Affirmation #3 – Holistic Personal Transformation

Posted on February 6, 2008 by bornfun

February 6, 2008
7:26 AM

On a personal note, today is a very exciting day in the Born household.  Around noon, we will sign the adoption papers for Maria.  Exactly a year ago I wrote these words:

The real issue of life, the bottom line for the Christ-follower, is the answer to this question.  Do I trust God or not?  This is the question of faith. … Do I trust in God’s faithfulness when I’m feeling something else, or to put it in the words of a friend, “When it’s not working for me?”  Well, this is what I have found out regarding faith as I walk through the unknown future with my daughter, Maria, whom my wife and I hope to adopt.  Right now I face a terrible loss – it’s a date on the calendar for next week, the day I am to give her away to her great-aunt.  … The knowledge of this possibility came to us in November.  Julie and I decided to make this a matter of prayer and have devoted Wednesday afternoons to fasting and praying for this situation.  This decision to devote ourselves to prayer has changed everything – it gives us the right perspective and it takes us to the humble position of our knees, together, as we confess our utter dependence upon our heavenly father. This unites our hearts with one another and opens our eyes to the bigger picture of God’s sovereignty – this is bigger than us and really isn’t ultimately about us.  Prayer makes us hopeful, not in getting our way, but with the felt presence of God working in and through us as we place our trust in Him.

Is it just chance that we get to sign the papers for Maria’s adoption at the same time that we have devoted to prayer for the past year?  Is it a coincidence that we go to court to finalize the adoption next week? I see God’s hand in it.  I am flooded by a sense of his pleasure.  He has proved his faithfulness time and again, and I walk away with a determined confidence in his timing and sovereignty.  (Even now as we have been on the list waiting since September for our next children to adopt.)  I echo the words to an old hymn, “Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him; How I’ve proved him o’er and o’er; Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus, o for grace to trust him more.”  I’d like to live my life spotlighting the proof of God’s faithfulness.  Certainly that proof will come through times of terrible loss as well.  But this time is a time of wonderful gain – I gain a daughter for life – Maria Joy Born.  Billy was chatting about his ‘deep thoughts’ before bedtime with Julie the other night.  He said, “Mommy, this means that I’ll get to see Maria when she’s 6 like me.”  She is so beautiful – I just can’t imagine what she will look like as a young lady.  For now, I will devote my time to cultivating her inner-beauty and thriving in the fact that I am her Daddy and will remain so forever.

Now I move to my reflections on our Trinity Philosophy of Ministry.  The third affirmation is stated as follows:

3. Our goal is holistic personal transformation, the lifelong process of becoming Christ-followers who increasingly manifest Christ-likeness and honor Christ as Lord in every area of their lives.

  1. Because we believe that God’s intention for Christ-followers is “likeness to Christ, for the glory of God and the good of others,” we are concerned that Christians grow, not only in right understanding (orthodoxy), but also in right character (orthokardia) and conduct (orthopraxy).
  1. Service and suffering [an undeveloped point thus far].

I see two areas that I must consider with regards to worship ministries. First, are the members of worship ministries actively involved in becoming transformed – are we growing in right understanding, character and conduct?  Second, are we encouraging and fostering that growth in our congregation?  Then I will speak separately about sub-point b) regarding service and suffering.

  1. The people who serve in worship ministries – I believe that the best way to ensure that people in worship ministries are growing is for them to first of all be deeply connected to and committed to this church family – not only in service, but also in Bible-study and accountability.  I want our personnel who serve to be committed to their own growth by being regular attendees of our worship gatherings – in other words, they don’t just attend when they are scheduled.  There is accountability in this as well as a shared journey as we experience our corporate worship together – the teaching of the Word, and the moving of the Spirit as we experience God’s transforming presence.  Second, I need to realize that Worship Ministries may be a connecting point for people to this church family, and even more so to the redeeming work of the Gospel in their lives.  All Worship Ministries teams need to be intentional about creating connecting points and then leading those who connect to a deeper connection to this church family by moving them towards that which was stated above.  Practically speaking, this means that all of our artistic and technical teams are seeking to engage those outside the family of God, as well as serving those who are inside.  This intentional ministry needs to be done with prayer and with my knowledge and support in choosing appropriate means to do this.
  2. Fostering growth in our congregation – Those of us who plan and lead worship services must acknowledge personally and publicly that we expect God to be actively present in our worship gatherings.  We must be devoted to prayer toward that end – for fruit to result from our time gathered together as a church.  Are we convinced that when we encounter God’s presence we should be transformed?  Are we just information junkies, walking away saying what great preaching or great worship, or do we walk away overwhelmed with our need to realign our lives with God’s will because we have met with him there?  A proper understanding (orthodoxy) produces proper character (orthokardia) and practice (orthopraxis).  We as worship leaders need to come to be changed – transformed, as 2 Corinthians 3 states, to “ever increasing glory.” And we need to encourage those we lead to come with the same mindset.  “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2Cor. 3:18, NIV)
  3. Service and suffering – Regarding sub-point b), the process of transformation is rarely comfortable.  This is an area where I confess a great misunderstanding, a blind spot, in my own life.  I would go so far as to label it sin – I am more and more convinced that it is the sin of quenching the Spirit of the Living God, of trying to manage and arrange my own life my own way and not allowing the oft-terrifying transformation process of the Holy Spirit to take me away from comfort into tremendous sacrifice, yes, and even suffering for the sake of Christ and the growth of his Kingdom.  The result of this quenching of the Spirit is a bland Christianity that while appearing different on the outside (we go to church, we talk Christianese, etc.), is in reality no different than the secular world (it lacks the Spirit’s power as evidenced by transformation).  Our family relationships, our character in business, our money, the way we use our time and talents, the manifestation of our sexuality, the purposeful use of our possessions, our demonstration of love for the poor, the orphan and the widow – all of these practices need to be transformed as evidence of the heart transformation that Jesus brings.  Like James says, “But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”  Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. ” (James 2:18-19, NIV) James has much to say about the character and practice that the life of faith in Jesus Christ should produce.  But he opens his letter with this statement.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ” (James 1:2-5, NIV)

Trinity Church needs to be a worshiping community that embraces suffering as God’s way of producing his character in us.  We don’t run away from it.  Neither do we foolishly run toward it, but we do expect it, accept it, and walk through it well together.  We need to be fiercely devoted to prayer for one another.  In addition, we need to be a worshiping community that encourages brave and courageous acts of faith that include tremendous sacrifice.  While foreign missions is a very valid calling and example of this, we need to also encourage it at home in our own community.  We don’t have to go somewhere else in order to do this.  God will at times call all of us to tremendous risk right where we live.  Our worship services should regularly acknowledge and embrace those who are going through “various trials,” but also highlight this process that God has ordained to produce maturity and to make us complete.  Again, I see the need to publicly highlight more examples of God’s transforming work in the lives of the Trinity Church family.  These should become some of our songs of praise and part of the sermons we preach.  We need to spotlight the good stuff that he is doing as we are becoming a people defined by Christ and the gospel as evidenced by <i>holistic personal transformation.</i>  In so doing, we will not only encourage and build up those who have faith in Christ Jesus, we will also connect with those who do not, as we ultimately spotlight Him.

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Rom. 12:1-2, NIV)

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Affirmation #1 – The Glory of God

Posted on January 23, 2008 by bornfun

January 23, 2008
7:17 AM

I am challenging my worship ministries teams to mainly one area of growth this year.  Of course there are other needs for growth, but they our dwarfed by our need for this, and they will all be served best by this:

to focus individual and team time praying for our church as a worshiping community, mainly that fruit would result from our times of corporate worship together.

It would help to read a previous blog, My Desire for Fruitful Ministry, posted on November 7, 2007.  Rather than repeating myself here, I will instead jump into Trinity’s first affirmation statement of our Philosophy of Ministry.  There are seven of them.

It is from my time gathered with Trinity’s pastoral staff discussing our philosophy of ministry that I have sensed God’s leading toward this increased focus on prayer.  The first affirmation is as follows:

  1. Our ruling principle is the glory of God, honoring him in all that we do.
    1. We have deep seated commitment to:
      1. The supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ
      2. The centrality and authority of the Bible as God’s Word
      3. Recognition of the empowering of the Holy Spirit as indispensable
    2. Because of these commitments
      1. We will honor God through gatherings that are God-centered, biblical, engaging and directed to the growth of Christ-followers, while being sensitive to and accessible to non-believers
      2. We will pursue biblical instruction that is faithful to God’s revelation and relevant to the lives of people today
      3. We will declare our dependence by undergirding our church life and our ministries with a mobilized prayer base

Since my area of influence and responsibility at Trinity is in our worship gatherings, I will speak directly to how this ruling principle determines how we function in worship ministries.  It is very important to me that my ministry teams, namely Worship Planning Team leaders and their teams (Art, Drama, Dance, Media, Lighting, Sound, Stage Managing & Music), and my Worship Leadership Team (worship leaders) join me in uniting around and pursuing these 7 affirmations.

First and foremost is that our worship declares the supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ.  He is the central subject of our worship gatherings – who he is (the God of the Universe) and what he has done (the wonderful gospel) will be proclaimed and celebrated without reserve. Our story is part of the glory of God’s saving work through the gospel and our worship times and programming will spotlight this work among us.  However, we are unashamedly defined by Christ and he is the one in the spotlight.  Our songs and programming will reflect that.

Second is that the Bible is acknowledged and given authority as God’s Word and is a central authority to our worship gatherings and worship programming.  In addition to the teaching of God’s Word, emphasis is given to centrality of Scripture so that all of our music and art is not only true to the Word, but also must be deeply rooted in the truths of Scripture.

Third is that the Holy Spirit is the one who leads us during our worship times and in the planning of our worship times – he is the one that guides us into all truth and the one who produces fruit that will overflow from our individual lives and corporate life at Trinity.  That fruit is what gives God great glory and bears testimony to the world that we are his disciples.

It needs to be mentioned here that the purposes of our worship gatherings are to engage those who follow Christ in worshiping him.  Those who plan and lead our worship gatherings must make it our first priority to lead those who are seeking God in a corporate experience of meeting with him.  It should work itself out this way:

  1. Our first priority is to lead those who are gathered in worship.  In other words, we are not leading a targeted group that is absent, we are leading those who God has sovereignly brought together at that moment.  We consider our people first and plan accordingly to make sure we lead them to God.  In other words, our musical tastes or artistic creativity, our specific desires and agendas, and even our targeted audience must yield precedence to making sure all of our gathered congregation enters into worship.  [Certainly all will not, nevertheless, that should be our aim.]
  2. Should we lean slightly toward a targeted group, (and we should) we must declare this to our congregation and invite them to join in reaching this group.  In that way, we are still seeking to lead those who are gathered, but enlisting them in a specific mission that God is calling us to.
  3. We assume that all people in our worship gathering are there to meet with God – no matter if they are Christ-followers or not.  If they are there, they are seeking him, furthermore, we believe that God has sovereignly brought us together – He is seeking us.  In this sense, everything we do, beginning with prayer, is for the purpose of connecting those who are gathered to Jesus Christ.
  4. Overflowing from our worship gatherings will be the fruit of new life in Christ.  We will always look for opportunities to declare the works that God is producing in and through us for the purpose of his glory and the growth of his church.

In conclusion, the last point of this Philosophy of Ministry statement is that our church life and worship ministries must be undergirded by prayer.  This is where it begins, carries through and ends.  Through prayer we declare our dependence on God’s work, not our own, and we look expectantly for fruit (answers to prayer) to overflow out of our worship times together.  I am committing myself to prayer and calling Worship Ministry teams to be the “mobilized prayer base” for our worship gatherings.  And then we will look together for the fruit that he is producing in us and joyfully declare it as part of our worship to God.  All eyes are on you, God!  All eyes are on you.

“Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf! … come, let us rejoice in him.” (Psa. 66:5-6, NIV)

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Trinity Church’s Philosophy of Ministry

Posted on January 16, 2008 by bornfun

January 16, 2008
9:21 AM

Last weekend at our Pastoral Staff Retreat and then again at our staff meeting yesterday, we discussed the Trinity Philosophy of Ministry.  A discussion like this is what fires me up and makes me excited about what I do and gives me clarity and focus as I press on in the calling of leading this church family.  I need this type of reinforcement all of the time – a continuous reminder of who I am and what my heart should beat for.  I think it is one of the main ingredients behind healthy churches – they know their mission, they continually communicate their mission, and they share a common excitement and an intense passion that results in a powerful momentum.  I’m so excited to begin to share this with my leadership teams and I’m excited to see where God is going to take our church as we re-ignite.

There are 7 points or affirmations to this philosophy of ministry.  I agree wholeheartedly to all of them, but there are certainly places where I feel an intense passion.  Perhaps God has placed me on the leadership team for such a time as this and to specifically lean heavier toward these areas.  Since I am limited on time this morning, I will list the main points for now and I will proceed over the next weeks to devote time to the sub-points under each one.  Keep in mind that this is an ‘in process’ document.  Gary has mentioned the possibility of preaching a sermon series on it beginning in April.  I’m praying that we indeed go there.

TRINITY PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY

  1. Our ruling principle is the glory of God, honoring him in all that we do.
  2. Our ministry is gospel-centered and grace-focused.
  3. Our goal is holistic personal transformation, the lifelong process of becoming Christ-followers who increasingly manifest Christ-likeness and honor Christ as Lord in every area of their lives.
  4. Our concern is the development of authentic biblical community, experienced on the congregational and small group level.
  5. Our conviction is that ministry is the lifestyle of every believer.
  6. Our mission is to extend the kingdom of God by engaging our community, our culture and the world with the words and works of Jesus.
  7. Our emphasis is on church health rather than on church growth.
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Overflow

Posted on January 5, 2008 by bornfun

Welcome to the Overflow – forsaking the American pursuit of safe, comfortable, manageable and clean living for something much more exciting and dangerous and dare we say, biblical.  I am writing this to encourage men to open up their lives to the overwhelming presence and work of the Holy Spirit and then to live the adventure of watching it happen. I will share my experience that began in 2006, and invite men to join me and others who are living in the overflow.

At a men’s retreat in the Spring of 2006 I was encouraged to make the choice between living according to the sinful nature or according to the Spirit.  Romans 8:6 sunk in deeply – it’s so easy to see with every day, every choice, and every response which choice we have made.

“The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;” (Rom. 8:6, NIV)

I knew right away that my desire was to overflow with the fruit of the Spirit in my private life, family life and work life.  I want to bring the sweet fragrance of life and peace to everything and everyone I touch.  And when I fail and bring the stench of death, I want to be quick to get down on my knees and repent and be forgiven.  Here I was, a Christ-follower since I was 5 years old, a worship pastor, and God was leading me to take the next step of faith with him – a call to go deeper.  Wherever you are at in your relationship with the Lord, I hope you hear his call to go deeper and I hope I can encourage you with my testimony.

On January 3, 2006, I wrote down my goals for the year and one of them was, “Pursue foster care/adoption and open the floodgates of love in our home – do more to love the ‘least of these.’”  Little did I know the implications of that goal, but I did sense a strong leading from the Lord that it was time.  This had been a desire of mine since I was 20 years old.  But it was what happened at a men’s retreat a few months later that made me adequate for the task.

I came to that retreat a year ago with an intense desire to connect with the men and lead them in worship to God.  I also felt very inadequate to do this – awkward as I was out of my usual context of the church and people who I knew.  As a result, I became ‘super-dependent’ upon God and him empowering me to be able to do the task.  The call to ‘live by the Spirit’ was not new to me, but in retrospect I had just touched the surface.  Even now, having gone deeper, I still feel that way.  As I led worship that year, I felt God’s Spirit moving through me in a way I had never experienced before.  I realized that I needed to approach my own congregation this way every week – with this intense desire to connect them to God in worship – something that could only be done as a result of a “super-dependence” upon his Spirit working in and through me.  I wrote this in my journal, “It was time to kick it into the ‘overflow’ gear by the power of the Holy Spirit.” In the same way, I needed this “super-dependence” to make me adequate as a husband and as a father to my son and to the children I hoped to foster and adopt.

This raises the question, “How do we open our lives to the work of the Holy Spirit?”  I will outline what I have discovered over the past year.

1. We must forsake the pitfall of the distorted American way of life as Christians.  We unconsciously follow American Christianity instead of a biblical Christianity.  Let’s face it, most of us are focused on creating a safe, comfortable, manageable and clean life for ourselves.  I propose that this life gives very little space for the Holy Spirit to fill us because we are full of ourselves.  We work really hard to create a life where we don’t need him.  Until we enter a period of tragedy that draws us to the end of ourselves and our ability to manage and control our lives, we live fairly ineffective, albeit pleasant, lives.  We totally miss out on the joy of being wholly dependent upon Christ and His Spirit.  Tragedy will certainly come, but why wait for a tragedy to draw us to our knees in dependent faith?  I’m going to assume that if you are reading this you can categorize yourself as a) someone, like me who was just living a nice clean, manageable and comfortable life which I call ‘the myth,’ b) someone going through a tragedy that feels hopeless, or c) you are living in the overflow of God’s Spirit.  Living in the overflow transcends our circumstances be it tragedy or tranquility.  The answer for those of us outside of the overflow lies in the following – God is calling us all to a deeper obedience and trust, to a “super-dependence” upon him, and to be influential leaders in whatever positions he has given us.  Success is only possible by the power of the Holy Spirit overflowing through us.  Welcome to the overflow!

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, 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.” (Eph. 3:16-19, NIV)

“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.” (Col. 2:9-10, NIV)

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him.  May you overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)

2. Take time to listen to God – through His Word (Bible study), prayer, and communication with other believers.  As a college student, I encountered the J.P. Moreland challenge – say goodbye to the 10-15 minute unfocussed, compulsory, quiet time and spend 1 or 2 times each week in depth with the Lord.  It’s much more likely that we will listen to God if we’re really taking time to examine the Word, examine our hearts, and go deeper as we wrestle with the reality of life against the reality of Christ in our lives.  This is a place to start that will foster a quiet time out of a ‘hunger and thirst for righteousness’ rather than a guilty compulsion.

3. Be obedient to the call he has placed on your life – guaranteed that this call is not to a safe, comfortable, manageable, and clean life.  God made a man’s heart beat for the opposite kind of life – anything else is settling for less than God’s best. Can you name one man in the Bible who was highly influential and didn’t experience danger, discomfort, sacrifice, and yes, a super-dependence upon God? Think of King David – enemies, sin, a small man with a big God.  Think of Job – loosing possessions, his job, family, friends and health, a man of incredible wealth and influence.  Joseph – false accusations, prison, separation from family – incredible wealth and influence.  Moses – 40 years in the desert, 40 years in the wilderness, – a man who knew God.  Daniel – the Lion’s den, faithful in prayer 3 times a day got him into the whole mess.  Micah – persecuted as a prophet, a call to do justice and walk humbly with God.  Jeremiah, Isaiah, Nehemiah, Hosea, etc.  The disciples and apostles – persecuted for the sake of the gospel, yet, wrote the inspired Word of God. The first Christians – slaughtered for their faith, faithful unto death, loosing homes and loved ones and their livelihood, yet, established the gospel and the church for all time. “Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.” (Psa. 86:11, NIV)  It is interesting to note that early Christians called their faith in Christ, “the Way.”  Like those who risked everything to identify with Christ and then follow him with their lives, we need to forsake the safe American life for something much more exciting and fulfilling.

The raises the question, “Then what is my call?  What way is God trying to teach me to walk in?”  Back to my testimony – at 20 I was deeply compelled to do foster care and adopt children.  At 24 I was reminded of that call and wrote this in my journal: “A dream of mine is to buy some nice property and adopt a number of kids – provide a home where love and discipline are practiced and taught.  He [a Ugandan preacher] and his wife were shooting for 20 orphans.  I’m thinking closer to 5 or so.  We’ll see how God will develop this dream.” In 2006 I realized that God was saying, ‘Go’ and so I went.  My wife and I were not on the same page, so I just prayed and casually brought it up.  Within 5 months she actually initiated the process.  We qualified for foster care in 6 weeks and within 4 days since that time received an infant from the hospital – Maria.  3 months later we learned that there was a great aunt who wanted her.  My wife and I chose to dedicate Wednesday lunch to fast and pray together.  We also opened up our lives and situation to our church family and immediate family.  Nothing externally changed – God seemed to be allowing Maria to transfer out of our home.  Internally God was working big time taking me, my wife and all those who joined us in prayer to a deeper place of trust in Him.  During this process I was deeply convicted that God was calling us to love Maria’s great-aunt because she was a widow.  His call is to do justice for the widow and the orphan.  We opened our hearts to her as well.  We began praying for her salvation in Christ and saw our potential role in bring Christ to her.  2 hours before we were to meet the great-aunt and begin the transfer of Maria out of our home, it was called off.  The court ruled in our favor and we still have Maria.  Her great aunt came to visit during Easter weekend and attended our church with us.  God is clearly calling her to himself and opening her extended family to us.  We cannot stop giving God all the praise for this wonderful work of his sovereign will in our lives.

My first inclination is to implore everyone to do this type of ministry to the orphan and widow, but the deeper issue here is an obedience to God’s call on each of our lives – and it will be uncomfortable, unsafe, out of our control at times, and about the most exciting way of life you can ever imagine.  I have been drawn into a deep trust in the Lord, and rich partnership and relationship with my wife in this ministry to our first foster-daughter, deeper into prayer and anticipating God’s response, deeper in dependence upon the body of Christ, his church and our relationships with my family and friends.  Welcome to the overflow!  For me there is no turning back – just an intense desire to go deeper.  Lord, take me deeper for your glory and for the good of those you have called me to lead and influence.

What is your call?

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Sharing Our Maria Story

Posted on December 5, 2007 by bornfun

This past week, Julie and I shared our Maria story with our church family.  It was an incredible experience preparing for and then delivering our story 4 times during the worship services.  (Video no longer available.) Julie and I re-lived it as we prepared and attempted to condense it.  We opened the pages of our journals and read to one another what we were feeling at the time as we walked through the exciting and terrifying days of getting Maria, almost losing her, and then getting to keep her.  There were moments of utter frustration in trying to fit our story into a 5 minute package – there are so many significant details that we had to leave out.  As Julie and I practiced through it, trying to narrow it down, it felt like we were sucking the heart and emotion out of it.  It made me realize how hard of a task I give to people when I ask them to share a significant story in so little time.  Yet, we need more stories of hope and faith because this presents God at work and is the perfect accompaniment to the teaching of God’s Word, and a great element of worship as we put the spotlight on God.  We never know the fruit that comes from faithfully sharing our life journeys with one another.

Sometimes I get really frustrated at the challenges of being a large church family.  Programs feel so far from the real stuff of being a church and they eat so much of our time.  I felt myself longing to be small yesterday as I sat through a staff meeting with way too much time devoted to the trivial stuff of running a large church.  But then I realized that we can’t be small if we want to keep on mission, growing the kingdom of God – seeing more children adopted into the family so to speak.  Yet this sharing from the heart connects us to one another and reminds us that we are a family, a big family going it together through the exciting and terrifying life of being Christ-followers.

Note: Our faith story was shared in the context of a new sermon series called, “Hope Changes Everything.”  The first sermon is “When Life Disappoints Me,” by our Senior Pastor, Gary Inrig.

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The Work of the Kingdom

Posted on November 21, 2007 by bornfun

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I am most thankful for the life that God has given me. I am overflowing with joy and thanksgiving and can hardly wait to declare that in worship tonight at our Thanksgiving Eve service.

Last week, I was impressed by the fact that I have found the work that God has created me to do. I am thankful for that work. It is my greatest source of joy and pleasure at this time in life. Perhaps that takes it a step further than just being thankful for salvation – for the rescue that God has done in my life, transferring me from darkness into the beloved kingdom of his Son, Jesus. He calls this the ‘Kingdom of Light.’ (1 Cor. 11:1) It is living out that rescue as an agent and ambassador – joining the team so to speak. It is discovering the works that God has prepared ahead of time for us to do. Each person’s work is uniquely different, but the same in nature. It is the continuing work of redemption – taking what is ugly and making it beautiful, bringing light into the darkness, and seeing the beauty of God’s grace at work in people’s lives. The Bible states it this way.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph. 2:10, NIV)

We had a first in the court waiting room, sitting with some friends from church who are in the process of adopting a teenage girl who had a hearing the same morning. I had a vision later that afternoon. What if that court waiting room becomes filled with families from our local churches, advocating and fighting for these children – loving them? It’s a ministry that’s long overdue in our highly affluent society. We who believe and belong to Christ are part of those who have been redeemed, rescued and adopted by him. We must be involved in the same business. Foster care and adoption is one way. I know that it is the work that God has called me to and I am convinced that this is the sweet spot of life. It’s a risky place with guaranteed suffering in its path, yet, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What’s the work that God has called you to do? What might be holding you back from doing it? Perhaps you are in the time of training to be physically, mentally and spiritually able to do this work. Then again, perhaps you are missing the work that God has prepared for you to do. Let’s all go about doing the work of the kingdom with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. And how do we know that we’re doing it? Listen to this Scripture on the work that God has called us to do.

“If any man builds on this foundation [Jesus Christ] using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.” (1Cor. 3:12-14, NIV)

God, grant success to the work of my hands. May it be work that lasts eternally. Give me glimpses of your pleasure as I do it – that is my reward. May all who belong to you be involved in this work for your glory and for the benefit of those you love. Amen.

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The Work I Was Created to Do

Posted on November 14, 2007 by bornfun

Next week on Monday is a very important court date for Maria. I’ve got nervous anticipation and strong hopes that things will actually progress as planned. This is called the “two six” hearing that removes parental rights and begins our process of adoption. Billy defines adoption the best of any of us. “Where Maria will be us forever.” That says it all.

In the midst of a busy season and on the cusp of an even busier one, I am attempting to take tomorrow off to complete a playground set that I am building next to our schoolroom. As I put together the pieces with Billy, I imagine him playing out his childhood there with his cousins and friends and siblings. I hear the laughter of happiness. I see the beauty of friendship and family and belonging. I imagine Maria joining him soon once she’s got her running and climbing legs. I imagine the unknown faces of the children that God has destined for our family – perhaps some of them only for a season, but all of them of utmost value to us and to the Lord, their Creator. I hear their shouts of joy – I see them loving each other and thriving in our love. What a privilege to be his ministers to them for whatever time they are destined to be with us. I envision our home and farm being a place of redemption – a place where ugly beginnings have beautiful endings. God fulfill this work that you have created us for before the beginning of time. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph. 2:10, NIV) May your protection and favor fall on us as we snatch these children from the enemy and bring them to you. My heart overflows with joy as I contemplate the life that is in front of me. Amen.

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My Desire for Fruitful Ministry

Posted on November 7, 2007 by bornfun

One of the things that I’m wrestling with lately is the desire to see fruit overflowing out of my life. I see a lot of growth in the people I serve in worship ministries – spiritual growth, growth in musicianship, leadership and a deepening love for the church. I see growth in our congregation’s corporate expression of worship to God each week. I see growth in my son and daughter as I invest my life in raising them. I see growth in my relationship with my wife and with other friends. I see growth in my relationship with God evidenced by a deeper trust, stronger desire and greater love for
him and for others. I see increasing fruitful ministry as I mature in my role as a pastor. Wherever I’m investing my time, talents, energy, I want to see fruit. In a way, I see it as evidence of God’s power at work in and through me – the Spirit’s work in my life should be evidenced by fruit. Now here are some questions. My desires are strong, but are they right? Is all fruit physically measurable? Is produces? Are there times where I am called to faithfully invest where I won’t see fruit? What does the Bible have to say about fruit? One of the most frustrating things about my former occupation of teaching was investing so much and seeing very little returns, very little growth in the maturity of my students – not much fruit. I was looking so much deeper than just mastering the mathematical skills that I was supposed to teach. This was a very discouraging time in my life. In the same way, I often wonder about what fruit we should see coming out of our church, specifically, our worship services. The mega-church era has given us a vision for numerical growth and in some instances spiritual growth. There are hazy lines between God’s standards and the American standards of bigger is better. Yet the unleashing of the Spirit’s power on specific churches is in many cases undeniable and wonderful and certainly gives great glory to Christ as his kingdom expands. I am not interested in being a mega church, but I do want to the power of the Holy Spirit at work in and through me. I am concerned that I don’t see more people turning from darkness to the light – finding salvation in Christ. I need some perspective seeing what this looks like. I will look to the Bible. Jesus had a lot to say about fruit. The one that I would like to meditate on this morning is found in John 15.

“ “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:1-8, NIV)

First of all, I notice that Jesus declares his role, God’s role, and our role in this fruit bearing process.

1. Jesus role is to be the center – he is our source of life – the vine.
2. God is the gardener, the one who produces the fruit through the often painful process of pruning, cutting off branches that are useless and pruning the ones that have the potential to bear the fruit. He is the one who causes the growth.
3. We are the branches with the sole job to remain in the vine, that is to remain in Christ – to keep him at the center.

I’m already feeling some conviction here. I get my position wrong. I am so concerned with producing fruit, that I try to produce it on my own, thus not focusing on being totally connected to the vine. Jesus is very clear on this. “Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. . . apart from me you can do nothing” (vv.4,5) Another lesson from this Scripture is that there is a consequence for not bearing fruit, and it is steep. The danger is death and God’s righteous judgment. Jesus teaches elsewhere that life is not in just having leaves, but it is in bearing fruit. (Mark 11:12-26) The Pharisees were very religious. They looked and acted and had the reputation of being deeply religious. However, Jesus blasted them for not being truly spiritual because there was no fruit. Our pastor, Gary Inrig, preached an incredible sermon on this passage. Check it out at All Leaves, No Fruit. A final thing that I notice is that the purpose of fruit is two fold. “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit,
showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (v.8) First and foremost, it is for God’s glory that we bear fruit. He’s producing it, and it gives him great pleasure to increase it all the more. Second, is that fruit is a witness to the world to see that we are Christ’s disciples. The first thing that comes to mind here is that this might be a key to our growth. Acknowledging that some fruit may not be the real fruit that God is producing, nevertheless, fruit that is flowing out of a person’s life or a church’s ministry is a powerful witness to the world. It catches people’s attention and turns them toward Christ. Knowing that there is way more to unpack here, I will conclude anyway with two points of action. First, I need to turn my desire to see fruit into an active desire to be fully connected to the vine – to cling to Christ and seek him with all of my heart. He needs to be the center and focus of my life. Perhaps that is demonstrated best when Paul, who certainly had a deep desire to see the fruit of the gospel, said, “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.” (Phil. 3:8) Paul was totally connected to the vine and it was evidenced in that the scripture he wrote was always centered on Christ and the gospel. If I am tightly connected to Christ, fruit will naturally grow. My work is to remain in the vine. This happens primarily through prayer, fellowship with other believers, being under the authority and teaching of God’s Word, and spending time in my own personal study and reflection of God’s Word. Second, I need to recognize that fruit is very important to God. The evidence of fruit is in itself a very act of worship bringing glory to God. Christ existed for God’s glory. By being wholly connected to Christ, we do too. Fruit is also a witness of Christ and the power of the gospel at work in and through our lives. God uses fruit produced through us to get people’s attention. Just as fruit grows and drops it’s seeds, our fruit is part of God’s plan to reach the world with the message of Christ. I can hear his voice proclaiming, “Hey world! Look at this! These are my disciples. They’re connected to my Son Christ. Isn’t it beautiful? Come and follow me and be my disciples as well.” I see in this study an affirmation that my vision for worship ministries is aligned with God’s will. That vision is, to glorify God, to serve his church, and to reach the lost. Abiding in the vine is where I must remain and grow if I am to see fruit from my life and through this ministry. After all, Christ says this a few verses later in the passage. “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.” (v.16) God, thank you for choosing me. Help me to remain in Christ and open to your pruning work. Produce fruit for your glory and that the world may see that I am your disciple! Amen. Next it would be good to examine the faithfulness in our calling even when our fruit is not externally measurable. Perhaps you might have some ideas on this?

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Thank You for Saving Me

Posted on October 31, 2007 by bornfun

This is from my journal last year as I reflected upon Thanksgiving. How do you think we are going to open our Thanksgiving Eve service this year? 11.29.06 7:19 AM Before I jump into a study this morning, I should pause and recount things. We just came through Thanksgiving – my heart is full of thanks. We had a great worship service – I used a lot of Scripture that just declared thanks to the Lord and commanded it. As I prepared the other morning, I had the great fortune of running into Rick Langer. I asked him to lend me his perspective on Psalm 116.

“How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains. I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD.” (Ps. 116:12-19, NIV)

This is one of my favorite psalms about worshiping God through thanksgiving because it makes it joyfully public. Yet, the middle verse seems so out of place – talking about death in the midst of a proclamation of thanksgiving. However, it is in context with the psalm that begins, “I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy.” Rick reminded me that in the Old Testament, statements like this, and this Psalm in particular were more often than not a response to God’s physical salvation from death. Assuming that King David wrote this psalm, that speaks of God’s rescue from death, I can imagine him fighting in battle, watching friends die, being near to death countless times, then coming home and praising God with thanksgiving for sparing his life. I realize that the very salvation that Jesus offers me is the same in essence. Rescued from the grave, from destruction, from everlasting torment in Hell. Rescued from the bondage of sin. Redeemed out of the hand of the Enemy. From the New Testament and in the context of thanksgiving we read this: “joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Col. 1:11-14, NIV) Having declared/accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior at the age of 5, I cannot really remember my life apart from Him. I can definitely recount my struggles with sin and am very aware of my depravity, but somehow, in a good way, I have only known this life with Jesus as my Savior. This makes it easy to take His salvation for granted, to forget the gravity and destiny of my life apart from Christ. Perhaps my greatest joy this past year, that for which I am most thankful, is my friendship with John Mace. He reminds me what it looks like to celebrate the rescue to be genuinely thankful for God’s salvation through Jesus. I don’t ever want to lead a worship time where I don’t spend some time saying, “Thank you,” to Jesus for saving me. Perhaps the highlight of our Thanksgiving Eve service was at the beginning with my worship team. Instead of praying in the usual way, I told them that we would pray in song. I then played Crowder’s, “Thank You for Hearing Me.” The song has that simple phrase repeatedly, and each verse changes the subject, from loving, to hearing, to healing, to finding and then it explodes into saving and ends there with a considerable amount of time and energy devoted to it. I want to use this song next year to open our service. One of my favorite things about Crowder is how he excels at celebrating the Rescue – God’s saving work through Jesus death and resurrection. Perhaps I could use this song for our Good Friday services. So I find my love for Jesus renewed and heightened as a result of some Thanksgiving meditation. Truly thanksgiving is and ought to be a daily part of the Christian’s life. So I echo the psalmist. I praise God for all His benefits toward me – my family, friends, work, home, health, but mostly my salvation through Jesus. And how shall I repay – by giving Him my worship and doing it in the presence of all His people! Cheers to God!

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Reflections on Nick Vujicic’s visit

Posted on October 24, 2007 by bornfun

I’m still giddy with excitement and overflowing with praise to God for what happened at our church on Sunday afternoon. We had Nick Vujicic of ‘Life Without Limbs’ speak to us. Nick is man who was born without arms or legs. Our church was packed beyond capacity, including an overflowing worship center and venue. Nick’s message was right on. He was clearly full of the Spirit and thus full of the power of God working in and through his life. Hundreds of people responded to his invitation at the end to ‘draw near’ to God. 26 people made first time decisions to follow Christ and each one of these people personally prayed with Nick and then with someone from our church. Nick remained afterwards for many hours and spent individual time with everyone who wanted to meet him – praying specifically for many needs. Perhaps this is Nick’s greatest ministry – the ministry of prayer. I’d like to invite our church people who were deeply moved and whose lives were changed that night to give God public praise. As we see God’s work among us, let’s respond with testimonies of worship. In reflecting on this experience, I have two observations to make. The first is that what we all observed on Sunday night was the power of God resting on a man who boasts in his weaknesses. His life parallels the passage of Scripture found in 2 Corinthians.

“ To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2Cor. 12:7-10, NIV)

Nick spoke of his time wrestling with the Lord as a child, asking him to make him different, to give him arms and legs like every one else. Yet God responded, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” So Nick, at 24 years old, has decided to boast in his weakness and as a result, God’s power is resting on him. In fact, I have a feeling that the floodgates haven’t even been opened yet. Watchout world! Nick encourages me to join him in ‘delighting in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and difficulties.’ I’m not looking purposely for these things. They will find me. But how much time do I waste in prayer asking for God to deliver me or give something to me rather than to display his strength in and through me? Nick realigned my perspective, taking me deeper and more courageously into a journey that God began in me nearly 2 years ago when I entered the ‘era of overflow.’ I want to be a humble man who boasts in my weaknesses, spends my life in ministry to the weak, and remains in awe of God’s power that rests on me, accomplishing his will in and through my life. My second observation is that this evening was an answer to many prayers. First of all, many people in our congregation have been sensing a greater need for us to be openly, aggressively and unashamedly inviting people to make decisions for Christ. The greatest place this should happen is in our personal lives outside of ‘Sunday’ church. And yet, Sunday church is a place where this should happen as well. Many have been praying to that end, personally, in small groups, and in larger groups. I praise God that this event happened and I see it as an answer to these faithful prayers. Not discounting the 26 years of God’s work in and through Trinity, clearly God is leading our church into what I believe is a new era of fruitful ministry. Life Without Limbs was not a ‘calendared’ event, planned by the pastoral staff. The opportunity was presented by a member of our church, tenuously approved, and mostly overlooked by the pastoral staff until about a month before. I casually tried to remove myself from it and assigned another person to just lead a simple acoustic worship set. I almost missed the fact that God was going to move, but fortunately turned to Nick’s website and realized, “This guy is an evangelist!” I had made a big mistake. I wanted John & Tonya Mace and Mustard Seed to do the opening and closing music that night. I quickly prayed that it would work out for them to partner with Nick. Circumstances changed and the other worship leader had to cancel. Mustard Seed was available to do it. This happened within a few days of my prayer. Finally, I have prayed for years that we would find a local evangelist that my good friends John & Tonya Mace could work with. Their hearts beat for big evangelism events where the gospel is proclaimed and there is an altar call. Ever since I knew that this was their desire and gifting, I have prayed. I connected them to musicians that could form a band that could facilitate this ministry. One year later, it happens and all I can shout is, “PRAISE YOU LORD! Thank you for answering this prayer.” Perhaps Mustard Seed can work again with Nick – we’ll see. God, you are so good! In the words of one of my favorite overflow worship songs, “Let it rain. Let it rain. Open the floodgates of heaven and let it rain!

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