While in Boone recently, we were having a conversation about teachers who make a difference in our lives...individuals who spoke truth and love in our lives to teach us something about ourselves, our worth, and our potential. A friend of ours told us a rather humerous story about an incident when she was growing up where the teacher actually threw a paddle at her. Her response: she threw the paddle back at the teacher! The incident had somewhat a negative impact on her for obvious reasons.
We had a great discussion about how teachers can either elevate our hearts to greatness or they can blind us from seeing who we truly are capable of becoming.
Recently, I've been studying the Book of Ecclesiastes written by one who calls himself "the Teacher." King Solomon's concluding words are facinating, explaining how the teacher's greatest characteristics: one who is wise, imparts knowledge, is organized, ponders, searches for just the right words and speaks the plain truth with clarity. The result is that the teacher's words are "like firmly embedded nails," making an impression on us that perhaps 'spurs' us to action, or causes us to see ourselves and the world around us more differently than ever before.
Rob Bell, author of 'Velvet Elvis,' points out that "the best teachers are masters of the obvious. They see the same things we do, but they are aware of so much more. And when they point it out, it changes the way we see everything." (p.89)
I think of how Jesus looks at us through eyes of love and compassion, through God's eyes, pointing out all that we are and all that we capable of becoming through Him. When Jesus tells me that He has come to give me life, that my life is hidden in Him, that I am a true child of the living God, and that I possess His power through the Holy Spirit that He sends to guide and direct my life, it changes the way I see myself and has a tremendous impact on the way I live.
To me, and many others, Jesus is the greatest teacher of all. He speaks to the heart...words of love, encouragement, compassion, restoration...and challenges us to do the same.
Recall the teachers in your life who have made the greatest impact. Perhpas you'll discover the similarities we find in their approach to the one Jesus takes with us.
Add to the painting...who are some of the greatest teachers you've encountered and why? How do they compare to Jesus?
Monday, February 12, 2007
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
identity
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied…”And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
-Matthew 16:16-18 (NIV)
-Matthew 16:16-18 (NIV)
Isn’t it interesting how Jesus looks back at Peter after he confesses that Jesus is the Christ, and then reminds Peter who he truly is? “…I tell you that you are Peter…” It’s almost as if Jesus is saying, “You’re right, I AM the Christ, but do you know who you are? Do you know what you’re capable of? Do you know what I’m planning to do through you? Do you understand what that means for you?”
I’ve been thinking a lot about identity lately. Identity of myself, the people around me, and especially our church community. I recently asked our Core Community (a group of about 7 people who are journeying deeper with us) to share what excited them most about who we are becoming as the church that Jesus Christ is building. I’m excited to share these responses with you…
“People care and know your name.” “I like how we’re taking time getting to know each other.”
“This is one of the first places we’ve felt we belonged in a long time.”
“I like our diverse make-up.”
“…our values and our goals, and how we emphasize relationships.”
“We’re a church for such a time as this.”
“We care about individuals and their thoughts.”
“I really like how we talk about relationships and how we celebrate everyone’s uniqueness.”
As I’ve chewed on these statements this week, I can’t help but celebrate in the fact that we’re becoming the church community that God gave us a vision to become almost 6 months ago. We are living more and more into our identity as we continue to advance, and it’s nothing short of thrilling!
I don’t know if there’s anything more glorifying to God than we we’re living deep and passionately from our hearts, when we’re learning to live comfortable and satisfied in our own skin. Few things in life are as significant as discovering your true self (a value our community is committed to), and moving forward in that life in an act of worship to the Sovereign Creator, a life created for a unique and glorious purpose!
Today, may you hear the words of Jesus in your life; “I tell you that you are ______,” and live deep from your true identity. Please know that we are so thankful for the way each of you are encouraging and supporting the identity of Awaken!
Monday, January 15, 2007
advance
“Go in the strength you have…am I not sending you?” -Judges 6:12,14
Over the last few weeks, we have witnessed the ministry of Awaken advance in ways we had only dreamed of a few months ago when we arrived here. Last Tuesday evening, 10 of us (not including little Amelia Shuping, who is only 6-weeks old) gathered in our living room for our first official Life-Community Gathering. And yesterday (Sunday) our Core-Community began with 8 people meeting together for a time of connecting our hearts and dreaming about the possibilities ahead. It’s truly been an amazing and humbling experience for us personally to witness how God works once we choose to advance with Him.
Do you encounter moments in your life where you’re not sure whether to move or to stay? To advance or to retreat? To go or to wait? Moments where you feel stuck, unsure which way to go? Although Scripture is clear that there must be consistent moments built into our lives where we still ourselves before God in order to connect our hearts with Him, Scripture is also clear that we are called by God to advance, to move forward, to “go in the strength you have” in order to seize divine moments, opportunities and experiences that daily await each of us.
Recently, God has been leading me back to stories in the Bible of people who He simply called to advance, to move, to go based on what they already knew. Stories where God’s will wasn’t always perfectly clear about the situation, but where their hearts were pursuing His. Stories where the only thing they knew they couldn’t do was stay, because staying meant getting stuck, and in some extreme cases, death. Stories like Jonathan and his armor-bearer (1 Samuel 14), Gideon and the 300 men (Judges 6-7), and the perils of King David voiced in the Psalms.
What I’m learning in these stories and through our ministry is that once we choose to move with God, we discover confirmation in the midst of movement. We are constantly being called forward to seize our divine moments and experience the exhilaration of a life of fearing God and nothing else. Failing to advance is to miss life and to find ourselves stuck, perhaps waiting for the very thing God is inviting us into.
Is there some divine opportunity that God is calling you forward to experience? Will you advance or will you stay, or even possibly retreat? Will you simply see your divine moments today or will you seize them? Maybe the thing that God is simply calling you to do today is to move.
Advance today in the strength of the Lord and discover confirmation for your journey in the midst of your movement.
Over the last few weeks, we have witnessed the ministry of Awaken advance in ways we had only dreamed of a few months ago when we arrived here. Last Tuesday evening, 10 of us (not including little Amelia Shuping, who is only 6-weeks old) gathered in our living room for our first official Life-Community Gathering. And yesterday (Sunday) our Core-Community began with 8 people meeting together for a time of connecting our hearts and dreaming about the possibilities ahead. It’s truly been an amazing and humbling experience for us personally to witness how God works once we choose to advance with Him.
Do you encounter moments in your life where you’re not sure whether to move or to stay? To advance or to retreat? To go or to wait? Moments where you feel stuck, unsure which way to go? Although Scripture is clear that there must be consistent moments built into our lives where we still ourselves before God in order to connect our hearts with Him, Scripture is also clear that we are called by God to advance, to move forward, to “go in the strength you have” in order to seize divine moments, opportunities and experiences that daily await each of us.
Recently, God has been leading me back to stories in the Bible of people who He simply called to advance, to move, to go based on what they already knew. Stories where God’s will wasn’t always perfectly clear about the situation, but where their hearts were pursuing His. Stories where the only thing they knew they couldn’t do was stay, because staying meant getting stuck, and in some extreme cases, death. Stories like Jonathan and his armor-bearer (1 Samuel 14), Gideon and the 300 men (Judges 6-7), and the perils of King David voiced in the Psalms.
What I’m learning in these stories and through our ministry is that once we choose to move with God, we discover confirmation in the midst of movement. We are constantly being called forward to seize our divine moments and experience the exhilaration of a life of fearing God and nothing else. Failing to advance is to miss life and to find ourselves stuck, perhaps waiting for the very thing God is inviting us into.
Is there some divine opportunity that God is calling you forward to experience? Will you advance or will you stay, or even possibly retreat? Will you simply see your divine moments today or will you seize them? Maybe the thing that God is simply calling you to do today is to move.
Advance today in the strength of the Lord and discover confirmation for your journey in the midst of your movement.
Monday, January 08, 2007
new
If you’re like a lot of other people, the beginning of the year signifies NEW things and NEW opportunities in life; perhaps a new routine, new goals, or simply a chance for a fresh start. Regardless of whether or not you chose a Resolution for 2007, the New Year gives us hope for better things to come.
The word “new” is actually very symbolic and meaningful in Scripture. It’s a word connected to God’s creational activity throughout the Bible. In the beginning, God created everything new. It was perfect, flawless, glorious…and it included humans. But something happened, and it continues to happen today. Sin corrupted not only humankind, but all creation as well. As a result, we are a broken, imperfect people living in a fractured, fallen world. So what was once ‘new,’ became scarred, flawed and filthy.
But here’s another great meaning behind the word “new” that we find in Scripture. In Revelation 21:5, Jesus (the One sitting on the throne) says, “Look, I am making all things new!” The amazing work of God in our lives is found in the hope that He has a plan for restoring what was once lost. Jesus comes to take what was once new and to “renew” it back to its original intent.
So may you be encouraged in the knowledge of the hope that God IS restoring the flaws, the brokenness and the imperfections in your life, and that the process will graciously continue in 2007.
The word “new” is actually very symbolic and meaningful in Scripture. It’s a word connected to God’s creational activity throughout the Bible. In the beginning, God created everything new. It was perfect, flawless, glorious…and it included humans. But something happened, and it continues to happen today. Sin corrupted not only humankind, but all creation as well. As a result, we are a broken, imperfect people living in a fractured, fallen world. So what was once ‘new,’ became scarred, flawed and filthy.
But here’s another great meaning behind the word “new” that we find in Scripture. In Revelation 21:5, Jesus (the One sitting on the throne) says, “Look, I am making all things new!” The amazing work of God in our lives is found in the hope that He has a plan for restoring what was once lost. Jesus comes to take what was once new and to “renew” it back to its original intent.
So may you be encouraged in the knowledge of the hope that God IS restoring the flaws, the brokenness and the imperfections in your life, and that the process will graciously continue in 2007.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
thanks
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. -1 Thessalonians. 5:16-18 (NIV)
As 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 reminds us, we are called to live joyfully always, and the season of Thanksgiving serves as a great reminder of how we live this out. Our source for joyful living is found in a life of gratitude and thanksgiving. To live joyfully is the discipline of continually recognizing the good in our lives and in the world around us. Today and throughout this week, be mindful that “every good and perfect gift is from above,” (James 1:17) and that the greatest source of joy in life is found in the knowledge that you are a child of the Living God through the life of Jesus Christ. Don’t allow the temporary circumstances of this fallen world to blind you from the goodness that is right in front of you today.
As 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 reminds us, we are called to live joyfully always, and the season of Thanksgiving serves as a great reminder of how we live this out. Our source for joyful living is found in a life of gratitude and thanksgiving. To live joyfully is the discipline of continually recognizing the good in our lives and in the world around us. Today and throughout this week, be mindful that “every good and perfect gift is from above,” (James 1:17) and that the greatest source of joy in life is found in the knowledge that you are a child of the Living God through the life of Jesus Christ. Don’t allow the temporary circumstances of this fallen world to blind you from the goodness that is right in front of you today.
Monday, October 30, 2006
seasons
The last two days have truly been breath-taking – magnificent sunshine, warmer temperatures and beautiful colors. Here in Greensboro, autumn seems to be in full swing with leaves still changing and blowing off the trees. It’s beautiful to behold (along with serving as a reminder that my first job after getting moved into our new home this week will be, of course, raking!). This is Molly’s favorite season of the year, which probably comes as no surprise you, especially due to the fact that she’s an artist and appreciates the colors.
Autumn is an interesting reminder to us of the change that is constantly taking place, not only in the world around us, but in our own lives as well. Seasons usher in change and something new and unique, but perhaps no other season brings the change that autumn does. Trees change from green and full, to colorful, and then empty. Temperatures begin to vary, and we begin to brace ourselves for colder temperatures. Crops are harvested, fields are left bare. Change is taking place.
Maybe you sometimes catch yourself, like me, wondering why changes are necessary (beyond the scientific explanations). Yet during seasons like this, I think the world around us is clear about God’s plan for change in all our lives and why it is so necessary. In nature, changing seasons bring renewal – bringing life to things that once seemed dead. Perhaps that’s a good way to look at why God allows change in our lives. Although He never changes, God uses change in our lives to renew us because He is a God who loves “making everything new” (Revelation 21:5).
Later this week, we will be moving once again into our new home in Greensboro, and I’m again reminded how this season (the last 3-4 months of our lives) has personally brought change after change into our lives. The changes have been tough, but they’ve also brought us huge blessings found in new relationships, new opportunities and a new home. And when you take time to put things into God’s perspective, you’ll be reminded, as I have been recently, of how we must continually give thanks during seasons of change – thanks for what has been (God’s faithfulness), thanks for what is to come* (God’s promises), thanks for what God is producing in us (God’s purposes). You see, God’s ultimate purpose for the changes that take place in our lives today is to transform us where “we become more and more like Him and reflect His glory even more” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Today, I pray that you will live in recognition of God’s purpose for change in your life, that you would embrace it and give thanks.
Autumn is an interesting reminder to us of the change that is constantly taking place, not only in the world around us, but in our own lives as well. Seasons usher in change and something new and unique, but perhaps no other season brings the change that autumn does. Trees change from green and full, to colorful, and then empty. Temperatures begin to vary, and we begin to brace ourselves for colder temperatures. Crops are harvested, fields are left bare. Change is taking place.
Maybe you sometimes catch yourself, like me, wondering why changes are necessary (beyond the scientific explanations). Yet during seasons like this, I think the world around us is clear about God’s plan for change in all our lives and why it is so necessary. In nature, changing seasons bring renewal – bringing life to things that once seemed dead. Perhaps that’s a good way to look at why God allows change in our lives. Although He never changes, God uses change in our lives to renew us because He is a God who loves “making everything new” (Revelation 21:5).
Later this week, we will be moving once again into our new home in Greensboro, and I’m again reminded how this season (the last 3-4 months of our lives) has personally brought change after change into our lives. The changes have been tough, but they’ve also brought us huge blessings found in new relationships, new opportunities and a new home. And when you take time to put things into God’s perspective, you’ll be reminded, as I have been recently, of how we must continually give thanks during seasons of change – thanks for what has been (God’s faithfulness), thanks for what is to come* (God’s promises), thanks for what God is producing in us (God’s purposes). You see, God’s ultimate purpose for the changes that take place in our lives today is to transform us where “we become more and more like Him and reflect His glory even more” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Today, I pray that you will live in recognition of God’s purpose for change in your life, that you would embrace it and give thanks.
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