What Are We Doing Here? OVERFLOWING

NOTICING
How observant are you? Take this AWARENESS TEST. How did you do? I failed too. Just another reminder that it is easy for us to miss things that are right under our noses. I've got a suspicion that the same thing happens regularly with people who are sincerely trying to follow Jesus. We pay attention to some things, and miss others. For example, have you ever noticed the pattern of overflow?

OVERFLOW IS THE WAY OF LIFE
Start looking and you'll discover that one life overflows into the next. For example, what do you know that someone else didn't teach you- either directly or indirectly? All of our lives we've benefited from the knowledge and experiences of other people: coaches taught us to play sports, musicians taught us to play instruments, someone taught us to drive a car, and another employee showed us how to use the cash register, fax machine or deep fryer at our first job. And it never ends. As we learn, we teach. We take the knowledge that others gave us and let it overflow: teaching others how to play sports, make music, drive cars and do jobs we are proficient in.

OVERFLOW IS THE WAY OF GOD
The bible describes God as the Giver of every good gift. God seems to enjoy bringing good things into our lives- not just for us to savor, but so that others can benefit as well. Take Abraham for example. God promised to make Abraham the father of a nation and to give him a great reputation- and to use Him to bless every family on the planet. Later, God makes a covenant with the nation of Israel (Abraham's people) and gives them favored nation status. Bully for them, but how does that help the rest of us? The Israelites are called to be priests. What does a priest do? He/She serves others and helps them worship God. (By the way, this same title is later given to anyone who is following Jesus.) One more example. When Jesus becomes a public figure, He selects 12 people as His disciples. For 3 years these folks catch the overflow of Jesus' life. Why? Not just for their own good- but so that they could could use what they learned to bless others.

OVERFLOW COULD BE OUR WAY
What might happen if we took personal ownership of the idea of overflow? Not only would we make the lives of those around us richer, but just we might experience the life Jesus promised. Jesus said that God's presence in our lives would be like a stream of living water. In Jesus' culture, "living water" moved and went somewhere.

"Dead water" just collected, got stagnant and maybe eventually evaporated.

Why is it that so many people who are following Jesus experience times of "dryness" or feeling "stagnant" or "empty"? One reason might be that we've forgotten to overflow. Seeking God's blessings just for ourselves can leave us in an ongoing cycle of "needing to be filled up". Allowing God to take the good things in our lives and pour them out into the lives of others can keep things fresh and alive.

How do we overflow? Let's keep it simple and assume that we simply pass on to others the blessings that God has given to us. God has forgiven us, so we forgive others. God listens to us talk, so we listen to others. God clothes us, so we clothe others. And we do all of this with the strength and kindness of Jesus. (By the way, if we can't overflow with kindness, I'm not sure we're really blessing people.)

REFLECT:
Q: Name a couple of people who allowed their lives to overflow into yours. What kinds of blessings, experiences and knowledge did they share with you? When/how did this happen?

Q: Look at 1 Peter 2:9 again. Do you think of yourself as a priest? Why/Not? If you are a priest, who are your "congregants" right now? What would it look/sound like for you to "tell about the excellent qualities of God"?

Q: Look back at the pictures of the river and the retention pond above. Which best describes your spiritual life right now? Explain.

Q: Describe a time in your life with Jesus when you felt the "living water" thing happening for you.

Q: Let's assume that "overflowing" is as simple as sharing with others the blessings that God has given to you. (Ex: patience, forgiveness, acceptance, wisdom, etc.) What do you have to pass on today? Who is God putting in your life that needs those things? Spend some time praying for that God will use you to bless these folks.

What Are We Doing Here? SURFING!

Growing up in Florida, I was regularly exposed to surfing. I kept it at arm's distance until age 17, when I was bitten hard by the surfing bug. What's the big deal about riding a board on a wave? My guess is the same thing that draws people to sailing, hang gliding, white water rafting and kayaking- the chance to interact with and be carried along by a force greater than yourself. See where this is headed?

If we are following Jesus, we are surfing- being moved and directed by a Power bigger than us. God leads, we follow. The currents of God flow and we hang on for the ride.

CALLING ALL THRILL SEEKERS
People of faith are often portrayed as boring, safe and sterile. While some may be all of those things, that doesn't mean a bland life is what God intended. The scriptures are filled with stories of people who rode the currents of God to adventures beyond their wildest dreams. Unfortunately, we don't hear enough about this kind of faith. Take John 3 for example. Jesus talks about our need for re-birth (think forgiveness and a fresh start). This is the gospel we've probably heard before. But what about the next verse? The one where Jesus compares the new life He offers to being carried along by the wind. Why don't we talk about that? Why focus on the start of the journey, but ignore the rest of the adventure? Maybe because we aren't sure we're up for all that surfing the currents of God will require of us.

SURFING TAKES PATIENCE
People who ride waves do lots of waiting. The ocean doesn't have an "on demand" feature. If you want to surf, you have to respond to what the sea is doing. All of the planning in the world won't make the waves come when you want them to. This is the same experience Jesus told His friends to expect with God. God was going to move, but they would have to wait for Him. Of course, Jesus' friends have lots of questions- When? Where? How? Jesus' response- none of your beeswax. God has this funny habit of keeping His plans to Himself. Which is probably a good thing, because when God tells us what is coming- we seldom believe Him anyway.

SURFING TAKES BALANCE
Waves aren't completely predictable. Folks who have spent a lifetime riding them still get surprised by their direction, duration and intensity. The movement of God can feel equally random. Back to Jesus' buddies. He tells them to wait for God to show up and move. To their credit, they do- and are completely floored at what happens next. God did something more adventurous and effective than this first band of Jesus' followers could have pulled off on their own. If we want to live life with God, then we need to accept the fact that He won't always move like we expect Him to. We simply do our best to adjust and hang on for a more exciting ride than we could have dreamt up.

SURFING IS A LIFESTYLE
Riding waves (or other kinds of currents) can get under your skin to the point where you order your life around them. Take Dale Webster for example. Here's a guy who surfed every day for almost 29 years or 10,407 consecutive days. Rain or shine, glassy or choppy, big or blown out- Dale made it a point to ride 3 waves every single day. What if we determined to do the same thing? What if we made it our quest to surf the currents of God's spirit each day- content to let Him take us wherever He would? That's a style we could build a life around.

REFLECT & DISCUSS:
Q: What's the most adventurous thing you've ever done in your life? What's the most adventurous experience you've ever had for/with God?

Q: How do you feel about Jesus' words in John 3:8? Why?

Q: When have you found yourself waiting on God to move? What happened? How did that experience affect you? Is there something you are waiting for God on right now?

Q: Can you think of a time when God moved in a way that you didn't plan or see coming? What happened?

Q: Which is harder for you- waiting for God to move- or riding along (and being out of control) when He does?

PRAY:

"God, I want to ride Your currents. Take me wherever you want me to go today."

What Are We Doing Here? MORPHING

That isn't an alien offering the "we come in peace greeting". It's me, geared up to do some serious home renovations. Two days of scraping popcorn ceilings helped me get my head around this week's idea that we are MORPHING- becoming more like Jesus.

MORPHING- MORE THAN WE BARGAINED FOR?
Transformations often grow in scope and scale. For example, I had to wear the hazmat getup because we discovered asbestos in our ceilings. Yes, we were going to take them down anyway- but the toxic news made it more complicated than we had planned. Same thing happened when some of us got involved with Jesus. We think we signed up for salvation, only to find that transformation is a mandatory part of the deal. God doesn't just forgive us, He gives us a new life to grow into and live. Although we'll see and be just like Jesus someday, we've got the rest of our days to grow towards Him.

MORPHING IS A PROCESS, NOT A PROJECT
Start remodeling a home and you'll probably find that you're never quite done. Yeah, you might finish a project, but there'll most likely be another. And another. And another. Sounds like our journeys with Jesus. When it comes to our transformation, we never arrive in this life. Instead, we keep growing and maturing. One one hand, this ought to take some of the pressure off. We can't, and aren't supposed to change all at once. But, on the other side of the equation- a process suggests movement. If I'm not changing (not matter how slowly or incrementally), then I'm missing something significant about this life with Jesus.

MORPHING TAKES ALL THE HELP WE CAN GET
Ever watch one of those home improvement shows where they remodel or redecorate someone's house? Think for a second about who is involved. 1. The professionals (often the cast of the show). 2. The homeowners. 3. Friends, family, neighbors. Who plays a part in our spiritual development? All of the above. God (the pro) provides the power that only He can provide. We (the life-owners) have to put forth some effort and build sweat equity. And our faith community (neighbors) have an important role too. This may be the missing ingredient for some of us. If we aren't willing to speak truth about our lives to others and let them lovingly speak truth back to us and build us up, we may not have all the help that we'll need to morph. (For more on the importance of allowing others to carry us to Jesus, check the last post on LINKING UP.)

LET'S GET GOING
The good news is that we don't have to stay the same. The challenging news is that we can't stay the same if we claim to follow Jesus. So gear up. Get your grungy clothes on and let's start scraping all the old toxic crap that's been hanging around far too long.

REFLECT:
Q: How would you describe your current level of maturity as a follower of Jesus? (Ex: Are you a newborn? Toddler? Child? Adolescent? Young Adult? Adult? Wise old sage? Something else?)

Q: How have you changed as you've been following Jesus? What area(s) of your life show the most transformation so far? What still needs work? (For examples, check a list of character traits in 2 Peter 1:5-9.)

Q: Who has been responsible for/contributed to your spiritual growth and transformation? You? God? Others in your faith community? Some combination of the three? If so, what roles has each played?

Q: How have you grown? What situations, experiences, practices, etc. has God used to help shape and mature you?

Q: If you haven't seen a lot of transformation, what do you attribute that to?

What Are We Doing Here? LINKING UP

Ever wondered what God intended His community to look like? Or why the Bible tells us we need community in our lives? There are probably countless reasons why people try to tackle their faith journey alone, some of which might even seem logical outside of God’s big picture – most things do. An online survey probed around to uncover some reasons why people avoid linking up with God’s community:

• God is great, but Christians tend to bother me
• God said to follow Him, not His people
• If I want to feel guilty about myself, I’ll call my mother
• Too many churches and pastors have burned me
• Three letters: NFL
• I don’t need to attend a church to be a strong Christian

Sure, some of the answers are pretty comical. But nevertheless, they prove a sobering point: too many people have misunderstood the value of God’s community. How do we shift to a healthier view? How do we discover what God intended community to look like? And how can we experience the value of it all? Luke 5:17-26 holds answers to these important questions.

SPIRITUAL GROWTH IS A COMMUNITY PROJECT: Verses 17-18
Although we would like to portray ourselves with unwavering faith all the time, our spiritual progress fluctuates. Sometimes we find ourselves passionate for God. Excited about His work in our lives. Hungry for His Word. Eager to pray. But there are moments along the journey when we find ourselves spiritually unmotivated, too. Like the paraplegic, we become unaided and broken. It‘s precisely in these moments when God uses others to help restore us to wholeness (Hebrews 10:24). Being surrounded by other Christians is critical to our spiritual growth.

Joshua Harris’ Stop Dating The Church states it this way: My individual and direct relationship with God (through Jesus) is the greatest privilege and He is truly all I need – and yet God in His wisdom has created us to need others, too…God has ordained that much of His graces flows to us (through) others (Page 48).

Real community is deeper than Sunday morning gatherings. We can attend a church our entire lives and never experience what true community is all about. Community is about living the journey together - being surrounded by the right people – those who are willing to encourage us onward when our faith comes undone.

GOD EXPRESSES HIS LOVE THROUGH COMMUNITY: Verses 19-20
It’s hard to know how far these men traveled to bring their friend to Jesus. 30 miles? 40? 70? Either way, the journey was surely daunting. The selflessness of these virtual strangers moved the heart of Christ and their friend’s life was changed forever (Luke 5:20). God’s grace was expressed through the love of these four servants.

Faith is personal. Even intimate. But it’s not private. God pours His goodness into us so we can pour goodness into others – as agents of love. Consider Jesus’ greatest commandment in Mark 12:30-31. Loving God means we must love people. And to live for God means realizing that a large portion of our lifestyle must be wrapped around His people. When we separate ourselves from God’s community, we essentially separate a large portion of who God is from our lives.

GOD DESIRES TO REVEAL HIMSELF TO COMMUNITY: Verses 21-26
Now the friend carries the mat the once carried him. Jesus’ response to this once unaided sinner is gripping. But when we look deeper, Jesus’ motive behind his response teaches us about God’s desire to reveal Himself to community (Luke 5:24). The love and grace Jesus expressed revealed who Jesus was – and that was precisely His motive – to make Himself known to a broken world.

Something extraordinary takes place when we gather together (Matthew 20:18). Does this mean God is not present when we seek Him on our own? No. God is forever present in our lives. But when we gather together as community, we find spiritual accountability. Momentum. Direction. God uses His work in community to lead us accordingly – something individual worship cannot provide.

WE’RE STILL BECOMING
Probably one of the greatest gifts God provides His people is the excitement of living the journey that is undefined. It reminds us of our dependence on Him. So much of our faith journey is unknown. And while we wait on God’s leading by trusting in His promises, Luke 5:17-26 teaches us some valuable lessons we can begin living today. Are you experiencing the value of God’s community?

REFLECT:
Q: It's no secret that many people avoid "Linking Up" with other Christians. Why do you think this is? How might you help the people in your life shift to a healthier view?

Q: Was there a time when you were disconnected from the church you were attending? How did this affect your faith? What prompted you to "Link Up"? If you find yourself still disconnected, what's holding you back?

Q: Who's been the most influential person in your life? What impact has this person had on your life? Why do you think God encourages us to be surrounded by other Christians?

READ: Acts 2:42-47

Q: What kind of community do you think God is forming at Connections? What values are apparent? How do these compare to the values found in Acts 2:42-47?