Nick’s Walk

My daughter broke her ankle a few weeks ago and can’t put any weight on it for a while. She can’t stay alone so she has been alternating weeks with Rose and I and with a friend. It’s been a bit of a hassle for everyone because she is used to living alone and we are not use to having a week long guest. But it’s also been a blessing. She and I both work from the house so we spend hours together in the same room doing our work. We have both picked up interest in each other’s TV viewing habits. I have learned more about her life and work and loves. Our relationship has been great (at least since the teenage hormones wore off); but in the last few weeks it has been “refreshed.” We are both probably pretty relieved when our week is over and a break is coming. But I also know when this period of alternating weeks is over I will miss her greatly. I have “refreshed” my memory at how cool, funny and lovely she is and how much she relies on Jesus. She is leaving for a week today and my wife […]

Choose to place yourself and your circumstances in God’s hands today. Joyce Meyer I think that Joyce is a pretty smart lady; but today I’m not sure about her quote. I would reword it “Choose to recognize that you and your circumstances are in God’s hands today.” I think we are always in God’s hands. We can try to take control. We can say we will let Him be our co-pilot, but the truth of the matter is that God is in control. Somehow He does it without denying our free will and in spite of the efforts of others to control us and everything in their worlds. The secure Christian lives in peaceful excitement. He knows He is in God’s hands and enjoys every moment of the ride. The insecure Christian keeps trying to grab the steering wheel and drive things himself. If the road starts to get bumping He thinks God has forgotten him or is taking him on an unnecessary detour. To be at peace, there must be trust. The truly insecure Christian tries to drive the bus for everybody else. Not satisfied to be “in control” of his own life, he tries to control everyone […]

Our concern is more about going to heaven than loving the King. Francis Chan Francis Chan is one of several young pastors who are setting fire to the church with similar messages. They are saying that the gospel, as originally preached by Jesus, carries a radical message. We don’t need a new gospel, we need to return to the original gospel in all its radical life-changing aspects. That’s a great message. His quote above struck me hard. I think most of us, if we are truthful to ourselves, will admit that we want to go to heaven, because the alternative is too horrible to conceive. We sometimes even think that heaven isn’t going to be that great, it’s just going to be a lot better than hell. We just don’t have that longing in our hearts to be with the God we love. We haven’t come to know our God enough to really love Him. We may know in our hearts that we should so love God that we can’t wait to be with Him and those who have loved Him through the centuries. However, we recognize that perhaps our love for Him is considerably less than it should […]

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. Hebrews 5:13One of the great things about doing prison ministry is that your audience knows they are sinners. The state has formally proclaimed it. It makes presenting the real gospel so much easier. That’s one of the great problems of witnessing to free people. They don’t think they are sinners. Most people think they are basically “good.” It’s easy to look around and find someone “badder” than ourselves. They don’t see any real need for Jesus.Because of this challenge, sometimes we short circuit the true salvation message problem by presenting Jesus, not as an answer to the problem of our sin, but as a kind of self-improvement guru. By doing this we eliminate the “problem” of talking about “sin” and repentance. We tell folks Jesus can make our lives better and we can be happier. That’s very true, but it tries to present the solution without addressing the problem. It also leaves the “believer” confused about the process of sanctification.The truth is we are sinners. In fact, we are much worse than we are willing to admit. It’s kind of like an […]

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35 Yesterday I went to the pharmacy to pick up some prescriptions. When asked for my driver’s license, I couldn’t produce it. It wasn’t in my wallet. I don’t know where I lost it.  Lucky for me I’ve known the pharmacist for years and he just accepted my social security number. I can say I spent a good part of the day yesterday getting it replaced. I don’t know what folks who don’t drive do. A driver’s license seems to be the universal proof of identity. Jesus knew that those who called themselves Christians would not always be true followers of Him. He established a proof of identity: the way we love one another. It seems many who called themselves Christian try to prove that status by the bible that they carry, an attitude they portray, the folks they hang with or the ones the refuse to hang with. For many, love is not a part of the equation.  Sadly when most non-Christians describe Christians “love” is seldom part of the description. We have to do something about that. Our love is assurance […]

15 “I am and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.  5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; 7 If you remain in me 8 This is to my Father’s glory, We tend to think that “fruit bearing” is a sign of a “really special” Christian. That’s not what Jesus said. Fruit bearing is a sign that  you are a Christian. The health of your fruit is directly proportional to the strength of  your relationship with Christ. A fruitless branch is useless. So what is the nature of this fruit? We know about the fruit of the spirit: love, joy,  peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. It is certainly great to have these traits, but they have a greater purpose. Like fruit in nature, the fruit we produce is meant to feed and sustain  others. Fruit attracts […]

Forty percent of Americans say they attend church regularly, but only twenty percent actually do.  A healthy percentage of the twenty percent show up with a “wow me” attitude. Even fewer participate in church beyond worship and only a tiny percent are willing to lead others. In the summer months approaching, attendance is so bad that many pastors shut down or greatly reduce activities so as not to waste resources.   If we are ever going to make a difference, we need to change our attitude about our faith and start going all in.  At the beginning of each Kairos weekend, we tell the participants the following story: A farmer was walking down the road carrying a bag of wheat. The King came along and greeted him. He asked the farmer for some of his wheat. The farmer reached into his sack and pulled out a single grain, hoping the King would find that sufficient. The King took the grain then pulled out a sack of gold coins and gave the farmer one gold coin. The King went on his way leaving the farmer wondering what would have happened if he had given the King the whole sack. We all know […]

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. John 15:16 Last night was one of the most exciting of the year for football fans. Yet no game was played. It was the first night of the NFL draft. We all know the basics of how this works from when we were kids. When it was time to play a team sport a couple of captains were chosen and they took turns picking team members. I wasn’t good at any sport so these were embarrassing times as I was usually picked last. Once I was picked I was usually told not to touch the ball and to try not to mess the others up. The draft is exciting for the players because it means big money and the chance to continue to play a game they love. For the fans it’s exciting as they see where their favorite college players will go and whom their favorite NFL teams will select. The worst teams generally get to go first and the best players generally are picked first. But historically, it doesn’t […]