Decision-making and Peace

People often make decisions based on whether or not they have a "peace about it." But is that the best gauge?

I'm not sure it is. Because sometimes when people say, "I have a peace about it," what they mean is that they are choosing the easier, safer route. Or simply avoiding the right thing to do.     

So instead of "having a peace about it," I would recommend that your decision be grounded in the God of Peace. Here are five questions I suggested in my message to ask yourself to help discover if your decision is grounded in the God of Peace (to hear the biblical grounding and commentary listen to the message online at http://www.greenvalleychurch.com/mainmenu.html) .

What would help me and others experience God?

1 Cor. 14:19-25

Which option will most strengthen me and others?

1 Cor. 14:26

Where should I bite my tongue?

1 Cor. 14:27-28

How much weight do my godly friends give it?

1 Cor. 14:29

Does it lead to peace, not disorder?

1 Cor. 14:30-33

I'd love to talk to you for an hour

Many people think that a pastor spends most of his time talking and meeting with people. You'd be surprised how much time is actually spent in administration, message preparation and study, research, planning, and just doing the business of the church.

Still, I love those times when I can spend some unhurried time, talking with people about what matters most - God.

Like with Ben. I met with Ben for tea yesterday. Man, I was encouraged.

Or Jacob. Jacob recommended we meet at 8:30 in the evening for sushi. I loved it. The raw fish AND the conversation about God.

In a few minutes I'm meeting with a pastor from our area that I've never met. I even think he's buying tea. I'm looking forward to the mutual encouragement.

So here's an offer for my blog faithful. If one of you wants to meet this Friday at 4 pm, I'd love to take some time, encouraging each other in our faith. Let's meet at the church. It's not that I'm not available other times, but sometimes we all just need something on the calendar to make it happen.

The first one to ask, gets the spot. You can either comment on the blog post, or if you'd rather not be that public, email me at doug@greenvalleychurch.com

Let's be encouraged!

UPDATE: Within 3 hours I got a taker! Cool.


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The cross is so counter-intuitive

1CO 1:18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

The cross is so counter-intuitive. That which seems like defeat is actually victory. That which seems like weakness is actually strength. That which seems like tragedy is actually is triumph. With the cross, God turned the worst into the best.

To many, in biblical times and today, the cross seems ridiculous. Before Jesus, the cross was a symbol of death, crime, and shame.

Imagine if we were able to assemble some of the world's wisest people to solve the problem of evil in the world. What would they recommend?

The educator would say, "People just need more information. They need to be taught to lift themselves out of circumstances." The moralist would say, "People just need to try harder. We must set up an effective system of reward and punishment. Then everyone will be good." The political activist would opt for policy reform. The entertainer says you just need to razzle-dazzle them; amuse them, and keep them from thinking too much. The pop psychologist would blame it on your parents.

But God didn't consult the world experts. Instead, He said, "This is how I will do it. I will come to earth myself, be born to an unmarried couple. I will live in obscurity for 30 years. I will wander as an itinerant preacher. I will live in poverty. I will make enemies with the powerful and the influential. Instead I will surround myself with a group of men who culture has overlooked. I will go to Jerusalem, straight into their snare, and I will be beaten and I will be killed like a criminal." And to that, the educator, moralist, activist, entertainer, and psychologist would say, "Foolish, foolish."

But to those who have experienced the power of the cross, O, the wisdom of God!

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The Video I showed in Church last Sunday

This video was fun to make. It was single take with a borrowed camera, and I recruited a stranger who was just reading on the beach to help me shoot it. I didn't catch his name, but if he's watching, THANKS!

Beach Baptism

I'm soaking in this beautiful Saturday morning and thinking about the amazing weekend ahead. Baptism is one of my very favorite events in the life of our church. It reminds me how much I love being a pastor. I never get tired of hearing the stories of transformed and committed lives. Over the years, we’ve baptized well over 200 people at the beach. And tomorrow I’m hoping we’ll baptize another 20 plus. And each story is amazing.

We meet at Torrey Pines State Beach Lifeguard station #4. Get there early or shoot for 3 pm (it takes awhile to park). Dinner will be served at 4 pm with the baptism immediately following. This is one of the coolest things we do as a church. We often have people come from great distances to be here. You'll be glad you came!

One day Jesus had a conversation with a woman. And the conversation got pretty personal. Especially as Jesus dealt with some of the poor moral choices that she has made in her life (in this case, her failure in six different relationships). Jesus looked deep into her heart and revealed her pain and emptiness.

That’s why I’m so surprised by her response: "Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." John 4:19-20

Did you notice what happened? Jesus addresses an extremely deep heart issue. But instead of facing the internal issues of her soul, this woman opts for a surface fix. It’s as if she says, “It doesn’t matter about my past moral failures, or my empty life … as long as I figure out the right mountain to worship on, I’m good to go.” It would be comical if it wasn’t so typical.

How easy it is for us, to try that to fix deep issues with quick external changes. But we will never be healed by surface makeovers. Instead, as Jesus counseled the woman, we must allow His Spirit to change us from the inside out (See John 4:21-24).

A great prayer is found in Psalm 139:23-24:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in
me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

As Jesus looks within your heart, invite Him by His Spirit to uncover any anxious thoughts or offensive ways, and let Him begin a spiritual transformation from within.

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Happy Fall

I LOVE Fall. Since today, Sept 22, is the first official day of it (actually in an hour or so from now), here are the results of my recent poll. Almost half of those polled said they were ready. Now vote on my new survey.

The patio used to be safe

My mom lives in a quaint townhouse with a sunny back patio. We often eat out there on warm evenings, celebrate birthdays and such. It is very pleasant. But, this summer, I received a panicked call from her. She had discovered a snake in her courtyard. Now she hates snakes. And I inherited that from her. And as it turns out, this was not just any snake, it was a huge rattlesnake. In fact, when the animal control person came to remove it, she said it was the biggest rattlesnake she had ever seen. It was about six feet long and the rattle alone was about eight inches. It was the width of a man's arm. The next day she looked out on her patio and saw two more (see photo above – this was the smaller one). They were also hauled off by animal control.

So a couple weeks later I am invited to celebrate a family birthday party at my mom's place. Did I mention I hate snakes? As we celebrated my nephew's birthday, my mom says, "Let's go out into the courtyard." I say, "Thanks. I think I'll just sit here in the living room." She says, "It's a nice warm summer evening, let's go out?" I respond, "No I don't think so!" Finally I sat there, craning my neck in every direction the whole evening. I was the picture of discomfort.

Here's the point: The courtyard didn't change. But my perception of it had changed.

I love talking to little kids about God. Their perception of him is huge. To them God is so big. But then we grow up. And life happens. And we encounter a snake or two, or worse, and somewhere along the way our view of God diminishes. Instead life gets big, problems get big, threats loom large … and our view of God changes. He sort of shrinks. And all the while God didn't change … but our perception of Him did.

How we need a clearer picture of God. A.W. Tozer said, "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us." That is an amazing statement.

How we need a clearer picture of God.

Staff Meeting Done Well

Just finished a staff meeting discussing Will Mancini's book, Church Unique. This is what the conference table looked like after we were done. Loose leaf tea, water, note pads, markers, Bibles. Great meeting.

The cross has always been a non-negotiable to God’s people. In the Bible, Paul says, May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ... Gal 6.14.

But, these days, many people would prefer a God without a cross. Here is the contemporary thinking. Why couldn’t God just forgive and forget? Why can’t God just accept everyone who says they’re sorry and move on? Why not just say we believe in a loving God and a forgiving God – good enough? Who needs a cross anyway?

One reason we need a cross is because forgiveness is always costly. Especially when the stakes are high, especially when the evil is great; to forgive is always costly. Dietrich Bonheoffer, the great Christian leader who was imprisoned and ultimately killed in Nazi German Concentration Camp, put it this way, “Everyone who forgives someone bears the other’s sins.” And we know this from life. When we choose to forgive, it always means absorbing the debt ourselves. It is a form of suffering.

Simply overlooking sin was not an option. Especially when you consider the massive evil of the world. But instead of making us pay, God bore the suffering Himself! The cross is a forever reminder that forgiveness is costly. But God paid the price we could never pay.

That is why I cling to the cross.

Wordle

OK, I found the coolest site online. It takes the text of a message and turns it into a word picture. The more you used the word, the bigger it is. Here's this morning's message as a Wordle.

Fun at Home

Party of Four?

Perhaps what's weirdest about sending our oldest son off to college is that we will be living, travelling, and eating out as a party of four. We've been the five of us for so long! Appreciate your prayers. We are so excited for Chris. He is definitely ready and we are so proud of him. But it's still really tough.

Sabbatical in Review

Also see Some random things I did over Sabbatical.

This summer has been a great break from day-to-day ministry. Although it was busy, I was truly able to disengage from the daily load of ministry and think big thoughts about God, His church, our church, and my calling.

As I reflect on my summer experience, I relate to the words of John Steinbeck. As Steinbeck prepared to journey across the United States he said, "We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; the trip takes us." In the same way, as I consider all the ways God worked in my life during this time, I feel as though I didn't take a sabbatical; the sabbatical took me.

What has the Lord done with me over this sabbatical?

• Gave me great times in His Word
  


• Took me through the death of my father.
  
  


• Gave me a lifetime experience with my family in Europe.
  


• Gave me fresh perspective on my strengths and areas of greatest effectiveness through the Pastors on Point Process.
  


• Allowed me to read several great books and visit several churches.
  

How would I define my "point" in ministry?

• God has made me a unique pastor. The themes of my life show that He put me together so that I was made to LEARN, DREAM, INVESTIGATE, EVALUATE, CREATE, ORGANIZE, PLAN, DEVELOP, OVERSEE, INFLUENCE, and COMMUNICATE.
  

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  I like to minister with and through GOD'S WORD, VALUES; RELATIONAL TEAMS, KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE, NEW GROWTH, SHAPE, PEOPLE ON THE FRINGE OF FAITH.
  
  
  

  
  



• 
  
  I work best in ministry environments that are NEW OPPORTUNITIES, UNIQUE, CHALLENGING, CONTAINED, WITH TEAMS, AFFIRMING, WITH MEASURABLE IMPACT, and WITH KEY RESPONSIBILITY FOR RESULTS.
  
  
  

  
  



• 
  
  I am at my best when I play a role of a CATALIZING PRIME MOVER, INFLUENCER, at the FRONT END OF A NEW MOVEMENT.
  
  
  

  
  



• 
  
  So that I can TOGETHER WITH OTHERS, PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN DOING SOMETHING NEW, UNIQUE, AND CREATIVE, WHICH WILL HAVE AN ETERNAL IMPACT.
  
  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

What do I most look forward to in the days ahead with our church?

• Reinforcing our missional mandate (grounded in Scripture).
  


• Solidifying our values (which never change)
  


• Refining our strategy (the map we will follow to fulfill our mission).
  


• Developing our measurements (the way we know we are doing what we planned to do)
  


• And seeing God show up in amazing ways as His compelling cause for us uniquely as a church is unleashed.
  

Some of the random things I got to do over sabbatical

• Read an entire book in one sitting beside a High Sierra river
  
• Took my daughter on a date to a Broadway production of Phantom
  
• Got my motorcycle license
  
• Sputtered around Poway on a borrowed Vespa
  
• Began doing our own yard work
  
• Ate outside a lot
  
• Drove historic Highway 395 with the top off our 1973 Porsche
  
• Drove historic Highway 101 with the top off our 1973 Porsche
  
• Went to a charming Bed and Breakfast in La Jolla with my wife
  
• Got to be "customer of the week" at Peet's Tea House
  
• Drank a lot of tea
  
• Hiked the Torrey Pines cliffs
  
• Touched a 12 foot Python (on purpose)
  
• And a bunch of other stuff