Category Archives: Ministry

Devotions, Jesus, Ministry, Renewal

Open my heart today.

Matthew 5:1,2, “And when He saw the multitudes. He went up on the hill; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.  And opening His mouth He began to teach them.”

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Jesus’ teaching on a hillside has been called the greatest sermon ever given. When I read it again and again, I see something much more personal, much more intimate. The masses were assembled, but the teaching was not really for them rows and rows of eager listeners. He was there to teach the chosen disciples.  Those few who had made a commitment to be something more. The multitudes were there with their own agendas, needs, and for some, simply curiosity.  The crowd was there to listen in and just perhaps become more than eager listeners.

His message was not about a new theology.  His message moved beyond the heady and distressing understandings to the emotional heart issues. Blessed for those who are poor in spirit, who mourn, who are gentle, who are hungry, who are merciful, who are pure in heart, who are peacemakers, who are persecuted and lied about. Words filled with emotion.  Words that drive us to our deepest feelings.

I must let these words speak to my heart and to my emotions. All the theology and prior understandings of God must take a back seat.  This sermon speaks another language, a language of the heart. For this moment I simply let the grass of the hillside cool my heated mind and learn the language of the heart.

Lord, still my mind and open my heart.

#Just Larry

Ministry, Motivation, Prayer, Preaching, Ramblings

Attitude determins altitude

Years ago, I was a wholesale meatcutter and a butcher.  I stood along a long moving conveyer belt that would bring pieces of meat that each cutter would in turn take off the belt and cut, slice, bone, separated into specific portions.  There were twelve of us six on a side doing this beef disassembly line.  We would work continuously for two hours, fifteen minutes then another two hours and take a half hour lunch.  Time worn meat dance would be repeated in the afternoon. We would continually talk and banter about the latest news of the world and our families, all the while soft music would play in the background to keep from going out of our minds.

As we approached quitting time we would look down the line of pieces of meat and know we had to get the conveyer belt empty before cleaning up.  If we would work real hard the boss would just add more big pieces of meat. 

One of my fellow butcher workman would, at the appropriate time would say under his breath “Twenty Degrees.”  He had his pilot license and he was referring to the attitude of the plane.  If you raised the nose of his little Cessna to twenty degrees above level, the plan would ultimately stall and fall out of the sky.  It was how we paced ourselves at the meat line became empty at the exact time when the clock said it was time to go home.

As he explained it to me, “In flight the attitude determines your altitude.” 

Your attitude determines your behavior.

Your attitudes determine our actions.

Devotions, Life, Mercy, Ministry, Personal

Concern

Acts 7:59-60 “While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.”

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As the stones of unrighteous indignation were being thrown, Stephen knew that Christ was the Judge and not the crowd of hurlers. He knew that in just moments he would be standing in Christ’s presence. His prayer was not, “forgive me for the life I have lived” but “Forgive those who sin against me.” Stephen did not ask for forgiveness for himself. He was not thinking about the judgment that he was going to meet so soon. Stephen was forgiven before the first stone hit his brow. He had no fear about judgment for himself, and so when the last stone struck, the desire of his heart and mind was for those who were hurtling stones and breaking his body. Without hesitancy, Steven’s focus was not on the stones and pain, but on his persecutors. I am closer than most to my earthly end, but I do not fret about it. Like Steven, I am now more concerned about you.

Devotions, Ministry, Motivation, Personal, Ramblings

Different or weird?

Revelation 21:5 “He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

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Revelation, the last book of the Bible, is difficult to understand. Visions of beasts, horses, fire, judgment, and images that are simply unimaginable. It is just weird. But then again, I am weird too. To the world my belief is weird. I am weird enough to believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, survived in the wilderness 40 days, walked on water, healed the sick, raised a man from the dead, was hung on a cross, and rose from the dead, was and is God and now sits at the right hand of the Father. If I am weird, so be it. Join me in my weirdness.  Perhaps, our stubborn defiance of the norm will make a difference in the world.

Culture, Devotions, Life, Ministry

All or nothing

Colossians 2:6 “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him.”

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It is simply wrong to think of God as a drive-in critical care service. To assume that Jesus is a kind of a heavenly nurse to go to when sin has crept into our lives and we need a quick fix. And once fixed up we can simply say “Thanks”. To think of Jesus wanting to heal and cleanse without any commitment to different actions is specious: plausible but not true.

I can’t see anywhere in the Bible that allows the cleansed to continue in their behaviors that caused the need in the first place. Jesus can save us and clean us, but for the outpouring of his grace and mercy, we have a responsibility.  A responsibility to walk with Him.  Not to go by our merry way and follow our own path.  Following, keeping close, walking as He walked, and responding to the will of our Lord are required afterward.  In the same manner I have received, so I walk in Him.

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Father, You are my Savior and my Lord. My debt to You is huge! I owe You my life and my following.

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Devotions, Ministry, Prayer

PINOGAM: Person in need of Grace and Mercy!

Psalm 23:6  “Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

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The 23rd  Psalm has been called the Psalm of faith, and certainly with great reason. Each line captures a sense of serene and happy confidence undisturbed by a single doubt. Included in these words of King David, are pictures of punishing rods and staffs, enemies, and foreboding valleys. Yet, each is coupled with mercy. Every possible fear is covered over by a faithful prospect of mercy and grace. 

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Dear Lord, my prayer this morning for those who are struggling, those who would simply give up, will be strengthened with a new resolve to find the true, sure, and available in every situation. Please, Lord, help us keep our eyes on you and not our problems.

Church, Ministry, Ramblings

The Word or the song?

MARK 6:34 says,  “And Jesus, when He came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them because they were as sheep not having a shepherd:  and He began to teach them many things.”

I have searched for a place to exercise my spiritual gifts.  I pastored four churches, taught hundreds of Bible Studies, written hundreds of devotions, yet as I sit in my local church as a congregant, I feel there is a gap between my expectations and reality. This situation has caused me to think that there is a pandemic within organized Christianity. The common thread is a subtle change from the centrality of the Word of God to something that could arguably be considered as important. Worship is a good thing but is it enough?  The change is from discipleship to worship.  I deeply understand and seek to worship my God in word and deed but I struggle with the lack of spiritual depth that a constant diet of worship and praise seems to provide.

So what is the reasoning behind this subtle change in style and methodology?  Is it easier to sing and raise our hands than to rightly divide the word of truth?  Is it more palatable to feel good by ecstatically repeating words over and over in the cadence of a snare drum and brass cymbal than to dig deeper into the Word of God and perhaps find something in our lives that requires change.

So who within the church today is supporting this well-meaning paradigm?  Today, in America, churches are full of sheep not having a shepherd.  Within these churches across our country, hungry sheep wait to be fed and to be led into the things of God.  Unfortunately, these same multitudes are being shepherded by someone not willing to, as Jesus stated, “If you love me feed my sheep.”  Barna’s studies state that two-thirds of all those who classify themselves as regular attendees have the primary desire for their attendance is to discover more about God.  But when asked if their last church service meet that need, only six percent responded that the last church service they attended met that expectation.

And, unfortunately, while there is a yearning for God in the pew, there appears to be a falling away in the pulpit.  I not saying that much of today’s clergy is spiritually bankrupt, I am just saying it is easier to go with the flow.

Paul speaking to the Roman church said “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”   I long for the day when more and more preachers begin refusing to “trim the truth in the name of tickling the ears of the people.

Not wanting to be a part of the problem and becoming part of the solution, I have found a better solution to sitting on my holy petard. I am actively finding my place in changing the Church. I must change it from the inside of a church.  I can no longer just point fingers.  I must be a change agent. Spiritual gifts are not to be hoarded or kept to myself.  I will make every effort to stick my foot in the door and make a difference where I can.

I will not do only what is expected but do as much as I can without incurring the wrath of the church hierarchy.

Church, Culture, Denominations, Ministry, Sermon Illustration

All hail the power of the skeptic

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Close your eyes and imagine a church sanctuary filled with those who all think, believe, and feel the same. They all say AMEN at the appropriate times. They all pay exactly ten percent of their income.  The songs are all well accepted and sung with both bravado and familiarity. The Preacher of the day is recognized with constant bobblehead responses. After service, everyone remains to greet each other and inquire about the glorious victories of overcoming.

Open your eyes and realize this perfected vision is not real.  Christians are not cookies cut out of the heavenly bread of life each perfectly identical to the other. This picture is what Psychologists refer to as groupthink.  It is a place where the congregation values consensus and conformity over vulnerability and self-examination.

The church needs a liberal sprinkling of skepticism.  Without criticism, dissent, and critique, there is no place to grow. There is nowhere to go to be more than the status quo.  An unexamined faith only leads to idolizing an ideal image, a disdain for outsiders, a denial of personal faults, and a lack of growth. Without a dose of dissent, there is no place for healing.

We need a liberal dash of skepticism, uncertainty, critique, and self-examination. Further, this infusion of questioning is to be handled with care and respect.  The number one roadblock to faith for a true skeptic is not a theological stance about Jesus, but the behavior of those who claim to follow Jesus. Those of us who diligently question almost everything find it striking that those who are in the knowing, act as if they have a monopoly on what it is to be proper or good. This ownership comes with dread, a rejection, a fear of any who would ask why.

Those who have doubt or uncertainty should not silence their questions to be accepted by the Body cemented.  We should not silence the skeptic for the sake of the comfortable.  Being a skeptic does not automatically mean heresy any more than the status quo automatically equates to perfection.

Those who are asking questions are vital to the church.  They make the church vibrant, accepting, and accessible.  They give the comfortable a chance to grow a little.

Culture, Ministry, Motivation, Prayer

pinogam

The more I study His word the more I realize my own self-worth is not worth at all. I see all mankind in one of two groups.  You may well think these groups may be categorized as the Good and the bad.  But I don’t see it that way. Let me explain

Group one includes those who think they are righteous and the second are those who know they are sinners.  Matthew 9:13. One group pretends there is no need for God and the other simply acknowledges a need for God.

The common denominator is that we all need help. The catch is that we don’t all admit it. Rather than realizing everyone is in this together, that we are all in need of help, we often prop up our self-esteem by looking at people who do supposedly worse things than ourselves.

We create a scale and somewhere there is a line between good and bad.  In our scale we work diligently to stay above the line. We live our lives in a two-story home on a quiet cul-de-sac, we keep our lawn well-manicured and our cars washed, we stay faithful to our spouse, we work hard at our chosen vocations, we pay our bills, and never cheats on taxes. We compare our goodness to others’ badness and think, “I’m a morally sound person. I’m doing pretty well. I don’t need help.”

All have sinned and fallen short of God’s ideal. We are all PINOGAMS (People In Need of Grace and Mercy). One group pretends there is no need for God and the other simply acknowledges a need.

Our superficial labeling system guarantees that we will never find freedom ourselves. It takes courage and humility to recognize we are as messed up as the drug addict next door. Few ever get that honest with ourselves. If we can’t be honest with ourselves, we’ll never be honest with God. We will continue to whitewash our dark sides and flaunt our good deeds, and nothing will ever change.

I guess we are really all in one category after all. We all need.

Bible, Bible Study, Life, Ministry, Motivation

Sermon on the Mount

I am building a group of men to think for themselves.  To rightly divide the word of truth.  The vehicle for this building is a study on the Sermon on the mount.  It is in Matthews Gospel Chapter 5,6,7.

But as I read these words over and over again, I am amazed at the teachings of Jesus.  He was teaching the disciples on a grassy hill about the Kingdom of Heaven.  The hearers were amazed at the teachings of Jesus for it was from authority.  It meant something to them.  The sermon was one of those in which after the last AMEN, you simply said, “wow”. It pierced their hearts with truth. Not like another law book or set of rules.  Jesus taught them about the things which impacted their lives.  

The Scribes and Pharisees taught speaking and re-speaking the same words.  Words without life and conviction. Jesus said to those who listened, “your righteousness must surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.  This new law of the Kingdom of Heaven, this new way of truth and life, this abundant life points to dire need for a new righteousness.

The Kingdom of Heaven is a righteousness of faith empowered by the Holy Spirit to enable  you  to  lovingly,  willingly  and  delightfully  yield  your  will  in  total  submission  to  His  examination  of  your  heart  so  that  you  may  be  completely  set  free.

As with any revolutionary idea these words of Jesus were and still are misconstrued. It would be easy for anyone reading the Sermon on the Mount to wince once and a while. We have to be different from everyone else.  We can’t even think about getting angry and wishing someone ill, just looking at a woman is the same as having relations with her, divorce is out of the question, can’t make a oath, turn the other cheek and pray for my enemies.

In a quick read the task of obedience is overwhelming. “Jesus have you just traded one set of laws for another?”  The demands of Jesus are simply too difficult. Who among us have never hid wrong attitudes in our heart?  Who is not guilty of disobeying the rule of the King? 

The inevitable result is to fall short of God’s glorious ideal. We try and try to uphold that ideal with every ounce of our strength, but we fail again and again.  We end up living a life full of disappointment, guilt and failure.  And that is just the point. 

your conscience burns within you knowing that Jesus does not rule simply until you’ve had enough.  But rather than leaving you naked in your rebellion and exposed to judgment, He forgives you. He heals you. He restores you. He lifts you up and strengthens you to carry on the journey of faith for yet another day.

In our men’s study we simply say, “there are only two things in the Bible, 1) Revelation and 2) reconciliation.”  God reveals Himself in his plans and ideals and we are to reconcile ourselves to that revelation. When we fail.  And fail we often do. Failure should lead ourselves back to God for His strength, His guidance, His forgiveness, His love, His reconciliation.