We are free!

Yesterday, while on the treadmill, I was listening to Coldplay’s Mylo Xyloto.  The song “Us Against the World” played.  My favorite line from that song is:

“And I just want to be there when the lightning strikes and the saints go marching in.”

I was swept up in the moment and the image above popped into my head.  It is the image of freedom…Paris has been liberated and the people are gathered in welcome and celebration.  Today, as I read from my morning devotion I was struck with the same image found in Revelation 7:9-12.

“I looked again. I saw a huge crowd, too huge to count. Everyone was there—all nations and tribes, all races and languages. And they were standing, dressed in white robes and waving palm branches, standing before the Throne and the Lamb and heartily singing:

Salvation to our God on his Throne!
Salvation to the Lamb!
All who were standing around the Throne—Angels, Elders, Animals— fell on their faces before the Throne and worshiped God, singing:

Oh, Yes!
The blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving,
The honor and power and strength,
To our God forever and ever and ever!
Oh, Yes!”

I don’t know about you…but that’s a Victory Parade that I desire to be a part of.  Chris Martin sings, “Slow it down…”  I want to see it in slow motion, I will want the moment to never end…the moment of seeing people march into Heaven, Jesus at the forefront, people cheering, singing, crying, and shouting:

“Salvation to our God on his Throne!
Salvation to the Lamb!”

I just want to be there when the saints come marching in.

“Suffer the little children…”

The other day a friend of mine posted this on Facebook: “Could it be that most adults have MORE than abandoned teens in our culture? That now adults actually HATE & loathe adolescents?”  Before we recoil in denial…

In Luke 18:15-16, we find parents bringing children to Jesus for a blessing.  It was common in that time for parents (mothers, particularly) to bring children to their rabbi for this sort of thing.  Interestingly, it is the disciples (NOT the pharisees, or the teachers of the law) that rebuke and scold the parents.  Jesus, however, rebukes his disciples, telling them to “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.”

Sadly, at times we tend to respond to the presence of families, children and teens like Jesus’ disciples. We do this…

When we turn and look at the family when an infant cries during the service, especially communion.

When we glare into the “youth area” of a church when a cell phone goes off during the service (usually, it is the phone of an adult).

When we refuse to allow students to have some creative control over an aspect of worship.

When we relegate their inclusion to “youth Sunday.”

When we fail to equip families to discuss the faith at home.

When we decide that it’s easier for us “to do it ourselves” rather than take time to teach students.

When we don’t greet them in the hallway.

When we don’t greet them by name.

When our facilities do not take into account small children.

When our ministries fill their schedules with events and programs that separate families.

Jesus rebuked his followers for their treatment of children.

Are we in need of rebuke for the way we treat families, children and teens?

 

 

 

Resignation Notice

Today was the day.  We shared with Eastview that we were leaving. We would appreciate your thoughts and prayers for our family, for Eastview Christian Church, and Naperville Christian Church as we transition.

Here is the text of my resignation notice:

Dear Eastview Christian Church Family,

More than 6 years ago, our family received one of the biggest blessings of our lives, the opportunity to serve alongside you in ministry.  Over these past 6 years, Eastview and Marion have been home to our family.  We are in love with the people of this church, this community and especially the amazing kids that come and worship here.  I am writing to tell you that my time at Eastview Christian Church is coming to a close.  God has called our family to the next season of our life.
I have accepted the position of Pastor of Family Ministries at Naperville Christian Church in Naperville, Illinois.  My last Sunday at Eastview will be March 25, 2012.
This announcement comes with a wide range of emotions.  We are excited for what God has in store for us as we have spent much time in prayer over this decision.  Our top priority has been and will be to follow Him.  We are also sad over leaving a place that we love deeply and where we are loved.  Please understand that this decision has not come lightly, and in so many ways, we are trying to honor God and the people He has asked us to serve.  The same God who brought us to Eastview is urging us to move on.  It is our desire to be obedient to this urging that is calling us away.
Since God is moving us away from Eastview Christian Church, then He is certainly doing something new in the youth ministry here.  It is my urgent and persistent prayer that we as individuals and as the larger body of Christ will be patient on the Lord as He shapes this youth ministry and does new and exciting things in Cedar Rapids, Marion and Eastview Christian Church.  I am confident that the leaders that work with our students will minister faithfully.
These 6 years I have served at Eastview have been sacred.  Eastview has allowed me great freedom in the pursuit of ministering to students.  Thank you for letting me be part of your families.  Thank you for letting me walk alongside your children and encourage their faith.  Thank you for all the conversations, meals, and moments shared.
Thank you all for the ways that you have blessed us.  There is not enough space in this letter to write all the ways this congregation has blessed my family over the past 6 years.  You are a great church and we will always consider you family.  May God bless you as you move forward in the Lord and know that Eastview Christian Church will always hold a special place in our hearts.
I’d love to connect with you about any questions, comments, or concerns..

Peace and Grace,

John Mulholland
Next Generations Minister

Matthew 5-7

I had the honor to bring God’s Word from the pulpit yesterday, the subject was Matthew 5-7, and entitled “What are you going to do with Jesus?” (loosely based on this post from a few weeks ago). There was a brief introduction and a brief ending.  We spent most of our time simply reading the text of those three chapters.  Here’s that text visually represented.

Jesus’s words in Matthew 5-7.

Hear, listen, obey.

Or…don’t.

 

8 Weeks to Go

In January of 2010, I began taking classes at Indiana Wesleyan University in pursuit of an MA in Ministry and Leadership.  Just 2 years later, I find myself 8 weeks away from being done.  The classes, studies, reading, conversations, teachers have all been excellent.  My final class, simply called “MIN-591-A: Project” begins today.  From the syllabus:

“The purpose of the Capstone Project is to develop the student’s scholarship skills and also to create original research to benefit the ministry of the Church.
The components are:

Ch 1 – Introduction
Ch 2 – Literature Review
Ch 3 – Theological Reflection
Ch 4 – Research Method
Ch 5 – Research Results
Ch 6 – Data Analysis
Ch 7 — Conclusion”

So…there you have it.  8 weeks.  7 chapters.

Stay tuned.

Luke 10:1-16- “Don’t say we didn’t warn you…”

Jesus chooses 72 new disciples.

He tells them to go ahead of Him, to prepare the way.

“Preparing the way” means to love people.  To heal.  To proclaim the coming “kingdom of God” (Jesus).

Some will accept the message.  Eat and drink whatever they provide.

Some will reject them.  When that happens, on your way out of town, shake the dust off your shoes, and tell them that what happened to Sodom was nothing compared to what is heading their way because of the rejection.

Go-love-teach-praise-condemn-rejoice-leave-warn.

Implications for today?

Recap, part 1 (what running taught me about life in 2011)

First up…the stats.

January- 80.6 miles

February- 80.8 miles

March- 77.9 miles

April- 95.6 miles

May- 52 miles (knee pain mid-way through the month)

June- 78.5 miles

July- 84 miles (introduce Vibram Five Fingers Bikila’s into the mix, ran in 4 separate states: Iowa, Tennessee, Nebraska, Colorado)

August- 81.4 miles

September- 86.6 miles (ran again in Colorado at SYMC Summit)

October- 73.8 miles (slight foot/heel pain, replaced shoes -they were at 400  miles and were due)

November- 85.1 miles- Two races:Marion Iowa Turkey Trot and Irvington Virginia Turkey Trot (ran this in my Vibrams)

December- 128.8 miles (ran in Sioux Falls South Dakota)

Total Miles for 2011: 1005.1

So..here was the deal.  The mileage goal for 2011 was 950 (100 more than 2010′s mileage).  In mid-November, the crew at Runner’s World Magazine came up with a challenge called the Runners’ World Run Streak.  The goal was to run at least one mile, every day, from Thanksgiving Day through New Year’s Day.  The Thanksgiving Day run was a given, I was signed up for the Irvington Virginia Turkey Trot.  I ran in my Vibrams (first race in them) and did great.

The two goals (950 + Streak) seemed at odds.  Simply doing a mile per day wouldn’t help with the 950; on top of that, I’d be taking a huge step back.  So, I simply played it safe: M-W-F-Sa I’d run 4+, and Su,T, Th would be 2+.  By mid-December, I was at the 950 mark.  And, at the schedule I was on, I’d be about 20 miles shy of 1000.  So, I decided on Thursday, December 22, that I was going to shoot for the 1000. As you can see above, I ended a tad over the mark.

Here are some lessons:

From November 24 through January 1, every run had a purpose. I never questioned whether I was going to run, only how far, and how fast (I am NOT fast).  That T-Day run in the Vibrams really killed my legs.  For 4 days, I could hardly walk, the step or two at the end of the hall at my dads house in Virginia was awful.  Push through pain.

My pace slowed way down.  It simply became a numbers game.  I just needed to last, to endure.  I watched where I stepped.  I slowed down when I wanted to.  I enjoyed running.  Live life joyfully.

On December 12th, just 2 weeks in and 3 to go, I was done.  Exhausted.  Beat.  I read my Bible that morning from Matthew 24:44.  There, Jesus tells his disciples that they need to be ready at all times.  To make it.  The only easy day was yesterday.

I’m not sure where this ends.  It’s now January 4, and I’ve kept the streak going; I’m at 44 days.  My body is aching, the left heel has been aggravating me off and on for the past 2 weeks.  When I sit with my left knee bent and then get up to walk, my first 10 steps are more of a “hobble”.  But.

It’s January in Iowa and there is NO snow on the ground.  Monday’s run was really cold, but I have a new jacket that I’m in love with.  The newest Runner’s World arrived, with some pointers on eliminating the very pains that I’m dealing with.  And I just found out that this year, the Marion Arts Festival is adding a half-marathon to their normal 5k- that’s in May.  I’m generally not a “glass half-full” guy, but things are looking up.  And tomorrow looks like a great day for a run.

 

On Community

Nate and I were at Starbucks in Sioux Falls today; they are hiring and had a few posters in their entryway as advertising.  The entire sticker read,

“An opportunity

to be more than an employee

to be a partner”

The other sticker read “Come and be part of something bigger than yourself.

The cynical among us (that’s me!!) are tempted to dismiss this kind of talk.  And yet, this taps into something that we in the church might (and SHOULD) learn from. 

I returned to my in-laws home today to find Ed Stezter’s blog post entitled “Answering Questions People Really Ask“.  The gist is that people are not talking about “going to heaven” when they die, rather, they are looking for, you guessed it…community, participation, purpose.  Starbucks seems to grasp the concept.  What might it look like for our churches to meet the real need for community…the one that only a Body of Christ can meet?

What to do with Jesus.

Last night, I scored the best gift at our Middle School Christmas party.

I confess…

I don’t know what to do with him…but, I think I’m in good company…because neither do most Christians.

 

The Gospel According to Coke Zero

This is one of my favorite commercials.

I see a believer receiving plain-vanilla salvation…an eternal reward of heaven, but then…not being satisfied, he says “and..?” and receives life to the fullest.

I see a person searching and searching for fulfillment, not found in food, sports or cheap sex…but in a drink.

I see a person living in the expectancy of an ultimate fulfillment.

I see a person, once he finds fulfillment in Christ alone, offer a “thanks”, knowing that his quest for self-satisfaction is done.

I see a church offering the worship and sacrifice of Christ, and a consumer church culture that looks at it and says “Is that all you got?”  And then, the church responds, “Oh, right…” and then caters.

I see a selfish believer.

I see a believer, going through life one spiritual high after the next, never satisfied with Christ, who promises to be our fulfillment.

I see a God who is willing to give, if we would simply ask.

I see God, when we show up on Sunday for the show, bringing the bare minimum, not as “all we have” but as “all we’re willing to give”…and he simply looks down and says, “And…?”

I’m curious…what do you see?