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The Main Question

Who has played the game monopoly? I can pretty much guarantee no matter your age, you have probably played at least once in your life, right? Growing up, in my family we would have monopoly marathons…me and my cousins would have sleepovers and play it all weekend long, breaking to eat and sleep, picking up where we left off if we got bored and needed a break.. or if grandma kicked us out of the house to blow the stink off us (as she put it.)

Isn’t it funny, no matter how many times we did great at getting park place first, or boardwalk, or all the utilities, even if we collected all the sets of colors, all the blue properties, all the greens, built houses and hotels, at the end of the game…what happened to it? It all ended up back in the box. It all goes back in the box.

Is that not an accurate picture of the game of life? Life on earth is not going to last forever. This is true whether you are a person of faith or not. You may act like the game is going to last forever. But it doesn’t. We all end up in a box sooner or later. The thing we spend our time on, the worth we put into things, is it stuff that just goes back in the box at the end of the game? The everyday idols take over and soon we are so off track, so lost we don’t know what happened!

In recovery we talk a lot about the old life and the new life…this isn’t so different than becoming a Christ follower, in both instances we have the old life and the new life and we aspire to improve that new life, make it better than the old, otherwise, really what is the point? If we continue to do the same habits as we did before our life will not change. I propose a different scenario for 2013. To shift our focus off of things in a box, and onto something different.

In 2nd corinthians 5 verses 16-20 in the message version, the bible states, “Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons!”

A new life grows, it flourishes, erupting forth! Through the holy spirit and our faith and works, a new life flourishes!

How can we create this new life and actually create new habits? Ask yourself what are you valuing?

Jon Ortberg, a pastor and author in Menlo Park, California says in his book, “when the game is over, it all goes back in the box” that nothing else in this world matters except these 2 things:

Who you loved and who loved you?

Nothing else matters, not money, not fame, not how many possessions you own, but who you loved and who loved you. if you can keep that thought in mind, it could change the way you make decisions and change what you value and make lasting life change.

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Take the Plowed Road

Last week, I went on a road trip with a group of gals to a church about an hour away from Pine City. We decided to take a short-cut. Unfortunately, the short cut was a road that had not yet been cleared from the snowstorm 2 days prior. It took us 45 extra minutes to get to our destination.

How often do we try to take short cuts in life, only to be harbored by the rough road we choose?

I often get caught in the performance trap, trying to make up all the wasted time; I was a prodigal daughter and I want to make up for the spoiled brat I used to be and still am at times. I often battle the feeling that I am not worth God’s time or love. I don’t fully understand love in general so I study the bible in hopes to learn how to love in a healthy way. The fear of being unloved will affect my ability to retain or absorb what I read, will affect my ability to wholly believe with everything in me, every part of the bible. Not to mention affecting my ability to apply it to life. Does anyone else feel this way? Please tell me I am not alone!

When I was a non-believer my stance was I did not believe in all the fantastical things that the bible records. None of the miracles, none of the stories of redemption, and especially Jonah in the whale, it is physically impossible! Pastor Seth challenged us in a message a few years back to make the decision to believe. Don’t argue semantics, just choose to believe. It was from that message that I began to discard the old way of thinking and adopt a new life.

For Evergreen’s Christmas series, we have a huge God-meter on stage at church. Pride on one end, fear on the other and Godfidence in the middle. For today, the unbelief I need to get past is that I am not important. And every time I try to combat that thought I jump right over the Godfidence part of life and into pride like leap-frog.

The challenge is how to live a useful life, still realize it is not about me, and at the same time feel totally loved and confident of God’s love.

Many days I do not feel worthy to be part of God’s church. I am much like the apostle Paul in the sense that I slandered (murdered in my heart) Christians, I passed judgement, I made fun of the stero-type, I dis-trusted, I rebelled with my behavior, my language, my lifestyle, choosing the world over the word. Since I didn’t grow up in the church, what did I think I was rebelling and repelling from? I think there is the knowledge and the desire in every single human for that connection to God. I think everyone wants to be loved by God. I think it is built into our biology. I only spent a few short years in Sunday school, I barely remember the old dusty attic of the Lake George bible chapel where we met for class. I had a rudimentary understanding of the memorization of the books of the bible, some key prayers and passages, and of course I remember the felt board ‘make-believe’ stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, Jonah, Jesus. Even for that short period I was affected for my life to come. God was setting the stage, preparing my heart for this time, my life now. He prepares all of us, each of our histories has set the stage for what is to come.

When I came back into the fold, I snuck back in, hoping not to be noticed, for fear I would not be accepted, not by the people- although that is always a fear- but more importantly I wouldn’t be accepted by God. That I had drifted too far away, was not important to His work and not needed. And truthfully, I am not needed. God doesn’t need me to further his work for the kingdom, he can choose someone else to do the job I am doing. So, the fact that I am here, in this moment, that I am in the work I am, helping my church operate behind the scenes, teaching kids, teaching recovery from the prodigal life, proves that God loves me, He desires a relationship with me, wants me exactly where I am and I can wake up everyday and decide to partner with him or not. Love is about acceptance. Acceptance of myself. Acceptance of the responsibility of my role as a child of God, daughter of Christ and in so accepting, I can accept that God loves me. He has the same love for you. You have the same responsibility to choose. Do you accept it?

God cleared the road to me, just like a snowplow. And he cleared the way to you. Use the right road.

May God our father himself and our master Jesus clear the road to you! And may the master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you. May you be infused with strength and purity, filled with confidence in the presence of God our father when our master Jesus arrives with all his followers. -1 Thessalonians 3: 11-13

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Crazy Train

I was recently challenged with this assignment: think the thoughts you would think if you believed God’s promises completely. You would think it would be easy to meditate on that, perhaps there are even people out there that naturally truly believe God’s promises, but I have talked to too many people who doubt their worthiness, that doubt God’s love, who doubt their ability to do anything through Him who gives them strength, so I know I am not alone in questioning God’s promises for me. In order to wrap my head around, to retrain that crazy brain of mine, I turn to scripture. So let’s test it…

I can believe God wants His church to succeed in reaching lost people.

Ephesians 5:29-33 “No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it. That is how Christ treats us,the church, since we are part of his body.

Unfortunately, there are too many of us that actually do abuse our bodies. We indulge in unhealthy habits, gorging ourselves with food, booze, drugs, forgetting that our bodies were given to us by God, therefore we should be wise in taking care of it. If we can’t take care of ourselves, how are we to take care of His church? This is why it is so important to remain healthy. To rest, eat well, live well and have time to balance family, work and play in order to be useful to the greater good of mankind. Jesus pampers His bride as should we.

Evergreen is having a Loco Mojo Christmas party on December 23rd at 7pm! Everyone is invited to come and bring everyone you know! Because at Evergreen we believe this second promise…

I can believe I have a new life in Christ.

“Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life,a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.” -2 Corinthians 5:15 msg

No matter what stress the holidays bring you, no matter how crazy the family is or how broke you are, believe in the promises God has for you. Study the bible, it is riddled with examples. Pay attention and you will be able to retrain the brain.

Psalm 136:23-26
“God remembered us when we were down.
His love never quits.
Rescued us from the trampling boot.
His love never quits.
Takes care of everyone in time of need.
His love never quits.
Thank god who did it all.
His love never quits.”

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Is Gratitude a Give-In?

“O Lord, listen to my cry; give me the discerning mind you promised.”-Psalm 119:169

Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be. I love that we get a day off work to reflect on the gratitudes in life. To be with family, sharing good food by a warm fire, enjoying the company of the out-of-towners arguing good-naturedly over football teams. Well-behaved but active children playing tag in the back yard. Ahh, a picture perfect holiday. Too bad we can’t leave well enough alone.

For the unfortunate majority, this holiday is spent gorging ourselves on grandma’s pie, slipping into the turkey-induced coma, only to get a power nap in before the stores open nowadays as early as 10pm the night of to buy the cuisinart 5 in one griddle and other useless items just for the last minute revenue reports for the already tanked economy. Sorry. Just had to get that off the chest.

Honestly though, our ability to be happy, to be content and recognize the blessings and feel gratitude is up to us. I used to be so negative I had no real good reason to even get up in the mornings. Thanksgiving wasn’t about the people in my life and my thankfulness for them, it was about the food and the shopping. This was all due to my frame of mind. When life didn’t go my way, when people didn’t respond or act how I wanted them to, I harbored resentment and self-pity. I thought it was my job to control everything, and since I didn’t have a relationship with God, I thought I was God. Admitting I have compulsive behaviors that have caused character defects was the first step to changing my thinking and thus changing my life. The surrender of my thoughts came next. Where the mind goes, the man follows.

By spending a few moments listing out gratitudes, I am conditioning my thoughts. Our part, our responsiblity, is to practice controlling our thoughts, our emotions. We can train our brain to think positively. This isn’t just rhetoric, daytime talk show dribble-drabble. It can be our reality.

“So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. but letting the spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.”-Romans 8:6

I am grateful for a forgiving and gracious God who gave me a loving husband, a family that cares for me, friends to walk with and a lake to play on. What are yours?

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The REST is up to Us

Every other week or so, I get stuck in the performance trap instead of resting in God’s grace. My mind twists messages I receive from others and what I read in scripture. I cannot always believe what I think. I manipulate and justify way too easily! I would not be able to successfully read the bible and understand it without positive outside influences; friends who are also Christ-followers, in-depth studies from Pastors, time to write and process, cause left to my own interpretation I am easily confused. My natural tendency is to think that if I only try harder I will get the things I want in life. If I work more hours I will get paid more. If I scrub the floor harder it will be cleaner. Doesn’t that make sense? The point I seemingly always forget is at what cost? Is it worth the extra money if I have no time for family or fun? Is it worth the clean floor if my fingertips are bloody? Luke chapter 10 is a great area to dissect and distinguish our work from God’s…

Later the Master selected 70 and sent them ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he intended to go. He gave them this charge: “what a huge harvest! And how few the harvest hands. So on your knees; ask the God of the Harvest to send harvest hands.”- Luke 10:1-2(msg)

This tells me to first PRAY. But I don’t think we stop there. Read on:

“On your way! But be careful-this is hazardous work. You’re like lambs in a wolf pack.”-Luke 10:3

Jesus sent out the disciples to prepare the way, which tells me they had to work after they prayed. This illustrates a partnership with the supernatural. God goes before us to prepare the way much like the disciples went before Jesus to prepare the way for God’s word to be heard easily. But God had also gone before the disciples to prepare the preparation…when the 70 came back triumphant, Jesus reminded them,

“All the same, the great triumph is not in your authority over evil, but in God’s authority over you and presence with you. Not what you do for God but what God does for you-that’s the agenda for rejoicing.”-Luke 10:20

God could’ve prepared the way on his own. He didn’t need the 70 to go to the towns before Christ. But he did it so they could be witnesses to many miracles and thus strengthen their faith. This is like our work today. God doesn’t NEED us to help each other out. He allows us to serve others at home, at school, at work, at church, so we get to experience His presence.

Don’t get caught in the performance trap. When we focus on His presence, our work is always good, so there is no need to worry or overwork ourselves. Bask in the Glory of God when you work it will be so much more fruitful!

Are you feeling God’s presence today?

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Doing Less Requires More

I was with my 2 year old nephew yesterday. Getting down to the level of a toddler is such great therapy. No matter what stressors my week entails, my weekly playdate helps my sanity on so many levels. Being able to hear his vocabulary grow as we discuss hot button topics like who is more awesome, Thomas the train or Percy? The magnetic force of a mudpit drawing us to land palm-first in squeals of laughter. The connection between a dog and his boy as they romp in said mudpit. These are great times. But I would not do any good if I do not continue to challenge my sweet newphew’s vocabulary, introducing him to new words, creating new worlds with full sentences. If I did not teach him to wash his hands or rinse out the filthy jeans after letting him play in the mud, he would grow up thinking it is absolutely fine to be Charlie Brown’s friend “Pigpen.” And as cute as a dirty 2 year old is, a filthy 40 year old man…not so much. Sure, it is easier to just do it all myself, takes less time too…but, if I didn’t teach him to clean himself, feed himself, talk himself, I would be too busy cleaning up after him, feeding him and interpreting baby language to help him build a foundation for life. I would be stunting his growth and development.

In the local church, I think many get stuck in the basement foundation that keeps sinking in quicksand, instead of moving believer’s further up their spiritual path, higher to the skies of their true purpose. We get stuck in the distraction of each other’s problems instead of pointing to Christ as the solution.

“No prolonged infancies among us, please. We’ll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up to know the whole truth and tell it in love- like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.”-Ephesians 4:14-16

At EVERGREEN we keep it simply about Jesus. We do a few things and we aspire to do them well. We study the gospel. We serve each other. We invite others to know Christ too. We do this by creating a creative distraction free environment on sunday mornings, learning and teaching how to serve others. By investing in young leaders in our leadership structure, kids and student programming. By encouraging personal growth by attending our newest experiment Evergreen Recovery, where we learn to break down life in manageable chunks in large group teaching and small group sharing. We give generously to organizations that are better equipped than us to help locally and globally in like minded missions.

No one is perfect. Not one person on earth has all the answers. But we can all have an influence that is positive in the lives of others.

When you do for others, do you also take the time to teach?

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Masking Tapestry

When I was a child I used to collect porcelain venetian masks. I loved the bright colors painted on smooth complexions. I felt a sadness about them and was especially intrigued by their hollow eyes. Perhaps because I didn’t have to spend time and energy trying to figure out what they were thinking, I could create their identity birthed from my own imagination.

Masks are fun for halloween, but just like our hurts, habits or hangups, the mask begins to handicap us. It makes it hard to see. Hard to communicate. We are often misunderstood.

I think many of us wear masks. We hide our true identity, we mask our pain, we isolate behind that hurt, habit or hang-up and over time the mask becomes glued to our face. We may even come to believe the mask is our real identity, and when people come at us with a pick to try and break the mask to free us, we run for fear of the pain of exposing what is underneath.

When we learn to look to our identity in Christ, we can humbly remove the masks because we are focussed on what God wants for our life, we care only about His approval, and we can shed our masks one layer at a time, one day at a time. When we learn to go to God in all circumstances he builds a new identity out of the former, one that is stronger, braver and has purpose for the greater good.

“Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like. But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God- the free life!- even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. that person will find delight and affirmation in the action.” -James 1:22-25

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Appreciation

October in Minnesota is the best time of year. Colors pop, weather cools, new clothing styles to refresh our palettes, new foods to can, harvest, create. It’s also Pastor Appreciation Month. For many congregations, that identification ranks right up there with Columbus Day. It means very little, if anything, to most churches.

Many people cringe at the idea of showing anyone extra appreciation or honor if they’re being paid for doing their job. I have even heard, “Well, if we give above what we give in the offering, then he will just expect more and more. He might even expect a pay raise. It’s better not to show all our cards in one sitting.” Wha??? I don’t know about you, but I am not playing poker with MY pastor! I am being guided spiritually, emotionally, relationally by someone who invests time, energy and money into MY well being, MY growth, MY soul. And I am not the only one in the congregation!

So, how do we show praise and honor to the leaders of our church? At Evergreen, one of our pieces of our culture is “We are a generation of Honor”. We honor up, honor down and honor all around. And when we honor and respect those around us, we ultimately honor God by respecting who He has placed in authority over us. How can we avoid worshiping a personality while simultaneously loving and blessing our pastors and setting them up to win and succeed in serving us? Here are a few places to start…

1. Obey The Bible

The pastors (elders) who lead the affairs of the church well are worthy of DOUBLE HONOR, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. I Timothy 5:17

Point Blank. End of story. It is in the bible, therefore we believe and follow the teachings to the best of our ability. Don’t refuse to honor your pastor because you’re afraid it will go to his head and cause him to be arrogant. How foolish! Honor and encouragement foster humility, not pride.

2. Verbally Affirm Them

Dear brothers, honor those who lead you. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love. I Thessalonians 5:12

Not only should I use my mouth to encourage pastors, I should also use my hands. I can write a card, send a gift certificate, compose an encouraging email, or post on Facebook and Twitter how much I love and appreciate those who lead the church. I can brag on them in public and pray for them by name.

3. Consistently Defend Them

Do not listen to an accusation against a pastor (elder) unless it is brought by two or three witnesses. I Timothy 5:19

At some point, people won’t like something our leaders say or do, and they will talk about it. When we hear these comments, we should quote this verse and explain to the gossiper and anyone else who is listening that we won’t put up with that kind of harmful slander against our pastor. Gossip should not be tolerated in any case, but especially to those in church leadership, you are working against the integrity of God’s church when you engage in those conversations! You wouldn’t let someone talk about your kids or spouse in front of you. Get your pastor’s back!

4. Faithfully Bless Them

For the scripture says, “Do not muzzle the ox while he is treading out the grain” and “The worker deserves his wages.” I Timothy 5:18

Generosity is a biblical principle. We do not need to ‘one up’ each other with generosity. That is not the spirit in which we give. Find out what your leaders enjoy and pray about giving it to them as a gift. Pay attention to what gives them joy, it is okay to see them as humans! Get creative! It could be something as simple as babysitting so your Pastor and his wife have a date night, gift cards, words of encouragement, offer to help with small tasks, if you have a vacation spot, let them use it. There are so many ways we can show honor and appreciation!

The more we honor and care for our leaders, the better they will love and shepherd and serve us. They win, we win, and ultimately God is glorified and His church is advanced. Let’s follow God’s instruction by loving on our leaders. Pastor Appreciation month is a great place to start.

ideas and concepts inspired by claytonking

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Truths 4 Today

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes (okay, OFTEN) I have overwhelming thoughts about my circumstances. Worry robs me of joy. Worry is a form of fear, and too much fear leads to faltering faith. It leads to taking back the trust I have finally starting feeling towards a God I denied pretty much my whole life. Oh, sure. I knew there was something bigger outside of myself. But, honestly…I kinda attributed that entity as like an alien; something just up in space observing us ants and either laughing or shaking his head in disappointment at our ridiculousness.

My former perception of God does not help my peace of mind. My former perception feeds into the lie that I am all alone and there is no one or nothing that is here to support me, love me, and actually cares how my life turns out. That former perception is a lie. And I would think there are many “ants” who perceive God in a similar fashion. I am telling you right now, IT IS A LIE. Here are some truths:

Our God is faithful.

So The Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For The Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious if you ask for help. He will surely reply to the sound of your cries.- Isaiah 30:18-19

Our God wants for us a great life.

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.- John 10:10

Our God is all powerful.

It is The Lord who provides the sun to light the day and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea into roaring waves.-Jeremiah 31:35

Our God keeps his promises.

“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day,” says The Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their heart. I will be their God, and they will be my people. And they will not need to teach their neighbors nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know The Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says The Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness and I will never again remember their sins.” Jeremiah 31:33-34

Our God loves us unconditionally.

He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. -Ephesians 1:7

Seriously. Once you dive in and study the Word of God, you see all kinds of correlations and truths spilling off the pages. Truths that are relevant to your current situation right this very moment! It is no coincidence that God told Jeremiah of the coming of Christ long before Jesus was born. It is no coincidence when you are feeling helpless or hopeless or lost that attending to your spiritual conditioning by going to church helps you see the road in, and the road home. Hang on for dear life. Your church is here to help you. Don’t have a church? Check out Evergreen here