Recently I spent a little more than twelve days walking through personal darkness.

I could feel some of my issues coming on me. I had let myself get physically, emotionally, and spiritually tired. A few long days of work, a couple of big meetings, a little travel, and the culmination of months of prayer came together all at once. When the last event happened, I could feel the downward spiral into a personal crash.

Through the first phase of my struggle, I recognized my need for self-care. I want to be successful in my job, and I believe what I do is significant. So I push myself to pour my soul into every project, meeting, and sermon. Self-care is a big topic nowadays, and there is truth in the need to care for your own soul.

Situations beyond my control brought on the second part of my darkness. Other people had said and done things that hurt me. Almost nothing was done on purpose. Mistakes were made, and their struggles overflowed into my life.

During this time, I called other people to pray for me because of my darkness. I realized my need for a few people to support me spiritually. I did not have to try and make it alone. Sometimes the best action when drowning is to signal to others for help. While they physically did not do anything that benefited me. Their prayers have strengthened my faith and helped me to keep moving forward.

Whenever I share stories like this, I know a few people will not understand, and some will be critical and point out all my weaknesses as a pastor. But I am reminded of the Apostle Paul, who said he would glory in his weakness because that is when Jesus is strong. His power is made perfect in our weakness. I know that is true.

One of the most important questions you can ask as a Christian is simply, “What is the next step on my journey of faith?”

This answer is an ever-changing goal. It should have a different answer every time you ask it. Today it may be reading the Bible more. Next week it might be praying. The following week it could be serving. And the week after that, it might be fellowshipping with other believers.

There is a long list of things we must do to become mature believers and expand our faith. You cannot do everything all at once. But you do have the ability to do the next thing.

Today is the day that Christians like me celebrate Good Friday. It is the day we set aside to remember Jesus’ death on the cross specifically. We honor the day Jesus bled and died for our sins. We believe his body was broken and his blood shed so that we could have the debt paid for all our mistakes, failures, and trespasses.

The book of Hebrews underlines, along with Romans, that the work of Jesus is complete. He has done everything we needed for our salvation. Yet the Apostle Paul makes a remarkable statement in his letter to the Church in Colossae.

“Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.” (Colossians 1:24 – NIV 2011)

Paul says he is filling up in his flesh what is LACKING regarding Jesus’ suffering. What does that mean? I thought the cross was enough.

It was enough to secure our salvation, but it did not take the message of his saving work into all the world. The great Apostle recognized that people needed to be sent out to share their faith; as they did, some would suffer. The work of Good Friday is not complete until people have the chance to hear the message of Jesus.

Recently I heard a preacher talk about traveling to India on a mission trip. He stopped to speak to a group of village pastors about standing firm in their faith. One of the local leaders asked this preacher a simple question that left him speechless. He inquired, “Are there any scars on your body for Jesus?”

Today I praise God that Jesus was scarred, but I also pray that I will fill up in my body was that lacking in Christ’s affliction.

Christianity is filled with enormous concepts wrapped in an ancient setting that is relevant today.

The struggle is getting those foundational ideas across to the people so they see the relevance. As followers of Jesus, we need to not only know what we believe but also be able to explain it to others.

One rule of thumb is to ask yourself, “Could I explain it so that an elementary-aged child would understand it?”

This challenge will push you to think through your language and the big words often associated with faith. We will be required to take concepts and attach them to a word picture to make them easy to understand. Analogies, object lessons, and stories become necessary to show others exactly what we mean.

Christianity will always be deeply intellectual, but remember that CS Lewis could argue with professors logically and still teach children through Narnia.

The Church I lead started in 1888, according to historical records. It started on one side of the street and moved to the other several years later. Eventually, it would split and come back together in a new building on the outer edge of town. Altogether it has been serving the Lord in this community for 135 years.

Some days I sit in my office and ponder all the people who got this Church to this point. How many people sacrificed time and money to keep the Church going? How many pastors, elders, deacons, Sunday school teachers, worship leaders, trustees, treasurers, and secretaries gave countless hours to keep this Church functioning? How many lives were impacted throughout that time? How many people performed baptisms, shared communion, and ate together in the name of Jesus?

I am allowed to be the preacher at this Church by the grace of God and the hard work of an untold number of heroes of the faith. People whose names I will never know, yet they shaped the life of this Church. I am so thankful for some people I will never meet on this side of heaven.

The truth of the matter is that all of us will one day be forgotten. However, we still have the chance to impact future generations. We can be a hero in the faith to people we will never meet. Distant relatives and future generations will one day be blessed by our work in this Church.

I may not know the previous generations, just like future generations will not know me. They served the Lord, and I am blessed by it. Hopefully, further down the road, people will be thankful for the work you and I did too.

My inbox lately has been filled with emails asking me to sign up for a “master class.” They have ranged from a course on discipleship to marriage to cooking and even to hunting. These messages proudly proclaim that if you listen closely to the teaching, you will soon master the given topic.

Everyone who reads those advertisements knows that they are an overstatement. Becoming a master at any craft requires teaching, plus guidance and experience. The experience comes from numerous attempts that both try and fail. There are no shortcuts to developing the skills needed to accomplish what we desire. These classes may give us a solid starting point; the rest is up to us.

Jesus called twelve men to be his disciples. He offered them the ultimate master class. They sat at the feet of Jesus, our Lord and Savior, listening to him teach about life, faith, and eternity. Not only that, but he also mentored them through their first preaching adventures and helped develop their fledgling faith. He poured his life into them for over three years, trying to develop them into fully mature disciples. Despite all his tutelage, one of those twelve men denied knowing him, and one betrayed him. The other ten scattered when he went to the cross.

I suppose Jesus could have offered people to take his master class on faith, but he didn’t because he knew you could not master faith by listening to someone else teach. It requires you to attempt to do it for yourself. Fail. Then attempt to do it again and fail. Then try again and again.

This Sunday, I will preach and pour out everything in my heart to help people in their walk of faith. Every week I feel like I am teaching a master class on spiritual growth. Still, it will not help you if you do not try to implement it. And even then, you will repeatedly fail until you get it right. The only way to develop a mature faith is to spend a lifetime walking with the master.

She did something foolish. He looked at her, and she responded, “Just Don’t!” 

He said, “Don’t what?”  She glared and stated, “Don’t think it, don’t feel it, and don’t say it.”

The other day I was listening to a Christian rationalize their behaviors, and I thought, “Just Don’t.”

Don’t tell me you believe everything in your Bible, and then don’t read it.

Don’t say you love the Church and then rarely attend.

Don’t try to explain to me how much you need Jesus and then not pray regularly.

Don’t exclaim how the God of the Bible is the only god worthy of praise and then not sing on Sunday.

Don’t say Jesus and his death on the cross are the center of your life and then willingly miss taking communion with the body of believers.

Don’t proudly state how much you long for heaven and then not work to experience the kingdom of God on earth. 

The list of things I have heard through the years could go on and on. Everyone (including me) has a series of things they say that do not line up with their life. Whenever our eyes are opened to a new area of hypocrisy, we need to speak to ourselves, “Just Don’t.”

I recently attended a conference at a smaller church explicitly designed for preachers. Going into the situation, I had done a little homework and knew my tribe of Churches did not put it together. This gathering was the work of another denomination and some of their better-known preachers in my state.

Walking into a room of about 140 strangers is a weird feeling, most of whom have the same job as I do, but I did not know a single person. It was a little scary because I was unfamiliar with how they handled things and felt like I might do something wrong.

Eventually, the conference started, and no one noticed me. No one acknowledged I was there with even a handshake. As people took the stage, I felt like even more of an outsider. There were inside jokes among the people speaking, and I was clueless. The introductions were short, and I was unsure who was speaking and why. Everyone seemed to know each other and enjoy their time together. It was interesting to watch, but I knew the whole time that I was not part of the group.

Someone has to be brave to be an outsider to a community of people, yet hundreds and thousands of people will try it with the Church this Easter. They will muster up all their courage and walk into a group of strangers to grow closer to God.

The challenge for the community of faith is to make everyone feel welcome and for the insiders to reach out and talk to new people. They are to shake hands with them and ask them about their lives. They can offer to share a seat or show them around to make them feel at home. They can explain anything that might be confusing and help them get acclimated. Christians should do everything in their power to show the love of Jesus to people who attend their programs.

I spent two days as an outsider, and when the conference was over, I determined that I would never go back. I pray that no one feels that way after visiting your Church this Easter season.

Life is rough. The Christian life may be even more difficult. There is this tension between our belief in a good God and all the rough things we experience.

For a person to spend their entire life as a faithful follower of Jesus, they need tenacity. It is defined as “determination” or “persistence.” One more picturesque explanation is that tenacity is to “grip something firmly.” To grab something, hold on tight, and never let it go.

Living for Jesus is like hopping on a bucking bull. A person will have to grab a hand full of Jesus, squeeze firmly, and hold on for dear life. 

I often think that those who will make it to heaven are not the smartest, the most gifted, or even those whose life is full of blessing. It is for the tenacious.    

My tendency is to wait to order something until I need it. Amazon has reinforced this habit. With my prime membership, I can order almost anything and have it in two days. Last week the Church secretary ordered something in the morning, and it arrived on the doorstep by that night.

Because I live in a culture where everything seems accessible in 48 hours or less, I offer Amazon Prayers.

“God, I need something, and I need it right away. Thanks, in the name of Jesus.”

If God is greater than Amazon, he should have the same customer service or better. I want it now, in this color and at the lowest price.

Unfortunately, that is not how God works. God is more like ordering something a hundred years ago. It will take a long time, and you are never exactly sure when it will arrive. God works more like a covered wagon than an Amazon delivery truck.

The good news is that when God finally delivers, the product will be handmade, not plastic junk. It will be of the highest quality, and your joy will be enduring. Things that come on short notice from Amazon are usually great for an immediate desire, but they are not the type of product God delivers that meets our deepest needs.