Rob Bell in Seattle
A couple of weeks ago, pastor Rob Bell from the Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, MI was in Seattle for the Seeds of Compassion event. I heard him speak on a panel that consisted of the Dalai Lama as well as Desmond Tutu, amongst others. It was a great day in Seattle (although as typical it was raining) as some of the worlds spiritual movers and shakers converged on the city.
After the “Seeds” event was done, my friend Jim Henderson hosted an event through his organization called Off-The-Map (PodCast), where Rob Bell, Doug Paggit, and Todd Hunter shared the bulk of the time answering questions about progressive culture and the church. Of special interest to me was Rob’s comments that: “Eucharist is a way of life… you break yourself open and pour yourself out. This means that you will suffer and on the otherside there is resurrection and new life. If we were to chart the most significant points of your journey it would center around times where you have cried out.” Lately my world feels like it is spinning out of control. There have been times where I have thought to myself, “Self, who can you talk to? Where can you turn?” And it has been there that Jesus has reminded me that He is there. That He is ultimately in control. That I have no need to fear the future with its trying to finish a DMin, trying to buy a house in New Haven, trying to sell a house in the worst market in years, trying to say goodbye to people I love deeply, etc. All God asks of me is to chill in Him. This has certainly been a season of crying out and learning that God cares deeply about me, He cares deeply about you!
mwg
China
I am writing today from downtown Beijing. I have been here now for a couple of days on a study tour to wrap up my last class towards my doctorate. Yesterday we hit up the Great Wall which was really fascinating.
Beijing is an absolutely amazing city. They are doing wonders to get ready for the upcoming olympics. Speaking of, I am about as tired as an olympic athlete so I am going to hit the sack. I will do my best to write more later.
Blessings on your day from Beijing!
mwg
Good Friday, Better Sunday
What is “good” about Good Friday? Granted it is the commemorative day that we celebrate Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, but if you were there that day, would you have called it good?
I have just revisited the account of Jesus dying on the cross. If I had been there that day I am not sure that I would have thought good of that day. While I am sure that there would have been confusion in my head as to why this was happening, I am confident that my emotions would have gotten the best of me as I would have been devastated to see my best friend being crucified. This would not have been a good day. As a matter-a-fact, I would imagine that this would not have been a good weekend. Sabbath would simply have not been the same without Jesus there. The singing, the worship, the meal, the fellowship: all of it would have felt empty.
Then waking up Sunday morning the first thought on my mind is that Jesus is dead. That empty feeling would have filled my stomach once more. My appetite would be gone as I could hardly eat breakfast. All I can think about is that Jesus is dead. Where there used to be light, now there is darkness. Where there used to be life, now I feel like death.
I make my way out to his tomb to prepare his body further. Upon arrival I find that He is not there and I am told by an angel that He is risen. Suddenly I am mixed with an emotion of both excitement and confusion. ”Where could He be?!” I turn to leave and I ask the gardner who is working on his crops if he has seen Jesus? After some brief dialogue this gardner calls me by name and I realize that it is Jesus! This day has become GREAT SUNDAY!
If you have seen Mel Gibson’s, The Passion you will remember the terrible scenes of Jesus being beaten, spit upon, and crucified. Many were horrified over how gruesome Jesus’ plot was portrayed, some even left unable to watch any more. What bothered me the most was how little emphasis was given to the resurrection. Why? Because while Jesus’ sacrifice on Friday is something that I am thankful for every day, it is the resurrection that assures me that Jesus is alive and well today. He has defeated death and the grave. He is victorious over all of the sins on this planet. He lives so that I too my have life and life more abundant. This to me is GREAT NEWS!
I know that Ellen White makes the statement that, “It would be well to spend a thoughtful hour each day reviewing the life of Christ from the manger to Calvary. We should take it point by point and let the imagination vividly grasp each scene, especially the closing ones of His earthly life.” While I see this as I too think that it would be well for us to spend one of the other 24 hours in the day praising God that He is alive and well today!
ENCOUNTERS Weekend - Da Aftermath
It is Sunday night and I am back home in Seattle. I had a great day with my wife today and have been reflecting on this past weekend at Southern.
I must say that this was an interesting weekend. I have received an overwhelming amount of emails and a few calls from various people reflecting on their experience with the ENCOUNTERS Weekend. Not to fail to mention the numerous conversations that I had with people after each message. That being said I want to clarify a few things:
1) There is a difference between METHODOLOGY and THEOLOGY - I believe that Jesus was THEOLOGICALLY “CONSERVATIVE” and METHODOLOGICALLY “LIBERAL”. What I mean by this is that Jesus loved the Bible and was well versed in it (after all He is the WORD). He used it regularly to make His points. Conversely His methodology was out-of-the-box! A Rabbi would never even look at a woman in public, much less talk to her, ALONE! (John 4) And she was a Samaritan! Jesus was not bothered by cultural or traditional values, rather He was all about KINGDOM VALUES. Scholars even tell us that He used the street language of His day. Koine’, or New Testament Greek, was the common language of the hellenistic world.
What is the point of this? Simply to say that while my approach may be “liberal” my theology is “conservative” (like I believe Jesus was). I know not everyone in the audience was comfortable with the methodology of how things were done this past weekend, and that is okay; so long as the bigger picture received was Jesus! One of the worst things that I can hear from someone after a sermon is “you’re funny.” If that is all you got and didn’t hear the message then I failed as a preacher of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If, however, God was able to use the gift of laughter (and ADHD) to keep your attention and communicate His goodness to you, then GOD BE PRAISED!
2) Many of the people that I have heard from are troubled by sin in their lives. Porn, sex, drugs, masturbation, etc. I praise God for the opportunity to address such things from the pulpit because all too often preachers are not scratching where people are itching. I believe that we have a huge problem in our church with the average age being 58. The issues that Young Adults are facing are not being addressed. Many are turning their backs on the church and in some cases God. We must wake up and smell the Postum.
3) In closing I just want to share with you something that I find so powerful out of scripture. In John 21 after Jesus forgave and empowered one of His closest peeps, Peter finds out how he is going to die and then asks Jesus, “Well what about him?” referring to John (:21). Jesus reply’s, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” (:22) This is such a huge point that Jesus makes. In the bigger picture, Jesus tells the restored disciple, don’t put your eyes on anyone else, you stay focused on Me! This my friends is so key.
Blessings to you Southern! I am praying that revival continue to take place in the lives of the students there, and in my life as well.
Courage,
mwg
SAU Encounters Weekend - Spirit vs. Flesh
Today marks day two of the Encounters Weekend here at Southern Adventist U. It has been such a blessing being able to connect with some of the students on this campus and listen to the vision that God has placed on their hearts.
Tonight the message is called “Who’s Ya Daddy?” based on Romans 8. This chapter really spells out clearly the entire battle between the flesh and the spirit. Ultimately I believe that God wants us to be filled with the Spirit and is so doing have our flesh crucified (Galatians 2:20), but how many of us as followers of Jesus still struggle with the flesh? There is great news found in this powerful chapter (Romans 8).
If you are unable to make it in person tonight you can check the vespers service out live starting at 8pm ECT. Just CLICK HERE.
Blessings and Happy Preparation Day!
mwg
Southern Adventist University - ENCOUNTERS WEEKEND
This morning I rolled over to Southern U’s campus bright and early. At 11am their weekly Convocation Service began. This week is a bit different because this is their Encounters Weekend. After some announcements, scripture reading, congregational sung hymn (Praise to the Lord which happens to be a personal favorite), and an intro by Chaplain and friend Brennon Kirstein, I took the platform to throw down some Good News.
I must confess that I get really nervous standing up infront of a group for the first time to preach, more accurately it is just about everytime. The irony is that preaching is my absolute #1 passion, and yet it terrifies the daylights out of me. I truly thank God for the gift of nerves because it helps me to recognize my utter and total dependancy upon Him.
So what does this have to do with you? The next time that you are scared out of your mind to do something for Jesus, just do it. Follow His calling on your life. While it may be intimidating you will know that anything God that came out of it was a direct blessing from God. While you may think that you’ve blown it, the very thing that you did or said may have been the very thing that someone needed to hear or receive that day. And when it happens we can be sure to give God all of the praise, the honor and glory!
mwg…
ps check out the blog post below on discipleship… I would be interested on more input.
“Go, therefore, and make ________________”
What is a disciple? If you were to define what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ what would you say? Further, would you say that you have been discipled? Jesus tells us to go and make disciples. Has anyone made you a follower of Jesus?
I have been a follower of Jesus just shy of 12 years now. I did not come into faith in him through my parents or an evangelistic series. While I believe that Jesus was/is the initiator, I came to faith after going through some intense events in my life. I was an atheist, but became an agnostic and started calling out to God in prayer. Some time passed and I met a pastor who, after hearing my journey, handed me a Bible. No one invited me to church, I looked up the closest one in the phone book, called and went. Some months later after attending the church and reading the Bible, I felt convicted to get baptized so I called the pastor and told him that I wanted to be baptized. My point with all of this is simply that it is hard for me to say that a disciple-er came along and discipled me to be a follower of Jesus. Granted I had people along the way that gave me encouragement, prayed for me, and clarified my questions, but I wonder what Jesus had in mind when he called us to go and make disciples.
I would like to hear from you. What do you think a disciple-maker looks like? Have you had a disciple-er disciple you? If so, what did that experience look like?
Invitation to IGNITION!
I want to invite you to join the discussion on a blog specifically geared to Young Adults on the journey to follow Jesus. I have personally been blessed by the discussions and I believe that you will be as well. You can check it out by going to ignitionblog.wordpress.com. Also find us on FACEBOOK by CLICKING HERE.
IGNITION started as an event this past February in Dallas, TX. There we gathered with over 200 other young adult servants, leaders, and dreamers. From an evening cafe where worship and community was experienced, to workshops on a wide array of different topics relevant to young adults in the 21st Century, IGNITION created an atmosphere of empowerment. Certainly be on the look out for the next IGNITION event, but also be plugged in through the blog and resources that are being made available. If you would like to receive regular updates about young adult ministry please sign up for the IGNITION Newsletter by CLICKING HERE.
24-Seven Featured in the Gleaner
An article was recently published in the Gleaner magazine. The article was written by Heidi Martella of the Washington Conference. I hope you enjoy!
Disciples Being Made Here
24/Seven Reaches Church Status
“A young family’s lives transformed by prayer in Pike Place Market. A young woman who stopped binge drinking. Lonely people who found a welcoming community. People searching for more in life. This is 24/Seven Ministry Center, and these are a few of their stories. To read more… CLICK HERE
NAD Youth & Young Adult Leadership Conference - Dallas, TX
Just a quick note to give an updated from Dallas, TX. I am here representing PureIntegrity.org as well as Vagabondservant International at the bi-annual NAD Youth and Young Adult Leadership Conference. God has truly been blessing as this morning I had the amazing opportunity to co-teach a general session for Ignition (the young adult track) with Adrienne Townsend from Andrews University. She has a powerful testimony and is an extremely gifted presenter, not to fail to mention her amazing ability to develop strong participation from the crowd. Be sure to check out Adrienne’s website One Touch Ministries.
I trust that God will continue to bless and pour out through the weekend. It would be great to hear from you. We are here to serve!
Blessings to you all and a big THANK YOU to Allan Martin and James Black for including me on the journey!
mwg
