Operation Narnia

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Threader is set to be released Dec. 10.  I love the The Chronicles of Narnia.  My entire family loves them.  But something I love even more, is Operation Christmas Child.

OCC is a project of Samaritan's Purse that takes shoeboxes filled with toys, candy, clothes and school supplies to vulnerable children around the world.  The boxes are distributed through local churches.  And along with these small gifts, the children learn that not only do other people in the world love and care about them but so does God.  It's an amazing thing to be a part of.

So why do I mention The Chronicles of Narnia?  Here's why.  This year the creators of Narnia and Samaritan's Purse have teamed up to help get 8 million boxes to children who don't have anything.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I love partnerships.  I love when people and groups come together to tackle a big problem.  I think this partnership is just really cool.

Check it out at this link.  Go see Narnia on Dec. 10.  And pack some shoeboxes and drop them off at a collection center near you.

How Should I Vote This Tuesday?

I can't wait for the elections to be over.  Elections are emotional, full of rhetoric and usually have a number of negative ads.  But this one seems to have more of all of that than usual.  The ads enough are enough to make paying for a DVR worth it.

Regardless of who wins and who loses, this election is going to make history.  It's going to be the most expensive mid-term election ever, with all the campaigns combined costing over 4 billion dollars.

A friend of mine (Rusty Coram) shared some advice about how we should approach this year's election.  His advice is well worth passing on so here it is:

• Negative ads aren't good info resources.  For helpful information, do your own homework.
• What someone did 20 years ago doesn't necessarily indicate who they are today - people can change.
• Political labels aren't as telling as what a person has actually done.
• Charisma shouldn't out weigh character.
• If you don't vote, don't complain.
• If you do vote, don't complain - do something constructive

I'm proud that I live in America and have the freedoms that I have.  And it's a privilege to be a part of the election process.  I'm also a follower of Christ.  And that means that I am to honor Him in all I do.  And so before I vote this Tuesday I will pray, seek wisdom, do my part to be informed and then exercise my right and responsibility to vote. 

Sunday Reflection

We were in week two of the book of Jonah this past Sunday.  I love the book.  It's about a God that cares so much for us that he continues to pursue us no matter how far or how long we run.

Jonah would have done well to pray the four prayers we talked about Sunday.  I can't help but wonder what our world would look like if everyone who claims to follow God or is seeking God would pray those four prayers.  They are four prayers that not only have the power to change us but also everyone around us.

If you missed it check it out here:  Intervention: Staying Connected to the Heart of God.

Intervention: Getting Our Attention

We launched a new series today called Intervention.  We're walking through the story of Jonah and today we talked about Getting Our Attention.

The audio is uploaded on our website.  Click here to check it out if you missed it.  Here's a recap of what we talked about:

• God is an intervening God.  He intervenes because He loves us and wants to know and be known by us.

• God's words of judgement are also His words of grace.  They are gracious words of warning, letting us know that it's not too late to change or head in a different direction.

• ALL of us occasionally run from God

• When we're running from God, we're really running from the call of God.

• A warning sign that we're on the run is we distance ourselves from the "stuff" of God.  Scripture, prayer, worship and connections with other followers become less important to us because those are some of the ways God's call is present in our lives.

• Even when we're on the run, God still manages to get our attention.

• Every time God gets our attention we have a decision to make; do we keep running or do we get honest?

• When we get honest and stop running, God intervenes again and is there to forgive, and to save, and to restore and to put us on a different trajectory for our future.

• The cross is the symbol of God's ultimate intervention in our lives.

The best advice Warren Buffett ever received

Warren Buffet gives two pieces of advice in this short clip.  They are both things that anyone who want to have healthy relationships should follow:

"The power of unconditional love."

"You can always tell a guy to 'go to hell' tomorrow; you never give up that right.  So keep your mouth shut today and see if you feel the same way tomorrow."

Time With God

One of the challenges from this week's sermon was to spend time with God everyday.  The longer I pastor the more I realize that this is a real struggle for most followers of Christ.  I think it's a struggle for several reasons.

One, we live such busy lives that's it's easy to get moving with our day and once we are on the move it's hard to hit the brakes to realize we never connected with God.

It's also a struggle because a lot of people think that connecting with God is bigger or harder than it really is.

And finally we get legalistic about time with God.  We think that we have to pray for an hour or read from the Old and New Testaments and throw in a Psalm and Proverb.  We get into a routine and pretty soon it's about the routine and not about the relationship.

Here's three truths about time with God:

1.  We make time for the things that are important to us.  That's a fact of life.  We start our day out and we make time to shower, put on clean clothes and fix our hair, makeup, etc.  We do that because how we look to people is important to us.  We make time to get to work on time.  And we make time for that quick stop in Starbucks.  We make time for the things that are important to us.

2.  Lots of little spiritual bites are better than one huge one.  I’ve discovered that to be spiritually fed it doesn’t have to be about one huge spiritual feeding that you check off the list before you walk out of the house in the morning.   Instead, I've found that practicing the presence of God, and as odd as this sounds, to nibble spiritually, all throughout your day is more affective than spending an hour one time a day.

3.  Legalism will kill any relationship.  When time with God becomes about following a rule and checking off a box, the relationship will stop growing because God is more interested in us - talking with us, walking with us, being a part of our lives - than He is in any rule we come up with.

Here are some tools I use to start my day off with God.  They are simple and don't take a lot of time.  The purpose of the tools are not to go deep but to start a conversation; a conversation that will hopefully continue throughout the day.  I hope they are helpful to anyone who's struggling to connect daily with their creator.

The Journey:  This is a daily email devotional produced by the staff of Fairfax Community Church.  It walks through a book of the Bible, one chapter at a time.  The idea is to read the chapter first and then use the provided summary and questions to engage the passage on a deeper level.  This is my favorite source right now.

Drive Time Devotions:  This is a 10 minute, daily podcast led by Tom Hollaway of Saddleback Church.  Tom is a gifted teacher and an all around great guy.  I've had the pleasure of having several conversations with Tom through the years.  He's the real deal.  Simply join the podcast and download them each day.  Tom developed this for the people in his church who commuted to work everyday - hence the name.

d365:  This is a really creative looking devotional.  It was recommended to me last week by a family member so I have not had time to really test it out.  It's designed with the college student in mind but looks like a great resource for anyone who likes a more hands-on, interactive experience.  Be sure to read the instructions first and enjoy the freedom it gives you.

Middle School Retreat Video

The 80/20 Rule

I walk my kids to school everyday and say good-bye to them at the crosswalk.  We have an awesome crossing guard named Min who really loves kids and wants to make sure they are safe.  She told me today she was having to follow my 80/20 Rule.

Last year she found out I was a pastor and asked me one day how to handle a conflict she was having with a couple of parents.  She had reminded them of some of the driving and parking rules near the school and they did not take it very well.  They were pretty verbally abusive to her and it was beginning to really bother her.

I assured her she was doing the right thing to enforce the rules and make sure our kids were safe.  And then I told her about the 80/20 Rule that I try to follow.  It goes like this:  "Twenty percent of the people in your world, at any given time, are unhappy with you or don't like you and some of them actually want to see you fail.  That's just the way it is so focus on the eighty percent."

I've found that to be pretty true in life and for the most part it applies to everyone, unless you're the President, then the rule is probably reversed.

But that's just the way it is, people in your world are not always going to like you, agree with you, and some of them actually want to see you fail.  Don't focus on them.  Focus on the people who have your back, who are in your corner and who think you're great.

And never forget that regardless of who likes you and who doesn't, what mistakes you've made, when you've blown it, God loves you and accepts you just the way you are.

What I'm Reading

Sometimes I get asked what books I'm reading right now.  Currently I'm reading three books.  One for personal growth, one for professional growth and one for organizational (our church) growth.  One note, I usually like to read in groups where what I am reading can be discussed.  It's the whole "iron sharpens iron" thing.  Here's the list:

• Crazy Love by Francis Chan - It's a great book for anyone who wants to explore a relationship with Christ or grow in the one they have.  Our small group is currently going through this together each Friday night.

• Soup:  A Recipe to Nourish Your Team and Culture by Jon Gordon - This is a great book for anyone who is a leader in their organization, whether it's as a supervisor at work, the owner of a business, or in a church or other volunteer organization.  Jon works with Fortune 500 companies, professional and college sports team, hospitals, schools, universities and non-profits.   I'm reading this book with a group of 10 other pastors in a coaching network.

• Think Orange and The Orange Leader Handbook by Reggie Joiner - I'm reading both of these together because one introduces the concepts and the other is a handbook designed to lead a team through a process of incorporating the concepts.  I highly recommend them to anyone who serves in children or student ministries in a local church.  I'm currently reading Think Orange with two of our staff and plan on leading a team through the handbook after the first of the year.

1 Chronicles 14:2 says "And David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel."

At this point in his life David is King of one of the strongest armies in the region, he's rich beyond imagination, his family is growing, and everyone in the kingdom of Israel adores him. If that were most of us, we'd let all that go to our heads.

But David recognized that God had put him where he was, given him the position that he had, and provided him with all of those resources, not so he could use them on himself and live the good life, but so that he could make a difference in the lives of others.

He's the deal, the same is true for you and me. The resources we have, the relationships we have, the responsibilities we have, we have because God wants to use them to make a difference in someone else's life.

What is one thing that you're holding on to, that you need to let God use to make a difference in someone else's life?

Respect the Position

There's a story in the Old Testament, in 1 Chronicles 10, that tells how King Saul died. It was a pretty violent death. The enemies of Israel were closing in and so Saul falls on his own sword to keep from dying at their hands.

The enemies end up cutting off Saul's head and hanging it in the temple of one of their own gods. His three sons are also killed. And Israel basically runs for the hills.

The warrior David, who later becomes king, does an amazing thing. He brings the bodies of Saul and his sons back to Israel and buries them. That's amazing because right up to the end, Saul wanted David dead. Saul had chased David all through the country trying to kill him, to keep him from becoming king.

But David did the right thing. He showed respect to the position that Saul had - King.

It's so easy to be critical of those in leadership, those in authority. Even if we don't agree with them, we should respect those in authority and the position they have.

That may be our President or other elected officials.

It may be the men and women in the military and law enforcement who keep us safe.

Maybe it's our boss.

It could be the teacher who teaches us or our kids.

Maybe it's our Pastor or pastors.

And yes, even those who run our HOA's.

The point is, even if we don't agree with the person(s) or even respect them as individuals, we need to be respectful of the position they are in, because one day someone else will be in that position; and it could be you or I.