We've Moved!

So much has changed in the last two weeks.  For starters we’ve moved from PA to VA to begin ministry to ROTC cadets in the Mid-Atlantic region.   We’re now about 15 minutes from VA Tech and an hour and 15 minutes from Virginia Military institute, two of our primary campuses.  We’re praying for God to open doors at all 48 campuses with ROTC programs – would you join us in this prayer?

The decision to move happened over the course of about 2 days.  It was a long time coming, but the decision to go was quick.  God opened a door for us, literally.  We signed a lease for the first house we looked at, on the first day of house hunting.  Despite looking at many other houses and condos we always went back to the first one – when we walked in, it just felt like home. 

And, what would a Mike and Jess story be without a long road trip?  Yes, we signed a lease and drove back to PA to pack up the Farm house, then drove back to VA in a caravan with Mike’s parents, Brad and LouAnn, and moved in.  Brad and LouAnn made the move so easy – we couldn’t have done it without them.  For those of you wondering about all of the meat which resulted from Mike’s hunting expeditions, fear not.  Mike ordered a chest freezer and timed the delivery to match our arrival time.  I do my meat shopping in the garage now.

In the two weeks since we’ve moved we have seen God open doors for us with the VT Campus Crusade Campus Ministry team, the University, and amazingly enough with over a dozen cadets!  We have been given an unexplainable peace and sense of contentment.  We remain open and available to the plans of the Lord, but He has given us such a sense of being in the right place right now that we’re pretty awed by Him. 

Thank you to everyone who has joined us in prayer and given wise counsel.  We continue to praise the Lord for your influence in our lives – He is so good to not have us on this journey alone!

Teachable or Willing to Learn?

For as long as I can remember I've always heard of the importance to be 'willing to learn'.  It is so important to start a new job and be willing to learn.  Or, as a student, be willing to learn from professors and students with backgrounds very different from your own.  Yet, as I continue to grow in age and spirit, I see more and more the higher value of a 'teachable' heart and mind.  What's the difference?

I can remember one Lieutenant from my days on active duty who always insisted she was 'willing to learn'.  Despite her hard attitude, indifference to protocol, and lack of interest in the Airmen around her, she was 'willing to learn'.  What was she 'willing to learn'?  I'm not sure.  My efforts toward counseling and guiding her often led to outbursts of tears or near Mt. Vesuvius-style blowouts.  'Willing to learn'?  Perhaps she was; if only I could have cracked her code and tailored each task, order, and project to her liking.

A stark contrast was a young sergeant struggling significantly in the transition from Airman to non-commissioned officer (NCO).  From the start this sergeant was 'teachable'.  Her heart was geared toward growth.  She stalled because she couldn't do it alone and each of her previous supervisors had left her without a path.  So we began a long steady march intended to help her grow from Airman to NCO.  She blossomed.  For the first time she internalized her role, responsibilities, and took initiative to maximize them.

The difference between 'teachable' and 'willing to learn' is dramatic.  'Teachable' reflects the heart and mind condition.  A heart that is set toward change and growth is teachable, consenting to instruction.  Listen to descriptions of people.  Often the word teachable is used by someone other than the subject.  It is bestowed upon the subject rather than self-proclaimed.  In contrast, 'willing to learn', is often how we describe ourselves when others are not willing to make a parallel reference.  It's an internally focused attitude that says, 'I'll learn if you can teach me in the way I want'.  One who is 'willing to learn' may not be receptive to instruction despite their claim.

The psalmist cries, "Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths.  Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long." Psalm 25:4-5.  It is an active willingness to receive instruction that makes us teachable.  How good is our Lord to not leave us alone to traverse a rocky path?  If we are willing, he will guide us through the path and help our transition.  We must only set our hearts toward Him.

I have a long way to go before I'm where I want to be, but I grow significantly faster when I submit my heart to be teachable, when I recognize I'm often the one in the way of my own learning, and allow the walls and prejudices to come down.  Rather than being willing to learn, I pray for a teachable heart and mind.

Does This Look Familiar?

I'll admit it. I'm taking this from another blog. Sean and Melissa, I hope you don't mind, but it's too good to not share.

I pray this challenges you as much as it did me. There are many times when I've felt so comfortable that I hardly recognize my relationship with Jesus Christ. The books all look the same, the messages from pastors all sound the same, the church activities all blend together; yet, this journey is exciting, vibrant, and passionate. At least it should be. Sometimes I need to see a visual to remind me.

Community

For the last ten years I've moved nearly every 1-2 years. Even during college I hopped around Philadelphia and lived in a different suburb each academic year, and so it often felt like I had moved to a completely new place each summer. And, yet I can really only remember a few neighbors. There was Arthur the whacky engineer and Marine Reserve officer who taught me how to shine my boots properly. Philippe, a Frenchman on a work visa doing artisan woodworking for a cabinet company, and who kept in touch when he returned to France. He wanted me to understand that he didn't have any anti-American sentiment when the Iraq War started. And the downstairs neighbors whose names I never learned, and are the only neighbors for whom I've called the police. Ahhh, Philadelphia.

Have you wondered why it is that we hesitate to meet our neighbors? While I lived overseas I thought I would meet my neighbors and at the very least would know their names and understand the rhythms of life that determined their comings and goings. School buses, work, family vacations, or pending moves. Yet, two years passed and I knew only one name and never understood any of the rhythms of their life.

The process of learning about community has been a gradual one for me. If I am hesitating to step forward to meet neighbors, then it's likely they are also hesitating or feel too busy to reach out. It's an awkward staring contest of waving over snowy cars before work, a slight nod as you pick up your newspaper, and the occasional, 'Happy Holidays', when you happen to cross paths during the Christmas season. Who will blink first? I'm learning that more and more I need to be willing to blink first and step forward. Slowly my sense of entitlement that convinces me that my neighbors need to reach out to me first is fading. Slowly my heart is being humbled by the Holy Spirit to see through His eyes - my neighbors are mirror images of me. Lost. Sinners. People with hurts, losses, shame, and guilt. Someone once reached out to me to bring me closer to Christ. Can I in-turn pass this along? Will I continue the movement?

Recently we had the privilege and joy of being "stranded" in DC during a blizzard, and had a wonderful and refreshing week with close friends. The depth of community they have worked to cultivate is amazing. It's more than knowing neighbors, but a development of relationships in all generations. Katie knows the baristas at the Caribou Coffee near their home, Jason has been able to pour into a neighbor's teenage sons, and both are growing relationships with neighbors, a difficult thing to do in transient DC. What struck me is their initiative made this possible. Hundreds of customers pass through Caribou daily, but how many ask the baristas about their lives beyond the polite, chatty "coffee" talk? With a growing family and steady work-related travel they could easily hole-up in their townhouse and not interact with anyone, but they've chosen to bring brownies to new neighbors and invite them to share dinner.

Community will enrich our lives in ways unimaginable. The people God has placed in our lives have greater depth than we ever allow ourselves to assume, they have more varied experiences, and have so much to teach us...if we let them. Take a risk this grey, grey February and walk over to the neighbor brushing snow off their car and help them out. See where the conversation leads, it may surprise you.

You have everything you need

The close of a year and beginning of a new year seems to be a natural time to reflect, and the Lord has brought me to a few verses and left me to meditate on them:

"...To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with our by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:1

Did you catch that? Peter...the apostle PETER writing you the church declares we have obtained a faith of equal standing because of our salvation through Christ. The moment you make a Lordship decision, and invite Christ into your life you have a faith of equal standing with the apostles who lived with and learned from Jesus Christ himself!

"His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence," 2 Peter 1:3

And, because of this we now have all things for life and godliness. We may not know yet how to use them effectively or when to use them - but we have them. Isn't the hardest part of any home improvement project the time it takes to drive to and from Home Depot to get parts and bits and pieces? Peter says we don't need to do this anymore because we have all things.

"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge..." 1 Cor 1:3

Paul emphasizes that all things includes speech and knowledge. What's left?

I hope you find this as encouraging as I do. As you look to a new year I hope you will take time to read these scripture passages and meditate on what the Lord has done in your life, and will continue to do. We've all been given what we need to serve him well and grow in our relationship with him, and as with anything it will take time and perseverance to develop into maturity. I hope 2010 will be a year diving deep into the Living Word of God, trusting God for greater things, and serving him in new ways. May this be the year that you take God at his word and stake your claim on the verses above and believe him for all he promises.

A Jesus Manifesto?

This is a short post. Really, just a link and a few thoughts. I found this online tonight and wanted to pass it along, with prayers that you will read it and be challenged to meditate on the words and stew on their meaning.

Take time to consider the basic tenets of your own belief system and what you are proclaiming. Are you proclaiming the name and divinity of Jesus Christ, son of the Most High God; or are you devoted to being a follower of Christianity? Christianity itself cannot save you, Jesus Christ can.

When people see your actions, hear your speech, observe your countenance and attitude, do they see Christ or a churchgoer? I fear that all too often I come across as a churchgoer rather than a window to Christ Himself. I want for people around me to know Christ rather than Christianity - I want them to see and understand that liturgy, tenets and pillars are not Christ our Savior, but often all too often I fall short and allow myself to get in the way.

I'm also taken aback by the increasing amount of white noise surrounding the questions of what we shall call ourselves - emerging, traditional, organic, orthodox, house, sticky - what happened to follower of Christ? It seems to me that such an honorable title shouldn't be swept aside lightly, it should be accepted with humility for the cost of it is grave and with joy for the cost is already paid.

Be as a Berean (Acts 17:11) and discovery for yourself...http://www.the-next-wave-ezine.info/issue127/index.cfm?id=50&ref=COVERSTORY

The cross cultural mission field next door

Ever wonder why you never really clicked with your neighbor across the street? Or have you ever felt like avoiding eye contact with the person in line next to you in the store…the one with the vibrantly colored tattoos and the bars in their eyebrows? What about the lady wearing a hijab in the grocery store? So often we feel as though a cross-cultural experience can only happen with folks of different ethnic backgrounds or in an entirely new country, but really as we drift further and further from a community-centric norm, cross-cultural mission fields are closer and closer to our front door. Our tendency to surround ourselves with people very similar to ourselves provides an insular comfort zone and deadens our sensitivity to others and their needs.

Consider the path Jesus took when traveling from Judea to Galilee in John 4. He had to pass through Samaria, but rather than moving directly through as was the standard, he stopped at a well and interacted with a Samaritan woman. He could have moved passed, but he didn’t. How often do you pass quickly through areas of town that make you uncomfortable? Have you ever found yourself downtown and rolling up windows and locking your doors? Jesus didn’t. He stayed for two days.

Consider Luke 5: 27-32. Jesus calls Levi and Levi makes him a great feast. The Pharisees found the company lacking – tax collectors and others – and grumble. The Pharisees had isolated themselves to such an extreme that they were unable to recognize God among them, or the value of the creation of the God they worshipped. To isolate yourself from others to this extreme is one form of valuing yourself above them. “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 10:39.

I’ve found myself struggling with this from time to time as I get used to life in a small town after living in cities for ten years. I have a lot of room for growth, but I see the fruit of doing hard things – I’m learning about what my neighbors find important, how they think a church should run, politics, land ownership and care, and the value of waving to and acknowledging a passing car on the road. It’s awkward at times. One gentleman talked about his military service and referred to “Them Japs and Orients” over and over, another person asked about my English, and still another asked if it was hard to cook American food. This cross-cultural experience has much more to do with families who have lived in these hills for generations and generations than stamps in my passport, but I know this will prepare me for a time when my passport needs a stamp.

Adopt-A-Jesus

Saturday night Mike and I spent a little time at the Scarlet Cord in downtown Brookville. The Cord is a teen ministry center that has been run for the last 20 years or so by a wonderful family in town, and throughout the years they've had many people come along side them to volunteer and provide financial support to it. It's a place where kids can find something to do on a Friday or Saturday night, hang out, eat, play games, or find a listening post. They'll also hear the Gospel. Every night. It's not a cuddly place, but Truth and Grace are in abundance.

Here's their blog: http://thescarletcordteencenter.blogspot.com/

Saturday night I learned a little about the game "Magic", and Mike joined a hoops contest on an old arcade game. We also had a chance to see the documentary, "Adopt-A-Jesus".

The subject of the documentary is Brandt Russo and his friends as they take a renovated school bus run on biofuel through the deep South to share of the message of not ignoring the poor, caring for homeless and hitchhikers, and hearing their stories. Brandt himself spent over a year on the streets homeless to learn to love like Jesus - completely without desire for return or credit. He's still working with the homeless, though now his ministry is on the infamous Skid Row in L.A. The night he came to the Scarlet Cord he talked about the many deaths on Skid Row, the disenfranchised people he meets, and the many, many people like you and me who never think twice of abusing or ignoring them.

I'm still thinking about the emerging church, and feel strongly about the lack of Truth and Justice many preach, but there are some within the emerging church who have strong doctrine and a challenging lifestyle to demonstrate it. I think Brandt is one of them. When I was going to school at Eastern College (now University) in the western suburbs of Philly a group of alum were living in the NE Philly neighborhood of Kensington to reach the homeless, the neglected, and extreme poor. This ministry is called, "The Simple Way". I was fortunate to have opportunities to spend time in the neighborhood to work with the younger kids over the course of a couple school years. Walking from the train station through trash strewn streets and run-down row homes to get to a dilapidated church for tutoring and other after school activities left a huge impression on me. This wasn't a third world nation, and yet it felt and looked like it. Since then I've learned we don't need to head into the urban neighborhoods to find the "least of these".

The documentary is worth checking out, though the film maker is not a believer, and unfortunately his emphasis is in areas that I wouldn't have emphasized (and Brandt wouldn't have either), but it's a poignant look the "least of these" (Mtw 25:31-46). Brandt was heavily influenced by The Simple Way, and so I've included the website for you to peruse. My disclaimer - this is not an endorsement of their politics, just the faith in action. TSW is a pacifist organization and I respect it, but do not endorse or attempt to promote its politics.

Be as the Bereans and read, examine, and wrestle through this with the Holy Spirit... (Acts 17:10-11, Phil 2:12-13)

http://www.adoptajesus.com/

http://www.thesimpleway.org/

Starting with the end in mind

It feels as though the phrase, "start with the end in mind", has followed me for years, however, the wisdom of it is truly just sinking in for me. It seems simple. How many situations, events or daily appointments do we face with the end already in mind? Grocery shopping, checklists, yard work, letter writing, road trips, interviews, appointments, staff meetings...the list is varied and long. We typically move forward toward a specific goal or result, and make lists, jot notes on sticky pads, set alarms, and request follow-up phone calls or emails to ensure we stay on track and feel a sense of satisfaction when we're accomplished the "end".

I recently read a quote in Francis Chan's book, "Crazy Love", that caused me to look at the admonition to "start with the end in mind" through a different light.

"Our greatest fear as individuals and as the church should not be failure, but succeeding at things that don't matter." Tim Kizziar

Take a second and let it sink in. I had a stop reading the book for a little while when I first read this quote from Tim Kizziar, a pastor at Sisters Community Church in Sisters, OK.

Why do we start with the end in mind? To ensure success at a task. To guarantee an efficient use of energy and resources. To prioritize efforts. To see goals accomplished. Grand reasons, one and all, but what is the value of this type of success? Mr. Kizziar's statement is not intended to push us away from success, but to guide toward the right kind of success. What eternal value is in success by promotions, pay raises, upgrading neighborhoods and cars, or maintaining a certain social or professional circles? Or even accomplishing a checklist? There are many people who are specifically blessed to be financially successful to fund the Great Commission and invest in the Kingdom of God, there are those who are called to work full time in the efforts toward the Great Commission beyond our neighborhoods and familiar streets - yet the things that matter should be the same for both groups of people. Loving God, obedience to Him, and loving people.

Mike and I recently attended a memorial service for one of the directors at Military Ministry who passed away and went home to Jesus last week. I was struck by how well he lived his life, and what a legacy it proved. Paul lived his life in such a way that he truly succeeded in the things that should matter most - loving God, obedience to Him, and loving people. Each person who spoke, echoed how well Paul lived and that his legacy was of loving well. Rather than a sorrowful service, this memorial was lively and full of praise to the Lord. I left drawing closer to God and praising Him for what He did through Paul, and also wondering how well I'm doing at succeeding at things that matter. For years I pushed on driven by deadlines, checklists, and chains of command, and having been newly reminded of the temporary nature of most of it I'm spending a little time reconsidering these things.

It doesn't mean I'm throwing away my calendars and notepads, but it does mean I'm working to hold them lightly and sensitively so I can be open to the prompting of the Spirit to work without them from time to time.

What about you? Have you taken time recently to consider your drive for success and its motivations? Perhaps it is time to let the Spirit also prompt you to new direction.

Focus

I(Mike) just returned from driving across the country with my cousin where we spent a week chasing elk with our bows. We packed in all the food we ate and all the gear we needed on our backs. We covered a lot of hard miles, all by foot. The nights were cold, and a few of the days were rainy. By the end, we were as beat tired as we’ve ever been and had pretty bad chest colds. Driving us was the hope of getting a change to fill our tags. That wasn’t all that pushed me. I had to go and see if I had what it takes. Before the trip, some folks I talked with thought we must crazy, others understood what we were doing and why. What do you guys think?

During the hunt, I was a bit surprised by how focused I was able to stay. In the midst of the discomfort and exhaustion, all I could do was focus on the essentials: must get water, have to keep hiking, gotta go up over that mountain, don’t give up. Most everything else faded away in light of that which was more pressing. Being that focused is a blessing in hard times like that. Most of the time, I’m not nearly that on track. When I ask myself, “How focused are you in your Christian walk?” I’m usually a bit saddened.

More often than I care to admit, I let my priorities cloud the vision God has for my life. I want to go here, do this, spend my time there… How can I enjoy His perfect plan, when I’m always buggering it up with my own plan??? I don’t have to work harder, I need to remember His promises, and in faith surrender my will. It’s also not about feeling guilty. It’s about focusing on truth, and choosing the better. God promises many more, and far greater blessings when we obey Him. When I find myself doing what I want, it’s either because I don’t believe God, or because I don’t care. Both pretty well stink.

Paul reminds us all through Galatians 5 of the great rewards of living freely for Christ. When I choose to obey Christ, when I surrender my will and walk in His Spirit, life rocks! I’ve found that for me to stay focused, like during the hunt, I need to remind myself of the basics. God’s ways are better, more fulfilling, more blessed than my ways. If I choose His way, even when I can’t understand it from my view, I will have more joy and life.

Would you choose with me to surrender to His Spirit, and enjoy His abundant blessings??

PS, I got my bull. It was worth it. I had what it took, because God gave it to me.

On Faith

This year has been a glorious LEAP of faith for me. A complete change of career, finances, marriage, geography, families, and in the midst of all of these whirling factors the Lord has developed an amazing friendship between Mike and me. It's been a comfort and a stabilizing factor in all of this. I'm amazed at how our relationship has grown and changed. The Lord is sooo good!

Yet, there has always been a slight hesitation on my part when confronted with the LEAP of faith. I thought I had It. It being FAITH. However, for a little while now, the Lord has been impressing upon my heart how often I get caught up in the race for a better ‘quality’ of faith or greater ‘quantity’ of faith. I’ve found myself wrestling with big questions and in the process have tried earnestly to have more faith as though it would make big questions more manageable. Yet, the Lord has shown me so clearly in scripture that He never set a standard for faith, He asks us to simply have it. Believe He is the Son of God, the Savior and Redeemer, and Creator of all earth; simply believe.

Matthew 17:14-20 and Matthew 21:18-22 are two passages I read recently through which the Lord really opened up my heart to understand the contrast of striving for a standard of faith, and simply having faith.

“14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” 17 And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”’ Matthew 17: 14-20

'18 In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. 19 And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. 20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” 21 And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. 22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”' Matthew 21: 18-22

I've run through these passages so many times, but during the last week and a half I've stopped to reread and reread again. I've needed to look up notes on them and pray about them. The disciples surely had some faith, but what kind of faith? Faith in Jesus as Messiah or faith in Jesus as a true prophet or anointed one of God? Perhaps it was the idea of being able to cast out demons that was too heavy for them to bear, so their faith faltered - 'surely this Jesus can do miracles, but me?'. I'm struck by Jesus' words in both passages, 'have faith'. He doesn't tell them how much, or when to have it; simply, have faith.


Last night my friend, Brooke, reminded me of Francis Chan's (Cornerstone Church Simi Valley, CA) teachings, and so this morning I listened to an older sermon called, "Living a Life that Matters: Living Courageously". It's a powerful teaching on courageous faith. Francis used Rev 21:8 as a reminder of what God says will happen to the cowardly (don't be scared away -- it's an incredibly encouraging message!); and it hit me hard. The LEAP of faith is about simply having faith in what God has called for us to do, and moving forward with the assumption that He who calls is faithful and will provide. It's living courageously and willingly. So, I'm rejoicing in the Lord today, for what He is doin in my heart and the ways He is revealing what He does with our faith. Ever struggle with this? I'd love to hear what God has been teaching you about living courageously and simply having faith.


Jess