Love is Risky, But Not for the Reason You Think

Yes, we all know that love is risky. We know that when you love someone, it’s possible that everything might go wrong.

You might end up with nothing.

Or hurt.

Or confused.

Frustrated.

Tired.

Etc.

What I have to say is a bit different.

The very act of love is about taking risks.  It is about choosing to do risky behaviors, knowing that they might produce great results for those you love.

It’s about letting go of security, comfortability, and stability, knowing that when we step out and love, we might be a greater blessing to those around us then if we hadn’t let go.

Ruth understood this. Her mother-in-law Naomi had traveled with her husband and two sons away from their home. While gone, her husband died and her two sons got married. After awhile, both of her sons died too.

Naomi decided to travel back home and told her daughters-in-law to go back home with their families. She said it like this (found in Ruth 1:9):

May the Lord bless you with the security of another marriage.” Then she kissed them good-bye, and they all broke down and wept.

Security.

There it is.

Naomi is essentially saying, “Don’t worry about me! Go back home to what you are used to, comfortable with, and where you are secure.”

One daughter-in-law returns home. Ruth doesn’t.

Because of Ruth’s decision, she knew that there was the possibility she may never be married again, or at the very least, she would be much older before getting married.

Regardless, Ruth chose to go to Naomi’s home. Here are her words found in Ruth 1:16-17

But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!”

(My biggest question is why we’ve taken these words from a daughter-in-law to a mother-in-law and turned them into vows for husbands and wives at weddings! Think about that the next time you hear those vows!)

Ruth loved Naomi by risking everything in order to serve Naomi.

This is real love.

Yes, when loving someone, we know that we might be hurt by them.

But, love itself is the biggest risk of all…letting go of everything we have held onto so that we might be of service to those around us.

May our love begin to look like that.

*By the way, Ruth does get married soon after. You must read the whole story.

 

Will You Consider Joining Us at CityLife This Weekend?

Hey everyone!

What an incredible week this is as we honor and celebrate all that Jesus has done for us!  This singular moment in history, this reality of the death and resurrection of Jesus, is the one event that has changed the course of the world and eternity.

I love it how Paul, a follower of Jesus states it.  In a letter to the Corinthian church (1 Corinthians 15:12-20) he states,

^“12 But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁴ And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. ¹⁵ And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. ¹⁶ And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. ¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. ¹⁸ In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! ¹⁹ And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. ²⁰ But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.”

Jesus died and Jesus rose!

In this we place our hope!

So, would you consider joining CityLife this weekend?  And, if you are a part of CityLife would you consider being a part of all that we have going on as we get ready to invite our guests this weekend?  Read on and check out what’s happening at CityLife!

(A side note: ALL events are happening at East Valley High School.  5525 Vineland Ave, North Hollywood, CA 91601)

GOOD FRIDAY (tonight!!!)

We will have an intimate time in worship, communion, Bible reading and more!  Come and join us as we talk about “I Am Barabbas”.  God took the place of the worst of sinners.  What amazing love and grace!  Join us TONIGHT at 6:30pm for English and 7:45pm for Spanish.

HOLY SATURDAY

We have a lot going on!  Join us at these times:

10:30am and 2:00pm PRAYER.  We will have two times of prayer on Saturday as we get ready for Easter Sunday, asking God to open people’s hearts to the life that He has for them!

10-4pm RECYCLING EVENT.  Donations go to help our community outreach and to help East Valley High School.  At this event, we will be inviting our community to join us on Easter Sunday.

EASTER SUNDAY

We all have doors in our lives.  A door is an entryway, an access point to something beyond it.  Some doors are hard to get through.  Some doors seem designed to keep us out.  Jesus is the one with the master key to open up the door of life.  If we choose to walk through it, we can experience all that he has for us!

This will be a Sunday filled with a kid’s Easter Egg Hunt (during the service), a service filled with spoken word, drama, music and more!  And above all, we will celebrate all that Jesus did for us!  Baptisms will follow!

Join us at 9am for English and 11am for Spanish.  It will be a great day!!!

 

Are You a Peacemaker?

At CityLife yesterday, I talked about how God blesses us when we are peacemakers.

The world around us is filled with conflict.  There is conflict between countries and inside of countries.  There is conflict at work and at school.  There is conflict in marriage and in family.

God has called us to be peacemakers.  And, there is a blessing attached to peacemaking.  Notice what Jesus says as reported by Matthew.  Matthew 5:9 says, “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.”

We all tend to have one of two reactions when faced with conflict.  We are either people who exercise “fight” (we stand up and fight for our rights and we fight to win) or we exercise “flight” (we back down and run away to protect ourselves and others).

Both of those are legitimate reactions, but none of them lead to real peace.  The truth is that peacemaking is found somewhere in the middle.

Abraham was faced with this situation.  He made a treaty with a king named Abimelech.  After securing the treaty, Abraham had to present an uncomfortable situation…the fact that Abimelech’s servants had taken a well by force from Abraham’s servants.

What could Abraham have done?

Fight: In this scenario, he would have stood up for his rights and defended the fact that the well was his.  This could have led to a lack of peace between both parties that could have destroyed their treaty.

Flight: In this scenario, he simply would have given in, thus ending up with nothing.  The end result would have been the reality that Abimelech’s servants would have felt free to take by force any future well that Abraham would have dug, knowing there wouldn’t be consequences.

What did Abraham actually do?

Read this part of the story, found in Genesis 21:27-30.

²⁷ Abraham then gave some of his sheep, goats, and cattle to Abimelech, and they made a treaty. ²⁸ But Abraham also took seven additional female lambs and set them off by themselves. ²⁹ Abimelech asked, “Why have you set these seven apart from the others?” ³⁰ Abraham replied, “Please accept these seven lambs to show your agreement that I dug this well.”

Abraham secured peace by exercising a “win-win” option.

This option had elements of both “fight” and “flight” involved.  While Abraham stood up for his rights to the well (fight), he secured the agreement through generosity (flight).  He gave in order to get.

In this scenario, both parties got something out of the deal.  Abimelech got seven producing (female) lambs and Abraham got his well.

What was the end result of this peace?  Verse 34 says this, “And Abraham lived as a foreigner in Philistine country for a long time.”

His peacemaking secured a place for him to live for a long time.

If you live as a peacemaker wherever you go, the blessings that follow will be undeniable.  This is who God has called us to be.  Ultimately, when people see how we bring peace to every situation, they will recognize the fact that we truly belong to God (Matthew 5:9).

What a great testimony.  Let’s live it today!

*And yes, the above photo is the extent of my amazing artistic ability.

 

My Trip to In-N-Out

For all of us who love In-N-Out, we know what it’s like to wait in the long lines of cars, waiting to get our hands on that delicious double-double, animal style!

Then, add on a shake with some animal style fries, and you have a meal that you would be okay to suspend your diet for.

A couple weeks ago, to celebrate our kids’ first baseball games, I stopped by In-N-Out to get enough burgers, fries, and shakes to feed my family of six. Did you know that a family of six is really expensive? I’m beginning to figure that out.

If you’ve been to In-N-Out, you know that long lines are a part of the experience. This day was not an exception. We pulled in and waited behind four other cars.

For those of you who are experienced in the art of the drive thru at In-N-Out, you also know that they have someone walking around taking orders at cars.

Pretty cool if you ask me. Could we implement that system for everything else? How about going to the grocery store and having someone take your order at your car, then doing the shopping for you…all for free! That would be amazing!

If only.

Eventually I made it into the second car slot. I was already salivating at the meaty and cheesy goodness I was about to experience.

I rolled down my passenger’s side window when the attendant-waitress-helper-order taking person showed up to my window. I opened my mouth to blurt out my order when she cut me off and said,

“Could you pull forward please?”

SHUT DOWN!

I was not allowed to order! How dare she tell me to move my car forward. I want food!

But, in that moment, I realized something.

She was positive.

She could have told me:
“No, not yet!”
“Please wait. I can’t get to you!”
“You cannot order right now!”

She never used the words “no” or can’t”. She was completely positive.

She came back and took my order and I eventually made it home to rejoice in the spoils of my twenty minute wait to get one of the best burgers on planet earth.

(Whew…I need a break…that was a long sentence I just wrote)

Besides the food, I still remember how she communicated positively to me.

You see, there are a lot of times when a “no” is required, but it can still be communicated through a “yes” type of attitude.

Try it once and see what happens!

 

Thank You CityLife

The last three weeks have been intense.

Just when you think you’ve experienced the worst of life’s storms, more come.

Hence the phrase, “When it rains, it pours”!

It has felt like we have been hit from every angle…and it has definitely been draining…emotionally, physically, and even spiritually.

So, on Sunday, for the first time since starting the church, I shared about the struggle my family and I have been through in the last few weeks.

Let me put it this way: I am thankful that I belong to a church where I don’t have to just be honest about the victories, but also about the defeats!

People came up to us afterwards and offered help.
People agreed to pray for us specifically this week.

What a great church we get to serve and partner with.

Thank you CityLife!

 

A Quick Note to CityLife

Hey CityLife!

I was reviewing a lot of things that we are doing this year and I am excited!

Time is flying by, but we still have so much to do!

And, I am really excited about this coming weekend.  So, here’s a heads up:

1. We will be continuing in our series called Positioned.  We continue with the story of Abram to see how he positioned himself correctly to receive God’s best for his life.  This one will be good!

2. We have a guest speaker with us this weekend.  His name is Aaron Hunter.  He is a Foursquare missionary to the country of Chile.  I will be interviewing him about what God is doing in Chile and I will talk about how we can support him!

3. We will be participating in communion together.  Every time that we do communion, I am blown away!  To celebrate the love of a God who gave his life for us never ceases to amaze me.  Let’s join together and celebrate Jesus’ love for us!

4. Bring a friend!  EVERY Sunday is a good Sunday to bring someone.  So, don’t come alone!  There are people who need Jesus and we are the church for them!

See you Sunday!

Pastor Jeff

 

Random Thoughts On My Grandpa’s Passing

Hey everyone!

I want to send some thanks to those who supported my family while we laid my grandpa to rest this last week.

On Friday, the family got together at the graveside. We had a few moments together to share verses from the Bible, share stories from his life, have some moments in prayer, and to sing about our great God. It was intimate (about 25 of us) and meaningful.

On Saturday, many people came out to celebrate my grandpa’s life. We went a bit long (so thanks to all of you who patiently joined with us), but every moment was good.

Over those two days, I learned where I got the church planting “bug” from. While I knew that my grandpa had done some great ministry, I didn’t know that he had planted over 10 churches in Nicaragua. That blew me away! I celebrate the fact that I belong to a lineage that has been so committed to expanding God’s kingdom here on planet earth.

I’m thankful for my dad and my two uncles who did so well in putting together something that honored my grandpa.

I was blown away by so many generations of God’s faithfulness to my family. God has truly been with us through the years and I’m thankful that he is with me and my family today!

I’m thankful that to his dying day, he was the loudest singer around. He would belt out songs of worship to God at the top of his lungs without care for who was close to him.

I’m thankful that today he is rejoicing in God’s presence.

I’m thankful that he set an example of ministry that we can follow.

And, I plan on continuing the legacy.

Thanks grandpa…I’ll see you soon!

 

Two Deaths in One Week

In all 33 years of my life, I have never watched anyone die.

Sure, I’ve been to countless funerals and even experienced the death of a baby that was growing in my wife’s womb.

But, I’ve never seen anyone pass from life to death. (Or, for those of us who believe in Jesus, from life to life!)

This last week, I saw two people make this transition.

In both cases, I showed up to the room under five minutes before they passed.  I had the opportunity to watch them take a few breaths, then pass away.

One of them was the mother of a CityLife church member.  The other was my grandpa.

I have a few takeaways:

1. It’s great to have people around us to support us!  To go through these moments alone would be torture.  We need family and friends.

2. We must enjoy the moments we have with everyone! I remember my grandpa telling stories for hours and never stopping.  We had to find excuses to get away!  I remember his continued trips to the dessert table to eat ice cream and pie.  I’m sure he would eat those for every meal if given the opportunity.  I treasure those crazy moments!

3. Every breath counts.  Every breath is an opportunity to live more, experience more, give more, grow more, and learn more.  Make it count!

4. Death is life.  In God’s world, this is true.  Death is simply a transition to the fullest experience of life that exists.  If you don’t know him, you are missing out!

5. God has everything. Whatever you need and whatever you feel…God understands it all and has the answer to it all. Trust him today!

 

Blind Side

 

This morning, I had a “near miss”.  I always wondered why it’s called a “near miss”, since I didn’t actually hit the person (or they didn’t hit me).

I was driving along, about to pull into a parking lot on my right side, once again fulfilling my spousal duties of getting my wife a cup of White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks.  I noticed a man pushing a cart, so I decided to stop and wait for him to cross the entrance to the parking lot.

Once he was almost across, I started moving my car, only to realize that another car (“crazy car”…I couldn’t think of a better name) decided that they didn’t want to wait to enter the parking lot.  So, they pulled around me (they were two cars behind me) and went directly in front of me.

Two accidents almost happened.  First, they almost hit the man pushing the cart.  Second, I almost hit them, since they cut in front of me.

And yes, I did honk the holy horn of righteousness and justice at them!

And it made me think…

They couldn’t see what I could see.

In their rush to get into the parking lot, the driver didn’t even wonder why it is that I might have been stopped at the entrance.  And, since they had a limited perspective, they were driving blind.  They had a blind side.

All of us have blind sides.

The key piece of information about a blind side is that YOU can’t see the problem.  The problem is real…it exists, but you are incapable of discerning it.

For this reason, we need people around us who can see what we can’t see, who can discern what we can’t discern, and who can help direct and lead us when we don’t know what’s in front (or to the side, or behind) of us.

When a blind side is not dealt with, it has the potential to wreak large amounts of havoc in our lives.          When a blind side is not dealt with, it has the potential for us to hurt those around us.                               When a blind side is not dealt with, it may very well destroy our lives.

Blind sides could include faulty plans, bad systems, character flaws, or any number of other things.  They are real and we can’t see them.

Do you have people in your life who can call you out on your blind sides?

 

Before Obedience

Moses, an author who wrote about God’s work in the lives of the people of Israel, repeated these words of God in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 5, verse 6: “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.”

After those words of God, Moses quotes the rest of what God says regarding how he required Israel to act.  God required obedience and commitment.

But, before God gets to commitment, He starts with a pronouncement.

God begins by saying WHO he is: “I am…”

Then, God says WHAT he does: “…who rescued you…”

First, God proves his identity to us, then He proves his commitment to and love for us.

This is what we call “GRACE”.

Before God requires obedience, he offers grace.

How have you been viewing God lately?  Have you imagined him as an angry father requiring action on your part without ever showing you any commitment or love?

If that is your view of God, then you might believe in a different one than the one I follow.

My God offers grace first, then equips us through his grace to live a life of obedience.

Thanks God!