Kudos!

Kudos to my good friend Chris Reyna. Chris heads up the local branch of Farmers Brothers Coffee. His branch just won the “Branch of the Year” award for the second year running.

Just a few years ago Chris was frustrated with his job and his branch was not doing very good,, but he worked hard and built his team into the best in his company.

Way to go Chris!

Now, how about telling me your secret for turning things around?! I need the help with Keva.

Politics

Just read this great article about Chrisitans and politics. I loved it so much that I thought I’d share it with you.

First Word: Leading the Charge

Posted on September 16, 2008
Filed Under Cameron Strang |

| Reprinted from the Sept./Oct. issue of RELEVANT
For more politics coverage, visit our politics page

Let’s get this out of the way up front: I’m not a politically motivated person. Which is why I felt a tad out of place meeting with Barack Obama this summer. And talking to John McCain. And doing countless interviews about the faith and shifting political views of our generation.

Yet I have unwittingly found myself thrust into the political arena, a place where people are vehemently passionate about their ideologies and platforms. It’s an entire industry built around being right and proving your opponent wrong, and winning at any cost. It’s a continual power struggle and—from my humble vantage point—seems a bit flawed.

I’m someone who tries to think independently and objectively, rather than simply follow what the pundits tell me to think. Because of that, I’ve realized I cannot fully embrace either political party. Both sides of the aisle have some great ideas and goals. But both also have areas where they simply get it wrong.

I know the power of politics and the importance of the process in our world. But I also know that, historically, real, lasting change has started first at the grassroots level long before it was ever legislated. Cultural mindshifts influence Washington, not the other way around.
Many Christians traditionally have voted Republican because of their justifiable conviction to protect the lives of the unborn. Now, many younger Christians are voting Democrat because of their justifiable desire to see our nation, the most prosperous in the world, address issues of poverty, global aid and the environment.

The problem is, many Christians vote these convictions, but that’s largely where their personal involvement in the issues stops. Are the government leaders we vote for meant to do our job for us?

If God has given you a heart for the poor, or to see a reduction in the number of abortions, or to promote peace, or to help the sick, or to stand for strong moral values, or to be a better steward of the environment, then your personal focus needs to be on that—whether or not the President shares your same values.

The Bible reminds us to pray for our leaders, but it also talks about praying for those who persecute us. Though I can’t foresee any situation where this would be the case, what if one day every value Christians stand for, even religious freedom itself, was legislatively removed? Christians in China and many other parts of the world face this reality every day. Would it change us?

Dare I say, it might actually spur the Body of Christ here into greater action. Could it be that the loss of religious freedoms would ultimately be the best thing for American Christians because it would cause us to stand on our own feet rather than relying on the government to legislate our faith and values for us?

I’ve heard that only 5 percent of people who attend church regularly actually serve in any way. I’ve read that if every Christian in America actually tithed 10 percent of their income, we would have enough financial resources to wipe out global poverty.

There’s more power lying dormant in pews around the nation than any government could hope to provide, and that’s where our focus should be.

Many Christians want to overturn Roe v. Wade, but I don’t hear nearly as many leading the charge on a national adoption movement. If Roe v. Wade is overturned, where are all of those babies going to end up? Christians should be focused on personal action regardless of legislation, not just waiting for the right number of Supreme Court justices to come along.

I’m not saying don’t vote. Do. Vote your convictions and let your voice be heard—that’s one of the perks of living in a democracy. But don’t let politics breed division, or make you see people in a different light.

If you have a passion for an issue, rather than judging someone who doesn’t share that passion or viewpoint, just go do something about it. Give your life to it. Be the change you want to see.

We need to pray for our leaders and our country, but always remember that our leaders and country do not define us. We are the generation that will shape the direction culture, government and social action will take in the next 50 years. It’s not up to Washington, it’s up to us—and I say it’s time we step up and lead the charge.

But that means with our lives, our finances and our actions every day. Not just Nov. 4.

Burgers and Dogs and Snakes, Oh My

Our Wednesday night small group did its service project this past Sunday afternoon. I think we were blessed far more than those we went to bless.

Glenn Kelly barbecued burgers and dogs at Mission 911. People from the group pitched in by bringing all the fixings. The adults hung out by the grill visiting and enjoying the great weather while the teens and kids played catch in the yard. We talked World Series, Dallas Cowboys, and politics.

Afterwards, we went to the chapel for Sunday night service. Tony, the director of Mission 911, shared a few words of thanks for those of us from Christ Point Church. He told us what a huge difference a little thing like a hamburger and normal conversation can make for the residents. He thanked us so much, in fact, that I became a bit uncomfortable. All we had done was share a meal and some time, but to hear Tony quote Scripture and talk about what we had done you would have thought we had just changed the world.

After Tony spoke, we heard from a resident. She shared how she and her two grandchildren escaped a terrible situation. She told how Tony and Mission 911 had changed their lives. We heard from a man who, with God’s help, overcame a drug addiction and is now rebuilding the Corpus Christi Zoo. He and his wife hope to open the zoo to the public within the next few months. He even brought a (harmless) snake from the zoo for everyone to pet. Finally, our own Troy and Glenn shared a few words of blessing with us.

It was a fun night. God used us to bless some of his people. Yes, it was awkward starting up a conversation with a stranger who lives in a homeless shelter but we never felt threatened or in danger. Children played and ate with us in complete safety.  (I mention this only because people are sometimes afraid of going to a mission such as this).

Mission 911 is a great place for you and your small group to serve. Who knows how God will use you? It could be that your simple act of service really could change the world for someone.

People Are Rude!

People are rude!

The other day I nearly lost my life three or four times while at the grocery store. One lady rear-ended me when I stopped to see how many calories were in a serving of chicken noodle soup. A little further down, a man almost knocked over my cart when he thought I might get to the cat food before him. But the worst people were the ones in the motorized grocery carts. Have you seen those things?

They should be outlawed.

Now, don’t get me wrong. And please don’t send me nasty e-mails about how you’re poor old aunt Ida couldn’t go to the grocery store by herself if it weren’t for those motorized killing machines. I know they have a place and a purpose… and honestly, I can’t wait till I’m old enough to terrorize grocery shoppers by driving one of those contraptions. But shouldn’t people be required to pass a driving course before they’re turned loose in the aisles with one of those things?

No exaggeration, at least three different people driving those bumper cars disguised as grocery carts tried to take me out. And I’m pretty sure that after one near-death experience I heard that gray-haired maniacal driver laughing at me as she whizzed around the corner toward the brownie mixes.

And wouldn’t you know it, just as I stopped being Mr. Nice Guy and started using my cart as a steel reinforced battering ram to plow my way to the checkout counter, I saw one of our church members. Instantly, I knew I had been caught. I don’t think he saw me — at least I hope he didn’t. No, it was God who caught me. I was acting just like the other idiots in the store.

I know it was God who caught me and convicted me because I’m pretty sure I heard snickering from heaven as I sheepishly made my way past the toilet paper toward the checkout lines.

Gone Fishing

There’s an old preacher’s story (which means it’s probably not true) that goes like this:

A man once spoke at his father’s funeral. He talked about what a great father his dad had been. In particular, he talked about a day his dad and he spent fishing when he was 10 years old. He told of the drive to the lake, the life-lessons his dad shared while they fished from the row-boat, the picnic lunch they shared, how great the fish tasted they fried over a campfire that evening, the drive home, etc. He vividly and emotionally described every detail, including the exact date of the fishing trip. It was a life-changing day he would never forget. His story touched everyone at the funeral.

Weeks later, as family members cleaned out the dead man’s papers, they ran across his journals. Remembering the story his son told at the funeral, they flipped to the date of the fishing trip. The day had made such an amazing impact on the son, they wanted to know what kind of impact it had made on the dad. To their surprise, that day’s entry was very short. It read, “Spent the day fishing with my son. A day totally wasted.”

I know that’s a corny preacher’s story; but even though I heard a preacher tell it many years ago, I still remember it and think of it often when my daughters want me to play catch, jump on the trampoline, go for a walk, or even go fishing.

Paige and Kaleigh are out of school this week for fall break. Honestly, it’s a pain. No other school is out. Their neighborhood and church friends aren’t around. Mimi’s school is still going so she can’t spend extra time with the girls. And since I hate leaving them alone at home all day I’m scrambling to find ways to be with them.

So, the three of us went fishing today. We loaded up our Scooby Doo and Little Mermaid fishing poles and went to Red Dot Pier. For $13 we got a pound of shrimp and 24 hour fishing passes. I cut shrimp, baited their lines, and unhooked the fish they caught. . . 17 in all. (They probably would have caught more but when the girls weren’t looking I threw some of their bait into the water. . . otherwise we would have been there forever!!). Later, the three of us went to eat at our favorite restaurant, and then we went home and played video games.

Now, after several washes, I can still smell fish on my hands, the girls are sleeping deeply, and I’m up late preparing for a guest preaching gig I’ve got coming up.

I don’t know if they’ll remember this day years from now or not; but I know I will. Will it be a life-changing moment in their lives? I doubt it. But I know it was definitely NOT a day totally wasted.

Ennui

I have a new favorite word. Ennui.

If you’re a super-sophisticate then you probably already know this word. For the rest of us, however, let me share what I just learned. Ennui is a French word pronounced awn-wee. Dictionary.com defines the word as a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest; boredom: The endless lecture produced an unbearable ennui.

I first read the word in this Seth Godin blog post where Godin points to consumer’s ennui as an endless frustration for business owners. No matter what you give them, consumers will never be satisfied and will always want more.

There’s two reasons this caught my attention tonight.

First is my person ennui. I am rarely satisfied. I’m easily bored. I often find myself weary and discontent and loosing interest all too quickly. I love starting new projects, learning new things, facing new challenges. But I’m soon ready to move on to the next thing. This is both a strength and a weakness. I remember being asked by a professor why I was leaving the first church I preached at. It was a great church. We loved the people there; and they loved us. The answer I gave the professor was the only honest thing I could say. “I’m bored”.

The second reason Godin’s blog caught my attention was his closing paragraph where he offered a solution to consumer ennui. He writes:

Along the way, marketers of stuff have tried to offer that stuff as a replacement to the thing that children/consumers/employees/customers/spouses really seek, which is connection and meaning and belonging and love.

What we all long for is authentic relationships. To be needed. To be loved for who we are. To be accepted. To be challenged to be better than we could ever be on our own.

Sounds a lot like heaven to me. Until then we’ll all have a holy ennui. Holy discontent.

I Grew A Little Yesterday

I came to the church office early to get some things done. The doors were closed and I was deep into my morning devotional when someone knocked. It was the same someone who often knocks on my closed door.

I knew who it was from the sound of the knock. It’s one of those irritating knocks. It’s like fingernails on a chalkboard. For a moment I thought about sitting quietly and acting as if I wasn’t in but my truck was parked out front. He knew I was here. And since my office has no backdoor, I was trapped. Trapped like a rat.

I knew once I opened the door I would be in for 30 minutes of useless conversation. Idle chitchat. Meaningless blathering. Yes, it would be mildly amusing but I had things to do and I didn’t have time to waste. But I was trapped, so I answered the door.

Sure enough, it was thirty minutes before I got back to the important things I had to do. I had just wasted thirty minutes.

Later that morning I visited with a group of ladies here for their weekly Bible study. One of them pulled me aside to speak in private. She told me of a conversation she had a few moments earlier with my irritating knocker. Somehow, the conversation between this woman and the irritating knocker had turned to the topic of friendship. She asked the irritating knocker who his best friend was.

Can you guess who he named?

Me.

Me. The one who wanted to hide. The one who is so selfish he couldn’t spare thirty minutes.

I can’t tell you how much this tears me up. Sometimes God uses us in the strangest ways. Sometimes he uses the strangest situations to teach us something important.

What have I learned?

I’ve learned that what I consider to be an interruption may well be the most important thing God has for me to do at that moment. I’ve learned that people matter more to God than anything else. I’ve learned that I still have a lot of growing to do. I’ve learned that thirty minutes spent making someone laugh, or listening to their problems, or praying for them, or just chit-chatting with them is not wasted time when it’s done for the sake of the kingdom.

A Mere Preaching Whore

I ran across a new preaching term while reading Perry Noble’s blog.

While ranting about the temptation to preach what the people WANT to hear rather than what God has called you to preach (just one rant among many in his absolutely awesome blog post), Noble used the term, “A mere preaching whore.” 

That’s a term I had not heard before. . . but boy does it communicate!

Noble defines a mere preaching whore as “one who is paid for a service [preaching] for the pleasure of another person”.

WOW!

That’s something every preacher and church member should contemplate.

How often does the church pay a preacher (or any other staff member) to perform a service for the mere pleasure of the church? 

When a church is more focused on itself than on others that church has ceased being a church and become something else (IMHO).

Burning the Bible

I was reading today how King Jehoiakim cut up and burned a scroll of Jeremiah’s prophecy. It’s really a cozy little picture the Bible paints of the event. King Jehoiakim sat by the warm fire in his winter apartment as his servant Jehudi read him Jeremiah’s prophecies. Every three or four columns that Jehudi read, Jehoiakim would slice off and throw them in the fire (Jeremiah 36).

Very few of us would actually burn the Bible because we didn’t like something in it. True, Thomas Jefferson cut out the parts he didn’t agree with. (You can read about the Jefferson Bible at Wikipedia). But few of us “Christians” would do the same. 

Yet, I wonder if we don’t do exactly that when we ignore God’s word to us.

When we refuse to listen to and obey God’s commands it must be just like we cut verses from the Bible and threw them in a fire. After all, it’s not the paper and ink that is sacred. It’s what God said that matters. So, when we rationalize our sin, when we discount the consequences of our actions, when we dismiss the promptings of the Spirit, and when we ignore God’s will for our lives we might as well take a Bible and throw it in fire. 

There are at least two things God does in Jeremiah 36 that really catch my attention.

First, God pronounces HUGE consequences for Jehoiakim and the people of Judah because “they have not listened.” How often have I not listened to God. . . and each time I endure consequences. When will I learn???

Second, God has Jeremiah dictate another scroll to Baruch, his secretary. God’s word won’t be destroyed. God’s word is enduring. God wants to give us another chance to hear what he says.

Will we listen this time?

Answered Prayer

Tonight I saw my daughter’s faith grow by (literally) leaps and bounds.

My girls and I were on a “date” so we ate at one of our favorite places, Olive Garden. On the way out of the restaurant we ran into Gene and Lee Graham walking in.

The key word is “walking”. Lee has been in a wheelchair as she endured several years of foot problems and the surgeries that went with such problems. Her health issues are not totally over, but she is getting better. I hugged her and told her it was good to see her walking.

As my girls and I walked away Paige jumped in the air and shouted, “I’ve had my blessing for the day! I’ve had my blessing for the day!”

“What are you talking about, Paige?” I asked.

“Ms. Lee, she’s walking. That’s what I’ve been praying for. I’ve been asking God to let her walk again, and now she is! . . . Can I call Mom and tell her?”

As Paige told her mom how God answered her prayers I silently prayed a “thank you”. My daughter’s faith had just taken a giant step forword.