Not Sure How I Feel

As my wife and I were reading the 40 Days devotional a few nights ago, a thought popped into my head. I wondered if this whole idea about small groups is a little biased. You see, I'm an extrovert, which means that I like having a whole lot of "friends," but to only get involved at what could best be called a shallow level with them. This extrovert-ness is a part of who I am, it's how I roll. So now, I'm supposed to cast aside that part of me that is integral to who I am so that I can invest and be invested in at a deep level. I struggle with that, to be honest. Could there not be a way for the extroverts among to be built up spiritually and to invest in each other that doesn't look like small groups and deep conversations? That is what I have been thinking.

But maybe, what is really at the core of the matter is that I really don't want people messing in my stuff. I know who I am, and there are times that I don't like that person. Why in the world would I want to get involved in doing life with someone else so that they can also know what a cruddy guy I can be? It's risky. It's scary. Maybe they'll find out who the man is behind the curtain and reject me or, worse yet, throw the curtain wide open for others to see. It's a gamble. But the fact of the matter is that God never promised that living in community would be easy or painless. Proverbs 27:17 tells us, "Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another." Iron is sharpened without the influence of anything else. Rather, it is sharpened when it comes into violent contact with another piece of iron. If iron could feel pain, it would probably reject the proposal of being sharpened in much the same way that I reject the idea of deep community in my life. But regardless of my rejections, if I want to be and stay sharp, it's what I need.

I remember being in a small group while at seminary. I joined it when I was going through a difficult time from a failed relationship. That small group was life to me! I had no idea that I would get to the level of intimacy that I did and share the things I shared. It was scary, and risky, and a gamble. But when I took the risk, the rewards of growth and relationship far outweighed it. The risk is worth it. Now, I just need to keep telling myself that...

Fitz, Youth Pastor

What You See Is What You Give

We're about halfway through the 40 Days of Community, so let's pause for a moment, take a breath, and celebrate what God is doing in our midst.

The big news is the Blitz Day this past Saturday. Over 800 volunteers participated in a one-day service blitz to reach out to our community. Through random acts of kindness, community and neighborhood cleanup, assistance to other community agencies, winterization and repair of homes and other churches, the people of La Croix have reached out in love and made an impact in our communities. (By the way, a huge thanks to the team of folks who coordinated all of those projects and also to the team leaders who took extra responsibility at each site.)

It was truly a great day; but will a great day become a great change in the lives of our people and our church? 1 John 3:16-18 says, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."

Oftentimes, we don't share our time, talents and treasures with those in need because we don't see them. Our busy lives and attention to our own issues blind us to those who are in great need. My hope is that the Blitz Day, and the entire 40 Days of Community, has opened our eyes to the opportunities to love others through our actions. I pray that the people of La Croix continue to reach out in Christ-like love to those in need.

Rob Mehner

Spiritual Formation Pastor

Aren't We Supposed to Love EVERYONE?

During the daily readings, it has been brought to my attention that some are confused with why it is that Rick Warren constantly focuses on loving the believer. I mean, after all – aren’t we supposed to love everyone?

Great question! What Rick Warren is talking about comes straight from the New Testament. The New Testament church was focused on loving other believers with such passion, sincerity, and consistency that the unbeliever was drawn in. Those on the outside of the church (the unbeliever) were so overwhelmed with the love being displayed within the church that they wanted to be a part of it. They were drawn in by the sweet “fragrance of Christ” being emitted from the acts of the believers. The church was like a pleasant smell that the unbeliever simple had to sniff. Have you ever been around something that smelled so good that you just had to breathe it in? The church should be like that. The “fragrance of Christ” should be so strong that unbelievers can’t help but breathe Him in.

What would it look like – if we were so caring and sincere with our love towards one another that the words ‘hypocrite’ or ‘judgmental’ would be the farthest thing from the unbeliever’s mind? What it would look like is an environment that is so much about community and togetherness that the unbeliever would be in a state of longing—a longing to belong to something so beautiful, so real, and so true. They would long to be invited to be a part of it. They would long to feel the love and sense of belonging that we feel.

However, we can’t stop with loving the believer. The next step is inviting the unbeliever to be a part of that family. The only way this works is to build relationships with them while they are still unbelievers. Jesus was really good at this. He was not afraid to hang out with the unbeliever. In fact, that is where he spent a lot of his time. Loving them where they are, the way they are and for who they are – all the while modeling the life they could have as a believer.

What often happens with us, as Christians, is that we aren’t afraid to get to know the unbeliever and we may even work to build a relationship with them. Yet, during that relationship building – they are drinking in and learning about how we treat our family of believers…and often times what they learn is that is not a family they want to be a part of. And in the words of James, ‘this should not be.”

Basically, what Rick Warren is telling us is – learn to love other believers first and do it well – then…we can love the unbeliever the way Christ did which will ultimately lead to “our numbers being added to daily.” What a great challenge for all of us!

Daniel Taylor
Assistant Pastor

The Foundation of this Campaign - Ron Watts

We are on Day Four in our 40 Days of Community campaign and I hope your readings in the book, Better Together are going well. On p. 178, in the study guide section, you'll find this week's memory verse: John 13:35.

"Your love for one another
will prove to the world that you are my disciples."

Those words of Jesus set the tone for this week's readings. As we love God's family, we are living proof that we are disciples of Jesus. Love is not a mark but the mark of the Christian life.

How many times have you heard a skeptic ask, “How can you expect me to accept the message of Christianity when the church is full of hypocrites?” Oftentimes, “hypocrite” is used as a catchall phrase encompassing anything that the skeptic finds objectionable (or thinks Christians find objectionable and don’t live up to). While this argument is very unconvincing to me (it’s like saying, “I’m not going to a hospital – it’s full of sick people!”) it’s painfully accurate when we Christians fail to love one another.

Take Jesus’ statement and put it in the negative, “Your lack of love for one another will prove to the world that you are not my disciples.” What kind of witness are we being to the watching eyes around us?

This is often called “the great commandment.” It is Jesus’ highest – and most difficult – command. How do we live up to it? It begins on the receiving end.

Brennan Manning, who spoke at La Croix during my sabbatical, said “To me, it's more important to be loved than to love. When I have not had the experience of being loved by God, just as I am and not as I should be, then loving others becomes a duty, a responsibility, a chore. But if I let myself be loved as I am, with the love of God poured into my heart by the Holy Spirit, then I can reach out to others in a more effortless way.”

In other words, you can’t give away what you don’t have. We can’t possibly live up to this command unless we have first received God’s love. How about you? Are you convinced that God loves you unconditionally? Have you received that love?

Knowing Jesus Christ and receiving God’s love is the basis for our 40 Days of Community campaign. That hasn’t been said up to now, but it’s the foundation we build on.

Jump in!

Hey La Croix Bloggers! Now is your opportunity to engage in an e-discussion about 40 DOC. If you haven't blogged yet . . . give it a try!

ps. See you at the Tailgate party on Sept. 8!!

Can't Wait!!

40 Days of Community is right around the corner. We have a great committee working on the campaign, and we are excited about sharing this with La Croix!!

The New Blog

This will be the blog site for La Croix UMC's 40 Days of Community campaign. Happy Reading!