Another great word from Jeff Bethke—
Another cure to the fairytale relationships that end up more like a horror story, is in Craig Groeschel’s outstanding book Love, Sex, And Happily Ever After.
A Sharper Sermon
January 27, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
It’s a lot of work preparing a sermon (and even that is a major understatement!). So if we pastors are going to put all of this effort in, isn’t it right to believe for a great return on that investment?
I’ve got good news and bad news for you—and they’re both the same. Pastor, after all of your hard work preparing your message, there is only one thing you can do: pray.
Sounds simple, right? But if it’s so simple, why are so many church attendees unmoved by the sermons they hear each Sunday (check out this Barna report)?
Here is some good counsel of how we should pray—
“Of what efficacy would be the exterior word of pastors, or even the Scriptures themselves, if we had not within the word of the Holy Spirit giving to the others all their vitality? The outward word, even of the Gospel, without the fecundating, vivifying, interior word would be but an empty sound. ‘It is the letter alone that kills (2 Corinthians 3:6), and the Spirit alone can give us life.’” —Francois Fenelon
“Does anyone of us desire to help the Church of Christ? Then let him pray for a great outpouring of the Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can give edge to sermons, and point to advice, and power to rebukes, and can cast down the high walls of sinful hearts. It is not better preaching, and finer writing that is needed in this day—but more of the presence of the Holy Spirit.” —J.C. Ryle
If I can add my two cents’ worth to these eminent theologians:
- Pray before you write your sermon
- Pray while you’re writing your sermon
- Pray before you deliver your sermon
- Pray after you deliver your sermon
And then watch what the Holy Spirit does with your sermon!
Thursdays With Oswald—I Have To Do It
January 26, 2012 — Craig T. OwensThis is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.
He Simply Says, “Do It”
You can’t wash anybody’s feet mysteriously; it is a purely mechanical, matter-of-fact job; you can’t do it by giving him devotional books or by praying for him; you can only, wash anybody’s feet by doing something mechanical. Our Lord did not tell the disciples how they were to do it: He simply says—‘Do it.’ …
The one great problem in spiritual life is whether we are going to put God’s grace into practice. God won’t do the mechanical; He created us to do that; but we can only do it while we draw on the mysterious realm of His divine grace. ‘If ye love Me, ye will keep My commandments.’
From Biblical Ethics
I can dress it up all I want to, but I must obey what Jesus said.
I cannot pray about, I have to do it.
I cannot get someone else to do it, I have to do it.
I cannot get a pass on this, I have to do it.
Lord, what commands of Yours am I failing to do?
Pain May Be A Good Thing
January 25, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
Yesterday I posted the following on Facebook, which generated quite a few positive responses—
“God may not recall the soldier from the battle, but if He gives him a greater stomach for the fight, and increased strength for its toils, it may be better still for him” (Spurgeon). Think about it: If God has left you in the battle, He will give you the strength to be victorious. Either way, you come out stronger AND God is glorified!
Since several commented on Facebook or emailed or texted me with words like, “That’s just what I needed to hear right now,” I thought I would add a couple additional thoughts for you.
“Let’s be honest, 90% of our prayers revolve around personal comfort, not God’s glory. Too often we try to pray away every problem. But what if that is the very thing that God wants to leverage for His glory? Let’s not be too quick to pray away the pain, the suffering, the situation, the problem. Let’s not just pray ‘get me out’ prayers. We sometimes need to pray ‘get me through’ prayers.
“We need a paradigm-shift in our prayer lives. It’s not about us. It’s all about God. And when you begin to pray for God’s glory above and beyond everything else it’s a game changer! You no longer pray away every problem. You pray through the problem. You know that God might do a miracle, but that isn’t the goal. The goal is God’s glory. And if suffering with grace yields more glory to God then so be it.” —Mark Batterson, in The Circle Maker
And finally, this prayer thought—
“Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle; but you shall be a miracle.” —Phillips Brooks
If you need someone to stand with you as you “pray through” your battle, let me know. I would be honored to join my prayers with yours.
Love, Sex, And Happily Ever After (book review)
January 25, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
There is something about the way Craig Groeschel writes that just connects with me (maybe it’s the Craigness that we share!). So when I heard about Love, Sex, And Happily Ever After, I knew it was going to be an excellent read. And I was not disappointed!
With divorce rates so high in our country, far too many couples enter into marriage with the thought in the back of their minds that “this might not work out.” Using sound biblical principles and examples, Craig shows that it’s not only possible for a marriage to go the distance, but that our marriages can get better and better and better as they go along.
In his very creative style, Craig covers principles like:
- Falling in love with The One
- Finding your Two
- The first, second, third, fourth and fifth gears of dating relationships
- The dangers of living together (“playing house”) before marriage
- How to know if you should breakup with someone you’re dating
- Heart habits that will help your marriage go the distance
When I was sharing with a friend some of the thoughts I was reading, he said, “That sounds like good old fashioned common sense.” And that’s exactly what this book is, because it is so firmly based on The Book.
If you would like to add something to your marriage, there is a lot to discover in here. But I think this book is especially appropriate for dating and engaged couples. In fact, since my role as a pastor means I get to do quite a bit of pre-marriage counseling, I’m going to make this book required reading for all of the couples I counsel.
I am a Multnomah book reviewer.
Self Checkup
January 24, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
These are great look-myself-in-the-mirror questions from Oswald Chambers (from My Utmost For His Highest):
- How much kindness have I shown to God in the past week?
- Has my life been a good reflection on His reputation?
- Am I as filled to overflowing with love for Jesus Christ as I was in the beginning?
- Am I so in love with Jesus that I take no thought for where He might lead me?
- Or am I watching to see how much respect I get as I measure how much service I should give Him?
Great questions to ask myself. And then really listen to the answers.
Preach It To Yourself
January 24, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
Before I am a pastor sharing with my congregation, I am a saved sinner standing before God.
Before I open the penetrating brilliance of God’s Word to my church, I must stand in the spotlight of His Word.
In other words, I should never stand before my church with my finger pointed at them. Instead, the finger of God should be squarely pointed at me. Only then can I share with my congregation what God is doing in my life.
I’ve always tried to pastor this way, but recently I read this passage in John Bunyan’s autobiography which made this truth even more real to me—
“Sometimes I have been about to preach upon some smart and searching portion of the Word, I have found the tempter suggest, What! will you preach this! This condemns yourself; of this your own soul is guilty; so don’t preach any of it; or if you do, mince your words, as to make way for your own escape; lest instead of awakening others, you lay that guilt upon your own soul, that you will never get from under. … It is far better that you judge yourself, even by preaching plainly unto others, than that you, to save yourself, imprison the truth in righteousness.”
So, pastor, preach the Word to yourself first. Then go share with your congregation about what God is dealing with you.
Discovering Your Spiritual Center (book review)
January 23, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
I enjoy books and commentaries that help me study the Bible in a different way. Discovering Your Spiritual Center by David Teems is a unique angle at one chapter of the Psalms that I have never seen before.
The big idea of this book is to take a long, introspective look at Psalm 119. It’s the longest chapter in the Bible (at 176 verses), but it is conveniently divided into 22 eight-verse sections, with each section corresponding to a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. David Teems makes the case that rabbis considered the Hebrew letters to be living things, so that there is a significance to why each of these eight verses are grouped together.
The next idea of this book is to take a 22-day journey of rediscovering the power of the Scripture, by reading one 8-verse section each day. Then to take time to reflect on each day’s passage. It’s a good idea to use this one psalm to (re)awaken a passion for Scripture, as all but four of the verses mention God’s Word (law, statutes, commands, etc.).
So far, so good.
However, I did find some of the author’s fascination with the Hebrew letters—like their shape, or their placement in the alphabetic order—a bit unsettling. I also thought at times his pointing out other words in Scripture that start with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet a bit stretched. So although the concept is good in theory (taking a 22-day journey through this psalm), I found the approach a bit, well, creepy.
I am a Leafwood book reviewer.
Set Them Free!
January 23, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
Jesus has some pointed words for us in Matthew 5—
Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. (vv. 23-24)
Notice that Jesus says that your brother has something against you. Since the first word of this verse is therefore, we have to back up a couple of verses to get the context. In the preceding two verses Jesus talks to us about our anger, our harsh words, and our rash judgments leveled at others. In other words, things we have done to others which has made them upset at us.
In our prayer time, the Holy Spirit will help us remember what we have done. Now what are you going to do about it? Excuse it? Justify it? Or will you rectify it? Will you be obedient to go and make it right?
Until we do, we’re keeping our offended brother or sister in bondage to us. But as soon as we ask forgiveness, we set them free.
I love what C.S. Lewis said about recognizing where we may have offended someone—
“When I come to my evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed. And the excuse that immediately springs to mind is that the provocation was so sudden or unexpected. I was caught off my guard, I had not time to collect myself…. Surely what a man does when he is taken off guard is the best evidence of what sort of man he is. Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth. If there are rats in the cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness did not create the rats; it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of the provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man: it only shows what an ill-tempered man I am.”
When the Holy Spirit shows you the rats in your cellar—when He helps you remember how your ratty words or behavior hurt someone else—take care of it immediately! It’s the fastest way to freedom!
I will be speaking on The Danger Of Prayerlessness again next Sunday. I hope you can join me.
Praying Through
January 22, 2012 — Craig T. Owens
I love this quote from Mark Batterson’s book The Circle Maker.
“Our generation desperately needs to rediscover the difference between praying for and praying through. Praying through is grabbing hold of the horns of the altar and refusing to let go until God answers.”
I grew up hearing that phrase praying through, but how quickly we pray one-and-done prayers! There is such a power in praying through. May I learn to do this better!
(By the way, Draw The Circle is a great companion book to The Circle Maker.)
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