Born to Run

In 2009 Christopher McDougall published the best seller “Born to Run.”  McDougall found that numerous physiologists have learned through research that God made you to run.  From the fact that we walk on 2 feet vs. 4, to your bone structure, and how our bodies process oxygen and nutrients, you were made to run.  If your palms are getting sweaty just thinking about strapping on some shoes and pounding the pavement; don’t worry I am not going to tell you that scripture mandates distance running.  As a runner myself, I can tell you there is a feeling you get when it’s time to run.  You can feel it deep in your bones and your soul.  It’s like all of creation is  calling for you to run.  The sun is warm, it’s 65 degrees, and a light breeze, just try to stop me from going out for a run.

Most of you have had that feeling before as well.  Not a feeling to run down the street, but a feeling that is hard to place your finger on.  You felt it in a worship service during that one song, at the bedside as your child or Grandchild was born, standing on the top of the ski run as the sun crests over the Rocky Mountains, and when you get the phone call with the unexpected and sad news.  It was a feeling to run.  A reaction of your soul telling your body it’s time to run, to run to God.  From the beginning of creation we hear that God made people in a special way unlike anything else in creation, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)  God made you with a place in your soul made for Him, a longing for relationship with God, to spend time in prayer, in worship, and for meaning and purpose.  God made His people to run, to run to Him when they are overjoyed, or sad; when you are confused or elated at all God has revealed to you; when you know it’s God who you need to run to, or when you are not sure what to do.  God made you to run.

Pastor Bill

Discussion Questions

1. Think of a situation recently when you had that feeling to run.  What did you do?
2. When do you typically run to God, or when do you run away?

Priceless Mom

“An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels…Her children rise up and call her blessed, her husband also, and he praises her”

Proverbs 31:10, 28

 

It is time for home made cards, art projects, flowers, back rubs, because Mother’s Day is here.  Each year on the second Sunday of May we thank our Moms for being who God made them to be.  As I read this proverb about the value of a Mom, it makes me think of the old MasterCard commercials.  What is the value of a good Mom? Priceless.  Good Moms are hard to come by; they change lives, mold children, and improve the life of a whole family in more ways than you can put into words.  The passage even compares her to precious jewels, something that few people could ever afford. 

 

It made me wonder, do we take for granted the value of a good mom?  Yes we might take care of her on Mother’s Day and bring her breakfast in bed, but what about the rest of the year?  This year, make sure to affirm your Mom on Mother’s Day for all she has done for you, but take it a step further, and keep affirming her all year round.  Because as the proverb reminds us, an excellent Mom is worth more than precious jewels.  Make sure your Mom knows that she means so much to you everyday, not just Mother’s Day.

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Questions

1. What is one way that your Mom is worth more than precious jewels?
2. How might you continue to affirm her throughout the year?

 

Nike

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him (Jesus) who loved us.

Romans 8:37

 

How did you feel this morning when you woke up?  I don’t know about you, but I would not likely put the word conqueror on the list.  I wouldn’t use that word to describe myself almost ever.  Me?  A conqueror?  That word evokes images of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Eraser as he looks at the bad guy and says under his breath, “You’ve been erased!!!”  Conquerors are strong, they are smart, they have muscles, and power.

 

Romans makes it clear though that you are more than a conqueror.  Not that your muscles are something to write home about, or that you can overpower others, but  this fact is true about you because of Jesus.  The sentence doesn’t say you are more than a conqueror, but you are through Jesus.  He is the one who loves you, the one who died on the cross for you.

 

Tomorrow when the alarm goes off, read this verse out loud to yourself.  In all these things I am more than a conqueror, not because of my strength.  I can barely keep track of all the things going on to make it through the day let alone to conquer it, but I am more than a conqueror through Jesus.  It’s His strength, His encouragement, His wisdom that will get us through the challenges, the frustrations, and confusions that life throws at us daily.  When you get stuck in traffic, behind at work, or in tough conversations, just remind yourself, because of Jesus you are more than a conqueror. The Greek word here is hyper-Nike, which means that through Jesus you are a Hyper, total defeater.  So when life throws you a curve remember that in Christ, you are more than a conqueror.

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Questions

1. Is there any area or place in your life that this passage helps speak to?
2. What do you think of this passage?  Do you believe it whole-heartedly, a bit skeptical?  What makes you feel the way you do?

Don’t Miss It

Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers,

for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.

Hebrew 13:2

 

These words open the conclusion of the book of Hebrews.  Do not forget to show hospitality, because you may be entertaining angels without knowing it.  This past week I was at a conference at my seminary and had a chance to catch up with some old classmates and professors.  One of my favorite conversations was with one of my professors.  I was talking with him about memorable moments from his class, and some of the things that had really stuck with me even now a few years past graduation.  His face was priceless as I shared.  He could not believe some of the “simple” things from his class that I remembered.  The fact that he would ask about how my wife and I were doing, the after class conversations about life outside the seminary; all sorts of conversations that might have seemed off the cuff or inconsequential to him, but years later were formational for me.

 

Each day your life is filled with a variety of interactions.  You talk with people at the grocery store, as you pick your kids up, at the office, and on the web via email or Facebook or Twitter.  We have opportunities that God places in front of us each day to represent Him, and to impact another person’s life.  Paul’s message in this verse is to be attentive, because what you may see as a “simple,” “basic,” or “normal” interaction might change someone’s day, or even their life.  God works through us in the big and the small.  Be attentive to the people and opportunities God places in your life, who knows you might be “entertaining angels.”

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Questions

1. Where are some places that you spent time at regularly that you could be a witness for God?
2. How might you have a chance to share Christ’s love in a “small” or “normal” way throughout your day?

Near or Far

Are you a Christian?  Are you a member of a church?  Have you prayed the sinner’s prayer?  All these questions have a similar flaw in them.  It can make it appear that each of them is a final destination.  Are you a Christian, oh great you are all set.  You’re a member of a church, well sit back and relax; you prayed the sinner’s prayer, great you have punched your ticket to heaven.  If we are not careful we can make it sound like faith is a destination or a secret club you need to seek entrance to.  If only you would say the right prayer or join the right church then you are set.

 

Jesus talks about faith in a very different way.  For Jesus faith is not a destination, it is a journey.  Throughout the Gospels Jesus doesn’t talk about how God’s Kingdom is an exclusive club you need to seek entrance to, but a journey all of us walk throughout our lives.  In Mark 12, Jesus could have said, well buddy, you are not in yet, but maybe one day. Instead Jesus speaks of proximity to God.  We don’t have a God switch that you just flip one day.  For many their journey towards God happened over the course of years; through conversations, books, concerts, and more.  The Kingdom of God is not about getting in, it’s about proximity.  This is so central because no matter your age or length of time as a believer, you too are on this journey; each day moving closer or farther to Jesus Christ our source, our life, our redeemer.  Instead of asking are you in or out, we should instead be looking to see, are you growing closer or farther, are you near or far? 

 

Bill Hybels describes it as a continuum running from -10 to 10. -10 is an atheist, someone who does not like God, or is even angry at God and convinced God is not real.  10 is a mature believer who walks with God in a deep and meaningful way each day.  As you walk in your own life or with others, he challenges us to think beyond getting someone to “become” a believer.  Hybels instead challenges us to think, how can I walk with someone to help them move closer to God?

 

Pastor Bill

 

 

Discussion Questions

1. Think of someone that you might share you faith with, or invite to church, how might you walk with them closer to God?
2. How are you growing closer each day in your own faith?

Game Change

But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Exodus 21:23-25

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

Easter week is filled with Easter baskets, Peeps, egg hunts, and Easter hams. Somewhere in the midst of all the fuss is the reality that on Easter, Jesus changed all the rules. The Old Testament teaches that our imperfections and sins have a cost and consequences. We hear in the New Testament that our sins have the consequence of death, similar to the Old Testament in a culture of animal sacrifice to pay the cost of sins.

Throughout this week you will hear people saying things like, grace is free, and that Jesus offers you this free gift. Jesus offers you this gift at no cost to you, but He had to pay for it with His own life. Jesus died on the cross and took on death, the ultimate game over, dead end, it’s over, that ever existed. When he came down from the cross and was put in the grave, these verses about the cost of sin were true as the day they were written, death was the end of the road on this earth, there was not way to make a U-turn out of it, at least before Jesus.

Early Easter morning Jesus did not just conquer death, he smashed it, exploding out of the grave. Easter morning Jesus rewrote all the rules. Death no longer won, sin no longer bound people until they sacrificed an animal to make amends, till people earned or bought their forgiveness and reconciliation. It was no longer about what we did to earn repentance for our brokenness. There was no more eye for an eye, just grace and new life through the man who died on the cross for each of us.

So when someone tells you grace is free, remember, although it doesn’t cost you anything, it cost Jesus everything. Scripture tells us that Jesus turned his face “like flint” to that task for you, so that Easter morning would be unlike any other morning. Jesus died and on Easter so that we would experience a game change, a new reality that we still live in today, where grace is free, and forgiveness is offered to you through Him.

 

Pastor Bill

Build A Savior

“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain…Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering,” Isaiah 53: 2-4 (excerpts)

 

As we approach Easter, Christians will open the Bible and read texts like this one from Isaiah talking about the coming Messiah, Jesus. We will be challenged to reflect on the person of Jesus, the one who died for us on the cross. We will celebrate Easter, and celebrate the person of Jesus. Depending on who you talk to, you may hear a variety of understandings of who Jesus is, and what His work means. For some, Jesus is like a Build a Bear. You choose a case, level of stuffing and what clothes to wear, what to name it, and more. At Build a Bear you have a totally customized experience for each person. Some will look at Jesus similarly. For some Jesus is a cuddly teddy bear, who only loves me and never tells me I am doing anything wrong; for others Jesus is a great teacher, filled with deep theological thoughts, but disconnected from the reality we live in, and the list could go on.

 

As we reflect on these passages and the person of Jesus we are faced with a reality from Scripture; Jesus is who He is, not who we might want Him to be. Jesus is not meant to be a highly customizable savior who molds and fits our flavor or desire of the week. Jesus is instead the Son of God, revealed to us in the Bible, revealed to people as He walked this earth and did His ministry. Jesus is more than anything we could ever describe or try to put words to. So this Easter season as we think about the person of Jesus, look at the Bible, read about the stories, the interactions, the meals, and all that we learn about Jesus from Scripture. Make sure the picture of Jesus that you are reflecting on is not from Build a Bear, but instead from God’s Word.

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Questions

 

1. What does your picture of Jesus look like?

 

2. Do you have any scriptures that are helpful as you think about Jesus during Easter season?

 

I Spy

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.

John 3:8 NIV

 

A great travel game to play with kids is I Spy.  You start by saying “I spy with my little eye…a red car.”  Then the other person has to look around and find a red car.  It helps you become more attentive to your surroundings and helps you to notice more in the world around you.

 

This past week I had someone approach me who said that they felt disconnected and distant from God.  They wondered how they might feel closer to God.  My suggestion, play some spiritual I Spy.  Start and end each day saying I Spy God at work, and then think about where and how you saw God at work.  Jesus reminds us in this passage that God is not just going to go walking by with a big “GOD” sign.  Instead we can see the Spirit of God at work in and through people and circumstances all around us.

 

I tried doing this for a few days and realized how little I am on the look out for the Holy Spirit around me, and just how much God is at work had I been looking or paying attention.  The best part of this is that when you notice God at work, it makes you more excited to keep looking and better at “finding” God all around.

 

Take it one step further though, and try this with someone else.  Share with your spouse, or friends, or family members how you see God at work in the world around them.  Encourage each other with how you have seen the Holy Spirit at work; you will be amazed at all the ways God is at work all around each day.

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Questions:

1. Write down what you spy God doing in the next few days.  What was it like to be on the look out for God all day?
2. What is most exciting or challenging about seeing God work around you?

Easy Button To God

A few years ago Staples created a cultural icon when it began its “easy button” campaign.  They said that using their store was the equivalent of hitting the magic easy button for your life and business.  This ad was wildly successful and memorable for most people because it tapped into something, we like – easy.  We strive for efficiency, with our time and resources, so we can do more.

 

Some people will try to explain being a Christian as if there is an easy button to God.  Just say a special prayer, and then come to church, be a good person, and you will should be just fine.  Church is a place to come, put up your feet with other worthy people, and get comfortable.  Surround yourself with traditions and ways of being that envelope you like a warm blanket, find your favorite seat, and you will be set.

 

There is no easy button when you follow Jesus that much is clear throughout Scripture.  Jesus spent most of his ministry breaking the traditions and stuffy rules that had nothing to do with a God, but were all about people.  Jesus was known well because he pushed boundaries, and didn’t hesitate calling out people who were selfish and focused on comfort and traditions instead of the living God.  Romans 12:2 tells us, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”  When you meet Jesus, when he gets into your soul, it will change you deeply.  There is no easy button to God or easy faith, but instead a road that you can journey along with others imperfectly.  You can grant each other grace, even though it can hard and messy, just like the grace you have been given freely by Jesus when He died on the cross and rose from the dead to free you from sin.  Is following Jesus hitting the easy button? No. Is the life change worth every messy, challenging, and joy filled step.  No question!

 

Pastor Bill

 

Discussion Question

1. What challenges you in your faith?
2. How might you encourage or walk with someone else in their faith?

Where’s Waldo?

You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

Psalm 139:1-2, 7-8

 

One of my favorite books as a child was Where’s Waldo?  Each page placed the red striped shirt hero in another complex and busy setting and our job was to locate him.  Waldo was crafty; he would hide near people wearing clothes like him or even behind props and parts of the setting.  Many of you may feel that God and Waldo share a lot in common.  You feel like God only shows up at certain times and in certain ways.  That to “locate” God is a skill and a challenging one at that.  You only get that “God” feeling sporadically, you only “find” him on occasion and question where he is the rest of the time.

 

But the psalm is pretty clear about God’s presence all around us.  It reminds us that God is more than an emotion or character who makes sporadic appearances.  God is more than a fuzzy feeling that you get as you listen to special music, or go on a retreat, or attend a Christian concert.  God is not just present in good or bad times.  God is the one who made everything you see and experience, including you.  He is always present, always around us, always there for us; sometimes we just don’t take the time to notice him.

 

Are you on the lookout for God’s movement?  Are you ready for God to show up in ways and places you might not ordinarily look for him?

 

 

Discussion Questions

1. What is one place that you don’t typically look for God?
2. How have you seen God in your life recently?