commitment

Somewhere I read that it doesn’t matter what kind of church we think is effective, whether it is mega-church or a home church, it does not matter. It’s not about style. It’s more that, by and large people today just do not want to commit to anything.

The current state of American Christianity is a lack of the substance – a lack of commitment, not the style of church.

At first, I wondered how I could help people raise their commitment level. Mostly with regards to being involved in real community. What would attract someone to commit to community?

It was in this series of thoughts and questions that I realized that although I am committed to many things, I am also very inconsistent with my commitments. I realized that I am not very committed to building new relationships.

I have friends but I am very introverted and tend to avoid opportunities to make new friends - even my next-door neighbor. I’m not sure why. Probably fear…but, fear of what? Whether it is not talking with my new next-door neighbor or the neighbor across the street, I tend to avoid these opportunities. Avoiding is much different than being oblivious. To avoid is intentional. To be oblivious, is well…oblivious.

So, I too, have a problem with commitment. The very thing I want to assist others with, I have as a problem of my own. How fun!

Starting now, I want to commit to building new relationships and not missing the opportunity to do so. “Good fruit” is shown through interacting with others. Love for God is reflected in our love for others. My desire to love God should create a strong desire for relationship with others. If not, then I’m still in-love with myself more than I’m in love with God.

Today, I’m going to commit to step into, be more aware of and more intentional about fostering new friendships. I take this part of my life for granted and in that, I’m probably missing one of the biggest blessings.

Who am I to decide which or what relationships I have? That’s still me in control, right?

Wisdom will guide through discernment, however faith must give me the confidence to engage and initiate new relationships. I’d rather burn my mental energy caring for other people than trying to figure out ways to avoid them. How about you?

I hope we all have more faith to receive new friendships rather than avoid them.

Life brings life – let’s not avoid the opportunity to give or receive it.

interesting email

Last night, I got an email from a friend. Below is the original email and my reply. Just thought I'd share in hopes of starting more dialogue online.

Original email:
Hey Al,
What do you think this passage is referring to and how do you think it applies today?
Matthew 23:15 (New International Version) 15"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are."

My response:
Wow. Okay, I'll try. Here it goes....

Jesus, at this point is in a heated conversation with the Sadducees and Pharisees. Just reading Matthew 22-23, I realize more and more that Jesus brought what we needed and not what we necessarily wanted. Although He was more than capable of having a theological conversation, He knew that the study of God wasn't going to assist in bringing Life to the dead. In other words, we humans love to get focused on the MEANS to the end or even the BENEFITS of the end itself; meaning: we love studying Jesus or even the benefits (some may say 'blessings') of Jesus - but, often negate the actual relationship with Jesus. Most churches are built around either means (style, method, etc.) or benefits (blessings, etc.) - not simply: Jesus is Lord.

The Pharisees were teaching others how to be good Pharissees, not how to be the children of God. In other words, they were teaching people how to be a good 'church-goers' instead of modeling and instructing them on how to continually integrate their life in a relationship with Jesus. An active, continual friendship with Jesus. Living a life that says, He is Lord (over my life).

Lately, I've started to think that the thing that irritated the religious leaders most about Jesus, was how practical He was - and still is. We, as humans, can't handle this kind of practicality. He did not get hung up on temporal methods or benefits of His relationship with God. He got hung up with things that got in the way of having a lasting relationship with the Father. Better said, Jesus got hung up on things that caused unbelief.

Jesus was deeply concerned with things eternal and we (humans) tend to concern ourselves with things temporal. We love control. It's just part of our nature - our flesh.

Jesus was open about His NOT being in control and that is what gave Him the authority to act, speak and love on the Father's behalf. It baffled them then, it baffles us now.

Jesus was not about building churches - although community is VITAL- He was about building people. In other words, He empowered and encouraged people in such a way as to raise them up to their potential that He knew was inside of them. This is the resurrection life - this is the incarnation. This is how the Future (the Kingdom of God) is ushered into the present.

To be the creative people of God, we must be free enough to see the contribution inside of everyone. This is a gift of God's grace, brought forth by our taking responsibility for our relationship with Jesus - nothing more, nothing less. More often than not, we've defined freedom as homogeny and didn't even know it. Rather than freeing people into their God-designed destiny, we've just put another set of shackles on them: we've made them "twice as much a son of hell".

My prayer:
Lord, take the veil off of Charlotte. Lord, give me a deeper sense of Your heart for this, my city.
Lord, help us today to understand on a deeper level what the resurrection means.
Lord, open our eyes, our ears and our hearts to fresh ways of seeking YOU first and not a new method, style or form to get there. Just You, that's what we want.
Lord, help us to know when we are receiving a benefit from our relationship with You, but only so much as it refocuses us back to You and not that benefit.
Lord, open our minds to what it truly means to be free.
Lord, helps us see the beauty in every life and rather than killing it - help us bring them back to Life.


Thank you for this question - it brought great joy to me this morning to write these words. At some points, I was in tears. I hope this helps.

an apple a day

[reflections on Romans 7: 1-13]

Isn’t it interesting that the ‘law’ was intended, more or less, to draw us closer to God and ended up - just like the fruit in the Garden – being a temptation for us to become like God?

“For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me…” (Romans 7:11 TNIV)

How often do we take what was intended by God to draw us closer to Him and make it into something that we can control? In turn, this control we have winds up creating distance from God, not closeness to God.

The Message Remix says this about sin: “sin simply did what sin is so famous for doing: using the good as a cover to tempt me to do what would finally destroy me.”

So, in this case, sin – our desire to be like God – made the law look like an apple. Although it was initially created for our benefit and our intimacy with the Creator it ended up creating distance. Not because of God, but because of sin (our desire to control the outcome and be like God). Maybe an apple a day keeps God away? Hmm…

For me, I’ve come to realize that those areas in my life that I strive in or try take control of – without God’s counsel - often are the very things that destroy me. How about you?

So, we give control over to God – what then? Are we finally free? It seems to me, according to Paul’s letter to the followers in Rome, that Paul continued to struggle with sin.

Is it possible that…at a certain point in our Christianity, sin is not so much NOT doing what is wrong and doing what is right but being increasingly (and sometimes painfully) aware of our hearts motivation for doing what is right?

“Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 5:20 TNIV)