Category: Lectureships (Page 7 of 11)

Whereby Earth Imitates Heaven

January 18, 2011 / Allan / 4 Comments

“The psalm blended all voices together, and caused one single fully harmonious chant to arise; young and old, rich and poor, women and men, slaves and free, all sang one single melody… All the inequalities of social life are here banished. Together we make up a single choir in perfect equality of rights and of expression whereby earth imitates heaven.” ~Ignatius, 110 AD

I had the most wonderful weekend singing with God’s children. You can’t believe all the singing.

Friday night and all day Saturday I was blessed to be able to sing praises to our Father with more than two thousand teenagers at WinterFest at the Arlington Convention Center. Over two thousand kids! Singing. Praising. Clapping. Stomping. Dancing. Twirling. Hand motions. Loud. Energetic. Enthusiastic. Singing of the very best kind. True offerings from the soul. Genuine praise and thanksgiving from the heart. The kind of singing that fosters Christian unity. The kind of singing that strengthens Christian bonds. The kind of singing that ushers one directly to the throne room of God.

I’ll bet we sang over a hundred different songs together at WinterFest Friday and Saturday. And not one of them — I promise — was written before 1980.

Sunday night, I was blessed to be able to sing praises to our Father with about two dozen of my Legacy brothers and sisters and another two dozen or so residents of the Sterling House Nursing Home in Richland Hills. As part of the NEXT challenge, our Small Group has teamed up with another to spend an hour with those sweet people at least once a month. About forty of us total Sunday evening. Singing. Praising. Toe tapping. Smiling. Head nodding. Amen-ing. Four part harmonies. Not too fast, not too slow. Just right. Singing of the very best kind. True offerings from the soul. Genuine praise and thanksgiving from the heart. The kind of singing that fosters Christian unity. The kind of singing that strengthens Christian bonds. The kind of singing that ushers one directly to the throne room of God.

I’ll bet we sang 25 different songs together at Sterling House Sunday night. And not one of them — I promise — was written after the Depression.

I want my children to take very seriously the words of Paul in Romans 12: In Christ, we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. That’s why our girls were right there with Carrie-Anne and me all weekend, with the crazy teenagers at WinterFest and with the sweet old people at Sterling House. I want my kids to see what I see, I want them to feel what I feel, to truly know what I know: that The Old Rugged Cross means as much to that older woman in the wheelchair as You Have Turned (my mourning into dancing, whoop! whoop!) means to that 12-year-old-girl clapping in the aisle. That it is critically important for the younger people to join in the congregational singing of Blessed Assurance and Anywhere with Jesus. And that it is just as important for the older people to join in the congregational singing of Days of Elijah and Lord, I Lift Your Name on High.

Why do the teens at WinterFest smile? Why do they sing? Because they’re expressing themselves to God — they’re declaring his praises and experiencing his grace — in their own style, in their own language, in their native tongue. They are free.

Why do the older people at Sterling House smile? Why do they sing? Same reason.

Now, does it give you joy to encourage a teenager in the faith? Does it bring you godly pleasure to tell a child he is important to you or that she is vital to your church family? Then why don’t you unfold your arms and wipe off that scowl and join them with gusto the next time your worship leader starts Blessed Be Your Name! Or is it only about you?

Teenaged brother or sister in Christ, does it make you feel good to encourage an older person? Does it lift your spirits to tell a senior citizen that she is vital to your church family? That he matters to you? Then why don’t you put down the iPhone and wipe the frown off your face and join them with gusto the next time your worship leader starts How Great Thou Art! Or is it only about you?

A gathering of God’s people all truly giving themselves to God in song really is incredible. But it only imitates heaven when the congregants are giving themselves to each other as well. The greatest joy I received and the greatest blessing I encountered over this wonderful weekend was in watching a couple of people almost twice my age shout out Couldn’t Keep It To Myself Friday night and watching the teens in our Small Groups sing A Wonderful Saviour Sunday night.

Earth really imitating heaven.

Peace,

Allan

The Choice

January 14, 2011 / Allan / 2 Comments

The Word of God confronts us with two ways. The Law and the Prophets, the Psalms and Proverbs, the Gospels and Letters all present us with the choice of two ways.

It’s not about where you’re going to live, what career you’re going to pursue, who you’re going to marry, or what you’ll have for lunch.

It’s the way of life or death. The way of blessings or curses. The way of God or the way of the world.

Yes, this one choice certainly impacts all those others. It encompasses and involves all those other decisions you make about where you work and where you live and who you marry. But there’s only one choice in Scripture: the way of life or the way of death.

God says, “Choose life!” ~Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Jesus says, “I am the Way.” ~John 14:5-7

When we choose Jesus, we choose the way of life and the way of blessing and the way of God. We sign up for a life of following Jesus along the way. We commit to walking behind him in his way. Doing things the way he does them. Speaking like he speaks. Thinking the way he thinks. Acting and loving and forgiving and submitting and obeying and serving and suffering and praying the way Jesus does.

It’s a choice we make every day. Every hour. A conscious and constant decision to allow the Holy Spirit of God to empower us and guide us in the Way of Jesus. It’s that first and continual step in asking God to show you what’s NEXT. In submitting to whatever NEXT he has in store for you. In jumping out of your comfort zone and whole heartedly embracing that NEXT that will further transform you into his holy image.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” ~John 14:6

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Speaking of choices: My annual Tulsa angst has begun. I just received an advance copy of the schedule for this year’s Tulsa Workshop from my friend Terry Rush and I find myself in the same spot I get into every year. How in the world do I choose?

Wednesday’s kick-off evening is easy. No choice. Praise and worship with Kip Long and a keynote address from Randy Harris. Awesome. But the anxiety kicks in early Thursday morning. At 9:00, do I go with the no-brainer, Don McLaughlin, on “Possibility Thinking: Nothing Less Than Winning the World” or Bill Campbell’s “For Church Leaders Only: How to Build a Healthy Congregation?” I could also go hear my friend Josh Ross on “Baptism: Transformed to Join in Jesus’ Mission.” And those are just three of the six possibilities for that hour!

More choices, of course, at 10:00. I’ll probably go with Randy Harris on “Jesus and the Quest for Cool.” But that means saying ‘no’ to Victor Knowles and my friend Dan Bouchelle and three other really interesting speakers and topics.

The 11:00 keynote is easy. No choice. Dusty Rush. No problem. Lunch is easy. I know we’re going to eat at that Mexican restaurant where we always run into Garth Brooks.

But it starts all over again at 2:00. How am I supposed to choose between Al Maxey’s “Breaking the Chains of Rigidity: Frail Hermeneutics” and Terry Rush’s “Adjusting Our Minds to Build Winning Congregations?” Are you kidding?

Same thing at 3:00. Again at 4:00. How does one choose between Marvin Phillips, Edward Fudge, Bobby Valentine, and Randy Harris? How do you choose between “Let the Chains of Spiritual Blinders Fall Away” and “The Unchained Holy Spirit” and “How to Break Free from the Chains of Those Who Won’t Change?”

And that’s just Thursday!

The Tulsa Workshop is one of the spiritual highlights of my every year. Have you never been? You have no idea what you’re missing. I encourage you to make the trip this year. March 23-26. Here’s the website with tons of info. There are special tracks this year for preachers and elders and worship leaders. Programs for the teens. Special stuff for the kids. You’ll be blessed by the worship, the study, the speakers, the fellowship, and the Holy Spirit of God. I really, really, really hope to see you there.

Peace,

Allan

Two Kinds of People

December 9, 2010 / Allan / 1 Comment

From the rumor mill… I just got off the phone with a very reliable source in Benton, Arkansas, the home of free-agent ace and savior Cliff Lee and the center of the baseball universe. (The source is a gospel preacher and a great friend of mine. It doesn’t get any more reliable!) The informant tells me that Lee’s granddad was in the downtown Benton bank this morning and was overheard telling a buddy, “Cliff’s going to sign with the Yankees. And we’re going to disown him from the family!”

You heard it here first.

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You will be wowed — quite possibly overcome — by this rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus. Click here to check out this very different version performed to the glory of God by the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. Set aside six minutes of your life and be blown away by this. If you’re an impatient Cretan, forward to the 2:25 mark and let it rip. I’ve never heard any arrangement like that. Ever. Not even close. Goosebumps, man. Big time. Wow.

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First Tulsa Workshop preview — You already know what a big fan I am of the annual Tulsa Workshop. Every March, it’s one of the most anticipated and rewarding spiritual highlights of my year. This year, Terry Rush and the Workshop organizers are planning several sessions that are dedicated specifically “For Elders Only” and “For Children’s Ministers Only” and “For Preachers Only.” The speakers for those special sessions include such heavyweights as Don McLaughlin, Rick Atchley, Al Maxey, and Terry himself. The elders sessions are going to be facilitated by the Memorial Drive shepherds. I can’t recommend that highly enough. I’ve been with those elders there. I’ve spent time with them. I’ve prayed with them. They’ve prayed for me. They’ve blessed me. They know what they’re doing. They’re elders in our Lord’s Church and they love it. If you can get your elders to Tulsa this year, do it! Terry provides a sneak peak at this part of the schedule on his blog here.

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“The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” ~1 Corinthians 1:18

There are two kinds of people: those who are dying and those who are being saved. Paul makes it pretty plain. All of Scripture confirms what the apostle knew. The message of Jesus — his life, his teachings, his death and resurrection — is difficult to accept. It doesn’t make sense with our contemporary eyes. It contradicts everything we’re taught by society. It flies in the face of contemporary culture. It’s offensive to the values of the country in which we live.

Honestly, it’s the exact opposite of some of our own strongly held beliefs and practices.

May our Father give us eyes to see Jesus as the Holy Son of God, not just a really good man; the belief to view the cross of Jesus as our eternal victory, not a scandalous or embarrassing defeat; the faith to embrace the Resurrection as our certain destiny, not just an amazing story; and the trust to submit fully to Christ’s eternal reign as something real for us, not just an abstract idea.

Peace,

Allan

Greetings from Abilene

September 22, 2010 / Allan / 1 Comment

Getting ready to begin our last day at the ACU Lectureship (Summit, sorry). Not enough time to write about all the friends, the great speakers, the encouragement, the Spirit-led worship, the fellowship, the challenge, the encouragement, the study, the conversations, and encouragement.

Did I mention the encouragement?

Had lunch at Rosa’s here yesterday with a bunch of our Legacy kids who are going to school here at ACU. Hello from Payton, Travis, Ashley, Haley, Shannon, and Mackenzie! Man, I see great potential in these guys. God-ordained potential. His creative genius at work right now in them. Just in the brief conversations we had over tacos and enchiladas, I perceived that they’re growing in our Lord. They, too, are being challenged and provoked and stretched. They’re reading Claiborne. They’re being forced to read Claiborne.

I wish I could force people to read Claiborne.

I’m about a third of the way through Shane Claiborne’s book, Jesus for President. Claiborne’s speaking in Moody Coliseum today at 3:00. And then Eddie Sharp tonight. This might be the best of the four days here.

I’m a little worried about our Rangers. Ceej stops the skid tonight.

Peace,

Allan

Tough Prayer

September 21, 2010 / Allan / 0 Comments

I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed for you or laid aside by you,
enabled for you or brought low by you.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
you are mine, and I am yours. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

I Feel the Need for Stream

August 25, 2010 / Allan / 0 Comments

It’s impossible to put into words how God moved me last year at Stream DFW. I can’t tell you — I don’t even know where to start — all the ways God used people and events and his Holy Word and circumstances and songs and sermons and his Holy Spirit to break me, wake me, and shake me.

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting from my first ever Stream. I’d never attended a Stream event. But it turned out to be so much more than I imagined. Through the use of congregational singing and dramatic readings and timely video dramas and silence and meditation and prayer, Ken Young and the Hallal Singers took all of us straight to God’s throne room, right into his presence. An hour of that and then another hour of Jeff Walling. Three times. A true focus on God’s surpassing love for us and our response to him through our own love for the Father and for one another and for the world.

Wow.

This year’s Stream DFW is approaching quickly. September 10-12 at the South MacArthur Church of Christ in Irving. And I need it. Oh, brother, do I need it.

It seems like this whole year has been so incredibly hectic. At times, frantic. Changes within our body of shepherds. Ministers coming and going. A trip to Ukraine. An abundance of difficult situations with over-burdened families here at Legacy. Church budget issues. Speaking engagements. Programs. Classes. It’s been go! go! go! non-stop, it seems, all year long.

I feel the need for Stream.

It’s so easy to get so caught up in church. Church issues. Church people. Church programs. Church meetings. Church politics. Church business. Church planning. Church. Church. Church. I feel like it’s been a long time since I just sat in silence before God and reflected on his great mercy and love. It’s hard to do that in our church worship assemblies. There’s so much to experience, so much to soak up, so much to acknowledge and share when it comes to God and his people, it’s impossible to do it all in the 75-minutes we have on Sunday mornings. Impossible. Sometimes we try, and that makes everything feel even more rushed. And hectic. And frantic.

Stream is a time to settle down for a whole weekend and enjoy the transforming presence of our God. No cell phones, no clocks, no meetings, no other place to be or other tasks to accomplish. We lose ourselves in long extended times of praise and worship and prayer and deep reflection on God’s revelation to his people.

Terry Rush is the speaker this year. I’ve never listened to anyone more humble, more completely aware of the grace of God, more grateful for his status as a child of the King, more encouraging to those around him than Terry. The theme is “At the Cross.” Terry is going to share with us the simplicity and the power of the cross that gives us eternal life. The good news of the cross that heals the wounded, strengthens the weak, and gives hope to the weary. Terry will be excellent. Stream DFW will be excellent.

And I need it.

Hope to see you there.

Peace,

Allan

Category: Lectureships (Page 7 of 11)

Whereby Earth Imitates Heaven

The Choice

Two Kinds of People

Greetings from Abilene

Tough Prayer

I Feel the Need for Stream

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