A.W. Tozer on the Lack of Passion in Christianity

What does it take to get you excited about God? Do you EVER get excited about the work of Christ? I think we can all admit that we give in to the dangerous sin of apathy and complacency more than we want to admit.  Consider these very wise words by A.W.Tozer in "The Root of the Righteous." 

Keep in mind that this was written in the 50's. I venture to say that the problem has escalated greatly since then.

“One of the greatest fears of the Christian is religious complacency. The man who believes he has arrived will not go any farther; from his standpoint it would be foolish to do so. The snare is to believe we have arrived when we have not. The present neat habit of quoting a text to prove we have arrived may be a dangerous one if in truth we have no actual inward experience of the text. Truth that is not experienced is no better than error and may be fully as dangerous. The scribes who sat in Moses’ seat were not the victims of error; they were the victims of their failure to experience the truth they taught.

Religious complacency is encountered almost everywhere among Christians these days, and its presence is a sign and a prophecy. For every Christian will become at last what his desires have made him. We are all the sum total of our hungers. The great saints have all had thirsting hearts. Their cry has been, “My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalm 42:2). Their longing after God all but consumed them; it propelled them onward and upward to heights toward which less ardent Christians look with languid eye and entertain no hope of reaching.

Orthodox Christianity has fallen to its present low estate from lack of spiritual desire. Among the many who profess the Christian faith, scarcely one in a thousand reveals any passionate thirst for God. The practice of many of our spiritual advisers is to use the Scriptures to discourage such little longing as may be discovered here and there among us. We fear extremes and shy away from too much ardor in religion as if it were possible to have too much love or too much faith or too much holiness.

Occasionally one’s heart is cheered by the discovery of some insatiable saint who is willing to sacrifice everything for the sheer joy of experiencing God in increasing intimacy. To such we offer this word of exhortation: Pray on, fight on, sing on. Do not underrate anything God may have done for you heretofore. Thank God for everything up to this point, but do not stop here. Press on into the deep things of God. Insist upon tasting the profounder mysteries of redemption. Keep your feet on the ground, but let your heart soar as high as it will. Refuse to be average or to surrender to the chill of your spiritual environment. If you thus “follow after,” heaven will surely be opened to you and you will, with Ezekiel, see visions of God.

Unless you do these things you will reach at last (and unknown to you) the bone yard of orthodoxy and be doomed to live out your days in a spiritual state which can be best described as “the dead level and quintessence of every mediocrity. From such a state God save us all.”

God Can Use Introverts

Introverts, have you ever wondered how in the world God could use someone like you to minister in the local church?

I admit that I often struggled with that thought. I have noticed a number of articles about introversion recently, and would like to give my two cents as a "survivor" of introversion. I am currently what many would call a "learned extrovert." Meaning, I can fake being an extrovert when I need to, but I am still very introverted through and through.

I grew up as a typical awkward, shy, nerdy beanpole of a kid. I had a few close friends that I confided in, but beyond them I tried to stay away from small talk, crowds, public speaking, and being in the spotlight. Even today, I freak out inside and get stressed whenever I engage in small talk with anyone outside my circle of close friends. So when I sensed the Lord calling me to full-time youth ministry, I seriously wondered if God had mixed up my number with someone else's.

I looked around at the people I admired in my church. Most were very outgoing and relational. In college, the ministry students who were the most outgoing and unreserved were the ones that were recognized as the great future leaders. While I had an intense passion and zeal for ministry, I felt hopeless when comparing myself to the believers around me.

When I began looking for a ministry position, I also found how many people think that a youth pastor can ONLY be an extrovert. I once had a great conversation with a pastor, but something changed when I later mentioned that I was a natural introvert. I stated that I was looking for an extroverted senior pastor to team up with and disciple me. Then, he gave me a questioning look that said, "It's hopeless. You'll never make it in ministry."    

So is that it? If you happen to be an introvert, you are disqualified from ministry? Let me prove all those people wrong.

Book of Thoughts #4

It's sad to consider how the world today views Christians. Instead of seeing Christ in us, they see hypocrisy. They see people who wear masks all day. They see fake Christianity. Now, part of the blame comes in their way of thinking, but as a whole, Christians do little to prove them wrong.  

Be "REAL," even if that means that other people see that you are a sinner.  

Of Singing and Revival

Few things sadden me more as a music leader than looking out at the congregation and seeing many people (especially men) who refuse to sing.

And then there are many who DO sing, but it is very evident that they are not internalizing the message of the song. Perhaps this is even more saddening. At least the non-singers are being honest.

I found this video by Paul Keew, who was a fellow student at Bob Jones University during my time there. Listen to what he has to say about music being a result and evidence of revival in our hearts:

When God Works, People Sing: Introducing Watchsong from Paul Keew on Vimeo.

Go ahead and check out his site. They have some great resources. 

I'm thankful I have such a wonderful Savior to sing about!  

Don't Touch My Sacred Cow!

Sacred cows. We all have them in our ministries.

A sacred cow is an idiom that comes from Hinduism, which worships animals. Hinduism is also known for its elevation of cows to a sacred status. In Hinduism, you do not dishonor or desecrate their sacred cows. Even today, you could be jailed or even killed for slaughtering a cow in some parts of India.

In our culture, a sacred cow is something that is considered immune from question or criticism. It is something that people hold dear and will be very angry if anyone even dares to change it or question it.

Let's call it what it is: IDOLATRY.

One more time: SACRED COW = IDOL

And sadly, this worship of false gods is very prevalent within our churches. In ministry, sacred cows are those things that are holding back the ministry, but they are not allowed to be changed or questioned.

I have seen these revered cows in every ministry I have been involved with. As a leader, I begin to feel very discouraged and powerless against them. There have been many times where a desperate change has been needed in a ministry, but I am not allowed to touch it because it is a sacred cow to someone. Most often, I am not even allowed to question it for fear of causing division. Such is the way when you try to mess with people's idols.

So then what happens? The ministry continues down the path of idolatry. And while those few people are happy they got to keep their cow, the ministry ultimately suffers in the long run. In some cases, untold numbers of people could be reached and many others would receive a blessing if changes could be made. But because of idolatry, the ministry becomes ineffective.

SNUGGIE CHRISTIANITY

Life is tough isn't it? I mean, we have so much to worry about during our day at work. Then we get home, sit on the couch, pull a blanket around us, AND THE BLANKET IS TOO SMALL! Sure, it may cover our torso and legs, but what about our arms? Are we just supposed to let them freeze? And what if we actually have to get up from the couch? Then we have to leave the blanket behind, freeze half to death, and return to an insufficient blanket. Life is just too stressful to deal with such tragedies. If only there was a blanket with sleeves...

"What have we turned into???"

This thought came to my mind recently and has not gone away, thanks to a few of my recent studies. But I wasn't thinking about wearable blankets. I was thinking about comfortable Christians.

Book of Thoughts #3

We Christians often pass up great opportunities to serve in ministry because "I am not gifted in that area," or "It's not really my thing." Well, if God wants you to serve in a certain capacity, He WILL make sure you can do it. Our excuses are therefore invalid. We have a wonderful example in Scripture:

10 THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT YOUR PASTOR

Do you appreciate your pastor? And if you do, does he know it?

My motivation for writing this is to help church members understand their pastors. The things I am going to point out are often things that pastors will NOT tell their members. Why? Because it is often difficult to predict how people will react. Some members will become angry. Some will judge. Some will wrongfully assume that it is just the pastor being selfish. However, some will be understanding. Some will take it as an opportunity to love their pastors more. It is risky to put these things out in the open. People may not respond in the way anticipated.

This is something that has been on my heart for some time. But there was a big elephant in the room that prevented me from ever following through with communicating these thoughts: My desire is to go into full-time ministry.

I was (and still am) afraid of others reading this post and saying, “Oh, Blake just wrote this because in the future he wants people to give him special treatment.” But that is not my intention. I wrote this because I have seen many examples in the past where the congregation has hurt their pastor. I have seen times when people in the congregation do not understand their pastor, and the pastor feels that he is not allowed to communicate these things. I have many friends who are in full-time ministry that have opened up to me with these very real struggles.

I didn't write this to serve myself. I studied this out as one of the church members to examine how I could support MY OWN pastor better than I currently was. 

Your pastor has been appointed as a shepherd. It is his responsibility to equip the saints and to guide the congregation in the right direction. It is your and my responsibility to make sure we are not getting in the way of progress. Even more than that, it is our responsibility to follow and support our pastors, even when we disagree with them.    

So what are some of these little-known things that your pastor would like you to know about himself?

The Best Decision I Ever Made

Even though I am happily married to my amazing wife, the decision to marry her was the second best decision I ever made. It's OK. She understands.

May I very carefully and HUMBLY ask a question? Do you know 100% that you are going to Heaven? Let me share with you my salvation testimony… how I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior... how He changed me from the inside out. I’ll try to back it up with as much Bible as I can. Stick with me. It is thrilling for me to consider what God has done in my own life:

I grew up in a great Christian family. We have always gone to church 3 times a week. I was always a very good kid. I heard about Jesus all the time. But for some reason, I thought that if I was good enough, that if I did enough good things… that if my good outweighed my bad... I would get to Heaven. But that was definitely not the case. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” This passage means that we can’t obtain salvation through doing good things, but rather, God offers us a gift (that I don’t deserve) that I must accept. No one can do enough good things to get to Heaven.

This realization came when I was about 8 or 9. I went to Children's Church, and the teacher (I wish I could remember his name) taught a lesson from the Bible about Hell. I was scared to death! Why? Because it finally dawned on me. I realized I was heading there. I had never made a decision to accept Jesus as my Savior. Do you know what God requires for anyone to enter Heaven? PERFECTION (Psalm 15:1-2). WHAT?????

Let me explain further... 

Book of Thoughts #2

This is somewhat of a departure from Bible verses, but I believe this truth goes right along with biblical leadership. 


Here is a great lesson in leadership: People rise to what you expect of them. 


However, leaders must be wise in their expectations. Whether this is in ministry, in the workplace, or at home, if we place unrealistic expectations on those we lead, all that will result are feelings of inadequacy. 


Be a good leader. Lead people to their true potential, not the potential YOU want them to achieve.

Book of Thoughts #1

I have a small black moleskin book that I like to carry around with me. It is a place where I can jot down something quickly, whether it be an inspirational quote, bible verse, reference for later, or just something that sparks my interest at the time. 

Basically, anything PONDER-WORTHY may end up in my little book. When I pick it up later and read a passage I wrote, I may jot down my thoughts on that same page. It is an excellent tool that encourages me to keep on thinking. However, sometimes I turn to a page and think, "Why did I write THAT in there???"

I have decided to start a series of blog posts that highlight entries in my Book of Thoughts. I will try to keep the commentaries to a minimum and let the pages speak for themselves, as they do for me. My hope is that these will be an encouragement to others too.  

Peace in the Midst of My Storm: A Devotional Analysis of My Original Painting

I have a painting hanging in my office at work. It is a piece that is very personal and a gentle reminder to me when my job gets hectic and seems like too much to handle… which happens to be every day, it often seems.

It’s fun to see what kind of reactions it gets when people see it. Some look at it and are perplexed, trying to make sense of it. I have had others say that it is very dark. Some look at it for a few minutes and are encouraged by its message. But I am more concerned about what it means for me.

Here is a picture of the painting. I'm sorry that this does not do it justice:

Before I explain the circumstances under which the work was created, I want to explain what you would be able to see if you were looking at it in person.

Don't Let the Preaching Get in the Way

Have you ever considered your philosophy of preaching? I believe this is one area that Christians generally think very little about. We struggle and come up with our own personal philosophies regarding music, evangelism, schooling, entertainment, involvement with the world, and many other walks of the Christian life, but when it comes to our philosophy of preaching we simply settle for what we enjoy or what we “get from it.”

Even if your church is an amazing Bible-believing church that sticks to the truths of Scripture, you need to have a strong personal philosophy about what preaching brings glory to God and how you should respond to it. 

Otherwise (as I have seen happen many times) it is easy to be swayed by a sermon that mishandles God’s Holy Word, but you respond simply because the preacher won you over with his style and speaking ability.  

MY JOURNEY

I have had the amazing privilege to preach in a few different churches over the past few years. I’ll be the first to admit that I have much work to do in my own preaching studies and style. I’m no Billy Sunday. However, I have made a few observations about preaching from my own studies, observation, and experience.

Will Heaven Be Ruined?

One of the biggest misconceptions about Heaven is the thought that when we pass into our new lives, we will start from scratch and begin a new life. However, Scripture shows that our current lives prepare us for Heaven and there is direct continuity. In other words, as Christians we don’t stop this life and start over, our lives continue!  But all those sins and burdens that weighed us down in this life will be gone.

Will we still have memories of this life? Of course! After all, we are shaped by our experiences. If God suddenly did away with my past, “Blake” wouldn’t be going to Heaven… someone else who somewhat resembles Blake would be going to Heaven. I wouldn’t retain my identity.

One of the biggest questions I had about Heaven was, “How can I enjoy Heaven knowing the fact that loved ones are suffering for eternity in Hell?”

Cheap Imitations

Ever buy something  that promised to be the 'real deal' only to find out later that it was just a cheap imitation? Come on, I know you've done it on ebay at some point. In my study of Heaven (with a capital "H" since it's a real place), I came to realize a very important truth: Our thoughts of Heaven are TOTALLY backwards. We are settling for cheap imitations when we should be looking forward to the real deal.

For some reason, we think that this earth and this life is "as real as it gets," and that Heaven is some nebulous otherworldly afterthought.

However, I think it is very clear that the things that we find amazing and wonderful in this life are mere shadows of the things that God has in store for us for eternity.  This life is actually "as fake as it gets." The good things we enjoy are cheap imitations of what God has in store for us to experience!

FOR EXAMPLE: Read Hebrews 8 and 9... especially 9:23-24, speaking about the temple/tabernacle. The pattern was just a small copy of what we will experience in Heaven in the actual presence of God. Also, consider our family structure. Do we think that God chose to call Himself our Father and us His children because He wanted to copy our family structure? NO! Our parent-child structure is a cheap imitation of the love He has for us and that we should return to Him. What about marriage, the most wonderful of institutions in this life? Even if you have the most perfect marriage in the world, it is just a cheap imitation of the wonderful relationship the church (the bride) will experience with Christ (Ephesians 5:22-32).

I think C.S. Lewis explained it perfectly in "The Last Battle" when the characters were beginning to see the "New Narnia" (allegory for Heaven / New Earth). Lord Digory explains it this way:

"Listen, Peter. When Aslan said you could never go back to Narnia, he meant the Narnia you were thinking of. But that was not the real Narnia. That had a beginning and an end. It was only a shadow or a copy of the real Narnia which has always been here…
...You need not mourn over Narnia, Lucy. All of the old Narnia that mattered, all the dear creatures, have been drawn into the real Narnia through the Door. And of course it is different; as different as a real thing is from a shadow or as waking life is from a dream.”    

Don't settle for cheap imitations. Look forward to the real deal that is yet to come!