Jesus, Jobs & Egoists

Question: How do you serve Jesus when you hate your job?

Answer: It depends on why you hate your job. Do you hate your job because you are lazy and would rather play your Wii in your mom’s basement? Do you hate your job because you have a greater vision for what God is calling you to do? Are you working toward it? Maybe your job sucks because you are not doing anything to work toward that goal.

When I was working for UPS and was a janitor at the church, I didn’t like either job, but I did it while we planted Living Stones and while I went to Bible College. I was working toward my dream—so cleaning crap off toilets didn’t look so bad in the short term (after all, it was great training for cleaning up crap within the church!). This went on for 5 long years. But I wouldn’t trade anything for the character that was built in those years. It was all God’s prep for my current position.

Regardless of your occupation, the Scriptures command that “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men” (Col. 3:23). If you are hating your job and whining about it… stop! God has given you a way to make income, which is something to be thankful for—especially these days.

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Question: If God is so loving and compassionate, why is it that most of the Christians I meet are the most self-centered people I know?

Answer: Why are some Christians some of the most self-centered people you know? Because they are not obeying Jesus… Are you?

Remember—God saves sinners! This means that those in the church are both fallen and redeemed at the same time. Be patient with them the same way God is patient with you. Spend more time praying for them rather than criticizing them. Ask God to show you how self-centered you are so that you will be more prone to forgive. The only way to survive in a world of ‘hypocrisy’ is to cast out the hypocrisy in yourself and ask God to do through you what you don’t see being done through others. Although self-centeredness if not okay, there is no room for self-righteousness on this issue. It’s only by His work on the cross that we can love others in the first place.

Let the Q&A Blogs Begin...

Here are some long-awaited answers to your questions. The following questions were all received via text during the Living Stones 5pm gathering on Sunday, August 31st, 2008. Be sure to check out the podcast on iTunes for more Q&A, too. Alright -- here we go.

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Question: What do you do if you have a Christian family that judges you for not fitting into the ‘church mold’?

Answer: It depends what you mean by “the church mold”. If ‘not fitting into the church mold’ means that you are disobeying the things commanded by Jesus in Scripture, then you are in the wrong and need to repent. If by ‘not fitting the mold’ you mean that you are being disobedient to church culture for pride’s sake, then you need to consider the matter prayerfully—it could have varied results. If you are just being yourself and trying to be a missionary to your culture—and thereby breaking the ‘consumeristic, self-centered church mold’, then I say “AMEN! Welcome to New Testament Christianity.”

When it comes to handling judgment from others—including family—ask them to show you where in Scripture they are deriving their opinions. Remember to be respectful.

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Question: Is there are moral inventory in the Bible that one can take to see if they are on the right path?

Answer: You might want to read 2 Peter 1:3-12. There you will find a series of things you might use to evaluate your spiritual vitality. I would advise that you keep in mind that it is not your works that make you acceptable before God, but rather the works of Jesus in His life, Death, resurrection, and return form the foundation of your hope in Him.

Dear Guatemala Missions Team...

I am so encouraged by each of you and your willingness to hear the call of Jesus to spread a passion for the Glory of God in places that are under-funded and under-loved. When I see a team like this go out, I feel that what we are doing as the Living Stones Community is really making an impact on lives. The measure of our ministry will never be how many butts are in the seats but rather how many obey the call of Jesus to “Come and Die”. I pray that your being there now will fuel your being here later. May your mission in Guatemala strengthen your mission in Reno; wherever we go it is the same mission. May the Lamb of God receive the reward of His suffering!

Here is my prayer for you…

Mighty God, who creates and commands trillions of stars to shine:
You have command that billions hear your Gospel preached and see your gospel lived out to the poor. I ask that by your sovereign goodness, you would reveal the urgency of the mission worldwide to this team. Reveal the glorious love of Jesus that heals even the deepest wounds. I ask that your Spirit would pinpoint areas of bitterness and sin and encourage each Living Stones Missionary with the abundant ways you are working all around them. Make their work swift and accurate, and make their hearts humble and teachable. I pray that you would guard your children from the evil one and his works and effects. Let them know that they stand on the edge of eternity, pushing back the works of the evil one and that one day they will be in your glorious company.
Amen.

A Prayer For Our Tongue

O Lord we repent! Make our tongues yours! With them we bless you and sing to you and teach your word. And with them we curse those made in your image. With them we lie, complain, gossip and damage others. O God, if it were not for your grace—given through Jesus’ Cross—our sins of the tongue (done in this week alone) would be enough to condemn us to the deep parts of hell.

O, but on the cross we see your Son in our place for our tongues! Even if that were the only load he carried, he would still cry out “forsaken” under its darkness and despair. But, O my God, he bears the load of a billion tongue defilers! Unless it had been divine blood, there could be no atonement for such a load of tongue sins as ours. But because of His infinite worth, our defiled tongue was no match for His unlimited grace.

Hallelujah! He has rescued us! There is hope for the broken!

O God, we pray this in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Good and the Danger of Dating Relationships

There have been a lot of relationships starting in our community lately. This is a good thing… but this can also be a bad thing. Over the years, I have seen a few relationships that have fueled and deepened the couple’s passion for God—but sadly—many relationships where the end result is idolatry. Idolatry is worshiping anything but God.

Here is how you can know the difference: if the relationship is leading you closer to Christ and your passion for his mission grows, then the relationship is a good thing. If your relationship with God suffers and your passion for His mission dies, it is a bad thing.

In the latter case, the person you are dating becomes your “functional savior”, someone who saves you from your own personal hell; the hell of loneliness or insignificance. The person you date becomes the place where you derive your identity and fulfillment—this is of utmost danger.

“Savior” is a role reserved for Jesus alone. If Jesus is not your savior—and someone else is—your relationship is idolatry and your mission ceases to be the mission of God but becomes the mission of relationship.

In a healthy relationship, the person of choice is not your savior but rather your partner in the Gospel. Your love for each other only stokes the flames of your live for God. Your mission is not each other but God’s mission.

If you are in a relationship that is leading you away from God—GET OUT!