Fear
In chapter 11 of his gospel John tells the story of the death and resurrection of Lazarus. I had quite a few thoughts when reading this passage. I challenge you to put yourself into the shoes of this man, Lazarus. This man had died and laid in a grave for days. Long enough for his sister to mention that he probably stank. Christ comes and calls out to the lifeless body of Lazarus. Imagine for a moment you are in darkness and you hear the voice of a dear friend. Calling for you to come out. You open your eyes and realize you are in a grave. From that day forward what would you fear? What could you fear? You had faced the most terrifying thing to any human, death itself. But, your friend came and snatched you from it’s clutches. Why would you be a slave to fear any longer?
There is a lesson in all of this. Those of us who have accepted Christ as our saviour are just like Lazarus. We were once dead in our sin. We were deceased spiritually. Christ called to us in the darkness and we were awakened we were spiritually resurrected. So, the question is, what do we have to fear? Live each day to the fullness of Christ’s promise.
As the holiday season draws to a close…
What can I say? Christ has blessed me so much this year. I have seen his providence and love in the lives of each of my family and friends. He has written me a beautiful love letter and I see more and more how much he trully loves me. He teaches me more about his love everyday. God bless all of you. I will try to write more and more often. Peace, -C
After a long day…
Hi guys! Sorry it has been so long since I’ve written anything.
Today I decided to spend my time working on graphic stuff for the church. I’ve been steadily working on a new website and miscellaneous graphics. I spent the entire day sitting alone and staring into a computer screen. I got to thinking about the ministry I do.
There are a few ideas that I am finding are more and more common in churches:
1.) It is the pastors (staffs) responsibility to minister
2.) I’m not called to minister so I shouldn’t
3.) Once I’m finished with my “church thing” I can hang up my ministry hat until next week
Well, I can go ahead and tell ya that all of those aren’t true. Let me address #2 first. I know…I’m working out of order. It’s how my brain works sometimes.
15He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” -Mark 16:15
That mandate is for you and I as well. It is the “great commission”. On the day we accepted Christ as our savior we decided we would live by his commandments. This is one of them. So, we are all “called” into ministry. Hmmm…I guess that kinda covered #1 and #2. Score!
The idea that ministry ends when you leave church is rediculous.
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual[a] act of worship.-Romans 12:1
Our very lives become ministry. So, every moment of everyday is a chance for us to minister to someone that may not know Jesus. Or maybe they just need a reminder. Live your life as a testiment to who Christ is and you will always be an excellent minister.
Well, that sums it up for me. I realize this wasn’t incredibly profound…I guess I’m a little rusty.
God Bless. -C
And…we’re back.
I’m sure most of you thought that I may have gone. The truth is I almost did. Over the last month I’ve faced a few issues. Uselessness. That sums up what I’ve felt. In 2004 I graduated college with my B.S. in Physics. From there I had been presented with the opportunity to work on a Ph.D. at Georgiah Tech. Long story short; I was too lazy to follow through with my end and missed the window.
Fast-forward:
I’m 26 now and as far as the “life clock” is concerned; I’m behind. Most folks are married, have a carrier, own a home, or some combination of these by the time they are my age. I, on the other hand, work a part time job, still attend school, and am very single.
It’s scary. The incertainty of my life the foggyness that has a tendancy to follow me. I live a boring life, however, I suppose there is a rather peculiar adventure that follows me. The foggyness built up to a point that I decided that the best option for me was to run. I decided I would move to Raleigh and find a job. That seems to be my solution for a lot of things. I ran from Georgia; I’ve ran from alot of other things too. Then came John’s sermon Sunday. It hit me right. I’m done running.
Who knows what the future holds for me……I’m not gonna worry about it….I’m going to be fine….
Regeneration
So, I’m completely addicted to a television show called Doctor Who. I’ve loved this show since I was a kid. About three years ago or so they decided revive the show and bring it back with a fresh style. The show has actually been around since the sixties.
Basically the show is a the story of a man (an alien) who travels around through time and space in his ship. Along the way he makes friends and manages to save the world over and over again. One of my favorite things about him is the fact that he doesn’t “die”. Not really. He regenerates. Basically in the even something happens that may kill him he changes every cell in his body and becomes a new man.
The cool thing is Christ offers us the opportunity to regenerate. When we chose to follow Christ we can allow him to transform us from the inside out, regenerating us. We can become a completely new person. The cool thing is our newness can spread. We can share what Christ has done with others and maybe just maybe change lives.
I am Iron Man!
Friday I had the privilege of watching the greatest Marvel movie to date: Iron Man. It was amazing. I am a comic book nerd. Comics were basically the only thing I would read when I was growing up. My two favorite heroes were Wolverine and Iron Man. So, basically, I was in heaven Friday evening.
The basic story of Iron Man is this: Billionaire, Tony Stark (owner of Stark Industries a weapons producer) is severely injured by his own weapons and decides to fight to protect innocent people from the very evil he placed in this world. That’s a really bad and brief synopsis.
At any rate, Tony is a dark man. He has many sinful vices and quite a few evil appetites. To me it sheds some IRON-y (yea I’m that cheesy) on his character. He decides to surround himself with an impenetrable armor to keep things from harming him out.
In my own life I have done this very thing. I have been injured in some way by something I have done (usually my choices), and I have built my armor. I lock everything and everyone out, and I desperately hope that no one can break through my defenses.
We hide our true natures behind armor and truly believe that no one will ever break through. In a lot of ways no one can. We have to remove our armor. We must remove those things in our life that will hinder us from approaching Jesus. It is then, and only then, that Jesus can truly work in our lives.
Take your armor off. Let Jesus work on you.
Can you imagine the blog I’m writing when I watch The Incredible Hulk?
Take a chance…
Those who have met me have a tendency to believe I am this zany out there goofy guy. I will readily admit that I joke a lot and have a tendency to tell hilarious, but embarrassing, stories. However, I do those things to mask an intense shyness and crippling doubt in my abilities.
Recently I have decided that the next step in my growth (both spiritually and otherwise) is to “throw caution to the wind” and embrace what is possible. Here’s a few of the decisions. I have decided to pursue my own graphic design business (apparently I have a knack for that). I have attempted to be more “genuinely” outgoing.” I have decided (fearfully) to cut Amy loose to do whatever it takes to make “it” happen. I may regret that last one 
.
God never intended for us to live in fear. Especially of ourselves and certainly not of what he has planned for us.
Romans 8:15
15For you (A)have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you (B)have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “(C)Abba! Father!”
Jeremiah 29:11
11‘For I know the (A)plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for (B)welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a (C)hope.
He has mapped it out. He thought of you before thought existed. So, get out there and take a chance.
Why do times get tough?
In the past two weeks I feel like I have walked through Hell. I have been a victim of theft (in some way) twice, my father is still in the hospital and being very stubborn, and spiritually I feel completely drained. Talk about frustrated.
Last week I had to go back to my hometown to request and extension for taxes because my father was in the hospital. The timing of his illness was absolutely terrible, but that’s life. While I was in town I decided that the dress boots I was wearing wouldn’t really cut it (they aren’t that comfortable, but boy do they look good). I went to Walmart thinking I would grab some inexpensive, but comfortable shoes.
I’m a man and I shop like a typical man. I don’t try things on and I really don’t check to make sure what I’m getting is the correct thing. I know that is not a very good approach, but I’m stupid. I found a pair of shoes I liked (by looking at the display shoe). I looked around and found the right box that contained my size. I paid for my shoes and rushed home to try on my new “kicks”.
I sat down in my mother’s loving room and opened the box. I was thrown back by possibly the worst smell coming from a pair of shoes I have ever experienced. The shoes in the box were scuffed, dirty, incredibly old, and obviously not the shoes I had intended to buy. Apparently someone had stolen the real shoes out and replaced them with their old funky shoes. What a rip off!?!?!
Imagine that someone low enough to steal shoes right out of the store. But, they didn’t just steal the shoes victimizing the store the replaced the shoes with their old ones victimizing someone else.
I actually laughed it off and chalked it up to a lesson learned. I even kept the shoes because they may make a good object lesson for the kids at church. I took care of my business in town (still sporting my very uncomfortable boots) and returned to Wilmington.
Dad’s condition had improved greatly and I had returned to work. I work at a Christian bookstore. There’s something about working at a places associated with Jesus that sometimes (in my opinion) gives you a false sense of security. I rolled into work Thursday morning and parked in the employee lot by the store. I locked my door, but left the window cracked to keep the inside of the car from getting so hot.
I went into work and finished my 10:30-3 shift. When 3 o’clock came I rushed to my car opened the door (which wasn’t locked anymore) and headed home. About halfway home I started noticing that something was wrong. My backpack was gone and so was my wallet. Inside my backpack was my laptop, mp3 player, and digital camera. My wallet held far more sensitive material. The thieves had taken my credit cards, social security card, and my license. Talk about scared I rushed to a computer with the internet and canceled the cards immediately. I checked to see if they had spent any money in my name. As it turns out they had. They had spent about $50 dollars at a few places in a matter of two hours. Fortunately I had canceled the card before any more damage could be done.
I came into church this morning to get some work done. My pastor asked me if I had heard any news about my stuff. Of course I haven’t. I told him that in the long run the thieves had really done me no harm. The bank is going to refund the fraudulent charges and I managed to get everything frozen and alerted before any real damages was done. In they end it’s just stuff. So, I’ve let it go.
Even after Christ had been beaten, humiliated, whipped, and more He hung on the cross and begged God to forgive the people that had tormented Him.
Luke 23:33-35
33(A)When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left.
34But Jesus was saying, “(B)Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing “ (C)And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
35And the people stood by, looking on. And even the (D)rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; (E)let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”
I feel like humans wander about blind to what we are doing sometimes. We chalk certain sins up as survival or “getting them before they get me”. We live in a world that is so twisted and broken that we don’t even know how to treat one another.
I was talking to my friend Justin (who also happens to be a worship leader in my church) the day my car got broken into. I expressed my frustration in the fact that someone had robbed me. I explained how it blew my mind someone would even think to go into someones property and take things that weren’t there. He said something that was very simple and very cool.
“Chris, you and I were blessed that we found something real to hold onto that changed our lives. That’s why we do what we do here (at the church). We’ve got to show these people what Jesus is really all about.”
He’s completely right. So, somehow I’ve managed to forgive the thieves that have impacted my life recently. I hope in some way you are blessed by what you took. There happens to be a Bible in that backpack. There are no hard feelings from me. Go, be blessed.
Bad week!
This week has been one of the worst ever. It seems to me that ever since I decided to pursue a life in ministry bad things happen. Makes you think, huh?
My parents were suppose to come to the church Sunday. I was playing drums and they have never heard me play. Well, Friday night my father got incredibly sick. My folks figured it was just food poisoning or a stomach virus. Sunday morning rolled in and my dad felt worse than ever. They rushed him to the ER in Whiteville. Turns out, he has an 8mm kidney stone that had caused a major infection that had begun to spread into his blood. This infection was trying to shut his body down. It caused his blood vessels to open up and his heart to race. This burned up his oxygen and he began taking gasping breaths for air. The gasping wore his lungs out so they had to place him on a breathing machine.
This is when I get called. My mother called me in a panic (even though she hides it well). I hopped up threw on some clothes and darted off to Whiteville. When I got there they had rushed my dad back for surgery to bypass the stone and clean some of the infection out. I figured my mom would be sitting in the waiting room alone. But, she wasn’t. An old friend of the family was there. Apparently he had shown up that morning to use the hospitals gym and parked right next to my mother.
So many times in life we face harsh circumstances, and a lot of the time we feel like we are facing it alone. My mother faced it this week, I have faced it in ministry. I’m sure anyone who has ever done any ministry has felt alone at some point or another. My mother said one of the biggest things someone can do for you when you are facing a tough time is to just be available. “Sometimes just showing up is more than enough.” Mom’s right when we feel like we are carrying the world all by ourselves it’s good to know that there is just someone there. Not necessarily to help with the work; it’s okay if they are just walking with you.
Matthew 28:20
“…And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
That can be reassuring. Knowing that in all situations he will be right there walking with us. We never have a reason to worry about facing hard tiimes alone.
He’s gonna take care of us. Walk it out with Him!
Rotation, Change in Perspective, & Revelation
Last Sunday I went through a huge change. I was placed on the rotation for playing drums at the church. This may sound like a silly thing for me to be calling it “huge”, but trust me it is. For a few reasons I have a running jokes with a few musician friends of mine that “drummers don’t count as musicians”. In addition to this drumming has never been my forte. Don’t get me wrong, I do it, and I do it fairly well. I’m just not use to it; I suppose. But, the way I see it, this is just another way God is trying to stretch and mold me into the kind of man he wants me to be. So, in the long run, I’m cool with playing. Even if Josh keeps teasing me.
Playing drums gave me a very different Perspective on the congregation. Typically, when I play bass, I turn sideways an keep eye contact with the drummer. It’s a habit I got into when I played with Matt. Sunday I was placed right in the middle of the stage. Luckily, I’m hidden away in the drum cage so noone can really watch me, as I watch everyone else. I have got to tell you my heart was broken. Many of the people in the congregation not only looked joyless, that looked angry. Not sure why. It crushed me to watch as people stood in the congregation motionless. Who only began singing after being cheerled to do so. Many of these people were folks I’ve heard complain about how noone in the congregation.
Matthew 7:3-5
3Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but(A) do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Don’t get mad with me that came right from the Bible. I’ve seen many of these folks worship their guts out when certain worship teams came and did specials for us or when they were at worshipfest. What makes the difference? How come these people can “step into the throne room” when certain worship leaders lead, but when we try to lead they stand there angrily? Do they worship better under other people? If so, why does that matter?
John 4:23
23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
I hear this verse tossed about alot by folks that get a spiritual “high” off of worship. Be careful. the phrase that is important to me is “in spirit and truth”. So often people have a tendancy to forget the truth part. They focus so much on the “spirit” that they forget the importance of truth. The truth is it doesn’t matter who is leading worship. It doesn’t matter how well it sounds or if the instruments are in tune. It could be Rick Pino, or me with a kazoo. The most important thing is WHO we worship not HOW. If you don’t like how the music is being played, or what is being played; should that matter? Isn’t God worthy of our praise reguardless of how it’s being done?
