I Want to be BOLD: Four Commitments

Several years ago, I replaced the traditional New Year’s resolutions with commitments. Commitments give me space for growth, beginning again as I seek to correct errors, constant renewal. Let me suggest four commitments that will make a difference as we seek to live as disciples of Jesus.

I want to be bold. When I read the book of Acts, I admire the courage of the first disciples of Jesus. Church history challenges me when I read about the commitment of those who sought to follow Jesus. I long to understand how to boldly proclaim faith in a hostile world. Why are some Christians bold while others are timid? One must avoid the temptation to a quick fix, but I find four characteristics are essential if I am to be bold. The acrostic is a helpful memory tool.

1. Belief. Boldness depends on a deep, abiding belief in God. We will never be bold until we settle the question of faith. Upon what or whom do you depend? What matters more to you than anything else? What is the foundation of your worldview? What is your beginning point? What are your orienting concepts? What is central in your life? One’s belief system is paramount. Any person (Christian or non-Christian) who is bold has settled the belief question. This is what is worth standing up for. This is what really matters. Our lack of boldness may be due to a lack of faith. Faith is more than intellectual assent to a few truths. Faith controls our actions. Faith is the foundation of life. God is; God rewards diligent seekers.

2. Obedience. The result of faith is obedience. Faith empowers relationships. Boldness depends upon the depth of your relationship with God. What is your attitude toward God? Do you hear him, listen to him, and talk with him? The God of the Bible is a communicating God. He reveals himself. He wants to be known–as he is! The God of Scripture is a personal God. Obedience that comes from duty or from distant, dry words that must be obeyed hardly qualifies as biblical obedience. A pliable, moldable Christian acts out of relationship, believing a faithful God, desiring to please God.

3. Love. Perhaps this goes without saying. Without doubt, a Christian will love God. This truth naturally follows obedience. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Love has a vertical dimension–love for God. Love has a horizontal dimension–love your neighbor. Thinking about horizontal relationships, Christians are called to love others. Be bold for others, for one another. Christian boldness commits to taking the love that has blessed our lives and spreading it in this world. We love others because we have been loved.

4. Discipleship. Here is the capstone. Also, the heart of the matter; an invisible, at times immeasurable aspect of life; an internal question. This is who I am. I have decided. I am willing to dedicate myself. I am determined. I will follow. I am a learner following a teacher. I have decided to follow Jesus. I am set for the defense of the gospel. A whole host of “D” words may come to mind, but the commitment I must constantly remember if I want to be bold is this: I am committed to be a disciple of Jesus.

May God help us grow in our belief, obedience, love, and discipleship. May we be bold as we live transformed lives.

My Faith Grew by Hearing

I was visiting an old southeast Oklahoma rancher. He and his wife had a beautiful view of the meadows and hills, framed by mountains all around. I’ll call him Bill.

Bill blessed me on that visit–probably without realizing it. Conversation turned to matters of faith and trust, creation and God’s sustaining power. Bill didn’t hesitate to express his faith. “I don’t see how anyone can look at all of these things around us and not believe in God. For me, it is clear. I believe He made it all.” Shades of Romans 10:17. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. Sometimes faith comes by hearing someone else declare faith.

A simple statement of faith, from a person of faith. My faith was strengthened. Those who meet Bill from day to day may not always see his faith, but God does. I did. And I was encouraged to see the hand of God afresh–in his creation, but even more, in his people.

Golfing and God

I few years ago, I was asked to speak at a weekend men’s retreat. I got to spend time with a group of men from a church in Bentonville, Arkansas.  We talked about priorities; we discussed discouragement.  The group discussion returned several times to an illustration I use to describe our Christian lives.

I begin by admitting I am not a golfer.  I have played a few rounds, I watch some golf on TV, but I am far from avid–as a fan or as a player.  This I understand, however.  In golf, one good shot does not mean that you are suddenly a better golfer, and one bad shot does not make you a worse golfer.  On any given day, you are the golfer you are, with strengths and weaknesses, good shots and bad.

Christianity is not to be measured by the successes or failures of one day.  Christian living is a process.  I am not a better preacher when I preach an especially good sermon; I am not a worse preacher when the words refuse to come.  I am the preacher I am, involved in a process of growing and maturing.  Christian living is a journey.  Success comes with practice and the development of habits.  Am I farther along today than I was yesterday?  Am I growing?  That is the question!

Another “God Thing”

Jan and I enjoy going back to places we have known in the past. In 2025 we plan to travel together to the Dominican Republic, to Ecuador and Colombia, to Honduras, and to several stateside locations. Going back to special places from our past is always a blessing. I am reminded of how my life reflects Christ’s promises of rest and blessing in multiplied lands and houses and families. The opportunity to reconnect our lives with friends and spiritual family is always special.

I’m also reminded that God is at work behind the scenes when we cannot see. I pray with gratitude for the blessings I see–also for those I do not see. I remember a trip Jan and I made to Guatemala several years ago. She went to language school–I also spent a few days reviewing and sharpening my language skills. But primarily I worked on sermon planning and writing. Along the way, we renewed friendships and encouraged the churches where we traveled. But….we are often troubled by the question: could we do more during such travels?

I remember the first time I met Pablo Molina.  He had come to OVU for a campus event. Pablo is originally from El Salvador. Our conversation quickly turned to Central America. In response to his question about my involvement and plans, I said, “Yes, this summer I am flying to Honduras, then going to Guatemala for two weeks in early July, then back to Honduras to meet a group for a one-week mission project in eastern Honduras.” He responded by outlining plans for a two-week campaign in Guatemala in early July. Wow! We would be in Guatemala at the same time. Where? It turned out that his campaign site was about 30 minutes from where we would be staying. “Could you help us with the campaign?”

How could I turn down an invitation that was so obviously from God? I hope you are not troubled by my description of things such as this as “God things”–I believe he is at work behind the scenes, orchestrating, coordinating, working his will and purpose. I see these things as evidence of God’s providence. The only other explanation I know is coincidence. It just happened!  We Christians know better!

Word for Today: “Surrender” to what counts

You will never be worth much to God in your Christian life until you learn to surrender to what counts. The spiritual disciplines must include surrender.  In fact, surrender may be first, the foundation of every other discipline. Surrender is the ultimate expression of thinking like Jesus (Philippians 2:5). Until we learn the lesson of complete surrender, we will continue to think it is about us and that success depends on us.  Until we learn the lesson of complete surrender, we will not likely become effective servants (slaves) in Jesus’ kingdom.
Do not be confused.  I am not talking about surrender to the minutiae, trivial, or urgent. These are hardly ever worth being the focus of our lives.

Surrendering to what counts is not easy–because a plethora of tasks, good projects, and commendable activities call for our attention. The choice of the best over the better or the good is seldom seen or done without extraordinary effort. Can you see reality, what is really #1? That is the only thing worth giving our lives for.
Surrendering to what counts will cause us to discard as unimportant the things the world teaches us to value. Cross-carrying: that is how Jesus defines surrender. Cross-carrying as Jesus describes and demands will demote self-promotion, possessions, reputation, and the accolades of others.
Surrendering to what counts opens new doors of genuine service and effectiveness in the Kingdom, because all that matters is the business of the King.

God, help us this day to surrender ourselves fully. Help us to identify the things that really matter in life. May we surrender ourselves to what counts, because of the majesty of the One we know as Lord, through whom we come before your throne, Amen.

Evangelism: Getting People to Do What They Are Not Doing?

In ministry and mission work, I often evaluate and design evangelistic outreach programs for local congregations. Who will be the target audience? What will motivate those the church seeks to reach? What should the church do to maximize results? What activities will be most effective?

Equally important questions must be added when one considers that almost all U.S. churches between 50 and 299 are in decline. Is the trend reversible? How does a congregation avoid the plight of almost all other congregations like it?

These and many other questions come to mind, but the larger question (the elephant in the boardroom, if you will) is how one can get people to do what they are not currently doing. That is, how can people who do not currently attend church be encouraged to attend church? Addressing this question is essential when one considers that only a small percentage of the U.S. population goes to church regularly. Further, that percentage is decreasing steadily.

For years, I said that approximately 1/3 of the population were churched, 1/3 minimally churched, and 1/3 unchurched.  I believe those numbers came from an older Barna report. The definition of churched in the report included all who attended church at least once a month.

More recently observations and focused research have caused me to conclude that on any given Sunday, it is likely that no more than 15-20% of the U.S. population is in church (Easter excluded). In 2003, the local newspaper conducted a church survey in a southeastern Oklahoma city of about 20000 population. The city had 31 churches. The 10 largest religious groups had a combined attendance of about 2500, with the 10th largest church reporting an attendance of only about 50. If one were to count the other 21 churches as having attendances of 50 (to add 1000 to the total), the average weekly attendance was only about 3500 persons (17.5%). I believe this number is an accurate representation of church attendance in our nation.

Information from major opinion research firms suggests that about 40% of the U.S. population attends church regularly. For example, National Opinion Research Center reports 38%, Institute for Social Research’s World Values 44%, Barna 41%, National Election Studies 40%, and Gallup 41%. The estimate of 40% church attendance is widely reported in the media. More and more, this commonly reported number is being challenged. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that 40% of Americans claim to attend church regularly.

Various studies during the last 10 years have addressed problems related to polling. How was the question asked, what was the desired answer, how does one correct for under or over reporting? In 1998, Stanley Presser (University of Michigan) estimated that the actual percentage of those attending church during the last third of the twentieth century was about 26%. Also in 1998, C. Kirk Hadaway and P.L. Marler researched some of these factors and published an article (“Did You Really Go to Church This Week? Behind the Poll Data”, Christian Century). They focused on individual counties, surveying actual attendance and comparing it with random surveys they conducted. They found that actual church attendance was about half the rate indicated by national public opinion polls. Their estimate for US actual church attendance was around 20%. Dave Olson surveyed only Christian churches (evangelical, mainline, and Catholic) and reported that the percentage of Americans regularly attending church is 18.7%.

The director of the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University, Robert Wuthnow, said that the terrorists’ attacks have not changed the basic makeup of the U.S.:

  • About ¼ of American adults are devoutly religious,
  • About ¼ are secular, and
  • The remaining half is only mildly interested in religion.

Wuthnow continued: “We are in some ways a very religious country, especially compared to Western Europe. But we’re of two minds, and the other mind is that we really are pretty secular. We are very much a country of consumers and shoppers, and we’re quite materialistic. And as long as we can kind of paste together a sense of control through our ordinary work and our ordinary purchases, we’re pretty happy to do that.”

Given these numbers, what is the future of evangelism for the church I am working with? What should I tell them?How can they encourage people who do not attend church to begin to do so? The answers will not be easy, but we have to ask the questions.

Sunday: With Pedro Sanchez, my “socio”

Through the years, I have often worshiped in English at an early service and then worshiped in Spanish at a later service. I am blessed when I get to study the Bible and worship in Spanish. That blessing is seldom more apparent than when my good friend and brother, Pedro Sanchez, from Santiago, Chile, is visiting.
Pedro is unique. He is committed to training church leaders and elders. He has a unique grasp of the word of God. He is vibrant, emotional, powerful in the Word of God.

Being with my Christian brothers and sisters is one of the things I most look forward to every Sunday. Each one encourages me and strengthens my faith. The time we share is precious. Today, and every Sunday, I will celebrate my gracious God and what he has done for me in Christ. I will also celebrate the beauty of God’s family, and the beauty of each Christian who crosses my path to show me God’s power.

Sunday: Joy

Most people in this world want to be happy. There may be a few scrooges who relish negativism and pessimism, but in my experience such people are the exception. Are we looking for happiness in the wrong places? Many seek happiness in possessions, experiences, work, relationships, prestige, or popularity. John wrote to struggling Christians near the end of the first century, “so that joy might be complete.” What did he write?

“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life–the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us–that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.” (1 John 1:1-4, ESV)

“Dear God, as we today contemplate afresh the testimony of eyewitnesses–the resurrected Jesus, the certainty of eternal life through him, and the beauty of sharing life in Him and through Him, teach us rejoicing. Bring joy to our lives in the midst of disappointments and regrets. Give us confidence that nothing that we experience as part of life in this fallen world can separate us from your love. May being reminded of your inexpressible love bring us this day inexpressible joy. Our lives have been forever changed by your immeasurably rich grace–may our new life be continually transformed into the image of Jesus, through whom we pray, Amen.”

Four Things God Wants Us to Know About Him

The Bible is the revelation of God. The Bible tells the story of creation, living human beings created in God’s image, and God’s subsequent actions and interactions. I read the Pentateuch last week and outlined new seminars on Genesis, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy.
Genesis is the beginning, God’s initial revelation. At least four things should be included when one talks of the God revealed in the Bible — the God who is personal, promising, providing, and present.
Use these four aspects of God as you seek to see God in your own life — an awareness of personal relationship and concern, providing just as he has promised, present in multiplied ways. Every time you are aware of one of these four dimensions of God in your life, say a brief prayer.

Casinos and 1 Thessalonians 5:17

I couldn’t help but notice–the car entered the interstate next to the Firelake Casino at a very high rate of speed. First thought–I wondered if the driver was mad because he had just lost a lot of money.  On second thought, “Probably just a coincidence.  Perhaps the driver lives nearby.”

He sped up enough to squeeze in ahead of us and we saw the bumper sticker on his car: “Follow me to Firelake!” Oh, wait! There’s a license plate frame as well: “1 Thessalonians 5:17.” I knew without looking it up what the Bible text says: “Pray without ceasing!”

Jan and I got a good laugh. I guess if you’re going to try your luck at the casino, a little “prayer without ceasing” can’t hurt.