I’ve been thinking about accountability

 
I meet on a regular basis with other men and we hold each other accountable for certain value which we feel are important if we are to become the men God wants us to be. Recently I’ve been wondering if what we are holding each other accountable for are the things that are really the most important.

Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our mind, and with all of our strength, and that the second commandment is like it, that is to love our neighbor as ourselves.

My next thought is from Hebrews 11:6 where we read that we cannot please God unless we are living a life of faith. This is tough because it tells me that as long as I’m living my life with a safety net, as long as I have my life in control, then I’m not living by faith. Now I’m not saying my life should be out of control. What I am saying is if “I” am the one to have it in control then that that is not faith. The emphasis is on “I” versus God. If I am living by faith then I have to trust God to the extent that I act on what His word says, even when the circumstances look impossible. This leads me to think that I need my accountability partners to be asking me how I’m doing at turning the controls over to God instead of hanging on to the controls myself.

Hebrews 12:14 tells us to pursue holiness without which no man will see the Lord. We cannot dabble in sin if we want the Lord to show up in our lives in a powerful way. We’re going to have to say no to some entertainment. We’re going to have to guard our eyes from looking at some things. We’re going to have to guard our hearts from longing for things we shouldn’t have. We’re going to have to go to people and tell them we were wrong and ask forgiveness. We’re going to have to go to others and make restitution for wrongs we have committed. We may even have to go to past employers and tell them we have stolen or cheated them. We may have to go to a former professor and admit to having cheated on a test. If we want God to show up in our lives we must pursue holiness. The question we must answer is this. How badly do I want God’s power in my life? When I want God’s power in my life more than anything else then I’ll do whatever it takes

And then Jesus said in Matthew 7:20 that we would be known by our fruit. If I’m healthy I will be growing and reproducing. What fruit is there in my life, and what does that fruit say about my life?

From this I’m thinking that I need to ask my accountability partner to be asking me the following questions:
1. How am I growing in my love for God?
2. How am I growing in my love for my fellow man?
3. How am I growing in holiness and purity?
4. How am I growing in faith?
5. How am I growing in fruitfulness?

Send me some feedback on this and give me your thoughts and insights.

I’ve Been Thinking

 
At 99° Celsius water is hot, but at 100° Celsius water boils and turns to steam. Steam, when contained and properly used can be used to run steam engines, the same engines used to power huge locomotives, ocean liners, power generators, sawmills, and many other such machinery. It’s only one degree, one single degree, but that one degree makes all difference.

Often it is that one degree that makes the difference between success or failure, between victory or defeat, between being the champion or being defeated.

I’ve been thinking about how the same is true in the Christian life. Some find going the extra degree just too hard. They don’t think it’s worth it. It’s just too much to give up. And so, many people settle for less. They get hot, but they never boil. They get close, but they never cross the line.

So I’ve been thinking. How hot am I? Am I simply hot, or have I crossed over to the point where I’m making steam and God can harness my output and use it for great things?

A letter to my BCF family

 
My Dear BCF Family,

More than once I have told Pastor Kenny that if I were independently wealthy I would stay on BCF staff doing the same things, only I’d do it for free. That’s how much I have enjoyed being your administrative/executive pastor. Serving you, my BCF family, has been a greater thrill than I could ever describe.

And because serving as your administrative and executive pastor has been such a thrill, stepping off staff is one of the most difficult and painful things I have ever experienced. The natural question then become, why do it? Well, that’s why I’m writing you, to share my heart with you and give you some insight into that answer.

It started last year when I got a personal invitation to go listen to a nationally known church leader. Only about 1,300 people were invited to that conference, and I was one of those men. None of my pastor friends got an invitation. Why me? I don’t know. How did it happen? I asked and tried to find the answer, but nobody could tell me. At the conference the church leader who invited us shared his heart, telling us about the huge need for pastors who have been trained to go train other pastors who have less training. At the end of the conference we were invited to stand and make a commitment to train someone else. I stood and told God, “Lord, I don’t know how you want to use me, but I’m here because you brought me here and I’m willing to do whatever You ask of me.” In less than a month God began putting things in place for me to begin teaching other pastors.

In May God worked it out for me to go to Peru to train church leaders, and then in July I helped lead a team where I oversaw the door-to-door evangelism teams. I didn’t plan or even try to put any of that together. God amazed me, working everything out so that I didn’t have to write a single letter or raise a single dollar of support. The team pastor who was scheduled to go couldn’t make the trip, and since I was taking his place the money which had been allocated for him was moved and used to cover my expenses.

The desire to continue training pastors grew, and I began thinking about how I could do more of it. I even began developing plans to do it. But all this time I was thinking I would stay on staff and do both. I thought I’d just train someone to fill in for me while I was away. But God had other plans. Slowly I began to recognize that God was doing the unexpected, and although I fought it, He won out. It became clear to both Pastor Kenny and me that God was moving me off of the BCF staff to go pour my life into training and teaching church leaders in foreign countries.

How will all of this work out? Honestly, I don’t know. Am I scared of stepping out into the unknown? No, I’m terrified! Most of you know that my training is in engineering, and engineers always overdesign to account for any unexpected circumstances, and then just in case something unexpected happens, we include a safety factor. I like that! When I get on an airplane it makes me feel good to know that guys like me designed and build those airplanes. We don’t like taking risks. We want to make sure all the bases are covered. God is stretching me way beyond my comfort zone. He is answering my prayer and teaching me to become a man of faith.

In the process of teaching me to become a man of faith I am seeing how God is teaching me to let go of security and trust Him for the impossible. In addition to training church leaders, God has given me a desire to start a company which will provide the income necessary for me to do this. I’m working on getting that company going, but the reality is that my dreams will fall flat and fail unless God steps in and makes it become a reality. I’m not smart enough, creative enough, influential enough, or educated enough to make this happen on my own. This dream is huge! There is no way I can pull this off! But God can. He is almighty God and with Him nothing is impossible!

But the dream keeps growing, and the desire has turned into a passion. I can’t just stay in my comfortable job and not do this! I’d rather fail trying then to never attempt it! In Matthew 16:25 Jesus said “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” Jesus is saying is that if I try to live my life in safety and comfort then I’ll lose the very satisfaction and fulfillment I’m trying to find. But if I’ll risk it all for His name and for His kingdom then I’ll find a life that is worthwhile and fulfilling.

So what is the business dream? To start a greeting card business that will sell millions of greeting cards and support the entire ministry.

What is the ministry dream? To train a team of church leaders and help them train other church leaders, who will train yet other church leaders, who will train yet other church leaders, who… Just imagine, if one church leader were to train two men, and those two men train two men, and those two men train two men, and that progression were to keep going, then in one year a single leader will be impacting 63 other men. This is what Jesus did with His twelve apostles, and it’s what the Apostle Paul told Timothy to do. Just imagine what would happen if every mature Christian were training two other Christians.

Well, there you have it, the vision and passion that God’s given me.

So it is with mixed emotions that I step off the BCF staff. It seems like I have cried buckets of tears as I argued with God about this, but now I sense an excitement that God is going to bring to reality something I really only dreamed of doing.

To you, my BCF family, I say “Thank you!” My life is richer because of you. Serving you and being your pastor has been a real joy. I will always treasure the memories of living life with you.

At this point we have no plans to move. We love Brownsville. This is home. Three of our children were born here. But mostly, we love it because you are here. So please stay in touch and let me know if there is anything I can do to help. In the meantime I’ll try to keep this blog updated so that you can follow what God is doing in our lives.

I love you and pray God’s rich blessings on you.

Your friend and fellow servant,

Jim

Growth & Fruit

In Matthew 16:18 Jesus said that He would build His church. But that doesn’t mean we sit back and watch.

When God delivered the people of Israel from Egypt He used Moses. God used David to kill the giant. He used Elijah to call fire down from heaven to consume the sacrifice. He used Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. He used John the Baptist to announce the coming of the Messiah. It seems that God nearly always works through faithful people to accomplish his plans and purposes.

Throughout history God has worked through men and women to build His church. That means we have a part in what God is doing, and that our skill, or lack of skill, will determine how much God uses us to build.

In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-9) Jesus said some seed yielded a hundredfold, while other yielded sixty, and other only thirty. My prayer is that I will be one of those who yields a hundredfold.

So what do we need to do in order to be that good seed which yields a hundredfold?

First, we need to stop asking what we need to do in order to grow and reproduce. That’s the wrong question. The question we must be asking ourselves is, what is preventing me from growing and reproducing?

As we saw yesterday, growth and reproduction are natural. If growth and reproduction are not a part of our spiritual life then we need to look what is lacking or what is attacking. What nutrients are missing so that our roots are weak and we are malnourished? Or, what enemy is attacking us and destroying the reproduction process?

Becoming Mature

I’ve been thinking about growth and maturity. It seems that God has placed us in a world filled with examples of things that grow, mature, and produce fruit. Plant a tomato seed and it grows, the plant matures, and has flowers, and produces tomatoes. A cat has kittens, they grow up to maturity, and then they have kittens. Chicken eggs hatch into chicks, the chicks grow to maturity, and then they lay eggs of their own. Everywhere around us we see examples of living things which grow, become mature, and then reproduce.

In fact, this is so much the law of nature that if a plant is not growing to maturity and reproducing we know something is lacking or something is attacking. It is either lacking nutrition, and therefore malnourished, or it is being attacked, such as by disease or insects.

The Bible tells us we should be growing to maturity and that we should be reproducing. In fact, Jesus said that we would be known by our fruit.

So here’s today’s thought: Do I have any fruit for someone to examine? If I do, what does my fruit say about me? Am I healthy? Am I malnourished? Am I diseased?

John 15:16 (NASB)
“You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.”

Developing a Heart of Gratitude

 
Earlier today I was walking around in Wal-Mart while waiting for Michael to get off work. As I walked around I noticed people buying “stuff” they didn’t need, and I began thinking about how unhappy so many people are.

My mind then drifted to a friend of mine who is always complaining. I thought of how I hesitate asking him how he is because I already know he will tell me how tired he is and how sleepy he is. I thought perhaps I should talk to him about his constant complaining, and suggest that he try giving thanks twice as much as he complains to see if he can change his outlook on life by “giving thanks in all things”.

And then it seemed the Holy Spirit tapped me on the shoulder and asked me how much I give thanks. I was reminded of how much I complain, and I wondered if people hesitate asking me how I’m doing because I’ll tell them about my bad back, or that I have a headache, or that I didn’t sleep well, or that I’m on an emotional roller coaster, or that…

Lord, please forgive me for my critical and complaining attitude. Help me to develop a heart of gratitude by remembering what You have done for me and how blessed I am to be Your child.

Thoughts to Ponder - What Am I Doing?

 
Often we think of sin as only having a negative consequence.

We think of sin resulting is something bad happening to us because we did something we shouldn’t have done.

But did you know there is another side to sin?

Sin also results in the withholding of something good that could have been, the blessing that would have been.

When Adam and Eve sinned they both experienced guilt. And then each of them had a particular sin consequence they had to deal with: for Eve it was painful childbirth, and for Adam it was struggling with weeds and thorns to get the earth to produce.

The obvious is that they no longer enjoyed those walks and talks with God in the cool of the evening. They no longer enjoyed perfect harmony with each other. They no longer enjoyed the beautiful Garden of Eden.

But what did they give up?
What might it have been like to raise children in a perfect setting?
What might it have been like to never have sickness, pain, colds, flu, headaches, etc?
What might have happened if they had been able to ask God how to create, how to design, and how to turn dreams into reality?

Think about it.
Imagine what blessings we might be missing out on becuase of our short sightedness and poor choices?

Truths About Giving

 
The Problem

1. Our society has become numb and turned off by the constant requests for money.

2. We see pictures of starving children in Africa, AIDS victims, hurricane victims, earthquake victims, tsunami victims, and many other very real and legitimate needs. People today are pretty much inoculated to the point that the first mention of money causes them to tune out and turn off.

3. If we are going to get through to people’s hearts the approach must change. The presentation of a need no longer gets through.

4. People today want to get something when they give something. Sadly, the culture we live in has become so “me” that most people will not give unless they see the personal benefit to themselves.

5. The bottom line is this: presenting a need no longer works because people tune out and turn off before you get half way through the presentation. If they get an e-mail or a letter, they trash it as soon as they see what it is.

The Truth

1. Although the above is all very true, that should not present a problem for the church of the Lord Jesus. However, our approach must take this into account.

2. God is still looking for faithful men and women whose hearts are fully committed to Him, people who will use the resources He entrusts to them for His purposes, and not to satisfy personal desires and greedy wants.

3. In the parable of the servants, the two servants who invested the talents given them were entrusted with more and given greater responsibility.

4. God says that He is looking for those faithful people to whom He can entrust His resources.

5. For many, the reason they don’t have is because they have not given God His portion. They have been unfaithful with what God has entrusted to them so God cannot trust them with more. Back to the parable of the servants: the unfaithful servant had the single talent taken away from him and given to the faithful servant. Jesus said that the unfaithful will have what little they do have taken away from them and given to a faithful servant.

6. If we don’t have enough then we need to examine our hearts to see why because God says He is looking for faithful people to whom He can entrust His resources. Could our problem be that we have misused what was given us? Has God taken away what little we had because we have been unfaithful? It’s pretty simple to check that out. All we need to do is look back at our giving record to see if we have been faithful to give God His portion.

The Solution

1. Giving is the laboratory where God tests and grows our faith.

2. When things are going wrong we need to ask ourselves: Do I trust God’s plan and His promise, or do I go back to trusting my plan and my checking account?

3. God will keep us in this testing and proving phase until our faith grows to where we move past the point of trusting in ourselves and our checking account to the point where we trust God and His promises.

4. Only when we have proven ourselves faithful will we see God entrust His resources to us.