Keeping it simple doesn’t mean keeping it easy. Jesus’ message and call to follow Him is both clear and simple, but never ever easy. The biggest obstacle to fully responding to Jesus is not only loving God, but loving God means we also need to love our neighbor as ourselves. It doesn’t get any more clear and simple as that, but my oh my, it is not easy.
Jesus cited what is known as the “Golden Rule” in Matthew 7:12: "Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God's Law and Prophets and this is what you get. (The Message) When I think of how to live that out, I’m reminded of Robert Fulghum’s little book, Everything I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten. Among the many lessons he cited, these stand out for me as I consider what it means to put into practice the "Golden Rule”:
Continue reading "5/29: KIS: Serve The World" »
I pulled up the last piece I wrote on Community, read it, and thought to myself…that’s pretty good. Here is a part of what I had to say…and it’s still true for me…
“Tomorrow morning I’ll do what I do every Friday morning. The only exception is when I am out of town. I will get up, feed the animals, and then head for Pearl’s where 4-5 guys will act like they’re glad to see me. We’ll tease and hassle each other because that’s what guys do, and then we’ll get down to the business of helping each other sort out our lives in a godly way. These guys are my “band of brothers.”
Continue reading "5/22: KIS: Doing Life Together" »
(KIS is short for "Keep It Simple.")
We make choices, then those choices make us. This is true for us as individuals, families, and as a church. Paul described to the Corinthians the choices he made as we came to live with them and preach the gospel message:
You'll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God's master stroke, I didn't try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified. I was unsure of how to go about this, and felt totally inadequate—I was scared to death, if you want the truth of it— and so nothing I said could have impressed you or anyone else. But the Message came through anyway. God's Spirit and God's power did it, which made it clear that your life of faith is a response to God's power, not to some fancy mental or emotional footwork by me or anyone else. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5 the Message)
Continue reading "5/15: KIS: Connect with God " »
