This October will mark 25 years I have been a preaching minister in a local Church setting. This journey has led me to two student ministries while attending college. Since then, I have also worked in four local Churches, one of which I started from scratch.

Over those 25 years, I have seen some changes in the Church. Not only has worship changed, but also the technology in the worship setting has radically improved from the instruments to computers. Methods have changed, personal technology is now a thing, and it seems every year brings new ideas that are meant to help people love God and their neighbor.

Each year I push myself to do the very best I am able at my job. Recently, I told someone that I was doing my best as their pastor and later I thought I should expand that thought.

I am trying to do my best at …

1. Learning about God through his word. Over the last ten years, I have dedicated more and more time each week to reading the Bible and understanding what it says. This results in an extended period of Bible study each day along with hours spent reading articles online and in magazines beside my traditional books. I want to know more about God so that I can lead the Church from my reservoir of information.

2. Listening to the voice of the Spirit. For me, this could be captured with two words: prayer and reflection. Each day I want to spend quality time in prayer about my family, myself and my work. Then I want to couple that to moments of reflection where I can process how God is leading and what he is trying to tell me through circumstances and people.

3. Meeting the needs of the congregation. Every week when I write a sermon I ask myself, “What can I say that will be helpful to this group of people?” Do people need to hear about marriage, parenting, spiritual growth, or a variety of other Christian topics? I want to speak only after I have observed and listened carefully. This influences my sermons and series, the classes at the Church and the programming we offer.

4. Using the best practices for growth. Not only do I read books about Biblical topics, but I also absorb as much material as possible about what other Churches are doing. I want to know what is working for others that leads people to spiritual growth along with numerical growth. I try to keep my finger on the pulse of Church trends in the United States. I never want to lead a Church with methods that worked many years ago but are no longer effective.

5. Applying everything I have learned. God has taught me so much through the last 25 years and beyond. I have personally tried and failed at more programs and projects than I care to remember. I have gained knowledge about people and seen the typical responses to situations. These lessons are not wasted information reserved for conversations about the good old days. These are stones I am using to build the kingdom more effectively where God has called me to minister.

These are the things I spend most of my time doing.

Please notice that there is a long list of things I am not trying to do. I am not trying to make everyone happy. I am not trying to hold onto the past while neglecting the future or vice versa. I am not trying to make a name for myself. I am not even trying to get people to like me.

I am trying to please God through my leadership in the local Church. One day I will stand before him, and he will ask me to give an account for all that I have done. He will be the final judge of my work. I hope it inspires people and leads them closer to God. I hope some people do like me, but I primarily want to please God above all else.

A teacher once wrote a single word on a piece of writing I turned in for a grade that has affected all my writing since then. I forget what I wrote, but I remember his word distinctly. He wrote in capital letters, “TRITE.”

At the moment I had no idea what that word meant. I quickly went and looked it up in the dictionary. It is “an overused word, phrase or opinion and consequently of little importance; lacking originality or freshness.” The teacher thought my wording was an expression that meant nothing anymore because of its overuse. Trite.

When I listen to Christians tell me the story of the events of their lives I frequently want to stop them and say, “Trite.” They continually use words and phrases that mean nothing.

One of the most commonly used phrases has to do with prayer. Often Christians will tell me “I have spent a lot of time in prayer over this matter.” It is always stated in the past tense and emphasizes the length of time spent praying. They want other people to know that this decision was not of their own devices, but rather a God-inspired move.

Usually, I have one follow-up question to this trite old expression. I want to know “Would your actions have been different if you had not prayed?” It seems that for most people the answer to their prayers was almost identical to the answer they were already seeking. For example, they thought it was time for a job change and lo and behold they felt God saying the same thing. They thought it was time to quit a particular ministry in the Church and they prayed. Guess what? God said the same thing.

So I want you to ask yourself a couple of questions about your prayers.

1. Are you genuinely praying for God’s will or yours be done? Do you even see a difference?

2. Where are you seeking for answers? Are you talking only to people who like you, agree with you and are influenced by you for insight? They may be very biased. Are you asking Christians with a deep spiritual walk?

3. What constitutes an answer to your prayers? Is a gut feeling enough? Are you looking for a sign? If so, what kind of sign do you seek?

4. Does the answer to your prayer align with scripture? God does not contradict himself.

5. Is the answer you seek pushing you to a greater dependence on God? God rarely uses the path of least resistance.

It is quite possible that some people say things like this just to make themselves sound spiritual. I will give you the benefit of the doubt. I believe you really are praying. I just want you to be careful with the answers you seek. I have seen people do very ungodly things saying it was God directed.

My teacher was right; some expressions are trite. I assume the one I used in the paper that day was a fitting example. But I hope for Christians that our talk about prayer cannot be described by the same word.

Are your prayers seeking God’s direction for your life or do you hope your will be done?

When I think of my dad, my heart overflows with wonderful memories. My mind can vividly picture moments with my boys, quiet conversations with me and holidays full of joy. There are so many precious memories that fill my soul about my father.

Do you want to know the truth? Not every day was great. There were times when dad and I did not get along at all. He disciplined me as a teen, and I responded in anger. He infuriated me as a young parent a couple of times that I thought would end our relationship. He embarrassed me as an adult with some of his comments. There are probably as many bad memories associated with my father as good ones. I just chose to put those in the past and let them go.

Every relationship you have is the same way. You have this with your parents, your children, your spouse, and every other person in your life. They are full of good memories that you cherish and bad experiences you regret. The question is, “Which encounters do you choose to remember the most?”

The Apostle Paul makes an interesting statement in 1 Corinthians 13. This is the chapter that is often called “the love chapter.” You may have heard it read at a wedding even if you have never read it yourself. There Paul gives us a list of things that love does and does not do. In verse 5 he says, “it keeps no record of wrongs.” In other words, chose to focus your thoughts on the good and forget the bad stuff.

This seems so elementary, but somehow, we forget it. In fact, in most cases where people are struggling in a relationship, it is because they have flipped this idea over in their heads. They can remember with precise detail every lousy action and forget the good ones. It happens in every situation but is most powerfully demonstrated in marriage. Slowly a person comes to the point where they only see negative actions and totally ignore any good behavior.

The challenge of having people in your life as a believer is always to stay focused on the good. Yes, people are still sinners and will continue to behave badly. They are also children of God who can do incredibly good things. Which one will you choose to remember?

Grace is easy to accept, living in light of it is difficult. In the work of Jesus on the cross, this amazing thing happens; He takes our penalty, and we get freedom from sin. We call that action the grace of God. It is the cornerstone of the Christian faith, and all we have to do is accept it. We then spend the rest of our lives following Jesus example and living out his teachings. It seems like this should be easy to do since grace was so simple to accept. The harsh reality is that walking the path of faith with Jesus is usually a challenge. Here are some of the things I find the most challenging to people.

1. Learning Does Not Come Natural. When I ask people, especially men, to read their Bible, I usually get a “Yeah; I should” response. Then when I press them on the issue I frequently encounter the same struggle, “I know I should read the Bible, but I hate to read.” I know this is true because this was once me. For years and years, I struggled to read my Bible. I could get into magazines because of the short nature of the writing, but I found the Bible was much more difficult. It took at least a year of focused reading and let’s be honest; some parts are boring. Finally, one day I started listening to the Bible on tape, and my world changed. Eventually, I went to a CD player, and now I have an app on my phone. I can listen, even when I don’t want to read. I found that I had to work to discover ways to learn the Bible. It seems like it should come easy, but anything worth knowing usually takes work. This is true in the life of faith. Learning the things of God are not comfortable, convenient or fun. They require hard work and concerted effort.

2. Faith Requires Us to Do Difficult Things. When you chose to follow Jesus, you are not choosing the path of least resistance. Most often you will find yourself having to ignore your feelings and do the right thing. In fact, our natural inclinations are usually wrong. Jesus calls me to respond to anger with love and to see past the hate to offer kindness. The way of Jesus pushes me to confront sin and expose my shame. The Christian life is a call to stand up for what is right when everyone else is doing wrong. I wanted my journey of faith to be wide and easy and Jesus made is narrow and difficult.

3. There is Resistance on Every Side. I thought the majority of people would be happy that I was a nice moral believer who seeks to follow Jesus. Nothing could be further from the truth. On one side some non-believers do not want to hear about sin or morality. On the other side were Christians who were convinced I was living my faith wrong. Both inside and outside of the Church were people more than willing to point out my every flaw in thought and action. The support I thought would be there was usually nonexistent. I found myself facing a tide of people who did not care about my soul or my walk with God.

Whenever I meet someone who acts like faith is easy, and their journey with Jesus is all sunshine and flowers, I know they are putting on an act. I often compare it with sports. The best players are not the ones where everything comes easy. The best players are those who rise early and arrive before everyone else, they work the hardest and stay the latest. They are people who work hard to achieve. The Christian life is not so different. If you want to be the best version of you, then it will take work every day, day in and day out.

I wish I could tell you the journey of faith is easy, but it is not. So today, instead of whining and complaining, why don’t you pick yourself up and go to work.

There are no Christian things. There are no Non-Christian things. There are just things.

Your phone is just a thing. Your computer is just a tool. Your children’s sports are only activities. Your job is just work. Your hobbies just fill time. Everything in your life is a thing.

These things can be used for God. You can use your phone to read the Bible and have devotions. You can use your TV to watch educational and uplifting programs. Your hobbies and activities can bring you closer to God and give you a witness to the world about your faith in Jesus. Every tool can be used in some way to promote the kingdom of God in your life and society.

These things can also be used for evil. That same phone can distract you from your marriage and things that matter. That computer can be a portal to the vilest forms of sexual misconduct known to humanity. Your hobbies and activities can separate you from God and his community of believers. Every tool can be used in some way to drive a wedge between you and God while hurting your Christian witness.

The items are neutral, but your use of them is not. Are the things in your life bringing the kingdom of God to earth or are they a tool of evil? Your choice will be seen in your actions.

The hard part, the Bible says that Satan likes to parade as an angel of light. He is also described as the father of lies. One of his primary actions is to take things that look good and use them for evil. He likes to use subtle lies to twist our thinking and make good things turn negative. I want everything to be black and white, and the Devil paints with gray.

The challenge of our lives to evaluate our actions to their logical outcome with total honesty. Are you using the things in your life for God or are you being deceived? That is a more difficult question to answer.

This week is the funeral of Billy Graham. His passing resulted in a plethora of articles written by bloggers like myself. While I appreciate the life and work of Mr. Graham, the articles posted about him have left me a little concerned.

Several of the articles I read spoke of Billy Graham as a “hero” of the faith. Personally, I am incredibly uncomfortable with that type of language.

First, it begins to separate the followers of Jesus into different categories. This is represented in other ways with titles like “clergy and laity.” It is a subtle shift from the “priesthood of all believers” to preachers somehow being closer to God and more admirable. Let me ask you, is Billy Graham any better in God’s sight than a lady who spends 50 years quietly teaching the children of the Church with no recognition?

Second, it continues to promote a “celebrity” culture in the Church. I cannot say this any more clearly, “I hate this thinking.” I believe we must be cautious about placing people of faith on a pedestal no matter what they have done. Once someone is lifted up, it is easy for them to become the object of our worship. Subtly we shift our faith into that person, and everything they say is correct. Then when some sin becomes public, our faith is shattered. I believe we are all equal in God’s sight no matter what we have said or done.

Third, Jesus is the true hero. In Paul’s first letter to the Church at Corinth, he posses an interesting question in the first chapter. He asks, “Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?” Paul saw clearly that he was not the Savior. Jesus is our Savior. Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. A friend of mine used to argue that the word we translate as “author” in that passage should be “hero.” Christ alone is the hero of the New Testament and the Christian faith.

With all that said, I appreciate the life and work of Billy Graham. To be a hundred percent honest I have listened to only a little of his preaching and never read anything he wrote. His influence was most significant before my time in ministry. He was in his 70’s before I ever preached my first sermon. Everything I know about the man was that his life was devoted to telling people about Jesus. I understand that he proclaimed Christ as Lord and Savior to everyone he encountered while maintaining his integrity. I admire him for his work in the Lord. He was a simple man doing the Lord’s work.

I hope and pray that will be the story of my life. I want no monuments or plaques. I desire for no one to build me a memorial or name a building after me. I just want to be known as a man who God used to accomplish his work.

I will never be as well-known as Billy Graham and neither will you. That does not mean that we live inferior lives. God has a plan and purpose for you. Will you let God use your life?

Even a non-reader of the Bible probably knows the story of the prodigal son. While they might not be able to tell you the book, chapter, and verse of the Bible, they do know the basics. They know of a boy who grew up knowing right from wrong and then wandered away from his beliefs and background. This is a universal story of a person growing up into adulthood through the process of making poor decisions.

It is a familiar story to non-believers and believers alike, but it is a painful story for all parents. Its words haunt me as a Christian father. I do not want my children to grow up through mistakes and poor judgment. I want them to do what is right every day for the rest of their lives. For this reason, I continually go to Luke 15 and read this story with my eyes wide open.

When I read this story, I find a few important reminders for me.

1. The Father is Overly Permissive. The story begins with a boy asking for his inheritance. He is basically telling his father that he would rather he was dead. If my children came to me and said, “Dad, I wish you were dead, now give me my share as if you were.” I would say unequivocally, “No way.” Yet, this father who represents God sees a bigger picture. He knows the heart of a young person and doesn’t fight it. Maybe there is little value is yelling them out the door.

2. The Possibility of Prayer. It is not mentioned in the story, but I know this as a parent. I pray and pray and pray for my children. I would like to imagine this dad taking every opportunity to ask God to open his son’s eyes and heart.

3. Plan for a Painful Return. I cannot escape the image of the father seeing his son from a long way off. I picture this old man looking down the road every day with tears in his eyes. I imagine him questioning his own actions. “What did I do wrong as a parent?” And yet, each day he watches and waits, never giving up.

4. He Loves “In Spite Of.” When his son returns, he runs down the road and embraces him. His actions are full of forgiveness and love. He does not question his past or the depths to which he has sunk. The past is left behind, and the focus is on the future.

5. The Place in the Family is Restored. The boy comes home with a speech about how he is willing to live as a hired hand. The father in his grace returns him to his rightful place as a son. There appears to be no lingering judgment or subtle anger toward the boy.

I often wonder if I could be like this father. The parable is about God and reveals his perfect actions as a father therefore I must ask myself, how much I am like God. As my boys go out into the world, I know there will be prodigal seasons. I ask God to let them be short and educational. But I also ask God to prepare me for their actions while he is teaching them.

The prodigal heart is natural for anyone to understand. Finding the father’s heart is difficult for everyone.

Bored one night my wife and I ended up watching the BRIT music awards. Honestly, I did not even know such a thing existed. It is an award show for the music of the British people and somehow we as Americans got sucked into watching. I assume it happened because my wife enjoys Ed Sheeran music and he was performing, but that is another story.

We watched the show enjoying some music we had never heard before that night. As we watched, I noticed something interesting to me continually resurfacing. The people who won the awards and performed live were not perfect singers. The music sometimes came with a gravelly voice. Many times, you could hear that the singer had very little formal vocal training. They were frequently flat and missed the proper note. And yet, this was the music that people appeared to enjoy the most.

Then I listened to the lyrics. Quite often the songs contained misshapen rhymes forced to fit a particular theme. Sometimes the phrases were very personal, and I had no idea what they were singing about until I did a google search. Their words were a mottled mess that somehow communicated their feelings.

While watching this display of music, my heart was drawn into four songs that I quickly downloaded and have listened to a few times now. Even with modern editing equipment they still have rough edges and oddly formed tunes.

This reminds me that the world is not looking for perfect. They are looking for you.

On an even more profound level, God wants you. He wants you to use your gifts, your words and your story. It is okay if you are not the best in the room. Take the message of God and pull it through your life making your own unique sound. Even if the words are pitchy and misshapen, especially if it is like that, God can touch the life of another person through your story.

Stop striving to be the best and learn to be yourself as God made you.

It will go down in history as one of the most awkward moments in Church history.

The Apostle Peter was a man known for his powerful preaching and witness to the resurrection. He spent three years with Jesus and led the inauguration of the Church. Luke tells the story that one day Peter was sleeping on a roof and had a vision from God. He saw all kinds of animals being let down by a sheet and heard a voice tell him to eat. At that moment, God declared all animals and all people clean. From that moment on Peter shared the gospel with the gentile people and ate their food.

The book of Acts does not record much more of the story. In Acts 15 the Church discusses this change, and the story moves forward. Later, the Apostle Paul writes a letter to the Church in the city of Galatia, and he shares another significant incident. In the second chapter of his letter it says, “When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he was clearly in the wrong.” The next few verses explain that Peter was afraid of a group of Jews, so he started to separate himself and refused to eat with the Gentiles.

Apparently, it was a banner day in the Church at Antioch. They had not one, but two Apostles at Church along with the Barnabas. They were so excited to spend time with them that they held a fellowship lunch and invited everyone to hang around to talk. Paul watches Peter and when he refuses certain foods and then goes to sit at the “Jews Only” table of the lunchroom. Paul gets up and walks across the room and confronts Peter face to face, telling him the error of his ways.

I imagine a silence falls across the room as Paul raises his voice to Peter and Barnabas at their unchristian behavior. Can you say, “Awkward?”

The whole scene reminds me of an essential truth. All preachers, teachers, writers, and speakers are flawed in some way. They are still sinners redeemed through the work of Jesus. It is a warning to all followers of Jesus that human teachers are still prone to errors. Even the great Apostle Peter was wrong in his leadership and actions in front of the Church.

Sometimes I fear that we like something about a leader that we forget their shortcomings. We accept everything without doing our own study and research. We don’t ask questions of the words we are hearing. We trust the teacher and quietly believe everything they say. The honest truth is that no leader is perfect.

Now, that does not mean you have to be a jerk to them, obnoxiously tearing apart every word and idea as God’s critic. It also does not mean that you drink up every word without question. The middle ground of reasonable questions mixed with loving trust is hard to find, but we must seek it.

Peter was wrong. Sometimes I am wrong. Your favorite speaker and teacher are sometimes entirely wrong. It might seem obvious to say, but in the world of the internet, everyone seems to forget that truth.

With all the ice in our area, I have been home and reading a great deal lately. Here are some of the best articles I have read.

4 Things I Learned from Stealing Credit Cards and Buying Beer in High School

Adults who went undercover at a high school found 7 things people don’t realize about life for teenagers today – This article is a synopsis of a longer article on Business Insider. Click the link to read the full article.

10 Questions I Wonder if Churches Ever Ask …

Too Busy to Love My Neighbor

What We Did With All Our Free Time

Does It Bother You That God Barred Moses from the Promised Land?

The Little Known Story of Olympian Eric Liddell’s Final Years – Longer article but good stuff if you liked Chariots of Fire.