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“The Unsettling Solution to Just about Everything” by Andy Stanley

28 Jun

Dear God, I first heard this sermon six years ago. I remember being struck by it and thinking it was one of the best evangelical sermons I ever heard. Now, nearly six and a half years later, I am preparing a Bible study for nine days from now that is supposed to be more evangelical and “make-a-decision-to-follow-Jesus” in nature. I have some thoughts I’ve been considering and praying through, but I want to go back to this, take some notes, and see if there is anything here you would have me incorporate into what you’re leading me to. So with that said, I am going to listen to this real time and then take notes on the things that strike me along the way. I’m also going to consider them and think about them through typing my thoughts to you. Please, Holy Spirit, sit with me in this time. Guide me. Teach me. Comfort me. Lead me.

“I don’t know why everybody wouldn’t want Christianity to be true.”

  • Right off the bat, this is his first statement within 20 seconds of the video starting. It’s the one thing I really remember from this sermon. He’ll go on to say he can understand why people have a hard time believing the virgin birth, resurrection, and miracles in between and such are true, and he can see why people don’t want the Christianity lived out by a lot of modern American Christians to be true, but he cannot understand why someone would read the Bible, see the Jesus of the New Testament and everything he taught and offered and not want it to be true. That’s a great thought. So before I listen to what he says, what are the things about Jesus I want to be true:
    • I want to think that you loved me that much that you would sacrifice Jesus, a piece of yourself–your Trinity–to an earthly existence and horrible death–for me to be in relationship with you and made whole.
    • I want to be loved by others the way they love themselves.
  • You know, it’s funny. I think those are the two main things I want to be true about Jesus and what you gave me through him. Heaven? Sure. But that you loved me that much that you came for me. I want that. That I could move in a world or community where the people loved me like themselves? Sign me up. Yes, that’s what I want.
  • Now let’s hear what Andy says that stands out to me:
    • “People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof but on the basis of what they find attractive.” – Blaise Pascal (17th-century mathematician)
    • “Grace” The word that made Jesus and makes Christianity attractive. “Grace is what we crave most when our guilt is exposed.” Me here: What drew David to God wasn’t his need for power but his appreciation for who God was and his grace. “Grace is what we are hesitant to extend when confronted with the guilt of others. Especially when they’ve hurt me or someone I love. “Grace for me is extraordinarily refreshing. Grace for others is extraordinarily disturbing.” “GRACE IS THE UNSETTLING SOLUTION FOR JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING.” Me here: Link to Sermon on the Mount, Lord’s Prayer, forgive me as I forgive others.
    • Definition for “grace” is undeserved, unearned, and unearnable favor. “We can’t recognize or receive Grace for what it is until we’re convinced we do NOT deserve it.” It can only be experienced when there’s an imbalance and you’re on the negative side.
    • Christianity is unique because of Grace.
    • God had to show up in Jesus. We would have never know the grace of God without the presence of God.
    • John 1:14: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” “Jesus never watered down the truth and he never turned down the grace.” He called sin sin and then he laid down his life for the sinners.
    • Matthew 9:11-13: And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” Me here: I think I need to hold on to this for the lesson.
    • Terrified woman caught in adultery. Jesus: Truth and Mercy. “You are guilty (Leave your life of sin), but I don’t condemn you.”
    • If you never get there intellectually, you should want this to be true.
    • If the kingdom of heaven was only reserved for the righteous, we (including David) would have no hope.
    • “Does God hear the prayers of sinners? Yes, those are the only kinds of prayers there are.”
    • Like life, Grace is not fair. It is unsettlingly better than fair.
    • Great sinners who were extended great grace: Peter and Paul.
    • Jesus knew justice and consequences would crush us. That’s why he came.
    • Why wouldn’t anyone want this to be true.
    • Luke 16:16: The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached and everyone is pressing into it. [seems a little out of context]
    • Grace is an invitation. “I know all about you. The good and the bad. And I want you to follow me. But be warned. If you follow me, I will lead you away from your sin. And, no, I have not forgotten about your sin. It’s better than that. I will remember all of it and I love you anyway. Now come. Follow me. Me here: I’ve got to use that as my closer.

Father, thank you for leading me to this sermon in the winter of 2018. Thank you for using all of these little things here and there throughout my life to prepare me for different moments. I offer all of this to you. I offer my life to you. I offer worship to you. I am grateful. I will follow you. I do follow you. Oh, I am so full of love for you right now. In this moment. Tears in my eyes. And I am normally wary of an emotional response to you because I am afraid it might be something artificial and not real, but this is just a moment where my emotions are high and I just want to lean into you. Thank you for being there for my leaning.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 28, 2025 in Musings and Stories

 

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Luke 12:35-40, 49-53

24 Oct

49 “I have come to set the world on fire, and I wish it were already burning! 50 I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me, and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. 51 Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! 52 From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against.

53 ‘Father will be divided against son
    and son against father;
mother against daughter
    and daughter against mother;
and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law
    and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’”

Dear God, we can’t read these verses without reading the context of what came before it. All of this started with Jesus warning the people to be ready like a servant who awaits his masters return and must always be ready:

35 “Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. 37 The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! 38 He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready.

39 “Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.”

Once again, our subject headings make some things convenient, but they can remove passages from their context if we let them.

This has always been a hard passage. Why does Jesus come across as so angry and vindictive in verse 49? Well, it’s partly related to the people not being ready when the master (Jesus) came and also knowing the truth of what was about to happen to him. And what was about to happen was incredibly destructive and then re-creational. But it would divide. It did divide. It still does.

I was listening to a recent Andy Stanley sermon this morning about Jesus being who he said he was. And I’ve seen my faith in that message divide members of my own family. I’ve literally seen children be hostile with parents over their faith. And it’s hard to watch. And when I read these words of Jesus they both aggravate me and comfort me. They aggravate me because I think, Why does it have to be this way? Then they comfort me because I see that it will simply sometimes be this way.

This passage also reminds me of the pressure and even anxiety Jesus felt about his earthly future. He certainly didn’t want it to happen. He didn’t want to be beaten and crucified. He wished the atonement cold have happened another way. But let’s for a moment say it could have happened another way and his death and resurrection wasn’t necessary for that, then what would have differentiated him in history? Had he just lived taught, and then been assumed into heaven, how would he have ever been remembered. It’s the crucifixion and resurrection, and how they inspired the people who witnessed this miracle to then go to the world and proclaim it that made the difference. It was Their witness to this story that made the Gentiles take notice. It is the reason I am sitting here this morning.

Father, there are times I look around and it seems like the world is on fire. And maybe it is. Maybe you’re breaking us down to our bare essentials so you can build us back up, once again, in your image. Maybe you want to love and inspire us through some setbacks. Through some suffering. Maybe it doesn’t matter who wins the presidential election because either way the world is spinning away from you, and we need just a little more leash before we are ready to come to the end of ourselves, repent, and come back to you. Show me the role you have for me in all of this. Show me how to love and inspire my wife. Show her how to love and inspire me. Show me how to love my children and my family. My coworkers. My friends. Everyone within my sphere, show me what to do.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 24, 2024 in Luke

 

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P.S.P.S. (Prayer, Service, Persuasion, Suffering)

11 Apr

Dear God, I was listening to an interview between Andy Stanley and John Dickson last summer and that the 40-minute mark Stanley asks Dickson about a quote in his book about how the early church strove to emulate Jesus. Dickson then said that Jesus used four tools and four tools only to influence his world–Prayer, Service, Persuasion, and Suffering–and that is all he left us as well. I didn’t want to lose that concept so I memorized the acronym P.S.P.S. Obviously, it has stuck with me.

So, it’s been about nine months since I first heard that interview. How am I doing?

  • Prayer: I think I am doing well with my quality time with you, but I don’t do nearly enough in intercessory prayer, either for individuals or societal/world issues that should have my prayer cover. I’m sorry for that. I need to come up with a better system for intercessory prayer. My wife is very good at that. I am not.
  • Service: I have actually worked different service things into my life. I could always do more, but I do have some things outside of my work, which is inherently service-oriented, that help me directly touch lives that might need my input.
  • Persuasion: This one is always tricky. I think my life directly influences a lot of people around me. And I think I am able to use that to get people to consider you more. But do I do enough?
  • Suffering: I really don’t have anything here. I mean, yes, I have some sorrows in my life. Some broken relationships. And at least one of them has at least some linkage to my faith. But for the most part, I don’t know what suffering is. Is this a problem? Is no suffering a sign that I’m not putting myself out there enough? Persuading enough? Serving enough? Praying enough?

One interesting thing I noticed as I did this list is that doing all of these things isn’t only good for the world around me, but it is good for me as well. If I pray more–good for me. If I serve more–good for me. If I persuade more–good for me. If I suffer more–good for me. All of these things, even suffering, will help refine me into being more and more Jesus-like.

Father, help me to be mindful of this today. Help me to love you well. Help me to find time to pray for others and your world. Help me to jump into service. Help me to be bold and loving in my persuasion. And help me to not resist or avoid suffering if it means doing something you called me to do.

I offer all of this to you in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on April 11, 2024 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories, Uncategorized

 

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“Has Christianity Done More Harm Than Good?” John Dickson

03 Jul
This is a link to Andy Stanley’s interview with John Dickson about Christianity’s impact on history. I recommend the entire interview, but the parts I am referencing start at the 38:50 mark.

Dear God, I just finished listening to this interview Andy Stanley with North Point Community Church did with John Dickson. Apparently, about 15 years ago in Australia, there was a debate between people who think religion has harmed the world (particularly Christianity) and those who thought it had helped the world. In pre- and post-debate surveys, the overwhelming consensus among the attendees was that it had harmed the world. The debate did nothing to move the needle. How sad.

The tools Jesus gave us

I could go on an on about the interview and what he said, but if there is anyone who actually reads these prayers I do to you, I highly recommend listening to the entire interview. With that said, at the 38:50 mark, they start talking about one of his main theses in the book. It is that Jesus gave us a very limited set of tool to use to transform the world around us.

  • Prayer
  • Service
  • Persuasion
  • Suffering

It feels like the American church today has added influence and power to that list. Why? Because we are afraid, I think. I think we are afraid of not being able to persuade. I think we don’t really believe in our message to the point we can articulate it and offer it to others. No, the easiest thing to do is force them into our way of thinking. To gain power over them. To protect ourselves from them by any earthly means necessary. We have forgotten that we’ve already won the war. Satan might win today’s battle. Someone might harm me in some way because of my beliefs, and I might feel like I lost today. But I have won. I have won in you. I have won my loving you with all of my heart and loving others.

It’s the singer, not the song

The other thing that struck me (to the point of giving me chills) comes at the 43:15 mark. Dickson talks compares Jesus’s Christianity with a genius piece of music, “Bach’s Cello Suite in G Major, Prelude.” Jesus’s Christianity, even more so than Bach’s piece, of course, is perfect. What Jesus aspired us to through faith in him was perfect. It was attractive to humans because it was so good. The problem has been people’s interpretation of it ever since. If Jesus’ Christianity is the song, then Christians are the singer.

Dickson took two cello lessons and then recorded himself trying to play the Bach piece. It was lacking, to say the least. It didn’t communicate the intricate nuances or the beautiful structure Bach wrote. In short, he butchered it. But then he played a professional cellist (maybe Yo Yo Ma, I don’t know) playing it the way it is supposed to be played and the brilliance of the piece is obvious, even to the most novice of listeners.

To quote Mr. Dickson from the interview: “If you have been hurt by the church or by an individual Christian, it’s because Christians haven’t played the melody. It’s not because the melody isn’t beautiful. And I reckon, if you have been hurt by the church, every genuine Christian in this building and watching on would want to say to you straight and look you in the eye and say, “We are sorry. We are sorry that we haven’t loved like Christ loved us. And we beg you, despite our poor performance, to see if you can hear the melody again: ‘Love your enemies.’ ‘Do good to those who hate you.’ ‘Bless those who mistreat you.’ A melody Jesus took all the way to his cross for us.”

Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit, there are times when I want to use more power and influence to expedite me getting my way. Prayer, service, persuasion, and suffering are too slow. But at the end of the day, they are all you gave me. They are the only tool you gave me. And as soon as I start trying to use other tools I start playing notes to a different melody than the Christianity Jesus taught us. I am sorry. Hel me to be patient in your victory and to lean all of the way into prayer, service, persuasion, and suffering as the only melody I try to play for your glory–for your kingdom to come and your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

I pray this through Jesus’ name because he taught us how to love you and he gave everything so I could be here this morning,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 3, 2023 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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What does my sin cost?

13 Jun

Dear God, I was listening to a sermon from Andy Stanley this morning, and he used an illustration that was excellent. He was trying to frame the idea of what my sin costs God and how I can’t relate to it, and he used an illustration of his daughter from when she was three years old. Apparently, he had bought a new car and it was a really pretty deep green. He came out one morning and saw scratches on the hood. They were deep scratches that went all of the way through the paint. He was certain one of his children had done it through he process of elimination, so he marched the three kids out to the garage and put them next to the car. That’s when his three-year-old daughter looked at him and said (in a three-year-old voice), “Daddy, I practiced my letters on your car with a rock.” Stunned he sat there and wondered how to communicate the value of her mistake to her. He looked closer and could see that the scratches were capital A’s. How could she understand what it would cost him to fix this? There was no way for her to pay for it. There was no way for her to comprehend it. He said he knelt down and simply told her, “Please, don’t practice your letters on Daddy’s car again.” She said, “Yes, sir, Daddy,” and went away to play.

Father, I am this simple child. I have no idea how to even know what my sin really costs you in the way of how I harm others, myself, or your plan. But I will do my best to take your instruction from your Holy Spirit as I go and be grateful for the forgiveness Jesus offers through his life, death, and resurrection. Thank you, Father. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I pray all of this through that grace which you so richly gave me,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 13, 2023 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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The Fundamental List

12 May

Dear God, I was driving to visit a friend this morning, and I listened to this sermon by Andy Stanley. It’s part one of a series he’s doing called “The Fundamental List.” He’s basically breaking things down into what do Christians have to believe in order to be considered Christian vs. the things that we sometimes feel are important, but might be more open to interpretation. He started with Jesus talking with the disciples in Matthew 16. He asked what the word on the street was about him: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13 NLT) When they tell him that people think he is a prophet come back such as John the Baptist, Elijah, or Jeremiah, he turns the question more personal: “But who do you say I am?” That’s when Peter gives us our first fundamental: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16 NLT)

So what does that mean “if” it’s true. Now, I’m not questioning its veracity. Of course I believe it. But do I appreciate what that means? If the Jesus that is recorded in the New Testament is the Messiah, the Son of the living God, then I should really learn from his example. I should love richly, forgive easily, and be a discomfort to anyone who is legalistic and focusing on the “Non-Fundamental List (whatever that may be).

I have to say that my soul has felt a little unsettled the last couple of days. I’m not exactly sure why. I’ve been on vacation, and I think part of it might be that I’m just not great without much structure and I just did several days at the beach with no structure. I need days that are more intentional in some way. Perhaps these unstructured days are good for me in that they make me appreciate the structure and the day-to-day work when I get it back.

I also had an interesting visit with a friend today. Part of it was good and part of it was hard. He said some things to tell me that were hard to hear. On the one hand, I wanted to dismiss them because it was a hospital visit and he was heavily medicated, but on the other hand, he was unfiltered and I was trying to discern whether or not you were trying to tell me something through him. I cannot tell right now in this moment, but I pray that you will lead me to the answer over the next few days.

Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit, I cling to the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Without that, without his life, death, and resurrection I am wasting my time. I have nothing to offer you, but Jesus offered it for me. Now please lead me. Guide me. Use me. In the words of the praise song, “Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. Break me. Melt me. Mold me. Fill me. Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.”

I pray all of this through your grace and in your name,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 12, 2023 in Matthew

 

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What would Jesus say to this?

20 Aug

Dear God, I was having a texting conversation with a friend last night. He is someone I met on a vacation over three years ago, and we have kept in touch through Facebook.

Anyway, we were talking last night and he wanted to know what Jesus would have to say about a lot of the wrongs happening in the world. In this particular case, the thing on his mind was corruption he witnessed firsthand at a food distribution for the the poor. He saw volunteers taking food before the needy were able to go through the line, and it disgusted him. He finally walked away.

So what would Jesus have to say about all of this? My reply to him was to listen to Andy Stanley’s sermon from last Sunday called, “Not it it to win it.” This man isn’t a Christian so I know it was a tall ask. He’s very likely not going to listen to Andy’s sermon, but I’ve listened to it three times this week, and I plan to sit with it and pray through it over the weekend.

The big thing I think Jesus would do right now is rebuke the church. Andy told the story from Luke 9:51-56. Jesus was wanting to stay in Samaria, but the Samaritans didn’t want him and his entourage there. James and John then asked if Jesus wanted them to call down fire from heaven to destroy the Samaritans. Jesus’s response was to rebuke them and press on towards his crucifixion in Jerusalem.

Why do I think Jesus would rebuke the church right now? Because Andy is right. The church has fallen into the worldly trap of wanting to win. We want to win the battle for influence and power. We want the world the yield to our way of thinking. We want to exercise political power and defend it when it starts to slip away. We want our morality to be legislated throughout the earth, and to do that we need more power. To get that power, we need politicians who will do our bidding, whether we believe they are Christians or not. If they say they will support our morality then that’s all we need to know. In chess terminology, if they will give us their queen, they can have most of our chess pieces. Then the world will be the place we want it to me…Oh, I mean you want it to be (sarcasm implied).

What would be included in Jesus’s rebuke? Frankly, I shudder to think of what he might have to say to his church. What he would have to say to me. But I’m pretty sure he would start with something close to the parables he taught about the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of heaven is something that starts from the bottom and grows from a grassroots level through love, the receiving of your grace, and then the sharing of your grace with others. There are moral standards in there to be sure. There is a need for asking for forgiveness of you. But these are what we need to do to be free. The kingdom of heaven is also like people who don’t care about their own rights and delight in the progress of others (see the parable of the workers hired at different times of day, but all were paid the same amount). And the kingdom of heaven is like the man who found it and sold everything he had to attain it because it was worth more than all he held on to.

Father, I’m about to go and do a prayer walk around one of our school district’s campuses that includes the high school, the primary school, and the district’s administrative building. Put my head into the right place as I do this. And better prepare me to answer the question, “What would Jesus have to say to this?” I want to always be about pointing others to you. Oh, and forgive me. Forgive us as the church. Help us to turn loose of our quest for power and influence so that our morality might be forced upon people. Help us to turn loose of that idol. Help us to turn loose of the idol of the Supreme Court, the President, the Congress, and any other person we think will do our work for us. Help us to do the work you put in front of us for your glory’s sake and not our own.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 20, 2020 in Luke, Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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North Point Church Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall (Part 2 of 3)

17 Jul

Quotes from “Surviving COVID: An Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall” from North Point Community Church

48:15
Andy Stanley: So, Stuart, I want to wrap up with maybe the hardest question or the biggest question. One of the mysteries of our faith is the providence of God. Who’s in charge? The sovereignty of God. You know, what role do we have? And you touched on this earlier. Did God cause this to happen? Do you just respond to what happened? Just life, random. How has this event changed your view of the sovereignty of God or God’s activity in the world? I mean, how…the whole issue of certainty. Talk a little bit about that.

Stuart Hall: Well, Kellee and I had already been wrestling with that a little bit. We did have a window of time as empty nesters where she would travel with me when I would go and speak different places. The more we’ve been around the country, the more we’ve talked to people, the more I started feeling really antsy about this reality: That–and this sounds really harsh, Andy–but I feel like we’ve made an idol out of certainty. Like we…And an idol isn’t an idol because it has a particular property to it. An idol is an idol because of the value you place on it. And so much of our existence revolves around security and certainty. And I think what has happened in our life as a result of this is this unveiling of the fact that you’ve got your value on the wrong things. The only thing you can trust–you know, the writer of Hebrews says Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He doesn’t say your circumstances are. He doesn’t say your marriage will be. He doesn’t say your health will be. He doesn’t say your children will be. He doesn’t say your country will be. He doesn’t say the economy will be. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So the question becomes then, why would I lean my life on anything but him? Do I think that God made this happen? It’s such an interesting tension because to believe in an all-knowing God is to believe that God knows everything. I don’t know if God made it happen. I do know he wants to make it matter. And because he wants to make it matter, I think that she and I feel this, almost like this burden, that we’ve got a join him in whatever it is he’s trying to do because of the story. Because of what it is that he has done in our life. And what we don’t want to do…it’s interesting when uncertainty happens I think we all have this propensity wherever there’s a contradiction we’ll set up an opposition to it. If something contradicts our certainty–like with COVID, for example–it’s a contradiction in our certainty so when go, “Well, it’s a conspiracy theory.” Or, “It’s a political agenda.”

Dear God, the idea of making an idol out of certainty really struck me.

I heard this interview a few days ago and intended to pray to you about these quotes this morning, but while I was getting cleaned up and starting my day about an hour ago I watched this “Reaction Video” on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUW5MwNASmo

Notice the title she chose for the piece was, “This one broke me.” She’s reacting to the song “Piece by Piece” from Kelly Clarkson. The video hit me on two levels. First, Clarkson’s song (which I happened to catch when she performed this life a couple of years ago) is so full of pain and determination that you can’t help but be touched by it. Second, the last words the “reactor” said in the video were, “The first person that ever broke my heart…the first man that ever broke my heart was my dad.” Wow. Heartbreaking.

As a dad who has had complicated relationships with my children, I wondered if they would use those words about me. I never left. I stuck it out through thick and thin. But did I inadvertently break their hearts?

Here are the lyrics to Clarkson’s song:

“Piece by Piece”

And all I remember is your back
Walking towards the airport, leaving us all in your past
I traveled fifteen hundred miles to see you
I begged you to want me, but you didn’t want to

But piece by piece, he collected me up
Off the ground, where you abandoned things
Piece by piece he filled the holes that you burned in me
Six years old and you know
He never walks away
He never asks for money
He takes care of me
He loves me
Piece by piece, he restores my faith
That a man can be kind and the father could, stay

And all of your words fall flat
I made something of myself and now you wanna come back
But your love, it isn’t free, it has to be earned
Back then I didn’t have anything you needed so I was worthless

But piece by piece, he collected me up
Off the ground, where you abandoned things
Piece by piece he filled the holes that you burned in me
Six years old and you know
He never walks away
He never asks for money
He takes care of me
‘Cause he loves me
Piece by piece, he restored my faith
That a man can be kind and a father could, stay
Piece by piece

Piece by piece I fell far from the tree
I will never leave her like you left me
And she will never have to wonder her worth
Because unlike you I’m going to put her first and you know
He’ll never walk away,
He’ll never break her heart
He’ll take care of things, he’ll love her
Piece by piece, he restored my faith
That a man can be kind and the father should be great
Piece by piece
Piece by piece

Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Gregory Kurstin / Kelly Clarkson

Where I want to weave this song and the interview with the Halls together is the idea of trying to be that person of certainty for someone else. She is determined that her husband is going to be that source of certainty for their little girl. She is determined that she will be a source of certainty for her little girl. But as you get older you realize that not only does certainty not come from the economy, work, marriage, children, etc. It doesn’t come from me either. I am not the same yesterday, today and forever. I can die at any moment. I can make unintentional mistakes. I can say something cruel in the heat of the moment.

But you. You are there. Father/Jesus/Holy Spirit, you are there. You love me. You are the same. It made me so sad a couple of months ago when I saw that Clarkson and her husband were divorcing. I thought of this song immediately. I didn’t read any of the stories, so I have zero idea of the details, but I know there have been tears. I know every person involved has been hurt and cried over this, and with those tears might come feelings of rejection. And I’ll assume that everyone is doing their best. But we are not capable of being the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Father, help my children to heal from whatever has hurt their hearts over the years. Help them to find their certainty in your love and to rest in that peace. Help me to do the same. It’s not up to my wife to be my certainty, and it’s not up to me to be hers. Yes, I will do my best, but I will fail. She will do her best, but she can’t be the same yesterday, today, and forever. No one can. But you are the foundation of the universe. You love me. You only ask for me to turn loose of these transient things of the world (including my own selfish desires) and be part of your kingdom. Help me to do that today.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 17, 2020 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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North Point Church Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall (Part 1 of 3)

16 Jul

Quotes from “Surviving COVID: An Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall” from North Point Community Church

40:52
Stuart Hall: I read this week, and I think this parallels with what you’re saying–the writer posed this question: “Have you placed your trust in your theology or the God of your theology?” And that’s really easy for us to get confused. And the way that Kellee and our children have inspired me is exactly what you’re saying. The writer of Hebrews says that we can approach the throne of God with confidence and he’ll give us grace and mercy. But those are not the outcomes we really desire. What we want to do is go, “Well, no, we want him to live and we want him to be completely healthy.” And the writer of Hebrews goes, “You can have confidence that he’s going to give you grace to go through whatever it is that you are going to go through, and he’s going to be merciful to you in that process.” And it does, it pushes against this–if we get really honest I think all of us, we tend to live…our faith ends up being a churched up version of the American dream with just enough Jesus to make it seem legitimate. And what’s happened to us is that that’s been knocked out from under us, and now you go, “Okay, are we going to…are we going to trust Jesus? Are we going to lean the full weight of our life on him? Or are we going to trust what we think about him or what we believe about him? And those are two different things.

Dear God, before I get into this quote from Andy Stanley’s interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall, I want to just say that I’m sorry I’ve ha trouble stilling my mind lately. It almost feels like my brain and thought processes have become addicted to stimulation of thought, and not necessarily news. Maybe it’s just having a TV program, a podcast, or even music running. Whatever it is, I feel unsettled right now. I’m kind of wound up, and my brain doesn’t want to let go of being wound up. If it starts to hit a quiet moment than I look for something to wind it up again. I think that, today at least, I am going to concentrate on allowing for more silence. I’ll see if I can “detox” a little.

Now, back to the interview. Do I have faith in my theology or the God of my theology? Have I made an idol of my faith? By coincidence, Fred Smith’s weekly blog dealt with a similar concept this morning. He talked about how you worked with the Israelites in Numbers 21 when you sent the serpents after they grumbled a lot and then you had Moses craft a staff with a serpent at the top and if people looked upon it they were saved from death from the serpent bites. He said that 800 years later, worshiping the serpent staff became part of the Israelite culture. They took a symbol of you and ascribed your power to it. They made it an idol.

He then said that we still do the same thing today: ancient relics of the early church, crosses, and even the Bible itself. Of course, there are the other obvious things like Stuart Hall mentions in this interview. We put our faith in things that change instead of Jesus/you/Holy Spirit, which never changes. The economy. Our health. Our church. Our education. Our intellect. My bank account. A politician. I put my faith in all of these things at one time or another as I get distracted from you and what you are calling me to do.

Father, right now there is a particular fork in my road at work, and I need your wisdom and provision to carry us through both the short-term and the long-term. I need to be still before you. I need to rest in you. I need to listen for your voice and give you all of my worship and praise.

I pray all of this in Jesus’s name,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 16, 2020 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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North Point Church Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall (Part 3 of 3)

14 Jul

Quotes from “Surviving COVID: An Interview with Stuart and Kellee Hall” from North Point Community Church

54:53
Andy Stanley: If you were sitting over a coffee table with our audience–either single men and women, married men and women, seniors, high school students, college students, and you had your, you know, your elevator pitch…the final moment–what do you say?

Stuart Hall: I would probably say that I think we have the wrong job description for love. As humans we are always trying to avoid pain. As parents we are always trying to protect our children from pain. As friends we are always trying to fix each other’s pain. And no wonder we always feel like failures because life is, it’s the human drama. It’s pleasure and pain. And the question I would have you wrestle with is just simply this: What are you going to trust in when that pain happens? When your certainty is made uncertain? Are you going to lean your life on your own understanding? Your own ability to reason? Your own ability to wrap this up and put a bow on it? Or will you trust your life to the only one that doesn’t change, that doesn’t move, and can actually heal you of your pain, can heal you in your hurt? The last thing I would say is that your love for Jesus doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be true. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be true. So I implore you–if you’re not a Jesus person, you don’t follow him–would you consider what you’re leaning your life up against? And if you are a Jesus person, you are…you do follow in the way of Jesus, how much are you trusting him? Are you trusting what you know about him, or are you really trusting him? That’s my prayer for people, that they will lean their life, the full weight of their existence on him.

Dear God, I was having lunch with a friend yesterday, and he said something I think is very true: Struggle is underrated. Struggle and pain are an important part of our human development–all of the way until death. If there is no struggle we will atrophy and die.

My wife has had a couple of specific stressors in her life lately, and she was talking about them with a friend. The friend asked if she had considered taking any antidepressants to help alleviate the stress, and my wife hadn’t considered it because she wasn’t trying to avoid the pain of the situation. She does things to care for herself through this time like prayer time in a chapel with you on a daily basis, exercise, and nourishing herself with a variety of Godly and intellectually stimulating things, but she isn’t trying to mask why is going on. And that’s not to say that there is not a time and place for antidepressants, but I do believe they are overused in our society. As part of that same conversation when she told me about what her friend said, my wife told me that 1 out of 6 Americans are on some sort of antidepressant/anti-anxiety medication. That means 17% of our country, including children, feel the need to mask their stress. I don’t know what that number should ideally be, but for what is supposedly the greatest country in the world, that seems like a high number.

One of the challenges I faced as a parent was trying to figure out when to mitigate the pain my children were experiencing and when to let them walk through it–albeit with my love and support. And there were times when I tried to not intervene when others would intervene and short-circuit any good that might have come from the struggle. It was a frustrating process, and I don’t think it’s a concept that is taught enough in parenting books.

And then there’s my own life. How do I face struggle and pain? Do I lean on you, or do I try to avoid it? Do I live in denial or do I live in faith (although there is a thin line between living in denial and living in faith). And to be sure, the struggles in my life are pretty mild when compared with other stories I know, but there are still times when I’d rather just curl up in my bed and not face the realities in front of me.

Lately, and I’ve told you this a lot in these journals recently, there have been times when I’ve let the COVID-19 news, the daily deaths, the depletion of healthcare resources, etc. get to me. I recently rediscovered a playlist I made of 15 songs I listened to in 2005 when I was unemployed for six months. They are a mixture of worship songs (“Forever” by Chris Tomlin) and songs about seeking you for comfort. The lead-off song is a guy who can’t get out of bed from the weight of his stress (“Staring at a Bird” by The Waiting). Another song has the line, “Sometimes he calms the storm, but other times he calms his child” (“Sometimes He Calms the Storm” by Scott Krippayne). A couple are songs about repentance like dc Talk’s cover of Charlie Peacock’s “In the Light.” I pulled this playlist out this week and listened to it quite a bit.

Father, I guess I’ll finish with this. If the fruit of the Holy Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, kindness and self control (Galatians 5:22-23) then I want to lean into you/Jesus/Holy Spirit as much as possible to face the trials before me and to help others face their trials as well. I want to do it with transparency and vulnerability. And I want to be a person of action. I don’t want to just sit here and think thoughts that are useless unless they are activated. I want to be a person who sees a need, hears your voice about how you would have me respond, and then be your presence in that situation. Give me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can (and your blessing, wisdom, and power in that work), and the wisdom to know the difference.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 14, 2020 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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