The Start of Something New

If you haven’t heard the news, yesterday I was laid off for financial reasons at Crosspoint Christian Church.  I wanted to write today not to complain or to say, “Woe is me”.  I just want to share what Christ is guiding me and teaching me through this process.

1. I can say that I’m at peace with what happened yesterday.  Would I have liked things to be different or happened differently?  Yes, but the instant I received the news I received “… the peace of God, which transcends all understanding…” (Phil 4:7).  Even though I have a range of emotions, PEACE is always the one that rises to the top and comforts me.
2. Do I know where I’m going or what I’m going to do?  I don’t have a clue.  That is something that will require some serious prayer.  One thing I know is that God will guide and direct me to where He wants me.  With that being said, if you know of an opportunity, please let me know!
3. The main thing that God is teaching me is FAITH.  Faith and obedience was the main topic of my personal time with Christ before coming into the office yesterday morning.  I said to God, ”Whatever the cost, whatever the hardship… I submit to You!  My number one priority is to be in Your will, to hear Your Spirit, and to be obedient in following Christ.  Please give me the strength and courage to do just that.”  I can honestly say that yesterday morning’s prayer was probably one of the quickest answered prayers I’ve experienced.  God heard and responded.  I’ve always heard it said, “Be careful what you pray for…”  God was ready to move and ready to shake things up.  He has a plan for me and this is part of it.  This I am confident of.  This I have FAITH in.
4. Crosspoint Christian is still and always will be my family.  I pray that many of the friendships that have been created over the last couple of years will continue to grow and flourish.  Particularly the small group I’m part of, you guys ARE my FAMILY. 

Today begins the start of something new.  This I know: God is and always is in control.  God will be praised.  Even though this will be a hard time for both Crosspoint and the Hope family, my prayer is that we all seek Him and give Him the glory.

Being a Servant: From Toilets to Servants

One of my favorite commercials on TV right now is one title “Ode to the Commode”.  The commercial consists a series of 25 different shots oft toilets each with a different nickname.  It’s humorous to me how creative our culture is when coming up with nicknames for our toilets.  Who would have thought we could come up with some many names for such a simple device.  When we here the phrase, “I need to go to the John,” we immediately know what the other person is saying they need to do.

Even though we know all the nicknames for our favorite seat in the house, terms like ministry, service and deacon can be harder to define.  Each denomination and even different churches within a denomination had different views on what it means to be a deacon or a ministry.  A casual reading of scripture sometimes doesn’t give distinction with this either.

Each of these 3 words (ministry, service, and deacon) all have the same root Greek diakanos in scripture.  If you were reading through the New Testament you would easily see the connection between these 3 words.

diakonia (noun)= usually translated service, ministry, serve, distribution, help

diakoneō (verb)= usually translated wait on, served, serve, administer, help

diakonos (noun) = usually translated servant, minister, deacon

When reading through the New Testament in English we break these words up (service, ministry, deacon, etc) and think of them very differently.  Each word in our culture has taken a different identity.  But if you were reading through the New Testament in Greek you would have a hard time doing this.

The root of all this is a person who is identified by being a servant (diakanos).  This person does service (diakoneo) to those around them.  When the servant (diakanos) does service to those around him, scripture call this service (diakonia).  To use a similar idea for English using sports it would go like this.  The baseball player plays baseball, and we call this baseball.  You cannot read that sentence without seeing the connection that it’s all about BASEBALL.  For the church, the same is true:  It’s all about SERVICE.

As Christians we need to try and get away from our preconceived definitions of ministry, deacons and ministers.  We all need to strive to be servants.  The church today is too focused on titles, position and authority.  By embracing the heart of diakonos we embrace the heart of Jesus Christ himself, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Within the church a diakonos is the very person that would pickup a bottle up a Clorox and starting scrubbing toilets.  A diakonos waits on others, assists others, cleans up after others, and in all things puts others first (Matthew 20:16).  In what areas is God calling you to be a diakonos?

Related Articles

Being a Servant: The Example of Jesus

Being a Servant: It Starts From the Top

Being a Servant: It’s Not About YOU!

I Don’t Want Kids (Part 2)

Change is not something that comes easy. As I mentioned in part 1 of I Don’t Want Kids, I realized that losing Alison was not an option.   But in order for the relationship between Alison and I to continue, one of two things would have to happen.  Should would have to change or I would.  

Madison

 

 First off I had to figure out why I believed what I believed.  My theory was that I would be more successful in ministry if I didn’t have kids.  I thought that my schedule would be more flexible and I would be able to dedicate a higher percentage of my time to the church.   I wouldn’t be tied down with diaper changes, pushing strollers, time-outs, temper tantrums, etc.     

Another belief that had was I would not be a good father.  I didn’t have the best father figure growing up.  I took a brief glance at my family tree as saw 2-3 generations of bad father figures and the easiest way for me to break that negative cycle was not to have kids.  If I didn’t have children, I couldn’t mess them up.  If I wasn’t a father, it would eliminate the possibility of me being a bad father.    

Tyler

 

I found the root of both philosophies about personally having children was ME.  “I believed, I thought, I was afraid,” were the thoughts that plagued my mind.  It was all about ME.  I never really thought about what GOD might be equipping me for.  I never thought about how Christ wanted to work through me and my inadequacies to reveal HIS glory and HIS power.    

For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him to serve you.   

2nd Corinthians 13:4   

God was trying to teach me that through the power of Christ you can be  effective in ministry and have children.  Not that just the two can co-exist, but through God calling me to be a parent, it has made me more effective in ministry by relating better to other parents.   There’s no limit to God’s power and what he can do and this is something  I had to realize.  What was limiting me was me.   

Jackson

 

But I still had fears of inadequacy and fears of repeating the past as a father.  Once again the power of Christ was the solution.  In reality I am not fit for ministry.  I’m not fit to be a husband, a father or any other position of importance.  But in Christ I am worthy.  In Christ my sins are washed away.  In Christ I’m equipped for service in the Kingdom.  This is the daily conversation I have with myself.  It’s has nothing to do with self-confidence or self-worth, but everything to do with my place in the Kingdom.  It’s only through grace and for that grace I am eternally grateful.   

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.   

2nd Corinthians 12:9-10