Carey Nieuwhof

20.5 Days Til Easter: Hope

Easter us sneaking up on us. One of the thoughts that is gripping me is how audacious (good word) hope is. This coming Friday we're filming the Good Friday message for our services that day. As I head into that space, I am astounded at how bleak it got for God.

Unbelievably bleak - if you look at it from a human standpoint. We have some rather stark things planned to convey that message (ain't giving no secrets away). But the bleak, starks be even depressing nature of Good Friday makes the story far more compelling. 

It makes hope real.

As I head toward Easter, I long to see the bleakness and hope of this holiday with fresh eyes. Rather than see a sanitary holiday with all the trimmings, I'd encourage you to explore the fierceness and raw story of the death and resurrection of Jesus as though you were reading it for the first time. 

The power of it might turn us upside down. The other thing it will do is show you and me that God speaks into the darkness of our lives with light far more powerfully than we might ever have suspected. In fact, he might be ready to breathe that hope into you right now.

26.7 Days Until Easter: The Gap Between Belief and Experience is Trust

In less than a month, Easter starts.  This year I feel more deeply pulled into the meaning of the cross and resurrection than I have in a long time.  Not to celebrate even, but to contemplate...to understand, to give meaning.  So I thought we might do a series of posts leading up to Easter on the meaning of faith and hope in 2009.  

Not a systematic treatment of anything, but a devotional of the soul.  A place to share questions, reflections and understanding. I've love the dialogue with you. So here goes.

I was reading Psalm 132 this morning and was caught by the opening verse: Lord, remember David and all that He suffered.

I always wonder whether we would have still believed and trusted if we were the the characters in the Bible.  The faith I often look for is so neat and tidy, so complete, predictable and unmessy that it probably bears little resemblance to the experience of people in the Bible at all.  David endured years as a king in waiting, dealt with multiple threats to this throne, discord in his own family, exile and enemies all around Him.  Who would have thought this was a "blessed" life (we throw that term around pretty casually).  At least it bears little resemblance to the life most of us yearn for.  Yet God was firmly in the middle of it.  

The question that haunts me is this:  would I have believed God was in the middle of it if I was David?

Sometimes the only thing that stands between what we see around us and our belief that there is a personal God is trust.  That's it.  Faith.  

And this is the hope that this gives me as we head toward Easter.  There are lots of 'unfinished' things inside me I wish I could change, and some things around me I wish God would change.  But just because what I see and what I believe sometimes seem like two different things doesn't mean God is absent in any way.  What fills in the gap is faith - trust.  Maybe that's what God is growing in me.

What do you think?  Does realizing that David suffered somehow encourage you?

P.S.  I am very aware I haven't blogged much in 2009.  I think God has been recalibrating my soul (plus I've been adjusting my workload.)  But you can come back for more steady posts from this point on.  Thanks for your patience and partnership!

Suffering? Great!

So...you want to be great.  We've talked about this before in several contexts at Connexus.  But last week, in a conversation I had a huge new insight from a friend.

He simply said this:  There cannot be greatness without suffering.

It was one of those moments when a bunch of things I kind of new and didn't know synced together in my mind and I realized he's right.

Can I think of anyone in scripture who was great who didn't suffer?  Abraham?  No.  Moses?  No. Ruth? Pretty much not.  David? No (read the Psalms).  The prophets?  Nuh uh.  Peter?  Nope.  Paul?  Never.  

In fact, the people we widely regard as the greatest leaders often suffer the most.  Jesus' life was a life of suffering.  The ultimate act of the redemption of humanity was supreme suffering?

Switch to world history: can you think of a single historical figure we admire who didn't suffer?  I can't. 

In fact, we vilify people who avoid suffering.  Dictators use power to make others suffer so they don't have to.  We hardly admire the rich who insulate themselves from suffering through money.  A hero is someone who embraces suffering and uses it for the good of others.

This rocked my world.  I spend far too much of my time trying to avoid suffering.  Guess I need to change. Here are some take aways I'm still processing:

• If you are suffering, this can be a portal into greatness if you will use the suffering for God's glory and for the benefit of others.  (Think of people who are ill who still give to others...) 

• If you are avoiding suffering like the plague, you will never be great.  

• God uses suffering to grow people. 

• All suffering can be redeemed (Romans 8:28)   

What do you think?  Do you agree?  Do you think the principle is true?  Why or why not?

Second, does it give you hope?

Dude...What's Buggin You?

Chicks and Dudes is our early summer series about relationships.  It's all about how men and women struggle in relationship and what God says about it.  You can help add some primal research.

Dudes, it's your turn.  What drives you nuts about women?  What don't you understand?  What seems like it will always be in the category of permanent mystery to you?  Where are the tension point in your relationship?  Post your comments and let's hear it!

Thanks to the chicks for some things to think about.  Anyone else want to chime in?  Ladies, add your struggle/complaint/question here.

A Growing Relationship - TakeAways

We're wrapping up a series we called a growing relationship, which is a rework of several series our partner church, North Point Community Church, has done (most recently....Five Things God Uses to Grow Your Faith).   You can access our series here or North Point's here.

It's no secret to any teacher that when you teach something, you learn.  Here are a few reflections/insights that really hit me during the series:

• At the heart of faith in God is trust, not just belief.  To trust someone is to have confidence in them.  If you don't have confidence in your car to get you to Toronto, it's because you don't trust its reliability.  Same deal with God.  If you don't trust him, it's basically that you don't have confidence in him. The more I think about that, the more I realize that what I really need to grow is my confidence in God.

• I'm convinced we've totally misdefined spiritual maturity in the church today. I know I've been on this one for a while, but I just get more convinced all the time that many Christians today are missing the boat.  Like I said early in the series, many Christians think knowing more makes us mature. Wrongo bongo. Knowing more just makes us more hypocritical.  Application grows us.  When we apply what we learn from God, it stretches us deeply (Ever read the bible?  Seriously, it's stinkin' crazy counterintuitive stuff!)  When we get stretched, we have to trust God.  And when we trust God, we grow.

• If we're not careful, most of us will become spiritual voyeurs (watching other people grow) or spiritual consumers (getting but never giving and, ironically, never being happy).  Jesus is the opposite. He applied.  He gave.  Maturity comes from giving, not getting.  (Thanks to all of you who stepped up to serve for the first time during this series!!)

Well, there's more, but that's enough for now. 

What thought is stretching you these days?  Any take aways from this or other things that are growing you into a fuller and more intimate relationship with Christ these days?

Dangerous Questions - Your Turn

So far we've asked five questions that I think are dangerous.  Dangerous because they threaten to upset our worlds, turn them upside down and releasing the power God wants to leverage in our lives.

Here's a recap of the four questions so far:

How would fully realizing that I am 100% fully, completely forgiven affect how I react to people who have hurt me?

Are you doing anything in your life that absolutely requires God's help to accomplish it?  If not, you're probably not doing anything significant.

What if today you pushed past your deepest fear with the confidence that God was with you?

What if you viewed all you had (your time, energy and resources) as things entrusted to you by God for which you had to give an account?

So how about you?  What question churning in your mind has the power to turn our individual or collective worlds upside down?  Post them as a comment and we'll see what happens.

Dangerous Questions (4)

When we started this little series a week or so ago, a friend emailed this question in:

How would fully realizing that I am 100% fully, completely forgiven affect how I react to people who have hurt me?

To me, that's a bombshell (good bombshell) question. 

What would be different?  What grudge would you have left to hold?  What relational funk would there be left in any relationships?  Is that actually what heaven will be like?  If Jesus died for our sins, doesn't that mean we can experience that now?

I have had moments - just moments - in my life where I think I saw the power of that thought.  A glimpse.  My heart melts.  Then the moment is gone.

What if that was true in our lives today?

What do you think?

P.S.  Tomorrow, we turn it over to you to ask your dangerous questions.  Can't wait to see what you're asking.

Dangerous Questions (3)

Here's a question that I hope disturbs your day and my day enough to force us to answer it. I think I heard a version of this question a few years ago (can't remember who, just don't want to steal credit...), and I wished the question stuck in my head every day.

Are you doing anything in your life that absolutely requires God's help to accomplish it?  If not, you're probably not doing anything significant.

As much as we say we want to trust God, most of us would rather have our lives unfold so neatly that God isn't required.  We'd rather have reward without risk and success without sacrifice.  We'd rather get a guarantee that it's all going to work out than have to engage in activity so risky that it actually requires trust every day.

So most of us settle. Life with limits.  A little house in the suburbs.  Better furniture.  A church that we could build on our own strength.  Just big enough, but nothing daring.  That's a good life.  Yeah, but it's boring. And it doesn't require God.

But

• if you're hanging onto a marriage you don't know how to fix...that absolutely requires God's help to heal it...you're doing something significant. 
• If you are are leading a mission so different from what others are doing that no one thinks it will work but you're convinced it will lead people to Christ...you might be onto something significant. 
• If you're living at a level of sacrifice that actually forces you to pray to God because you're not sure you've got enough left over for yourself, you're doing something real.
• If your day starts uphill against the wind every day because you're attempting to obey God, then you're doing something significant.

And you might, actually, be trusting God.

Dangerous Questions (2)

So we're asking dangerous questions.  The kind of questions that, if taken seriously, could throw a hand grenade into the complacency in your life and mine.

Today's question:

What if today you pushed past your deepest fear with the confidence that God was with you?

I'm not talking cliff-diving here (especially onto a frozen lake). I'm talking more about the kind of fears that prevent you and me from being who God designed us to be.  The kind of fear that keeps hope from happening, that makes us lose heart.  That makes us want to give up.  That keeps us from realizing potential because, well, we'd just never do that.  Fear is such an enemy.  Here's what happens when fear gets you and me:

• We shrink back from certain relationships.
• We lose the confidence that God can use us.
• Opportunities never get seized.
• Our world becomes smaller and smaller.
• Despair gets access to the place where hope used to live.
• Risks never get embraced, and rewards rarely surface.
• God becomes a good idea, not a personal companion.

What fear did you wake up with today?  Some of you can name it.  Some of us, on the other hand, have been living with fear so long we don't even recognize the intruder any more.

What fear will you hand to God today?  Read this.  Then talk to God about your fear.  And dump it, fully confident that today, God will give you the strength to push past it.

Dangerous Questions (1)

We're starting a short blog series today I'm calling "Dangerous Questions."  The questions are only dangerous because if we really pay attention to them, they could change us deeply.

The purpose?  Most of us will live our lives with assumptions or beliefs that don't serve God or even us particularly well.  Assumptions that place limits on how God can use us.  So in this series we'll simply ask questions that challenge those beliefs and assumptions. 

Today's question:  What if you viewed all you had (your time, energy and resources) as things entrusted to you by God for which you had to give an account?

Last night, for example, I watched tv for 2.5 hours.  Great use of time?  Not really.  Nothing wrong with tv, but 2.5 hours?  Really.... Well what if I believed that the time entrusted to me belonged to God, not me?  How would I use it differently?  How would I have used it to add value to the lives around me?  How would my day have been different?

Apply that to what's sitting in my bank account.  What claim does God have on the money not only that I give back to the Kingdom, but to the money I use for monthly cash flow?  How is my leadership a stewardship?  How is my time best used if it really doesn't belong to me?

The easiest way to get your head into this space is to imagine you entrusting an investment adviser with $1000 for you to invest (remember we talked about this a few times at Connexus?).  Imagine you come back six months later and

• The adviser has no idea what happened to the money or where it went.
• The adviser says you lost 'approximately' 10% but isn't sure exactly how much and is not interested in answering your questions.
• The adviser used your money to take a trip to Cuba.

We understand this scenario because the assumption is that the money belongs to us, not to the adviser.  The problem is that the adviser acted like the money was his when it wasn't.

If our lives belong to God, why do we resent God's incursion into 'our' lives to give an account for 'our' time, 'our' money and 'our' energy because we assume it's 'ours'.

What if it's not?  What if it's His?  How would your day be different?