Disciplined Lives

Titus 2:1-6, “Your job is to speak out on the things that make for solid doctrine. Guide older men into lives of temperance, dignity, and wisdom, into healthy faith, love, and endurance. Guide older women into lives of reverence so they end up as neither gossips nor drunks, but models of goodness. By looking at them, the younger women will know how to love their husbands and children, be virtuous and pure, keep a good house, be good wives. We don’t want anyone looking down on God’s Message because of their behavior. Also, guide the young men to live disciplined lives.”

Paul is speaking to one who is setting up the church and guiding people.  He is very specific in ways to care and guide people.  Older men toward love and faith.  Grumpiness is not included.  Older women toward respect and goodness.  Like it has been said, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”  Young women toward love and virtue.

Finally he speaks to young men to live disciplined lives.  I feel this could be said of the other three too.  Working with youth for six years and now focusing more on 20’s and 30’s for the last two, we do not live disciplined lives.  There is no doubt we go from one thing to the other when we feel like we should.

A wise businessman I know once told me the practices and disciplines you learn in your first two years in the working world will stick with you for the rest of your life.

This is why it is so important for those of you starting off out of college or high school to find practices which build disciplines in your life.  This may include consistent sleep times, healthy eating, exercise, time spent with God in the Word and prayer, etc.  It will only help you down the road.

So what about all us old folk who are past this time.  Let’s be honest, it is going to be really hard, but it is possible to develop disciplines in your life.

Rich Mullins wrote in one of his songs, “What I’d have settled for/You’ve blown away/What You brought me to/I thought I could not reach.”

The Father is able and willing to move us beyond who we have settled for.  In this New Year may the Father move me and you, through a more disciplined life into the place he’s called us to.

Coat

II Tim. 4, “Bring the winter coat I left in Troas with Carpus; also the books and parchment notebooks.”

I love reading the scriptures and coming upon verses like this one.  These books are projects from human hands inspired by God.  There is such a humanity written into the pages of the scriptures.  Paul has given instructions to push through the hard times, to keep your eyes on God, to watch out for the false teacher, and to bring the coat with you.

God is in the midst of the everyday.  We have erred when we separate the “spiritual” and the “secular”.  We claim one place is more holy than another.  A church building is different then your office.  The church parking lot is different than the high school parking lot.  God is not confined in the places we try to keep him or if we’re honest, sometimes want to keep him so we can be good at church and some other way in other places.

God is here.  He is where you are right now.  Whether you acknowledge him or not.  He’s there waiting in the ordinary everyday.

Books

It’s the end of the year and everyone seems to be talking about the top 10 of everything.  I think I’m just as qualified to do the same.

So here goes, my top five…books I read this year (in no particular order):

1. The Missional Leader by Alan Roxburgh and Fred Romanuk.  A challenging look at the church and traditional forms of leadership and structure.

2. The Blue Parakeet by Scot McKnight.  How do we read the Bible?  Why do we skip over certain parts and highlight others.  A great honest look at our approach to the Word.

3. The Great Awakening by Jim Wallis.  Election year, need I say more.

4. Bo’s Lasting Lessons by Bo Schembechler.  Michigan football and leadership.  An interesting look inside.

5. Moo, Baa, La La La by Sandra Boynton.  One of Aubrey’s favorites.

Containers

2 Tim. 2…“In a well-furnished kitchen there are not only crystal goblets and silver platters, but waste cans and compost buckets–some containers used to serve fine meals, others to take out the garbage.  Become the kind of container God can use to present any and every kind of gift to his guests for their blessing.”

This passage stuck me today.  I think maybe because recently, our youth pastor lost one of his mentors.  I just spent some time reading reflections from people he worked with and those who loved Randy on various blogs.  I never met him but I wish I had.  Corey loved him like a father, what a great compliment.  I suppose I look at this verse and hear the way Corey and these other people looked at this servant of God as a container of love, compassion, hope, joy, and so much more.  His life was a blessing to all God loves.

Lord, may each one of us be a container filled with all the goodness of God for the blessing of his guests.

AFA

My friend, Heidi Lum, started Advocate for Africa’s Children in Swaziland in Africa.  This video was from a recent trip she took.  Thanks for taking the time to watch it.  To find out more visit: www.afachildren.org

Nitpick

“Repeat these basic elements over and over to God’s people. Warn them before God against pious nitpicking, which chips away at the faith.” -2 Tim. 2 (The Message)

How quickly and swiftly we can move away from the core message of the Gospel, of the Bible and focus on other “nitpicking” items which make us more self-righteous and “godly”.

The core message of the Bible is God’s restoration of his creation. There was perfection in the garden, sin entered and messed everything up. The story of the Bible has been God’s restoring action. This is why Jesus is important, to restore a broken relationship between man and God. This is the role of the church, is to be agents on a mission of restoration.

So back to the basics, Gospel and restoration. Nitpicking as the Message says chips away at the faith. I cannot tell you how many times nitpicking from Christians have distracted from the core mission of God and I might add have hurt so many people in the process.

So, do we nitpick? Or are we focused on the basics?

Church

Lesslie Newbigin:

“The church represents the presence of the reign of God in the life of the world, not in the triumphalist sense (as the “successful” cause)and not in the moralistic sense (as the “righteous” cause), but in the sense that it is the place where the mystery of the kingdom present in the dying and rising of Jesus is made present here and now so that all people, righteous and unrighteous, are enabled to taste and share the love of God before whom all are unrighteous and all are accepted as righteous.”

Is this the church you have experienced? Is this the church you are a part of? Some of you who read this blog have been burned or turned off by the church and I do not blame you in some of your situations.

Paul wrote to Timothy for the sake of the believers, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.  So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time…”

Those who follow Jesus are to respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and move in love…love for the sake of the Gospel.  In this movement of love, as Newbigin states, all will be accepted as righteous.  The grace given is a powerful gift given not just for our self but for the good of the world.

First

“I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and I am persuaded now live in you also.”

Paul wrote a letter to Timothy in II Timothy 1 reminding him that his faith formation began in his mom and grandma.  Faith was something passed down from one generation to the next.

What about you?  If you have faith in Jesus, what about your faith?  Where did it come from?  Who had a formative impact on you?

What about your kids?  Is faith being passed on to them?

I find it so interesting how many parents return to faith and church when they have kids.  They know the value it has if properly formed in a person.  They want their kids to experience a positive life changing environment where they can be a part of something more than themselves.

Thank you mom, dad, Grandma K, and her mother for the faith you have shared and how it has impacted me.

Rich

On Sunday morning I spoke at our church.  We continued our Advent series called, “A Tale of Two Kingdoms.”  The message was titled “Redistribution”.  There were three points to the message: 1. You Are Rich.  2. It’s Not Yours.  3. Be Generous.  If you are interested, it is on I-Tunes.  Search “Family Bible Church”.  Click Podcasts and then search through until you see the one that says Marshall Michigan.

Anyways…I ended the message with this verse from I Timothy 6:17-19,

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.  In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”

The last line has held my attention all week, “…life that is truly life.”  Paul as he wrote these words instructed the church to embrace something more than this consume, consume, consume mindset.  He hinted toward something more to this life.  I wonder what we are missing when we ignore Paul’s words?

Pray

“The first thing I want you to do is pray.  Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. “  -I Timothy 2:1

Paul’s first direction to Timothy was to pray, pray, pray.  If we’re honest, sometimes prayer feels empty.  We feel like we are talking to a wall or even to no one.  But Scripture says that God hears our words, our cries to him.

Prayer is an open door of communication with God.  Prayer is not so much about changing God but rather refining and changing us.  It causes us to be more and more in tune with God and how He is moving.

My Grandma Karbusicky was a woman who prayed.  My mom often reminded me that she prayed hard for her family.  She was a great woman of faith who had a deep abounding faith to her last days.  I’m thankful for the prayers of my grandma.

May we in times of trouble and also in times of rejoicing turn to God to talk and to listen.