How will they KNOW it!

It is interesting how the Lord puts things in my way which find relevance in the things that need to be dealt with in my own life.

It all starts with having a student come to class late and with an attitude. They feel like it is just an inconvenience in their lives and that all of these rules must not apply to him because they are just stupid. This leads me to an understanding of how often I see students walking around and doing life with a sense of entitlement. Like the world revolves around them and that if everyone would open their eyes and realize that this is true, all would be well again.

Then I watch this video

T4G 2010 -- Special Session -- Matt Chandler from Together for the Gospel (T4G) on Vimeo.

And Matt talks about how he knew the Gospel and how it applied to him but since going through the treatments for brain cancer, he now KNOWS the Gospel and how it applies to him.

Add this to the fact that 80% of people who grow up in the church, later reject the church and the Gospel as irrelevant.

All of these things come together to form this question in my head:

What are the things that I need to do to lead my family and kids in a way that they will KNOW the relevance of the Gospel in their lives and have a real and deep understanding of who God is and who they are?

I realize that most of this is out of my hands. But I also know that God has put me in this place of influence for a reason and that to shirk this responsibility is a sin of omission(I know what should be done, but I do not to it).

Tough decisions

How do I know when it is the Holy Spirit leading me and when it is just my selfish old self? The problem with being a leader is that sometimes tough decisions have to be made? Decisions like, should we hire this pastor? Will he be the man to take us and lead us? Will he be bold enough to rebuke us when he feels it is necessary? We don't even know this man and we are going to rely on him to take us somewhere?

My brain is about to bust it seems with the pressure that I feel to make the right decisions. What if I make the wrong decisions? I don't want it to be the same as it has been. I don't want to get someone here who is afraid to lead into the dark waters and challenge us. I have had enough of that. Has anyone felt this before? Is this normal? If it is normal, why would anyone put themselves through this?

And then a voice of wisdom from someone important in my life. 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 tells us about the story of Jehoshaphat and how they looked to God in their time of need against a vast army of people. Verse 6 says "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven?" ESV The God that has set the world on end is in charge and has a plan in place to take care of us. It makes me ask the question, what does that look like in my situation? If I believe that God is God, I mean if I truly believe that God is God, then that knowledge should make a difference in my life today.

In verse 12 Jehoshaphat says "O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you."ESV

Thank you Lord that you are God and I don't have to be. My eyes are on you, please help me to believe it!

Leadership Ideas

Every once in a while I will gain some insight into how to best lead in a church setting. Too often those in leadership positions think that, just because they are in a leadership position they have influence on those people sitting in the pews on any given Sunday. Influence is not something that can be voted on necessarily. Often times someone who does not have a formal level of authority has influence. I have begun to understand that Humility is the greatest characteristic of someone who has influence. Once again humility comes from an understanding of who I am and who God is.

If people sense that a leaders confidence comes not from an inflated view of himself or herself, but rather from God's grace and truth spelled out in our everyday lives then they want to be a part of that. Realness that is a result of true humility reveals to others that the common denominator is always God and not ourselves. When I can connect with other people in a way that shows how God works in my life in all of the struggles that are around us, they get the sense that we can work together towards a common goal, even if what I say has nothing to do with the common goal. I have seen this several times when I listen to my wife talk about struggles in her family. In one instance, before she sang a song in church she talked about a breakdown in some relationships in her family and how much the song she was about to sing had meant to her in the midst of it. People came up to her after the service and mentioned that what she had said and sung really meant alot to them. She had influence on those listening because she was being real and did not just try to give the "right" sunday school answer to the problems she was facing. Leadership is not necessarily having all of the answers all the time. Rather understanding that truth and hope in a God who is God connects us in ways that we could not set up or plan.

About the Title

Over the last few months I have been impressed by how big God is and the differences between me and God. I have come to fully believe that there is a God and He is found in the Bible. In many ways this information has changed my life not just theoretically but also in every thing that I do throughout my day. As I deal with people and see how fickle and weak they (and I) are I am thankful that God is at a whole different level than the rest of us. Often we think of ourselves climbing our way to a a better chance at getting to heaven. As we do more "spiritual" things like not swearing or not drinking or not cheating on our taxes, we climb closer up the ladder to heaven. If we picture God at the top of a mountain we see ourselves as more righteous and climbing to be closer to His Glory. Then we look down on others and feel pity for them or feel better than them. In reality though, we are so unlike God that it is not a matter of achieving his righteousness but rather accepting his Grace, because God is God and I am not. There is no way that I can be mentioned in the same sentence as God and His Holiness. Everyday I can look at my students and say that I am no different than them in regards to how we compare to God. When we feel a little guilty for either not listening to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit or doing some "minor" sin that doesn't hurt anyone, we often end up comparing ourselves with others and justifing our actions in comparison with other sinners. When we do this it is no suprise that we can find someone who is not as righteous or holy or as committed as we are. Our gauge should rather be the One who is the definition of Holy. So, God is God and I am not. In 1 Samuel 2:3 Hanna sings a song to God after she brings Samuel to the temple to leave him there to dedicate him to the Lord's work. Verse 3 says "Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him are actions weighed." God is God and I am not. If God were as fickle and untrustworthy and unreliable and as unworthy as I am, then I am done worshiping Him and the whole purpose in life is gone forever.

So,

God is God and I am not.