Embracing Change

February 18, 2009- Yesterday I read an interesting article on the subject of CHANGE. Change is necessary. It says we aren't staying in the same place, and usually as long as the change is positive, it means we are growing. But the problem with change, is that a human being is wired for comfort, and change pushes against comfort. We all search for a place in which we are good at what we do and that is where we like to stay. I am the world's worst at that. But as of lately our team is going through some change. God is calling us higher. He is calling our church higher. And the simple fact is, that's uncomfortable. I find myself wrestling with change and comfort. I, like anyone else, desire to do great things, but that is a road few travel. But for today, I have chosen to take the road less traveled. I want to be all I can be, and I commit to not only work through the change, but to embrace it.

What is a Dream?or a Dreamer?

February 11, 2010- The team really had a good time with me this week. Pastor was the one who had the idea when we went to check out a building for one of our church plants earlier in the week. Here's the story. When we were walking through this building I began to see not what happens next, but what happens after what happens next. I began to see ministry possibilities. Now rest assured I wasn't the only one seeing things like this. Everyone did. But I was the one who got stuck with the label "The Dream Bug". Any time you get photo shopped it makes you uncomfortable, but this was a horrible photo. The thing is, dreaming is good. We all should be dreamers. So I found some examples of dream bugs that I want to share.
First, we find Jacob in Gen. 22:10-22. He sees angels going up and down a ladder to heaven and God gave him a huge revelation through a dream. It changed his life and the course of the world. Then we find Joseph in Gen. 37. He has a dream that his entire family would bow at his feet. Sounds arrogant but later he interprets dreams for others which leads him to a leadership position that leads to his family seeking food from none other than him. Lives changed! Then in the book of Daniel 4:19-37 Daniel interprets dreams that lead to favor, faith, and guess what? Lives changed! Then in Matt 2:12 the wise men(or Magi) were spoken to in a dream and told not to return to Herod. Dreams are everywhere, and so are dreamers.

Freud, of course, did not link dreams to the holy, which he regarded as an illusion. He worked to put dream interpretation on a scientific footing, transposing the religious dimension of dreams into a psychological reality. Dreams were taken to be disclosure of the denied part of the self particularly the self’s repressed desires.

Though he transposed dreams from religious to psychological realities, Freud nonetheless utilized an interpretive method, which involved a patient probing of multi-layered meanings and the inscrutable, enigmatic dimensions of life. Dreams, like ancient texts, require imaginative interpretation in order for us to receive what they disclose.

Freud invites us to the work of "archaeology,’ of uncovering the origins of the self in the unconscious, But Freud’s interpretation of dreams is also anticipating what the self may become. The eschatological dimension of a dream may lead to wise choices, like that of’ the wise men in Matthew, or to the choosing of an alternative future, as in the case of Jacob.

Another kind of dreamer, perhaps the greatest dreamer of the mid-2Oth century, is Martin Luther King Jr. His "I Have a Dream" speech of August 1963 represented a defiant political stance couched in religious rhetoric. It is important that the address was presented as a dream:

I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal." I have a dream that one day all people, no matter what creed or color will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. . . . I have a dream that my son will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today! . . . I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

Dream interpretation, so Jewish in its imaginative attentiveness, pertains to psychological matters and the reality of repression. But it is not limited to those concerns. Dreams concern larger realities and possible futures. There are many voices in the night, not all of them noble. Among them, however, is the voice of the holy God, who "plucks up and tears down" what we have trusted, who "plants and builds" what we cannot even imagine.

In a nutshell, here it is. Within the dreamer are hidden truths that disrupt the status quo, that stretch the human capacity, and create new possibilities.

Activate

February 10, 2010- Lately a problem I have been dealing with is the call and limitations of a leader(very long story). But I have had to have several talks with leaders who seem to have a problem leading. I know it sounds elementary but the situation is bad at times. Anyway, while reading a book by Nelson Searcy called Activate,
I ran across a truly amazing principle. I am not the leader I should be! The principle was this. An average leader see what happens next(me), an excellent leader sees what happens after what happens next(where I want to be). Here's the deal. If you are a leader remember this. If the presentation of the Gospel doesn't appear to be worth our time, effort, planning, and preparation, then how can we expect it to be worth the time of those we are leading. The principle is simple. If you are a leader... LEAD!!!!

Breakthrough

February 8, 2009- We have just finished a 21 day fast here at the City Church. Usually a time of prayer and fasting is very calm, refreshing, overall great. This time however I experienced a different angle of fasting and prayer. I literally fought a spiritual war over this 21 days. Now the great thing is that God was so close during this time. But we fought hard against resistance and intimidation from many directions. There were times when I thought, "why even do this"? I had a really hard time physically(because of the poor eating habits I had acquired) and a tough time spiritually(because of the poor study habits I had acquired). But just when things looked like the fight was just too tough, a breakthrough happened. Isn't that just like God. He perfects our faith through times just like this. He disciplines us through the obedience to His word. And through it all He is right there by our side. Fasting is TOUGH! Remember the first test on mankind's faith was about what they put in their mouth. Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of porridge. Even Jesus was tested in that area. The devil visited Him in the desert during a time of fasting, and told him to "turn those stones into food". The spiritual tests will always come during our fasting and prayer, but never fear! Your breakthrough is coming.