Light

First of all, I’d like to apologize. As I re-read my last entry, I realized how obvious it was that I rushed through it… I really didn’t take the time to write it as well as I should have, and that was my mistake. Actually, the reason Light is being posted so late is that I wanted to make sure I took my time with this one. So, maybe it’s not really on time, but it’ll certainly not be rushed. Here we go…

On Sunday night, I was up late talking to some good friends of mine, and eventually one of the guys looked at me and said, “Art, what do you think the world will be like in 30 years? Do you think it’ll be worse?"

That was a tough question. Of course, I’d like to say that things will get better. That there will be less war, less poverty, less violence, less teenage depression- these are all things I wish I could honestly say, but I can’t. Unless Jesus comes back, I don’t think I’ll be able to call my friend up thirty years from today and say, “Hey buddy, I was wrong, times really have changed for the better!”

It seems like things just get worse every day… It doesn’t even take a big age gap for us to see a major difference in the way younger generations are living. I can look at the middle school students in my church, who are only about 5-7 years younger than me, and the fact is they’re facing things I never would’ve IMAGINED in sixth or seventh grade. And we can’t avoid the problem by saying that it’s only in the cities, and moving to the suburbs- because even in my upper-middle-class, fairly rural town, I’m hearing horror stories from the middle schools.

Sadly enough, Britney Spears said it best when she said “Living in sin is the new thing.” Let’s face it… if sin is darkness, then our society is heading for nightfall. The world’s getting more selfish, more hateful, and more promiscuous- and as a result, more hurt, more defensive, more angry, and most of all, more in need of God than ever.

           

In the midst of all of this, I believe there’s a calling. In fact, I believe we were given our calling over two thousand years ago, when Jesus gave the sermon on the mount.

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men..."

Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV)

Sin is darkness, but we are light. It's as simple as that... As this world gets darker and darker, our every good deed should "shine before men."

Let me point something out. No one needs a flashlight in the middle of the day, but you need a flashlight at night, when it gets darker [I know, very simple. And obvious]. But so, as this world gets darker, we have a chance to shine even brighter... When everyone else in the world is selfish, our service will touch hearts. When everyone else in the world is hateful, our love will give hope. When everyone else in the world is promiscuous, our purity will be a testament of change.

Jesus left us a task- to be light. And He gave us the power- the Holy Spirit. So, let's shine before men.

With love, learning to shine,

Art

Who

Ok, I know. It's been MONTHS. And I wanted to write weekly... well, so much for that! Seriously, with all that went on last semester, I just couldn't sit down and write... I was too busy doing stuff. That's about as much of an excuse as I'm bothering to make, so let's move on.

Revisiting the purpose of It Springs Up, I wanted to write about the ways God is working in my life. I wanted to share the lessons He's teaching me, and to keep track of my growth. So, the only thing I can think to write about today is identity.

This is a lesson that God has really had to teach me these past few weeks, and especially these past few days. It's an exciting, beautiful, just pure lovely lesson... and yet it's hard to embrace.

The lesson is simple: I am who He says I am. No more, no less.

I'm reading a novel called Lucifer's Flood, about the fall of Satan and a third of the angels from heaven. A demon narrates the whole story, and tells of how he fell from heaven with the others and was then assigned by Satan to serve as a watcher- he would watch humanity and tell Satan anything interesting that happened. As he narrates the lives of several biblical characters, he mentions how it is their faith that seems to move God's heart. When the demons are discussing what faith is, the narrator says faith is a very strong belief- a belief that God is who He says He is.

Now, I think it's hard enough to believe in that sometimes- to believe that this unseeable God is who He claims to be. But I think it's far harder to believe that I am who God says I am.

The reason for this is that, first of all, to believe what God says about me I first have to believe what He says about Himself; I have to believe that He really is the truth, and that He really does know me better than anyone else. I also have to believe that He knows what He meant for me to be.

All that is well and good, until what He says I am starts to conflict with thoughts that I've had for years about myself. Let's face it, we've each been told who we are since we were born. And out of being told who we are, we're told what behavior is expected of us. Then, somewhere along the line, we meet Jesus and decide to be all about Him... but then what?

The experience I've had, and have been confronting recently, is that I still carry tons of thoughts and beliefs about myself that, frankly, no longer belong to me... Because they're not what I was meant to be. Often, I believe I'm someone who Jesus has clearly told me I am not. Or, I believe I cannot be the person Jesus has called me to be.

Let's look at a fairly simple example: gender roles. In our society, men are supposed to be a certain way. The model differs depending on who you talk to or where you are, but basically we're told is that men dress a certain way, can't show much emotion and, oh, if they happen to have a girlfriend, that makes them REALLY a man. [Let me mention I speak for my generation, out of my experience and what I have seen in others].

What you have, then, is a massive amount of men who know Jesus, and who have been set aside by God to be Men Of God, but they can't seem to get there. It's not that they don't want to, it's just that something is stopping them... Because, you see, they can't become Men Of God until they first accept that they ARE men- not because they fit into the model that the world has prepared for them, but because God says they are.

I myself have been told countless time to behave a certain way, because it's how a man acts... When, really, as I explore my faith and relationship with Christ, I don't find that God tells me the same. I'm realizing that I spend so much time trying to be the man other people, including Christians, expect me to be, that I often miss out on being a man just because God has made me one.

Or how about this- what about the things we tell ourselves we are? For years, I've been insecure around new people. I seem to carry a general assumption that new people just plain won't like me... And so I've gotten used to saying "I'm shy because I'm insecure."

All the while, however, God is saying "I've freed you. I've made you secure in Me." Only I haven't been able to embrace this truth that he offers me, because I'm so caught up in being "me."

Over the past few weeks, I've had several instances where God has used the most RANDOM people to specifically tell me "You are bold and brave," in those exact words, in ways that I could only be totally certain that He was speaking. I kept asking God "why would you say that to me? I'm so insecure. I'm so scared."

You see, I was looking at myself as the me that I had been for years. I kept making myself into the person I believed to be. I ignored that I am free in Christ. I am free from insecurity. I am free from fear. The Word says

^"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear..."

1 John 4:18 (NIV)

So why is it that I was so focused on being fearful that I couldn't embrace that God had made me brave?

The fact is, I am not who people tell me I am. I am not who I tell myself I am. I am who God says I am.

Now I just have to walk in it... which takes some effort. I need to take the time to hear Him tell me who I am. Because, truth be told, every day people try to tell me who to be. If I'm not taking time every day to ask God who I am, all I'm gonna be hearing is the lies.

With love,

Art. The Art that God has declared.

Family

Before I get into it, this is the first post of February. It's been over a month since I started It Springs Up... and I have to say, I'm really enjoying it. It Springs Up was created for me to keep track of my growth- to hold myself to it- and to share my growth with others so they could, hopefully, grow as well. In January, that clearly happened. So, it might be cliche, but I want to thank you for being part of my adventure this past month. The feedback I get from you guys has been really encouraging, so please keep reading and keep commenting... and let's see how much we've grown in another month!

Oh, and sorry it's been so long. But I'm back :)

~~

I've always been an advocate of community in Christianity. I mean, we're called to love people... and love just happens to create natural community. Well, real biblical love does. As I look through the New Testament, especially in the book of Acts, I see so much love from one believer to the other. [As a side note, my hope is that as I mention these occurrences in the bible, you'll be led to go dig deeper and see what I'm talking about.] And how could the early church NOT love each other? Jesus flat-out told them it was required of them! Check it out:

"Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

John 13:35 (NIV)

So here are the apostles, hanging out with Jesus, sharing in the last supper, and he tells them that he's about to leave. He tells them that they're gonna look for him, but that where he's going they cannot come. And the next thing he says is to "love one another."

This was the man who had totally changed their lives, done miracles, and he's about to leave... and what he cares about is that they love each other when he's gone! Then, as they leave the upper room on their way to the garden, he reminds them:

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you."

John 15:12 (NIV)

And, knowing their forgetfulness, he reminds them again just a few verses later:

^"This is my command: Love each other."

John 15:17

Imagine... these are Jesus's last few teachings. He goes on to teach about the Holy Spirit, and prayer, but even those things he doesn't repeat three times! How important it must be to Jesus that we "love each other".

But maybe you noticed something else. He didn't stop at love each other. He said "love each other as I have loved you." Well, so we have to love like Jesus. And not in a cliche kinda sense. None of this "well I have to love them because Jesus loves them."

Think about the love Jesus has for you- and I HOPE you've experienced this love, because it's the only thing in this life worth all the pain and hardship we go through. Jesus' sort of love is top-notch, perfect love. It's "agape": unconditional, self-sacrificing love. This love, this agape, is what led Jesus to take betrayal, physical and emotional pain, spit, whips, spears, nails, and burdens for us. Jesus sacrificed himself for us... because of his deep love for us. He sacrificed his life for us.

But just before he does so- just before he takes up the cross meant for us- he says "love each other like I love you." Basically, love each other sacrificially. Love each other by giving to each other. Love each other by doing things that are really inconvenient for people who won't be able to pay you back. Love each other, sometimes even to the point of having to suffer for each other a bit.

The early church understood this much more than we do. They understood what it meant to be brothers and sisters in the family of God. Don't get me wrong- they certainly loved non-believers as well, as we should. There was, however, something special about now, being God's children, spending time with their new-found siblings.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.

Acts 2:42-45

Here's the sacrificially-loving family of God. When one believer was short on money, his brother would sell whatever he had to make sure the other had enough. It's incredible... there was no one in the church who was needy.

There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales, and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.

Acts 4:34-35

Now in most churches, there's some sort of benevolence offering. And once in a while, when one of us has a little bit of extra cash, we go ahead and make an offering. But, let's be honest... there's not much sacrifice in it. We get $5 coffee at Starbucks four times a week, but can't give $10 to our struggling brothers. That's the reality of a great portion of the church.

You see, we don't consider each other family. I can guarantee you most members of my church would take in their blood brother or blood sister if they were in need, and not ask for anything back. But would they look at me, or another church member, the same way?

When we're born of the same parents, we feel responsible for each other- for taking care of each other. For some reason, this sense of responsibility does not carry over into the lives of our brothers and sisters in the church- nevermind the fact that we're born of the same heavenly father now.

Lately, I've been experiencing a taste of biblical family with some friends here at school. I first noticed it last week, when we all went out to eat. As we held hands around the table to say a prayer, I thought to myself "Wow. This feels like family."

I notice it more and more as we spend time together. On Wednesday, we got the day off from school, so we stayed in the basement of one of the dorms all day, watching movies together. And as we spent time together, ate meals together, and just fellowshipped, I heard "thank you" more times than I ever had in my life. There was simple acts of service going on left and right! The whole day, people would be doing each other little favors. Little things, like if someone noticed that someone else was uncomfortable in their chair, they'd offer the couch instantly. It seems silly, but that's the beginning of sacrificial love. This week I had people offer to pay for me whenever we went out to do ANYTHING- not because I didn't have the money, but just because they wanted to.

At one point, I came in from the snow and took off my shoes. One friend noticed that I had gotten my socks wet and, even though I didn't mind the wet socks, insisted on getting me a dry pair from their room. They sincerely cared that I was comfortable. You know, it might not seem like much, but this gives me hope. There's hope that God's children are realizing we need to concern ourselves with serving and loving each other. We need to take up the responsibility we have for each other as brothers and sisters. And we need to start loving each other as Jesus loved us.

With love, His love,

Art

Face

I've had an interesting week. A very, very good week, don't get me wrong, but with an interesting revelation. Since last Friday, I got an awesome opportunity to share my story [testimony, past, auto-biography- whatever you wanna call it] with a friend, and I also got to hear what's going on in the lives of some people around me. Basically, there's been a lot of story-telling going on... and all of the stories involved a lot of pain, both past and current.

It's remarkable to think about, but if you stop to really listen to what's going on in people's lives, a great number of them are hurting. Your friends, my friends... frankly, maybe you or me. Our society's fast pace has made it really easy to ask people "how you doin?" without actually caring, or having to listen to, how someone is actually doing.

So the pained people walk around pained, and those who happen to be doing alright never even know about the pain. And it's tearing them up on the inside- they're filled with thoughts like "I don't know what to do... Why does this have to happen to me? Where is God in all of this?" Speaking from experience, the hopelessness can get a little frightening. These are hurting people.

Then you have those who HAVE been hurt. The past pain. This week, as I shared with a friend some of the things I've been through, I realized how much hurt I've really had to overcome. There have been troubles that, even after I went through them, left marks on me that took months to erase. In fact, to be totally honest, I'm still erasing some marks from years ago. And so are most people who've been really hurt.

This is all going on right now.

When I look around my campus I see a lot of normal, happy people. Then I take the time to sit down with one of those people, and hear about how much they're hurting and how confused they are. Or how confused they've been and have finally found the right track after a lot of trouble. It's crazy!

Sometimes when I sit down to talk to someone, I find that I'm the first or only person to hear about what's going on in their lives. What's going on, that people feel like they need to hide their pain? Why are we content to have a generation of hurt, broken people as long as it's covered by a mask of normalcy? When is enough going to be enough, and we're going to start to be real?

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.

James 5:16

I don't know what that verse says to you, but to me it SCREAMS the need for "real-ness" and de-masking in our lives. I mean, think about it. The verse says "confess your sins to EACH OTHER and pray for EACH OTHER so that you may be HEALED." How is it, then, that Christians tell themselves, and each other, that they just need to keep their problems between them and God?

God can heal you on His own. In fact, He's the only source of real healing. But for some reason he chooses to use the act of people being REAL with each other to bring that healing.

This is a conviction I've had for quite some time, but thought I'd share today. This week, I really saw how many people are hurting, or have been hurt. Most of all, though... I saw that few people KNEW that others were hurting. It's all a secret.

Lift up your hand. Curl it around the edge. Now peel the mask off your face. Let's see some real people, and receive real healing.

With love,

Art

Sing

I've noticed something. The church needs to stop singing. Or at least, we need to think before we do.

What I see is that too many times our words are hollow. They're meaningless. We care more about the fact that the current social norm is that we have to sing, then we do about the actual words coming out of our mouths.

I imagine how God feels, as we approach him and say we want to sing to Him, that we want these words to go to Him... and yet most of us are thinking about other things.

Let's face it. Singing worship songs has become a religion- the same kind of meaningless act Jesus came to end! I mean, didn't he rebuke the pharisees more than anyone? And what they did was ACTION without HEART.

I'm tired of seeing my brothers and sisters singing with a lack of heart and a lack of care for what they're saying! I'M sick of going to church and saying words I don't CARE for. I need to KNOW what I mean.

How will I sing to God "There is NO ONE like you!" If at the same time I'm living as if people are more important than God? How can I say to him "I am secure, I'm confident that I am loved, I know who I am!" If I don't live my life confident in the love of Christ, fearful of what people will think of me, insecure of who I am?

We need to know the words we're saying. And we need to mean them. Otherwise... what's the point?

With Love,

Art

Worry

It's funny how you can read something once, and not even blink- but when you read it again two weeks later, it hits hard. I was just re-reading some early chapters of Crazy Love in preparation for a message I'm giving on Friday, and this paragraph jumped out at me:

"I used to believe that in this world there are two kinds of people: natural worriers and naturally joyful people. I couldn't help it that I was the worrying kind. I'm a problem solver, so I have to focus on things that need fixing. God can see that my intensity and anxiety are ministry related. I worry because I take His work seriously.

Right?

But then there's that perplexing command: 'Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!' (Phil. 4:4)."

[Francis Chan, Crazy Love, Pg 41.]

The reason this paragraph connected with me is that just this week I was using the same excuses as Francis Chan uses. When two individuals, on two separate occasions, mentioned my worries about ministry and the things I'm involved in, I responded with excuses like: "I'm very passionate about this ministry... I care a lot about it... I love the people in it..." Don't get me wrong- I AM passionate... I DO care a lot... I DO love the people... And to be honest, at times I think others aren't worried enough!

But... does all that give me a right to WORRY?

Chan goes on to point out how, when we worry- even over GOOD causes- we say that our care about a ministry is more important than God's command to rejoice. And then there's the continuation of that command- to "Not be anxious about anything." (Phil. 4:6).

One thing I'm noticing is how easily we make exemptions when God makes rules with words like "all" or "anything." He wants ALL of me... except this relationship. I can't be anxious about ANYTHING except my financial burdens.

We don't ever say those things OUT LOUD, but we certainly live like that.

The truth is... I love my church and its ministries. There's something about our youth group that gets me SO excited for God and his works. I am more passionate about that ministry and those people than any other ministry or church or group or work that I have seen. So I WANT to worry about it all. When the church seems a little empty on a particular Sunday, I worry. When my youth group is having problems, I worry. And in case you don't realize, worrying is the same as being "anxious."

What I realize is that my passion and love for these ministries is taking place OVER God because my worries- It's causing me to disobey the commands to "rejoice always" and the command to "not be anxious about anything." And not only that, but my worry shows how little I trust God. Time and time again He has provided for me, opened doors, given me what I needed. I've seen him change lives in ways most people would NEVER believe. And yet... I can't rejoice when something goes wrong, because I believe I have to work to change it- I don't trust that God, out of love and care for his children, will provide the change and healing.

I'm going to choose to trust. When I start worrying about my church, my youth group, or any ministry... I'll turn it back over to God. I will learn to rejoice in the fact that I believe HE will take care of the problem. That HE will heal. HE will bring life change.

And He will do it. He is the redeemer.

With love,

Art

Invest

The other day I got a chance to catch up with one of my good friends, Ryan. I met Ryan three years ago at Word Of Life bible camp. God used him to really speak some truth and encouragement in my life in a time when I really needed change. And since that week, though I haven't seen Ryan in almost three years, we keep in touch. Once in a while one of us will call the other and we'll share what's going on. Ryan, to this day, continues to be a source of encouragement, conviction, and love- all based on biblical truth.

As I thanked Ryan for everything he'd been doing for me, he said something that stuck with me. He said, "Hey man, if you had a chance to invest in some stock right before it really soared and made loads of money, you would have." Basically, Ryan INVESTED himself- his time, mostly- in me, because he believed in the things God would do with me. He could see that God was preparing something. I'm sure neither of us could have expected how far God would take me, but I'm also sure Ryan doesn't feel like his time in talking to me and praying for me was wasted.

The reason I bring this up is because I'm currently working through what it means to invest. In Lukewarm, I wrote "It's time for my wealth- in time, money, energy- to be committed to something other than myself." Since writing that a week ago, I've really tried to live it out. You see, as I discussed in Lukewarm, I can no longer make excuses for the fact that I use most of my resources on myself. It's glaringly obvious, and ugly, before me. So I'm fighting it.

Today, I'd like to focus on financial resources- mostly because I'm realizing it's the area I carry the most lies in. You see, we all know we have to do kind things for others. We all know we can't spend all, or even most, of our time serving ourselves. We all know we have to go out and serve. In fact, we sing songs about it all the time. We constantly offer our lives and services to God- "Here I am," we sing, "ALL of me! Take my life, It's ALL for thee."

Over and over, we dedicate ALL of ourselves to God. ALL of our time, ALL of our energy, TEN PERCENT of our money... wait what?

You see, here's what I've come to realize. I give my tithe joyfully- It's the ten percent of what God gave me that he asks for directly, so there, it's His again. But why do we leave it at that? Why do we ignore that Jesus asked the rich young ruler to "sell everything" he had and "give to the poor."

If ten percent is all God asks of us, why did Jesus say that this man had to sell everything to achieve salvation?

Again, I'm repeating some of Lukewarm, but think about it! GOD WANTS IT ALL. Every single penny. Over and over again, he commands people to give up EVERYTHING for Him, right? So WHY do we delude ourselves in thinking that God only asks for 10% to be dedicated to him?

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not telling you that you have to give 100% of your income to the church. Not at all. I understand we have needs that require money. What I AM saying is that, since God demands ALL of us for ALL of Him, all our money should be DEDICATED to Him.

When this simple fact hit me, I was blown away. Because... well, to be honest, as soon as that 10% tithe is out of my hands, the rest of my money gets spent on myself. Notice the use of the word spent - spent on myself.

As I already told you, I committed to not buying video games until 2011. I decided to use the money I would usually be spending on video games to sponsor an inner-city child in Newark to attend a christian day camp Pastor Danny Iverson organizes. But get this- as I shared this decision with some guys from my church- guys who GREW UP in the church, I might add- one of them looked at me and said "you're crazy man. That's stupid." He had no respect for the idea, because he has been taught that the money you make, save 10%, is your own, to use as you please. Listen... NOTHING we have is our own, NONE of it is to be used as we please.

I came to realize in that moment that there was a year in which I spent 200, 300 dollars on video games and entertainment, and yet refused to sponsor a worldvision child because I didn't have the money. And my immediate thought was this- I value my entertainment more than I value a child's life. I would rather buy a Wii than feed a child for a year. How sick and twisted is that? Welcome to the American dream. Welcome, I should say, to the CHRISTIAN American dream.

So I continued contemplating this idea, until yesterday, when I had an epiphany.

You all know I love American Eagle clothing. Well, I love clothes, but especially American Eagle. I have shoes, hats, necklaces, church shirts, t-shirts, jeans, pajamas, slippers, jackets, and even underwear from American Eagle. So, one of the decisions I made this past week is that from now on I will buy clothes only when i sincerely NEED it- not just a new t-shirt because it's on sale and it looks nice. So I unsubscribed myself from American Eagle's email list, and when I was tempted to go on ae.com to check out the sales, I ignored this desire.

However, after The Great Escape, my furry hat is looking a little beat up. So, I figured, I'll go see if a new one is on sale at AE. Well, the furry hat was not... but my gray beanie was- SEVEN DOLLARS for a new black one. THAT'S THREE DOLLARS LESS THAN I PAID! SEVEN DOLLARS IS NOTHING! And the black one was so much nicer... So, I decided, when I next go to the mall, I'll buy it.

But this didn't quite sit well with me. I sat there, looking at my grey beanie -which is only two weeks old- and realized, super cheap or not, I don't need this new beanie.

What, I asked myself, would I be investing seven dollars in if I bought this hat? Fashion... style... my ego... Basically, nothing of KINGDOM VALUE. It wouldn't be an investment at all- It'd be money SPENT.

What could I do with that seven dollars that would be of KINGDOM VALUE?

>I could buy wings for a friend at Buffalo Wild Wings. A meal provides a chance for relationship building, and relationship building has KINGDOM VALUE.

>I could buy a hot meal at a bakery in Newark for a homeless person. Serving the least of these? KINGDOM VALUE!

>I could send it to Invisible Children, who would put that tiny contribution to huge goals. Saving child soldiers in Africa definitely has KINGDOM VALUE.

Three options. Three ways that, rather than SPEND my money on myself, I could INVEST it on God and his Kingdom. And that's a stock that's ready to SOAR.

So here's another commitment. This is the hardest one yet, and I might slip up a few times. But here it goes...

In 2010, I will seek to INVEST every last penny of my finances into things of KINGDOM VALUE.

KINGDOM VALUE, as I see it includes:

>Building relationships. [IE, paying for breakfast with a friend so we can have a nice conversation. Also, traveling to churches, events, etc.]

>Serving "the least of these"- buying any sort of resource for someone in need.

>Supporting ministries.

>Things that promote spiritual growth, such as reading material.

This will include all needs, such as food, clothing, and hygienics. HOWEVER, I will seek to cut costs on my needs. Which MEANS... I will buy no clothes that are not on sale, and then only if I sincerely need the article. I will not go out to eat unless is serves to build up relationships, and even then I will choose cheaper options. [IE: If I go to Applebees, I will order water, which is free, and not a soda, which costs $3. I will not buy dessert.]

So that's the practical aspect. Basically, whenever even a dime of my money will be spent, I will ask: Will this be an investment in the Kingdom of God? Could it be invested better elsewhere?

I know, it's intense. I'm not saying it's going to be easy. In fact, I'm already uncomfortable with some of the things I'm giving up. But... I want every single fiber of my being to be INVESTED in HIM, and not SPENT on ME.

With Love,

Art