Sign #23 that my kid is cooler than yours...AC/DC onesy...my knowing the word onesy....not cool!

A good Saturday...Buckeye blowout, day off w/kids, & a sleeping Jones

Mmmm...milk coma....good!

I'm awake and I'm ready to rumble...let's go Bucks! #tc

The Unasked Question

In my earlier blog I looked at a most common question, "What should I do with my life?"

The answer to that question often leads us to dreams and visions of grandeur. We believe that if we have been called to church planting or pastoring we must be the next Driscoll, Chandler, Piper or Warren. If we have been called to business we must be the next Jobs, Gates or Buffet. And so the dreams go, if we've got our "calling" it must mean we are going to be the best, biggest, latest and greatest. Too often we don't ask the question of capacity, "How big is my cup supposed to be?"

When Moses was faced with the overwhelming task of leading the Israelite people his father-in-law gave him the great advice of finding able men and dividing the task. He told Moses to find leaders of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.

When Jesus shared the parable of the talents he offered a picture of his kingdom where some got ten, others five, and some one.

We tend to believe that we are the one able to lead thousands and when asked to lead hundreds, fifties and tens we act like the man given one talent. We bury it. We see the others with more, more resources, more dollars, bigger buildings, a larger staff and a wider influence and doubt the character of the gifter and caller. We like the man with one talent are controlled by fear, fear that this is all we will ever get and so we don't act faithfully with the one. We bury it, ignore it, and secretly (or not so secretly) long for more.

Perhaps we've been called to the hundreds, fifties or tens...do you trust the One who has called?

School shopping with these Crazy Kids!

Photos from Today's Work

A Most Common Question

"What should I do with my life?"

It's funny throughout the years of my life and interaction with people few questions have been asked more. The question comes most commonly to us at significant moments.

Should I marry this guy/girl?

What should my major be?

And now as a church planter I get calls/emails/etc. regularly from guys wondering if they have what it takes. In and out of, for that matter, pastor circles it is known as the question of calling.

Should I be a church planter?

The odd part of the question for me is most folks want to be called in some mystical, miraculous way. But it doesn't happen like that very often, at least not for me. Jesus didn't shine the cross shaped symbol in the night sky and stand on a roof waiting for me to arrive. I didn't flip open my Bible to II Hesitations, drop my finger on Chapter 3 verse 5 and read replant this dying church. My call came from jail. Literally. Late on a Friday night a friend called, asked me for a favor and without realizing the implications of saying yes, I accepted. The craziest part was...I wasn't even looking for a calling. I wasn't asking the question. All I was doing was trying to faithfully serve right where the Lord had already put me.

And that to me is the real answer to the question of calling. Are you already being faithful?

If you can't be faithful to the girl while you are dating....God doesn't want you to get married.

If you flunked out of Algebra....God isn't calling you to be a math teacher.

If you aren't serving with integrity and faithfulness in a local church, making disciples, gathering people who want to follow you & haven't read your Bible in a week....God isn't calling you to church planting.

The reason we see so many men get their calling out of the wilderness is because the Lord was teaching them that faithfulness always come before fruitfulness. Most guys need to serve right where they are first and worry about the call second. I have seen few folks through the years who were simply walking with Jesus everyday being faithful to what was in front of them who didn't get the call when Jesus rang.

Asher and his Orange Phone

Photo of the Day

One of my favorite ways to end a day, reading the Jesus Storybook
Bible with my kids.
sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

Photo of the Day

Staycation 2010: The Remodel - penisuala gone, pantry modified, new
floor laid, new cabinets hung, face frames made & doors hung. Just
three doors and some new countertop to go. Unfortunately the
staycation is over.
sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

Photo of the Day

Hanging out w/the Yasnowski's, Big Jake's 3rd Birthday.
sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

Photo of the Day

Day 2, at the end of a long week of remodeling Asher and I can still
smile it up.
sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

Photo of the Day

Starting my photo a day blog posts. My friend Sandy showed up to help
install the new floor in our kitchen.
sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

Cutest boy in America just woke up from a nap!

Monkey see, monkey do...I've got a pile of monkeys, how about you?

How Do We Interact with Those Who Believe Differently than We Do?

I just read a really interesting blog about a pastor, Bob Roberts of Northwood Church in Keller, TX. He is the pastor of a large church with wide influence. He recently participated in a weekend of interaction between Muslim, Jewish and Christian believers and leaders.

I encourage you to read the full article by following the link: http://www.edstetzer.com/2010/01/christian-jew-and-muslim-trial.html

One quote that really stood out to me.

I don't think we...know how to speak of faith and treat people with respect at the same time. We can come across as arrogant, superior, and sometimes condescending because we have the truth. If we have the truth - we should be the most humble of all and the most serving of all. Keeping our young people and children isolated from other religions in an attempt to keep them in our faith - is a dangerous move in the 21st century. They will hear and know, we can help with that process and help them understand why we follow Jesus above all else, and send them out equipped, or ignore or worse villify but never explain other religions and watch them turn from Jesus because we didn't live it or explain it.

My experience would certainly echo this truth. We have done a poor job of communicating the truth and reality of Jesus, without an arrogance and disdain towards those who believe differently. It comes to my mind that Jesus was known as the friend of sinners. Most of us are simply known as those with no friends who are sinners.

A Couple of Thoughts on Haiti and How We Should Respond

Events like those that have/are taking place in the small island nation of Haiti often leave me wondering what I can do. The size and scope of the problems are so much larger than my limited resources seem capable of impacting. I am not a doctor or a construction worker. My guess is most of you are in the same boat. In response to the recent events and in anticipation that there will be a future need. My friend Mark Driscoll has helped to start a new organization designed enable the repairing and planting of the churches in these devastated areas.

This organization is called Churches Helping Churches.

www.churchhelpingchurches.com

If you are interested in participating there are links there to see footage immediately following the devastation and give. As a church we are participating and you can give through Journey Fellowship or give directly via the website.

Also, this past Sunday (1/24/2010) Driscoll shared his experiences including some very intense and graphic footage from his time on the ground. I encourage you to take a look and watch the whole thing. It is about an hour, but really nothing else you will watch on T.V. will be as worthwhile. I am including here on my blog the video feed.