Mia Joy

I love to see my daughter smile (which lately is all the time).  Just the other morning, while she was still asleep, I went into her room to say goodbye before I headed off to work. She opened her eyes, looked at me and smiled.  There is nothing like that feeling. She is the happiest  baby I have ever seen and she continues to surprise me each day.  I didn't even know that an 11 week old baby could smile; I thought they just ate, slept, peed and pooped until like 6 months (I know nothing about babies).  But here she is, always smiling; so full of joy.

We named her Mia Joy because we liked the sound of it, but it's amazing how much her middle name seems to fit.  She is so full of joy and seems to bring joy to anyone who spends time with her. (especially now that she's sleeping through the night!)

The Bible talks frequently about "joy." In fact, just in the Psalms, the subject of joy comes up 45 times. In nearly all of them, the source of our joy is God Himself. For example:

-  You [God] have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and new wine abound.
    (Psalm 4:7 HCSB)

 -  Those who look to Him are radiant with joy; their faces will never be ashamed. (Psalm 34:5 HCSB)

 -  But the righteous are glad; they rejoice before God and celebrate with joy. (Psalm 68:3 HCSB)

When I see my daughter smile, I see a joy unhindered by this fallen and sinful world.  She doesn't worry about anything, because there's nothing for which to worry.  She is loved by her mother and me, but more than that she is loved by God.  My prayer every day is that she will never lose that joy.  Life is tough and it only gets harder as the years go on, but I want her to know that she can always find joy if she'll give her life to Jesus.

Maybe that's what Jesus was talking about when said that we should come before Him like little children.  Little Children have joy unhindered by this fallen and sinful world.  I want to be joyful like my daughter and I want to find that joy in God.  And with a God like ours, no matter what may come, why would we not be joyful?

My Name is Martha

My name is Martha.  The whole of my Christian existence has been about the business of serving Jesus.  Since I was a young child, I’ve looked for a place to serve or “get more involved.”  I volunteered on Sunday mornings to pray, read scripture, or even be an usher.  As I got older I worked with kids younger than me.  In youth group I lived for the “service projects.”   As the years went on, I knew God was calling me to be a pastor, so I got busy serving as a leader in my church’s youth group.  Eventually, I even quit my job so I could give more time to “serving Jesus.”  These days, I’m a full time youth pastor and I have the pleasure of “serving Jesus” as a career (oh wait…the Christian word is “calling”).  It’s awesome, but I’m busy.

And I wonder in the midst of my “busyness” Have I missed something? Have I missed something that could possibly change everything about how I view my relationship with God?  Where did I learn that the Christian life was about being “busy” serving Jesus?  Well…from other “Marthas” of course.  These are well-meaning people who love God and desire to bring glory to His name; they recognize that there is much work to be done and they get down to doing that work.  And “serving Jesus” is what’s important right?  Well…Martha has a sister; her name is Mary and if you know the story (Luke 10:38-42), you know that while Martha was content to stay busy, Mary was content to sit at the feet of Jesus, hanging on His every word.  Understandably, Martha is frustrated at this perceived “laziness” and complains to Jesus.  Jesus explains that Mary has chosen what’s best and it will not be taken away from her. Hmmm….

Mary who has chosen what’s best?  “What good is sitting at Jesus’ feet with all this work to be done?”  If it’s you’re propensity to ask this question, like me, you’re probably a Martha.  We are the ones who complain (i.e. take pride in the fact) that “we’re the 10% doing 90% of the work.”  After all, the church couldn’t function without us, could it? Like Martha, we have falsely convinced ourselves that Jesus needs us to serve Him.  That if we don’t keep busy, we will derail the “Great Commission,” or, to us (even worse), our church’s doors will close for good.  No, Jesus didn't need Martha’s help, nor does He need our help.  As Lord, He has everything under control.  Don’t get me wrong, there will be time to do work, but first things first; Jesus wants us to sit at His feet, be fully present, and experience a very real relationship with Him.

But sadly, I’m convinced that many of us in the church find it easier to “serve Jesus” than to sit alone in our rooms and be fully present at His feet.  But that’s what Jesus desires of us….to sit as His feet and enjoy the relationship.  While there have been countless people in my life who have taught me how to serve Jesus, I cannot recall anyone who has ever ushered me to the feet of Jesus and showed me how to simply enjoy my relationship with Him.  This is not to say that they didn’t experience their personal relationship with Jesus like Mary; they just never thought to show me.

Don’t get me wrong, "serving" Jesus is important.  It’s important to serve in the church and serve our community and world, but before we can do that, we must, first, sit at the feet of Jesus and hang on His every word.  After that, our service will be a natural overflow of our devotion to Him.  Now if, for you, like me, sitting at the feet of Jesus sounds childish; where the kids sit and listen to stories while the adults do the work; you’re right.  The Bible tells us that we should approach Jesus like a little child.  Jesus addressed this specifically by saying, “I assure you: Whoever does not welcome the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Mark 10:15 HCSB).  Children are content to sit and enjoy a good story; but we’ve convinced ourselves that adults must always “serve.”

As I’m writing this, I recognize that I truly desire to be like Mary.  Sitting at the feet of Jesus, as I hang on His every word, sounds awesome (if not insanely spiritual).  But I can’t even have a consistent quiet time.  I’ve already failed in my New Year’s resolution to follow a Bible reading plan for the entire year.  So if you are looking for a 5 step plan to become more like Mary, I don’t have it.  For a beginning, I’m simply going to start reading my Bible while sitting on the floor as a way of tangibly “sitting at the feet of Jesus” (all the while wondering if this might be too literal) because I know I have to start somewhere.  One thing I know for sure is this (and it keeps me up at night): as a youth pastor, I’m responsible for helping to train up the young people that God has put under my care.  By example, am I teaching them to be “Marthas” or “Marys?” Am I showing them only to “serve” or am I showing them how to experience a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.   I’m great at teaching these young people how to serve; at giving them something to do.  I’m even great at serving with them.  But I’m not great at leading them to the feet of Jesus, because if I’m truly honest with myself, I don’t spend a whole lot of time there.  But more and more, I’m beginning to realize, that if I truly want these students to defy statistics and stick with their faith after high school, then it’s going to take more than just being “busy.” I need to lead them to the feet of Jesus.  I need to teach them to be like Mary.  I’ve always known that a change needed to be made, but now I see that the change needs to start with me.

A Father's Love

One of the most common descriptions in the Bible for God is a “Father.” I guess I’ve always seen this, but I’ve never really understood. My “earthly” father was a good man who always strived to provide for my brother and me. I believe that he loved me even though he didn’t always say it. As a result, I spent a lot of my childhood (and adulthood) believing that I had to earn his love and favor by always being on my best behavior or by doing well in school or by succeeding on the football field. It should serve as no surprise that this mentality crept into my understanding of my “heavenly” father. I’ve always assumed that so long as I didn’t sin, prayed every day, read my Bible, went to church, etc… that I would find favor with God. In times that I failed in any of these categories, I felt guilt and shame, and I hid myself from God for fear that he was angry with me or even worse: disappointed.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve realized that I’ve had it all wrong. You see, I’m a father now. And for the first time in my entire life I understand a father’s love. Believe me; nothing could have prepared me for the emotions that I felt as I held my daughter for the first time. I just met this little girl, but it feels as though I’ve always known her and that I’ve always loved her. She is my little girl and there is nothing I wouldn’t do for her and there is no length to which I wouldn’t go to protect her. She doesn’t have to earn my love; I will give it to her freely.

In the same way, I don’t need to earn God’s love and there is nothing I could do to make God not love me. The Bible tells me that God’s love for me is just like my love for my daughter only a whole lot stronger! My heart’s desire is that as Mia grows older, when she thinks of me, she will think, “wow, my dad really loves me!” And by my example, I hope she will know that she has a “heavenly father” who loves her even more!

Why I like Tim Tebow

If you have ever talked to me for more than 5 minutes, you probably know that I’m a diehard Baltimore Raven’s fan. I hail from the land where they bleed purple and black and unless you are from Baltimore, you may not understand…even my wife Amanda doesn’t (she’s from Delaware). However, if you were to ask me who my favorite football player is, right now I’d have to say Tim Tebow. Now before you throw up, let me explain. I’m not one of those people who thinks that God is causing Tim Tebow to continue to win and I don’t pray that Tim will win so that the gospel can be spread. When it comes to Tim Tebow, he doesn’t have to win for that to happen...he just has to be himself. There have been many athletes to bow their knee in the end zone and point to the sky (e.g. Reggie White, Mike Singletary; Deion Sanders, Kurt Warner, etc...) but never has a player been so defined by their faith as Tim Tebow. From the days of writing scripture verses on his eye black at Florida to the iconic bowing to pray after practically every action (now known as Tebowing).

Let's face it Tim Tebow doesn’t need football because he has defined himself not as a football player but as a follower of Jesus Christ. And Tebow will follow Jesus wherever that might lead. In fact, I suspect Tebow will be out of the league and in the mission field in the next few years, but what he’s doing with the time he has, is simply remarkable. He’s a role model for all of us showing up that we can wear our faith on our sleeves and not be fake. Of all the criticism that Tim Tebow gets (and he gets a lot), you never hear people questioning his character. He’s genuine and caring and loving to everyone regardless of whether they agree with him or not. There’s a reason people compare him to the second coming of Christ...he acts and looks an awful lot like Jesus. But isn’t that exactly what Christians are supposed to do; look and act like Jesus?

Nevertheless, Tebow is a polarizing figure in which he is both loved and hated. Some people wish he'd stop talking about Jesus and just play football. Others think he's a joke of a quarterback. Others still have naively elevated him to a superhuman status in which he is on a level with Jesus Himself. I personally feel that this is nothing different that idolatry. However you feel about Tim Tebow, one thing is certain, there is something about him that demands a response. He is different. As a youth pastor, I couldn’t be more happy to see a young man of God in the spotlight who is proud that he’s a virgin saving himself for marriage; who thanks God even for the little things; and in spite of his weaknesses and shortcomings, he’s proving that with hard work, you don’t have to be the best to win.

In a world where the media inundates of with pictures of Christians who stumble in sin, who are greedy for more money, who are judgmental and filled more with hate for those who don’t think like them, and even worse, Priests who abuse little children; isn’t it refreshing that we finally have a Christian in the spotlight for which we can say, “that’s what it means to be a Christian”? I pray for TimTebow, not that he’ll continue to win, but that he’ll continue to live his life to the glory of God so that my students will be able to see an athlete in the spotlight who loves and serves God with his whole life.

Distractions

Distractions are everywhere. Around every corner is a new “thing” to push us off our path or interrupt our stride. Some of these “things” are sinful, others are just that: distractions. You may be working on a project for work or school and are distracted by a text message from a friend telling you to check out his or her Facebook page that leads you to a website with a 30 minute video of something your friend thought was awesome. And in the process of all of this, you realize you’ve just wasted an hour of your life that you can never get back; not to mention you could have used that hour to finish the aforementioned project.

But what about things that distract us from God? Doesn’t the busyness of our whole life sometimes become a distraction that forces us to put God on a shelf to be brought down only when absolutely necessary? As people, we typically pride ourselves on being self-sufficient. We can do almost anything without the help of anyone else; including God. Sometimes we even convince ourselves that “God only helps those who help themselves.” The fact is that this is a lie. By excluding God from, what we see as, the mundane and insignificant parts of our lives, we have shortchanged ourselves by missing out on the intimacy that God want us to have with Him. God doesn’t want to be catastrophe insurance; He wants to be near to us always. But how often in a day, do we truly stop to think about God? So today, as you read this, I offer you a challenge. Set a timer to go off every 15 minutes. When that timer goes off…think about God; pray; or even read a verse or 2 of scripture. The point is that we need to intentionally and deliberately enter the presence of God throughout our day or else at the end of the day, we may go to sleep having not considered God at all. And that would be foolish.

Criticism

I dislike criticism. I don’t like it when people tell me that something I’ve said or something I’ve done is wrong. I’ll confess that part of this has to do with pride, but not all of it. You see, when someone comes to me and criticizes me, I will almost always try to see it from their perspective. While I may not always like it, if they are right, I’ll seek to correct the problem and I’ll have gained a new-found respect for that person. However, many times, I’ve found that criticism is misinformed. At times, people are quick to criticize before having all the facts and they jump to conclusions leading them to criticizing a make-believe problem which is never helpful. It’s often been said, “seek to first understand and then to be understood.” The problem, of course, is who has the time? Can we all be detectives in our spare time?

Nevertheless, criticism is immensely important. Through positive and constructive criticism we essentially sharpen our skills. As an editor criticizes a first draft so the final will be better or a coach critiques a player’s technique so that he or she will be best prepared at game-time, criticism can make us better. But it must always be done with love. So here are a few basic rules to keep in mind when you feel the need to express your criticism:

Seek to understand what you are criticizing. This may involve dealing with the person directly. Ask why the person did something or what they meant when they said or wrote something. You may even find that you’ve completely misunderstood and that you now, having all the facts, actually agree with them.

Criticize the position/action and never the person. In order for you to criticize a position/action you have to know the facts. However, it is easier to assassinate a person’s character than to take the time to learn those facts. If you don’t take the time to learn the facts you have forfeited your right to criticize them.

If you don’t feel strongly enough to criticize the person to their face, then don’t criticize them at all. Self explanatory.

Ask yourself, “does this matter?” There are big things that need to be addressed, but more often than not, what we are criticizing isn’t really important. When you are always critical, people are less likely to listen when important criticism needs to be said. So learn to let those little things go. When people don’t see you as a critical person, when you do feel the need to share criticism, it makes people ask, "does this person have a point?"

By exercising discretion in our criticism we can help one another to be better in everything we do.

Note: This post was inspired by a 2 part series written by Ed Stetzer on his blog (www.edstezter.com). I've adapted some of his points to fit my on cultural context. Honestly, his posts are better so here are the links:

http://www.edstetzer.com/2011/03/criticism1.html

http://www.edstetzer.com/2011/03/how-to-offer-criticism-part-tw.html

30 Hour Famine

I was recently shocked to learn that the leading cause of death in our world is not war, disease, or even cancer, but rather hunger. It’s hard to believe that in the 21^st century we still live in a world where more than 8,000 kids under 5 will starve to death this very day! The students of Trinity have decided that they’d like to do something about it. This weekend, Trinity’s youth will be participating in the 30 Hour Famine to raise money and awareness for world hunger. From noon on Friday until 6:00pm on Saturday the students will be going without food for around 30 hours to get a small glimpse into what it means to be go hungry. Through this, we’ll be learning about hunger in our world as well as serve the hungry of our own community.

We as Christians are called to not just share the gospel in our broken world, but to live the gospel as well. Sharing the gospel without first living the gospel points the world to a hypocritical Church. However, living the gospel with sharing it on a personal level, doesn’t really help anyone in the long run.

If you would like to participate in the 30 Hour Famine with Trinity’s youth, feel free to contact the church office. Please pray for our students this weekend as they seek to live out the gospel in their community!