Revelation

If these messages aren't online yet, they soon will be--Jay, Alex and I have begun a Sunday series on the book of Revelation, using a book called "Discipleship on the Edge" (DOE) as a commentary guide. I've always been a little suspicious of commentaries because I've had a hard enough time on my own reading God's word for instruction and insight without someone else's "quiet time" over-influencing the process. Yes it's odd.

For my message Sunday ("First Love-Jesus' Rev 2 letter to the Ephesian church"), I incorporated many of the insights from DOE, and some from another recent read, "Velvet Elvis." But I did add one of my own that, like all insights I guess, "came to me" as I was studying Revelation 2: knowing from DOE that "revelation" translates more like "unveiling" or "revealing," I realized that Jesus starts that process with seven letters to seven churches. BEFORE he "unveils" what is and what is to come to the disciples, he does a very personal unveiling of what is going on in the seven churches of Asia--he reveals what they are and are not doing.

We (hopefully) crave spiritual insight. We want some ongoing "unveilings" of scripture as we read and study--real "meat," something new. But perhaps the structure of Revelation points the way: only when we are first engaged in the unveiling of our own hearts will we encounter unveilings about God's will for us in scripture. Heart inventory is a good thing, and that's why Jesus spends so much time on it in Rev 2-3.

Joining the Fray

Yesterday afternoon the Seahawks prevailed over da Bears and looked more like the offensive juggernaut of 2005 than at any time I've seen them over the past two years. The offensive was beautiful to watch all day. Perhaps the most beautiful play, though, belonged to the kicker, Josh Brown, who raced down the field on one kickoff and wrastled Bears kick return specialist Devin Hester to the ground like a cowboy grounding a steer. It was a real football play and you usually don't see that from kickers. Brown is in the battle.

I'm fond of saying that football is a sport where standing around isn't an option--you'll get hammered by someone. Unless you're a kicker. Kickers can be part of the action but stay out of physical trouble.

So, on the spiritual field, which are you? A kicker who likes to minimize contact, or a Josh Brown that is in the fight, eager to hit before being hit? That choice will probably determine how happy and fulfilled you are as a Christian.

Saturday, Sara Brumley had "had enough" of standing around, field goal kicking from the sidelines. She jumped into the Christian contest, baptized on Mercer Island that morning, surrounded by friends, fellow students, parents, and grandparents. She's in the storm now, full of blessings, full of challenge, but ready, I'm convinced, to do some serious spiritual hitting.

How to Save a Life

Step one you say we need to talk
He walks you say sit down it's just a talk
He smiles politely back at you
You stare politely right on through
Some sort of window to your right
As he goes left and you stay right
Between the lines of fear and blame
You begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Let him know that you know best
Cause after all you do know best
Try to slip past his defense
Without granting innocence
Lay down a list of what is wrong
The things you've told him all along
And pray to God he hears you
And pray to God he hears you

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

As he begins to raise his voice
You lower yours and grant him one last choice
Drive until you lose the road
Or break with the ones you've followed
He will do one of two things
He will admit to everything
Or he'll say he's just not the same
And you'll begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life
How to save a life
How to save a life

In high school I stayed up all night not a few times trying to save someone I loved. But I didn't know how.

After The Fray penned this chart-topper two years ago, the meaning got obscured by its eventual attachment to the ABC television series “Grey’s Anatomy,” a meaningful story of love longed for, lost and found, amidst a whole lot of meaningless sex among doctors. Which is pretty typical, I suppose of our culture—confusion about love, confusion about sex. The original meaning of the lyrics actually concerned an at-risk teenager who defied outreach and counseling.

There is a part of me that is trying to know how to save a life. I have been doing that really all my life, from the first person I reached out to spiritually when I was in junior high school to my graying 40’s. Even now I’m in my first quarter at Seattle Pacific University as a Masters candidate in Psychology, hoping to learn, along the way of saving souls, how to help save marriages and families. I want to know how.

But then, as one of my professors said recently, we can’t save anyone. We can’t “make it happen.” Yes, we can help. But only God, His grace, and their own choices can really pave that Way. Even surgeons are under a bit of a delusion; it seems like they really can “save the day,” but of course, without the miracle of God-driven human healing, medicine is completely a waste of time. If I’m a surgeon, for all I do, there’s so very much I don’t do.

With Lynne’s cancer well-treated but well still on our minds and personal horizons, I am reminded of the miracle of deliverance and salvation—what a team thing it is. Lost souls, hearts, marraiges, and families need God's good help. We need God. They need us. And God needs us to do our part—so much smaller than His, but so vital, so urgent.

We don’t know how to save a life. But we do know how one is saved. Will we, then, stay up all night?

1st Cousin-in-Law, Once Removed, My Brother by Jay Kelly

On October 29th I received an amazing email...

"Hi Jay, my name is Ian Mohlie and I’m a disciple in the Richmond church. …and I think I’m your relative too! My grandmother is Pat Goodman (well, she was, until she became a Mohlie), and when I told her about the church she told me about you and carol. Does this ring a bell? Anyway, if so then we should talk!"

Ian and his roommate are coming out to visit for the weekend of Dec. 7-9. We can't wait to meet him. We've been praying for our relatives near and far. Carol's Mom and Dad told us that Ian might be in our church. He invited his Grandmother (Carol's Aunt Patty) to church and they immediately thought that we might be connected.

Ian and his campus group heard Alex Whitaker preach at the last campus conference and were very inspired.

What a great encouragement to find out that our prayers for family near and far had been answered years ago without us even knowing it. Ian and his mother are both disciples in the Richmond, Virginia Church.

2007 Fall Campus Retreat

Title: Fall 2007 Campus Retreat “Lost Ones”
Marcus Wallace (South Sound Church of Christ Intern)

This year’s fall campus was one to remember. Although we were once again in Vashon Island aka the Island City with No Street Lights (named by me and other students), we were in a new and improved part of the Camp Sealth campground (which for some of us was hard to find). However once we got there, we had a great time. We started off the night by eating some of Alex Whitaker’s famous New York chili and then had our first lesson entitled “Lost Leadership” in society today. The speaker for this class, Marcus Wallace (yes it was me—it is always strange writing about yourself), strove to highlight the lost leadership that exists in America by reporting some disparaging stats about society. A few included:

- Pornography industry makes about $10 billion dollars a year which is more than ABC + CBS + NBC (about 6.2 billion)

- Porn revenue is larger than all combined revenues of all professional football, baseball and basketball franchises.

- Somewhere in America, a woman is raped every 2 minutes, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

- Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce

- About 60 percent of men and 40 percent of women will have an affair at some point in some marriage

In addition to these statistics, he also discussed how in many circles of Christianity today, the topic of sin has been replaced by a feel good message that leaves people feeling good but unchanged in many areas of their lives spiritually. In closing, Marcus challenged all the students to redefine leadership by knowing their bibles and letting it be the standard of how they should live their lives.

The retreat only got better as two disciples a part of the UW ministry (boyfriend and girlfriend) got a chance to share openly and candidly from their lives in the class entitled, “Lost Values.” Both of them shared how before they became true disciples of Jesus Christ, their value system for life was usually led by preserving self and seeking acceptance from others. As a result, their lives were plagued with frequent episodes of underage drinking and sexually immoral behavior with those they dated. They encouraged many of the college students to get open with the sin in their lives.

After lunch and a break for some sports, the men and women had separate classes as we looked at the topic of “Lost Souls.” For the men, Ryan Flynn led a convicting class that challenged many men to admit that as a result of the sin in their lives, they were separated from God. It was Amazing! For the women, a myriad of women shared about how their religious pride towards God led them into sin either before/and they became Christians. The night closed as people talked about the lessons, played board games like Risk and Scrabble and Mafia, or just fellowshipped with one another until they were ready for bed.

The crescendo of the Retreat came during the Sunday Worship Service as Alex Whitaker (Campus Minister at the University of Washington) preached a lesson that proved that in order to be found by God, one must first be Lost and then in order to have our sins forgiven by God, we must follow the plan of salvation outlined in the Bible (a path that many involved in Christianity have left). Immediately following the lesson, many of the visiting students set up bibles studies for later on that day and during the following week in order for them to repent and get baptized and get right with God. If you were Lost (Spiritually) before you came and if you wanted to truly change your life, you were definitely given the way to be Found (Spiritually).

Out of Time

Here’s an outline of yesterday’s staff meeting lesson and discussion, just in case you’re interested. Generally, Tuesdays are “Staff Training Day,” and that includes me. Even though I play the quarterback role for our staff/church, I receive much and learn much from the staff itself, especially on Tuesdays. The first Tuesdays are an “all-staff” meeting, including the Tacoma/South Sound staff. Third Tuesdays are for purely Administrative meetings—nuts and bolts, deadlines, goals that practically move the congregation forward. The other two Tuesdays are one-on-one appointments, our “discipleship partner” or “dp” times. Loads of follow-up, as you can imagine, gets done then.

Yesterday’s meeting theme was “Out of Time”

Luke 10:38-42

-Martha overwhelmed with a hectic life; was “time” the issue?
-We have enough time; the question really is our “choices” (Mary has chosen what is better)
-As congregational leaders, are we making good choices?
-What will we choose as priorities for 2008 especially?

Choose Conviction—Mark 1:29-39

-The rather hectic life and schedule of Jesus: demons, whole towns, etc.
-He was up early to be with God
-I tend to walk with God like a battery getting recharged. That’s a mistake because such a map of my relationship with Him allows me, like a battery, to function on “my own” until my battery runs down. Instead, I need a daily plug-in or nothing works. Exodus 16:11-20

-God gave manna daily—this is a BIG HINT on how to seek Him
-“Give us this day, our daily bread”
-Does anything else “stink”? Do our convictions putrefy?
-Being men and women of fresh conviction is our first leadership task

Choose a Field—Matthew 28:18-20

-We can share our faith “as we go” or “Go share our faith.” Perhaps both ideas are true.
-But if we lack intentionality, will we be surprised if our scattered efforts to scatter seed will yield little evangelistic fruit?

-Are our people aware of the fields they’ve chosen? Have they “chosen”?
-Have we, not as “ministers” but as “members” done likewise?
-Marco P’s example (from LA): set his mind that at least at the gym, “there, I will share my faith.” I’m not sure if he thinks that way everywhere or not, but in the last 13 years, 30 have been baptized that he met in that gym.

Choose a Few—Mark 3:13-19

-We easily forget that convictions spread like yeast, not like Wednesday announcements. Our fellowship convictions tend to spread beginning with a few. Sometimes ministers feel overwhelmed by a “congregational need;” they rightly suspect that preaching and teaching won’t be enough.

-The gospels tell a story about a few; Jesus worked to change the world but helping a few, who, in turn, could teach others. Eventually, Christianity would reach a positive tipping point in Palestine, in Rome, in Europe.

-As ministers, we should “be there” for everyone in need. And yet, we must remember, like Jesus, to focus on a few “who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Tim 2:2). Moses’ lesson in Ex 18 is still true.

Whether you are a member, a lay leader, or a full-time minister, what choices are you really making for 2008?