Living with True Joy

Yesterday at Delta we looked at John 16:16-33 and unpacked what Jesus taught about true, Gospel-centered joy.  Joy is intrinsicly different from happiness, as joy is not dependent on things that will ultimately fail or disappoint like people, things, or circumstances.  Too often people put too much stock into these things but just end up frustrated, easily agitated & angered, confused, depressed, and have no direction for their lives.  So the question is, how do you find true joy?  Here is the process I am working through:

-First, you have to jump deep into your sin.  You have to begin to see just how depraved and far from God you are.  This is not easy, and it's not fun by any means.  But it's a necessary first step.

-Second, as you jump deep into your sin, you must jump high into God's love and holiness that he has available to you through Jesus. The principle at work here is Luke 7:47 "...her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." Jumping deep into your sin and high into God's love allows the cross to be really big in your life, which serves as an anchor for your joy.

*Intermission note:The above "jumping" illustration is borrowed from my friend Darrin Patrick who will be soon releasing this material

-Also, you need to get away.  You need to remove yourself from your regular context in order to gain a more objective outlook on yourself and your life.  Practicing the spiritual disciplines of solitude and silence are key in the process.

-Then, you need to get in God's Word.  I strongly suggest living in Romans chapters 5-8.  Read them.  Journal them.  Personalize them.  Journey with Paul as he dove deep into his sin through chapters 5-7 and then rose high into God's amazing love in Chapter 8.

-You also need to be honest with yourself and others.  Be specific when identifying areas of sin in your life and how you're feeling and living; you have to get it all out.  Part of this is also bring people who are mature and who love you on your journey with you.  These people will be those who are good spiritual peers (people in your community group, church, etc.) and people who are spiritual directors who can give you insight and direction (people who are in leadership or are mentors to you).

-Lastly, take advantage of godly, theologically sound, gospel-centered preachers, teachers, and authors. Soak up Gospel-centered resources.  I highly recommend the books "The Cross Centered Life" and then it's sequel "Living the Cross Centered Life" by CJ Mahaney.

Living a life of true, gospel-centered joy is a process that is difficult because our world doesn't have any idea of what true joy is.  Living in joy involves a transformation of your heart by first surrendering your life to Jesus as your Savior and Leader, and then changing the way that you think and view your life, because of the the great mercy that God has shown us.  

Blessings on your path to joy!

The Great Nation of Texas

I'm currently in Dallas at the Depth Conference - http://acts29network.org/event/2008-11-19-dallas-boot-camp/ - with all of the Acts 29 "superstars": Matt Chandler, Mark Driscoll, and Darrin Patrick.  It's been great so far.  Be sure to grab the audio when it gets posted on the Acts 29 website.

Best quote of the day so far has come from Matt Chandler (I'm actually paraphrasing): "I'm a Baptist, and a non-apologetic one.  I'm just a weird Baptist. We give to the Cooperative Program, we're Elder-led, I occaisionally enjoy a beer.  But I'm a Baptist, just a different one."  That was refreshing to hear, seeing as how I fit that profile.  I guess he gets to be more vocal about it because his church has grown from around 130 to 5000 in 6 years, is a tredmendously gifted teacher, and a movement leader.  And I'm nowhere near that...yet :-).

Internalizing the Gospel

You cannot begin to understand and appreciate the Gospel until you begin to really deal with the depth of your own sin. Until you realize how depraved you are apart from Jesus, he will remain a God of convenience and your Christianity will be more like being a part of a social club than a transforming movement that will change the world.

This is the journey I've been travelling on for at least the last 3 months.  Now I've thought that I've dealt with things and have understood my sin.  I've had many dark times in my life where I was face to face with my depravity. But I had no idea how deep it went.  And man, is it deep.

This is what Paul consistently reminded himself of, specifically in Romans 5-7.  He says that "nothing good dwells within him" and that he's a "wretched man" and in other places, the "chief of sinners."  Now Paul isn't wallowing in self-pity, but rather he is reminding himself of how great God's mercy is, shown to us through Jesus Christ.  Paul is practicing the principle that Jesus taught us in Luke 7:47 "Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little."  Paul loved much because he was forgiven much - and he reminded himself of that.

The Gospel then is this: I am worse than I could ever imagine; yet I am loved more than I could ever comprehend.

It is a dangerous prayer to ask God to show you the depth of your sin, but it is a necessary one.  Walking that journey will bring out the worst in you, but it has to be brought out to the light so it can die as Christ shines on you.  Not dealing with your sin will only lead to  arrogance, pride, selfishness, and consumerism - the very things we see rampant in the modern church today.  The more we realize how much we've been forgiven, we become radically more loving, forgiving, compassionate, and gracious to others.  We serve and give all that we can because we have been served and given so much.

I've been greatly identifying and appreciating these words of the song 'Thy Mercy My God', and I hope they minister to you:

Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here

Sin would reduce me to utter despair

But through Thy free goodness, my spirits revive

And He that first made me still keeps me alive

Vote for Jesus

Yesterday at Delta we took a long look at Romans 13:1-7 to discover what exactly God has to say about the Christian's responsibility in and to the government.  The audio should be up soon at www.deltachurch.net for those you who weren't there.  I just want to highlight the takeaway points in how we as Christians exactly "vote for Jesus":

• Submit yourself to Jesus.  Following Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords begins with you and in your heart.
• Work for conversions.  We can’t expect those in public office (or who want to be in public office) who don’t love Jesus to lead according to God’s standards…so we need to do the work of making disciples.  Faith can’t be forced by physical means like voting; that’s not how we influence our city, state, & nation with the Gospel – the influence of the Gospel is proclaimed and lived out by Christ-followers to those who are disconnected and far from God.
• Stay informed.  Christians are already caricatured as unintelligent, archaic, backwoods, NASCAR fans…don’t fuel that fire…love God and your country with your mind and don’t make simply emotional and single-issue decisions.
• Don’t look to the government for a moral compass.  We’re dealing with fallen, sinful people…add on top of that politicians!  Jesus is our only true and reliable standard for righteousness…everyone else falls terribly short.
• Trust in God’s sovereignty.  If your guy doesn’t win, that’s OK – the person that God wanted there to achieve His purpose for His glory is sitting in the seat of authority.

My challenge to everyone is this: if you indeed want our unChristian nation to become a Christian nation, it begins with you and you bringing the Gospel to those who are lost and disconnected from Jesus, including those in government.  So, how can you do that?  Where can you volunteer?  If your line of work can get you a government job, can you work there?  What boards or committees can you be a part of?

So I encourage everyone to do your duty as a citizen and vote tomorrow!  And if you are a Christ-follower, remember your citizenship that is in heaven and honor Jesus with your vote, however He leads you to do that.

You can check out a short video piece about Delta and our "Vote for Jesus" day yesterday on our local FoxNews affiliate here in Springfield: http://www.myfoxspringfiel

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