This is Christmas

My "virtual friend" Ed Stetzer recommended this Christmas video on his blog. It moved me to tears. Sit back and enjoy:

Casting Crowns I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Whatever You Need, God Is

"He who has God and many other things has no more than he who has God alone." ~ C. S. Lewis


At Christmastime it is easy to focus on what we are missing. Whether it is family members to surround us, friends to celebrate with, money to spend, or simply time to get everything done . . . this season can accentuate our lack.

Perhaps we have forgotten our best resource. We know Him as Jesus, but in the first chapter of the New Testament, God's Son is also introduced by another name. Matthew mentions His Old Testament name, which is Immanuel (Matthew 1:23). It is a Jewish name, and fortunately Matthew translates the name for us. Immanuel literally means, "God with Us."

Here then, is the amazing truth of Christmas: This God, who we have meditated on these past weeks, is revealed in the Bible as For Us, Wise, Faithful, Able, Just, Light, and Love (among other things). This Holy God is also the God who is with us in Jesus. Amazing! All that we ever needed resides with us and in us through the Spirit of Jesus.

Here's my prayer for you, as we move into Christmas: May God meet your every need, primarily and ultimately, with Himself. Because whatever you need, God is.

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Just got our tree up!

Our tree and son playing piano

Mystery Worshipper

Last Sunday, we had a surprise guest in the service -- a writer for the San Diego Reader who visits churches unannounced and writes reviews. He introduced himself after the service. As you can imagine, I was eager (and nervous) to see what he would write. You can view his article by clicking here.

Or watch the YouTube video he put together here. (The name of his column is Sheeps & Goats).


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Is love enough?

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. 1John 4:7

John, who penned the words above, is sometimes called the Apostle of Love; so prominent is love in his writing.

What is amazing though is that John wouldn't have always been characterized that way. If you read about him when he was a young disciple of Jesus, he was hot-tempered and fiery. On one occasion, John suggested that Jesus call fire down from heaven and burn up an entire Samaritan village just for being rude. No wonder Jesus nicknamed John "the Son of Thunder."

But over time, God slowly molded John into a man of love. In fact, there is a legend, although it can't be verified for certain, that on John's deathbed, people gathered around him and begged for one last word. After all, he was the last living apostle.

The legend says that he breathed these words, "Love one another."

"Is there more?" they asked.

"That is enough," John replied.

As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, we can get distracted in so many ways. As we honor God's most tangible expression of love, may He shape us into people who reflect His love in growing measures every day. That is enough.

Ancient Stained Glass Windows

If we walk in the light, as [God] is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
(1 John 1:7).

Some people falsely think that those who claim to walk in the light, are always perfect. But according to the context of the above passage (1 John 1:5-10), that is actually the definition of walking in darkness. Only those who walk in darkness claim to be without sin (1 John 1:8).

Rather walking in God's light means being authentic. It means being genuine. It means agreeing with God that we have flaws and giving Him permission to change us (1 John 1:9).

The only light we have to offer this dark world is God's light as it shines through us. It turns out; those who walk in God's light are a lot like ancient stained glass windows. When you look closely you will see some flaws and imperfects, yet they are stunningly glorious when the light of the Son shines through.

3 reasons we need God as a consuming fire

I've been running a survey for the past several weeks (the survey is located on the right side of my blog) to see what "God is…" statements of the New Testament are most meaningful for people. If you look at the results of the survey you'll notice that only one choice has received no votes (that is, until just now when someone voted for it). It comes from Hebrews 12:29, "for our 'God is a consuming fire.'"

Let me suggest three reasons why we need God as a consuming fire.

1. We need to see God as a consuming fire to remind us that He is absolutely holy and should be respected.

From the earliest age, we learn that fire is something we should take seriously. It is dangerous and powerful. In the same way, God is good but He is not safe (a line from the Chronicles of Narnia). We need a healthy fear of God.

2. We need to see God as a consuming fire to remind us that if we draw close to Him, He will purify us.

Fire destroys what it cannot purify, but it purifies what it cannot destroy. Fire, in the Bible, is often an image of God's ability to burn away impurities in order to make us pure. He sometimes even uses trials to help us see what is really lasting. God loves us, but He doesn't leave us the way we are. He purifies us as we walk with Him.

3. We need to see God as a consuming fire to remind us that, through the death of Jesus, He has consumed all that separates us from Him.

In the pioneer days, on the prairie lands, people would sometimes find themselves about to be consumed by fire. Camped in the middle of the prairie they would see the flames of a wildfire approaching. Knowing that even their horses could not outrun the flames, they would start a fire on the ground upon which they stood. They then would stand on that burned patch of ground. The prairie fire would sweep by along the edge of the burned patch, but ultimately pass them by.

On the cross, God burned a patch of earth. His wrath poured out on Jesus. And those who stand in that place are saved by His consuming fire.

Thank God that He is a consuming fire.

A trip back to Westmont

We got a call Sunday night that Chris was invited to be at Westmont for a gathering specifically for the handful of students whose dorms were lost. We spent all day yesterday travelling and removing all the stuff from his room as he will be relocated to a new dorm when he returns after Thanksgiving. The good news, there was only smoke and water damage to his stuff, and most of his stuff will be redeemable. Not such good news for the guys in the story above him who lost everything to the fire. It actually was a long but remarkable day.

In the photo: Me, Chris, and his roommate Lawrence.

Update: Westmont fires

We just got some good news last night. Chris' RA called him, had seen his room, and said, while the upstairs was destroyed by the fire, that where he lived, downstairs, was relatively unscathed. Just some water damage, but it looks like a lot of his belongings may be redeemable. We'll see when we are allowed back on campus.

Chris is home with us. We are unsure if anything remains of his school possessions but we are glad to have him home!

Westmont fires

We were up a lot of the night following the fires at Westmont college where our son is a freshman. There was significant damage to the campus and its buildings but Chris and all the students are OK. They spent the night in the gym. It looks like his dorm was lost so he is coming home today with the clothes on his back. Thanks for your prayers for us and for the whole Westmont community.

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An Audience of One

Imagine that the script of your life was turned into a hit theatrical play. The drama of your life goes public. And on opening night, the theatre is filled with both raving fans as well as the ever-present critics.

Who matters most to you to you? Your critics? They can be brutal. It doesn't take much. Just a few words. Do your critics matter most to you?

Or would you say your fans matter the most? Are they the ones you want to please? Is it their admiration that you seek?

In the Bible, Paul had his own share of critics and fans. But he never let them set the course for his life or ministry. Instead, when he was accused by his critics of playing to his fans he said:

You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed -- God is our witness. 1 Thess. 2:5

Paul refused to be swayed by his critics or his fans. Instead he lived his life for an audience of One. He cared most about the applause of Heaven.

For you and me, if God is not our witness, then we will always be tempted to play to the wrong audience. That is, we will be tempted to look to people for our approval. We will find ourselves making decisions and operating our lives for the admiration of people rather than the affirmation of Jesus.

Today, remember God is your witness. Only He sees what is in your heart. It is only His ovation that matters. Live for an audience of One.

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Free Burritos

Here is a recent family outing to Chipotle for free burritos (as long as we dressed like a chipotle burrito; i.e. in aluminum foil).

Awesome quote

"The repentance that really changes your heart and your relationship with God begins when you recognize that your main sin -- the sin under the rest of your sins -- is your self-salvation project."

Timothy Keller, The Reason for God

God is able

I love the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the Bible. Their words inspire me. You may remember that they were about to be martyred because of their unwillingness to worship anything other than the True God of Heaven. At the last minute, the reigning monarch gives them an opportunity to change their strategy. Instead this is their conviction …

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." Dan. 3:17-18

Where does that confidence come from? Their theology! It was rooted and anchored in what they believed about God!

"…the God we serve is able…"

But notice this: They were not predicting that God would deliver them (although that's exactly what happened), but that God could deliver them. That is how faith operates. It is enough to know that God is able.

And if we truly believe that God is all-powerful, then if he doesn't do what we expect Him to do, it isn't because His hands were tied, but because He has an unseen plan. It is not because He is limited, but because I am. I just don't know all the options.

None of us knows God's script for our lives. But we know that God has the power to do whatever is best for us and those we care about. That is enough.

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