Replicate: Growing in the Lord

Replicating.

That is how God made our church.  He made it organic: an organism capable of a-sexual reproduction.  We can, should, must spawn new churches.

Replicating.

That is how God made Christians.  He made us organic. Like a virus eager to replicate the new DNA of the Spirit into the old man of our friends’ and neighbors’ and see them become new.

Replicating.

That’s just what we are terrible at doing.

Another Summer of Devotionals

This morning on my Facebook memories there was a quote from my then 12 old daughter over morning devotionals.

Me: Why do we fold our hands when we pray?

Daughter: Because the grown-ups don’t want us to do anything naughty while their eyes are closed.

Me: (Crickets chirp in the stunned silence)

I laughed, hit the share button, and remembered that summer is almost here and it's time that we start summer devos again.  

We’ve been doing this every summer since my younger daughter was four (read about our faltering start).  It’s more than just a habit, it’s a pleasure. When school is in, we study Bible as an academic subject, but when school is out, it would be easy for Bible study to fall behind.  

This summer my girls will turn 10 and 17.  And every morning, as soon as breakfast is over, even before we clear the plates and do the dishes, we recite whatever verses we are working on memorizing, read a short passage of scripture together and talk about what comes up.  Our school year Bible study focuses on learning; our summers focus on becoming.

We’ve done Daniel and worked through Colossians (both of which are available to you free online Daniel / Colossians).  This summer we are focusing on what it means to be a woman of God. We’ll be looking at Deborah, Hannah, Jael, Miriam, Huldah, Ruth and Esther.  Then turning to the New Testament we will talk about Mary, Mary and Martha, Mary Magdalene, Lydia, Phoebe, and Priscilla.

This isn’t spiritually easy ground.  We’ll discuss the ethics of violence in Jael’s story and our own ethics as we progress in Tae Keon Do.  We’ll work on when it is right to lead and when we should submit with Deborah, Huldah, and Miriam. We’ll talk about courage from the perspective of Mary and Mary Magdalene.  And what it means to be both a female evangelist with Priscilla’s story. We’ll talk about loyalty, God’s and ours with Ruth and Esther. And we are going to learn about prayer, poetry and “reversal of fortune” with Hannah and Mary.  I hope to share some insights with you as we go along.

It’s going to be a wonderful summer.  This is my last full summer to have my eldest home.  Soon after her 17th birthday, she’ll head off to the University of Wyoming.  But for these last precious days, the three of us girls will take that 10 minutes in the morning to have devotionals.  Take the chance to listen to my girls, to hear their hearts and know their minds. To recite God’s word with them and think about His story together.  Time goes so fast and for us summer devos are priceless.

If you are looking for Bible study material for your own kids, you are welcome to use our online material on Daniel or Colossians or we have an entire semester's worth of FREE curriculum just for our subscribers!  Subscribe here!

Be the Joy!

Joy.  We glitter wooden ornaments with the word.  We see it inscribed on Christmas cards.  We proclaim it in song: “Joy to the world.”  

It is the Christian’s claim.  We are people of joy.  

Joy is powerfully attractive.  Not the smug happiness of having everything but the basic foundational attitude that there is in fact much to rejoice about in this world.  That despite today's natural disaster, the world God made is good.  Despite Satan’s depredations, the people God called are declared righteous and holy.  Despite all of our short term sorrows, despite death, sin, and terror, Jesus has triumphed and will continue to reign until His Father has put all things under His footstool. 

This is how and why Christians are people of joy. 

Not pie in the sky fools but people grounded in the solid anchor of hope in the face of every ugly storm Satan sends.

This attitude is entirely refreshing to a world bathed in anger, cynicism, hatred, and disgust.  To a jailer in Phillipi considering suicide, the sweet song of joyful prisoners was the sound of hope. Our joy in troubles echoes that ancient hymn. Peter instructs us to stand ready to give an answer for that hope. 

This Christmas season, let me encourage you to do something joyful.  Wish every Scrooge a merry Christmas.  Got the extra mile to bring delight to someone with less reason to rejoice than you.  (Say a dozen Christmas cookies to an elderly neighbor?)  Share your Christian long-view that when our Lord returns He will set this old world to right, rebirthed in a new heavens and new earth, a world fulfilling today’s little joys with the great joys of eternity!  And smile, friend.  Smile. And let the world know that God has given us something to smile about. 

Helene

PS: There will be another video to share soon!  Keep an eye out for in your email or the Facebook page.  (What?  You are not on the email?  Subscribe here and get the PDF: 21 days to Evangelism!)

PSS: If you were looking to buy one of my books to give for a Christmas present, time is almost up! 

Christmas In the Middle of a Mess

Have you ever been in the middle of a mess?

I don’t mean a polite middle class mess where you roll your eyes and complain with the other moms about decorations that aren’t up or a Pinterest masterpiece turned into burnt offering.  I mean the sort of mess that buries you in shame.  

In the middle of a mess like that we feel entirely unloveable.  We are convinced that if someone knew the truth we would be a pariah.  We hide.  We lie.  We try frantically to clean up our chaos hoping against hope that somehow no one will notice.  We tell ourselves all kinds of stories that start with "bad luck" and end with "never again" and some of them are even true. 

7 Ways to NOT Reach the Lost this Christmas

The Top 7 Ways to NOT reach the Lost this Christmas

7. At least once a day post something on Facebook that includes, “Like the Baby Jesus and receive a blessing today!”

6. Shout “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” at everyone who dares to wish you, "Happy Holidays."

5. Give complex explanations about the historical/mythical syncretism that connect Christmas and Saturnalia.

4. Every time some one says, “Elf on a Shelf” mutter “Tool of Satan” under your breath.

3. Insist that political correctness is ruining Christmas.  Lecture everyone who will listen on how President Trump will save us from this travesty.

2. Give out tracts instead of Christmas presents.


And...last but not least!

1. Focus on your family, your presents, your shopping, your music, your decorations and your traditions.  Just let the season slip away without seeing those around you who are lost and longing for Jesus.

Of course I say all that tongue in cheek.  And if you really think that the Elf on the Shelf is a tool of Satan, we can talk about it.  I think that little guy is super creepy myself.  But here is the point: vaunting our (however sincere) thoughts on Christmas, doesn't necessarily help people see Christ.

Every Christian nods her heads when I say "we should reach out to anyone and everyone who is willing to talk about Jesus!" And yet Christmas rolls around and we aren't effectively talking to the lost about Jesus at one of the few times of a year He is on their minds.  Sometimes that is because we are entangled in our own “issues," and sometimes that is because we are embroiled in our own pain and sorrow. But frequently it is because while are enjoying our holiday, the days slip by. 

For the last couple of years I have posted Christmas meditations--short thoughts about our lives and their relation to the Christmas story.  (I've gathered them into an ebook!  Check out our Holiday Bundles).  But this year, for the sake of the lost and for the sake of those who should be searching for them, I am going to be posting some connections we can make between the people we are reaching out for and the Christ who came reaching down for them.

Join me this month for posts to help you help the people you care about and for videos that can be shared on Facebook or via email directly with lost folks. (Ready to get started today?  Subscribe today and receive a PDF: 21 days to Effective Evangelism.)

Link-ups: Mommy-Moments, Inspire Me Monday, The Mom Gene, Good Morning Monday,  The Modest Mom Blog, Moments of Hope, God-sized Dreams, Glimpses, Breakthrough Homeschooling, Salt and Light

Maggie, Aretha and Kyla-Marriages in conflict over God

Let's imagine an ordinary Monday...

You wake up with a beautiful idea, a plan, a conviction from God. And you are ready to get started.  But then you remember that the last time you had one of these brilliant ideas your husband squashed you like a bug.  He hasn't even woken up and you can feel your resentment building.  You start flipping bacon and by the time he stumbles towards his morning cup of joe, your mood has turned bitter.  You've  already had the argument with him in your head, so why say anything at all!

Is that your story? 

When I wrote last week's post about what to do when you feel your husband isn't on board with your desire to serve God, I had lots of great conversation on Facebook, on the blog and in person. These talks taught me that this is even more difficult and controversial a topic than I imagined.  

Dividing Lines

Evangelism is like having a much longed for child.  All your sisters should be excited, encouraging, and enthusiastic. And to some degree it’s true.  If you announce to your ladies’ Bible class that you talked to your best friend about coming to church with you, they’ll all give you a little pat on the back and promise to pray.  If you tell them that you signed up to grade correspondence courses or that you are going to teach a community Bible class at the Library, you’ll get proud smiles and offers to help with anything they can do.  

But when you joyfully announce something like, “One of the ladies from our prison bible class was baptized this week.  She’ll be out next month and she and her kids will get to be a real part of our congregation.”  

Do you think you’ll get that pat on the back?  

Maybe. Maybe not.

Intentional Evangelism

Evangelism.  It’s the main job Jesus left for his followers (Matthew 28:19-20), yet it’s the one job that often gets shoved to the back burner in our lives.  We know we should do better, but we just don’t. There are many reasons for this oversight, but I suspect that one problem is that we aren’t intentional enough. We don’t make a plan and follow it.  While it is certainly possible for someone to come to us and say, “I’m missing something in my life, and I think you have it.  Can you tell me how to get it?” and then happily agree to everything we tell them and become followers of Christ with little or no outreach on our parts, it’s not very likely.  In our examples of Biblical evangelism, Jesus and the apostles were very intentional about spreading the gospel.  They had a plan to share the good news, and they followed it as best they could.  Sure, there were bumps in the road and detours created by the Holy Spirit.  But if they had never had a plan and sat in their homes waiting for someone to come to them, the church would not have spread like it did.  

God the Pursuer

Can you imagine what our world would be like if God sat back on His fatherly heels and said, “I’ll wait till they come to me?” What if he had never spoken to Abraham, never wrestled with Jacob, never declared his name to Moses?  What if he did not reveal himself to us? Never wrote his glory in the stars or gave His law to the assembled people he had claimed for himself (Psalm 19)?  Aren’t you glad that he is the God who pursues us?

In the extremity of love and need, He pursued us right down into our own neighborhoods. John 3:16  reminds us: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” God loved and God gave.   

Improving our Attitude toward Muslims

Monday, I talked about the toxic attitudes and behaviors that some Christians display towards our Muslim neighbors, and how those prejudices hinder our ability to reach followers of Islam for Christ.  I’ll be the first to admit that I have never shared the gospel with a Muslim, but I’d like to think that if I were given that opportunity, I’d be willing and able to do it.  So these are some steps we should take to improve our mindset so that we are ready if that time comes.

Modern Day Jonahs

Last week, we took a look at our children’s favorite prophet, Jonah.  He had been commanded by God to prophesy to his people’s enemy, the Assyrians, and he was not happy about it.  Even after he obeyed and went to Nineveh, he wanted God to wipe out the people of the city instead of forgive them.  God was not pleased with Jonah’s attitude, and as I watch my social media feeds, I can’t think that He is too happy with some American Christians and their attitude toward Muslims either.

Jonah: Beyond the Fish

Once upon a time there was a nation who believed that conquering neighboring people was a religious duty. Their god had given them a divine mandate, so it was an act of faithful obedience to punish nations that would not bow down to their rule.  Based on this belief, the aggressive empire built a huge army.  In order to frighten nearby kingdoms into submission, the conquerors committed unspeakable atrocities on any peoples who resisted their army, then boasted about it to further spread the word. 

Jesus Style Evangelism

I was sitting on my husband’s desk, swinging my short legs and discussing the upcoming weekend trip to Montana.  In the swivel chair, he sorted the mail.  A padded manila envelope labeled, “To the minister” revealed a free book.  

Neither of us were all that excited.  New books addressed “to the minister” are most often books with an ax to grind.  But when I flipped it over, the title, “The Jesus Style” caught my attention, and I decided to take it with me to the retreat.  

I was not disappointed.  

The author, Gayle D. Erwin, has a simple thesis. The only way to the win the world for Christ is to do it like Jesus. In other words, we have to imitate the way Jesus loved and served others. This seems painfully obvious.  What else does WWJD mean?  Yet when Erwin gets down to brass tacks his conclusions sting.

I frequently laughed as I read and had to turn down the radio to read snippets in the car. For example, when talking about how he would have chosen someone suave as a forerunner, he comments, “Jesus obviously didn’t do it my way. Instead, he used a raving, rough-hewn man who dressed inappropriately for a minister and was committed to organic food.”   Or when trying to explain the horror and shame of the cross, he paraphrases apologetically, “Can you hear us singing, “At the electric chair, at the electric chair where I first saw the light.”  Or, “There’s room in the gas chamber for you?” Or, Take up your firing squad and follow me?”.

Erwin reminds us of things we are committed to in theological terms but neglect when the rubber meets the road.  For example, this quote on how we would behave if we were really slaves to Christ.

“A slave should have no title that raises him above that lowly level and definitely no title that raises him above others.  A slave should have no status symbols except the scars that come from hard work.  You would not expect a slave to have a parking space more accessible than his masters.  A slave would not have an office larger than others or more ornately decorated in order to show his position.  A slave would not wear clothing that intimidated others or impressed them in any way except as being their servant…A slave would not try to use his “power” to protect his position of “first.”

Probably the most poignant of the many short chapters was the one on humility.  Erwin defines humility as a life without hypocrisy-a life in which we are as real and transparent as the “Great I AM.” He reminds us that rather than becoming more aloof as his ministry gained steam, Jesus became increasingly intimate with his disciples.  Furthermore, Erwin says this is what it means to “walk in the light.”  We know our failures and faults and feel no need to hide them or ourselves from God or our brothers and sisters.  Instead without pride we all walk together growing in grace and knowledge. 

Each point in the book is tied back to evangelizing like Jesus.  Can you imagine an evangelist who showed up in shorts and flip-flops-in other words a slave who did not dress to put herself above the master? Can you imagine one who was humble, confessing her shortcomings to her student?  Who freely admits that becoming a disciple of Christ (taking up our cross and following Him) is more about opening oneself up to humiliation, suffering and injustice than it is a quick ticket to heaven?  Or who never manipulates an argument or an emotion but gives people the dignity and respect that God does by allowing them to say no? As painful as it seems, that would be evangelizing like Jesus.  

If you can’t guess, I really like this book.  The chapters are short and suitable for a daily devotional.  Or alternately like me you can devour it in a weekend; just be sure and choose a place where you can both laugh like a loon and mull over how you might be less like Jesus than you first imagined. 

An audio copy of the book can be downloaded for free at http://www.servant.org 

Helene

The Watchman

Of all the fears and worries of an evangelist I don’t know that there is any more discouraging than the fear of failure. Young evangelists worry, not without reason that in their inexperience they may fail.  What if I mess this up?  What if I say the wrong thing, do the wrong thing, and make it worse? Drive people away from God? Wrong motives, wrong methods, wrong message, these are real and powerful concerns. However, if this fear is so paralyzing that she never reaches out, the battle has already been lost.

The experienced evangelist, I am afraid, has a more subtle and powerful fear. What if I do the best I can, if I pour out everything I’ve got, and no one listens. Have I failed God?  She doesn’t fear that someday someone will reject her.  She’s already been there. She has tasted the bitterness of investing hours of loving concern, Bible study and her own physical resources into a person only to have them reject her and God.  Her fear doesn’t paralyze her; it haunts her.  Will she shout and shout and no one listen?

Praise the Lord!

I love Ladies Bible Class.  For nearly a year, I’ve had the pleasure of teaching a class that encompasses women who have walked with God for many years, baby Christians and women who are seeking God.  I love the class for the fellowship, the joy of studying the Bible, and because my “students” teach me things all the time. 

For instance, recently I wanted to teach a lesson on the power of prayer.  I pulled out some of my favorite Old Testament prayers for examples.  I had them lined up: Nehemiah’s prayer when he wanted God to help gain the King’s favor to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem; Hezekiah’s prayer when he spread that blasphemous letter from Assyria in front of God and insisted that God uphold his good name; Daniel’s bold prayer with his Hebrew brothers that stopped the murder of the wise men and gave the King the answer he asked for.  I had so many lovely lessons we could learn from these brave prayer warriors. 

When we finished the lesson, I asked them, “What stands out to you about these prayers?”  And they piped up, “Praise. All these prayers start with praise.”  I was stunned by their point.  Think about it.   None of these men were sitting around with nothing better to do, watching a sunrise or contemplating a mountain range.  Daniel was facing his executioner and Hezekiah an enemy army. This is the perfect opportunity to stop and praise God?

But What If I Fail?

Like Helene, I don’t live in fear of external things.  (Yes, if a spider lands on me, I will run and scream like a little girl, but I can avoid the eight legged freaks for the most part.)  I teach a women’s class at a prison once a week, and I never worry about being attacked or even called names.  For one thing, there are guards watching our every move, for another I rely on God’s protection when I’m doing His work.  

Another Way to Cast the Net

Hasn't it been great talking so much about evangelism these past weeks?  I've been uplifted, and I hope you have too.  Thus far, we've concentrated on all the people we already know that we can share the gospel with, both in person and long distance. I think that is the absolutely the best place to start, but today I'd like to share methods of sharing the gospel with people we may not know. Here are two ways that won't be intrusive and don't take an inordinate amount of time.

Seeker Friendly Resources

Imagine with me. 

Once there was an excellent 2nd grade math teacher.  She loved manipulatives (you know, those little blocks) and taught with them every day.  Next door was another excellent teacher.  She thought manipulatives were a disaster because they didn't develop kids' ability to think abstractly.  One day in front of a class full of children struggling with a new concept, they began to argue. Fingers went in the air, big words like "objective representation" and "associationist theory" were tossed around and finally they devolved to red faced name calling. 

21 Days of Evangelism: Week 3

We're almost done with our 3 weeks.  I sincerely hope that you've started a habit that you're not going to give up.  I know that this short time isn't necessarily enough to bring in a new believer but please understand that this is only the beginning of becoming a disciple-maker, one more wonderful way we can follow and obey our Savior.

21 Days of Evangelism: Week 2

 

I hope this new lifestyle of evangelism is going well for you!  If you haven't gotten started yet, go back and read last week's post and join us!