Leading from.....

Leading....when I hear this word I normally think of the person that stands in front and directions the affairs of others. Now this could be in war, church, business or just life in general, but I'm not so sure anymore. The question that makes me wonder about leading is not what are they leading but how are they leading. This is a much more important and necessary question to me at this point in my life and for the greater calling of the Church in general. I am really learning a lot about this cause of the wonderful lady God has placed in my life and trying to lead her right. All this said, Y'shua lived on this earth from a place of service and humility. I, as many have and do call Him, the suffering servant, from what Isaiah chapter 53 lays out for us.

But at this point I want to look at what the gospel of Mark says in chapter 10 verse 42-45,

"And Jesus called them to him and said to them, 'You know that those who are considered rulers of the gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. but it shall not be so among you. but whosoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and give His life as a ransom for many."

Y'shua touches on a subject that I think we all should be looking at. Leading out of serving not leading out of position or power. The gentiles had a very interesting easy of leading and being placed in leadership. They would buy there leadership and there authority was one that they put themselves into and not from a place as Y'shua mentions as leading from the side (my words from the title). The Romans would be in power by paying a high price to Ceaser and so on. Just previous to all the text above says two of the disciples as Y'shua about being seated at His right and left in glory. Y'shua basically asks them if they think they can really life and deal with that as they say they can and Y'shua affirms them in that and there calling for His kingdom.

The thing is that James and John both want a place of position by asking for it. This is not much unlike the gentiles who buy there position and then lord over people as a means of power and position. Y'shua then rebukes all the disciples in what leading really look likes. He says the above text not only in love but in rebuke of James and John and there desires to be in glory. If you want to take Y'shua literally then death for others is true leading. Giving your life in buying others life is leading. Service I don't think is a strong enough word but death to bring life is necessary.

Now Y'shua preludes his words of his life as a ransom for many to being servant of all means greatness in the kingdom and that's true leadership. To lose all ideas and thoughts about leading by position and power by following in out Lord's example of humility in service and death of self to bring life into others. Now in my life this has been a challenge but a joy at the same time, for I've seen God do some really cool things in submitting to this but also death to my wants and desires and thoughts about leading have been tough and not fun.

I've had to learn what it means to die to self so that God my live through me (Romans 6:10). My Lord Y'shua's life was one that dies so that life may come. I pray and hope that some how I move into leading in the church and my relationships in this manner and for you also.

......your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.....

life changes so we must change

As always its been a while since I blogged but life has not been what I've always known over the past year. For the past year I have not done formal ministry but informal. Before I moved to Colorado and even my first year and a half I was a pastor but for the past year I have been selling pool chemicals. This in and of itself is not bad, but my life feels out of whack. I personally feel out of whack. I feel like I'm trying to find myself all over again. Living in CO has placed me into a greater love for running, I've discovered rock climbing and even the mountains are totally different to me. I always ran for fun and exercise but the other two are new. Again these are not bad just different.

My life as a Christian for the most part has been doing formal ministry like teaching the bible, leading ministry's and overall just being a pastor in general. Over the past year I have not been doing this to the degree that I'm used to, but I have been in some ways still teaching and pastoring but not in the manner I'm used to. I have learned a couple things. First what it means to die to self and second what Christian ministry looks like and is really all about. In the teachings of Jesus I recall two passages about this. The first is.....

           "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life, will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." (Gospel of Luke 9:23-26)

The whole realm of this text is death. for me in modern day America This makes very little sense cause in Jesus' day the cross was a means of execution for a criminal worthy of the death penalty. Now Jesus was placed in this position and died on the cross as scripture teaches but yet rose from the dead three days later. This Son of God, God in flesh, died but yet lived. For me to follow Jesus I am called to do the same. I am to follow in His steps which can suck sometimes, be just plain tough. I mean death is not easy to deal with or to live in. This means to plainly kill something, for this thing is ourselves, our desires, our wants, our will so that God and His will may live though us.

For me over the past year God has been placing me in situations to choose one of two paths. Life or death. Now again this sounds strange but very necessary for me to fully serve God in what He has called me towards. Romans 6:10 says, "The death he died he died to sin once for all, so that the life he lived he lived to God". Death brings life. Another passage in John 12:24 says, "Truly, Truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit", for again death bring life. I have been challenged to give up (die to) ministry. This for me falls into the next passage which is.......

         "Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ." (Ephesians 3:7-8).

This is part of a passage (all of it is Ephesians 3:7-11) that God spoke over me about 3 years ago that I held to very tight. I held it so tight that I didn't really listen to God on it after he said this is for you. now really quick Paul wrote this about God calling him to preach the gospel of God to the gentiles. Paul was one of the most interesting Apostles to me cause he had full rights to receive money for his work but refused to and worked as a tent maker. Paul the Apostle worked so as not to take from the furthering of the gospel. Now this is not for all but Paul wanted to not get in the way.

I have come to see that my calling in ministry as to the church but I don't see this as being a formal one to the church all times and all places. God has continually placed me into positions of bi-vocational ministy to those that know God and those that don't know God. This has meant death to what I saw what I thought "God called me to" to a revamping of ministry in modern day America. I see God placing me for now as a missionary where I live. Not that I "convert" people, but so that God's love and righteousness is displayed in my life. This challenge has been one of death to me. For me to dive deeper into God speaking about what this is for me.

Either formal or informal. In the workplace or in the church. Someone close to me said a few weeks back said, "You know, God man never have to doing ministry in the way you've always know it.". As I write this I still process where God is taking me, for life is death to me, for this I pray!