The Choice

Where do you turn when you mess things up?

The book of Hosea recounts a time when God's people lost their way. And they had a choice: Where would they turn for help? Unfortunately they made the wrong decision:

"When Israel and Judah saw how sick they were, Israel turned to Assyria, to the great king there, but he could neither help nor cure them" (Hosea 5:13, NLT).

How sad. They could have turned to God, confessed their sin, and repented. But instead they turned to the world that could not really help or cure them, as only God could. But here's the Good News: even though God brings judgment upon people who have gone astray and don't depend on Him, He still patiently waits for us to admit our guilt and look to Him for our help (see v. 15).

God promises throughout Scripture that when we repent and turn to Him, He will respond to us. When we ask, he'll give. When we have faith in Him, He'll give us life. When we come to Him, he will give us rest. When we love Him, He will work for our good. He is for us. When we obey Him, He will be with us always, to the very end. He will never leave nor forsake us.

So, where will you turn when you are in need, when you have failed, or when you realize how sick and messed-up you are? You have a choice. There is only one source that can truly help and cure you. Apart from Him, you and I are nothing.

Don't Point Fingers, Leader

Did you know that as a spiritual leader, God will hold you accountable for the spiritual condition of the people you lead? You are a steward of the leadership responsibilities and the people He has entrusted to you (1 Peter 5:2, 3) and you and I will someday give an account to Him (Matthew 25:19; see vv. 14-30 for the entire parable).

In Hosea 4, God held the spiritual leaders accountable for the spiritual condition of the people.

"Don't point your finger at someone else and try to pass the blame! Look, you priests, my complaint is with you!" (Hosea 4:4, NLT).

If you're a leader, don't point fingers at the people you're leading. Look in the mirror first. God's complaint may be with you!

In verse 6, God says, "My people are being destroyed because they don't know me. It is all your fault, you priests, for you yourselves refuse to know me." Spiritual growth--discipleship--begins with us as leaders. We know that. We've heard it before. But I wonder how seriously we take it.

As I read this passage, I feel the weight of my spiritual leadership responsibility. And I should feel that weight! People's lives are at stake. Many people are depending on me to be a model of what having a real relationship with the living God looks like. God will someday hold me accountable for what I did with what he entrusted me. And yet, I realize that I don't have to carry this heavy burden myself. In surrender, I can take it to Jesus, and he will provide me with rest and peace. In his presence and by his power the burdens--even the leadership burdens--are not heavy at all.

I'm a Gomer ... and So Are You

Hosea has never been a Bible book I've paid a lot of attention to. Until now, I may have never quoted it. None of my favorite or memory verses are from it. But as I read it now, I'm amazed by it's very clear and meaningful illustration of God's character, ways, and love for us.

This morning as I read chapter 2 and let it soak into my life, God spoke to me about Himself.

In the prophet Hosea's true-to-life story, his wife, Gomer, represents the nation of Israel. She also represents God's church and each of us as individuals. Each of us have treated God with contempt. I have chased after other "gods" in this world. I've prostituted myself to the world. I've committed adultery against Him. I've selfishly taken advantage of His blessings and spent them on the lusts of this world. I'm a Gomer ... and so are you. (I'm also a Goober ... but that's another story entirely.)

The story of Hosea is this: God comes after us. Even when we have sinned and treated Him with contempt, as Gomer (Israel) had, he seeks after us to win us back. Gaaw-aawl-ly!

As you read trough Hosea 2, especially beginning in verse 14, notice that all the actions ("I will ...") begin with God, not us. God pursues us. He returns our blessings to us and transforms our lives. He causes us to "forget" our "Baal images." Not only that, but someday God will restore His creation to it's original state and put an end to all wars. The point is that no matter how bad things seem to be in this world, God is still ultimately in charge and will someday redeem and restore all things. Neither individuals, governments, nor any force in this world, including Satan, are really in control. Surprise, surprise, surprise!

This whole passage reminds us of God's promises. He says, "I will," and by faith, we believe He will. God extends His covenant to us. He woos us, pursues us, faithfully loves us despite our unfaithfulness to Him. Shazam! 

Father, thank you for wooing me. I'm sorry for the ways I've run after other "gods," trying to satisfy my lusts with other things. I'm sorry for prostituting myself to this world and committing adultery against you. I'm amazed that you still want me and that you pursue me as you do. You have been faithful to me even when I have taken your blessings and used them for my own worldly satisfaction. Father, I accept your faithful love for me. I am yours, all yours. You are my God. You are my only God! Lord, I know you will transform my troubles into opportunities for joy and hope and peace and life to the full. I believe that you can and will help me to turn from my temptations and sin and, only by your awesome power, to live a holy and blameless life. Father, I admit my own powerlessness over all these other gods that woo me, and I submit to your power in my life--your holiness, your ways. Thank You, Father for the way you are planting joy and goodness and love in my life through Your Spirit. Thank You for Your love for me. I am Yours. You are my God!

Jesus' Small Group Curriuclum

What curriculum did Jesus use as He led His small group?

That question seems absurd, at least to me. Jesus' curriculum was life. He asked great questions and told great stories as He did life with His group. And so they learned how to live life as they observed Him and did life with Him.

One of my favorite quotes outside of Scripture is from Leroy Eims:

Disciples cannot be mass produced. We cannot drop people into a “program” and see disciples emerge at the end of a production line. It takes time to make disciples. It takes individual, personal attention. It takes hours of prayer for them. It takes patience and understanding to teach them how to get into the Word of God for themselves, how to feed and nourish their souls, and by the power of the Holy Spirit how to apply the Word to their lives. And it takes being an example to them of all of the above.

What Eims describes here is shepherding. The Best Small Group Leader Ever was a shepherd: the Good Shepherd, the Great Shepherd of the Sheep, the Chief Shepherd. He had compassion on people who were "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36).

I think Jesus is our best model for being a small group leader.

Which is why I believe small group leaders should be much more than just facilitators or hosts or disc-jockeys who put in a DVD and press the PLAY button. Small group leaders are called primarily, in my opinion, to be shepherds. When we take a minimal view of small group leadership, the members of our groups are still “like sheep without a shepherd.”

What do you think?

Small Group Superhero!

Today at Northeast, Bob Cherry stepped out on stage wearing a red cape, playing the part of "Super Pastor."  He shared how, early in his ministry, he did everything around the church: preaching, teaching, visiting, writing and printing the bulletin, roofing, and so on. He then taught us about the Old Testament role of the priests, who acted as mediators between God and man, and discussed how many churches still work from this Old Testament model in which the priest (or pastor or minister) is expected to and actually does almost everything.

The problem, of course, is that this model is totally foreign to the model and teaching of the New Testament. In the New Testament church, everyone is a super hero. Everyone has a part to play in Christ's Body. We are all priests (1 Peter 2:9). Most of us who have been around the church for awhile know this. We've read passages like Ephesians 2:8-10; 4:1-16, 1 Cor. 12, and Romans 12. We know it, but do we really live it?

Each member of your small group is a super hero! Each one has been given super powers called spiritual gifts. Each one should have an important role to play in the group. Each one is a priest.

Do you see your small group this way? Is everyone empowered to use their gifts to serve others in the group in their own unique ways? Does each person have a role that matches up with their gifts, passions, and skills?

I visit a lot of small groups and I see a lot of super hero small group leaders who somehow have come to believe they must do everything in order for the group to thrive. I talk to some of them and they tell me things like, "Well, they're just not ready yet to share leadership in the group." My question: Why is that? Why have you not developed them and empowered them? Why don't you believe in them?

Leaders who do everything for the group enable the other group members to sit and do nothing. They send a clear message that says, You can't ... You're not able. But a leader's main responsibility is to say, "You can do all things through Christ who gives you strength. You can do it! Give it a try! This is a safe place to step out of your comfort zone. I'm behind you!" People will grow when they are in this kind of environment. People do not grow when they are always playing it safe inside their comfort zones. People don't grow with super hero small group leaders!

Discuss this with your group! You can hand out a list of possible roles for your group, discuss what gifts and talents are involved in each one, and let group members take ownership of at least one. You can download the form from HERE.

It's time to take off the cape and get everyone involved. This will change your group! (It can also change your church and the world.)

When Jesus Isn't Able

Jesus went back to his hometown, and Mark 6:5 says, "Jesus wasn't able to do much of anything there—he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them, that's all" (The Message).

When I read this last week, it took me by surprise. Jesus ... not able to do much of anything? In the midst of healing thousands, calming storms, raising dead people to life, and feeding thousands with a Lunchable, Jesus experienced a "failure." Of course, his power was sufficient. It always is. But their stubbornness and unbelief was the obstacle to his work having any effect. The problem was not in Jesus' power; the problem was their hearts, which were hard, shallow, or full of weeds (see Mark 4:1-20 and my post about it here).

We can only imagine Jesus' dismay over the fact that he could not bring healing or insight to these people, his own friends and family. Jesus was simply too familiar to them. They knew of the Jesus from the past--the son of Joseph and Mary--but they did not know the Jesus of Today, the Son of God who had the power to bring healing and transformation to their lives. So he moved on to other places.

Hmm.... does this still happen? Have we become too familiar with Jesus (and the way we've always done things) to be healed and transformed by him? Do we know the Jesus of the past from Bible stories we learned as a child, or do we know him and how he is working Today, in our midst?

As you meet as a small group, move beyond the stories of what Jesus did. Talk about--better yet, experience--what he is doing. He is indeed present in your group meetings--right now. Don't just meet to study the Jesus of the past through Bible study. Be sure your hearts are softened and prepared to experience his presence, power, and purposes Today.

Otherwise, Jesus may have to move on to other places.

Jesus' Power to Multiply

In whose hands is your small group?

This morning I read from Mark 6, which includes the account of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish. I love Wiersbe's illumination in his commentary:

The miracle took place in His hands, not in theirs; for whatever we give to Him, He can bless and multiply. We are not manufacturers; we are only distributors.

—Warren Wiersbe, Bible Exposition Commentary - New Testament

What are you holding onto in your own hands today? Your small group? Your family? Your finances? Your ministry? Your job? When we place what we've been given in Jesus' hands--an act of surrender and stewardship--he has the power to multiply it. In his hands, he provides superabundantly--to overflowing (John 10:10).

Would you like to see your small group grow and multiply? Would you like Him to bless your life? It's not so much about your methods, your goals, and your abilities. It's about putting the group--and your very life--in Jesus' hands and then being a faithful steward in your role.