Thanksgiving

Not surprisingly, as Thanksgiving approaches, I have been giving extra thought to what it means to be thankful. Many of us probably have traditions at this time of year that include counting our blessings or verbalizing what we are thankful for to others. These are beautiful and redeeming practices, and I always enjoy participating in them and hearing what others are thankful for.

I have begun to appreciate a different side to being thankful lately. Gratitude is more than expressing how much we like certain things. Gratitude is responding with joy to our lives and the things that make up our lives. It is easy to be thankful when we are happy, content and do not lack. It can be much more difficult to be thankful when we are hurting or struggling. Our thoughts and emotions can get clouded by what we do not have and what we wish we had.

In Philippians 4, Paul states:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

(v. 4-7.) Later in the same chapter Paul explains:

. . . I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

(v. 11b-13.)

One thing that stands out in this passage is that Paul’s exhortations to rejoice are explicitly unrelated to external circumstances of being in need or having plenty. Rather, Paul’s thankfulness and joy are directly tied to “Him who strengthens me.” Paul has a vision of the world that is rooted in something other than himself and his circumstances. Paul’s vision is centered on the peace of God and guarded in the name of Jesus Christ. (v. 7.)

Put another way, Dallas Willard states that the disciple of Christ believes and understands there is nothing in this world that can irredeemably damage us while we are living in the Kingdom of God. When we are in the thick of our own problems and suffering, this can be hard to believe. If we pause to take a step back and connect with “Him who strengthens [us],” we realize the truth. We are safe and provided for in the Kingdom of God, and we have much to rejoice about and for which to be thankful.

How do we do this? Paul provides the answer to that question as well. “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” (v. 8.) We can choose what we think about. Here, Paul instructs us to focus upon those things that are true and good. This Thanksgiving, let us choose to dwell upon things that are good and true, such as the fact that we are safe and provided-for in the Kingdom of God regardless of our earthly circumstances. Then, we can stand before God with joy and thanksgiving, and our requests to God will be made, not from a heart of fear and scarcity, but a heart confident in God’s love and provision for our lives.

Until We Meet Again . . .

As many of you are aware, Oak Hills has lost two members tragically in the span of a couple of weeks. Hugh Reed was a leader within the Oak Hills community for many, many years. He was unexpectedly diagnosed with extensive cancer on June 22. He passed away on August 8 from complications before he had the chance to thoroughly battle his cancer. Tarrah Mead was actively involved in the Youth Ministry at Oak Hills both as a student and a leader for several years. She was involved in a catastrophic car accident on August 12 that left her body alive but broken, and her brain irreparably damaged. She passed away on Sunday. She was 21. It was obvious from the first time you met or even observed Hugh or Tarrah that they were the type of persons that made this broken world a brighter place. Since they have been gone, the world has seemed dimmer and colder.

Oak Hills has lost wonderful people in the past and will unfortunately lose wonderful people in the future. But the tragic, sudden and unexpected deaths of Hugh and Tarrah have sent a shockwave of grief through the church. Our community is reeling.

As I attempt to process my grief, I cannot escape the pain. I don’t think we are supposed to. Death is the inevitable and gut-wrenching result of a fallen world where disease and violence reach everyone. It hurts. Our Leader, Jesus Christ, knew and felt the pain of death and loss. When Lazarus died, he wept. (John 11:33-36.) When Jesus overlooked the city of Jerusalem, he lamented its destruction and loss. (Luke 19:41-44.) When faced with his own impending death, Jesus pleaded for an alternative. Even God incarnate felt the sting and ache of loss and death. Jesus’ mourning shows us that our mourning is alright, because all things have not yet been set right.

I have realized that this grief is a temporal matter. That is, in the Kingdom of God, our loss is not permanent. We will be with our brothers and sisters again in the Kingdom of God. In my experience, this truth does not do much (if anything) to lessen the pain of loss, but it does underscore that pain with hope. All is not lost to the very real pain of grief. Our hope in God can carry us forward to the day when we will be with all of our loved ones and the grief and pain will finally be fully healed. Our hope in God helps us live our lives out of our love for God and those we miss rather than being controlled by our pain and grief.

When I was a child, the idea of eternity frightened me. Eternity (I thought) was an endless stretch of time that could never be understood. The older I get, and the more loss I face, the more I realize that eternity is a place without the constrictions and boundaries of time where we will enjoy the sweet fellowship of those we love.

Lord, we miss Tarrah and Hugh and our other lost loved ones. It hurts. It breaks our hearts to be without them. But we place our hope in You, knowing we have an eternity without bounds to be in Your presence with them.

Prayer

Please enjoy a blog written by Elder Allison Carlos on Prayer:

What do we really think about prayer or praying? Maybe, a more interesting question is, what do we, as Christ followers, allow prayer to become in our lives? Could it be at times that the idea of prayer invokes images of routine or performance of ritual, in our own lives and as promises in care for others?

It is painful to think of all we would compromise and abandon if prayer were reduced to a habit formed to compartmentalize and create discrete packaging for what we engage in, simply becoming something else we do. Frankly, if we were so inclined to neatly package important nuances of our lives, “tidy” treatment of prayer life would come too easily for comfort. That would be immeasurably sad and an unfortunate discarding of what God provided for His good pleasure and our benefit.

What if we believed prayer was the avenue by which we could be known for who we are, and experience peace, truth, and reality? Wouldn’t we listen and speak into that all the time for comfort and clarification? Perhaps at times we hold back or are discouraged from fully accepting that the God of the universe would be so available and instructive to us in an intimate way.

In recently reading of the life of St Theresa of Avila, her description of her struggle around prayer was striking. In many of her most difficult and early years of distraction with illness and temptation, she describes her courage to still practice intentional prayer. She beautifully explains the courage it takes to know that even in ones betrayal of God, with at times a divided heart, He will be present to us. She describes His presence not merely as being near us, but so attentive and intimate that it is as if He is looking directly at only us.

The thought makes the bones quiver while the soul is slain in gratitude. How humbling is the image, and how well we can see His beckoning nature and the pureness of what He offers. If it were not for His mercy and love for us, we could not withstand His gaze in the midst of our imperfections.

But we can have courage that is woven with the threads of humility that helps us accept that we are not so much for God’s eyes to gaze upon in our own right. It is by the power of the cross through Christ that with great anticipation and faintly beating hearts we stand affirmed and can boldly offer our praise and present our petitions.

It is His instruction that we pray continually; at times as joyful utterances or burden laden groans. Not out of routine, but in faith and watchfulness that we may better know his will through spiritual wisdom by the Holy Spirit, and be kept by His power and in His fellowship.

Service

Please enjoy a blog post written by Elder Tim Hooey on Service:

Sometimes I think I understand love. I know what it means that God loves me and I choose to enter into His love. I choose to look at people with love and treat them accordingly. This love is generous and disinterested in personal gain.

Sometimes I am in desperate need of understanding love. I can’t imagine why or how God would love me and I choose to reject His love in favor of my own way. That way is not always pretty, but sometimes seems good. When I choose that way, I also choose to love people the only way I know how, through my own effort. This is sometimes good, but often greedy and full of motives that ultimately have my best interest in mind.

Over the past month and a half, as a church, we have been talking about service. Lately, I have been thinking of service as an action that flows from love, something that finds its breath from love and cannot survive without love.

When I mention service, I’m not referring to any kind of act that helps people. We are all perfectly capable of helping people without thinking twice about why we are doing it and how God is involved, and to some degree we do this regularly. The type of service I am referring to is Kingdom-extending, selfless, and often sacrificial. This type of service comes in the mundane and everyday as well as the heroic and extraordinary.

Matthew 22:37-40 has a lot to say about love and service. After Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he answered:

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Love God. Then, let that love for God produce love for people. If we love people, and are concerned for them, it seems that it would be natural to serve them.

I found out almost two years ago that Theodore Judah Elementary School was in desperate need of help, attention and love. Almost 50% of the student body is living under the poverty level, and numerous families are homeless. As I let myself enter into God’s love, and then let that love produce a love for my community, it was natural to jump in and begin serving Theodore Judah. For me, that meant mentoring a boy from the school once a week at lunchtime. The two greatest commandments ever created required that I spend $3.25 on popcorn chicken and tater tots so that I could be involved in the life of a person who needs me. I find this thrilling. Not always easy, but thrilling.

Service is love in action. Sometimes I choose to love and my eyes are open to the heart of those around me. Sometimes I choose not to love and I miss out on extending the reach of God’s Kingdom to the ends of the earth. My prayer for Oak Hills is that we would be people eager to experience God’s love, then, as a response to His love, we would love our community actively.

A Month/Night with Gary Black

Our blog post today is written by Rick Johnson about some thoughts he had in the wake of Gary Black visiting our church last month:

Many of us at Oak Hills were strongly encouraged with the recent month long visit and evaluation from Gary Black, currently working on his P.H.D. Doctorate on “Willardian Theology” at Exeter , England . Gary's research and upcoming dissertation is on a recent movement with some new Evangelical Churches in the United States to pursue Discipleship and intentionally Living in the Kingdom of God as their mission. After studying dozens of other churches attempting to pursue this mission, Gary then this last February and March studied Oak Hills transition from a "Seeker" based church to a Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation based church.

As you are probably aware, about 10 years ago Oak Hills Church was in the midst of being a successful "Seeker" growth model based church with a robust and growing church body, then shifted to a Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation based church (for more details regarding that calling and shift refer to the Elder Board Blog posted on 8/16/10), weighing heavily from the teachings and writings of religious scholar Dallas Willard. Part of Gary Black's evaluation unique to Oak Hills, was whether a church can successfully transition from a "Seeker " or growth model church to a church based upon purposeful Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation, as many believed it is impossible to do so and too risky to try.

Gary discovered that after a sometimes painful yet necessary transition, Oak Hills Church led by its Church Leadership has become a model centerpiece of a Discipleship /Spiritual Transformation based church with a smaller yet committed and purposeful body many of whom are knowledgeable of and practicing Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation concepts and disciplines, including those taken from Willardian teachings such as "Renovation of the Heart" VIM-Vision, Intent and Means-as evident in forums such as Small Groups, Missional Living Group, the Spiritual Formation Academy and the Men's Retreat. There have been countless stories and testimonies by Oak Hillians whose lives have been transformed by purposefully entering into the reality of Christ and living in His Way and Kingdom Living as a church community at Oak Hills.

At a special evening with the Elder Board, Gary tearfully commented that based upon his research and from his own church experience that this was the closest thing he has found to purposely Living in the Kingdom of God together and what he has been looking for in a church. To a tee the Elder Board then reflected "Where Else Would We Go" than a church based upon Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation? Gary advised that Oak Hills Church use this evaluation as a Benchmark, and that we just continue to press on in pursuit of and seeking after Christ as disciples and that the rest will fall into place through the power of the active Holy Spirit according to God's Will...

So much for the nostalgia! Seriously though, I for one say despite our imperfection at seeking after Living in the Kingdom of God as a church, where else would I go! We still have much to learn about Discipleship and Spiritual Transformation, thankfully, but through God’s Grace we are purposefully and intentionally seeking after Jesus Christ and to "Follow Me" together with the higher truth and abundant real and glorious life that only comes with it. What can be more important and better than that, where else would we go? Yes, despite all the hardships that also come with “Follow Me”, Living in the Kingdom of God and Jesus' Way, IT IS WORTH IT!!!

I and the Elder Board would love to see your comments and feedback?

A Few Thoughts on Fasting

Over the past couple of years, the idea of a “full body cleanse” has become a popular topic in the media. The idea is that a person will stop eating altogether or severely restrict their diet for a period of time in order to allow their digestive system to expel the accumulated “gunk” in their system from years of eating less healthy foods. I have listened to these pitches with a fair amount of skepticism over the years. However, as much as I have no desire to spend a month eating the edible equivalent of wood chips, I must admit there is a certain appeal to this “cleansing” idea.

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I always feel more comfortable and confident driving my car after an oil change and car wash. There is simply something good about knowing that I have just washed away (or had someone else wash away) the grime and waste left over from my daily driving for the past three months. Somehow, my car feels fresher, and I feel that my engine is healthier than it was before the oil change.

It is this positive feeling that I have after getting my car’s oil changed that makes a “full body cleanse” an intriguing idea. If I were to eat a certain way for a month, would my body feel renewed and fresh? Would I be able to wash away the effects of eating cheeseburgers for the past several years? Well, probably not. But just as an oil change helps mitigate the effects of my daily driving, I can imagine a body cleanse would help refresh the body.

As we enter into the Lenten season, I found a similar line of thought occurring with regard to fasting and the health of my soul. Fasting is a good thing, and a well-established spiritual discipline, for many reasons. For example, fasting provides us with an opportunity to rely on and seek God when we remove those things from our lives we otherwise rely on in lieu of God.

I also think that fasting can have a cleansing effect. Every day, I engage in activities that are not particularly bad, and sometimes are even good, but that leave their traces on my soul. Everything from listening to the radio and surfing the internet to watching television and looking at magazines in the checkout aisle, my mind is being constantly barraged with messages that affect my thoughts and my soul. These messages are varied and numerous: I am the most important person; my desires and pleasures matter most; winning is all that matters; looking good makes me a better person; rich people matter more; and on and on the list goes.

If I stop to think about it, I know that these messages are false or dangerous or both. I don’t always stop to think about it. As a result, these messages creep into my mind and color my thoughts. They affect my perception of the world, and they begin to change my behavior. Before I realize it, these messages have made their way into my habits, like a splinter under a thumb nail.

I have developed habits and thought patterns based upon these messages. I have become numb to real beauty and true heartache because of the accumulated “gunk” left behind by the messages telling me what I should have or deserve. The constant appeal to my desires and pleasures has blurred my vision of God, of those hurting or in need, and of my own brokenness and salvation.

As I enter into Lent this year, I have decided to “cleanse” my soul by finding ways to limit the barrage of soul-numbing messages from various mediums. I am going to leave my radio off. I will severely limit my use of the internet (check email; pay bills; update this blog). I will use the space left by those things to focus on and rely on God and His messages for me.

One more thing – a “full body cleanse” or an oil change are allowed by and limited in their effects by the laws of the physical universe and the shortcomings of the physical vessels which are involved. The renewal of the soul is a spiritual matter, and it is therefore essential that it be done with an open heart to God. If you go through the motions of performing an oil change, you can expect that the oil will be refreshed because you are dealing with physical matters in a physical way. However, just going through the motions of a fast does not guarantee a particular result, because you are dealing spiritual matters that require more than just physical actions (though our physical actions matter). In fasting, we must ask God to renew our souls, we must seek His Truth to show us the way, and we must rely on His Goodness to refresh us and draw us closer to Him.

Will you join me? Is there anything you will give up for Lent as an invitation and request to God to refresh your soul?

Back Up and Running

Welcome back to the Elder Blog! As Valerie has come to the end of her term on the Elder Board, she has signed off of the Elder Blog. However, she created a very enjoyable and useful thing, and the Elder Board has decided to continue the blog.

I think that I can speak for the Elder Board (something I will not typically do) in expressing our deep gratitude for Valerie’s service as an Elder. Not only did she create and maintain this blog, she was a consistent, wise and gracious Chairperson of the Board. Her presence at meetings has been and will continue to be missed.

Now, I will address a few “housekeeping” type matters regarding the blog, so that hopefully we will not have to revisit them often. I will be the moderator of this blog. But since I am not as skilled or prolific of a writer as Valerie, I have asked for assistance from the other Elders. Frequently, the posts will be from different members of the Elder Board. Hopefully, you will enjoy the varying perspectives over time. Also, this blog will consist of the musings and opinions of the individual elders contributing to the blog. Finally, I encourage lively discussion and thoughtful debates about anything said on this blog, but also demand respect and civility. I will not elaborate further, in the hope that I have already said more than necessary.

I am looking forward to this endeavor, and I hope that you all will come back frequently to share your thoughts and opinions in the comment section. Please look for a new (more substantive) post early next week.

In the meantime, if you like, let’s have a little fun in the comment section with a couple of fill in the blanks:

I truly enjoyed Valerie’s blog post on _________ because ________.

I would like to see Mike Lueken interview the following fictional animal or character: ________ (e.g., the Cowardly Lion).

Signing Off

It is with real regret and sincere thanks that I sign off on this blog. To those of you who have been reading, I appreciate the connection that we’ve had together. The opportunity to write this blog has helped me clarify my thinking and get in touch with my feelings on a wide variety of topics over the last few years. The diarist Anais Nin noted, “We write to be able to transcend our life, to reach beyond it. We write to teach ourselves to speak with others, to record the journey into the labyrinth. We write to expand our world…” This has been true for me, whether writing about politics, banned books, or civility; engaging with the church calendar or the invitation to say “yes” to God. All of it has been a part of my own journey and hopefully every once in a while it has helped or challenged you as well.

It isn’t clear if the next board will continue with the blog or not. It may be used as issues arise or perhaps several different elders will contribute their thoughts. I suggest that you check the church website from time to time (in case the link changes).

As the 2011 Elder Board meets next week to choose a new chairperson and engage with the business of the church, I would like to encourage you to pray for each of them. They shoulder a heavy burden by willingly taking on the responsibility for discerning what God is doing in our church and making staff, financial and ministry decisions. They are a great board, men and women who love God and love Oak Hills, and I have every confidence that God will use their collective wisdom to lead us into this New Year! If you’re wondering how you can help to carry the burden of the church here are my three suggestions: give your time, give your prayers, give your money. And then expect God to use them to expand his kingdom both within you and within the church.

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you (2 Thessalonians 3:16).
With much affection,
Valerie