The Art of Becoming YOU…
If you haven’t read John Ortberg’s latest book, “The Me I Want To Be”, I highly recommend that you stop what your doing (’cause I’m about to ruin…) and head to the Soul City Store and grab it right now. It’s that good. It’s that important. In a sense it reads like a Cheat Sheet to the Transformational Mission of Soul City Church….a very very well written Cheat Sheet.
It explores the idea that there is a ME that I not only want to be, but that God has actually created me to be. And one of the questions John asks is, “How would I want the Me I want to Be respond to…” What a brilliantly simple question.
How would I want the Me I want to Be respond to…
- This huge disappointment that just blindsided me.
- The fear I feel that I will always be alone.
- My apparent lack of care for the poor
- This strained or broken relationship.
- The lack of discipline in my life
- The temptation that has been staring me in the face all day
I know it may sound like a Stuart Smalley kind of concept, but I challenge you to practice it today. To Reflect on the fact that there is a YOU that God has made you to be. And to begin Responding to your life from that truth. To actually start living (by God’s grace) into the life he created you for. To being the You that God created you to be and to settle for nothing for less.
Let us know – Have you read the Me I Want To Be? What did you think? How can a church help people become who God created them to be?
A Transformational Field Trip
A while back I (Jeanne) read the fabulous book INFLUCENCER with the Buckhead Leadership Team. The author thoughtfully proves that when it comes to influence that the two primary questions that everyone asks before any kind of significant change / transformation is…
IS IT WORTH & CAN I DO IT?
And they need a story, many stories saying - it is possible! That’s what Soul City Church is trying to do when it comes to Cultural Influence – Be a community that tells the story that Transformation is possible with Jesus!
A cheap tool that most of us use to change others expectations is the use of verbal persuasion because it is convenient. Talk is easy. Talk is cheap. But stories of transformation provoke. They create a vivid picture that TRANSFORMATION IS WORTH IT & IT CAN BE DONE!
Those are some of the most profound and simple lessons that I am learning as a leader right now – I can talk about influence, cast vision, I can fund raise, and I can create systems and structures – but does my life tell a compelling story of authentic dependence and a life of transformation. That’s where I believe my greatest influence comes from.
We long for Soul City Church to constantly be telling stories of Transformation. We pray that every time someone encounters our community its as if they are on a Field Trip of Transformation.
So, the question is – How might you and your community take a Field Trip of Transformation together this week?
An Incredible Guide to Lent
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As you may have figured out after seeing the girl at Starbucks with the big black X on her forehead – Today is Ash Wednesday. The start of Lent. A season of Preparation, Introspection, and Devotion as we move towards Easter Weekend.
Instead of breaking down Lent, we thought it would be best to point you to one of the BEST Daily Lent Reflection Guides we’ve found. It’s from an organization called CRM (Church Resource Ministries). It’s a collection of Daily Readings from a book they printed a few years back. They are incredible.
We’d love for you to join with Soul City in this journey as we prepare together for Easter.
You can get your CRM Lent Reflections HERE.
It would be really cool for you to Comment and let us know that you are doing this with us.
3 things I learned from 31 days of Fruit and Vegetables
In the month of December Jeanne and I embarked on a 31 day Daniel Fast. If you’re unfamiliar with what a Daniel Fast is, it’s basically committing yourself to eating nothing but Fruit, Vegetables, Legumes, and Water based on this passage from the life of Daniel
“During those days, I, Daniel, went into mourning over Jerusalem for three weeks. I ate only plain and simple food, no seasoning or meat or wine. I neither bathed nor shaved until the three weeks were up. (Daniel 10:2-3, The Message)
Aside from the Not Showering part , we followed the fast as literally as we did dependently. In the midst of Christmas Parties, our own Fund Raiser, and a Giant 5 Gallon Tin of Popcorn from my parents, we stayed true to our fast.
We did it to focus our body, mind, and soul on the presence and provision of God. In a season when we are raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Soul City Church, we didn’t want to forget where it all comes from and who it all belongs to. It’s one of the most important spiritual discipines I have ever embarked upon and one that I will repeat regularly. Here’s 3 things I learned along the way.
- Satan is real (kinda already knew that) and uses Resistance as one of my Greatest Temptations. The day before the fast, I looked for every possible way I could cut corners, opt out, quit while I was ahead. Jeanne’s response to me was both Simple and Succinct- If you feel that God is telling you not to do this, than I will fully support it. (I don’t think Satan planned on Jeanne M. Stevens)
- Food is the Cause and Solution to all my Problems. In just 31 days I uncovered how deeply rooted is my belief that I am Chief Dispenser of Comfort to my life. And food is where I find comfort. Instead of staying in the tension I escape to whatever “little comfort” will take me away from the place where God tends to do some of his greatest work.
- The thing you are most afraid of, may be the very place God is inviting you…and He will give you the strength you need. This was perhaps the greatest thing I gleamed from God throughout this process. The first two days were hard (slurred speech not being the least of it), but every day after I literally felt like I had exactly what my body needed. I honestly never felt weak or overly hungry. My body was at peace (which had a wonderful ripple effect on my mind and soul). For anyone who’s ever finished a race or an impossible assignment or task, you know what it’s like to step back from it all and say, “Look at what I just did”. Only difference on this one is that I step back and say, “Look at what God just did.”
I am so glad we did it. I am so thankful for what God did in me through it. You may have never fasted before or may be in the middle of one right now. Whatever your exposure and experience with fasting, I am convinced that it is one of the most tangible forms of Transformation we can participate it. The math of the whole thing is brilliant – I take something away, God gives me something greater in it’s place. I would highly recommend that you ask God the simple question after reading this post – “Father, what are you inviting me to let go of so I can better cling to you?”
The question is NOT whether or not God is inviting you to Fast, but rather WHAT is HE inviting you to Fast from.
Jesus ALREADY has in mind…
I love the miracles of Jesus. Easily one of my favorites is when Jesus feeds five thousand people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish from some kids lunch. It’s amazing. It’s inspiring. He turned a meager meal into a straight up All You Can Eat Buffet. Most people know about this miracle. In fact it’s the only miracle that’s recorded in all 4 Gospels. But what is so amazing to me in this miracle is the obscure interaction that is recorded in John 6:6 between Jesus and Philip.
It says, “When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him. For he already had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “It would take almost a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”
I never noticed that tiny interaction between Jesus and Philip before, but I literally felt like I experienced that conversation first hand with Jesus in that moment. I am a lot like Phillip. I am an optimist that appreciates reality. While I tend to think of best-case scenarios I also believe that a leader needs to define reality and then help people see how to get to where they want to be. So much like Phillip – If I saw the hungry crowd and the kids lunch and I would have realistically predicted that it would take exactly 1 year before we can feed them all.
What I often overlook is that Jesus loves taking obvious situations and turning them into things that seem straight up impossible. For those of us that have ever been in a situation where you felt like all you literally have left is for God to come through – you know what I’m talking about.
I will be vulnerable and honest – Most days I feel like Philip. I look at our situation, I look at what we have in the bank, I look at our meager 5 loaves and 2 fish and my optimistic and practical self settles into reality instead of believing that Jesus already has in mind what he is going to do. He already knows and all he wants is for me to be faithful to bring what I have to the equation. So this past month we have been bringing every fish and loaf of bread we can find to the table – knowing that Jesus already knows what he is going to do with it. So today be encouraged and reminded.
- Jesus already has in mind what he is going to do with your finances.
- Jesus already has in mind how he is going to remedy the relational pain and complexity that you are facing.
- Jesus already has in mind how to turn your fears into opportunities for Faith.
- Jesus already has in mind how he wants to use your talents and gifts.
- Jesus already has in mind the best solutions to your problems that seem too big.
So we are gonna keep bringing our Little Lunchables to Jesus. And we believe that some of you might be able to be a part of what Jesus already has in mind to do with it for Soul City Church. There are 2 days left in this year – maybe you can help us add some more fish and loaves to our Year-End Start Campaign.
Click here if you want to see what Jesus can do with what YOU bring.
I Just Keep Turning Numbers
A couple weeks back we celebrated Elijah’s Fourth Birthday. It was an EPIC week. The closest thing to Mardi Gras a Four Year Old will ever know. In between Family Dinner, A Rockin’ Birthday Bash, and a weekend viewing of Star Wars Episodes IV-VI, Elijah had this profound pearl to offer us- “Well guys, I guess I’m just gonna keep turning numbers.”
He’s right. As much as it breaks our hearts, our little guy is gonna keep turning numbers…and there’s nothing we can do to stop that…believe us, we’ve tried.
All of us Keep Turning Numbers every year, every day, since the day you were born. But here’s the crazy thing – just because you’re turning numbers does not mean that you are GROWING. Everyone Turns Numbers, But Not Everyone Grows. In other words – Just because you’re Older, that doesn’t mean that you’re getting any Better.
This lies in great tension with not only what Jesus Promised (Life to the Fullest) but with what Jesus Expects (Grow and Bear Fruit). How is it that we can go year after year and still be as selfish / as angry / as bitter / as addicted / as insecure as we were the year(s) before? Especially for those who know and follow Jesus? Does it seem like something might be off?
What if we worked as hard for our GROWTH as we do to our attempts to stay young? What would it look like to ask God to give you Growth Goals for your life this Year? This Month? What if Growth is what WE actually lovingly held each other to each year? What if our questions were no longer If We Grew, but rather How We Grew. Imagine what you’d have to actually celebrate at your Birthday? Imagine how you might approach this next year.
Imagine your life Growing, as opposed to just turning numbers.
From Soil to Soul
A ton of people have been asking about the significance of our name “SOUL CITY CHURCH” – So today a little bit about the “SOUL” part of the name.
Our collective human story begins with some dirt… complete nothingness. Dusty brown soil that God took into his hands and blew on – that is what formed who we are – our soul.
- God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul!
- Genesis 2:7 (Message translation)
As God’s breath reached our soil of nothingness the soul was birthed and the most beautiful relationship between God and humanity was formed. The bond of dependence between the creator and His creation began, a bond that was never meant to be broken – but sin brought separation and humanity has been trying to breath on its own ever since. We want to help people recognize and return to what they were created for – DEPENDENCE ON GOD.
Soul City Church is committed to helping people live from their Soul. We believe that as we dig in the soil of our lives we discover who God created us to be and we learn to live the life God originally intended for us. To do that we know that Soul City Church needs to help people in the journey of identifying their basic soul needs and then walking with them on the road of transformation. There are more reasons why we choose the word “SOUL” to be in our name – but this is the primary vision for us – Helping people LIVE & LOVE & LEAD from their Soul.
So here are just a few of our basic soul needs….
The Soul needs
- The soul needs breath
- The soul needs intimacy
- The soul needs healing
- The soul needs truth
- The soul needs forgiveness
- The soul needs Encouragement
- The soul needs love
- The soul needs inspiration
- The soul needs creativity
- The soul needs beauty
- The soul needs relationship
- The soul needs comfort
- The soul needs hope
- The soul needs affection
- The soul needs affirmation
- The soul needs commitment
- The soul needs security
- The soul needs safety
- The soul needs acceptance
- The soul needs correction
- The soul needs council
- The soul needs perspective
- The soul needs vision
- The soul needs reminders
- The soul needs understanding
- The soul needs sleep
- The soul needs food
- The soul needs laughter
These are just a few. There is much more.
The real question is – What does your “Soul” need today?
Soul (simpli)City Sundays – The Art of Searching Your Heart
Soul City Sundays have been a rich time of community, worship, prayer, and spiritual development. We have decided to focus for the next four weeks on the journey of Transformation and what it means for us to love God with all of our HEART, SOUL MIND, & STRENGTH. This past week we kicked things off with focusing on our hearts.
God deeply cares about the state of our heart because He knows that it is the heart that houses LOVE… and LOVE is the acid test of our real relationship with Jesus. So searching the condition of our heart is essential to our transformational journey. Yet we tend to shy away from it. If we are physically sick we try and figure out what’s wrong – we go to a Dr., we take Medicine; we change a behavior so that we can remedy the problem. But for so many when there is a heart problem, they simply don’t know what to what to do or where to turn. The Bible says that the way to assess the heart is by searching it….
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Psalm 139:23 – 24
“As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.”
Proverbs 27:19
The state of our heart is a reflection of the state of our life and is often that very reflection that shows up in our emotional and relational lives. One of the very best books I have read on this topic is by Pete Scezzaro - “Emotionally Healthy Spirituality” He says quite plainly
It is impossible to be spiritually mature while remaining emotionally immature.
:: You have probably seen many times – the man that can quote the entire book of Romans by heart and yet has remained emotionally dead to his family most of his life.
:: The woman who gets up every morning to spend time with Jesus and then goes and gets ready and progresses through her day with a spirit of duty and obligation to others and has never truly felt alive.
This is not what God intended – he intended that our Heart never stops growing and reflecting His love. But over time – many of us learn to PROJECT that which we actually REJECT in our lives and it has a direct impact in our emotional & relational life.
:: We don’t know how to express healthy emotion so we reject that about ourselves – push it down – bury it in our hearts and project a reflection of “Everything is OK”
:: We don’t know how to deal with the anger that we have towards an experience in our childhood so we reject the healthy processing and we push it down – but it ends up projecting in our life through a short fuse, or an impatient spirit.
:: We have a person that we know we need to forgive and instead of moving towards them we hold on and bury our contempt in our hearts and reject the work that God might be doing and therefore we project a judgmental spirit.
So what might it be in your life? Do you…
:: Reject healthy Sorrow and Loss therefore you are unable to Project Brokenness and Repentance?
:: Reject Humility and therefore it is causing you to Project Pride?
:: Reject Joy and Excitement about life therefore it is causing you to Project a Bored and Complacent spirit.
:: Reject Peace and it is causing me to Project Impatience & Fear.
:: Reject Discipline and it is causing you to lack focus and purpose.
Mustard Seeds of Faith, Trust, and Sacrifice
Early on into the process of deciding to launch Soul City Church I felt God give me a prayer to pray every time we hit our common speed bumps of fear, control, and desiring comfort.
“God please turn my Fear into Faith, my Control into Trust, and
my desire for Comfort into Sacrifice.”
Today I hit all three speed bumps. I realized how much I am afraid of when it comes to giving up our jobs and financial security. I realized just how out of control I am when it comes to the fact that I can’t make someone buy our home, and I realized how I crave comfort when it comes to my lifestyle.
After flopping around in the reckless fear, control, and comfort for a while I was taken straight to the passage in Matthew where Jesus breaks it down for his disciples as to why they could not cast out a demon and said this…
He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you
have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move
from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.
Matthew 17:20
So I went to my cabinets and grabbed a container of Mustard Seeds and asked God to give me that kind of faith, trust, and desire for sacrifice today. I put three mustard seeds in a bowl representing my fear, control, and desire for comfort – and asked God to turn them into faith, trust, and sacrifice.
How about you – What kind of mustard seed faith, trust and sacrifice do you
need today?
Be.Loved
I (Jeanne) finally heard Gigi say “I Love you” this morning. I’m sure to the average person it would sound like a 16-month old jumble of mashed up consonants and vowels, but to me it was clear – “I LOVE YOU” came out of her mouth all by herself. She was probably able to say it because of 2 things – she hears it all the time and she it experiences it all the time. I pray that in her little 16 month old mind when she thinks of her parents she thinks of Love.
I have often times asked people – when you think of God what do you think He thinks of you? Sadly, far too many people do not answer with LOVE – they answer with words like disappointment, distant, anger, etc.
The journey of transformation will always take us to the question of “what does God think of me?” and it is essential that we understand that it is impossible for God to feel anything other than LOVE for us. I love how David Benner says it in his book “Surrender to Love”
“God’s love is never compromised by anger. The presence of anger does not mean the absence of love – particularly in God. Love is God’s character, not simply an emotion.”
Even at our lowest moments, even in our deepest sin – God never stops loving and it is His love that actually propells us on the journey of transformation to becoming the people that He created us to be.
This is most beautifully exhibited in the life of Jesus, even in his moments of confrontation, moments of anger, moments of intense truth speaking he never stopped loving….
So today, simply be reminded :: LOVE IS GOD’S CHARACTER. NOT SIMPLY AN EMOTION THAT HE FEELS TOWARDS YOU.
BE.Loved
Destination: Transformation
I always remember getting extra excited as a child when our class would go on a field trip. I loved our scavengers around the Chicago-land area. Trips to the Shedd Aquarium to learn about marine life, outings to the Art Institute to view the great works of Picasso & Renoir, a Wendella boat ride down the river to drink in all of the awe-inspiring architecture of Chicago. It was a wonderful way to get out of our normal classroom environment and be able to get up close and personal with whatever we were studying.
I am reading an amazing book right now called “Influencer – The power to Change Anything.” It is a great read. The authors have boiled down that to create change in behavior we need to help people alter their mental maps of cause and effect. When we find a way to help people change the way they think, they are well on their way to changing their behavior. And the two primary questions behind the possibility of change for everyone is…
“Will it be worth it? & “Can I do it?”
For so many years I think the tendency of the church is to try to verbally persuade or pep talk people into change. To drag people into a room. Plop them into a seat. Ask them to sing out loud with a bunch of strangers. Give money. Listen to one person talk for 45 minutes. And then go home changed! I have been guilty of this tactic many times.
When it comes to helping people BECOME who God created them to be I have been wondering if it actually might be more helpful for us to take people on Field Trips of Transformation. To allow them to get up close and personal with people that are answering the questions of “Will if be worth it? & Can I do it?” I know in my own journey when I have witnessed first hand in the life of another person that Jesus has truly brought about real transformation – it gives me hope that it is possible in my life. I am convinced that is why shows like the Biggest Loser have drawn such a following – It’s like a field trip of real change.
I absolutely love gatherings and I can hardly wait for Soul City Church to start gathering on a regular basis. But what if when we gathered on the weekend, in homes throughout the week, as we serve our neighbors in need, as we open up our space to the community – what if all of it served as a constant Field Trip for TRANSFORMATION. A constant story in motion – letting people get up close and personal to the reality that TRNASFORMATION IS WORTH IT AND IT IS POSSIBLE with JESUS.
So, as you think about your life and your world…
- If you could take me on a field trip of TRANSFORMATION – Where would you tell me to go?
A 3″D” Relationship with God (pt. 3) – Discipline
The third “D” to a 3- D life with God is Discipline. I’m sure the very word produces a response in you. The reason I know that is because it produces a response in me – and most of the time if I am honest the response has something to do with guilt.
For many of us the story of Discipline has a common thread woven throughout our different experiences. You desire to be physically healthy – but you’re unwilling to work hard at it. You desire to know God’s Word – but you are unwilling to discipline yourself to set aside a time in the day to focus on reading and meditating on it. You desire to be financially free – but are not willing to say no to the designer jeans that everyone else has. You desire to be patient with your kids – but when you have found yourself saying 15 times “Please – share with your Sister” – it’s on the 16th time that unfortunately you loose our cool.
There are so many things that I desire to do in my lifetime – but at times I am just plain unwilling to put the hard discipline to the test to make it happen. But desire without discipline usually turns into dead dreams. It’s in the small and the big moments of life that I need discipline when I want that iced lemon loaf at Starbucks that would go so well with my coffee…to the courage that comes from disciplining myself to work hard at raising all of the necessary funds to start Soul City Church.
I was reading in proverbs today and this simple verse jumped out…
- “Slack habits & Sloppy work are as bad as vandalism”
- Proverbs 18:9
Wow – do I really believe that – do I really believe that my sloppy and flabby disciplines are as damaging to the personal property of my soul, as vandalism is to a building or home. I would be crushed if someone came into my home with a baseball bat and ripped through my rooms destroying what has become a sacred space for me and my family. I would be angry, sad, hurt, and would probably desire a certain amount of justice to be served.
Why don’t I have equally strong emotions when it comes to my sloppy disciplines. A vibrant and transforming relationship with God will require not a sloppy discipline – but one that is fueled with a steadfast faithfulness and commitment to the task of training your soul to do what was originally put within it to do.
So why don’t you try this simple exercise :: God I will discipline myself to….
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Here is what I wrote:
God I will discipline myself to have some significant conversations this week with some key people that are in the process of praying about their connection to Soul City Church. God I will discipline myself to drink more water – I confess my love of coffee – but I know coffee all day is not good for my body! God I will discipline myself to put my cell phone and laptop away from 4:30 – 8:00 so that I am present with my family. God I will discipline myself in my writing this week – I will complete a chapter by Monday. Because I believe that desire without discipline usually turns into nothing more than dead dreams.
a 3 “D” Relationship with God (pt. 2)
(part 2 of 3)
Somewhere along the way being FINE became our facade for spiritually mature. Many of us have believed a dreadful lie that it’s better to cut ourselves off from desire – than to actually live into the depth of all that we long for in life. When someone asks how we are doing we robotically puke our canned response “I’m doing fine – How are you?” Most of the time I think we are just waiting for the other person to return our question with the same response… “Thanks for asking – I’m doing Fine also.”
What would you do if someone responded to your question with – “I am in the middle of pleading for God to give me the deepest desires of my heart – it is overwhelming, filled with raw emotion, sometimes I am anxious and afraid, I honestly wonder what I will do if this doesn’t happen, etc….how are you?” Most of us have a hard time living that deep into our desires – or if we do we struggle with feeling like our desires reveal immaturity – instead of maturity. But desire is essential in our life if we long to live completely ALIVE in Jesus.
I love what John Eldridge says in his book, “Desire“
“Why are we so embarrassed by our desire? Why do we pretend we’re doing fine, thank you, that we don’t need a thing? The persistent widow wasn’t too proud to seek help. Neither was the psalmist. Their humility allowed them to express their desire. How little we come to God with what really matters to us. How rare it is that we even admit it to ourselves. We don’t pray like Jesus because we don’t allow ourselves to be nearly so alive. We don’t allow ourselves to feel how desperate our situation truly is. We sense that our desire will undo us if we let it rise up in all its fullness. Wouldn’t it be better to bury the disappointment and the yearning and just get on with life? As Larry Crabb has pointed out, pretending seems a much more reliable road to Christian maturity. The only price we pay is a loss of soul, of communion with God, a loss of direction, and a loss of hope.”
I (Jeanne) am realizing that to step out onto the wobbly faith limb of starting this church has been one of the greatest movements that could have happened in our life. I no longer go through any kind of canned motion when it comes to my desires. I am acutely aware of my desires every day and it has allowed me to live in a healthy desperation for God.
So why don’t you try this spiritual exercise – Finish the thought, “God my deepest desires are…”
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Here is what I wrote
- God I desire for you to lead me towards the people that you have already prepared to be a part of soul city church. Increase my desire to trust that you will direct and prompt them and that I won’t need to convince or beg people to come. God I desire for you to regularly surprise me with the provision of our financial resources for our family and for Soul City Church – increase my desire for sacrifice. God I desire for you to simply sell our house. God I desire to be more humble, honest, and bold in my leadership. God I desire to be more patient, fun, and silly with my kids this week.
We would love for you to leave a comment with what YOU put in that space of DESIRE. It is such a simple exercise and such a good reminder to not let DESIRE die in your life.
And make sure to check back over the next few days to hear how DESIRE works together with Discipline and Dependence.
A 3 “D” relationship with God
(Part 1 of 3)
Jarrett often makes fun of my need to have words that start with the same letter when I teach – but the truth is that I am so forgetful that I often don’t’ even remember what I’ve taught if it isn’t simple. So having alliterations may seem like its straight from the creative genius of Sesame Street – but it works for me. That being said, I believe that there are 3 D’s that are critical to a healthy relationship with God.
Depend, Desire, & Discipline are the 3 closest companions to those waiting on God. Whenever I am in a significant season of waiting or when I am seeking God to reveal His direction in my life I hang out with Dependence, Desire & Discipline. Like three old friends – when one of them is missing – something is clearly off. All three are needed in the process of growth and waiting.
Depending on God is crucial to waiting. When we depend we essentially are saying, “I trust you God, I trust your process, I trust your timing, & I trust your outcome.” When I depend I release my own abilities to make something happen. To let go of that old self of cruise ship activities director of my life – always making something happen. Instead I trust and meditate on things that are ALWAYS true about God and that are not always true about me.
- God is ALWAYS in control
- God is ALWAYS present
- God is ALWAYS loving
- God is ALWAYS honest
- God is ALWAYS faithful
- God is ALWAYS good
Maybe today you can do a simple spiritual exercise to remind you of who God ALWAYS is. Fill in the following Blank:
I depend on you God to…
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
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What would it say? What does it need to say? Here is what I wrote in my blank…
“I depend on you God to provide all of the crucial leaders and volunteers that are needed to help launch and lead Soul City Church. I depend on you to provide all of the financial resources that are needed to start and sustain Soul City Church. I depend on you to provide a space for Soul City Church to meet in. I depend on you to sell our house so that we can get to Chicago.”
We would love for you to leave a comment with what you put in that space of Dependemce. It is such a simple excercise and such a good reminder of who God ALWAYS is and who we don’t have to try and be.
And make sure to check back over the next few days to hear how Dependence works with Discipline and Desire.
Either way, we find ourselves in tears…
The journey of launching Soul City Church has completely revolutionized our relationship with God. Never in our lives have we lived so utterly dependent on God. Better put – Never in our lives have we lived more AWARE of our dependence on God.
Our days end with Jeanne and I physically on our knees before God. That time together in prayer typically tends to go one of two ways. We find ourselves in tears because…
- We simply can not see how all of our needs are going to be met personally, as a family, and as a church.
- or because…
- God blows away our small expectations of His goodness and ability to meet exceedingly more than we are even able to ask for.
Either way we find ourselves in tears.
As odd as it may seem. we are becoming increasingly grateful for the dichotomous swing between fear and faith. We are learning to love living life this way. Fully aware of all of our fears, concerns, and challenges. Fully dependent on God. We often wonder how we went so long without living at this level of daily dependence. And the more we experience it, the more we can’t imagine living life any other way.
Leaving Comfort for Courage
This is a piece I (Jeanne) wrote earlier this year when I was facing one of the regular occurring visitors in my life – FEAR. It has served as a reminder to me when FEAR comes knocking on my door – That my God is faithful and that He called me to courage not comfort.
Courage will always require an element of leaving. Leaving is just plain hard. When My 3 year old knows I’m about to leave he will often squeeze as hard as he can around my neck to lovingly manipulate me into staying one more minute.
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I know how he feels – because leaving comfort for courage makes me want to wrap my arms around every ounce of safety in my life – hoping if I hold on tight enough that I won’t have to taste the pain of the leaving what I know is inevitable.
Leaving comfort and safety looks and sounds alluring and attractive – but the attraction fades quickly – in fact I have never felt so vulnerable, small, and needy…. words that are not known for their alluring appeal.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to question your decision.
It will cause you to look around for the safety bars, seatbelt, and any kind of security button.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to try to make something happen… scheme, make phone calls, send out hail mary e-mails– anything to distract from sitting in the fear.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to doubt your abilities – you will look at everything that you have failed at in the past… failed relationships, failed financial decisions, failed leadership calls, – and you will wonder will you repeat those patterns and are they indicators to go out and look for comfort again.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to doubt the author of the calling on your life. Thinking that God is too busy to take care of your little fear
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to be jealous of your neighbors who seem to be perfectly content with their lives – you will wonder if you are some sort of crazy person that has a unhealthy propensity to live on the edge.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to look for the easy way out.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to pray like never before… wonder if you know any scripture to cast out the inner demon of doubt.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
cause you to white knuckle yourself around anything that feels secure and semi safe – even though you know earthly security and safety is a mirage and the place where Jesus is, is most where you want to be.
Moving from comfort to courage will…
Cause you to feel weak in the knees – a good indicator that you should stop standing up and get ON your knees..
Moving from comfort to courage will…
Cause others to question you… especially those that have found security to be a bedrock to build their lives on. You will be misunderstood, questioned, and perhaps even seen as foolish.
So today God I feel every one of these fears. I am terrified… straight up terrified. I am calling out to you to be a voice of truth and freedom. Tell me to settle down, to trust you and to release every one of these fears into your arms of faith. I know it is impossible to invite others into a life of obedience if I am unable to live it myself – so today I am re-upping my commitment to obey and be faithful.
I am doing this out of the spirit that lives within – my will wants to go get a job at a church and ask them to take care of all of this. But I know that is not YOUR will. Send your angels to tend to me as I feel the temptation to trust myself today – with obedience I am choosing to trust you.
The Value of Transformation
(part of a series of posts about the Values of Soul City Church)
At Soul City church everyone is accepted, but everyone is expected. In other words, you are accepted right where you are at, but you are expected not to stay there. We believe that God created everyone of us to transform – TO BECOME EXACTLY WHO GOD CREATED US TO BE.
It is God’s desire and by God’s power that He changes every element of our lives from the inside out. We believe that as we are transformed into our true identity we experience freedom that liberates us to love our community in a way that promotes peace and health that can bring transformation to our neighborhoods, city, and the world.
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We want to make that incredibly Spiritual process as practical (helpful) and normal (expected) as possible.
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“You must display a new nature because you are a new person, created in God’s likeness-righteous, holy and true.”
Ephesians 4:24
Discussion :: How does a church take something as avoided and yet as critical as Growth and make practical as possible? Who is doing this well?
