Spreading God’s Grace

With all of the survey results and polling data being reported as the nation moves toward the presidential election, you may have missed the results of the survey conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life. It reports that one-fifth of the U.S. public—and a third of adults under 30—are not affiliated with any religion today. That’s a 15% increase in just the past five years.

In other words, 46 million Americans do not identify with any religion. Of those, 13 million are self-described atheists and agnostics (nearly 6%); and the other nearly 33 million people say they have no particular religious affiliation (14%).

Despite the rise in the religiously unaffiliated, Pew also found that more than two-thirds of those people believe in God. One-in-five say they pray every day. According to Pew, the spiritually engaged but religiously unaffiliated do think that “churches and other religious institutions benefit society by strengthening community bonds and aiding the poor.” Most of them acknowledge faith as a positive human urge, but are increasingly turned off by the institutions that claim to represent faith.

In the midst of his public ministry Jesus commissioned around 70 of his followers and sent them into the towns and villages where he was planning to go. “These were his instructions to them: ‘The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields’” (Luke 10:2). Jesus’ last instructions to his disciples were to “go and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19).

The time we have spent learning how to share the good news in a graceful pattern has prepared you to take your place in the field. The results of the Pew survey are just one more reminder that this is work that needs to be done. I encourage you to renew your commitment to pray for those in your life who are “unaffiliated.” Look for opportunities to engage them in conversations about life and faith. Share your faith story with them with humility and love. Let them know that there is a community of believers where they can experience the love of God in meaningful and tangible ways. And let us all resolve to allow the Holy Spirit to shape us into that community that is more interested in making God’s love real than it is in anything else.

On the Winning Team

The band builds to a crescendo. The cheerleaders soar above the field as they move from one routine to another. Everyone in the stands comes to their feet. With a roar from the crowd the team streams onto the field ready to prove they are the champions everyone hopes they are. It’s called the “home field advantage.”

Whether you are on the team, roaming the sidelines or in the stands, being a part of this experience is thrilling. There is a sense of excitement that borders on ecstasy. It is really not that hard to understand why people will pay hundreds of dollars and traveling thousands of miles to spend a few hours reveling in opportunity to be part of the team.

To extend their experience of being part of the team people will even change their behavior during the week. Perhaps you know some folks who decorate their house, their office or their car with team insignia. I have a friend who is dressed in orange and blue nearly every time I see him. When we are down on the river walk, Laine enjoys exchanging a “Roll Tide” with complete strangers. She knows they’re safe because they are wearing a big crimson “A” on their shirt or hat or handbag.

Sometimes I’m afraid we forget that as followers of Christ we are part of an even greater team. After naming about a dozen great heroes of the faith and alluding to all the others who demonstrated their faithfulness to God over the centuries, the writer of the letter to the Hebrews paints a picture of the faithful running into a stadium filled with all these witnesses—martyrs of the faith. “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” he urges (Hebrews 12:1c).

When you share the good news with another person, it is essential to let them know that once they make the decision to confess their faith in Jesus Christ, now they are a part of something that is bigger than any national championship or World Series victory. Now they are a part of the Kingdom of God.

It may be hard to see, but there are times and places where, if we help one another look in the right direction, we can catch glimpses of what it means to be counted as one of God’s children. As “Christ our invites to his table all who love him, who earnestly repent of their sin and seek to live in peace with one another” once again this Sunday, I pray that you may experience the thrilling excitement with a new sense of passion that encourages you to share it with someone who is looking for a place to belong.

Just Admit It

When I’m driving down the road, I believe that the other drivers sharing the road with me will observe the same set of rules of the road and regulations of the legislature that I will. When I come to a traffic light, I believe that others will stop when it turns red and that they will go when it turns green. Even when I’m running or riding my bicycle, I believe that the people who are behind the wheel of a vehicle will act in a way that is consistent with what I have come to believe is the acceptable behavior of an operator of a motor vehicle.

When I go to the doctor’s office, I believe that the doctor will use the skills and knowledge he or she has acquired through years of training and practice to diagnose and treat whatever condition I have. If the doctor prescribes medication or some other form of treatment, I believe that it will help me become more healthy. Even when I’m feeling well, I will schedule a visit periodically just to make sure that I haven’t missed a problem that could endanger my life.

When I go to the bank to deposit my paycheck, I believe that the teller will post the amount to my account, that the other officers and employees of the bank will be faithful stewards of my funds, and that when I decide to use some of my money to pay someone else for goods or services, that the money will be available to pay them. Even when I use cash, the transaction is based on that fact that both parties believe that the paper changing hands is worth something.

I could go on and on. Every day there are hundreds, if not thousands, of transactions that depend on one person believing that another person will do what they are expected to do. It would difficult, if not impossible, to sustain a community without such trust. That’s one of the reasons, we respond so negatively when we experience a situation where someone betrays our trust.

You may feel very uncomfortable leading someone to confess faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. What I want you to see is that people are already placing their faith in all kinds of practices and processes and people. And they are doing this in spite of those things being unproven, unpredictable, and unfaithful.

You have the distinct privilege of inviting them to say yes to the invitation of the one who loves them, forgives them, and accepts them with a faithfulness that is unparalleled in this world. They may be waiting for someone to join them in admitting they need to accept that gift of grace. May God give you the boldness to offer that invitation.

Beyond Excuses

Nobody’s perfect. Everybody makes mistakes. If you look at anything close enough, you are sure to find a few flaws. Even the aluminum housing of each new Apple iPhone 5 is photographed by two high-powered 29 mega-pixel cameras to determine which of the 725 unique glass inlays on the assembly line at that point is the most precise match for every single iPhone.

Even though nearly everyone would agree that perfection is rare—if it can be found at all; that doesn’t keep most of us from expecting it. We assume the server will bring the meal we ordered. We anticipate the product we purchased will perform as advertised. And we imagine everything we do will turn out exactly as we intend.

But then the salad shows up with onion, the miracle gadget is not up to the task we hoped it would do, and our best efforts fall short of our lofty aspirations.

There are a lot of people who are living in this gap between their expectations and their reality. They feel like the whole world is out to get them. And they are hurt and angry and frustrated. And when they have a few moments to reflect on what they are feeling, they have to admit that the root of their deepest frustration, anger and pain is the result of their own flawed choices.

God wants what is best for us, but God knows we are not perfect; and the good news is that God forgives. Some people believe they have to get their act together before God will accept them. Other people are still working on developing a plausible excuse. More than a few think they have done something that cannot be forgiven. Almost no one believes they deserve a fresh start.

But that is what God offers every person. And God offers it to each person because of his love for them. Not because they’ve earned it. Not because they deserve it. Not because they’ve come up with a clever explanation. Just because God loves them; and wants to restore the peace, love and joy in their life.

Helping people accept God’s forgiveness is another important step in sharing your faith and helping them move through the process that leads to a transformed life.

Recognizing the Mistake

Some people might think that the computer programming courses I took in college were a waste of time. They may have not helped me earn any money or led to position at a tech company; but spending that time writing code influenced the way I think about computers. 

One of my professors taught us that while most people think computers are really “smart,” they are actually quite “dumb.” They can only process one instruction at a time. They don’t “remember” what came before, and they can’t “anticipate” what might come next. They only follow the instructions they are given.

They can do that at a very high rate of speed that keeps increasing year after year. That’s the reason companies keep coming out with more powerful models and we keep thinking we need to upgrade. I suppose we hope we will eventually buy a device that really is “smart.” 

It may only be a few hours or it may take a few weeks, but eventually the new desktop, laptop, tablet, or game console is going to “freeze up.” For a while everything is going great. All your programs are opening faster than you can believe. The video displays details that are stunning.  The controls are so responsive you are tempted to believe it is anticipating your moves. But then; everything stops. Nothing works.

When I was assigned to write simple programs back in college, it was challenging to think through a process and break it down into it component parts. You had to consider not only where to start and what outcome you desired, but all of the decisions that had to be made along the way. If one condition existed, that called for a particular response. If another condition, that called for something very different.

If you weren’t careful (and sometimes, even if you were), you might include a test statement that resulted in the computer doing the same test over and over and over. In programming terms, it’s called an “infinite loop.”  As a novice programmer there was only one solution: find the mistake and correct it.

I wonder how many people feel like their life has been caught in an “infinite loop.” Something is going on in the background that seems to be consuming more and more of their energy; but is not helping them move toward their goals. It is keeping them from experiencing the joy they crave. How would you gracefully help them find the mistake and correct it?

That’s another important step in sharing your faith.

Scandalous Grace

You never wanted it to be this way. Indeed, you spent hours making sure this would never happen. You thought you had planned for every contingency—bad weather, car trouble, sudden illness. What you had not planned for was that all of them would converge and completely derail your efforts to make your deadline.

After pulling an all-nighter, here you are—dressed in your most professional suit—waiting to submit the work you have been laboring on for months. The deadline passed two days ago; but you are hoping you can find a compelling way to plead your case. What do you have to say to convince the person who stands behind the counter to accept what you have to give?

Someone unlocks the door and you walk briskly across the room. You lay your package on the counter and begin to tell your story. You begin at the beginning—talking about when you first learned about the project and decided you wanted to participate. You recount your careful scheduling of the various parts of the assignment —detailing the way you made allowances for interruptions. You chronicle all your troubles—the hurricane, the busted alternator, the respiratory infection that became pneumonia.  You make sure to point out that all of these setbacks were predicaments over which you had no control.

Your adjudicator listens patiently. Once you finish, she reaches for the package, smiles and says, “Thank you! I’m sure there will be no problem.”

You turn to walk away surprised at how easy it was. Just before you get to the door some guy in dirty blue jeans and a worn out t-shirt stumbles into the office. You can tell he had a rough night, too; but not like yours. His bleary eyes and distinct aroma tell a different story.

As he slouches toward the counter, you notice that he has a package in his hand, too. It looks almost as rough and tattered as its owner. He plops it in the same spot where you had carefully placed yours, and slurs, “Well, here it is.” You wait to see what happens next.

The woman behind the counter reaches for the package, smiles and says, “Thank you! I’m sure there will be no problem.”

“No way,” you think. “Scandalous!”

Consider this: “God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8). Yes, God’s great love is scandalously good news.

Life in the Spotlight

When you go to a concert, attend a pageant, or spend an evening at the theatre watching actors perform on the stage, the director often helps you know where to look by focusing a spotlight where the main action is occurring. As you sit in the darkness, you have no doubt that what is happening before you is worthy of your attention. When the spotlight shines, you sit forward in your seat. You don’t want to miss a second of the action.

While some people dream of stepping into the spotlight, most folks would prefer to stay in the shadows, off-stage, in the wings. They are perfectly happy to have a supporting role. They have never aspired to be a star. If no one ever asks them for their autograph, that is fine with them.

Even though that kind of humble spirit pleases God, those who profess faith in Jesus Christ are called to accept a new role—one that cannot be played out without being noticed. Peter reminds members of the community of faith, “Once you were nobody. Now you are God’s people” (1 Peter 2:10).

“Special people.” “Royal priests.” “A holy nation.” Everything changes. It’s not because of anything we do. It is all because of what God does for us. Through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, God heals, forgives, encourages, empowers and transforms the lives of those who receive God’s grace. And when God works in the lives of the people he loves, other people notice. “God brings you out of the darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).

This is where you feel your face start to flush, your hands start to sweat, your heart begin to race and your mind begin to go blank, because you know what comes next. “Now you must tell all the wonderful things that God has done.”

Each disciple of Jesus Christ is called to declare the wonderful deeds of God. Each Christian is called to be a witness to Christ in the particular situation in which he or she lives. The challenge is to be a truthful, faithful, graceful and effective witness for God.

You may be asking, “Am I ready for center stage?” Let me remind you that even the most talented performer spend hours preparing for their time in the spotlight. As we move through this time together, we are going to rehearse the essential elements that will help you gracefully lead others to Christ.