects of this blog for me is the opportunity to begin to articulate new ideas or initiatives that get birthed in me or in conversations. (Some of you are thinking, “Then this guy only has one new idea every several months?”)
Yesterday morning (Sunday), I was talking with a couple of guys after a conversation about the tough, hard spots they’re in on their spiritual Journeys (marriages, lust, spiritual coolness, failure to pray or read Scripture, etc.). While such struggles are a part of our spiritual Journeys (read the Bible—duh), sometimes I think we focus on the negative almost to the exclusion of the positive. Here’s what I mean. It’s suggested in the saying, “Jesus didn’t die to get us to stop doing stuff but so we could start doing things we’ve never done or couldn’t do.” Nature abhors a vacuum, so when we stop doing something, if it isn’t replaced by or pushed out by a positive behavior (example of old leaves being pushed off a tree branch as new leaves appear), then we’ve just created space. If we’re not intentional, that space will create enormous pressure which will then naturally be filled with something. “Nothing happens naturally but sin,” so the likelihood is that the “something” will not necessarily be an improvement.
Another take on this is the observation that our tendency is to focus on what we don’t do well rather than on what we do well. This means that we expend our best efforts trying to get incrementally better in an area of our life that we’ll probably never be but so good at, meanwhile neglecting that which we are good at. In other words, build on your strengths.
Add to this men’s natural passivity in spiritual things (e.g. Adam in the Garden) and you get an outcome that is defeatist and defeating. The Gospel (“good” news) and the Christian life becomes basically “sin management.” This is a recipe for guilt and ineffectiveness. Our meetings become sessions where men, at best, reveal repeated failure and discouragement for themselves and those who hear. And this becomes a self-fulfilling cycle.
How about if we instead talked about the spiritual adventures that God wants to take us on? What if our conversations revolved around the things we could do that day that would cause our affections for Christ to grow? What if we “encourage one another” (Hebrew 10:24-25) to live a life (that day) of adventure for and with God? I don’t mean to go climb a mountain (although that might be a good option), but go home and serve your wife, especially if your marriage is not so hot, or go on a mini-retreat with God. (One of the guys was leaving for the beach—I told him to get up early or go late on a walk along the beach with just God.)
The possibilities are endless. What if men encouraged (and accompanied) one another in living this kind of life—not reactive and often defeated, but one of positive, growth-producing spiritual adventures? We might just become the kind of people that our wives (and the world) would want to be like and to follow. What do you think?
Woody
One of the helpful aspects of this blog for me is the opportunity to begin to articulate new ideas or initiatives that get birthed in me or in conversations. (Some of you are thinking, “Then this guy only has one new idea every several months?”)
Yesterday morning (Sunday), I was talking with a couple of guys after a conversation about the tough, hard spots they’re in on their spiritual Journeys (marriages, lust, spiritual coolness, failure to pray or read Scripture, etc.). While such struggles are a part of our spiritual Journeys (read the Bible—duh), sometimes I think we focus on the negative almost to the exclusion of the positive. Here’s what I mean. It’s suggested in the saying, “Jesus didn’t die to get us to stop doing stuff but so we could start doing things we’ve never done or couldn’t do.” Nature abhors a vacuum, so when we stop doing something, if it isn’t replaced by or pushed out by a positive behavior (example of old leaves being pushed off a tree branch as new leaves appear), then we’ve just created space. If we’re not intentional, that space will create enormous pressure which will then naturally be filled with something. “Nothing happens naturally but sin,” so the likelihood is that the “something” will not necessarily be an improvement.
Another take on this is the observation that our tendency is to focus on what we don’t do well rather than on what we do well. This means that we expend our best efforts trying to get incrementally better in an area of our life that we’ll probably never be but so good at, meanwhile neglecting that which we are good at. In other words, build on your strengths.
Add to this men’s natural passivity in spiritual things (e.g. Adam in the Garden) and you get an outcome that is defeatist and defeating. The Gospel (“good” news) and the Christian life becomes basically “sin management.” This is a recipe for guilt and ineffectiveness. Our meetings become sessions where men, at best, reveal repeated failure and discouragement for themselves and those who hear. And this becomes a self-fulfilling cycle.
How about if we instead talked about the spiritual adventures that God wants to take us on? What if our conversations revolved around the things we could do that day that would cause our affections for Christ to grow? What if we “encourage one another” (Hebrew 10:24-25) to live a life (that day) of adventure for and with God? I don’t mean to go climb a mountain (although that might be a good option), but go home and serve your wife, especially if your marriage is not so hot, or go on a mini-retreat with God. (One of the guys was leaving for the beach—I told him to get up early or go late on a walk along the beach with just God.)
The possibilities are endless. What if men encouraged (and accompanied) one another in living this kind of life—not reactive and often defeated, but one of positive, growth-producing spiritual adventures? We might just become the kind of people that our wives (and the world) would want to be like and to follow. What do you think?
Woody
Monday, August 10, 2009
All Bets are Off
Hey guys,
Last Sunday I commented that I felt we were at the top of our bandwidth as a church and that God wanted us to move to the next bandwidth. Someone posted a comment asking what I thought that looked like.
I thought about that and knew immediately that I would have no specifics. One of the characteristics of the “new” thing God has been doing at BRCC for the last couple of years is making it clear to us that we don’t know nor do we determine His future. You’ve heard me talk about my own journey from plans and strategies that we come up with and then asking God to help us, to asking God for His plans so we could help Him. It’s a major shift. In the “old” model, we generated the plans and asked God to help us with them. In the “new” paradigm, we ask God to show us His plans and we help Him. The lid on the old model was our dreams and strategies. The limit was us. Under the new way of operating, there is no lid...God is the originator and enabler of His own plans, so the possibilities are virtually infinite. We become (are) recipients and implementers of God’s plan rather than the reverse. Wow! All of a sudden all bets are off.
I’ve used the analogy of a 3-year-old who is determined to build something, refusing his father’s help. Finally, in frustration at his own inability, he asks his father to do it and his father, who has refrained thus far, takes over the project and creates something far better than the 3-year-old ever could.
So, like the 3-year-old, we can’t even conceive or imagine the final product. We may have a general idea, but it’s bounded by our limited ability to even conceptualize, let alone build, what an infinite God could/can.
God has revealed His dream of what he wants to do in and through His people in Scripture. In our “3 year-old” finiteness and arrogance, we have downsized it—made it manageable for us. What God is doing at BRCC is turning us upside down so we see the world differently (if we choose to). And when we see the world differently (as God sees it), then everything changes. The “impossible” (to us) becomes possible (“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”) and the miraculous happens.
That is what God is doing among us and we can’t imagine what it will become—only that it will be amazing (Eph. 3:20).
Won’t you come with us on this wonderful adventure? Let go of the “old” and grasp the “new” (2 Cor. 5:17) “so that they (we) may take hold of the life that is truly life” (1 Tim. 6:19b).
Woody
Last Sunday I commented that I felt we were at the top of our bandwidth as a church and that God wanted us to move to the next bandwidth. Someone posted a comment asking what I thought that looked like.
I thought about that and knew immediately that I would have no specifics. One of the characteristics of the “new” thing God has been doing at BRCC for the last couple of years is making it clear to us that we don’t know nor do we determine His future. You’ve heard me talk about my own journey from plans and strategies that we come up with and then asking God to help us, to asking God for His plans so we could help Him. It’s a major shift. In the “old” model, we generated the plans and asked God to help us with them. In the “new” paradigm, we ask God to show us His plans and we help Him. The lid on the old model was our dreams and strategies. The limit was us. Under the new way of operating, there is no lid...God is the originator and enabler of His own plans, so the possibilities are virtually infinite. We become (are) recipients and implementers of God’s plan rather than the reverse. Wow! All of a sudden all bets are off.
I’ve used the analogy of a 3-year-old who is determined to build something, refusing his father’s help. Finally, in frustration at his own inability, he asks his father to do it and his father, who has refrained thus far, takes over the project and creates something far better than the 3-year-old ever could.
So, like the 3-year-old, we can’t even conceive or imagine the final product. We may have a general idea, but it’s bounded by our limited ability to even conceptualize, let alone build, what an infinite God could/can.
God has revealed His dream of what he wants to do in and through His people in Scripture. In our “3 year-old” finiteness and arrogance, we have downsized it—made it manageable for us. What God is doing at BRCC is turning us upside down so we see the world differently (if we choose to). And when we see the world differently (as God sees it), then everything changes. The “impossible” (to us) becomes possible (“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”) and the miraculous happens.
That is what God is doing among us and we can’t imagine what it will become—only that it will be amazing (Eph. 3:20).
Won’t you come with us on this wonderful adventure? Let go of the “old” and grasp the “new” (2 Cor. 5:17) “so that they (we) may take hold of the life that is truly life” (1 Tim. 6:19b).
Woody
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Taking Spiritual Chances
Hey guys,
I’m a week later writing this than I intended to be. Last Tuesday, I took a curve too fast on my bike (motorcycle) and hit some gravel which slid me head-on into an oncoming car. At 30+ mph, it totaled the bike and sent me to the hospital via the Rescue Squad. Amazingly, I had no broken bones and only limited “road rash.” (People often ask why I wear a leather jacket and full face helmet in the summertime—now you know!) The impact did damage something internally, which has led to a very painful week.
Experiences like this can and should lead to some introspection and “lessons learned.” A logical conclusion would be no more motorcycle riding. But, as I told folks on Sunday, it was an equipment failure—the nut that holds the handlebars. Certainly there are obvious lessons like riding slower and more safely. But, to tell you the truth, while not riding would be a sensible thing to do, I’ve chosen not to live my life that way. Everything at the core being theological, “I am immortal until my life’s work is done.”
I’m so grateful for all the prayers and well wishes and affection that people have extended to and for me, and I will try to be more careful. But, on a deeper level (where life is really lived from), I want to live life that way—not cautiously and fearfully, but taking chances and experiencing the thrill of being in places where only God can carry me through.
I’m really not talking about doing foolish, daredevil things on a physical level (well, maybe a little). I’m talking about living this way spiritually. I’m not doing that yet—but I’m moving toward it. I have lived too much of my life in fear, making excuses for why I couldn’t do this or that—sharing Christ, public speaking, taking the spiritual initiative, etc. I want to do it not as an adrenaline junkie but as a follower of Christ. I want to do it so you too will be encouraged to take spiritual chances. And because I don’t believe any other course of life is worthy of what Jesus did for us and calls us to. I’m not sure what that looks like yet, so would you pray with me that God would show me (and you) the next step on the Journey He has called us to–with Him?
I don’t know who said it first, but you’ve probably seen the following quote in an e-mail or on a T-shirt. I can’t think of a better way of saying it.
“Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, ‘WOW! What a ride!’”
Woody
I’m a week later writing this than I intended to be. Last Tuesday, I took a curve too fast on my bike (motorcycle) and hit some gravel which slid me head-on into an oncoming car. At 30+ mph, it totaled the bike and sent me to the hospital via the Rescue Squad. Amazingly, I had no broken bones and only limited “road rash.” (People often ask why I wear a leather jacket and full face helmet in the summertime—now you know!) The impact did damage something internally, which has led to a very painful week.
Experiences like this can and should lead to some introspection and “lessons learned.” A logical conclusion would be no more motorcycle riding. But, as I told folks on Sunday, it was an equipment failure—the nut that holds the handlebars. Certainly there are obvious lessons like riding slower and more safely. But, to tell you the truth, while not riding would be a sensible thing to do, I’ve chosen not to live my life that way. Everything at the core being theological, “I am immortal until my life’s work is done.”
I’m so grateful for all the prayers and well wishes and affection that people have extended to and for me, and I will try to be more careful. But, on a deeper level (where life is really lived from), I want to live life that way—not cautiously and fearfully, but taking chances and experiencing the thrill of being in places where only God can carry me through.
I’m really not talking about doing foolish, daredevil things on a physical level (well, maybe a little). I’m talking about living this way spiritually. I’m not doing that yet—but I’m moving toward it. I have lived too much of my life in fear, making excuses for why I couldn’t do this or that—sharing Christ, public speaking, taking the spiritual initiative, etc. I want to do it not as an adrenaline junkie but as a follower of Christ. I want to do it so you too will be encouraged to take spiritual chances. And because I don’t believe any other course of life is worthy of what Jesus did for us and calls us to. I’m not sure what that looks like yet, so would you pray with me that God would show me (and you) the next step on the Journey He has called us to–with Him?
I don’t know who said it first, but you’ve probably seen the following quote in an e-mail or on a T-shirt. I can’t think of a better way of saying it.
“Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, ‘WOW! What a ride!’”
Woody
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Repentance
Hey guys,
Recently, we as a church family have been dealing with some common family issues. What do you do when family members are disobedient or disruptive or destructive? Every parent is familiar with such thorny challenges.
We were dealing with one such challenge this morning. As I reflect on it, I’m impressed with the critical core attitude that will determine the outcome. It’s usually not the presenting problem that is the real problem; it’s the attitude behind the problem. If a person acknowledges the problem (confesses it), the way forward is not only possible but highly probable. This attitude is the key that opens the lock to the new life that Christ offers us.
The Bible calls this attitude repentance. Literally it means to “change one’s mind,” with a corresponding change in behavior. It reflects a tender heart and a willingness to change, which God honors and can work with. In fact, without repentance, no real change is possible. With it, God gets in the equation and change can and does happen.
Take some time and look at the central place repentance occupies in Scripture (Luke 15:7 and 10, Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15, Acts 17:30 and 26:20, and 2 Peter 3:9).
It’s no wonder that influential figures down through history have emphasized this crucial response. Martin Luther said in the first of his 95 theses that the whole life of the believer should be one of repentance.
Where it exists, God can begin His work in us. Without it, we stay in the hole we’re digging for ourselves that gets deeper and deeper.
Woody
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