God in a Box

Sometimes we become so isolated in our little Christian world that without even thinking about it we put God in all kinds of convenient boxes.
I'm growing more and more convinced that God wants to blow our boxes to pieces. If He cannot, then we will not be able to fit Him in.

I read about the church around the world and it helps me to broaden my perspective of how God is working. I thought that you would like the post below by Bob Roberts that talks about a recent experience he had worshipping with a church in India.

What boxes does God need to blow up in your life?

Worship With Hindu Followers Of Jesus

from glocalnet by Bob Roberts Jr.

No doubt E. Stanley Jones would have loved being with me yesterday in worship. I worshipped in a house church with some 30 other people. The pastor was a former Hindu militant who organized the persecution of believers and even killed some until someone led him to Jesus - now he’s a church planter. The service was incredible. We were stuffed in a small room, there were Seiks, Hindus, and other people from various religions that came into the room to experience this Jesus as the one true God, yet stay within their culture and families. A coconut with a burning candle and some incense was at the front of the room where the pastor sat. They open with prayer. Most of these are in their 20’s, they are the present future of the church. The prayer is as if the pastor is leading a chant - it reminds me of Gregorian chants. We sing four songs with a drum. Each song, they clap - but they are very serious - their eyes are closed and they are deeply reflective. We stand and sing, sit and pray, up and down on the floor - I sure feel my knees! Then he takes the coconut - breaks it open and lets the milk go into a jar. He describes that as what Jesus did for us on the cross - I don’t understand it but it has something to do with how Hindu’s believe they worship - and he’s describing that Jesus opens the door and has accomplished all they need to know God. A man preaches - or teaches - for 30 minutes. We pray for sick people, people being called to ministry - one young girl feels God is calling her to plant a church - I’m asked to pray over her. I do and ask God to use her powerfully. Another person has relatives in prison and they are hurting. The service lasts all of 2 hours and man I feel like I’ve met with God. I understand very little of the words but capture all the passion and meaning. Thank God!

Crazy, Busy Day . . .

What a wild day between trying to work on a sermon, fix a car window (see this mornings blog) and tying up loose ends to get out of town . . .

I'm excited to get on a plane in a couple of hours to go to Dallas for a Church Planting gathering that's been in the works for several months . . . I'm going with Alan Reed and taking along Luis Garcia who I've been meeting with and is planting a church near Hamlin MS and John Richerson is also meeting us there . . . it's at Northwood Church where Bob Roberts leads and they are pushing out into the world in incredible ways . . . it's gonna be awesome . . .

Although I'm very bummed as I'm missing my girls soccer game tonight and it's us - King @ 7-2-1 against Converse Judson @ 8-1-1 . . . the winner will be in first place with 3 games left! Man, I can't believe I'm stinkin' missing it! Go Kings Girls!!!!!!

#14

One of my blog mentors - Bob Roberts - was writing recently about his reflections from the last 20 years of journaling (yes, 20 years!).

And #14 on his list was this: "Big things come from small obediences"

Man, how true. As we've been seeking to learn together, it's about moment by moment following Jesus in the 'trivial' details of life. If we stay connected in the 'small moments' we'll be prepared for the next moment and the next . . . and the next . . . and the next . . .

And the truth is, there are no 'trivial' moments or details -- every breath we take on earth is counted in eternity.

And you could just ask 'Sully' how 'trivial' all those small moments of studying and practice were . . . the ones that allowed him to park flight 1549 in the Hudson River.

The Missing Pieces

"If community transformation became the measure of our success, how would our churches and our communities look different? How would we look different?"

"We have allowed ourselves to separate believing the truth from it's impacting the way that we live."

"Programs did not carry the enthusiasm of the gospel in the early church. People did."

These are a few thoughts from Bob Robert's book Transformation, which myself and the leaders have been going through. I highly recommend it!


I'm also pumped that this Sunday I begin 3 Sundays of leading us in what this kind of transformation looks like in our midst! And one of the awesome elements is that it will not just be my voice, but also the voices of Creekers whose lives have been transformed!

I know that there are people around you who are curious about the Kingdom of God . . . invite them to come and hear about transformation!

Slowly Transformed

As I said a couple of days ago in a post, I've been knowing that it's time to really listen to God's heart for the future, and yet it seems like the present is always here!

Then as I was reading Bob Robert's book Transformation yesterday (which I highly recommend!) this quote by Elise Bouding hit me between the eyes:

"If one is mentally out of breath all the the time from dealing with the present, there is no energy left for imagining the future."

I'm sure that I'm not the only one who finds themselves caught up in the urgency of the moment, when what is really at stake is the unseen depths of the future.

He went on to say this: "Faith is a long-term perspective toward others realizing a future reward. In contrast, fear is a short-term, me centered 'now' that gets it all now, but nothing for the future. . . . What happens fast is illusion; what happens slowly is reality."

What do you think? Are you living fast for the now, or patiently for the future?

Something to Think About Today . . .

Another quote from Bob Roberts:

“Converts grow a church, but disciples change the world.”

Are you a convert or a disciple?

Sitting Still

Yesterday in Celebration I talked about preparing ourselves for success in following Jesus --- and the absolute necessity for us to continually hear from God through His Word.

Today I was reading Bob Roberts' The Multiplying Church and he hit a note that I knew was true in my spirit even though I sometimes struggle so much with it:

"Spiritual maturity is dependent on our ability to sit still and listen."


What do you think? What are you gonna do with it?