Anxious

For the past few weeks I have been feeling very anxious. There is so much going on in our lives right now. We're having a baby in a few months, we're looking at moving into a new home in about a month, a new round of small groups need to be organized at the church, and there are some personal matters that have been weighing heavily on us. Good stuff, but stuff nonetheless.

It seems that I have been going full bore for so long that I haven't really stopped to examine my feelings of anxiety. I know better than to do this (or not do this). I try to follow the Bible when it says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything...present your requests to God." But honestly, I don't have the first clue as to what kind of requests to make to God right now.

When I'm quiet, I calm myself down, breathe some deep breaths, and engage in some self-examination. Why am I feeling so anxious? What's going on inside of me? As of yet...I don't know. So my request to God is, "Show me what's going on in my heart."

It's times like these when I'm grateful to have a God who knows me better than I know myself. When I am anxious, God is not. When I'm confused, God is not. When I don't know how to pray, the Spirit himself intercedes for me with groanings that words cannot express. So I will glory in my weakness of humanity. The fact that I don't really know what's going on reinforces the fact that God is in control. So my heart is still because it knows that He really is God.

Doing and Being

I woke up with the realization that I actually have a blog site. I suppose I better use it. So here's what's on my mind today...

I have been preaching heavy in the church about what we ought to be. Honestly...it's good stuff. I'm seeing magazine articles and books in the future. Oh yeah...it's that good.

But here's the thing...

I have been talking an awful lot about the kind of church we need to be. What we need to be doing and how we ought to be acting. Know what? It's absolutely true. But at what point do I as the leader begin to transition from talking about the kind of church we need to be, and start being the church we need to be.

Yes, I know the church is made up of people. The people need to get on board and embrace the vision. Until they do, it's hard to actually BE that church. But the fact is, I think they know what I'm talking about now. We are at that crucial moment (hopefully not past it) where we need to shift into high gear and go before we run out of steam. This time of vision casting and education was necessary. It will still be necessary as time goes on.

My message is simple. "Jesus makes your life better." I think it's time that I get very specific as to exactly how Jesus makes your life better in my preaching. So I'm going to transition myself and my style of preaching from talking about the church, to actually being the church. Sounds like something I should already know, doesn't it? It's not that I don't know it. It's just that I have felt like people have not been getting it. But the word now is, "Ready or not, here it is."