The Church Community

Tomorrow I'm having lunch with a good friend of mine. He is the lead rector of a start up Anglican Church in West LA. I've hung out in LA, and have some friends from Cali. He's got his hands full for sure. Not a whole lot of JC vibe going on over there on the left coast. The only place I can think of that may be more of a spiritual wasteland is the tech area of northern California. Unfortunately my brother lives out there, and it has completely crushed his faith in God. But that's a sad topic for another day.

So I'm excited about seeing my friend tomorrow. I'm finding that being surrounded by a community of believers is key. (Although I've always found the idea of a life of solitude in prayer quite romantic. I've had images of running away from it all and joining a monastery so that I could have my own cell with a wooden stool and a bible. But maybe it was the running away from it all that sounded so appealing.) My faith is often replenished and restored by meeting with my brothers in Christ. I often leave feeling as renewed as I do after a solid session of prayer.

In the sermon last Sunday, my friend I'm meeting with tomorrow spoke of the Body of Christ. He talked about how we're all called to do different things, but we are functioning as part of Christ's body. The work that we're doing is a continuance of the work Christ did while he was here. We are instructed to carry on in his name. There is nothing more important. We all have different strengths and callings. A good way to find out what your'e called to do in the Body of Christ is to follow your passion. But even more importantly, when we meet live and work together...I think there's a sense of Christ being present in more of a complete way. And thus when I'm with fellow Christians, I feel very alive.

I looked up some passages that refer to the Body. They are all Pauline. Paul was an amazing orator. He was his own lawyer in Acts, and it turns out he didn't have a fool for a client. He developed a lot of the theology behind the Body, and here's some of what he has to say about it.

1 CORINTHIANS 12:27
27 Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.

1 CORINTHIANS 1:10,13
10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
13 Is Christ divided? . . . .

EPHESIANS 5:30
30 For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.The Church, or Body of Christ, is composed of many members. Not every member has the same function or calling. God did not create or call each member to do the same thing.

ROMANS 12:4-8
4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function,
5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;
7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching;
8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

1 CORINTHIANS 12:12,14,17-27 NKJ
12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.
17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?
18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.
19 And if they were all one member, where would the body be?
20 But now indeed there are many members, yet one body.
21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you"; nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you."
22 No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.
23 And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty,
24 but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it,
25 that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another.
26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.

EPHESIANS 4:11-16
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive,
15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head -- Christ --
16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.







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Location:Rosehaven

Balancing work with faith

So I had my first full day at work since I've really committed to putting my faith first. It's a tough balance. The world is so...well worldly. I find myself falling into the criminal defense attorney role that I grew accustomed to before I came into the faith. Chain smoking, cursing, drinking, never a care win or lose....that was the lifestyle.

I don't smoke cigarettes anymore, I don't drink anymore, but the cursing and general hard core attitude creeps in now and again. Especially when I'm trading war stories with other attorneys. I told myself I'd stop cursing this year, and it's proved a bit challenging. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I tend to drop the F bomb or anything...but even the occasionally damn is something I'm trying to cut out. The less I immerse my self in base behavior, the more I hear gods voice and the less I'm tempted to engage in earthly desires.

Being a criminal defense attorney will wear you out unless you develop a pretty thick and calloused skin. I was trained by some of the most Godless and rebellious trial attorneys out there. And they were good. Juries loved them. But they knew nothing of the peace of Christ. I'm trying to learn to avoid burnout not by becoming hardened, but by becoming clothed with Christ. I want to exercise patience and a softer understanding with my clients questions, but be prepared to go to battle when needed. Christ was as gentle as a lamb, but he also knew how to turn over a table when need be.

Well, that's enough for now. I'm going to pray until bed time. I've got some reading to do too. Until tomorrow.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Rosehaven

I Believe

It's amazing how God speaks to His children. It's such a subtle nuance, but so powerful. It's almost an indiscernible whispering that will go completely unnoticed, until you begin to practice tuning Him in. The more I listen for Him, the more I place myself in His presence...the more I can hear Him, and the more He shows up. 

If I was forced to explain it, I can think only of two real life comparisons. 

1) Before someone spends time going to the gym, they think they look fine. Pretty average perhaps, but nothing seriously lacking. Then they start working out. A week or two goes by without noticing much of anything. But sooner than later, they begin to feel muscles they never knew existed...they begin to see musculature emerging that had been residing beneath an inch of fatty tissue. All of a sudden, they become excited to see more. What once seemed adequate suddenly appears quite unsatisfactory in hindsight. And the quest to really get in shape begins. 

2)The second example I can think of is when you buy a new car. I drove around for 20 years and never once noticed a Ford Focus on the road. I never knew to, or had a reason to, notice one. Then I bought one last year. I was amazed at how many Ford's I noticed on the highway. Who knew I had been passed this many times by a Ford Focus! Now they're all I see! All this time, oblivious to the Focus...now I can't drive down the road without seeing one.

I think it's like that with God's voice. I've been focusing on Him for weeks. Calling out to Him, doing my best to be in His presence. At first nothing dramatic. Just a calm assuredness that I was not alone. But then, He began to show up and speak to me in my everyday life.

Some stories:

Earlier this week I was looking online for a timeline chart of major old testament charactors. I couldn't find much. 2 days later, my wife and I swung by the Christian Bookstore. I think she had to return something. I began browsing the Theology section. A discount sticker caught my eye. Before I even read the title, I grabbed the book off the bottom shelf. It was an Old Testament treatise by one of my favorite authors and a gentleman that I've met several times...Norman Geisler. Although I collect his work, this was a book I had never seen before. How providential I thought! Half off! I cracked it open, and the first page I came to was a timeline of ancient biblical charactors. From Noah on down the line. 

Hello God.

Also this week, I've been calling out to God about how I can best serve Him over the next couple of decades. Spending a lot of time in prayer, and gearing up for a New Year of discernment. So I get to Church today and my good friend who's planting a church in LA is giving the sermon. And wouldn't you know, his main point is to put God first and to behave like part of Christ's Body as we were called to do. To sacrifice and take a risk on what God intends for our lives. Challenging us to question whether we are inviting God into our plans, or whether we are accepting God's invitation for His plans. Convicting. And directly answering my prayers.

Hello God. I am here.

Last week, I was reading about death and the references to Heaven in the Bible etc. Later, I pull up at a red light and the license plate in front me said etrnlif. Eternal Life! Are you kidding me? The list goes on and on. When this stuff happened early on in my conversion I remember being stunned. Like when the title of the sermon was 'Good News, Bad News' the morning after I found out I had failed the NC Bar exam...and Reba had passed. But God's voice is not uncommon, when you include Him in a dialogue. Muscles will begin appearing when you spend time on them, Ford's will begin popping up everywhere when you're driving in one.

God will appear if you ask Him to. He still answers.

Now...none of these things would have meant anything to me if I hadn't been purposefully putting myself in God's presence. I wouldn't have noticed who wrote the discounted book, the chart on the first page I flipped to wouldn't have mattered, I wouldn't have been stung by the sermon today in church, and in my old life I probably would have muttered 'Jesus Freak' when I read the license plate in front of me at that stop light. None of it would have had any meaning for me at all. Nothing ever amounted to anything more than the odd coincidence - and even that was rare.

But I've started 'spiritually working out' and made that commitment to honing myself as part of  the Body of Christ. I've bought the ''spiritual new car' with the onstar connection to JC...and now I notice God in ways I never knew existed before. I'm seeing Him in places I never knew I was supposed to look. I'm finally hearing His voice when he had been whispering to me my whole life. Who knows how many times He rolled passed me on the highway? He speaks with a quiet understanding that bowls me over with power and clarity. God is on point if you take the time to communicate with Him. He shows up. He's real, and it's exciting.

Getting Ready For Church

It can really be a challenge to set aside the worries of work on Sunday. I often feel the anxiety of a rough work week looming around the corner.

Prayer is helpful. I'm a huge fan of technology and I have found the following apps to be a great resource.

http://www.cph.org/p-18058-pray-now-iphoneipod-app.aspx (Lutheran)

http://www.iphonelectionary.com/ (Episcopal)

A great web site to use as a tool is: http://www.oremus.org/ (Anglican)

Of course, those are all protestant and fitting with what I feel most aligns with God as he's revealed himself.

What can be frustrating for a proddy like me is that...the best prayer apps online and on itunes are Catholic. I used to listen to the Universalis and Divine Office apps, but there was just too much praying to the Virgin Mary. I can't feel comfortable focusing that much time on intercessory help when I've got a direct line to JC. But that's me. In terms of format and audio presentation, the Catholics are running the hi tech prayer market right now.

I'm part of the ACNA, and I think it would be imperative to ride the crest of technology when it comes to evangelism. The younger generations are all about staring at the computer screen, and there may be no better way to connect with them. I need to develop this...

Well, off to Church. One of my good friends is giving the sermon today. He boldly left our little Antioch to plant an Anglican church in the spiritual wasteland of LA. He's been an inspiration, so I'm looking forward to hearing from him.

Day One

Why this blog? I'm challenging myself to make 2011 a year of holiness. I'm daring myself to find out what it's like to live according to God's plan for my life. I'm committed to writing something in this blog for 365 straight days in order to better understand my Christian faith, and to what extent I'm called to be a leader in the faith.

What inspired all this?

For some reason...perhaps many reasons...after having 34 'fun' filled and aimless years, I begin wondering what it was all about. I began envisioning my death and having this sinking feeling that it was all going to be for naught. I felt motivated to understand whether there was any hope for this life. I didn't want to be at the end of my stay on Earth, wondering if I lived to the utmost.

In 2007 I began to embrace the hope that can only be found in the risen Christ. I found fairly quickly, once you come into contact with the living Christ, many of your former pastimes become trite in comparison. Which is actually quite good when you're hoping to quit boozing, carousing, womanizing, and all the other things that go along with an inflated ego and too much free time.

Along with this blog, I'll be praying for an hour a day. Some people work out, I'm going to be pumping the spiritual iron. 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes at night. Not a big sacrifice when there's 24 hours per day. Devoting somewhere around 5% of my time to the God that created not only me but the universe...well, it doesn't seem like it should be too hard. I also want to devote time to this set prayer, so that I can praise God without doing it only when I need him for something. All too often I'm communing based on a spur of the moment desire for help. That's not good enough.

There will also be time devoted to my church of course. I am absolutely in love with the group of people that I worship with every Sunday. We worship and commune with God in the Anglican style and it has been a perfect blend of spirituality, evangelism, and liturgy. I've learned a lot through the blessings of some great, young, spiritual leaders. Part of the purpose of this year is to determine whether I am cut out to lead an Anglican Church. And more importantly, am I being called to do that?

Professionally, things are really starting to become promising. I have a lot of opportunities for worldly success and the time to seize those possibilities will be ironically...at the end of this year. In December of 2011, I will need to decide whether God is calling me to a life of service, or rather...is he encouraging me to continue on in my very worldly profession as a devout and orthodox Christian.

These journal entries will help me to evaluate the process.

Location:Rosehaven