BETTER....OR NOT

We do things better. 

We study better than others.  We believe better than others.  We win souls better than others.  We plan better than others.  We give better than others.  And we have a theology better than others.

We, also, are most ignorant.

Better insists there is comparison; one against another.  II Corinthians 10:12, though, voices clear warning against such a trap.  We are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves, and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.

It is a perpetual challenge to walk in humility before the Lord.  Our pride must only reside in Him; never in ourselves.  Never are we to look with superiority comparing our work to any other.  Vanity, arrogance, and conceit plague many of our turns.  These are mistakes.

I know what I'm talking about.  I live in this wide-open field of ambition, jealousy, and ego.  Some seem to escape this treacherous plague.  I note their meekness as well as their modesty.  I am not like them.

When we grow in seeing the power of the Spirit of Christ, at these moments we tend to appropriately back-track and step down.  When with Him, our egos surely limp away in humility.  Good.

We are not better than others.  We are blessed by Another.  If not for Him, our nothingness would still try to run, rule, and reign from an assumed self-assigned self-importance....all in vain.  He, Jesus the Savior, is our hope; the one who daily shows us what and who we really are.  Nothing without him.

THE ESSENCE OF REPENTANCE

Repentance could be one of those hell-fire words to some of us older believers.  It could be a dull, seemingly of non-interest to the younger.  Yet, repentance is a main-stay in church theology. 

Since conversion and soon-to-be in preaching school, I have heard the explanation/definition of repentance.  As one reversing course in a marching band was one analysis.  Changing one's mind; yet another.  Discontinuing the acting out the disobedient and bad habits among us would surely fit. 

Yet, I believe it to be more.  I believe the essence of repentance is to reach some point where we quit trying to manage life, righteousness, and salvation on our own.  We finally give up self-management and yield to Jesus.

Brent Curtis and John Eldredge say in The Sacred Romance that learning to relax in confidence in who Jesus is and what he does over who we try to be and what we try to accomplish is the essence of repentance.  How we need this.

Listen in.  Resting in Jesus is not applying a spiritual formula to ourselves as a kind of fix-it.  It is the essence of repentance.  It is letting our heart tell us where we are in our own story so that Jesus can minister to us out of the Story of his love for us.  When, in a given moment, we lay down our false self and the smaller story of whatever performance has sustained us, when we give up everything else but him, we experience the freedom of knowing that he simply loves us where we are.  We begin just to "be", having our identity anchored in him.

We tend to be obsessed with fixing things or seeking help to fix things before we first settle down in repentance and look to Jesus to give us peaceful response.  We look to us for our answers.  This calls for repentance.

Before we pray, we tend to get on the phone for advice.  Before we settle to be still, we lean toward taking immature and immediate action. 

To repent is to make drastic shift from self-enamorization and self-provision to complete rest in Jesus.  This...is the essence of repentance.

ARE WE ALL IN NEED OF AA?

My good friend Sharon Hersh, author of the powerful The Last Addiction, penned with incredible accuracy, Everyone loves something too much.  Everyone struggles with passion gone awry.....We all suffer from the same condition.  We all seek a resting place from striving and suffering, and we often cling to what promises to be a haven, only to find out that we have created our own hell.

For any who are proud that you don't suffer the addiction of being an alcoholic, may I suggest you presently suffer from something just as self-defeating.  If not addicted to sex or to drugs, it is certain you are addicted to some other overpowering vice; controlling others, being popular, spending more money than income, or complaining about how rotten your life is. 

Something owns you/us.  We are all in need of some form of AA.

The Word of God, the system of His Kingdom, and the Spirit of His Son awaits our interest.  Each has already made the first move toward us.  Each reaching for our rescue, we would do well to believe back.

However, our addictions tend to fog our brains to the extent we are foolishly proud as well as vulnerably independent.  Give us time; we will right this straying ship.  We believe we can do life's improvements by our own building technique.  Try harder and set your mind to it and just focus keeps the ball in our courts.  We know we can win if we just get one small right break.  That's all we need to be alright once again.

When we think we can save ourselves for we surely aren't THAT BAD, our ignorance continues to mislead us.  The Cross does not communicate that, with a slight correction here and there, we will be as good as new if we just DO better.  As hard as we try, effort turns to mush for only the Divine can save us from our own addictive deterioration.  We are that corroded. 

Reading our Bibles, hitting the mall on a shopping spree, or confessing determined resolutions will not improve the condition of the soul as long as we believe we are in charge of responsible restoration.  We are not.  We can't.

God is.  God can.  God did.

The church can quarrel and squabble and snip and snarl at one another and others all it wants.  All is cheap and unproductive religion.  Until we admit how terribly and embarrassing lost we would be without Jesus, we will never worship wildly our Holy Father in Spirit form. 

May we try to yield to Him.  Upon such a move, may we cut loose with praise and worship galore for He indeed is mighty, wonderful, and powerful!  He saved us from ourselves.  This we perpetually need.

HOW SHALL WE KEEP GOING ON?

Anyone who is applying himself or herself to Kingdom concepts has encountered multiple battles.  It is the war nature of the system.  Initially, society perceives church as the one parcel of supposed to be pleasantries in all communities.  Reflection of the Son upon the Cross should cause additional consideration.

The fabulous Positive Thinking Rallies of the 70s and 80s were surely a step toward improving the church's stinkin' thinkin'.  Yet, even these produced a threat to the God-call toward us.  If it is to be, it is up to me was the clarion call.  While this surely stirred action over complacency, it presented yet another stigma. 

Life is not up to me.  It is not up to a determined you.  It is up to God.  We are called to believe Him.  He parted the Red Sea; not Moses.  He pushed out the walls of Jericho; not Joshua.  God raised Jesus from the dead; not a self-determined, never-to-give-up Jesus. 

In actuality, If it is to be it is up to Him. 

Why do we need this reminder?

When we think church is up to us, we become overwhelmed and inwardly overwrought with exasperation because WE CAN'T DO IT.  Frustration, guilt, and bummerism subdue the spirit of each servant.

Here's what I face; where my mind races....constantly:

1. How do we keep the members we have and draw more?
2. How do we hold the church staff in tact?
3. How do we keep the contributions strong?
4. How do we create a growth spurt in the Tulsa Workshop?
5. How do we remain meaningful in our assemblies for the various age ranges?
6. How do we speak with clarity from the Word when we, too, are accustomed to supporting doctrines that never came from the Word?
7. How do we refrain from giving up for we see ourselves as so terribly flawed and inadequate?
8. How do we add new elders that will not go ego-blind the minute they become an elder?
9. How do we determine the things we ought to keep doing versus the things we ought to let die?
10. How do we transition me out due to age without doing so too soon...or too late?
11. How do we hold this place together when we are basically operating on emotion more than Jesus?
12. How do we keep the fire lit when each possesses a touchiness which could dampen in ripple effect?

On the list goes.  On it goes; ceaselessly, endlessly, infinitelessly.

Enter the Holy Spirit of God. 

I don't know the answer to one of the twelve questions.  Not one.  When I apply myself, I conclude weaker than when beginning.  Yet, the good news in all of this is the church really is Christ's; not ours.  If it is to be it really is up to Him; not us. 

We shall continue to move forward because He determines the path.  We will rest when He calls for rest without guilt of we ought to be doing something more.  We will respond when He calls for response. 

Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent."  This....is how we shall keep going on.

IF WE ARE GOING TO EVANGELIZE WE MUST SAVE THE WORLD FROM OURSELVES

Everything in life is about us...until...until we run into Jesus.  He alone transforms.  The transformation isn't easy because the self-ego won't melt well.  Rather it races to the front of the line for first consideration.

Women are poor at this front.  Men are worse.  All are guilty.

The Apostle Paul leads the way to the back of the bus.  He regarded himself as the chiefest of all sinners and the least in the kingdom.  No wonder God let him write more books than the other guys.  He knew God deeply.

Think about it.  Sin and weakness are THE TWO things we struggle to admit.  How we think others think we are doing is paramount.  The bottom line within the church context today remains much like that of the Creation's beginning.  It seems necessary to focus mostly on us.

Insightful Calvin Miller remarked, ....so many of us are tied to earthly concerns while we give the appearance of spiritual freedom.  Appearance.  How am I looking?  How am I doing?  So Miller continues, How thick are the cords that bind us to Christian reputation!  Outward appearance fastens us to our own false needs for approval.

Oh, how I have positioned myself for approval.  I had nothing to bring to the table.  Therefore, due to intense self-awareness of glaring lack, I had to shine and polish what little I might have to offer just hoping it would sell in the church's market place.

The world--this sounds terribly generalized--is in need of evangelizing; yet is not hearing from God when we are desperately trying to make a trophy of our convert rather than make such a one a child of the King. 

In trying to save the world for God, we must simultaneously save it from our ego-centric, how-am-I-looking, what-do-you-think-of-me selves.

MY HAT IS OFF TO WAYNE MONROE

Memorial's 50th Reunion is history.  It was remarkable.

Of course seeing many from our past is usually pleasant.  I was not disappointed.

What made the entire weekend for me was Wayne Monroe; former preacher before me.

Wayne and I co-taught the class and then co-preached.  We had very briefly been around each other some 30+ years ago and didn't know each other well.  Our tandem thoughts were seamless.  I loved watching God in him.  He was steady.  He was stable.  And Wayne was humbly on target.

My hat is off to Wayne.  He didn't quit after being treated pretty roughly.  Instead he matured.  In his closing remarks for the morning he apologized.  He sent multiple letters of apology 36 years ago and never did the elders at that time respond. 

So three and a half decades later he spells it out once again that he didn't do everything right and expressed apology.  If anyone has been unclear, the slate was cleaned today.  Wayne did a classy job of speaking from the heart without fleshly edge.

It was a remarkable weekend.  I find I have a new friend....that I really like.

God knows how to work everything out for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. 

ELDERS ALWAYS SET THE TONE OF A CONGREGATION

Rarely do I address the topic of shepherds among us.  But this weekend is Memorial Drive's 50th Anniversary.  While it is a great story of ministers and ministries, its history revolves around the make-up of the elders.

Thirty-six years ago this weekend Mary and I traveled to Tulsa to be introduced to the congregation as new preacher and wife.  For us, it was fearfully, thrillingly, nerve-racking.  I was 29 years old and had been converted seven years earlier while preaching only the last three.  It could be said that Memorial Drive was ahead of its time as it had gone green.

In the beginning, there were eight elders.  All were nice to me when I did what was expected.  Four loved me even when I couldn't keep the complainers of the church pleased (which ultimately meant I was in trouble every week...and I'm not kidding).

The church struggled at many turns.  Not until thirty-six years later have I realized these good men had a very flawed motto.  Four of the eight reminded me of it often.  We may disagree in this room, but when we go out there, we are united. 

Much disagreement went on in the elders' meetings; much serious contention.  The flaw was the visionary four had to continually dumb down because of the negative four.  Ultimately, in each matter, stubbornness ruled.  Regardless of talk, we were stifled and stagnant.  Our goal was so see there was no trouble. 

Cemeteries have no trouble and Jesus refused to stay an entire week in one.

Through the next several years elders were replaced on occasion with new ones.  Two more sets gave us the same story; frustration and division.

Finally, God blessed us with shepherd hearts which included one of the original eight.  These developed a new model; stay out of the way.  These were neither naive nor wimpy.  They simply had vision.  They believed each member had a calling and a vision which the elders didn't possess.  These guys are genius at giving the flock room to try, to succeed or fail, and try again. 

Memorial today is robust with energy, joy, and profound productivity.  It can be heard on occasion what do the elders do?  What they do is live ultra-attentively to the flock.  They minister behind and in front of the scenes.  Our men intentionally seek the Spirit's input. 

As a result, we have more ministries going than shepherds or staff can know about.  We have 95% of the church doing 100% of the work. 

They added a full-time worship leader when there were no funds. 

We had slumped in attendance so badly our children's halls were dark; no children.  Our elders added one of our intensely compassionate-for-children women to the staff part-time.  There was no money.  Later, Linda Scott was so effective we had to add Stacey Kendall to the payroll as another part-timer.

They added a summer youth intern to full-time status when there were no funds. 

Our youth man trained him to be a youth minister and after a year, he was our youth guy.  His trainer shifted to Minister of Involvement.  Over the next four years, I trained him to preach.  Today Bobby Smith preaches in Mt. Carmel, IL.

Our elders bought into the idea of adding yet another man as Community Outreach director.  There were no funds; but they brought him on board anyway.  What a blessing David Combs is today.

While none of us are perfect, we are wowed day by day at the harmony between elders, staff, and members.  None of this would work if the elders had wanted to shut us down in the name of logic and reason and bank accounts.

I believe many churches suffer today in trying to find the right preacher.  That isn't the first place to look.  Checking to see if all of the shepherds are Holy Spirit led would be my first assessment.  Memorial Drive is highly blessed by our present four and have been over the past 18 years by a rotation of very Jesus-attentive, sensitive-to-the-Spirit men. 

If congregations keep changing preachers over the years, yet remain the same size I would point out the men overseeing the congregation may be a significant factor.

WHAT WOULD YOU WANT FOR GOD? FOR PEOPLE?

I live wowed!  Sure, my role would necessitate hardship and sadness; moments of strong grief.  But working in God's system is simply above and beyond imaginatory parameters. 

One thing I do on occasion is ask Him to teach me what He wishes we would consider.  He responded one time with a new teaching and vision regarding the Holy Spirit among and within us.

Recently, I have been making the same call.

Forgetting such prayers, a book was handed me that is another you gotta be kidding.  It is that good; that revealing.

God's Promises and the Future of Israel by Don Finto is both inspiring as well as informative.  The book is another answer to my prayers.  It thrills with in depth ideas regarding our connection to the Jewish root. 

I'm not trying to persuade readers to obtain the book as much as I wish to prod you to pray for Kingdom things.  Imagine.  Wonder.  Seek.  The Holy Spirit of God seems to lavishly stretch across a broad range of religious beliefs.  He is drawing a surprisingly great many to Jesus.

Before I was called to preach at Memorial Drive, I was praying in my late 20s for God to help me reach the "whole world".  He has given me such fascinating and unexplainable doors and windows of opportunity. 

I don't know how this happened but a couple of years ago a woman from India began to ask for my sermons on DVD.  We mail them still once a month.  Just this week I received an email from a preacher in India seeking input to questions about ministry/theology.  The sister and the brother in Christ are from the same city in India; but they do not know one another. 

Be encouraged.  While the world news reveals much of the bad and the ugly, the Spirit of God is raising crops for harvest.  We want in on the latter to bless God and to redeem people.  He places us in perfect harmony with His actions. 

Keep the faith moving forward.

Reframed

by Tim Rush (Terry’s youngest and probably favoritist child)

By the way, this blog is being hacked… well, sort of. 

Dad came to Guadalajara last week for a short visit.  While here, he wrote a couple of blog posts from my computer and forgot to sign out.  Thus, when I went to check his blog this morning I realized I am now able to “put some words on it”, to steal his line. 

Instead of having all the fun myself, I want to invite you to put some words on dad’s blog too.  (I thought about waiting for dad’s 66^th birthday which is coming next month, or for his 36^th anniversary at Memorial which takes place in July… but being a Rush, I just can’t wait that long.)

So here’s your invitation:  How has dad impacted, your kingdom walk? 

I’ll start with one of the things dad continually teaches… and lives:  Replace worry with thankfulness (Philippians 4:6-7).    

I’m a worrier by nature.  I hate it, but it’s true.  After struggling to find peace amidst the chaos around us, I’ll remember dad’s constant example of thankfulness.  It takes effort, but my reality changes as I give in to this kingdom truth.  It usually starts like this:  “God, thank you.  We both know I don’t feel thankful, but I’ll be thankful out of obedience.”  Perhaps I have to confess this a few times, before I start giving thanks with feeling.  And God is true to his word.  The peace cannot be described.  My heart is reframed through thanksgiving.  Instead of worrying about the situation, I begin to anticipate God’s movement.  Stress is replaced with the anticipation of what God might do.   I’m thankful for a dad who lives this kingdom secret out loud. 

Thanks, dad, for reminding me that God can bring good from any situation.  I think your life is so fun because the hassles remind you to watch for God, instead of slowing you down.       

 

THE DIVINE TRAVELS WITH THE HUMAN

We speak about faith things as if we are insane.  Paul surely felt this to be true.

Kingdom life and church action are not conducive to the business mind.  It's nuts, really.  II Cor. 2:14 insists that natural minds cannot grasp the things of God.  Rather, they assume them to be foolish.

The church struggles in large part today because we are trying to walk with one foot in heaven and one on earth.  We like the promises while disdaining the disciplines.  The old rugged cross for most is a song; not a march.

Jesus did not first call us to go to heaven.  Rather he first brought heaven to earth and said, take a look.  He defied natural thinking to the extent mankind remains perplexed and baffled.  We still see as in a mirror dimly.

It was when Jesus died on the cross that the curtain was split in the temple.  That very curtain had kept heaven at bay...or us depending on how you look at it.  Only the high priest dared enter.  None other.  When the curtain ripped, heaven came out.  It wasn't torn that man could enter; but rather that God could exit.  God could now interact with us in Spirit as heaven was moving in.

With the Spirit of God being poured out at Pentecost, the heaven and earth traffic really picked up.  We co-labor with God, worship Him, and perpetually ask Him to send in wisdom from above.  The heaven and earth interaction is fascinating. 

To the unbeliever this is simply a figment of the imagination; seemingly without ever considering where in the world they got an imagination in the first place.

MEMORIAL DRIVE IS HAVING A GREAT REUNION THIS WEEKEND

All readers who are former MD members are invited to a wonderful reunion this weekend. 

I am very enthused.

While I dearly love people, this event is going to be monumental for a few....maybe more.

MD has an injurious history.  Typical church squabbles were both epidemic and explosive here.  From what I can tell as well as experienced, emotions often ran over understanding.  Blame is never a good thing for such is usually blind to self and accentuated upon others...those we don't like.

I am especially happy that Wayne and Carol Monroe (predecessors to Mary and me) are coming.  I don't know them well.  But their ministry tells me a lot about them...a lot of good.  For one, life in the church can be rugged.  Most quit.  They didn't.

I believe there will be a healthy segment gathering who were caught in the cross-fires of when Wayne was here and then after I got here.  Confusion, irritation, and disruption ran rampant throughout the church. 

Some limped away.  Others ran.  Several held on.

We now know God works directly in our lives through His Holy Spirit.  He has the ability to do for us what we cannot/will not do for ourselves.  Because of His mercy and grace, I anticipate wounds being healed and hearts getting well.

Reunions, to me, are often a seeming dime a dozen.  Not this one.  It will be a work of our God to draw us even closer to Him and to one another.

THE OTHER PERSON ISN'T "ALWAYS" WRONG

Most of us are thinkers.  Few would be so indifferent.  Thinking, admittedly, often causes bias.  If we actually thought something else was right rather than what we already think, we would have thought it instead.

Therefore what we think is not only right from our perspective; it becomes an unwritten law where we strongly anticipate others must ultimately abide.

While insecurity has been one of my more major blemishes, this did not interfere with the process where I believed that whatever I thought seemed natural that all others should think as well.  I believed my approach was the right one.  Otherwise, I would have thought differently.

This is a problem.  When disagreements arose I just assumed all other parties to be...well...to be obviously WRONG. 

This would explain why I have had to learn so much.  It turns out, to everyone's shock, that I'm not always right.

I first learned this assumed absolute-ism from my dad.  He was a good man and daily informed us in many ways that what he thought was the only way to go.  For years I believed that whatever dad believed was complete truth; no need to question, doubt, or wonder.  He thought so, too, and I followed in step.  I wanted to be just like him....and for many years....was.

If school friends played a game in their home differently than the rules for the same game in our home, I sneered.  They had never had the honor of meeting the Rushes who knew everything and thought everything right.  We couldn't help it if our family knew things that others didn't.  We were sorta graced I assumed.

Our family was just blessed with knowing things the right way because we thought well.  We just couldn't help it if we were always right.  Other kids weren't as blessed as my brother and me!!!!

Eventually we mature and move away from childish things.  We discover others' opinions and insights are worth our attention.  In disagreeable matters they might be right.  Or, we might be right. 

As old as many of us are, we must still be reminded that the other person isn't "always" wrong.  They may be right more than we would like to admit.

GOD DOESN'T WASTE ONE CRUMB OF THIS CRUMBY WORLD

Some enter the church with a hope that, once in, nothing goes wrong again. 

Bad entrance.

Mistaken entrance.

These soon leave for their root is shallow.

Others become a part of a church because they do not want to go to hell.

Another bad entrance.

Mistaken entrance.

This kind of mind-set is not discipleship; rather it is merely a weak membership.

We are called to follow the One who was always suspect, continually scrutinized, and perpetually misunderstood.  His final robe was a crown and a cross.  That's how Jesus' walk ended...sorta.

We, on the other hand, seem to think that we can skip the tough stuff.  We view the fact that if we are going to "go" to church, we are owed special exemption from stresses and difficulties.  When some find this to not be the case, they check out with great cynicism and pouting....and vocal disappointment.

One of the things I like about the Kingdom system is that even the bitter herbs of the walk contain promise, hope, and value.  Sudden death of one always awakens ten or a hundred who had been asleep to spiritual need.  Tragedy drives the uninterested to pray.  Devastation opens quiet lips to speak of the need for God's intervention.

God will not waste a single crumb of life.  Even the dogs feed off of them.  It is always time for us to awaken to the sheer wonder of God in each moment; good or bad. 

Unbelievers don't see it. 

We can't miss it!

WORLD ON FIRE

Something is going on.

I believe it is God.

Something is very different about today's today. 

Spiritual hunger, hope, and effectiveness is brewing.

Present unity driven by the Spirit feels different than past efforts to unite orchestrated by men.

Things have gotten so bad that things are getting better.

Things will get worse so that things can reach best.

News coming out of Asia and Africa is raging with accomplishment of and for God.

Signs of imminent world-wide collapse merely ignites the fires of His impending return.

The darker the bad news the brighter the Good News; not spoken as cliche, but as reason to awaken to marvel and awe of now and the immediate future of the next now.

From what I am hearing, the world is on fire for God.

JUST HOW BIG OF A DEAL ARE WE?

I don't know about you.  I've always had a need to be big.  If I could have figured a way to be a Super-Star at something, I would have hurried.  It isn't that I didn't try.  I just couldn't reach the level of Rock Star at anything.

Still, I tend to think I am so important.  I should be heard.  Notice and accolades coming my way would seem fitting, I believe. 

However....

However, in God's scheme of things I find myself a bit overshadowed.  For one, how many millions drive down any major highway of any major city when I'm driving down the same lane, and few realize I AM THE ONE DRIVING MY CAR?  Hey you!  It's me.  Terry Rush.  Over here behind the wheel.  See me?

Nope.

Snubbed once again by other big-shot people who think their business, their family, and their time is more important. 

In the scheme of God's Kingdom Life, I'm pretty specky in importance.  Swat me like a gnat and the bulk of millions wouldn't miss me because they never knew I existed. 

So what shall I do?  Feel sorry for myself that fans aren't at every airport calling for a picture or an autograph? 

No. 

I'm to give God incredible glory for all of Life centers upon Him.  Removed from our own centering, God claims more and more of our hearts.  And we love Him for it.  Worship is totally about and for Him and not our long-sought good pleasure.  He often notes life in terms of centuries as well as  months and years.  Jesus is our heartbeat and his Spirit is our power. 

Just how big of a deal are we?  Paul marked himself as least.  He wasn't being pseudo-humble.  He was being theologically and accurately......and honestly so. 

And every bit like Paul, we matter.  We count.  We are important to God.  But He is the BIG DEAL in life.  Not us.  When such begins to truly dawn upon our hearts, we find life beginning to finally flourish.  And because of God, it will.

WHEN THERE IS NOTHING TO SEE BUT INVISIBLE HOPE

I will never be anything more than a funny little man trying to catch on to what so many have known all along.  Yet, I don't mind being behind.  The more I see of God the more I conclude I will always be wonderfully behind!

Steven Furtick speaks a language I like.  He penned, Every big dream has a small beginning.  No exceptions.  Every tree was a seed once upon a time.  The people who do big things for God are the ones who have the perspective to see the potential in these small beginnings. 

Furtick goes on in reference to the one praying for rain, Elijah didn't waver in faith because of limited visibility. 

Faith is a new kind of sight.  It sees through the blockades and the hindrances to human estimation as well as calculation.  Faith already perceives what visibility always refuses to show. 

When there is nothing to see but invisible hope (and you go ahead an exert such hope), you are a wonderful, cheerful blessing to your family and your community.  Hear God...and then believe Him when there are no markers along the way to verify your thrilling vision. 

Faith thrills the world!

WHAT MAKES US WHO WE ARE?

Fortunately, most of my acquaintances have something in common; ambition.  I don't seem to associate with those who don't.  I like to hang with those of drive and determination.  Truthfully, I had in mind when in high school that I wanted to grow up to be somebody.

I thought influence and prestige made us who we are and I wanted to be at a high level.  I didn't need to be President, understand, or to own my own company.  But I did want to be important.  I wanted to be big.

But life doesn't work that way.  Yes, a few get to be important in a big sort of way.  I still admire them; those who work in special ways or have degrees (I have none), etc.  But life doesn't work for all of us on the Big-Deal plane.

This is one factor that enamors me with the Kingdom.  Weakness is central.  I have much centrality to offer.  Really, I think God uses me as an example of not much to inspire the rest of the many not muchers who feel stranded and hopeless.

What makes us who we are?  It isn't a what.  It is a person.  Jesus is the who makes us who we are.  He isn't a Sunday School icon.  He is our reality.  We are highly acceptable because Brother makes us somebody; even in our nobodyness.

Jesus is the best news for all of us wimps and fools.  He empowers us with God's Holy Spirit because we can't make life click otherwise. He moves us from frustrated helplessnesses to satisfied hopefuls.

Jesus makes us who we are; powerful, influential, and effective.  Don't ever take credit for accomplishing anything because we who are buried in him don't...on our own.  He alone is the accomplisher.  He has simply rented out our carcasses so that he can work from our shop.

Be a builder! Rent out well!  Jesus alone makes us who we are!

DOCTRINE: GOD DELIVERED OR MAN DEVELOPED?

Jesus must be our Lord for we are too foolish to get this spiritual stuff right.  It remains true, our righteousness is in Him.

From kids' interests to doctorate degrees, man faces profound challenges as we wade through the beauty God labels as Kingdom Life.  The Glory remains enthusiastically, eternally explorable.

Man has studied and restudied God's Word to the extent we may have more than dotted every I.  We may have begun to dot some of the Ds and a few of the Qs.  In other words, our devotion at times has led us to conclude ideas and details God may have never intended. 

We must be on guard against our own delving and digging.

A serious challenge for all is that, whatever the topic, humility must be in the lead.  Strangely, ever since the Adamic centering of the self, this is surely more difficult than the most innocent of we egotists can grasp.  And, each of us has significant Adam-ego pouring forth in abundance.  This mistakenly thrusts one into the self-limelight of appearing spiritual when the truth is we have become blindly enamored with where we stand.

We, therefore, must be aware that our conclusions are a result of genuine revelation from God rather than flattery for our own perceptive research.  Calvin Miller addressed this need when he wrote, Outwardness is good but easily spoiled.  A few pats on the back can wean it from its first love and draw it toward self-interest.  Soon outwardness, which first served Christ alone, finds ways to serve itself while it serves Christ.  At last it moves away from Christ altogether and finds a godlike glory in its own interests.

If our positions are God delivered, great is the future to behold.  If, on the other hand, our drive is due to man's burr under his own preferential saddle, we once again swallowed yet another camel while unaware of the gnatism embedded in our own muddled version of spiritual accuracy.

THE INSANITY OF SIN

...a deeper reality seems all but forgotten: The main point of our spirituality, according to the Bible, is the furthering of God's glory, not the fixing of our lives.  In other words, "God does not exist for us; we exist for Him."

So the question isn't whether God is on our side, responsive to our call, but whether we are genuinely on His side, responsive to His call.  It isn't how God fits into what we're doing, but how we fit into what He is doing.  He is the Creator, we are the creatures.  He is the Sovereign, we are the subjects.  He is the Master, we are the slaves.  He runs the universe, we fit in.

Sin, however, has introduced the insane proposition that we can alter or even reverse these roles.  If God cannot be dismissed, at least He can be utilized.  The bumper-sticker slogan speaks for many: "God Is My Copilot."  We supposedly honor God by extending to Him a place in the cockpit of our lives, inviting His input on how we can fly smoothly and successfully through life, and of course turning to Him in any emergency cases.  But the true and living God is no one's copilot.  He's in absolute and sole control of where we're headed and solicits no one's advice on how to get there.  In each of our lives, He relentlessly pushes forward His own kingdom agenda to its inevitable, glorious conclusion.

                                  Dwight Edwards

HOW TO ENTER INTO THE WORKINGS OF THE KINGDOM

Self-conscience is usually a game-stopper.  Being aware of self can sometimes serve as a bandit holding up a stagecoach.  It is most sensitive to the loud perspective of others.

I would know.

I'm a champion of worry and an expert at being intimidated.  Just this week a friend back home said, I remember the days you were so timid.  I lived a self-imposed inner prison sentence due to fear of what others thought. 

Of course, a major problem linked with this dis-ease is that once stricken, hesitancy becomes the norm.  Restriction is practiced.  And then criticism of others becomes prominent because we are limited in our space with little to do but bark at others.

Is there any chance of breakthrough?  Absolutely.

Jesus sets us free.  He really does.  Life isn't about our perspective of another's perspective.  Such is not our boss.  It seems at every turn Jesus was accepting the put-down and the insecure ones.  He associated with....those exactly like us!

How, then, do we enter the workings of the Kingdom?  We relax.  We lean into him.  He makes us good enough.  We are hidden in him, remember?  We can actually enjoy.

Whether in leadership meetings, or church gatherings, or at baseball camp, or in the local cafe, one thing consistently lets me engage with confidence.  I am ever-aware of my complete nothingness coupled with the same alertness to the fact Jesus uses me from that very same setting.  I live coming through the back door.  Whether through inquiry of needing information or making fun of myself, I enter through the back because that's the most I have to offer...and most of the time it works.

Jesus never called an expert on board for anything.  He consistently employed the weak, the goofy, and the clumsy.  That would include me. 

We are free to imagine and to roar because God is the one doing the work; not me...not any of us.  The person who has made it big is the same person who has no audience for he is the only one convinced of his greatness. 

We are to make it little! 

We are to marvel at our failure.  We are not to die because we discover our lack.  We are to arise with him in resurrection power because we have successfully attached ourselves to the mighty arm of God.

Yippee!