I Don't Have Time for This!

This Sunday is the last in our series on how Jesus redefines everything in our lives as disciples, pulling our thoughts mostly out of 1 and 2 Corinthians. To review, this is where we've been:

1. I am a Disciple (the "tree") 
2. I am on Mission (the "fruit") 
3. I am Being Transformed (the "roots")
4. I Worship the Risen Christ (the "trunk")
5. I Belong to a Community (the "branches") 
6. I am a Disciple who Makes Disciples (but what kind?) 
7. I am Missionary (learning to think like a missionary right here)
8. I am a Consumer (we can become consumers of church, rather than disciples)
9. I have a Vocation (our 3 callings)

This Sunday's message will be "I don't have time for this!" from 1 Cor 9:19-27.

And we don't really have time for all this ... do we??? I simply can't add all those things to my life, because I'm already hovering around the "overwhelmed" status. Quite frankly, I just end up feeling guilty about all this, which is worse than before.

We must be honest enough to admit whatever feelings like this we have, and we must be brave enough to explore those questions.

I'm not going to explore here what we're going to explore Sunday morning, but I did want to create a simple list of the series so we can see the big picture of where we've been. I also wanted to put the question about time in your mind in advance to get you thinking about it so that we gather together with fresh, real questions and ideas.

Let me prime the pump with the following:

• Does God ever give us too little time for what He desires for us?
• Are we foisting our idea of "time" onto God's plan? If so, how?
• What are we not fully believing that then leads us to think we don't have enough time?
• Are there things I'm not yet willing to give up in order to live life "on mission" according to a list like this? If so, how should I respond?

The Insidious Consumer

Jesus, who departed the glory of heaven to add a fully human nature to his fully divine nature, the King of the Kingdom, the one in whom all things are summed up (Col 1:16), once said, "I did not come to be served, but to serve" (Mt 20:28). This just doesn't sound right. Perhaps the teleprompter skipped, because the Son of God doesn't serve the sons of men.

To comprehend this wrong-sounding truth, we have to stand on our heads. It is so upside down that we spill other theology on the floor trying to keep this idea on our plate. But there it is - the Greatest One by every measure chose to serve those who should be serving him.

This same Jesus, then, gathered a group of people called the "Church" to collectively house his Spirit and continue his mission. He trained a handful of men and women, the Twelve with more intensity, and Peter, James, and John with even greater instruction. They were to do what he had done, and to do so in the same way.

Since then, through two millennia, this Church has existed, thrived, suffered, split, healed, taught, mistaught, reformed, loved, hated, started some wars and stopped others, enslaved and broken slavery, and honored and shamed the one who's name they bear. Their constant charge has been to carry on the same mission by the power of the indwelling Spirit. This Church has done great and awful things in pursuit of that mission.

Somewhere along the way, the Church has taken what was rightly upside down and put it back on its feet, making it stand as it ought not to, even though they think it has finally been set right. One day, in some church in some town, there arose the right side up phrase "serve the Church." This phrase then spread to many churches covering the globe.

It sounds so noble, so filled with piety, so ... religious. What a great life's endeavor ... to serve the Church.

But it is right side up when it should be upside down.

We are not called to serve the Church. We, the Church, are called to serve the world. This is upside down, but exactly oriented to the King who came to give his life as a ransom for many. Church is not something to be served, but a living organism designed to do the serving. The Church is a gaggle of servants, gathered to serve. Yes, to serve one another, but also to serve the world.

A right side up Church cannot carry out the upside down mission of its founder. No, we must turn it upside down again ... to be sent into this world not to be served, but to serve.

More Cool Stuff in Scripture

Our reading through the New Testament together now has us in the Book of Acts, Luke's "sequel" to his Gospel, tracing the key events of the early church. There's something very cool in Acts that could well be Luke's cues to us about the structure of the book. There are six summary statements throughout Acts that seem to summarize the action that has preceded, and prepare for what follows. These six verses create six "panels," or sections, to Acts, which help us to see the important progression of the book.

The first summary verse is 6:7 ("And the word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith"). All of this action happening (especially persecution), and then all of the sudden, a summary verse that talks about the Word spreading, even to Jewish priests (success, despite the persecution). In the first section, the main character is Peter, the location is Jerusalem, and the audience is entirely Jewish. The very next thing is the story of Stephen, the first recorded martyr of the church, and as the persecution intensifies, many of the disciples are driven out from Jerusalem.

The second summary verse is 9:31 ("So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and, going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase"). Again, the narrative is talking about amazing events, and then out of the blue, a summary statement about the progress of the Gospel. In this second section, the main character is still Peter, but the location now includes Judea, Samaria, and Galilee, and therefore the audience of the Gospel now includes "half-Jews" - people who are not fully Jewish, but still have similar history and connections with Israel. The Gospel is beginning to spread out of Judaism, forced by the persecution. The very next thing are the accounts of Peter coming to terms with the Gospel spreading to, of all people, Gentiles. That was a huge paradigm shift for Peter and the others.

The third summary verse is 12:24 ("But the word of the Lord continued to grow and be multiplied") - the Word is continuing to spread. The main character is still Peter, but the location is now Palestine and Syria, which means the audience is primarily Gentile. The very next thing is the calling of Barnabas and Saul to become missionaries to the Gentile lands.

The fourth summary verse is 16:5 ("So the churches were being strengthened in the faith, and were increasing in number daily") - another statement about the progress of the Gospel, despite the persecution of the new missionaries. The main character is now Paul (the Greek name for Saul, which he used as soon as he started going into Gentile lands). The location is now vastly different - Antioch and Asia Minor. The audience follows the same pattern in every town. First, the Jews, and then the Gentiles, who get far more attention because they are now more receptive than the Jews. The very next thing is the vision Paul has in a dream to go over to Europe (specifically, Macedonia), crossing greater boundaries with the Gospel.

The fifth summary verse is 19:20 ("So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing"). Still more progress with the Gospel despite violent rejection of the missionaries. The main character is still Paul, but the geography is Europe (Greece in particular) and the audience is overwhelmingly Gentile. The very next thing is Paul emphatically stating his determination to get to Rome with the Gospel. Rome is the center of the Western pagan world, the epicenter of Gentile politics, military, and religion.

The last summary verse is the final verse of the book, 28:31 ("And he [Paul] stayed two full years in his own rented quarters, and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered"), a statement of how Paul, even though under arrest on false charges, has freedom to preach the Gospel of Christ right in the center of power of the pagan West, the most influential city of the Greco-Roman world! The main character of this section is still Paul, the geography is Paul's journey from Jerusalem to Rome, and the audience is again mostly Gentile. The very next thing is ... the rest of church history!

The book starts in occupied, Jewish Jerusalem with a small band of scared Jesus freaks who have nothing but a command to make disciples of all nations and to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth. The book ends in Rome, the Gentile capital, with the missionary to the Gentiles preaching the Gospel freely even within the household of Caesar himself. All along the way, Luke appears to give us summaries of the Gospel's progress even while telling us of the difficulties suffered by the apostles and missionaries. In every case, the very next thing is some brand new barrier that will be successfully crossed by this Gospel.

So, what is the book of Acts about? The structure itself tells us: by the power of the Holy Spirit, who is the real main character of every section, the Gospel will advance, not only in spite of the suffering of those willing to carry it across new boundaries, but even through their suffering. And the very next thing is the rest of church history!

As you read the Book of Acts with us, check out this structure and keep it in mind as you follow the storyline. It's a ripping good story!

Rooted in Failure

After one of the World Series games last week, I listened to one of the players being interviewed, and he said one of the most profound things I've ever heard in a post-game interview. OK, OK ... the competition for profundity in pro athlete interviews is not the hardest competition in the world to win, but even so, it was a gem.

I didn't write down the exact quote, but the gist is this: "Baseball is rooted in failure." The team just won the game, bouncing back after a previous loss. But even after winning, that was his thought: baseball is rooted in failure. Sounds odd. But it's fantastic.

His point is this: The goal of training and playing the game is to push until you fail, learn from your failures, and then become better. Reaching your limit or facing an opponent who's stronger than you, "failing" in that sense, and then using failure to improve toward excellence. You reach the World Series by failing ... repeatedly ... even intentionally. Without failing, a team (or a player) will never become good enough to make it to the Series - you cannot reach excellence without failing. Keep pushing to point of failure ... then figure out how not to fail in that way again.

This is more than saying that failure is inevitable, so react well when it happens. It looks at failure not as an unwelcome, unavoidable guest, but something that should be sought out in order to be overcome. This player sees Failure as a useful tool towards excellence.

That's baseball. Or other sports. Or even business. And this player was not claiming to spout biblical truth for Christians to follow. But is there a lesson for followers of Christ in this? I think so.

First, this is not to say that we should push until we fail in sin, and then figure out not to sin next time. I'm not going in that direction at all.

Second, neither am I talking about trying to become more acceptable to God or more righteous. In Christ, we have Christ's 100% righteousness as our own and are perfectly accepted by God because of grace alone.

Third, I see Christians across the country afraid ... fearful! ... to take risks for the Kingdom of God because of a fear of failure. They avoid failure, and in order to avoid failure, they avoid risk. Here's the dirty little secret - that is failure!

Rather, we can look at excellence in advancing the Kingdom of God as something we can achieve only by pressing in the right directions until we "fail" by reaching our limit or facing challenges that are stronger than we are. And then we figure out why we failed, and then how to become better at our goal. We need not stay in mediocrity. And if we can see Failure as a useful tool towards excellence, we can in fact become more excellent at the mission Jesus gave us to do.

We can not succeed at all, of course, without the empowerment of the Spirit, but certainly we can became more capable vessels by seeing success to be rooted in failure.

Too Much to Process

I have not yet had a chance to sit down and sift through my notes to write up a trip report to encapsulate the last two weeks in Kenya. I need to get this done, and I will. But not today. Therefore, I am left to ponder singular events and activities for the moment.

On Sunday, I briefly mentioned a reading in Jeremiah that impacted me in a strong way while in Kenya - Jeremiah 2:5, Thus says the Lord, “What injustice did your fathers find in Me, that they went far from Me and walked after emptiness and became empty?”


I was reading this one morning during my Quiet Time. I hadn't read Jeremiah in a long time, and so I just picked it up that morning. There's so much in the first two chapters that catch our attention, and so I've never really dwelt on this verse before. The image of becoming empty because of walking after emptiness shocked my sleepy-headed system. I asked myself, In what ways have I been walking after emptiness and becoming empty?


One could easily say, "Well, here I am in Kenya on a mission trip. I've given up so much earthly comfort to be here. Surely this is anything but walking after emptiness." And it is true. But if one satisfied himself with this statement, he can successfully ignore the power of the passage. Even if I'm willing to go to Kenya, that doesn't mean I don't have times in my life where I'm walking after emptiness.


I can walk after emptiness by wasting time in front of the tube, by pursuing recreation to the point of imbalance, by getting caught up in consumerism, by letting my mind wander onto topics best left alone, even by pursuing ministry goals for personal benefit more than the purposes of the Kingdom. Anything (and indeed everything) I do that is unrelated to the Kingdom of God in some way is walking after emptiness, from sin to idleness to occupying myself with strictly temporal matters.


And by pursuing emptiness, we become empty. In a sense, we get what we've been looking for, to a tragic fault.


"Weigh" the hours of your week. Do you hours have any weight in God's Kingdom? If too few of your hours are pulled by the gravity of heaven, perhaps you are walking after too much emptiness. For our pursuits to be un-empty, they must be substantive in God's economy. We will get what we're looking for - if we walk after emptiness, we'll find it. If we walk after the weighty stuff of God's Kingdom, we'll find it.


I didn't expect that a mission trip to a developing nation would reveal just how empty some of my pursuits are. However, had I read that passage from the comfort of home, I may well have missed what it has to say.

Why not just send over money?

When you've seen how much short-term mission trips cost, perhaps you've pondered the question, "Why not just send over money?" It is perhaps the most common question I get, and it is a logical, legitimate question. After all, how many orphans could we support in a year for the amount of money it takes our team to get there for just two weeks? There's no arguing that in a simple trade, it's hard to see how the trip makes financial sense.

I'd like to offer a few thoughts:

One of the things the teams do is simply to visit with and pray with various people. We meet with the guardians (who care for the orphans), we meet with church members, we meet with Bible students, and we meet with church leaders. We learn from them, perhaps we teach them something, and we develop relationships and pray with them. You cannot imagine how grateful and encouraged people are that someone would come all that way to spend time with them. It's one of the ways they are encouraged to endure the hardships of ministry in a tough place.

We also develop relationships at the institutional level, connecting Kenyan churches and ministries with US churches and ministries. These relationships are crucial for being able to maintain long-term ministry partnerships, which provide framework for that orphan sponsorship that we want to dollars to ultimately go toward. So in a way, the money spent on the trip does go to orphan sponsorship.

By working Bible students and church leaders, we help them to multiply the ministry. The more pastors and other leaders who are trained, the more the churches can move forward with excellence, and the more churches that can be planted. By bringing teaching and encouragement, we have a part in the multiplication of the church, which in turn affects all kinds of ministry. We've already seen several churches planted by the graduates of the Ahero Evangelical School of Theology.

By sending at least one person per year, we also can update all the biographical information of all the orphans for their sponsors, including current pictures. All this data is crucial for the sponsorship program to proceed. Furthermore, regular visits provide a regular form of accountability, so that the ministry never falls victim of any accusation of malfeasance.

Our teams who work at the orphanage also provide a bit of a break for the teachers, who work so tirelessly day in and day out. Often, we can minister to them directly and encourage them as we do the Bible students.

Perhaps the greatest evidence that short-term missions are financially responsible is that our friends in Kenya think it's worth it. They know it's expensive. They know is a long, arduous trip. They know that we give up relative comfort in order to come. And they think it's worth it. So, I'm inclined to believe it's worth it, even for reasons I may not be aware of or even be able to comprehend.

The fact that our Kenyan friends have so much to teach us about faith and worship, endurance, standing up to the real enemy, and even true joy is a fantastic side benefit. It doesn't justify the expense by itself, but it helps the conclusion that it's worth it. Plus, it keeps us from thinking we're the experts who have come to save the day.

The best way to look at this is not to think that money for the trip is being spent instead of supporting orphans directly, but rather that money well-spent on a short-term trip is an investment for the long-term health, success, and growth of the ministry to orphans, students, and the Kenyan church.

Return to Kenya

The plans are coming together! From June 24 through July 8, a team of four of us are planning on going to Kenya to serve for a couple of weeks. Our team will be: Joe Graham, John Harrison, and Janette Jasperson, and me. The "Three J's" will be going for the first (and I pray not last!) time; it will be my fourth visit to beautiful Kenya. We will spend one week in Ahero and one week in Wachara.

Our mission will be varied: teach Bible to orphans (from "baby" class up through 6th grade), teach ministry and leadership principles to seminary students, minister to the teachers and guardians of the orphans, teach at a pastors' conference, collect updated information and pictures for 300 orphans, and perhaps even introduce a new crop! Whew! Plus, we'll likely have some role in at least one church service.

Our team asks for your prayer support. We need prayers for:

• Safety
• Health
• Preparation (not only our lessons, but our hearts)
• Boldness
• Team unity
• Spiritual vitality, sensitivity, and growth
• Effectiveness in ministry
• Ability to communicate cross-culturally
• Finances

If you would like to support us financially, you can make a check out to Grace Fellowship Church (10201 W. 127th St., Overland Park, KS 66213). On the memo line, please write "Kenya 2011." If you want to support the whole team, that's sufficient. If you want to contribute to a particular team member's fundraising effort, include a note with your check with the team member's name on it.

Janette deserves double kudos for taking care of all the trip planning necessary. And our families deserve medals for their willingness to send us. The Missions Committee, Bob Graverholt, and the Elders have also been very helpful and supportive. The ministry team is more than just four people. Would you please consider enlarging the team by supporting us in prayer?

For more information on our ministry in Kenya, see http://hungry4him.com.

Vision

The all-church survey is in, and we're sifting through the results. Great feedback from not a few responders, so thanks to all of you for putting your thoughts into words and sharing them with us. The elders had a meeting earlier this week to discuss the results, and will spend this Friday and Saturday combing through it all, collecting ideas from personal interviews I have conducted, taking in the various elders discussions throughout the year and prayerfully considering where to set our sights for 2011.

Developing "vision" is a common practice for organizations, religious or secular, to focus limited resources in the face of unlimited possibilities. There are so many good things we could do - the question is what should we do at this time? A vision statement brings that focus. Even from looking only at your comments in the survey, there are far more good ideas that we could do than we have time and resource for. Some good ideas are good ideas for us now, some good ideas are good ideas for us at a later time, and some good ideas are good ideas for someone else. (And, of course we could come up with any number of bad ideas!)

Our "vision" statement will be a statement that helps us focus the energies of each ministry toward a common, single, clear purpose. It is a statement that should be unique to Grace Fellowship, in the sense that it is what we should focus on, without any suggestion that other churches should focus on. Our vision is what our church's unique contribution should be in the Kingdom of God.

Our "mission" statement, however, is not the same thing as our vision statement. A mission statement is bigger than a vision statement. A vision statement is usually good for a period of time, whereas a mission statement remains constant throughout the organization's lifespan. I believe that every church in the world has the same mission - it was a mission that Jesus gave us, called the Great Commission:

Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came up and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 28:20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Every church has the same mission, and therefore the same mission statement. We should all be working toward this mission of making disciples of all nations, under the authority of Christ.

Our "vision" statement is the unique proclamation that says how this particular church intends to add to the overall mission that we share.

Please pray for your elders as they prayerfully develop a vision for our church.