One man challenged another to an all-day wood chopping contest. The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised and annoyed to find that the other fellow had chopped substantially more wood than he had.
"I don't get it," he said. "Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did."
"But you didn't notice," said the winning woodsman, "that I was sharpening my ax when I sat down to rest."
Luke 5:15-16, "But the news about Him was spreading even farther, and large crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray." Of all of the wonderful truths we observe in the life of Jesus, this truth is often overlooked. After the demands of life and ministry, the Bible records for our benefit, "Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray."
If Jesus needed to get away from the demands of life to recharge His batteries, then how much more you and me? We are to be imitators of Christ. So, let's learn how to pull away, rest and talk to our Heavenly Father, just like Jesus.
Here are a few suggestions. Eliminate “hurry” from your life. John Ortberg asked a wise friend what needed to be done to be more spiritually healthy. The reply, “You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” Famous turn of the century psychologist Carl Jung wrote, "Hurry is not of the devil; hurry is the devil.” Ortberg wrote, “For many of us the great danger is not that we will renounce our faith. It is that we will become so distracted and rushed and preoccupied that we will settle for a mediocre version of it.” You can be busy without being in a hurry!
Here is a radical idea, "Just say, 'NO.'" Say no to almost everything. Let your priorities determine your schedule. Learn how to practice daily solitude. Here's how to do it:
Turn Off and Tune Out (TV, internet, and/or telephone)
Find a place to be alone
Invest that time with God
Invest that time in rest
Invite Jesus into your moment
Replay video of your day
Move from one scene to other
Pray for people & situations; ask forgiveness
Seek Guidance
Jesus took time to refresh (sharpen the ax), perhaps we should also!
Peace,
Stan
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Monday, January 14, 2008
Just Jesus
I am asked to teach on leadership periodically. I have read many books on the subject. Yet, I always come back to the gospels for my favorite leadership lessons. Jesus was the greatest leader ever. So, let’s learn leadership from Jesus.
On Amazon.com I found titles such as: Artist’s Way, Toyota Way, Wilderness Way, Way of the Turtle, The Way—Using the Wisdom of Kabala, and The Jesus Way. Let’s examine The Jesus Way.
Very often people outside of the church express great admiration for Jesus, while despising the church. They love Jesus, but not the church. The church to them is organized religion with various rules, conformity, and narrow-mindedness. They loathe the political agendas, both internal and external. They don’t like the holier-than-thou attitudes of some Christians.
So, I am not much interested in telling you what our church believes. I don’t want you to conform into our image of following Christ. You won’t hear much from me about the rules or religious ritual. You won’t hear much of my personal political leanings. You aren’t likely to hear condemnation of pet sins. We all sin. All sin is egregious, and should be repented of.
Hopefully, what you will hear from me is much teaching the Way of Jesus, the Jesus Way. I believe all of us, myself included, have some warped views concerning Jesus. These ideas, perhaps, have come from the opinions of others. Some misconceptions are of our own making. We put our mask over the “real Jesus.” The church, at times, has presented an angry, judgmental, narrow Jesus to the world. I am afraid people hear, “rules”, “religion”, or “politics.”
Christianity has been about achievement and retention of certain facts, like some academic endeavor. The Jesus Way is not concerned so much with accomplishment as with lifestyle and relationship, NOT rules, NOT religion, NOT politics—JUST JESUS! Jesus continually challenged individuals with this phrase, "Follow Me." Jesus' kingdom is relationship. We hang out with Jesus when we hang out with Jesus people, fellowship around His Word (The Bible), and talk with Him (prayer).
Jesus came to start a revolution. A revolution is a sudden, radical, or complete change, epecially the overthrow of a ruler and substitution of another by the governed. A revolution is a rebellion, a mutiny. I willingly choose to overthrow my selfish ambitions and replace them with Jesus. I believe we are living in a time and place where Christ followers are more interested in the kingdom of God than the kingdoms of this world. In previous generations these seasons where called revivals. To reach this condition requires rebellion and change. The question is, “Who’s going to rule my life?” Jesus said, “Follow me.” When I follow Jesus, I am going to become absorbed into what is important and priority to Him.
People are Jesus' priority. So, I need to value other people more than myself. People must believe that I like them. "Others" are not the enemy. People are hurting. Donald Miller wrote, "People are hurting. We need to take Jesus to people's wounds." Let's do church a new way, the Jesus Way.
Peace,
Stan
On Amazon.com I found titles such as: Artist’s Way, Toyota Way, Wilderness Way, Way of the Turtle, The Way—Using the Wisdom of Kabala, and The Jesus Way. Let’s examine The Jesus Way.
Very often people outside of the church express great admiration for Jesus, while despising the church. They love Jesus, but not the church. The church to them is organized religion with various rules, conformity, and narrow-mindedness. They loathe the political agendas, both internal and external. They don’t like the holier-than-thou attitudes of some Christians.
So, I am not much interested in telling you what our church believes. I don’t want you to conform into our image of following Christ. You won’t hear much from me about the rules or religious ritual. You won’t hear much of my personal political leanings. You aren’t likely to hear condemnation of pet sins. We all sin. All sin is egregious, and should be repented of.
Hopefully, what you will hear from me is much teaching the Way of Jesus, the Jesus Way. I believe all of us, myself included, have some warped views concerning Jesus. These ideas, perhaps, have come from the opinions of others. Some misconceptions are of our own making. We put our mask over the “real Jesus.” The church, at times, has presented an angry, judgmental, narrow Jesus to the world. I am afraid people hear, “rules”, “religion”, or “politics.”
Christianity has been about achievement and retention of certain facts, like some academic endeavor. The Jesus Way is not concerned so much with accomplishment as with lifestyle and relationship, NOT rules, NOT religion, NOT politics—JUST JESUS! Jesus continually challenged individuals with this phrase, "Follow Me." Jesus' kingdom is relationship. We hang out with Jesus when we hang out with Jesus people, fellowship around His Word (The Bible), and talk with Him (prayer).
Jesus came to start a revolution. A revolution is a sudden, radical, or complete change, epecially the overthrow of a ruler and substitution of another by the governed. A revolution is a rebellion, a mutiny. I willingly choose to overthrow my selfish ambitions and replace them with Jesus. I believe we are living in a time and place where Christ followers are more interested in the kingdom of God than the kingdoms of this world. In previous generations these seasons where called revivals. To reach this condition requires rebellion and change. The question is, “Who’s going to rule my life?” Jesus said, “Follow me.” When I follow Jesus, I am going to become absorbed into what is important and priority to Him.
People are Jesus' priority. So, I need to value other people more than myself. People must believe that I like them. "Others" are not the enemy. People are hurting. Donald Miller wrote, "People are hurting. We need to take Jesus to people's wounds." Let's do church a new way, the Jesus Way.
Peace,
Stan
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Making God's Dream Come True in Your Life
Jeremiah 29:11 - 14 (NKJV), "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive."
Imagine being dropped by parachute into an undisclosed, remote area of India. At your drop site is a fueled up Jeep with the keys in the ignition. Your goal is to see the Taj Mahal. But, you have no idea where the Taj Mahal is located. And, you have never been to India before.
How insane would it be to just start driving, hoping you will eventually get there? Too many of us treat goal setting this same way. We dream about where we want to go in life, but don’t have a map to get there.
What is a map? {a picture with written words and markings of locations and destinations} To accomplish our purposes in life, we will need a vision from God of where He wants us to go, and how to get there.What is a vision? Bill Hybels calls vision a picture of the future that produces passion.
To get to your destination you need a picture of your future. God wants to show you the picture He has for your future. God's vision for your life will light you on fire. Here are a few suggestions on how to fulfill God's plan for your life:
1. Is your goal Good or God?
· Proverbs 8:17
· Matthew 7:7-8
2. Goals cannot contradict one another.
3. Develop goals for a balanced life.
· Personal (spiritual, health, financial, community)
· Family
· Business
4. Write your goals.
· Habakkuk 2:2-3
· Write them in detail.
· Write positive statements, not negative ones.
5. Make sure your goals are high enough.
· Goals should stretch you.
· Isaiah 54:2-3
6. Keep your goals before your eyes.
· Proverbs 4:20-27
· Keep in a place where you will see them often.
7. Seek to be a blessing. Don’t seek to be successful.
· This will keep your heart and conscience pure.
. 1 Timothy 1:5
Peace,
Stan
Imagine being dropped by parachute into an undisclosed, remote area of India. At your drop site is a fueled up Jeep with the keys in the ignition. Your goal is to see the Taj Mahal. But, you have no idea where the Taj Mahal is located. And, you have never been to India before.
How insane would it be to just start driving, hoping you will eventually get there? Too many of us treat goal setting this same way. We dream about where we want to go in life, but don’t have a map to get there.
What is a map? {a picture with written words and markings of locations and destinations} To accomplish our purposes in life, we will need a vision from God of where He wants us to go, and how to get there.What is a vision? Bill Hybels calls vision a picture of the future that produces passion.
To get to your destination you need a picture of your future. God wants to show you the picture He has for your future. God's vision for your life will light you on fire. Here are a few suggestions on how to fulfill God's plan for your life:
1. Is your goal Good or God?
· Proverbs 8:17
· Matthew 7:7-8
2. Goals cannot contradict one another.
3. Develop goals for a balanced life.
· Personal (spiritual, health, financial, community)
· Family
· Business
4. Write your goals.
· Habakkuk 2:2-3
· Write them in detail.
· Write positive statements, not negative ones.
5. Make sure your goals are high enough.
· Goals should stretch you.
· Isaiah 54:2-3
6. Keep your goals before your eyes.
· Proverbs 4:20-27
· Keep in a place where you will see them often.
7. Seek to be a blessing. Don’t seek to be successful.
· This will keep your heart and conscience pure.
. 1 Timothy 1:5
Peace,
Stan
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