Foundational Missions

As we enter this world, the smile and joyful exclamations of one man welcome us to our new reality. Who is this man? He is known as our father. This moment is the beginning of the important role he plays in the different stages of our life. He is not just an individual who helped in our creation or pays our bills at the end of each month.

A father is a person who gives all he can to help you, in ways great or small. He takes the responsibility he has been given seriously and sacrifices himself for the sake of his children. He has a role to play, which no other individual can replace. A father is one who gives in selfless love to provide for you, teach you, and challenge you.

A father is a giving person who sacrifices daily for his family. This sacrifice may be found in working long hours to support the family or spending time with his kids. Through this sacrifice, he realizes that he is not the center of his world. He is aware of the importance of the responsibility he has been given. Sacrifice is a necessary element of fatherhood.

And that is our problem. We know what to do; in life, in ministry, and in business. And if you don’t know what to do, someone will happily tell you (sadly most often from the same source as your “knowing” comes from). There is no blank slate to start from…

My mind goes to examples from scripture that highlight such “knowing” and reveal it’s source.

Why do most major issues become rapidly politicized and fought over, with fixed battle lines and endless strategizing? Who wins with this approach? Who loses?

We are living in a time where everyone is looking for the “high ground” of being the “one” who is right. Not to mention the immediate huddling into opposing camps, consolidating power, shaming and reproach of opponents, and basic devaluing of the dignity of ourselves and others. Looking for the high ground in a conversation, and especially in an argument, robs us of the benefits of the perspective of others. The robbery happens when we need to prove our points as superior and ultimate.

I travel, safe to say I think, more than most. As I type I’m on a plane.  I travel about every other week, sometimes more.  Maybe this is why I’ve noticed we have a problem down at the local Micky D’s.  Especially when driving cross country, you are looking for a convenient, quick and clean place to get rid of that coffee you really had to have a few hours before.  But you can’t buy a meal every time.  Stops kill your time results.  Also, you aren’t hungry, but a cone sounds nice!  Right?  Wrong.

My last rendezvous with this fact was quite recent, and this angst has been building for a while, to be honest.  What can I say, I like ice cream.

My wife and I were about to get into a stretch of I-20/59 that is pretty sparsely populated. We called an audible and took the exit. Would it be false hope that the Golden Arches inspired? I told her as we pulled in, “I bet you $10 the ice cream machine is broken.” When we walked out, I wanted to know where my money from the bet was. Oh, I wasn’t surprised, but more like the final squeaks of a balloon that’s loosing all it’s air, my final gasp of confidence in getting a cone from this place (or it’s billon other locations) left me with a grunt. I’m done, I told her. Let’s never stop for anything at McD’s ever again. She agreed.

Oh, the irony!

For this article in Spanish, clic Español

There is an escape from dominance by the spirit of the age, which is Christ and His grace. The systems and strategy that the enemy uses against us, we are no match for, in our own strength. This can be clearly seen in the example of the man and the woman in the garden of old. To face spiritual forces in natural strength creates a very predictable outcome. But let’s not lose heart! We have access to the Tree of Life, Himself!

Esta es una traducción del texto original publicado en Inglés, si deseas leer el texto original haz click aquí: Madurez Espiritual

As we grow in spiritual maturity, our desire grows toward mutuality.  We want to have a contribution, and we want to grow in our contribution.  Often as we are in the beginning stages of our journey, we look for and seek everything and everyone who will make a contribution to and for us, with little thought toward contributing. This is normal and shouldn’t cause any alarm.  “What’s in it for me?” is an expression of immaturity, coming from an immature mind and perspective…

Dependence, Independence, Interdependence 

We can see this in Paul’s thoughts on impartation in Romans 1.  Here he explains that impartation is, in fact, mutual.  It’s not something that the “great man” or “great woman” comes to town to do, it’s something that we participate in, mutually.

10 always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be [h]established; 12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine.
So much of what we see around us, and even the way things are constructed, in effect locks us into immaturity.  Don’t be alarmed, however, if Jesus is the one you are following, He will lead you on, beyond these things!

And a thousand into the wilderness.

The road leading home is the road of obedience. Unless your course is fixed, you are powerless before a thousand options, regardless of how “empowered” you may feel.

This reference to the wilderness, tho I am not sure it was CS Lewis’ meaning in his original statement, has a curious parallel to the children of Israel’s trek, a trek we are all on, in a manner of speaking. Our individual journeys will fill up a lifetime, but will it be a lifetime of wandering here and there, filled with false hopes & failing motivations, distractions, misleadings and unfulfilled promise? The choice was theirs, and it is ours, as well. Continue reading “One Road Leads Home…”