Reflections on 9/11

As was my custom, I woke up late, grabbed a hurried coffee and rushed off to class only to find that my prof was sick and had cancelled the early class. I was both mad and happy. Mad because I had to get up and get ready for nothing, but happy because I got to head back to bed.

I laid down and was just about back to sleep when an abrupt knock at the door woke me out of my slumber. As the Resident Assistant at Liberty University, a guy on my hall turned to me for counsel on what he saw on the TV.

"A plane hit the WTC!!"

I was like "not a chance, you had to have  bad dream!"

"No come and see!"

We rushed to the end of the hall where he had his TV tuned in to the News that was keeping a live feed on the tower. We sat there in utter disbelief as we saw the second plane hit.

It was surreal.  America under attack?! Unbelievable and yet undeniable. That’s where I was on September 11, 2001.

I remember the unity and patriotism that followed. I remember the images of the buildings collapsing, the heroic NYPD and NYFD rushing toward the falling buildings. The stories of rescue and loss are as vivid today as they were 12 years ago.

In that time, America had remembered how to put politics aside, how to come together on what we had in common, and unite. This event has forever changed the culture of America. We who once felt invincible and invulnerable were faced with fear. Nothing can be more unsettling then the awareness of fragility.

Prosperity and safety is a distraction from the reality of evil. We hold fast to our finances, our jobs, our cities and look to them for meaning. We become dulled to the inner most cry of our heart that we are in desperate need of more. God “has put eternity into man's heart” and we fill that void with our own wisdom, wealth and thoughts of safety.  But what happens when our false foundation is shaken? Where do we turn?

One of the most profound images that is still burned into my mind is the cross among the rubble of the WTC. In the midst of chaos, destruction and uncertainty was a stark reminder of hope! This life is not the end, just the beginning. God had made provisions for us long before the foundations of this temporary world was established.

Throughout history, as calamity upon calamity happened, God always gave a sign that He was there and He was in control. Turn to Him and find your hope, not just immediately but for all eternity.

I think of the fall of Adam and Eve where God’s sign was the promise of a descendant who would crush the head of the serpent.

I think of the poison in the wilderness, where the people only had to look at the bronze snake on the pole to be saved.

I think of the conquest of Rome and the Son of God lifted up on the cross! Only three days later to conquer sin and death!

It is this truth that brings hope at the image of the cross amongst the rubble. It is in this imagery, that our broken and desperate lives can be healed because of a resurrected Lord!

To honor those fallen 9/11/2001, don’t turn your hope to America, to wealth, or to safety. Turn to Jesus, trust the one who gave it all that we might live. Allow the image of the cross to draw you into a relationship with a loving God who gives signs of who He is and has revealed Himself in the pages of the Bible. This is where true peace, security and hope come from.

As we say weekly in youth group: “Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever!”

An Unlikely Voice: the story of Amos

In the era of the divided kingdom, the 10 northern tribes, known as Israel, were enjoying a time of peace and prosperity. The surrounding oppressors have been pushed back and kept at bay for some time. The economy was booming and the nation had settled into a false sense of security. One might think the nation would be grateful to God for their prosperity; instead they began to turn away from God to their own devices.

 Israel began to turn their religious pursuits away from the true God of their fathers and pursue the gods and practices of the surrounding religions. The pagans that God had commanded them to destroy and drive completely out of the land had begun to infect Israel with their idolatry and pagan worship. Israel began to do the once unthinkable acts of worship, even to the point of sacrificing their own children to false gods.

Prosperity had dulled their hearts to God’s Words and His warnings. They began to feel indestructible and pleasure began to be their primary drive. Holiness became a thing of the past. Even those who were charged with the religious leadership of the nation had become calloused to God’s Word.

An Immense Call

It was at this point that God called Amos from the rural hills of Tekoa, Judah, south of Jerusalem, to go north and be His voice to the nation of Israel. God called Amos to be His mouthpiece to the rebellious king of a decadent kingdom; a people who had largely rejected the notion of the One True God.

Amos was charged to challenge the hearts of kings and leaders. He was to confront the political machine that was moving farther and farther from the truth. He was to confront a religious system that had long lost its true mission, to be a light in this dark world. He was to bring to light how the people of God had become worse then the pagan cultures they replaced in the promised land. Amos’s call was going to meet much opposition.

A Hard Message

“Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt: “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.” Amos 3:1-2 (ESV)

Israel’s view of God probably was not much different than today, where people only want to hear about the love and compassion of God for the whole world. They gathered religious leaders that would allow them to do what they wanted and not confront them on their sins.

Amos was called to declare the sinfulness of the nation and the impending judgment from God. God hates sin! God is a God of wrath! Judgment is real and coming quickly! The people of Israel had amassed a great deal of sins: empty ritualism, oppression of the poor, idolatry, deceit, self-righteousness, arrogance, greed, materialism and callousness, to name a few. Judgment will come to them unless they repent of their sins and turn back to God. The people rejected Amos and the gracious offer of God.

It is very similar to today’s culture. People like the fluff, but hate the truth. Our culture needs to reminded of the same message, even as one pastor posted this on Facebook today: “The basic message of Jesus: "I'm God. You're in sin. Repent to me, or you will go to hell." No wonder they killed him. Today we'd have killed him too.”

A Humble Beginning

As Amos speaks the word of the Lord, he comes under opposition and attack. The religious leader Amaziah tells Amos to go home and leave them alone. Basically telling him he is a busybody who has just come to be a nuisance to the himself and the king of Israel. Amos responds with:

“I was no prophet, nor a prophet’s son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Now therefore hear the word of the Lord.” Amos 7:14-16 (ESV)

It’s as if Amos is saying, “Hey I know I am an unlikely choice to be God’s voice! I didn’t attend the local Prophet University. My dad wasn’t a prophet. As a matter of fact I was pretty content taking care of my flocks at home and taking care of my fig trees. Yet God called me to tell you this message. Now listen to what God says!”

As I consider the situation I remember a time in youth group where a question about a specific demonstration of sin was asked of the students. One students response was “Um, I’m from Cloverleaf…we don’t know about such things.” Interpretation: I’m from the country and we do not allow behavior like that, so we are basically ignorant of it.

I could see Amos coming from a wholesome, sheltered up bringing, where he never encountered the gross sins that the nation of Israel faced. He wasn’t experienced in these matters. He wasn’t the intellectual giant. He wasn’t a military general. He had no pedigree for what he was doing. He had the call of God. And that was enough for him!

He didn’t allow his humble beginnings to prevent him from sharing the message God had given him. No, instead he boldly proclaimed the truth to the religious leaders and to the king himself!

A Source of Hope

Though his message was harsh and firm about the impending judgment, it was also laced with grace. On a number of occasions he shared that if the people would just repent and follow God then they would not reap the judgment.

“For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek me and live.” Amos 5:4 (ESV)

Life is found in God and God alone. He tells them to stop pursuing the false gods and false religions and they will find life. This is the same message that Jesus brought to us when He says that He has “come to give you life, life to the full!”

“I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them…I will plant them on their land, and they shall never again be uprooted out of the land that I have given them,” says the Lord your God.” Amos 9:14-15 (ESV)

Amos concludes his message with great message of hope! God has not forgotten His promises! He will keep His covenant with the people, even though they have broken theirs with Him. One day He will restore all things and do away with sin forever. In that day, His people will realize that holiness is not about being robbed of fun, but is removing everything that steals true joy from us. They will finally know God and be known by Him as He always intended.

Conclusion

Amos was just a farm boy, one who was content being in the country and enjoying the “good life.” He had no family history, no formal education that would cause one to think he should be a prophet. But what he did have was a love for God and a desire to be faithful to Him. God took him from the field and placed him in the palace with a hard message.

This message was supposed to wake the king and his people up to their sins and lead to their repentance. If that would have happened they would have been rescued from judgment. Amos pointed to true hope when God would restore all things.

Amos didn’t realize at that time, that God was going to send His own Son to be a prophet to declare the truth to these stubborn, rebellious people. At that time, they would not only reject His message, but they would kill Him. But that was part of God’s plan, for on the third day He rose again, conquering sin and death! It is on the basis of Jesus’ finished work that the true fulfillment of Amos 9:11-15 can be experienced.

Just like Amos cried out to the people then, today we can experience the life giving love of God as we repent of our sinful rebellious ways and follow Jesus! We are like Amos, a very unlikely choice, but God wants to use us to be His voice to this dark and dying world!

An Unlikely Series

This post contains my thoughts about the upcoming series for Loft youth group:

Recently I was in a young adult Bible Study at Lakeside Christian Church while we were completing our study on the book of Amos when I began to think of this series. I was struck by Amos’ explanation of how he got to be where he was as a prophet in chapter 7. As I thought about his words, which we will deal with in lesson 1, it was laughable. His basic argument was “I am the most unlikely candidate for this job and yet God told me to do this!” So that was my inspiration for this series.

However, Amos is not alone in this characterization. I began to think about the characters in the Bible and realized that most of the people God used were, by human standard, the most unlikely people. Amos the farmer, David the shepherd boy, Rahab the harlot, Moses the stutterer, and the list goes on. As a matter of fact, it is unlikely that you will come up with a long list of likely candidates. Sure, there is the curve buster in Daniel and Solomon, but they are really few and far between.

These stories fascinate me because of how human they really are. If we strip away the cutesy Sunday School version of the stories, then we begin to see the raw humanity rise to the surface. We see that these “saints of old” were not as “saintly” as we once supposed. In fact, many of these characters would find a hard time being accepted in to membership of our churches, let alone leadership.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV)

That is why I am so thankful that God sees things differently then we do! That He has different plans and goals for our lives then we could ever imagine. As I study these characters, their flaws, their bad decisions, their circumstances I begin to have such hope that God can, in fact, use me if He so chooses. That God doesn’t care what family I am born into, or what grades I got in school, or how much money I have, or what car I drive, or what brand of shoes I wear, or what sins I committed in the past, or what fears I have, or what struggles I have. What He cares about is my heart! He cares so much that He sent His Son Jesus to redeem you and me! So that we can truly say that we love Him because He first loved us!

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 (ESV)

When I consider the teens in our church, I see amazing young men and women whom God wants to do great things through. I see young men and women who struggle to understand how much God loves them and how much more of God they can have if they so desire. I see fears and worries prevent them from fully allowing God to take over their lives. I see some who think they are unworthy, unwanted and unlikely. Yet that is exactly where God calls us from.

As Sam Preston and I were talking, she shared a great quote, “God does not call the equipped, He equips the called!” It’s not about who we are, what we’ve done or what we have, it is about Jesus Christ in us! As we look at this Unlikely Series, I hope that we find great freedom and joy in the realization that we are unlikely candidates, and yet that God loves us the way we are. However, He loves us too much to leave us where we are. Just like the Bible characters we look at, God will call us from our humble beginnings and do great things in and through us as we learn to trust Christ with all of our life!

A Desperate Plight for Validation and Acceptance

“For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7 ESV)

This week started off with a lot of commotion regarding the VMAs in NYC! Mostly, I don’t pay much attention to the secular music scene. Admittedly, I have a far different opinion about music then I did when I was in High School, or even when I first started as a youth pastor 10 years ago. I use to think I needed to know the latest, coolest and hippest music to relate to teenagers. After all, my early spiritual mentors all did…actually they did not.

I came to the realization that even if I did know the hippest songs, I wasn’t hip. It wasn’t how cool and trendy I was that helped me relate to students, but a genuine love for Jesus and for them. So I gradually began drifting from the mainline, popular music scene. I began to listen less and less to secular radio. Christian music is on the rise with better musicians and songwriters. Every type of music I wanted to listen to I could find Christians who sang it. Soon I developed my own personal preferences to lend itself to 90% Christian music and 10% shared with talk radio and secular music.

Not only that, but I don’t watch TV. I don’t have cable or even the digital converter so I can get local channels. I just don’t watch normal TV, including news and sports. Occasionally I will meet friends for sports, but only when invited. I do have Netflix which allows me to be selective on what I watch.

I tell you all this so you know that I am, well, out of the loop on pop culture. I read articles online and try to be relevant. However, most of the trendy and popular music contains lyrics that are just offensive to me. I wouldn’t have even known the VMAs were last week had I not heard that a couple of my students were going to it.

I heard a lot of the hype about Lady GaGa and, of course, Miley Cyrus. Mostly it was just headlines on Yahoo News or reactions from my blogger friends. It wasn’t until this morning, while I was at the gym, that a segment of the video played on the News. I had my headphones on listening to Skillets new “Rise” album and not really paying attention. Then, looking up, I see this very offensive clip, pretty much pornographic material, being displayed on the local news. Have you ever seen something that makes you physically sick? That’s what happened to me. I just couldn’t believe my eyes.

Now you probably expect me to jump on the “let’s bash Miley” band wagon. No, I that’s not what I want to do. My heart breaks for her. What must have been going on in her mind and heart to drive her to perform in such an obscene way? I don’t know her and I certainly don’t want to judge her. However, I know she was looking for validation, for worth, for love. She may not realize it, but what she really wants is the genuine love, meaning and purpose that can only be found in Jesus Christ.

The world she lives in, pop culture and the music scene push the performers to go further and further into the obscene to receive notice and accolades. It’s a constant battle for artists to stay in the lime light and some will do anything to receive attention.

Jesus came to show us the way to the Father, the only one we should be seeking attention from. Jesus lived a perfect life because we cannot. He paid our debt on the tree, because we cannot. He rose from the dead to secure a way for us to find ultimate satisfaction, meaning and purpose in Christ.

We may look at Miley and shake our heads, but her performance should remind us that we too are looking for affirmation, for validation and love. We often pursue it in the wrong places and find ourselves far from where we intended. It is there that we look to Christ and find forgiveness and hope. You see, God doesn’t look at us the way the world does, He looks at our heart. We can fool the world, but we cannot fool Him.

In this desperate plight we find ourselves in, will you consider the words of Jesus? “ Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV)

Stop Worshiping Yourself

“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!” (Psalm 100:1-2)

You are wired to worship! Did you know this? Deep down inside, you have a longing and desire to worship that works itself to the very forefront of your life on a daily basis. Mostly you worship yourself. Oh, so now I have your attention. You didn’t like it when I said you worship yourself, did you? That would make you a hedonist, right? Well, its true. The sooner you understand this point the better. You worship yourself daily it is a constant battle to overcome.

Think about it. You spend an exorbitant amount of money each year on yourself every year. Now I not talking about the basic needs, but the superfluous spending. You treat yourself to delights all the time, because its fun. You enjoy yourself all the time, because “dog gone it I deserve it!” You stand in lines to be entertained, to be pampered, to be loved, or so you think.

In our culture we have given self-worship a new and acceptable term, we call it self-esteem. We tell people to love themselves, to develop a positive self-image and life will be good. You may as well tell them to go bow down to Dagon (the god of the Philistines) so they will feel better about themselves. It just will not work!

You see, Solomon tells us that God has “set eternity in our heart!” It is the sense the we “were made for something more!” It is the longing for something bigger, that there is more to life then meets the eye. This is the longing we have to worship our Creator!

Only when we slow down, take our eyes off of ourselves and look to Jesus do we begin to find true enjoyment of God. When we realize that the Creator wrapped Himself in human flesh and lived amongst us, lived a perfect life and paid the ultimate price for us, we will want to shout for joy! He promises to be with us! He doesn’t promise us a life of ease and comfort, but He says no matter what He will be with us. He will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). This should cause us to long to worship Him!

When we see that He will forgive us and make us right with Him we will enjoy His presence all the more. When we realize that when we believe in Jesus Christ, we are adopted into His forever family and we can stand in His presence with confidence.

When we focus on the words of the songs and see that God is who He says He is and that He will do what He promised He will do, then we sing praises to His great Name! This is what we are made to do! This is what brings true joy and satisfaction! So stop worshiping yourself today, look to Jesus and praise His name!

The Way Up is Down

Have you ever heard that phrase? “The way up is down?” Doesn’t make any sense does it? We live in a world that constantly strives for self-improvement, self-help, self-betterment, self-motivation, self-initiative, etc. (I think my point was made.) We are caught in an endless cycle of striving for the top, exalting ourselves over others. It’s tiring to constantly compare yourself to others and try to out do them on all fronts so you will be recognized.

What word would you use to identify the problem with this ambition? Pride! At the root it is self-pride that drives these desires and this philosophy. “I want.” “I deserve.” “My rights.” Etc. It all stems from our own self-concept that we are good and deserve to be treated a certain way.

However, the Bible helps us see ourselves clearly. God reveals to us that we are not good and at the core desperately wicked (Romans 3:23). We cannot improve our situation or ourselves because our sins deserve separation from God (Romans 6:23). Yet God loved us so much that He sent a hero to pay for our sins (Romans 5:8). That if we humbly believe on Him and accept what He has done for us we will be forgiven and reconciled with God (Romans 10:9-10).

True fulfillment in life doesn’t come from finding yourself; it comes from finding Jesus! Purpose and meaning will only be lost when you look within yourself, but in Christ we find abundant life (John 10:10). The key is learning to put off pride and embrace humility. Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of your self less.

Some think humility is to belittle yourself, to consider yourself worthless and look depressed. However that is really pride working in reverse. You want people to see how humble you are so that they will praise you and therefore build your self-esteem. The Bible wants you to learn to get your eyes off of yourself and look at Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2). When you learn to love Jesus with all your heart, you will stop thinking of yourself and begin thinking more about Him. You will see the value of others and seek their good over your own.

The Gospel transforms our self-concept. We begin to care less about our self-esteem and begin to develop a Christ-esteem. Your value doesn’t come from within, or from what you do, but from what Christ has done for you. Stop living in pride and see how true humility leads to a full life of blessings and connectiveness with God and His people.

"Humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up." James 4:10

Spirit Dependence

Summer activities have been amazing! The Slovakia trip was amazing and full of great lessons for each of us on the team, which you can read about in previous posts. We had a couple of weeks between arriving home and then heading to Mid West Camp at FaHoLo Christian Camp and Conference Center in Grass Lake, MI. Mid West Camp is a Family Camp for all ages and this was our first year at FaHoLo (Faith Hope Love).

Mid West Camp is a great environment for all ages. I love being at a camp where the teens get to interact with older generations and play with the little kids. Camp was great this year as the new location seemed to aid in a more intimate setting. Our theme was Every Day Disciple Making, learning to live out the Gospel in day to day life.

Our morning classes were on Gospel Fluency, God's Story/Your Story, Gospel Listening and More Than Ordinary (how the Christian life should be full and abundant). At the heart of the week was how Jesus didn't redeem us so we could just have a "Get Out of Hell Free" card, no He wants you to have a life that is marked by His love and grace. Getting to gain a new perspective and love for Jesus in every area is hard but rewarding.

My biggest lesson came as I was assigned to preach on Friday night a sermon entitled "Spirit Dependent." I should have been prepared considering the topic, but I was a little surprised at the way this sermon came about. I have known and prepared for months about this sermon, but coming into that Friday I was under spiritual attack. An anxious spirit was upon me and I couldn't focus my thoughts. I found myself being short with my teenagers and feeling smothered. It was awful. I just wanted to get a lone and pray, but the day was packed. I pleaded with God to help me correct my attitude. A few hours later it finally subsided and I began to focus my thoughts on the sermon. As I was reading the Word I was convicted that I had to go apologize for my short responses to those I talked to earlier. I am grateful for their quick forgiveness and understanding.

It was with a great sense of my need to depend on the Spirit that I stepped into the pulpit that night. I was so amazed at God's faithfulness and how the Holy Spirit brought to remembrance everything I needed. I truly felt sustained by the Spirit and guided as I delivered the message. I was humbled again that God would use me to share His Word with people at camp.

God is waiting to use you. He has a plan and a purpose for you, but often a spirit of fear, intimation, anxiety, control, pride, etc. comes over you and I. Sometimes we are aware of it, others time we are not. When we learn to cry out to God to reveal our heart, and submit to His Spirit, He sets us free to be used in powerful ways. What is holding you back from experiencing God's best for you?