That Uncomfortable Feeling!
Do you know that uncomfortable feeling that only faith can bring?
I was talking to a friend of mine last week about tithing. He was so tight on money he was literally squeaking! He said that he wants to tithe, but 10% of his income would just kill him financially.
I told him that when we start to tithe it often starts in stages. I continued to tell him that instead of feeling guilty about not being able to give the dreaded 10% to rethink what tithing is. Basically it is giving back to God out of love and sacrifice from what he has given you. All God is asking is that you make a sacrifice out of love to him. I challenged my friend to give just past what he is comfortable with, or just past what he can handle alone. This is a sacrifice, and God honors our sacrifices.
So this past week, after telling this to my friend; God give me that uncomfortable feeling. He has brought some unique opportunities into my life concerning Generation Church. A building in a prime location which would be set up perfect for what we believe we are to do with Generation Church suddenly became available. This was one of those left field, back door opportunities (literally, I went through the back door!) that take you by surprise.
I’m not even sure if this is going to work out, but as Raquel and I started to dream and envision the possibilities, inside of me I had that incredible uncomfortable feeling of; oh no this may be God!
Just when we thought our long search for a location was over (we already had two options), this pops up! I’ll be honest, we probably couldn’t afford the lease, we couldn’t afford the renovations and we probably couldn’t afford the upkeep, but like I said to my friend, sometimes God asks you to step out just beyond where you feel comfortable!
This is for one reason! To totally rely on God, and to call o the name of Jesus!
10 Statements That Are Changing My World!
There have been a few statements that have been going over and over in my head the last month or two. So I wanted to share them with you. Hope they are insightful and challenging at the same time. Just a disclaimer, these are statements I have heard others say, I don’t get credit for them!
- Hurt people hurt others (don’t allow your circumstances to welcome hurt into your life)
- Found people find people
- The quickest way to fall away from God is to disengage yourself with God’s people (i.e. don’t stop going to church!)
- Loving God isn’t enough; you have to love Jesus to!
- If you love Jesus you will keep HIS commandments
- It’s impossible to love Jesus without loving the church (The church is His body and he is the head!)
- No-one will come to Christ just observing your ‘good life’. People only come to Christ when someone tells them about Christ!
- You will never be able to out give God!
- Don’t let the gifts God gives you replace the one giving the gifts!
- People have no problem talking to others about God; they just have the hardest time telling them about Jesus! (God can mean many things to many people, there is only one Jesus!)
Life on a Cross!
I’ve been thinking about Mark 10:21 a lot lately!
This is the scripture where Jesus tells the people to sell all their possessions, give it to the poor and then for them to take up their cross and follow him.
The cross is an interesting term to use. We know it as the piece of equipment used to kill Jesus. However, when Jesus said this the people only knew of a cross as the way the Romans killed the worst criminals. The criminal would have to carry the very instrument that would kill him all the way to the place of the crucifixion. People would spit on them, the soldiers would beat them and they basically would be humiliated, all as a punishment for what they did. The cross was a place of death!
So Jesus tells us we are to take up our cross. He doesn’t say pick up his cross, or the Roman cross, or another persons cross, he says YOUR cross.
What does this mean? Well it means we are to spend our lives giving up our lives to follow him. Not physical death, but a death to self. You see Jesus knew that selfishness destroys lives. Jesus was asking us to die to all the things that kills our soul and our spirit. Things like pride, selfishness, envy, selfish ambition etc.
The only way for you to find real fulfilling live was the kill the very thing inside of you that is trying to destroy you!
So many see Mark 10:21 as a negative! It’s not negative at all; it’s the most positive thing I believe you can do for your life! Humility is a life-saver; selflessness is a life-giver, celebrating others success is a life-preserver, Godly ambition is a life-provider.
So over the last couple of weeks I have been waking up every morning thinking about what I need to do that day to take up my cross and follow Jesus. Each day the cross may look a little different, but the common denominator is that everyday they are my own crosses and I am the only one who can pick them up and follow Christ!
If you desire life, then today take up YOUR cross and follow Christ. It’s the only way you’ll find, gain and receive life!
The ‘WHY?’ Question
Have you ever asked the question, why do bad things happen to good people?
If not, then you must have a heart of ice! I ask this a lot, and the closer I get in my relationship with God I ask it even more.
Solomon had some pretty wise answers to this question. He basically said that’s life! Sometimes life is good, sometimes it’s bad!
However, there are times when the bad is for our own good. I’m not saying this is in every situation in our lives, but there are times when God allows the bad the make room for the good.
In Acts 8 we see the early church has boomed to mega proportions. Over 10,000 people in the area around Jerusalem are now part of the church. People are being healed, lives are being changed and a community is being transformed. Yet in the midst of all this the people in the church start to get persecuted. This isn’t your name calling, laugh behind your back persecution; this is chop your head off, beat you until every bone is broken persecution.
Most people would not understand this treatment, and I bet the people in Jerusalem didn’t understand.
However, we are told that because of the persecution the church in Jerusalem started to move into other areas around Judah, Samaria and other regions near Jerusalem. As the church moved out, more lives were changed and transformed. In fact due to the persecution in Jerusalem church became a greater force and this set up the pathway to reach in Europe and subsequently the whole world.
Imagine what would have happened if the church had not had received persecution? They probably would have stayed in Jerusalem, transformed a community but left behind a world that was unreached and untouched.
Maybe you’re going through some stuff at the moment and all you can do is ask God, WHY? I don’t have the why answer, but I do know he is in control, and maybe just maybe, he is using this ‘why’ situation to push through something so incredible you would have never believed it if he told you!
Financially Secure!
There are some days when I just can’t get over how financially blessed I am!
Now don’t go thinking I’m loaded or anything like that, because I’m not. In fact at this point in my life I’m probably earning less than I was 10 years ago!
Some months are pretty tight, yet I know God is blessing me more than I have ever seen in my life! I just wish others would be able to know this freedom of financial blessing!
Now if you haven’t closed this page down already, let me explain! You are probably thinking I’m another preacher going on about money! Well, I’m not but money is such an important issue in all of our lives that sometimes it just needs to be addressed.
The reason I am so financially blessed is because I have discovered the secret to money! The secret is this: All my money doesn’t belong to me, it’s God’s and he decides what I should do with that money.
If you’ve been in church long enough, you’ve probably heard enough preachers talking about money! You’ve probably heard someone say that the first 10% belongs to the Lord, and you’ve probably heard some preacher put the guilt trip on, as to why they need another $100,000 to help with their ‘vision project’!
However, the first ten doesn’t belong to the Lord, all of it does! The reason I can say this is because all that God has given me is his, and my life, as well as my wallet is his. Yes, I have had to make a few personal sacrifices, but today I am so blessed!
When you do not hold back from God, he really does supply all of your needs! This year my wife & I set a goal, to live off 60% of our income. 20% went to the taxman (boo!!!!) and 20% went to the Lord. In a year when we earned less as a married couple than we ever had, we have given more than we ever had, the result, more blessings and financial security than you could ever imagine!
The reason I’m telling you this is not to gloat! Trust me, sometimes it’s hard to write that ‘tithe’ check, but the reason is because if you think you can’t afford to give, if you believe that only 10% is the Lords (if that for some of you) then you are withholding yourself from all that God has for you. If you give unto him, he will give back in ways that will make you smile, laugh and shout for joy!
So make a life adjustment today. Become an extravagant, generous giver and watch how God will take care of all your needs, just as he has promised!
10 Quick Leadership Lessons
I consider myself a novice leader. Looking back to when I was 17 years old leading a youth ministry to today I have come a long way, but leadership is now learnt in a day, nor is it learnt in fifteen years, it’s only something that takes a lifetime to get a grasp on.
As a leader I have found that if I am open there is always something new to learn. This last week God taught me some huge lessons in leadership, lessons that I hope stay with me for life. Here they are:
- I am my biggest doubter and biggest critic. If I can overcome my doubts I have the opportunity to do great things.
- The church is not mine, has never been mine and will never be mine. That means the people, the resources, the structures, the ministries and the vision! Guess what? They’re God’s! Any leader that’s gets territorial is in for one big fall!
- There is more I do not know about myself than what I do know about myself. So glad there is one who knows Alex way better than Alex!
- A leader can not do it alone, you can not control others or even control the future. A leader has to have others they can trust in, others they empower and others they believe in. If you don’t believe in the people you are leading, maybe you shouldn’t be leading them.
- God will often let your fears become a reality in your life to show you that fears are not to be feared! He is way bigger than all your deepest darkest fears.
- Leadership is not for everyone. Just because you may not be a leader doesn’t mean you will one day get a lesser crown in heaven. God has a purpose for you that only you can fulfill!
- Leaders have to show the way! If your church is not reaching out to a broken world, it is because you are not. Having outreach events does not count! A leader has to personally interact and invite broken people into their lives, if not your church will never reach beyond where it is today!
- Your version of success is very different to God’s version of success.
- God is always on time. A leader cannot push open doors that are not ready to be open. Don’t worry, you may have a whole nation panicking because you are not in promised land, but as a leader you have to KNOW that God will open the way at exactly the right time.
- If you have a God-given vision, it will become so overwhelming there will be times you just want to give up because it is so big you won’t be able to get your hands on it. That’s why it’s a God-given vision. It’s his vision that he is sharing with you, enjoy the ride and watch how he’ll blow making it happen in front of your very eyes!
Out of the Darkness
There are times in my life when I just cannot put into words my feelings and emotions of where God has brought me from!
No one really knows the dark places I’ve been in during my life. Dark places of hurt, regret, anger, bitterness and selfishness. No one ever saw the tears of pain or heart break. No one ever heard of my intense fears of failure and to always be liked! No one ever really understood my longing to just bury my head in the sand and let the worries of this world pass from me!
This weekend I look back at those dark days knowing that Christ shone his light into my life and gave me life! In my darkest moment he brought me light and in my lowest agony he lifted me up and comforted me. The reason I look back on that this weekend is because we have our 2nd Preview Service for our church plant, Generation Church.
This weekend we are showing our community what Generation Church is all about I can’t help but think of where Generation Church started!
It started years ago in England as a young boy got on his knees before God, totally broken and cried out why! It started when God revealed to me how far away from him I really was. In fact it started way before then. It started some two thousand years ago when a man called Jesus lay down his life so that the world may experience life!
This weekend is a big one for Generation Church, but it’s an even bigger one for me! If you could have seen me 10 years ago and said that I would plant a church, I would have laughed in your face.
I am an example of how God can take an average man with a ton of issues and use him to create something way bigger than anything man could ever build!
So this Sunday at 10:30am people will join us for a preview service. I really do not know who is going to turn up, but I do know that this is a project Jesus Christ has been working on for two thousand years. I think I’m just going to get out of the way and just thank Him for giving me life when I was on the brink of death!
God-Given Dreams!
Every one of us have dreams for our lives. Some have bigger dreams than others; some have expensive dreams while others have simple dreams.
Most people will one day chase after their dream. A few will succeed in catching their dream, but most will probably give up half way for some reason.
Dreams are always something out of our immediate reach, otherwise they would not be dreams, they’d probably be reality.
The dreams that I find are hardest to chase are the God-given dreams! We will always fail and quit chasing these dreams if we rely on our own instincts, gifts and talents. God-given dreams always require God at the center.
We have a God-given dream called Generation Church. This God-given dream is something I have realized is impossible without God. We have a great team of people partnering with us to chase this dream. The majority of our team members including my wife and I are planners. We hate to feel unprepared! However, I have discovered that you can plan all you want with a God-given dream, yet it will never bring that dream to reality.
For us the hardest part of chasing this dream has been to have to take our hands off and just let God do what God does best, bring things that were not into being!
It is often frustrating to not be able to take the bull by the horns and guide this dream, not just frustrating for me, but for our team as well. However, I have realized that with a God-given dream it is impossible to get your arms around it. In fact it is so large that you will never be able to see the top, bottom, sides and back of the dream. This is where the need for God comes in. He sees the whole dream and gets a view we will never see!
If you have a God-given dream that you feel totally overwhelmed and will never become reality, then start to look to the one who gave you the dream. Stop trying to figure it out yourself, trying to control the outcome, trying to predict the next step, trying to plan your way to the finish line. God-given dreams are gifts that enable us to watch the creator himself at work. Enjoy the gift God has given you and be amazed at what he will do if YOU LET HIM!
Church Planting Insights
Next month Generation Church will be officially launched. We are so excited but also so humbled to know that God chose us to be part of this way to give life to our community.
What many do not know is that while Generation Church will be born on September 19th 2010, it has been a work in progress for the last 18 months.
Most church planters go on a similar journey to what we have been on, starting with a feeling of God unsettling you, to an unbelievable burden God puts on your heart, to an impossible vision he starts to birth inside you, to the gathering of a team to the start of a brand new church.
Even though I am not an expert at church planting and I have so much more to learn in the days, months and years ahead I do feel I have a little insight for those who are just starting their journey.
So today I want to give you two feelings that you will quickly discover. These are feelings every church planter (and anyone who does anything bold for God) will experience, but do not let them bother you, they show you are on the right track
- The constant feeling of wanting to quit – This will come on faster than you think. In fact to be honest there must be two or three times a week I feel like it! However, I have discovered that the reason I feel like that is because we are doing something that is way bigger than anything I could ever create. This vision is a God-sized vision and without God it WILL fail! If you have that quitting feeling then hold on to the hand of God, because you are probably part of something only he can create! When you try to think of how you can achieve that vision, you’ll want to quit!
- Criticism always stings – If you do anything for God you WILL get criticism, it just comes with the territory. There are lots of different reason someone may criticize you, but the moment you stop getting criticized is probably the moment you stop chasing after God and start searching for man’s approval! I have realized that no matter where criticism comes from it always stings. If it doesn’t sting then you probably have a stone cold heart and church planting just isn’t for you! However, even though it will sting, don’t let it kill you!
Keep hold of the one who comforts, directs and lifts up, and then the father of life will sustain you, He will protect you, He will provide for you and one day He will crown you for the outstanding part you have played in the Kingdom of God.
Church planter you are my hero! I salute you! Keep going, keep pushing and keep planting!
A Day To Celebrate!
Most people have one day each year that is special to them, their birthday.
Yesterday was my birthday (#31 on the list), yet August 10th isn’t the most special day of the year for me. In fact today, August 11th is the day I prefer to celebrate.
23 years ago on August 11th 1987 a small 8 year old boy realized that he was a sinner. He hadn’t done anything really awful in his life; he just knew that there was sin! Sin that had crept into only 8 years of life and also sin that would creep into the next 70 years of his life. It was at this point this young boy realized that this sin would mean his soul was dying and that he would spend eternity alone, in pain and anguish. Even at 8 this boy knew his need for God. It was at this point he knelt down and asked God for forgiveness and accepted God’s Grace through making Jesus Christ the Lord of his life.
That boy while not always living a life that was recognizable as someone who had Jesus as the Lord of his life grew up into a man who realized that without August 11th the day before would have had no meaning or purpose. He realized that on that day in 1987 he had received life! Not physical life, but life to his soul! He realized that at 8 years old he made the bravest decision that most adults are scared to take. He decided that this life wasn’t about him, but it was about living a life in complete surrender to Jesus Christ.
Looking back I now understand the power of the cross of Jesus Christ and the love of God to look down on an average little boy and choose to give him one thing that millions in this world do not have, that is a full and satisfying life through Jesus Christ. Today I realize what a gift August 11th is to me, today I recognize without August 11th the other 364 days of the year would be pointless, today I celebrate the greatest and wisest decision I have ever made in my life, that was to become a Christ follower!
If you don’t have Christ in your life, then life isn’t really life for you! If you have not surrendered your life to the power of the cross of Jesus then on your birthday you celebrate a life that has no meaning, no hope and ultimately no joy! You have the opportunity today to have life! Let Christ be the Lord of your life!
