If you were at Soma this past weekend, you heard the phrase “Rak Chazak!” several times… Check out this AWESOME video on that phrase!
If you weren’t at Soma, Ttis is an AWESOME video from Eric Ludy so you should check it out!
Author Archives: Jones
About Jones
When Do Stars Shine?
Phillipians 2:14-16
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life.
I love the metaphor that Paul just tossed out, “Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky…”
When do stars shine?
Well, they shine all the time but you only see them when the sky gets dark.
Sometimes God lets the circumstances of our life grow dark because that’s when we shine the brightest.
Sometimes we just want to give up and go home because life just seems too crazy and out-of-control but the truth is, that’s the moment God has given us to lift our heads and shine like crazy in the middle of a “warped and crooked generation.” The way you react while under fire WILL be noticed by your neighbor. And that moment will make a much bigger impression than how you react when all the cards are dropping in your favor.
It’s easy to live without grumbling or arguing when you get your way. But it’s much harder to shine when your day turns to night…
Relationship? Or “Rescue Me?”
Following back surgery, my recovery was going pretty good until I came down with some infections in my incisions. The doctor quickly put me on antibiotics that cleared up one of the infections but my back just wouldn’t heal up for some reason. So, after seeing a specialist, I’m on a new antibiotic that has made short work of whatever was in that incision. It’s stopped draining and looks a ton better!
But… I have to keep taking the antibiotic for at least a couple more weeks…and maybe even a month. And it’s such high strength that it makes me feel anywhere from lousy to horrible. Now, I’m incredibly grateful for the healing this drug brought but I’m also incredibly frustrated that I have to endure the discomfort for weeks after I feel like I’m healed.
And isn’t that how we approach Jesus?
We get caught in the consequences of some poor decision or blatant sin and we desperately look for help wherever it can be found. We’re hurting and we need answers. So we go to church for a few weeks, we ask for special prayers, we search the Bible for answers and we even spend time praying as we lie in bed at night. And then, as our situation begins to right itself, we get all excited that life is turning back to normal and we happily slide back into the comfortable spiritual life we had before.
It’s not that we don’t want to feel as close to God as we did when we everything seemed dark… It’s just that we don’t have time for all that stuff all the time. It’s inconvenient and uncomfortable.
So many of us never form a real relationship with God because our entire experience with Him is series of “rescue me” moments. We treat Him as a cosmic antibiotic for the ailments and infections we face and, once we feel healed, we’re back to normal.
Relationships are built after the crisis moment, after the pain has subsided, after the darkness has been vanquished. Jesus loves you and longs to help in your suffering but He died to be with you in your health. He died to have a relationship with you after the dust settles.
It may be inconvenient in your schedule and uncomfortable with your current priorities but it’s the only way to stay healthy. It’s the only way to break the cycle of sin and poor decisions that routinely brings you back to desperation.
BE and DO work best together…
Too often, evangelism is approached with a “love ‘em and leave ‘em” mentality. Basically, it amounts to a flurry of activity and investment in leading someone to Christ, just so that we can show them to a great seat on the front pew. Once there, we fully expect they will enjoy being preached at for the rest of their lives. And we move on to a “new project.”
The end result is that someone is invited to BE a Christian but they’re not challenged to DO anything worth dying for. They’re comfortable and they’re cozy, but they’re not learning to be a disciple.
Ultimately, discipleship done right creates a culture with high invitation to BE like Christ and high challenge to DO the work of discipling others. Forget the constant invitation or worthwhile challenge and your culture winds up bored, stressed or cozy. People burn out, give up or zone out. And the church falters in its mission to spread the Kingdom by making disciples.
You have been called to contribute to the Kingdom’s discipling culture. Invite your family, your neighbors and your co-workers to BE a child of God and then challenge them to DO the work of the King.
“Blessings” Are Transforming My Family
My son suffers from a condition that I frequently call “too-much-time-with-teenagers.” He’s only 7 years old, but he’s developed an incredible wit…accompanied by a healthy dose of sarcasm and self-centeredness. I love him with every ounce of my heart but over the past year or so, his attitude has become…ferocious…at times.
We’ve tried every form of discipline in the book (along with some we made up) but we haven’t quite achieved the “results” we’ve been hoping for. That is, until we had this little epiphany… What if we taught “blessings” instead of “punishments.”
For the past few months, if you were eavesdropping around our house, you would have heard us asking this question: “How can you bless Mom/Dad/Andrew/Jesùs today?”
It’s been a game-changer for our family! I routinely tell Andrew that because I love my son, I want to bless him with ________. And he tells his mom that he wants to bless her with ________. And so on… Just a day or so ago, I heard him telling my wife that he was glad he was able to bless her with bringing in the groceries because she had blessed him with raisins in his lunchbox. Now, THAT was a “proud dad moment!”
Regular and intentional “blessings” have transformed the way our family interacts. Check out this excerpt from Scot McKnight’s book, Jesus Creed, and consider how you can show love and blessings in your home…
Surely one of the most touching scenes in the life of Jesus is when, on the cross, he issues the request to John to take responsibility for his mother, by saying, “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to his disciple, “Here is your mother.” Jesus clearly affirms here the duty of loving one’s family. Sadly, far too many Christians love others with abandon while their own families are starving for their love. Let this be clear: Our home is also in our neighborhood.
It is attention-grabbing to love the poor, to show compassion to AIDS sufferers, and to show mercy to victims. But it is attention-deflecting to wake up in the morning and ask, “What does my wife or husband, my daughter or son need?” and then attend to those needs. It is easier to see love in the public square than to show love in the home.
Highlights From A Great Month Of Blogs!
April has been a crazy month for me! On April 2, I had major back surgery and while I’ve been wrestling through infections and trying to recover, God’s been working on my heart in serious ways. And, since I write as I grow, it’s resulted in an awesome month of blogging!
So, here, just in case you missed them, are the top 10 most viewed posts I wrote in the past month, along with my favorite of the rest!
- “Blessings Through Pain” – 4/10/12
- “Why I Do Student Ministry” – 4/12/12
- “When Everything Seems Broken…” - 4/11/12
- “Restore Your Identity” – 4/28/12
- “But Even If He Does Not…I Will Still Praise Him” – 4/25/12
- “Dress For Where You’re Going…Not For Where You Are” – 4/16/12
- “Laughter Makes Everything Better” – 4/17/12
- “More Than Just A Guy Who Goes To Work And Goes Home” – 4/18/12
- “Jones Family Motto (one of them)” – 4/29/12
- “Soma: DNA Of The Body” – 4/13/12
Bonus: “Rescued For This Reason” – 4/26/12
Worry Derails Purity
Matthew 6:31-34
So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
It is IMPOSSIBLE to chase after the Kingdom of God in your life if you’re spending all – or most – of your time worrying.
Worrying simply sucks the energy and joy out of everything you do. It pulls you away from faith and trust in anyone but yourself. It leaves you feeling completely alone and helpless. And it becomes an impassable obstacle between you and God’s call to holiness.
You CANNOT pursue purity when your mind is wrapped up in the stress and worry that Satan wants you to focus on.
You just can’t… Worry alienates you from hope and stress encourages your “go-to” sin. Whatever you struggle with the most, whether it’s drinking or anger or porn or drugs or cussing or lust or over-eating or fighting or any other kind of addiction, the struggle is a thousand times harder when your mind is immersed in worry and stress. Eventually, no matter how strong you are, the stress gets so strong and you dive into your “chosen addiction” because it blocks out the helpless feeling of everything you’re worried about.
If you’re going to pursue purity, it begins with letting God handle the worries of your life. He’s infinitely more capable than you are.
Jones Family Motto (one of them)
Luke 6:27-36
Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back…
If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.
My wife and I developed this motto a decade ago… “We don’t own anything that can’t be broken, borrowed, lost or stolen.”
There have certainly been times when that motto has been easier to recite than others, but regardless, we’ve stuck to it. And, over the years, we’ve loaned things that we’ve never seen again, we’ve had things broken by careless teenagers and we’ve had things stolen from our home. Some things aren’t as big a deal as others… For example, a lost book doesn’t compare to a stolen ring.
We’ve been taken advantage of, we’ve been lied to and we’ve been betrayed by “friends” we’ve trusted. People around us have told – and expected - us to be angry, to be vengeful and to write off the ones who have hurt us. But Jesus has told us to forgive them, to love them and to work for their future good.
It hasn’t always been easy, but our hearts are free of grudges and our souls are satisfied at having friends today who, once upon a time, needed someone to give them a “second chance.” I would much rather risk being taken advantage of and losing some “stuff” than live a life ruled by mistrust, bitterness and cynicism. It’s much more fulfilling, much more rewarding and is much closer to the attitude Jesus called us to adopt.
So… My question to you is this: Who has hurt you? And have you forgiven them, are you loving them and are you working for their future good?
Restore Your Identity
I am 27 days out of surgery now and I’ve learned a couple things about myself…
- I’m a terrible patient. (Just ask my wife…she’s basically the only reason I’m still alive!)
- I don’t deal well with “resting.” (I naturally tend to define resting asa complete and utterly boring waste of valuable time.)
I’ve come to know that resting is important, but after 27 days of “rest,” I’m ready to do something. One of the most difficult pieces of this journey has been convincing myself that I’m valued and productive and worthy, even when I’m not “producing.”
I, and many people I know, tend to live life backwards. I place my identity in what I “do” instead of in who I “am.” It’s a somewhat natural tendency for men – although not necessarily a healthy one. If you ask my wife who she is, she’ll give you her name and then she’ll tell you she’s married to me and she’s a mom to a couple kids and, oh yeah, she works for a lawyer. Her identity is wrapped up in her most important relationships. Ask me though, and typically, I would say, I’m a preacher and a writer and I lead a bunch of students and, oh yeah, I have a beautiful wife and some great kids.
Here’s the problem: If I place my identity in what I do, but for some reason, I am unable to produce, my self-worth plummets and I find myself in a deep, dark place with no one to pull me out.
Here’s the solution: My identity is in the Father and my obedience flows with joy out of that identity. If I fail, I am loved. If I succeed, I am loved. If I am sick, I am loved. If I am healthy, I am loved. If I am faithful, I am loved. If I mess up, I am loved.
I am loved by the Father, unconditionally, and that is my identity…if I let it be. I don’t have to earn it. I don’t have to work for it. I don’t have to fulfill an untold number of duties for it. I just have to be.
Don’t let Satan steal your identity…let the Father protect it.
Ephesians 3:17-19
I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge —that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Embrace The Mess…Because It’s Ministry
John 9:6-7
[Jesus] spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.
When God heals brokenness and pain, there’s always a mess to clean up… Mud on the face, drowned pigs, doubting family, skepticism from those who consider themselves “religious.” There is ALWAYS a mess.
To be pure…holy…we have to strip away the junk and crud that’s been covering us. But stripping away the mess is, well, messy. It’ll clutter up our nice, neat plans. It’ll leave our pristine image looking just a little scruffier.
It would be so nice to put up walls and barriers to the mess, so we can enjoy our spotless chapels and our carefully planned programs. But that’s not what the Church is called to do!
The Church is called to stand in the Pool of Siloam, washing the mud off eyes that Jesus has healed.
We aren’t the Healer, we are the cleaners. When the Healer works, there will always be a mess and it’s our job to help the healed clean it up.
The Church isn’t a quiet, unsoiled, unstained sanctuary. It’s a magnificent mess, desperately trying to turn disorder into something resembling the Divine.
Embrace the mess…because it’s ministry.
