Love and Truth

Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports and affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. - Tim Keller

Jesus told his disciples - people whom he loved - that the truth which God entrusted to them in His Son would set them free (John 14).  In order to be able to love, we must be willing to move toward truth in our relationships.  This requires us, ultimately, to step back from a consumerist approach to relationships (I'm in this marriage/dating relationship/friendship/etc. to get what I want and to get out when I'm satisfied) and instead come forward with a way of relating to people that Dallas Willard described as "agape love."  Willard wrote that Jesus perfectly modeled this kind of love, which is characterized by seeking the flourishing of the object (person) upon which it is directed.

I still have to slow down and think about Willard's definition when it crosses my mind.  Do I live like I want other people to flourish?  How about my wife?  My son?  Our small group?  Or am I content to live with the kind of "sentimentality" Tim Keller describes?  I think Keller is absolutely correct in his statement that sentimental love keeps good stuff flowing - support and affirmation - but does not (and actually cannot) seek the flourishing of the object upon which it is directed.  Flourishing happens when sin is confronted and brokenness is repaired - which are tasks which Jesus came precisely to do.  

A pastor friend of mine and I were talking recently, and we came to the conclusion that embracing the gospel of Jesus Christ - that people are broken and incapable of living fully in relationship with God without Jesus' saving grace - is the only thing that truly rights the wrongs in our hearts, and therefore has the power to right the wrongs of our world.  The gospel is the beating heart behind any  lasting change that truly matters.  The gospel is love with truth, and it is the message that embraces the flaws of anyone who stumbles toward Jesus and invites them into wholeness.

Shalom,

Travis

TED link from Sunday and a tribute to Dallas Willard

Some of you may be familiar with the life and ministry of Dr. Dallas Willard.  He passed away this week at the age of 77, and he leaves behind a legacy of thoughtful Christian scholarship and engagement with our culture unlike anyone else with whom I'm familiar.  John Ortberg, an author and pastor in California, befriended Willard over many years, and he wrote a moving tribute to Willard for Christianitytoday.com, which you'll find below.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2013/may-web-only/man-from-another-time-zone.html

Ortberg gives honor to Willard's life and legacy more beautifully that I ever could.  My personal experiences of Willard's work focuses primarily on a book he wrote in 2011 called Knowing Christ Today.  If you've been around FPC for a while, you'll probably remember the title because I mention in often.  Actually, I've probably used it more than any other resource (except the Bible :) ) in my sermons.   

Knowing Christ Today had a tremendous impact on my life because it taught me about the reliability of what Willard calls "spiritual knowledge."  In an interview with Ken Myers, Willard talked about how spiritual knowledge - understanding what is good and true based on the spiritual revelation of Jesus Christ - has been degraded in public conversation.  Genuine spiritual knowledge has been reduced to the categories of sincere belief, conviction, or disciplined feelings impacted by a social group.  But Willard pushed back against that notion - quite brilliantly and accessibly - in Knowing Christ Today.  It's a challenging work to tackle, but that was Willard's M.O.  Reading Dallas Willard is always a costly exercise, but one which always produced an abundance of gifts and insights for those willing to try.

After I learned of his death, I felt a great sense of loss but also a sense of responsibility.  Dallas Willard's work impacted my life, and I hope that his thoughtful Christian scholarship will be available to generations of Christians (and those unsure of their faith) for years to come.

 Solo Dei gloria,

Travis

PS -

For those of you who were in worship last Sunday, you might recall a clip from a TED talk which was shared during my sermon.  Here's the link to the talk:

http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html

We'll continue to show parts of this talk throughout the sermon series, and we'll also have it available in Fellowship Hall after each worship service.

Guest Blogger: Cindi Brower

Today's blog post is from Cindi Brower, director of senior adults and women's ministries at FPC.  She's also a returning team member for our mission trip to Uganda later this summer.  Her post is part of an email-chain discussion which the team is sharing in preparation for their mission to the Amani Baby Cottage in June.

Colorado never ceases to amaze me how quickly we can shift from winter directly into summer. What happened to spring?  I guess I missed that day! :). Living in Colorado teaches us...to never separate your clothes into seasons (no packing away your winter sweater because as soon as you do you will need them!); be willing to share this beautiful state with the many out-of-towners who want to bask in its beauty; and don't get too settled into a routine. Flexibility is a must to live here.  All things that I was reminded of this past week as I worked through our [mission team] devotional. Flexibility is at the top of the list for a successful mission trip, and we must be willing to include others in our mission journey in order to receive the fullest blessing possible while letting others be blessed as well. 

When I first read [one of the devotions] regarding taking others along, I was a little reluctant to do the whole "support" letter thing.  But, I remembered my kids doing the same and how important it was for them to build a strong prayer support for their journey. Was I above that?  Certainly not!  So I swallowed my pride and put together a letter (emphasizing prayer support more than financial) sending it to family members and out-of-state friends. The letter even found its way (thanks to a dear friend) into the hands of the mission team at my former church who is interested in financial support as well as the much desired prayer support. I now feel confident that I am not going on this trip with 11 others but many more as they lift me (and you!) in prayer and anticipate hearing about the amazing work as we become the hands and feet of Jesus. 

In great anticipation!

Cindi B

 

The Burden of Leadership

We have a problem at FPC.  It's a great problem to have, but a problem nonetheless.  What can we do to make room for more people in worship, more room for ministry, and how can we better use the terrific facility we already enjoy?  A group of people began to formulate answers to these questions several years ago, creating a long-range strategy for our facility and our mission together. 

The umbrella under which our decisions rest in any setting comes from our mission statement: to follow Christ and share his Word.  Even though many different opinions exist about whether expanding our facilities is a good idea at this time, the litmus test we all need to appreciate is provided by our mission statement.  Can we faithfully and responsibly expand our facility while being aligned with our mission statement?  This is the kind of scenario our leaders have faced for several years. 

Expanding our facility has been a long-term conversation.  I came into this conversation almost 2 years ago, and since that time, I've been astonished at the level of intentional dialogue, prayer, and focus given to this important challenge we face together.  Churches falter when decisions about facilities are ignored, rushed into, or delayed for so long that the problem (more people coming to our church) disappears.  Thankfully, a great team of people spent a long time working on this very issue way before I arrived in leadership here.  And it has been my pleasure to watch our elders, building team, stewardship & finance team, and capital campaign team work together to pursue our mission through the lens of our facility.

Our session came to an important decision last Thursday night: we are moving forward with our building plan.  Under the grace of God, we plan to follow the Spirit's leading and make room for more people, more mission, and more ministry.  We still have a lot of work to do, so I would covet your prayers for our elders and teams as they make decisions about: financing, design, timing, and other important details.  In the near term, you'll see some important changes around our facility as we prepare to expand and as we do our best to serve the needs of both the elderly and the youngest among us.  Come to the forums we'll be having in May (go to firstpresgj.org and click on "Calendar") to find out more.

Also, please be praying for our staff, pastors, and session members as we travel to the front range this weekend to meet with 7 other churches in the Fellowship of Presbyterians.  It should be a great time of connecting, worship, and growing together in Christ for the sake of his mission.

Solo Dei gloria,

Travis

New Sermon Series starting May 5

One of the phrases I used to introduce myself to the staff and session nearly two years ago was: "I'm not here to maintain the status quo."  In hindsight, those words could have brought me a bit of trouble in another setting.  At FPC, we speak regularly about raising the bar, reaching those who have not yet heard the gospel in our community, and doing risky things like expanding our facilities - and I'm grateful to be a part of many of those decisions.  As a church, we're not content with the status quo.

I also appreciate that our preaching is not about maintaining the status quo.  You'll always heard God's Word preached here, but the form of our messages will change and hopefully become more and more accessible to those who aren't quite sure what to make of Jesus - while being attentive to those who already love Jesus and want to grow in their love for him.

Eugene Peterson says that it takes about 100 sermons to "find your voice."  I agree.  I'm not anywhere close to 100 sermons just yet, but I do feel a movement toward finding my voice and submitting that voice to God's service.  Starting in May, I'll get to do something I've never done before: start and end a sermon series.  Actually, our worship team has given me a lot of freedom to design this series from the ground up, and I'll be preaching the majority of the sermons throughout May and June.  It might be a good time to schedule your vacation. :)  I'm really excited to see what God is going to do in our worship during this series and truly humbled by the task ahead.

What's it about?  Good of you to ask. :)  If you follow this blog regularly, you've already seen one component of the series.  All of the sermons will be focused on Scripture and it's witness about how the gospel makes us whole.  In addition to Scripture, we'll hear pieces of Brene Brown's wonderful 2010 TED talk on vulnerability (http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html) in a few of the sermons.  I really do think Dr. Brown has a lot of insight to offer our congregation on what it means to be a community of people who are devoted to and pursuing transparency and vulnerability for the sake of Christ.  By the way - the apple image above is a teaser for the logo for the series.  Stay tuned. 

By no means do I think I'm the first preacher to integrate a TED Talk into a sermon.  And who knows - maybe this will be a risk that doesn't pan out very well.  I'm happy to take a risk with our church and see what the Lord does as we study His Word together.  Take a moment and watch Dr. Brown's talk and join me in praying for our worship this summer and always.

Solo Dei gloria,

Travis
 

What are you reading?

A few good books I'd suggest from my shelves:

Change or Die, by Alan Deutschman
Although the title is a bit harsh-sounding, the book is absolutely fascinating.  Deutschman, who writes for Fast Company and Wired magazines, outlines the key elements for creating lasting change in individuals and institutions.  He presents case studies involving heart patients, auto workers, and criminals.  It's in my top-5 books for 2013.

Deep and Wide, by Andy Stanley
Also included in my top-5 books for the year so far is Stanley's latest book, which focuses on creating church cultures which welcome and include the unchurched.  Stanley's church in Atlanta certainly knows a thing or two about reaching people for Christ, and his practical teaching has been both challenging and refreshing to read.  I'm reading Deep and Wide with a group of folks from FPC who want to see us grow in our outreach to the unchurched.

Sanctorum Communio, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Bonhoeffer is one of my heroes - he stood up against the Nazi regime in Germany and lost his life in a concentration camp days before VE-Day.  His theology covers a huge variety of topics, and Sanctorum Communio ("the community of the saints") is his doctoral thesis on the nature of the church.  I've been told that the key to understanding Bonhoeffer's later works is reading this early work.  So far, it's been a lot of theological heavy lifting, but well worth it.

Solo Dei gloria,

Travis

Guest Blogger: Karen Davis

(This week's post comes from Karen Davis, one of our youth team leaders.  Karen is a regular blogger at cantsparethechange.com)

I hate waste and the older I get the more it drives me crazy.  Waste of any kind frustrates me, but nothing irks me more than wasting time. 

It’s been a lifelong battle and yet when I say this people are surprised.  I am one of the most productive time wasters you could meet.  Yes, I accomplish a lot but the trouble is I only have two speeds—overdrive or stalled.  There’s no middle ground and both exhaust me.  On one end of the spectrum it takes a lot more momentum to get going and on the other there’s no time to catch your breath. 

It’s a vicious cycle to say the least and one I’ve never had a great deal of success breaking free from.  Project after project I promise to give myself more time to clear the gate and make it to the finish line only to find I’m behind.  It’s de-moralizing, but recently I’ve made some unexpected progress in my lifelong pursuit of “more time.”    

In February I traveled to San Diego with a group of folks from church to attend Donald Miller’s Storyline Conference.  I didn’t expect the conference would talk about time management so I was surprised when the subject came up.  It made sense though.  Finding your subplot in God’s story and pursuing it takes time.  In fact, it requires time more than money.   Most people think of it the other way around but Miller de-bunks that myth.  

He talked about his own struggles and I could relate to everything he said.  It felt like he was living my life so I was dying to know what helped him?  Was it a new planning system, a re-ordering of priorities or just sheer willpower?  The answer was a little bit of all of those things but from a more strategic perspective. This involved understanding why you procrastinate in the first place.    A concept so simple it never occurred to me. 

To help with that discovery Miller recommended a book called, “The Now Habit,” by Neil Fiore.  The name of the book resonated with me so deeply I downloaded it on my iPad that night.  I couldn’t put it down because for the first time I was engaged in a conversation about why I waste time rather than why that’s bad. 

It was liberating.  Where I blamed what I assumed was some deep-seeded laziness or lack of organization on my part I came to see that’s not the case.  It’s neither of those.  I’m just normal. Procrastinating isn’t about being a slug it’s about pain relief.  People procrastinate because it relieves the stress associated with getting done what needs doing.  Which begs the question why is the “To Do” list so stressful? 

For everyone the answer is different but for me it’s about boredom.  On a daily basis I have a long list of things that need to be done that I consider very tedious and boring. Since that work is unpleasant, I put it off as long as possible.  They aren’t difficult tasks but they offer little gratification making it hard to get motivated.  So, I wait until the last possible minute and then I grit it out which only makes the problem worse.

What’s the remedy?  Turn things around.  Start with the work that excites me (ministry) for thirty minutes a day no matter what and use that as the momentum to tackle the things that don’t.  A simple idea but one I’ve always felt too guilty to embrace.  My Puritan work ethic has led me to believe that I don’t get to make that choice.  I always have to start with what’s the most pressing even if it’s something I hate. 

Changing my tact took a leap of faith but since giving it a try I’ve become exponentially more productive. I’m happier too because I know I’ve accomplished something I think may benefit God’s Kingdom.  My friends and family might not notice a difference but only because I’ve had them fooled.  But, God knows and my spirit knows there’s less waste and that feels good. 

So, what’s at the root of your battle with procrastination?  Do you know?  If God’s work here on earth could benefit from you finding out would you?  I hope so.