Category: God

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Praying Audaciously…Now What (February 2016 Newsletter)

Last month, I wrote about praying audaciously, looking at Jesus’ prayers from John 17.  It ended with a challenge to prayer big, tough, audacious prayers throughout the month of January.  If you want a refresher of that article, you can click here to read it again.  This month, I want to follow up on that article.  We’ve talked a lot this past month about prayer, and have even partnered together to pray over all aspects of Central Christian Church for 24-Hours straight.  Prayer is an important part of our relationship with Christ, but we can’t treat it like prayer is the only thing that we should be doing.  One of the things that I have noticed in my own life, and in the lives of those that I am close to, we are either really good at praying, but not following that up with action, or we don’t take time to pray, but we’re really good at jumping to action right away.  Neither of those are the best that we should be doing.

Take for example the prayers of Jesus in John 17(click here for a refresher).  Jesus prayed and prayed hard at that time.  He was hours away from going to the cross.  Actually, all four gospels record some version of His prayer that night(Matthew 26, Mark 14, and Luke 22).  He not only took time to pray for His disciples and for all of us that would eventually come to know and follow Him, He was praying that God’s will be done.  He didn’t want to go to the cross.  In fact, Luke’s account of His time in the garden praying says that Jesus was so stressed over what He knew was coming, He was literally sweating blood.  It would have been easy for Jesus to pray, and just think that was enough.  To walk away because He did what He thought was enough, and prayed about something that was bothering Him.  We do that a lot.  But He didn’t do that.

He prayed and then He went out and did what He had to do.  He didn’t just leave it at prayer.  He put the physical effort in and He went to the cross.  And we should all be so glad that He did.  That was God’s will, and Jesus put in the work to complete the task that God had given Him.  If He had just left it at prayer, and then walked away because He didn’t think He needed to do anything else, the sacrifice for our sins would not have been completed. 

Other scriptures speak to this, but the first one that comes to mind when I was thinking through this was James 2:14-26.  James is talking about faith vs. deeds, but I think it can easily be seen as prayer vs. work as well.  So in other words, what is prayer without putting some work in at the same time.  Don’t get me wrong, God wants us to pray, and He is more than capable of handling the situations that we pray about.  Sometimes, however, by allowing us to work at the things we are praying for, He uses that to help us grow in those areas and in our faith. 

In the article last month, I mentioned an author and preacher by the name of Mark Batterson, and his book The Circle Maker, all about praying big prayers.  One of my favorite Batterson quotes, and I can’t remember which of his books it’s int (probably in multiple), is this; “Pray like it depends on God, but work at it like it depends on you.”  That’s my challenge to you this month, and it will be a main focus of our teaching times over the next few weeks as well.  Put the time in praying, but don’t be afraid to put the work in either.  God doesn’t want us to just sit idly by after we’ve prayed.  He wants us to do the work as well.

So, think about that big prayer or prayers that you’ve been praying over the last month (if you haven’t been praying those big prayers yet, it’s not too late).  Keep praying those prayers.  Pray bolder prayers.  Then ask yourself, “What can I do to help bring about the results of the prayers that I have been praying?”  And then do it.  Figure out what needs to happen on your end, keep praying, and then do the work!  Let’s all get out there and put in the work to reach this community for Christ.

God, Life

Family

I am more convinced than ever that this life that we live is better lived in community, and that community being with fellow Christians.  We call our congregation here in NM a faith family, and that’s because we try to treat each other as family.  That means that we take care of each other.  Do we always get along?  No.  But what family does?

We are a family simply because of our relationship with Jesus.  We, as Christians, are Christ followers, and therefore we are brothers and sisters in Christ.  And because of that bond, we need to help take care of each other, in the good times and the bad.  But our faith family should be more than just the church that we choose to attend.  Our faith family, in all reality, should be anyone who follow Jesus.  Anyone who is a disciple is your brother or sister, and that means we should be trying to help take care of each other even more.

And the events of today that took place in TN around my mom have proven that this is how the Church or  Christ followers should interact with each other.  My mom lives alone, and when you get a phone call from one of her neighbors asking if she is ok, it’s a little unnerving.  But at the same time, that neighbor was helping to take care of and look out for my mom.  I’m 1,400 miles away, and had no idea that something was wrong, but a neighbor, and fellow Christian called because there was an ambulance in my mom’s driveway.

Turns out, my mom had gotten her feet tangled in a heater cord and fallen.  She landed on her left arm and snapped her humerus, but was able to get to her phone and call 911.  She was taken to the hospital and got the treatment that she needed, but the family aspect of being taken care of doesn’t end at my mom’s neighbor calling me.

Some how, a man from her church found out what was going on, and showed up at her house to check on her.  A lady from a Wednesday morning Bible study that she attends was there, along with my aunt making sure the dogs were taken care of and anything else that my mom needed taken care of.

As a minister, I understand the role of checking in on and praying for someone in the hospital.  Well, it turns out the staff of mom’s church is on a staff retreat this week, but the church has stepped in to take care of her.  One of the elder’s almost immediately called me to make sure I knew what was going on.  I don’t even know how he knew.  He told me to keep him updated when I found out what hospital she was being taken to.  I did, and then found out from my aunt that another elder and his wife showed up at the hospital almost at the same time that they arrived.  They stayed with them the whole time, and ended up taking mom home after she was discharged, so that my aunt could go home and pack a bag to stay with my mom.

There have been countless comments and prayers being offered through social media.  The same neighbor that called me initially has already offered to take mom supper at some point this week, and promised to help take care of her since we are so far away.  I tell you all of this to say the following:  That is what being a Christ follower is all about.  Taking care of each other.  We are family.  Yes, there are times we don’t agree, but our bond of being brothers and sisters in Christ should trump those disagreements.  We have other things that we are called to as being Christians, but one thing we have got to remember is that we’ve got each other’s backs; NO MATTER WHAT!  Seeing it in action over the last several hours, even from 1,400 miles away, gives me hope that we can all remember to treat each other with love and respect.  Not being able to be there for my own mom is hard, but knowing that she has a family bigger than just blood makes me so thankful that I get to be a part of this bond of brothers and sisters in Christ.

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Sick Of It

Today has been one of the hardest and most draining days that I’ve had since I’ve been in ministry.  I really didn’t have to do anything today either, except watch a family grieve as they said goodbye to a 21 year old kid that died way too young.  I didn’t have to speak at the funeral, but as I set there, watching family members weep uncontrollably at times, and watching this kid’s friends walk up to his casket, I’m just emotionally and spiritually drained.  This kid’s death could have been completely prevented.  It was an accidental overdose, so all of those involved are just heartbroken, thinking what could have been.  I think I met him once or twice in passing, so it’s not that I was emotionally tied to him.  But his aunt and uncle are core members at my church.  And their youngest daughter is the same age.  Watching all of them deal with his death breaks my heart, because there is nothing I can do to take away their pain.  Quite frankly, I’m sick of it!

But it’s not really what you think.  I’m not sick of ministry.  I’m not sick of trying to be there for people as they go through tragedy.  What I’m sick of is sitting back and not doing more to try to introduce people to Jesus that don’t know him.  The kid that died was not a professing Christian to my knowledge.  And now he’s gone.  My heart breaks for the family, but more than that, my heart breaks for his friends.  As I sat in that funeral home this morning, it was amazing to see the different crowds.  You had his family and friends of the family that all sat toward the front.  It was the type of crowd that you would typically see at a funeral.  But then behind the row I was sitting in, there was a crowd of his friends.  I try not to judge by appearances, but it was the type of crowd that you would expect to see at a wild party somewhere.  These are the people that my heart truly breaks for. 

A few of them, before the funeral started, and before the family was actually brought in to the chapel, came up to the casket one at a time.  They stood there looking at their friend with the same blank expression on their faces.  They didn’t understand what was going on.  And who could blame them.  When you’re 21 years old, you think you’re invincible.  All I could think while watching them then, and as they were filing out of the funeral home after the service was I hope and pray that seeing your friend lose his life this young will be a wake-up call.  But not just a wake-up call to get clean and live life sober.  I pray that they see this as a wake-up call that life with a relationship with Jesus is so much better than any other kind of life.

It’s been a wake-up call for me, that’s for sure.  I’m sick of not doing as much as I can to impact the community around me for Jesus.  This world is lost, and seems to be getter further and further from the truth at a rapid pace.  And there is only one thing that can fix that.  Jesus.  He’s the answer.  Addiction takes hold in many forms, and it’s usually an attempt to fill a void in our life.  But there is only one thing that can actually fill that void.  John 10:10 reads, “10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Those of us that have found Jesus and have a relationship with Him have got to stop keeping Him to ourselves.  This world depends on it.  This world desperately needs Jesus, and we are called to help make the introduction.  I wrote a couple of weeks ago about being unashamed of the gospel (read that here).  In other words, we need to live out our faith, and we need to be sharing it with those that we are able to build relationships with.  If watching this family mourn the loss of a 21 year old kid has taught me one thing, it’s that the stakes are even higher than we could imagine.  We’ve got to start sharing Christ with those that don’t know Him, because you never know how much time someone has.

Romans 1:16, 17 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Let’s Get Excited

School started back here today in Carlsbad.  I know for some of my friends and family in other parts of the country, your schools have already started back, while some are still a week away from starting as well.  And don’t forget, colleges are about to get back into session as well.  We are already in August of 2015.  This year is flying by, yet there seems to be some big excitement this time of year, every year.  Schools are starting back.  Some may be excited about that, while others are not so much.

Another source of a lot of the excitement surrounding this time of year is that football is about to start.  Preseason NFL games are taking place, and we are less than a month away from high school and college football being back.  In fact, we have less than four weeks before Carlsbad has their first home football game of the season.  I’m a big University of Tennessee football fan, and they are about three weeks away from their first game.  I love this time of year.  But it’s not just because of football.  It’s not just because of school starting back.  It’s also because it seems to be a new beginning for churches as well.

For many, we trim down our programming and calendar for the summer months.  This could be because of many different things.  People are traveling on vacation a lot during the summer, volunteers need a break, attendance drops whether you are having your full programming, and many other factors seem present, along with the fact that many churches follow the schedule of the school systems.  So now, most churches are gearing up for their fall kickoffs if you will.  And you’ve got a lot of excitement in the air.

Most of that excitement, however, seems to be about school, or football, or anything else other than church at times.  I’ve been one of those people.  I love football and the anticipation of it starting back is always an exciting time of the year.  But this year is different for me.  Yes, I’m still very much excited about football and fall and everything else.  Even more than that, this year, I am super excited about what we are going to be offering in the fall at Central Christian Church.  Our whole church will be going through The Story through small groups, adult worship, and our children’s church program.  I’m excited because we have almost 30 people that have committed to being in a small group, which is over 75% of our regular attendance.  I’m excited because I know what The Story can do.  I’m excited because my leadership team here at the church seems to be excited as well.  But most of all, I’m excited because we get to talk about how our story intersects with God’s story.

I want our whole congregation to be excited about this, though.  I want us all to participate and to dig into God’s word together heavily over the next few months.  It’s my prayer that we can all channel this excitement of a new school year and a new football season into excitement about a new endeavor here at church as well.  If you are in Carlsbad, NM, especially if you are a part of Central Christian Church, and you have not signed up to be a part of a small group yet, please consider it.  I promise you it will be worth it.  If you have signed up, join me in the excitement of this new opportunity.  Let’s take our excitement out into our community, and let’s do exactly what we talked about doing this past Sunday; We Speak Good News!

It’s great to be excited about things.  But let’s all get excited about the best thing.  The good news of Jesus, and sharing that with all that we come into contact with!  I’m excited about what’s to come at Central…Are you?

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Just Stop It (July Newsletter) 

God has been teaching me a lot recently. There is a common theme, however, that just keeps coming up over and over again. It’s something that I have always known in my head, but it’s something that for whatever reason I’ve had a hard time truly implementing in my life. I don’t know, maybe I have just kind of gone through the motions of my walk with Christ for so long, that I just couldn’t get to the point that Jesus has been calling me to over and over the last few weeks. And finally it broke me while Kelley and I were attending Jr. High Camp a few weeks ago. It took getting away from the normal, day-to-day activities, and easy access to technology (although I did have cell and internet service at camp) for me to finally hear and understand Jesus in a real and impactful way. What was He saying? Well that’s what I want to say to you today, as you read this article as well.
It’s not enough to just go through the motions anymore. Just stop it. Let Jesus become real in your life, or quit pretending that He is. In other words, let’s realize that awe that we are supposed to have of a God that gave it all for us, even while we were still sinners. If we aren’t able to be in awe of God because of His love for us, do we really understand what He did for us by going to the cross and dying for our sins? Romans 5:6-8 puts it this way;
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 
If that doesn’t make you realize how awesome our God is then I don’t know what will. Again, it took getting away from the normal routine of life for it to become real to me this time. And I hope I remember to step away from the normal on a somewhat regular basis to reclaim that awe of God again and again. There is a lot of junk and muck that gets in the way through day-to-day living. We are all called to ministry in one way or another, and let me be the first to warn you; Ministry is messy. Being in ministry, whether paid ministry or volunteer ministry, can easily be described as being in the trenches. And being in the trenches is a very messy thing. Because in the trenches of ministry, we have to deal with our humanness and the humanness of those around us. It can bog us down, and we can become jaded. Through that jadedness, we can easily lose sight of the awesomeness of our God. But in that muck, in that messiness that we live in, God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  
So take a step back, stop going through the motions, and find that awe of God again. Do whatever it is that makes you realize His awesomeness over and over again. While you’re reading this, Kelley and I are on vacation, and part of that vacation for us is taking a step back and making sure we are still in awe of the One that gave it all on the cross for us. Psalm 46:10 tells us that God said this about Himself; “Be still, and know that I am God…” That’s a call to be in awe of Him, and He tells us how to do it. Be still. Take a step back. Be in awe of the One who created it all and the One who gave it all because He loves us. Our God is and AWESOME GOD! It’s time we start living like it. God Bless 

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

The Joy of Easter

*This is the devotion I wrote for our Easter Sunrise Service, April 5, 2015*

I’ve been looking forward to today more than I have ever looked forward to an Easter, at least that I can remember.  Last year may have been close, because Kelley and I were volunteers at our church in TN.  They were doing three services for the first time ever, with the thought they could break 1,000 in attendance for the first time.  There was a lot of excitement leading up to this, and the 1,000 in attendance mark was broken.  But this is my first Easter being here with you all.  And it’s my first Easter getting to preach.  Kelley and I love this congregation so much, so it is an honor to get to share this Easter celebration with you this morning.

As I said, this Easter is one that I have been excited about, longing for, and anticipating for a while.  I’ve had today circled on my calendar since about the time we moved here, but this current sermon series we will be concluding in our regular service later today, I have been gathering ideas for for around three years.  But I have a confession to make today as well.  Over the last couple of weeks, that excitement seemed to not be there completely.  At first, I tried to rationalize it.  “It’s just the stress of this time of year”, or “it’s hard to stay that excited about something for so long”, or “I’m just really tired”.  Those were all things I just kept telling myself when I would realize that we were only a few weeks from today, but I just wasn’t feeling the excitement that I knew should be there.

And I really thought that’s all it was.  But this past Monday night/Tuesday morning, when I couldn’t sleep for whatever reason, it finally dawned on me.  I had been lying to myself.  I had lost some of the excitement because I had lost my focus, which is something I do all to often anyway.  I let some things that maybe aren’t perfect in my life make me start worrying about a lot of different things.  In other words, I had let Satan steal my focus.  I was more concerned about things going on around me, that I may or may not have any control over, instead of remaining “Crosseyed” like Hebrews 12 tells us to.

When this all dawned on me, it made me start thinking, which led to even more of a sleepless night, but I was able to work through a bunch of stuff.  It all started making sense, and I don’t think it is just something that I am going through.  When things are good, and we are excited about things and where they are going, it’s easy to lose that focus.  And as we approached this Easter season, Satan used that lack of focus in my life to cause some great havoc. 

When this realization hit, all I had to do was refocus, and you know what, my excitement for Easter returned.  Think about it this way.  In a lot of the same ways, the disciples experienced this almost 2,000 years ago didn’t they?  They were in Jerusalem for the Passover, one of the greatest celebrations for the Jewish people.  Yet they watched their Rabbi be betrayed by one of their own.  They watched Him beaten and crucified.  They watched Him laid in a borrowed tomb.

Their world fell apart when they were supposed to be a part of a huge celebration.  One of my favorite professors from school, when talking about the anguish of watching Jesus go to the cross, would always describe it this way.  He would say, “It’s Friday…But Sunday’s coming!”  In other words, the world around you may be falling apart, but the greatest news in the history of the world is just around the corner.  Jesus not only was crucified and laid in a borrowed tomb, three days later HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD!

That’s all we need to know about why this is an exciting day.  Timothy Keller, a well know minister, wrote this earlier this week on his Facebook page;

If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what he said?  The issue on which everything hangs is not whether or not you like his teaching but whether or not he rose from the dead.

In John 11, right before Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, He claims;

I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?

It comes down to this, and this alone this morning.  Do you want the excitement of the resurrection, or do you want to let Satan steal your joy?  Just the chapter before, Jesus tells us in John 10:10;

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Let me ask you this morning, as we wrap up, just one question.  John 10:10 again tells us;

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

And John 11:25-26 tells us;

I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?

DO YOU BELIEVE THIS?

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Lukewarm?

A few weeks ago, I was flipping through the pages of Crazy Love by Francis Chan, looking for a quote that I was wanting to use in an upcoming sermon.  This book is a favorite of mine, but I have to admit, it’s been about five years since I’ve set down and read it in its entirety.  As I was flipping through the pages, I eventually found the quote I was looking for, but I came across another that struck me hard.  I posted this quote on my Facebook page and said that I would write more about it at a later time.  Well, it’s about a month later, but this quote is what I want to talk about in my newsletter article this month.  So, let’s start with the quote.  Francis Chan states;

“Lukewarm people feel secure because they attend church, made a profession of faith at age twelve, were baptized, come from a Christian family, vote Republican, or live in America. Just as the prophets of the Old Testament warned Israel that they were not safe just because they lived in the land of Israel, so we are not safe just because we wear the label “Christian” or because some people persist in calling us a “Christian” nation.”

Before I go any further, this is not intended to be a political debate.  Honestly, I think that our relationship with Christ is far more important than any political holdings we could ever have.  So, for the purposes of this article, I don’t care what voting tendencies you have.  What I am concerned about is the growing statements by religious people around this country wanting the USA to become a “Christian” nation once again.  I grew up thinking that we were a Christian nation, and that my Christianity and my patriotism was the same thing.  Don’t get me wrong, I still love this country and am very patriotic, but I have come to realize that, if I let it, that can become my religion instead of actually following Christ.

What am I trying to get at?  It doesn’t really matter if the USA is a “Christian” nation.  Just like it didn’t really matter that the Jews lived in the land of Israel.  It matters what we do and what’s in our hearts.  We aren’t safe just because we say we believe in God.  James warns that even the demons believe that there is one God, and they shudder. (James 2:19)

To borrow from our current sermon series, we need to WAKE UP and fall deeply, truly in love with God.  We can’t go on being lukewarm in what we believe.  And that is exactly what we are doing when we claim we want America to be a “Christian” nation again, because we think that makes us safe.  We need to take personal responsibility for our relationship with Christ.  Jesus warns what will happen if we stay lukewarm in our faith for too long.  In Revelation 3, to the church in Laodicea, Christ warns about their lukewarmness.  I’ll let you look up the whole section, for sake of space, Revelation 3:14-22.  But just for reference, here is Revelation 3:15-16, which states;  “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot.  I wish you were either one or the other!  So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

Do I want America to come back to God?  YES!  But more importantly, I want to see as many individuals come to God on fire, not lukewarm.  That is my desire above anything else, finding truly, completely, on fire lovers of God that can sweep across this nation, bringing others the good news of Christ!  That’s the cry of my heart this Easter, and it starts with us, individually deciding what type of relationship we want with Christ.  “Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you.” (Ephesians 5:14)  God Bless.

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

No Surprise (March 2015 Newsletter Article)

There is a lot of evil in the world today.  We were reminded during our time of communion the other day of the evil that existed during WWII with the Holocaust, and in a lot of ways, it seems like history is starting to repeat itself.  We are hearing on almost a daily basis about Christians being kidnapped, beheaded, burned alive, or many other horrific things at the hands of ISIS and other groups.  It seems like there is just more and more persecution happening around the world, and some of it seems to be starting here in the US as well.  We should definitely be praying for all of our brothers and sisters in Christ for strength to hold to our faith. 

But what is bothering me more than anything about all of this situation is the fact that most Christians, at least ones that are being vocal about what is going on, seem surprised that it is happening.  They seem to not understand why this persecution is happening and they can’t understand that “in this day and age” why this type of evil still exists.  I understand this, in the sense that we, as Christians, are called to love everyone.  So in our view, we should be able to get along.  “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:17-21 NIV)

The problem is, we think this applies to everyone, but not everyone knows Christ.  That’s why we are surprised when this evil still exists in the world.  But it shouldn’t surprise us at all.  Jesus, in fact, told us that we would face persecution because of our faith and relationship with Him.  If we believe His word, then why are we surprised that persecution is still happening.  Jesus said, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.” (John 15:18-21 NIV).

Pray for our brothers and sisters around the globe that are being persecuted.  Pray for strength to stand firm in the face of evil.  But don’t be caught off guard that this is still happening.  Jesus told us it would, because the world hated Him first.  We also have to remember that as far as it depends on us, live at peace as well. 

God Bless,

Kraig

Christian Living, God

Let’s Get Serious About The Presence of God (February Newsletter)

It is no secret, whatsoever, that I plan to focus on Spiritual maturity and depth over the coming year, for myself, and for our faith family.  That’s what our current series of “Not a Fan” is all about.  Becoming a truly committed follower of Jesus, and then growing in Him.  So, we started off the year with a series designed to start the conversation of what a true follower looks like.  There are still two more sermons in this series, but where do we go from there?  What is the next step after we decide to become a completely committed follower of Jesus?  As I have stated, it’s not just a one time decision.  It takes making the decision daily to pick up our cross and follow Jesus.  And there are going to be days where we fail, but we have to try and make that a daily decision.

So, what’s next?  Starting February 15, we are going into a four part series on Spiritual disciplines.  I know that at first glance, that may not sound exciting, especially since it has the word discipline in it.  I get it, but have you ever put any thought into what Spiritual disciplines actually are?  If you want a little head start with where we are going, we are going to be using Richard J. Foster’s Celebration of Discipline as our jumping off point for this study.  Foster breaks the disciplines down into three categories, so we will be tackling our series this way.  The first week will be a general study of what Spiritual disciplines are, and why they are important.  And then we will take Fosters three categories, one each week. 

This will be a very generally study, as we could spend a couple of months or more on them if we took each individual discipline by themselves.  Foster’s three categories are “The Inward Disciplines (Meditation, Prayer, Fasting, Study)”, “The Outward Disciplines (Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, Service)”, and “The Corporate Disciplines (Confession, Worship, Guidance, Celebration)”.  In his introductory chapter to the disciplines, Foster states;

Superficiality is the curse of our age.  The doctrine of instant satisfaction is a primary spiritual problem.  The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people…Joy is the keynote of all the Disciplines.  The purpose of the Disciplines is liberation from the stifling slavery to self-interest and fear.

Kit Dotson, a friend from Tennessee says this about the importance of Spiritual disciplines;

The importance and beauty of spiritual disciplines is that in practicing them, we are intentionally aware of the presence of God.  They do not bring us into the presence of God because He is constantly present.  To often though, we find ourselves going hours, days, or weeks with no awareness or thought of the creator of the universe who loved us and sent His Son to die for us.  When we are forgetful, we tend to wander.  When we are aware of the amazing presence of God, we have the hope that we will be transformed.  Spiritual disciplines are intentional opportunities for us to live in full awareness of God and be changed to look more like His Son.

I hope that this short introduction to Spiritual disciplines helps you get interested to learn more.  Foster’s book, The Celebration of Discipline is one of many books if it’s something you would be interested in learning more about the subject.

          Because of Him, Kraig B.

Christian Living, God, Life, Ministry

Bible in 90 Days Reflections (Day 26)

11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for theLord is about to pass by.”   Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.  Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (I Kings 19:11-13 NIV).

As I was reading through our reading plan today, this is the passage that stuck out the most to me.  It seems to be very relevant to us today.  With all the technology and busyness that we have in every part of our lives, it’s no wonder that we sometimes have a very hard time seeing or hearing from God.  And it makes even more sense, thinking through this passage, that those that don’t know or believe in God have an even harder time.  Christians tend to get asked very regularly, “How can you believe in God with all the evil in the world”.  I think this leads often to the question, “How can you know God is real, because I’ve never seen or heard Him.”

This passage from Elijah’s life sheds some light on this for us.  If Elijah, who was a prophet of God, someone who regularly heard from God, was not able to hear Him in the strong wind, earthquake, and a raging fire, I think that shows us that it’s going to be hard for us to hear Him as well, unless we are able to really listen, and find His voice in the stillness and quiet.  That’s why so many have a hard time finding God.  They don’t quiet themselves down, slow down, and truly listen.  They think we can just keep doing what we are doing and that God will speak louder and louder until we hear Him.  That happens sometimes, but more often than not, it is only when we quieten our lives, minds, hearts, and truly seek Him that we find Him in the gentle whisper in our lives.

I’m not sure how our community of Carlsbad will react, but I have a feeling that many will be asking some of the questions above with the loss of a 9 yr. old boy from our community to a tragic accident.  I couldn’t help but think of this family as I read and prayed today.  My prayer is that God’s comfort will find this family.  That in the midst of their pain and loss, that they are able to seek out God.  Our God is a God who’s peace surpasses all understanding, and that is what I truly pray for this family.  May we all find ways to quieten our own lives, step away from the busyness, and seek God’s voice in the stillness.

God Bless,

Kraig