Sheepwalking 101

I was driving to the office this morning and found myself caught in a small road construction project.  I was turning left onto South Blvd (a 4 lane road) from the service drive of the M-59 exit ramp.  The inside lane of South Blvd was closed and had the notorious orange barrels blocking it.  The closed lane wasn't inhabited by any construction vehicles as the work was only being done in the median by a backhoe.

The interesting thing about the open lane was that it had three sections of the road removed and prepped for resurfacing.  The prep work was about 80% complete, but there was still a 2-3 inch dip that was noticeable.  They had heaped asphalt on the transitions to make for a pretty bumpy ride, but that's what they needed us to do... travel a road that was under construction.   The closed lane had no vehicles working on it... and the open lane had uncomfortable travel conditions.  Hmmm....

It was visually confusing unless you read the signs.

The leading vehicle at the stop light was a truck and it was four cars ahead of me.  It was obviously dusty, the color orange and had a big white decal.  When the light turned green, the truck turned left onto the open lane and then immediately veered between two barrels into the closed lane and continued down a ways.  The three cars behind the truck followed suit.

When is it ever a good idea to follow a construction truck thru barrels into a closed lane?

When the open lane is uncomfortable to drive on and the person leading you breaks the boundary.

The lane wasn't closed because it was being worked on, it was closed because the backhoe was swinging his bucket into the space and needed the liberty of knowing vehicles weren't needing to be accounted for.
I didn't follow suit.  I drove the road in front of me.  The open road.  The road that we were being asked to drive on and guess what... all the people behind me followed suit.

Outside of the awkward lineup at the next stop light 500 feet down the road, there wasn't any damage to vehicles... just a few damaged egos pulling out of the closed lane and trying to merge into a single lane, but how often do we find our selves acting like sheep being herded and just following the butt in front of us? Seth Godin in his book "Tribes" calls it sheep walking.  It's the art of not thinking and thus not leading.  It's the theory that if the person in front of you did it and didn't die, it must be the right way when all signs point otherwise.  Sometimes we just need to lift our head up and read the signs.

People are longing to be lead.  They will follow you on a road that is closed and they'll follow a leader that takes them down the road that has a few obstacles but ultimately brings you the destination that yields the most productive result.

What will you be?  A sheep walker? or someone who's willing to count the cost of being right or wrong, read, and make a good decision?  Everyone around you is looking for permission to do the right thing.  Be the first and watch the culture shift in your sphere of influence.
    

The New Breed Of Church Leaders

These are not always comfortable, but these are the attributes of our leaders necessary for this next season of the kingdom of God being released in the earth.

1. Being a revolutionary – questioning the old ways of doing things
2. Being an innovator – creating new and powerful ways to do things
3. Being a creative – giving birth and expression to new and powerful ideas
4. Being a performer – pushing the boundaries and thinking in new ways that lead to improved results
5. Being a seeker – gaining a deeper and better understanding of the world
6. Being a visionary – having an expanded vision of what is possible and what is worthwhile
7. Being an independent – thinking independently for yourself
8. Being wise – gaining a different and informed perspective
9. Being a leader – having the courage to discover and and express your individual uniqueness
10. Being a change agent – leading people or groups through change
11. Being committed – committing to making a difference
12. Being authentic – discovering who you are, and having the courage to bring your true self to the world you live in

Is God Really In Control?

I could be wrong, but I think it was Shirley Caesar that sang it... "God's got it all in control, He's got it all in control.  He took that reassurance and put it way down deep in my soul. God's got it all in control." She would get her SANG on... if you know what I mean.  We used to blare this and many other old Gospel tunes in the house growing up as a child in the early 80's.  I also wanted to be a black gospel singer sooo bad.  Shirley Caesar and Andre Crouch inspired me.  The only problem is that I'm white... lol so that obviously didn't work out for me.  Sidetrack... now back on track.  (one other note: It's amazing to see how our theology works itself out in our songs of worship, that's why we're constantly needing new worship songs to show our greater revelation of who He is to us as His companion)  We sang this song because it's what we believed, but what we were not connecting with is that we were mistaking control for God being Lord over all things, being in charge.  Having a great plan and executing His perfect will... thru people who also have a will.  (Rom. 12)

Control and complete love cannot co-exist.  Love is birthed out of freedom of choice.  Control takes away options and leaves only one path.  While sometimes this is exercised for good reason, its primary motivation is fear. Perfect love casts out fear.  (I John 3 & 4)

Melissa and I have been learning how to raise our children in a freedom culture ("Loving Your Kids On Purpose" is a must read!), not a culture of control.  I was raised with pretty strong conservative discipline and it worked with my behavior.  I've turned out pretty good too,  I'm a provider for family.  Never went to Jail.  I honor people of authority.  I learned how to work hard.  Growing up I said yes ma'am and yes sir.  I never told my parents "no".  Seriously... I don't remember a time I back talked to my parents growing up.  It was never an option.

The only thing it didn't do, was unite my heart with my father and mother.  THAT was a problem.

Love is the most powerful source that exists in human experience.  It's the greatest motivation for life.  Every person created on the earth is designed to desire to be loved.  It's in our DNA.  While many find versions of love thru many different facets, the reality of God's love with the most complete form is found in our revelation of Jesus and His character. Jesus was the perfect picture of love in action.  His love towards "sinners" or pre-christians as I've heard it, the poor (in spirit and wealth), the business owner,  the dejected, government officials and the sick are amazing.  He understood how perfect love would bring their life in line with God's greatest intention of why He created them in the first place.  Thru love they would discover who they really are and begin living that way.  In the midst of living that way, all other behavior and desires would begin to align or fall to the way side.  They were loved INTO living the life God created for them to live.  The love they encountered met their greatest desires which in turn, changed their behavior.  Jesus walked in this revelation between Him and the father as well.  He had to exercise self-control over His own will to perform the will of God.   God didn't make Jesus die.  He loved Jesus into a place of surrender that allowed Him to choose to die.  It was a choice of freedom for Jesus.

We have to die for freedom.  We have to kill for control.

While my upbringing changed my behavior, it rarely changed my heart because control usually places emphasis on performance.  It breaks the  spirit and confuses the mind.  It yeilds purely an external transformation.  Control has a core value of performance and low value on what was happening internally.  While I'm thankful for parents that had strong conviction (that conviction has led them into many new great places of freedom today!) and did their best to raise me to be the man of God I am today... this one element still plays into our relationship today at the age of 32.  We have talked often about it and have had many healing conversations, but it's an ongoing journey of new trust being formed and hearts being truly open to receive from one another.  We're in a perfecting process.  Love offers responsibility with one another's heart while control never creates a safe place for the hidden places of the heart to be encountered.  Every choice we make has to take in account the ones we love and how it will affect our whole sphere of influence.  Love surrenders joyfully because it prefers others over itself.  It believes that success however defined is something that is reaped not conjured or strived into.  The bible says we plant and water seeds, but it's God who makes the plant grow.  Notice that the plant needs to be a seed planted or "surrendered into the earth" before God ever gets involved.  He asks for our permission every time because He wants our heart, not our "orderly" behavior.  The cross already paid the price of our behavior.

The bible actually never says that God is in control of us. The only emphasis on control is found in Galations when Paul spoke of the fruit of the spirit.  One of them being "self-control".  How can self-control be a fruit of the Spirit and yet God still control us?  Even when Control is initiated out of protection for those who don't know better, there needs to be a massive understanding of responsibility of equipping those who don't see the snares in their future and a willingness to guide them thru their circumstance.  This will cost you something.  Your time, your energy, your grace and more importantly... your love.  Control costs you nothing.  The moment we control them, is the moment they disengage their heart and their brain to think for themselves.  This is how immature adults are raised up all over society and even the pervasive mindset of entitlement that has a stronghold on the next generation, it's all founded out of control.

We as Christians have used "God is in control" theology as a scape goat for a lot of bad decisions we have made.  It's time for us as the church/christians to accept responsibility for all our actions.  We need healing.  We need to enter a perfecting process that the church can be trusted again.  That love and freedom can reign.

God is in charge and He decided that Love would prevail over all things.

//



Generation ONE Event coming soon:

EMPOWER
wsg Drew Neal, Chris Cook & Brett Whitefield.
Also featuring Generation ONE Music!
July 23rd
3pm-9pm
Teaching sessions on how you can encounter your ministry and purpose plus a "Soak" Worship session to end the night.
Donations taken at registration.

See www.iamgenerationone.org for more info.

Honor & Future Dreams or Control & Rebellion

I had some really good seared salmon last week.  It was Melissa and I's anniversary (we celebrated nine years!) on tuesday and we had the chance to go out on a much overdue date night.  Neither of us are huge raw fish fans.  While sushi is a favorite, we've been spoiled by american precooked dishes that lighten the load so to speak.  It's funny how I have to make a conscious choice to follow thru on eating raw fish after I order it, whether a seared filet or served rolled up in rice.  When done correctly, I enjoy it tremendously but there's still that hesitation that is encountered.  I wonder how difficult it would be if I had grown up eating it all my life?  I'm not scared of grease laden fried chicken, maybe I should be? (thank you southern cookin'!) Anything that is new or different than what has been typical within our sphere of influence will always trigger flags in our brain.

It's natural to reject new thought.

Our brain has a powerful ability to reject new things from our conscious realm and push back into known paths that have been traveled year after year thru the subconscious.  Let's face it, our brain likes to keep things as comfy as possible.  98% of brain power is used to facilitate the subconscious realm.  That's a lot of energy placed towards keeping our mind free. The challenge comes when we experience something that is vital to our future and our subconscious isn't feeling very hospitable.  The attempted rejection of new thoughts and ideas can be overcome, but really taxes our brain to forge new paths.  This in turn allows old paths to gradually grow back in that we would not find them as easy to go down.

New thinking is a choice consciously reinforced.

I was in Chicago a few weeks ago at a leaders meeting.  Banning Liebscher spoke of his love for revival history and how that so many great things have happened in the midst of these eras.  He mentioned that one of the many desires of his and Jesus Culture as a whole is to see the restoration of spiritual fathers and mothers and that their increase in numbers is mandatory for a movement to be sustained. One of the losses in previous movements was the lack of unity between generations.  The older generation generally has a greater desire and need for honor.  Because of the sacrifice of forging new paths (without the support of generations before them or father figures) and counting the cost of birthing what was the beginning of their dreams, it can be challenging to release the favor that you never found for yourself or even know how to give favor if you've never walked in it.   Meanwhile, the younger generation longs for those who've gone before them to embrace the dreams that are in their heart a help them discover the means to see those become reality.  A generation without dreaming has a dead future, so the challenge seen throughout history is young people won't stop if they don't have support.  Then end result:  we have new trails being blazed but with a wake of destruction left in the dust.

Two great desires of worthy generations... one huge divide.

Honor and future dreams.  Let's just be honest.  Leaders go first.  Movement without self-control just does as much damage as good because it's always partnered with a conclusions of disappointment and protest.  This is fruit that rivals what it really looks like to walk in the spirit.  The question has to be asked of how do spiritual fathers and mothers teach and raise up honorable sons and in turn receive their dreams?  We have a fatherless generation on our hands.   One in three children in America are being raised without a father role active in their life while some stats say over 40%.  Believers (the church) are going to have to step in to help fill the gap of fathering in a powerful way and it can't be in a way of control because that will always lead to rebellion.   The essential value of allowing there to be choice that always benefits those who are learning from the fathers has to be in place.

Control always produces rebellion. So who has the greater responsibility in producing a healthy movement? Leaders or dreamers?

Like every time I eat raw fish and have to reaffirm my decision to order it by then eating it (and then being reminded about how good it is), the fathers of this era are going to have to learn what it looks like to father in a new way and constantly reaffirm that decision with action.  A movement is on our doorsteps as a greater revelation of Kingdom is being given to the church.  Fathering isn't fathering when it produces protest, confusion or separation. It should produce honor, peace, righteousness and more importantly... love.  Give and it will be given.  Fathers? Sons? it's time to unite and merge our hearts.

Generational Events that support this message:
:::ACTIVATE:::
Awakening

Breathing life into Generation ONE!

Thanks for taking the time to stop and read this post.  I really want people to understand what it is that God has placed in my heart in the last few months.

I'm excited to see all that God is allowing to come together in this season of discovery and enlargement.  Melissa and I have never seen God and His favor like we have in the last 8 months.  wow.  Favor in all things.  Finances, Healing, Revelation, and even more importantly with dynamic relationships.  I'm overwhelmed at the relationships that God has brought into Melissa and I's life.  They've been lifelines... helping us to see His goodness in the midst of every situation.

Generation One is coming along tremendously.  We are launching a summer mini conference series themed ::ACTIVATE:: .  I know this series is going to be powerful.  It's starting on June 24th and will follow in the months of July, August and September.  I'm looking forward to having guest Stuart Greaves from ONEthing in town as a guest speaker along with myself for this first event.  The Lord begin to speak to me that His church was about to have a breakthru in their identity.  He told me that if a message of His love and goodness could be released, that we would see unity between the generations and as a result renewal would be sustained.  As I continued to seek out what this would look like I began to be inspired with three essential expressions or movements that will be needed.  ACTIVATE. EMPOWER.RELEASE.  Each of these experiences represent upgrades to who we are and our effectiveness to actually live out a life of "greater things."

ACTIVATE:  This has everything to do with the presence of God.  I can only think of how powerful the experience of Moses was to actually dwell in the presence of the almighty God, but even greater to call Him friend.  Those who find Him in His presence will become His companion.  The presence is the beginning of our encounter that God is real.  In His presence we find out what He's really really like.  This leads to a message of Individual identity as it relates to God.  There is a strong reinforcement of the prophetic as well.  This helps us begin to see ourselves the way that God sees us.

EMPOWER: This experience is really about equipping believers with the understanding of how their call relates to their identity.  Strong teaching is needed on five fold ministry, spiritual gifts and corporate Identity.  This essentially is our toolbox to operate from.

RELEASE: This could have easily beeen mobilize if any other word.  It simply speaks of what it looks like to live a life that always has us in His presence.  Knowing who we are as well as knowing what tools we have to be a living demonstration of His goodness towards those in our realm of influence.   It's the sending that we're all called to on a daily basis and answers the question of "what does it look like to share the goodness as Jesus did, in our modern era?"  With truth and a supernatural experience.

I believe that the increase of young revivalists along with committed Father's and Mother's in this season will build a bridge for a sustained visitation like none other.

These are some of the core themes that resonate within Generation One and others.  I look forward to be a conduit for fresh streams to find their way into our region that we could see our city rise like never before.  What a great story it is going to be for us to share...

More to come soon...


www.iamgenerationone.org

Pocket Change and Gum Balls.

Gum balls.  Plastic Spiders.  Fake Tattoos or anything in a clear capsule with a difficult lid that was in a machine by the entrance or exit of a store.  The childhood $.25 machine must have candy and toys. I remember as a kid, the longing i had in my heart for these cheap, worthless, fall between the seats 20 minutes later experiences.   The only thing that stood between me and these blissful items was what was in my Dad's pocket.  His permission was usually in place but was conditional not on whether he had money in the bank, but whether he had change in his pocket to give me.  It was immediate gratification to place the quarter in the slot and turn the handle with three quick slotted turns. Then your eyes would follow the spiral trail from top to bottom, round and round leading to the plop of hitting the metal flap door and now... it was mine.  Unless of course my dad didn't have any change on him.  Then it still sat in the machine and we'd continue walking past with the spirit of the beggar rearing it's ugly head.  "PLLEAAAASE!"

Life is infused with paradox and is necessary for our existence.  What is a paradox exactly you may ask?  A paradox is the collection of two truths (or paradigms) that oppose one another but are contained within the same value to make it possible.  This is the origin of friction, tension, and energy.  Examples of paradox are found all over.  Left brain and right brain.  Marriage between a man and a woman.  Knowledge both subjective and objective. Northrop Frye said, "Freedom is not doing what you want, freedom is wanting to do what you have to do... this kind of freedom is always rooted in practiced habit." Economy is predicated on consuming and producing and on and on.  Life is built on paradox.  One of the challenges in life is embracing both sides of a paradox.  One without the other will always produce a lopsided or incomplete result.

Church is a building. Church is a body.

One is rigid and unchanging and the other is fluid and changing constantly.

It's Easter.  What a great time of honor and love.  I am forever grateful for what has been given on my behalf to live the life I do.  Within this seasonal experience, it's interesting to observe the behavior of "church as a building" and "church as a body".  Building as we'll call it, is gearing up for the great celebration and in the midst, usually begins it's call to  "body" to prepare themselves for the big bold invitations to fill up seats on Easter weekend.  It's understood that we are supposed to invite people to church (building). There's a great potential for people all over the world to be impacted as they come and experience  a side of God they may not know.  Our gatherings are phenomenal tools to spread the message of the kingdom, but is that the only tool we have to share about who God is?  I guess my desire is to make sure that we are reminded that inviting people to a gathering is only one side of the experience that we offer the kingdom of God within.  Considering our over solicited society, an invitation to attend something may actually connect only with a very overused and culturally numb part of the brain.

How do we invite people to the church as a body?

Jesus is a beautiful picture of the balance we are needed to walk in when it comes to display of the gospel.  Everywhere He went He carried the opportunity for someone to experience God in a way like they never had.  Right then.  When they encounter Jesus, they encounter God.  While foundational I know, why don't we see ourselves in the same light?  The invitation of the church as a body is simply an invitation to an experience with you, in that moment.  Who are you? As a believer, you are the temple of God.  A habitation of all of who He is.  You bear His name, His authority, His anointing, His LOVE and His thoughts through the power of the Holy Spirit.  While invitations to church as a building or a corporate gathering is a great thing, what if God is wanting to show himself in that personal moment?  What if we identified with our ability to impact that person and mark them with an encounter with God's love and goodness that they otherwise would never be exposed to? I'm not saying to impose, but God has great thoughts towards people, so what would it look like if we believed we could share these things?  We have His permission and the ability.

I look at it like the $.25 machines.  There's definitely money in the bank and we can definitely afford the quarter.  So do we invite people to the bank to recieve funds or do we prepare ourselves to always have money on us to give in the immediate moment.  There's nothing wrong with going to the bank to pay for the experience, but what if it's a moment that you could never duplicate and provide for.  What if the child is asking then... in that moment they desire to know the father as their provider but we are unprepared.   Even if it's a plastic spider they'll lose 20 mins later or a gum ball that will lose it's flavor in milliseconds, their encounter will always be remembered as a day of great childlike joy. The day the Father acknowledged them and said "Yes".



2wordstory.com

The Generation Of Greater Things or The Hopeless End?

The internet is POPPING with tons of blogs, articles, videos and status updates declaring that the world is falling apart or that the end of the world is coming.  It doesn't take much observation to see why people are responding the way they are with the natural disasters that pepper the last year's calendar.  No matter your faith world view or cultural world view, one thing most are agreeing on is that something significant is on our door step.  We're on a global bubble.  What happens when it pops?  The entire world is searching for answers.  As sectors of governments, markets and cities crumble at our feet, many are sitting and wondering where stable ground is.  What is going to remain if the social structure we all currently know breaks free like an ocean levee?

John wrote in his 14th chapter... "The person who trusts me will not only do what I'm doing but even greater things..."

One of the greatest values that is offered to us thru Jesus is that we are all able to operate from a place of victory, not just hoping for victory.    Those that have gone before us have toiled for quite a long time just trying to convince the church what this looks like.  Many generations of Christians have spent countless seasons of life in a lack of rest just because they don't really believe that we win in Christ.  Do we want to the "head" or the "tail".   

Jesus simply said that we would be not even just "like" Him, but that we would have the chance to do greater things.  If there's ever been a time in the earth that "greater" things are needed, it's today.  Our need for God is greater today than any other time in history.  

What's exciting is that we have a generation of young people that from a young age have been told that the walk of faith toward God leads to victory and great hope for our future, not us all running into the hills in fear over the big bad scary world.  A god that requires you to hide doesn't sound like a winning contender and this doesn't match what we know of the character of our God. 

I look back at my life, remembering all the incomplete stories and broken versions of how Christianity was supposed to work out in my life.  It was really depressing actually and not something people would acknowledge as "greater".  It wasn't a life of rest  or true peace and it really crippled my world view.  I needed to understand that the followers of Christ weren't going to be less visible in the times to come, but would rise to the occasion and lead.  Jesus made it possible for us to lead and be the example of life in the midst everything falling apart.  If we can't show the world what real peace is and where answers to the most difficult questions can be found... what's the point of living the life we do? 

I'm excited that we have generations rising all over the world that are not looking to hide, but looking to engage.  Looking to give... and more importantly looking to love unconditionally.  These are the core values that create the moments for greater things to be possible.  Young people, will you be a person in fear of the times or will you stand on the security of Jesus Christ?  It's sooo possible because it already IS.  It's time for the next generation to take their place!  Historically, the world shifts when youth unite for a cause.  Will your cause be responding in fear or will you respond with embracing a message of victory thru Jesus Christ and the life of greater things? YOU get to choose.  

ATTN Gen X: Business as UNusual

As a sports enthusiast, I love watching and playing within good competition.  There's just something great about contending and fighting for what you believe in... even if it's that you believe your team is better than another.  One of the greatest traps to dominating teams losing big games is that they generate a massive lead early on and begin playing "not to lose" rather than keeping their edge of attack that brought their lead in the first place.  This is similar to the business as usual mentality that creates a trap of being caught by surprise by elements you lost respect for in everyday life.  Generation X is rising in the ranks of influence and we are at a pivotal time of transition between the baby boomers and their children.

Blockbuster Video.  Borders Books. Automotive Big 3. Major Record Labels.  Big Banks & The Fed.  Business as usual found these on their knees begging for mercy.  Anything that grows quickly with mass appeal always finds itself at a pinnacle moment of either transitioning into what is becoming a redefining season or business as usual.  It's life and death are predicated on the choices made during these critical moments.  Some are obvious, others catch you completely by surprise.

Mega-churches.  I know.  Before you assume my position... please continue reading.  This is not a church bashing written effort.  I'm completely FOR the church.  Let's just ask a few questions and explore where we honestly are at.

There are 56 million people attending evangelical (mostly protestant) services at the 300,000 locations of worship country wide.  Over 50% of christians in the US are attending only 10% of the churches.  These churches represent attendance marks of 350 people or more.   The rise of the mega-church has found a visibility for the church unprecedented to times in the past.  More people giving financially into the same ministries have allowed churches to pay for the expenses it requires to make a little bit of noise and as a result continue with the popular trends of big box saturation.    As a result we have 30,000 leaders each week speaking to the majority of the protestant church.  30,000 people is a big number of people, but in contrast that's a speaker:listener ratio of 866:1.  WOW.  What great influence a relatively small amount of people have with the church on a weekly basis to speak into their minds and spirits.  It really is a massive responsibility.

While you could see this mass appeal to mega-church as  unifying process of people gathering under similar heart and worship, it also creates a peaking that if a shift happens quickly, over half of the protestant church could be shaken in a moment.  How would the church respond?  The signs in the world are that voices are being lifted and the earth is shaking. We have enemies that can't be seen, cries for social justice and freedom are no longer faint, financial deficits that will haunt for generations along with poor energy habits draining our remaining resources. We have more education in the world than any other age and yet we have less answers.  How long can we (baby boomers?) just turn our head? While it doesn't take a rocket scientist to wax the evident times we live in, there is a distinct reality of what God has allowed to happen in the earth.  All the fruit is ripening... Darkness and Light.

While Baby Boomers (age: 47-65)  are the predominate supporters of the mega-church movement, Gen Xers (ages: 28-46) are rising in influence and are kind of a handful.  They are stereotyped as full of pessimism, devil's advocacy and the need for proof.  Whether just a stereotype or not, the question I want to ask is with the BBer's doing mega-church business as usual, where will the Gen Xers take the church?  Will they support big budget church?  Mega-Church has been predicated on man made kingdoms thru new communications with celebrity leaders.  While the individualism (thank you self esteem movement :/ ) of celebrity leadership appeals to Gen X, they also want it to be authentic.  They really are caught between two realms.  Do you continue the current pattern of "success" that you didn't lead or embrace the next generation who is already making a stamp for a different pattern?   Gen Y or Echo Boom (ages: 11-27) is massively known for it's broader compassion, communal mentality and awareness for social justice. Collectivism is on the rise. Due to inheriting the financial sins of their fathers with little awareness of how it came to them, we know they will abhor most of current systems used to get us where we are today.  Let's face it, we are already seeing financial and governmental institutions  crumble to the ground.  So the institution of the church... how will it respond in this season?  Will BBers empower GX?  How will GX respond?

It's a pivotal time in the church.  A time of when generational unity is needed like never before.  While I see plenty of gaps in the foundation of the mega-church movement, you can't deny it's influence and power of massive corporate gathering.  My challenge is to Generation X.  The "nothing" generation.  The victim mentality generation that generally is ticked of and in need of a lot of approval that BBer's will probably never be able to satisfiy.  Gen X - It's time to step up and lead.  There's an identity crisis on our hands and we MUST have resolve.  There's an audience like never before and we have a responsibility to take it to the next level.  We MUST know who we are in Christ and be willing to count the cost.  The generation below us is rising with unity and are a new breed of leadership.  How will we handle being in the paradox of what the boomers established and what GY is already establishing.   With so few people having such large voices (866:1), when we speak it will be heard.  Will we take the church to places of new life? Even if there is a shift out of business as usual mega-church, what does business as UNusual within the mega-church look like?

I have great hope  and love for the church, but I am not ignorant of it's inadequacies.  I pray that we as a generation, turn our hearts to the ONE who does have the answers.  We are here and we can not be distracted by business as usual.   The shift is beginning and leadership is going to be needed like never before.  We can not play to simply not lose.  We must be forward in our thinking.  Anchored in the word of God.  Resisting individualism by living in extravagant giving and unconditional love.  It's our time to choose.  Who will we be and what will we be known for?




Event: The Call with Lou Engle will be in MI on 11.11.11 .  It will be a fantastic effort of rallying the state of MI to prayer and break thru for our area.  There is a rally entitled The Power Of You for this effort that Transformation MI, EACHtoday.com and Mt. Zion have collaborated on  March 18 & 19th.  You don't want to miss these times of gathering.  They will be powerful!

Where Love Is Possible.

Love is the answer to every person's desire in life.  I'm convinced.  Completely convinced.  It's in our DNA to desire to know love and to desire to give it away.  Even the greatest evils are simply perversions of the same love that brings healthy fulfillment.   I think if we were just more open to understanding the realms where love is possible... finding it would be less of a challenge.

The search for love consumes society.  We're obsessed with it. The storied history of mankind is saturated with the rise and fall of societies over love.  War has been started and solved over love.  It's amazing to see how the story of love has dominated our existence.   I remember pre-marriage dating and it wasn't a pretty sight.  I would fall pretty hard for girls and find myself acting out in ways that were so embarrassing.  Calling too many times, accidentally running into them in public (scAR-EE) and of course the worse demonstrations of all american macho.  All this to win the heart of a girl that might want to give love to me.  In our post-analog society, I can only imagine the trouble that clingy desperate dating prospects find themselves in these days.  Reality TV doesn't help either.   Trashy competitions and voyeur cameras deliver pressured responses without the trust and intimacy needed to create the environment for real love and yet... we watch.  Why do we watch?  Because if it works, we would lay down anything to try it too.   We're obsessed with finding love and willing to be open to any means it would take to experience what was created as the greatest life fulfillment.

Love defined is a challenge to come to. Much of society asks questions like:  Is love a feeling?  Is it a choice?  Is it sex alone? Is it something you're born with? Is it something that you mysteriously fall in and out of? Is it something you take?  I think there are so many questions because love defined as one thing would limit the world that love exists within.  It's so much bigger than what one word could describe.  It's power supersedes words and most people find themselves without them when they experience the purest version in their life to date.  We just know that when we find it, that nothing else matters.  We would give up anything for love.   I look at love as an ongoing revelation throughout our life.  Every relationship adding an experience that anchors our ability to love less conditionally.  While its nothing we can see or taste, most of us believe it's real because we've experienced it.  Those who struggle with it's possibilities have been soured by the love experience because someone mistreated them in the name of it.  Debates will rage on because if you've found love, you'd die for it and those who've not found it don't understand that sentiment.  It's that real and means that much.

So when is love possible?  Love can not exist without freedom and for ages people have decided it was worth dying for.  For the love of their country, Wael Ghonim and millions of Egyptians looked death in the eyes for 18 days, longing for the freedom their country deserved.  The greatest love stories of all time in popular literature, included death over love. Shakespeare's work all embodied this sacrifice.  Martin Luther King in love, ultimately giving his life for his brothers and sisters, inspired a revolution that brought the beginnings of equality in America.  The core value of America that makes us such a great nation is that within our freedom, our love can be experienced in the most diverse of realms with no limitations.  This makes the power of love to be as vast the atmosphere around us.  Love has no ceiling.  It take a free person to not create ceilings or limitation through control over people.   While SELF-control is needed in a freedom environment,  love can flourish when it's key values are in action.

The values of love are always going to be rooted in the desire to see the good of someone else.  Self awareness is the complete antithesis of love.  Love's DNA is made up with things like patience, honor, self-control, easily letting go of wrong, appreciating simple truth, preferring others over yourself, never quitting and passion for excellence.  It takes a free person to have patience.  It takes a free person to prefer someone over themselves.   Love becomes possible when we are not consumed by our own needs and attempts to be self sustaining.  Honesty is required here.  Love is not conjured or strived into existence... it is walked in.  It's identified with.  A love relationship is cultivated thru outrageous giving and worked out through trial and error.  All of it being added one layer at a time as we walk life out with the people around us.  Love is the answer to all of life's situations.  Be free to love and you'll find it'll be reciprocated because others are probably waiting on someone else to be first.

Filter:
The writer John in his first epistle of the Bible, wrote this: And we know (understand, recognize, are conscious of, by observation and by experience) and believe (adhere to and put faith in and rely on) the love God cherishes for us. God is love, and he who dwells and continues in love dwells and continues in God, and God dwells and continues in him. 

(reprise)

God is the answer to every person's desire in life.  I'm convinced.  Completely convinced.  It's in our DNA to desire to know God and to desire to give Him away.  Even the greatest evils are simply perversions of the same God that brings healthy fulfillment.   I think if we were just more open to understanding the realms where God is possible... finding Him would be less of a challenge.  

The search for God consumes society...  We're obsessed with Him. The storied history of mankind is saturated with the rise and fall of societies over God.  War has been started and solved over God.  It's amazing to see how the story of God has dominated our existence.   I remember pre-marriage christianity and it wasn't a pretty sight.  I would fall pretty hard for God and find myself acting out in ways that were so embarrassing.  Calling too many times, "accidentally" running into Him in public (scAR-EE) and of course the worse demonstrations of all american macho.  All this to win the heart of a God that might want to give Himself to me.  In our post-analog society, I can only imagine the trouble that clingy desperate christian prospects find themselves in these days.  Reality TV doesn't help either.   Trashy competitions and voyeur cameras deliver pressured responses without the trust and intimacy needed to create the environment for a real God and yet... we watch.  Why do we watch?  Because if it works, we would lay down anything to try it too.   We're obsessed with finding God and willing to be open to any means it would take to experience what was created as the greatest life fulfillment. 

God defined is a challenge to come to. Much of society asks questions like:  Is God a feeling?  Is He a choice?  Is He sex alone  (a "perks" or "blessings" based relationship with no string attached)? Is He something you're born with? Is He something that you mysteriously fall in and out of? Is He something you take?  I think there are so many questions because God defined as one thing would limit the world that He exists within.  He's so much bigger than what one word could describe.  His power supersedes words and most people find themselves without them when they experience the purest version in their life to date.  We just know that when we find Him, that nothing else matters.  We would give up anything for Him.   I look at God as an ongoing revelation throughout our life.  Every relationship adding an experience that anchors our ability to love less conditionally.  While its nothing we can see or taste, we believe it's real because we've experienced it.  Those who struggle with it's possibilities have been soured by the God experience because someone mistreated them in His name.  Debates will rage on because if you've found God, you'd die for Him and those who've not found Him don't understand that sentiment.  It's that real and means that much.

So when is God possible?  God can not exist without freedom and for ages people have decided it was worth dying for.  For the God of their country, Moses and millions of Israelites looked death in the eyes for 40 years, longing for the freedom their country deserved.  The greatest God stories of all time in popular literature, included death over God. Jesus' work all embodied this sacrifice.  The apostle Peter ultimately giving his life for his brothers and sisters, inspired a revolution that brought the beginnings of the church to the world.  The core value of the church that makes us such a great nation is that within our freedom, our God can be experienced in the most diverse of realms with no limitations.  This makes the power of God to be as vast the atmosphere around us.  God has no ceiling.  It take a free person to not create ceilings or limitation through control over people.   While SELF-control is needed in a freedom environment, God can flourish when His key values are in action.  

The values of God are always going to be rooted in the desire to see the good of someone else.  Self awareness is the complete antithesis of God.  God's DNA is made up with things like patience, honor, self-control, easily letting go of wrong, appreciating simple truth, preferring others over yourself, never quitting and passion for excellence.  It takes a free person to have patience.  It takes a free person to prefer someone over themselves.   God becomes possible when we are not consumed by our own needs and attempts to be self sustaining.  Honesty is required here.  God is not conjured or strived into existence... He is walked with.  He's identified with.  Our relationship is cultivated thru outrageous giving and worked out through trial and error.  All of it being added one layer at a time as we walk life out with the people around us.  God is the answer to all of life's situations.  Be free with God and you'll find it'll be reciprocated because others are probably waiting on someone else to be first.