Revelation and a prayer for disturbing

Yesterday I was preparing to teach a Sunday School class at North Cincinnati Community Church based off of D.A. Carson's book The God Who Is There:  Finding Your Place in God's Story.  It's a great book that walks the reader through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and connects the themes throughout.  This week is our last class and part of it is on "The God Who Triumphs."  At the beginning of the chapter Carson asks where our treasure is (based off of Matthew 6:19-21).  He says, "...if what you value the most has to do with treasures down here--things that may in themselves be good, things to appreciate and for which to give thanks--if that is the entire horizon of your treasure, that is where your heart will go."  He then speaks about places in the world where there is persecution and great suffering for Christians and that in those places it's easier to look forward to what is to come - the New Heavens and New Earth.  But, "if we live in parts of the world that are lavish in the goods of this world, our hearts will easily pursue what is here and rarely get excited about what is to come."

Then I was glancing at a friend's blog (Missy Kollar) and she had posted this poem/prayer by Sir Francis Drake.

Disturb us, Lord, when

We are too pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when

with the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst

For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,

We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision

Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wilder seas

Where storms will show Your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push back the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love.

This we ask in the name of our Captain,

Who is Jesus Christ.

I'm almost scared to pray that, but in my heart I'm not.  When you look at the vision given to John of the New Heavens and New Earth in Revelation 21 & 22...there is nothing better.  May we be excited about not only what is to come, but about what we have right now in Jesus Christ!

Global Church Advancement - Part 1

In January Erin and I went to the Global Church Advancement Conference in Lake Mary, Florida.  It was a great time and we were fortunate enough to have another couple from our church plant attend with us (Dan & Sarah Brewer).  I wasn't sure what to expect from the time, but I was delighted by what I learned in the 3 1/2 days.

One of the ideas that struck me most was that to be a successful church planter (or any type of pastor) one must be a life-long student of three things:  the Gospel, the culture, and the church. 

• The Gospel is that normative aspect - the truth of Scripture and of what God has done to rescue sinners.  This is the truth that never changes but always gives hope.  
• The culture is the area in which we are called to minister.  What is true of it?  How has sin uniquely damaged it?  What idols are most prominent?  How does this culture react to the Gospel?  Great questions and a great encouragement that I must understand the situational aspect of life that God has called me to.  I must know the people and the place to which I am called to minister.  
• The church is the group of people God has brought together in an existential manner.  We have come together to be a Kingdom outpost.  A place where God's truth is taught and lives are lived in light of that truth.  But we are also very much different from one another and we will constantly be changing.  I must know the makeup of the people in the church.

If I am to be most effective I must know all three of these areas well...like the back of my hand.  If I know the Gospel well I am able to apply it to the culture with wisdom.  I must know the people in the church and understand where and how the Gospel applies to each of their situations.  It is a strong call to be a student.  I will never be a master of any of these, but I can be a good student and prayerfully God will be at work and will make His invisible Kingdom more and more visible.

Back in Cincy

Our Florida trip has wrapped up and we are glad to be back home in our own beds.  We got back last Monday evening after 12 days on the road and staying in 4 different houses and 3 hotels.  We had a great time, but I must say...we were exhausted.  It's always bad when you need a vacation after going on a vacation!

I had a great time speaking at Christ Community in Gainesville for their Missions Conference.  It was wonderful to catch up with friends like Frank Matthews (their Associate Pastor) and his family.  We also got to see many of our friends from our 4 1/2 years in Gainesville.  It was good to be back and reconnect and hear how the Lord is continuing to work in people's lives.

If you are interested in hearing my message from Sunday morning you can go here.  My message was titled "And I Have Other Sheep," taken from John 10:16.  That verse has been a motivating verse for me for years and it was a joy to have an opportunity to preach on it. 

We are now in the full swing of things back in the house...settling in, trying to get rid of as much cardboard as possible, figuring out where to hang pictures, etc...Our big issue right now is trying to figure out how to make the basement a little quieter without finishing it off.  We are having our Core Group meeting here Sunday night and there will be around 18 adults and 16 kids (all running around in the basement).  If you have good suggestions before Friday (when I plan to insulate the floor joists) please let me know.