The Relentless Pursuit

Surely none of us want our lives to be lived in vain. One of the mega-themes in Ecclesiastes is that any pursuit in life under the sun, apart from the pursuit of God, is like a chasing after the wind. Our quest for success, pleasure, happiness, leisure, or lust will always end in futility. So what are we called to pursue?

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” The kingdom of God and the righteousness of God should be the final destination programmed into our life’s GPS. As we search after God first, those things that seemed so important seem to fade into a distant second (or twelfth!) Jesus explains later in this same gospel account that “all authority in heaven and earth has been given to Me… therefore, GO”. As we pursue His kingdom, He will begin to draw us on a “wild goose chase” that will lead us down paths we would have never pursued otherwise. And the motivation for these endeavors should never be the need in front of us or the personal burden or desire to serve others, but simply the call Jesus has placed upon us. In a word, that call is “love”.

Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:14 “For Christ’s love compels us”. It is the love of Christ that smuggles Bibles through Chinese borders, that spends a lifetime in a hard field with little fruit and no conversion, that gladly trades the mirage of safety and comfort in America for the unknowns of faith and blessing. His love wakens men to trade the corporate ladder for the servant’s seat; it harkens young women to abandon the pursuit of courtship and seek a better reward in serving their Bridegroom; it draws young and old to people that have never seen a white face, heard an English word, or the saving name of Jesus. His love leads a young family to leave all that is comfortable and ‘safe’ to plant a church in an unfamiliar city for His glory. The love of Christ calls the broken, the failed, the fallen, the forgotten, and the firm equally, to lose their lives to find what is truly called life by their Lord. What compels us? It is the love of Christ.

Paul says, “the love of Christ compels us”, which literally means, “to hold together, to press the ears together, to press on every side, to hold fast, to hold oneself to”. His love is a keeping love, as He holds us to Himself, holding us together. That gives comfort to the struggling marriage in the struggling work in a struggling field. That brings peace to a young couple looking for direction in a wide-open valley of choices and opportunities. That brings endurance to the missionary that is questioning the will of God and whether this furlough is their last. His love is a compelling love, a staying love, a love that keeps us close. And as Paul said, it may seem to others that we are out of our mind, but it is for the sake of God.

May Christ’s love be our sole and relentless pursuit.

-Pastor Pilgrim

Thanks, Tyler Fox. In a strange way, as you now stand in the presence of God, I am thankful. I’m not happy that your young life was seemingly cut short on Wednesday. I’m not happy that those you love and care about are feeling a supreme sense of loss. I’m saddened that what could have been a longer, more productive life, on the surface seems to have tragically ended.
I don’t like thinking about eternity, at least not yet. Whenever someone dies at a young age, it forces us to rethink our priorities, our joys and sorrows, what is real and what is fake. We too come face to face with our mortality and begin to question all that seems mundane and trivial.

But beneath the surface, Tyler is in more than just a ‘better place’. His contagious smile that always lit up the room is now enjoying the fellowship of Jesus. I don’t want to speak about Tyler in ‘past tense’, because he is more alive now than last week. He is, not was. Tyler is filled with an inexpressible joy, receiving the goal of his faith, the salvation of his soul. He is in Heaven, in God’s presence, and for this I’m thankful.

Thanks, Tyler Fox. Thanks for living your life, even now, eternally. We miss you but we also long to be where you are. Thanks for reminding us even in your death that we are not promised tomorrow. Thanks for showing us the need to live with Jesus today, knowing that we will be with Him forever.

Pilgrim
Psalm 119:50

Comfort

(A few years ago our extended family faced an unexpected tragic death. This article was originally written during that time.)

2 Cor 1:3-5 (NIV)
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”
Comfort. In our day and age, we are constantly looking for ways to make ourselves more comfortable. We take long ‘comforting’ vacations on cruise ships, pay extra for the more ‘comfortable’ furniture, strive to get the most ‘comfortable’ loan rates, save money each paycheck for a more ‘comfortable’ retirement, and are constantly looking for a company that will help us feel more ‘comfortable’ as an employee.

I remember selling shoes part time at Bible college, and the best sales technique I learned was to allow the customer to try on the shoes to see how ‘comfortable’ they were. As Americans, we trust our military and law enforcement to keep us ‘comfortable’ and safe from harm. Even in our relationships, we find the need to be ‘comfortable’. We surround ourselves with those who make us ‘feel’ good, and rarely allow anyone close enough to upset our delicate personal lives! We like calm waters, not rough seas!

But God’s comfort transcends the materialistic and physical comforts I’ve just mentioned. God is known in this passage as ‘the God of all comfort’. The word ‘comfort’ means to call to one’s side, and is the same word that Jesus used to describe the Holy Spirit in John 14:16, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever”. The Holy Spirit of God is our Comforter, the One who God has sent to come alongside us and help us in our times of pain, suffering, loss, doubting, fear, and anger.

The comfort that God gives isn’t based on circumstances. It’s based on a Person. When King Nebuchadnezzar was about to throw those three young men into the fiery furnace, they looked confidently into his eyes and said, “The God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand…But even if He does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods” (Daniel 3:17-18, emphasis mine). And with that incredible faith, they were thrown into the furnace, the fire, the trial, where everyone around would expect them to be burned.

But when the king looked into the furnace, he said, “Weren’t there three men that we threw into the fire? Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like the Son of God”(verses 24 and 25). You see, they weren’t delivered FROM their trial, but they were delivered IN their trial. It wasn’t based on the circumstances changing; it was based on a Person being there to comfort them in the midst.

And so you and I will walk into fiery trials that will test our faith. The enemy would want us to be tied up and bound, thinking we were facing certain destruction. Yet in the midst of the fire, though the heat is consuming and the flames are pressing in around us, God’s Spirit is there to bring comfort to us. By trusting in Him, we will be as these three young men were: unbound, unharmed, and in the presence of the Son!

After we have been saved through the fire, we can then go and be a blessing to others. We can comfort others with the same comfort the Holy Spirit gave us. With the fiery furnace, their deliverance so radically affected the king that he began to praise God! When Jesus and His disciples walked near a blind man, the disciples asked, Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life” (John 9:2-3). Jesus went on to deliver that man from blindness. Perhaps we are facing our trial simply because God wants to display His work in our lives. May our lives be such that when we withstand the fire, others will see God’s work being displayed, and they will give glory and praise to Him.

Pressed but not crushed,

Pilgrim

"Daddy, I'm on a Mission"

This morning I woke up to London, my two-and-a-half-going-on-twelve-year-old daughter, refusing to play with her older brother Aiden. What was her response to his pleading? From the living room I awoke to, "I can't. I'm on a mission." Then she came running into my room yelling it with determination: "Daddy, I'm on a mission, I'm on a mission!" What daddy wouldn't wake up with a smile in these moments?

Though her mission was to find some gum, our mission as believers is clear and with great reward (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). God's mission is to draw His elect into a right relationship with Him from the ends of the earth, with kindness and grace leading us to repentance and faith. He does so not by angelic proclamation or a high-tech gospel billboard from space, but through you and I, the church. Our mission is a mission of love, sent by a loving God to win people to a loving Savior by living lives of loving obedience and laboring in love until our last breath. I've heard some people say with a profane tone, "for the love of God!", and I would say, "yeah, absolutely right!"

William Carey, the great missionary to India, once said, "Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God". I echo his exhortation but my prayer is not that I would attempt great things for God. My desire is for God to attempt great things through me. The only way this is possible is for you and I to live submitted lives to the gospel of grace, to yield to the work of the Holy Spirit in every area, and to take risks and go boldly wherever He leads us.

Can you say like London, "Daddy, I'm on a mission"?

Pilgrim

Bruised Reeds

Matthew 12:20 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out…

Let’s face it, life is difficult sometimes. After just a brief survey of the scriptures, any young disciple will quickly realize that trials are inevitable in anyone’s life, whether that person is a Christ-follower closely abiding or a vehement unbeliever dead in their sins. And it also becomes clear that we are to rejoice in the midst of trials because they are in our lives for a defined purpose that God will ultimately work for good, including our maturity and growth. There are seasons of sowing and seasons of reaping, and moments of pain and tears that sometimes make us forget the moments of laughter and peace and joy.

Jesus brings us comfort in tragedy and literally gives us His peace. This is not the peace that the world advertises. Worldly peace is usually either a forced cease-fire or simply ignoring all the terrors around us through a sideshow of entertainment and pleasure. But Jesus affords us true peace, the peace that surpasses all understanding and exceeds all human wisdom and doesn’t seem to be proportionate to our circumstances. He offers this peace to us everyday.

Jesus promises not to break a bruised reed. Every Sunday our chairs here at Calvary Chapel are filled with bruised reeds, people who have been beaten up all week by the world, their sin, shame, guilt, condemnation, temptations, fear, injustice, persecution, and hatred. God knows our vulnerability and our weakness. He promises to give us sufficient grace and even strength in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9) and to allow us to walk, run, and even soar in life without losing our spiritual vitality (Isaiah 40:30-31).

God also promises not to snuff out a smoldering wick. We’ve all gone to douse out a candle in the house, and sometimes we approach a barely-lit wick that is about to flicker out. That certainly describes life for some of us: where a brightly burning fire should be, there is just the faintest bit of combustion and one more bad day is all it will take to turn us to ashes! There are many whose passion for God is simply outward, going through the numb motions but lacking true intimacy and fervor because their hearts are far from Him (Matthew 15:8). Others get disillusioned and doubt their faith and their lamp is just a question away from being extinguished. But Jesus won’t quench the fire. He wants to fan it into a flame that will blaze with fervent heat as we rest in His grace and truth.

We as a church have an enormous opportunity during this difficult season to live what we’ve been exhorted to for so many years: to be a body that truly cares for one another and builds up those who are struggling and weary. Let’s model what Jesus gave the world as our commercial: that they would know we are His disciples by our love for one another (John 13:35).

Pilgrim

20 Questions

I picked up a "20Q" handheld game yesterday to try and stump the omniscient computer that can supposedly guess whatever you are thinking within 20 questions or less. I wasn't expecting to blog about what happened, but some of life's biggest surprises can come in moments of low expectations!

I decided to pick in my mind "the church", the gathering and scattering of God's chosen people bought by His blood and sent for His name to be salt and light on the earth (I figured that would be harder to guess than "Ketchup"). What blew my mind was the questions that 20Q began to ask:
"Can it be heard?"
"Do you find it in a house?"
"Is it comforting?"
"Do you use it in the dark?"
"Does it affect you?"
"Can it change size?"
"Is it worth money?"
And my favorite: "Is it colorful?"

At Question 21, after admitting defeat, the 20Q game didn't relent. It tried some last ditch questions:
"Does it move?"
"Is it a source of energy?"
And finally, 20Q's best guess was: "Is it a FIRE?" What an apt description of what the church SHOULD be. The scriptures tell us that 'our God is a consuming fire', and that our lives and bodies should be a living sacrifice, a burning offering given to Him for His glory and our good.

May our hearts burn within us as we spend time with Jesus, and may the church spread like wildfire in these dark days of apathy and confusion.

Pilgrim

Organic Evangelism

Extended Notes from Pilgrim's Teaching this week: Click Here

Weary of Intercession

Whenever we see tragedy or suffering or pain in the life of someone we care about, initially there should always be "spontaneous intercession". I am compelled to immediately turn to my heavenly Father when any overwhelming situation comes into the life of a friend or family member. But does this ever grow tiring?

In Jesus' parable of the persistent widow, He commends this woman for her example of stubborn persistence for mercy. We too should have the same relentless struggle as we wrestle in prayer for those around us bound in drugs, porn, pride, and selfishness. We should be in agony on our knees for marriages that are struggling, houses that are being lost to financial ruin, and diseases that are wreaking havoc on faithful saints. But too often we lose sight of the reality of long-suffering, and believe a simple prayer here or enough faith there will evoke relief, repentance, or a reversal of adversity.

Jesus was literally sweating drops of blood before facing the excruciating pain and torment of death by scourging and crucifixion. And He asked His disciples to stay alert nearby and pray with and for Him. Their response is no different than ours: they fell asleep. May we rise up from resting on our backs in sluggish spiritual posture, to falling hard on our knees as we bear one another's burdens in prayer.

Pilgrim

Extended Notes on "Racism"

Click Here for Notes on "God's Not White...So Stop Being Racist"

-Pastor Pilgrim

Have You Figured God Out Yet?

Why is it when we think we’ve mastered a skill or suppose we really know someone, there’s suddenly a curveball thrown our way that challenges all we thought we understood or had buttoned up so perfectly? This is my experience with walking with God. Whenever I’ve learned enough of His nature and character and leading to begin writing a book as an expert, He throws me three strikes and I’m back to falling on my face to worship His majesty and complexity.

Mark 6:45 “Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of Him to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd.”

Just when it seems like the disciples were starting to get used to Jesus’s ministry methods, here in Mark 6 Jesus sends the disciples ahead of Him by way of boat, while He stayed behind. This would have been the event that shattered Peter’s training videos on “What Would Jesus Do?” or Philip’s book called “Step-by-Step with the Radical Rabbi”. How can Jesus send the disciples ahead without Him? This was an unorthodox move, but they quickly discovered that this is exactly how God prefers to work.

Jesus never really laid down a perfect pattern to be followed or a system to be capitalized and turned into a twelve-step process. Think of the inconsistencies! Anytime they approached a blind man, all bets were off. Sometimes Jesus touched their eyes (Matthew 9), other times He spit in the mud and rubbed it in their eyes (Mark 8) and still other times He simply told the blind man he was healed (Mark 10). When out on boats, sometimes Jesus would tell them to launch out into deep water to catch fish (Luke 5), and other times just to throw the net on the other side of the boat (John 21). In the same way, when the children of Israel were crossing large bodies of water, sometimes the staff went in the water (Exodus 14) and other times the leaders did (Joshua 3).

The point is that you may have been walking with God for any number of years and seem to know the way God works, the way God provides, leads, speaks, and directs. Though God is immutable and never changes (Malachi 3:6), He does work in a variety of ways and whenever we get puffed up in our experiential knowledge, He has to humble us so we rely and trust in Him. We are called to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7) and often God will work in ways we have not been acquainted with so we will trust not in our wisdom and understanding but watch the gloriously unique ways He can direct our paths!

Have you figured God out yet? His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55), and whenever we assume we have become an expert, we like Job should humbly admit, “Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.”(Job 42:3). His ways keep us watching, wondering, waiting, and trusting.

-Pilgrim

Church Reclaimed

When we think of 'church', many of us see a church steeple with a cross, ornate architecture, pews, and perhaps even icons and stained glass. Your tradition might lead your mind to a priest wearing a cassock, a reverend in a well-tailored 3-piece suit, or to a pastor in an unassuming t-shirt and jeans.

But to get a more accurate picture of the church, take a picture of yourself with your phone! We are the church. But if that's true, why not skip the formal gathering each week at the one location and just grab your friend, head to Starbucks and enjoy a latte together, and mention God. That's church, isn't it?

Today many are trying to redefine the church as simply Christians hanging out, and these same men denounce any organized meetings, painting church as a caricature: large anonymous pep-talks where you sit and listen to someone tell you how to live while you stare at the back of someone's head, and then go to lunch and forget all that was said.

This generation of Christ-followers needs to reclaim the true definition of church. The church is a gathering of believers in Jesus who have been called out of the culture to organize locally around the giftings given by God's Holy Spirit, to submit to spiritual leaders who are in turn submitted to the head pastor, Jesus. We meet together as the church gathered to be equipped for every good work in our faith until we all reach unity and are mature in Christ. We are sent out as the church scattered to be a light and witness for Christ in our culture: in our homes, our workplaces, the beach, the mall, the sports field, the streets.

The church is both too ludicrous and wonderful for men to have dreamed up. Only God would create something that at the same time brings the Father glory and the Son joy, gives the Spirit a people to bless and gift, offers the world a message of hope, and gives to itself a source of both discipline and grace. The church is less an organization and more like an organism. It's alive! Organizations are created and maintained by people. But Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it". The church was created and established and maintained and built and disciplined and protected by Jesus. And He's coming back for His own...soon.

Pilgrim

All Means ALL

I'm back from vacation and am already hitting the ground running. We've had an amazing 'stay-cation', which is defined as a vacation where instead of leaving to some exotic locale to spend time, money, energy, and memories, you stay home and play with your kids, sleep in, take walks, visit the beach and local restaurants, build forts with your son, read and sleep and sleep and read! One of my best friends called it a "poor-cation", and I have to agree:)

On my desk when I arrived back was an unexpected 'encouragement card' purchased from a Christian bookstore that applauded our efforts with the student ministries but also had some personal words of encouragement. I was humbled to read the words this parent wrote Jenn and I for our ministry to their children. But there was a verse at the bottom, printed as a post-script on the card. I read the verse and fell out of my chair.

2 Corinthians 9:8 "God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work". What an amazing encouragement from God's Word! For me this couldn't have been more timely and I know God used this at just the right moment to give me fresh wind in my sails and a new vigor in my step.

No matter what situation or circumstances you are enduring, you can rest in the promise that God is able to make ALL grace abound to you. You may feel that you have exhausted His grace because of your sin, that you are beyond the reaches of His grace. He wants you to experience the grace that is unmerited and undeserved and unending today.

The verse goes on to say that "in all things at all times, having all that you need..." What things are you struggling through today? What time is it in your life? Is it a tough season, a spiritual drought of disillusionment or confusion? Is it a time of growth and refining and sharpening and sacrifice? Is it a time of absolute abandonment and faith because your resources and options have come to an end, and you have to solely call upon God for even the strength to take the next breath? God says that in all things at all times, you will have all that you need.

The verse ends saying that 'you will abound in every good work'. He doesn't just promise that you will get by with a 'C' in your ministry. He doesn't suggest that you will do the bare minimum and get by with the skin of your teeth. He says that you will ABOUND, there will be an ABUNDANCE of fruit in your ministry, that we will reap a harvest of 30, 60, or one hundredfold IF we do not give up. Not only that, but God promises that we will abound in EVERY good work. No matter what we put our hand to, the Lord is faithful to bless it with His grace as we submit to Him by faith. Are you trusting Him today?

Pilgrim

Dear Graduates:

You’re not home yet. You’ve been sadly misled to think that this world has something to offer you. It doesn’t. The reality is that you are a stranger here, a traveler who hasn’t yet arrived safely home. You are passing through, sojourning steadily until you reach that final destination, and your eyes lay hold of the place that has been prepared for you. It’s hard to hear, but it’s not here.

The next step in your journey is in many ways the biggest one yet. There are new freedoms to enjoy, new horizons to set after, new boundaries to establish, new relationships to embrace. With these next ten years come shattered wishes, broken promises, intellectual enlightenment, and surprising emptiness. You will likely question your faith, ignore your family, wander from Jesus, follow your thoughts, defend your reasoning, challenge your worldview, and wallow in meaningless. Trials will pound you, temptations will haunt you, fears will bind you, sin will blind you, Satan will find you, and your past will remind you. But God will also be there to guide you.

His way is narrow. His road is tough. God’s path is steep, and barely traveled.
Few find it. You’ve been shown the way to walk, now the choice is in your hands. Don’t lose heart. Don’t fear. Be strong and courageous, because God is with you. You’re about to become a statistic: you’re either an evangelical Christ-follower who will abandon their faith in college, or one who will change the current tide. You are either a thermometer or thermostat. You’ll either be changed, or make change. Mom and dad can’t defend you anymore. It’s in your hands now. Are you ready?

These are the last words of wisdom before you enter the world, and I hope you listen well:
Rise early.
Drive slower.
Eat lighter.
Work out.
Read often.
Walk fervently.
Pray earnestly.
Seek diligently.
Abide closely.
Lead gently.
Live humbly.
Speak gladly.
Smile hourly.
Laugh daily.
Listen deeply.
Choose joy.
Try harder.
Give generously.
Serve faithfully.
Go frequently.
Play hard.
Work hard.
Sleep hard!
Do something once a day that surprises you.
Take the commands of scripture literally and practice what you already believe.
Make time to call your grandparents and just chat.
Fast once a week and don’t tell anyone. Use that day to spend time praying and seeking God’s will for your life.
Find those people in your life with the most needs, and encourage them.
Pat people on the back when you greet them. Use a firm handshake.
Wait for God’s timing for your future spouse. They are out there somewhere…
Start each morning praying and worshiping. Let the first words out of your mouth be a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord. Let your last words of the day be the same.
If you doubt what you believe, study it even deeper. Don’t abandon it because another argument comes along. Press in and discover the heart of God.
Nothing is beneath you, so be willing to feed the pigs. Eventually you’ll enjoy the fattened calf.
Act confidently, even if you’re acting. You’ll be surprised how you feel and look.
Find your clothes at Goodwill, and buy a lot! Then when you are done with an outfit, bring it back to Goodwill. People need jobs and the clothes rock.
Reduce your carbon footprint. Do so by losing weight or amputating your feet.
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, because difficult days lie ahead.
Never forget those who have gone before you. They know what’s in store.
Listen. Then keep listening. Once you get it, then speak.
The most important thing in life is this: _______________.
How are you going to fill in that blank? It’s up to you.

Thanks for letting us have such a small part in your life. We love you and are praying for success and blessing in all you endeavor to do.
God bless you.

“Foul Ball”

You’ve probably never heard of Steve Bartman. But ask someone in Chicago, specifically a Cubs fan, and you’ll get more than an earful! It was game 6 of a Cubs playoff game against the Florida Marlins, with the Cubs leading 3-0 in the game and 3-2 games in the series. In the eighth inning, with only five outs away from the World Series, the Cubs players and fans were thinking the impossible was about to happen. Enter Bartman.

Bartman was sitting in the front row near the left-field corner wall, when a pop foul came toward his seat. The Cubs left-fielder leaped into the stands with his glove extended to make the catch and subsequent out, but Steve Bartman’s eyes were also on the ball. As he also went for the catch, the Cubs player was unable to make the play, and the ball fell into the stands. The Cubs tried to argue for interference but because it was in the stands it was considered out of the field of play.

The Marlins drew life out of the coincidence, and then came back to not only win the game, but also the next two games, eliminating the Cubs from the playoffs and heading on to defeat the Yankees in the World Series. Bartman’s life was threatened and he had to be escorted off the field with a detail of security guards. Fans now take pictures of Bartman’s outfield seat and reminisce about what could have been. Then months of media interest and fan fury drew too much attention to poor Steve, and he issued a formal apology for the “accident”.

I find in this story such a sad truth. Often in the church leaders will draw unnecessary fire for their ‘interference’ in the plays. Steve was simply going to make a catch, along with the dozen people around him, but because his hands dropped the ball, he received the criticism. Pastors and church leaders are often attacked by the sheep because we fail to make the play, or get in the way of what others believe is the right play, and seem to make decisions that are not in the best interest in the crowds.

Jesus made such an ‘error’. In John chapter 6, when His following was greatest, His notoriety most widespread, He drops a theological bomb on His followers. He explains that if you weren’t drawn by the Father, you’re wasting your time, and that some were there that did not believe. I can see the disciples smiling and trying to reassure the masses of people leaving that “perhaps what Jesus meant to say was…”, or “now don’t take Jesus too literally! He’s just being sarcastic!” At the moment of greatest impact, Jesus chased some people away. But His reasoning was that He “knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him” (John 6:64). On the field it appeared to be a foolish play, but Jesus had a purpose and intention.

Church leaders should not make the plays dictated to them by the stands. We are not elected officials who are nominated to represent the people’s wishes. We are men called by God to lead the church of God by the Word of God under the direction of the Spirit of God for the glory of God to be faithful to the gospel of God. We care far more about what our Coach thinks than what the critical columnist writes. So take heart if you are in the stands. What seems to be a bad play may actually be exactly where God is leading our team. And if you are Steve Bartman, be encouraged. Five days after that fateful game, a group of 13- and 14-year-old baseball players whom Bartman had coached in little league held a rally for him, where one kid called him "a great coach, a great person and a great role model". That probably meant more to Bartman than we’ll ever know.

-Pilgrim

Move Us

A sculptor was looking up at the beautiful Venus statue in the Louvre museum, with tears running down his face. Someone walked by and said, "Don't you like this statue?" and the man said, "Yes I do, but what is the point of all that beauty when it is marred by such impotence? She has no hands."

Sadly the church en masse today can identify. The church is beautiful: a rag-tag motley bunch of fools and beggars that have been summoned and pardoned by the King, given new life, hope, an inheritance, and a future marked with rich rewards and boundless promises. What once was wretched is now glorious and attractive. But what is the point of all that beauty when we are marred by impotence, with no hands to reach out to a dying world?

Casting Crowns became a Christian household name after writing their controversial and convicting song, "If We are the Body", challenging Christ-followers to use our hands and feet to reach out and affect change in this broken and fallen world. Most of us liked the beat to that song but ignored the message intended in it. It's hard enough reaching across the aisle to offer an obligatory handshake and half-smile, let alone across a generational, socio-economic, or racial divide in our city!

Art enthusiasts who frequent the Louvre all come across the statue of Venus, and a nagging question attacks the forefront of their mind: what happened to her hands? If the church will not be on mission the way Jesus was, the same thing will be asked about us. Israel was disqualified because they grew damningly comfortable in their salvation, no longer being heralds with good news to those around them. Is it any different with us? If God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.

Move us across the aisle, across the street, across the county, across the world, across the fear and discrimination and poverty and injustice and suffering and emptiness and sorrow. God, move Your people, please.
-Pilgrim

What Does Legacy Look Like?

If you were to be singled out for a new reality television show called, “Leaving a Legacy”, where video crews followed you around 24/7 to capture your life on video, so that your kids, or the next generation, could follow in your footsteps, would you hesitate? Would there be any area of your life, whether word, thought, or deed, that you would be embarrassed to have displayed for all the world to see?

The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ”. In context Paul was asking the ‘spiritually free’ Corinthians to imitate his lifestyle in reference to others in the body that were watching and had the potential of stumbling over something they saw in another Christian’s life. We all learned a game in school called, “Follow the Leader”. Someone would get chosen to be the ‘leader’, and would then do a series of hand gestures or facial expressions, or physical exercises, and everyone else in the class would mimic exactly what that person did, down to the detail. Paul says that in the exact same way, believers should have someone to look up to model their behavior and lifestyles after.

Recently I asked the middle school students to list one person that they would like to be like when they grow up. This would be the one person who they look up to more than anyone else, doing whatever they had to do to imitate their lifestyle and behavior. I was somewhat shocked by the results. Many of them put a father or mother, a sister or brother, a grandfather or uncle or other family member, which was completely encouraging! A few put the name of one of the youth leaders, which made me proud, even though my own name didn’t make the list:)! A majority of them put pop icons, including Lil Wayne, a rapper on the top of the charts with questionable lyrics, which was a little discouraging! But a few listed names of people in this fellowship that they weren’t even related to. That surprised me.

When Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2, “…the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others”, he was writing to the one who had already been entrusted by Paul (1:13-14). Paul was expecting the pattern of discipleship to continue with Timothy to others. Are you obeying the command of Jesus to make disciples? To whom are you saying, “follow me as I follow Christ”? As Pastor Carl has taught us, the legacy we are leaving behind is the life we are living today. There may never be a reality show with your life displayed on camera, but your life is certainly being displayed to your friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, children, and the young people in this church. Leave a legacy that will make an impact in eternity!

-Pilgrim

Just a Sample, Please

I only want a sample. That was really hard to say. Not a portion; that’s too much. I don’t want it any other way. I want just a taste, nothing more, nothing less. See, I know how to confess! I want to dabble, try a bite. Not too heavy, not too light. I want life to be a breeze. No decisions, no commitment. I’d like just a sample, please.

I’d like glory, I need grace. Let me see Your radiant face. Just a glance though, not a stare. Just remind me that You’re there. Don’t come knocking, don’t intrude. You should learn to not be rude! I will call You when I need You. Don’t remind me to beseech You. I don’t get down on my knees. I’d like just a sample, please.

Can You rock me fast asleep? Don’t You have promises to keep? I want comfort and delight. I prefer to walk by sight. That was tricky. This is hard. I don’t want to walk that far. There is no room for affliction. Entertainment’s my addiction. You are here to bring me ease. I’d like just a sample, please.

It’s not evil. You should try it. It’s really not that bad. Everybody seems to like it. Why are You getting mad? No matter what You call it, it goes by a different name. It’s appealing, it’s alluring, why don’t You look at it the same? It’s not sin, not at all. Why treat it like a disease? I won’t go out and buy it. I’d like just a sample, please.

Change the channel, try a hobby. Make a resume of sorts. I’m a spectator of sports. I walk the sidelines, dream a dream. I am never part of the team. I will never be a member. I leave my money in the bank. I won’t rise to higher rank. Mountains aren’t for me to climb. Practice is a waste of time. I won’t go back to that again. I try to spread myself real thin. Do it all, but just a little. Make sure people know I’m fickle. Stay alone. Stay at home. I don’t invite the neighbors in. Let them think that we are friends: just enough to give a tease. I’d like just a sample, please.

No commitment, no repentance. I’m not into heavy stuff. Something lighter, something nicer. I don’t like a path that’s rough. I think I’ve had enough. Only Sunday, maybe Wednesday, let’s not push this thing too far. Here a little, there a little. I don’t want to set a bar. Nice impressions on the outside. Only what a person sees. I don’t want to push the limits. I’d like just a sample please.

Rugged cross? I’m at a loss. I thought this was about me! How can You ask me to be free? Let me change it. Rearrange it. It won’t damage it at all. There’s no sin, so there’s no Fall. Now it’s pretty, now it’s clean. Not offensive, never mean. Take it up, and follow You? I’m not sure what You are asking. I’m not good at multi-tasking. I don’t want to walk that path. Dip my feet, not take a bath. This is not what I signed up for. Not the life that I’m designed for. I don’t want a God who bleeds. Cursed and dying on a tree. Just a genie for my needs. I’d like just a sample, please.

-Pilgrim Benham

How Our Leaders Can Be “Better Than Ezra”

One of the most overlooked men of scripture is a profound leader named Ezra. After Israel had been taken captive by Babylon for 70 years, God turned in mercy and allowed the people to return to their homeland. They were unfamiliar and curious about their surroundings, as well as the Word of God. After all, they had spent an entire generation in the Babylonian life: the most notoriously ‘worldly’ civilization in history! After the rebuilding of the temple, this incredible man of God named Ezra comes onto the scene.

Some things that we learn from Ezra are that above every other trait, he is known as a man who had the hand of God upon him (Ezra 7:6, 7:9, 7:28, 8:18, 8:22, 8:31). Israel desperately needed leaders at this point in their history; it was corrupt leaders that had led to their captivity in the first place! Nothing is more important in any ministry or church than the hand of God being upon the leaders. Leaders are called in scripture to be overseers, shepherds, servants, and ministers. They should be skilled and gifted in their talents but more important than abilities or aptitude is anointing. Leaders of any ministry should above all else be CALLED.

Ezra was also known as a well-versed teacher who was devoted to the study, observance, and teaching of the law (7:6,10). God has entrusted the leaders of this church with His Word, and we are exhorted to preach the Word, to correct, rebuke, and encourage (2 Timothy 4). This requires us to study the Bible to show ourselves approved unto God. We not only should be faithful to study, but like Ezra, be faithful to observe the commands of God. Leaders should be men above reproach who will face a stricter judgment for their position and teaching. Leaders must be COMMITTED to the Word of God.

Ezra was also brokenhearted for the things that break God’s heart. He mourned and grieved over the sins the people had committed, by marrying foreign women and corrupting their society. He confessed and interceded for the people, and had courage and support from his other leaders to do what was right, confronting sinners and standing for the truth without compromise (9:3; 10:1,10) . Church leaders are shepherds and overseers, and when the wolves of false teaching, worldly philosophy, and sensual indulgence begin to reek havoc on the flock, we should be men of prayer and purpose, and defend the sheep. God wants men, not boys, to stand up and be COURAGEOUS leaders of His church.

Finally, Ezra was humble and penitent before God. His prayer in chapter 9 reveals that He knew who God was, and wasn’t slow in admitting who Ezra wasn’t! Leaders are servants, not slave-drivers. We must be men who stand alongside the sheep, not in positions of authority above them. True men of God are CONTRITE in their attitudes and relationships with others.

Are you better than Ezra? You can be! Ezra had yet to see Messiah lifted up and bringing reconciliation to all men. We now have that complete message, and the world has yet to hear! God is raising up for Himself a generation of called, committed, courageous, and contrite men and women who care more about the glory of God than their own lives. And He has empowered us with His Spirit to be with us, to ensure the job is done right, in His strength and power. Is anyone following you? Then lead them like Ezra!

-Pilgrim

Teen Pregnancy--Why Wait?

This week I watched in disbelief as Bristol Palin, the daughter of the spunky former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin did an exclusive interview to talk about her teenage pregnancy and her new advocacy role for teen abstinence. The tragedy for me wasn't that a teen got pregnant, albeit the daughter of a popular conservative Christian politician. Teen pregnancy doesn't surprise me, a proverbial scarlet letter in a hypocritical system that mocks abstinence as being unrealistic, but then on the other end condemns teens who reap the consequences of their actions. "Let kids have sex!" is the mantra, but shame on them if they happen to get pregnant.

We did a survey of our middle/high school students at Calvary Chapel, and here are the surprising results:
Are you a virgin?
YES: 90%
NO: 10%
WHY are you waiting for marriage?
Among many GOOD responses, these concerned us:
“because it is not right"
"cuz, I am"
"cuz I am 11 and its gross!!!" (that was just funny!)
"because I want my first to be my best and all I know"
"because I’m 14 (a lot of kids put this)"
"my parents"
"because I have principles I want to keep”
(read more of this survey by joining the "Parents of Teenagers" Unifyer Group)

My frustration was that Bristol had supposedly learned her 'lesson', and the wisdom she proceeded to share should have been a 'been there, done that, got the t-shirt' nugget of wisdom that all teens should pay strong attention to. But her microphone lost volume and her platform reduced to a worldly stump when she uttered these words, "I think that kids just need to wait 10 more years. If I had just waited ten more years, things would be a lot better".
There was no remorse over sin, no sense that she had been breaking God's commands or violated her marriage covenant with whoever her future spouse might be. Instead of an exhortation to remain abstinent because it pleases the heart of God, yields obedience to His command, and preserves the purity and intergrity of the marriage bed, she actually said in as many words that "abstinence just doesn't work". Then she explained that pregnancy would be easier in 10 years.

Bristol, didn't your mom raise you to understand WHY abstinence not only works, but is biblical and possible if you walk in the Spirit of Christ who dwells within you as a born-again believer in Jesus? In the face of her pragmatic worldview, the only thing that didn't work for Bristol was birth control, or for that matter, self control.

-Pilgrim

Michael Phelps

We never like to see a fallen hero.
The romance of the unconquerable athlete who never winces at pain, overcoming impossible odds, along with cancer, blindness, a debilitating handicap, all while speaking ex cathedra and feeding small orphans in Kenya is intoxicating.
But then they come crashing back to Earth and reality and we are all shocked, dismayed, and relieved to remember their humanity weighs them down like it does the rest of us who can't run a 4.5 in the 40 yard dash.
Some are upset that Phelps got caught. Others are disappointed that such a role model would behave so irresponsibly. Either way, the scales have fallen off our eyes.

The only redeeming point in this tragedy is that we can relate. We read of the failures of the Old Testament saints, the bumbling disciples, and the folly of our forefathers in church history, and we are comforted with a glimpse of familiarity. These aren't cliched metaphorical characters, they are you, and they are me. Show me an infallible man, and I'll start the stopwatch. It's only a matter of time! The Bible tells us that if we think we are standing firm...watch out!

Welcome to Earth, Michael. It's a rough landing, but at least you hit the water.

Hope

“There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” Proverbs 23:18

If there was ever a time in my short and reflective thirty years of life when people needed to hear, understand, and cling to hope, it is now. We are living in dark days of uncertainty and fear, a time of economic instability and worldwide emptiness and despair. Job security is a distant memory, excessive spending a lost commodity, and dire projections a stark reality. It seems like the hidden question the whole culture is secretly asking is, “What is going to happen next?”

I believe we as Christ followers have an unequivocal opportunity this year. We have the hope that presidents and pundits dream of offering. We alone stand as a light in the darkness of uncertainty and fear, and Jesus said we should not hide our lamps under a basket. Biblical hope is not wishful thinking, but a resolute certainty in our God and His Word that never changes. True hope doesn’t get bogged down in the circumstantial swing of trials, problems, and inconveniences. True hope keeps a watchful eye on the horizon knowing at any moment the winds can change. True hope is genuine and can’t be conjured up with false pretenses. It comes from the God of hope. Paul said in Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

God doesn’t just want us to hold onto hope as if tucked away somewhere in our spirit there is a small candle, fragile in the wind, almost able to be snuffed out by the smallest gust. God wants us to OVERFLOW with hope, by the power of His Spirit!

Peter tells us that we should always be ready to give an answer to unbelievers, explaining why we have hope. I recently spoke to a pastor in Florida who said this is a tough time to do ministry because people are hurting financially and they can’t support churches like they did in the past. I said in rebuttal, “This is a wonderful open door for effective ministry!” In people’s hurts and financial struggle, they remove their hope from riches and place it back in the Living God!

If you place your hope in politicians, corporations, relationships, or 401Ks, you will soon be let down. But if you place your hope in God, Isaiah 49:23 says, “those who hope in me will not be disappointed”.

No matter what the headline news is reporting, we as Christ followers can, with confidence, overflow with hope so a hopeless and haunted culture can be drawn into right relationship with their Heavenly Father.

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you… Ephesians 1:18

-Pilgrim

Inauguration

This week we watched, along with probably over 1 billion people, the changing of the guard of chief executive of our country. With fervor and excitement, almost drunken stupor, the crowds of millions stood in the cold and chanted and cheered, awaiting the arrival of their newly pronounced leader. And then he appeared, and his demeanor took me off guard. Obama stood resolute, jaw-clenched, with almost a look of ominous sobriety, walking with what seemed weighted steps, as the reality of his surely impossible duties loomed ahead. No smiles or softness; he had his face set, and had counted the costs, as he stepped onto the platform.
I can't help but think of Jesus, when this scene unfolded. The crowds gathered, singing "Hosanna, save now!" and waiving their palm branches, only to turn in fickle disregard when their king wasn't Who they elected Him to be. Jesus's face must have revealed a sense of weight that maybe only the disciples saw, that may have surprised them when He entered Jerusalem. And was Jesus's task not infinitely greater? The weight of our sins bearing down, eventually taking the form of a Roman cross upon His back, eventually brought even our Lord to His knees. The sacrifice He gave was given with joy, because beyond the cross Jesus saw glory, and your face and mine. Jesus stepped onto the platform and His speech wasn't smooth, but humble, forgiving, desperate, compassionate, and somber.
May our hopes be placed not in human hands or government systems, but in the Living God, who did not spare His own Son.
Let Him rule and reign in your heart today!