It is about love
John Eldredge's December letter addressed Christmas and it made a great point. When you walk around the mall wondering what on earth you'll get your wife and you hear Christmas music playing, say to yourself, "It is about love".
Whenever you see a Christmas tree, say to yourself, "It is about love."
When someone surprises you with a visit or an unexpected gift - say to yourself, "It is all about love."
A client came into our office on Monday with a gift of goodies. She recently lost her husband and has been really struggling yet through her pain she thought of us.
It is about love.
A good friend of mine from YoungLife came by my office today. I missed him. He left a little gift.
It is about love.
This season is way too commercialized and society has ruined the message of Christmas. Drown that out. Say to yourself - "It is about love".
Even though we are rotten in places. Even though we have good intentions and fall way short. Even though we think evil thoughts about those who oppose us. Even though we lust and crave and hate. Even though when times are good we turn our backs on Him. Even though...
He loved.
Even though we fall short...He cared enough to love and suffer and die on our behalf.
Even though we constantly forget - He never forgot.
It is all about love.
Soar!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Hating Christmas
Do you hate Christmas? Does any part of you hate it? Here I go with more anti-religion talk but I think deep down a lot of us hate Christmas or parts of it at least. I do. Stay with me, there is a good part of this message to come.
I have grown to hate parts of Christmas. It is too commercial and too chaotic for me. I like peace and Christmas has come to be anything but peaceful for me. I love how my wife transforms our home during Christmas and I love how she cooks treats for others. Our home feels warmer during Christmas and I love that. I don't love how it wears her out. I don't love the endless "to do" lists. I hate - really hate - getting out into the shopping areas. It overwhelms me. I don't like how Christmas makes us all so tired - the travel, the shopping, the parties, etc. It just seems to wear us out.
But in reality, I guess I have figured out that the entire season has really very little to do with Jesus and that is why I don't like it. We get all freaked out and spend gobs of money and we wind up worn out and it really has very little to do with Jesus.
I don't hate Christmas. I hate the commercialization of Christmas. It is supposed to be about love but it isn't. The world has let it become about something else altogether. It is about a new Lexus with a big bow sitting in the driveway. It is about way too expensive jewelry and "this year, show her you really love her". It is about commercialized magic. It plays on our distorted memories of magical childhood Christmas'. "Make this year magical..." (by spending way more money than you should).
The magic of Christmas happened 2,000 years ago. Christ came to earth as a baby. The warrior came to liberate his people. He took human form knowing it would lead to murder. Max Lucado's book An Angel's Story reflects on this as he wonders what the angels must have been thinking looking at Jesus as a baby, "I exist to serve my King and I must watch Him be tortured? How will we sit silent as you suffer?" I've never thought of that but I wonder what it was like for the angels to see Jesus leave their realm and enter the world as a baby knowing full well it would lead to His painful physical death. Why would He endure that?
He came because He loved.
Christmas is about love. It isn't about Lexus', diamonds, playstations, Wii's or magical ski trips. It is about love. Remember and say to yourself over and over these next few weeks - "It is about love".
Soar!
Do you hate Christmas? Does any part of you hate it? Here I go with more anti-religion talk but I think deep down a lot of us hate Christmas or parts of it at least. I do. Stay with me, there is a good part of this message to come.
I have grown to hate parts of Christmas. It is too commercial and too chaotic for me. I like peace and Christmas has come to be anything but peaceful for me. I love how my wife transforms our home during Christmas and I love how she cooks treats for others. Our home feels warmer during Christmas and I love that. I don't love how it wears her out. I don't love the endless "to do" lists. I hate - really hate - getting out into the shopping areas. It overwhelms me. I don't like how Christmas makes us all so tired - the travel, the shopping, the parties, etc. It just seems to wear us out.
But in reality, I guess I have figured out that the entire season has really very little to do with Jesus and that is why I don't like it. We get all freaked out and spend gobs of money and we wind up worn out and it really has very little to do with Jesus.
I don't hate Christmas. I hate the commercialization of Christmas. It is supposed to be about love but it isn't. The world has let it become about something else altogether. It is about a new Lexus with a big bow sitting in the driveway. It is about way too expensive jewelry and "this year, show her you really love her". It is about commercialized magic. It plays on our distorted memories of magical childhood Christmas'. "Make this year magical..." (by spending way more money than you should).
The magic of Christmas happened 2,000 years ago. Christ came to earth as a baby. The warrior came to liberate his people. He took human form knowing it would lead to murder. Max Lucado's book An Angel's Story reflects on this as he wonders what the angels must have been thinking looking at Jesus as a baby, "I exist to serve my King and I must watch Him be tortured? How will we sit silent as you suffer?" I've never thought of that but I wonder what it was like for the angels to see Jesus leave their realm and enter the world as a baby knowing full well it would lead to His painful physical death. Why would He endure that?
He came because He loved.
Christmas is about love. It isn't about Lexus', diamonds, playstations, Wii's or magical ski trips. It is about love. Remember and say to yourself over and over these next few weeks - "It is about love".
Soar!
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Ism's, 'Ians, 'Ists...
Ferris Bueller said, "Not that I condone fascism. Or any "isms" for that matter. "Isms", in my opinion are not good. A person should not believe in an "ism"." Ferris Bueller, you're my hero.
Espiscopalian's have female pastors yet they don't call them pastors, they call them Rectors. They think they have it right.
Presbyterians have female elders. They sprinkle for baptisms and think they have it right.
PCA Presbyterians embrace "reformed" theology and unless it is "reformed", they won't support it. They think they have it right.
Methodists baptize babies. They think they have it right.
Baptists don't baptize babies and don't let ladies serve in leadership roles. When they baptize adults, they dunk them under the water and they think they have it right.
But then again, First Baptist here in Columbus has had a female deacon. So they must think they have it right.
How does all of this come about? The "Ians" (Episcopalians, Presbyterians) and the "Ists" (Methodists and Baptists) all think they have it right. They all read the same Bible and they all came up with their own interpretations, traditions and beliefs.
This sounds anti-church and it isn't meant to be but in some ways, aren't the major denominations kind of like cults? Their membership is brought in, taught "the way" and trained to defend/argue their beliefs to other denominations. In many cases, members feel their "way" is the only way. "The Episcopalians have it all wrong because _______". "If it isn't 'reformed', I'm not going to read it." "Baptizing babies is wrong". "Having ladies in any leadership capacity isn't Biblical." "Communion is only for those that have accepted Jesus as their Savior." "Communion is only for those that are members". "Anyone can walk down the aisle and join this church...all are welcome." "We don't allow anyone to join until they have met with the leadership of the church and we have heard their testimony of faith." I have heard it and seen it my entire adult life - denominations fighting each other over who has it "right".
You see where I am going. Who really has it right?
A lot of friends of ours have left Wynnbrook and are looking for a church home. They've been to Christ Community or CrossPointe and they really like the service and the passion but it isn't "church" to them. After 20 years in the Baptist church, they "need" Awana and Sunday School and Wednesday night supper, etc. We feel their struggle. They are conditioned that they "need" these things to have "church", to have "religion".
I wonder why we can't seem to dig beneath organized religion to the passion of a walk with Christ. Or better yet, can't you see how organzied religion tends to cover up The Truth? Jesus is in there somewhere but at times, He is hard to find underneath all the business of church. All those rules - we do this, we don't do that, you need to be in church 3 times a week, the way we baptize, the role of women - seem to bind people up into duty. I had a pastor one time tell me, "I don't read John Eldredge because he isn't reformed." What? You are so bound up in the "rightness" of reformed theology that you won't even pick up and read a leading Christian author?
Folks will say, "I love CrossPointe/Chris Community, I felt alive, I felt the Holy Spirit, I loved the music, God is present in that place but I miss the Awana and the traditional Sunday School and the Wednesday supper and I need all that for 'church'". So they will likely leave and go to a traditional church. I guess my fear is they will trade a passionate walk with Christ for the tradition of the church. They are hungry, you can see it in their eyes, but I suspect they'll trade that hunger back in for the "normalcy" of traditional religion.
All of this may offend readers that are in traditional churches and that isn't my intention. No one has it "right". What is right is what is in scripture. What is right is that Jesus was a rebel who challenged the organized religion of His day. He threw out many of the religous customs because they were man's rules and they were off base. Jesus was a rebel. He was passion. He was love - He healed on the sabboth even though that was against mans' rules because it was the right thing to do.
So today as people search for the Holy Spirit and they search for a newborn passion in their relationship with Jesus they need not seek Him in organized religion. He isn't there. Please don't misunderstand - I am not saying there isn't any faith or passion among those in the traditional church - far from it. I'm not saying the non-traditional church is "it". What I am trying to focus on is how we have come to value "organized" religion (our rules, the way we baptize, 3 services a week, Awana) more than we value the passionate experience of following Jesus. We fall into the routines of church but Jesus was anything but routine.
It seems to me that in many cases, man has taken passionate faith and made it organized religion and in so doing has driven the Holy Spirit out. This isn't anything new - it was the same 2,000 years ago when Jesus came as a rebel to tear down organized religion and set the captives free.
'Tis the season of the Great Liberator!
Soar!
Ferris Bueller said, "Not that I condone fascism. Or any "isms" for that matter. "Isms", in my opinion are not good. A person should not believe in an "ism"." Ferris Bueller, you're my hero.
Espiscopalian's have female pastors yet they don't call them pastors, they call them Rectors. They think they have it right.
Presbyterians have female elders. They sprinkle for baptisms and think they have it right.
PCA Presbyterians embrace "reformed" theology and unless it is "reformed", they won't support it. They think they have it right.
Methodists baptize babies. They think they have it right.
Baptists don't baptize babies and don't let ladies serve in leadership roles. When they baptize adults, they dunk them under the water and they think they have it right.
But then again, First Baptist here in Columbus has had a female deacon. So they must think they have it right.
How does all of this come about? The "Ians" (Episcopalians, Presbyterians) and the "Ists" (Methodists and Baptists) all think they have it right. They all read the same Bible and they all came up with their own interpretations, traditions and beliefs.
This sounds anti-church and it isn't meant to be but in some ways, aren't the major denominations kind of like cults? Their membership is brought in, taught "the way" and trained to defend/argue their beliefs to other denominations. In many cases, members feel their "way" is the only way. "The Episcopalians have it all wrong because _______". "If it isn't 'reformed', I'm not going to read it." "Baptizing babies is wrong". "Having ladies in any leadership capacity isn't Biblical." "Communion is only for those that have accepted Jesus as their Savior." "Communion is only for those that are members". "Anyone can walk down the aisle and join this church...all are welcome." "We don't allow anyone to join until they have met with the leadership of the church and we have heard their testimony of faith." I have heard it and seen it my entire adult life - denominations fighting each other over who has it "right".
You see where I am going. Who really has it right?
A lot of friends of ours have left Wynnbrook and are looking for a church home. They've been to Christ Community or CrossPointe and they really like the service and the passion but it isn't "church" to them. After 20 years in the Baptist church, they "need" Awana and Sunday School and Wednesday night supper, etc. We feel their struggle. They are conditioned that they "need" these things to have "church", to have "religion".
I wonder why we can't seem to dig beneath organized religion to the passion of a walk with Christ. Or better yet, can't you see how organzied religion tends to cover up The Truth? Jesus is in there somewhere but at times, He is hard to find underneath all the business of church. All those rules - we do this, we don't do that, you need to be in church 3 times a week, the way we baptize, the role of women - seem to bind people up into duty. I had a pastor one time tell me, "I don't read John Eldredge because he isn't reformed." What? You are so bound up in the "rightness" of reformed theology that you won't even pick up and read a leading Christian author?
Folks will say, "I love CrossPointe/Chris Community, I felt alive, I felt the Holy Spirit, I loved the music, God is present in that place but I miss the Awana and the traditional Sunday School and the Wednesday supper and I need all that for 'church'". So they will likely leave and go to a traditional church. I guess my fear is they will trade a passionate walk with Christ for the tradition of the church. They are hungry, you can see it in their eyes, but I suspect they'll trade that hunger back in for the "normalcy" of traditional religion.
All of this may offend readers that are in traditional churches and that isn't my intention. No one has it "right". What is right is what is in scripture. What is right is that Jesus was a rebel who challenged the organized religion of His day. He threw out many of the religous customs because they were man's rules and they were off base. Jesus was a rebel. He was passion. He was love - He healed on the sabboth even though that was against mans' rules because it was the right thing to do.
So today as people search for the Holy Spirit and they search for a newborn passion in their relationship with Jesus they need not seek Him in organized religion. He isn't there. Please don't misunderstand - I am not saying there isn't any faith or passion among those in the traditional church - far from it. I'm not saying the non-traditional church is "it". What I am trying to focus on is how we have come to value "organized" religion (our rules, the way we baptize, 3 services a week, Awana) more than we value the passionate experience of following Jesus. We fall into the routines of church but Jesus was anything but routine.
It seems to me that in many cases, man has taken passionate faith and made it organized religion and in so doing has driven the Holy Spirit out. This isn't anything new - it was the same 2,000 years ago when Jesus came as a rebel to tear down organized religion and set the captives free.
'Tis the season of the Great Liberator!
Soar!
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