1:1:1a

“In the beginning God...”

In the beginning, there was God. This is a fact that I tend to overlook a lot however I believe whole heartedly that it should be the first thing we think about before we try to do anything. It is so crucial before we begin any new task, attempt to tell any great story or establish any personal ethos that we understand that everything has a beginning and that it is always preceded by the existence of God. In the beginning there was God...Period!

God is before all things. He is before our successes and he is before our failures. When life was formless a void, he was there and while very few of us live life like this, he is still here today in the midst of our own chaos and uncertainty.

Everything finds its being in and through him. This too is a crucial fact that must be understood if we are to truly understand ourselves and our place in this world. There is a God, and everything that is comes from him. If we are to understand our own being, our origins, our nature, and our future, we must first begin with the source and beginning of it all, God.

Wow! This message comes to us from just the first four words in the Bible. It almost seems that when the author of Genesis became caught up in the presence of holy spirit, the first thing that came to mind was the first thing itself, God. Nothing about feelings, or theology, or church government, just God. What if we were all willing to put everything else on the shelf for a little while each day and focus on our own beginnings? What if we were constantly reminded that while we are writing our our story, we all share a common beginning and history, God. His story is our story. His history is our history. God then, God now, God tomorrow. God.

He Never Lets Go

This week, I cannot help but be reminded of the unmerited yet unconditional love, grace, and providence God. One year ago today I visited The Divinity School at Wake Forest University for the first time. I remember that trip like it was yesterday. I arrived the night before, checked into my hotel room, and proceeded to perform my ritual of walking the campus of the prospective school that I was visiting. This night was cold. Snow was still on the ground and as I drove onto campus, I saw Wait Chapel glowing like a beacon of possibilities. I walked up to the doors of the building and to my surprise, they were unlocked. I walked in through the rotunda and up the dimly lit stairs. I rambled my way through the maze that I now simply know as the second floor and as I descended down the opposite dimly lit staircase, I heard music. This music was different from that which I heard coming from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, much newer. The music was also not like that I was accustomed to hearing during my progressive Sunday morning church service, it was older. Come to think of it, this music was not new or old, it was just music. I will never know who or what was producing the sounds that I could ringing from Davis Chapel, but I’m pretty sure that it was at that moment that I knew I would end up at Wake. After a stroll through the glory that is Wait Chapel at night, a walk around the quad, and quick look at the library, I returned to my car, and went back to the hotel.

The next day, though not nearly as spiritual was every bit as exciting. That morning I sat in an interview with Dr. Bill Leonard, Dean of the Divinity School. As we talked, I remember wondering what it would be like to attend a school like Wake. Little did I know that less than a year later, Dr. Leonard and I would meet weekly to discuss historical and emerging church happenings while drinking wine. I had lunch on campus in the Magnolia Room. Not quite the elitism of a gothic Ivy League dinning hall but every bit as classy. I remember I enjoyed the way this Baptist “did lunch” much more than some of the New England schools that I had visited. These people knew how to eat, and they knew how to do it on linen table cloths. That afternoon, I sat in the same church history lecture that I sat in today, Dean Leonard’s classic talk on the early 16th Baptist and how he considers himself to be on. Knowing my own love hate relationship with my own Baptist heritage, I felt that I too could be a 16th century Baptist. Too new to be institutionalized with a clear link to the past. I think that just about sums me up.

I am taking this trip down memory lane because I have found myself amazed at the grace of God that is at work in us when we follow our hearts. I needed Wake Div, and not only did God know that, but He gave me the desires of my heart. This week, everything feels just like it did then. From the lecture to the several feet of snow that has fallen this winter, Wake is everything I hoped it would be and more.

There are rainbow stickers on the faculty doors at the divinity school that read, “A Safe Place at Wake.” I remember these stickers being the one problem I had with Wake a year ago. They symbolize the inclusive space that Wake Div is for all people, without any question of their of race, gender, sexuality, or theology. Now regardless of how you feel about that statement (and to be honest I’m still not sure how I feel about it), I too needed a “Safe Place at Wake.” I needed a place to explore my own theological vision and to experience others doing the same. I needed to be in a place where I had the freedom and the safety to be me, without feeling like I had to hide in the shadows or conform to the fundamental background that I come from. I needed a place to spend three years following Jesus, sitting a his feet asking the hard questions. I have found that at Wake, and I feel strongly that it is an expression of the unconditional love, grace, and providence of God.

Now, may you too have the freedom to follow your own heart, and the courage to resist the institutionalization of your soul.


“What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? What could you ever trade your soul for?” --Jesus (The Message)

Do You Have What It Takes?

Do you ever ask God to make you into something? To give you a gift or the ability to complete a job that has been put before you? I do this all the time! I am constantly asking God to give me the drive, patience and ability to remain focused on my daily tasks. It usually goes like this…"God, will you motivate me to study my languages?" "God, I really need to finish this book review, would you please give me the ability to do so?" "God, will you give me the words I need to write this message or paper?" And the list goes on.

The good news is, not only will God always give us what we need, He already has. "in everything, you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge…so that you are not lacking in any gift…" (I Corinthians 1:5-7). Oswald Chambers has this to say about it…

"Jesus Christ labored in redemption to redeem the whole world and to place it perfectly whole and restored before the throne of God."

We have been equipped and we lack nothing! God has already given us everything we need to complete not only our most basic everyday tasks, but even the great works He will have us do. This is a truth that I desperately needed to be reminded of this morning as I was asking God to motivate me and give me what I needed to get through the day. His answer was simple, "I already have, you just have to make the decision to use it."

"The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:41)

Memories

Tonight feels a lot like my first two years of college. It's midnight, but instead of heading to bed, i'm awake listening to Ryan Cabrera, writing, and "visioneering" about the future. I have been thinking a lot about this question…you know, the one question that always seems to loom over us every time we reach any particular goal in life…"what's next?" Graduate college, check. Get married, check. Get into graduate school, check. Start a career, check.

At every junction, once we take that next step, we always want to know what's next. Right now I'm reading a book by Edward Wimberly, a professor at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta called "Recalling Our Own Stories." In this work, Wimberly claims that the best way for us to continue to progress in life spiritually and in ministry is to regularly return to "our original motivation for ministry as a means of renewal." Remember the moments, the people, the locations, the music, the books, and the art that shaped your vision, and let them serve as devices for measuring your current direction. In other words, allow yourself, as I am tonight, to become nostalgic.

"Renewing our motivation by reconnecting to our original call allows us to visualize again how God has decisively acted in our lives at crucial junctures. It reminds us that God has been intricately involved in our lives. The routine duties of ministry and life take on new meaning when looked at in light of the call." - Wimberly

Remember the way you were when life was simple and all you had was a vision. Remember the way you felt before things became so busy. Remember the way you looked at your wife before your marriage became overshadowed by bills and routine. Remember.

This is not a new idea, its been around. In the Old Testament, Joshua has the children of Israel pick up stones as they cross the Jordan so that they would not forget all the wonders God had done for them. In the New Testament, Paul writes to Timothy and tells him to kindle afresh the gift of God that is in him. In other words, make new that which you already know or have. Even today, Andy Stanley, in almost all of his books on leadership, encourages us to remain true to our vision and keep it at the forefront of everything we do.

So this is where I am tonight. I'm trying to remember who I once was, and I'm praying it leads me to who I am going to be. I am trying to remember all those cold Atlanta winter nights 5 years ago with the best friends a guy could ever ask for. Staying up late dreaming of what we might be used to accomplish in this life. I'm thinking of when I first met my wife, it was about this time a year. God hasn't changed, the vision is the same, remember.

Do you Remember?

Life Happens Here

If you have been to my hometown of Atlanta, you know the exact place I am talking about, Atlantic Station. I remember when Atlanta's first live, work, and play property opened, my friends and I were were absolutely inspired by the new locations tagline, "life happens here." We were in college, just beginning our careers, and the many possibilities of 21st century ministry was the topic of every conversation. I remember chatting one night about the new Atlantic Station, it's irresistible location, and the simple truth that life truly happened there. I remember one of us asking, "what if church was that way?" What if every church experience provided an irresistible environment leaving every attender feeling as if they had just experienced real life. Is your church like this? Could you honestly say "at [insert church name here] life happens here?" I think there are many steps that could be taken to create such an environment, but since I am a communicator, I will speak from my own experience.

As a communicator, my number one goal is to challenge my audience to live the life they have always dreamed of. I cannot tell you how many times students and young adults approach me wanting to know what God's will is for their lives and what they can do to make their lives count for something bigger than themselves. I love these moments because it gives me the opportunity to share the best advice that I ever received which I also believe is "God's will" for all of our lives.

"Do what you love, and live inside the means that it provides" one of my father's co-workers once told me. Could it be that easy? I think so! You don't have to bag six figures and you don't have to be a starving artist, you just have to do what you love. I think Saint Irenaeus said it best when he told us "the glory of God is a heart fully alive." I had the privilege of having lunch yesterday with a guy who is putting this concept into practice

Jac is a tobacco chewing, Jesus loving, college freshman who will tell you that he is "eat-up with NASCAR fever." Jac is also in student leadership at our church. The coolest thing about Jac is that he has found passion in life, and he is going after it. For most of his life, Jac's parents pushed him consider a career in business, pushing papers in an office and making lots of money. All that is great, but that's just not Jac. As he was about to graduate high school, Jac decided to take a chance. With his love for stock car racing, Jac decided to attend a local community college with a program in motor sports management and engineering (this is North Carolina). Jac is now training to be a tire carrier for a NASCAR team and the word on the street is, he's gonna make it!

So whats the point? The point is that we must live a life full of passion! Without passion, there is no life. Jac isn't going to make a lot of money working on race cars, but he loves what he does. What an inspiration! As leaders, I truly believe that it is our job to encourage and inspire those inside our spear of influence to follow in Jac's footsteps a live lives of passion. It was after all Jesus himself who said to "love God with all your heart (i.e passion)."

So today my challenge to you is simply to do that which you love. Find a way to use your God-given passions and skills in a way that will challenge and inspire those around you to do the same. I really do believe that is the meaning of life, and that this is exactly what God wants for all of us.

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - Howard Thurman

ACG

A Poem For The New Year

I am not a poet. I love poetry; I enjoy reading it and have the highest respect for masters of this art however because of this, I cannot ever claim to be a poet. I struggle with rules, rhymes and meter and while I have been educated by two of the finest universities in the South, my grammar often returns to its rural Georgian roots. With all that said, this “poem” came to me while I was driving from Winston-Salem, North Carolina back to Atlanta for a New Year’s Eve party in the city. I found the message to be personally challenging and would like to share it with you. Again, please remember that I am not a poet. I know that these words have probably broken several rules of poetry and that my former literature professors would be outraged. Still, I hope that you hear and enjoy these words and allow them to inspire you to make life in 2010 a little better than in years the past.


2010

New years come as the old years go,
Through the spring, summer, autumn, and snow.
A thousand promises left unkept,
And resolutions all but met.
Millions pray for a slate washed clean,
For all the things they have not seen.
And liberation from the wake,
Of all the risks they did not take.
To make the world a better place,
Perhaps less fallen from their grace.
Our New Year truth shall always be,
We know not our humanity.
Failed this world to show brothers love,
And help one another rise above.
The constant drive to live in hate,
Through constant needs to debate,
All our basic necessities,
To love, and live, and stay happy.
You! Yes you can alter man’s fate!
Answer the call, and do not wait!
For another year come and go,
Now is the time to let love grow.
Out of a past filled with mistake,
And all the choices we failed to make.
Deny thyself and bear his load,
It is a straight and narrow road.
Filled with love and power alike,
Only then will we know what’s right!
Rise and leave where you have been,
The masses stirring; awaken!


Happy New Year!

ACG

Christmas Isn't Over!

When I was a kid, I remember our Christmas decorations were always put away just a few days after Christmas. My mother’s birthday is December 28th and it has always been her wish that she not celebrate her day under the lights of Christmas. Mama is not anti-Christmas or anti-Jesus or any thing like that, she simply wants to prevent her birthday from becoming an after thought to the biggest holiday of the year. While her logic is sound, I remember being so disappointed as a kid when I would wake up to a seemingly empty house and reminded that after a six-week build up, Christmas was over.

Now that I am married, I am so happy that I have a wife with a birthday in the middle of summer who loves Christmas and the decorations as much as I do. Christmas was five days ago and we have continued to watch our favorite holiday movies, listen to the music, and enjoy our decorations. This typically goes on in our home until a few days after New Years at which point we reluctantly pack up and wait for next year. Just last night, Allison asked if it would be weird to keep some of the decorations up through winter and after a little thought, I said no.

The corporate consumerism that has become our favorite holiday begins to call us as early as September to get into their definition of the Christmas spirit. This usually consists of our fill of shopping, big crowds, and tons of stress. We are met with sales, jolly music, and sights that are simply irresistible and only add to our excitement as we look forward to December 25th. In all of this, Christmas comes, and simply ends. Every year I stay up until midnight on Christmas day and try to soak up every last bit of Christmas I possibly can by watching movies and listening to music. The second the clock strikes 12am, the movies and music stop and Christmas is over. But its not!

Christmas ends on December 26th for corporate America and those who subscribe to this style of celebrating because at that point, there is no longer anything in it for them. The money has been spent, the presents are opened, its time to stop. But for those of us who truly understand the meaning of the day, Christmas didn’t end at midnight; it was just beginning!

Christ has come, advent is over, the savior is here, let’s celebrate! Why don’t we let the Christmas music play just a bit longer and help remind a world that has forgotten of the hope we have because of the incarnation. Let all the Christmas movies continue to remind us of true love and good will to men. Keep your decorations for just a few more days at let the lights guide you into a better understand of the light of the world. Keep celebrating.

Even as I look at the liturgical calendar I am reminded that historically, Christmas is celebrated until the first Sunday of the New Year, which is appropriately called The 2nd Sunday of Christmas. Even as late as January 6th, the Epiphany of Our Lord gives us reason to continue celebrating as it is attributed to the visitation of the wise men so we should at least leave our nativity scenes on our mantles.

I say all of this not because I am a redneck and too lazy to take down our lights and tree and not just because I am overly sentimental; I just don’t want to see us buy into the corporate lie that Christmas is over. As Christians, our celebration should have only just begun.

In closing, I’m not saying leave your decorations up all year. I too, probably after a few weeks will give in and tell Allison its time to pack up. I am a classy guy and am appalled of Christmas trees in February, which just happens to be the month of my birthday. So while I do not say leave your stuff up all year, maybe wait just a bit longer before moving on this year. Let the truth of the holiday sink it just a little more. Be silly and listen to Christmas music a few days into January. Watch that favorite movie one more time. Remember that Christ has come, and is here, and we can celebrate Christmas in our hearts throughout the year.

I think this great man said it best…

“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The spirits of all three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach.” - Ebenezer Scrooge


Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Merry 2nd Sunday of Christmas!


ACG