Prayer Support for the Mission

The first and most critical component to kingdom building in the church militant is prayer.  The disciples looked as Jesus after years of talking, after years of Jesus' modeling, after years of His miraculous events ad requested, "Lord, teach us to pray."  They didn't say, "Lord, teach us to heal."  They didn't say, "Lord, teach us to walk on water."  They said, "Teach us to pray."  They came to recognize that the role of prayer in mission and in this life of faith is critical.

Before every significant event in Jesus' life, He was first in prayer. (In fact His life was and is a life of prayer before the Father even though He is 100% God.) He went off on His own to pray before He called the Disciples. He lifted His voice in prayer before feeding the thousands who came to listen to His teaching. Jesus was in excruciating prayer before He was betrayed and led to the cross. I know you can identify other prayer/event connections.

Such is the case today. As a District we are looking for a miracle. We are looking for the miracle of changed hearts that would trust Christ with their soul. We are asking the Lord of Life to bring life to the thousands upon thousands who are moving next door to us in Texas, and we are asking that He use us to do this. Indeed, we would be honored if He would use us to add to His kingdom.

We are organized for this; we have check lists, priorities, coaches, and enthusiasm. We are eager and burdened for this to occur as a District. But the question stands: are we convicted to pray concerning this Divine mission?

To be sure, we recognize that the growth of the church is a supernatural event calling for a supernatural turn of heart toward Jesus. After years of ministry, the disciples recognized this reality and finally suggested to Jesus or pleaded (I can not tell which from the text), "Lord, teach us to pray." Is that our request? Or are we still hoping, "Lord, teach us structure" or "Lord, teach us to better schedule"?

The challenge before us in Texas is so profound that a significant call to prayer is called for.  It is my prayer and our goal to realize 10% of the Baptized membership of the Texas District LCMS congregations to be in prayer for the mission in Texas.

As the Lord leads you to pray for the mission of the church in this district and beyond, I encourage you to subscribe to the Texas District Prayer Initiative.  When you do, you will receive a weekly prayer page through your preferred email account.  The content of this page for 2011 includes scripture readings, reflections by missionaries and leaders in the Texas District, and items for you to include in your personal prayer time.

To see prayer pages or to sign up to be a prayer supporter click here.

God Bless!

Biblical Creation and Faith

The following is an email response to an inquiry about Biblical Creation and the role of Faith.  As you read you will notice that there has been previous communication.  It is the second exchange. 

Thank you for your kind words.  My question was an honest one to be sure.  Email tends to convert some statements in inappropriate ways.  I would ask for your patience in applying the best construction on what I write. Thank you.   I am glad to learn that you have degrees in Geology and Math.  I appreciate your passion for this subject. 

In addition, I am glad to learn that your daughter has survived a struggle with cancer.  Such events are life focusing and priority challenging to be sure.

I am not surprised to learn that you know Bible passages.  While I do not know your faith I do know that there are many in the church who embrace the proposition of macro-evolution as the explanation of all things rather than the Biblical proposition. That broader reality saddens me because there is a larger question in play at this point concerning the veracity of Scripture.  The bottom line question is: "To what authority does one submit?" 

I do agree with you, a deep understanding of Science does not preclude belief in a Creator.  In fact I would go so far as to say that a deep, full, and complete understanding of Science requires such a belief.   The question is then, "What kind of Creator is He?"  Is He the one characterized by the phrase, "Survival of the fittest?" or is it the one who looked at His Creation and said, "It is very good!" (Genesis 1:31)

I can tell you that I would hate to know of the Creator without also knowing of the Redeemer.  Knowing the first alone would terrify me to the point where I would intentionally become an atheist.  However, because of the promise of the Word (Gen 3:15 and a multitude of other passages) the Holy Spirit, in His mercy, has called me to faith in Christ, addressed the fall of mankind in Genesis chapter three (before which there was no death) and provides for me hope in this life and the next.  And since the vicarious atonement calls for God incarnate to be born of a virgin, to live without sin, to be punished for my sin and the sin of the world (John 3:16), to die on a cross and rise from the grave three days later, to ascend into heaven where He now sits at the right hand of the Father, (all miracles greater than speaking the Universe into existence 6,000 or so years ago simply by His word) I have to ask, which is lest tenable?  Is it Creation or Salvation?  I would suggest the answer is Salvation is the more difficult proposition to accept.  How could Jesus be fully God and Man?  How could he raise the dead, heal the sick, give sight to the blind, calm the wind, and control nature in such ways?  And then I read John 1:1ff and learn that Jesus was before everything.  At this point, if I am prepared to accept such Christology and Soteriology by faith, Creation is a piece of cake.  And so I ascribe to both by faith alone.  Then I go from there looking at everything through the trustworthy eyes of Scripture.

Just a thought: The Lutheran Reformation of 1517 returned the church to the truth of the Gospel, and provided the theological and philosophical foundation for science to thrive and move forward.  The world-view that sees God's word as non-negotiable and removes fear provides the context for greater advancement in history more than any other world-view.  (I have found no exceptions.)  In other words, the reason mankind ended up on the moon has nothing to do with evolution.  Rather it is the freedom of the Gospel provided by Jesus' death and resurrection that removed fear, superstition, and the obligation to please God with our actions (Matthew 11:28). 

I would like to suggest a few reading resources and a couple of websites for you to consider:

            The Ultimate Proof of Creation: resolving the origins debate, by Dr. Jason Lisle

            Refuting Compromise, by Dr. Jonathan Sarfati

            Thousands Not Billions, Dr. Don DeYoung

            The Greatest Hoax on Earth?, Dr. Jonathan Sarfati

Team Mission

I had decided to quit golfing. That was it. I do enough stupid things that I don't need others to know about without actually going out with three other people to demonstrate yet another area of inadequacy. "It's about the fellowship," say some. I say no. It's about competing and winning. The last time I won at golf, well I haven't.

So one day, as I was driving home, I decided to quit golfing. I called my wife to give her the news, but before I could say anything she said, "Steve, we need to buy the boys golf clubs." I almost said, "Well, they can have mine now, before I die" but I didn't. I said, "Well, okay." Maybe I shouldn't give up yet.

The boys can hit the ball about like I hit the ball. If I were a baseball player I would be hitting about .300. That would put me in All-Star territory. We all would be in All-Star territory. But in golf hitting .300 is a bad day. Some days better. Most days worse. In a rare moment, the last for many years I'm sure, my two sons and I were together in Borger. So we went golfing. (Go figure.)

I suggested that instead of playing against each other, we play against the course. We played best ball. So here you have three players, all able to hit about .300 (.300 translates into a score of 110 or so) competing not against each other but against that nasty golf course. Game on. At the end of it our score was 78! I couldn't believe it. And everyone contributed.

To start out there was some competition within the team with everyone trying to keep track of whose ball was "best" most of the time. That element of competition evaporated completely within about six holes. We can all mess up pretty well on our own. As a team we could do great things that as individuals would be impossible.

Translating this into other areas of life is not difficult. Where we try to go through difficulties alone, we find ourselves inadequate and unfulfilled. But linking to a team and relying on the gifts and abilities of others actually develops three critical areas:

1) humble fellowship;
2) recognition of others;
3) fulfillment of mission.

Humble Fellowship is something you learn when a team is working well together. Arrogance does not advance the mission. Paul says this in Philippians 2 when he exhorts the congregation not to consider themselves better than the other person. Instead, humble yourself as Christ humbled Himself.

There is also a necessary Recognition of Others on the team. One of the lessons that I have learned as a leader is to make room for personalities that I don't prefer. My role is not one of exclusion but rather of discovery and facilitation for contribution. A person may not think the way that I do, but that does not allow me to preclude their contribution in the pursuit of the mission. God has gifted them as He has gifted you.

Fulfillment of the Mission is the goal, but such is not done in isolation. Even Paul, who seemed to be the individual who just moved ahead, needed support and companionship to the end of his involvement in the Great Commission. I would remind you also that Great Golfers, even though they golf alone, have great caddies who encourage, coach, and rejoice with the one they serve.

I enjoyed golfing with my boys that day. Truth be known, we were disappointed that we shot a 78. We wanted it to be lower, but that is a man thing. Still, given there are not many super-heros in the church, it was a great lesson to learn again; we need each other as we move out with the Gospel to a world that is lost. And as we move together, the task is not as much labor as it is delight.

Maybe I'll continue golfing. Only God knows what else I can learn.

Being the Church in a Recession

We have been blessed in Texas with a robust economy in good times and a resilient economy in times when the rest of country is struggling economically. Still, people are moving into the state at high levels and businesses are struggling. There are communities dependent upon government contracts when the Federal budget is being redistributed. The result of this is employment numbers are declining. People are looking for jobs. The challenge for the unemployed to find employment is growing, and some economists say economic struggle will continue for years to come.

So what can the church do? An even better question is, what can the church be to their communities in a time when circumstances threaten to turn lives upside down? In one of the ubiquitous blue boxes in the Economist (Feb 20-26, 2010), a short two column piece appeared, addressing this very issue. Here is some of what this secular publication observed.

The church can be a gathering place. Many congregations across the country are providing both spiritual and professional counseling for people who have lost their jobs. They come together in prayer and praise, they network or fellowship, they highlight people who have recently become employed. For those who have been unemployed for the longest period of time, congregations hand out gas cards and gift cards to help them travel to where they need to go and to prepare for an interview. One lay leader said, "We believe that God should be a part of the job search." Then they break out into workshop sessions.

In these workshops they review their resume` writing and learn how to construct an “elevator pitch” for why an employer should hire them. (An elevator pitch is a statement the length of the time it takes for an elevator to reach the selected floor. Not a bad idea to develop for a witness statement as well.)

An interesting component to this growing activity across the country is that the goal is not to add members to the congregation. Indeed, there is a great deal of anxiety and even hopelessness in the ranks of the unemployed. The church can certainly address fear, but opening the doors of a congregation for job searchers unconditionally (without the call to join the congregation) reduces anxiety for those unfamiliar with the church culture and encourages people to become acquainted with principled, hard-working members of the body of Christ.

Such attention to the community may not be forgotten when a job is secured. Still, a cup of cold water given without qualification serves the kingdom of Christ very well.

Stewardship: There is Still Time

The word "stewardship" has always had an effect on people. In fact, my guess is that as you read the title, this eleven lettered word, you were either saying, "go get 'em" or you were saying, "I'll go to the next blog and skip this." Not unlike the word evangelism, at the mention of the word "stewardship," people either become impassioned or their eyes glaze over. "All they want is money."

Here's the thing. And there is no way around this. Discipleship is stewardship and stewardship is your job. While this is not what you put on your tax forms indicating occupation, it is easily arguable that this is why you are here; to be a steward. If you think about it, you were a steward very early in your life. When you were instructed to make your bed and pick up your toys, you were being trained in stewardship. As I reflect on my reluctance to follow instruction at that age, I realize how resistant I was and how much I needed to learn about being a good steward.

To be sure, stewardship is more than straightening up the garage, washing the car and taking out the garbage. It includes family, being a good husband or wife or child. It includes being a good neighbor. It includes the use of your time. How do distribute your time? Do you set time aside to read the Word of God, to prayer, and to worship the Lord? Stewardship includes the call to mission.

Do you use your gifts and personality for the kingdom of God as well as your vocation? I once had a visit from a man who was a great salesman. He was selling me on becoming involved in his business. Ok, I turned him down. I am not in the business of getting into business. When my visitor was done with his presentation, I asked him if he was involved in evangelism in his congregation. He said no. I told him that he may be gifted in evangelism and should not miss the opportunity of being a good steward in this. I said, "Speak of Christ with the same passion and you will be a blessing for the kingdom of God." I don't know what happened after that, but I am certain he never had a "sales visit" like that before or after. The point is, use what God has given to you for the good of your neighbor and it will also reflect God's kingdom to the world. In so doing, recognizing that God is the owner of all things, you joyfully praise God in all that you do by taking care of and managing that which God has given to you.

Money is included. The Scriptures do not tip-toe into this issue. In fact, statistically, twenty percent of the New Testament deals with financial concerns. It talks about management of money, misuse of money, the consequence of loving money, and the proper place of money in our lives. When Jesus speaks in the parables about the kingdom of God, He is discussing stewardship and many times illustrates His point using money. The Pharisees tried to trip Jesus up over financial issues. He would not be distracted. In fact, Jesus used money to illustrate reconciliation, servant leadership and love. Money is used to demonstrate your love for God and all that He has done for you. It is used to demonstrate your love and responsibility also to your neighbor. First-fruit giving is a major component in praising God with all that you have. Stewardship, in this regard means learning to budget and learning to prioritize the budget to reflect your faith. (My family, at a minimum, has tithed all income for my entire ministry. Praise God, we have never gone without. My children have learned to tithe. I don't say this other than to encourage and perhaps challenge you.)

There is another word that has great effect on people. It is a word that softens hard hearts and minds. It is a word that causes congregations to pause when they are out of sorts with each other. It is a word that reunites families and neighbors. It a word that leads people to an even higher level of stewardship. The word is "forgiveness." In Jesus' death and resurrection, you are offered forgiveness. Adam was given the responsibility of stewardship of creation before the fall. Adam needed to hear that eleven-lettered word when he "dropped the ball" in his own stewardship and caused the human race to fall. You need to hear that word when you fail to manage the things you have and the gifts you are to use. Read Luke 19:11-27 and you will learn that our Lord has exacting expectations. The great thing about forgiveness in Christ is you can start again. There is still time to start again.