The Acts of the Apostles: An Essay on Boldness

Last night I hung out with my hall and watched a movie and got to know everybody. I can tell that they are going to be a fun group to be around, and this is going to be a great semester. We're all average college students, but Christ calls those who declare themselves to be followers of the Way to look radically different than what the status quo would account for.

In my devos this morning I read from the beginning of Acts, which is a very convicting and very applicable passage of scripture for my life right now. If you think about it, the disciples are going out to the people right outside their front door and preaching the Word boldly. Acts 3:12 says the Peter saw his opportunity and jumped on the chance to tell his community about Christ, crucified and resurrected. 

The disciples hadn't embarked on any missionary journeys yet, they were in their home town simply following the instructions of Christ. For me, College Station is my home, and this campus is my mission field. Let the truth of Acts 4:33 be said about my life, that I testified to the power of the Gospel with my very life. The thing I admire most about Peter is that he was an ordinary fisherman without any specific training (Acts 4:13) yet they preached the Gospel with such passion and severity that everyone was forced to react to them. As a Christian, your life should carry with it such influence that the people around you are forced to respond. My greatest fear for the Christian community of today is that they will become "ineffective and unproductive" (2 Peter 1:8).

Pray for passion. Pray for boldness. To all my collegiate buddies out there, pray that you would be a powerful testament to the Gospel of God's grace (Acts 20:24). In order to do this, we must combat our sinful nature. That means casting aside the fruits of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21) and trading in our stained heart (Jeremiah 17:9) by continuing to transform our mind through immersion in the scriptures (Romans 12:2). It doesn't matter if you don't feel "called" to spend time in the Word. We aren't called to sit on the couch and watch tv, yet that seems to be a recurring theme in our lives. Read your Bible and let the power of God transform you. The Word of God is active! (Hebrews 4:12) and it will transform you.

Our mission field is right in front of us, and God has equipped us with everything we need to be His light to those around us (Ephesians 2:10). Christ impacted this world in such a way that we are forced to respond to His life. What is your response? Will you choose to accept his commission to us (Matthew 28:18-20) or will you choose to live in fear?

I've made my decision, and I pray that you step out boldly for Christ in your community today.
I challenge every single one of us to begin to pray for the people we come in contact with every day. Pray for your roommate, your suite mate, your hall, your dorm, and more. Pray big and accept the challenge of Christ. We are the body, let us move as one.
-matt

Stronger: An Essay on Human Fragility

I was talking with my discussion group at my Fish Camp about defining moments in our lives. There was an array of major changes in people's lives that really were incredible. One girl in particular, we'll call her Kim, told us about a rough relationship that she had just recently gotten out of. When asked why that qualified as a monumental moment in her life, she responded with, "I'm stronger now. Nobody can hurt me that bad anymore."
That broke my heart, and Kim isn't the only one under that illusion.

We live in a consumerism-based culture that lauds success and power. It's all about me doing better, being more successful, and being strong enough to step up to the challenge. The only problem with that mindset is that it in itself is an endless cycle. You're always working to get to the next level, but you never achieve a the level of success that you are searching for. The truth is that men and women can be strong, but God is always stronger. We must choose not to rely on ourself, but instead we must choose to rely on our God.

You see that's what Kim didn't understand. Kim thought that her trials had prepared her for what she still had to face. Trials do build strength when they are endured, but it isn't enough to defeat the prince of this world. We often try to block out the truth that Satan is an all out war against mankind. It's warfare. The Word tells us that our strongest offense is a firm grasp on the Truth. As Christians, we know that we are broken people that won't ever be good enough or strong enough to stand up against the armies of darkness. But we also know that those armies have already been beaten. We know that Christ's work on the cross and His resurrection from the grave mean that we don't have to be good enough. Christ is supreme. We've been saved from a mindless religion that demands our subservience to a set of rules and a morally acceptable life.

Jeff Johnson sings a song entitled Stronger, look at the chorus below;

You are stronger. You are stronger.
Sin is broken, You have saved me.
It is written, Christ is risen.
Jesus, You are Lord of all.

This is the truth that Kim was missing out on. She won't ever be strong enough, but Christ already is. He just asked that we accept His open invitation. If you're trying to fight your own battles out desperation, despair, or pride I beg you to stop! Flee from those battles and run to the feet of Jesus, who is mighty to save.

Jesus, I am weak, but You, You are stronger.

Your brother,
-matt

Awakening: An Essay on Spiritual Drought

I just spent the past two evenings attending a sort of apologetics seminar that dealt heavily with creation, the fall of man, and the flood. I was extremely interested and am grateful to have learned all that I did. New knowledge aside, this scientific affirmation of the facts of my faith did more than give me the mental fortitude to outstand the creeping doubts. No; this set of lessons awoken my soul.

You see for the past three months or so, I'd been slowly bottoming out spiritually. Time with God began to slowly deplete from several hours a day to none at all. I'd been out serving God and loving people as best I could, but I didn't spend nearly enough time taking care of myself as I should have. Physically and mentally I was fine, but spiritually I just was fading. We all hit these dry spells, but we naturally assume that they won't last very long. Three months later... I can't even count how many times I'd thought that the end was right around the corner.

I'd keep looking for things to bounce me back. I went on a few retreats and had fellowship with my peers. I was a leader on some of those retreats, and was able to live out my passions of leading and teaching. I had a time to relax and regather my thoughts on vacation, and then I had the ultimate spiritualness generator, a mission trip - and got nothing. My depleted tank was not filled.

But tonight I came to a realization. Spiritual contentedness is not something that is come upon by attending the proper church activities, and it doesn't come from living morally right. It comes from Jesus. As my friend Kenny taught us about the Flood, I saw the beauty of God's awesome power. I saw the depths of his tremendous love for men. I saw Jesus. You know when you're in church, and the sermon is preached and God just grabs you and changes your life regardless of the topic, thats what happened.

So now as I go into my first collegiate semester, as I set out from the home, church, and friends that I love; I am prepared for what life will throw at me. One of my biggest fears was entering this next stage of my life on a spiritual flat line, but God is good and takes care of His children.

If you get nothing out of this other than Matt is feeling good with God again, so be it, that's cool. But do consider a few things.
-Only we know what is going on in our own hearts, to others we usually look to have it all under control. It takes an honest self assessment to progress onto the solution to any problems in us.
-God is faithful. No matter how far away you ever feel He loves you, even enough to die so that you could have life forever and ever.
-Be a part of a wolf pack. As me and my friends discussed at an overnight lock-in at a church event, none of us has to do life on our own. We have brothers and sisters in Christ who are more than willing to do life with us and make the hard times more bearable. Without my brothers, theses past months would have been incredibly more painful and troublesome.

I hope this encourages your souls,
-matt

Adaptive Expectations

Hello again blogosphere. Now that I've had some time to process my adventures in Baja, Mexico I feel it pertinent to share it with you, my readers, so that you will share parts of my experience as well as God-willing learn something from what I have to share. To catch anyone else up, I went on a two week mission trip in July to La Paz, a city near the tip of the Baja peninsula in what turned out to be the middle-of-nowhere, Mexico. It was a great trip. We spent the first week working on a ranch with some incredible missionaries and then spent the final stage of our trip kayaking in the Sea of Cortes. I have plenty of stories, just ask me.

Now as with all mission trips, there is a certain expectation that is placed on them. It seems that everyone knows these unwritten rules about what mission trips are supposed to do. Mission trips are supposed  to change your life. Mission trips are supposed to rock your spiritual world and transform your soul. Mission trips are supposed to bring you back to God, no matter how far you've been.

I don't know where these expectations came from, but we all know that they are very real. Yet, why is it that I sit here and seem to see so little life change? Why is my spirituality still constant? Why am I just as far from God as I was before I left? Here is a better question: why do we forced our conjectures upon an Almighty God?

You see mission trips will rock your world in that special way, if God wants them to, and only if He does. We have no control over that. As Christians in our culture we seem to live for camps, retreats, and mission trips to fill our cup for just long enough until we make it to the next event. We grow to lazy or selfish to feed ourselves. We count on these "mountain top" experiences to be enough to keep us afloat. The Christian life has turned into a survival and not a battle.

But, God does not waste opportunities. He is always teaching us. Sometimes, we must adapt our expectations to meet the need He sees in us. That's what I had to learn this time. You see for me, God hadn't planned a grand spiritual awakening. He didn't speak word of prophecy over my life. But I have found that's just fine with me.

Spirituality isn't enough to make us people of God, so we mustn't limit our scope of successfulness to such a category. Anyone can be spiritual, and if you don't believe me, ask around. When we strip ourselves of our preconceived notions, we are able to look beyond any disappointed and truly see what God has in store for our eyes in the moment.

For me, I needed my life to be give more clarity. I need something to strive toward tangibly. Through this need I have discovered what are beginning to become my five core values. Passion, Intentionality, Adventure, Seeking, and Significance.

Passion: I want to be enjoying everything that I do. I want to be sure to be moving in a direction that ties in with what God has purposed me towards. I want to fulfill God's specific call on my life.

Intentionality: I don't want to waste any time that God has given me, I want to live out His Gospel with every part of my life. I want to make every relationship, conversation, and action display a purposeful and intentional desire to be Jesus to the world around me.

Adventure: I was created to be a risk taker. I want to do things others would call impossible. I want to live a life outside of my comfort zone. I don't seek danger, but I am more than willing to wrestle with it head on.

Seeking: I have an attitude that desires more, specifically when it comes to my walk with the Lord. I'm never at my finishing point on this earth. I want to be aware of that and I want to continue thirsting for more. I refuse to settle in my life for simply existing where I am, there is more, and I strive to continue searching out for more always.

Significance: Plain and simple, when my life is done, I want to have made a difference for Christ. I want my life to be so dynamic it is unforgettable. And I don't mean that its all about me, because clearly all of me strives to point towards Christ Jesus. I want a life that matters, not just existence.


So sure, I didn't experience that crazy growth that many connect to missions, but I don't care. There were moments on the trip that I will always remember. There were moments that will affect my life in the near future. Stories will be told. Laughter will be shared. But it all comes back to this adapted expectation.

Jesus does what He wants, no matter what you want. I learned some practical things about my life that I needed to know for who I will become. It wasn't as flashy or as dramatic as expected, but heck, I'll trade my expectations for His goodness any day. He goes above and beyond anything we could ever expect.

Keep you mind open to what God can do. Don't give up because you're stuck in a rut... still. Keep the faith, follow after Him. He wants you to continue to be increasing in your life, but not just spiritually. 2 Peter 1 tells of so many areas we must always be growing in.

I leave you with this. Don't be afraid to cast aside your own expectations and let Christ do what He wants. He is always in line with the plan the Father has created. Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding. His way leads to true life.

thanks for reading,
-matt