Hating Sin

I read a piece this week by Dr. Clay Jones of Biola University regarding sin. His article specifically talks about God commanding genocide in the Old Testament (See Deuteronomy 7 and the book of Joshua). God literally told Israel to wipe the Canaanites out. Every one of them. Women, men, boys, and girls. It seems a bit cruel doesn’t it? I thought God was a God of love? How could someone loving order so much destruction?

Jones’ article (click HERE to read it) describes the depth of sin that the Canaanites were involved in (adultery, idolatry, child sacrifice, and more). If we take a look around our world we see people involved in many of the same things as the ancient people (save, hopefully, for the child sacrifice). There are websites for cheaters to make connections. People of various faith backgrounds have statues in their homes that they either lean on for moral support or outright worship. This stuff is commonplace. In fact it’s so commonplace that when we see God’s judgement on a sinful people it can look as though God is being unfair. “Sure they were cheating on their spouse, but it happens all the time!”

The fact is God’s hates sin (Psalm 5, 11, 45; Heb 1:8). He hates it. It’s not that it makes Him sad. He doesn’t simply wish it wouldn’t happen. He HATES it. And the only way we’re ever going to begin to understand that is by starting to hate the sin in our lives as much as God does.

That’s a bold prayer, “God help me hate my sin.” But it’s one that I’ve been praying this week. God is faithful. I’m feeling the hatred building up. Unfortunately I have a lot to hate. And I’m feeling in a fresh way just how gracious God is to forgive me in spite of my sin. 

Again, that’s a bold prayer. But give it a try. My prayer for you is that God would answer it.

 

Taking A Break From My Vacation

Vacation. A respite from the drain of everyday life. On your time away you can do challenging things like mountain climbing or wind surfing (though I don’t know why anyone would) or you can simply sit on a beach for days at a time (I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t). Regardless of your preference, vacation is supposed to be about one thing. Rest.

I’ve had two vacations since I started the pastoral life. The first was last summer. The whole family drove to Michigan to stay at a friend’s house on Lake Michigan. The house is amazing. You literally walk steps to a beautiful beach on the lake. We were very blessed that they allowed us to use their home. But early on there were big problems.

Gabriella (our 3 year old) started throwing up on day two of the trip. Three days later, Anna and I both realized we were getting major colds. This wasn’t the relaxing time away that we were expecting! In fact, we came back from our week “on the beach” far more exhausted than when we left.

Fast forward to last week. Anna and I spent two months looking forward to traveling to Arkansas with the kids. There’s a great ministry in Russellville, Arkansas that rents a home to pastors and their family for a super cheap rate. They just want to give folks in ministry a chance to feel refreshed. On the way we saw some friends in Kansas City. On the way back, we planned to see friends and family in Tennessee and Kentucky (while stopping for some great food in Memphis). And during the week in Arkansas we were just going to hang out. Maybe we’d go to Little Rock one day. Maybe we wouldn’t. It was going to be a chance for us to decompress and share uninterrupted time with the kids. But then it happened.

Anna woke up the first morning in Arkansas with a right knee that was three times the size of her left knee. It was starting to hurt too. I searched around for an orthopedic surgeon (in small town Arkansas) and found a great one. He discovered that the swelling in Anna’s knee was caused by blood and he suggested emergency arthroscopic surgery to see what was wrong. One knee surgery, hospital stay, and brand new set of crutches later, Anna was back at the rental home where she would spend the rest of the week either in bed or on the couch with her right leg elevated. Far from relaxing. She started physical therapy the day we got home.

Two vacations down. Zero days of relaxation.

I don’t write to try to make you feel sorry for me. Far from it. Instead I want you to know what God reinforced in my mind when I reflected on these two trips: we need to rest regularly, not just during planned time away.

The concept isn’t novel. It’s thoroughly Biblical (4th Commandment, anyone?) and makes perfect sense. We can’t survive if we’re running 100 miles an hour 6 or more days a week without any periods of significant rest. The leaders of our denomination (EFCA) encourage pastors to take at least one solid day off per week (for rest and time with God and family). They ask us to take one day off per month for a spiritual retreat. (There’s really nothing more refreshing than spending a whole day alone with the Lord). And (in addition to regular vacation time) they urge pastors to take a sabbatical of at least two months every 5 years.

I know not everyone can do all of this (how many employers give you two months off with pay?). But I hope you’re tracking with me as to the importance of regularly resting. There is nothing in our lives that God can’t handle without us. We dishonor Him when we think otherwise. When we say, “there will be plenty of time for sleep in heaven” we may find that we’re there a lot earlier than we might otherwise be.

So let’s make a New Year’s Resolution together. Let’s agree to take regular periods of rest: every day, week, month, and year. And let’s see how God uses it in our lives. I think we’ll find the world keeps spinning even when we’re resting and we’re of more use to those around us after a break.

How Does Newtown Connect To Christmas

As I was preparing my latest message in the series “A Mary Christmas” a challenge was presented. The horrible shootings in Newtown, Connecticut took place. How should I address them as a pastor? Should I completely throw out that’s week’s sermon on Christmas to do something different in light of the tragedy? Should I ignore them since they happened so far away? This is a challenge that was faced by pastors all over the country last Sunday.

I chose to continue in our Christmas series of messages, but I connected the two. In the end, Christmas wouldn’t have been necessary if not for shootings like this (and gossip and lust and slander….). You can listen to this week’s message by going TO THIS LINK.

Lots of Thanks

I have no choice but to give big thanks to God as I look back on the last year. In December 2011 there were 18 people in our living room praying about starting a church. This past Sunday there were more than 70 meeting in a historic building in the heart of Oak Park. I’ve been able to meet so many people for the first time and I’ve enjoyed watching how they quickly transformed from stranger to church family member. It’s very cool!

Looking ahead to 2013 is exciting as well. We’re doing some outreach into the community in order to make sure people know we’re here. We’re also trying to establish healthy relationships with non-Christians in order to effectively show them Jesus. That is, after all, the whole point of starting this church. There are many people who don’t know Jesus. Sometimes it’s because they’ve never had someone talk to them about Him. Other times, the people have been burned by Christians and so they have also rejected their Lord. We’re keeping focused on the “grace and truth” of Jesus and looking forward with eager expectation to what God is going to do.

PS: My 2013 resolution is going to be to blog more. Ignore the fact that it was also my 2012 resolution.

Village Church Update

The last few months have been really exciting at Village Church. Sure, there are challenges, but God is showing His faithfulness at every turn. We felt we needed a few more things in place structurally and with our equipment before we launched any sort of formal outreach. In the meantime our church grew from 18 to 60 in just a couple of months! It’s exciting because the people who are joining us are Christians who are serious about impacting this community. They want to live godly lives so they can earn a chance to tell others about Jesus. I’ve been so blessed by people I didn’t know 3 months ago but now consider family. We’re mobilizing these people to adequately serve Oak Park and the surrounding communities so things are all set when we initiate some formal outreach.

I’ve known my limitations from the start of this project. But toward the end of the summer it became clear that these weaknesses were going to hamper the ministry right at the start. Amazingly God provided the right man at just this time. His name is Tom McElroy and in September he joined us as Associate Pastor. Tom has extensive experience as a church planter, worship leader, and associate pastor. His family is wonderful too. They’re a great addition and I look forward to partnering with them for a long time.

If you haven’t checked out our church website give it a try. www.villagechurchoakpark.com. There you’ll find info on the church, our team, and even my sermons (be gracious please!).

We’re looking forward to the end of the year as I have planned a sermon series in December taking a look at Jesus’ birth and life through the eyes of his mother. Imagine her emotions: fear, worry, excitement, joy. I’m really excited about seeing the Christmas story in a new way.

As I mentioned above, God is being faithful. He guides and provides for us every day. I still can’t believe I’m on this journey, but it’s wonderful. Thanks so much for your prayers and encouragement!

Jesus Changes Everything

This week at Village Church we talked about the radical change that Jesus brings about in the lives of ordinary people. In fact, he can take the unlikeliest people and use them to do big things for Him. The apostle Paul was smart and driven, but he used all of his gifts to try to silence Christians. He was working against God and didn’t even know it! Then Jesus stepped down, made Paul a new creation, and used him to spread the hope of Jesus to the known world. He wants to use you too. You probably won’t write Scripture like Paul did, but the Holy Spirit can impact the lives of people around you no matter what you’re background is.
You can hear the whole message at our church’s website HERE.

 

 

Death and Life

There’s nothing worse than a blog what only gets updated once every 6 months. That’s not a blog. It’s an occasional diversion. Believe it or not, I’ve wanted to post here several times over the past few months. But things have been tough. I’ve been processing things internally and haven’t been ready to write about them publicly.

Most of you know my mom died unexpectedly in December 2011. This crushed my family. In fact I don’t even think a scab has formed yet. We don’t even understand what we’re feeling much less know how to heal. In the midst of this, my dad was dying of pancreatic cancer. It’s a brutal disease. Only 5% of patients survive it. My dad battled much longer than most, but the cancer finally won on September 7.

So in a matter of 9 months I went from having two parents to none. From the family I’ve known my whole life to an orphan. I have brothers and a sister who are a great support. My wife is literally the best woman I’ve ever met. My kids (2 with another due soon) are pure joy. But there is a new emptiness that I can’t describe.

I am encouraged by the fact that God is a “father to the fatherless” (Psalm 68:5) so none of us is ever really an orphan. I can truly stand in the midst of so much sadness and say God is good. He has truly given me the “peace that passes all understanding” (Phil 4:7).

There’s another thing that encourages me. In the last conversation I had with my dad he confessed faith in Christ as his Savior. I had talked with him about the gospel, but it never seemed to stick. Two spanish-speaking pastors came to meet with him, but it didn’t seem to connect. And finally, on his deathbed he said he trusted Christ to save him from his sins and he’d see me in heaven. My last conversation with my dad was the sweetest.

Now Anna and I move to the next curve on our emotional roller coaster. Baby #3 is due in November. We’re nervous and excited. I know God will use her (and Gabby and Louis) to help us heal.