PHS Lacrosse

Fantastic game with one of our own GSM students.  Zach Stanley (#59) played with such tenacity and helped his team defeat Saint Joe High School 7-6.  This game was so exciting that even through the downpour of rain, fans were glued to the edge of their seats as they watched an electrifying sudden death overtime.

Zach is equipped with so much leadership potential and it is awesome to watch him live that out spiritually, mentally, and physically (yes, that is him jumping through the air in the eleventh picture!).

"Objection your honor!"

Just ask my wife.  I can be a difficult person.  As quick and willing as I am to admit that, sometimes it's another person in my life that can be the problem.  Despite all that I've done, all the truth that I've spoken, there are continual "relational misfires" happening.

My wife and I have both experienced this in our lives.  A certain person that, no matter what we do, just does not want to get along with us.  Does not want to "agree to disagree" with us.  Ever experience someone like that?  What becomes especially hard is when this person is a confessed believer.  What do you do when two Christians disagree and one refuses to make amends?

Well, after recently coming through a situation like this, I would like to share some of my thoughts and encouragements.

1.  Confess your faults to God and forgive the person who has wronged you.  For me, the first part was easy, the second part was hard.  I did not want to forgive this person because my selfish pride wanted everyone else to know what had happened.  I wanted to jump up and say "Objection your honor!"

2.  Continue to dig into Scripture.  I can't stress this enough.  You cannot run today's faith on yesterday's gasoline.  Make the decision that, despite what is being said or done to you, that you will be a healthy, growing person.  You will seek the higher ground.

3.  Don't talk about past hurts with others.  This was hard for me also, and goes with the first point.  I wanted so badly for people to know the true nature of the person who hurt me, but I soon realized that it wouldn't do any good.  Forgiveness is not a one time decision, but a day-to-day decision.  I wake up each morning and must forgive this person, claim God's promises in my life, and CHOOSE to do what is right.

4.  Talk with a trusted Christian mentor.  I say "mentor" and not "friend" because sometimes friends agree with things just because they want to listen, but a mentor will tell you the truth even if it hurts. Make sure that you are being submissive to people in your life who can come in and say "Hey Jon, what you did was wrong, you need to make this right."  I know that if I have time to think about the wrong that was done to me, I can quickly become bitter.  It's these trusted mentors in my life who help keep my views balanced.

5.  Don't be fooled/discouraged by a Christian who uses Scripture as a "trump card".  It's sad to say, but there are believers who are not healthy, yet their "prophetic utterances" seem to say otherwise.  Even Satan had the guts to quote Scripture to Jesus.  That didn't make him right.  If you think this may be the case, ask some of the following questions:
a. Is the person living a balanced Christian lifestyle? (Part of a local church, has Godly mentors in their life, has a history of Godly living, has a good reputation in the community, has a strong base of Christian friends/family/fellowship?)
b. Is the person committed to building God's local church or his own kingdom? (note: I have strong apprehensions about people who run from church to church and have developed into a "loner Christian")
c. Does the Scripture quoted establish confidence in the Word of God or does it highlight the ingenious way in which a man interpreted it?  In other words, will people who hear this person develop a greater dependence on God's Word or this man's ability to interpret it?
d. Does this person build up the Body of Christ (the local church) or work against it?
e. Does this person defy authority or accountability in their life?  I know when I am kicking against authority and I can see it very quickly in others too (maybe because of my military background).  2 Peter 2 talks about false teachers (people who wrongly quote the Bible) and in verse 10 it tells us that these people are quickly identified as those who despise authority, are bold, and arrogant.
f. Is this person being reasonable?  2 Peter 2:12 says that they will be like "unreasoning animals, blaspheming in matters they don't understand." A big key is that this person will talk, but it won't make sense to anyone listening.
g. Is the passage quoted Biblically true?  Scripture is not to be looked at through a small one-verse peephole.  Does what is said line up with the WHOLE of Scripture?

6.  Finally, understand that sometimes a clean break from the person may be necessary.  There are times when putting effort into a relationship is just too exhausting and all of your mental/emotional/physical efforts are just "throwing your pearls to swine" (Matthew 7:6).  Even Christians who claim to be following after God can experience periods of separation.  We see this in Paul and Barnabas; the wonderful Christian team that had to split ways (Acts 15:3-16:10).

Hang in there, God can redeem your situation.

Four Ounces of Coffee

Every now and then I get an email that changes my plans for the day.  Yep, you guessed it.  It's the email that informs me that I have a free drink waiting for me at Starbucks.  Today, just happened to be one of those days.

Since I can get any drink free of charge, my mind jumps to the more expensive side of the menu:

TRIPLE SHOT WHITE CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT MOCHA.

Yum.

As I pull out of the drive-through today, drink in hand, and giggling to myself, I notice that the barista has made a terrible mistake.  He got everything correct, EXCEPT that he made it a grande instead of a venti.

"How dare he!  Doesn't he know that this is MY free drink!  I couldn't pay to have such terrible service!  Maybe I'll turn around, walk in, and demand that they make my absolutely free drink CORRECTLY!"

No joke, these thoughts were running through my head... until I remembered a video I saw last night that my friend Jim Blechl had sent me:

The video resolution isn't the best, but the message is clear.  These are Chinese Christians receiving their own Bibles for the first time.

Suddenly, four ounces of coffee doesn't seem that important.


I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
~Philippians 4:12

Life Foundations

Such an encouraging night!  Susanna and I began the Life Foundations series at Granger Community Church.  There were so many people who attended that we had to set up extra tables in the back!  This is a great Wednesday night discussion that is geared toward learning Bible study methods.

Answering the Call: Eyes Open

There are many times in life that I am absolutely certain that I should do something.  I am often reassured of my decision because I am in a comfortable place, know what the future holds, or have lots of time to think about the decision before I make it.  However, there are some times when I know I have to make a difficult decision and have to step out in faith, without much reassurance other than the voice of my Heavenly Father.

My wife and I have just made the biggest decision of our married lives.  We have decided to leave our current church ministry, my profession as a youth coordinator, and those that we care about deeply in order to pursue God's calling in our lives.

Before I get into the actual calling, I want to lay the ground work of how God has been moving in our lives this past month.  I will divide this post into five (maybe six) segments over the next few weeks; discussing different principles I have learned this past month.

The best biblical parallel to what we have been going through can be found in the story of Moses encountering the burning bush.  It is a passage that I read in the OYB (One Year Bible) at the end of January, and at the exact time I was going through this difficult transition:

Exodus 3:1-4

(1) One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian.  He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God.
(2) There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush.  Moses stared in amazement.  Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn't burn up.
(3) "This is amazing," Moses said to himself.  "Why isn't that
bush burning up?  I must go see it."
(4) When the LORD saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, "Moses!  Moses!"  "Here I am!" Moses replied.

Just like Moses was not expecting to be called away from his current position (tending his father's sheep), so too, my wife and I were not anticipating a calling to leave our church family.  The first principle I have learned in this process is to always keep my eyes open to what God is doing in my life.

Dim-witted Discover Magazine

The first edition of Discover Magazine for 2014 was a summation of the top 100 scientific stories of 2013.  Coming in at number 34 was this article:

A few personal thoughts:

1.  Discover Magazine is NOT a Christian-operated publication. 

Source: (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2009/06/23/science-and-religion-are-not-compatible/#.UvJflEJdV-g)

2.  Researches (experts in their field of study) didn't just find one piece of evidence, but four.

3.  Researches readily admitted that the tools must have been crafted by human hands.

4.  Popular evolutionary thinking is that Neanderthals were dim-witted, which made this discovery so much more confusing.

5.  The editor of this article only gives his readers two options to explain this discovery.

6.  This discovery flies in the face of evolutionary hominid teaching.

7.  Nothing about this discovery disagrees with Scripture.  In fact, the Biblical account is supported by this fantastic discovery.  God made Adam and Eve with brilliant minds from the beginning.  

8.  The Bible shows people of great intellect in the book of Genesis.  One such account of a man named Tubal-Cain, who already knew how to forge all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron (Genesis 4:22).  Doesn't sound like a dim-witted Neanderthal to me...

Try again, Discover Magazine.

The "eyes" have it! (Part 1)

Happy New Year!  I hope you are still going strong on your resolutions. If you haven't resolved to do any improving this year, it's not too late! As I was reading through the OYB today, I came across a passage that caused me to add a new resolution to my 2014 list.  Feel free to add it to yours as well.

Here's the passage:

Your eye is a lamp that provides light for your body.  When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light.  But when your eye is bad, your whole body is filled with darkness.  (Matthew 6:22-23a)

Was 2013 a victorious year for you in the faith?  Or, like many Christians that I've talked to, did you stumble and fall in areas that you now regret?  Yeah, me too.  According to this passage, the eyes truly are the window to your soul.  If my eyes are good, then my whole body is filled with light!  That's so encouraging!  

The resolution I'm adding this year is:  KEEP MY EYES GOOD.

It doesn't make much sense grammatically speaking, but I will know exactly what it means:

1. Put the Bible before my eyes every morning.

2. Close my eyes in prayer and focus on the God I love and serve.

3. Watch movies and internet clips that honor God.

4. Look for opportunities around me to share my faith and love people.

5. Get my eyes away from my smartphone and instead focus on my wife and son.

These are just some ways I hope to improve this year.  Praying I can look back at the end of 2014 and say with a big smile that "I am different than I was a year ago!".

"There is a road from the eye to the heart that does not go through the intellect."

~ G.K. Chesterton 

Good to be back

It has been such a long time since I have blogged!  I have a somewhat good reason for it though, which is that my password was lost and was assigned to an email that was no longer in use.  Crazy huh?  So Google would send me my reset password, but I wasn't able to access it.

Anyway, long story short, I'm back.  I've missed a lot of writings and updates to my life over the past year.  Updates that were life-changing for me and my family.  Because I want to blog more, I have decided to make a blog entry at least every two weeks.  God deserves recognition for the things He is doing in my life and my blog is one of the best ways for me to do that.

And finally, the purpose of this blog site is to help me remember key events in my life and how God has been communicating to me through His Word or through daily encounters.  For this reason, I have disabled any ability for others to comment and don't have any analytics monitoring this site.

It's good to be back!

Leadership through humility

Paul’s humility was a striking characteristic in the early church.  As a former Pharisee, he would have had a deep understand of the Old Testament and it’s teaching on humbleness.  He knew of Isaiah’s text that said God would “put an end to the arrogance of the proud” (Isaiah 13:11).  He would have examined and honored the life of Moses, a man who “was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth” (Numbers 12:3).

This basic knowledge alone wasn’t enough to change his heart.  He needed a powerful catalyst that would propel him to become a man of humbleness.  That event was the Damascus Road in 33 AD.  On that remarkable day Paul’s human strength and wisdom finally failed him.  His entire life spent living for himself and keeping the law as he knew best, suddenly came to a crashing halt when he came face to face with the object of his persecution.  Rather than dropping him dead for atrocities against His bride, Christ offered him a path of redemption: to become a disciple of the true Rabbi, and to carry the salvation message to the world. 

The reason that Paul included humbleness in this passage is because he viewed himself as one of the greatest recipients of grace, and seemed to have no other choice but to remain prostrate in the presence of an eternally merciful Savior.  Paul received a gentle hand instead of a death sentence.  He was suddenly aware of “the appearance of wisdom and self-made religion” (Colossians 2:23) and finally understood that a heart of “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” was incredibly valuable, especially as a beneficiary to such mercy.

I believe Paul displayed his humility through an overwhelming love for people.  It is doubtful, after living a life promoting his own power, that he would ever consider himself to be higher than another person in stature or position (Philippians 2:3).

Church leaders today, myself included, should take a healthy slice of Paul’s humble pie.  An old Indian proverb says, “Don’t cut off someone’s nose, then ask them to smell a rose”.  As Paul discovered, a knowledgeable mind, embraced by a heart of humility, is a powerful witness to the Gospel of Christ.

Hezekiah Reed Anderstrom

The past few days have been a whirlwind to say the least.  As you may know, my wife and I are what you might call "social-butterflies".  The month of June was no exception.  As I was thinking about all we did before Hezekiah was born, it kind of blows my mind.  Take this for example:  Just 15 days before he was born, my wife and I ran around town at midnight picking up 8th grade students while dressed as a gorilla and graduate (yes, with a creepy Samurai in the background).

Or just 6 days before he was born, we made a trip to Vite Greenhouses to pick up loads of plants.  Then we went home and actually planted them in the hot summer sun!

Two days before he was born, we went to a fantastic concert by Joanna Beasley.  I still don't know how my wife managed to stand on her feet that entire time...

And finally, just six hours before labor, we spent the night eating Mexican food with some fantastic friends.

Then the moment finally arrived.  Our greatest joy and gift from God.  Hezekiah Reed Anderstrom.

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD; The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They shall not be ashamed, When they speak with their enemies in the gate. -Psalm 127:3-5

The Highest Responsibility

People often ask me what I do to keep the faith.  I hear this a lot:
"Jonathan, life is really hard, I don't know what to do."

If the person is a Christian, I usually reply,
"Are you reading the Bible every day?"

The answer, almost 99% of the time is "no".

That's how I keep the faith.  I renew my mind with the object of my faith, which is God, displayed through His Son, Jesus Christ.  The only way to do that is through prayer and daily Bible reading.

The English pastor, Robert C. Chapman (1803-1902), penned these true words about the Bible:

"This book contains the mind of God,

the state of man, the way of salvation,

the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers.

Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding,

its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable.

Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe,

and practice it to be holy.

It contains light to direct you,

food to support you,

and comfort to cheer you.

It is the traveler's map, the pilgrim's staff, the pilot's compass,

the Soldier's sword, and the Christian's character.

Here, paradise is restored, Heaven opened,

and the gates of Hell disclosed.

Christ is its grand object,

our good is its design,

and the glory of God its end.

It should fill the memory, rule the heart,

and guide the feet.

Read it slowly, frequently, and prayerfully.

It is given you in life,

will be opened in the judgment,

and will be remembered forever.

It involves the highest responsibility,

will reward the greatest labor,

and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents."

Priorities in Ministry

A little over a year ago I sat across from a young man who said he was hearing the Holy Spirit tell him to go into full-time ministry.  He believed that the first step he needed to take was to attend a Christian college to study theology and music ministry.  It seemed to be a tremendous step of faith, but after praying about it, I sensed God was really speaking to him.  He is an incredible musician and comes from a stable family that could support his tuition.

Everything seemed to line up.  God's will and man's desire to obey.

Then I warned him.  I said, "You've just told me that you desire to be in full-time ministry.  Your life is about to get real hard.  The forces of darkness do not want you to make that decision and will try to stop you any way they can."

He agreed and said he'd stay on guard against such attacks.

Needless to say I watched over the next year as this young man's life was interrupted by difficulty and he eventually decided to not go.  It was a sad day.  Thankfully, I'm encouraged to hear that he is back on track and following the call God has placed in his life.

Ministry is hard work.  People frequently tell me that I must keep God first, family second, and my job (ministry) third.  This catch-phrase sounds Biblical and even looks great on this blog right now; eliciting warm feelings of being an "ideal Christian family man" and "keeping my priorities in line".

Unfortunately this tiered list of do's quickly falls apart with the question: Why does my love for God and the calling he's placed on my life get split into two different categories?  Aren't they one and the same?

"No Jonathan, what you don't understand is that keeping God first means doing your devotions in the morning and going to church on Sunday.  It also means you should keep your wife above your job."

Although that response reeks of American Christianity, it begs another question.  What if my "job" causes me to lose my life?  

Let's take Chinese pastors for example.  Could you ever imagine telling them to stop putting God's calling above their family life?  It sounds ridiculous, but that's how watered down our mission has become in American church culture today.

The calling that Chinese pastors have is the same one we have in America.

Most of the Apostles are believed to have been married with children.  We definitely know Peter was married because the Bible speaks of his mother-in-law.  We assume the other Apostles were, because a requirement to be an overseer was to be the husband of one wife (1 Timothy 3:2).  And yet, most of these men threw themselves into full time ministry; traveling the world preaching the Good News, probably with their wives and children by their side.  Except for John, they were all executed in gruesome ways; some even watched as their wives and children were raped and murdered before the executioners turned their sword to the Apostle.  All because of their "job"?

My point is this.  Jesus did not call us into a life of comfort.  He did not say "When things get rough in your family, or you feel the strain of ministry (aka job for pastors), or your health is failing, that's when you need to back off and get your priorities straight."

Actually He had some harsh words about the strain of ministry:

"If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.  Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple ... So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple." (Luke 14:26-27, 33)

How should Christ followers interpret this passage?  How do you interpret this passage?

American culture and God's calling are diametrically opposed to each other.  I would go so far as to say that American culture is an enemy of God.  If we are unwilling to forsake all, continuing to speak these fake-Christian talking points to each other, we will constantly be defeated in our mission.

Since I have a beautiful wife that I love deeply, I have one final thought.  I will continue to pour as much love as possible into her life while maintaining the calling God has placed in mine.  I'm not giving permission to ignore my wife so I can sit at my office and do work.  I'm talking in more broad terms about enduring hardships in ministry as a couple.  And yes, sometimes the trials and struggles we endure will not synch with the ideal American dream.

But they don't have to.

Small Group Dynamics

Small groups launched this week and I couldn't be more thrilled!  I have been journeying with a group of 8th-9th grade guys for the past year and it has been phenomenal to see God move in each of their lives.  Paul and Noah Cooke, Jesse Gonder, Levi House, and Marc England Jr (Dos) are some of the most Godly young men I know.  And yesterday we decided to begin a new study on the book of Revelation with an emphasis on current events.  What a great way to encourage these guys that their time on earth is short and to be prepared for the second coming of Christ.  Should be an exciting series!

Wanted to share a few thoughts from a book I've been reading on small group dynamics*:

1.  Small groups should be value-driven not curriculum-driven.
2.  Small group relationships are more important than small group attendance.
3.  Effective leaders make sure the content serves the mission, not the other way around.
4.  The mission of a small group leader is to develop meaningful relationships with students and help shape them into the people God designed them to be.
5.  Small group ministry goes beyond small group meetings (see #6).
6.  Good leaders are always on the lookout for ways to make connections with students outside of the scheduled meeting time.
7.  A small group leader can't control a student's spiritual journey, but they can provide a nurturing context for growth to take place.
8.  Small groups are more than just opportunities to impart information.  They allow students to experience a real, meaningful connection in a relationally starved world.
9.  Small group leaders who take their call seriously will go with their students after the meeting ends.  Not physically - but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

*Small Group Strategies: Ideas and Activities for Developing Spiritual Growth in Your Students
by Laurie Polich and Charley Scandlyn
Youth Specialties  2005

Purpose in every step

“I have become a servant of everyone so that I can bring them to Christ”, were tearful words from Paul I’m sure.  The rest of 1 Corinthians 9 continues with his personal plea to pursue the lost with all the strength his battered body could muster:

“When I am with the Jews I become one of them …” (9:20)

“When I am with the Gentiles, I fit in with them as much as I can…” (9:21)

“I try to find common ground with everyone so that I may bring them to Christ …” (9:22)

As an Army Soldier I can relate the question of the church’s mission to our nation’s military.  What is the purpose of the U.S. Armed Forces?  To train soldiers who will perform well?  To develop better technology than our enemies?  To build bases all over the world?

While these are all good functions of our military, none of these is its primary directive, which is to fight and win America’s wars, at home and abroad. 

The same is true of the local church.  I think it’s good to encourage Christians through Bible studies and church programs, but it seems the same to me as continuously training soldiers how to shoot a gun, without ever sending them to war.    

Our primary job as a church is to seek and save the lost.  It’s what Jesus came to do, and it’s what we’re commanded to do first, even before teaching them to “obey all things”.

“So I run straight ahead to the goal with purpose in every step” (9:26).  What is the goal that Paul is talking about?  He is running for an eternal prize, training his body to do what it should, to preach the gospel to those who need to hear (9:27).

Two chapters later Paul exhorts the Corinthian church again, telling them to “follow my example as I follow Christ’s” (11:1).  I believe Paul put all his heart into training church elders and infant-minded Christians into greater Biblical understanding, but his primary purpose reflected the primary purpose of Christ’s, which was to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).

The local church should reflect this same purpose in all it does without compromising Biblical principles.

An excellent story illustrating how the church is a lifesaving station that has slowly evolved into a Christian club can be read below:

http://executableoutlines.com/top/lifesave.htm

Should we segregate children from adults in Sunday School?

As a youth ministry worker, this topic intrigues me. A documentary recently published (and viewable online for free) called “Divided”, seeks to condemn youth ministries as unbiblical because they’re never mentioned in the New Testament (although neither is the word “trinity” but that would take much longer to explain). I agree that the Bible depicts a strong family model for discipleship (Deut. 6:7, Prov. 22:6, and Eph 6:4). As Gene Getz says, “each believing family in a given community, ideally speaking, was to be the ‘church in miniature’ and the father the primary spiritual leader” (1 Timothy 3:4-5). But at what point does a father and mother allow other influential Godly men and women to help instruct their children in the knowledge of the Lord? As Gene Getz explains in his book Elders and Leaders, we must look through the lenses of Scripture, history, and culture to reach decisions on such delicate matters (28). Getz further explains that the church can “use cultural insights without compromising divine absolutes” (29). The history of educating American youth began in large, single-story buildings of 30-40 students, ages 5-16. As the American education system grew, culture had to adapt and segregate it’s children using age as it’s primary criteria. Since those early pioneer days, the act of separating children by age has become an American tradition. We train our children, for eight hours a day, five days a week, 9 months a year, for 16 consecutive years, to learn in an age-segregated environment. We teach them to “find kids your own age to play with” and to have birthday parties where they invite other children in their age group. Why would the church separate from this culturally ingrained learning style for one hour a week, because the first century church implied that children were present at home church gatherings (Acts 2:46-47; 4:32-35; 16”31-34)? Christians are often guilty of adding to Scripture what isn’t intrinsically there. To combine adults and kids into a large corporate worship service each week is not commanded in the New Testament. Rather, the New Testament directive to “teach what is in accord and sound doctrine”, and “to encourage the young men to be self-controlled” (Titus 2:1,6) is not hindered because the form of that command has changed.