Don’t Do Stupid

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When things are going well in the life of a church – the giving is good, the church board is healthy, the vision is clear, there is growth and vitality, etc. – there are two sets of people who can derail all the great things God is doing: Staff and leaders.

It’s amazing how arduous, time-consuming, difficult it is to be in a position where growth and health is present. It takes years to build such an ethos and environment. And one person, with one stupid act, can derail the entire thing in minutes.

This typically happens in three arenas: money, sex, and relationships.

The Little Church on the Prairie finds herself in a healthy place. We are positioned for God to do some amazing things in the future.

I have been reminding both the staff and the elders, and most importantly me, “Please don’t do stupid things. Be pure and God-honoring in our dealing with God’s money, sex, and relationships with one another.”

 

Someone Has to Break the Cycle of Retaliation – Reflection on MLK Jr

Screen Shot 2017-01-13 at 2.42.50 PM.pngSomeone has to break the cycle of retaliation…

Let that sink in. Read it again.

Someone has to break the cycle of retaliation.

A week doesn’t go by without stories of hatred, bigotry, violence, rape, atrocities committed against humanity. Stories bombard us from abroad and from our own communities.

One way to respond is to build bigger and better walls. Let’s protect what we can. Better alarm systems. Better lighting. More surveillance. Bigger walls. More guns. Keep the evil out.

That’s one way to respond.

And violence and atrocities continue to march on. Nothing changes.

Someone has to break the cycle of retaliation.

The cross of Jesus Christ is the ultimate breaking of the cycle of vengeance and retaliation. The cross is God saying, “I’ll take it all. Bring it! Bring the hatred. Bring the violence. Bring the evil. Bring the violence. Bring the frustration. Bring the pain. Bring it! I’ll take it all!”

On Good Friday, Jesus bore the brunt of sin and evil. Jesus bore it all.

And by rising from the grave on resurrection Sunday, Jesus crushed hatred, violence, frustration, pain, and evil.

What our world needs is not better ways to keep people out and apart. What we need, and what our world needs is a people called and a people who will answer the call the break the cycle of evil and retaliation with the hope and love of God in Jesus Christ.

May we be such people. May this be the generation that turns the cycle of violence and retaliation.

Whatever You Do, Don’t Follow Your Heart

Screen Shot 2017-01-12 at 3.13.48 PM.png“What does your heart tell you?”

“Follow your heart.”

Sounds right. It makes for great movies and stories. The main character pursuing what they know to be right, but their heart being tugged in a different direction…and in the critical moment, they choose to follow after their heart…and everything ends up happy ever after.

Everything…happy…ever after.

Yeah. That happens in the movies. That rarely happens in real life.

The problem with the heart is that the heart is wrong more often than not. At one time the heart thought Lisa was the one…then it thought Jane was the one…then at another time, the heart was sure Jenny was the one…The heart lies. The heart has no clue.

The heart has no boundaries. The heart has no concern for morals. The heart doesn’t have any other loyalty other than getting its desires met NOW!

Thing is, people have followed after their hearts and left their spouse and children, leaving devastation in its wake. Why? Because it felt so right. I was just following my heart.

People have followed their hearts and ignored all the warning signs, all the statistics, all reason that clearly showed it couldn’t possibly work out and find themselves in impossible and violent relationships.

The heart can’t be trusted.

So what do you do?

Do what’s good and right.

Things are good and right because…they are.

So please…for your sake…whatever you do…do not follow your heart. Do what’s right and good.