Thursday, August 23, 2007
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Halls and Inner Rooms, thoughts from C.S. Lewis Part #2
"When you get into your room you will find that the long wait has done you some kind of good which you would not have had otherwise. But you must regard it as waiting, not camping. You must keep on praying for light: and, of coarse, even in the hall, you must begin to try to obey the rules which are common to the whole house. And above all you must be asking which door is the true one; not which pleases you best by it's paint and panelling. In plain language, the question should never be: 'Do I like that kind of service? but 'Are these doctrines true: Is holiness here? Does my conscience move me toward this? Is my reluctance to knock at this door due to my pride, or my mere taste, or my personal dislike of this particular door-keeper." - Lewis
I suppose we could take this particular paragraph of Lewis and draw many conclusions, all the way from relationships with people to areas of ministry. However, I will try to draw some thoughts out of Lewis on the idea of our commitment to the church. It may not seem like that big of a deal to some of us but for others their view on eternity, mankind, God, and the church are thoughts that take time and special attention. Some people in this world would say that they will walk in the hallway but never enter a room simply because they do not want to. It is safe to say that we could refer to these people as those who do not know the Lord and who would never want to come into any kind of church. However, there are some in the hall that are still trying to figure out what they believe and why they believe it, this we will talk about later on in regard to how we treat those who dwell only in the hallway (one of the rules that is common to the whole house). As for those who will enter into a door but trying to decide which one may be looked at as one who is trying to find a place, congregation, or people of certain thought like their own. In light of this I think Lewis is suggesting that we look at these rooms with an open mind, asking the question, "is this the leading of biblical truth or my own mere feelings and emotions?" I have run into a lot of people that would suggest it is perfectly alright to treat the church like a Friday night hook up and spend all 4 years of college or after college to run around from church to church and not engaging in any real relationships with the body of Christ. In 1 Timothy 3:6 Paul urges Timothy that as an overseer that person must take care of the church just as that person takes care of a household. The point is, is that the church is to be respected and cared for, loved and cherished. It is alright for those to spend some time waiting on the Lord to see which door is the right one for them to open and which room or "body" is the right one for them, but as we discussed earlier the hall is not a place to live in even though it may be a place to wait in. So why discuss this topic? Why talk about hallways and doors and churches and people's thinking? The reason why it is important is because Christ set up the church to be His lighthouse to all the world, and we need to be shown as people who are committed to the rooms and the people inside of the rooms, not just the hallways.
~JP~
I suppose we could take this particular paragraph of Lewis and draw many conclusions, all the way from relationships with people to areas of ministry. However, I will try to draw some thoughts out of Lewis on the idea of our commitment to the church. It may not seem like that big of a deal to some of us but for others their view on eternity, mankind, God, and the church are thoughts that take time and special attention. Some people in this world would say that they will walk in the hallway but never enter a room simply because they do not want to. It is safe to say that we could refer to these people as those who do not know the Lord and who would never want to come into any kind of church. However, there are some in the hall that are still trying to figure out what they believe and why they believe it, this we will talk about later on in regard to how we treat those who dwell only in the hallway (one of the rules that is common to the whole house). As for those who will enter into a door but trying to decide which one may be looked at as one who is trying to find a place, congregation, or people of certain thought like their own. In light of this I think Lewis is suggesting that we look at these rooms with an open mind, asking the question, "is this the leading of biblical truth or my own mere feelings and emotions?" I have run into a lot of people that would suggest it is perfectly alright to treat the church like a Friday night hook up and spend all 4 years of college or after college to run around from church to church and not engaging in any real relationships with the body of Christ. In 1 Timothy 3:6 Paul urges Timothy that as an overseer that person must take care of the church just as that person takes care of a household. The point is, is that the church is to be respected and cared for, loved and cherished. It is alright for those to spend some time waiting on the Lord to see which door is the right one for them to open and which room or "body" is the right one for them, but as we discussed earlier the hall is not a place to live in even though it may be a place to wait in. So why discuss this topic? Why talk about hallways and doors and churches and people's thinking? The reason why it is important is because Christ set up the church to be His lighthouse to all the world, and we need to be shown as people who are committed to the rooms and the people inside of the rooms, not just the hallways.
~JP~
Monday, August 13, 2007
Halls and Inner Rooms, thoughts from C.S. Lewis...
"It is more like a hall out of which doors open into several rooms. If I can bring anyone into that hall I shall have done what I attempted. But it is in the rooms, not in the hall, that there are fires and chairs and meals. The hall is a place to wait in, a place from which to try the various doors, not a place to live in". C.S. Lewis "Mere Christianity"
It is certainly worth the time to think about how we do church these days. I have had many days in Bible College where I was excited to poor over many different theological thoughts and views, trying to see why one certain group believed this and one group believed that. Although, I am still learning a whole lot about my own theology and other people's theology I have come to be much more interested into how our theology plays out in church, more importantly a "worship service". I find myself always wanting more and more of a certain mid-week service that will "recharge my batteries" and will hopefully last me till Sunday as if walking through the week hand in hand with the Lord was not enough. Obviously scripture brings out the point of the importance of the fellowship with the body (1 Corinth. 12:12). However, it seems that sometimes I find myself depending on a one-stop worship service to be my Church or body for that entire week, forsaking the service to a real Church and body where my service must be placed. It might be that Lewis is trying to show an example of what happens when we depend so much on a service alone, a song alone, or even a certain sermon alone to be our main "meal" of the week. Not that we do not grow from a service, podcast, or event, but it seems that just one time of worship during the week or weekend is not a main meal but rather a late afternoon snack. Lewis says, "we are not to live in the halls", meaning that our dinner table to where we feast with the living Christ is not just in a one time event with our favorite worship leader and entertaining speaker. Maybe the inner room that contains a fireplace, chairs, and a meal is found in the commitment to the local church where there is a body of believers and discipleship. I will always visit and sometimes sit, and even learn in the hallway, but it is the inner room where the main meal will always take place.
~JP~
Monday, August 6, 2007
Crazy Summer, Crazier Fall....
My friend in Louisiana reminded me the other day that some people read this blog, so I do apologize for not writing on here lately. It has been a very crazy but very amazing summer, which mostly consisted of watching God do some amazing things and I was blessed to have a front row seat. When God first gave me this vision last fall to preach to anyone, any time, and most importantly anywhere, my number one desire was that I would just be able to see God do some amazing things in the lives of people around me. Looking back on this summer I see that He has shown me just that. I assume that if I could even explain all that God has done this summer it would take me until next summer to write it all out, and I’m sure nobody would read it all. For now I will simply say that it is an amazing thing to watch a student decide for the first time that Jesus is more than just a sermon, but that Christ is real and alive. I was blessed enough to watch students step out in faith to accepting the truth of the substitution that Christ gave us on the cross, and seeing students awake to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ the Son of God. It reminded me that it is the simple things in our walk, with God, the most foundational beliefs we hold so close, that seem to be the most glorious. Praise God for a glorious summer that was full of rejoicing and learning!
For the past few weeks I have been looking back on my first summer in itinerant ministry and savoring the experience to learn everything that God brought my way. I have spent the last few weeks in deep reflection of how to carry this forward into the fall and winter. One thing that has always been consistent in God’s calling on my life is to always be available. I remember playing little league baseball as a kid and seeing all the kids running up to the coaches on the first day of practice with their parents behind them screaming, “I’ll only play short stop, and if you really want to win you will consider me your best pitcher too!” A few things that God has shown me over the last few years is that first, ministry must be embraced with humility. As ministers we must hold onto humility like it is our only child, and embrace it with all that we face in these times. We must also be on guard against shoving our plans in God’s face, proclaiming that our vision and our clocks are bigger and better than His. Not to say that vision is bad, not at all. Vision is a must in every walk of life. However, if we are to follow the vision of God we must be open to following Him wherever He leads us and at any time. Jonah was the perfect example of someone who heard the voice of God and decided that his own vision was bigger and better than God’s vision. It is with this thought that God has opened my mind and heart to continue to preach His word to anyone, any place, and at any time that He says so. This probably goes against some popular preaching that says that our visions have to be specific and have to work out in the end without any failures or changes, but that is not the way Paul lived his life. Paul had Rome always in his mind, however he also had a heart to be in many other places as well, before going to Rome.
With all that said I am looking forward to an amazing fall and winter with many different ways of preaching God’s word. I am currently working on a speaking schedule that will keep me close to the south for the first part of the fall, but hopefully will take me to other areas later on with the possibility of going overseas to preach too. I plan on meeting with some folks this week about spending some time in the next few years speaking some overseas so please pray for God’s providence and my discernment in these areas of this ministry. Lastly I plan to begin working on a book called, “more than enough”. The book will focus on one specific passage in John about Christ being the center of all of our needs, and how that truth alone sustains us for now and throughout all eternity. I am really excited about this opportunity which just fell in my lap one day when a publisher approached me about the idea of writing. Other than that I plan to spend much time in personal study walking through the Old Testament and many of C. S. Lewis’ writings which I am excited beyond words to dive into. Again, please pray for God’s leading and my following to preach His truth to whoever, whenever, and most importantly wherever He sends me. I plan on writing on this blog a lot this fall so check in daily for updates and other random thoughts on the greatest person mankind has ever known, the son of God, Jesus Christ.
For His Namesake,
John Pond
For the past few weeks I have been looking back on my first summer in itinerant ministry and savoring the experience to learn everything that God brought my way. I have spent the last few weeks in deep reflection of how to carry this forward into the fall and winter. One thing that has always been consistent in God’s calling on my life is to always be available. I remember playing little league baseball as a kid and seeing all the kids running up to the coaches on the first day of practice with their parents behind them screaming, “I’ll only play short stop, and if you really want to win you will consider me your best pitcher too!” A few things that God has shown me over the last few years is that first, ministry must be embraced with humility. As ministers we must hold onto humility like it is our only child, and embrace it with all that we face in these times. We must also be on guard against shoving our plans in God’s face, proclaiming that our vision and our clocks are bigger and better than His. Not to say that vision is bad, not at all. Vision is a must in every walk of life. However, if we are to follow the vision of God we must be open to following Him wherever He leads us and at any time. Jonah was the perfect example of someone who heard the voice of God and decided that his own vision was bigger and better than God’s vision. It is with this thought that God has opened my mind and heart to continue to preach His word to anyone, any place, and at any time that He says so. This probably goes against some popular preaching that says that our visions have to be specific and have to work out in the end without any failures or changes, but that is not the way Paul lived his life. Paul had Rome always in his mind, however he also had a heart to be in many other places as well, before going to Rome.
With all that said I am looking forward to an amazing fall and winter with many different ways of preaching God’s word. I am currently working on a speaking schedule that will keep me close to the south for the first part of the fall, but hopefully will take me to other areas later on with the possibility of going overseas to preach too. I plan on meeting with some folks this week about spending some time in the next few years speaking some overseas so please pray for God’s providence and my discernment in these areas of this ministry. Lastly I plan to begin working on a book called, “more than enough”. The book will focus on one specific passage in John about Christ being the center of all of our needs, and how that truth alone sustains us for now and throughout all eternity. I am really excited about this opportunity which just fell in my lap one day when a publisher approached me about the idea of writing. Other than that I plan to spend much time in personal study walking through the Old Testament and many of C. S. Lewis’ writings which I am excited beyond words to dive into. Again, please pray for God’s leading and my following to preach His truth to whoever, whenever, and most importantly wherever He sends me. I plan on writing on this blog a lot this fall so check in daily for updates and other random thoughts on the greatest person mankind has ever known, the son of God, Jesus Christ.
For His Namesake,
John Pond
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