Unwindings.org

In scores of churches on any given week you will find a directory or bulletin with a list of ministries that anyone can choose to join and participate in. They are often widely varied such as women’s ministry, community outreach, food delivery, audio/visual or church greeters just to name a few. You may currently be involved with one or know someone who is. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself what exactly is a ministry? In more conversations than I can count I have heard how tired or overwhelmed people feel having served in a ministry for a long period of time. I have even heard some say they are ready to retire from a ministry as if it is an occupation. Just recently a woman told me she felt pressured into serving in a particular ministry because she was told she fit the criteria. Hmm… it is almost if we are talking about an occupation here qualified by our service history, our personality, our looks or social status. Is that what a ministry is, an occupation? In one particular case I knew a person who faithfully served for years in a Sunday morning ministry during the morning sermon. Exhausted, constantly searching for strength to continue onward yet unequipped being very immature in the Truths of Scripture. This person stoically forged ahead thinking that a long track record of ministerial endeavors accomplished much for God’s Kingdom. Sadly that is not what ministry is at all.

The idea that ministry is religious activity we create and then participate in is not supported Biblically. True ministry is not started and empowered by man at all… instead it is the opportunity for an “equipped saint” to serve and function in the Spirit of Christ through a God-chosen venue. Look at what Eph.4:11,12 says – “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;“. In the last several weeks I have been studying this and other related portions of Scripture heavily. The “equipping”… the “building up”. Oh how we in this era of modern church have contorted these truths to mean something they are not and then shackled ourselves to them. There is so much freedom in this passage if we will see it. We are talking about the giftedness among Christians that the Holy Spirit has distributed. It is in this collective giftedness among Christians that Christ’s fullness becomes realized… becomes experienced.  It makes us real and authentic so we can grow together in Christ. It makes us unafraid and unencumbered to admit our personal struggles and share our victories. We accept one another and learn to trust one another because we see Christ. We learn from one another as The Teacher works among us through our gifts to grows beyond being bottle-fed to eating the filet mignon of Scripture. This process if unhindered by humans equips us to correctly handle the trials of this life. It equips us to minister… to serve but this serving or ministry is not something we will have to go looking for or are pressured into joining. Instead, we will simply find ourselves in the center of a ministry because it is God-provided.

I understand how such an approach to ministry is lost in today’s “I-want-it-now” and “I-want-it-my-way” societies. God is not in a hurry nor does He require His children to work hard for Him. He is the provider and we are the receivers. May God reveal Himself to those of you willing to see His amazing freedom in grace.

I opened my personal Gmail account and as I was skimming through a few emails I noticed an context advertisement that popped into the top of the my inbox (red arrow below). It touched on a topic that is as subtle and dangerous as quicksand for the Christian’s spiritual growth – I call it the “Try versus Trust” syndrome . Let me explain.

God is a triune God meaning He is three persons in one: Father, His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This trinity is a vitally important attribute of God that is supported through Scripture and God wastes no time introducing this attribute about Himself beginning in Genesis 1:26. When a person receives Christ’s free gift of Life (salvation) he/she receives the very Life of God and in turn God fully accepts this person into the family of God – in other words God adopts us (John 1:12; Rom.8:15). Father has a plan for this world and that plan will never be thwarted no matter what humans may do – Father is completely in charge (Eph.4:6; Job 42:1,2). Jesus Christ who paid the sin debt of all humans with His own blood on the cross, rose from the dead to give every human a chance to receive Life… if we will choose to. It is Jesus who then creates the opportunities (sometimes called ministries) for all those who received Him to express outwardly what God is doing inside of them. These expressions come in many difference forms otherwise known as gifts – spiritual gifts. And who is the distributor of these spiritual gifts? You guessed it – the Holy Spirit Himself now indwelling the believer (2 Cor.5:17). When we let go of our agendas and truly trust God then all of His design begins to come together perfectly in us. We become expressive and open about our faith in God, we don’t have to look for ministries because Jesus has already created them all around us and all of this fits perfectly into Abba Father’s plan (Eph.2:8-10).

The reality is we do not become anything on our own but instead are what God established for us before we were born. When we stop trying and begin trusting God then we simply begin experiencing what we already are. I hope this truth excites you as much as it does me – if not, just trust God with that too!!! Do you now see how you cannot “become a pastor”? Pastoring is just one of many gifts of the Spirit (Rom.12; Eph.4; 1 Cor.13-15). Maybe you will find if you begin letting God live His Life in you then He will show you that you already are a pastor… just in need of some training. Wow – wouldn’t that be an experience?!

I encourage you today to simply trust God and watch what He will bring about in your life. What an adventure!!

I had a friend come and share with me a YouTube of Michael Card singing ‘God’s Own Fool’; a song that Card wrote in 2002. There are many parts to this song I particularly enjoy over many other Christian songs because the New Covenant message is so strong and yet so simple. For your benefit here are the lyrics and the video.

GOD’S OWN FOOL
Scribbling in the Sand: The Best of Michael Card (2002)

Seems I’ve imagined Him all of my life
As the wisest of all of mankind
But if God’s Holy wisdom is foolish to men
He must have seemed out of His mind

For even His family said He was mad
And the priests said a demon’s to blame
But God in the form of this angry young man
Could not have seemed perfectly sane

CHORUS
When we in our foolishness thought we were wise
He played the fool and He opened our eyes
When we in our weakness believed we were strong
He became helpless to show we were wrong
And so we follow God’s own fool
For only the foolish can tell-
Believe the unbelievable
And come be a fool as well

So come lose your life for a carpenter’s son
For a madman who died for a dream
And you’ll have the faith His first followers had
And you’ll feel the weight of the beam
So surrender the hunger to say you must know
Have the courage to say I believe
For the power of paradox opens your eyes
And blinds those who say they can see

CHORUS
So we follow God’s own Fool
For only the foolish can tell
Believe the unbelievable,
And come be a fool as well

For those of you who can remember there was a popular dance song in the early ’90s that echoed the words “I’ve Got The Power” over and over again. It has since lived on in many movies and commercials occasionally even showing up at professional ball games during intermissions. I happen to like those words not because of the dance song but because of what they mean to me as a Christian. So what do they mean?

For anyone who has worked out with low weight but high repetitions you know the feeling when you begin the routine: “this is easy… I could do 100 of these”. But what eventually happens over time? You get more and more tired until you cannot continue. Strangely enough the weight did not get any heavier although we sometimes say it did – in reality, we simply got more tired over time from the same weight. The feeling of power and strength we had in the beginning of the workout gradually diminished leaving us feeling weak and much less powerful in the end. So often as Christians we approach life with much the same feeling. In the beginning we seemingly have all of the strength and power to work through any issue that life throws at us but over time we grow tired and burdened while the issues continue to weigh us down. God has promised the harder we try to take control of this life the more worn out, empty and exhausted we will become. It is the power of God within us that strengthens us even when the weight of this world is upon us. None of the strengthening comes through our own striving. Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9,10 wrote, “But He [God] 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.”

All of us at some point face human weakness. We may even at times feel powerless and frail but God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He and His promises never change. It is to Him we should submit and in Him we can trust and confidently claim “I’ve Got The Power” in the middle of life’s hardships, persecutions and difficulties.

For me mornings are pretty much routine beginning at roughly 5AM with an exercise regimen. At that early hour little is going on in my home except for the occasional creak of a loose floorboard as I drift down the hallway. Today after swinging by the kitchen for my water bottle I descended into the basement to begin warming up for my workout. And as always I was faithfully greeted by our gold-striped tabby cat, Rockefeller. With a series of rolls, half somersaults and twisting stretches he eventually wallowed at my feet all while chattering a strange little song as if to say “Hi Master, it’s so good to see you again – now, can you feed me?”. For those of you who own pets with similar personalities you can certainly identify with this scene.

Today however, after I watered and fed him, I continued to think of his dependence on me. He actually needs me and cannot do without me… and in some limited way he knows that. Let’s say that I chose not to feed him or give him fresh water – he couldn’t just go to the sink or food bag and apportion out for himself all that he needed. No, he still needs me and remains dependent upon me to feed him, quench his thirst and care for him.

Sometimes I wonder how dependent we actually are on Jesus Christ even though as Christians we verbally say we are. In Galatians 2:20 Paul wrote, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” As Christians when we received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior… we died. The life we now live although very much humanly alive is alive in Christ. It is a new resurrected life – the very Life of Christ now in me. It is living dependent on this new Life that will bring about extraordinary changes in us that He promised to do – but it’s a matter of choice? Will we choose this dependency as we walk instead of walking our own course? Dependency on Him will bring about a hunger and thirst for more where we could genuinely greet the Lord each morning with the words “Hi Master, it’s so good to talk with you again – now, can you feed me?” All this causes me think how much we need Him in countless ways – many of which we fail to acknowledge. Yet, His love continues unconditionally.

“I can only imagine what it will be like, when I walk by Your side…
I can only imagine, what my eyes will see, when Your Face is before me!
I can only imagine. I can only imagine. Surrounded by Your Glory, what will my heart feel?
Will I dance for you, Jesus? Or in awe of You, be still?
Will I stand in Your presence, or to my knees will I fall?
Will I sing ‘Hallelujah!’? Will I be able to speak at all?
I can only imagine! I can only imagine!”

©1999 MercyMe

From time to time I like to review some interesting statistics from the respected Barna Group, a marketing firm who has served the Christian community for 26 years. In a research article titled How Many People Attend A House Church? there is some compelling data supporting that fact that house churches are on the rise among Christians. For those of you not familiar with the Barna Group and their research be prepared for a thorough examination and analysis of all the data gathered while asking whether people attend or have attended a house church. The reason I find this article interesting is it makes sense according to what I have seen happening for a long time among Christians I know. Many of the traditional and conventional churches I am familiar with are facing a multiplicity of problems with memberships dropping, people feeling disconnected and empty upon leaving worship services and a general malaise over the entire church experience.  Some will say that this is all due to peoples’ unwillingness and inability to tolerate sound teaching which is indeed happening according to Biblical prophecy but I never believed this to be true for everyone unfulfilled with traditional church. Many, young and old, have a tender heart, a willing heart and want to grow in Christ but not according to agendas or “must do’s”. At times I wonder how many people the traditional church has turned away with its inward focus.

More than two years ago God laid on my heart to open my home to anyone who would come and explore the riches of God grace with me. The very first night not a single person came and as I stood on my front lawn with hurt feelings God made it very clear that it was not my home group but His… so therefore trust Him with it. And there my journey began as He began to bring all sorts of people into my living room. I had no format then and I have no format now except that we study through Biblical lessons God gives me, share openly, care for one another and just trust that God knows what He is doing. It is terribly uncomplicated. I have long since stopped worrying about who will come, how many or what they look like – I just unlock my front door and thank Him for all who come and wow – do the people come. Several weeks ago as I was finishing up dinner one person after another after another began coming in. Before I knew it 14 people had filled my living room to capacity to include missionaries from Romania and that was with some who could not attend for various reasons. The fellowship and openness was amazing much like I envision the early New Testament churches to have been. During last night’s home group I streamed a live webcast from my living room because a believer in Canada and in Colorado as well as Pennsylvania wanted to join in remotely. I have no expectations of this home group except that God promises He will build and bless His Church… His bride… us, the Body of believers. If that means filling my living room to capacity or shutting down the home group altogether then that’s ok – after all it is His.

Is it possible that what I have long called a home group is actually a house church? Sure, quite possible but that too is a work of God. I will simply continue to thank Him for this weekly gathering of believers as He develops, strengthens, equips and establishes the necessary authority among us.

Recently I have had another encounter with someone struggling with pornography. The conversation was similar to others I have had with the old familiar words of “it just seemed to happen by accident.” It is a common problem among many Christians if they will be honest and it often begins unintentionally. A while back I heard Jay Leno say that 2/3 of all men struggle with pornography… the other 1/3 are just lying. We may laugh at those jokes but it is sobering to find out that there is substantial evidence supporting that this type of secret indulgence is crippling so many men and boys and now even women and girls. An article by Rob Jackson at Focusonthefamily.com states that the average age of exposure to pornography is down to 8. The pre-teen years filled with riding dirt bikes, throwing snowballs and skipping stones across the water are being encroached upon by the an onslaught of sexual immorality through the a huge array of venues like the Internet, TV, radio, playgrounds, field trips, company parties and even in the classroom.

During my four years as an active duty Marine, I spent many months overseas and on the open ocean. During this time I had overwhelming access to pornography which posed significant trouble for me as I already knew that God did not want this in my life. Yet, even with unintentional exposures I struggled with the desire to see more followed by feelings of guilt for looking. Oh the viscous struggle. I wish I would have known more about my freedom in Christ then. As I listen to others talk about their struggle I hear much of that former me in them. Pornography is a thief and a controller which often leads to addiction similar to drugs or alcohol.  It steals away and controls our thoughts causing us to focus on our personal, selfish desires – away from our dependence on God.  Colossians 3:1-17 is so helpful beginning with where are minds should be: on Christ. If we focus on Him, trust and then respond to Him then in His strength alone we can stand against the evil that awaits us.

I love the words of Third Day’s song, Cry Out To Jesus…

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
And love for the broken heart
And there is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He’ll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus
Cry out to Jesus

If you find yourself crumbling under your struggle – there is Hope for you in Christ… even when it seems hopeless.

It doesn’t take much to figure out by the date of this post that I have not been blogging for very long here on Unwindings but shortly after launching Unwindings I knew I would be venturing out of my comfort zone. My goal even before launching Unwindings was not to become my own voice of reason or Biblical insight – God certainly knows as well as those close to me that I don’t know everything. I simply seek to be open, honest and transparent in expressing Christ as my life to the onlooking world. This onlooking world has turned out to be my family, my siblings, my home group, my church, my co-workers, my friends and yes, even a few “not-so-friendlys”. Galatians 2:20 is such a wonderful verse to me and still sticks in my throat no matter how often I quote it but it is one I hold dear. For those looking on from the shadows you have the opportunity to see some of my inconsistencies as God is still molding me, shaping me and growing me but I am not ashamed to express God’s innerworking power in me. It is precisely what makes Unwindings a unique experience for me because it tests what I believe with what I live (Heb.13). As Christians there will be times in our lives that we will discover through God’s amazing grace that we have believed a lie that God wishes to deconstruct and rebuild in our thinking if we will yield to Him. Other times we will discover that we are not living according to a correct Biblical principle which we believe. As we trust in God then He will see us through in the good times and in the bad. He will reveal our flaws to us in ways He knows better than we know. Sometimes He will work through others to reveal Himself to us, other times it may be circumstances or even just a quiet moment when He speaks so clearly.

As I think about some of the comments I get through this blog or the emails I receive I do not necessarily know what God is doing in all of it but I do know He is at work in me. It is easy for me to get excited with comments like “very eye opening” or “Cory, this was extremely helpful to me” or “I just love this blog. It is freeing and wonderful and simply phrased of what God does as we allow Him to love through us”. But when comments or emails are not always so friendly I am reminded that it is not me growing people at all but instead the work of God. I will continue to pray that God will remind me to trust Him as He grows me while ministering to those of you who will receive it.

This is an interesting topic among believers because there is so much diversity. The two extremes are (1) those who have accountability partners to whom they share their weekly problems, faults, failures and victories and (2) those who do whatever they want because they answer only to God and not to man. Although these two extremes exist they are not the majority but rather it is a mixing of the two extremes that poses a subtle destruction among believers. The problem with these extremes and everything in between is the motivation of the heart. For the accountability partners they place the emphasis of change on another person when it is the Holy Spirit within the believer that changes lives. For the “I-only-answer-to-God” person they reject the wonderful and transparent Body Life experience God designed for His earth-bound children.

Paul in Romans writes openly how our dependence must be on Christ and that we are not to speak of any accomplishments except that Christ did them in us (Rom.15:18). We are not designed to change each other therefore to attempt to do so is futile. But Paul is the same person who time and time again challenged and encouraged change in many believers who are behaving outside of the God’s direction. Paul did not remain silent but went to these brothers and sisters in love… and spoke candidly with them. His motivation was not to point out sin or change them himself but instead to remind them of their righteousness and the wonderful transforming power of Christ in them.

Authentic and normal Christianity is being individually free to lovingly, openly and honestly share concerns and victories with other believers regardless of their response to us. Paul never once openly challenged others based on if they would positively respond to him… but instead he trusted in God as he spoke the truth that God gave to him. However, if Body Life is to ever be experienced among believers then they must be willing to trust and allow God to work among them… in and through them to accomplish His plan. It is then that the fact we are unified in Spirit starts to become an experiential reality. It is then we can read 1 Peter 4 and be encouraged.

1 Peter 4:7-11

“… therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.“

Decision-making for Christians tends to be an area that remains compartmentalized from our daily Christian living primarily because we attempt to make decisions according to our own judgment. Through the use of our five senses in our body we take in information and process that information in our soul where we think and feel various things along way only to arrive at a point of choice or decision. But there three parts to the Christian… body, soul and Spirit; the Spirit, the most important part that remains too often cordoned off from any interaction with the body or soul. We find ourselves making decisions based on what we concluded to be the best path often leading us into conflict and frustration which commonly results in our placing unhealthy pressure and guilt on ourselves. There are two types of pitfalls for those who function within the process I just described: (1) those who just plunder ahead not considering anything except their own goals and agendas but live a miserable, self-absorbed and problem-filled existence despite Christ living in them and (2) those “waiting on God” but really immobilized by fear to make any decision afraid that it is not what God would want. Both types are precisely what God wants us to be free of in order to live a life of abundance that He promised to us.

Spirit filled decision-making does not come to us naturally… it is a learned process that if practiced according to God’s design will eventually become normal to us. Here are a few simple pointers that can tremendously help you in your practice.

1. Recognize and agree with God that He is your power, strength and sufficiency. In Him you can do all things according to His purpose – without Him you are nothing. This is humbling. 2 Cor.12:9 “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.“
2. Be aware that God has pre-chosen specific opportunities and good works for you and desires that you trust Him as He leads you into them. A different way of thinking. Eph.2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.“
3. Trust God fully that He knows what is better for you that you do BEFORE you ever make any decision. Where is your faith? Psalm 37:4,5 “Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.“
4. Go ahead – make a decision as you walk in the Spirit. You must be willing to move forward. Steps 1-3 help you not to plunder ahead of God and this step (#4) will help you trust Him in the power He gave you to move forward.
5. Thank God for giving you the power to make decisions but also thank Him for the decision’s outcome whether you know it yet or not… whether it worked out in your favor or not. God always works everything for good for those who respond to Him and allow Him to lead them. Rom.8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.“

Walking in the Spirit is a mystery to many but an indescribable freedom to millions more. Test this for yourself and see what God will do in you.