Sunday Morning Call

It wasn't too long ago that I received a message from my friend Joseph Ransom asking for a letter of recommendation to include with his resume that was being submitted to a church in view of a Pastoral call. What a privilege it was to tell somebody of the high regard that I hold for this man's integrity, character and theological background. Today, Joseph is pastor at the small country church in Shady Grove MO.

Recently, he has been plagued with some health issues that have caused a great deal of pain and discomfort. Knowing that conditions can be day-to-day, I offered to be available for a last minute call to fill in for him if needed. This morning, about 6am, I received that call.

I'll be at Hopedale for Sunday School. I have already agreed to visit with our youth class for a little Q&A time--just a chance for them to ask about some of the things in the Bible that they don't understand or are not sure of what it means for us. Then I'll head on down the road to Shady Grove which is only a short distance away.

Please keep my friend Pastor Joseph and his wife Kaye in your prayers...and as long as you have the ear of God, offer a short prayer for me, too. An old friend of mine used to say, "You should pray for me. I need the prayers...and you need the practice!"

Have a great Sunday.

By the way, God loves you. Jesus died for you.

John

Wasted Days and Wasted Nights

Several days ago, I was having a conversation with somebody that posed the question, "How would our world be different if only news and educational shows were aired on television?"

What?! No Idol? No Lost? No Dancing? No BASEBALL? (of course, Cardinal baseball could be considered educational for Cub or Royals fans!)

Think about it. If we didn't watch stories about other people living make-believe lives and were actually living life ourselves, how would we be different? Would we converse (actually talk) with family members more. Would we be in better health because we spend more time doing things rather than parked on our butts eating snacks and watching others do things? Would we become more intellectual and better informed about the cultures that we share the planet with if we only watched educational shows or news programs instead of the garbage that we currently fill our heads with?

Would we spend less money on the worthless junk that is constantly paraded across our screens in the way of advertisements? Would we eat less junk food? Buy fewer diet programs? Would we do without the latest can't live without it item (that we've been doing well without) that will end up in next year's garage sale?

What would we do with all of the time that we spend vegetating in front of our television sets letting somebody else do and think and live for us?

To be fair--the set has an on/off switch and a channel selector. But we are a weak people. We are easily swayed by the promotional genius of the broadcast world and slowly enticed to relax in the comfort of the sofa and slip into the false reality that we dream of living in.

Overall, we don't watch too much TV in our home. It is a rare occasion that more than one set is on at a time and we don't have the same taste in programming. Most of the time (like now) the TV is off. Even so, when it is on, it is usually a waste of precious time. So think about this--the next time you sit down to watch your favorite reality show, sit-com, or serial; what could you (or should you) be doing that would be more beneficial to you or somebody you care about? Would the time be better spent playing catch with your kids, calling a friend or family member, finishing a project that you've been putting off, reading a Good Book (hint, hint, wink), or just talking to each other in a conversation that lasts longer than the time allocated for commercials?

Well it appears that the rain has stopped (for the moment) on this Saturday morning and I have horses to tend to and a life to live. I hope that tomorrow (Sunday) will find you worshiping God with fellow believers somewhere. If you don't have a church home and live in the Ozark area, I invite you to join us at Hopedale.

I hope that every day finds you worshiping God.

John

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Romans 12:1

Re-evaluating the Call

It's weird how things come together--somebody recommends a book, somebody else makes a comment, another person starts to look at their calling and ministry--and before you know it, I'm looking at my own ministry calling.

Here are some of the odds and ends that are a part of my mental/spiritual struggle:

I am definitely called into some type of vocational ministry that includes preaching, teaching, and encouragement.

I have always felt (and still do) this to be the calling of an evangelist.

I have never felt like God has called or equipped me for pastoral ministry.

Overall, I'm pretty frustrated by the way we (Christians in general, Baptist in particular) do church.

Even though I have never felt called to pastoral ministry, I feel that we should be as busy planting churches as growing them and sense a call to church planting.

Another frustration--in Southern Baptist life, church planters become church pastors.

So here's my question--Is God calling me to be a non-traditional pastor of a new work that tries to keep people out of the pitfalls of organized religion--you know, the kind of church that doesn't "do church"; that isn't "religious; that doesn't fall into the model of committees on committees and program after program; but rather studies, teaches, and lives out the teachings of Jesus our Lord and Savior?

Simple church must not be that simple because I don't know of any churches that are doing that. As a matter of fact, there is a book called Simple Church. I have it...and I've seen it in every pastor's study or church library that I've been in over the last year. Those that have made comments about it all say that it is a good book, right on the mark...but nobody is doing things that simply. The only thing that I can come up with is that church isn't that simple.

It may be that our focus is all wrong. Maybe while we're trying to figure out how to do church, we're forgetting the part about a God that loves us and a God that commands us to love one another. Maybe we've decided that making disciples is for the vocationally called and the rest of us can plan the next program for our kids/youth/men's group/ladies' group/etc. The Missouri Southern Baptist Convention even has a Committee on Committees! No kidding! I was on it this past year.

I know that there is a business side of church that must be tended to, but it seems to get the most attention--as if that's why we're here. Unfortunately, I don't know the answers to solving this problem. I don't know if it's even a problem for anybody else. Maybe it's just me that is frustrated by living a mediocre (at best) Christian life. Or maybe it's just me that is frustrated that we (as a church) seem content to be turning out mediocre Christians and part time disciples.

I think that I need to be doing more. I think that we all need to be doing more. And I'm not talking about supporting a political party or candidate. I'm not talking about a social agenda. I'm not talking about anything other than learning and living according to the teachings of Jesus.

So...what next? Good question. I guess it's time to figure this calling thing out...again.

Maybe you're in a similar place and need to examine (or re-examine) your calling and place in the Kingdom. Let me know about it.

John

A Beautiful Saturday

Wow! What a beautiful day in the Ozarks--sunny, warm, simply beautiful.

I was up at 6 this morning to enjoy a cup of coffee before getting everything together for a magic show at Eastside Baptist Church in Mountain Home, Arkansas. The last time that I was there for their Easter egg hunt the temperature was at the freezing mark. Today was shorts, t-shirts and flip flop weather! Aside from the beautiful weather, Eastside went all out today. They sent out thousands of mailers and had hundreds of kids show up with their moms and dads!

After some guy started the day with a magic show and a brief explanation of why Christians celebrate Easter, hundreds of kids went in search of thousands of eggs that had been scattered outside. Then there were inflatable games to play on, bunnies and chicks to be petted, pictures with bunny rabbits, and hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and lemonade to be enjoyed!

And I had a beautiful day to make the 2hr 10 min drive home. Driving home after a good event is always enjoyable. Daytime or nighttime, sunny or raining--it really doesn't matter after a fun event where I get to share the Gospel. But today was great--windows down, a phone conversation with my mom and then pre-season baseball on the radio.

God is great. Life is good!

Here's a cool magician. If you speak Japanese, you can interpret for the rest of us. Fortunately, you don't have to speak the language to enjoy the effect.

John

Good Friday

I think that it's odd that we would refer to the day of the Crucifixion as Good Friday. I mean, I know that the Crucifixion of Jesus was a necessary part of the plan of salvation (Jesus had to die in our place), but still, it seems like it is a very bad day.

It's interesting that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified and the one that was released by Pilate was also called Jesus--Jesus Barabbas. Barabbas literally translates as the son of the father, bar abbas. So Jesus, the Son of God is crucified in the place of Jesus, the son of the father. Jesus Barabbas was a murderer and an insurrectionist. Jesus, the Son of God was innocent. The Bible says that He, who knew no sin, became sin for us. He died in our place. Like Jesus Barabbas, we are the ones that are guilty before The Law. We are the ones that have fallen short of the perfection of God. We are the ones that are worthy of death. But the God that created us is a God that loves us and is unwilling for us to be eternally separated from Him because of our sin. The Bible says that God demonstrates His love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

I don't think that I can look at the events of this day from long ago and call it a good day. Even though it was a day that I needed to take place, it was a day that showcased the arrogance and self-centered will of man. It is a day that reminds me of the weakness and the evil that is in our hearts. It is a day that reminds me that we are so unworthy of the love that God has for us. It is a day that reminds me of the death that I deserve and of the mercy and grace that God bestows on a sinner such as me.

Good Friday. It is a day for me to reflect on just how great God's love is.

Jesus died so that we might have eternal life. In His death is the pardon for our sin. It is the payment for the wrong that we have done. You can know that you have an eternal home in heaven by believing that Jesus died for your sins--that He took your place; your punishment; your penalty. It is God's gift to you.

John

Easter Cookies (from last year)

In Like a Lion...

...Out like a lamb.

Or maybe it's the other way around...at least as far as my March blogging goes. Since Mike is taking a short break from blogging, I thought maybe I would take a break from...taking a break.

Part of the silence has been that I've stayed out of the whole healthcare reform debate. For one thing, it's really been about health insurance reform--not healthcare reform. Shifting the who pays doesn't really address the problem of affordable health care, only the problem of affordable insurance. For another thing, as inexplicable as it seems, there are people that don't feel that everybody deserves decent health care. This makes the whole issue very polarizing and I'm trying not to be antagonistic toward a large portion of the population.

Don't get the idea that I'm afraid of a little controversy, it's just that I see a greater purpose for this blog than to get on my political rants and tick off a bunch of people that I would like to continue reading when I'm on more meaningful topics.

From the personal file: Aaron is engaged! He and Jenny will be getting married in August. As an added bonus, they have asked me to officiate the ceremony!

I've only done two previous weddings (both couples are still married) and I am thrilled to get to do this one. I'm certain that they will be very busy between now and then with school, summer work, wedding plans, new housing arrangements, etc. More on that as August 7th draws nearer.

From the ministry file: spring and summer are shaping up. I haven't kept up on the "coming events" section but have a few upcoming events, none the less. Church at Hopedale continues to grow with new families joining the church and new believers coming to know Jesus as Lord and Savior. If you follow along on Facebook, you already know that our choir is awesome and always does a fantastic job with leading the congregation in worship. This past Sunday was a great time of musical worship!
The evening service was a concert by singer/songwriter Chuck Day. He is best known for the song Midnight Cry. Overall, the cowboy/country style is not really my kind of music (love Midnight Cry, just not the other stuff) and I could have done without the whole God and Country rant about government, politics, blah, blah, blah. Again, don't get me wrong about this--I love my country. But I don't worship my country. And I go to church to worship my God--and only my God. There seemed to be a bit of idolatry going on as the people forgot what we were there for and got wrapped up in the moment of patriotic praise.

I do have a couple of posts that are still just in the "I need to blog about this" stage of the thought process. I'll be getting on those soon.

So bring on april and let the blogging at Out of My Hat resume!

John

The Most Eligible Bachelor

Well it would appear that the most recent season of "The Bachelor" has come to an end. I don't know if I should be happy about the year's bachelor's choice or not...I didn't watch a single episode. As a matter of fact, I was very surprised at some of the reactions posted by some people and surprised by some of the people that were actually watching the show!

Maybe I don't understand the idea behind the show. It appears to be a bunch of beautiful women competing for the affections of a well-to-do, handsome bachelor in the hopes of being the ONE that he chooses to pursue a relationship with. On the TV they are called contestants. In real life we have other names for people that seek out relationships based on material things, beauty, sex, power or influence. They are not flattering names.

Most of us would hope that our sons and daughters would seek out relationships based on more personal qualities; maybe even relationships that are built on love...on loving and on being loved. While money, means and muscles are certainly an attraction, they will seldom stand the test of time and usually fail to bring real comfort in times of personal distress. How many of us are encouraging our kids to seek out mates based solely on what they can provide for them--a big house, exclusive neighborhood, fancy car, fine jewelry, etc., etc.

Certainly this kind of thing happens often enough, but rarely are these long-lasting, happy marriages.

I bring this up because it occurs to me that this is the "pitch" we evangelicals have been using for decades to peddle our "God" to a lost world:

"If you want a nice home in an exclusive celestial neighborhood (heaven), you're going to need to know Jesus. I can fix you up--kind of a blind date except that He already know all about you."

Or how about this:

(cue the music) da da dat dat da da da...
Announcer: "Welcome to the Celestial Dating Game.
"Tonight's Bachelor number one is...Mohammad ibn Abdullah! Mohammad is a 6th Century Prophet born in Mecca. Followers around the world seek out infidels to persecute and prosecute and are hopeful of receiving a plethora of virgins upon their death for the cause.

"Bachelor number two is Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus was born around the time the calendars were revised (somewhere around 0!) and claims to be the Son of God...and He has the miracles to prove it! His followers believe that the reward of heaven is exclusively for those that profess Jesus as Savior.

Bachelor number 3 is Siddhartha Gautama (also known as Buddha). Buddha's birth predates Jesus by about 500 years. Buddha is "the Enlightened One" and teaches a life free from self indulgence. His followers seek out the supreme state of nirvana."

**************

Too often our presentation of Jesus sounds like our God is competing against the other gods or religions of the world for some kind of prize.

Our God isn't competing for a prize.

Why is it that "love" seems to be absent from our story of God. Even when we mention "love"--we talk about God's love for us. Our need to love Him seems to be absent in our relationship. It's as if we only want to be the bride for the big house and powerful influence. We throw back our shoulders, puff out our chest and proudly proclaim that we are Christians--like a little name dropping is going to get us into heaven. We don't follow His teachings (but quickly point out how nobody else is either) and we say that we love Him but we seldom show it--not to Him or to others that may be watching us (or maybe only when others are watching us).

I believe that God truly loves His creation (that's us) and that He truly desires for us to love Him.
I believe that He has gone to great extremes to insure that we might spend eternity together.
I believe that His grace is the only thing that allows us into His Holy Presence.
I believe that we must know Him through His Son, Jesus.
And I believe that to know Jesus is to love Him.

I want for you to know my Jesus.
I want for you to love my Jesus.
I want for Him to be your Jesus, too.

John

Not That Old

This is from an e-mail that was sent by a friend (I think). I'm nothing like the guy in the story. I don't go to Taco Bell. I don't own a truck. And I will take any kind of discount that's offered. That said, enjoy the story--maybe you know somebody that can relate to it:

$5.37. That's what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell said to me.

I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Elmo hairdo said the harshest thing anyone has ever said to me.

He said, "It's OK. I'll just give you the senior citizen discount."

I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. "Only $4.68" he said cheerfully.

I stood there stupefied. I am 48, not even 50 yet? A mere child! Senior citizen?

I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Elmo. Was he blind? As I sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me?

I'll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile.

Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted!

What am I now?

A toddler?

"Dude! Can't get too far without your car keys, eh?"

I stared with utter disdain at the keys.

I began to rationalize in my mind.

"Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly!

It could happen to anyone!"

I turned and headed back to the truck.

I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn't turn.

What now?

I checked my keys and tried another.

Still nothing.

That's when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rearview mirror.

I had no purple beads hanging from my rearview mirror.

Then, a few other objects came into focus. The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread all over the floorboard. A partially eaten doughnut on the dashboard.

Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle.

Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found.

I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time.

There Elmo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, "What is the world coming to?" All I could say was, "Did I leave my food and drink in here?" At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits.

Elmo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, "I think you left this in my truck by mistake."

I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized.

She offered these kind words: "It's OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time."

All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40. Yes, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius. And no, I told the officer, I'm not too old to be driving this fast.

As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blankey.

The good news was I had successfully found my way home.

*************

The larger print is for you old guys!

John <><

Notes from Dad

Maybe it was the monthly meeting of the Ozarks Chapter of the American Christian Writers. Maybe it is that I'm bored and don't have anything else that I feel like doing right now. Maybe it's that there are a bunch of thoughts floating around in my head and the only way to make them go away is to finally write them down. Whatever the case, here I am finally blogging after almost two weeks of ... nothing.

So that this doesn't come out as a completely random ramble, I'll post a couple of related stories and how they have come together in own little mind.

I'll start with a conversation that I had with a friend about his young son that had "a melt-down" when at a sports practice. My friend didn't have much luck in getting the boy to open up about what was going on or what cause the unacceptable behavior, and the normal taking away of privileges wasn't working. I shared one of the things that I remember from my own experience as a father of a young boy.

I don't remember the events that brought about the conversation (or lack of conversation) between me and Aaron or just how old he was at the time. What I do remember is that he told me that I was hard to talk to because sometimes I'm so fixed on what I want to say that I don't listen to him and that I just get mad when he wants to talk. Wow! My son was afraid to talk to me because I wouldn't hear what he had to say and I would just get mad. I still think of that from time to time and it has made me slow down when listening to others. I think that I've become a better listener over the years but I still struggle with it--after all, I still have a teen-aged daughter at home.

Right after that, I had a conversation with another dad. He is recently divorced and has a much younger son that occasionally wants to talk about things that my friend still finds painful to talk about. The little guy doesn't really understand why his dad doesn't want to talk about these things but knows that it upsets his dad and he doesn't want to do that. I suggested that it might be a good time to let his son know that from now on, no subject would be off limits. That, no matter what, he could always talk to his dad about anything that he wanted to talk about. The time will come when dad is going to wish that his son will want to talk about some things that may be upsetting.

I didn't want either one of my friends to fall into that same situation of having sons that are afraid to talk to their dads.

All of this has spilled over into my relationship with God. I'm starting to think that referring to God as "our Father" may not be a good thing--at least, not for me. The problem comes when we start to confine God to the image of a father. Too often, we see God as a parent that will get mad. Too often, we think that we can avoid talking to God about things because He won't understand, He won't really listen and He'll just get mad.

I know that Jesus called him Father, but Jesus had a good reason. I know that the God that I believe in is a Being that desires to have a personal relationship with us. A father/child relationship works--for the most part. Where it fails to work for me is that I forget that God isn't my dad. He is my GOD. I am realizing that I've managed to shrink my God to a size small enough to fit into the imaginations of my small, finite mind. And He is so much more than that!

Although we may want to avoid a confrontation with this all-knowing God, it's not like He doesn't already know about that thing that's causing us to avoid Him. Although we may have to suffer the consequences of our disobedience, His mercy and grace is still there for us. Although we may think that we are a huge disappointment to Him, we are His handiwork; created for a purpose.

I don't want any of you to get the idea that I have a poor relationship with my dad. That's not true. But even the very best dad is a poor comparison to God. While referring to God as Father may bring us into a close relationship with Him, it also has a way of diminishing His Greatness and Glory. It is that Great God that I am desiring to know. It is that Great God that mankind should come before with fear and trembling. It is that Great God that I want ... to love, and to be loved by. I want to demonstrate my love for Him by following the teaching of His Son. I want to be obedient. I want to honor His greatness by fulfilling His plan and purpose in creating me.

When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?

Psalm 8:3-4

John <><

Encouraged by Family and Friends

So I haven't written much lately and the last couple of posts have been kind of downers. So I wanted to write something that is more uplifting and encouraging today. Let's begin with last weekend:

Last Friday and Saturday was spent in the northern part of Missouri, just south of St. Joseph. I was at a place called God's Mountain Camp with about 50 college students and their BSU (Baptist Student Union) leaders. It was a real honor to be asked to speak to this group of young men and women. I'm interested in getting feedback from the leaders on just how the weekend met with their expectations. I had a good time...I hope that they did, too. As a bonus, there was no snow in the north and Ozark was pretty much covered up. While Chris was shoveling the 9 inches of snow from the driveway, I was relaxing and enjoying the snowless view from camp.

Sunday morning I was at Edinburg Baptist Church and Sunday evening at First Baptist Gallatin. I had a really great time at both places. Edinburg is a country church and the pastor speaks very proudly about his people and the work that is happening through the little country church. I could tell that Pastor Stan really loves what he does and where he does it. They blessed me with their hospitality and warmth.

The folks at FBC Gallatin turned out in great numbers for a Sunday night. After the evening program they had a soup and sandwich fellowship. I managed to avoid the desserts with the exception of one small chocolate covered rice krispy treat and really enjoyed just talking with Pastor Marty and the people of the church.

In between the two Sunday events, I had some free time to catch up on a little reading and to make a couple of phone calls. I owed a couple of apologies and have been trying to get squared away with some of the things I've failed at in the recent past. All-in-all, I had a pretty good weekend and was ready for the four and half hour drive that would put me home at about 1 o'clock Monday morning. But then came the Sunday night bonus...

I always enjoy an unexpected phone call from one of my siblings. Turns out that my older sister had been catching up on her internet reading and read my two previous posts. She determined that I could use a little pep talk from Big Sis and called for that purpose--pretty cool, I'd say. So we talked and it helped to pass the time. We lost connection a couple of times in the spotty coverage of AT&T in rural Missouri and I felt pretty good about having a sister that would call because she felt like I needed an encouraging word.

I also received an encouraging e-mail from one of my reader/friends/fellow minister after she read the previous downer posts. (Thanks, Claudia) Then I heard some good words from a friend about how a mutual friend perceives me (very positive) and received a message on Facebook from a fellow blogger/FB friend with some questions about the Bible, Jesus, good, evil, etc.

All of these things have lifted my spirit and are bringing me back to the easy going lovable guy that you all know and love...okay, maybe that's going a little too far but you get the idea. I don't want to completely leave the thoughts of those previous posts behind me; I want to remember them and grow through them. I do want to be more purposeful and more perceptive. I want to see with the compassion of Jesus and act accordingly. I want to love with the love of a God that can love the unlovable human, John. I want to be a person that others feel that they can turn to in crisis rather than hide from. I want to be a little bit more like Jesus today than I was yesterday. And I want to be an encourager...like those that have encouraged me.

Thanks,
John