Discipleship...where to begin?

Love your people.

That is the only proper place to begin. If we don't begin with love, then we'll end up off somewhere in left field, if at all. If we don't begin with love, then we're just wasting our time, bending people's ears. 1 Jesus looked out at the crowds and had compassion on them. They were lost and broken and sick and lame. 2 The heartbeat of the father is to heal and free us. His heart must begin to line up with ours, and as it does, we will begin to desire to see people set free. This can only lead us to the trenches, unless we give up along the way. It's necessary for us to get our hands dirty and our hearts committed in this work of discipleship in order to be effective at all. It was said to me once that the "Rocketship that drives the heart of God is found in Isaiah 61." 3 God seeks to free us from our captivity to sin, to break our bondage, and to rebuild us like cities. He wants to exchange beauty for our ashes and to comfort those of us who mourn. Furthermore, He wants to heal us so that we can heal others. Jesus read these words about Himself in the temple in Luke's gospel. They were words that had been written about him hundreds of years prior, but he came to fulfill them, and we are His body fulfilling them today.

We are the healers, the comforters, the rebuilders. He gave us an example through His humility on the Cross, forgiving us even as we put Him to death. His compassion and love ran (runs) so deep that He still sought our freedom. Father, what must I do to have that kind of love? Put it in me!

Put in me, what I cannot buy with gold
Put in me, Oh God, come restore my broken soul
Put in me, what I cannot give myself
Put in me, a clean heart. 4

There is a love that extends beyond offense or deserving. There is a love that has conquered death and brought life. There is a love that not only overlooks your wrongdoing, but loves you because of it. There is a love that cannot be squelched or put out or extinguished by any manner or means. There is a love that will not let you go; that reaches into your heart and sings victory and freedom over you.

We need to begin to see how much we have been forgiven, you see. It is there that we make headway toward loving more deeply, and nowhere else. Remember, Jesus was at Simon's house, eating with him. A woman of ill-repute (they call her a Sinner and a woman of the city) came in and began to wash Jesus' feet with her tears and her hair. Then, she broke her alabaster jar of ointment and anointed His feet. What an act of worship. This woman knew she had been forgiven, because her heart was able to worship freely. She had been forgiven much, and so she loved Jesus more than anything. Jesus said "Her sins, which are many, are forgiven--for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." 5 She knew what we must come to know, and it broke her.

If we receive forgiveness for our sins (or love and affection), then we are able to convey forgiveness (or love and affection) to others, but if not, we can't. You see, the two go hand in hand and the same direction. If i condemn myself (or, don't receive forgiveness from the Father), then I cannot in turn forgive others and extend grace to them. Bitterness or condemnation go both directions and poison the system when present at all. Another way to say this is that the way I see myself before God is the way I see others before myself or God.

Father, change my heart. Let me love them as you do. Let me receive your love. Show me the extent of what you've done to remake me. Break me like the alabaster and let my sorrow and grief change to compassion and grace. Then bring me people to anoint with it.


1. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 13 (all)
2. Matthew's Gospel 3:13-21; Luke's Gospel 10:31-33
3. Andy Rittenhouse - Staff Training, Camp Ba Yo Ca 1999 (author's notes)
4. Waterdeep "Put in me" - Ben & Robin Pasley 1997
5. Luke's Gospel 7:36-50

Discipleship in absence

Our dear brother Paul, though he is revered by us for his availability and input in the New Testament, was merely human. Thus, as we are, he was limited in his ability to be "around." We begin to walk with others through life, and we, just like Paul, can't be everywhere at once. Paul used letters to communicate to the followers of Jesus whom he loved dearly, in his absence. He was able to teach, reprove, correct, train, and encourage so that they would be able to live wholly equipped as Jesus' bride, the church.1 We, in the same way, may put pen to paper in order to more fully walk with those we are investing in. In a day of instant messaging, text messaging, and cell phones, we can break through the impersonal nature of our culture like the sun on a fog. The intentionally placed, hand-written letter cuts through the noise of our culture and freshly reminds those in whom we are investing that we bleed for them. Instructions, encouragements, and even corrections and rebukes carry weight when they are borne on paper and are written by a pen. "I truly think of you and have spent time and prayed for you," they say, with emphasis. Letters are no more casual notes sent by doting housewives or businessmen or even family. Letters are rare gems. If written with prayer and care for our people, they have the ability to speak to them even when we are not present. Being that we are limited by time and space, this is handy.

I remember devotional reading in adolescence from Oswald Chambers' My Utmost For His Highest, which has the uncanny "ability" to speak directly to what I was currently dealing with from day to day. One wonders whether Mr. Chambers had special insight into our lives, or whether my copy of the book is in a different order than my neighbor's. Uncanny, that. The same phenomenon is present in Bible reading, as we daily open it to receive from God. The Holy Spirit is given room to speak and teach, and we find that what we are reading is "just what we needed." Coincidence? No. It is, after all, living and active. The same effect can be achieved as we write to our disciples. We can give a breath of the Spirit to them by writing scripture and the truth of Jesus to them. God's Word is still God's Word, and we write to our beloved of Jesus and His work, seeing them transformed by the same power that reached into us and freed us. There is no greater hope. Let us carry it to them with affection and intentionality.


If you leave now, you can buy some stamps before the price goes up again. See you at the post office.

1.Paul's Second Letter to Timothy 3:16-17, ESV

Discipleship Through the Lens

Prayer: He can and will; and what I cannot convey the spirit can embed.

Prayer is always the best first response. It matters little what the situation is, be it excess or need; we should always be bringing our lives before our father, God. Paul tells us "in everything, by prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God." 1 Not only is the command to let our requests be made known, but that as we are obedient to do so that "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." 1 The promise is just as important as the command. We know not only what to do, but what the result will be. Jesus said himself in John's gospel that "Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it." 2 Now we know two results: both that we will be guarded in heart and mind by the peace of God, but that our prayers will be answered, given that they are in His name. The contingent, of course, is that our will be lined up with His.

I say first response (as opposed to first word) because prayer is always a response, and never an initiative. I say first response (as opposed to simply response) because it should be our first reaction to anything instead of our second or third (or often, our last resort). Eugene Peterson, in his book Working the Angles, calls prayer "answering speech." 3 This is an important distinction to make, because it places us in the part of the creation in need of provision and not that of the creator making demands. We come to God broken in need or with thanks because of who He is and what He has provided (or what we hope He will provide).

Prayer, as the most intimate communication with God, must serve a great deal in our discipleship of others. The effectiveness of prayer is sadly underestimated by most, and falls by the wayside as a spiritual discipline. Not only can it serve to begin a softening of our hearts for those in our spheres of influence who have a need for spiritual direction; it must be the conduit by which we gain the heart of the Father for the lost and dying. On the outward side, we can begin praying for opportunities to invest in others and for the willingness on their behalf to receive from God through us.

Not only does prayer affect the first part of our discipleship process, it must be at the forefront of our efforts for the long haul. We cannot do anything effective in the lives of our disciples without the Holy Spirit, and sometimes the only thing we can do at all is pray. No word or example, no matter how eloquent or timely, can carry any weight if said or done in our own strength or wisdom. The Spirit of God, however, is constantly applying Himself to the lives of the followers of Christ in our worst moments. The Holy Spirit can make headway in the heart and mind in areas that I am completely ignorant need retooling, and uses even the inconsistencies of my life to teach truth. He can embed his life deeply where I cannot merely scratch the surface.

Without Him I am nothing, and thus He must increase and I must decrease. 4

1. Paul's letter to the Philippians 4:6-7, ESV
2. The Gospel of John 14:13-14, ESV
3. Peterson, Euguene. Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity. Eerdmans, 1987.
4. The Gospel of John 3:30, ESV

Oh, heart...

9-10-2007



It's amazing what power the sung word has. When applied to the soul like a salve, song can both open and mend the wounds inflicted by our world in these dark days. The words cleanse us, but only if they concern the Healer.



Tonight the chapel was full of folks in our community. Monday remains Monday, regardless of whether one is an investment banker, a store clerk, or a man or woman living on the street. Both men and women bustled in as our doors opened, eager to drop their loads and bags and be attended to for the evening. The chapel filled quickly, pews laden with sleepers, sitters, talkers, and those who came to listen and be filled. We have the opportunity on the second Monday night of each month to host a group of brothers and sisters from a Mennonite community in Greene County. They journey an hour and a half from home to bless us with their singing and to join us for our evening meal, and then return the same distance without blinking.



Usually, the chapel is a place that is an affront to the senses. To the casual bystander or those who don't normally frequent our halls, the odors of body and soul mingle and can be enough to curl the toes or straighten a permanent. Tired and outcast is always the order of the day, and visually and aurally our community is lively at the least. The exception is the second Monday evening of the month when the Mennonites come to town.



The chapel becomes silent as the group comes and begins to sing. Their demeanor exudes humility and an incredible spirit that echoes the words of Menno Simmons:



"We who were formerly no people at all, and who knew of no peace, are now called to be ... a church ... of peace. True Christians do not know vengeance. They are the children of peace. Their hearts overflow with peace. Their mouths speak peace, and they walk in the way of peace."



Their hearts overflow peace and as they begin to sing, their words are pristine. The enunciation is somewhere between Old English and Pennsylvania Dutch, and Reuben calls our folks "Friends" instead of "you all." He speaks of Jesus as someone he knows....because He is.Their voices aren't polished, which is excellent, and they sing with conviction. My favorite moment is a line from What a Friend We Have in Jesus. They sing "Are you weak and heavy laden? Burdened with a load of care? Precious Savior still our Refuge, Take it to the Lord in Prayer." And, oh, they sing like they know. My heart leaves my chest and is somewhere in the heavens where it belongs and wants to remain.

What a Savior. What Brothers and Sisters. God is Good.

(These singings still happen on The Second Monday of the Month at Grace Chapel in Knox Area Rescue Ministries, right around 4:30...they don't last long enough, and so are usually done by 5:15).