MIND OF TRUTH

As the year draws to a close, I often think about a focus for the coming year. This years I simply want to do what God is speaking to me, to follow through with his direction, to move forward. So often we say one thing and do another missing the opportunities God gives us to grow closer to him. The key is to adopt a pattern of learning and living, to make our normal approach to hear and do the Word. This is why the spiritual disciplines are key. I don't trust myself to maintain this new normal, so I must submit to the disciplines. It's the everyday deeds that keeps the darkness at bay (sorry, had to quote from the Hobbit). Are we willing to set out on an adventure? Are we willing to leave the old live and set out for all God has in store for those he loves? That's what 2016 holds for me.

As I finish my review through Dallas Willard's book The Spirit of the Disciplines , I wanted to include the discipline of prayer which is critical in the life of every disciple. The activity of prayer, conversing and communicating with God, is often accompanied by other disciplines such as solitude, study, and worship. Prayer in itself is not a spiritual discipline, but it take practice to continue in a place of prayer throughout our day. Willard states that "praying with frequency gives us the readiness to pray again as needed from moment to moment." He goes on to say that the discipline of prayer, teaches us to pray without ceasing, and trains us to invoke God's presence in every action we perform." Prayer can be difficult for most of us. We fail to set aside adequate time, alone with the Lord so we can actually communicate with him. We also struggle to focus our minds and discipline our thoughts. The discipline of prayer helps us push past these hindranc

"And he said to me,  “Son of man,  can these bones live?” And  I answered, “O Lord  God , you know.”   Then he said to me,  “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the  Lord .    Thus says the Lord  God  to these bones: Behold, I will cause  breath  to enter you, and you shall live.  And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and  cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live,  and you shall know that I am the  Lord . ” (Ezekiel 37:3-6). I've been thinking about this passage lately. I want to be careful not to take an interpretation out of context, but to me this question asked of the prophet is powerful. Often situation in our lives seem impossible, overwhelming, and beyond our control. Can we hear God saying "Son of man, can these bones live?" What we see as being impossible and hopeless is  possible with God. Do we believe he is capable of breathing new life into dead situations?

Another discipline of engagement is the act of service. Willard says "In service we engage our goods and strength in the active promotion of the good of others and the causes of God in our world." He clarifies that not every act of service needs to be considered as a spiritual discipline. We should strive to serve others simply out of love and righteousness, but as a discipline, service can be an effective tool in drawing us closer to Christ. Service is asking self to let go of the thing its holding to so tightly. If I find myself being inpatient with people or getting frustrated easily, then maybe I need to take time to serve people instead. I believe this same concept works with our possessions as well. If I find I'm getting stressed about money and I'm not obediently giving as the Lord instructs, then I need to serve others by giving more money and time to others. Service acts to bring us back into alignment with God's pattern for our lives. I know having b

Dallas Willard's next discipline of engagement is worship. "In worship we engage ourselves with, dwell upon, and express the greatness, beauty, and goodness of God." It's an opportunity for us to see God as "worthy", to ascribe worth to him. The more we allow ourselves to engage in worship, the more we see that God is good and beautify. This leads to a greater illumination of God's worth and our worship becomes richer and deeper. Willard says as the "worthiness" of God enters our minds and hearts, it will "increase our faith and strengthen us to be as he is." I believe we do not engage in worship enough. What we do on Sunday mornings when we gather to "worship" the Lord is rarely ever that. We sing songs and praise, but there is often little time to wait upon the Lord and dwell upon his goodness and greatness. We desperately need to make time to worship God corporately as well as personally. If we are truly worshiping

Had a great time with family and friends the past few days. My wife is such a giving person. She gives of herself  to make others feel comfortable and welcome in our home. She lives out the biblical model of giving by offering others the best. It doesn't matter if we have some honored guests or just our normal family differ, she does everything to the best of her ability. I'm so proud of my kids as well who think far more of giving to others than they do about receiving for themselves. I can see the joy in their eyes when someone opens a gift from them. Tomorrow morning, we're having a discussion in our learning group about fellowship. I can't help but think we need this kind of sacrificial giving of ourselves to find the real definition of fellowship that God intended for his church. Do we give others our very best? Is our heart filled with joy at the thought of giving to others? Do we think of others first and ourselves second? That's the picture the Bible giv

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined… For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:2-7) This is the blessed message of Christmas, the good news that Jesus has come to be among us and to shine his light upon us. He is the one who brings hope to the hopeless and joy to the joyless. The words prophesied by Isaiah are fulfilled so powerfully in the New Testament when Jesus himself, the Word of the eternal God incarnate, stands before the crowds of p

I thought I'd share a Christmas poems from the book A Christmas Wreath , by one of my favorite Bible teachers - John Wright Follette.

Just to recap, I've been commenting this month on the book The Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard.I would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to practice spiritual disciplines. Willard is now moving from disciplines of abstinence to a discussion on the "disciplines of engagement." As we engage in disciplines of abstinence, we must counterbalance  and supplement them with disciplines of engagement. Willard says "Abstinence and engagement are the out-breathing and in-breathing of our spiritual lives, and we require disciplines for both movements." He says "Abstinence makes way for engagement." This makes perfect sense because growing in Christ is about denial of self in order to be filled with Christ. If we take time to empty our hearts and minds through solitude silence and fasting, then we must fill ourselves with study, worship, and prayer. The study of God's Word is critical to the life of a believer. Its not possible to su

Two days before Christmas feasts is probably not a good time to discus fasting, although many people start fasts at the beginning of the new year. The practice of fasting seems to be gaining popularity in resent years. It seems like the thing for churches to do in January. Willard's comments focus mainly on the personal practice of fasting. He is correct when he says "The discipline of fasting teaches us a lot about ourselves very quickly." It only takes hours or less for our body to complain and start the relentless attempts to get us to turn back, give up, and give in to the flesh. My first extended fast, I was shocked at how relentlessly my mind would fight me. Willard says if nothing else, fasting "will certainly demonstrate how powerful and clever our body is in getting its own way against our strongest resolves. I believe fasting is about 2 things (1) Its about denying self. Willard says "fasting is one of the more important ways of practicing that sel

The spiritual discipline of silence is accomplished by closing ourselves off as much as possible to any sounds, noise, music, or words. I would also add no electronic communication, no cell phone or social media. Silence can be frightening. We seldom slow down enough to do any real examination of our lives. I think this discipline is becoming more and more difficult in our culture. We're always connected to someone, or listening to something, and we have grown dependent on this input. Willard says "And in that quiet, what if there turns out to be very little to 'just us and God?' Think what it says about the inward emptiness of our lives" if we're always filling the quiet space with music, audible stimuli of some sort. Is it possible that we often replace quality of life with quantity? Do we get so busy and spin so many plates that we don't have time to think about the real inner life with Christ? The discipline of silence will often accompany the disc

I've reached the point in Willard's book where he goes into detail about specific spiritual disciplines. He groups them into "disciplines of abstinence (Solitude, fasting...) and "disciplines of engagement" (prayer, study...). Willard's first discipline is solitude. He states that "of all the disciplines of abstinence, solitude is generally the most fundamental in the beginning of the spiritual life, and it must be returned to again and again as that life develops." He goes on to say this can be a place of strength for beginners, In the stark aloneness, it's possible in the silence, to be still and know God. Personally, I love solitude. As an introvert, I find peace in the quietness of being alone with my thought and with God. I have to say though that the intentional discipline of solitude is very different. I decided one time to get away and stay in a cabin for a 3 day spiritual retreat. It sounded good, but in reality, it was one of the

For this reason make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue…For if these things are yours and abound, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:8) Willard states that “Spiritual disciplines, ‘exercises unto godliness,’ are only activities undertaken to make us capable of receiving more of his life and power without harm to ourselves or to others.” He reminds us that we practice disciplines in the natural every day that result in a “direct command of further abilities that we would not otherwise have.” We know we need to read, study, develop relationships, exercise, ect. Spiritual disciplines are no different. If we're spiritually aware, then we can practice spiritual things daily. Even saying a kind word, or not saying an unkind word can build up our spiritual fruitfulness. Peter tells us to make every effort to supplement our faith with virtues, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, and love

And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life...For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.   Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Luke 12:22, 30-31. It’s hard to teach about the church without looking through the window Luke gives us into the early church in Acts. We can see how they gave freely and lived as equals. In his book   Who is the Holy Spirit , Amos Yong says this early community of Spirit filled disciples has clearly adopted the teachings of their Messiah and his views about wealth, possessions, and poverty. On the occasion recorded in Luke 12:22-31, Jesus instructs his followers to not be anxious about their lives. Yong says unlike others who hoarded up for themselves, the disciples are encouraged to strive after the kingdom instead." This example of how we are to live is just as critical for the communities of disciples today tha

I'm teaching about the Purpose of the Church on Sunday. Purpose is a big word. It can be difficult to talk about our purpose, or the purpose for the church. I think purpose is different from commission. I try to get down to the foundation of living and then add in the church pieces like commission, models, ministries, worship styles, ect. This video really helped me grab hold of that foundation. In this video Andy Crouch says "there's a reason to be a human being." He says our purpose as God's image bearers is to bring a flourishing to the world, to be representatives of the Creator, to bring into existence through our lives everything that the he wants this world to be. This is such a critical thought. The kingdom of God is the ongoing renewal of the world through Jesus Christ. We get to participate in this renewal, this restoration of God's plan for mankind. Then Jesus calls us to be a community of disciples living out this purpose together. We have been c

Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war; stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up.   Beat your plowshares into swords, and  your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say,  “I am a warrior.”  Joel 3:9-10 Listening to a sermon today, I heard Bill Johnson use this phrase " Let the weak say I am strong ." I like how the ESV says "I am a warrior." This is why spiritual disciplines are important. Discipleship is an intentional, active, daily following of Jesus Christ. We are all wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked without him, but there is no reason to remain in that state. God's plan for the whole world is restoration and the renewal of man as God created him. Those who follow Christ and wait on the Lord will be renewed and filled with his strength. Spiritual disciplines strengthen the inner man, focus the mind on Christ, and prepare us for the battles to come. Bill Johnson went on to

Too many times in my life I've been caught off guard when the battle comes. I'm sure many of us have experienced moments when temptation comes and our defenses are down, or a difficult circumstance brings a sudden wave of fear and anxiety. Too many times I miss the opportunities the Lord gives me to pray, to fill my mind with the Word, and to spend time worshiping him. We need this practice so that when the hour of temptation comes, we'll be able to resist. If we intend to live a spiritual life, then we can't miss these times of spiritual preparation. I watched a message by Francis Chan where he talked about how much he loved to surf and just do nothing some days. Its good to relax, but those few days, he said, turned into weeks and he knew he was not maintaining his closeness with the Lord. I can relate. Many times I've had to force myself to wake up and get back on track. God graciously helps us see these moments and give us a chance to be prepared for the b

How and when we exercise spiritual disciplines in our lives can be just as important as doing them. Willard makes the observation that "Jesus was a master of life in the spirit. He showed us that spiritual strength is not manifested by great and extensive practice of the spiritual disciplines, but by the little need to practice them and still maintain full spiritual life." I always find it interesting how much we can learn from the Gospels by observing the patterns of Jesus life. Jesus didn't dutifully show up at the temple to pray, he got away early in the morning to be alone with the Father. He demonstrated the reason for prayer, not necessarily the discipline of prayer. Willard goes on to identify a fundamental, crucial point brought out in Jesus life that the "activities constituting the disciplines have no value in themselves. The aim and substance of spiritual life is not fasting, prayer, hymn singing, frugal living, and so forth. Remember, it is the effect

As I've been reading through Dallas Willard's book, The Spirit of the Disciplines , I've thought about the reality of how difficult and misunderstood spiritual disciplines can be. I've encountered Christians with no discipline and no self control, they make a habit of doing what they want and then wonder why they struggle to deny self. I've encountered others who put their practice of spiritual disciplines on display for all to see thinking this is what makes a man spiritual. In reality the only thing that develops us spiritually is our obedience in following Jesus Christ. Every self-denying step I take towards him will be a profitable one. When I teach discipleship, I can sometimes see anxiety in people's eyes as if they just realized that the demands of discipleship are too hard for them. I can feel them backing away from what the Holy Spirit is teaching them. I've found this is one of the tactics of the enemy. He gets us to look too far down the road

I'm starting a new class tomorrow called "The Church." I've been studying the definition of church at its basic root level. The church as Paul defines it several times in the New Testament is the Ecclesia - the called out ones, the gathering of those called together for a purpose. We talk a lot about how church is not just a building and that we're part of the body of Christ, the big "C" church. I agree and I think we need to emphasize that more today since too many believers have little life in Christ outside of Sundays. However, there is a pattern of God calling his people out to a specific place. God called Abraham to come out of Ur of Chaldees to the land of Canaan; God called Israel out of Egypt to the promise land. The tabernacle and the temple served as a centralized place where God dwelt in the midst of his people. Jesus called his disciples away from their life to follow him, and in Acts we see the community of early believers being called to

"Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven-for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." Luke 7:45 In Luke 7:36-50 Jesus exposes Peter's self-righteousness and his lack of sincere love for the Lord.  Jesus is not indicating in this passage that Peter has fewer sins to be forgiven. Its just that this woman is aware of how much she has been forgiven and has lavished her love on the Lord. Peter had only recognized his need to be forgiven for a few of his many sins.  Having been a Christian pretty much as long as I can remember, I can definitely relate to feeling like Peter at times. This self-righteous prideful thinking is so dangerous because it keeps us from experiencing a right relationship with God. At first read, we think Jesus is a little harsh, but Jesus acts lovingly and graciously to Peter. He exposes the thing that is holding Peter back from loving like this woman loved. In the same way, spiritual disciplines position u

Yesterday I talked about loving Jesus. He is is the one thing our soul was made to long for. I want a heart that cries out to God as David did in Psalms 27:4. I want to know that if I can just get into God's presence and be with him then everything will be fine. What is the one thing we are asking of the Lord? I've found I ask God for all kids of stuff when I start to pray. This is where the discipline of prayer pays off because I know I need to take time to get past all those requests and chaotic thoughts at the forefront of my mind. I know I need to press in until I get to the one thing. Then I find nothing else matters because God is enough, his grace is enough and all I want to do is dwell in his presence forever. Chan says "If God really is sovereign, it seems obvious that all we really need to do is stay close to him." It may seem obvious, but often the voices of our own mind, worry, doubt, other people, and our culture start telling us we need to take ca

Are we in love with Jesus Christ?  A disciple is one who loves the Lord enough to follow him, deny self, and obey his commandments. Love is the ultimate motivator. Are we motivated to follow Jesus out of some religious duty and obligation or out of love? If Jesus turned to us as he did with Peter and said "Do you love me" how would we respond?  Our first response may be like Peter's "Of course, Lord you know I love you" (John 21:15-19). Jesus will see right though that. It's OK to say "God, I’m not sure I love you, but I want to." Be honest with the Lord. T he key to loving Jesus is knowing Jesus . The more we allow ourselves to draw close to Jesus and really know him, the more we will love him. Peter begins to open up to Jesus in the right way when he says "Lord you know all things" (John 21:17). In spite of Peter's lack of agape love for Jesus, in spite of his guilt and shame, his mistakes, his impulsiveness, his weakness, and

Spiritual discipline as Willard defines it is "activity carried on to prepare us indirectly for some activity other than itself." In other words we don't do Bible reading just to read the Bible better, but to live the Bible better. The practice of righteous living helps prepare us to live righteously. Indirect discipline is often a bridge to get us to the next season or to bring us to the answers we're seeking. When I look back on my life, I can identify seasons when God had me practice disciplines that made no sense, but later on I realized how he was preparing me for the season to come. I'm so grateful for the leading of the Holy Spirit. A disciple lives by an active obedience kind of faith that follows Christ without needing to have all the answers. I encounter many Christians who have difficulty overcoming the simplest things and give in to the urge to say an unkind word, or act self righteously, or insist on being heard instead of hearing. To me this m

Willard is really challenging me with this book. He discusses how we've moved away from the realism of Jesus teaching or Paul's writing. In other words, we try to fit the truth into our life instead of fitting our life into the truth. Willard says we rest upon many centuries of interpreting Paul and other biblical writers in a "fanciful, sentimental, or 'spiritual' manner." Take for instance Paul's often used phrase "I die daily". This is usually accepted as an expression of attitude or spirit of self sacrifice and humility. The context of this phrase however, makes it clear that for Paul, this was not an attitude, but a daily way of life. Willard clarifies the this point in stating that Paul always referred to the life of a Christian disciple using language "realistically," but not always "literally."  So while Paul doesn't mean we literally crucify our flesh, he does mean we have to take definitive actions to remove th

Comments from The Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard Willard says the key to understanding Paul's intense devotion to Christ is to know that with all his weaknesses and failures, "he gave himself solely to being like his Lord. He lived and practiced daily the things his Lord taught and practiced." In other words, Paul was a disciple by Jesus definition in Luke 9:23. We tend to define a disciple very differently. I want to be clear here. A disciple is a learner, a follower of Jesus, and person who no matter how new to the faith, sincerely and truly desires to follow Christ. Being a disciple doesn't mean you have to be like Paul, but it does mean like Paul, you have to give yourself to the Lord and practice the things the Lord is teaching you daily. Its in the following, the continuing in Christ, in his practices, and in His Word that you are a disciple.  The problem occurs when we attempt to redefine what it means to be a disciple because we don't

One of the ways I like to get out and exercise is hiking. Its something I've enjoyed for many years, but as much as I appreciate God's beauty, I know its a lot of work hiking up some of those mountains. It doesn't always feel so good. Willard talks about how spiritual training and exercise were an expected practice in Paul's day. In our day however, "we tend to think of ascetic practices as oddities." I mentioned this yesterday, but I continue to be concerned at how much Christians compare themselves to others. Real Christlike selfless living disturbs us because it upsets our illusion of spiritual maturity. Its hard to be around someone who is actively practicing spiritual disciplines so we label them as odd or unusual instead of looking to learn from their spiritual practices. Willard makes a great observation asking "Where have we gotten this idea about doing what feels good?" This is probably the real reason why we avoid spiritual discipline

Why practice spiritual disciplines? Its important to answer this question for yourself before making any commitments to ascetic practices. In 1 Corinthians 9:24-17 Paul talks about the athlete who disciplines themselves, exercising self-control to run the race so they may obtain the prize. Do we view being a disciple of Christ as a race to run and a prize to be won? Are we that focused and set on committing our life to this purpose?  I have to say I'm not always there. Some days I'm focused on the race and I can feel the strength of the Lord, but other days I loose focus and get sidetracked in the worries of life. This is one reason why I find spiritual disciplines to be helpful. I need the constant reminder of fasting, solitude, or prayer to keep my mind centered on Christ. I am deeply concerned that the mindset today is often running just to stay ahead of others or to keep up the appearance of being a good athlete. Forget all that, throw off all the weights of religion, d

Sometimes I'd like to erase some phrases from a student's memory and let them re-learn them for the first time. I say that because these phrases get so over used and under stated that they hold little meaning. Phrases like "Live for Christ" can never be over stated in their importance. Every time I teach I can feel the Holy Spirit prompting me to dig down deeper in a person's heart and mind to plant the Truth in good soil. This has led to some good discussions on how we can realistically and practically live out what we're learning. A few weeks ago we had a great discussion in our Learning Group about living for Christ. Based on a discussion of the Apostle Paul's relentless pursuit of Jesus Christ which he records in Philippians 3, I came up with these five points to help us live for Christ daily. Live Focused - Be focused on Christ throughout your day, learn from him, meditate on him. Be intentional about asking the Lord for help. Living for Chr

In Matthew 11:29-30 Jesus says " Take my yoke upon you, and  learn from me, for I am  gentle  and lowly in heart, and  you will find rest for your souls.     For  my yoke is easy, and my burden is light . ” Willard tells us that this offer is real and is intended for the here and now. Jesus speak this to us "in the midst of this life where we labor and bear impossible burdens and cry out for rest." All we have to do Willard says is to grasp the secret of entering into that easy yoke. What is that secret?  I'm not sure how you feel, but I've always struggled with this passage. So often I've felt like the path of discipleship and spiritual disciplines is anything but easy and light. Maybe the problem is that we don't like to die to self or release our uncertainly, our fears, and our perceived control in life. This always produces a burden greater that we can bear. Willard says "The general human failing is to want what is right and important, but at