Abiding in the Vine as a Triune Being

During one of my basic theology courses at Northwest University, I had what I thought was a completely original epiphany regarding the nature of the trinity. I thought, “what if the trinity operated like a single human person, in that God is Father, Son and Spirit in the same way you and I are mind, body and spirit? Each one equal parts God like each part of your being is equal parts you.” Pretty slick, huh?

Well don’t be too proud of me, this is an idea that’s existed for a long time; that we are “triune beings.” I simply hadn’t heard of that yet. Though, admittedly, the model does have some holes in it (God has love between His beings, ie between the Father and the Son, while I don’t necessarily have love between my mind and body), this breakthrough proved helpful for my understanding of the Godhead regardless of who thought of it first.

This laid the foundation for another sort of aha regarding John 14:20:

“On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”

Jesus continues sharing this truth a chapter later in John 15. The purpose of these passages is, of course, to show us the power of abiding in Jesus, and to show us how utterly ineffective we are on our own. But using the triune personhood model, we can look at this in another way that was helpful for me.

In that model, the Father is the head of Jesus, and Jesus is obedient to Him. So, if that is what Jesus abiding in the father looks like, then if we are to abide in Jesus it would look like us placing Jesus as our head, our mind, and revering him as our authority in the same way He reveres His Father (in this model, His mind). So you have a sort of Russian doll scenario of descending authority, where you are definitively at the bottom.

If this seems like I’m thinking in a circle to you, I understand. But for me it is a useful model for understanding one of the more ethereal concepts of following Jesus. Maybe the process of sanctification is the continued, Spirit-driven reshaping of your mind, your authority, more and more into that of Jesus. Maybe that is the physical reality of what it is to abide in the vine?

Just some thoughts!

Who Is Up For Such A Task?

I am writing this blog from the parking lot of Mercy Hospital in Gilbert, Arizona where lately I spend most of each day. I do this so that I can be close to my son, Tim, who is on the second floor in critical condition. He is fighting pancreatitis, renal failure and COVID 19.

I spend my time texting him, updating family members and friends, doing prayer walks around the hospital, and working as much as my concentration will allow.

Today, during a walk around the beautiful gardens here, I realized that I am learning a little bit about mental and emotional endurance and how to “fight the good fight of faith” in terrifying times. A question from the Apostle Paul popped into my mind as I lamented my fatigue and helplessness: “And who is equal to such a task?”

I looked it up and here it is in context: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of Him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task?” (2 Corinthians 2:14-16)

I was encouraged by the phrase, “captives in Christ’s triumphal procession” - how cool is that kind of captivity? God holds us captive in Christ’s victory march so that He may use us to spread the aroma of Jesus. Wow.

The reason I was asking, “And who is equal to such a task?” Is that I feel so helpless and exhausted; I feel like a man with no spiritual or emotional power.

As I reflected on this during that walk, I began to sing praise to God. I began to confess His sufficiency and power. I began to boast that He is more powerful than sickness and even death. I began to worship Him. I began to fix my eyes on Him alone, and gaze upon Him.

It strikes me that this is the big advice I would give if you, too, are fighting a good fight right now. If all you can do is control what you stare at, do it and stare at Him.

When I stare at my son being on a COVID floor without a visitor for days, or doing dialysis, or gasping for breath because he decided to stand up - when I stare at those things, I get very discouraged and afraid.

But when I stare at Jesus and begin to proclaim to myself, to Tim’s sick body, and to God, the goodness and power of God; when I begin to tell Tim’s sickness to go back from whence it came and I call upon the Holy Spirit to comfort and counsel Tim in the absence of his wife and family - then my entire being changes, too.

At the same time I ask, “Who is up to such a task?” And, “Who can ever defeat my good God and loving Savior?” I live in the tension of these realities by the grace of God and I fix my eyes on Jesus.

Just after writing that sentence, I got another medical update with both good and bad news.

That means it is time to do some more fighting. Time for another walk. Maybe you need one, too.

The Chicken-Egg Debate of Mental Health

I ordered a chicken and an egg from Amazon today. I’ll let you know.

There are so many issues that have a “chicken or egg” quandary - which came first - and I want to talk about emotional and mental health. I have become obsessed with the urgency of mental and emotional health due to the covid crisis and the chaos of 2020. I believe mental health to be the greatest need and threat of our time.

So here is the quandary:

Do people with strong mental and emotional health have great habits, rhythms, and thinking patterns, OR, do people with great habits, rhythms, and thinking patterns have strong mental and emotional health?

And the answer is?

YES

People with strong mental and emotional health do, in fact, have great habits, life-rhythms and thinking patterns. They usually eat better, are more physically active, have meaningful relationships, and have generally more positive and optimistic outlooks.

But you can also reverse engineer this.

If you are battling mentally and emotionally, you can behave your way into a better space. In fact, you must behave this way, even if it’s the last thing you want to do.

Behavioral psychologists have long believed that we can behave our way into a better psychological place. I agree and have experienced this myself.

If you are battling for your mental or emotional survival, your behaviors are critical in the fight. And, for those who consider this pop-psychology, the Bible says a ton about this as well. Here is a small list of helpful behaviors that the Bible prescribes for mental and emotional health:

Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus

Rejoice always. I say it again, rejoice!

Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

Let no unwholesome talk come from your mouth, but only what is useful for edification and encouragement to those who listen (even you)

The list could go on and on for days.

Here is what I know: When you practice these habits of soul-care and health, you actually feel better and experience more health. And, when you are discouraged, depressed, or anxious, these are the last practices you feel like doing. In fact, they can feel impossible, emotionally.

And that is exactly why you must do them. Not just when you are struggling, but as a lifestyle.

Negative people suck.

Negative thoughts do not inspire positive action or emotions.

Get in the game and keep some habits that will feed your soul. Get outside. Take walks. Take naps. Pray the Scriptures. Worship musically. Reflect. Eat healthier. Give thanks to God and make a gratitude list every day. 

You get the idea.

Your emotional health is a stewardship. Steward it well!

God’s Good and Gracious Will for Your Life

Probably a dozen times I have had a room full of high school students where I gave them index cards and pencils, asked them to write down any questions they wanted, and I sat on a stool to answer the questions. Every single time, there are 3 questions that got asked:

How far can I go on a date before it is sin?

Is masturbation sin?

How can I know God’s will for my life?

The fact that these 3 are the universal questions of teenagers is another discussion, but I want to talk about question number 3 - What is God’s will for my life?

There are three New Testament passages that clearly name something as God’s will for you:

1 Peter 2:15 - “For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.”

1 Thessalonians 4:3 - “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;...”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Again, I want to talk about number 3 - Rejoice, pray, and give thanks - continually and in all circumstances.

The Bible is the greatest book of psychological wisdom in the history of the world. And God gives this as His will for you, not only that you should practice obedience, but that you should be emotionally and mentally healthy.

Consider this approach as a strategy for soul-health in a COVID, division-rich, unpredictable time.

Rejoice always - “Be joyful; to enjoy a state of happiness and well being; to be glad”. This is a choice you can make and there is a great reason to make it - Jesus has redeemed you and the Father has adopted you into His family. The Lord is your Shepherd - you lack nothing!

Pray continually - Talk to your Father, in the name of the Son, all the time. Tell Him how you feel, what you are afraid of, how you see your enemies, and how great He is. Just talk to Him - like a child would freely talk to a loving Father.

Give thanks in all circumstances: There is much to be thankful for in every single circumstance. We don’t give thanks FOR our circumstances, but IN them. Why? Because in every circumstance, we find a faithful Father, an advocating Son, and an abiding Holy Spirit who are relentlessly committed to our good.

Try it today. Try it every day for 21 days. Establish the habit - and watch what happens to your general outlook and disposition in life.

Christians and Persecution - in America?

(Thanks to Dr. James Emery White for this content)

I’ve often heard Christians in the U.S. speak about being “persecuted” for their beliefs, or for being marginalized as a result of their convictions. While I believe there have been isolated cases of Christians in America being wrongly prosecuted for taking various stands, I’m not ready to call anything any American Christian has suffered persecution.

Not when real persecution exists around the world in ways that can only be deemed unconscionable. As in imprisonment, torture and death. Currently 2,983 Christians are killed every year. In other words, eight Christians are killed for their faith every day.

A study just released by the Pew Research Center has found that government restrictions on religion have reached their highest level globally in more than a decade. The total number of countries with “high” or “very high” levels of government restrictions has risen to 56, representing 28% of all countries/territories in the world.

Most of these countries are in the Asia-Pacific region (25 countries, or half of all countries in that region) or the Middle East-North Africa region (18 countries, or 90% of all countries in the region). Of the two, the Asia-Pacific region has the largest increase due to a greater number of governments in the region using force against religious groups, including property damage, detention, displacement, abuse and killings.

China continues to have the highest score on the Government Restrictions Index (GRI) out of all 198 countries and territories in the study. The Chinese government restricts religion in a variety of ways, including banning entire religious groups (such as the Falun Gong movement and several Christian groups), prohibiting certain religious practices, raiding places of worship, and detaining and torturing individuals.

Of particular interest to Christians would be the rising number of “anti-conversion” laws—not simply in Muslim countries, but in places such as India in regard to Hinduism. In all, 21 countries currently criminalize what they deem “apostasy” (e.g., a Muslim or Hindu becoming a Christian).

The good news?

Consider China, where the Protestant church has grown from 1.3 million members in 1949 to at least 81 million members today. The Catholic Church in China has grown from 3 million members to more than 12 million during the same 50-year period.

Though Christianity is “harassed” in 145 nations (representing 260 million Christians worldwide), the gospel of Jesus Christ will not be contained, nor the spread of its message intimidated.

But make no mistake:

American Christians are not being persecuted,

… but Christians in other countries are.

Rugged Individualism, the Gospel, and You!

I love Westerns. Western movies, books, music, clothing, I’m all about it. I’m listening to Marty Robbins as I type. And for more than just the aesthetic of the genre, I love Westerns for their themes and iconography. Though now a largely dormant genre, the Western identity is baked into the individualism that permeates the culture of the USA. Be it dime-novel stories about a lone lawman facing down an entire band of outlaws to save a poor mining town, or a contemporary tale of down-on-their-luck legacy families trying to hold to the old ways in their ever changing once frontier town, the Western is always the story of resilience, resourcefulness, stubbornness, and, above all, doin’ it yourself.

There’s just one problem: these are not the values of the Gospel. Can you think of anything that would appeal to the Man with No Name less than assimilation into the church as a member of the body of Christ? Than submitting yourself to authority for the sake of God, regardless of how corrupt or stupid their laws? Than devoting your life to the servanthood of others, out of reverence of your Servant-King?

Our God is relational at His core (see my last blog). Before He created anything He was already perfect in community, being three-in-one, so none can claim He needs us for community. He doesn’t even need us for love, as he has that within His own persons, too. Point being that community is the name of the game with our Lord; no one member of His body is worth much on its own, but together we are His living representation here on earth. His image.

So where does this leave us Western-watching and God-fearing individuals, reared with the independent values of a country founded on rebellion? Are these earthly values of self-reliance and grit useless (or even worse, sin)? I might not say as much.

In the book of Acts, we find the apostle Paul posting up with a family in Corinth and plying his trade of tent-making so as not to burden them financially while he ministers to the city. Later, defending himself against naysayers in 2 Corinthians, Paul writes in chapter 11 verse 2, “I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so.” And again in chapter 12 verse 16, “Be that as it may, I have not been a burden to you.”

While we are called to support each other in as many ways as possible, as one body supports itself, we are not called to be a burden on each other if we can help it. That sounds like some good, old-fashioned American values to me. Again in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.’”

So while the Gospel commends, even commands, submission to the will of authority and the betterment of others, I wouldn’t necessarily call it un-American, or opposed to Western values. Instead, the answer lies where it often does when weighing earthly, cultural values against the Gospel: in moderation.

Are self-reliance and hardwork Christ-like values? You bet. Are you blameless if you are full of the pride that often accompanies those values, and act like it? You already know the answer to that. So take those values you love, remove yourself from the occasion, keep your eyes on our Lord and you should be good to go.

Besides, some of those Western priorities are already Christ-centered. Putting your life on the line for those in need? That’s what being a cowboy is all about!

The Perversion of Mistrust

Prepare yourself for a journey into the raw reality of how God feels when we place our trust in powers, wealth, and resources that we can see, touch, and quantify, rather than boldly trusting Him when our circumstances are dire.

This blog is rated PG13.

In Ezekiel 23, God is letting the Israelites have it with some scathing rebukes and nasty metaphors about their lack of confidence in God and their adulterous affairs with Egypt and Assyria as they seek rescue assistance from these two godless nations.

God speaks through the Prophet Ezekiel and tells an allegory about two sisters, representing Samaria and Jerusalem. These sisters become prostitutes who have “their breasts fondled and their virgin bosoms caressed” by Egypt and Assyria. “While she was still mine, she lusted after her lovers,” God says.

Even though her lovers abused her and exposed her naked body, she kept coming for more. In fact, she became more and more promiscuous and, get this, “lusted after her lovers whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses.” It goes on and on in descriptive terms about their lust, prostitution and abuse, rather than trusting in their true Husband, God Himself.

Here’s the deal: God is using such vulgar language, metaphor, and exaggeration because they are, in fact, appropriate for the offense and adultery being committed. It is equivalent to grotesque sexual perversion to look to godless men for rescue rather than boldly trusting in their proven Father.

We must admit that we know exactly what this is like!

During COVID, elections, economic trials, relational collisions, unemployment, family crises, profound fears, etc, it is vastly easier to look for rescuers we can see and touch! We all do it!

And it is nasty, perverted, lustful distrust in God’s eyes.

And here is the kicker: That powerful nation of Egypt that these fools are looking to for rescue and resource? God defeated them when they were the most powerful nation, economy and military on earth - and He did it with a stuttering 80-year old man with nothing more than a stick in his hands!

No matter how dire your circumstances - and no matter how powerful your allies - God can defeat anyone and anything with nothing but Himself. Any time He wants to.

Trust that. Fall in love with that. Lean hard into that!

This is what purity looks like.

The God of Jon

A few weeks into first grade, I had yet to make a friend. I remember this one guy who I would talk to at first, but he eventually found a tribe and I was left in the lurch. My teacher noticed this, as well as a classmate of mine, Connor, who was in the same boat. Every recess Connor would just walk laps around the playground equipment swinging his arms around and making action noises, completely alone. So one recess my teacher suggested I go and talk to Connor and spend a recess with him. That was the start of a friendship that lasted through the end of third grade, when I switched schools and we lost touch. But for those three years, me, Connor and this kid who loved pretending to be a robot (I don’t remember much else about that guy) were thick as thieves. 

My teacher initiated that relationship, sending me over to talk to the lonely, yet very kind, Connor, but that was the extent of her involvement in the friendship. She didn’t make me hang out with him every day, or initiate the playdates we would have outside of school, or tell me what to say in our conversations. It was my responsibility, and Connor’s, to actually steward that relationship, even as six-year olds.

In the same way, your relationship with God is no one’s responsibility but your own. It’s not your pastor’s, even if he/she is the one who initiated your meeting with Him. It’s not your parent’s/friend’s/spouse’s. None of those people can facilitate your relationship with God any more than a teacher can facilitate a friendship between students. They can make an introduction, and the rest is up to you.

Had you asked me about this truth pre-COVID I would have said, “yeah, of course I know that. I’m not Catholic.” But, as with almost anything, knowledge of a concept is not the same as a practical, hands-on understanding of it. Since the coronavirus pandemic I have had to forego many of the weekly ceremonies that energized me and brought me closer to God. I had regularly scheduled times where I could count on feeling the presence of my Savior, every single week, in one of at least two church services. When that routine went the way of Sean Connery, so too did my intimacy with Jesus.

I spent months in a numb sort of coasting. I don’t think I noticed it right away, either. Eventually, though, it was clear to me that something had changed and I needed to get to work. To take responsibility for my own friendship with Christ. It was nobody else’s job, and no one else would answer for it either.

This has been one of the many unexpected blessings of this horrific year. In taking the reins of my own personal, unique relationship with the Almighty I actually reached a deeper level of intimacy than I had enjoyed before. It led to that funny feeling you get when a friend’s friend that you sometimes hang out with gradually transitions to become your own friend, with your own relationship irrespective of that with your original friend.

This is the kind of personal friendship that God longs for; the kind that He made us for. Our God is unique among the ancient Mesopotamian gods in that He has no proper name. Instead he opts to be called the God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, etc. He longs to be your God, and He is my God too; the God of Jon.

I wonder what Connor is up to.

See How You Really Feel About The Electoral College

Saturday morning Joe Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 Presidential Election. No matter how you feel about that, the last few days have been a perfect classroom to test how you feel about the Electoral College vs the National Popular Vote to determine an election.

As of today, 16 States have passed legislation that requires that their electoral votes be given to the candidate who wins the national popular vote. In other words, the voice of these States’ citizens will be subjugated to the national voice whenever the two disagree.

Advocates for this believe that the national voice is more important than the voice of each State, for a variety of reasons. Detractors, like myself, say that the Electoral College guarantees that the diversity, needs, and values of each State get a more accurate and weighty voice, the way our forefathers intended.

This week has provided the perfect opportunity for you to test your opinion and insure that you truly do value your perspective regardless of who gets elected with it.

Try this out:

Biden has outperformed Trump on the national level by between 4 and 5 million votes. That is huge and Popular Vote advocates say, regardless of the Electoral College, Biden should be the winner. Test #1: in 2016, Trump won the College but lost the popular vote. So, do you believe that Hillary Clinton should have been our President for the past four years, or do you prefer the College? Now, carry your answer to that question into the next question.

Test #2: There have been six “battleground states” that determined the outcome of the election. We have been glued to the exhausting counting process in those States so we could declare a winner. What if those six States were a nation? Biden has been winning four of those States, and thus the Electoral College portion of the contest. However, Trump holds the popular vote of these 6 States, combined, by over 100,000 votes, or 10%. So, if these six States were the entire nation, Trump would be your President if decided by the Popular Vote.

So, if you are a Democrat, you. “Win” with the popular vote in Test #1 and you lose in Test #2 (with a smaller nation as the example). Do you still feel the same on the Electoral College issue?

If you are Red, you lose the popular vote in Test #1 and win it in Test #2. Do you still feel the same on the Electoral College issue?

Let your mind embrace both outcomes and reflect on them for a minute. Do you still hold your opinion, regardless of whether you win or lose?

My point: If you value the popular vote idea, and it’s because you like what that would do in recent history, you need to insure that you feel that way if it worked “against you” as well.

I continue to recommend the documentary, “Safeguard” on Amazon Prime. It’s 77-minutes that will help you reach clarity of your position on the Electoral College. For me this is, perhaps, our most critical issue for a sustainable and healthy Republic.

Nor Can It Do So

Months (years?) ago I set out to write this post, and only half succeeded. I think the idea can be much clearer communicated, so this is version 2.0 of that blog.

Simon Peter is a legend. He was among Jesus’ apostles, and even further he was part of Christ’s yet smaller A-team, called with James and John to be alone with Jesus on many occasions, including the transfiguration (Matthew 17). He alone is called out on the water to walk with Jesus, and has the faith to do it at least for a short while. When asked, the Spirit reveals to Peter alone that Jesus is the Messiah. That’s an impressive resume, and yet very soon after these things we see Peter declaring that he is chief among the disciples, cutting off a man’s ear, promising his fealty to Christ, and then denying him on the night of his death.

That is the story of a man, living in the flesh, who traveled with the living Son of God for three years, observing powerful signs and wonders, being taught firsthand the secrets of the Kingdom, and still being as broken and messed up as he ever was. In Peter we see so clearly the fundamental truth for any who seek to follow Jesus: exposure to His beautiful, mighty, and perfect truth, even in the most unfiltered sense, is not enough to change a human heart. Instead that requires yet another extraordinary gift from the Father; His Holy Spirit.

“Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.” • Romans 8:5-8

It is not that Peter was not trying hard enough; in fact he, like many of us, was trying as hard as he physically could to please his master. Instead the truth is that it is literally impossible for the mind governed by the flesh to submit to God. It cannot do so. To do that we need the Spirit of God himself within us

The night of Jesus’ crucifixion is not the end of Peter’s story, nor yours or mine. Because when Jesus came back, Peter did too. And when he is commissioned by his Savior, and given the Spirit, he becomes one of the most important people in the history of the church. And his belief never failed him again, leading him all the way to the second most legendary act of martyrdom in our faith.

Peter of the flesh was fully exposed to the person of Jesus yet entirely incapable of becoming like him. Peter filled to the point of spilling with the Spirit was dead to himself, living through Christ with the Kingdom alone on his mind and as his mission. Living by the flesh, none of us could have done better than Peter even when walking side by side with Jesus for years. Leaving that flesh behind, living by the Spirit, is the only way to truly be Christ-like.

How Should a Christian Vote?

Recently I posted a blog about Christians and Donald Trump. Some suggested that it only appropriate that I post one about Christians and Joe Biden as well. While I see the logic, that really misses the point of why I wrote the original post. What I want is to be clear about some principles of Christians and voting, and the priority of the Kingdom of God over kingdoms of men.

To be clear, the issue is not that a christian should refuse to vote for Trump. There are many valid reasons for a Christian to vote for him. The issue is that many Christians have so aligned themselves to him and proclaim that it would be unChristian to vote any other way.

The pattern that disturbs me most is Christians who lambast and character-assasinate the candidates or Presidents that they dislike while pretending the deep character flaws and moral sins of the candidate or President they do like don’t exist or simply don’t matter.

So how should a Christian vote?

Biblically.

That is a bit of a lazy answer, so let me be clear. Here are some principles that matter to me:

Our commitment to King Jesus and His mission cannot be aligned to any candidate - ever.

There are many issues we are called to care about and no candidate aligns with them all. We are called to fight for the unborn, welcome the alien and the stranger, care for prisoners, fight for orphans, and love the unlovable. We are to speak for those without a voice and advocate for the disenfranchised.

It is a personal responsibility to discern some batting order of priorities through which to filter your decision of who to vote for. There is no list of universal priorities that guide every Christian to vote the same way.

There are an array of important issues and values that need to be addressed by our government. Each candidate has a personal view as to the best way to address each of these issues. I rarely find a candidate that aligns perfectly with my own views, so almost always a difficult choice has to be made. This is where each Christian voter has a duty to exercise personal responsibility in casting their ballot.

The highest priority is to never believe or communicate that the government, or the holder of any office, is the hope of mankind. The only hope for us all is Jesus and the good news of His Kingdom. The only way to truly change the world is to change the hearts of people, and only God can do that.

So how will I vote in this election?

I will prayerfully exercise my personal responsibility to steward this freedom of ours and vote in alignment with my conscience. I will not define others by the vote they cast, nor will I be defined by my own. I am defined by my allegiance to King Jesus and will exercise my American citizenship in the best way possible to serve His priorities.

How “Name it and Claim it” is Supposed to Work

If you’re like me, you have a deep disgust for the prosperity movement and the historical “name it-claim it, blab it and grab it” theology. However, I recently realized that this idea has Biblical roots and that Jesus taught us the proper and appropriate practice of naming it and claiming it in John 14.

““And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

Sounds like an invitation to ask God for literally anything and He will do it. And it is. To get clarity about how this invitation is designed to work, we need to check out the context in which Jesus said it. So read it again, this time in context with the conversation that was being had:

“Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

Jesus did not speak and make promises on His own authority, but the Father spoke through Him. This authority is now given to us so that we might do the works that Jesus had been doing, and “even greater things than these.”

How are you and I going to do what Jesus did, and even greater things? By asking the Father, in Jesus’ name, to do for us whatever we ask.

That is, by naming it and claiming it.

Here is the deal: if you follow Jesus, He is going to bring you to places where doing what God wants to do seems absolutely impossible...places where God’s will is yours to participate in, and it seems completely impossible. This is His intention, so that He might show Himself to us and, through us, to the world.

You probably have already had cases where you needed to name it and claim it. Where you needed to speak to the mountain and order it to be moved and thrown into the sea.

Don’t hesitate!

This is not about a new Mercedes in your driveway. It is about God accomplishing His will on the earth through your exercise of the authority Jesus passed on to you.

Let’s do this!

Life Hack: Align Your Motivations

You are motivated in two ways: intrinsically and extrinsically. That is, for some things you are motivated by a drive inside of you (intrinsic), fueled by dreams, loves, values, Truth, etc. For other things, you are motivated to do them because you are motivated extrinsically - by wages, popularity, promotions, and rewards.

Example: If you have a special needs child, you wake up every day thinking about special needs kids and how they might flourish, how to parent them most effectively, what new breakthroughs are being made, etc. No one has to ask you, pay you, or reward you in any way to do this - you are driven or compelled to do it from within.

Example: Some people stay in jobs they hate or take a pass when they’re given an opportunity to try something they’ve dreamed of because the money doesn’t pencil out. Sometimes we have “golden handcuffs” on us in a job - the pay is too good or the stocks are not vested yet, or a bonus is coming, etc. So, we remain in that position for the cash or other extrinsic rewards.

Take a moment today and consider your own life. What are your intrinsic motivations? What is it that you would do for no pay at all, or that you would sacrifice deeply to improve? What wins your free time and your free thought life?

Then take a moment to consider your extrinsic motivations: what are you doing because of fear of failure? What are you doing just because you need the money, or the benefits, or the retirement? What would you walk away from if only….?

Now - consider how to align your motivations into a life you can love deeply. How can you align your vocational life with your intrinsic motivations? How can you move from a good life to a great life?

Don’t cut any corners here! Take some real time to reflect on this. Ask people who know and love you for their observations on this issue. Journal and pray about gaining clarity. Don’t rush this. Take you time.

Then?

Begin to study how this transition could occur. Read, research, explore, and craft some plans. Seek the favor of God and the counsel of friends. Don’t rush this, but don’t stop or take short-cuts.

Then?

Go all in and trade your good life for a great one. Don’t settle for less in a land that offers you the ability to have it all.

Two Practical Tips in Challenging Times

The longer this pandemic continues, along with all of the political division and social unrest, the more fatigue and stress we are all experiencing. I meet people literally every day who are struggling to maintain their emotional, mental, and relational health.

The struggle is real!

I have become aware of two very powerful tips that are helping people to actually flourish during this season. They are powerfully helping me, for sure.

At first these may sound selfish or survival-oriented. In other words, you may at first think that God would consider these to be the opposite of His call for you to serve Him and His purposes on the earth. But the reality is that this is exactly what He would call us to all the time because they are fundamental to human flourishing and effective mission.

The two tips are:

1. Make your world smaller.

2. Feed your deepest relational connections

What I mean by making your world smaller is to tune out the noise of chaos, bad news, and public opinion. Stop gorging your exhausted soul on social media, news media, and all the screens in your life. Stop seeking the advice or rescue of others and draw yourself into the secret place of intimacy with God. Practice the life of altar and stewardship.

Making your world small is to seek interaction with God more than you ever have. Beg Him for clarity, peace, wisdom, and His Presence. This is the safe place; the empowering place; and the healing place. It is the place of Shalom - wholeness and completeness.

One day you’re going to stand all alone with Him anyway and that day you will receive a personal review and accounting of your life. Why not live there now?

I have found my experience of peace and Shalom is directly connected to the volume of my time and energy spend with Him.

The second tip is to feed your deepest relational connections. Marriage partner, kids, siblings, grandkids, and life-long friends are all powerful agents of life for disruptive times. Love, laugh, and serve these people with more focus and vigor than ever before. You need these people and they need you. Your soul will find joy, purpose, and meaning in the deepening of these relationships.

I recently read an article about how human beings were designed to only know about and engage the tragedies and chaos of their own “village” - their oikos and the community in which they live. But today, because of global technology and mediums we are hearing about pain, chaos, and tragedies all over the world and our soul just cannot process that much stress.

Oikos is the Greek word for “extended household” - it is the 8-15 people whom God has supernaturally and strategically placed with a front-row view of your life. They are your people and your mission field.

To thrive in trying times, shrink your world.

This glorifies God and positions you to be even more effective for Him anyway. This is how we “GO” in obedience to the Great Commission:

• Intimacy with God

• Investment in our Oikos.

God and Oikos - that is all you need, especially in times of dynamic change and disruptive chaos. And it is also how you will live your best life and make your lasting impact on the world.

Christians Demanding Our RIghts: NOT

The question many people keep asking is a good one: “Don’t we need to obey God rather than human beings?”

Peter and the apostles uttered those important words in Acts 5:29. “We must obey God rather than human beings.” But they are in response to a government mandate, issued in the previous verse. “We gave you strict orders not to teach in Jesus name.” To my knowledge, no American governor has ever said that to any American pastor. At least not yet.

But there is another set of cries that trouble me, coming from the lips, pens, and keyboards of Christians and Pastors. Things like, “We need Pastors with backbone!” Or “Churches must lead the way in demanding our FIrst Amendment rights!”, “This is war!”, and so many more.

The big idea is that Pastors and churches must demand their rights to assemble or else they are compromising their devotion to Jesus and selling out to the immoral acts of human governance. It is time to stand, demand to be heard, and fight, they say.

The problem is that I can’t find any of this attitude in Jesus or His disciples. I can’t see any rallying cry in the New Testament for demanding our rights and insisting on our rightful share of political power.

In fact, what we find is quite the opposite. Consider a few examples:

“If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.”

‭‭“And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.”

‭‭“But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”

‭‭And the crown jewel of our guidance as Christians: “have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!”

And, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.”

It turns out that the cross is not only the place where Jesus redeemed the world and overcame evil through suffering. It is also the place where God revealed His very nature - the One who suffers on behalf of His enemies.

God is the great enemy-lover!

Not only did he suffer for His enemies, but He also continues to suffer for His enemies, in His body on the earth right now - the Church. We continue to carry on the suffering servant hood of Jesus by being His Body on the earth in real time.

This could not be more opposite of demanding our rights and declaring war on political leaders and parties.

We are called to be His Body - to continue the suffering of Good Friday, through the power of Easter’s resurrection. This is how God and good overcome evil. This is how the gospel becomes powerfully clear in our culture.

As an American, I am appalled that our three branches of government are being ignored at the State level. I am determined to vote for leaders who defend our constitutional rights and insist on constitutional processes to suspend those rights.

But as a Jesus follower, I am determined to overcome evil with good and make up what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of His Body.

I hope you will, too.

There are Still Only Two Trees

God placed Adam and Eve in paradise and told them to knock themselves out. Enjoy creation, one another, and intimacy with God. Exercise dominion and express their creativity and passions. There was only one exception to this freedom to self-actualization: Don’t eat from one of the two central trees in the Garden.

God placed the Tree of Life next to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the center of the Garden and instructed them to feast on the Life Tree and abstain from the other Tree.

These two options continue to be our daily delima: choose to operate from the Tree of Life or choose to operate from the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

Feasting on the tree of life is positive, redemptive, forgiving, gracious and empowering. When we face conflict, disappointment in others or ourselves, pain, etc, we can feast on the tree of life and find balm, calm, and hope.

Feasting on the tree of knowledge is to question and analyze intentions, fallen natures and motives. It is to place blame and judgement, even accurately, and major on negativity, correction, and penalty.

God pushed them from the Garden and placed an angel with a flaming sword so they could not eat from the Tree of Life and live forever. Instead, he placed us in the reality that we chose - knowing good and evil - and gave us our freely chosen destiny. But then, He entered into that destiny and purchased life for us with His own blood. This way we can now know good and evil, but overcome it with the life of Jesus flowing in hearts.

We live like monkeys, jumping from one tree to the other, based on how we are feeling at the time or how much of our depravity drives us in any given moment. But, choosing to live in that tree of life is the choice that gives life abundantly to us and those around us.

Feast today - not on knowing good and evil, but on having life in Jesus and on giving that gracious life away to others, empowering yourself and them to truly live!

Should Christians Demand Our Rights?

It’s only 15 verses, but Titus chapter 2 is packed with some hard-to-swallow but desperately needed wisdom for today’s world. If you believe that we should demand that our rights be honored and protected, you need to read this chapter! The big idea of the chapter is that Jesus wants a people for Himself - that are His very own - and who are eager to place His Kingdom above all of their own personal rights, desires and dreams.

Here are some thoughts to consider from this powerful chapter:

Grace has come so that we can “say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ”

‭‭Jesus gave himself for us to “redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”

So obsessed with Jesus and His Kingdom are we to be that we would subjugate our fleshly desires, our earthly dreams and our individual rights for the glory of Jesus and the ongoing ministry of His Word.

All of us, young and old, male and female, must learn to live our lives with one goal - “that no one will malign the word of God.”

Women are to live their lives with this objective - sacrificially.

Young men are to be self-controlled and setting an example with their behaviors.

Slaves are to be subject to their masters in everything, trying to please them and never stealing from them - showing themselves to be fully trusted “so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.”

The bottom line: Jesus pours out His grace, not so that you and I can have our own rights empowered and protected. He pours out His grace that we might live our lives entirely for His glory. How much so? So much that we would suffer loss of rights, or endure difficult circumstances purely so the Word of God might go further.

God’s glory above all else.

The attractive nature of the Gospel above the protection of our own rights.

Personal purity as a focused personal pursuit, so that the Name of Jesus gets glorified!

He>I

Don’t Do Life Without This Ever Again!

On our podcast recently (Episode 64) we discussed millennial manhood with a couple of studs named Michael and Jordan. Man, what an episode! Frankly, I wasn’t on the episode and heard it on the Monday it dropped, like everyone else. I had been battling some deep discouragement and this episode totally turned me around!!

If you’re struggling, go listen to it here right now!

There were so many great tidbits in the episode, but the overwhelming takeaways for me were two:

The Lord has got this! Your life, our crazy country, the challenges we face, all of it! He is worthy of trust and the best is yet to come!

Mentors and reverse mentors are an absolute necessity in life.

That’s what I want you to see right now.

You need other men, if you’re a dude, or women, if you’re a gal, to have access to your heart, mind and soul. You need to be giving your best self to others and you need to be gaining from others, both older and younger than you, RIGHT NOW!

Never again do life without real partnerships. Never again!

Never again view mentorship as olde-to-younger only. We need reverse mentoring because the perspectives are so vastly different and powerful.

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

Don’t ever do life without this - ever again. And if it’s missing from you life, start the prayerful pursuit now.

Here are a few tips to get started:

Ask God to help you find the right persons to receive from and to give to.

Watch other men (or women) more closely and notice the ones that either inspire you with their strengths or with their transparency - and hopefully both. Choose authenticity over talents every time, by the way.

Date them. You will find the best of these relationships the way we found our spouses - date a few. You may have to kiss a few frogs, but everyone has something to offer and you’ll be better for the experience.

Don’t ask for a lifelong commitment. Just ask for a season of conversations and an agreement to decide from there where it will go next. (Maybe a series of 5 coffee times and then a decision?)

Give more than you take.

You can do this and you need this!

Thanks, Jordan and Michael!!!!

Life-Shaping Priority #5

Eight times in the New Testament, we are told to “make every effort”. These eight admonishments create a most excellent list of life-shaping priorities. Today, number 4, found in 2 Peter 1:5-9:

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.”

First of all, for what very reason? For the very reason that God has given us everything we need for life and godliness, through Christ, and has lavished upon us very precious and powerful promises.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith. There could, legitimately, be a period right there. This is, in fact, the admonishment - make every effort to add to your faith.

But why? Why is it so important to add to my faith? Isn’t faith enough?

It turns out that idle faith soon becomes lazy faith which soon becomes dead faith and soon after that no faith at all. I am sick to death of hearing about yet another young leader, raised in the church and committed to ministry, who is giving up on God. This is, I believe, what happens when we don’t make every effort to add to our faith.

But what should we seek to add to our faith? It’s quite a list!

Goodness

Knowledge

Self-control

Perseverance

Godliness

Mutual affection

Love

Oh my - what a list! Can you see, just by reading the list slowly how dramatically it would affect your life if you made every effort to add these to your faith?

What would happen is that you would be kept from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of Jesus!

And neglecting this effort of addition actually reveals that you are nearsighted and blind - that you have forgotten that you have been cleansed from your past sins.

Wow!!!

I don’t know about you, but I say, “Let’s get started now!”

Episode 54 Show and Tell