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I am trying to get back to the basic principles of discipleship. This year, as a church, we are trying to focus (or refocus) on the importance of Jesus’ call to discipleship. Throughout the years, the focus of our church has always been on “transformation.” We will never see transformation in our families, church, society and the nations if our lives are not first transformed with the Gospel message. But as we experience more of God’s work of transformation in our lives, then we will be able to be the agents of transformation.

Looking back to my journey in discipleship, I am thankful for all the different people that God has placed in my life to help me grow as a Christ-follower. One particular person that had a huge impact in the way I see and do discipleship is Dr. Robert E. Coleman. I still remember the early morning discipleship meetings on Tuesdays. There were many cold Chicago winter mornings, where I did not want to get out of my warm toasty bed to go to the discipleship gathering. But something kept on compelling me to go.

I still remember the many talks with him where he shared his heart and wisdom. I still remember going over to his house and getting to know him more in his natural environment. I still remember the various road trips out to Wheaton where I saw his passion for missions and evangelism as he did ministry. I still remember the gatherings, where he just landed at the airport from a missions trip and then met with us to share his experiences with us. All these things are still fresh in my mind.

As I have watched him and many others over the years, I have learned many principles about discipleship. One common thread that runs throughout my experiences is the importance of the relationship. No amount of classes or head knowledge on discipleship can trump the importance of doing discipleship via life-on-life.

One big part of discipleship is learning how to develop a heart for Christ and His Kingdom. A good way to learn it is by “doing” ministry together. This is why I have taken the age old principle – “I do, you watch; I do, you help; you do, I help; you do, I watch; now teach it to someone else” – and tried to simplify it for our members.

I am calling it the “WHAT” principle.

Simply, it is “Watch, Help, Apply, Teach.” A lot of things are learned by just watching and observing, but that is not enough. As we begin to watch, we need some “on-the-job” training. This requires a person to have the avenues to help. Sometimes we learn best by trying, failing, and then trying again. From here, we need to learn how to apply the principles on our own. This is the big step of growing and maturing. Then eventually, we want to teach these principles to someone else.

This is what we are going to focus on this coming year, as we are going through a major ministry shift with new leaders and members. I am thrilled to see what God has in store for us as we continue to make disciples who will transform the world… one life at a time.

 

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It is hard to believe that God has given me the privilege of serving HMCC for the last 14 years. With all its ups and downs, my heart is filled with gratitude and joy as I think about the many transformations that I have been able to witness because of the power of the Gospel.

After going through seasons of tremendous church growth, I began to experience something that changed the way I view the importance of my spiritual health. Christina started to notice that during April I went through a spiritual funk that lasted for weeks. At first, we really couldn’t pinpoint the cause, but it became more evident that I was just exhausted from a whole year’s worth of intense ministry. After going 100 mph, I just ran into a wall. But I was always able to push through because during the summer, I had to prepare for the various missions trips, which I had to lead.

Everything came to a crash when August rolled around and things started to slow down. It was at this point that I felt a great hunger and a need to get away to just retreat, reflect and refresh before the start of the new school year. After talking to some people, our church was gracious enough to allow me get away to take a personal retreat. Since then, I have been trying to take a personal retreat every year to prepare for the new year of ministry.

Now, with the summer time slowly coming to a close, it is that time of the year again. As I have been trying to transition back to the swing of things after one year in Indonesia, I am feeling the need to retreat and spend some concentrated time with the Lord.

I am praying that as I take a few days to reflect and refresh that God would prepare me for what is ahead. This year will be a very important year for us as a church. Therefore, as I retreat away, I am expecting God to speak. When I get back, I can’t wait to share the revelations and insights with the rest of the HMCC churches. Please keep me in your prayers.

 

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Following Christ is sometimes a difficult thing, especially when we are challenged to trust wholeheartedly in the midst of confusion and uncertainty. This fact is never more tested than when we go through pain and anguish.

It is in those moments we wonder to ourselves if God really cares or if He really does have our best interest in mind. Sometimes what we see (and feel) does not match up with what we believe and “know.”

One good example of a person who probably had some questions for God is Mary, the mother of Jesus. When we think about the story of Mary and the birth of Jesus Christ, it is a bit startling to think about all that God was requiring from this young teenage girl.

How in the world can we consider God, the Father, to be a loving and caring God when He was asking Mary to do the unthinkable? In essence, God was requiring Mary to do a task that would destroy her future, decimate her reputation, disrupt her plans, and demolish any hopes of living a “normal” life.

Would a loving God truly allow a person to endure such agony and pain?

This is when we can get a good gauge of our perception of God. When we go through difficulties, most of us react with anger or withdrawal as we conclude that God has let us down. Things get worst when we begin to compare ourselves with other people whose lives are filled with blessings. We wonder why God isn’t pulling through for us as He is doing for others. As the feelings of disappointment and bitterness begin to mount, it erodes at our faith. Then years go by and we find ourselves in a place where we doubt if God even exists.

It is like the boat without an anchor. Without the moorings, it will slowly drift out to sea ever so slowly. We need these moorings in our lives. Sometimes it might have to come in a form that goes beyond our reason and human understanding. One thing is for sure. There are things in life that can be understood by reason and there are other things that simply cannot be explained fully by reason alone.

So, is God a cruel Father?

I usually tell people that I will give them an answer when God is finished writing the story of our lives. One of the things that God does so well is authoring the story of redemption in people’s lives. Numerous examples pervade all throughout the Bible. It permeates through people’s testimonies even today.

In fact, things become clearer as we look at the cross. What seemed like a display of God’s cruelty was quickly transformed into a demonstration of God’s love and grace. May we learn this lesson from the cross of Christ.

 

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For some reason I have been researching on the difference between the U.S. armed services’ system of conscription and recruitment. Don’t ask me why. I think maybe in light of what is going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, but I think it is out of pure curiosity and my desire to “just to know.”

Simply, in the United States, recruitment is when the military tries to enlist people to voluntarily serve in the armed services. Conscription or better known as “the draft” is a compulsory method of forcing people to serve in the armed services. Throughout the history of the United States, we have seen voluntary enlistment in various periods; and we have also seen various times of the enactment of the draft.

In fact, I have been inspired by the numerous stories of people who voluntarily enlisted after the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States. It was out of their free choice to sign up for the military to serve their country.

As I was thinking about this, it dawn upon me regarding God’s mission and the need for people who are willing to serve in His army.

There is something beautiful about people who willingly volunteer to serve God out of indebtedness to the Gospel. The worst kinds of servants are the ones that are “forced” to serve out of pure obligation. I was just thinking which group of people God would prefer – people who grudgingly serve because they are forced to or people who are voluntarily willing to lay down their lives for His mission?

I realized that there is always a price to pay.

To those who are willing to make the sacrifice, the price is never an issue. They commit to the mission because they believe in it with all their heart. But to those who are “drafted” against their wills will always think about the price and what they will lose or what they will miss out on.

If I were to lead a platoon out on the spiritual battle field, I would want Christ-followers who enlisted in God’s army willingly because of their gratitude for the cross, than to lead cultural and comfortable Christians who really don’t want to be there, but who feel like they have to because of obligation.

Battles are won or lost depending on what type of people are on your platoon.

 

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It was interesting to read what Barna Group recently discovered regarding teenagers (ages 13-17) and evangelism. Not only is the “spirituality” of teenagers slowly waning, but they are less likely to share Christ in their conversations. You can read the whole article here.

In Barna’s survey, they specifically asked the teenager, “During the past 12 months, did you explain your religious beliefs to someone else who had different beliefs, in the hope that they might accept Jesus Christ as their savior?” Guess what? Compared to about a decade ago, the percentage dropped considerably (from 63% in 1997 to 45% in 2009).

David Kinnaman, the president of Barna Group said, “Christian teenagers are taking cues from a culture that has made it unpopular to make bold assertions about faith or be too aggressively evangelistic. Some of the Barna Group’s other research shows that the vast majority of these students agree with the statement it is ‘cool to be a Christian.’ Yet fewer young Christians apparently believe it is worthwhile to talk about their faith in Jesus with others.”

Can something be that “cool” but yet, something not worthwhile to share with others, especially to those who are important to you?

This is a problem in the American Church today.

We have made following Christ a “cool” thing through all the culturally-relevant youth programs, but we have failed miserably in “making disciples.”

How can anyone not talk about someone that is so important to you?

Sometimes the problem is started from the front-end. We have been content with just presenting the Gospel and then have the person say a simple “sinner’s prayer.” It is easy to think that our job is done after the person says, “Amen.” To our demise, we make our goal to see how many converts we can get. Nowhere in Scripture does Jesus command us to “make converts” but rather to “make disciples” (Mt 28:19).

Disciple making is hard work. In fact, it requires a lot of time, energy, effort and prayer.

I will never forget one of the discipleship sessions I had with Dr. Robert E. Coleman. As he was talking about the importance of evangelism and discipleship, he said, “We have not done evangelism, until the person who has come to Christ is able to bring someone else into a relationship with Christ.” At first, I really didn’t know what he was trying to get at, but after giving it some thought, I realized that he was emphasizing the importance of discipleship. A person will not be able to bring someone else into a relationship with Christ if they are not discipled to share their faith.

If we are serious about seeing a cultural shift in our generation, then we have to put a lot of attention on making disciples. No more lukewarm Christianity. No more easy Christianity. We need to raise the bar and challenge Christ-followers to share their faith.

A person who has genuinely experienced Christ in a powerful way would want to share the greatest discovery with everyone. No apologies. No excuses. No hesitation. There is just no way around it.

 

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As a pastor, I have done my fair share of performing wedding ceremonies for couples. I have also attended many weddings just as a guest. In many ways, weddings are pretty similar and standard. Lighting of candles by mothers, the processional, cute kids, the bride, songs, prayer, message, vows, rings, prayer, unity candle (as the special praise is playing), giving roses to parents, pronouncement, benediction, announcement, and the recessional.

Of course the order might be slightly different from one wedding to the next, but in general most of these elements are there.

So the question is: What gives one wedding a different “feel” compared to another?

In light of several weddings that I performed more recently, I began to think about this a little bit more. Let me start off by giving some HUGE disclaimers. The things that I am about to write about do not discredit any of the weddings that some of the readers of my blog might have had in the past. Also, I am not putting down any weddings in the past, whether performed by me or someone else. Hmm… let’s see… are there any other disclaimers?

Bottom line is that I am just making my personal observations from the perspective of a pastor who has performed weddings.

I think, from a pastor’s perspective who is performing the wedding, there is a different feel when these things are evident:

 

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One of my members forwarded me a New York Times Op-Ed piece that talked about the American clergy, as well as the situation with the churches today. I was encouraged because this is what I have been harping on in our church for awhile now.

In fact, due to my bluntness on particular matters, we have lost some people. I guess when the truth is spoken some people cannot handle the truth (I am hearing Jack Nicholson’s voice from the movie, “A Few Good Men” right now).

The Church culture today is drifting further away from the standard that we see in the Bible. People are being coddled rather than being convicted. People are too comfortable rather than being challenged. People are choosing convenience rather than commitment. People are acting like chumps rather than champions. This is weakening the church’s witness as a community of transformed people who desire to transform the world.

So often, pastors are too afraid to speak boldly on various issues that are hurting the Church. Some pastors do not want to “rock the boat.” But the problem with this is that the boat is sinking, so it might be better to rock it back afloat!

The pastors today have a choice – either settle for the status quo, which is killing the church or step out in faith and stick up for what is right. I am praying for the latter.

I decided to post parts of the Op-Ed written by G. Jeffrey MacDonald. You can read the article titled, “Congregations Gone Wild” directly from The New York Times here.

 

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As soon as we arrived to Ann Arbor, my family and I realized that there was a lot of road construction going on in this city. When the boys and I went out on an errand, one of them asked about the increase in construction on the streets.

This was one of those great teaching moments that I did not want to miss.

I started out with a series of questions:

We concluded that bumpy roads stink and are bad for cars. We also concluded that it is frustrating to go through construction because everything gets delayed. But the ultimate conclusion was that construction, while it is frustrating for the moment, has a lot of great benefits at the end.

I really didn’t have to make the connection about the road construction and the change that God puts us through in life. They made the connection pretty quickly as we had to wait for the traffic to move.

As I mentioned in my sermon two weeks ago, “pain always precedes change.” Without some pain, discomfort, stretching, and frustration, we will not experience the change that God wants to bring into our lives.

So next time when there is construction in your city, remember that the construction in our lives will pay off. You will definitely notice the difference and so will other people!

 

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There was a USA Today article the other day that caught my attention. It described how so many NFL (National Football League) players go bankrupt after their career is over. The sobering statistic was that the average football player’s career last only 3.5 years.

This means that after 3 years there are a lot of players who will have to find something else to do to earn a living. But the problem is that the players are not educated and equipped to manage their finances as they enter their rookie year. Therefore, with the allure of fame and fortune, many players end up having financial problems and some even go bankrupt when their careers are over.

Keyshawn Johnson, who was a former number one draft pick and now works as an ESPN analyst sees the trend and coined the NFL as “Not For Long.” He said, “After Uncle Sam comes first, your agent is going to get his cut. Then there’s your wife, girlfriend or baby’s mama. You’re going to hook up your family and homeboys, and get yourself some nice things, like jewelry or some sweet tire rims. By the time you’ve done all of that, you’d be lucky to have $320,000 left.”

We cannot forget that the rookie minimum salary in the NFL is $325,000 USD, which about 7x the average starting salary for a college graduate. It is sad to hear that it is estimated 78% of NFL players will become bankrupt, divorced or unemployed within two years of retirement.

As I was reading this article, I couldn’t help to see some of the similarities with college students who graduate and start their single adult years, as a working professional. As they get their first paycheck, they are amazed at the new financial power. Many end up getting a new car, new wardrobe, new entertainment system, new electronic gadgets, and even possibly put a down payment on a condo.

The sad fact is that many college graduates have not been trained in the area of stewardship. Therefore, after several years out of college, many single adults are in debt. This then puts them in a downward spiral, which affects their ability to steward God’s resources wisely for God’s glory.

This is when the Church really needs to step up and provide various tools so that the college graduate can be equipped to better steward God’s resources. Here are several things that came to my mind:

I will never forget the time when in the early years of our church, I challenged the graduating seniors that once they get a job to tithe their first paycheck to the Lord. The reasons I gave were twofold: 1) It will remind you that it was God who provided you with the job, therefore learn how to be thankful by giving; 2) It will help you to hold things loosely because just as God gave you the job, He can take it away at any moment.

Whether it was a lack of faith or my lack of confidence in people’s obedience, I was flabbergasted when I found out that there were several people who took up the challenge and wrote a check to the church after receiving their first paycheck.

We would love to see more people raised up in our church who are magnanimous and missions-minded so that they can leverage their resources for the building of God’s Kingdom. Oh what God can do with a church like that in our generation!

 

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We have all heard the adage that states, “We need an attitude of gratitude.” I am realizing that having a grateful heart does not come easily. Simply, it is not natural. In fact, it is something that has to be trained in a person. No one is born with a grateful heart. We are depraved human beings, therefore we would rather be complainers and selfish, than live with thankfulness.

Over the years, I have observed that people who have this “attitude of gratitude” display certain traits that are consistent in their character:

 
 
So if an “attitude of gratitude” is something that has to be trained in a person, how does a person go about obtaining it? Well, here are some things that I am trying to work on because everything inside of me wants to complain, argue and be selfish:

 
 
I am trying to commit to this discipline of gratitude and hoping that I will become a better person because of it.
 
 

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all others.”

[Marcus Tulius Cicero]

 

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In John Maxwell’s book, The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader, he writes, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” This principle is seen in every major area of life. If a family is struggling, then there is some connection with the husband not taking responsibility of leading his family. If a sports team is not doing well, then we have to look at the coach’s ability to lead.

More recently, we have seen this principle play out in the whole fiasco with BP and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. BP just recently asked Tony Hayward to step down as the CEO and Robert Dudley will take over as the new CEO effective October 1st.

In order to cut Tony Hayward some slack, we will have to concede that there were a lot of factors involved in this oil spill debacle that went beyond just his leadership. Also, we have to look at the overall “system” or “structures” that produce people like Hayward.

But once again, the principle of “everything rises and falls on leadership” applies in this situation with Hayward.

After the oil spill, Hayward made some comments that questioned his ability to lead (at least from a PR and perception perspective). In light of these comments, there are several leadership principles that Hayward failed to uphold:

 

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I love breaking down people’s preconceived notions of things. I love it when people say, “Pastor Seth, when I first met you, I thought you were….”

It is so innate for us to make judgments on people and things just from the externals. This just proves how different we are from God because God always looks at the internals (1 Sa 16:7). This is why we are wrong a lot of times when it comes to judging people (I have my fair share of misreads).

If this is true, then why do we love labeling people?

I think for some crazy reason it helps us to “distinguish” ourselves from others. It helps us to draw boundaries and keep ourselves at a distance, which insulates us from discomfort and awkwardness. Sadly, it builds walls instead of bridges because rather than keeping us humble, it fuels pride in our heart.

If we are serious about reaching the lost, then we have to give this some serious thought. It also applies to the follower of Christ, who is on this journey of becoming more like Christ. Rather than labeling people with our own tainted judgments, it might be helpful to see Christ as our standard. Then we will see that we all fall short of His glory (Ro 3:23). We will see that we are all in need of His grace. This might just transform the way we see and do things.

John Ortberg in his article, “Category Confusion” gives an excellent perspective on the issue of categorizing people. Ortberg writes,

 

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Recently in my prayer time, God put a phrase in my heart – “Let God do the saving, while you do the serving.” I am constantly reminded of the paradox of God’s Sovereignty and human responsibility. We cannot have one without the other. If we only have one, then it would be like rowing a boat with only one oar – we would go in circles.

Too often we falter in two areas. Either we take all the responsibility on our shoulders and eliminate God from the equation or we get passive and expect God to do everything. But in order to be effective in doing what God has called us to do, we need both.

As I am looking ahead to this coming year, there is an excitement and a momentum that is building within my heart and in our church. We are trying to exercise faith. We believe that God is preparing the harvest field for us. Not only is this in-coming freshman class the largest in the history of University of Michigan, but there will be many new single adults and families coming into the area.

Therefore, as we learn how to sacrifice and do our part by faithfully serving people, God will do His part and save the people.

We cannot get this confused. We do not save anybody. In fact, we cannot by any human means. It has to be the Spirit of God who prepares and prompts people to trust in Christ. We are called to pray and proclaim.

So as we serve, God will save.
I cannot wait to see all that God will do this coming year.

 

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It is interesting to note the various shifts that have occurred in Christianity throughout the centuries. A pendulum that swings back and forth until it comes to a halt in the middle can be a good imagery of some of the shifts. In fact, shifts are good because it compensates for people going too far to one extreme. I think about the social Gospel that began to deafen the voices of the fundamentalist in the 20th century. Then there was a shift back to the fundamental evangelical doctrine as the social Gospel opened the doors to liberalism. Now, there is a shift back to the social justice aspect of the Gospel in the recent decades.

Once again, these shifts are good because it helps us from going to one extreme to another.

Recently the Barna Research Group conducted a study where some of their findings re-emphasized the shifts that are happening now.

In this study, the Barna Group gave a snapshot profile of Americans who are active in their faith. They examined various expressions of “group” faith, such as: church attendance, small groups, adult Sunday school programs, church volunteering, and house churches.

Here is a partial list of things that they found:

 
 
As I read the study, I did not find the results too surprising. In fact, it just shows the trends that many people have been noticing, as well as reaffirming the things that churches are implementing.

Here are my conclusions in light of the findings above:

 
 
As things are shifting in the church structure, we have to trust in our God who never changes. He is constantly working whether we notice it or not. Jesus wants to present a beautiful Bride, a radiant church (Eph 5:25-27) and it is for this end we labor and toil, even though the shifts are bumpy at times.