1. The President has correctly stated that these people in NY have a Constitutional right to construct their center as long as they abide by the laws of the land.  This is the same right of any other American religious group.

2.  Not all Muslims in America have declared Jihad or live by the same interpretation of the Qur’an as the terrorist of 9/11 did.  Not all Muslims hate the West or America.  I don’t hate Muslims.

3. But the real reason is my faith in the power of the gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ.  Paul stated that he was not, “ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes”.  In short, I am not threatened or fearful of Islam.  I have a friend from Iran who came from a Muslim faith.  I believe that when the simple elements of Christ are placed alongside the basic tenants of Islam on an equal playing field, Christ will win.  I say that not because Christ followers are better than Muslims.  Rather I say that because Jesus answered the inner cry of our hearts like no one else ever has- how can we have peace with God? Islam says keep the Five Pillars and maybe you’ll get in.  Judaism says keep the Torah and maybe you’ll get enough points.  But Christ came and said that in and of ourselves we are bankrupt, but that he loves us anyway.  We are unable to appease God, but Jesus came and took our brokenness and sin on the cross.  That is where true transformation comes from.  That’s love and power and true change.  That’s why I’m not too hot and bothered by a Mosque two blocks from ground zero.  I’m actually excited about more opportunities to share the love of Christ with those in New York and around the world who don’t know him.

The real answer for NY is not a court battle over property, but for someone to move there, share the love of Christ, and thus plant a living Christ centered community there.  Any takers?  I might be able to get you connected.

“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:
   ”Salvation belongs to our God,
   who sits on the throne,
   and to the Lamb.”

 Wow, that’s amazing.  It speaks again that the hope for unity in the world is not the UN, but the love to Christ.  Yup, I really do love the Kingdom.  “Slava Boga!”

Oksana and the Blinchiki

I’ve always said that I could eat Tex-Mex food two or three times a week and I think that’s probably true.  But tonight was a dinner full of memories as we got together with some friends in North Houston for Borscht and Blinchiki.  Our chef, Oksana, is from Uzbekistan which used to be part of the Soviet Union.  So it was a lot of fun trying to remember our Russian and the names of the great dishes we had while living in Moscow back in the mid 90s.  I love trying foods from all over the world.  Probably the worst thing I’ve ever eaten was on a college internship in Chile back in 88 and I’d say that the best food I’ve ever had was in Nagaland, India.  But I think one of the greatest parts of these fun food festivities is not just the palate, but the friendships, culture, and Kingdom experiences that come along with them.  Cultural because we are all different and I love that.  But from the Kingdom standpoint, it is a reminder that the Kingdom of Heaven is not an American thing, but a God thing.  The real Kingdom of God, or Heaven, is something that Jesus said is within us.  It stretches all over the world and across time.  It will continue to expand in the hearts and minds of God’s children until Christ comes back.  So in a very real sense, the Kingdom is all over the world and transcends all cultures.  Having grown up in Texas, you could say that Tex-Mex really is a “national” or cultural reality for me.  But because the Kingdom of God is so big, there is really no one “national food” for Kingdom citizens.  But rather, it’s kind of a multi course banquet.  Now THAT smells good.  Fish Tacos anyone?

-Pray for a spiritual awakening in the EU and England.
-Pray for the true Christ followers in the EU and England.
-Pray for the missionaries who are there in the EU and England.
-Help support those missionaries through our resources.
-Begin to dialogue ourselves with other people who don’t know Christ.
-Live out a Christ centered life where we are today.

To See a Transformed World – or NOT!

When we go into ministry it is driven by passion, love, vision, and determination to see God work in our lives and see radical transformation through Jesus Christ in our local ministries and throughout the world. Too often it ends in frustration, disappointment, and defeat. The problem is not our heart or desire or even willingness – it’s our paradigm and understanding of our world. If we would see transformation:

1. We need a clear understanding of what the Great Commission is and what it isn’t. In my upcoming book that will be out in a few months I deal with what the Great Commission is – and move it from religious preacher work to disciple society engagement. Our current western understanding of the Great Commission is limiting us in being able to be a part of things where the Gospel is going viral.

2. We need to learn how God is working in the rest of the world and what the church looks like and how we contextualize that to where we are. Right now an Indonesian pastor is mentoring our church. It means that there are some sins in our culture that have infiltrated our church that we have to address in order to be a part of what God is doing.

3. We have to open our circles to others who may not look just like us or think just like us. I’m not talking about compromising the Bible or Jesus. I am talking about living beyond our own personal tribes.

4. We have to understand faith in a globalized context. All religions are all places and how we speak of faith is crucial because whatever we say, we say to everyone because of the internet, etc. That’s the book I’m working on right now!

5. We have to move from an 18th century model of missions of a 21st century model of global engagement (Glocalization). Businessmen and college students get this quicker and closer than most.

6. We have to be filled with the Holy Spirit daily, radically, with abandonment to follow God where he leads and respond in obedience immediately to the doors he opens. That messes up our plans and stifles “our” ministries – but it does get the Great Commission fulfilled. God already has his plan, and we must follow his, not ours.

7. We must not be overwhelmed by the world. I used to think guys didn’t engage the world because they were ignorant. I don’t believe, that they were lazy – I don’t believe that, they were self-centered and thought it was all about their own local ministry (I still believe that!), but I’m convinced, at least with young pastors the reason is two-fold. First, the world is overwhelming. Where do you start? Second, the models are outdated and they know it and they don’t know where to turn so they adopt the attitude that it is better to not get involved in something that is dying and outdated.

“great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 11All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

Can all this be a reality? Can people from every ethnic, cultural, and economic background come together? You bet they can. In fact, that was God’s design all along. That’s the way it will be in heaven. That is the way it is all over the world at the foot of the cross.

For those of us who live in places like Nor. Cal, LA, or even Dallas, we can experience that today if we drop our personal ideas of “church” and purposefully come together under the banner of Christ alone. We can realize this divine vision when we reach out in sometimes uncomfortable ways to those who are different than us with the love of Christ.

We can also be encouraged to know that we are part of a much larger family that gathers publically and in secret all over the world today in the unity of Jesus. That’s the Kingdom that I’m a part of.

I found this video clip several months ago and I’m pretty sure that Matt was not thinking Kingdom thoughts when he made it, but I sure was. Check it out and then ask yourself what you can do to help build the Kingdom of God international. Have fun.

World