Can you learn what “having a good day” actually means?

Can you learn what “having a good day” actually means?

I walked into my home office this morning and realized that a problem was afoot.

Literally.

I had around 4 pairs of shoes strewn about.

That is an issue because a.) shoes don’t go there and b.) it is indicative of a larger problem. You see, my home office is decently sacred. It is full of the things that bring me joy. I’ve got my great-grandfathers 110+ year old desk in there (with the matching chair), a decent amount of books, a place to play music, my reading chair and a few other things. It is the space in my home that physically builds my life and passion.

And besides shoes on the floor, I’ve got stuff piled up in my reading chair and the desk is an absolute wreck.

The bigger issue is my physical clutter represents my mental clutter. And it is stopping me from doing the things that keep me in equilibrium.

Last week I released a podcast episode where I talked about another one of these points of conflict, namely that I had not been reading this past month. In the episode I also shared about how I have been using a bullet journal to track my habits and how they relate to my own internalized well being. (check out the episode here.)

It’s hard to spend any time reading when the place where you read is covered in camera gear, loose papers, and other assorted things.

A few years ago I read a fantastic compilation book on teams from Harvard Business Review. But the best article in the book, or the best learning for me didn’t really have anything to do with teams, but was a report on research done helping people define what made a day good. Their findings were that people who had the ability to complete their tasks often had the highest self-reporting of “a good day” and that good days/bad days really didn’t have anything to do with the things we think they might. Ever since then I have thought heavy about how intentionality in time management has the greatest ability to affect us in both positive and negative ways.

So I track several different things in my life now. You can listen back to the episode to get an idea of what those are, but I will put two things out there as the most important. My Peace/Chaos scale and measuring gratitude.

I learned peace/chaos from my good friend JD Walt. It simply means rating our peace on a scale of 1-10 and our chaos on a scale of 1-10. These numbers interrelate with each other. The scale also helps us realize that it is possible to be in high levels of chaos (or stress) while also maintaining a high level of peace. It is only when those numbers get off-kilter and for a period of time that we need to be worried.

I also track my gratitude. This is possibly the biggest thing for me. I do it each day because I need to be thinking about, processing, and self-identifying thanksgiving and faithfulness in my own words. I pick one thing each day to name.

These things, combined with my habit tracking, help me understand my own contribution to my emotional health. They keep me on track because I am learning what it consciously means to avoid disaster in my own life. It makes me accountable to the way I am able to work with others, lead my churches and staff, and be the best disciple of Jesus I can be.

How have you learned you own contributions to good days and bad days?

5 Books (That Are Responsible For Me)

5 Books (That Are Responsible For Me)

I’m a reader.

And I’m not nearly the reader I used to be. When I was in my early 20’s and going through one of the biggest times of personal and spiritual development, I found myself coming back time after time towards the same handful of books. I don’t know how many times I read each of them, but as I grow older I realize how each of them played a serious role in who I am in my late 30’s, In many ways, these books are responsible for me. They formed me, forced me to grow and expand, and taught me so much. In many ways, they made me who I am now. They helped me understand my own scripture and prayer life and helped me learn what it looked like to live as a Christian in the world.

5 Books (That Are Responsible For Me)

The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
There was a time in which I pretty much duct taped my first copy of “Pursuit” to my Bible. It was making the rounds at my college at the first part of an intentional discipleship relationship with a campus pastor and the word got out. Many of the folks I was around back then could trace their own path of following Jesus off this book. I recommend it constantly. I’ve ended up keeping around 5 copies around my office to give to people. In fact, I’ll give any of my copies away with the exception of that first copy. It’s downright sacred.

Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
This is the first of Richard Foster books on my list. We used it in college ministry and I had a fantastic co-leader that outlined the entire book for everyone. I thought the outline was so awesome I went out and bought a copy of the whole book. Celebration taught me about a HUGE amount of Christian  Practices outside of my own personal experience.

Streams of Living Water by Richard Foster
After I read Celebration of Discipline, I started hunting down every Richard Foster book I could find. It was a little tough in the pre-Amazon era, but my part-time job at bookstore helped. If I have to think about one of the biggest pivotal shifts in my life, it was discovering and interacting with the larger, historic Christian faith. And I read about it for the first time in Streams of Living Water.

The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
Richard Foster started me down a trail of reading and working through other Christian traditions. The Practice of the Presence of God is a 17th-century Catholic monk. I read and reread it for an entire summer. It helped me learn to not be so forceful in my own devotion and how rest factors into our own life with God.

Resident Aliens by Stanley Hauerwas
Resident Aliens was a pretty big personal shift for me. It made me fall back in love with the church and dream of the possibilities it as. Before this point, my spiritual development had primarily been personal, and in some ways had decently given up on any sort of gathered expression of faith.

All of these books have been important for me. If you are wanting to dive deeper into your own relationship with Jesus, or just learn new things, you won’t go wrong with any of them.

 

 

 

 

 

Behind the Sermon | Everybody is a Neighbor

Behind the Sermon | Everybody is a Neighbor

I’ve started a new experiment. I’ve been thinking of vlogging these last few weeks, and ultimately, after pouring over youtube, realized I wanted to start working through an honest week of sermon writing. I couldn’t find pastors regularly vlogging, so I am curious how this all works out.

So without any added fanfare, here’s the first episode of Behind the Sermon. If you dig it, please subscribe on youtube.

 

 

And here is the sermon this week produced.

 

Why You Need To Ask Yourself Tough Questions

Why You Need To Ask Yourself Tough Questions

Beatles or Stones?

Earlier this year I asked this question on Facebook and got around 200 comments. I love the question. It tells me so much about a person and their musical taste and preferences.

Good questions tell us so much more than a simple answer.

I wrote a piece on Why I became a Methodist. In the article, I mentioned one of the primary decision points being my belief in the effectiveness and necessity of Wesleyan discipleship.

Part of  historic discipleship and formation (growing closer to Christ) in the Methodist tradition is the act of asking questions. We ask them to ourselves in our own personal devotion. We ask them to others we are in accountability with.  This was important in the Methodist movement and I feel a recovery of the asking of questions will be a key thing to any spiritual development in our world now.

A little history…

Wesley organized his folks (you couldn’t really call them a formal church yet) into 3 groups. From largest to smallest; the Societies, The Classes and The Bands. Part of the fundamental design of the two smallest (classes and bands) was a series of questions designed to keep each person in forward motion towards Jesus Christ. The Class met as a mixed group of sexes and ages. When they met, these questions formed the main conversation points. They got SERIOUS!

When the Bands met, the questions got even more in depth. They also centered on this small group (usually no more than 5-6 and same sex) really keeping each other on track. You gave the others the permission to get into your business.

Here are another set of questions Wesley and his original small group, called The Holy Club, asked themselves in their lives and meetings.

Our life now

These questions matter. They help us to be real and honest with each other. One of the best small group experiences I have ever had focused on asking a few of these questions every week. This isn’t casual discipleship. It is changing and transformational discipleship. It is the kind of spiritual relationships each Christian needs to have in their life.

Several groups have done a great job trying to incorporate these classic notions of discipleship into current life. Most of them are going really well. What I really appreciate are the attempts to quickly get the emotive qualities of these HUGE lists into a few simple questions. You can answer them openly, in front of people you know and don’t know. You can be asked them by people who know you really well. The most important quality is these questions are approachable. It is frightening allowing others into what most modern Christians consider to be pretty private.  Here is a listing of the ones I have found, liked and used.

1. Are you growing closer or further away from God since the last time we met?
2. How do you see God moving in your life right now?
3. How is your life in God?

Lately, I have a new one I have been thinking about, asking myself and asking others. It comes from my own personal conviction and values.

How have you allowed God to change you lately?

This question tells much more than a simple yes or no. In my own examination it causes me to think about my openness to Christ, my expectation of his presence and activity, how my false self is being broken down, etc, etc. It is great and broad.

Self-examination has long been part of Christian tradition. It helps us to make the points in which we have grown closer to God, progressed in our sanctification, won victory over things controlling us or simply mark our maturation in Christ.

So friends, How have you allowed God to change you lately?

Why I Read the Bible Every 90 Days.

Why I Read the Bible Every 90 Days.

 

This weekend I finished what has become a regular practice in my life. I read the Bible in 90 days.  Actually, this time it took a little longer, but I kept up the practice of a long read of scripture in a rhythmic fashion. I believe all Christians benefit from frequent 90 day bible reads.

I usually keep to it 4 times a year, so it would get done every quarter. I love reading the Bible this way. A good friend challenged me to try it out and I have never stopped. I also have a different reading strategy at night (I read one book a month and pray through it). For the last several years I sit down every morning and spend some time reading scripture. I do around 12-15 chapters a morning. I use the plan on youversion or a print out this PDF.

It isn’t for everyone. One of my best friends and I argue about it. For me, it works great.

I know some of you are thinking “Of course..shouldn’t preachers be reading the Bible that much?”

I would be doing it no matter what. I love how it consistently orients and prioritizes my time towards God.

I want to share with you a few reasons why I love reading the bible this frequency and speed.

1. I like a longer, frequent read.
I like the connect the dots of the biblical narrative. This is easier to do when you read through the entire Pentateuch (the first 5 books of the Old Testament) in around 2 weeks. Many of the New Testament letters can be read in one sitting. After I did this several times I found myself realizing the large scope of the biblical narrative in ways I had never seen it before.

2. It draws me to Biblical Theology.
I  believe the Bible matters. It is the word of God and the story of redemption drawn over thousands of years. I also think the Bibles construction with purposeful. It is hard to see this when we are always reading small and often unrelated pieces. My 90 day read builds Biblical familiarity. I can’t think about worship in Chronicles without thinking of the Exodus or visions of St. John in Revelation.

3. It’s a great way to start the day.
I love making my coffee and sitting down to read familiar words. I have done this enough to where I can anticipate what will happen next. It’s like having a conversation with a friend. If I miss my reading early in the morning I am thinking about finding the time for it all day.

4. It’s handy as I build sermons and studies.
This last read I kept a small notebook as a placeholder. Every day if anything struck me I would write it down. I know there are several sermons in a formation stage in the notebook. The repetition and frequency of my read also help me see the large chunk of scripture and how sections interpret other sections. If I am preparing a message and I see something helpful, I can make a quick note in Evernote where I collect sermon notes.

No matter what you do for a living, I would encourage you to try the 90 day read. It will be one of the most spiritually beneficial practices you have experienced.

Why I am Wesleyan

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Today the 8th episode of The Threshing Floor came out. I am privileged to produce this podcast with two great friends and for it to be part of the amazing Seedbed family. In this episode all three of the hosts share why we each are Wesleyan. We are also each offering up a blog post today on the topic as well.

For me, there are many reasons I self identify as a Wesleyan. I didn’t grow up Methodist and I wrote about that transition a few months ago. I wasn’t always a Methodist…but I think I have always been a Wesleyan. The United Methodist Church became the place I found my own personal experience best expressed. And experience matters.

Why I am Wesleyan

1. The Theological Beginning Point of an Incarnating God.

I am a big fan of the incarnation. The tagline of my blog is “worshiping a God who has come to our world”. That is the incarnation. We have a God who is not distant and far off, but instead is right here among us. In the very mess of life.

The incarnation is a fundamental doctrine of Christianity, so no big distinctiveness here. What I makes me Wesleyan are a few shifts the incarnation gives my larger view of faith.

God absolutely claims us first. He said yes to us before we said yes to him. This is why I (as a pastor) will absolutely baptize an infant. It is why I believe in the true goodness available to all people in prevenient grace.

This also gives us a savior who meets us in communion. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we meet with the presence of Christ at the Lord’s Table. Our Thankgiving isn’t just a rememberance, but it is a Holy mystery of us meeting and being sent by God.

2. Commitment to a Holy God.
When I was in seminary there was always a big conversation about Open vs. Classic Theism. What I appreciated was an alternate conversation about God being understood as Holy. Of course God is holy, but here we find another Wesleyan distinctive.

The very beginning point in our attempt to describe God is Holy. In his own words, God is who he is (exodus 3:14 אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה) If we want to look at the characteristics of what best describes, what is the starting point for the way our God works…it is holiness.

For I am the Lord your God. You must consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. (Leviticus 11:44)

God wants us to be like him, to be functional images of the one who created us. This is a precious gift.

3. The Importance of Human Experience.
One of the four parts of Outler’s quadrilateral is experience. John Wesley called Methodism an “experimental faith”. Not experimental like a science project or a weird cult, but an experiential faith. Human experience should play a dramatic part of faith. John Wesley had this at aldersgate and we each have primary spiritual experiences.

Not only do we have an experiential faith, but we have a faith in which our experiences about God teach us who He is. These experiences should shape our view of God’s character. We believe God gives us these experiences for this very reason.

These are just a few reasons. I hope the conversation helps you think about why you specifically believe what you do, whatever the faith tradition.