LeBron James is Changing the Nature of Truth

LeBron James is changing the nature of truth. During the NBA Finals this year LeBron James a Professional Basketball player made the statement "I feel confident because I am the best player in the world."

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 If he says I am the best basketball player in the world does that make it true? By what standard does he measure that? By his own standard? By Commentators Standards? Has he played against every basketball player in the world? On which day is he the best? What about when he has an "off" day is he still the best? Has he ever lost a one on one with anyone? And when did he become the best player in the world? Did it just happen? You see where I am going with this? Statements like this I believe are changing the nature of truth. The way something is verified as truth is if someone that our community values says it, then it becomes true. And if other people who our community values as important also verify it like color commentators or ESPN Analyzers, then it stands as a true statement. Pontius pilot actually asked Jesus the same question, "what is truth?" Right before he nailed Jesus to the cross for claiming to be the truth. Truth is a hard thing to nail down in our culture. LeBron James is right about one thing, One person is the best player in the world and HE is the truth. Jesus said of himself, "I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through me." This one verifiable truth stands the test of time. Jesus is the best player in the world, he has given his life to prove it, he has more followers in human history that anyone ever, and His word has stood the test of time. We can't say that for LeBron James. He can't even win a Championship in his last two tries. Maybe if he were the best player in the world he might be able to win a championship, but oh basketball is a team sport, but I digress. I think I'll stick with Jesus, his track record is a little better. I am pretty sure that I can trust him. His truth stands the test of time a little bit better than LeBron's truth.

This is a cultural phenomenon that we as the Christian community should resist with everything that we are. As Jesus people we resist...

Pride
Opulence
Greed
Lies
Worldliness
Power

On the other hand we are countercultural with values such as... 

Humility
all Sufficiency of Christ (Jesus is Lord)
Generosity
Benevolence
Truth
Holiness
Meekness

When we live these values we will be a city on a hill, a sweet fragrance that the world will notice. The nature of truth is changing in our culture, but for the Jesus follower the nature of truth NEVER changes. We are a people that give ourselves wholly and fully for the one who gave Himself fully for us. If we could boil Christianity down to a single thing it would be Jesus telling us what it takes to be a disciple of His. In Mark 8:34 Jesus says, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the sake of the Gospel will save it." That is the truth of being a Disciple of Jesus. I am so glad that I serve a great savior not just great, but sorry LeBron He is the greatest player in the universe!!! Here is an old video, but a great one that explains further the greatness of Christ.

The Church Should Be Like the NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs last night for a third straight game totally dismantled the Miami Heat. It was a very impressive display of basketball wizardry! As a basketball fan and player myself I was totally impressed at this team concept and how efficiently they passed the ball and not one player shined greater than another. The player with the highest point average on the team this year was 17 the lowest of a player on a winning team in the finals in the modern shot clock era. This proves the team concept that the San Antonio Spurs have been playing with for the last 15 years.

However I was not as impressed with the excellent basketball and team play as I was with several other aspects that I think make them great. I also wonder if the church might have a look at these areas I noticed last night. As I watched them as a team receive the trophy I thought "the church should be like this!"

1. They are Humble Team Players: 
The first thing that occurred to me while watching the spurs last night was that there is not one single ego on the team. Tim Duncan will be in the Basketball hall of fame one day (and maybe a few other players too), but his Jersey is the 14th Highest selling Jersey in the NBA. Do you think he cares? NO He cares about team, and family, and those around him. I have to say I am actually struggling with this lately. I am struggling with the need to prove myself to everybody. Why do I do that? Why can't I be completely satisfied in My Savior? What if I was a person that was actually completely satisfied in my savior? What if the Church was completely satisfied in Jesus? What if the church was a little more like this? Like Christ actually?

This team is full of unselfish basketball players, they are totally unselfish. They pass the ball better than any other team in the league. Every time I counted the passes in a possession it was always over five passes and when I counted the Heat's passing it was always under 5 usually 2-3 passes per possession. This can only be attributed to team leadership that is also unselfish. From the top down Greg Popovich their coach deflects accolades better than anyone in the NBA. He usually doesn't like to say much to the media, but to his players he demands excellence, humility, and the team concept. What if the Church looked like this? Unselfish, humble, team players?

2. They are Diverse: 

One of the reasons that you have never heard of any of the players on the Spurs is because they are humble team players, and also because they are very diverse. Most of their roster are not Americans. There are only seven Americans on the roster for the Spurs.

There are Italians, Australians, French, Canadians, New Zealanders,  Argentinians, Brazilians and one from St. Croix of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Americans are outnumbered by the international players for the Spurs. Greg Popovich has found a winning formula with this international community and great diversity. Jesus has also found a winning formula in seeking and redeeming those from every tribe and nation under the sun. As I watched the Spurs celebrate Their win, the flags of all these countries came out. It was a great sight to see all these various countries represented on the platform. I can remember a missions conference in Germany that I attended in which our worship rose to the Lord in many different languages, and then the flags were flying of every European country. It was AWESOME! There were about 30 countries represented. It was almost like the Holy roar that will rise before the throne of God, everyone singing in Heaven one day in their own language (Revelation 7:9). How can we as a church reflect the diversity that will one day encamp around the throne of God worshiping the lamb? Well maybe we could take a lesson from the Spurs and seek to reflect that diversity now.

3. They are Relentless for the Team and Goal:
Since the Spurs should have won the NBA championship last year and were robbed (I guess you can assume how I feel about last year) they have worked tirelessly and gotten better. I would never have been able to believe that from last year when they played

awesome basketball. Somehow they really got better as a basketball team. They truly pounded a great Miami team. How could we as a Church learn from their example? If a bunch of guys can work tirelessly for sport, something that will ultimately fade away, couldn't we as a Church tirelessly put our efforts to work in this world for Christ and His kingdom? I was reminded recently of a poem written by a hero of the faith named C.T. Studd. this is the last stanza of the poem...

Only one life, ’twill soon be past, 

Only what’s done for Christ will last. 

And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be, 

If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.”

Paul also wrote about giving everything for Christ...

"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing" (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

These San Antonio Spurs give everything for the goal, the prize, the trophy that will one day not be shiny,
one day not be made of gold, one day not even be there. However, the crown of righteousness will be awarded one day, and if we have lived a humble, faithful, Christ honoring life then the Church will receive that prize that will never fade away!

Church how can we refocus and realign our hearts with the heart of Christ in Humility, embracing Diversity, and being Relentless for Christ? I pray that this emboldens the Church to be what Christ had envisioned for His bride form the beginning. Let us seek Him in these ways so that we can be a most beautiful, appealing, and effective Bride.

Cultivating Curiosity in the Name of Christ

Pastoral ministry requires a person to be curious and genuinely curious about other people. Over the years, I’ve found that ministry required me to be curious about people, and early on in my ministry, I noticed I was genuinely uncurious, arrogant and proud.

A mentor pointed this out to me. It was hard to hear, but it was the best thing he could’ve done for me at the time. I went with him on a weekend retreat where he was the speaker. On our way there, he said to me, "You interrupt people all the time."

I was shocked. He said I had interrupted his wife at dinner at least a dozen times. They were looking at each other, thinking, “Who is this guy; what is he doing?” He offered to observe me over the weekend and let me know what he noticed by the end of our time ministering together. 

At the end of the weekend, he told me he felt I cared more about myself, and what I wanted to say, than about other people and what was on their minds.

This hurt to hear, but it was so eye opening. I realized I needed to overhaul my pride, and my lack of curiosity. I needed to flex my selflessness muscles and genuinely begin caring about people’s souls, interests, passions and needs. James, the brother of Jesus, has this wise advice for us: When we’re tempted to speak first in any situation, we need to choose first to listen, understand and ask questions.

Are you curious, or are you self-important, arrogant, and proud? Here are a few ways to discern where you need to grow:

1.       Do you come into groups of people and begin immediately to talk about yourself or what's happening to you?

2.       Do you, like me, interrupt people when they’re in the middle of a sentence or thought? Do you rush to interject your opinion, tell a story about yourself, or somehow promote yourself?

3.       Do you ask questions of people? Do you seek to get to know people beyond surface level?

4.       Have people ever made these types of comments to you: “you talk too much,” “you interrupted me,” or “you’re not listening”?

5.       Do people seem to pull away from you after a while, even people you had considered a friend?

In order to become deeply caring and curious people, we need to be transformed by Jesus. For me it is happening as I submit myself to the direction of the Holy Spirit. My wife has also sharpened me; she knows my struggles and challenges me. "You aren't listening," "you’re interrupting," she will graciously point out.  

We can also grow by asking other people who are close to us: "Do you feel listened to by me?" "Do I have any blind spots in my character?" Our culture is head over heels for celebrities, starved for information about the rich and the famous, but our Christ call us to minister to the poor, marginalized, hurting, unpopular, and unfamous. Christ is calling his church to be genuinely curious about those that cannot repay you or return the favor:

“(Jesus) 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).

Let us with fresh vision obey the words of Jesus, and with great curiosity, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, “and you will be blessed.”

Is UFC 166 the Answer to Our Masculinity Problem? Masculinity, Ministry, and the cultural slide. How Should We Respond?

I read an article recently about a famous Evangelical leader who was being parodied as appealing to men to be more alpha.  In the satirical piece, he was quoted as saying, “The problem with our churches today is that the lead pastor is some sissy boy who wears cardigan sweaters, has The Carpenters dialed in on his iPod, gets his hair cut at a salon instead of a barber shop, hasn’t been to an Ultimate Fighting match, works out on an elliptical machine instead of going to isolated regions of Russia like in Rocky IV in order to harvest lumber with his teeth, and generally swishes around like Jack from Three’s Company whenever Mr. Roper was around.”  The article went on to poke fun at men who bash on guys who don't spend every waking moment doing "masculine" things like changing the oil, watching football, beating their bare chest in front of the latest UFC 166, 



or Muy Thai stick fighting.  There's a crisis in the church today; we have a skewed understanding of true masculinity, which this article highlighted by exaggerating some of the views that are out there.

I believe in men being masculine, but we would be wise to find out what truly makes a man masculine? From examining scripture, I have four observations.

1. We need a healthy balanced definition of Masculinity. Webster defines the word masculine as "having qualities appropriate to or usually associated with a man." It is also defined as "courageous, bold, or strong."  Nothing about violence, machismo, or emotional distance, which some of these aforementioned activities can involve.  Do we need macho guys in the pulpit or men who are connected to their families, and wives in particular.  I have found that even the act of watching football can isolate me for a complete weekend (not to mention Thursday and Monday night). Some wives are virtually widowed in the Fall; I call them "football widows."  Is masculinity now equated with violence such as UFC, and football? Both of these have made me more violent over the years (and I have played football for 10 years of my life). Jesus shows us true masculinity.  The scriptures say about Jesus in Isaiah 53:9, "He had done NO VIOLENCE, and there was no deceit in his mouth." The scriptures also talk about doing violence to our wives in Malachi 2:16. The prophet says, "The man who hates and divorces his wife," says the Lord, The God of Israel, "Does violence to the one he should protect," says the Lord almighty. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful."  Could unfaithfulness include loving a sport or hobby more than our spouse?  I think there should be a healthy balance of strength, and boldness, kindness, and tenderness in the biblical definition of masculinity, rather than the masculinity litmus test being your ability to bash someone's face in on UFC 166. Here are some other scriptures for your perusal: Ps. 11:5, Pr. 13:2, Is. 59:7, Matt. 11:12, Jer. 22:3; Ps 119:37.

2. Men in ministry need to be spirit filled and humble. We don't need men in ministry who are more effeminate; we don't need "studs" either.  I remember years ago our student ministry decided to stop attending a very popular camp with our students because of this very issue. We attended this camp for years, and then as I began looking around at their staff, they were all studs and studdettes.  There was not one minority, disabled, unattractive, or "un-cool" person on their staff from year to year. It was an unreal picture of the kingdom of God. Jesus ministered to the odd, hurting, needy, marginalized, leprous. He reached prostitutes, people with disabilities, the sick, and tax-collectors. It also seems like the biblical definition of the 'elder' or 'overseer' seems to fly in the face of what I am going to call the "new evangelical masculinity." I would actually consider this definition the height of masculinity.  In 1 Timothy 3:1-7, Paul writes that a church leader "must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil."  This passage seems to be the antithesis of the description of manliness that we're hearing from several evangelical church leaders lately.

3. We need leaders whose masculinity is evidenced in part by their transformational ministry. Transformational leaders are connected emotionally (to people and the Lord).  They feel deeply, act deeply, and worship affectionately.  Men, where is your affection for the savior? We go to concerts and get crazy, or a baseball game, or for that matter play video games for countless hours, but where is our excitement to worship Christ?  A.W. Tozer said, "Any man (or woman) who is bored or turned off by worship is not ready for heaven."  So my question to you is not, Are you a masculine leader? But, do you have a living, humble, needy, celebratory, affectionate, meditative, worshipful, loving, and tender, communion with Christ? If so, you are masculine by his standards.  If we say No to any of these things, and say "I'm not a very emotional person" then we may need to examine our hearts.  We need to pray and ask him to change us into a emotionally connected servant leaders, like Jesus our master.  I'll give you a few instances of how our master was compassionate, affectionate and emotional: Matthew 14:10-18; Matthew 20:30-34; Mark 8:1-6; Luke 7:12-15; Philippians 2:1-3; Matthew 9:36-38; Mark 1:40-42; Mark 6:34; John 11:32-38; Luke 19:36-41; James 4:9, 10; Matthew 13:15; I Thessalonians 2:1-19.

4. We need men who serve faithfully rather than seeking to be superstars in the church. For example, we don't need more multi-site churches beaming sermons into their venue via satellite.  As we're seeking to lead other men, we can give them opportunities to lead and invest in them. We can give them feedback and encourage them when they take those opportunities.  They will speak with their feet and walk out the door if we don't provide opportunities to express their pastoral gifting in this way.  We need more men of average intelligence, and average teaching skills, to be preaching the not-so-average gospel in the not-so-average power of the Holy Spirit!  Our men need to be empowered through training and service.  The "big ministry" and personality-centered ministry concept gives young men the impression that if they have only 200 or fewer people in their church, they're not adequate or successful in ministry.  Success is not how many butts are in our seats.  There are so many men out there who appear "average" in other people's estimation, but they're not average because they minister week in, and week out in the Holy Spirit's power!

In conclusion, I wholly disagree that the problem with the church today is not enough "masculine" men in ministry; we don't have enough men who call on the name of the best man in all of human history, the most humane and mighty man, Jesus.  No, not the most interesting man in the world from the Dos Equis commercials.  

No, "that one," the one who did seemingly un-masculine things.  He let evil men savagely disfigure him by beating him in the face and pulling his beard, the symbol of a Jewish man's masculinity.  He then let them put him on a cruel cross to do the most masculine act in all of history!  He took responsibility!  He took responsibility for your sin and mine.  That man is the ultimate measure of masculinity.  May we all as men measure up to that man Christ, "who emptied himself taking the form of a bond-servant; and being made in the likeness of men, being found in appearance as a man, he humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."  Can we all follow the example of Christ? Then and only then will we measure up as masculine men, and if that isn't very masculine in our culture, then I'm not masculine, and I don't want to be.  I want to be like Christ!

The Opposite Way: Study on the Beatitudes

The Opposite Way: Week 5

Open: This Kanye West quote is the essence of hypocrisy and arrogance, not to mention the Rolling Stone cover below. He said in a Time Magazine interview...
“My goal all along was to be praised and talked about until I reached a level of total contentment with who I am and where I belong in the world, and on Friday night of last week, I reached that level,” said West, standing outside the screen door of his home in a pair of khaki slacks and a plain gray work shirt. “I finally feel satisfied and whole as a human being, which means I can stop being a famous pop star now.”
“So I just want to say thank you to everyone who bolstered my self-esteem by showering me with so much acclaim,” added West, sweeping some dust from his front porch. “Because it worked. I’m good to go.”

"Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. "This, then, is how you should pray:

"'Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name, your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.' (Matthew 6:1-13 NIV)

1. The Opposite Way is sincerity in giving
To be sincere givers we have to practice it. Give stuff away to your best friends. Swap your favorite thing with one of your close friends. What are you doing so that the grip of materialism is being broken in your life? You won't break the power of materialism by getting and keeping more stuff for yourself.

2. The Opposite Way is sincerity in prayer
Prayer is to be done authentically. Not with lots and lots of words or repetition. Just telling God what you feel and what you need, and how holy He is and how thankful we are

I got a phone call from someone recently with a wrong number. This guy who called me was looking for Marco. It was pretty funny how he thought that Marco had to be at this number.  He called back several times asking for Marco. I guess he thought he might all of a sudden get through to Marco by talking a lot.after telling this guy four times that he had the wrong number to check it and not call back again he started to text me asking for Marco. Here is how the text conversation went...

Caller: did u took marcos sell phone? Oh I sorry dis wrong number
Me: No I didn't "took" Marcos "sell" phone. This has been my cell phone number for two years you might want to go talk to Marcos and ask him what his cell phone number is. Please don't call back or text this number anymore
Caller: Half shortie call. Me
Me: STOP texting me "half shortie" or whatever
Caller: I sorry..nu 2 da sell phones..dis wrong number. Dis not marcos sell? Sorry
Me: NO STOP TEXTING ME or I call the cops
Caller: I don't nead no po pos comin round hear. I Ben pressing wrong number SORRY mista

In prayer we don't just keep talking and eventually get through to God like this guy who called me.  He kept trying to talk and thought that through his talking more he would get through to Marco. With God it is much different. We must pray in sincerity to ever draw near to Him. 

Here are some things to pray for...
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. (Ephesians 6:18-20 NIV)

Take a moment now to pray and thank God for how great he is. Tell Him truthfully, and authentically how grateful and thankful you are for what he has done for you in Jesus, and thank Him for how He blesses you everyday.

Ramen Noodles Chicken Flavored Pride

Ramen Noodles Chicken flavored Pride

I used to love ramen noodles! I still kind of love Ramen noodles. You put them in hot water for a few minutes, and you add the powder and you have yourself some awesome chicken (flavored) soup. But alas I am older now and the days of backpacking, living on pennies a week, and late night exam cram sessions are over (at least for a little while).

So, I caught myself today looking through our sparse cupboards for something to eat for lunch. I found an old stack of ramen noodles packed away behind a box of really out-dated dates (sorry some puns just happen). And so I cooked them. As the water was boiling I said to myself, "self, aren't you past eating Ramen Noodles?" it was a moment of pride before I put the noodles in the water. Is this the season of life that I should be eating a few packs of year old Ramen Noodles? This is where the deceitfulness of pride comes in. It lulls you into thinking you should grow out of certain things because you are better than that. Pride says you are better than that when in truth we are not better than anything or anyone In this life. It is written about many times and many places in the Bible, but never more eloquently by Paul in Philippians...
"Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross." (Philippians 2:3-8 NLT)
Here is the tough balance not thinking I am better than Ramen Noodles, and also looking out for your own interests as Paul says here. I must confess, I lean almost always ever to the wrong extreme of self love and preservation, pride and arrogance. God would you help me/us to lean more toward the example of Christ. Help us follow Christ example in all things as it says "You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had." Not try to have, or strive, but "you must". Lord I am so sorry when I think I am better than that thing or person. If you are willing you could pray with me this very dangerous prayer of humility. It goes like this..."Jesus, please humble me". But be ready the dangerous part is that he will answer that prayer, so be ready to be humbled, and maybe I should be ready to eat Ramen Noodles for a while longer. Who's with me?

Fighting Un-Humility

Ever since I was a young man I have fought Un-Humility. Then I memorized Philippians 2:5-8. "Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form. And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal's death on a cross." after reading what Jesus did (Son of God) I then realized that I was a really proud person. Pride in anything. Anything I could get my hands on to wrap my pride into. Sports, school, my smashing good looks although my hair is washing down the shower drain daily, or anything that I could boost my Un-Humility. If it smacked of pride I liked it. I still like it, but everytime I read this passage again I realize the true depths of lowness I can sink to in the area of pride, and how sick it really makes me. And so my first post will be one of Humility. I will seek in this blog to relentlessy pursue the mind of the Humble Christ. If you promise to pursue it with me. Thanks for reading and hope it inspires you, empowers you, and most of all imprints you with the mind of Christ. Blessings!