God

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Mission Myth 3: Hairy Scary Meanies?

Last month I commented on part of an article by Shane Bennett that appeared several years ago in Missions Catalyst.

In his two-part post on Top Ten Myths about Missions , Bennett explained:

I want to understand how the average Lou and Sue, sitting in the pew, think about missions stuff. What begins to crackle in their minds when the pastor introduces a “missions” speaker? What synapses fire when a video rolls about poor kids in Faroffistan? From what I’ve seen there are some serious misconceptions floating around in our churches, at least some of our churches. We could call these collective assumptions, beliefs that simply don’t reflect reality, “myths.”

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More Blessings… (I think)

Last week I wrote about the many ways God was gracious to us on our California adventure. Even through I wrote more than usual, there was no way to fit everything in. It was truly a trip to remember, and I’m very, very thankful.

Eventually you have to come home. We finally walked through the door at midnight, Tuesday night. We dragged our bags up the stairs, ran through a quick shower, and crawled into our own bed. Coming home can be pretty nice.

It wasn’t until morning that we discovered God’s next “blessing”—the kind of blessing you have to examine closely before you see the good part.

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Counting Some Blessings…

Frequently I find myself viewing God as a serious, “it might hurt but it’s good for you” kind of guy. That is certainly one aspect of his personality. He is a Father who loves enough to discipline, who has called us to a life of service and selfless love, who asks us to sacrifice everything for the greater good that is the salvation of our souls.

But sometimes God reminds me that he also delights in giving us good things. While he values our sanctification above our temporal happiness, He takes pleasure in giving us good gifts. Our recent trip to California certainly qualifies as a wonderful gift.

We had entertained vague notions of spending a week or so reconnecting with friends in Silicon Valley, bringing supporters up to date, and maybe squeezing in a bit of much-needed R&R in the green California springtime. Apparently, God thought this was a good idea. When we were offered a pair of “buddy passes” on Alaska Airlines (enabling us to fly stand-by for a substantial discount), we quickly accepted, and scheduled the trip.

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Let God

I’ve always tried to do excellent work whether as a volunteer or a paid employee. I believe God desires for us to do our best at all times, as a reflection of His presence in our lives. As Paul writes in Colossians 3:23-24—“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.’

We’re also told to obey earthly authorities (1 Peter 2:13). But what do we do when these two Godly commandments conflict with one another?

Several times in the course of my life I’ve come up against. circumstances where I was under the authority of someone who told me, “Don’t think—just do it my way.” And each time, their way wasn’t very good.

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Mission Myths: Not Me, Not There!

A friend of ours recently pointed out an article by Shane Bennett that appeared several years ago in Missions Catalyst, “a free, weekly electronic digest of mission news and resources designed to inspire and equip Christians worldwide for global ministry.”

In his two-part post on Top Ten Myths about Missions , Bennett explained:

I want to understand how the average Lou and Sue, sitting in the pew, think about missions stuff. What begins to crackle in their minds when the pastor introduces a “missions” speaker? What synapses fire when a video rolls about poor kids in Faroffistan? From what I’ve seen there are some serious misconceptions floating around in our churches, at least some of our churches. We could call these collective assumptions, beliefs that simply don’t reflect reality, “myths.”

Continue reading →

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Observing Lent

What are you giving up for Lent?

This was a familiar question in my college dorm, back in the “Jesus Freak 70s.” As a child growing up in a Catholic neighborhood (my non-religious family stuck out like a group of Hari Krishnas at a bar mitzvah), I remember all my friends forgoing meat from Ash Wednesday until Easter. Fish sticks appeared on the school cafeteria menu while brown-baggers munched peanut butter or tuna sandwiches day after day.

Somewhere along the line, non-Catholic believers decided that giving up meat wasn’t the only option. We could fast anything, as long as it had some spiritual impact on our lives. Some of my college friends gave up sugar, while others unplugged their stereos. Bring that concept into the 21st century, and we might have signed off Facebook for the duration, or stopped playing video games.

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Throwing Money

In my post last Friday, I stated my opinion that the best way to help the poor and unreached in far away places is to send money.

I don’t want to minimize the importance of hands-on ministry—how being personally involved is so much better than merely throwing money at a problem. We have so much to teach one another, and the Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives as we share our lives with others.

But we also need to reach out across political boundaries, languages, and cultures. Sometimes the only practical way to do this is to “just” send money.

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What Would You Say?

Warning: I’m going to ask you to think today.

What would you say to Mr. Benson?

I was relaxing, happily following a succession of links from blog to blog, when I came across Ryan Benson’s “Stump an Atheist” site. Since I used to be an atheist, I was quite curious to hear his perspective. After reading his “about” page, several recent posts, and his hilarious FAQ, I found that I totally agree with him: he is the friendliest atheist on the web.

As he says in his introduction:

Don’t let the title of this blog mislead you; I’m not on a crusade to convert. This is not a challenge to you; it’s a challenge to me. I am not a New Atheist writer; I am a writer who happens to be a new atheist.

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Perfect!

It was a recent Sunday morning, and I was struggling to stay engaged as we sang the same words over and over. In case you haven’t notice, many popular praise and worship songs have pretty repetitive lyrics. Praise Him… Praise Him… Praise Him… Praise… What should I make for dinner tonight? Him… That lady in front of me looks really fat in that tight sweater. Praise… How can that baby sleep through such loud music? Him… I don’t like that guy’s T-shirt… praise… huh?

Something (Someone?) jolted me back to alertness and I suddenly realized that I’d put my mouth on automatic while my brain ran in a zillion different directions. I was paying tribute with my lips, but my heart was far from God.

Frustrated and convicted that I needed to do better, I confessed my distractedness to God. I asked Him to teach me to worship Him with all my heart and soul and mind and strength. As so frequently happens, God surprised me.

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Going

Should I go on a short-term mission trip this year? If so, where?

Our church recently announced this year’s short-term mission trips, and I was staring at the list. The glossy brochure, with its glowing descriptions of each destination and the life-impacting ministry we could do there, was very impressive. In keeping with our congregation of over 10,000, there were a lot of trips to choose from: Afghanistan, Myanmar, Israel, Egypt, India, Honduras, South Africa, Germany… with more to be added later. Our church is in partnership with missionaries and indigenous ministries in these and other places. Every year short-term teams are sent to help with projects, train local leaders, encourage missionaries, prayer-walk the neighborhoods, teach health and hygiene classes, provide medical care, lead Bible studies, love on orphaned kids, and “share the love of Christ in practical ways.”

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