discipleship

high school graduation and SHIFT

/ Craig / 1 Comment

Growing up for some of us is like driving an automatic:  we shifted gears almost without thinking.  And for others of us growing up has been like learning to drive a standard:  we shift, jolt, restart, look for the sweet spot, and try again;  every transition requires us to think, stop try.  Nothing feels automatic.  

 High school graduation is a major marker in the journey of growing up.  Today I was privileged to be a part of graduation interviews at Tupper High School.  I’m so impressed with the students I met and deeply appreciative of the variety of strengths they have landed on and are seeking to develop in the next years.  Some of them are shifting well almost on automatic, and others are in the midst of learning to shift.

I have been thinking during the day about the kinds of shifts that are needed and one hopes are well on the way by graduation.  Here’s a short list of shifts that I believe high school graduation signals are in order.  What do you think, are these expectations realistic?

1.  From dependence to independence to interdependence.

2.  From working on my weaknesses to living in my strengths.

3.  From trusting that others will solve problems for me to seeking solutions with others.

4.  From simply absorbing the values of others in order to please them to sorting out what really matters to me.

5.  From living for myself as an end to living for something greater than me.

6.  From fear of challenges to facing challenges.

7.  From the inertia of the familiar to the exhilaration of learning something new.  And from depending on others to do this for me to taking the initiative to sharpen my growing edges.

8.  From intoxication with power to the just application of power.

9.  From having others pay the bills to paying the bills myself.

10.  ……….hey what shift do you believe high school graduation signals?

the integrity test: alignment and anxiety

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On the weekend after the Integrity Workshop we began a new series at Cityview called Integrity Test:  6 realities we have in common with Jesus.  As followers of Jesus we live with a much for severe reality than others do.  We live with the reality of God’s perspective and right to our life.  We live with the costliness of His grace.  Anyone who is a new believer or even consider following Christ is probably already aware of the challenge that accompanies alignment with the Jesus and seeking to walk as walked in this world. (See 1 John 1:6)

 The first reality that the series deals with is that your alignment with Jesus may create anxiety in others.  For the follower of Jesus this is integrity 101 after the matter of honesty.  Our text Luke 2:41-52 opens a window on Jesus going to Jerusalem with Mary and Joseph and then staying behind without their knowledge.  After three days they find him in the temple conversing with the elders there.  His parents are astonished.  And Jesus himself seems genuinely surprised that they did not know where he was or what he was about.  Jesus’ alignment with His Heavenly Father created great anxiety for Mary and Joseph.  In a simple reduction of the problem we can say that when faced with the anxiety of others we are pressed into an integrity test.  Will we be a people-pleaser or a God-pleaser?  You can listen to the message at cityviewchurch.ca later this week.  The listening guide is below.

1.  Alignment with Jesus means you will be doing new things and establishing new patterns.  

“Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”  Luke 2:49
2.  Alignment with Jesus creates change in relationships.  

“When his parents saw him, they were astonished.  His mother said, “Son, why have you treated us like this?  Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”  Luke 2:49
3.  Alignment with Jesus does not mean you abandon all your commitments.   But it does require you to sort out your obligations.

 “But they did not understand what he was saying to them.  Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them.”  Luke 2:50-51
4.  Alignement with Jesus propels you into essential areas of growth.  

“And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”  Luke 2:52

Jesus fully met the demands of reality.  We do not and that problem reveals again why I need a Saviour and why Jesus was fully able to meet the reality of my sin:

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”  2 Corinthians 5:21

seen at Cityview this weekend

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Here is the video we showed Sunday morning before the service set to Toby Mac’s song Lose My Soul.  The song is based off Jesus teaching on following Him found in Luke 9:23-27.  Specifically verse 25:  “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very sefl?”  What a big difference from the message my kids sang at the table last week, “Baby you can have whatever you want!”

SPECKA–bible study any place any time with anyone

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I’m always on the lookout for ways to promote study and application of God’s Word.  I believe we need to move our western romance with information or knowledge on toward speedy obedience when it comes to us and the Bible.  Please don’t hear me saying that I am against education.  I just think we get inoculated against the power of God’s Word to change our lives when we become dependent on a “studied person” as opposed to seeing every person empowered to open the Scripture and experience the shaping work of the Holy Spirit.  Here is a way to do that.

If you are using a narrative passage of Scripture have someone prepared ahead of time to tell the story.  Then have someone read the text.  Then make your way, one question at a time through the following questions:  SPECKA

S  is there any SIN to confess or avoid in this passage?

P  is there any PROMISE to claim?

E  is there any good EXAMPLE to follow or bad EXAMPLE to avoid?

C  is there a direct COMMAND to obey?

K  is there any KNOWLEDGE about who God is or how He works?

A  what is the APPLICATION?
     1st.  What are the general APPLICATIONS from this passage?
     2nd.  What are your personal APPLICATIONS from this passage?

 

Enjoy.  And if any of you do this by yourself or with a group of friends please give me feed-back on how it went.

stepping into culture

/ Craig / 1 Comment

Our series at Cityview through the first six chapters of Danial has called us to think about how we engage culture:  to Live Like Strangers, in the world but not of it.  I want to encourage you to listen to this 18 minute talk by Andy Crouch at Q.  His talk stepping into culture reviews “postures” and “gestures” toward culture.  He ends with 3 good questions:  What are you cultivating?  What are you creating?  And Who are your co-creators?  I find Andy’s descriptions of different postures and gestures useful for helping me differentiate between the kinds of responses faith in Christ requires in daily living.