Pass It On

Roberta and I just got back from a quick vacation in Monterey. Roberta took this picture of me playing golf at Spyglass Hill Golf Links. We had a great time. Thank you Believers Fellowship. Your generous gift at our 10 year anniversary made this trip possible.

While we were in Monterey we were constantly reminded of the rich history and tradition of the area. It is interesting how that tradition has been passed on. Families of fisherman have passed on the business from generation to generation. Families that have been in the restaurant business have seen their children carry on the traditions. Also, this week in Monterey there will be a golf tournament sponsored by the Champions Tour and The First Tee. It is a unique tournament where a senior golfer is paired with a junior golf. The purpose is to generate an interest among young people for the history and tradition of the game of golf.

This all made me think of the little series we are doing on discipleship. This is what it is all about. Discipleship is passing on the faith. It is what Paul told Timothy to do in 2 Timothy 2:2, "And the things you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also." This verse speaks of four generations - Paul, Timothy, faithful men, and others. Discipleship is passing on the faith (both the doctrine and the practice) from one generation to the next whether it be to our physical children or to spiritual children that we have the privilege of ministering to.

Don't let it end with you. Make sure you are investing your life into someone else who will not only live out the faith but pass it on to others as well. All believers have the responsibility to pass it on.

I Want To Be Like ...

A few years ago a major company had a series of popular ads with the catch phrase, "I want to be like Mike." The ads featured Michael Jordan. The idea was that if you want to be like Mike, one way you can is by using the product he endorses. This ad played off a major desire within each one of us to be like someone we admire or respect. When I was a kid I wanted to play baseball like Willie Mays or golf like Jack Nicklaus. I think everyone can relate to this kind of desire.

I believe that this desire to emulate someone else is from the Lord. He has built in us a desire to follow the example of someone else. The only question is, "Who will we follow?" That's where this crucial issue of discipling comes in. Discipling is basically one person leading and encouraging another person to follow the Lord. The Lord commanded us to make disciples and our example is a big part of the whole process. Part of the commission is to teach others to observe (or do) all that the Lord has commanded us. One vital and necessary way that we teach others to follow the Lord's commands is by practicing them ourselves.

Example was a big part of how Jesus trained His disciples. They had the opportunity to observe the Lord. As a result of them watching Him pray and realizing what an important place prayer had in His life prompted them to ask Him to teach them to pray (Luke 11:1). After Jesus washed the disciples feet He told them this, "For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you (John 13:15)." Clearly Jesus expected the disciples to learn from what He said to them and by the example He gave to them.

Paul was the same way. Paul was involved in discipling some important men in the early church, men like Luke, Timothy, and Titus. Paul constantly urged others to follow his example. The words of Paul found in 1 Corinthians 4:16 are common for him. He said, "I exhort you therefore, be imitators of me." Paul was committed to following the Lord and he encouraged others to follow the example he was setting. In 1 Corinthians 11:1 he said, "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." That's the idea. This is not a comment on the perfection of Paul's life but more of the direction of his life and the affection of his heart. Paul loved the Lord and was following Him. You and I don't have to be perfect to disciple someone else, but we do need a genuine love for Him and a consistency in the direction of our lives.

Not only did Paul set the example for those he discipled but he encouraged them to be examples for others also. He said to Timothy, "Show yourself an example of those who believe (1 Timothy 4: 12)." To Titus, Paul said these similar words, "In all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds (Titus 2:7)." The importance of example in ministry, especially the personal ministry of discipling cannot be over emphasized. If we want to encourage others to follow the Lord, we need to set a pattern for them.

This is where many parents fail in making disciples of their children. They tell their children to do one thing (either directly or through the teaching the children receive in church or school) and then the parents do something else. There is an inconsistentcy in their life that frustrates or exasperates their children. Parents can teach their children about the love and grace of God and then be harsh and ungracious with their children. Children can be taught about the holiness of God and then observe that their parents are not pursuing holiness. One way we don't pursue holiness is by not dealing with sin in our children's life or by dealing with it inconsistently.

Obviously discipling demands involvement. If people are to benefit from our example they have to be able to see it. We need to be involved with our children and we need to get involved with others that we would hope to disciple. We can get involved in a lot of things these days. We can even get involved in a lot of things at church. The extracurricular things keep us from getting involved in discipling. The church activities make us think we are doing what we should. Not necessarily. If you are not making disciples you are not fulfilling the great commission. Activity can't repalce obedience.

So here is my advise. Find someone and start to spend some time with them. Share meals with them. Study the Bible with them. Have them be involved with your family. Pray with them. Let them get to know you and you get to know them. As you do you can encourage them in their walk with the Lord and how that relates to their job, marriage, children, friends, church, etc. And as you do this, you will know the peace of God as you fulfill the ministry He has for you.

I wanted to be like Willie or Jack, but after I became a Christian I wanted to be like the godly men God brought into my life. There have been a long list of men who have had a part in discipling me. God has given me the joy of discipling others. What about you? Who do you want to be like? Is there anyone who wants to be like you?

Additional Note: Shortly after I wrote this post I went out to bring our trash bins back from the curb. We have bins on wheels which makes it easy to move them. We have a bin for yard trash, another bin for recycleables, and still another bin for all the other trash. The recycleable bin and the yard trash bin are smaller and so I attempted to roll them both at the same time. I pushed one and I pulled the other. It was difficult to push the one. It kept wanting to veer off the path and into trouble. Pulling the other one was easy. It follwed me wherever I wanted to go. Here's my point. In ministry it is easier to lead people than to push them. Yet, we often do the other. We tell people what they should do. We encourage them, exhort them, and even embarrass them in an effort to get them to grow or serve. How much better to disciple them and lead them in walking with and serving the Lord. This is the point I was making about the importance of example. Parents often push their children and get distressed when they go astray. We must lead them by means of our example. It is so much better to have others following us than it is for us to try and push them.

What Are We Doing?

Let's cut it straight. Many people have misconceptions about what ministry is all about. Some think it is just for the "professionals," those who have been to seminary and are in full time ministry. Others think of ministry in specific terms - preaching, reaching out to the homeless, visiting hospitals, missionary work, etc. There are wrong conceptions about the goal of ministry - to have a big church, to rehabilitate drunkards and drug addicts, to keep children out of trouble, etc. Simply put, the misconceptions abound.

What is amazing about these misconceptions is that Jesus could not have been clearer in what ministry is all about. Before He ascended He gave a commission. We call it the Great Commission. It is found in Matthew 28:18-20. Jesus said to make disciples. That's what ministry is all about and that is the goal. We do that by evangelizing (goinig), baptizing, and teaching believers to observe or do all that Jesus commanded. There it is. It is plain, straightforward, and easy to understand. The disciples got it and did it. In fact, in Acts 14:21 it says that Paul and Barnabas went to Derbe and made many disciples. How could any one miss this?

Unfortunately, many do. I've even heard church leaders express opposition to this whole idea of discipling because they saw it as a parachurch program and they were against programs by parachurches. In fact one man said, "I don't even know where this idea of discipling comes from." Wow. The simple fact is that many Christians have not been adequately discipled and they have never discipled anyone else. Most believers who have some idea of discipling talk about it but don't necessarily do it. Parents, who should be discipling their children are woefully ill prepared to do so.

It's time to re-examine the words of our Lord and get back to the commission of making disciples. This is what He told us to do and this is how we accomplish the ministry. In up coming posts I will be looking at what this discipling thing is really all about. I hope that you will put aside any misconceptions you may have been carrying around and join me in looking at what the Bible says. As we look at this together, come with an attitude of readiness to obey what you learn. You really don't know discipling if you are not doing it. So let's cut it straight and just do it.

We Arrived ......Sort Of

Well, here we are in Southern California. Last Sunday was my last one as the pastor of Believers Fellowship in San Antonio, Texas. After sharing from the Word, sharing around the Lord's Table, and sharing some of the memories of a 10 year ministry, we all shared together in some wonderful fellowship in the Family Life Center. It was a time to say goodbye to some terrific folks that we have worshipped and served alongside of over the years. The Lord was good and gracious during our time at Believers Fellowship.

Monday we jumped in the car, after watching the final holes of the PGA tournament (see Ben's blog for more), and away we went. The drive was uneventful and we spent the night in one of my favorite spots - Gas City in Benson, Arizona. As the saying goes, if they don't have it at Gas City, you don't need it. Every thing a road warrior could want, he can find at Gas City.

Tuesday morning Ben and I were awakened by Roberta saying, "It's 4:30, who else is ready to go?" Well, Ben and I got ready and away we went. By 3:00 in the afternoon we were at our new home. After checking out the new digs we went out to dinner at the Outback. Then we checked in to a hotel to spend the night.

Early the next morning the moving truck arrived. Did we really pack all those boxes? We are currently in the process of unpacking. We are making progress. Thursday some high school students from church showed up to do some unpacking and cleaning. Did I say cleaning? We were a little disappointed with how the house was left but the high school students were a big help. There is some carpet that will need some serious cleaning or replacing. Also, our guest bedroom is painted a kind of purpley-pink or pinky-purple. Since most of our guests will be Billy or Bobby and Christa, we plan on painting the room a different color. Also some window covers left with the previous owners so we need to buy some new ones fairly soon.

Overall we are extremely happy with our new house. It is light and spacious. It has a terrific view (the hill we are on is higher than I remembered). And it has a lovely pool. So far all we have done is gaze at the pool. It needs a cleaning which we don't know how to do and we don't know some other basic things like how to turn the hot tub on. However, Monday we have a guy known as Dr. H2O coming to clean the pool and give us instructions.

We also enjoy being closer to family. Last night Billy came and spent the night. Tomorrow we will have dinner with my dad. Monday Bobby and Christa arrive to visit for a few days. Even though Ben is at college, we will see him often and we are looking forward to getting to know the friends he will make rather than mostly just hearing about them like we did with Bobby and Billy.

I'm itching to get into the ministry groove at Grace Church. Right now we are getting settled and in a week Roberta and I will get away for a few days. After that I will be eager to get into my new office and ministry. One thing we have noticed is that we are surrounded by a lot of people, and I mean a lot. People who need the Lord. People who need to hear the Word of the Lord. We look forward to many opportunities to serve, teach, pray, and witness. Pray for our witness to our new neighbors. I've already met one - Eddy.

So we are here, sort of. We keep thinking of that box we saw somewhere. Another common phrase is, "I have no idea where that is." And we don't know exactly what our routine will be once we get in to it. It's not like we are on vacation and then we get back to the normal. We're about to establish a whole new normal. However, the Lord has not changed and He has not left us. We look forward to what He has for us in the near future.

Moving With the Lord

I just finished reading through the book of Joshua. This book records the faithful actions of God in bringing Israel into the promised land and judging the nations which had inhabited the land. The Lord reminded them of His faithfulness to them and, in fact, we are told that, "Not one of the good promises which the Lord had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass (Joshua 21:45)." What an amazing and encouraging word! The Lord is faithful to His word. None of it ever fails.

This is encouraging to me as I and my family prepare to move. We don't have to fight against hostile nations to take possession of our home, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a lot of work to do. We are just about finished packing up our home, but we still have to drive 1300 miles to our new home and then guess what we get to do? Yep, we get to unpack. But as we go we have the word of God to comfort us and direct us. We find strength in knowing that He is with us and He will provide for us.

All of this moving, though, presents a vivid picture of the Christian life. When Israel moved in to the land, they were to destroy all of the nations. They were warned that if they did not it would come back to bite them. God warned that if any nations were allowed to remain they would become, "a snare and a trap to you, and a whip to your sides and thorns in your eyes (Joshua 23:13)." Ouch! Ever get a thorn in your eye? Well, you know the rest of the story. Israel did not drive out all the nations. Either they thought it would be too hard in some cases, or in other cases they thought it would be better to have these peoples as their servants. In the end God's word proved to be true. These people did become a snare to Israel and they suffered the promised consequences.

This is an important reminder for Christians. We are walking (moving) with the Lord. As we walk we are to deal with sin in our life. Just as the Lord promised to fight for Israel and give them victory, He promises to help us deal with sin. But sometimes, just like Israel, we don't obey. We think some sins are just too powerful and we'll never be able to deal with them. Others we just like to keep around. They are servants to us. When we need to relax or unwind, we pull out these "little" sins and let them serve us. We need to be warned that if we tolerate sin in our lives it will jump up and bite us. They will be a thorn in our eye.

So as we move to California, we have to be diligent to do all the things we need to do, trusting the Lord that He is in control. Failure to follow through could lead to costly and unwelcomed consequences. So it is as we move (walk) with the Lord. Let us be encouraged to know that the Lord is our strength and we can "do all things through Him who strengthens" us (Philippians 4:13).

A Lot of Boxes

It has been a slow week in the blogging world. Bobby and Christa are away at Survival Camp. They have no internet access there. Billy is traveling all over California visiting friends and relatives waiting to move in to his new apartment. No internet access for him. Even Pyromaniac took a day off after doing jury duty. Only Ben has been faithfully blogging away. But Ben has been cranking it out too fast for people to comment. (Note to the uninitiated: at the bottom of each article it says "comments" as in "0 comments" or "4 comments." By clicking on the "comments" a screen will pop-up providing a place for you to leave a comment. It is quite exciting for a blogger to receive comments, so please feel free.)

Roberta and I have not been blogging because we have been busy with a little project. (Although Roberta has managed some late night, early morning entries lately). This project is called "moving." We are in the process of going through our house and either tossing away, giving away, or packing away all our stuff. The moving van will be here on Friday whether we are ready or not. I think it is better to be ready. We haven't moved in 10 1/2 years and so there is a lot of stuff to go through. We are hoping this is the last move we ever have to make.

Earlier this week, Ben and I packed up my office at the church. Except for a few files that got tossed and a whole bunch of tapes that I am bequething to Tyler, every thing in the office was carefully packed away. The contents of my office contain something very important to me. They are the books I have purchased over the years. We packed up 57 boxes in my office. 95% of those boxes contain nothing but books. These books are various in nature. Some are technical works on theology or language. Many are commentaries on books of the Bible. Others are books on Chrisitian living or biographies. All of these works are designed to either help me in my understanding of the Scripture, or in my living out of the truth, or in my teaching and preaching of the Word of God. I don't know how much all of these books cost, but their value is priceless. Why? Because the Word of God is more valuable than gold and precious jewels. Therefore the books that help me in my study of the truth of Scripture are so important.

I am thankful for God's Word. As I sit in my office and look at all the boxes, I give thanks to the Lord for the wonderful privilege I have of studying and teaching His revelation to us. As I gaze into the Bible I see my Savior and I am drawn closer to Him. I am thankful as well for the gifted men the Lord has given to the church who have written the books that have helped me and so many others. I hope in the future to obtain even more boxes of books as long as they assist me in the understanding of The Book. May God bless you as you read His powerful and priceless Word.