Engaging Community

Cultivating Missional Living

Engaging Community

Luke 10:1-12

The Importance of Public Spaces

Isolation is a word that describes the kind of lives many people are living today. More and more people are spending less and less time with others. There is less time given to civic participation, connections in the workplace, involvement in any type of faith based activity, and neighborhood relationships than ever before. The fact is that more people are spending time alone than ever before. One possible solution involves identifying and engaging what I’m going to call, “Third places” in our communities. Third places are represented by public places of common ground where people enjoy the company of others.

A couple of questions might be, what examples of isolation do we see or have we experienced in the lives of people around us? Are things different than they were 10, 20, 30 years ago? And what are some third places in our community.

Very soon, in just 2 weeks, we will begin a journey. We will make our way through the twin texts of Luke-Acts. Very soon Luke 10:1-12 will become a foundational passage for the future of Ridgecrest. One of the reasons I say this is that I believe that Luke the writer of both books, is suggesting the way to understand the church in relationship to our community.

Luke, I believe is suggesting a radically different location for being the church when the Spirit is breaking our boundaries. Which if you have paid attention to me at all, you have heard is what I’m suggesting God is doing at Ridgecrest, in our communities and in our City. ?... What if one of the most important locations for the church isn’t so much being centered “in here” as much as it is being located “out there” ? What if an element of what God is saying to us in this passage is that our nature, our meaning, our role, and our function will be rediscovered only to the extent we learn to discern what God is up to in the interactions in our relationships with people in the homes and public spaces of our neighborhoods and communities. We should ask, why did Jesus send out the Seventy-two? Where did they go? How does the concept of hospitality, which we looked at last week, play out in this passage? What can we learn in our interacting “out there” that we might not be able to discern “in here?”

? What thoughts are you beginning to have when I tell you that our relevance might only be rediscovered as we interact in our neighborhood or community? I pray, with only one week left in the first half of this series that huge questions are rising up within our minds.

Where Everybody Knows You Name

In the late 1980’s and early 90s one of the most popular TV shows on US television was a show called Cheers. It was set in a bar in the heart of Boston. A very popular scene was when a particular “regular” would bust through the front door of the bar and everyone would shout his name in unison, “Norm!” The tagline for the show was, “Where everybody knows your name.”

A man named TJ Palmer took this concept of a place people could call their own and developed the most successful restaurant chain in the world, Applebee’s, whose restaurants were originally designed around the cheers set.

The environment within the world of cheers and that desired in Applebee’s provides a perfect picture of a cultural phenomenon referred to as a “third place” by sociologist. Places like Starbucks and others have used this trend to build large chains of Cafes, Coffee Shops, and other Hangouts. Many of us frequent a form of these third places.

So, what exactly is a third place? Well, a first place is our home and the people whom we live with. A second place is where we work or go to school and spend the majority of our waking hours. A third place is a public setting that host regular, voluntary, and informal gatherings of people. It is a place to relax and have the opportunity to know and be known by others. It is a place people like to “hang out.”

So, ?, why is it so important for Jesus followers to understand the concept of third places? …Because the vast majority of people in the US are living isolated, relationally impoverished lives, and third places offer an opportunity for missionally minded people to do life in very close proximity to others.

Let me share some interesting statistics and changes in the US in regard to social interaction. Did you know that in the past twenty years the number of people who bowl has increased dramatically? But, the number of people who bowl in a league is very small. In the past a bowling alley was a very popular third place. Most people who bowled there bowled in a league. And it is estimated that as much as a third of adults bowled in a league.

Another third place of the past was the 1950 and 60 phenomena of the game of bridge. It is estimated that by 1958 one-third of all adults, men and women, at that time, gathered once a week for club games. This spread through dorm rooms and student unions in the 60s and 70s and millions of college students spent millions of hours in seemingly endless games of bridge. On college campuses mixed double clubs developed and it became a very important way for men and women to gather informally. The very rules of the game, limiting talk among partners about their cards, encouraged conversation about topics other than the game itself.

Now people play card games and numerous other games alone on their phone or tablets. The problem, when we play games alone, we obviously do not participate in the social interaction and community that occurs in leagues or teams or club environments.

Now, let this sink in, just a few decades ago, once a week, the majority of our population, was in a bowling alley, living room or college student union or dorm room spending the evening with other families or friends. Today we have substituted things like television and computers and tablets. The reality is that we usually engage them all alone. 

What I’m saying is that this deterioration of social connections in our communities should drive us to action. As followers of Jesus we know we were created as relational beings. We know that God designed us to be in deep, abiding relationship with Him. But we also understand that we were created to be in life-giving relationships with one-another. The idea of millions of lonely people sitting at home, remote control, tablet, mouse, phone in hand, dying relationally from the lack of basic human connection should inspire us to bring about change. But, what can we do? Let me say some things in regard to third places.

Third Places

Identify and Enter

First, we must take the time to identify the third places in our neighborhood. Where do people gather to spend time with others? Where are the typical places, the cafes and coffee shops and other hangouts? And where are some atypical places where people come together. Maybe libraries, parks, workout places. We may need to think outside the box when identifying where people gather. But then once we identify them, we must then seek to engage these places. As we discussed way back in the second message in this series, this will involve embedding our lives incarnationally into third places. Listening and learning where God is at work, and asking how we can participate in what God is doing!

Create Environments

This is one that is often talked about. Churches attempt to open coffee shops or libraries. We plant community gardens hoping to encourage people to work together. But when we do these things they often become more about members rather than reaching our community. Coffee shops for members, libraries for members to study the Bible, gardens that members use….Good things, but we must keep our minds set on ways to be creative in the way we think about common space in our neighborhoods, and how they may enhance relational connections.

Support and Defend

Now this one may sound unusual. But in some ways we may need to become urban planning advocates. If we are committed to the importance of relationships for the health and vitality of our communities. We should involve ourselves in anything,. parks, bike trails, and anything else that would enhance the opportunity for a richer public life.

So, our engagement with third places should first flow out of our desire to see those who are relationally disconnected drawn into life-giving relationships with others, and ultimately with the giver of life. And, secondly, it should flow out of the recognition that as an increasing number of people are less interested in the activities of the church, it is we, as the missionary people of God, who have to engage others on common ground, or third places. 

Welcoming the Stranger; Recovering Biblical Hospitality

Cultivating Missional Living Sermon 10

Mi Casa, Es Su Casa!

Welcoming the Stranger; Recovering Biblical Hospitality

Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 14:12-14, Romans 12:13, Hebrews 13:3, 1 Peter 4:9

Welcoming the Stranger

Matthew 25:31-46

I do not often talk about Greek words in the context of Sunday Morning sermons, but I want to point a word out to you. It is the Greek word we translate hospitality. It is made up of two Greek words. The words for love and for stranger. The word literally means “love of stranger.” You might recall that Philadelphia, is two Greek words put together, one meaning love, the other brother, to mean brotherly love. Well the word here is philoxenia, joining the words for love and stranger together. 

So some ?s, What is the first thought that comes to mind when you hear the word “hospitality?”

Does the definition of hospitality as “love of stranger” surprise you in any way?

How would you define a stranger? Do strangers include more than those we simply do not know?

When people hear the word “hospitality, we typically picture entertaining around meals, or inviting family and friends into their homes for a night of fun and games. Some may think of the hospitality industry, which includes hotels and restaurants and cruise ships that work to create an atmosphere of friendliness and welcome. Or,….perhaps Church “hospitality” comes to mind, greeters, ushers, and those who set up coffee and snacks for the Sunday Morning gathering. In any case most understandings of hospitality have a very minimal moral component them…hospitality is a nice extra if we have the time or the resources, but we rarely view it as a spiritual obligation or as a dynamic expression of vibrant Christianity. The fact is that over time the Christian Community has very much lost touch with the amazing transformative realities of true biblical hospitality.

Understanding Biblical Hospitality

In order to love the stranger and open our homes effectively, we need to expand our view of hospitality. Jesus commands us to extend the circle of hospitality beyond friends and relatives to include those in need:

Luke 14:12-14 He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

And just to be clear, there is absolutely nothing wrong with sharing a meal with friends and family. In fact, shared meal times play an essential role in cultivating healthy family relationships and are an essential element of biblical community. But, the practice of genuine, biblical hospitality is distinctive from the conventional view because it reaches out to undesired, neglected people who cannot pay us back.

And, to be clear, strangers are not simply those we do not know. …In the strict sense, strangers are those who are disconnected from basic relationships. Making space for hospitality is not only about creating physical environments that are welcoming to others, but it is also about the posture or position we take toward human relationships in general. It is about turning our lives toward those who are isolated. It is about listening well to those who rarely have a voice.

Hospitality is really about inclusion. It is about including others into our lives and our network of relationships. The opposite of inclusion is exclusion, which involves the actions of dismissal and rejection. The lack of a welcome can be deeply hurtful. Do you remember a time in your life when you were excluded? Stop and think for a moment. How did being excluded from the lives and activities of others make you feel? Many people live a life of constant exclusion. Biblical hospitality, when rightly understood and pursued, has the power to break the bonds of exclusion and isolation.

And, when considering the idea of hospitality as more than welcoming the stranger into a physical place, it is worth noting that Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:35, “I was a stranger and you invited me in,” do not refer to a particular physical location for hospitality. Instead, the verse challenges us to examine our practices of welcome to strangers in every setting. Jesus’ words are more closely associated with relationships than with location…I was a stranger and you received me into your group.

Hospitality involves living our life in a way that places a higher value on relationships and community than on consumption and productivity. But, this is counter to the prevailing philosophy of our American Culture.

Barriers to Hospitality

When did we lose the capacity to give and receive hospitality? Why has it virtually disappeared from the life of the church and from those of us who make up the church? The reasons are no doubt very complex, but much of the move away from biblical hospitality can be seen in the changing view of the family. We have moved from family as an extended web of relationships that included aunts, uncles, grandparents, and friends to a very individualized, insulated, and in most cases, small ”nuclear family unit.”

The picture then, within most single family homes today is one of both parents pursuing careers and working hard to take hold of the American Dream. The endless pursuit of this type of life leads to a lack of flexibility in several areas of life…..Like, there is no money left over at the end of the month. There is no physical energy left over at the end of the week. There is no time for relationships left over at the end of the day. So the lack of flexibility in our lives becomes an enormous barrier to opening our homes to others. And until we are willing to make hard decisions to create it, there will be little time and space to welcome others into our lives.

However, maybe the greatest barrier flowing out of our changing view of the family has to do with the perceived relationship between family and culture. Over the past few decades, the family has increasingly become a place to achieve safety and security from the dangers of secular society. You know, the home has become a fortress to protect the family from the evils of the world, rather than a place of welcome. We think this is our space and those we chose to welcome are very carefully chosen. So visitors, especially strange ones, stress us out. And while this in some sense is understandable, the negative result in terms of our spirituality is that family has effectively become an idol…a place where the Shema is no longer applied to the whole of our life. So once again, our culture, has undermined our responsibility.

And it is not hard at all to see how this is absolutely disastrous from a missional perspective. Our families and our homes should be places where people can experience a foretaste of heaven, where the church is rightly viewed as a community of the redeemed from all walks of life. Instead, our fears restrict us from letting go of the control and safety we have spent years cultivating.

This view of the family leads to a very high level of skepticism and fear of strangers. We are fearful that the stranger is not like us. They may think differently. They may have different values. They may make us uncomfortable. And stemming from the fear of the unknown is a heightened desire for our safety and security. What do we do?....We add extra locks on our doors, install security systems, and construct higher fences. You know when I grew up here in the metroplex…people had 4’ chain link fences. These were mainly to keep our dogs in…but you could see right through them to your neighbor’s yard. Then I saw how we moved to 6 then 8 and now we have 10’ privacy fences. And we even put overlapping boards so that there won’t be any chance of anybody seeing into a neighbor’s life.

The problem is that people are created as relational beings. God made us to be in a relationship with him, but also with each other. However, because most people have never experienced genuine biblical hospitality, and do not know how to offer it to those around them, they continue to live isolated, sometimes very lonely lives. As followers of Jesus, we must set the example and illustrate for others the transformative power of hospitality.

Pursuing Biblical Hospitality

Romans 12:13, Paul’s says we are to contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. I think the word translated seek, we are to seek hospitality is great. Because Christians are not to simply practice hospitality, but instead are to seek out opportunities to welcome strangers into their homes and lives.

1 Peter 4: 8-9 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.

You know in most areas of life we fall short of God’s best by what we do… infidelity, lying, stealing, jealousy, anger, and so on. These are all examples of sins of “commission” Sins we commit. Not so with hospitality. Here our sin comes through what we fail to do. It is a sin of omission. And it is not just because we fail to lessen or alleviate hurt of others, or that someone is forced to go without food or lives on the streets, but rather because of what is left undone in our own lives. See, every time we turn away from another, our heart becomes a little colder. The doors to our homes close a little bit tighter. And, the worse part…our vision for what God is doing in the lives of those around us becomes a little less clear.

The real question is not how dangerous the stranger is…but how dangerous will we become if we don’t learn to be more open?

Biblical hospitality is an obligation. It is a spiritual discipline and a missional practice. It is simply…the way of Jesus. It is a gift to others and to ourselves. Both the blessing and difficulties of biblical hospitality are most deeply discovered only as it is pursued.

And I know, I acknowledge that pursuing hospitality, along with all the blessings and difficulties that come with it, is at times scary and radical. But it is worth the risk. Because unless we find a way to open ourselves up to others, we will be the ones to grow more isolated and frightened. And if we do not find and practice ways of hospitality we will grow increasingly hostile. Hospitality is the answer to hostility. Jesus said to love your neighbor…hospitality is how!

Like a Good Neighbor; Knowing and Loving Your Neighborhood

Cultivating Missional Living Sermon 9

Like a Good Neighbor; Knowing and Loving Your Neighborhood

Jeremiah 29:4-7, Matthew 5:14

Good News for Our City

Though chance or circumstance may appear to be what brought us to the place we live, as followers of Christ we can be assured that God sent us on an assignment as a participant in His mission to the world. Our location in this world is no accident. The people in our immediate neighborhood and the community that surrounds us are the ones to whom the Lord has sent us and for whom He has raised up our church. As individuals and as the collective body of Christ, we are called to seek the welfare of the very people we are living among.

Jeremiah 29:4-7

In this passage God says to make a good life for ourselves but also to seek the welfare of the city He has sent us to. ? In what ways do we “seek” our cities welfare?....This passage also contains God’s instructions to pray for the city He sends us to. Have you given this serious consideration? (We spent time on this passage a few weeks ago. How does the thought of beginning to pray for your neighborhood and city enliven you?

Matthew 5:14-16

In this verse Jesus says, “You are the light of the world.” Wow, lets imagine that for a moment…Do you look at yourself this way?...Are there currently any ways that your light is somewhat hidden under a basket? Does the idea of “good works” excite you or turn you off?

Knowing and Loving Our Neighborhoods and Cities

Most of us view our neighborhoods and cities as little more than places where we live. We live out our lives and simply hope for the best….for a safe, peaceful, crime free community with good schools and nice parks and good job opportunities, and maybe even some good arts and entertainment venues. But a missional person sees his or her neighborhood differently. A missional church views its community differently too.

A missional church is a fellowship made up of people who individually and collectively own the responsibility for the welfare of their particular community as a whole. And if our hopes of becoming a missional church are to ever be realized, we must open our eyes to be missional people in the very places we live and frequent. This begins with the street we live on, which is our most immediate mission field. These pathways then stretch out to our neighborhoods.

Seeking the Best for Our City

So, and here is what God is saying, when we make conscious and committed decisions-on a daily basis-to seek the best for our neighborhoods and cities, life flourishes not only for us but also for those whose lives we touch. No matter how we reach out, even if it seems small to us, our collective actions become proportionately significant. (Jeremiah 29:4-7)

Knowing People, Meeting Needs

As God’s missionary people, sent ones, it is unavoidable that we constantly ask missionary questions. So, what are some of the questions we should be asking regarding our neighborhoods? Well:

How would a missionary live on my street?

What would he or she notice is missing here?

Who are the poor, marginalized, and hurting in my neighborhood? (Oh, and don’t think they are not there!)

In what ways would my neighborhood be different if God’s Kingdom came here as it is in heaven?

What would good news be for my neighbors right here, right now?

Kim and I in Mexico

The Simple agenda of Jesus for winning the whole world is to make each person he touches magnetic enough with His love to draw others. Jesus’ followers and faithful churches are cities on hills and lights in the midst of darkness. Even though people in our surrounding neighborhoods may or may never join our church, they will have no choice but to see Christians and churches as essential components of the health and hope of our community. (Matthew 5:14-16)

But and this is important, we can quickly react to needs while unintentionally communicating that solving the problem is more important than knowing the person with the problem. Any agency or government can do that. What agencies and governments cannot do is something only a human can do-building relationships with the people in need. When missionaries start with need, hoping they will one day get to know people personally, they will most likely be found years later, still addressing the same need.

On the other hand, when we start with people in empowering relationships, we are still likely to get to the problems they have, but then work together, with them, on the problems. The work, so to speak may start slower and look less impressive when relationships are the priority before attention to need, but it is more likely to be owned and reproduced by the people themselves and, as a result, have a much longer lifespan.

Building a Community

The church is not the kingdom of God. It is an instrument, or an entity, within the kingdom. It is then mandatory for us, that we understand who we are and assume the role of servant for the kingdom of God. We are God’s tangible expression of how He feels about the world. Most Christians today are overwhelmed by what they believe to be their own lack of talents, giftings or expertise to help others. The good news is that none of us must have all the answers, resources, or solutions. That is one of the things that makes community so diverse, colorful and creative.

So as we begin building community, we begin to see that our neighborhood is a treasure chest. By opening the chest and putting all the gifts together in many different ways, we then multiply the power of its riches. ….Think of the street you live on. Consider the homes on either side of you in both directions. Think of those across from you. It would amaze us all if we really knew of all the gifts and talents of the people living in those houses-not to mention the resources contained in them.

A community builds on the gifts of its people. It knows that a gift is not a gift until it is given. Before it is given, it is only a beautifully wrapped box. Gifts need to be named and exchanged, not only to create a capable community, but also to create a functioning family. A church is a family that has discovered its capacity to produce for itself, together with a capable community, all that is required for a truly good life, a satisfying life. The tragedy of a dysfunctional family or neighborhood is that the potential gifts of its members are never given away.

The road to loving our neighborhoods and cities can begin as a treasure hunt, then by our prayerfully opening our eyes and ears, taking some risks to get to know others, and giving ourselves as servants, we can play a significant role in the future welfare of our cities.

So, In Response:

Begin this week, to take some time to use whatever media, newspapers, magazines, the internet….watch the evening local news to learn more about our community. Then follow that up with prayer for the welfare of our city in light of what you know about its needs, asking God to bring His kingdom to bear upon the situations as well as ones you don’t know about.

Then, begin this week to pray for people on your street. Specifically pray for them by name if you know them. Pray for their spiritual and physical needs. Pray not only for them in difficult situations but also that they prosper and are well. 

Waking up from the American Dream; God’s Mission and Our Resources

Cultivating Missional Living Sermon 8

Waking up from the American Dream; God’s Mission and Our Resources

Our Lord has provided a plan for a sustainable and vibrant society. But, it doesn't just happen. God’s plan as revealed to us through the Bible portrays a caring community of Jesus followers who are both sympathetic and sacrificial in their approach to their possessions and financial resources. If we hope to bear fruit for the Kingdom of God, our eyes and hearts must be fixed on people and things beyond ourselves. Our hearts must be open in order for our hands to be open.

So, ? How should the concept of a caring community change the way a local church thinks and functions in its local setting?

 How should the concept of a caring community change the way we think and act on a daily basis?

What areas of our lifestyle may need to change?

Read Mark 4:18-19… In this passage Jesus says that three things-the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things-make the Word of God unfruitful in people’s lives. A good question for each of us is to ask how this applies to our lives.

Read 1 John 2:15-17….In what ways have you been tempted by “love of the things of the world.” …How does this relate to your life, …how important are things and what does your life look like in regard to resources that you consume.

Read Acts 2:44-45….Other than money at church, how do you currently, not how you want to, but do you currently practice, sharing your resources. …..Now a good question might be, how do you imagine yourself sharing the resources God has given you?

Read Matthew 6:24-34….Reflecting on this passage, does worry affect you frequently in regard to your own daily needs?

Open Hearts, Open Hands

In spite of the recent economic recession, the US remains the wealthiest nation on earth. We have more than enough to go around. Our biggest problem is not so much having enough. It is more likely that we are not sharing enough. As the Body of Christ, the core values of the church embody the only viable answer to the issue of enough. However,….the so called American Dream crashes against God’s dream for His Kingdom to manifest on earth as it is in heaven. The values of God’s Kingdom clash with the values of this world on most every front. And in one of the most familiar of Jesus’ parables, we are confronted with the key to God’s Word taking root in our lives, in order that we may bear fruit and give a taste of the Kingdom.

Mark 4:18-19

The importance of this passage cannot be emphasized enough. Jesus says this parable is the key to understanding all of his other parables (V13). It is the master key. Tens of thousands of sermons are preached every year across America. Millions of books are sold every year. And a great many Christians read this scripture every day. Yet, our culture remains unchanged by it. Our neighborhoods remain unchanged by it. Our City remains unchanged by it. Why? How can this be? Might the truth be that we, the body of Jesus Christ, remain for the most part unchanged? And in order for us to be change agents, salt, light, we must first be changed ourselves?

The “isms” Thorns

If you have ever got yourself tangled up in a thorn bush, you know how aggravating and even painful it can be to get out. And thorn bushes in gardens or flower beds can literally wrap around plants and squeeze the very life from them, leaving them fruitless and eventually lifeless. Jesus says this is exactly what happens when our lives become wrapped up in the values and agendas of the present age. We can spend endless hours of Bible Study and church activities with no visible fruit produced in our lives on account of our entanglement with worldly pursuits and concerns.

 Let me share a few “isms” that effectively choke out not only our ability to live on mission with God, but also our imagination of what we could possibly do missionally.

One of the critical admissions for Christians is that consumerism, the theory that an increasing consumption of goods is economically desirable; also : a preoccupation with and an inclination toward the buying of consumer goods, has the propensity to shape and dictate our very identity. When our identification is one of a consumer our true identity as citizens of the Kingdom of God-which is supposed to be, strangers and aliens to this earthly Kingdom-fades away. We can’t then even begin to conceive of a Kingdom life in Biblical terms of Risk, Time, Finance and Energy. We just can’t get our heads around how we could possibly afford to be missional. And this is exactly what the apostle John warned us against.

1 John 2:15-17

The very essence of the church, the fragrance it emits to a world watching so closely, lies in its living as an authentic community. ….In other words, the church doesn’t have a social strategy; the church is the social strategy. We have an unmatched opportunity to show the world the type of life that can never be achieved through social programs or our governments’ intervention. But, authentic biblical community can never be practiced alongside the American lifestyle of individualism. (a doctrine that the interests of the individual are or ought to be ethically supreme)

Risky People

Even the hastiest reading of the Book of Acts paints a picture of an open-hearted and open-handed Christian people who are fueled by an unrelenting, risk-it-all resolve. To become this type of people, we will have to make some serious choices that most likely will necessitate significant lifestyle changes. Just like an out of shape athlete, we must get our lives into missional shape. …Some people may want to run a marathon. Some, like me, would just like to be able to run a few times around the block. But we love Blue-bell too much. We like our cookies and brownies and tortillas. And in the same way most Christians really do want to have an impact on the world, or even just their block, but they have never shaped their lives to be able to keep pace.

Currently, the average American family lives in a home that is over three times the size of the average American house from 1950. This is despite the fact that family units are smaller now than they were fifty years ago. A sign I often use to define our over consumption is the phenomenon of this past few decades of the use of self-storage units. It is now reported to be a 23 billion dollar industry that rakes in more than the entire entertainment industry. 

Our Lord is pleased when we enjoy the fruits of our labor, but our appetites need to remain in check. God has carved out an economic design for the Body of Christ that is full of life for us as well as others.

How to Inherit the Earth

Those who are meek and who are submitted to the government of God will seek for His Kingdom to come before everything else in this life. Why, because they treasure His Kingdom more than they treasure personal wealth. They are attentive to those who are weak and who are trampled on by those more powerful. They turn into great filters of wealth, sending out possessions to those in need and stretching arms out to those on the margins of society.

This isn’t trickle-down economics where a few at the top might spill some of what they have accumulated over the years down to the masses at the bottom. No Kingdom economics is pictured in the poor widow who was so insanely generous that she gave away the little bit that she had to live on. In Kingdom economics the followers of Jesus pool their resources and then dole them out to each one as they have need, Widows and orphans are cared for in their distress. Homes are opened for the homeless and clothing is given away to those who need it. The economic blueprint in God’s kingdom works against personal increase and selfish accumulation and works toward distribution out to the extremities. Maybe that’s why Jesus said it was impossible to serve both God and money; people can’t submit to the desire for personal accumulation and submit to the desire for God at the same time!

See, for our lives to genuinely be fruitful for the Kingdom of God, most of us must change our habits and lifestyles. You know, junk food and fluffy sofas don’t pump out many marathon runners. And the church in the book of Acts had a habit of producing changed lifestyles for the sake of the community. A return to that mindset would certainly go a long way toward our forming a missional community. Towards our cultivating a Missional Lifestyle.

Cultivating Missional Living Renewing and Refreshing for the Long Haul

American culture is the most medicated and therapeutic on the face of the earth. Stress is killing us physically, emotionally, and spiritually. As God’s people, it does not have to and should not be this way. If we will look to God’s Word, we will discover a pattern for living-in any area of our lives- that God has prescribed to set his people free from stressful lifestyles. It is not possible for any of us to find the strength to carry out life on our own. The Lord never intended us to do so. He wants to be our strength for living.

So, the ?, do you consider your life to be stressful?...Does the idea of a stress-free lifestyle seem realistic?.... Lk. 24:49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” I think it is very significant that after 3 years of walking alongside our Lord, and witnessing His atoning work on the cross and His resurrection, Jesus say’s you are still not ready so “stay” until I return in power. I believe this should cause us to ask, in what ways is Jesus still instructing us to do this today.

But, it’s hard, someone wrote a song once called the waiting is the hardest part. But in Isaiah 40:31, a personal favorite piece of scripture for me,

but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;

   they shall mount up with wings like eagles;

   they shall run and not be weary;

   they shall walk and not faint.

What is most difficult for you? In what area of life is it most difficult to wait for The Lord? Are you praying about it, are you laying it before the feet of our Lord?

This is not so much a message on the Sabbath, “God’s Sabbath Rest”, as it is a message about Renewal and Refreshing for the long haul ahead. But, what has the Sabbath meant to you in your walk with Christ. In what ways do you observe it or keep it? It is an often misunderstood word, but in Mark 2:27, Jesus says, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Here is a clue, the key, to understanding the Sabbath.

Hitting the Pause Button

Maybe you remember playing Red Light, Green Light as a child. The game as you might remember is a combination of running, stopping, moving, and freezing. To win, you must listen closely to whoever is calling out the commands for stopping or going. ….And in the Body today, I truly believe we are seeing a renewed obedience to our Jesus’ command to Go! Green light …..But, Jesus’ last words when he appeared to the disciples after the resurrection were “Wait (stop) in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high” ….Red Light!

So here in the middle of this series I want to reflect on the much neglected doctrine of “The Red Light” and its aspect of missional living. It is imperative that we take time to focus on the habit of pausing, refreshing and renewing ourselves in the Lord!

Why is this so difficult? Because ours is a culture that values production to such a degree that the idea of “wasting time” for just about any reason is considered a curse. ….But if we want to truly spend time with God, we must intentionally, make a concentrated and regular effort to create space for God….. But everyone and everything around us wants to fill up every bit of the space in our lives and then make us an occupied people, more than that a preoccupied people. This has a negative effect on our time with God. We approach it as simply a task to be completed. So we try and make our time with God useful, we view it from kind of a what will this do for me perspective. What wisdom can I get? Will I feel God’s presence? What answer will God give to my questions? Then it becomes a chore.

The world says if you are not making good use of your time, you are useless. Jesus says hey, come spend some useless time with me. See, if we can separate ourselves from the idea of “the usefulness” of spending time with God and “the results” of spending time with God, it frees us to “Waste” a precious hour or two with God. Then gradually, we may find, our useless time will transform us, and then everything in our life will be different. See, our Sabbath, spending time in God’s Rest, is our being unbusy, instead of being busy with other things. …To not be useful is to remind ourselves that if anything important or even fruitful happens through time spent with God, it is God who achieves the result. ….So when we go into the day, we go with the conviction that God is the one who brings forth fruit in my work, and I don’t have to act as though I’m in control of things. I have to work hard, I have to do my job, I have to offer my best. But I can let go of the illusion of control and be detached from the result. At the end of the day I can prayerfully say that if something good has happened, God Be praised, God be glorified!

So as we set aside time for God to share His inward thoughts with us, we open our ears and minds and the doors of our heart to receive His most intimate affection and dreams for our lives and for those with whom we are in relationships with. We hope in the Lord and He will renew our strength!

We Sabbath!

So, correctly understood, our Sabbath becomes both a joy and a gift from God to us. It becomes something we get to enjoy instead of a have to endure. Why because, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”

I read that 37% of Americans take fewer than seven days off per year. Only 14% of Americans take vacations of more than two weeks. Americans take the shortest paid vacations in the world, and 20% of those who take vacation stay in direct contact with the office or those on the job. So I guess I’m trying to help us become a little less American. Because to Sabbath, to spend time in God’s rest means to schedule time to do nothing but rest in God.

It has been written, so many times by so many that I think people think it’s a verse, that “The purpose of man is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.”  I think this is true and an accurate reflection of God’s eternal plan. … Well, for the Christian …forever has begun. Forever is here and now.

Our God is more than capable of keeping this universe going without us helping him for a few hours a day. And for a day a week, to be spent in His rest! Again our time with God, should be a daily and weekly event we look forward to with anticipation. And on your Day of rest, …What brings you joy? What gives you delight? If it’s reading a book, then kick back and do it. If it’s playing with your children, do it, if it’s loving on your spouse, then do it. Whatever you do, remember it’s not a time to get things done, it is for joy and delight!

Our Daily Office

Let me share this with you as I close, the word Office comes from the Latin word opus or work. For the early church, the daily office was always the work of God. Nothing was to interfere with that priority. The basic goal of the daily office is to maintain a conscious connection with the Lord throughout our day. The Monk St. Benedict structured eight prayer times called offices for monks. Every three hours the monks of the Benedictine order, even to this day stop everything they are doing, this includes sleeping, and observe the office.

Well, few people other than monks observe offices today. Most ‘office’ so to speak three or four times a day with very small doses of prayer, reading a psalm or proverb maybe. A devotion or small amount of scripture. But the wisest man in the world at the time he lived, Solomon wrote a proverb we know it as Proverbs 4:23, Above all things, guard your heart, for everything flows from it” He believed everything concerning our life comes from our heart, so the best thing we can do is to keep proper maintenance on our inner life. So attending to our heart, our attitudes, and a listening ear is essential as we move in missional ways. Good works will quickly become dead works if we are not drawing both our wisdom and strength from the power of the Holy Spirit on a very frequent basis.