When the Sermon Doesn’t Seem Like it’s for You.

I got to brag about my church this week. I meet with a group of other clergy guys about three times a year for a couple of days. We call it our "covenant group." There are six of us who all serve different United Methodist Churches in Florida. We've been getting together like this for 13 years. My friendship with these guys will be one of the reasons I'll make it to retirement in the ministry (if I should be so blessed to live that long). They inspire me. They make me laugh. They keep me honest. They hold me accountable to be who God called me to be.

This week they listened to me brag about how 60 people in my church made 6 very significant commitments for living in financial peace for a lifetime. Those commitments are:

1. Acknowledge daily that 100% of my resources belong to God.
2. Assign every dollar a name – to spend it on paper and on purpose first (in other words live on a budget).
3. Eliminate debt and live debt-free.
4. Train my children to handle money God's way.
5. Save and Invest.
6. Give a tithe.

SIXTY people made a commitment to God that they would do all six of those things. SIXTY PEOPLE! The average congregation of 180 adults in North America has about 6 people who do all those things.

I also got to brag that 59 people worked for the last 90 days to reduce their consumer debt by nearly $281,000 and saved $92,000. And I got to brag that my church has begun 8 new ministries in our community since the end of last year. And 30 couples renewed their wedding vows in worship a few weeks back. For some of those couples that was the first time they had made marriage vows with God at the center.

I am so proud of the hard work that my church has done to get to this point!

But it also occurred to me that there are several people in my church who probably wondered how any of these recent sermons had anything to do with them. After all, we've got several single people at Spring of Life and we've got a few folks who had been living these 6 commitments to financial peace for a long time.

I honestly wouldn't have blamed them if they took the last three and a half months off from worship. In our culture we are formed to think about "what we're going to get out of it?" Or "what's in it for me?" And if we aren't going to "get anything out of it" then we consider it a waste of time and do something else.

Why on earth would anyone keep coming to worship and sit through three and a half months of sermons that really didn't directly address their issues? I think because they understand that coming to worship is as much about forming a community as it is about inspiring individuals.

The Apostle Paul spoke a lot about the church as "the Body of Christ." He said that we are all like different part of Jesus' body (fingers, toes, eyes, ears, hands, feet, arms, legs). While the hands are working and growing, the body still needs the rest of its parts to function well.

During these past three and a half months some body parts were working harder than others, but all their hard work was, in a significant way, made possible by those who quietly surrounded them with prayer, support and encouraging presence.

I know that there are times when I come to worship where I don't sing. I just listen to the voices of all those who are around me singing the songs of our faith. They don't realize it but their voices are carrying and lifting me higher than I would have been if I had just been there by myself in private devotion.

So I want to brag like Paul bragged about the people in his church when he said, "I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now." Philippians 1:3-5

Whether you realize it or not – whether the sermons touched you or not – God has been using you to form a community that is stronger today than we were 90 days ago! Thanks for coming to worship.

The Barrenness of a Busy Life

A friend of mine started a new job recently. It was a promotion and took him in the direction of things he was passionate about and skilled to handle. And in an economy like this one where any job elicits gratitude, having one you enjoy too is like heaven. But now two months into it, the increased hours and energy are beginning to take their toll. He said, “I’m not sure how much longer I can keep up this pace!”


This morning a mother of four told me she was so busy with just one of her sons she was overwhelmed. He’s a talented athlete and is involved in sports at school and works out starting at 6:00 a.m. and gets to bed late every night. She said, “I’m not sure how I can keep up this schedule.”

All of us have 168 hours in a week. And in a culture where we have been used to getting loans or using credit to spend tomorrow’s dollars today, we have imagined that we can also spend next week’s hours this week. Living like this will suck the life out of us.

My third grade daughter recently learned about something called “Opportunity Cost” in her class at school. “Opportunity Cost” is an economic term that means if you spend money on one thing, you won’t be able to spend it on something else. What it comes down to is priorities.

You can’t do everything you want to do with your 168 hours. So what is it that God wants you to do? What is it that you need to say no to in order to say yes to God’s priorities?

If we don’t budget our time like we budget our money, we will go into debt. We will get sick. We will not have the life God intended for us.

What is it that you need to say no to in order to say yes to what God wants you to do?

Patiently Enduring

If you haven’t wanted to give up, you are either dead or haven’t lived long enough.

We aren’t that far from the days when we set hopeful (dare I say) realistic resolutions for the new year. We set goals to be more healthy by eating protein, veggies, fewer carbs and sugar. We set goals to exercise by training for a 5k, joining a friend at the gym once a week or going for a walk around the block 3 times a week. We set goals to change our unhealthy financial management practices by taking Financial Peace University. We set a goal to improve our spiritual health by worshipping every Sunday unless we are sick or out of town. We decide to live more simply and spend more time with our family.

Those are all good goals. And if you live long enough you will want to give up on them all at some point. Any number of things will happen to cause you to want to give up. You will lose your job. A family member will become ill. You will get injured. You will move. You will wonder if there is a God. Your spouse will announce that they want a divorce. You will have a baby. Daylight savings will end. You will lose your driver’s license. You (fill in the blank!).

Disappointment, unexpected circumstances, attacks from the forces of evil, life happening . . . however you put it. These things threaten our patient endurance. These things conspire to make us seasonal Christians – following Jesus when it’s easy or convenient.

But the Bible doesn’t know what a seasonal Christian is. There’s no such thing as a part-time Christian. And if we are full-time, then we must learn how to patiently endure the times when it would be easy for us to give up.

In every marathon, runners go through a bad stretch. Everyone, from the pros to the beginners, experiences it. Kara Goucher, pro marathon runner who ran her first in New York, said she couldn’t believe how painful the last 10k of the marathon was. She said, “I kept looking for a place to bail out, but the crowds were so deep and cheering so loudly that I couldn’t find a place to quit.”

I love that story because it is an image of how God dreams the church to work. During the stretches where we find it painfully difficult to patiently endure any longer, we find that the road is lined with witnesses who are so deep and cheering so loudly that we have a hard time finding a place to quit.

The Apostle Paul put it this way in his letter to the Corinthian Churches:

“So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.” 2Corinthians 4:16 (The Message)

I pray that you experience the power of God’s unfolding grace to patiently endure today. God is making all things new!

Momentum Killers

What are the threats to living the life God created you for? What is it that threatens to kill any God-given momentum you may have?

How many times have you made a commitment to live a God-honoring life and a few short weeks or even days later you found the fire fading?

You said, "I'm all in." You prayed that prayer that John Wesley covenant prayer: "Lord, make me what you will. I put myself fully into your hands: put me to doing, put me to suffering, let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you, let me be full, let me be empty, let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and with a willing heart give it all to your pleasure and disposal. Amen."

And then life happens. You met with crisis, hurt, unmet expectations. The life of faith didn't seem to hold all the adventure that the preacher promised. All your momentum seems headed in the wrong direction.

These moments can be a time to leave or a time to learn.

Perhaps our first defense against momentum killers is to remember that following Jesus is for the long-haul. As Eugene Peterson put it in his book, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, "We are obsessed with the immediate."

We are much more interested in quick fixes than long-term commitments. Rarely do you find someone who works the same job or lives in the same house for 30 or 40 years. More rare these days is to find a couple who has been married for 30 or 40 or more years. It's hard for us to imagine focusing on one thing that long. Too mundane! Too boring! Can't focus for more than 10 seconds on anything!

I think we will be very sad at the end of our days if we say, "I did so many things that I did nothing."

I'm not suggesting that God wants us to live boring , mundane lives. I am suggesting that we'll never know the real joy God has in store for us if we are unwilling to persevere through very difficult, sometimes mundane times in our walk of faith.

A second defense against momentum killers is developed by perseverance in a life of faith. In a word, it's forgiveness. At some point in your relationships you will get hurt and you will have a choice - harbor hatred and bitterness or forgive. Not choosing to forgive will kill any positive momentum in your life.

Forgiveness is not a feeling you get that makes everything alright. Forgiveness is not forgetting about the pain that was caused you. Forgiveness does not mean you trust someone who is not trustworthy. Forgiveness is a choice not to get even. Forgiveness is a choice not to hold the harm caused you against the person. It's a choice not to keep bringing it up in conversations. Forgiveness is a choice to love when love is not deserved or earned. Forgiveness is what God has done for you when you didn't earn it.

Forgiveness will kill momentum killers! It is one of the most powerful weapons God has given His people in the fight against evil, injustice and oppression. It will set you free. It is a primary ingredient to learning to live the "long obedience in the same direction."

Becoming Who God Made You to Be

Building positive momentum takes time. Think of the momentum behind a freight train versus a sports car. The sports car can get going faster, but it doesn’t have the momentum of a freight train going the same speed. Once the train gets going 60 miles per hour, it’s going to take a lot to stop it. That’s how good momentum works. It takes a while to cultivate, and isn’t easily stopped.

The momentum that God began when he re-created the world through the resurrection of Jesus was a long time coming, and it isn’t easily stopped. In fact, the Bible tells us that God’s redemptive momentum through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection is unstoppable. (See Romans 8:38-39 for that promise!)

God's out recruiting every human being to join up with His story of unstoppable redemptive momentum. God wants everybody to be a part of his work to set this world right, to restore broken relationships, to disarm evil with self-giving love and find our life by giving it away. God has been pursuing us from the beginning of time and longs for us to share in his redemptive story for the world.

It is a special moment when we wake up to this reality of God’s work in the world and get that text message invitation to follow Jesus. It’s not an invitation for perfect people. It's for all people – even the ones you think don’t deserve it. Yep, you!  Have you gotten that text message from God yet?

Following Jesus and joining God’s story of unstoppable redemptive momentum is an amazing adventure. It is really about living life in the fullest possible way. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly.”

If you are tired of living life afraid, angry, lonely, and only for your own goals, there is another way. God made you for a life of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control (those are the fruit of God's Spirit. See Galatians 5:22)

Can you have this life over-night?  Perhaps. Who are we to limit what God can do.  But ordinarily long held bad habits take a while to become good habits.  Don't let relapse or struggle cause you to lose heart or give up the work of replacing bad habits with good ones.  Put the bad habits behind you and ask God for his power to help you keep becoming who God created you to be.

Keep showing up for worship. Keep reading the Bible. Keep asking God to show you His will. Keep building relationships with others who want to follow Jesus. Keep looking for ways to honor God with your body, your mind, your work and your time with your spouse and kids. Keep sowing the good habits that you know will produce the fruit of God's Spirit in your life.   Keep on becoming who God created you to be!

Don't give up! And know without a doubt, God has not given up on you.

King-Sized Hope

On Monday mornings I meet at Sweet Mama’s restaurant with a group for a Bible study. This morning the Book of Revelation and the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. collieded. It was awesome.


As you study the book of Revelation, the word hope rises over and over again. The book, with all its strange imagery, is really a book of hope. It was written to give hope to Christians who were undergoing persecution for their faith during the latter first century Roman Empire. Despite some popular theology, the book is not a coded time-table for the end of the world. While Revelation has its share of symbolism or code, its main concern is giving hope to God’s people today.

This world is created by and for God’s purposes. God created all things and called them good. But evil lies close at hand and seeks to destroy God’s good creation. There is injustice. There is exploitation. Those with power don’t always use it in God-honoring ways. How does a good and almighty God resist this evil and restore creation to its intended purpose?

Answer: The King of Kings becomes the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Jesus confronts and destroys the ultimate power of evil through his suffering, death and resurrection from the dead. The original King-Sized Hope is born!

Because of this King-Sized Hope, all people who hope in Jesus can have this assurance:

“They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:16-17

This King-Sized Hope was the foundation of all Martin Luther King’s dreams. He didn’t just think that non-violent love was the most powerful weapon to resist every form of evil. He knew it to be true because Jesus had already revealed it to be so through his death and resurrection.

It is clear that MLK’s King-Sized Hope is deeply rooted in the hope of the King of Kings. Read this last paragraph of Martin Luther King’s last sermon, preached the day before he was killed.

“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn’t matter with me now. Because I’ve been to the mountaintop. And I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the promised land. And I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

Maybe you aren’t facing death for your faith today. But if you’re following Jesus, you probably have some form of evil that you are up against. It might be evil from within or without. But it’s evil nonetheless. You may be tempted to give up. You may be tempted to hate. You may be tempted follow lesser gods. You may think evil has won. And you’d be wrong.

We have a King-Sized Hope – the only truly unstoppable momentum the world has ever known.

Building Momentum: Walking Daily with Jesus

This week Spring of Life United Methodist Church launched an initiative to build momentum in the area of personal finance.  It's not an effort to get people to give more money to the church. Even though I think giving money to the church is a fine idea, that's not what this initiative is about.

I'm convinced that our practices of managing money are a deeply spiritual issue.  I preached on that issue this past Sunday.  I believe that most people really want to give to the people and causes that are important to them. I believe that most people would like to be free to do the work that they love and be generous. I believe that most people would like to have less stress when it comes to finances.  And I believe that all of that is possible to accomplish.

There are some basic money management principles (mostly followed by our grandparents and great grandparents) that we can learn about and follow to help us accomplish this.  Dave Ramsey teaches these things well in the 13-week Financial Peace University Course. And our church is offering that course right now to anyone who would like to attend. The course materials are $80 but don't let that be a reason not to attend. We have schoarship help for those who need it. Check out our course days and times here.

With that said, basic money management principles are not everything you need to build the momentum God wants you to have.  The only true way to financial peace (and any other kind of peace) is to walk daily with the Prince of Peace. Really, having finacial peace is only one aspect of becoming the whole person that God created us to be.

The weekly devotions on this blog will help you to get to know Jesus and build momentum in your relationship with God.

If you’ve never considered putting God first in your marriage, in your work, in your finances, in everything - here is the invitation to give that a try. God doesn’t promise to make our life work out like we want, but he does promise to surprise us with His healing grace. And he promises that over-time our lives will begin to bear the fruit of His Spirit – Love, Joy , Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control.

While initially these devotions will focus more on the area of financial discipleship, you will see that this area affects everything else – our friendships, our job, our marriage, our prayer life, worship life, even our physical health. Perhaps this is one reason why over 800 verses in the Bible reference personal finance. Perhaps it is why Jesus talked more about money and giving than anything else.

God’s guidance, the Financial Peace University course and your willing spirit are an amazing combination for helping you make some changes and build some positive momentum in the area of personal finance.

Take a look at these short stories from people who have begun to feel the momentum. Feel free to share your own experience on this blog.