Though we are different, we are the same...

Back in February, I was attending one of my sister's dance competitions and at each of the awards ceremonies, they had all of the dancers say this long phrase, part of which was "Though we are different, we are the same." This has sparked quite a bit of thought about the church.

Over the past few years, I have become very aware of the conflict between Conservative, Moderate, and Liberal Baptists and I am disconcerted by the fact that people in all parts of the spectrum choose to focus on the division within Baptist life rather than the uniting mission of God to which we are called. (Note: While I am sure this is occuring or has occured in other denominations, I am speaking of the context with which I am familiar.) Some of you may be thinking I am not old enough to really understand what is going on and has gone on but I have heard many stories from people on all sides of the spectrum explaining what happened and how that made them feel. While I realize that for many within the Baptist denomination that was not a pretty time, I also realize that we cannot live in the past pain and hurts forever. We have to come to a point where we can work through our feelngs and move forward. By no means am I suggesting that the Baptist world should unite under one convention again. I recognize that there are theological differences significant enough to allow for multiple conventions. I also realize that we as Baptists no matter what end of the spectrum we are on are known for bashing others who are bit like us. I have heard Conservatives bash Liberals and Liberals bash Conservatives, This is a huge indication that we have a seriously misguided focus. We have lost sight of the mission and lifestyle to which God has called us.

We are called to love and serve one another. Nowhere in the Bible do I see the command to only love those who are just like you. This passage may help to shed a little light on the lifestyle to which we are called.

" ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax-collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters,^* what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?" -Matthew 5:43-47 (NRSV)

This love should extend not only to other Baptists, who we may not agree with, but to others outside of the Baptist world and outside of the church altogether. Imagine how different our world would look if everyone who attends church began to live out the commands in Matthew 5:43-47. Imagine the impact the church could have if it set aside the differences and began to love one another and work alongside one another to serve the surrounding communities and world. Let us learn how to love one another despite our differences.

Here is a song that really illuminates what I am talking about:

What do we do with Saturday?

After having Holy week activities the last couple of nights with Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services, what do we do with Saturday? We know that Thursday celebrates the Last Supper, Friday is the day we reflect on and remember the crucifixion, and Sunday is the celebration of the resurrection. Again, I say what about Saturday?

Saturday was the day Jesus was in the tomb. His suffering here on earth had ended and they laid him to rest. What about his disciples? Where would the disciples have gone? What would they do? The man they had devoted their lives to following around for the last three years was dead. I can only imagine how confused and scared they all were. They had left their families behind to follow Jesus. What were they going to tell their families? Were they the ones that were going to look stupid? Were they next? What if the crowds wanted them to be crucified because they were the followers of Jesus? John 20:19 says "On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you.'" The first part of this verse alludes to the fact that the disciples had all ran and hid in a locked room because they were scared of what the Jewish leaders would do to them. They didn't really understand what was going to happen next. Jesus had tried to tell them, but really he was dead. Could he really raise himself back up from the dead? What were they supposed to do now that their leader was gone?

Confusion....Fear....Sadness....Mourning..... The disciples experienced many different emotions during that time. If they had really understood what Jesus had taught them, would they still be in fear? Are we living in a state of fear, even though Jesus has already told us he has everything under control? No fear.....Sunday is coming!

A Unique Good Friday: Part 2

Tonight I attended my very first Good Friday service, which also happened to be my first tenebrae service. This service gets its name from the Latin word "tenebrae" which means "darkness" or "shadows." It is a Christian tradition that began in the 4th century and was designed to be conducted on Good Friday. The most significant feature of this service is the gradual extinguishing of the candles in the room, one by one throughout the course of the service- representing the flight of Jesus' disciples as they abandoned Jesus during the last hours of his life- until the congregation is left in total darkness and silence. It is a service of deep meaning and reflection.

The choir presented a compilation of music and narration entitled "Song of the Shadows" by Joseph Martin. The following introduction was written by Joseph M. Martin himself:

"The earthly life of Christ began in shadows. By the flickering of a candle flame in a rugged stable, the Light of the World delivered himself into our darkness.

In the shadows of ancient temples, we see him preaching "let there be light," and hope began to live where once only despair and night had ruled.

In the shadows of an upper room, we see him experiencing betrayal, but teaching the world about forgiveness and servanthood.

In the midnight of Gethsemane, we see Christ himself, struggling as we do with the lengthening shadows of life, and still he teaches us about obedience and sacrifice.

Past Pilate's court, we see Jesus walk through the valley of the shadow of death as he embraces the cross. Yet it is the silhouette of that same cross which cast onto the sands of time, offers rest and shelter for those who are weary from the journey. In that sacred shadow, we discover our faith. It is there we develop our night vision, trusting God to be our guide.

Shall we walk together for awhile in the shadow of the cross? It will not be an easy sojourn, but we will not walk alone. As we confront the "dark night of the soul," we can always find comfort in this: That wherever there are shadows, there is also light."

This sums up the service better than I ever could. It followed the journey of the shadows. For me, I was left with a question. How do I go out and live like the one who was the light in the shadows? Even in times of great suffering, Jesus chose to be the light. How can I imitate Jesus in that manner? How will I react when times are tough and it seems like the world is against me? Will I choose to bring the light or will I hide in the shadows?

A Unique Good Friday: Part 1

Good Friday...the day we set aside to remember the day our Lord was crucified. A day that means many things to many people. Many wonder why we call it good. It is the day  that Christ died after all, so what is so good about it. One person reminded me today that good in the English language used to mean holy, so in essence we are really saying Holy Friday. Others say that it is good because without it there is no sacrifice and forgiveness of our sins, but with it our sins are forgiven. Still another person asked me if  thought Jesus would use the term "good" when referring to his own crucifixion. Well, that I can't answer. I find it hard to believe that while the crucifixion was occurring that would be a term he would have used to describe his fate, but then again he knew it was necessary.

All of these thoughts were swirling through my head as the day began. The fact that we are coming to the end of the semester and all of the papers and projects are due soon did not seem to matter. After all this day wasn't meant to be spent reflecting on all I have to do, but on all that has already been done for me. Why does it take a day being set aside for this specific purpose to get me to slow down and consider what really matters? Why do I not take some time each day to see the larger story of God both in my life and surrounding me?

After class this morning, we had an SGA sponsored Good Friday service. At this service, I was asked to say the words of institution for communion. This was a brand new experience for me and I was nervous as I got up to speak. Luckily, a friend of mine had the words of institution typed up. As I spoke the words, the power of what I was saying really started to set in and I was overcome by emotion. Then, it came time for me to invite others to the table, but how could I invite others to a table that I am unworthy to take of myself? Why is it that Jesus would not only invite me to his table, but also have me invite others to the table? And why on earth would Jesus be willing to go to such great lengths to forgive me and then invite me in?

Seeing the World Through the Eyes of a 2 Year Old

The last few months I have been watching my boss's two year old son. He is an adorable little boy and I haven't decided who is teaching who more.

A couple of nights ago we were playing outside when little man took me on an adventure. He began taking in all of his surroundings, noticing every little stick, bug, acorn, etc. and being amazed. Every discovery was a new wonder. Even though we looked at about 20 different sticks that night, he carefully examined each one before taking them from the middle of the field and moving them out of the way like he had seen his mommy do several minutes before. With each new sound, we were off on another adventure and he continued to be amazed by everything we saw and heard...even something as mundane as a storm drain.

In the middle of the field in front of the seminary, there is a volleyball net. As we were playing with his soccer ball at the net, little man noticed the drain that is in the middle of the field to drain off the excess precipitation in the case of a storm. He was amazed by each of the holes and bumps and studied each one. Many times all I heard was "WOW!" The examination of each hole brought on another "WOW!" Even though each hole was exactly the same, he experienced each one as if it were the first. We probably stayed at that storm drain for 10 minutes just exploring.

This experience has taught me that so many times, we miss the little things like storm drains that are around us, because we are constantly rushing from one place to the next and one thing to the next. We have so much to do that we never take the time to just take it all in. This is exactly what we have been discussing in our spirituality class. We become so rushed that we forget to engage with our surroundings and the people who God is placing in our lives. We don't take time to recognize our humanity and presence in this world while also finding the divine within our surroundings.

If we really believe that God created man and woman in the image of God, then why do we not treat interactions with each other as a holy, spiritual time? If we believe that God created the world around us, why do we not take the time to enjoy the creation and experience the Creator in new and different ways? Why are we not fully engaging with our surroundings and recognizing the presence of God in our lives as they are not as they should be?

Somebody Prayed for Me

Somebody Prayed for Me

When my heart was so broken'
That I could not pray,
When love wasn't easy to see.
Someone was there,
Somebody cared...
Somebody prayed for me.

Somebody went to the Throne of Heaven,
Somebody lifted my name,
Bringing me into His Holy presence.
Saying what I could not say,
Somebody showed me the face of His mercy,
When darkness was all I could see.
Somebody pleaded the blood of Jesus, Somebody prayed for me.

from Songs of Hope & Restoration, by Marty Parks, www.lillenas.com
© 2000 Juniper Landing Music (Admin. by Word Music, LLC)/Two Fine Boys Music (Admin. by Word Music, LLC)/Word Music, LLC. All rights reserved.

The choir sang this song at church this morning. This was not the first time I had heard it, but as I sat and listened to the above lyric, I began to think about all of the people who have entered my life and prayed for me at the times when I needed them the most. Some of those people are still in my life on a regular basis and others are not, but whether I ever see them again doesn't really matter. What does matter is the impact that they have had on my life and that will not be forgotten.

Then I began to think about where I would be without those people in my life. Without them, I don't know that I would be in seminary right now and I may have turned my back on the church a long time ago, BUT they were there. They helped me through and prayed for me. Who can I pray for today? How can I help somebody else see that God has a plan and a purpose for their life and they shouldn't give up no matter how hard it gets? 

So my question to you is how can I pray for you today and in the coming weeks and months?

What are you doing to positively impact your community?

Over the past few years, I have worked in various ministry positions involving ministry teams, World Changers, and many other activities. While all of these things are great ministry opportunities, they are no substitute for evangelism/ministry events in the community surrounding your church. So many times I have seen people (and I have been guilty of this as well) watch others come in, do ministry, and leave and then think that is enough. The problem with this model of ministry is the teams that come in form relationships with the members of the community and then the team leaves leaving the people to whom they ministered with no connection to a local church. I am not saying ministry teams and World Changers are negative experiences. They can be very positive experiences and can be very effective in ministering to people, but we can look on and convince ourselves that these events are enough.

There are so many opportunities for the local church to impact their community and effectively minister to the people they encounter. These opportunities include but are not limited to block parties, yardwork, an Operation Inasmuch event, providing free gas/oil changes, bike repair, getting involved with local sports teams/schools, etc. Take a drive through the neighborhoods surrounding your church one evening during the week and/or a Saturday and see what kind of activities are going on that you could possibly get involved in. While on your drive, take note of what is going on around you and think about what you/your church could do in order to show God's love to the people involved. You do not have to come up with a program or your own event. Maybe you can hand out water/snacks at a sports game or practice or get involved with after-school activities or tutoring. Talk to the people in charge and see if there is any interest in you coming alongside of them or if they are in need of specific items. Start the relationship and see where that leads. Just don't sit inside your church waiting for other people to come along and "do ministry" in the neighborhoods around you. Get out and do something to show the love of God to people.

I leave you with this. Pastors and church leaders, what are you doing in your communities? What practical ways can you get involved and show God's love to those around you? Church members, what is your church already doing that you can get involved in? Are there other practical ways that you could show God's love? Share your ideas with your church and see if you can mobilize others to join you in your efforts. On a smaller scale, what ways are you showing God's love to those you encounter daily (i.e. your coworkers, friends, boss, waiter/waitress, checkout person at the store, etc.)?

Do you want others to imitate you?

This weekend I was supposed to make a trip to Richmond to visit my friends and church family up there, but it turned out I couldn't go because of my knee pain. Well, after attending church with my family at Thalia Lynn Baptist this morning, I believe there is good reason I wasn't able to go. On the drive to church this morning, I was thinking through some of the questions that last week's service at Holland Road raised for me. (For those of you who may not have read my post about last week, you can find it here.) Upon arriving at the church, I quickly discovered the title for today's message was "Do You Want Others to Imitate You?" At this point, I was very curious and ready to hear what the Prentice was going to share with us.

The first couple of verses, Prentice used was 2 Timothy 2:1-2, which states "You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." (ESV) In Paul's letter to Timothy, he is instructing Timothy to pass on what we has learned from Paul to others who will then teach others. So, Jesus taught Paul, Paul taught Timothy, Timothy was to teach others who would teach others, etc. As Christians what we know is a combination of what we have read in the Bible for ourselves and what others have taught us. We have all had someone that we look up to and try to imitate and we are instructed to pass on that knowledge to others. The question then is not if someone is looking up to you and is going to try to imitate you, but it is what are you giving them to imitate? Do you really want others to imitate what you do? 

Pastor shared with us that the things that are imitated are magnified in the person who is trying to imitate that action, so if we are passing along bad habits/actions then those habits/actions will be magnified in those that are following us. The problem with this is we cannot decide what others imitate, we can only decide how we act on a day-to-day basis. Many people say well I go to church every time the doors are open, so people who are imitating me will go to church....Not exactly! What difference is going to church making in the way you live your life outside of the four walls of the church building? How do you act daily away from your church friends? at work? at school? at home? What are others seeing in you? Sometimes we are the first Bible people read and they are expecting us to act differently. The question is are we ready to rise to the challenge? 

Not only are other people expecting to see a difference in the way we act, but God calls us to holiness. We are to strive to follow the example that Jesus set for us and to show God's love to the people we encounter everyday, even those who disagree with us. It is easy to love those who agree with us, but how are we treating those people who we disagree with or who have a different perspective than us? 

Do you want others to imitate the way you are living? If so, great keep it up, but I would imagine there are things in each of lives that could use some work. What are those things in your life? What are you going to do about them? If you can't think of anything that needs work, pray and ask God to show those things to you and then begin to work on those things.  

Physical Therapy....Not Just Physical

Most of you know over the past several weeks I have been going through physical therapy for my knee, which has now turned into strengthening exercises for my calf muscles, quadricep, and hip muscles. At times, this has been a very daunting task and physically draining. The day after therapy is typically a day of rest, because my body just doesn't want to do much else. This process has taught me a lot more than just the exercises I need to do to make my knee better.

During my physical therapy sessions, I have come to know my physical therapists very well. We joke around, laugh and have a great time while other patients look at us like we are crazy. The other day one of the other patients mentioned how much fun we were having during therapy and I responded with "If we have to do this to get better, we might as well have fun doing it. Sure there is pain that comes, but a little bit of laughter never hurt anyone." The other patient agreed and as our hour of therapy progressed, she joined in and began joking with us. This has helped me to realize that a positive attitude and outlook not only helps the person being positive, but it affects everyone around the person as well. On the other hand, when I was in therapy yesterday, one of the other patients was complaining about each of the exercises as she did them. I watched as she became more and more frustrated throughout the session, but I also noticed that her mood was affecting the mood of her physical therapist. This helped me to see that it is not just a positive attitude that affects others. When we are negative, the people around us are affected by that too. There are times in life that we are faced with things that we would rather not deal with, but we must push through. During those times, we are faced with a choice. We must choose how we will respond. Will we be positive or negative? Remember, your decision doesn't just affect you, but also those around you.

This time in physical therapy has also helped to remind me that there are times when we need to rest. Our bodies can only take so much physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We must practice good self-care in order to better serve others. If we are not doing what we need to do to take care of ourselves, it will become very difficult to be fully present with others better yet serve and minister to them. My question to you is what are you doing to take care of yourself? When was the last time you did something for you? How can you make self-care a part of your regular routine?

In Jesus' Name We Pray........But what does that really mean?

In Jesus' name we pray...It's a phrase that we add to the end of our prayers, but do we ever stop and think about what that really means?

John 14:13-14 says "I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it" (NRSV). These two verses are challenging for many people, because they believe they are praying in the name of Jesus simply by adding the phrase "In Jesus' name we pray" to the end of their prayers and then they are greatly disappointed when their prayers are not answered the way they wanted or were expecting. For example, how do you explain that to someone who prays for a miracle "in the name of Jesus" but does not get it? How can you describe that to the family that has prayed unceasingly for a child of their own but they never are able to have one? What has changed? Why was this true for the disciples but not for people today? What is Jesus really promising here?

This passage is not giving us a "magic formula" that says if you say "In Jesus' name" at some point during your prayer that you will get whatever you want. If you are praying in Jesus' name, then you are asking for the things that Jesus would ask for. You have a desire to see what Jesus wants come to fruition and a desire to see the things that will bring glory to God here on Earth. The words "whatever" and "anything" in verses 13 and 14 respectfully do not give us the right to ask for anything that we want. We must remember asking for things in Jesus' name is a greater responsibility. To ask in Jesus' name, we must first know the name of Jesus. To know the name of Jesus, we must know his nature, what he is, and what he wants to do. We, then must take that to the next level and be willing to do our part in making what he wants to do happen here on earth. God answers prayers that will bring honor and glory to God, so we must pray for those things. As we deepen our personal relationship with God, we will be able to better recognize those things that will bring honor and glory to God and thus we will know what to pray for.

Will they find us faithful?

Today has left me with quite a bit to think about. In the church service this morning, the choir sang a song called "Find Us Faithful," which can be found here. It talks about wanting those that come behind us to find us faithful and be inspired to obey because of what we have done. This really struck me, especially since I was attending the church where I served as the Student Minister for two years. It left me asking this question: Is what I'm doing now going to leave a legacy that will inspire others to follow Christ and do the right thing?

Follow that up with a sermon on the following passage:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. (Hebrews 12:1-4)

In his sermon, Pastor Jay talked about the great cloud of witnesses that are watching us and encouraging us along the way including the great "Hall of Faith" that is listed in chapter 11 of Hebrews. It was a reminder to stay focused on Jesus and lay down all of the things that are weighing us down. Sin is defined as missing the mark and we WILL miss the mark, but we must always strive to hit the mark, which is living a life that is pleasing to God.

I left church this morning thinking about a conversation I had with my youth leader Beth and her husband Jeff several years ago. At the time, I was making some decisions that weren't the best decisions I've ever made and they pulled me aside and reminded me that there were younger students that looked up to me and I needed to set a good example for them. This is a lesson that I have needed to be reminded of several times since then and I have come to realize that no matter how old we are, someone is watching us, waiting to see what we are going to do. Some times those people are younger than us. Other times they may be the same age as us or older than us, but they are watching. The question is not whether or not we are going to make an impact. The question is will that impact be positive or negative.

I shared that very same lesson with the students tonight after we watched this video. It was the talk of this video this morning that got me to come back and be with the students for the evening service tonight. God knew I needed to be there, because I needed to be reminded of that very lesson that Beth and Jeff tried to teach me almost ten years ago. The questions I am pondering and the ones I leave you with are: What kind of impact/legacy are you going to leave behind? Are you positively or negatively influencing those around you? What kind of difference are you making?