Climb Everyday

"When Jesus saw his ministry drawing huge crowds, he climbed a hillside. Those who were apprenticed to him, the committed, climbed with him. Arriving at a quiet place, he sat down

and taught his climbing companions."  

Matt 5:1-2 - THE MESSAGE

 
 
One of the advantages of reading different translations and versions of the Bible, is that you see new things is passages that you have read before, perhaps, many times before.
 
This morning in my devotions, I read the passage that the above verses come from - Matt 5. I had never noticed The Message's depiction of only the disciples following him up the mountain.  
 
Just as those disciples were committed to Christ - hanging on his every word, so too must we. Where in your life do you need to climb higher after Christ? Lace up your climbing boots! There is so much waiting for you!

When smaller Is BIGGER!

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps."

Prov 16:9 NIV

I remember writing a piece in October in which I stated our future plans for life and ministry - at least the plans that I knew of. God has a way of granting the desires of our hearts even when we don't fully know what those desires are.

I remember telling some trusted friends that I was going to resign as an associate pastor, even though Robin and I had only a few open doors of marriage ministry to walk through. The words to a Sidewalk Prophet's song kept running through my mind, "Father of love, you can have me - YOU CAN HAVE ME!" We were willing to be obedient to what God was asking us to do - step out in faith and trust him.

I had faith, but I was also working on a plan, you know just in case. However my plan made it no farther than a browse through some local printing industry jobs, online, to ascertain any part-time opportunities.

One day after submitting my resignation, I received a email from a transition team member of a church near our home. I knew my pastoral resume was active in the area and was open to the idea, should God so will. However, it wasn't until I received that email that something begin to change in my heart.

Until that day, I had envisioned traveling and doing marriage conferences on the weekends to support our family and grow the ministry to which God has called us. However, I knew that marriage ministry, providing an income, would be very unlikely, because of our focus on couples and churches who do not have the finances to support such ministry and our committment to see that no couple falls through the cracks.

God began to instill in me that, if we would be obedient and allow him to use us, that he could do more through us in pastoral ministry than we could even imagine - even more for marriages.

We are excited about this next chapter of ministry that God has purposed for us. We are believing that the chapter will be long and fruitful. Are we going to keep ministering to marriages? In the words spoken by the people around our son's college, "Ya Sure! You Bet'cha!" By listening to God's quiet leading, we have the opportunity to see not only marital and family change in our community, but life change here and abroad.

Will we travel as much? Probably not, but I believe, through Christ, our Kingdom impact will be greater. When we, ourselves, are content with being small, God's plans for us become larger than we could ever imagine.

Time Out To Listen

With all of the rain we have been experiencing in Northeast Ohio, I decided to take advantage of the sunny day we had on Tuesday and start cutting our grass - a task that has been washed out by either the weather or my schedule. Hopefully, it will be the last time I have to do it this year.
I started with the trimming. I was pushing the mower around the north side of our dog kennel, when I heard the familiar, "Hi Dave!" I turned to see the neighbor boy standing at the property line waving at me. I waved and went right back to my task. I finished the trimming and then shut the push mower off.

"Hi Dave!" Again, I turned to see the friendly 7 year old, still waving and smiling at me. A question crossed my mind, "Have I become so busy that I cannot stop what I am doing and give this little boy a few minutes of my time?"

Calling the boy's name, I started a conversation with the lad, which lasted a few minutes and consisted of a very detailed and enthusiastic account of his recent trick or treating adventure.

Once he finished with what he wanted to tell me, he said, "Well, I'll let you get back to your mowing." He then flashed a big smile and walked away.

Did I get as much mowing done that evening? No. Did it really matter? No. While I do not know if my listening to a little boys story had any significant impact on his life, at least he knows that I care. Maybe that is all he needed from me.

An Emotional Day

By the time my head hit the pillow last night, I was well on my way to a sound sleep. I was drained, not so much physically, but emotionally.

Yesterday, we announced my resignation as associate pastor to our church family. It was a day filled with emotions. We felt the excitement that accompanies the sense of God's leading and the sadness of the thought of parting with so many people that we have grown to love.

We will be serving at Grace Fellowship through the end of the year - leaving sooner if God chooses to open a door of ministry for us before that time.

All the while, Robin and I are praying earnestly for God's will and direction to be revealed in our lives and in his purpose for us. We want to be who God wants us to be even more that we want to be where he wants us to be.

Emotional? Yes. But we are filled with the knowledge that while we do not know exactly where this road will take us, we know WHO is leading the way!

Preparrrrrrrrrring For Take-Off

It was my first "date". OK. Not a romantic one, but it was still a "date". I was a strapping young man of 45 pounds, decked out in my blue polyester pants and my blue and white checkerboard jacket. My mom arranged the "date" with a close friend of the family who had recently been divorced. I tried to be the complete gentleman, opening every door and standing to my feet whenever she would leave and return to whatever room we were in. I mustered up all of the charm that a seven year old boy could possibly have.

After dinner at a restaurant, we were off to the entertainment part of our evening. The opening of Disney's The Rescuers. One of my favorite scenes in that movie was when Orrville, the albatross, was trying to take off. Well, here, have a look...





An albatross, even though they can effortlessly fly for days and even weeks on end, has a terribly difficult time taking off. The funny thing about an albatross is that it will wait for hours for the right amount of wind to blow in order to get enough lift to break into flight. If there is little or no wind, these large birds may be land or sea-bound until the right breeze comes along. Walking, for an albatross, is cumbersome and slow - crawling along the ground. I had forgotten about this movie and this scene until last night.

Robin and I have been diligently seeking the Lord about expansion and increase regarding the marriage ministry to which God has called us. The ministry has been in existence since 2004 and, in our minds and from our viewpoint, it has never really left the ground. Much like an albatross without any wind. Sure, we are moving forward, but we are crawling. At least we are crawling after God.

In this scene of the movie, Orrville, basically attempts to run (we can relate to him well)and then throws himself off of the top of a building - the fall providing the speed and lift to achieve flight.

Maybe we have been running, trying to take-off for the last seven years and what we really need to do is throw ourselves off of the proverbial building. Maybe then, the wind of God's Spirit will lift us to fulfil His vision.

No matter what, our hope is in God. He has called us and he will bring about the reality of His vision and purpose.

"Have you never heard?
Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
29 He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
30 Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
31 But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint."
Isa 40:28-31 NLT


How about you? Have you ever felt like Orrville? Have you been running after a vision that God has given you and it just has not materialized the way that you believed it would? I cannot tell you that you are supposed to jump out of your comfort zone and go "all-in", but that may be what God is waiting for.

There is one thing I take comfort in. Just as an albatross, once it becomes airborne, can fly for days and weeks at a time, God's vision, when we are faithful, will materialize as one that lasts.

It is funny how God has reminded me of this event in my life. Perhaps, even as a seven year-old, God was using me to help bind a broken heart.

The Highest Honor

Yesterday, our Son, Brandon, sent, via text, a picture of the handle of a plunger. Not just any plunger, mind you, but it's the plunger that is passed down every year to the current resident advisor (RA) for the dorm floor that our Son is living on.





What also lends personal value to this picture, for both Brandon and I, is the name of a close personal friend - a friend that I admire and respect, written on the handle.





So what's the big deal about a plunger, you ask? When we think about a plunger, our mind automatically goes to one of the dirtiest places in a house or building - the toilet. No one wants to do the task that requires the use of a plunger or, at least, one does such task reluctantly.





But the plunger in the possession of the RA on Brandon's floor represents far more. It represents servanthood. Being a servant often requires us to do things that we may not choose to do, given the choice. The menial, the mundane, the unheralded, the inconvenient and, sometimes, the disgusting are all parts of being a servant.





For a true disciple of Christ, being a servant is not an optional thing. Christ said it himself...

"If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."
Mark 9:35 NIV

What part of servanthood are you resisting because of what it requires? That plunger serves as a fitting reminder of what a servant is. According to Christ, it is the highest honor.

Tenacity

Yesterday, before leaving the office, I was startled to find a man walking down the hallway of the church building. After I extended a friendly greeting, he proceeded to invite me to his church. He gave me his pastor's phone number, directions to the church and another invite. He then asked about our affiliation and my role at the church. Soon after I responded, he encouraged me to come and try his church.

I must admit, I was a bit confused at either his reluctance to understand the situation or his misunderstanding of the same, but I couldn't help but admire his tenacity and his huge smile.

While I don't recommend going into another church to invite people to church, I wonder if, for no other reason than this man's willing effort, God smiled.