Category Archives: Church and Ministry
The Key to Freedom
“Free me from prison…” Psalm 142:7
Ever feel this way? Like your in your own personal prison – alone, punished, tormented, and desperately longing for freedom. David, the author of Psalm 142 certainly had to feel this way. He was alone in a cave, clinging to his life – desperate for freedom.
I don’t know about your personal prison, but let me give up you peek behind the armor so you can see one of mine.
I would rather be filled with the scars of 100 wounds against me, than live with the guilt of being the one inflicted a scar on someone else. My prison bars are formed by the decisions I’ve made that left others in pain. It torments me to think of those who have been scared by the words I’ve said, or didn’t say. Guilt weighs heavy on my soul, sometimes to the point of total despair. I can live with almost anything and anyone, except the wicked man I am. I long for freedom – not from the consequences of decisions made and words said, but from the guilt that has locked the door of my soul and thrown away the key into the depths of the ocean. Not surprisingly in the times of loneliness and pain of soul, the prison cell I reside in seems to grow smaller and smaller, tighter and tighter. What is left to do? Is freedom even a possibility? Are these chains forever?
“I cry aloud to the LORD; I plead aloud to the LORD for mercy. I pour out my complaint before Him; I reveal my trouble to Him. Although my spirit is weak within me, You know my way…” Psalm 142:1-3
There is no reason to pretend before the Lord. He knows all my thoughts and ways. He is not fooled by my fake countenance, or my lofty words. He is not impressed by human strength that is mere weakness disguised. So inside the prison bars I cry aloud. I plead. I pour my heart out. I am honest. I acknowledge my frailty and weakness. None of this surprises my Lord.
“I cry to You, LORD; I say, ‘You are my shelter, my portion in the land of the living.’ Listen to my cry for I am very weak.” Psalm 142:5-6
If there is any hope for me, it is not in me, so I cry to the Lord. He is the only one who can offer shelter – relief from this trouble. You are the only one who can give me new life.
“Free me from prison so that I can praise Your name.” Psalm 142:7
Don’t free me so that I may be free. Don’t free me so that I may escape the pain. Free me SO that I may praise Your name. That I may praise the name of the ONLY name worthy of praise. That I may praise the ONE who knows my way, who hears my cry, and is my shelter and portion.
“You deal generously with me.” Psalm 142:7b
When I plead for mercy, though undeserving, you offer it freely. When I cry out for grace, you send it in full without regard to my merit.
Freedom is given to me, not just from You, but because of You. The chains around my feet fall because of your great name. The prison door opens because you are rich in faithful love and mercy. I stand to walk in the light of your glorious grace not because I deserve to, but for your name’s sake.
Daily I can lay down my loosened chains and walk out of my opened cell because of the Gospel. I don’t have to live with myself, but I get to live with Christ in me, the hope of glory. I live today knowing that His grace is far greater than my sin. The key to my freedom that was lost in an ocean of guilt and shame has been found by the One who made the ocean by the word of His mouth. He has given it to me. It’s not surprising that it opens the lock of all prison doors.
I am free, and you can be too.
- Brad
When Morning Doesn’t Come
One of the more familiar and encouraging verses in the Bible is Psalms 30:5, the later portion of which states: “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.”
That phrase encourages us because we all have experienced weeping nights of sorrow and pain – with the hope that joy will come in the morning. But what if morning is a long way off? What about the times when it seems so dark that morning isn’t coming? What do you do when it seems like the light of morning dawn is unable to rise in the face of your daunting darkness?
Let us consider the author of these words – David, who
- was overlooked and considered insignificant as a child
- was rewarded with the death penalty for sparing the Kingdom of Saul
- lost his best friend
- saw family and friend murdered when the sword couldn’t reach him
- experienced the torment of a daughter abused and the sorrow of a son murdered
- suffered the pain of betrayal at the hands of his closest allies – including his own flesh and blood.
- and alas, saw his glorious kingdom that he fought for divided against him
Yes, that’s the man who wrote, “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” In 2 Samuel 15 David finds himself on the outskirts of Jerusalem after being forced into battle against his own son. The priest began to follow David with the Ark of God. (The Ark was a powerful symbol to all of Israel. No army in the generation of David ever lost a battle while the Ark was in their presence.) Stunningly, David says to the priest in verse 25: “Take the ark of God back into the city.” This had to mystify the priests and all of David’s army. Why would he send the Ark back into the city? It is at this moment we get a peek into the soul of David as he says to the priest, “If I find favor in the LORD’s eyes, He will bring me back and let me see it and His dwelling place again. But if He says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let Him do to me whatever seems good to Him.”
David’s Hope was not influenced by the depth of the darkness that surrounded him. Rather, his Hope – his Joy was shaped by his unflinching trust and confidence in the sovereign goodness of his God. David knew God could never be manipulated, but that He could always be trusted. David’s focus shifted from the surrounding darkness – to the surpassing glory of the one who had originally breathed the light into existence to start with.
Do you find yourself surrounded by darkness and weeping that lasts through the night? Maybe even wondering if morning light will come? If so let me encourage you to pray another Psalmist’s prayer – Psalm 33:22 May Your faithful love rest on us, Lord, for we put our hope in You.
Put your hope in God your heavenly Father, not the coming light. After all, He made the light to begin with.
- Brad
The Best Gospel Question Ever
Saturday afternoon I was preparing to take Rylee on a Daddy-Daughter date to Chick-fil-a. As I loaded her into the car, without any prodding, she posed this question to me:
“Daddy, do you remember (pronounced by her as ‘member’) when we were broken and Jesus fixed us and put us back together?”
I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. I smiled and enthusiastically replied to her, “Yes I do.” I promptly took out a pad of paper and wrote the exchange down so I could recall it later exactly as it transpired. I knew I would want to revisit her simple, yet profound question.
At not quite three years of age my little girl articulated the essence of the Gospel as well as the most skilled preacher ever could hope to. She is learning truth that most adults I encounter have yet to grasp. In my counseling and preaching I spend a significant amount of time deconstructing the false gospel of the American Bible belt. That flawed gospel says that we have to fix ourselves – put ourselves back together, and then maybe Jesus will have us. As a result ‘church people’ keep trying to live up to a standard they think will pass God’s checklist and thereby earn His favor and love. The ‘De-churched people’ have come to the conclusion that they will never be able to – so they gave up and just quit doing the church thing. That’s the man centered Gospel so many have unfortunately been taught and subsequently bought into. What they could learn from Rylee is that Jesus is the One, the only One, who does the fixing and putting pieces back together. That’s the message of the Gospel. That is what the Cross was for. Jesus is the One who makes dead men live, blind men see, and lame men walk.
Do you remember when you were broken and Jesus put you back together and fixed you? Or are you still trying to fix yourself?
- Brad
21 Days of Prayer and Fasting
Yesterday we began a 21 day church-wide fast here at NorthStar Church. I thought it might be beneficial to post the resources and devotions we are using here on my personal site. Scott preached a great message introducing what fasting is from a Biblical perspective. You can listen to or download the audio of that message here. The fast is already producing blessing and spiritual renewal in my life. I believe a time of prayer and fasting can do the same for you!
For resources and daily devotionals that can assist you in your own personal time of prayer and fasting, click the Prayer and Fasting image below.
- Brad
Eyes on Jesus
My initial reaction to the news of a sex scandal at Penn State involving the abusing of children was avoidance. Literally I didn’t read any of the articles that came out on Sunday and Monday. I feared they would say exactly what they said – that there was sexual abuse of children AND that the people who knew about it did nothing.
The reason I didn’t want to read it is simple. I have had incredible admiration for Joe Paterno. For years I have rooted for Penn State (not like for the Vols) because of him. He was so consistent, ran such a clean program, and with so much class. I knew this scandal would taint him. I didn’t realize how much.
My second reaction was sadness for the victims combined with anger and disappointment towards the Penn State leadership – especially Joe Paterno’s. How in the world could he not go to the police. What was he and the other administrators thinking?! How in the world could a known pedophile be allowed such access to the school in the aftermath? The passivity of it all just shocked me. I’ve been angry, especially since this hits close to home. I’ve seen first hand in many lives the painful affects of sexual abuse.
Now I have another emotion: Fear. Can you imagine making 1,000 good decisions that turn you into a successful person, then 1 terrible decision that derailed it all? Can you imagine building a reputation that is revered by all for 61 years, then in 1 week have it all destroyed? Tuesday and Wednesday of this week I was saying how could you Joe?!!!!!! Today I am asking, Could I? Could I spend years building a reputation as a family man, a pastor who is supposed to love Jesus, who lives honorably, makes moral decisions, has integrity AND then see it all collapse and burn in a fire of regret? Could I be that person?
Yes I could. So could you.
I was reading Hebrews 12 this morning. What incredibly poignant and timely words these are:
Hebrews 12:1, 2 1Therefore since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that lies before us, 2 keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.
I’ve had to put my stones back in my pockets this morning, lest I do exactly as Joe Paterno and the other leaders at Penn State did. My prayer today has been, “Lord, rid of me the sin, the blind spot, the weight that will tear me down. Give me strength to keep my eyes fixed on You.” I hope you’ll make it yours too. Want to finish well? We better keep our eyes on Jesus.
- Brad
when you pastor a nightclub
OK, I don’t actually pastor a nightclub, but sometimes it feels that way. Maybe I should explain…
Discovery Church is just 10 months old. We’re a baby church. I’m new to the role of Lead Pastor. I’ve learned more about leadership this year than any of my previous 30. It’s been a wonderful, rewarding year. With that said, let me be honest about one of the weirdest aspects of planting a church like Discovery: Atheists and Agnostics like me/us much more than many of my conservative Christian fundamentalist brothers and sisters.
That seems like an outlandish hyperbole, right? In the last year we have seen faithful attendance from various Agnostics. I’ve had dinner and coffee with them. Atheists have written me to say they appreciate what our church does for the community. One Agnostic friend from another state wrote me this year and said he would regularly attend on Sundays to hear my sermons. He doesn’t buy what I say about Jesus, but he likes the message and practical application enough. Of course I’m sure not every Atheist/Agnostic feels this way, but that is the interaction I’ve had with them over the last year.
On the other hand my more conservative, “fundamental” Christian friends have had the exact opposite reaction. As a matter of fact, it would seem I pastor a nightclub. “Brad, I’d love to visit Discovery, but I’m not allowed too.” I’ve pretty much lost count how many times I’ve heard that one. One high school student had to beg their Christian parents to see their friend get baptized at Discovery. Just this past Sunday a young woman in tears said to me she loves coming to our church, but that it caused her a great deal of conflict with her Christian family and she is torn with whether she should continue to come. Her family is convinced she’s being taught a false gospel because I don’t preach from the King James Version. I’ll leave some of the other backlash out. It’s important to note here that not all of my fundamentalist friends have responded this way – some have been very encouraging and gracious, and not mean spirited.
So why have some acted as if Discovery Church and other churches similar to it are like nightclubs or other worldly places ‘good Christians’ avoid?
I would totally understand it if we soft sold the Gospel, weakened who Jesus was, viewed the Bible as just a nice piece of ancient literature, or embraced sinful lifestyles. But we don’t do any of those things. Watch our Beautiful Collision, or Captured by Grace sermon series and if you come away with those conclusions then you might fit in well at a Westboro Baptist Church protest.
So what is the issue? The issue is almost always in the HOW.
Not what I preach, but HOW (usually in jeans)
Not if we sing hymns, but HOW (with electric guitar and drums)
Not if we love and believe the Bible, but HOW (we don’t exclusively use the King James Version)
Not if we have church, but HOW (We meet on Sunday mornings, but not evenings. We meet for small groups in homes, not in classrooms for Sunday School)
HOW we do WHAT we do always creates the tension with some in the christian community. We’re OK with that because of WHO we do it for. We do it for those lost and in need of salvation from their sins. And we do it for those burnt by previous experiences with the church. If that brings criticism, that’s OK, I don’t lose sleep over it. I do hurt for those Christians who get caught in the crossfire.
So let me offer these pointed thoughts. You’re a fool if you are critical of other churches and pastors for doing church ministry differently than you would prefer it be done. If you criticize a church for using ‘contemporary’ Christian music (I hate those terms) instead of hymns, you are a fool. If you criticize churches for using the organ and singing hymns instead of being cool and hip like your church, you are a fool. If you use your church sign to let everyone know you use the KJV and still have night church unlike those weak watered down churches, you are a fool. If you scoff at pastors who still wear suits and not True Religion jeans, you are a fool. And there is a lot of foolishness out there.
The HOW is important because we should try to be as effective as we can in reaching people, making disciples, meeting the needs of the poor, sending missionaries to the nations etc. Discussion about discernment in the methods we use is absolutely helpful and necessary, but pot shots and back biting have no place in the kingdom. The HOW should never be the focus. The focus should be the WHAT. The WHAT is the GOSPEL. It’s the Gospel of Jesus Christ that matters.
Just to be clear it is the Gospel that is critical, not my jeans or your suit.
- Brad
The Essence of a Man
This past weekend at Discovery Church featured some straight talk for men and fathers. The statistical and anecdotal evidence for the need for real men and real fathers in our society is is overwhelming. But what makes a good man and a good father? What does authentic, Biblical masculinity look and feel like. We take a hard look at what a real man isn’t and what a real man is.
