CRASH!

Enemy in the Mirror

Now, don't get me wrong.  I'm a firm believer in the complete redemption of Christ and the ministry of the Holy Spirit renewing and transforming me into being more like Jesus.  I am sure not the man i could/ought/want to be, but I am not the man I was and the credit goes to the power of Christ in me.  I am grateful for this grace.  But there is a strange paradox in me.  There are three critical elements needed for victory and growth that are strangely absent...at least I seem to avoid them....see if you agree:

Absence of the Cross--constant reluctance to make the Cross the center-piece of my life.  I tend to embrace blessing and strength offered and not embrace the suffering that following Christ promises to me.  I also seem to be hesitant to speak of the cross w/o a sense that I am somehow out of it...seperate from the "real world" and looked on with suspicion...

Phobic Avoidance of Suffering--this ties into the above, but i am so slow to embrace the truth of Romans 5 and James 1....namely that the road of suffering is where Christ is formed in me.  i not only work frantically to avoid suffering, but i run to the rescue of all who suffer around me, when that may be God's plan for them.  (I am not speaking here of relief to the poor and abused...)

Finally i seem to have a strange and puzzling indifference to community and the development to the type of relationships that will bring intimacy and meaning to my life.  The practice of doing life together is shoved to the bottom of my list of items for the week consistently, even tho I know and believe that it is desperately needed. 

God, thank you for not giving up on me.  Thank you for the forgiveness that is mine in Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit walking with me to complete the work in my you desire (Ph 1:6).  May Christ be formed in me more fully that transforms not only the way i act, but the love i have for others.  For YOUR glory and your Kingdoms sake...amen

June 21st...Double blessing

Today is a double blessing for my life.  Both I did not grow up expecting and in fact grew up a skeptic of both areas.  Today marks first my anniversary with my beloved wife.  29 years!  10, 600 days or so with the same woman.  To have that time with her has been the best earthly blessing clearly of my life.  She has been best friend, lover, counselor, nurse, encourager and trusted companion.  The courage and freedom that comes with her love for me is amazing and impossible to express.  Thank you God for such a great wife...one that after this long is still so great to be with.  I am the type of person that tires of some things and needs change quite often, but she is still as interesting and mysterious and yes, even exotic as the first day we met!  How does that happen?  What a gift!! 
(i can share all this cuz she will not see this...does not even really know i have this page...hahah)

Second blessing is Fatherhood.  Today is father's day and i have 2 awesome sons.  Following their own path and one that I feel will end up in your hands God.  One that, although does not make too much sense to me now, will make perfect sense in Your timing and Your good way.  What a blessing to be entrusted with these two fine, intelligent, caring and gifted men.  Two men that i know will make the Your world a much better place.  They have been a huge blessing for me and one that has made me a much better man.  Parenting has made me more loving, caring, and a whole less selfish.  To know just a taste of the Father's love for us as an earthly father has also given me deep insight into God and His love for the whole earth.

I wake this morning a blessed man!  Thank you God, for such a rich life.  Psalm 16 is right about me...."...the boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places..."

Prayer by Billy Graham

"Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance.  We know your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.  We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.  We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.  We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.  We have killed our unborn and called it choice.  We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.  We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem.  We have abused power and called it politics.  We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.  We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.  We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.  Search us, O God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free! Amen!"

The need to Network

I have this weird life!  I work for and with a great community of people in San Jose.  They consistently challenge my gifts and encourage my development as a pastor and as a  man.  I love working there.  But Westgate church is part of a larger community of churches that frustrate me deeply.  The church in general is so hesitant to work together and help each other.  Churches in poor health are like the old man who refused to see a Dr. thinking it as an admission of not being a man.  Churches somehow think we should figure everything out on our own and never seek help from someone else. 
Now, I'm not saying I know what to do in these other communities, but i would certainly role up my sleeves and try to work with them. 
The church in San Jose simply must get over itself!  We are not effective in our city at the level we need to be and we must work together.  O God, that we would get a vision of what YOU want to do here in the South Bay, and that vision would move us to think outside of our little "kingdoms." 

Stages of Conflict

Reminder that when Paul instructs us in Eph 4 to not let our anger linger long, he knew what he was talking about....I got these stages from John Maxwell

KNOW THE STAGES OF A SLIDING CONFLICT

“Do not let the sun go down on your anger….”

#1 REMEDY  Stage – “Fix the Problem”

Characteristics:

1)     RECOGNITION__ of a problem.

2)     DISAGREEMENT_ on how to solve it.

3)     COMMITTMENT__ to solve it.

4)     BELIEF_that is can be solved.

5)     HONEST_communication.

90% OF ALL CONFLICT CLEARED UP HERE

If the conflict is NOT solved…

 

#2  REPOSITIONING_Stage – “Who caused the problem?”

Characteristics:

1)     The focus shifts from solving the problem to PROTECTING MYSELF___.

2)     People are NERVOUS_.

3)     They GENERALIZE_ everything.

4)     Low TRUST_level.

5)     Communication is CAUTIOUS_ and not clear.

LESS THAN 50% CLEARED UP HERE

If the conflict is NOT solved…

 

#3  RIGHTS_ Stage – “I’m right, so you must be wrong.”

Characteristics:

1)     I’m the good person who has the only possible answer.

2)     People take SIDES_.

3)     People are LABLED___.

4)     The focus shifts from solutions to WINNING__.

5)     Communication is OVERSTATED  and DISTORTED.

5% RESOLUTION

 

If the conflict is NOT solved…

 

#4  REMOVAL Stage – “Get rid of those people.”

Characteristics:

1)     People are no longer satisfied with getting their own way.

Now they have to get rid of the opposition

2)     The goal is a DIVORCE__.

3)     People are now in different CAMPS___.

4)     Trust is GONE__.

 

1% RESOLUTION

If the conflict is NOT solved…

 

#5  REVENGE__Stage – “Make someone pay.”

Characteristics:

1)     People are not satisfied with a resignation.

2)     People become FANATICS__.

3)     The conflict has become a PERSONAL/GOD_ issue.

4)     They feel that it is IMMORAL_ to stop fighting.

5)     The conflict goes OUT OF BOUNDS_.

 

0% RESOLUTION OUTSIDE OF DIVINE INTERVENTION

Christmas Songs

Because i did not grow up in a Christian home, we did not really grow up singing Christmas hymns.  We sang "Chestnuts" and "Frosty" but i really missed out on the rich tradition of the Christmas carols.
So this morning, i woke up and started singing and playing my favorite Christmas carols and it ushered my heart into the anticipation of celebrating this great gift from a loving Father.  Here are the words of one of my favorites...enjoy!!

What Child is this who, laid to rest
On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

Why lies He in such mean estate,
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christians, fear, for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.
Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,
The cross be borne for me, for you.
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh,
Come peasant, king to own Him;
The King of kings salvation brings,
Let loving hearts enthrone Him.
Raise, raise a song on high,
The virgin sings her lullaby.
Joy, joy for Christ is born,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

Change

Regardless of how you voted yesterday and how you feel about the election, you have to be amazed and proud that we can have such change and such disagreement and still remain united and w/o civil war or division that threatens life.  What change the Lord has allowed me to witness in my lifetime.  From the racial prejudice of the south when i was small to electing an African American to be our president.  Wow!!
This is now a time to pull our prayers together and pray for our country, not whine or strutt!  There are difficult days ahead and serious issues that face our nation.  May God lead and protect us!  I am proud ot be an American!

Sin

"At first, sin is like an occasional visitor, then like a guest who stays for awhile, and finally like the master of the house."  --Rabbi Yitzhak, Genesis Rabbah 22:6

Reminds me of another quote, which i paraphrase---"Sin will always stay longer then you thought, take you farther than you wanted to go and cost much more than you wanted to pay"

"This view of sin contrasts sharply with modern, individualistic morality that more or less asserts that nothing is sinful that does not immediately harm someone else."  Jeffrey Satinover, MD

I am so quick to leave God's plan, certain that i know best for me....what a fool i am sometimes!

The Righteousness of God Through Faith

²¹ But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— ²² the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. ²⁶ It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷ Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. ²⁸ For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. ²⁹ Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, ³⁰ since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. ³¹ Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.

The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Ro 3:21-31). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

Stealing Signs

Maybe i just did not notice...but what is up with the stealing of signs out of peoples yards for this election?  I have never noticed this before in elections past, but this seems to be a pretty big deal this fall.  Maybe it is because for the first time ever, I have a sign in my yard (not for a candidate, but in support of a proposition...anyway, strange times.

Father Along

I love it when you are living your life, making decisions and trying to follow after God, and all of the sudden you sense growth!  It almost sneaks up on you and surprises you!  Like finding a $20 bill in your jeans that you did not know you had!  haha
This past weekend, "growth" snuck up on me.  Several churches this past weekend canceled their Sunday a.m. services to turn out for the Santa Clara Aids Walk.  Not to protest or demonstrate, simply to come along side this worthy effort of raising funds for the research and relief efforts around this terrible disease.  There were over 800 registered walkers who collectively raised over $30K from Team Beautiful Day (the church team)!  And, we did it w/o the pomp and circumstance that sometimes follows the church when they decide to care....w/o the, "hey, look at me, i'm here now!"
At the end of the walk I was enjoying the sandwich provided and relaxing in the grass and realized the whole thing happened w/o incident or problems.  No well meaning Christian got into a debate over Prob 8.  No arguments about the gay lifestyle that is usually associated with the HIV/AIDS pandemic.  It was wonderful.  We just showed up and said this issue matters to us and we care.  And we showed up BIG!
Little steps.  Baby steps towards becoming the community Christ is calling us to be.  Wow!  It's good to grow!