This morning I met with Marc Nee for my first session with a personal trainer. We went over his evaluation from our time last week and laid out the plan for our time together. It looked easy enough but I had this sneaking suspicion that it would be more than I had bragained for.
Let me tell you that as we neared the end of the hour I was worn out. We didn't even do that much. Mostly stretching and flexing and rolling and pulling. I had worked up quite a sweat too. My body just wasn't used to doing that much work. Of course by anybody else's standards we really didn't do that much. It was a lot of little things. Things that I am not used to doing.
It prompted me to realize that even though I have been going to the gym for twelve years, I have never had this kind of a workout. I usually do cardio. I ride the bike, walk the treadmill, do the elliptical trainer or every once in a while try another machine. I sweat. I feel good. But today I think I used muscles that I don't normally use. I probably burned off just as many calories too.
It made me think about the people who come to church for years and years but don't really do much with their faith. They get a good baseline. They develop some good habits. But the power of living with Jesus in your every day life just isn't there. Jesus is more like a historical figure than the Loird of your life. He is more of a memory than a real presence.
If you want to exercise your body you need to engage it. The same is true with our faith. It needs to be lived out every day. We need to walk with Jesus. We need to read his word. We need to praise and worship him. Then we will feel the change in our life and begin to do some powerful faith walking.
Cal
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
God is amazing
A friend sent this to me and I was moved by it. It speaks to a truth about God that is so deep. You see God uses every scrap. He weaves together a tapestry that picks up all the pieces and redeems all of us in ways we can never imagine.
Think about it. He takes a despicable slave captain and knocks him down on his knees. He turns his heart inside out and then uses his words and his experience to give us one of the greatest songs of faith ever written. John Newton penned the word to Amazing Grace but he got the tune from the people he oppressed. It is amazing what God's grace can do. Enjoy.
Cal
Think about it. He takes a despicable slave captain and knocks him down on his knees. He turns his heart inside out and then uses his words and his experience to give us one of the greatest songs of faith ever written. John Newton penned the word to Amazing Grace but he got the tune from the people he oppressed. It is amazing what God's grace can do. Enjoy.
Cal
Friday, April 2, 2010
The reason we celebrate Easter
This is what Easter is really all about. Want to hear more? Attend worship this Easter weekend. Don't have a church to go to? Come join us at First Baptist at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. We'd love to have you. My sermon is titled, "What They Really Found in the Empty Tomb!"
Cal
Cal
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Grace: Available to all with no conditions
I found this essay online and thought it was worth reprinting here. It speaks about the nature of grace and I thought it was especially timely during Holy Week.
Every once in a while we get caught up in discussions about what a person needs to do to be saved. We like to set pre-conditions. We like to make rules especially when it comes to baptism and church membership. But do we have the right and authority to do that? Is it enough if a person confesses Christ as their Lord and Savior for them to be able to access that grace or do they need to make radical changes before they receive the forgiveness and grace that Christ bought for us on the cross? Well, read this and let me know what you think.
Cal
The 15th chapter of Luke is a pivotal and compelling bit of storytelling because there are three stories told sequentially, each illustrating the same lesson. In many ways, Luke 15 has been considered "a gospel within the gospel" because it so typifies the message that Jesus embodied. The three stories he told are in response to how he is received by the Pharisees who note that, " … a lot of men and women of doubtful reputation were hanging around Jesus, listening intently … the Pharisees and religion scholars growled, 'He takes in sinners and eats with them, treating them like old friends.'" (Luke 15:1-3)
The notion of grace and forgiveness is uniquely divine. Only in the mind of God could such an idea come among us. It's not in our nature to think up the idea of grace. In order to see that the divine message of grace gets shared, we have to treat the subject with care so that our own fallen natures don't corrupt that which is divine.
The church has always wanted to intervene with the idea of grace and forgiveness by making the church a ticket booth to God's grace. In order to receive grace, you need a ticket that only the church can dispense. That's the human twist we give to grace: We take that which is free and liberating and we make it cost something. In order to obtain the ticket of salvation, you must meet the prior approval of the church.
We question whether the grace of God is enough for certain sins. We expect that you clean up appropriately before receiving God's grace and afterwards that you meet our expectations of behavior and belief. That's why Jesus had to tell these stories about a lost coin, a lost sheep and ultimately a lost son. Why, we've even gotten the nature of the stories confused. They are not stories of things that are lost; they are stories of things that are found.
Jesus wanted in the deepest way possible for the Pharisees to discover how they had missed the point of the message. The point was God is out on the front porch looking for any sinner who realizes they need acceptance and forgiveness. He is out there waiting and willing to offer grace to them all, no matter how lost they have been. He has already paid the price for their sins … all they need to do is simply come home and receive it.
That's our message, too, if we are willing to hear it for ourselves. We see ourselves mirrored in the lives of the two sons. We're either the younger lost son who took everything that was due him and left, or we're the older son who obediently stayed at home and yet resented the father who gladly welcomed the wayward boy. We're both lost and broken and we come to realize it, or we're lost even while we're obediently trying to earn our acceptance by being good enough.
I guess ultimately in the good grace of God, there is even a grace for us lost older sons who are lost in our goodness, our niceness and our morality. That's what Robert Capon calls, "being a bookkeeper." He says, "The human race is positively addicted to keeping records and remembering scores." You stay at home, near God, where it is safe and predictable. What you don't realize is that, given time, your bookkeeping behavior has, in fact, become your god, and you, too, are far away from "home."
Grace is a kind of mercy that we in the church have had a notoriously difficult time handling. We've taken that which is free and we've made it something to earn. It's sad in a way because we first come to God seeking forgiveness and the desire to be whole. And then, after experiencing the liberation that only God can bring, we go out and get lost all over again.
Seminary Professor Tom Long tells of one of his seminary students who went jogging with his father in their urban neighborhood. As they ran, the son shared what he was learning in seminary about urban ministry, and his father, who was a pastor in the inner city, related experiences of his own with his son. About halfway into their run, they decided to call a local pizzeria to order their lunch to coincide with their arrival back home.
A phone booth (remember those?) was on the corner and as they stopped, a homeless man approached them and asked for spare change. The father reached into both pockets and pulled out all the change he had, offered it to the man and said, "Take what you need." The homeless man, hardly believing his good fortune, said, "Okay, I'll take it all," and scooped the coins into his own hands. It only took a second for the father to realize he now had no change for the phone so he called out, "Pardon me, I need to make a call. Can you spare some change?"
The homeless man turned and held out the two handfuls of coins and said smilingly, "Here, take what you need." Long claims we're all homeless prodigals and beggars. "Head home," he says, "and expect nothing. Be astonished beyond all measure when the dancing begins, the banquet table is set and the voice of God says, 'Here, take what you need.'"
Keith Herron is senior pastor of Holmeswood Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo. He holds degrees from Baylor University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and a doctor of ministry degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Ill. He and his wife, Wanda, have a son and daughter, Ben and Alex.
Every once in a while we get caught up in discussions about what a person needs to do to be saved. We like to set pre-conditions. We like to make rules especially when it comes to baptism and church membership. But do we have the right and authority to do that? Is it enough if a person confesses Christ as their Lord and Savior for them to be able to access that grace or do they need to make radical changes before they receive the forgiveness and grace that Christ bought for us on the cross? Well, read this and let me know what you think.
Cal
The 15th chapter of Luke is a pivotal and compelling bit of storytelling because there are three stories told sequentially, each illustrating the same lesson. In many ways, Luke 15 has been considered "a gospel within the gospel" because it so typifies the message that Jesus embodied. The three stories he told are in response to how he is received by the Pharisees who note that, " … a lot of men and women of doubtful reputation were hanging around Jesus, listening intently … the Pharisees and religion scholars growled, 'He takes in sinners and eats with them, treating them like old friends.'" (Luke 15:1-3)
The notion of grace and forgiveness is uniquely divine. Only in the mind of God could such an idea come among us. It's not in our nature to think up the idea of grace. In order to see that the divine message of grace gets shared, we have to treat the subject with care so that our own fallen natures don't corrupt that which is divine.
The church has always wanted to intervene with the idea of grace and forgiveness by making the church a ticket booth to God's grace. In order to receive grace, you need a ticket that only the church can dispense. That's the human twist we give to grace: We take that which is free and liberating and we make it cost something. In order to obtain the ticket of salvation, you must meet the prior approval of the church.
We question whether the grace of God is enough for certain sins. We expect that you clean up appropriately before receiving God's grace and afterwards that you meet our expectations of behavior and belief. That's why Jesus had to tell these stories about a lost coin, a lost sheep and ultimately a lost son. Why, we've even gotten the nature of the stories confused. They are not stories of things that are lost; they are stories of things that are found.
Jesus wanted in the deepest way possible for the Pharisees to discover how they had missed the point of the message. The point was God is out on the front porch looking for any sinner who realizes they need acceptance and forgiveness. He is out there waiting and willing to offer grace to them all, no matter how lost they have been. He has already paid the price for their sins … all they need to do is simply come home and receive it.
That's our message, too, if we are willing to hear it for ourselves. We see ourselves mirrored in the lives of the two sons. We're either the younger lost son who took everything that was due him and left, or we're the older son who obediently stayed at home and yet resented the father who gladly welcomed the wayward boy. We're both lost and broken and we come to realize it, or we're lost even while we're obediently trying to earn our acceptance by being good enough.
I guess ultimately in the good grace of God, there is even a grace for us lost older sons who are lost in our goodness, our niceness and our morality. That's what Robert Capon calls, "being a bookkeeper." He says, "The human race is positively addicted to keeping records and remembering scores." You stay at home, near God, where it is safe and predictable. What you don't realize is that, given time, your bookkeeping behavior has, in fact, become your god, and you, too, are far away from "home."
Grace is a kind of mercy that we in the church have had a notoriously difficult time handling. We've taken that which is free and we've made it something to earn. It's sad in a way because we first come to God seeking forgiveness and the desire to be whole. And then, after experiencing the liberation that only God can bring, we go out and get lost all over again.
Seminary Professor Tom Long tells of one of his seminary students who went jogging with his father in their urban neighborhood. As they ran, the son shared what he was learning in seminary about urban ministry, and his father, who was a pastor in the inner city, related experiences of his own with his son. About halfway into their run, they decided to call a local pizzeria to order their lunch to coincide with their arrival back home.
A phone booth (remember those?) was on the corner and as they stopped, a homeless man approached them and asked for spare change. The father reached into both pockets and pulled out all the change he had, offered it to the man and said, "Take what you need." The homeless man, hardly believing his good fortune, said, "Okay, I'll take it all," and scooped the coins into his own hands. It only took a second for the father to realize he now had no change for the phone so he called out, "Pardon me, I need to make a call. Can you spare some change?"
The homeless man turned and held out the two handfuls of coins and said smilingly, "Here, take what you need." Long claims we're all homeless prodigals and beggars. "Head home," he says, "and expect nothing. Be astonished beyond all measure when the dancing begins, the banquet table is set and the voice of God says, 'Here, take what you need.'"
Keith Herron is senior pastor of Holmeswood Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo. He holds degrees from Baylor University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and a doctor of ministry degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Ill. He and his wife, Wanda, have a son and daughter, Ben and Alex.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
He brings us peace
God is so good. Whenever I am seeking an answer to something, whenever I am troubled by the events happening in my life, God sends me little things that ease my mind and bring me peace. That's been happening a lot over the last few weeks.
Like everyone else, I find that there are seasons of life that bring challenges. I confess that I don't like them. They are especially rough if I find myself in conflict or disagreement with people I care about. When it happens at home in the family and at church or at work it can leave you unsettled and distraught.
The image of the storm comes to mind. Jesus often told stories about storms that come out of nowhere to threaten and scare the disciples. Well I think that happens in life. The good news is that Jesus told us that when we call on him he will bring us peace. I have found this to be true. He does still the storm.
If you are in the midst of a storm and the waves are threatening to undo you, then call on him. He will come to you with his peace.
If it doesn't happen there are at least three different reasons. First, you may be listening to the wrong voice. God has an enemy who wants to mess up whatever is good in your life. He will jump in and deceive you. He will not bring peace. He will lead you into strife and lead you to fights with people you would never dream of fighting. This happens in churches a lot unfortunately. Second, you may be forgetting to call on Jesus. It is so easy to try and wrestle through things on our own. We may even use the tools he has given us, like the Bible. But if you don't involve Jesus then you will never have peace. Finally, the testing may go on and force you to rethink whatever you have been thinking. Maybe it is you who has to change what you are doing or what you are thinking. This is the process that often leads us into repentance. The troubles you may be experiencing could be God's way of getting your attention. He wants to teach you something. It usually involves grace and healing.
This week I have been at peace even though I have been troubled by something that happened. God has helped me reach out to the people involved. In one case there has been prayer and resolution as far as it can be had. In the other there is still more work to be done but I am praying that Jesus will work his will and that there will be peace for my friends who are hurting. I am resting in Jesus right now and feeling his presence in the things that have happened.
So is there a storm brewing on the sea you are traveling? Then call on Jesus and invite him into your boat. He will bring you peace.
Cal
Like everyone else, I find that there are seasons of life that bring challenges. I confess that I don't like them. They are especially rough if I find myself in conflict or disagreement with people I care about. When it happens at home in the family and at church or at work it can leave you unsettled and distraught.
The image of the storm comes to mind. Jesus often told stories about storms that come out of nowhere to threaten and scare the disciples. Well I think that happens in life. The good news is that Jesus told us that when we call on him he will bring us peace. I have found this to be true. He does still the storm.
If you are in the midst of a storm and the waves are threatening to undo you, then call on him. He will come to you with his peace.
If it doesn't happen there are at least three different reasons. First, you may be listening to the wrong voice. God has an enemy who wants to mess up whatever is good in your life. He will jump in and deceive you. He will not bring peace. He will lead you into strife and lead you to fights with people you would never dream of fighting. This happens in churches a lot unfortunately. Second, you may be forgetting to call on Jesus. It is so easy to try and wrestle through things on our own. We may even use the tools he has given us, like the Bible. But if you don't involve Jesus then you will never have peace. Finally, the testing may go on and force you to rethink whatever you have been thinking. Maybe it is you who has to change what you are doing or what you are thinking. This is the process that often leads us into repentance. The troubles you may be experiencing could be God's way of getting your attention. He wants to teach you something. It usually involves grace and healing.
This week I have been at peace even though I have been troubled by something that happened. God has helped me reach out to the people involved. In one case there has been prayer and resolution as far as it can be had. In the other there is still more work to be done but I am praying that Jesus will work his will and that there will be peace for my friends who are hurting. I am resting in Jesus right now and feeling his presence in the things that have happened.
So is there a storm brewing on the sea you are traveling? Then call on Jesus and invite him into your boat. He will bring you peace.
Cal
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