Beauty and the Beast

Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl who met and married an ugly beast of a man. He was a man who lacked a compass to navigate the complicated waters of life. Because of how he expressed his anger, he couldn't even hold a job at Burger King. Beast's most stable job since marrying Beauty had been growing and selling drugs. After six years of abuse, broken promises and three children together, Beauty decided that she had enough; she kicked the Beast out on his ugly head and washed her hands of him, or so it seemed.

All of her friends and family applauded her decision and supported her. But then Beauty did something scandalous. She told the Beast that if he died and came back to life as a real man, literally changing his identity, even his name, disposing of all his animal ways in exchange for humanity, then—and only then—would she take him back.

Repeatedly she was told, "Beauty, this is a price that he cannot pay, and it's a chance that he doesn't deserve to be given!" Every time her answer is the same: "I know all of that, but I love him anyway."

Beast has spent the past 10 months in a treatment program sorting his life out, wrestling with 30 years worth of dysfunction so that he could begin to rebuild as a new man. The hope that keeps him going is that Beauty would give him one more undeserved chance if he could figure our how to kill the beasts that had ruled his life for so long. For most people, the scandal is strangely palpable—and beautiful. Others have made no room for this new man in their hearts and lives; they refuse to forget or forgive.

Lately I've been asked over and over to talk about how we are supposed to balance the idea of Grace with Justice… or acceptance and accountability.

I have struggled with how to blog about this… I'm not a writer. Nobody reads long blogs and I want to produce something that's palpable.

So here's my abbreviated attempt at Grace and Truth.

GRACE:

Grace could be defined as the undeserved favor of God toward people. It's something we've not earned and that we don't deserve. Grace is the first ingredient necessary for us to be whole, healthy, mature people. In Christian-eese I would say that Grace is the first thing needed to grow into the image of God. It's a main ingredient found in the Garden of Eden. Adam and eve were secure; no shame or anxiety. They could be who they truly were.

TRUTH:

Truth is what's real. It describes reality. Truth is the second ingredient needed to live the best possible life for now and eternity.

Grace is the RELATIONAL ASPECT OF GOD'S CHARACTER.
Truth is the STRUCTURAL ASPECT OF GOD'S CHARACTER.

TRUTH WITH OUT GRACE IS JUDGEMENT

Truth sends us straight to hell. Truth before relationship (Grace) brings guilt, anger, anxiety, and more.

GRACE WITH OUT TRUTH IS LICENSE

License allows people do what they want to do. Laziness, irresponsibility, procrastination, alcohol abuse, teenage pregnancy… this and more is a look into license without structure.

Beauty let Beast abuse her and get away with a non-structure for 6 years. She showed Grace (license) without truth (structure). When she combined Grace and Truth, she found new freedom for herself. She realized that she could create healthy structure that would protect her and her kids. She balanced that with Grace (which came easy for her) and found hope for a good relationship. When she combined Grace and Truth, it created freedom in Beasts life, too. Beast was shown a consequence for his actions (structure, truth) and when Beauty offered him an opportunity be in relationship with her (within healthy guidelines), then Beast found motivation attempt change. Combining Grace and Truth brings freedoms to us and others.

There are some of my thoughts.

With that in mind, do you have specific questions or situations to discuss? "What do I do if….?"

We aren't the future

We are so much more than our future.

I hate to admit this in such a public place; a place that simply begs for criticism that you can keep hidden from me. Deep sigh, here we go... I used to have a poster of Whitney Houston on the wall of my bedroom. Gulp. I’m bracing myself for the sound of laughter, but I’m alone now. You haven’t read this yet.

Although confession is quite a relief, I didn’t tell you that just to confess my teenage dorkiness. I’m tying to go somewhere with this, so hang with me.

Second embarrassing Whitney-related confession: One of the first CD’s that I ever owned was a Whitney Houston CD. I MUST clarify that I didn’t go out and buy this CD – it just came with the CD player that I bought from my Aunt. I know I’m alone here at my computer, but I honestly found myself preparing for another round of laughter.

On that CD, Whitney sang these words (I am quoting them from memory)

“People say the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead
the way”

Although I could quote more - much more, that’s all that pertains to this particular ramble.

“YOUNG PEOPLE ARE THE FUTURE!” – too often this misguided mantra permeates our thoughts, programs, strategies, and teachings. I spent MANY years working with teenagers around the world - this is a pretty common battle cry.

“Sometimes I think we sacrifice present purpose while looking for future greatness” – Joe Green

Lol. I just quoted myself. That’s got to be some literary faux pas.

Whitney grew up in church. So did Elvis and Marilyn Manson. I wonder – just speculation here – if people were more interested in what they were going to be rather than what they were right then and now?

Even though I started by quoting Whitney’s thoughts about children, my overarching thoughts aren’t exclusively about young people.

Although I agree that preparing for the future is REALLY important, sometimes I think we are so preoccupied with “what’s next?” that we miss out on what is happening now.

Are you thinking about what you have to do next? I mean it… right now are YOU slightly anxious because there are other things to be doing? Other people you should be with or chores to be done? Is this normal?

We are not the future. If you and I are similar at all, then sometimes you struggle with being fully present right here, right now. Maybe you’re present in your body, but your mind and attention is really somewhere else. If we’re similar then sometimes you are playing with your kids while trying to figure out what you’re going to do about a situation you have to deal with later… or you’re thinking about something at work… or wondering how long you ‘have’ to play with these Barbies. But, you’re not at work or doing a chore. You’re playing with your kids. Now.
Sometimes present relationships suffer because of our preoccupation with what’s next.

Personally speaking – in my time alone with God today, I was reminded that this church that we’re planting isn’t JUST something that is “going to be great someday”. See, I’ve found myself looking so far into the future that I forgot for a second that we are a church RIGHT NOW. This church that we are starting isn’t only a future reality, it’s a present reality. I have to lead like we are a church right now. The future of our church is important, but not more important than our present purpose, our present people, or our current victories. I made a choice to stop today and celebrate what we ARE, before I started working toward the future.

Want to join me in trying to be ‘fully present’ wherever we are today (and tomorrow)? Maybe we could have one less place to go after this and stay in that place a bit longer?

I have to go now… I’m supposed be somewhere.


---joe

p.s. If you are close to my age, I bet you have that Whitney song in your head.

...but don't stay that way

Come as you are, but don't stay that way.

Will you accept me for who I am now? With all my baggage that I bring to this relationship? Or would you prefer me to hide my faults, my insecurities, my addictions, my immaturity, and my sin?

Would you like me more if I only showed you my healthy character traits? Would be my friend longer if I kept the ugly parts of me a secret to you? Will you make fun of me behind my back if I tell you some of my weird thoughts? Will you stop calling me if I tell you my marriage is in trouble?

There's a subtle message that I've picked up in the "church". I've only recognized it in the past 5 years or so. It's the message that tell us that God's grace is what gets us to heaven and it's a beautiful thing, but almost right away you are 'supposed' to grow up to live an 'acceptable' christian standard. The subtle message in the 'church' tells me that most Christians are more interested in an outward conformity than with inward growth.

As long as you "don't do" certain outward things like smoke, drink, cuss, or have sex outside of marriage, then you pass the test and can 'join' (or stay in) the club. And as long as you read the bible, attend church and have a regular 'quiet time' - you're acceptable and desirable here. Even if on the inside you are still controlled by fears, greed, jealousy, insecurities, anxiety, or emotionally shut down. Even if you are secretly addicted to material possession, a glutton, filled with lust, or rage - just don't let it show and you can be viewed as a successful and upstanding Christian.

I think that the scripture makes it clear that people don't grow spiritually if they are exclusively conforming outwardly. Too many people start with Grace and then move backwards and try to become acceptable on their own efforts. That's anti-grace. We can't make ourselves acceptable... our efforts have nothing to do with it. God's Grace takes us "as is".

Paul writes in Galatians 3 "Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?"

Come as you are, but don't stay that way. It's time to grow up, but how?

I'm trying to grow; become a better, more healthy person. I'm trying to grow for my sake... but also for yours. If I grow up, then I participate in making this world a better place to live. I'm learning that if i truly want to grow, then I have to stop pretending, hiding. To many, that proves too flipin' difficult with in the church context.

I wish I had more time to develop this next concept, but i don't... so just trust me on it. GROWTH HAPPENS BEST IN THE CONTEXT OF RELATIONSHIPS. As a matter of fact, I'd go so far as to say that Growth can't happen outside of loving relationships.

Growing up is a messy process. There's messy diapers, then they learn to feed themselves (and get food everywhere!), then there's puberty (aaarrrggh!), then the 'who am i?' crisis in college. Mid-life crisis? Spiritual growth isn't much different.

Help me accept people for who they are right now. And will you help me allow people to grow from there - wherever there is? I don't want to do this alone, it's too messy. Let's you and I re-write the 'church's' subtle message to say something different... something less anti-grace. Something less anti-christ.

I'm convince that God is asking us to to be open and honest about our baggage. He's not very helpful in healing us if we hide our diseases.

Of course we don't want people to be alcoholics or remain addicted to porn or continue to abuse women!!! Of course not! So WE HAVE TO provide a place where people can tell their struggles in a safe environment.

The church was never meant to be a 'place' or a 'building' - it's meant to be people who are loving God and others... will you join me in being a 'people' who allows others to identify, out loud, the areas that they need to grow?

Come as you are, but don't stay that way.

I want to be a better person, too - for you - for me.

GRACE: Come as you Are

"The world can do almost anything as well or better than the church. You need not be a Christian to build houses, feed the hungry, or heal the sick. There is only one thing the world cannot do. It cannot offer grace" – Gordon MacDonald.

Grace says that God loves your right now, just like you are. Then why does the 'church' or christianity get labeled as intolerant so often?

GRACE: more than tolerance

Tolerance: "sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one's own."

Why do I think that tolerance is a cheap substitute for grace?

· Doesn't value people only puts up with behavior or beliefs.

· Deals with differences, but doesn't embrace people for their good and bad parts.

· Because tolerance can't label something as "bad" or "wrong" or "sinful" (that wouldn't be tolerant, now would it?)

· There's no place for 'justice' in tolerance.

Grace accepts both the good and bad in people…

The world around us is good and bad

Your friends and family are good and bad

YOU are both good and bad

Your enemies are good and bad

Sometimes people have a hard time integrating the good and the bad parts of them. Some people try to hide or ignore the bad, sinful, compulsive, arrogant, or mean parts of themselves. But we are meant to be WHOLE people. There's something healthy about being able to accept myself and others for who they are right now... all of them (or me). Reality is healthy.

If we only acknowlege the good parts of ourselves, then we aren't being honest with who we are, now. We're lying and putting ourselves in unreal relationships - relationships where the bad parts of us are 'off limits' to discuss. If we get stuck in this then we can't change and move beyond our hurts, addictions, anger, etc. When we're in this 'all good' mode, then we de-value ANYthing that doesn't meet our expectations (Unsatisfied in job(s), churches, relationships, etc).

If we go to the "all bad" mode of ourself or the world...

·

End up in a mental hospital

· Depression

· Suicide

· Pessimism

· Hopelessness

· Lying to self and others

If we don't integrate the good and bad parts of us or the world around us, we can't successfully deal with the realities in the world.

We need to be fully integrated people.

Grace allows us to accept the good and bad parts of us and others.

Tolerance doesn't do that because tolerance can't label something as 'bad' or sinful or wrong.

GRACE: means we don't try to fix people.

If you found the mona lisa in your back yard covered in mud, you would be focused on the value of the painting. On the flip-side, if you saw one of my paintings covered in mud, there would be no value in spending anytime trying to clean it – a waste of time.

Back to the mona lisa – you should be excited and nervous to have something so valuable in your care. BECAUSE OF ITS VALUE - you shouldn't try to clean it up yourself, but you should take the art to a master who could guide the restoration process. That's a picture of Grace.

People should be introduced to God who is the master of restoration.

GRACE: ACCEPTANCE
QUESTION: How do we put skin on this kind of Grace?

Romans 15:7 "Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God."

GRACE: NO CONDEMNATION

At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" "No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."

Grace is beautiful. Grace is powerful. Grace can acknowlege our shortcomings. Grace takes me as I am.

As is. As we are. As you are. How are you? Do you have Grace toward yourself? Do you re-present God's Grace toward your world? Have you experienced Grace?

I'm trying to be fully integrated myself... celebrating the good parts and accepting the stupid parts. I'm trying to do the same for you.

just some of my late night thoughts.

Lesson from Spider-man

"...In the end, Peter has made his decision, he's going to run. Until Aunt May meets him on the way out the door. To her there is clearly no option about the decision he has made, he will reveal himself, she believes more in his character than he does. This is the last bit of reassurance he needs to make the hard decision. It then cuts to him at the press conference with Tony Stark who has already made clear his identity as Iron Man. The final frame of this issue was exhilarating. In his classic red and blue costume Spider-Man steps to the podium and says: "Hi, good morning. Thank you for coming. I'm standing here today because… well, because… I have an announcement to make."


Peter Parker has done the unthinkable – he's revealed himself to the public. Everyone now knows that Spidey is Peter Parker. What in the heck is Marvel doing?!

I suspect in the long run he's probably relieved that he doesn't have to pretend anymore. A dual life is hard to live.

I suppose he could put on glasses when he doesn't want to be recognized… doh!

My distaste for Marvel's marketing ploy aside, I DO have a point.

In the real world, I think few people are comfortable enough with them selves not to pretend. The fear of rejection or disapproval is strong, even in 'spiritual' leaders.

I think there is a message that God has for us; it goes something like this

Get rid of hypocrisy, stop hiding behind masks. Lose the religious pretense; it's destructive to authentic faith. I want honest, authentic people.

Authenticity: Loosing the need to pretend.

As a human being, I don't want to be a place where you put on your churchy-face and pretend. I want to allow you to be a work in progress. I want you to do the same for me.

When we pretend, we're stuck. We absolutely cannot become better people until we admit the areas that need work. We can't find our security in God if we never admit being insecure. We can't overcome our anger problems if we continue to act like we're fine.

You can't fix that relationship with your boyfriend if you never tell him the things that make you uncomfortable. You can't find eternity in Heaven until you admit your inability to get there on your own. You can't until you admit, come clean, and be honest.

Good relationships require honesty, including the relationship you have with yourself.

Come as you are. No perfect people allowed.

Authenticity is dangerous if it's not married to acceptance and grace, but that's for another blog.


Trying to be real,

Joe

DOUBTERS WANTED

Somewhere in my work in Churches over the years, I heard a story about a church picnic gone wrong. At this picnic, a teenage boy named “Bob” (a fictitious name) dives to save the volleyball from hitting the ground and breaks his arm in the process. For those of you who are wondering, the opposing team won that point.

That evening the youth pastor called to see how Bob was doing. The mom answered the phone and wouldn’t allow the pastor to speak to Bob. “I’m tired of all this church stuff! How could God let something like this happen to my son? If there was really a God, then He’d protect my children. Especially at a church event! If He can’t keep my kids safe at a church picnic, then why should I trust him?”

Doubts. Do you ever doubt? I have doubts. Sometimes more than others. Faith mixed with doubt? Is that even possible?

Do you remember the story when the little boy put his finger into a hole in the dike and saved the people from being drowned by the ocean? (Hans Christian Anderson). Sometimes I think Christians, especially new ones, put their finger into the hole and hold back a great sea of doubt.

Broken arms are not the worst things that happen to Christians.

There are a lot of Christians who have doubts; a lot more than are willing to admit it. Have you ever expressed your doubts? In my experience, the most common answer among Christian people is “you have a lack of faith” or something similar. That’s it? Simply tell me that I have a problem?

That’s like going to the doctor and telling him that it hurts when you swallow. The Dr. nods, and replies “You have a sore throat,” then he grabs his golf clubs and heads out the door. (boy, I’m full of analogies today!)

At the church I’m starting, together we are trying to loose the need to pretend. We value dialogue and encourage doubt to be expressed. I want my church to be a place where we don’t head out the door with our golf clubs. I want to be a church where we can dialogue, spend time with each other and uncover the ‘reasons’ for our doubt and maybe discover ‘reasons’ for faith.

In the most famous doubting story in the bible, Doubting Thomas didn’t get made fun of or ostracized for his doubts. Instead, Jesus offered evidence. Jesus gave Thomas a reason to believe.

If doubt is the opposite of faith, then I think we must be honest about our doubts before we can ever grow in *faith. If we ignore our doubts or hide them from others, then we are hiding from and ignoring important parts of our lives.

Faith and doubt a paradox? Think about this piece of scripture, “Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”.



Love ya,


Joe



*Faith always needs an object. It’s not possible to have faith in faith. Faith isn’t ambiguous. It’s always Faith in SOMETHING. People say they have faith in themselves or faith in a person. I suggest Faith in God makes the most sense. Maybe we can substitute the word trust for faith?

Our actions stem from our beliefs

How do you view God?

GALACTIC POLICEMAN: He's always trying to catch us doing something wrong so that He can punish us. Shame and guilt are God's tools to keep us in line.

COSMIC JOYKILLER: God prefers the stoic, the serious souls. Fun is only for children. We must be mature followers of Christ now.

THE FORCE: Impersonal, faceless, formless energy - He both guides the universe and IS the universe. Some people can tap into this energy and some 'less spiritual' people can't.

VENDING MACHINE: When you need Him, you'll do the right things, pray 'good' prayers and hope He'll deliver what you're asking for. It's like He's relegated to a fixed location and we go back to Him when we've screwed up.

God doesn't describe himself like any of the common views of him that I described above. There are bits of truth in each of the descriptions, overall they give a POOR image of what God is really like.

What if God, the maker of the universe, actually came to earth and offered a description of Himself? There's a Rich Hebrew word that God himself used to describe himself (Exodus 34:6-7). Hesed (sometimes spelled chesed).

In the scripture I just refered to, Moses had been put in a cleft and God passes before him. The scripture says that God proclaimed - Yaweh, Yaweh God hesed... and abundant in hesed...keeping hesed.

Hesed is a rich word, full of meaning and depth. The word can rightly be translated many ways depending on context. Similar to the word ALOHA - can mean hello or goodbye, or an aknowledgement - or love or affection. You determine the meaning of ALOHA by the context.

Hesed is translated mostly as LOVE, MERCY, GOODNESS, WONDERFUL LOVE, and KINDNESS.

This word is important for Christians to understand, not so that we brush up on our Hebrew, but because it embodies so much of what God is... how God wants to be known... His character.

So much of what we do comes back to what we truly believe about God. Do we really believe following Jesus is the best way to live? How can we answer YES! and then spend our money on stupid things and let the poor go hungry? If we really believe that God is deeply GOOD toward us, then why do we spend so much time worrying and being anxious? If we believe that God is merciful toward us, then why do we wallow in guilt and shame? Why do we do so many things in our own strength when God wants to move on our behalf? Do we believe that Jesus is the only way, yet we go our own way all the time? - maybe we don't REALLY believe?

God is Hesed. God is love, merciful, good, kind. The rabbi's point out the part of the point to Hesed is that it's a 'covenant love' - it's a merciful love that's based in a love RELATIONSHIP with us. Not too unsimilar to a marriage. Hesed is a beautiful blend of loyalty and love. In a real sense, God has chosen to obligate Himself to show Hesed to us.

Hesed is almost ALWAYS used to describe God's actions toward mankind or individuals. Even in the case or two that Hesed is used to describe human to human mercy, the point remains that any mercy that I can extend to a human FIRST COMES FROM GOD! This reminds me of when Jesus said "you love because I first loved you".

I'm convinced that most of our actions are rooted in what we truly, deeply believe. I am trying hard to connect with a God who is full of Love, Mercy, Goodness, and Kindness toward me. I find the more I connect with Him, get close to Him - the easier it is to believe the deep love towards me in Him... to REALLY believe that about Him. The more time I spend with Him, the more I see His character. The more I see His Hesed toward me, the more I can rest, be joyful, productive, and fulfilled.

At times in my life, I've lived my Christianity through other people's relationship with God. I was an observer. I listened to sermons and read books yet was disconnected from God. In those times I found it increasingly difficult to follow Jesus as if I TRULY believed His ways were the best. I think there's a point in everyones life when what we've been convinced of in our head, moves to our hearts. This is central to the Christian experience.

Friends, be reminded today that God IS love. Let's work on what we truly believe in such a way that our actions represent God to the world.

More parties

I don't think Christians party enough.

One of the ways that Jesus described how things 'should be' is when he said "The kingdom of Heaven is like a wedding banquet". - have you ever seen how the Jewish people party?#!

I think that we were created to Celebrate... Specifically, I think we've been created to celebrate God and His work/actions EVERYWHERE WE SEE IT.

No amount of darkness can erase the Divine imprint of God in every human life. Every time we find something good, godly inside of someone, we should celebrate that! When a single mom works her rear-end off to care for her child, we should HONOR that as something from God. Everytime an addict enters recovery we can celebrate with him - whether he knows it or not, he's just done something that God would want him to do.

What is there in the life a Mormon or Buddhist or atheist that is right, true, lovely and worth celebrating? Isn't all truth God's truth? I think that WAY too often Christians take a "we're right" approach to such a level that we communicate the wrongness of everyone else and therefore create a CHASM deeper than is needed.

A side note to the Christians: I think that when our communities (churches) spend most of our time trying to convince people not to sin, then they've missed the point. The point has NEVER been sin management, the point is about who we ARE. It's about Jesus.

One of the first things Jesus described himself as is someone who brings GLADNESS and PRAISE... As opposed to anti-gladness and anti-praise. Once he told us that if the people stopped singing praises - then the rocks would cry out in praise! WE CAN'T STOP THE CELEBRATION!

Anyway, when is the last time you stood still in awe of God and His creation? That's celebration.
Don't you think we move to fast to stop and listen to peoples stories, lives? I think it's "ANTI-KINGDOM" to be so busy that we can't see God's divine imprint in the lives of those around us.

Here's how we would summarize these thoughts at Axis (a church in formation, Fresno, CA)

We believe that the world God created is good, that He creates people in His image, and that no amount of darkness can erase that divine imprint. Because we believe that all of life is sacred, we look for God's fingerprints everywhere. We celebrate the divine in the daily, pursuing lives of hope, gratitude, and worship. God invites everyone everywhere into this way of life, and we believe it is the best possible way to live.

• An atheist who creates great art - we can celebrate his God given gift
• An Al Quaeda member who shows compassion on a sick relative - do we see God's imprint there?
• An Israeli who donates his money to the poor.
• An inner-city gang member who is loyal to his friends.
• A preacher who's starting a church.
• A mother nursing her child.

God's activity is worth celebrating - no matter where we find Him.

---joe

Why am I a Pastor?

Last week one one of my online friends asked me this question. "Why are you a pastor?"

I didn't have time to type an answer, but the first thing that came into my mind was this... I thought, "Telling me that I can't be a pastor is like telling me that I can't breath." I don't know if that thought answers the question well, but it sure reveals the passion I have for "Pastoring". It's almost as if I'm a pastor because I just can't do anything else with my life.

When I think about answering this question, I find that there are many "levels" to answer. Let me briefly mention a few reasons.

JOE, WHY ARE YOU A PASTOR?
1. I'm convinced that God has asked me to be a pastor. Plain and simple. I'm convinced that God is a communicator and that He's told me clearly that full-time, vocational ministry is His plan for my life.

2. I don't think that I do anything else well. Not that I'm a perfect pastor, but I'm really not that good at many other things.

3. I'm not fulfilled doing anything else. I sometime wish I could have been a rock star. No, don't laugh, I'm serious. I've found that pursing music alone, doesn't fill me with satisfaction. Graphic Arts/design? I love it! But, I find little heart-satisfaction with it... same with photography. Sure there are other things that I love, but nothing that satisfies my heart.

4. The world needs more pastors. Yes, we are loosing ground in America. The big "C" Church needs more people to step-it-up and lead toward advancing God's kingdom! Did you know that...

• 1,400 pastors leave the ministry each month, in America.
• No county in the U.S. has a greater percentage of churched people today than it did 10 years ago.
• The amount of un-churched people in the U.S. has doubled in the past 10 years.
• America is the 3rd largest missions field in the world.

What about you? What gets you out of bed in the morning? What fulfills you? Motivates you?

Great causes motivate me. I'm convinced that the Greatest Cause the world has ever known has been the local church. When functioning properly, the local church is the greatest organization on planet earth. The local church carries the message of Hope that will effect the human condition for eternity! No other cause effects or affects mankind for today or for eternity like the church. This is why I'm a pastor. Great causes need great sacrifice and energy. I'm willing to sacrifice and give my life to being a leader in the local church.

There you have it... some quick thoughts. How do you respond to that? Did I make you cringe? Do you think the church is the hope of the world? Were you inspired? Talk to me.


---joe

BASS LAKE DAY - AUGUST 20th - 1 til 6

Here are the details:

WHERE: Bass lake... Recreation Point. Click here for a map. Call Joe (288.7643) if you need better directions.

WHEN: Sunday August 20th. 1pm - 6ish.

WHAT: AXIS will BBQ. Also, we are trying to get a boat and some Wave Runners for the day. Invite your friends and family to hang out for the day.

WHAT TO BRING: some food to share (i.e. potato salad, cookies, salad, veggies, etc.).

AXIS WILL PROVIDE: BBQ - hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken. Drinks, plates, napkins, cups, utentsils etc.

Would you be so kind as to leave a comment if you plan to join us.

The two Become One

On July 23rd I got to perform my very first Wedding. Yes, bald head and earrings and that hair under my bottom lip. No suit. No tie. I loved it. The groom cried. The bride cried. Nobody fainted. It was brilliant!

Below I have copied a portion of my part of the ceremony... the part where I talked to the beautiful couple. I've not done any editing to make it more understandable to you, the reader... good luck.

I'm asking you to read, then let's have a community response to the topic of ONENESS. How have you experience oneness? Does it truly exist? How does it work? What does it look like?

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 19:4-6

Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' 5 and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? 6 So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."



Gods intent was that a man and woman leave their parents to be joined together in marriage. When your family said We do they were endorsing this biblical principle.



U2 wrote an incredible song called ONE

It starts off:

Is it getting better

Or do you feel the same

Will it make it easier on you

Now you got someone to blame

What do they mean? This is a great thing about being one? That you get someone to blame?



I Ryan Emerson take you Hayley Owens

So that I have someone to blame.



The song continues

Did I disappoint you?

Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?

I Hayley Owens take you Ryan Emerson

To disappoint me?

To leave a bad taste in my mouth?



Does ONENESS include times of disappointment and blame? Yes it does.


The best relationships must acknowledge reality, limitations, disappointments, and struggles. Sharing in that reality is part of what makes you ONE. Allowing God to change you, heal you, and teach you within the context of this ONENESS is what makes this a Christian marriage.



U2 finishes the song

One life,

But were not the same

We get to carry each other, Carry each other.

You follow a God who carries us through good times and bad! Who accepts our limitations and loves us unconditionally no strings attached. It's HIS love that helps us be ONE. He is our example of what Love really is.



SCRIPTURE: 1 John 4: 7-19

7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 19 We love because he first loved us.



Ryan and Hayley, the love that you share comes from God. You love because He loved first. Keep Him first in your marriage!

One life

Because youre not the same

You get to carry each other, carry each other.

Out of the Huddle

Mamush
Good deeds

It’s like there is this parallel place on the other side of the world. Hope is white. Mamush is black. Hope lives with her parents in suburban California and Mamush lives with his parents in a hut in Ethiopia.

Hope struggles with enough play time with her Barbie’s. Mamush struggles with hunger pains.

Hope is 5 years old. She’s my daughter. Mamush has the same birthday as Hope, he’s 5 years old and he’s not my son. Hope recently got vaccinations in order to be allowed to attend kindergarten. Mamush lives in a town that’s infested with the AIDS virus… school may not be an option for him.

I’ve been blogging about community lately. Mamush is the result of the little community that I’m deeply involved with. We’ve “adopted” Mamush through World Vision.

One Sunday night we were looking through the bible at portions that discussed “good deeds”. We ran across Ephesians chapter 2. We read in the passage that we’ve been saved by Grace. We reminisced about how we’ve heard that phrase a million times in ‘church’ settings. I rambled about how I think too many churches are huddled together reminding each other the we’re “Saved by Grace” – they sing their songs about it, do small group bible studies about it, and put it on their bulletins… but too many churches missed the crescendo.

Crescendo – a musical term… you know, where the music builds to a climatic moment of glory, bliss, and beauty. Arguably the Crescendo is the point of many musical pieces and the rest of the music is meant to lead us there.

Yes, we’ve been saved by grace… but don’t stop the music early! According to the scriptures, we’ve been saved by grace for a reason – TO DO GOOD WORKS.

Here’s what I believe – deeply believe.
“Jesus calls people to be a compelling force for good in the world. God uses people as agents of change, to relieve suffering and fight injustice, living out the transforming message of the resurrected Jesus. I believe that the church is at its best when it serves, sacrifices, and loves, caring about the things God cares about. We were created to live for something larger than ourselves.”

So, on that wonderful Sunday night, we decided to stop talking about doing “good deeds” and we decided to take some action. That’s where Mamush comes in. He’s a result of a community of Christ followers deciding to actually follow the Way of Christ. We just sent our first check to him this week. I have to tell you, if felt GOOD! Since that day, we’ve seen one of our people in our community go to Africa on a missions trip and we’re planning a time where we can help to build a habitat for humanity house here in Fresno.

Parallel worlds collide. Mamush in Africa. Hope is in Fresno. I’m praying that Mamush would begin to have some hope.

LIFE TOGETHER - part 2

I can be a loner. I like my alone time, just me and my thoughts. This notion reminds me of a poem that I wrote in high school and eventually used in a song... Here's a line:

Here I sit in my room full of thoughts
my doors and window all are locked
on and on ticks the clock

I like to be independent. Self-sufficient. There's something satisfying about being able to handle my own "stuff". Yet, when I'm honest, it's a temporary satisfaction. It's shallow. And although I like to be alone, I don't want to live my whole life that way. I actually crave community.

Don't you think our culture makes it easy to be isolated? Oh, wait... We have "Myspace", nevermind.

For Centuries reading the bible alone was practically unheard of. Ancient peoples only heard the scriptures read aloud in a rooms full of people. Sometimes there was only one copy of the bible (or portion of the bible) in an entire village.

Because of the oral nature of the scriptures, the ancient/near east mindset saw themselves as part of a discussion that has gone on for thousands of years. Community, community, community. TOGETHER wrestling and searching and engaging the scriptures as a people hungry to know God in order to follow God.

Now, pastors study the bible alone, stand on stage and deliver the message alone, then they received e-mails and phone calls from individuals who agree or don't agree. Sigh. Is this right? Healthy? It's probably not all bad.

I do know that I'm really enjoying being part of a small community of christ followers who are trying to do life together. We've recently adopted an African child with the same birthdate as my daughter... we're contributing a small amount toward his health and education. My little community is planning a day to help build a home for a "less fortunate" family here in Fresno. And soon my little community is going to PART-A (party) for a day in Bass Lake! I'm finding that doing life together is very rewarding, fulfilling, diverse and most importantly pleasing to God.

I believe that we were created to live deeply with one another, to carry each other’s burdens and share our possessions, to pray for and confess our sins to each other, to suffer and celebrate together. It’s in these sacred relationships and honest, loving communities that God transforms us. The way of Jesus cannot be lived alone.

Are you connected? Do you have a community with whom you do life together with?

Love,

Joe

LIFE TOGETHER

Group one: knew all the church songs, all the right religious language, and grew up in Sunday School with all the bible stories. This group has decided to follow the way of Jesus.

Group two: dressed different, went to different restaurants, had completely different backgrounds, and knew NONE of the 'right' religious things. This group has decided to follow the way of Jesus.

Can't we all just get along?!

(Ephesians 2) Paul makes outrageous claims about forming a "new humanity" (verse 15) out of these 2 groups. He tells us that JESUS is our "peace" and that his intent is to destroy the obvious barriers (by abolishing the law) between two seemingly opposite groups. It's because of JESUS we now have the ABILITY to do life together. A new humanity.

The following is an exerpt from an e-mail that I received recently. I've changed the names to protect the accused. We'll call them Jack and Jill. Jill is writing the e-mail, we'll catch her somewhere in the middle.

"...Great message on the blog as well...I'd like to not fail in my life been doing a lot of outreaching to other young Mums here and sometimes I wonder if I should be hanging out with more Christian people at this point, but God seems to be bringing me all these people who just need to talk or that need the practical help stuff like a meal brought round or their child watched and I'm able to do that for them.... also reading your blog made me realize what I want from a Church as well....I want a community of CHRISTIANS that SUPPORT each other in the good times and in the bad times, I hate to tell you this but my Non-Christian friends here are more supportive and helpful then my Christian friends, and even 's family, if I call them and need something like to take to kinder or something they are there for me...no questions asked, even at the last minute...but the Christian friends always seem to have something on or are busy with their own things, the non-christians actually offer to help out where the Christians say "I'll pray for you this week.." NOT ACCEPTABLE!!! as Super Nanny would say... we need to do these things for each other and do them with a cheerful and glad heart... THAT's what I want from a Church....”

Here's what we believe at Axis:

"We believe that we were created to live deeply with one another, to carry each other’s burdens and share our possessions, to pray for and confess our sins to each other, to suffer and celebrate together. It’s in these sacred relationships and honest, loving communities that God transforms us. The way of Jesus cannot be lived alone."

The church is meant to be a community. I don't think that Jesus ever intended the Church to be a place where people go, but rather a place where people learn to love Him and others. It's in community that we are meant to display this "new humanity".

Dig deeper.

Love,

Joe Green

The Inward Journey

INWARDS:

At the heart of mankind’s story is a world that got derailed - it’s off kilter and now us humans have a ‘bent’ to take this world in a different direction that God intended. (The Christian world view)

Does that sound like your own journey? How many ways you’ve found yourself connecting with this “primitive bent” and you’ve gone way off the path maybe because you went searching for worth or belonging in the wrong places? It certainly sounds like my journey.

Central to the Christian faith is repairing what is broken and getting back on to the path that God intended for us. Remember that Jesus said He is the Way (…the truth and life). Jesus didn’t say that He points to the way, but He IS the way. Jesus is the way to get our lives and humanity back on track. He is the means by which we point people back to the way that God intends us to live. The best possible way to live life is found in Jesus. I believe that.

Either Jesus shows us the best way to live life now and for eternity or Jesus is a liar or at least misguided.

The journey to get our humanity back on track requires that we take a look inside of ourselves. Before people get the wrong impression, let me say that I don’t think by looking deep within ourselves we will find the answers we are looking for. We won’t find the ability within ourselves to save ourselves. I don’t think that we are god(s).

”We believe that God wants to redeem every part of us, and that Jesus’ message of salvation is holistic in nature. We believe that all of life is spiritual life, and that all of our fears, failures, and broken hearts can be restored and made whole. We value the inner journey, because we want to be fully integrated people mind, body, and soul, emotions and experiences all offered together to God.”

Psalm 139 says:
“Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I'm about;
See for yourself whether I've done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.”

None of us has escaped the darkness. When we allow God to shine His light inside of our lives we can take the first steps to deal with our abuse, our mis-trust, our addictions, our lies, our workaholism, our alcoholism, or abandonment issues, our arrogance, our bitterness, anger, our perversions, and our broken hearts.

God wants to guide us on the road to eternal life. Take the inner journey and ask the tough questions... where have you gotten off track? Dig deeper.

I love you,

---Joe

Moving Forward

Central to Christianity is the task of carrying the timeless message of God to the world around us. As I'm reading about the things Paul (the Apostle) did I can't help but notice the changes he made while communicating to different audiences. For instance, to interested Jews he would use a significant amount of references to the Hebrew Scriptures. Then to the people in Lystra he makes no reference to the Old Testament but instead quotes "secular" sources to communicate. I also notice the different ways that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John chose to write based on their respective audiences.

I believe that we must ask about what it looks like for us to be a church here and now. I think we should constantly be exploring new and creative ways to communicate the teachings of Jesus. The goal is, of course, to carry the message of Jesus forward to the world around us.

Let me tell you 2 principles I'm seeing in the bible that could be helpful on this topic.

LETTING GO OF THINGS WE ONCE THOUGHT WAS RIGHT:
Read Philippians 3:4-8. In there you will see Paul saying that he used to be the best of the best in religious circles... He thought he had "arrived" spiritually. He thought he did all the right things and knew most everything. Then he had a moment of explosive revelation and new life when he realized (with God's help) that everything he had done in the past was shit compared to knowing Jesus. Yes I used the "s" word. Paul used the Greek word "skubalon" in the scripture I referenced... The "s" word is a very close translation into English.

In other words Paul found that in order to move forward sometimes we will find that there are things that we need to let go of. As we move ahead, we'll discover some things that we once thought were right and good, but in reality we need to leave them in the dust because they are "skubalon".

This has implications for us. What things are there in our lives that are not essential that we need to let go of? What's Skubalon compared to knowing and following Jesus? Are there some things that you need to leave behind as you move forward with your faith?

DISCOVERING ESSENTIALS THAT WE NEED TO EMBRACE
In 2 Chronicles 34: 14,15, 18-22 You'll read about a Jewish king who discovers the Torah. Here we have the King who is supposed to be leading God's own people and He's dusting off a copy of the Bible after years of power. I like to point out that in this story the king seeks the advice of a woman to discover what should be done with his discovery.

The principle is simple. In our lives we will and should discover very important things that we need to embrace. If we intend to move forward, we must realize that there are discoveries to be made about God. About ourselves. About following Jesus. When we discover those things, we should embrace them.

I see this faith as a journey. I assume that there will be change along the way. Innovation is welcomed. I'm asking myself if there are things to let go of and are there things to embrace. But better than just asking myself, I'm asking God the same questions.

How will I move forward as a believer?

What does God want?

Ever feel like God has stopped caring about you or the world? That He's neutral about the bad things that happen to you or around you? This is just like the people of Judah in the book of Micah.

On the flipside, God saw that the people of Judah had grown tired of God and have decided to go their own ways. God communicates this through Micah and the people begin to remember the ways that God has rescued them and saved them in the past. Then they repent. As the people ask questions about how to make things right between them and God - they suggest that maybe it would please God if they did more sacrifices.

Have you ever done that? When you've wanted to work on your relationship with God - make it stronger - have you told God that you'd go to church more? Read the bible more? Give more money? Sacrifice? Rituals. External things to show how serious you are.

I ran across this verse today in Micah 6:8 (Message)- "But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and don't take yourself too seriously – take God seriously."

What does God want from us? I think today He's saying that more 'ritualistic' activities aren't what God's after. He wants us to relate to people better, love more, interact with those in need. Sometimes we need to take less interest in ourselves and more interest in God.

Ever think Christianity is complicated? Read Micah 6:8 again. Grace to us, through us.

How can you apply that verse to your relationship with God? Dig deeper.

Taking the (mini) Plunge

It's Time! I can't put it off any longer. Next week I will be dropping 10 hours at my "secular" job. It's a step of faith - believing/trusting that God is going to supply for my family (and me too). It's time to take the (mini) plunge!

I'll be devoting those extra 10 hours toward the huge task of starting a church.

THE NEXT STEP: As soon as it's possible, I will quit my job and devote myself totally to starting Axis. It's time for God to supply. These are exciting times, to say the least! Would you please pray for us? Click here to sign up for the prayer team.

Where's the money going to come from? There's no salary package being offered, no benefits or insurance. This is one of those things were UNLESS GOD COMES THROUGH WE'RE DOOMED TO FAILURE. Sarah and I are taking a risk.

I keep thinking lately about how I, occasionally, can fear failure - But I also fear the absence of risk in my life. How can God's people be agents of change (positive change, that is) in the world without facing risks? Can you name one person who's significantly impacted society who hasn't taken risks?

When I was a missionary, I had a total of $300 donated monthly (by loving friends, family, and churches) to cover all my expenses. On the surface it's impossible to imagine being able to travel to every continent on the planet (except Australia - oh, and the Antarctic) on that kind of income. YET, GOD ALWAYS supplied. I'm trying to recall those days... honestly it seems like my faith was stronger then. It's a good thing that I only need mustard seed sized faith, I can manage that!

What about you? Do you have a story? When have you lived in the place where UNLESS GOD COMES THROUGH, I'M DOOMED TO FAILURE? I'm very interested to hear your story.

Also, if you care to help us out financially (or otherwise), please click here.

---joe

Ungrateful Brat - Part One

Forgiving people is hard work

This writing is based on Matt 18:23-35. I encourage you to read it. Bible reading is good.

Jesus starts his story by saying the "Kingdom of Heaven is like...". These good Jewish boys (the disciples) would have clearly understood the kingdom of heaven to mean something like - The way God operates - or - The way things ARE in a God-controlled world. I believe they would have understood that, essentially, Jesus starts his story by saying "Boys... This is how I want YOU to live life here on earth because this is how God is and how we brings God's Kingdom to earth. Now. Today."

We know that the Kingdom of Heaven was inaugurated/started by Jesus, but won't be fully realized until heaven. We're between the now and the not yet. In other words Jesus wants us to bring a bit of heaven to earth. Bringing God's ways of living to this world is both possible and expected if we are followers of Jesus.

Part of bringing a bit of heaven to earth is forgiving. arrrg. Why couldn't he be saying parables about breathing or something equally as easy? The Kingdom of Heaven is like a good cup of coffee.

Let's name the 'servant' in the story Joe. Notice that Joe owes a ton of money... Ten thousand talents. We can't tell exactly how much money ten thousand talents would equal today, but we can responsibly describe it as an insurmountable amount... A million dollars? A billion dollars?

Narrators voice: The King has decided that it's time to collect what's owed to him and begins the process of settling accounts with his servants.

I find this part of the story to be a fascinating picture of human nature. Joe didn't go to the King, the King came to Joe. I can see my own humanity in the fact that Joe wasn't pro-active in approaching the King, instead he was reactive. How often I see myself or others waiting until someone else brings our offenses into the light before mercy or forgiveness is requested. The most obvious parallel is when we wait for the credit card company (_____ insert a company you owe) to call us instead of calling them first. This is true in our other relationships as well. We put off asking our spouse, best friend or significant other for forgiveness (probably hoping they'll just drop the subject) for something that we know we shouldn't have said or done... And then the inevitable happens - they bring it up again! Does anybody relate to Joe? We live life knowing that we've screwed something up, but we don't like to talk about it, do we? We'd rather ignore it hoping that the other person will ignore it too. Oh, but the KING has too much goodness in him to ignore it! The King can see the bigger picture. Joe doesn't know it yet, but having the King approach him is going to be one of the most freeing things ever to happen to him!

Let me park the car here and idle on this thought. God's goal for us is always freedom. If you and I are anything alike then sometimes we get scared when it's time for God to shine his light into the dark places of our lives. We don't like the shame or the embarrassment, but God's end-goal is never, never, shame or embarrassment. Maybe it's not fear that resists God's flashlight shining into your heart... Maybe for you it's something else. Whatever it is you MUST remember that God is FOR YOU! Besides freedom, his goal for us is always mercy, goodness, wholeness, health, and restoration... And that's only the beginning!

Narrators voice: The servant fell on his knees and begged for a chance to pay the money back. The King took pity on his servant and erased the entire debt owed to him and let the servant go.

One of the most understated verses in the Bible is when the parable tells us that the King "...Cancelled the debt and let him go...". This is like concentrated orange juice. A little bit goes along way. The depth of God's character is revealed in such few words. Here, we see the kindness of God. Because we can slow things down and read these stories at our leisure we can easily connect this story with another bit of scripture that says "It's his kindness that leads to repentance". Do you see God's kindness operating in your life?

Do you see his passionate desire to do good to you? His mercies?

Can you see the parallels here? We have Joe who is absolutely NOT in any position to pay the debt he owes the King. Can you see how that is suspiciously similar to our real life predicament? We have NO ability to pay the price of our sin-debt and God (through Jesus) paid it for us! WOW, what an amazing God!

Stay tuned for more! In Part 2 the story takes a twist. In the mean time, I encourage you to genuinely consider any areas of your life where you need God's forgiveness. I encourage you to be pro-active rather than wait for Him to point out where you've screwed up.

Discussing The DaVinci Code

LOCATION Joe and Sarah's living room - Our Address is 8393 N. Thyme Way Fresno, CA. Click here for a google map. Call 288.7674 for the code to get in the gate. You can call in advance or when you arrive.

DATES: Sunday Nights May 21 through June 11. 6pm in Joe and Sarah's living room.

TIME: 6:00 - 7:30pm

CONTACT: Joe Green 288.7643. e-mail info@axiscommunitychurch.com

christians, atheists, skeptics, people with questions, people with answers, just come as you are and we'll explore some of the the issues raised by the book and movie.