For as long as I’ve been a youth pastor, few topics pique the interest of teens (and adults too) as much as the book of Revelations. And I have a theory as to why that is.

The book of Revelations, which is the last book in the Bible was written by God through visions given to John while he was exiled on the isle of Patmos. It is the recording of exactly what John saw and was instructed by God to write down (Rev. 1:19).

As we learned in the “Digging Deep” series (which birthed this blogsite), we can confidently know that the Bible is truly the Word of God revealed to humanity. It passes all types of bibliographic, historical, extra-Biblical, and even archaeological tests. And since that is true, we can know that what we read in the book of Revelations is also true. And if that’s the case, that would explain why so many people (even non-believers) are fascinated and often confounded by what the book holds. Every other book in the Bible records what has already taken place. Revelations holds prophecies yet to come about. In essence, its a window into our future that cannot and should not be easily dismissed.

Through the centuries many people have come and gone trying to predict when the “end” will be. But let me remind you of the words of Christ Himself and I think you’ll agree that any such attempt at prediction is futile…”No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matt. 24:36)

Its not our business to know when the end will come. It IS our business to ready for it! Jesus spoke parable after parable after parable which gave clear instructions for us to be ready, and not to be caught unprepared for the Lord’s return. It is when we lose sight of the fact that this world is temporary that we start living like this is all there is. But what if we actually lived as if heaven were a real place? What if we truly believed in hell (which Jesus speaks of more than heaven!)? What if we lived with an eternal perspective instead of a temporary one? What if we lived as if Jesus were returning an hour from now? What would change?

No, we can’t know exactly when Jesus will return, but we can live a life that clearly says that He WILL return!

It’s early morning and my day is filled with uncertainty. I’m traveling 2 hours east today to look at probably a dozen or so houses that are going to get a major facelift next month at the hands of 60-70 middle and high school students and about 20 adult leaders I’m helping to lead. So, today I and my 2 other directors are going to choose the houses that we will be working on next month. Pretty cool.

But still, there’s a lot I don’t know about what’s going to happen today. What will I see? Who will I speak with? What will we speak about? How will we be accepted? How will travel go? And even, will I return home safely to my family?

For some people, not knowing things can be unnerving. And I’m definitely a guy who likes to have a plan and know what the plan is and have the plan play out the way I planned. But I’ve learned that if I get too wrapped up in that, faith can lose its place and when unanswered questions arise I don’t have the spiritual, faith-filled footing to stand.

I went to visit a young person in the hospital yesterday. Without disclosing the details, I can tell you that he was a rough shape. And I stood with his dad there bedside over his son and watched his eyes. Uncertainty. But a stark absence of fear. You see, uncertainty is okay and even welcomed when you walk with the God who knows it all and will only give what’s best for us.

Believe it or not, when I was a teen I was in a singing group. Crazy to think about it now, because if you’ve heard me sing you’d say, “Yeah, right.” One of the songs we loved to sing and people loved to hear was an old hymn with the words, “Many things about tomorrow I don’t seem to understand, but I know who holds tomorrow and I know who holds my hand.”

A day filled with uncertainty? Bring it on.

I’m terrible about remembering important dates.

One month after getting married, guess who forgot his new bride’s birthday? Yep.

One year ago today, on May 17th 2008, I rose from my bed and walked to the bathroom. I looked into the mirror and noticed something new. In numbers far too many to ignore were distinctly white stubble on my chin. I thought to myself, “It’s May 17th. This will forever be the day I got white stubble on my chin.”

For some reason known to no one, THAT date stuck.

*A disclaimer of sorts:
When I clicked “Publish Post” after finishing this one, it felt messy and undone. I published it anyway.

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I’ve been following Jesus for a while now.

Sometimes from a distance.

Somtimes it looks more like “Where’s Waldo”, when I get lost in the busyness of life’s demands and I just plain lose track of Jesus. Where He went, what He’s doing, and how I fit into it.

And in the interest of giving credit where credit is due, I’ll tell you that these thoughts you’re about to read were spurred by a blog I recently read. You can find it here. If you’ve got the time, read it and come back here.

You back? Good.

I recently had a great conversation with my boss. Now, to my knowledge, he doesn’t read my blog so it’s okay for me to say that I really like this guy, and its not considered brown-nosing. Right?

One of the things we were talking about was the Church. And just so we’re clear, when I say “Church”, I’m referring to the worldwide collection of Bible-believing, Jesus-following, counter-culture, blessing people wherever they go, children of God. And when I say “God”, I’m referring to the Creator of everything we see, every galaxy, every planet, every star, every tree, every mountain, every person. I’m referring to the God of Abraham, Moses, Isaac, and Jacob. The God they call “Yahweh”. That’s the God I love, serve, and live for.

The Church is God’s vehicle for His message of forgiveness to the world. The problem is, the Church has historically spoken from a pedestal. Therefore, the message has been discredited. Not less true, just less heard. The other day I was listening to a song by Casting Crowns called “What this world needs”. There’s a brief part in the song where a few different people speak. With their words, they lament the condition of the Church today. Their conclusion seems to be that Jesus wants to save the world, and the best thing the Church can do is “get out of the way”. While I appreciate the direction from which these words are coming and certainly the good intentions with which they were spoken, they represent a flawed theology, if I can say it that way.

As I spoke with my boss that day, I remember saying (and I still believe it) that if the Church (re-read defintion above) actually behaved the way we should, there would be no need to any other charity organization. No homeless missions. No Salvation Army. No Meals-On-Wheels. No World Vision. None of those organizations would have come to be if the Church lived out its Christ-given mandates to their fullest.

In case you’ve never heard the song I mentioned, I’m throwing it in for free.

The truth is, the Church IS the vehicle for God’s message of forgiveness, for grace, for unconditional love, for a movement of people who not only live to bless humanity, but will not allow that “silent witness” to be enough. And while the packaging might and should change, the content will never. The message of Jesus is the only answer that addresses the question that is indelibly asked by every human soul, no matter what their confession.

So, while “go to church” sounds responsible or nice or even “American” in some places, “be the Church God envisioned and instructed from its birth” sounds a lot more compelling. The thing is, there is not one without the other. There is no movement of God apart from the people God inhabits. And those people, those redeemed, we who are “called out” ought never to communicate anything but love, compassion, and mercy. Not judgment, not condescension, not malice, not hatred, not political correctness. We simply bless. First in deed, then in words. This was Jesus’ life and how He treated us. And so we must treat all people likewise.

Now, I don’t like it when people say “Now, I know what you’re thinking….” and then proceed to tell me what I’m supposedly thinking. So, I’m not going to do that. I’m simply going to ask what you’re thinking. Is what I’ve written here even worth responding to? What thoughts have surfaced in your mind as you’ve read this blog post? I’d love to hear them.

In the past week, there’s been an influx of junk email in my office computer. I think the people that do our technical stuff made some adjustments to some thingy-muh-jigger and it has temporarily let in some spam.

Spam isn’t all bad. Well…most of it is. The only spam I think I like is the kind my Mom used to make, diced and stirred together with diced potatoes and fried in a skillet. Mmmmm. Spam.

But today I got a piece of spam email that just made me laugh; and the funny thing is I never opened it. The subject line read: “Spam, Please Reply!”

In just those three words, the sender let me know that they were sending me unsolicited garbage as well as a genuine plea to respond to it! Deleted.

Are we able to see the enemy’s schemes so easily? We should be able to, if we’re “walking by the Spirit” as Paul instructs us to do. But I’m continually saddened to hear about people falling for Satan’s pathetically predictable, and yet all too effective traps. They come in all flavors: dishonesty, pride, laziness, fearfulness, gossip, hatred, addiction, pornography, infidelity…the list goes on and on. But they all boil down to one thing: me getting what I want because that’s what I want.

But we’re told in God’s Word that not only can we escape the snares and traps of the evil one, but that we can live victoriously continually. What stops me? Vacancy. When temptation comes along (sometimes it seems non-stop), and it gives way to sin, its only because I have left room for it in my spirit. In one way or another, I’ve decided either instantly or over time to carve a niche for the devil to offer suggestions.

This issue used to be called “Lordship”, but I don’t hear that word much anymore. Giving Jesus Lordship means that He is in and over and empowering and guiding every area of my mind, thoughts, heart, and actions. Not in a robotic sense or in a way a puppeteer pulls the strings of the marionette, but in a way that is only brought about by my will fully surrendered to His will.

Surrender fully to God and Satan won’t have any room to work. He’ll try until he dies, but that’s only because he’s that stubborn. And when I’m that stubborn in wanting and living for my own way, I’m actually emulating the character of the devil. Yikes. Got to chew on that one for a while. That one’s tough to get down.

So, I pray that I’ll have the mind and eyes of Christ next time Satan dangles some bait in my face. I pray that we’ll be able to see it for the garbage that it is. And……deleted.

My son Crews got a new Bible last week. It was a gift from the church we attend; they give a new Bible to all the 3rd graders. Pretty neat tradition.
He had a Bible we had gotten him, but apparently favored his new one, so today he gave his “old” one to his younger sister. Again, pretty neat.

Tonight, while my wife was tucking the boys in bed, Crews prayed thanking God for this and that, and right in the middle of his prayer said, “And I want to thank myself for giving Macy my old Bible.”

What a kid.

Realizing you’ve done a good thing doesn’t take the spotlight from God. I think in many ways it can help us keep the spotlight ON God. And besides, I’d dare say that God is proud of Crews giving his little sister his used Bible. I know I am.