As many of you are aware, I have accepted the call to be the Senior Teaching Pastor of Trinity Church in Lansing, Michigan. For those of you who prayed with and for us, we are thankful to God for you, your prayers and encouragement while we went through the lengthy and productive process. Although the process is over, the work is just beginning. We are excited about the adventure, but we know we can do nothing apart from Jesus. Here are some areas for which we ask you to pray:

1. Transition grace and wisdom
2. That we find the right school for our children
3. That our family builds a strong web of relationships
4. That God would increase my Cultural Intelligence Quotient
5. That I would practice good and wise exegesis of Trinity Church
6. That my Life Accounts (Faith, Priorities, Health, Family, Finance, Friends, and Service) will remain full and healthy
7. That we would remain connected to Jesus in the midst of the transition
8. That I would have a strong implementation of my Ideal Work Week
9. That God would lead us to the right house
10. That God would use us to bring many people to Jesus, for his glory
11.  That we would laugh a lot and have lots of fun

What transitions are you going through in this season of your life? How can my family and I pray for you during this transition time?

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Lord, do not leave me to myself, but save me from myself, and help me to daily depend on your divine power.

This prayer expresses a healthy distrust in my own ability to resist temptation or stand up under trial. It acknowledges my inclination to sin and to run away from trouble and adversity. This is a prayer of humility and total dependence on God to preserve me under heavy trials and seductive temptations. When I trust myself to always make good and godly choices in the face of trials, temptations, and distractions, I live a delusional existence and typically fail miserably.

This is a prayer that recognizes and exposes my spiritual weaknesses, flaws in character, a desperate need for God’s daily deliverance from the power of sin. Moreover, it is a prayer for guidance and strength to live close to Jesus through the Word of God, community and the power of the Holy Spirit.

I hope you will join me in praying this prayer.

What is your take on this prayer? What part of it is most relevant to you?

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We find it relatively easy to thankGod for saying yes to prayers we have prayed – healing from sickness, promotion on job, admission into college of your choice, spiritual growth, financial freedom, healing of marriage, and so many more amazing blessings. But, when was the last time we genuinely thanked God for saying NO to our requests? I shudder to think of the possible smears and cumulative blots on, and dead-ends and culde-sacs in my life, had he not said NO.

When I look back over my life and see all the times God said NO, and how he saved me from ship wrecking my life against the icebergs of unwise choices, I rejoice and thank him for his amazing preserving grace. In short, I am learning how to say YES to God’s NO.

When was the last time you genuinely thanked God for telling you NO? In what areas has God said NO to you, and when you see the big picture, you were glad that he did? How are you doing saying YES to God’s NO?

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I ran across this prayer by Ignatius the other day. It impacted me, and I want to share it with you.

Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will.

What is the toughest part of this prayer to pray? What part of this prayer have you been praying and living these days?

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“Six days later Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone.” Matthew 17:1

As I read this passage this morning, I sensed that Jesus wants me to climb a mountain with him – the Mountain of Aloneness. I hear him calling me to ascend this mountain with him each day. Here are several observations about this ascent:

1. Jesus desires me to climb this mountain with him each day. He longs for me to say no to my lesser desire of procrastination and say yes to his greater desire of spending quality time with me. I know he wants to spend time with me because he loves me. 

2. Every believer is invited to ascend the Mountain of Aloneness with Jesus, but not every believer will make the ascent. The ascent to be alone with Jesus takes work! It takes getting up early, staying up late, turning off the television, blocking time, and making preparations to be alone with him.  Are you willing to be the “one” and put in the work to make the climb? 

3. I am led up this mountain by Jesus himself. I am not left alone to climb this mountain by myself. I have a guide who leads me up this mountain. He leads me up this mountain because he desires to reveal himself to me. 

4. There are times I need to climb this mountain with fellow pilgrims.

5. I must leave distractions behind when I ascend this mountain. I am easily held captive by noise, all kinds. I have to decide to fast and detox from my addiction to the noise of life and let the silent aloneness with Jesus quiet and feed my soul. 

6. I see a clearer picture of Jesus when I climb the Mountain of Aloneness with Jesus. I see him more clearly as Messiah and Son. Layers of his person are peeled away, and I see Jesus in his majesty, holiness, and power.

Will you ascend the Mountain of Aloneness with Jesus with me this week. It’s worth the climb and the view is transformational. 

Which observation(s) spoke to your heart the most? What keeps you from climbing the Mountain of Aloneness with Jesus? What changes do you need to make in order to make the climb? 

Let’s Climb!

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As I was running the other day, I realized something that really disturbed me - I don’t need God. I mean, I never actually said it with my mouth, nor was this an arrogant declaration; I am way too spiritual and “elder brotherish” for that. lol! But, I say it with my actions all the time. For what I believe determines how I behave and how I behave reveals what I really believe. Here are some I don’t need God indicators that the Holy Spirit revealed to me:

When I fail to pray.  

When I depend on my creativity and gifting more than seeking to be empowered and used by the Holy Spirit.

When I secretly take the credit for God’s work through me and fail to thank God for his gifting and use of those gifts to advance his kingdom. 

When I consult my mentors before I consult God for personal guidance and important decisions. Or, when I don’t consult God at all. 

When I think God’s help and power is nice but not absolutely necessary.

When I am a practical atheist – saying that God exists, but living as if he doesn’t.

When I allow people’s positive or negative opinions of me to define me and my ministry. 

When my money, possessions, social media make less and less room for God.

I need God and I know I need God. I just want to make sure I am living like I need God. 

What about you? Do you think this list is accurate? What are some other postures that we take that indicate we don’t need God? Please join the conversation and invite others.

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When we were growing up, my father kept a can of WD-40 in the house and in his car. It seemed it was the end all be all for almost everything. But what is WD-40? It literally stands for Water Displacement, 40th attempt. In 1953, the chemist, Norm Larsen, was attempting to concoct a formula to prevent corrosion – a task which is done by displacing water. Larsen’s unyielding tenacity and persistence paid off when he perfected the formula on his 40th try. Larsen had, what the Bible calls, chutzpah (khoot-spuh).  

Matthew introduces us to a Gentile woman who had chutzpah (Matthew 15:21-28). Her daughter was violently and cruelly demon-possessed. She had no hope of ever seeing her daughter normal again, playing on the roads, or walking down aisle on her wedding day. She was hopeless, until she heard Jesus was in town, the same Jesus who had exorcised a demon on the Sabbath. Her faith came alive because she had heard about Jesus’ power at work in the lives of others. With this in mind, she approached Jesus boldly and persevered with unyielding tenacity. She had the gall, the brazen nerve, the incredible guts, the audacity to overstep the boundaries of accepted behavior, with no shame, in order to get help for her daughter. She had chutzpah! Jesus responded to the unyielding persistence of her desire and healed her daughter. Take time to carefully read the narrative.

Man, I wish I had that kind of chutzpah in my prayer life. Sometimes I pray and if I don’t get an answer the first time, I give up. I stop praying. I stop approaching. I stop crying out to God. That’s not chutzpah! Chutzpah is having the raw nerve, the gall, the incredible guts, and the audacity to be persistent with God. Now, it is not an attitude of arrogance, but an attitude of unyielding tenacity that recognizes that God is sovereign, good, just, loving and desires what’s best for his people. I wonder how many of our requests God has not granted because we lacked chutzpah. So, when you pray, do it with chutzpah! 

Do you have chutzpah? What prayers have you seen God answer because of your chutzpah? What other questions does this post raise for you regarding chutzpah in prayer?  

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Both my sons play baseball, and each team has signals for bunting, stealing, taking a pitch, hitting away, etc. Normally, the third base coach gives the signals to each player before he steps to the plate. Also, after each pitch, our batters are supposed to step out of the batter’s box, look down the third base line, and check with the coach for the signals. Needless to say, they missed many of the signals because they weren’t paying attention at the beginning of the game when the signals were given or they simply did not bother to look down the line to get the signals from the third base coach. As a result, we were far from having a wining record. 

Each day, I believe, the Holy Spirit gives me signals to: steal away to a quiet place, pray, stop, pause, breathe, go, talk, be silent, take a risk, listen, move, repent, confess, laugh, love harder, dig deeper, live and lead more courageously, share the gospel, put down my blackberry, turn off the computer, buy my wife a gift or simply hold her, play catch or sit with my children, call someone I haven’t seen in a while, and so many more.

I wonder how many times I have miss the signals in my day because I wasn’t paying attention or because I wasn’t looking down the line to check with the Third Base Coach before I started my day. Sometimes I see the signal to bunt (humility), but because I don’t see myself as a “small ball” kind of player, but a power hitter (Ego, Pride), who wants to be the hero and win the game (selfishness), I ignore the signals and carry out my own agenda at the plate. In the end, I lose out on advancing the Kingdom and bringing glory to our heavenly Father.

Each day, before I start my busy day, I need to look down the line and check the signals from the Third Base Coach, through prayer and meditating on Jesus’ words. This way, I can better understand what he wants me to do, thereby doing my part in advancing his kingdom in the world. What signals is the Third Base Coach giving you? How closely do you pay attention and follow them? 

“Since we live in the Spirit, we should also walk in the Spirit.” Gal. 5:25

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In addressing the students of Oxford University, John Wesley said, “How few of you spend, from one week to another, a single hour in private prayer.” As I read this, this statement sent waves of conviction through the corridors of my own soul. It reminded me of how I have failed, in many ways, to make private prayer more of a priority in my life. Why do I fail more often than I succeed at having a vibrant personal prayer life?  I believe, during those times when I become intoxicated with the elixir of complacency and self-sufficiency, I tend to pray less.

This was true of Peter, James and John. On one of the most painful nights of Jesus’ life, Jesus takes his closest followers to a place called Gethsemane. There, he longs for and invites them to watch and pray with him. They handle this privilege and responsibility with faithfulness, right? Not! On three separate occasions, instead of finding them watching and praying with him, Jesus finds them sleeping. Just couldn’t their eyes open. Jesus was disappointed that they had become victims of the condition I call “Gethsemane Sleep” – when his followers become complacent in their prayer privilege and responsibility (Matthew 26:33, 35-41).

Not only had they become complacent, but they also had sipped, imbibed, and become drunk off the wine of self-sufficiency. Peter said, “I will never deny you. And all the other disciples vowed the same.” (Matthew 26:35) As we used to say on the block, “Never is a long time.”  You should never say never because  we are too frail and too prone to failure to say what we will never do. Sounds too much like pride, overconfidence, self sufficiency or cockiness to me. I recognize it because I have been there, done that, got the T-shirt, and am making the video version of it. And, the next time we see them, they are sleeping instead of praying. I believe prayerlessness had infiltrated their lives long before they were found to be prayer-less in Gethsemane; it was just revealed when Jesus found them sleeping. 

Isaiah said that prayerlessness is a sure sign that we have grown tired of God: “But my dear people, you refuse to ask for my help. You have grown tired of me! (Isaiah 43:22) When we are more concerned about our social networks than our Spiritual Network, then we have grown tired of God. When we depend more on our own strength to get things done rather than his power to accomplish the impossible, then we have grown tired of God. When we manipulate and maneuver circumstances and people to get our way rather than trusting him to change hearts and navigate circumstances, then we have grown tired of God. When we trust our own resources more than the Source of our resources, then we have become victims of prayerlessness and thus have grown tired of God. 

Let’s demonstrate to our heavenly Father that we have not grown tired of him by spending quality time with him in prayer and depending on his wisdom and his power for our lives. 

How much time do you spend in prayer from one week to another? What do you need to do to make prayer more of a priority in your life?      

Tired of God? Wake up your prayer life.  

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I follow the Radical Rabbi named Jesus, but I am too safe, too comfortable, too undisturbed. I hang the Do Not Disturb sign on the door of my life because I don’t like my comfort, safety and status quo living being interrupted by the turbulence of big dreams, the deep waters of radical obedience, the rough seas of suffering, and the dark nights of uncertain adventures.  

The other day, I ran across a prayer, written by Sir Frances Drake (explorer and naval pioneer during the Elizabethan era), that disturbed me. This prayer affected my spiritual equilibrium so much, that I want to share it with you, in hopes that it will disturb you like it did me. Don’t just gloss over the words; sit with it for a minute and then spend some time, dissecting and parsing its content. Then ask God to help you identify “smooth sailing” areas of your life.  Next, ask him to disturb the places in your life where you are safe, comfortable, undisturbed. Here’s the prayer: 

In what areas have you become too comfortable and need to pray: “Lord, disturb me?” In what areas in your life have you been traveling too close to shore and need to pray: “Lord, disturb me?”

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