For you River Group leaders and members–don’t worry. For now your pages will stay here and be updated as needed. They may be moved to the new site after it is developed a bit more, but for right now your stuff isn’t going anywhere and will still be accessible.

See you on LeadTheChurch.com and remember….

Live The Mission,
Greg

Live The Mission,
Greg

“If you are really God, then why don’t you care? Aren’t you listening? Why aren’t you doing anything? You know my dad doesn’t deserve this–Do SOMEthing!”

 I screamed until I became hoarse and my vocal chords literally hurt.

The man who loved and was loved by his wife and two sons. The man who drove 100 miles to the mines and back every day so he could provide for his family. The man to whom children flocked because they sensed his gentle spirit and good-natured humor. The man who served his church as a trustee for longer than I could remember. The man who was more of a father to my wife than hers had ever been. The man who my sister-in-law described as having ”Jesus eyes.”

This man lay dying of cancer and was not getting better. I was mad and becoming more angry by the day. And my anger was aimed squarely at God. My dad didn’t deserve this. God knew it and could do something about it, but he wasn’t. Or more like he wouldn’t.

That thought fueled my rage. Rage at my helplessness. Rage at a church that wanted me to gloss over my true feelings with a happy face even if I had to lie to do it. Rage at an all-powerful God who just sat on his hands and did nothing. Just rage.

It all boiled over that day while driving home. I’d had enough and I challenged God with every fiber of my being. Never had I challenged anyone like that before and never have I since.

But finally, finally, God did something. He worked a miracle. He began a healing. Only it wasn’t in my dad–it was in me. The point where I got real with God was the moment he was able to reach into my heart and start repairing the hole that had been ripped wide open.

I wasn’t fooling him anyway–he’s God and he knew I was mad at him. He was just lovingly waiting for me to drop the Christian act so he could help me.

Once I got honest with him, the rage went away and the hurt was covered by peace. The hurt was, and is, still there but it was tamed by a comfort I never knew existed.

Even after getting up in his face he made sure I knew he still loved me just as much as he did before. I couldn’t explain it but everything was going to be alright even though what I feared the most was about to happen. 

Yes my dad died. He died a Christian. No anger, no self-pity, and no doubt in the arms of Christ–the same arms that carried me through it all. He taught me what it meant to be a Christian in death as much as in life. And God taught what love could do in both.

Are you mad at God? Are you keeping a brave Christian face on the outside but shaking your fist at him on the inside? Are you struggling understand why he’s not doing what you need him to do? 

You’re not fooling him, you know. Get real with him and tell him about it. I promise you he can handle it. He’s got big shoulders, thick skin, and a listening ear. And he’ll love you through it all.

Live The Mission,
Greg

Not many of us got to where we are today in the blink of an eye.

Tiger Woods didn’t win the Master’s the first time he picked up a club. Warren Buffett didn’t make billions on his first stock trade. And Albert Einstein didn’t develop the theory of relativity on his first day of school. Yet they all persisted in what they were doing and rose to the top of their fields.

By the same token, someone under a crushing mountain of debt probably didn’t have it fall on them after a single purchase. A prisoner doing hard time likely didn’t get there on a first offense. And the chain smoker didn’t contract lung cancer after smoking their first cigarette. They too persisted in what they were doing and wound up with predictable results.

In First and Second Corinthians, Paul instructs us to examine our lives. Examing the grandiose, once-in-a-lifetime events isn’t that difficult. Stepping back to examine the patterns of our lives takes effort, a sense of responsibility, and lots of courage. And this is where our greatest potential exists–not at one fork in the road but along our entire journey.

Where are the things you repeatedly do leading you? Which ones will make you look like Tiger and which ones will crush you? More to the point, which ones lead to fulfillment of your mission and which ones lead you to chase stuff that doesn’t matter?

Maybe it’s time to just do something different.

It’s never too late. Just later than it was. –Seth Godin

Live The Mission,
Greg

Reblogged from SonBurn:

“Are you cold?”
“No, I’m Zachary.”

“Are you 3?”
“No, I’m Zachary.”

We’ve gotten plenty of amusement over the past few months as our 3 year old son learns the nuances of the English language. He always thinks you’re getting his name wrong when you ask “Are you…” and the next word isn’t “Zachary.” In fact, substitute any word after Are you and he’ll most likely answer the exact same way every time.  

But one thing is for sure–Zach knows eactly who he is and he isn’t shy about correcting you if he thinks you don’t. I think I’d do well to learn a lesson from him when Satan tries to confuse my human condition with my identity in Christ.

“You are worthless.”
“I’m a child of God–bought at a very steep price.” (I Cor. 6:20)

“You are a life-long loser.”
“I’m a child of God–I choose to lose it all. (Matthew 10:39)

“You are not able.”
I’m a child of God–able to move mountains (Matthew 21:21)

“You are a failure.”
“I’m a child of God–anything is possible.” (Phillipians 4:13)

“You are scared.”
I’m a child of God–fear has no power over me.” (I John 4:18)

“You are not loved.”
“I’m a child of God–He loves me as His own. (John 17:23)

Know who you are. And when Satan assaults your identity take Zach’s lead and set him straight. Better yet, do more than correct him–let your actions prove him wrong.

Live The Mission,
Greg

Live The Mision,
Greg

Horace Hunley invented the combat submarine. He died when it sank—the third time.

Henry Smolinski invented the flying car based on the Ford Pinto. He died when one of the wings fell off in mid-flight. 

Franz Reichelt invented the parachute suit. He died while testing his suit by jumping off the Eiffel Tower. He told authorities he would test the suit using a dummy. 

According to legend, Wan Hu was an official in the Ming Dynasty and invented space travel(?). He sat in a chair with 47 rockets attached to it in an attempt to reach outer space. After the smoke cleared neither Wan Hu nor the chair were ever seen again. 

These people were all done in by inventions of their own making. I wonder if they were able to speak to us today, would they blame their untimely demise on the casual observer who could have probably told them what would happen? 

Of course not, that would be silly. 

Just as silly as blaming God for problems of our own invention. 

God didn’t cause your problems (for that matter maybe you didn’t either). But he does want to help. Seek him out and listen to what he has to say. 

Live TheMission,
Greg

With tomorrow being his birthday, I’d like to share with you an excerpt from one of his speeches: 

“We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at flood — it ebbs. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, ‘Too late.’”

Two phrases in King’s speech grab my attention –”fierce urgency of now,” and “too late.” Dr. King was well aware of the implications of both. Fully prepared to meet the fierceness of his time’s need and equally determined to do it before it was too late, I believe he knew God had placed him where he was with the gifts he had for a particular reason.

As Christians, we can’t afford to be any less certain of the world in which we live. We are where we are with the abilities we have for one reason–this is where God wants us. And the reason isn’t so we can live life for ourselves. It’s so we can meet the fierce urgencies that swirl around us now–in our time and in our place.

But be warned:  ”Now” doesn’t last forever. If we fail to use what God has given us to meet the need we see, then with one hand we will scrawl the pathetic words “Too Late” across our own community while in the other hand we will hold our unused potential.

What fierce-urgency-of-now need is waiting to be met by your God-given potential?

Live The Mission,
Greg

Remember to pray for the kids and families these boxes are sent to. May we be a blessing to them this Christmas season and may they come to know the ulitmate gift God gave to us all.

Live The Mission,
Greg