Cycleguy’s Spin

Every Sunday we have to go into the building we rent and set up chairs, sound system, walls for nursery/Children’s church/preschool class as well as other stuff. When we are all done I like to sit down with my Clif Bar (energy bar since I don’t and won’t drink those high caffeine drinks), water and Moleskine to sit and listen to our worship team practice. I try to slow my pace and my spirit so that I can focus on God after the hectic pace of setting things up. As I listen I like to write thoughts as they come to me. Maybe words to a song they are singing or thoughts that come to me as they sing. This past week I wrote these words down as they sang one of the songs: “It is God’s kindness that leads to repentance not anger or judgment or guilt.” The song they were singing had these words: “It’s your kindness Lord that leads us to repentance/ It’s your favor Lord I desire.” That prompted me to write my words down as I thought about motives and motivation for following Jesus. Then Tuesday of this week I read this post by Pete Wilson that messed me up. I am afraid to tell you how many times I tried motivating people to action-either to accept Jesus or to work for Him or to tithe or a myriad of other things-without you thinking, “What a jerk!” And frankly, I was. I can remember preaching on a Sunday morning about how real Christians would be in church whenever the doors were open-Sunday morning, evening and Wednesday-and if you weren’t then you need to check the reality of your faith. That night our attendance jumped from like 20-25 regulars to about 50. A 100% improvement! I thought, “I reckon they got it this time.” Until next Sunday night when I found myself preaching to the same old 20-25. I soon found out, especially as I got older, that guilt was and is a lousy motivator. It is temporary at best and when the guilty feelings wear off it is back to normal.

That same principle applies to salvation. Some pastors (actually in this case preachers) want to preach hell, fire and brimstone every week. They want to do what Jonathan Edwards did in his famous sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”-dangle them over the pit of hell. I know it is probably irreverent but the picture that comes to mind when I hear of this is the picture of Arnold dangling that dude over the cliff and saying, “Sully, remember when I said I would come for you last? I lied.” And then he drops him. I am not saying there is not room for preaching on the reality of hell and what awaits the unrepentant sinner but in this day and age I tend to believe that it is not hell, fire and brimstone that leads people to repentance but preaching on the kindness and grace of God. I am not talking about a mamby-pamby, Barney type of love either. Nor am I talking about the approach that “we are all going to the same place just by different means.” But a pastor (or anyone for that matter) cannot talk about the kindness and grace of God without talking about the cross of Christ. It was there that God’s kindness and grace was shown at its ultimate. If you must teach/preach about hell then at least do it with tears in your eyes and not a wicked looking glint in the eye, rubbing your hands together with a “hahahaha. You are about to get yours.” I personally don’t believe God is pleased with that approach at all.

What do you think? Do you agree or disagree? If you disagree please don’t be afraid to say so and tell why. This is open to all viewpoints, and as such is also subject to discussion by those who “pipe in.” What do you think is the best motivation for “doing” and also for salvation?

Time for a lighter side this afternoon.  Someone sent me the following video and I thought it would lighten up your day. Actually, each time I watch it I laugh harder.

See what I mean? I was caught totally off guard with this. I thought it was spam at first until I saw the face. But that is deceptive also. I have no beard as of this writing. And probably less hair. My complaint to Tony: “Least you could have given me a better body!”  Sheeesh!

I am going to warn you right from the top: I am going to whine today. I am going to need want your sympathy today. If you have ever seen Disney’s The Kid starring Bruce Willis and a newcomer who went on to play in the Santa Clause movies you will know about the “whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabulance” that I am going to be needing you to call. So get your towels out or your kleenex so you can have a big cry and whine session along with me.

I HURT!! From what you say? Be glad to tell you. Not the normal everyday “senior” things like a visit from arthur(itis) or sleeping wrong in a recliner late into the night. Not even my cranky back (although that does have some issues going on also). I don’t have a whopper of a headache…least not yet. My knees and joints ache but that is normal fare for my day. No…I HURT!! If someone so much as touches my hurting spots I am not going to be responsible for my knee-jerk reaction. After 2 months of only riding my bike and logging close to 1500 miles so far this year, I decided to do something I haven’t done since a week or so before the flood (June 7). I went to the “Y” to do some other exercising. Translate that: lift weights. I went Monday and took it easy. I went yesterday and added some weight and some reps and some new exercises. Can I say one word here? MISTAKE!! No make that 3 words: BIG, FAT MISTAKE!! Arms and shoulders and chests that haven’t been used like this recently have a tendency to rebel (I would like to say slightly but I would be lying). They tend to scream at you as if to say, “You idiot! Why did you do this to me!” So i bravely say, “Ha. No pain (OUCH!); no gain.” I know it is true, but whoever thought up that saying ought to be taken out and hung up by their toenails so we can see the blood rush to his head. Funny thing is that when I noticed the hurt was while I was climbing a hill yesterday afternoon on my bike and my arms said, “Look buster. You already abused us this morning. Do you really think we are going to hold you up and help you up this hill? You have another thought coming.” But I won (grudgingly). Given a day or two of recuperation and TLC, they will come back stronger and as good as new, which wasn’t all that good to start with.

My point with all this rambling? It hit me while I was riding. The faith of a Christ-follower is like that. It starts out maybe unused, perhaps new. But then comes the exercising and along with that comes pain. The agony of lost friends. The agony of losing friends. The pain of rejection. But with the pain also comes gain. Growth comes. It comes as you stretch your faith. It comes as you trust the One who is worthy of trusting. It comes as you lean harder on the Life-giver. Your faith becomes tested and harder. But for muscles to continue growing (without shortcuts like steroids) it takes more exercise. For your faith to move ahead, to move off a plateau, it requires more exercise. There are no shortcuts to true spiritual growth.  You can’t inject “Bible” into your veins and have instant growth.  But as you have that pain, you will begin noticing a healthier outlook, more stamina and more strength to handle that which life throws your way.  Paul wrote, “Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it hold promise for the present life and the life to come.” [I Tim.4:7b-8] So don’t wish away those tough times when your faith is stretched. Don’t agonize over God’s seeming absence.  Don’t regret the muscle stretching that God is permitting and encouraging.  Trust Him in the pain so you can experience the gain of stronger faith muscles.  What do you think?  Are you going through a tough time right now?  Is your faith muscle being stretched?  Are you experiencing the “get-off-the-plateau-and-grow” stage?  Do you agree or disagree with what I wrote?  The floor is yours.

Now…won’t someone get me some Ibuprofen and the whaaaaaaaaaaaaaambulance?  And whatever you do, do not come up and poke those sore spots. 

I began using the ESV (English Standard Version) in 2001. I used it for one year in my private Quiet Time, reading through both the Old and New Testaments. I did not want to suggest a Bible that was archaic in its approach and unreadable. After all, most of the people in the church I pastored used NIV. So did I. I was sold. It was a big deal to switch but when I told the folks at the church in Ohio that I would be using the ESV exclusively for preaching and reading, there was a mad rush to sign up for me to order them. Something like 50 Bibles were ordered. Many at OVCF have slowly begun to use the ESV also. Each Sunday we have a table with copies of the ESV available for any who want to borrow one for the day (and will give it away if someone needs it to read). Almost 2 years ago now I heard that an ESV Study Bible was in the works. But that was all I heard. Now it is official!! On October 15th the ESV Study Bible will be available. Mine is already on the pre-order list. I am not ashamed to tell you that I cannot wait! If you would like to pre-order a copy of the ESV Study Bible you can do that by clicking on the icon under “Books I Recommend” and do it that way. Order it and study it. It will be a “lamp to your feet and a light to your path.” [Ps.119:105]

I am not ashamed to admit that this is a post in which I need some help. You can make all kinds of comments about that I know and I will probably let them go. Well…at least for now. ‘Cause you see I really have a serious issue I am dealing with and I want/need your help. Let me first tell you what happened and then my reaction. Then the door is open for any thoughts or suggestions you may have. The question is “where do I draw the line?”

Yesterday afternoon when I got back to the office there were two phone calls that had come to the office. One had left a message on the machine with a phone number and Brad, the Worship/Youth Pastor of OVCF, took the other one. His involved helping a woman with her electricity. Her words: “I have called and gotten $50 from here and $50 from there and wanted to know if you would help.” We decided we could help with $50 also. She must have had a whopper of a bill. The other phone call I took care of. I had a sneaking suspicion even before I called what it was about and my suspicions were confirmed. It is the 18th of the month and this woman says they have no food in the house. I gave two suggestions of food pantries in town and she had an answer for both-one was open Tuesday and the other not until Wednesday. We don’t have a pantry nor do we carry any money in the office. So I went to the store to buy a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a 1/2 gallon of milk-something to tide them over until today. (She had suggested those items and a few other things). I was okay until I talked to a relative at the store who told me that she was loaded with food stamps, the husband was a heavy drinker and some other stuff. Suddenly my good deed was throwing me for a loop. What do I do? Was I being used?

But there is a deeper issue that I struggle with. Where do I draw the line? How do I draw the line? I have to admit that I was upset…more upset with my reaction to the initial request. Am I being too gullible? I am gun-shy, I reckon, about being used. But then Jesus’ words come screaming back to me: “When I was hungry, thirsty, a stranger, naked, sick and in prison, you came to me.” You see the difficulty? If I do not help this family am I being disobedient to Jesus? Am I turning a blind eye to someone in need? And if I do what does that say about the reality of my Christian faith?

So I am opening this up to you. I want to hear what you think. I want to hear how you deal with incidents like this. Do you have a line you draw? How do you keep yourself on an even keel?

The year: 1969 (before some of you were born maybe?)

My age: 16

My year in school: (soon to be) Senior

The times: VietNam

Supergroups: Led Zepplin, Jimi Hendrix, Vanilla Fudge, Iron Butterfly, CCR, CSNY, myriads of others.

My favorite: None of the above (although I liked them and listened to them all). My favorite includes my #1 song of all time. Bar none. #2 will appear someday in this “Blast from the Past.” My #3 has already appeared (Wayward Son). I know I am doing it backwards but unpredictable is sometimes my middle name. The video is a more updated version of the star and the song.

Well, thanks for coming along and taking part in my Blast from the Past. In case you are part of the “I-have-never-heard-that-song-before” or “I-never-heard-of-that-singer-before” crowd, the artist is Tommy James and the Shondells (new guys) and the song (as you probably guessed) is “Crystal Blue Persuasion.” It was, and still is, my #1 song of all time.

I am currently in a series called “Get Wise”, advice taken from the book of Proverbs. I spoke today on “Get Wise About Friendship.” I shared this with the folks at OVCF today because of the start of school and the importance of choosing the right friends to hang your hat with. I landed in 6:16-19 with a list of people to avoid but I preferred to turn it around and make it people we need to choose as our friends. You can see the negative list if you choose to look at the Scripture. Here is my positive list in contrast to the negative:

1. A person of humility. Instead of an attitude of superiority, this person has an attitude of a servant, one who delights in serving others. [11:12]
2. A person of truth. We should choose friends, who by their higher level of honesty, call us to a higher level of honesty. Lies fall apart while truth lasts. [12:19]
3. A person who is tenderhearted and merciful. The Christ-follower should be the leader in caring for others instead of being insensitive, harsh and cruel. [3:27]
4. A person of high integrity. Rather than push the moral and legal envelope, or to see how close to the line we can get, we need people who will pursue a higher level of character. [6:27-28]  {Note:This combines #4 & #5 of the negative qualities}.
5. A person who can keep secrets. We need to be people who lend an ear but hold our tongue. [26:20]
6. A person who seeks reconciliation and forgiveness. Disagreements will happen but we must be committed to working through them. [10:12]

Being a friend is sometimes hard work and will often take a lot out of a person. It may even put us on the “outs” with people with whom we want to be accepted and included in their clique. Eccl.4 speaks of “two being better than one” (v.9) and that “a three-fold cord is not quickly broken” (v.12) What kind of friend do you see yourself as? What do you teach your children or your students about friendship that I have missed? I would like to hear from you.

All Scripture is ESV.

A quote from John Wesley has me thinking: “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” From one disciple to another following their walk to Emmaus with Jesus: “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (Lk.23:32) is there a correlation to the fire in the heart and the amount of time spent with Jesus? There has got to be!

What do you think? Does your heart burn for Him? for His truth? for the Word this morning? Do you sense it in the heart of those you love? in the heart of your pastor? If not, pray hard for hearts to flame.

This past week I read a quote that has stuck with me. I wrote it down in my Moleskine with plans to say something about it here. Tonight (Saturday) seems like a good time to say something since tomorrow is the day I look forward to and perhaps the day this quote becomes most apparent. The quote:

“When I worship, I would rather my heart be without words than my words be without heart.” Lamar Boschman

Do you have the same reaction that I do? This is a quote worth writing down and remembering. Not for its length but its power. I hate to even think about the times I was more words than heart. My focus was elsewhere. I was “taking care of business” (like writing down prayer requests or announcements that came to mind) when I should have been focusing on the ONE. I know I have sung songs that were sung without meaning. Matt Redman wrote one of the most well-loved worship songs in “The Heart of Worship” in which he says, “I’m coming back to the heart of worship and it’s all about You, it’s all about You, Jesus.” But my title is not the “The Heart of Worship” but “The Heart in Worship.” Big difference. We can realize that Jesus is the reason for our worship and our focus but when we come we must come with a heart that is seeking to honor and adore and exalt Him. Hearts that are clean before Him. Hearts that are uncluttered before Him. Hearts that are surrendered to Him. Hearts that are involved in worship with our head and our lips. It has been said that many miss heaven by 18″-the distance between the heart and the head. Is it possible that many miss worship by 18″? I think so. I have been guilty of that. I am praying about that for tomorrow…that not only I but all those who come will attach head and lips and heart. Lee McDerment, worship leader at NewSpring church where Perry Noble is the pastor, has a song on his CD with these words: “All we have is Yours/the earth and everything/unless You have our hearts/we praise You in vain.” I am praying for a move of God’s Spirit in my heart and in those who come. And lest you misunderstand me…I am not for one moment suggesting that worship only takes place on Sunday. But, for the record, this post is referring to the time the family gets together to worship.

What about you? What will you be praying about tomorrow/today? If you read this after your worship, did you engage heart and lips and head? I would love to hear how your worship was.

It is amost midnight. What am I doing awake? It is 11:55 p.m. and I should be sound asleep. I am supposed to ride with a man from the church who is 15 years my junior so it is always a challenge to ride with him. At my age recovery from a ride the previous day takes longer so a good night’s sleep is essential. I would like to blame the Diet Dr. Pepper I had at supper. If I drink caffeine too late it tends to have this effect on me. Or I would like to blame the bowl of ice cream I rewarded myself with last night. It wasn’t my normal 3 scoops. No, I piled it on with chocolate syrup to boot. (I think Vanilla is so bland but it was on sale and the ony way to eat it is with chocolate syrup). I would like to blame it on the kind day off I had. But a day off that included riding 28 miles usually sends me to la-la land pretty quickly and soundly. I would like to blame it on the Mexican food that made itself known about 11:30 with indigestion and the need for some Papaya enzymes. After laying in bed tossing and turning for about 15 minutes I think I finally figured it out. Least I think this is what it might be. Maybe you have been here before too. Maybe you have struggled with the same problem and tossed and turned. No, it wasn’t a fight with my bride. We try really hard that if we have a disagreement or if something is bugging us that we take care of it before the light goes out.

I believe I offended someone. Or at least I think I did. That may not seem like much to some who read this but I am not made that way. I know I can’t please everyone. My head tells me that. How does that statement go: “You can please some of the people some of the time; a few of the people none of the time; but none of the people all of the time”? (Is that the right statement?) I am one, who for the longest time, was paralyzed as a pastor because I wanted to break the last rule of that statement. I thought I could please everyone and then found out the quickest way to disaster was to try or even think it could be done. My head tells me I can’t please everyone. But my heart says differently. Oh, to be able to separate the head and the heart when it comes to emotions and relationships. Some are able to do that. I have trouble with it. God made me that way so when I know something (my head) and it involves another person, my desire to straighten it out (my heart) goes full force. I don’t think that is all that bad frankly. I am reminded of the words of Jesus of leaving your gift at the altar if you realize your brother has something against you and go and be reconciled (Mt.5:23-24). I also remember Paul’s words in Eph. 4:26-27 of not letting the sun go down on your anger lest you give the enemy a foot in the door. I am not angry at all but as I laid there tonight I could sense a battle going on. One was telling me “Get up and write and say what is on your heart” while the other was saying, “Oh forget it. It was nothing anyway.” To be disobedient to the call of the Spirit in my heart would have opened the door to the enemy. (I say “the enemy” instead of Satan or the devil because I want to have a constant reminder that he is truly my enemy and not just some invisible force). So here I sit at the computer at 12:30 a.m.- in the middle of the night when I should be sound asleep-typing because I feel the Spirit’s call to do so.

I suspect I am not alone in this struggle. How about you? Have you ever found yourself waking up in the middle of the night (if you got to sleep at all) with a heavy burden for someone? I am not talking about sensing God telling you to pray for that person but in a similar situation that I just wrote about? What did you do? How did you handle it? I know this is asking a lot from some people to be vulnerable but feel free to tell your story and the outcome. Who knows? It may actually encourage someone else to mend a fence or even to forgive.