Pastor Mike's Blog

Unpacking Africa: the peace is shining

Thu, 17 May 2012 13:15:09 +0000

This is one post in a series that unpacks some of what God did and taught us during our pioneering trip to an unreached/unengaged people group in West Africa.

Here in the South, when passing someone on the street or even greeting someone socially, we ask, "How are you?" We say, "Fine." It's always troubled me how meaningless and nonchalant "fine" is, but there's no getting around it. Coining another term comes off strange.

In the village we worked with in Africa, their word for fine has some meaning. The English meaning of their greeting is, "The peace is shining." How strong, huh? Read it again, "The peace is shining." Not just, "Peace" but "The peace is shining," meaning radiating, I'm aware of my well-being, I'm thankful for it, God has been good to me.

Now, realistically, "the peace is shining" means "fine." It's a broad headline word that can communicate, "I slept well," "I'm not sick," "My family is well," and "It's good to see you." They say this at least 5x more than we say fine in a single greeting. So, their term is rather meaningless as well, lost in the black hole of overuse. But their term is beautiful and provides great food for thought.

In our eyes, these people are poor. However, they don't know of more and are wonderfully content. I was quite refreshed by the simplicity of their lives. Being around them and the wandering livestock was like a resort vacation. They are thankful for having enough food to sustain them, family healthy and near them, and getting enough sleep. It's why they say, "The peace is shining" when they greet us.

Our entire goal is communicating to them that Peace has come. Like resurrected Jesus said to His disciples, "Peace to you" (Luke 24:36). He wasn't just talking about a generic "peace" that humans aspire to. He was talking about Himself. Divine Peace sent and successful to reconcile. I also think of the intro to Hebrews that says Jesus is "the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature" (1:3). Jesus is the Peace that radiates from His redeemed people. He accomplishes Peace within those who are saved and that salvation works out to new life.

Lord willing, their inspiring greeting will take on redeemed reality, that one day they would say to one another "The Peace is shining," referring to Christ in whom they believe and have been wonderfully saved.

Diagnosing faint-heartedness

Wed, 16 May 2012 12:25:26 +0000

Our church is a serving church. It's a joy. Nearly all people, including teens and pre-teens, are serving Harvest in some capacity. I've never been a part of a church who serves so fervently and faithfully. Of course, and understandably, we receive word from some that they are weary and would like to take a break from serving. True confession: when my ears hear this request, my instinct is to react rather than listen. To badger rather than commend. The Word tells me that I need to be diagnose before I react.

1 Thessalonians 5:14 says, "And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all."

If I were to read this verse to 100 weary people and ask them, "So, are you idle, fainthearted, or weak?", most would answer, "Fainthearted" without too much thought. It's the response that most guarantees a result of rest and the church leaders leaving you alone. Rather than letting people choose their condition, a good doctor does some diagnosis work. So, I have to listen. I also have to know what these words actually mean and what response they require:

Idle: disorderly or undisciplined, they are either the sluggard of Proverbs or doing a lot of the wrong things so the Lord gets the leftovers, which is usually not a lot, so energy gets burned up quickly. They need admonition. Strong, loving leadership to get their priorities straight and on the Lord. An idling car is just wasting fuel, congesting the flow of traffic. They need to hit the gas and follow Jesus.

Fainthearted: assailed by life affliction, persecuted because they are serving Jesus. They need encouragement to press on for Christ. Because Paul was no stranger to fatigue from persecution and affliction, he was an expert at pep-talk lines like "I press on" "Fight the good fight" "Finish my course" and "Work for the Lord is never in vain". He didn't quit. He was good at breathing the life of Christ back into his faint heart.

Weak: not yet strong in their faith, constantly caving under temptation, doubting the power of Christ to change them and use them for His glory - they need help. Help from the Scriptures about what is true from the throne of heaven and not from the temptations in our hearts. They need people to walk with them, teach them, serve with them, surround them until they are ready to spread their wings and fly from the nest.

The point? Stepping away from serving Jesus isn't an option. Stepping away from serving the Lord is never a good plan because serving God is what we were born to do (Genesis 2:15, Joshua 24, Romans 12:11), it connects us to God's people who love us best (Galatians 5:13, 1 Peter 4:10), and serving Jesus when we are weak proves Him strong (2 Corinthians 12:9). Stepping toward the Lord is what's needed in each occasion. The temporary reprieve option is this: with leader approval, step away from a particular role in serving for a time so that particular attention can be placed on restoring fervency for Jesus. Set an re-entry date. Assign an advocate to help the person along. Restore "serving the Lord in fervency". Restore my soul.

Unpacking Africa: repentance

Tue, 15 May 2012 19:56:13 +0000

This is one post in a series that unpacks some of what God did and taught us during our pioneering trip to an unreached/unengaged people group in West Africa.

We had two immediate and fantastic nights of sharing the good news of Jesus with 12+ men. For at least five hours, we shared and interacted with them about salvation through Christ alone. They were intrigued, having heard of Jesus, yet not that He could save them. But on the third night, only a few showed up. The few that came explained to us that the others had heard enough. Repentance from their own way was too costly. Too much would have to change. They could not place their faith in Jesus.

You could see it on their faces as their minds calculated the worldly cost of following Jesus. They'd have to uproot generations of traditional worship, thinking, and behavior. They would certainly be mocked for their faith in Jesus. They would be denied some of life's luxuries like meat because they'd no longer attend the sacrifices to idols where meat is available. They'd place themselves at risk of being poisoned by idol priests so it would look like the idol killed them for converting to Christ.

Repentance is a changing of gods which changes everything about us.

They understood that following Jesus wouldn't be an adding-on of yet another god. They knew that following Jesus would mean following the God, and would therefore mean that they must turn from their own gods. They understood repentance. Not pick-and-choose repentance like we seem to have mastered, but abandon-all-else-for-Jesus repentance that the Bible proclaims. When they believe on Jesus, it will be obvious. No one will wonder if they are or are not Christian.

"Repent and believe, for the Kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1:15). Repentance and belief occur simultaneously. It's not "Repent then believe" or "Believe then repent". Real repentance is never half-hearted. It is Spirit-led and Spirit-enabled to be thorough and definitive.

Lord, save them!

Is your life this vivid?

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:16:42 +0000

We all like pictures, right? I love this series Tim Challies is doing called "Visual Theology". This one really caught my attention. It's called "The Fruit of the Spirit" from Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control; against such things there is no law."

I like how the fruits are in tree form: strong, steadfast and growing. People can find shade under them. Their root is distinctly Christian: from the ministry of the Holy Spirit at work to transform Christians. This fruit replaces the rot the previous verses list: "sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these" (Galatians 5:19-21).

For the visual, they didn't choose fruitcake: small, perishable, empty calories.

All this fruit is active. All enable Christians to "shoulder" the pains of this world while while extending the provision of Christ to all others. These fruits are imperishable, unlike their moralistic counterparts, because they are born of the Holy Spirit.

One thing that just struck me is that our Christian "lingo" calls these the "fruit[S]" of the Spirit, when this verse says simply, "fruit". This list of nine is one body of fruit, not a produce aisle from which we pick and choose our preference. The Spirit is at work, if we would so allow, to produce all of these in every Christian.

Is your Christian life this vivid? Let the Spirit grow this crop in you.

Baptism video: Rich Perkins

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 18:19:24 +0000

Baptism video: Nick Wright

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 18:18:50 +0000

Easter joy

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:59:14 +0000

Easter weekend is always a joy! Regardless of the circumstances life is bringing at the time, our eyes lift to the Risen Lord, exalted forever. We don't go to a cemetery to worship Jesus, we don't look within, we don't craft a new god, we look up to the Risen King. Peace rose because Salvation came.

During Good Friday worship, we considered the significance of the veil in the temple tearing just before Jesus gave up His breath. By faith in Christ, we are cleansed of sin and can pass into the searing presence of the Holy God.

Easter morning, walking through halls, I noticed those in Harvest t-shirts, with beaming smiles, ready to serve in our children's ministry. I said, "Thank you for serving these kids on Easter Sunday!" They responded, "I'm excited" and "I do this with great joy! Jesus is Risen!"

Another faithful servant used his truck, dolly, and ingenuity to engineer, load, set-up, drain and unload our baptismal so two more men could be baptized during our Easter worship service! Countless more served in significant ways and do so every week.

Jesus is Risen and He is raising many to new living in Him!

We'd be gonners

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:37:05 +0000

We're in big trouble when we mistake worldly success for God's favor. I'm reading through Ezekiel and am reminded of the Lord's eternal desire for us to "know that I AM the Lord." Over and over in Ezekiel, God is correcting worship gone wrong, and He is not kind about it. After the Lord purifies Israel for "whoring" after other gods and flirting with disaster which came to them, the Lord topples the trusts of other nations - their commodity cedars, trade rivers, fearful armies, wealth, and beauty. The buck stopped with God though every single one of them thought they were secure because of worldly success. We think, 'Surely I'm saved because things are going well.' Circumstantial evidence doesn't even fly in our court system. As is the anthem of Proverbs: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

Sin and idolatry are not God's pet peeves. They are deal breakers and the consequences are larger and more certain than we anticipate. But how can we be delivered?! Even on our best days, it's not enough! We are gonners without sincere, trusting faith in Jesus for salvation. He absorbed our looming wrath and rose to qualify our security through His life and worth, not our own.

Good Friday and Easter. Amen.

Baptism: Phil Young

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:37:35 +0000

Baptism: Jenny Azzopardi

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:34:19 +0000