Get Outside!

Should be fun!

The following are some notes that I jotted down from the book Building Leaders by Aubrey Malphurs and Will Mancini.

Notes are taken from the chapter: Challenges of Empowerment.

An I-MAD

What is an I-MAD?

It is a IPad + Macbook.   The Ipad (equipped with retina display of course)  is the display for the macbook. While it is plugged into the macbook and functioning as the Macbook display, it is getting recharged.

When I want to get up and leave, I simply pull the IPad off the macbook, and away I go with my Ipad.

So, I would have the portability of an Ipad, and the functionality of a macbook for higher end processes.

Thank you Apple for your consideration.
And, if possible, I would like to alter my request to include 5 of said comped products for the rest of my family.

Feel free to name it whatever you like.
Thank you.
John

1. Every plant grows differently. Study the plant and find out what it needs. Then nurture it for maximum fruitfulness.

2. Plants need space to grow. At first, the garden seems vacuous, but just wait. When it grows, it will need the space. Then you will wish you had made your garden larger.

3. Be careful you don’t pull the weeds out with the plant. Or, worse yet, when it’s real early and you are a gardening newbie, don’t pull what you think is a weed. It might just be the seedling finally popping through the soil that you are trying to grow. Wait for it to reveal what it really is. This takes time.

4. Don’t plant everything all at once. Plant it gradually, then you have a gradual harvest… unless you are looking to eat an acre of corn all in one week come harvest time.

5. You will need to protect your garden from predators. Get some chicken wire to keep out the rabbits who will steal your fruit.

6. Once fruit shows up, you value it and are more likely to nurture it. Just like when a greater amount of kindness shows up in a former jerk, you treasure it! You need to nurture and praise that kindness!

7. Unless I plant the garden, I could probably care less about the garden. It is much harder to get excited about other people’s gardens. Much more easy to get excited about my own garden. Just the nature of the beast. Encourage people to take care of their gardens.

8. Sometimes people need help and wisdom in gardening, especially if they are new. Figuring out how to plant, water, nurture, fertilize, prune, harvest etc. can be overwhelming, just as faith, repentance, baptism, justification, sanctification, etc, can be overwhelming to one new to faith.

9. New plants don’t attract predators, fruit and vegetation does. Expect the warfare with predators to begin when edible stuff starts showing up.

10. Gardening is just providing the right environment for growth to happen. Nobody grows a plant. It grows all by itself when it is in the right environment. Just like faith.

“We may not actually burn incense to Artemis, but when money and career are raised to cosmic proportions, we perform a kind of child sacrifice, neglecting family and community to achieve a higher place in business and gain more wealth and prestige.” xii

We may not physically kneel before the statue of Aphrodite, but many young women today are driven into depression and eating disorders obey an obsessive concern over their body image. xii

an idol is something we cannot live without.

we think that idols are bad things, but that is almost never the case. the greater the good, the more likely we are to expect that it can satisfy our deepest needs and hopes. Anything can serve as a counterfeit god, especially the best things in life. xvii

The bible uses three basic metaphors to describe how people relate to the idols of their hearts. They love idols, trust idols, and obey idols. xxi

Ezek 14:3 “These men have set up idols in their hearts”

We can locate idols by looking at our daydreams. What do we enjoy imagining? What are our fondest dreams? We look to our idols to love us, to provide us with value and a sense of beauty, significance and worth…

Idols give us a sense of being in control, and we can locate them by looking at our nightmares. What do we fear the most? What if we lost it, would make life not worth living? Anything that becomes more important and nonnegotiable to us than God becomes an enslaving idol.

In this paradigm, we can locate idols by looking at our most unyielding emotions. What makes us uncontrollably angry, anxious, or despondent? What racks us with guilt we can’t shake? Idols control us, since we feel we must have them or life is meaningless. xxii

Why is getting your heart’s deepest desire so often a disaster? In the book of Romans, Paul wrote that  one of the worst things God can do to someone is to “give them over tho the desires of their hearts” romans 1:24

We may not realize how idolatrous our career has become to us, until we are faced with a situation in which telling the truth or acting with integrity would mean a serious blow to our professional advancement. If we are not willing to hurt our career in order to do God’s will, our job will become a counterfeit god. 14

People who have never suffered in life have less empathy for others, little knowledge of their own shortcomings and limitations, no endurance in the face of hardship, and unrealistic expectations for life. As the New Testament book of Hebrews tells, anyone God loves experiences hardship (Hebrews 12:1-8) 15

God saw Abraham’s sacrifice and said, “Now I know that you love me, because you did not withhold your only son from me. ” But how much more can we look at his sacrifice on the Cross and say to God, “Now, we know that you love us. For you did not withhold your son, your only son, whom you love, from us.” 18

As many have learned and later taught, you don’t realize Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have. 19

Community Garden Revelations

As I was out in our community garden today, I noticed that the ground was getting pretty dry and cracked. I got out the hose and began to water my plants. As I began to put the hose away, I knew that I couldn’t just walk around other people’s plants that needed the nourishment that this cool water could give them.

So, I took the time to water each plant, and as I did, I prayed for the person who had planted them. I prayed for their kids, their jobs, their future. And then a thought occurred to me. “Isn’t this what prayer is all about?”

Yes, praying for other people is like watering the fruit and vegetables in their garden. Without water, they dry up and are less likely to be fruitful.  Without water, the seeds will never take root and pop through the soil. Without water, plants die.   In the same way, I can preach and teach my heart out, but if I never water the seeds that have been planted through faithful prayer, then those seeds run the risk of never bearing fruit, or getting choked out by weeds, or growing so shallow that when the July sun hits them, they have no root system strong enough to get them through and they wither.

So, today the garden reminded me of the importance of praying for others.
How often I go through my day, careful to water my plants and flower, but ignoring those of my neighbors.

Here are a couple ways we can water each other’s gardens:

1. Pray for people. Pray that they would be filled with the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, etc… and that they would stay attached to Jesus, the true vine. See John 15 and Galatians 5.

2.  Encourage people. NEVER underestimate the power of listening to people, looking them in the eye, placing your hand on their shoulder and speaking a genuinely kind word into their life. Like water to the soul.  Like choice apples on a silver platter are words that are fitly spoken.

3. See a need, meet a need. If you see something that is obvious and easy to fix, don’t walk by. If you know you can be generous, be generous. If you know a person needs a lift, don’t drive by. If a person is struggling, come alongside and help shoulder the burden.

Do these things and you will be blessed. And so will everyone around you.

“One of the great weapons in the revolutionary leader’s arsenal is to cultivate a sense of holy dissatisfaction–to provoke a basic discontent with what is and so awaken a desire to move toward what could be. It must be holy because it is very easy to awaken the unholy variety of discontent. The old Marxist slogan “rub raw the sores of discontent” is brilliant. The early Marxists knew how to create the environment of insurrection, of revolution, of movement. This ought to be no less true for the revolutionary missional leader. We must not be afraid to be unpopular, to be seen as revolutionaries, if we want to really effect the missional-incoarnational paradigm in our time. The real revolutionary, perhaps theonly one, is the person who has nothing left to lose. Rub the discontent raw and then throw salt on it–our times are urgent.; Christendom must be brought down and apostolic faith and practice established if we are to be true to our call as followers of the revolutionary Jesus in our day.” pg 192 Imagination and the Leadership Task

Our first reaction to discontent is to ignore it or justify it. Instead, uncover it and let the people yearn for a solution that treats the cause, not just the symptoms.

Part of Change-ology is always to reveal the true problem and let it become so hot that people yearn for a solution. It is what Andy Stanley writes about in his book Visioneering, John Kotter writes about in Leading Change, and what Jesus spoke about when he shared his rebukes with the Pharisees and teachers of the law, healed sicknesses everywhere, and taught about a kingdom that would restore what God had intended.

2. There is a window of opportunity for planting season. If you miss it, you will miss out on certain varieties of fruit/vegetables. Underground growing vegetables have to be planted in early Spring so that their delicate leaves don’t get burnt by the scorching sun of June when they come up. Likewise, there is a window of opportunity for us to share our faith with other people. Some seasons they will ready and others not so ready. It takes good discernment to know when to share your faith with someone else.

3. If you want a big harvest, you have to sow plentifully! Sow lots of seed!  If you sow skimpily, you will reap skimpily. Likewise, if you want to see the fruit of the Holy Spirit in your life (love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control) you need to sow lots of spiritual seed by reading God’s word and reflecting on it. The more you do, the more seed will go into the ground and begin taking root. Then, as you gently nurture and water those seeds by reflecting on them in the days to come, they will bear great fruit.

4. Sometimes you need a neighbor to water your plants because you don’t have time. This is why gardening in a community is so much better than solo. It is also why Christianity was never meant to be lived out alone. We need the encouragement, prayers, teaching, service, generosity, and compassion of our fellow brothers and sisters to bear fruit and keep our spiritual garden thriving.

So why am I saying that a culture is in danger when it loses it’s hypocrites?

Truth 1: Hypocrisy can only exist in an environment where standards exist.  If you remove the standards, whether they are moral/ethical standards, or intellectual standards, or whatever, there is no longer anything that you can be hypocritical about.  But, is this really the culture that we want? Is this what Jesus promoted? A culture with no standards at all?

Truth 2: Hypocrisy is the natural byproduct of having high standards. If you are shooting for the stars, you are going to miss. However, Jesus certainly told us to shoot for the stars! Actually, a bit higher… He said: “Be holy as your Father in Heaven is holy” or “Be perfect as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Matt 5:48    Seriously!?!?  That’s a challenge that if taken and promoted is going to result in some failure! And that would be what some call hypocrisy. Insert dilemma here.  We are commanded to be perfect, but we may not hit it. Does that make me a hypocrite?

Truth 3: There is a difference between hypocrisy and authenticity. There are two types of moral failure. The first is the failure that happens when one is striving for a standard and falls short, humbly admits their failure and continues to strive ahead. This is authenticity. (boy does the world need more of this…)

The second is the failure that happens when there is no striving towards a standard, but still the recognition that the standard exists. The Victorian Age was very much a time when standards were espoused, but typically only as a front.  Behind the scenes, things were as awful as ever. Jesus condemns this second type of failure as hypocrisy. It is someone who sees themselves as above (hupa in Greek) the standard (critos in Greek) so that they don’t even have to try and fulfill it. Or, a person who only fulfills it in public for recognition sake.  No real striving for the standard though, but plenty of finger pointing when others don’t hit it. (unfortunately, some Christians seem to be pretty good at finger pointing.)
So, what are we to do with all this? Would Jesus direct us to remove all standards and thus eliminate hypocrisy? Well, it’s an easy way to get out of being called a hypocrite… but instead He gives us this parable:

Matthew 13: ²⁴ Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. ²⁵ But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. ²⁶ When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew.

²⁷ “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’

²⁸ “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed.

“‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked.

²⁹ “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. ³⁰ Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’”

So, in our attempt to strive for holiness and a life that God has called us to, let us be careful to not be so afraid of hypocrisy that we throw out our standards.  If we do, we may uproot the wheat that God has planted in the process. Instead, let us be authentic and humble, admitting our failures, but still valuing and striving for the standard that God has called us to. And for crying out loud, let’s try to keep our fingers pointed at ourselves.

I am so excited to hear how God is at work in your life. Nobody asks questions like what you are asking unless there is some serious activity there! How exciting!  It sounds like you have a great appetite for reading. I too have read Rob Bell’s book, and the “Heaven is for real” book is on my coffee table. (haven’t got too far into it yet…)  Anyway, I know that there are a buzillion books out there that I would recommend, and perhaps I will. But, I would have to agree with you that there is no substitute for God’s word. It’s like a full meal. Other books are like meals that other people have predigested and given to us and often times we don’t always get the same amount of nutrients like we would if we just read the Bible for ourselves.    So, where to start.

Well, there are a myriad of ways to proceed, but a safe bet is to just the New Testament. I am sure that you have read a lot of it. I try to read through the whole Bible every year, and recently decided that I needed to feed my soul by reading the New Testament (Matthew-Revelation) at least 5 or 6 times a year.  So, I would say, pick one of the gospels like Matthew, Mark, Luke or John, and then read the rest of the New Testament. Every time you do it starts to piece together better and better.

Another strategy would be to read through the Bible in 90 days. It’s pretty hard core, but man, the payoff is tremendous in spiritual dividends!  I personally have failed time and time again when I try to take an entire year to read the Bible. It stops making sense after a while. And, after vacations, I lose focus.  But, I can handle a 90 day project. You can find a reading schedule here for that.    And let me tell you, when you do read through the entire Bible, cover to cover in 90 days, you see the big picture in powerful ways. It’s pretty crazy. I have never regretted doing that.

Sometimes I will go through a season, (like after reading the Bible in 90 days) where I slow it down a bit and just take in smaller portions.  Recently I have found Proverbs and Luke to be a couple of my favorites.  I always ask a couple of questions though, and jot them down in my journal:

1. What did I learn about God from this passage?

2. What did I learn about people from this passage?

3. What did I learn that was new? Did it raise any new questions for me?

4. What should I do differently in my life now based on what I have read?

I even find that reading a passage of scripture with my kids at night and asking those questions is a great way to have them think through and discuss what they are reading. And, man, sometimes they have pretty profound stuff!

Here is one other thing I would point you to.

gods redemptive plan small group

It’s a list of passages from the Bible that tell the whole big picture of the Bible in 40 stories. I met with about a dozen people from our church last year and each week we picked one of these stories and just asked the questions above. It was fantastic. And, it really made the stories relevant in our lives.  It was amazing to see people get the whole story of the Bible and how it all fits together. And amazingly enough, the Bible, though it is 66 different books by a bunch of different authors over the span of 2000 years, still somehow, mysteriously is able to be woven together perfectly and even more mysteriously, speak truth into my life each and every day. There is no other book like it.

So, hopefully this is a start for you.

The most important thing to remember any time you are reading the Bible is to remember that it is truly God’s words being spoken to you. So, say a prayer before you read and ask God to reveal his truth to you. Then, make a commitment not just to read it, but to live it out.  You will be blessed if you do!