Just passing something simple (yet profoundly important) on: What every child should hear from his or her parents:

1. You are my son/daughter. This states ownership on my part, and identity on theirs. It gives them a place to belong, in my family. This is the foundational statement on which the other two phrases are built.

2. I love you. This is one of those phrases I don’t think I can say enough. This tells my kids I accept them as they are. My boys are finally to the age where they randomly say to me, “I love you, dad”. I treasure those unprompted comments from them.

3. I am proud of you. My pride in them is not because of performance, but because they are mine. I regularly ask my oldest, “Do you know why I am proud of you?” He always looks me back in the eyes, smiles, and proudly says, “Because I’m your son.” Occasionally, he’ll say he doesn’t remember why I’m proud of him. I don’t mind when he does that. It’s his way of telling me he needs to hear it from me again.

Where did I get this? From the example God set for us as Father. At the baptism of Jesus, before He had done anything of significance in His earthly ministry, God says in Matthew 3:17: “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

…God was claiming Him as His own. Because of his sonship, God loved him and was proud of him.

These words are powerful. Don’t believe me? Try them on your kids. Now remember, if you have gone some time without telling them this, you might feel weird or out of place. Let me encourage you to push through it. It’s worth it. (via Kevin East)

This is quite simply great advice and it will make a difference in your child’s life no matter how young or old they are. Don’t cheat them from knowing they are yours, that you love them, and that you are proud to be their parent.

...comment ...discuss at http://teammueller.com/r/what-every-child-should-hear/?utm_source=rss&utm_med...

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Yikes! Technical Problems...

Just refreshed my memory on chapter four of The Good and Beautiful God and found it so encouraging that I wanted to pass along a few tidbits. You'll get a quick sense of the author's throughts as you follow the progression of these quotes:

First, he highlights a false narrative we tend to live out, even if we don't consciously agree with it:

What does God want from us? ... "What God most wants is for us not to sin and instead to do good." This [false] narrative is rooted, as all false narratives are, in a half-truth. True, God does not want us to sin, and God does want us to do well. But that is only because sin harms us, and acts of goodness are healing both to us and to the recipients of our goodness.

Then he asks his readers to consider if this narrative is the dominant narrative we should consider:

Even though we can find a few “narratives of earning” from select Bible passages, there is only enough cloth to make a small quilt of guilt and fear. The larger narrative from the biblical story is a massive tapestry of grace and generosity... The dominant narrative of the Bible is a story of unearned grace, of a God whose love is not thwarted by human sinfulness, and of a Christ who dies for sinners (Romans 5:8). The minor narratives are a part of the ambiguity of all epic stories. The metanarrative of the Bible is the story of the steadfast love of God that culminates in the incarnation, death and resurrection of God on behalf of a wayward world. Therefore, we should interpret the entire Bible and each of its parts in light of Jesus. It is noteworthy that every time Paul brings up a story from the Hebrew Bible, he interprets it in light of Jesus.

The author then reflects on Jesus' parable of the generous vineyard owner (who paid workers coming to work very late in the day a full day's wages; Matthew 20:1-16), summing it up by focusing on verse 15, which suggests that God is fundamentally generous. Interestingly, the author then makes an interesting historical point about how the story was told in Jesus day, which gives further clarity on what Jesus was attempting to teach:

Bible scholar Joachim Jeremias notes that a similar parable was told by Jewish rabbis. In their parable the punch line is quite different. The owner of the vineyard explains that the last group got the same amount because they earned it—they worked harder and did more in their short time than the first group did all day. Jesus’ story is exactly the opposite. It has nothing do with earning, justice or fairness. Jeremias concludes: In the parable of Jesus, the labourers who were engaged last show nothing to warrant a claim to a full day’s wages; that they receive it is entirely due to the goodness of their employer. Thus in this apparently trivial detail lies the difference between two worlds: the world of merit, and the world of grace; the law contrasted with the gospel. . . . Will you then murmur against God’s goodness? That is the core of Jesus’ vindication of the gospel: Look what God is like—all goodness. If this were the only story you knew about God, what would you conclude? I would believe that God does not behave anything like what I see in the world. In our world the parable told by the Jewish rabbis makes sense. The late workers worked harder and got what they deserved. But in Jesus’ parable I am struck by the utter gratuity of God. (emphasis mine)

This, God's generous desire to love us without regard to merit, is what we should focus on when we think of God because this is what Jesus was trying to teach. Not only that, but this is what Jesus demonstrated day by day while he walked the earth and minute by minute as he suffered on the cross.

Finally, the author concludes the chapter by asking his readers to consider the motive of God's generosity toward us - toward me and you:

Generosity... flows from either a sense of abundance or a feeling of compassion. God is moved by both. God is generous because he lives in a condition of abundance—his provisions can never be exhausted—and God is moved with compassion because he sees our need... [Given this] what does God want from me? I believe he would answer, God wants you to know and to love him. This narrative tells of a God who is loving and merciful, whose desire is to love and to be loved. This in no way negates the fact that God is unflinchingly against sin. God hates sin because it hurts his children. But God is crazy about his children. The Westminster Larger Catechism, written in 1648, opens with a question and an answer: Question: What is the chief and highest end of man?   Answer: Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy Him forever. I love the concept of fully enjoying God forever. Do you think that God wants you to enjoy him? Though many people do not believe this, I think it is what God most wants. Julian of Norwich once wrote, “The greatest honor we can give to God is to live gladly because of the knowledge of his love.”

As you go about your day today, remember God's generous love, expressed in so many ways we often miss... the air in our lungs and ongoing rhythm of our heart; the sun (when it shines on us here in Oregon), the rain that keeps our landscape green; family, friends, community; and of course in Christ through his teaching, sacrifice, and presence. His generosity is all around, I hope I have eyes to see it, for it is new every morning in both the best and worst of times (Lamentations 3:22-23).

That is why the Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish. Joel 2:12-13 (NLT)  

I had the opportunity to participate in an Ash Wednesday service this morning (complete with an ashen cross rubbed onto my forehead) and was struck by the words of Joel, specifically "...tear your hearts...", which were read aloud to the congregation. 

How might I live out this scripture over the coming days of Lent? 

Over the past few hours, a few thoughts on this have bounced around my head and heart:

• First, I look to all the words of this scripture and am reminded that whatever the Lord calls us to, he calls us to out of his mercy, compassion, and unfailing love. This is his character and it does not change. Understand it or not, in calling his people to honest repentance he is calling them to his love.
• Second, I do not believe I can rend my own heart open on my own power. I need to ask for the support of grace in coming to him honestly, in the ashes of repentance for whatever I have done and whatever I have left undone, be the doing or "non-doing" conscious or not.
• Third, I will benefit as I remember that I am part of the catholic Church. I am joining in the fellowship of the Body of Christ, a fellowship that extends beyond language, borders, and even time. I humble myself during Lent just as many who have gone before me have done, just as many who share this world with me today are doing. There is a willingness to let your soul be searched by the One who loves us when we know that others are doing the same!
• Finally, I need to lean into the ancient-present practice of Lent by adding a daily prayer to my life (scripted below) and as I fast from something that will be missed (and will therefore be reminded to turn my hunger, my desire, to the Lord so that he can have my heart to do with as he pleases). Both of these practices will, I believe, create an opening in my life for Him to whatever work he needs to do in this man's soul.

The Prayer of St. Ephrem the Syrian

O Lord and Master of my life, keep from me the spirit of indifference and discouragement, lust of power and idle chatter. [kneel/prostration]

Instead, grant to me, Your servant, the spirit of wholeness of being, humble-mindedness, patience, and love. [kneel/prostration]

O Lord and King, grant me the grace to be aware of my sins and not to judge my brother; for You are blessed now and ever and forever. Amen. [kneel/prostration]

May my heart be broken open before Him...

"Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones he wanted to go with him. And they came to him. Then he appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles. They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach..." (Mark 3:13,14 NLT)

Isn't it interesting that Jesus didn't want everyone to go where he went? Textual clues in the narrative around these verses suggest that Jesus had a large and curious crowd wandering behind him. He also had a substantial subset within that crowd of more committed followers, willing to go anywhere. Out of that subset he chooses only a small group, twelve to be exact, to go with him and do what he did (preach the good news of the Kingdom and cast out demons).

Here's my question: What did the committed subset do when he didn't call them to go with him? And here's my answer: Maybe they went home. This runs counter to our romantic thoughts about what it means to be a "real" disciple. I'm okay with that because I think we are oftentimes too romantic when we read the bible, thinking that we must be like the twelve in order to make a difference or be "real" disciples of Jesus. 

Consider though: were those who were not chosen to go preach and heal of no use to Jesus? Sounds crazy even to consider such a thing, doesn't it? And it is when we stop and think about it. The truth is that those not called to go preach and teach were invaluable to the manifestation of the Kingdom of God in all the small little nooks and crannies of this world that they inhabited as part of their everyday and very ordinary life.

It's passages like this (and like Mark 5:18-19) that help us see that Jesus doesn't need or want everyone to be a preacher, or a missionary, or an aid worker. Rather, Jesus needs the bulk of us to continue traveling the well-worn paths we always have, and to do that as people who seek to manifest the Kingdom right where we are: in our homes with our family members, at school with our classmates, at work with our bosses, employees, or peers, and in our communities with people we love and those we struggle to love.

Jesus has an essential role for you to play in his Kingdom, even - or maybe especially - if he "only" calls you to be his child in your home and community instead of in some far off land preaching to and healing the masses. Let the Kingdom be manifest in small ways right where you are as you sow seeds of grace. Just perhaps those seeds that will grow into something bigger and better than anyone might expect (Mark 4:30ff)!

Last week I was talking with a friend about Jesus' parable of the prodigal. It's beautiful story (and if you've not read it, do so right now, you won't be sorry) that captures the extravagant love of a father for his wayward sons. In the midst of the conversation it became apparent that there's no indication that the father had to try to love his sons well, he just did it. And that got me thinking: why didn't he have to try and why do I have to try so hard to love well (and yet fail so often in doing so)?

I don't believe that God, represented as the father in Jesus' parable, has to try to love us. He loves perfectly, all the time, without fail. His perfect love arises from who he is, rather than an effort of the will on his part. His love of his creation and his love of his children just comes naturally, even in the hardest of times like when Jesus does the loving thing even for those who happened to be crucifying him at the time.

The bible says that we are created in God's image, that is, we are created to be the image-bearers of who he is, what he cares about, and how he acts in goodness and love. We are created in his likeness. When I hear this, I think of a lens and begin to imagine that we are the lenses through which God meant to project his light and love out into his creation. The problem is that we don't do that too well. Try as we may we don't love perfectly, or even close to it.

Why? Why can't we be who we want and know we should be?

From a Christian perspective, the problem comes down to the belief that God's image in us, the lens through which he wishes to shine the light of his love into his creation, is damaged. It's scratched up, it's spider-webbed, it's broken into pieces; any projection through it - any effort to shine the his love through our being - will be distorted; the light of love just can't shine through cracked lenses without distortion. And so, I believe this is the reason we can't love God, others, ourselves, or creation except in a sometimes less, sometimes more, distorted fashion.

So what's the hope? 

The only hope for a lens that projects imperfectly is for that lens to be repaired and restored. If that could be fully restored then we would love naturally like the father in the parable and like the God who loves us. As I read the bible, the initial repair work on that image comes as we entrust our lens to the master lens-maker, and as we draw nearer and nearer to him, he reshapes his image-bearers to project his character, his love, his desires, better and better over time (1 Corinthians 3:16-18). 

Yet, we still don't project all that well right now, do we? And so God uses other tools around us, if we let him. The truth is that while we sense that we are broken image-bearers, we are too close to the problem and too inept to know how to fix our own lens. So we need to receive the corrective the input of his word to us regularly. We need to be open to what the natural consequences of our choices might teach us. We need the best input of others and what they see to help us, too.

Together, all three of these tools help us realize when we cast a distorted attempt at love and goodness into the world and onto others, ourselves, or God. But even more than that, if we cooperate with the Lord in his use of these tools, the broken lens of our being might just be polished here and there, or angled just a little differently now and then, or be pieced together a little better every once in a while, so in the end we grow better able to be a vehicle for the love God desires to shine into the world. And as we let that happen, perhaps we'll have to try less and less to love better and better because we are being reshaped in his image, the image we were meant to reveal all along.

“I contend that to be saved is to be renewed in the true image of God as women and men in Christ, to have our relationality restored so that our sinful selves, hopelessly incurvatus in se [turned in on themselves], are set free to be new creations in true divine and human koinnia.” Cherith Fee Nordling via A Community Called Atonement: Living Theology

Lord, help me to cooperate fully with your efforts to restore your image in me. Help me be open to the work of your Son, my Savior, and the Holy Spirit toward this end. Help me also to read and receive your word and to be open to the insights of those in the Body of Christ about my brokenness. Please, let your work be done through this so that I can better reveal your love and goodness in the world.

Jacob to Esau: "...what a relief to see your friendly smile. It is like seeing the face of God! (Genesis 33:10 NLT) Jacob said this after Esau (the one Jacob had cheated and swindled more than once) welcomed him back into his life with open arms.

We would do well to remember this as it is the very picture of the good news we live in as followers of Christ. No matter what we have done and no matter the failures of our character, in (re)turning to the Lord as Jacob returned to Esau we invariably discover the warm embrace and the welcome smile of the One who is a friend to those like Jacob (and me)...who are very broken and far from holiness but have the privilege of knowing a beautiful and faithful God!

Just thought I'd pass it along as it made me smile to think of God warmly smiling on me!

Join in, if you want, with others who are reading the Bible this year. It's easy and I even have a Facebook group you can 'like' (Facebook.com/ReadandReceive). Details on reading plans and occasional reflections are posted there.

In my last post, I mentioned that I would be slowly and intentionally sharing some of my foundational assumptions about the Church and our church. If you are a part of the Columbia Ridge family in any way, you deserve to know what goes on in my head and my heart. You deserve to know the foundation from which we move forward. You deserve to know so that you are given an opportunity to speak into what happens in your church family, to be part of what we share of the grace we have been given, which begins with the life we’ve received, the salvation we are offered, and the ongoing favor we enjoy in walking through life with Christ together.

As I shared at The Gathering that occurred last month (everyone is always invited to one of these quarterly events!) there are several convictions I have about the mission we are called to embark on together. I will share these in this post, will share where I believe they will ultimately lead in the next post, and will share what happens in-between – how we get from here to there – in my final post on this topic.

So what convictions does this follower of Christ have?

First, I believe that the call of Christ to us is not simply to make converts to a church but rather disciples of Jesus, his reflections, fully devoted to him (Matthew 28:18-20). As such it is not enough to stop at ushering people into the grace of Christ (we must do this, but can’t stop there), we must help them become fully formed as his disciples over their lifetime. If this happens, the people we have the privilege of introducing to Christ will become more accurate reflections of him day-by-day. Such an occurrence would be a true gift of God to that individual and to everyone they cross paths with! One essential note is that we can only fulfill this call well as we move like Christ (Matthew 22:37-39; Mark 10:45) and that it is exceedingly difficult to help someone become like Christ unless we ourselves are becoming like Christ along the way!

Second, I believe that growing into a follower of Jesus, becoming a disciple and reflecting him, requires a transformation of the heart, mind and soul (Ezekiel 11:19-20; Romans 12:1-2; cp. Matthew 15:18-20). This is not something we can do on our own or even together under our own power. Rather, a transformation of the heart, mind and soul is a gift and typically occurs slowly, over time, through the tool of spiritual disciplines (e.g., fellowship, prayer, solitude, metabolizing God’s word, ministries of service, etc.) as we rely on grace and learn to walk with the Spirit (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; 2 Corinthians 3:16-18; Galatians 5:22-26).

Third, we could grow to be a very large church and fail to reflect Christ and make disciples; we could remain a small church and effectively produce disciples (and vice-versa). The key is being true to our call to abide in Christ first and as such let God handle the growth of the Body as he sees fit (John 15:5). I have a hunch, however, that growth of the body numerically will follow growth of the body in discipleship and that numerical growth is essential to reach some of the long-range goals that we can work toward together (again, I’ll be writing on these in my next post).

Finally, as I’ve continued to grow in my role in this church family (which has nothing to do with some title and much to do my with what gifts God has may have given me to offer as our church family sees fit), this has become my personal goal: To, like Paul and his companions, “…proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.” Colossians 1:28 (NIV) It is to this end I desire to be used, as he enables and empowers.

At the end of my life I hope to hear a “well done” for the work of presenting those in my sphere of influence as mature in Christ (this includes those in my family, those in my business, and those in our congregation and community) and for being just one of many who help our church family become all that God would intend. I pray that you would join me in this same hope!

Afloat in grace,
Reed

Funny the thoughts you think on a plane.

It had been a great day yesterday. The weather was warm and sunny and the work our team did in San Jose was very well-received. It felt good to have been given the opportunity to begin to assist one of the largest companies in the world in this particular industry, and to do so with excellence. I am so enthused about moving forward for the benefit of those we met yesterday. Plain and simple, it just doesn't get any better than that with regard to my business. 

Reveling in all of this got me thinking about more important matters. Somewhere around 35,000', it struck me that like our team, there was One long ago who traveled a great distance to offer help.

He was like us, but not just like us.

He was like us in the traveling, but unlike us in that

• he was shunned, while we were welcomed;
• his trip cost him greatly - it cost him his life - while our trip "cost us" a single day (and offered us new business);
• his goal was to change our lives and the world, while ours was to help improve one key initiative in one company.

Pretty substantial and humbling differences. The work we do is important and makes a difference, but it is nothing compared to the work of Jesus. 

Funny the thoughts you think on a plane.

Suddenly my reveling moved from what had been done yesterday in San Jose to the mission (not work) I share with the people of Columbia Ridge. Together we share in the call to reflect Christ in our world, even when it costs us greatly and even when it hurts, so that the lives of those around us - and indeed our community and our world - might be changed, redeemed. It just doesn't get any better than that!

This Friday evening (November 18th) from 6:30-8:00pm at our offices I'll be sharing as clearly as I know how the steps we need to take to move forward in this great mission and why I believe we need to do such things. Please attend if you can and if not, please pray for the success of this gathering.

I've been doing a considerable amount of thinking lately about the church, leadership in general, and my leadership. Some of this thinking has come about because of internal pressures that I'm feeling. Things like...

• desiring to lead better and in areas of my own gifting (rather than outside of them),
• wanting to equip others better in their areas of gifting and to release them to create for the Kingdom, and, 
• to do it all while balancing my business and loving my family better. 

I don't necessarily think I'm doing any of that well right now; hence the internal pressure.

There's also some external pressure as well, which is all well and good. External pressure can come from things that exert force on our church that are beyond our control (e.g., the economy and what it does in drawing off available resources, changing culture around us), things in our limited control (timelines for projects are at least partially in our control), and the pressure of a community of diversity that is Columbia Ridge (folks with different opinions on how different things should be done). Again this is all well and good as long as we can move forward together in openness and mutual care and love in Christ.

Because of that desire to move forward in mutuality, I wanted to open up and share this because I think it is important for the Columbia Ridge family to know that such thinking isn't bad at all. In fact, it gives us an opportunity to move forward in different ways, to enter into deeper trust in Christ, and to move forward together as he leads us.

At present, the Board has advocated, and I wholeheartedly agree, that a staffing and leadership group be formed in order to discern how we might move forward in a new and different manner in those regards. It has and has begun its work. I'll be reporting on it as "discovery" comes together.

Additionally, I've revisited and will be writing on some foundational assumptions, activities and hopes with regard to our congregational life together. I felt it was a good practice for me to get such things out of my head and into the world in a formulated manner. I hope you'll agree as pieces of that appear in this blog.

Finally, in some of the reading I've been doing on church leadership, the following passage from a church consultant's essay on leadership in the church (link) struck me profoundly, emphasizing our need to think and pray about our leadership structure and philosophy going forward:

"Even though congregations resemble other institutions -- with physical assets, human resources, budgets, markets and products -- the interplay of a transforming God and a change-resistant constituency, a Savior who suffered and died and constituents who avoid suffering and fear death, and a Spirit who is making all things new even as Christians are grounding themselves in tradition, makes for a complex organization... A church community draws people close to their deepest yearnings, their most vivid fears, their wounds and their triumphs, their doubts about everything, including themselves, and their native optimism or hope that life can be better... walking with God can be a discomfiting and humbling journey. The effective church leader accepts this complexity, tries to understand it, works within it, and exercises both patience and determination in trying to help people get beyond their flaws. That is demanding and often confusing work. Little in the rest of life, except the challenge of living in a family and raising children, prepares one for the challenge."

I am thankful to be part of the Community of Christ that is Columbia Ridge. I believe that we have people here that love the Lord and each other deeply and are engaging, even right now, in how we can move forward together in honor of the One who gave his life for us. Whether or not you are part of a team, a leadership group, or the staffing/leadership discovery group, you can participate in our journey forward through your prayers for the health of our congregation and the fulfillment of the mission God has given us. Please considering offering them up to the Lord regularly! Furthermore, I am open to hearing your thoughts via this blog or email. Feel free to speak up anytime.

Afloat in His Grace,
Pastor Reed